Bungacast

The fifth and final part of a series on generational consciousness and conflict. In this episode, we examine the Millennials and Generation Z. Uniquely, generation war today seems to be a conflict over resources more than over values. Is there any basis for this, and what do Millennials actually want? With generational and class conflict seemingly bound together today, we analyse 'Generation Left'...

The fourth in a special five-part series on generational consciousness and conflict. In this episode, we examine Generation X – the generation of the End of History. How was this generation overshadowed by the Boomer's failures? In the Eastern Bloc, the fall of Soviet regimes was a traumatic moment – how did this shape consciousness? And how did the Iranian Revolution – and subsequent war – shape...

The third in a special five-part series on generational consciousness and conflict.   In this episode, we examine the Baby Boomers – myth and reality. The revolt of the '60s has been misunderstood in many dimensions. Was it betrayed or did it always express capitalist ideology? Were the Boomers the ones who really did the 1960s anyway? And what world have the Boomers created as they passed through...

The second in a special five-part series on generational consciousness and conflict. In this episode, we look at the emergence of 'youth' as political concept in the age following the French Revolution, and its shifting meanings. How important was generational consciousness in the Young Italy movement and its imitators in the 19th century, and how should we understand the so-called 'Lost Generatio...

The first in a special five-part series on generational consciousness and conflict. In this episode, we look at the current, vexed discourse around generations, and analyse competing theories on how to understand generational cleavages. Guests include: Felix Krawatzek, political scientist at the Centre for East European and International Studies in Berlin Jennie Bristow, sociologist at Canterbury...

On disruption, disturbance, decline, decay. We continue our attempt to conceptualise the present moment by looking at Silicon Valley-style disruption, geopolitical disturbances and 'polycrisis', and decline & decay along two axes: normative vs descriptive, and geopolitical and universal. Then we deal with your questions and comments over the past month on: religious authority; Russia, imperial...

[Bungacast is on holiday, so we're unlocking/re-releasing a July 2021 episode that was previously only available to higher-tier subscribers] We discuss Michael Lind's The New Class War . Lind identifies new lines in the class war, between working class and managerial overclass, between those in the "heartlands" and those in the "hubs". How convincing is this account? What is his critique of techno...

On The National Interest. Aufhebunga Bunga co-founder and contributing editor Phil Cunliffe joins us to talk about his new book about politics after the age of globalisation. We ask questions about his book – and then put him on trial for wrongthink. SUBSCRIBE: PATREON.COM/BUNGACAST Who is the 'national interest' good for? Is it a domestic or a foreign policy concern? Why did the 'national interes...

On image-enhancing drugs. Jason Myles of This Is Revolution is back on, talking to George and Alex H about his article in Damage on increasing steroid use. What does the discourse around 'fake natties' tell us about authenticity? Do SSRIs provide "fake happy"? If steroids are a short-cut, how do we understand the "work" in "working out"? Is the taboo on drug use completely gone? Are we medicating...

On Franz Jakubowski's Ideology and Superstructure in Historical Materialism. We focus on a very short section from Jakubowski's 1936 book, and delve into wider questions regarding ideology, social totality, and the middle classes. Is ideology “false, partial consciousness”? Is Jakubowski right that capitalism is the least ideological social form so far? Is it true that the middle classes only come...

On resistance and reform in southeast Asia. Historian Sean Fear talks to Alex H and Lee Jones about Vietnam on the 50-year anniversary since the end of the war. How is Vietnamese identity wrapped up with the notion of resistance? Is Chinese influence as great as resistance to China? How is the ‘American War’ thought about in Vietnam today? How similar is Vietnam to China: defying Fukuyama’s thesis...

On the end of the end of history and what comes next. Phil is back on the pod, talking with George and Alex about the big themes of the podcast. In particular, we look at a recent essay in Foreign Policy by historian Christopher Clarke called "The End of Modernity". To what extent was the 1989 moment as significant in Beijing as Berlin? Is Trump actually Stalin (but in a good way)? Is Russia the r...

On the "return of religion" in Britain. [ Patreon Exclusive ] Journalist Lamorna Ash talks to George and Alex about how and why young people might be turning to religion today. Have things moved on from the New Atheists and their critique of religion? What are the divides in Christianity today? How do culture wars over sexuality play out? Why do ritual, quiet, and the 'new monasticism’ hold appeal...

