The Ricochet Podcast

Ok. We lied. We swore that we we're going to take this week off. But we're not. So just like Janus, the two-faced God of Duality, we're here to kick down the door of the New Year and not be content with bidding farewell to just 2023, but a whole century worth of old years. James Lileks is your guide as we dance through a hundred years of New Years and then he takes your questions while heading int...

We end our podcasting year with a special edition of the Ricochet Podcast as James Lileks takes you through the Christmas memory book. So gather 'round the hearth and revel in our gift to you. Merry Christmas and we'll see you in the New Year. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-ricochet-podcast--5817275/support .

The tippi-toppers of higher ed are out of breath—they've run themselves into nonsensicle circles. But today's guest Glenn Loury is breathing easy. He, Peter and Rob discuss the Ivy League, Claudine Gay and the advancement of Black Americans, both due to and in lieu of Affirmative Action. Stay tuned to the end for Rob Long's 100% guranteed, "Impress Anybody on Planet Earth: Extra Special Eggnog" re...

Once upon a time Americans could reliably count on reporters to follow the money to stay up on what the world's powerful players were up to. If you've ever despaired that those days are gone forever, we want to provide a bit of hope by introducing Seamus Bruner . We cover his new book Controligarchs . To be sure, the story is quite disconcerting, but the young Mr. Bruner is optimistic that we can...

Henry Kissinger is gone after a century on Planet Earth. The most influential diplomat of the last fifty years, he's never been short of fierce criticisms from both the left and right. The great war historian Victor Davis Hanson returns to the Ricochet Podcast to give a careful review of the controversial emissary. Plus Lileks, Robinson and Long are reunited after a couple weeks to evaluate Thursd...

Perhaps you're failing to vibe with Bin Laden and thus feeling a bit behind the times. Then again, you could be a sane person with a moral compass. James, Charles and Steve cover this and more with Noah Rothman , author of The Rise of the New Puritans: Fighting Back Against Progressives' War on Fun . Aside from his anti-Osama stance, Noah takes us through the relevant considerations about America'...

We've made it to number 666! Unfortunately among the three of them James, Steve Hayward and Charles Cooke haven't a single sinister plan to reveal. They do however have lots to say about Wednesday's debate; progressive love for Hamas and what it means for the intersectionality coalition; and they wonder why there are no DACA protections for beloved pandas! Become a supporter of this podcast: https...

The fight for our civilization is here, and today's guest is no stranger to the fray. Christopher Rufo is a member of the New College of Florida board and the mastermind of a number of projects devoted to winning the culture war. He's the author of the new bestseller America's Cultural Revolution: How the Radical Left Conquered Everything , which covers why the right's been on the losing side, and...

Even a pessimist would have reason experience surprise and consternation by the extent of our institutional crises. It's revealed that American students know nothing of the history of the Holocaust and the story of the Jewish people in its aftermath. We've seen our government progressively possessed by the whims of influencer representatives. Even today's guest Yuval Levin , who's painstakingly do...

Nice as it would be to turn away, the Ricochet Podcast follows up on the chaos covered last week with a new pair of guests. David P Goldman joins for the first time to o lay out China’s long term strategy to build global markets, the edge it's gaining in the tech sector, the risks of its real estate bubble and the types of opportunity it may look for from the war in Middle East. Then Annika Rothst...

That war in the Middle East had been predicted did little to allay the shock of all who’ve followed the news from Israel since October 7th. Today's first guest Niall Ferguson was among those who made such a prediction. He joins to discuss the Second Cold War, why it's warming up, and the difficulties the US will face if the temperature continues to rise. And Eli Lake joins to expound upon a shift...

It was no great secret that a single match could put fire to the 2023 Republican coalition in the House. But that didn't make the incediary Tuesday any less remarkable. To discuss what it means for the party's near future and for conservativism more broadly, Rob, Peter and James are joined by the erudite Ben Domenech . And considering that the happiest news of the week is Biden's DHS being forced...

Citizens of Philadelphia are the latest victims of "wilding nights," watching helplessly as chortling teens smash storefronts and ransack the goods inside. These aren't unheard of events, but they're becoming more frequent. To sort out the ideologies and policies that got our cities conditioned to this, and the hard work it'll take to get us back in shape, Manhattan Institute's Rafael Mangual — au...

