Douglas Murray, an author and associate editor for The Spectator, joins to discuss his new book, 'The War on the West.' They dive into the cultural implications of hyper partisanship, dissecting the roles of identity politics and media bias in today's society. Murray critiques contemporary anti-racist movements and explores the unsettling topics of the Hunter Biden laptop scandal and political polarization. The conversation highlights the urgent need for constructive dialogue in an increasingly divided landscape.
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insights INSIGHT
Twitter Moderation Complexity
Sam Harris is agnostic about Elon Musk improving Twitter, despite potential moderation policy changes.
Billionaires already control media, and content moderation is complex, with edge cases requiring human judgment.
insights INSIGHT
Identity Politics on Both Sides
Both the left and right are engaging in identity politics, prioritizing group differences and victimhood over facts.
This behavior hinders honest engagement with ethics and critical thinking, fostering double standards and hypocrisy.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Predicting the Right's Reaction to 2020
Douglas Murray critiqued the 2020 election results narrative pushed by the right.
He predicted it would waste time and prevent necessary self-reflection among Republicans.
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In 'The Strange Death of Europe,' Douglas Murray argues that European civilization is under threat due to two primary factors: the mass migration of new peoples into Europe and the continent's low birth rates, combined with a loss of faith in its beliefs, traditions, and legitimacy. Murray contends that Europe's exhaustion from its historical burdens, its post-Christian and post-modern identity crisis, and its inability to defend its values are leading to a cultural and demographic transformation that may result in the end of Europe as it has historically existed. The book is characterized by its polarizing reception, with some praising its insightful reporting and others criticizing its perceived xenophobic and paranoid tone[1][3][5].
The War on the West
Douglas Murray
Laptop from Hell
Hunter Biden, Big Tech, and the Dirty Secrets the President Tried to Hide
Miranda Devine
This book details the discovery of Hunter Biden’s abandoned laptop at a Mac repair shop in Delaware in 2019, just before his father, Joe Biden, announced his presidential candidacy. The laptop contained a treasure trove of corporate documents, emails, text messages, photographs, and voice recordings spanning a decade, which provided evidence of President Joe Biden’s involvement in his son’s international business ventures despite his denials. The book exposes the coordinated censorship operation by Big Tech, the media establishment, and former intelligence operatives to stifle the New York Post’s coverage of the story.
The Madness of Crowds
Gender, Race and Identity
Douglas Murray
In this book, Douglas Murray investigates the dangers of 'woke' culture and the rise of identity politics. He examines the most controversial issues of the current era, including sexuality, gender, technology, and race, and critiques the Marxist foundations of modern social justice movements. Murray argues that modern attitudes towards these issues have been distorted by a sense of victimhood and the negative impact of political correctness. The book is divided into sections dealing with different forms of identity politics and includes interludes on the impact of technology and the need to relearn the ability to forgive in an increasingly online culture. Murray's work has received both praise and criticism, with some reviewers appreciating his bravery and others criticizing his approach as provocative and divisive.
Sam Harris speaks with Douglas Murray about his new book, “The War on the West.” They discuss the problem of hyper partisanship on the Left and Right, the primacy of culture, Hunter Biden’s laptop, the de-platforming of Trump and Alex Jones, the new religion of anti-racism, the problem of inequality, the 1619 Project, history of slavery, moral panics, the strange case of Michel Foucault, and other topics.
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Learning how to train your mind is the single greatest investment you can make in life. That’s why Sam Harris created the Waking Up app. From rational mindfulness practice to lessons on some of life’s most important topics, join Sam as he demystifies the practice of meditation and explores the theory behind it.
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