On Arno Mayer's "The Lower Middle Class as Historical Problem". We kick off the third block of the 2024/25 Reading Club, which is dedicated to the question of the middle class: The abatement of class struggle between workers and owners has shone a light on the role of the middle classes. Beyond the resurgence of the debate around the much-maligned professional-managerial class (PMC), what is the t...

We celebrate 500 episodes of Aufhebunga Bunga with a cold, hard look at the decay around us. Alex and George plus contributing editors Lee Jones and Alex Gourevitch wrangle with four principal questions: What does it mean to say our era is one of decay or decline? How does this relate to the non-death of neoliberalism – its intellectual destitution, its practical weakening, but also its mutation a...

On shame, guilt and responsibility. Taylor Hines, an editor at Damage magazine, talks to George and Alex about his essay "Fool Me Twice" in Issue 4 of the magazine, which deals with the theme Responsibility. Remember, subscribers to Bungacast get a complimentary online subscription to Damage! We discuss: Why is Robert Eggers' Nosferatu about shame? What about the Rape of Lucretia? What can Frédéri...

On Iran and its Axis of Resistance. Historian Eskandar Sadeghi-Boroujerdi talks to Alex about the leadup and aftermath of the so-called "12-Day War between Iran and Israel and the US. Hamas and Hezbollah have been humbled, Assad is gone from Syria – how weakened is Iran? Did the 12-Day War actually happen? What prevented it becoming a wider war? What is the meaning of Israel's maximalist aims of r...

On technology, transhumanism, and progress. James Hughes (Exec Director, Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies) and Eli Sennesh (postdoc, Vanderbilt) present a futurist approach to Alex and contributing editor Leigh Phillips. What is wrong with the acronym TESCREAL? Why is it wrong to worry about future transhumanism when we need to grapple with the technologies of now? What are the limit...

On the war on Iran that wasn't (yet). Alex and George review the past month in the world and on Bungacast: The crazy will-they-won't-they of a potential US war on Iran The ex post facto justifications on all sides Where does "sanewashing" come from Ways to understand and not understand US political polarisation And we deal with your questions and comments from the past month: Woke Dungeons and Dra...

On land conflicts, MAGA , and the frontier. Journalist James Pogue talks to George and Alex about his book Chosen Country: A Rebellion in the West . The book concerns the events surrounding the 2016 armed occupation of the Oregon Malheur National Wildlife Refuge led by the rancher Ammon Bundy. We discuss: Why were these 2016 events so important and so telling? Is the Jacksonian concept of America...

On the dual crisis of the world. Wolfgang Streeck, renowned economic sociologist, is back on to talk to us about the crisis of capitalist growth and of democracy. We focus on the solutions proposed in his brilliant new book, Taking Back Control? States and State Systems After Globalism. Then, Lee and Alex discuss three key themes emerging from the interview: federalism and small states; the nation...

On the right to protest. [For the full episode, subscribe at patreon.com/bungacast ] Contributing editor Alex Gourevitch talks to Alex H and George about restrictions on speech and protest at US universities and beyond – particularly with regard to Palestine solidarity demonstrations. How have uni administrators not just undermined by seemingly attacked the right to protest? Why is Trump going aft...

On Poland's election, its history, its self-conception. Philosopher Maciej Szlinder joins us to talk about Polish politics, society and history. Maciej is a member of the general council of the left-wing political party Razem ("Together"), as well as the president of the Polish Basic Income Network, so we discuss these matters as well as the general context. How did Poland represent a beacon of ne...

On the former Yugoslavia and the ethnography of anti-nationalists. [For the full episode, subscribe: patreon.com/bungacast ] [Reading Club LIVE: Sat 14 June, 9am LA, 12am NY, 5pm London, 6pm Berlin] In the third installment of this block on inter/nationalism in the 21st century, we take a look at the other side of nationalism, through scholar Stefaan Jansen's “Anti-nationalism: Post-Yugoslav Resis...

On the end of the (very) long 1960s. [For the full episode, subscribe at patreon.com/bungacast ] Contributing Editor Lee Jones joins Alex and George to talk through the themes and stories of the month, including MAGA's war on universities, right-populists in power, and culture war. Plus we deal with your questions and comments on: lawfare, video games, and the 'new class'. What is TACO (Trump Alwa...