The Problem with Reading

We turn to Mother Russia, the Revolution, and a certain Mr. Lenin for another view into High Modernism. Weightlifting Socialists, vanguards, and alternative Marxisms are all on the table. Separately, Stephen is a Doctor, ideas are special things, and we play out the episode with a special song. Have a listen!

The hands of High Modernism have left their mark on world, nowhere more dramatically than on the form of the City. Le Corbusier, architect and supervillain, contends with Jane Jacobs, New York Lover and sidewalk-er. How many cubic meters of air does a person needs? How much empty pavement can put down? Is 18 lanes enough for the main street? All these questions and more, answered. Also, everyone is ill, or soon to be.

Is your Last Name a government conspiracy? Is 2xPi overrated? Is illegibility of local conditions and terrain a protection against state control? The answer to all these questions is “Yes.”

German Scientific Forestry goes horribly wrong! Cadastral mapping allow for state exploitation of otherwise illegible localities! Appearance of order does not imply efficiency! Also, Sam breaks his toe, Brevin enjoys Shamrock Shakes, and Stephen is an Engineer™.

In which we begin our new book: "Seeing Like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed" by James C. Scott. High Modernism, maps, peasant anthropology, utopian schemes, evil architects...this book has it all, and we're excited for the journey.

As we delve deeper into winter, it’s worth one last quick look back at the year past. For your consideration, The Problem with Reading presents the eight best articles of 2024 as chosen by elite and erudite past podcast guests. From Monks to Mathematically-Challenged Medicalists, from Gym Rats to Gambling Addicts, from Anti-culture to Architecture—we have the best of 2024 all in one place, and from the best people. Have a listen! ~Inside the Dangerous, Secretive World of Extreme Fishing: theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2024/10/extreme-fishing-montauk-wetsuiting-striped-bass/679574/ ~"[Don't] Call Me Daddy": Manosphere influencers are not your father: cracksinpomo.substack.com/p/dont-call-me-daddy-manosphere-influencers ~The Last Rave: newyorker.com/magazine/2024/07/08/a-pandemic-breakup ~'I literally can't stop.' The descent of a modern sports fan: nytimes.com/athletic/5777632/2024/10/14/sports-betting-addiction-problem-fans/ ~Apparently, Calculus Was Invented In 1994: forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2011/11/10/apparently-calculus-was-invented-in-1994/ ~Literature, Culture and the Western Soul: stmichaelschool.us/forming ~Cities for Humans: firstthings.com/cities-for-humans/ ~The Carthusians of Vermont: firstthings.com/the-carthusians-of-vermont/

**Dear Listener, if you listened to our Propagandistic escapades, or even just one or two episodes, we'd love to hear your questions, hot takes, and objections. Submit questions, written or audio, to "The Problem with Reading Podcast" Facebook page, and we'll endeavor to answer them in a future episode!** In this packed episode, we close out our journey through Jacques Ellul's "Propaganda" with all the top takeaways you need to know. Can we beat propaganda? How should we think about advertising and social media? Did the Unabomber have a point? These answers and more!

The quest for peasant illiteracy has finally led to the belly of the beast: the Publishing Industry. And literary agent Ellen is the perfect intrepid insider to explain its nuances and absurdities, explicate Booktok, and also talk down the boys from getting book burnings going again. At the end, everyone pitches their novel ideas. Have a listen!

We finally reach the fifth and final chapter of Jacques Ellul's Propaganda: The Socio-Political Effects. In a world where ideology itself is subject to propagandistic forces, do ideas like democracy and freedom mean anything? Can religion use propagandistic techniques and escape unscathed? The answers will depress you! Have a listen!

Propaganda does psychological damage, no matter what side it comes from. In Chapter 4: "Psychological Effects of Propaganda" Jacques Ellul lays out the alienation, crystallization, and ambiguous demoralization of propaganda. The hosts wrestle with the seeming similarities between religion and psychological techniques, the need to commit oneself to something bigger than yourself, and how to get out of this puzzle. Also--earthquakes make the internet work as intended (temporarily), sticky floors, and totality. Have a listen!