Explaining the U.S. Government Shutdown and Political Chaos

0:29 What is Bob doing in Qatar? 3:34 “Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold.” Why Yeats felt this way 7:07 Peter Thiel’s Antichrist theory 9:16 Nikita: COVID was a weird time, and nothing has been the same since 14:27 Why Bob feels things are falling apart 17:58 Were things ever in order? 19:23 “Inner emigration”: tuning out the world as self-care 22:08 A reaction to a drone strike: “Loud noises don’t wake me up” 25:27 Young people are turning away from social media 26:35 When Spain lost all power and cellular coverage 30:06 War as a “major inconvenience” 33:58 Bob’s prediction about Ukraine’s future retaliation for Pokrovsk 38:26 Nikita’s impressions from Europe 41:37 Nonzero Reading Club THIS SATURDAY: Norbert Wiener’s God & Golem, Inc. 46:38 Deepfakes and the future of news 51:34 Russia’s first humanoid robot falls down

Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Nikita Petrov (https://psychopolitica.substack.com). Recorded November 12, 2025.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

Join NonZero’s newly established Discord server: https://discord.gg/Zy4jAhTQMFBook a time to chat with Nikita: https://calendly.com/psychopolitica/office-hoursSave the date for the first-ever NonZero Reading Club discussion on Zoom this Saturday (Nov. 15th) at 1pm ET: https://www.addevent.com/event/1yxb9cr5nk0z