Conversations with Peter Boghossian

According to author, MMA coach, and one of the first people in the United States to receive a black belt in jiu-jitsu, Matt Thornton, violence is as natural to human evolution as sex and food. In his book, “The Gift of Violence: Surviving and Thriving in a Dangerous World,” Matt provides the tools and mindset necessary to avoid—and if necessary, engage in—violent encounters. Matt has been Peter Boghossian’s Brazilian jiu-jitsu coach for over a decade, and they are also close friends. In this intimate conversation, they discuss the practical value of jiu-jitsu and MMA training. Matt outlines specific moves to gain control in a fight and the importance of situational awareness and weapon training. According to Matt, many people have a glamorized view of violence and do not understand the limits of their own capabilities. Worse still, ideology has blunted people’s connection to defensive evolutionary instincts, resulting in dangerous encounters that could be avoided. Matt Thornton has taught functional martial arts for more than 30 years. He holds a 5th-degree black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and is the founder of Straight Blast Gym International, training champion MMA fighters and world-class law enforcement instructors. Matt addresses policing, gang violence, and crime data in his series “Wokeness, Public Safety, BLM, & Antifa.” Watch this episode on YouTube.

In the spring of 2021, award-winning dancer and choreographer Rosie Kay performed a solo show to wide acclaim. The show included three pieces addressing women’s experiences in life and dance, with the final piece, “Adult Female Dancer,” serving as Rosie’s memoir. Just a few months later, she resigned from her own dance company following accusations of transphobia. In the fall of 2021, Rosie invited dancers from her production of “Romeo + Juliet” to her home for a dinner party. A late-night conversation about an upcoming production of Virginia Woolf’s “Orlando” revealed Rosie’s support for women-only spaces and her acknowledgment that biological sex is real. A handful of her dancers reported this “transphobia” to the Rosie Kay Dance Company board of directors, initiating investigations. The board wanted Rosie to be “re-educated.” Rosie resigned from the company she ran for nearly 20 years and launched a new company, K2CO. She only employs dancers who are committed to freedom of speech and artistic expression. Rosie Kay graduated from the London Contemporary Dance School in 1998. She performed internationally and founded The Rosie Kay Dance Company in 2004. She was the Leverhulme Artist in Residence at the University of Oxford, the choreographer for the 2018 Commonwealth Games, and received Special Commendation from the Royal Society of Public Health. Awards from Stuttgart’s International Solo Dance Festival, The Queen, and Bonnie Bird are among her many accolades. Her work has been featured on stage and in film. Rosie Kay on Unherd: “My body will never be erased”  Watch this episode on YouTube.

Rikki Schlott, a journalist and political commentator, discusses cancel culture, personality disorders in positions of power, the limits of free speech, the impact of social media on society, and the damaging effects of cancel culture on authentic relationships.

In this conversation, Peter and Rajiv Malhotra discuss anti-Semitism at Harvard and other Ivy League universities, Harvard’s cancellation of Hindu speakers, collaboration between leftist and Islamic radicals to undermine various civilizations they label “oppressive,” how China uses Harvard to undermine the U.S. and India, and much more. Bestselling author Rajiv Malhotra is a physicist, computer scientist, and founder of Infinity Foundation, a Princeton-based non-profit specializing in civilization studies. His books include “The Power of Future Machines: Essays on Artificial Intelligence,” “Snakes in the Ganga” (with a foreword by Peter Boghossian), and “Being Different: An Indian Challenge to Western Universalism.” Watch this episode on YouTube.

Philosopher and writer Nina Power is senior editor and columnist at Compact Magazine. She is the author of “One Dimensional Woman” (2009) and “What do Men Want? Masculinity & Its Discontents” (2022). She left her position as Senior Lecturer of Philosophy at Roehampton University after more than a decade in academia.   Peter Boghossian spoke with Nina about the current manifestation of the “battle of the sexes,” where men have become a socially permitted target of hatred and blame. Nina discusses the curious ideal of a homogenous human being, an aim to un-gender the sexes to make men and women interchangeable. She says it is a mistake that traditional masculine virtues—strength, judgment, responsibility—are being coded as right-wing values that must be dismantled alongside “the patriarchy.”   Peter and Nina also discuss sex differences, male suicide, Nina’s break with the Labour Party, the state of philosophy, Aristotle’s categories of friendship, intellectual conformity, Ivan Illich, Rebecca Tuvel, activist attacks, leftism, the beauty of changing one’s mind, and more.   Nina received a Ph.D. in philosophy from Middlesex University and an MA and BA in philosophy from the University of Warwick. She was a senior lecturer in philosophy at Roehampton University and has taught at various British universities. She is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a member of the British Philosophical Association. She cohosts the podcast The Lack with Helen Rollins and Benjamin Studebaker.   More from Nina: “What do Men Want? Masculinity & Its Discontents” by Nina Power  Compact Magazine “The Lack” podcast  Nina on X  Nina on Substack  Watch this episode on YouTube.

Sall Grover is the Founder and CEO of “Giggle,” a social networking app “designed by women, for women.” She is currently battling a lawsuit from a trans-woman who calls himself “Tickle.” Tickle was kicked off the app in 2021 because he is a man.   The outcome of this lawsuit (Tickle vs. Giggle) will impact women’s rights and protected spaces in Australia.   Peter Boghossian spoke with Sall about the fundamental distinction between the sexes, why preferred pronouns must be rejected, free speech and cognitive liberty, the meaning of progress, and the future of the transgender fad. According to Sall, “women are not dickless men” and have the right to exclude men from their sports, prisons, and social apps.   Further info on the Tickle vs. Giggle case: fedcourt.gov.au  Quillette article   Watch this episode on YouTube.

In 2021, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) canceled a high-profile lecture by Dr. Dorian Abbot, a renowned geophysicist from the University of Chicago. The topic of the lecture was not the issue. Rather, Dorian was targeted by Social Justice activists because of his critique of DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) ideology. MIT buckled to the demands of a handful of ideologues, inadvertently contributing to discussions about academic censorship.   MIT did not expect the blowback it received for hobbling scientific inquiry in favor of ideological conformity. MIT alumni formed the Free Speech Alliance and its faculty overwhelmingly voted to adopt a university statement regarding freedom of expression. Since then, Dorian has become a leading figure in the fight for academic freedom of thought, speech, and inquiry. In this conversation, Peter Boghossian and Dorian discuss the MIT fiasco, the proper aim of academia, the immorality of DEI, speech as “violence,” University of Chicago’s commitment to academic freedom, finding meaning through religion and naturalism, Dorian’s rejection of tyrannical “equality” mandates, and much more. Dorian Abbot is associate professor in the Department of the Geophysical Sciences at the University of Chicago. He has written more than 90 scientific papers on the climates of Earth and other planets. He is a member of the Council of the Faculty Senate, a co-founder of the faculty group U-Chicago Free, a founding member of the Academic Freedom Alliance, and a co-founder and moderator of the Heterodox Academy STEM Community.  Dorian won the 2021 “Hero of Intellectual Freedom Award” from the American Council of Trustees and Alumni and the 2022 “Courage Award” from the Heterodox Academy. Read the MIT Freedom of Expression & Academic Freedom statement. Watch this episode on YouTube. 

Wilfred Reilly, cultural critic challenging mainstream narratives on race, crime, and gender ideology, discusses the importance of evidence-based work and the left-right divide. The podcast explores perceptions of systemic racism and woke ideologies, the crisis of legitimacy in institutions, academic performance gaps, and the need to address bias. It also delves into debates on colonialism, the emergence of a conservative backlash against 'woke' ideology, and movements countering it.

Author and activist David Silverman is one of the best-known atheists in the United States. He has been a leading voice in the atheism movement for decades, previously serving as President for American Atheists and Executive Director for Atheist Alliance International. He broke ranks with these organizations when they were captured by the “religion of wokeism.” David is now the advisory board chair for Atheists for Liberty, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization promoting secularism, free speech, and enlightenment values. He is the author of "Fighting God: An Atheist Manifesto for a Religious World." He recently published an article in Reality’s Last Stand expressing his concerns about atheists aligning with Christians in the fight against woke ideology.   More from David: Reality’s Last Stand: “Reflections of a Firebrand” by David Silverman  YouTube Atheists for Liberty Twitter  Watch this episode on YouTube.

Filmmaker Taylor Reece discusses 'Dead Name,' a documentary exploring the damage caused by gender-affirming care. They address concerns about child transgenderism, the irreversible nature of gender transition procedures, and the impact of social contagions. The discussion also touches on censorship and the importance of individual autonomy in decision-making.