Crock of Schmitt

Nov 19, 2025

A brisk dive into the life and ideas of Carl Schmitt, from his theory of sovereignty and the decisive exception to his Roman-inspired notion of dictatorship. The conversation traces how those concepts shaped emergency powers, friend-versus-enemy politics, and spatial arguments like Großraum. The episode also maps Schmitt’s accommodation to Nazism and why his thought still matters for contemporary political strategy.

01:24:42

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INSIGHT

Sovereignty Revealed In The State Of Exception

Carl Schmitt locates the core problem of Weimar politics in who holds ultimate sovereignty when legal norms break down.
He argues emergencies expose a free-floating moment of judgment that positive law cannot mechanistically resolve, requiring a sovereign decision.

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INSIGHT

Two Types Of Dictatorship And The Threat Of Conversion

Schmitt distinguishes commissarial dictatorship, a temporary remedy to restore the status quo, from sovereign dictatorship, which posits new law in the name of the people.
He fears commissarial power could be converted into lasting sovereign power, making the people a permanent threat.

insights

INSIGHT

Politics Is The Friend Enemy Distinction

Schmitt defines the political through the friend–enemy distinction as the irreducible criterion of political intensity.
He ties politics intrinsically to the possibility of existential combat and war as its extreme expression.

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Who was Carl Schmitt?

08:31 • 2min

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Sovereignty and the Weimar problem

10:22 • 3min

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Positive law vs. the judge's decision

13:31 • 3min

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The Roman dictator as legal tool

16:51 • 3min

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Commissarial vs. sovereign dictatorship

19:39 • 2min

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The threat of proletarian sovereignty

21:53 • 3min

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Political Theology: secularized theology

25:16 • 3min

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The exception as miracle and sovereign power

28:24 • 3min

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Sovereignty revealed by emergency

31:08 • 2min

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Politics versus technocratic positivism

33:10 • 6min

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The concept of the political: friend and enemy

39:00 • 9min

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War, enmity, and political intensity

48:26 • 4min

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Putting Schmitt's ideas together

52:28 • 1min

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From theory to 1933: Article 48

53:31 • 4min

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Hitler's seizure of emergency powers

57:15 • 5min

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Schmitt's accommodation and Nazi writings

01:02:05 • 4min

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Großraum, Lebensraum, and spatial politics

01:06:33 • 3min

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Schmitt at Nuremberg and postwar stance

01:09:07 • 2min

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Why Schmitt matters today

01:10:45 • 5min

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Using Schmitt as a tactical mirror

The Nomos of the Earth in the International Law of Jus Publicum Europaeum

Carl Schmitt

In 'The Nomos of the Earth' Carl Schmitt examines the historical foundations of international law and territorial ordering, proposing that land appropriation and spatial arrangements constitute the nomos underpinning global political orders. He develops the Großraum (great space) concept to describe spheres of influence and how powers legitimize authority beyond borders. The book traces European jus publicum to land-based legal orders and critiques universalist liberal internationalism. Published after World War II, it reflects Schmitt's geopolitical thinking and continues to be studied for its influence on theories of sovereignty, territory, and imperial legal structures.

#19962

• Mentioned in 3 episodes

Carl Schmitt's "On Dictatorship" delves into the concept of executive power during exceptional circumstances. Schmitt argues that in times of crisis, a sovereign may need to assume dictatorial powers to preserve the state. This work is controversial due to its potential justification of authoritarian rule. The essay explores the historical context of dictatorship, examining various forms and their implications. It remains a significant text in political theory, sparking ongoing debate about the limits of executive power and the nature of emergency governance.

• Mentioned in 12 episodes

Political Theology

A Guide for the Perplexed

Elizabeth Phillips

This book is a comprehensive introduction to political theology, divided into two parts. Part One, 'Defining Political Theology,' discusses the emergence and various approaches to political theology, including historical markers and classifications of different types of political theology. Part Two, 'Issues in Political Theology,' explores historically enduring and contemporarily pressing issues such as the church and the political, the politics of Jesus, violence and peace, and liberation theologies. The book provides a clear map of the terrain of political theology, engaging with key figures and movements in both historical and contemporary contexts.

#1514

• Mentioned in 27 episodes

The Human Condition

Hannah Arendt

In 'The Human Condition,' Hannah Arendt provides a comprehensive account of how human activities have been understood throughout Western history. She contrasts the 'vita activa' (active life) with the 'vita contemplativa' (contemplative life) and identifies three primary human activities: labor, work, and action. Arendt discusses how these activities have evolved and been affected by changes in Western history, emphasizing the importance of action in disclosing human identity and creating a 'space of appearances' through speech and deeds. The book addresses issues such as diminishing human agency, political freedom, and the paradox of increased human powers without corresponding control over their consequences.

#3395

• Mentioned in 14 episodes

The concept of the political

Carl Schmitt

#33365

• Mentioned in 2 episodes

Homo sacer

Sovereign Power and Bare Life

Giorgio Agamben

In 'Homo Sacer: Sovereign Power and Bare Life,' Giorgio Agamben delves into the concept of sovereignty and its intrinsic connection to the idea of 'bare life. ' He argues that from the earliest treatises of political theory, notably in Aristotle's notion of man as a political animal, a notion of sovereignty as power over 'life' is implicit. Agamben draws upon Foucault's analysis of biopolitics and Carl Schmitt's idea of the sovereign's status as the exception to the rules he safeguards. He defines the 'sacred person' as one who can be killed and yet not sacrificed, a paradox that is operative in the status of the modern individual living in a system that exerts control over the collective 'naked life' of all individuals. The book examines how the sacred and the taboo are interlinked with sovereignty, and how this relationship shapes modern politics and the individual's place within society.

Come join us, won’t you, for a deep dive into one of the twentieth century’s biggest assholes. Say hello to Carl Schmitt: Jurist, legal scholar, political philosopher… Nazi? Look: We’re only showing you him so you know how to get away from him.

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A Scam Goldin Production

Our theme song is Dream Weapon by Genghis Tron
Artwork is provided courtesy of KT Kobel

Sources:

Gopal Balakrishan – The Enemy: An Intellectual Portrait of Carl Schmitt

Angus Brown – ‘The Left Should Have Nothing to Do with Carl Schmitt’, Jacobin

Stuart Elden – ‘Reading Schmitt Geopolitically: Nomos, territory and Großraum’, Radical Philosophy

Carl Schmitt – Dictatorship

Carl Schmitt – The Concept of the Political

Carl Schmitt – The Nomos of the Earth in the International Law of Jus Publicum Europaeum

Carl Schmitt – Political Theology

(Image: Carl Schmitt’s grave in Plettenberg, Germany. The Greek inscription reads, “KAI NOMON EGNŌ” / “And I Know the Law”)

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