Philosophy After Hours

In this episode Aaron asks what's so bad about technocracy. Bethany reacts with abject horror, and JP sits back with some popcorn to watch the fireworks. Should we accept the expertise of technocrats as preferable to democracy? Might the ideal of technocracy democratize itself? Bethany argues that technology fragments us by making expertise so specialized we can no longer take collective action, a...

Hey y'all! In lieu of a main episode this week, here is a recording that we did on the movie  Banshees of Inisherin . It's a masterful movie--and this is masterful commentary.  After we each give our take on the movie, we discuss Colm and Padriac's relationship as reflecting Aaron and Jp's relationship, the nature of the absurd, Padraic as biblical Adam, Siobhan as completing the Banshee's critiqu...

In this episode a slightly ill JP puts on his gamer-bro hat and explains the origins of the term "NPC" (non-playable character), which has come to be used by the likes of Donald Trump and Elon Musk as shorthand for boring, gullible people. Is this language inherently dehumanizing and…troubling? Also covered: "Main Character Syndrome," Aaron's experience of being "Obama-fied," and why Bethany would...

In this episode Bethany invites us to examine the self-help industry and its influence on American culture. Inspired by the podcast If Books Could Kill , she traces the history of self-help starting with Dale Carnegie, the first in a long line of shameless grifters. JP shares his personal gripe about Eckhart Tolle and other authors who appropriate Eastern philosophy and repackage it as a tool of c...

In this Shooting the Shit episode, we discuss Aaron's adventures during his partner's birthday weekend and his ambivalence about a therapy intake session. Also covered: The joy of hosting, why JP and Bethany love being heckled, the phenomenon of corecore, Top Gun: Maverick and The Banshees of Inisherin (spoiler alert!), whether we should nationalize the film industry, and yelling at rom-coms like...

In this episode Aaron asks whether nuance is dead and whether we should mourn its passing. Why do we care about writing and thinking in a nuanced way when our culture doesn't seem to put a high premium on nuance? Is it just narcissistically pleasurable? And when we're committed to nuance, do we risk sacrificing the urgency of justice? Then again, if we opt for the "tl;dr" version of political disc...

In this episode JP takes us on a journey into the heart of the far-right conspiracy theory known as "globalism" (and ruins his YouTube algorithm in the process). Along the way, we ask questions like: Is there actually anything interesting here, or is it all gobbledigook? To what extent should we try to empathize or establish solidarity with folks on the far right? Is the right-wing obsession with...

In this episode Bethany brings us back to the realm of dreams as a continuation of episode 74. Bethany begins by laying out the differences between the hermeneutics of suspicion and faith, and how each of these frameworks affects our understanding of, and approach to deciphering, dreams. We then discuss the cultural practice of the Tlingit tribe wherein the sharing and interpreting of dreams is a...

In this episode we introduce our new fit (that's short for "outfit" to the uninitiated). We kick off the new year with our first episode of Philosophy After Hours. We discuss how we feel about leaving the "The Rilkean Zoo" behind us to forge a slightly different podcast identity. We share a few stories about our holidary activities, and then we close the episode with some musings about the before-...

In this episode we begin with a discussion on the use of AI price algorithms as a new form of price fixing by major real estate holding companies. In a case like this, who is to be held accountable? Does culpability even make sense when our system is driven exclusively by profit, when it seems to be operating as intended? Will AI allow business practices to rid themselves of the last vestiges of e...

In this episode we discuss the potential for revolutionary art. After discussing the fifth episode from the final season of Atlanta, which takes aim at Tyler Perry, we ask whether there are resources to pose viable alternatives to the media and artistic products pumped out by the culture industry - the commercialization of creative production. Can we leave the culture industry? Where would we go?...

In this episode we discuss the idea of a guilty pleasure. What are we communicating when say something like: It's not good, but it's entertaining? By disavowing the good in what we find pleasurable (i.e., entertaining), are we implicitly recognizing some misalignment between goodness and pleasure? If so, does this misalignment tell us that something's gone wrong in our world of experience? And can...