In a world gone mad, there's something comforting about turning attention to crazier days that somebody else had to suffer through. TikTok informs us that the boys are thinking an awful lot about Rome, we grownups are joined by Hillsdale College's Paul Rahe to learn about proxy war, ancient and modern. He helps Peter, James and Rob connect the dots between Sparta's success in bleeding the Athenian...

As the lines that used to distinguish the political and legal are blurring, and the sense that the country is swirling down the drain, it's nice to at least have good company. Rob and Peter chat with Andy McCarthy to discuss the 'impeachment inquiry' into the Biden Family's influence peddling and the administration's apparent obstruction. And if you're in need of a good cheering up, you can hear a...

The boys are back! That's right: you can hear Peter, Rob and James on the same podcast. They consider Eric Adam's unwitting vindication of the migrant-to-sanctuary city assistance program, along with the precipitous decline of Hollywood's major studios. And Barton Swaim visits to expand on his Wall Street Journal column where he applies the left's favorite terms of the Trump era to the president o...

There's post-debate analysis, and then there's post-debate analysis with Henry Olsen . Henry talents with numbers and genius for the politcal metaphor will make you rethink Wednesday's showdown in Milwaukee. Henry takes us through the snap polls, considers the candidates' new prospects, and posits a game changer (or two) that the casual debate watcher may have overlooked. (And once you've enjoyed...

We've got a crossover episode, folks! Our friends of the Three Whiskey Happy Hour podcast (Steve Hayward, "Lucretia" and John Yoo) join to talk about the wacky legal matters of our time. There are environmentalists claiming the positive right to enjoy cooperative weather; they discuss the plush and cozy Hunter Biden tier of criminal justice compared to the briar patch tier that The Donald's living...

We're erring on the side of positive expecttions again this week with Bjørn Lomborg . His new book is Best Things First where he sets his sights on cost effective, acheivable goals that will lift the world's poorest out of miserable conditions and inch us along in the direction towards those sustainable goals we hear so much about. The billions of dollars question: Are the world's prosperous ready...

Another week, another indictment. Another president, another scandal. So we call on the house prosecutor, Andy McCarthy, to weigh the evidence before us and join Messrs. Lileks, Long and Cooke as they debate the merits of the cases against both Trump and Biden and see where we think we stand. But more importantly, James has thoughts on the cultural event of the decade. Yes, he has seen Barbie. You...

We have a lot for you this week! Covering everything from atoms to commodities and precivilization to our indictmentpalooza. James, Rob and Steve discuss the latest from Mar-a-Lago; Hunter's crumbled plea deal; and the disengenous reaction to Florida's African American History curriculum. They enjoy some good news with guest Marian Tupy, whose latest book Superabundance reminds us of mankind's sti...

The days of Carter era malaise were bad, bad, bad. But at least the man had the decency to speak honestly about the nation's troubles. Joe Biden on the other hand insists on telling us that everything's great. We discuss this along with the frowny faced Republicans who hope to challenge him and the proscpects for an American rebound with Kim Strassel , author of the just-released The Biden Malaise...

Scary times could be just around the corner. To help you prepare for that we've invited our old friend Carol Roth to stop by and talk about her new book, You Will Own Nothing... because you don't have to be a parnoid prepper to be prepared for what's coming. And, of course, James Lileks, Rob Long and Steve Hayward (sitting in again for the roaming Peter Robinson) cover the more immediate news comi...

It seems Democrats are confident that racial preferences are the only way for Black Americans to succeed. Our all-American guest Ian Rowe disagrees. Why's he so sure? Because he's sees acheivement everyday in his charter schools in the Bronx . He covers why the left's prescriptions to equality is wrongheaded and harmful, along with why his are working. Rob, James and Steve (filling in for the hook...

Conservatives are set to celebrate another year of invigorating Supreme Court decisions. Ricochet's old pal John Yoo even goes so far as to suggest that we can finally get back to business. He and the gang go through the big ones of this session: Race-based affirmative action, religious freedom for both practice thereof and freedom of speech; then on to gerrymandering and more. The boys also discu...