In Episode 306 of Hidden Forces, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Michael Sacasas. Michael is the executive director of the Christian Study Center in Gainesville Florida and the author of The Convivial Society, a widely read newsletter about technology, culture, and the moral life. Demetri and Michael discuss how we are engineering society and the human experience in ways that could have irreversible effects on humanity’s future. Many of you may be wondering if this conversation is about A.I. Not necessarily. Advancements in artificial intelligence may very well prove to be the catalysts, but if so then A.I. is just the apotheosis of trends that have been in place for decades if not longer, and which are changing the nature of our lives, our societies, and our politics in ways that are not necessarily desirable. Some of these trends threaten the values and traditions that we associate most strongly with human civilization and the flourishing of the natural world. And many of us feel the urge to “do something” to alter our trajectory, but what is to be done? Besides understanding the nature of these trends and the technological and social structures bringing them about what can we do to effectuate positive change and on what scale we can hope to make a difference? This is the central focus of today’s conversation. You can subscribe to our premium content and gain access to our premium feed, episode transcripts, and Intelligence Reports (or Key Takeaways) at HiddenForces.io/subscribe. If you want to join in on the conversation and become a member of the Hidden Forces genius community, which includes Q&A calls with guests, access to special research and analysis, in-person events, and dinners, you can also do that on our subscriber page. If you still have questions, feel free to email info@hiddenforces.io, and Demetri or someone else from our team will get right back to you. If you enjoyed listening to today’s episode of Hidden Forces you can help support the show by doing the following: Subscribe on Apple Podcasts | YouTube | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | CastBox | RSS Feed Write us a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify Subscribe to our mailing list at https://hiddenforces.io/newsletter/ Producer & Host: Demetri Kofinas Editor & Engineer: Stylianos Nicolaou Subscribe & Support the Podcast at https://hiddenforces.io Join the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at @hiddenforcespod Follow Demetri on Twitter at @Kofinas Episode Recorded on 04/03/2023

✨ DEBRIEF ✨ | Unpacking the Episode: https://shows.banklesshq.com/p/debrief-demetri  ------ Demetri Kofinas is a digital entrepreneur and host of the Hidden Forces Podcast, one of our favorites.  Demetri has a broad perspective on geopolitics, which we explore as we discuss the probability of a World War 3, diplomacy among superpowers, and surviving the rise of the machines. Have we lost the ability to solve hard problems as a species?  ------ 📣 ConsenSys | Mint a Merge NFT!  https://bankless.cc/themerge   ------ 🚀 SUBSCRIBE TO NEWSLETTER:          https://newsletter.banklesshq.com/    🎙️ SUBSCRIBE TO PODCAST:                 http://podcast.banklesshq.com/    ------ BANKLESS SPONSOR TOOLS:  🚀 ROCKET POOL | ETH STAKING https://bankless.cc/RocketPool  ⚖️ ARBITRUM | SCALING ETHEREUM https://bankless.cc/Arbitrum  ❎ ACROSS | BRIDGE TO LAYER 2 https://bankless.cc/Across  🦁 BRAVE | THE BROWSER NATIVE WALLET https://bankless.cc/Brave  🌴 MAKER DAO | DECENTRALIZED LENDING https://bankless.cc/MakerDAO  🔐 LEDGER | SECURE STAKING https://bankless.cc/Ledger   ------ Topics Covered: 0:00 Intro - Demetri Kofinas 6:30 Hidden Forces 10:26 Towards Chaos 18:00 Cyclical Powers 23:15 Taiwan Case Study 28:30 Trusting Institutions 31:23 State Sovereignty 37:50 Military Power & US Politics 45:00 Liminal Warfare 51:00 Why the Future Doesn’t Need Us 1:00:35 Chinese Algorithms 1:06:15 Unity, Diversity, Identity 1:12:05 Layer Zero Social Values 1:20:05 Losing Our Humanity 1:25:00 Cycling through Chaos 1:28:40 Improving Systems 1:37:30 Closing ------ Resources: Demetri on Twitter https://twitter.com/kofinas?s=20&t=cNy4k855qT6O3xHtEC6xZw  Hidden Forces https://hiddenforces.io/  Theories of War with David Kilcullen https://hiddenforces.io/podcasts/david-kilcullen-national-emergency/  Episode 28 - Industrial Society and its Future https://hiddenforces.io/podcasts/demetri-kofinas-industrial-society-and-its-future/  Why the Future Doesn’t Need Us https://www.wired.com/2000/04/joy-2/  Brave New World https://www.amazon.com/Brave-New-World-Aldous-Huxley/dp/0060850523  The Fourth Turning https://www.amazon.com/Fourth-Turning-American-Prophecy-Rendezvous/dp/0767900464  ------ Hidden Forces Episodes: Industrial Society and its Future https://hiddenforces.io/podcasts/demetri-kofinas-industrial-society-and-its-future/  Encryption and the Will to Power https://hiddenforces.io/podcasts/demetri-kofinas-industrial-society-and-its-future/  Surveillance Capitalism with Sohshana Zuboff https://hiddenforces.io/podcasts/surveillance-capitalism-shoshana-zuboff/  Complex Systems with David Weinberger https://hiddenforces.io/podcasts/david-weinberger-ai-prediction/  The Age of AI with Eric Schmidt & Dan Huttenlocher https://hiddenforces.io/podcasts/eric-schmidt-ai-human-future-national-security/  Predicting the Future with Tim O'Reilly https://hiddenforces.io/podcasts/tim-oreilly-predict-the-future/  Kill Chain with Chris Brose https://hiddenforces.io/podcasts/kill-chain-chris-brose-anduril-2/  American Defense with Elbridge Colby https://hiddenforces.io/podcasts/elbridge-colby-american-defense-age-of-great-power-conflict/  Preparing for Cyber Attacks with Chris Painter https://hiddenforces.io/podcasts/russian-cyber-attacks-chris-painter/  ----- Not financial or tax advice. This channel is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This video is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research. 

Demetri Kofinas, who coined Financial Nihilism, delves into questioning financial systems' value and the rise of meme stocks and cryptocurrencies. The podcast explores how millennials view investing as a way to navigate a seemingly meaningless world. It discusses the emotional drive behind the GameStop phenomenon and the impact of financial nihilism on society and politics.