In this Shooting the Shit episode--our first with Bethany!--we discuss Bethany's forthcoming interview at a university in Boston, Aaron's frustration with the competing demands between the dissertaiton and his job, our public philosophy project, overcoming the language of "laziness," adderall, and more. Finally, we roundout our episode with a discussion on humanism and a criticism of it as 'under...

In this episode we discuss the value of convenience. We talk about the way it operates in our capitalist form of social and economic life. Have the technological innovations that purportedly make our lives more convenient actually freed us up to pursue our creative interests? Or, do we use our many conveniences only to be more productive at our jobs? And what about the unequal distribution of conv...

In this episode Aaron and I chat about Just Stop Oil and the efficacy of radical activism. Can we sufficiently judge the impact of this movement while it is still nascent? Are such "extreme" acts of vandalism and civil disobedience/disruption potentially hurting the cause by losing the support of the moderate public?  If you like what you hear, find us on Patreon at patreon.com/therilkeanzoo for m...

In this epsiode we discuss the concept of panpsychism, which suggests that 'mind' is a ubiqutous feature of existence--that all things are in possession of mind or a mind-like quality. Is panpsychism guilty of an over-extended anthropomorphism? Does panpsychism facilitate an engagement with the world that is more enchanted, playful, and dialogic? Is there strategic import in this worldview for gen...

In this episode we talk about the body and its capacity to present as a work of art. We take the phenomenon of body modification as a launching point for thinking about embodiment as artistic expression. What happens, then, when the work of art and the artist are the same living being? What would it mean, then, for the work of art to have some sense of autonomy relative to its maker? Do we learn a...

The entire Rilkean Zoo crew is together under one roof! JP and I headed down to Bethany's home in Cincinnati last weekend for a friends reunion of sorts. In this episode we each ask other some searching questions about aging well, establishing relationships of trust, and exploring negative emotions. We also talk a bit about tattoos, fashion, and vocal harmony. This is a good one. (Although, your e...

In this episdoe we question the popularity of genetic tests like "23 and Me" and move into a discussion about the relationship between the quantification of ethnicity and identity. Do these tests impart meaningful information about who we are, or are they merely a starting point? From this, we move into a more general discussion on the value of science and the 'replication crisis.'  If you like wh...

In this episode we discuss the ideal of community. Activist talk about "fighting for the community"; corporations talk about "giving back to the community; public institutions talking about "serving communities"; organizations talk about the importance of "building community". Has "community" become a buzzword vacated of any substantive meaning? What values should be embodied in communal practices...

We didn't have a planned episode ready to go this week, but thankfully we've got some recordings in the stash. In a late night recording, JP and I returned to our familiar "3 questions" format to discuss moments of clarity, favorite baseball teams, and morning routines, among other things - all while drinking an inviting bottle of wine.  If you like what you hear, find us on Patreon at  patreon.co...

In this episode, we take up part II of our conversation on sex. JP is back with the crew, and we spend most of the episode engaging with his comments on part I. Much of the discussion turns on a debate about whether we can reliably assume that there are sexual skills and techniques that work well from person to person. Would it be presumptuous to think this? Further, we ask whether good sex - howe...

In this episode Bethany and Aaron discuss sex. What makes for good sex? Is there a general ethos regarding sex that we should take into our sexual encounters? What would that ethos be? Does internet porn (in particular) foster an undue sense of control over sexual arousal, leaving us less responsive to the uncertainties that come when engaging with another person? How might capitalist conditions h...

In this episode, Aaron and I discuss the value of silence as a means of respite from constant stimulation via music, podcasts, media, etc. Does this constant stream of noise serve to distract us from ourselves, and silence allows us to regain a sense of focus and awareness? Or can silence serve as its own type of distraction? Is silence essential to the utopic vision?  If you like what you hear, f...

Episode 100, baby! For this milestone of an episode, Aaron and I go on a walking journey across various neighboorhods in Chicago (Andersonville, Ravenswood, Wicker Park, and Ukranian Village) and chat along the way. Join us as we meander and discuss the significance of names, crashing parties, the voyeurism of estate sales, our first trip to Chicago together, and more. To all of our listeners and...