Shame used to be a regulator. Now it’s background noise. In this bourbon-fueled consult, David and Rob put “Uncle Sam” on the couch and sort the difference between shame (“I am bad”) and guilt (“I did a bad thing”) and why only one reliably leads to repair. We unpack Nathanson’s compass of shame (withdrawal, self-attack, avoidance, other-attack) and how those last two blow up our politics and relationships.

Then we zoom out: social media’s confessional culture gives a quick hit of validation, followed by 2 a.m. regret and next-day loneliness, while partisan incentives reward riding out scandal instead of resigning. Result: a post-policy era where words are theater and hypocrisy barely stings.

Prescriptions you can actually use:
• Before you post, ask: am I confessing, performing, or connecting?
• Use a 24-hour rule on anything personal or inflammatory.
• Write down your values and hold yourself (and your leaders) to them at the ballot box.
Also featuring Crow 86 in a plastic bottle, Horse Soldier for contrast, and the required roast of pajama pants in public.

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Shrink The Nation is where America lies on the couch — and we pour the bourbon.
Hosted by board-certified psychiatrists and mental health pros with backgrounds in military, media, and systems thinking, we break down the psychology behind politics, culture, and public dysfunction.
Smart. Funny. Clinically sharp. Slightly buzzed.

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Shrink The Nation — On the Couch With America.

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