Escape From Plan A

In an experimental podcast episode, Teen talks with the large language model DeepSeek-V3.2 to talk about the transgression and the professional managerial class, and why our view of it may be completely inverted. What does transgression actually mean within the constraints of a culture at once obsessed with virtuous perfection, and unvarnished degeneracy? And what is the nature of the dissociated,...

Back from a 5 month world tour, Twitter moot Scott (@alreadydawn, born in Taipei, raised in SoCal) talks with Teen about his world city rankings. What makes a city great (Osaka) versus loathsome (ahem LA)? And what exactly constitutes a city even? See Scott's city rankings at: alreadydawn.substack.com Part 1 of 2 For Part 2 and access to bonus pods: patreon.com/planamag

Steve joints Teen from Hong Kong to catch upon buying Chinese EVs, the surreal political landscape of the US, and using real cameras again. Part 1 of 2 For access to bonus pods: patreon.com/planamag

Fred (@fredsoda on X) joins Teen to talk about starting out his career after just graduating from the famed HBS, and what life and work looks like at the beginning of the high arc track. What do these people actually want? What are they willing to do to get it? Part 1 of 2 For access to part 2: patreon.com/planamag

Two humanities professors -- Fred (poli sci) and Chong (literature) -- join Teen to discuss C.S. Lewis's "The Abolition of Man", a short book from 1943 that has found renewed currency in America in the wokeness debate and 'trad' values. Pt. 1 of 2 For Part 2 and all bonus episodes: patreon.com/planamag

Angelica Oung (https://taipology.substack.com/) talks with Teen about recent changes in Taiwanese political consciousness and its attitudes towards China vs. America. Also, Angelica talks about going to fancy private schools, and the great Chinese real estate develeraging.] Part 1 of 2 For access to Part 2 and all bonus episodes: patreon.com/planamag

John Pang joins Teen from Kuala Lumpur to catch up on world affairs, especially the growing importance of Southeast Asia and the way ASEAN is becoming the hub of a new world order. Part 1 of 2 For Part 2 and bonus episodes: patreon.com/planamag

Kyle returns to talk with Teen about getting ready to have the first child, and traveling to Korea to meet his birth parents and siblings for the very first time. Part 1 of 2 For access to bonus episodes: patreon.com/planamag

Q joins Teen from Tianjin, China to catch up briefly about the first few months of living in China, the hypocrisy of the West's human rights rhetoric for China vs Israel -- including the recent genocide denialism of Bret Stephens -- and an extended talk in the bonus about the potential dangers for Jewish people in the West presented by Israel's atrocities. Part 1 of 2 For access to bonus pods: pat...

Jess and Teen rail against modernity, a tendency it seems of the young and the old, but not of those stuck in the fat middle slog of life. The retreat of culture from physical real estate, the Hobbesian all-against-all ethic of the social media era, and how none of this is new, it's just getting worse. And an extended discussion in the bonus around pro-/anti-natalism against the backdrop of a soci...

Jess joins Teen to reflect on 8 years of friendship through working on Plan A, the endless treadmill of careerism, and how we all live in a Human Zoo. Made by and for humans. Part 1 of 2 For bonus episodes: patreon.com/planamag

Jess and Teen talk about a long running theme on this podcast: the trap of professional managerial class careerism, the cognitive traps built into it, and potential ways to get out of playing the squid game. Part 1 of 2 Bonus episodes: patreon.com/planamag

Shorter pod today where Teen gives his thoughts on why we aren't facing Iraq War Redux, and why liberals are engaging in mass self-deception as a form of covert therapy rather than an assertion of their (completely discredited) world view. Bonus pod this week is a discussion with Carl Zha about initial impressions of the US bombing of Iran, as well as how life is going on 6 years after abandoning...

Steve joins Teen from HK to talk about soft retirement plans. What if instead of working your ass off like a chimp until you earn the brass ring (FAKE), we just hit a target number and fade into 'maintenance' mode? Part 1 of 2 For access to Part 2 and bonus episodes: patreon.com/planamag

John Pang joins Teen to discuss the contrast between America's dark vision of tech leading us into a dystopain near-future, while Asia dreams of a tech utopia. And theories on why China is building data centers in space. Part 1 of 2. To get access to bonus episodes: patreon.com/planamag

Angelica Oung joins Teen from Taipei to talk about perfect bilingualism, wayward Taiwanese politics, and Noah Smith's weaboo fixations. Pt. 1 of 2 Bonus episodes: patreon.com/planamag

Shan and Teen talk about Evgenia Kovda's epic multi-day Twitter rant against stunted American adults who refuse to grow up, have children, and become 'tethered to life'. Do only parents experience the primal source of love? Can only parents be trusted to save the world? Why is the Pope an unmarried, childless bachelor? A married couple tackles these question. Pt. 1 of 2 For bonus episodes: patreon...

Q Anthony Ali joins Teen from Tianjin to talk about leaving Toronto, starting a new chapter in life in China, and the small things about adjusting to life in China. Pt 1 of 2 To access bonus pods: patreon.com/planamag

CS Taniguchi joins Teen to talk about trying to live your best life in an objectively bad era. Part 1 of 2 To get access to Part 2 and all bonus episodes: patreon.com/planamag

Trevor joins Jess and Teen to follow up on the discussion of Jewish American culture and its under-appreciated impact on American culture overall (see ep. 586). This time with a focus on the films 'Annie Hall' and 'Quiz Show' and how the Asian American experience echoes these earlier works, but in ways that don't often get expressed in Asian American culture. Pt 1 of 2 To get access to pt 2 and bo...

Mike joins Teen to break down last week's "Liberation Day" against the whole world, the stock market meltdown, and what kind of sense can be made of what seems to be economic seppuku by the United States. What does any of this shit mean? Part 1 of 2 To access bonus pods: patreon.com/planamag

Mike joins Teen to talk about figuring out an alternative to the career-family path, people just cracking under the pressure, and The White Lotus. Part 1 of 2. For access to bonus episodes: patreon.com/planamag

John Pang joins Teen to talk about Trump's escalating trade war with China, and why we in America may have grown complacent with China only playing defense i.e. responding in kind and proportion to American aggression. Is it possible that era of Chinese conservatism is over, and that we could see China taking the tempo of the fight and switching to offense? What could China do to us? See Teen's re...

Prof Fred Lee and Chong join Teen to talk about the state of higher education, why universities are bloated with administrators but short on full time professors and instructors, and the way college and grad/professional programs have become finishing schools to sell oneself into the corporate market. Part 1 of 2 To access Part 2 and all bonus episodes: patreon.com/planamag

Trevor from Champagne Sharks joins after a long hiatus to talk with Jess and Teen about 90s media culture, the context-lite stochastic New York City of primetime sitcoms, the exceptionalism of 'Seinfeld', and crypto-Jews. Part 1 of 2. To access Part 2 and all bonus episodes, become a supporter at patreon.com/planamag