
Open College Podcast
Dr. Stephen R.C. Hicks is a Canadian-American philosopher who teaches at Rockford University, Illinois. He has had visiting positions at Oxford University (England), Kasimir the Great University (Poland), and has lectured at universities across North America, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. He specializes in modern European philosophy and politics, and has written extensively on Kant, Marx, including his two books, Explaining Postmodernism: Skepticism and Socialism from Rousseau to Foucault and Nietzsche and the Nazis.
Latest episodes

Jan 13, 2020 • 40min
EP #31 Hazony Attacks the Enlightenment
On December 30th 2019, the YouTube channel Prager University released a video narrated by bible scholar and political theorist Yoram Hazony discussing the Enlightenment. Hazony makes eight major claims about the Enlightenment and while there are some thoughtful arguments against the Enlightenment, Hazony has not made them. In this episode of Open College, Dr. Hicks points out the flaws in Hazony’s augments and shows why this video is an example of special-pleading history.
PragerU - What Was the Enlightenment
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9AL0TUHuuM
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/c/opencollegepodcast
Bitchute
http://www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Apple Podcasts
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/open-college-podcast/id1438324613?mt=2
SoundCloud
https://soundcloud.com/opencollegepodcast/ep-25-thales-revolution
Stitcher
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/possibly-correct/open-college-podcast-with-dr-stephen-rc-hicks
Google Play
https://play.google.com/music/m/Iuramibvl3n32ojiutoxhlba4gu?t=Open_College_Podcast
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/2qgnmMDAEevJ28UNdXvboZ?si=LuTt_Zc5Th-kOpNd5thgBw
Join our email list - http://eepurl.com/dEEsTj
Contact Dr. Hicks, on twitter @SRChicks or visit http://www.StephenHicks.org
Twitter: @OpenCollegePod
Minds: www.minds.com/opencollege
Bitchute: www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Facebook: www.facebook.com/OpenCollegePodcast
gab.ai: www.gab.ai/opencollege

Dec 22, 2019 • 21min
EP #30 | The Real Scrooge
We all know the tale of Ebenezer Scrooge. Or do we? At least 20 movie versions of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol have been produced, along with innumerable stage plays and live reading. Who was Ebenezer Scrooge? Was his character the Villain according to Socialism, the Homo Economicus and Savvy Investor, the hero of the Anti-Over-Commercialized-Christmas crowd?
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/c/opencollegepodcast
Bitchute
http://www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Apple Podcasts
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/open-college-podcast/id1438324613?mt=2
SoundCloud
https://soundcloud.com/opencollegepodcast/ep-25-thales-revolution
Stitcher
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/possibly-correct/open-college-podcast-with-dr-stephen-rc-hicks
Google Play
https://play.google.com/music/m/Iuramibvl3n32ojiutoxhlba4gu?t=Open_College_Podcast
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/2qgnmMDAEevJ28UNdXvboZ?si=LuTt_Zc5Th-kOpNd5thgBw
Join our email list - http://eepurl.com/dEEsTj
Contact Dr. Hicks, on twitter @SRChicks or visit http://www.StephenHicks.org
Twitter: @OpenCollegePod
Minds: www.minds.com/opencollege
Bitchute: www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Facebook: www.facebook.com/OpenCollegePodcast
gab.ai: www.gab.ai/opencollege

Nov 5, 2019 • 38min
#29 War on Socialism
William James was a leading American philosopher who lived at the turn of the 20th century. In his essay the Moral Equivalent of War, James describes himself as a socialist and pacifist and is very disgusted with the human history of war and is looking for a solution. This essay, while thoughtful and well argued is to my mind, highly objectionable. Here is why.
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/c/opencollegepodcast
Bitchute
http://www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Apple Podcasts
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/open-college-podcast/id1438324613?mt=2
SoundCloud
https://soundcloud.com/opencollegepodcast/ep-25-thales-revolution
Stitcher
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/possibly-correct/open-college-podcast-with-dr-stephen-rc-hicks
Google Play
https://play.google.com/music/m/Iuramibvl3n32ojiutoxhlba4gu?t=Open_College_Podcast
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/2qgnmMDAEevJ28UNdXvboZ?si=LuTt_Zc5Th-kOpNd5thgBw
Join our email list - http://eepurl.com/dEEsTj
Contact Dr. Hicks, on twitter @SRChicks or visit http://www.StephenHicks.org
Twitter: @OpenCollegePod
Minds: www.minds.com/opencollege
Bitchute: www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Facebook: www.facebook.com/OpenCollegePodcast
gab.ai: www.gab.ai/opencollege

