In this episode of New Ideal Live, Ben Bayer and Nikos Sotirakopoulos discuss the problem of tribalism in our political culture. Exploring issues such as the Israel-Hamas war and the debates over immigration and abortion, they show how both the left and right are guilty of an anti-conceptual mentality that has degraded our political discourse.

Among the topics covered:

How tribalism has made today's political atmosphere toxic;

The left's tribal support for Palestine;

How the tribal mentality is motivated by opposition to a common enemy, not shared principles;

The right's tribal fearmongering on immigration;

How tribalism has infiltrated the issue of abortion on both sides;

How attacks on reason fuel today's groupthink;

What ARI does to take a principled philosophical stance on political issues.

Recommended in this podcast are Ayn Rand’s essays “Global Balkanization” and “The Missing Link,” Bayer’s talk “Tribalism in Today’s Political Culture,” and Sotirakopoulos’ book Identity Politics and Tribalism: The New Culture Wars.

The podcast was recorded on February 14, 2024. Listen to the discussion below. Listen and subscribe from your mobile device on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or Stitcher. Watch archived podcasts here.

https://youtu.be/WK6FBGNk4Ck

Podcast audio: