Bungacast

On Mexico, class, and sexuality.    We welcome anthropologist Roger Lancaster onto the pod to talk about his new book, The Struggle to Be Gay – in Mexico, for Example.     We discuss: How much is being gay tied to being modern? And conversely, how much of globalized culture is itself "gay"? Do you need to be middle class to be gay? Why did neoliberalism provide more sexual freedom than corporatism in Mexico?  How was Mexico ahead of the US in introducing ‘progressive neoliberalism’? Is now a time of freedom, or should we think of it differently? In part two, we discuss AMLO's "synthetic" presidency, and the way peasant conservatism in central America has traditionally provided a boost to radicalism – and ask whether this is still the case.   Only available at patreon.com/bungacast.   See also: /180/ Bunga Bunga (but Gay) ft. Mark Simpson & River Page

On Portugal's elections, 50 years since the revolution   Catarina Príncipe, a long-time activist on the Portuguese left and a doctoral student of political economy, is back on the podcast to talk through what happened as Portugal went to the polls. How does Portugal see itself, with regard to Europe, and its own history? How did the right-populist Chega party break through amid high turnout? What kind of anti-politics did Chega bring to the table? Is there nostalgia for the dictatorship? How did immigration become an issue in a country where emigration is the big problem? What is going on with Portugal's huge housing crisis? Why has the EU disappeared as a political issue, 10 years on from the peak of the crisis? Bungacast is expanding, with new regular contributors, partnership with Damage magazine and more. Read about it here or see the video. Links: In Portugal’s Election, the Center Left Struggles to Hold On, João Murta & Guilherme Rodrigues Europe After Brexit, Bungacast live event, ft. Catarina Principe + others

On what comes next: in politics, ideas, economy, subjectivity   To commemorate seven years of the podcast and four-hundred episodes, we got all our new Contributors in to examine the oppositions and tensions that we think will characterise the next decade. We say hello to Amber A'Lee Frost, Alex Gourevitch, Catherine Liu, and Leigh Phillips.   For all Bungacast shows, including our Contributors, the Damage magazine episode, Reading Club and more, go to patreon.com/bungacast     Politics Right-populism: insurgency or incorporation The Left: engagement or reclusion Multipolarity: opportunity or restriction War: inertia or action Industry & Economy Work: precarity or militancy Green Capitalism: industry or austerity Tech: exhaustion or enchantment Ideas & Art Truth: the image or the word Belief: reason or romanticism Individual & Society Subjectivity: vulnerability or resilience Sex: liberation or puritanism Sociability: virtuality or embodiment

On the withdrawal from hyperpolitics and hypermodernity.   [Patreon Exclusive]   What comes after a decade of populism? Alex Hochuli talks through his new essay in Damage, issue 2. This is episode is the third part of our Emotion Sickness series on the politics of feelings. Click here for part 1 and part 2. If we are disengaging from politics, what is the associated feeling - resentment or resignation? Why are our times "hypermodern" – and why is this exhausting? What can the examples of the 'great resignation', 15-minute cities, and postliberalism all tell us about the ways people are withdrawing from modernity? Why do we need to decelerate to save modernity? How might we gain control of time? This episode is in partnership with Damage. Bungacast subscribers ($7+) automatically get a digital subscription to the magazine. Go to patreon.com/bungacast.   Links: From ADHD to Let Me Be: Taking Control of Time, Alex Hochuli, Damage Damage issue 2: "Deinstitutionalized" (subscribe for Alex's essay + more) /365/ It’s So Over (Again) ft. Ryan Zickgraf (see also the links in show notes) Hypermodern Times, Gilles Lipovetsky Social Acceleration, Hartmut Rosa Scorched Earth, Jonathan Crary

Part II of the series: on therapy and vulnerability.   [Patreon Exclusive: subscribe at patreon.com/bungacast]   Sociologist Ashley Frawley (and COO of Sublation Press) is back on the podcast to talk about her new book, Significant Emotions. What is behind the seeming rise of public emotionalism and the focus on mental health? How was “happiness” a policy concern – and when did it disappear and why? What’s going on with universities and their focus on the mental health of students? Is there much emotion about, in a romantic sense of deep feeling? Or is it emotion ersatz, instrumentalised, superficial, sentimentalised? How does affect polarise politically Left and Right? Can we solve the crisis of subjectivity by focusing on the self? And who is the Big-Ass Subject? Links: Significant Emotions: Rhetoric and Social Problems in a Vulnerable Age, Ashley Frawley, Bloomsbury Sublation Media Ashley's YouTube channel

On Benedict Anderson's classic Imagined Communities.   [Patreon Exclusive. Subscribe: patreon.com/bungacast]   Originally published in 1983, Anderson's account of the origins of nations is one of the most cited books in English in the humanities. In what ways does this diverse and inventive book still explain the world? How is imagined different from imaginary? Did nations emerge first in Latin America? Does Anderson's account of print capitalism still apply – and is it more valid than ever? Are we really in a post-national era? Does Anderson underestimate the political side – the project of achieving your 'own' state? Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism (pdf)   The Reading Club this year is dedicated to three themes: the rise and fall of nations; intellectuals and the public; Russia: past and present.

Turbulent times, ideological confusion. Politics is back, but it's stranger than ever. All the more reason for unflinching critique of the current moment. That's why Bungacast is expanding. Regular contributors are coming on-board: Catherine Liu, Amber Frost, Alex Gourevitch, and Leigh Phillips   We're partnering up with Damage Magazine   There'll be many more exclusive episodes – see patreon.com/bungacast   And a new Reading Club, with new themes!

Discussing the failures of the millennial left, pondering if left-populism was just a media event, and questioning the relevance of the internet for political movements. Exploring generational divides, the impact of internet culture on politics, and the challenges faced by the left in maintaining principles amidst generational influences.

On the missed opportunity of the 2010s.   Chris Cutrone of Platypus joins us to talk about his collection of essays, The Death of the Millennial Left. We discuss: Why define it as the "Millennial" Left? Was the anti-Stalinism of leaderless protests a good thing? Did the talk of "winning" from 2015 onwards represent maturity? Should the turn to a more public, statist capitalism make us more optimistic? How will the 'lawfare' used against Trump play out? Links: The Millennial Left is dead, Chris Cutrone, Platypus The Death of the Millennial Left: Interventions 2006-2022, Chris Cutrone, Sublation

On the politics of emotions and emotionalism.   Philosopher Nina Power (an editor and columnist at Compact Magazine) kicks off this series by talking to us about anger, hate, and evil. Do we complain too little or too much? Should we be more repressed? Political passions were meant to be dead. Has anger overtaken apathy? Should we hate our enemies? Is that okay? Has contemporary society become hysterical? Why does everyone want to be a victim today? How does this relate to self-interest? Is evil a psychological concept? For part two, subscribe at patreon.com/bungacast Links: What Do Men Want?: Masculinity and Its Discontents, Nina Power, Penguin Books Nina's columns at Compact Magazine Political Ponerology, Andrew Lobaczewski, Red Pill Press (pdf)