Oct 22, 2019 • 33min
EP #28 Keynes Blame
Is Keynes to blame for everything? John Maynard Keynes was the most influential economist of the 20th century. In the 21st century his theories are institutionalized. But how close is current Keyesnian practice to original Keynesian theory?
Join our email list - http://eepurl.com/dEEsTj
Contact Dr. Hicks, on twitter @SRChicks or visit http://www.StephenHicks.org
Twitter: @OpenCollegePod
Minds: www.minds.com/opencollege
Bitchute: www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Facebook: www.facebook.com/OpenCollegePodcast
gab.ai: www.gab.ai/opencollege
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/c/opencollegepodcast
Bitchute
http://www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Apple Podcasts
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/open-college-podcast/id1438324613?mt=2
SoundCloud
https://soundcloud.com/opencollegepodcast/ep-25-thales-revolution
Stitcher
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/possibly-correct/open-college-podcast-with-dr-stephen-rc-hicks
Google Play
https://play.google.com/music/m/Iuramibvl3n32ojiutoxhlba4gu?t=Open_College_Podcast
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/2qgnmMDAEevJ28UNdXvboZ?si=LuTt_Zc5Th-kOpNd5thgBw

Oct 7, 2019 • 39min
#27 Money You Should Love
Money is one of the greatest inventions ever, just as books are one of the greatest inventions ever and for the same reasons. Books are collections of abstract symbols that represent abstract ideas. Writing enhances our thinking through portability, storage, precision and universality. Books enable everyone to communicate with one another. All of these points about books hold precisely for money.
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/c/opencollegepodcast
Bitchute
http://www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Apple Podcasts
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/open-college-podcast/id1438324613?mt=2
SoundCloud
https://soundcloud.com/opencollegepodcast/ep-25-thales-revolution
Stitcher
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/possibly-correct/open-college-podcast-with-dr-stephen-rc-hicks
Google Play
https://play.google.com/music/m/Iuramibvl3n32ojiutoxhlba4gu?t=Open_College_Podcast
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/2qgnmMDAEevJ28UNdXvboZ?si=LuTt_Zc5Th-kOpNd5thgBw
YouTube
https://youtu.be/yi1AQDidnmg
Bitchute
http://www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Join our email list - http://eepurl.com/dEEsTj
Contact Dr. Hicks, on twitter @SRChicks or visit http://www.StephenHicks.org
Twitter: @OpenCollegePod
Minds: www.minds.com/opencollege
Bitchute: www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Facebook: www.facebook.com/OpenCollegePodcast
gab.ai: www.gab.ai/opencollege

Sep 24, 2019 • 38min
#26 Manifest Destiny Wasn't
Apple Podcasts
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/open-college-podcast/id1438324613?mt=2
SoundCloud
https://soundcloud.com/opencollegepodcast/ep-25-thales-revolution
Stitcher
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/possibly-correct/open-college-podcast-with-dr-stephen-rc-hicks
Google Play
https://play.google.com/music/m/Iuramibvl3n32ojiutoxhlba4gu?t=Open_College_Podcast
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/2qgnmMDAEevJ28UNdXvboZ?si=LuTt_Zc5Th-kOpNd5thgBw
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/c/opencollegepodcast
Bitchute
http://www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Join our email list - http://eepurl.com/dEEsTj
Contact Dr. Hicks, on twitter @SRChicks or visit http://www.StephenHicks.org
Twitter: @OpenCollegePod
Minds: www.minds.com/opencollege
Bitchute: www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Facebook: www.facebook.com/OpenCollegePodcast
gab.ai: www.gab.ai/opencollege

