The Wright Show (audio)

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.comRobert Wright, Andrew Day, and Connor Echols discuss items from this week’s Earthling. Read it here: https://nonzero.substack.com/p/how-to-fight-trump-mindfullyRecorded November 08, 2024.https://twitter.com/NonzeroNewshttps://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.com0:28 Election 2024: The view from Canada 5:44 Paul praises Bob’s pre-election sermonette 10:37 Why did Trump win? And who’s to blame? 18:47 Did DEI doom Kamala? 25:32 A Kamala campaign post-mortem 33:33 What policies will President Trump 2.0 prioritize? 37:12 The art of the Trump 45:05 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded November 06, 2024.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

0:28 Is Mickey all-in on Trump? 4:26 The “garbage” wars and their aftermath 7:54 Kamala’s path(s) to victory 10:29 Mickey explains the logic of voting for Trump 19:44 Why Trump sucks, why Kamala sucks 26:05 Bob doles out (p)recriminations 35:37 Will Israel-Iran escalate? 45:00 How Kamala could win Mickey’s vote 49:23 Why did Kamala go negative? 55:27 Mickey plays pundit defender 1:10:02 Which swing state looks worst for Kamala?1:15:55 How Biden made war in Taiwan more likely 1:21:24 Four Dem sex “scandals”1:30:53 Bob trashes Trump’s tariffs 1:41:55 Bob looks for a silver-lining to a second Trump term 1:47:31 Elon Musk, the oligarch’s oligarchRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Mickey Kaus (kausfiles, The End of Equality). Recorded October 30, 2024.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nonzero.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.com0:28 Peter’s new book, Other Rivers: A Chinese Education 3:24 Have Chinese people become less hostile to America? 13:12 What Americans get wrong about China 17:38 Why Peter thinks Covid didn’t come from a lab 20:59 China’s transformative recent decades 31:10 Respect for authority in Chinese culture 40:26 Change in China between Peter’s two teaching stints there 54:41 Why the Chinese political system may change dramaticallyRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Peter Hessler (River Town, Other Rivers). Recorded September 17, 2024.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.comAndrew Day, Connor Echols, and a SPECIAL MYSTERY GUEST discuss items from this week’s Earthling. Read it here: https://nonzero.substack.com/p/are-we-inching-toward-world-war-iii

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.com0:28 Bob: The oligarchy has arrived 8:24 What do the odd 2024 betting markets mean for the race? 17:51 Trump on Palmer’s manhood: a closer look 25:24 The Elon empathy enigma 34:51 Coates’s controversial cognitive-empathizing 43:06 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded October 22, 2024.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.comRobert Wright, Andrew Day, and Connor Echols discuss items from this week’s Earthling. Read it here: https://nonzero.substack.com/p/why-israel-wont-take-the-winRecorded October 18, 2024.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.com0:28 What is the chip war intended to accomplish? 11:44 How China sees the chip war 19:02 Is Huawei a threat to US national security? 30:21 Paul: The chip restrictions on China are unprecedented 39:39 How Biden boosted China’s chip industry 52:40 Clear costs and unclear benefits of the chip warRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Triolo (Albright Stonebridge Group). Recorded October 02, 2024.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.comAndrew Day and Connor Echols discuss items from this week’s Earthling. Read it here: https://nonzero.substack.com/p/israel-assassination-backfires-andRecorded October 11, 2024.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.com0:00 The time Ron helped un-cancel Jimmy Carter 3:36 How has 10/7 affected American Jews? 15:38 Israel’s place in US politics post-10/7 21:59 What a second Trump term could mean for Israel-Palestine 28:31 Could the current trauma in the Middle East eventually revive the two-state solution? 39:05 Making sense of Israel’s military strategy 45:39 Criticism of Israel, left vs right 50:58 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Ron Kampeas (Jewish Telegraphic Agency).Recorded October 09, 2024.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.com0:28 Elon takes the stage with Trump 5:025 The logic behind Elon’s Trump gamble 11:21 Who won the Vance-Walz vibe war? 14:56 A few kind words about Elon from Paul 27:50 Bob and Paul debate the CBS Coates controversy 48:06 Paul gets philosophical about Mission: Impossible 51:54 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded October 08, 2024.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.comRobert Wright, Andrew Day, and Connor Echols discuss items from this week’s Earthling. Read it here: https://nonzero.substack.com/p/bibis-plan-for-peace-through-widerRecorded October 04, 2024.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.com0:28 Arvind’s book and newsletter: AI Snake Oil 3:02 A taxonomy of AI observers 7:41 The impact of generative AI 20:21 Why predictive AI sometimes fails 25:03 Uses and misuses of AI in law and healthcare 41:22 Can social media be saved? 52:25 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Arvind Narayanan (Princeton University, AI Snake Oil). Recorded September 11, 2024.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.comRobert Wright and Connor Echols discuss items from this week’s Earthling. Read it here: https://nonzero.substack.com/p/biden-and-blinken-israels-lawyersRecorded September 27, 2024.https://twitter.com/NonzeroNewshttps://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

0:28 Bob crestfallen over Mickey’s hat switcheroo 2:41 Mickey blames DEI for Kamala tic he finds annoying 8:20 Who’s less impressive, Kamala or Trump? 15:27 Why Bob prefers Kamala’s foreign policy team to Biden’s 29:46 The Vance dossier, revealed at last 34:08 More arguments about Kamala 48:08 Preliminary election analysis 59:05 Trump, Vance, and Springfield’s cats and dogs 1:09:52 Mickey’s Eric Adams conspiracy theory 1:12:02 Biden diplomacy? What Biden diplomacy? 1:23:16 Is cancel culture impotent? 1:29:02 Election predictions 1:33:28 Deeper election analysisRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Mickey Kaus (kausfiles, The End of Equality). Recorded September 26, 2024.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nonzero.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.com0:28 Deep insights about coffee and sleep from Paul 5:11 Mindfulness and cognitive behavioral therapy 7:58 Oligarchy + paranoid billionaires = disaster 14:38 Ackman and Thiel join Elon in billionaire la la land 22:02 Is Trump anti-Semitic or just really pro-Israel? 36:37 If you don’t feel alienated you should seek counseling 41:26 Heading to overtimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded September 24, 2024.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.com0:28 Would a different US president have made a difference for Gaza? 14:32 Saudi-Israel normalization takes a step back 19:36 Is all hope lost for a two-state solution? 26:51 Making sense of Israel’s pager attacks in Lebanon 35:28 Heading to Overtime—and an AP PSARobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True), Derek Davison (Foreign Exchanges, American Prestige, Discontents), and Daniel Bessner (American Prestige, University of Washington). Recorded September 19, 2024.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.com0:28 Why didn’t OpenAI call its new o1 AI GPT? 12:27 Tim’s first impressions of o1 16:30 What’s the secret to o1’s better reasoning? 27:21 Inspecting AI introspection 30:31 Does o1’s capability for deception bring us closer to doom? 35:59 AI doomers’ Hollywood problem 41:03 Elon’s self-driving speed bumps 47:03 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Timothy B. Lee (Full Stack Economics, Understanding AI). Recorded September 17, 2024.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.comRobert Wright and Andrew Day discuss items from this week’s Earthling.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit nonzero.substack.com0:28 Tragedy strikes the Wright household 4:20 Breaking down the big Trump-Kamala debate 22:44 Are debates actually valuable? 26:16 Kamala’s worst debate moment (according to Bob) 33:39 Elon vs Taylor Swift, Brazil, and himself 37:19 Bob and Paul argue about free speech 45:18 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded September 11, 2024.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods