Oppenheimer and the Catastrophe of Communism
The Ben & Marc Show
Introduction
A discussion on the political influences of the time and the filmmaker's unique perspective in 'Oppenheimer', as well as the potential undeserved portrayal of the end of the world.
In this episode of “The Ben & Marc Show”, a16z’s co-founders Ben Horowitz and Marc Andreessen take on the biggest and most important film of the year – Christopher Nolan’s latest blockbuster “Oppenheimer”.
The film – based on the 2005 biography “American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer'' by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin – chronicles the life of the American theoretical physicist, whose direction of the top secret Manhattan Project forever changed the course of world history.
In this one-on-one conversation based on YOUR questions from Twitter, Marc and Ben examine the historical accuracies (and inaccuracies) of Nolan’s epic work, explore in-depth the life of the enigmatic physicist himself, and tackle – from all angles – the social and philosophical aspects of communism, a theme that weighs heavily in the film, as Oppenheimer’s association with party members led to his political downfall. Enjoy!
Watch the full Video:" https://youtu.be/AwOFcxENsVk?si=vUF9ZO5Fcj9W0O49
Resources:
Marc on X: https://twitter.com/pmarca
Marc’s Substack: https://pmarca.substack.com/
Ben on X: https://twitter.com/bhorowitz
NY Times: "The Problem With Everything-Bagel Liberalism" by Ezra Klein: ’https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/02/op...
Books mentioned on this podcast (and others you’ll want to check out):
– “Red Decade” by Eugene Lyons https://amzn.to/3OEQMbZ
– “When Reason Goes on Holiday: Philosophers in Politics” by Neven Sesardic https://amzn.to/455zYRv
– "Witness" by Whittaker Chambers https://amzn.to/3OEu0RC
– ”The Great Leap Forward" by Alexander J. Field https://amzn.to/3QlCYV2
– "The Economic Consequences of U.S. Mobilization for the Second World War" by Alexander J. Field https://amzn.to/3Yemsbz
– “The Man From the Future: The Visionary Life of John von Neumann” by Ananyo Bhattacharya https://amzn.to/446SbNf
– “Stalin's War: A New History of World War II” by Sean McMeekin https://amzn.to/47c29zw
– “McCarthy” by Arthur Herman https://amzn.to/3OFKYzc
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The views expressed here are those of the individual personnel quoted and are not the views of a16z or its affiliates. This content is provided for informational purposes only, and should not be relied upon as legal, business, investment, or tax advice. Furthermore, this content is not directed at nor intended for use by any investors or prospective investors and may not under any circumstances be relied upon when making a decision to invest in any a16z funds. PLEASE SEE MORE HERE: https://a16z.com/disclosures/
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