Sep 10, 2019 • 25min
#25 Thales’ Revolution
The standard claim is that philosophy begins with Thales. Why did philosophy come into being in a clusters of cities on the coasts of Asia minor? Ascribed to Thales by Aristotle: “The first principle and basic nature of all things is water, ”and “All things are full of gods.” Why do historians of philosophy get worked up over these lines?
To see their significance, let’s set a context by going back to the worldview of the awesomely great Homer. So brush up on The Iliad, which I want to use as our pre-philosophy-worldview contrast object.
Apple Podcasts
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/open-college-podcast/id1438324613?mt=2
SoundCloud
https://soundcloud.com/opencollegepodcast
Stitcher
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/possibly-correct/open-college-podcast-with-dr-stephen-rc-hicks
Google Play
https://play.google.com/music/m/Iuramibvl3n32ojiutoxhlba4gu?t=Open_College_Podcast
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/2qgnmMDAEevJ28UNdXvboZ?si=LuTt_Zc5Th-kOpNd5thgBw
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/c/opencollegepodcast
Bitchute
http://www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Join our email list - http://eepurl.com/dEEsTj
Contact Dr. Hicks, on twitter @SRChicks or visit http://www.StephenHicks.org
Twitter: @OpenCollegePod
Minds: www.minds.com/opencollege
Bitchute: www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Facebook: www.facebook.com/OpenCollegePodcast
gab.ai: www.gab.ai/opencollege

Aug 27, 2019 • 25min
#24 Does Power Corrupt?
Lord Acton said, “absolute power corrupts absolutely” but is this accurate? Abuses of social and political power are the ones we worry about the most. Social science data does seem too, on the surface, bare out Lord Acton’s claims. However, if you correlate the degrees of corruption with degrees of centralization the data suggests things are not quite so simple.
Apple Podcasts
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/open-college-podcast/id1438324613?mt=2
SoundCloud
https://soundcloud.com/opencollegepodcast
Stitcher
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/possibly-correct/open-college-podcast-with-dr-stephen-rc-hicks
Google Play
https://play.google.com/music/m/Iuramibvl3n32ojiutoxhlba4gu?t=Open_College_Podcast
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/2qgnmMDAEevJ28UNdXvboZ?si=LuTt_Zc5Th-kOpNd5thgBw
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/c/opencollegepodcast
Bitchute
http://www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Join our email list - http://eepurl.com/dEEsTj
Contact Dr. Hicks, on twitter @SRChicks or visit http://www.StephenHicks.org
Twitter: @OpenCollegePod
Minds: www.minds.com/opencollege
Bitchute: www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Facebook: www.facebook.com/OpenCollegePodcast
gab.ai: www.gab.ai/opencollege

Jul 31, 2019 • 40min
#23 Is Post Modernism Neo-Marxist? Yes, No & Sort Of
Professor Jordan B. Peterson is perhaps most famous for the neo-Marxist label “Postmodern Neo-Marxism.” Although Dr. Peterson recommends Explaining Postmodernism by Dr. Hicks, their analysis on this issue differs in some important ways.
Apple Podcasts
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/open-college-podcast/id1438324613?mt=2
SoundCloud
https://soundcloud.com/opencollegepodcast
Stitcher
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/possibly-correct/open-college-podcast-with-dr-stephen-rc-hicks
Google Play
https://play.google.com/music/m/Iuramibvl3n32ojiutoxhlba4gu?t=Open_College_Podcast
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/2qgnmMDAEevJ28UNdXvboZ?si=LuTt_Zc5Th-kOpNd5thgBw
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/c/opencollegepodcast
Bitchute
http://www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Join our email list - http://eepurl.com/dEEsTj
Contact Dr. Hicks, on twitter @SRChicks or visit http://www.StephenHicks.org
Twitter: @OpenCollegePod
Minds: www.minds.com/opencollege
Bitchute: www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Facebook: www.facebook.com/OpenCollegePodcast
gab.ai: www.gab.ai/opencollege

Jul 29, 2019 • 28min
#22 Did Coffee Give Us The Enlightenment
As a contributing factor, coffee (and tea) certainly gets credit on physiological grounds. Also contributing was the development of European coffee house culture, the coffee houses bringing businessmen, artists, and scientists together for drinking and socializing.
Apple Podcasts
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/open-college-podcast/id1438324613?mt=2
SoundCloud
https://soundcloud.com/opencollegepodcast
Stitcher
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/possibly-correct/open-college-podcast-with-dr-stephen-rc-hicks
Google Play
https://play.google.com/music/m/Iuramibvl3n32ojiutoxhlba4gu?t=Open_College_Podcast
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/c/opencollegepodcast
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/2qgnmMDAEevJ28UNdXvboZ?si=LuTt_Zc5Th-kOpNd5thgBw
Join our email list - http://eepurl.com/dEEsTj
Twitter: @OpenCollegePod
Minds: www.minds.com/opencollege
Bitchute: www.bitchute.com/opencollegepodcast
Facebook: www.facebook.com/OpenCollegePodcast
gab.ai: www.gab.ai/opencollege