After a long break, ITA returns with a very special guest: my Uncle Nick. We discussed his time in Korea and Iraq in the early 2000’s as well as architecture and fatherhood. Enjoy!
Outro provided by Brock Tanya.
WELCOME TO THE MACHINE! An opinion piece critiquing civilization with a short summary and analysis of Zapffe’s 1933 essay, The Last Messiah. Here’s the episode link: https://anchor.fm/into-the-absurd/episodes/60-Welcome-to-the-Machine-e1h0ki6
Outro provided by Brock Tanya.
Peter Zapffe’s The Last Messiah: https://philosophynow.org/issues/45/The_Last_Messiah
The Undiscovered Self by Carl Jung: https://fleurmach.files.wordpress.com/2016/07/jung-the-undiscovered-self-1957.pdf
Every Trivial Fact podcast hosted by Mynaa Miesnowan episodes on The Undiscovered Self: https://www.bezabezar.com/post/every-trivial-fact-3-carl-jung-s-undiscovered-self-with-gregory-gravelle-on-psychic-epidemics
Pink Floyd’s “Welcome to the Machine” lyrics: https://genius.com/Pink-floyd-welcome-to-the-machine-lyrics
Sex at Dawn by Chris Ryan Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Sex-Dawn-Stray-Modern-Relationships-ebook/dp/B007679QTG
Civilized to Death by Chris Ryan Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Civilized-Death-Progress-Christopher-Ryan/dp/1451659113
Tangentially Speaking podcast hosted by Chris Ryan: https://open.spotify.com/show/5tMHDm7XHkniXSCTVFDGuE?si=559653e65d2c4375
Who am I? Am I a writer? Am I a philosopher? Am I a saint? Am I an asshole? Am I good? Am I bad? Am I a giver? Am I a taker? We often base our identity off of static, unchanging moral value judgements that we then project our personality upon. It is inherent in the human being to seek to understand ourselves, as it would be terrifying to not understand that which we are. However, how much of this so called “self-understanding” is merely the understanding of arbitrary concepts outside of the Self? How much of this has been processed and spit out by the herd, the state, and mass culture? How much of “you” is really just “them”?
Carl Jung dives into these questions in his essay “The Undiscovered Self” where he argues that the individual must have a firm, deep understanding of and inner grounding within the Self in order to avoid being controlled by outside forces like the Herd and the State. I appeared on a 2-part series regarding “The Undiscovered Self” on former guest Mynaa Miesnowan’s podcast, Every Trivial Fact, where we laid out an in-depth analysis and summary of the essay.
All links to the different platforms are located at Mynaa’s website.
An analysis of David Foster Wallace’s “E Unibus Pluram”, a thorough critique of US fiction and televisual culture written in the early 1990’s.
Outro provided by Brock Tanya.
I am starting a bonus series where I simply talk into my phone recorder whenever I have a thought or thoughts worth sharing. Enjoy! This will not be available on YouTube.
An analysis of David Foster Wallace’s “E Unibus Pluram”, a thorough critique of US fiction and televisual culture written in the early 1990’s. Outro provided by Brock Tanya.
Tom is the author of multiple books regarding the usage and history of psychedelic drugs, which have been used by human beings since the dawn of civilization for spiritual and medicinal purposes. His most recent book, “LSD The Wonder Child: The Golden Age of Psychedelic Research in the 1950s”, details the bizarre yet incredible history of LSD–going from the usage of ergot in spiritual practices, to the CIA in various sadistic experiments, to hippies, scientists, psychologists, and intellectuals throughout the mid to late 20th century. We discussed religion, Carl Jung, Alaska cruises vs tropical cruises, the history of LSD, and much more. Enjoy!
Tom’s website: https://psychedelichistorian.com/
Outro provided by Brock Tanya.
“All men are created equal.” Sure, under the eyes of the law, this decree is necessary in creating a just, fair, and civil state. However, if taken literally, we are ultimately defining all people as the same–with no differences. This alienates the individual from themselves and gives them no reason for the pursuit for self-knowledge. In this episode, we will dissect the claim that “All men are created equal” and its implications. This will serve as an introduction for some later works on mass media and televisual culture as well as self-knowledge. Outro provided by Brock Tanya
Dr. Terry Soule is the computer science department chair at the University of Idaho, as well as a professor and video game designer. We discussed the ethical implications of artificial intelligence/automation, consciousness and the development of such, and evolution from a technological standpoint.
Outro provided by Brock Tanya.
For every solution, there is but another problem.
Ted Kaczynski was a philosopher, psychologist, mathematician, and unfortunately, domestic terrorist of the late 1900’s, who destroyed the lives of multiple people in an attempt to start a revolution against techno-industrial society. His essay, “Industrial Society and its Future”, though quite radical, contains amazing insights as to why our society is so broken, why mental health disorders are the norm, and why technological progress will continuously strip away our freedoms as individuals so long as it exists. Though I do not advocate for violence, I do advocate for the understanding of problems and the ability to open one’s mind to their potential causes and solutions. With that said, I hope–for a moment–you can open your mind and consider Crazy Uncle Ted’s description of industrial society and its future! Enjoy!
DISCLAIMER: I do not promote the use of violence, nor justify Ted’s violent acts in any way, shape, or form. Additionally, I do not believe, what so ever that leftism is wrong, but rather seek to give people a better understanding of some reasons why leftism, in its extreme form, can lead to grave consequences for humanity–at least in Ted’s view.
Outro provided by Brock Tanya.
Information on Ted’s life: https://www.fbi.gov/history/famous-cases/unabomber
“Industrial Society and its Future” by Ted Kaczynski
Into the Absurd