Making Sense with Sam Harris - Subscriber Content

The podcast explores the differences in attitudes towards violence between Israel and its enemies, with a focus on Hamas. It also discusses the historical context of war crimes and ethical norms in the Muslim world compared to the West. The tactics of jihadists in Gaza and Iraq in using human shields are contrasted with the Israeli army's practice of warning people before bombing. The podcast also highlights the contrasting ethical approaches of Israel and its adversaries in intentional civilian massacres versus unintentional noncombatant deaths.

Jeannie Fontana and Robin Carhart-Harris discuss the Treat California initiative, the therapeutic potential of psychedelics, and the future applications of psychedelic medicine. They emphasize the need for large-scale clinical trials, patient education, and accessibility. The chapter also explores the financial challenges of conducting well-run studies, the effects of psychedelic drugs on the brain, and the need for non-denominational dialogue.

Sam Harris speaks with Yascha Mounk about identity politics, skepticism about cancel culture, racial segregation in schools, ideological change on college campuses, rejection of universalism, indoctrination of children, intersectionality, white privilege, racial preferences during Covid, asymmetric advantage of authoritarianism, media coverage of crime and violence, and the role of social media in shaping politics and journalism.

The speaker discusses being misrepresented on podcasts and social media. They express concerns about the pharmaceutical industry and capitalism's role. Government control and pandemic response are also discussed. Free speech and the suppression of debate on social media are highlighted. The risks and safety measures of flying are explored. The accuracy of COVID deaths and the impact of vaccine hesitancy are discussed.

Sam Harris speaks with David Brooks about the state of American democracy, the loss of social trust, identity politics, the Republican Party, the 2024 Presidential Election, the Trump indictments, the war in Ukraine, economic inequality, the problems with meritocracy, the state of media and social media, the lure of conspiracy thinking, our handling of the Covid pandemic, our withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the limits of American power.

Renowned scientist Chris Field provides a 'sanity check' on climate change, discussing the accuracy of climate models, historical records of climate variation, wildfires, air pollution, renewable sources of energy, carbon capture, China and India, carbon taxes, and other topics. The chapter explores the urgency of addressing climate change to prevent catastrophic consequences and the potential benefits of a carbon tax in incentivizing reductions in emissions. The speaker expresses optimism but acknowledges challenges in meeting Paris Agreement goals.

Mustafa Suleyman discusses progress in AI at DeepMind, acquisition by Google, Atari DQN, AlphaGo, AlphaFold, risks of AI, containment problem, changing norms of work, digital watermarks, conflict and cooperation with China, and supply-chain monopolies.

Exploring the allure of assholes, including examples of Andrew Tate and Donald Trump. Discussing the influence of assholes in society and the potential consequences on moral standards. Examining the harmful impact of social media and the need for wisdom in the modern world.

Topics discussed include the ethics of dropping atomic bombs, the history and future of nuclear proliferation, cyber vulnerabilities, the war in Ukraine, growing tensions between the U.S. and China, artificial intelligence, and the role for private citizens in mitigating nuclear risk.

Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/329-what-happened-to-the-republican-party Sam Harris speaks with Bret Stephens about the current state of the Republican Party. They discuss the strange change in Republican attitudes toward Putin, the character of Tucker Carlson, the war in Ukraine, the failures of elites and experts, the tension between concerns about misinformation and free speech, the Hunter Biden laptop, the 2024 Presidential election, how Trump captured the Republican Party, the criminal charges against Trump, the future of conservatism, and other topics. Bret Stephens is an opinion columnist with The New York Times and editor-in-chief of Sapir, a new Jewish quarterly. He has previously served as editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Post and as foreign-affairs columnist for The Wall Street Journal, for which he won the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for commentary. He was raised in Mexico City, educated at the University of Chicago, and was a NeverTrumper from Day One. In 2022 he was banned for life by the government of Russia from ever visiting that country. Website: https://www.nytimes.com/column/bret-stephens   Learning how to train your mind is the single greatest investment you can make in life. That’s why Sam Harris created the Waking Up app. From rational mindfulness practice to lessons on some of life’s most important topics, join Sam as he demystifies the practice of meditation and explores the theory behind it.