

The Regrettable Century
Chris, Jason, Kevin, Ben
The old forms of the Left are moribund and the new forms are stupid. We're making a podcast that discusses the need to organize a Dialectical Pessimism and develop a salvage project capable of sparking a new workers' movement for socialism.
A clean, honest, and unsentimental melancholy is required; we are cultivating one and would like to share it with you.
Check us out on Patreon for regular Patron Book Clubs, Regrettable Geopolitics updates, Real Nerd Hours, and more...
Visit The Regrettable Century Merch Shop
A clean, honest, and unsentimental melancholy is required; we are cultivating one and would like to share it with you.
Check us out on Patreon for regular Patron Book Clubs, Regrettable Geopolitics updates, Real Nerd Hours, and more...
Visit The Regrettable Century Merch Shop
Episodes
Mentioned books

Feb 6, 2026 • 18min
Patreon Preview -- Boundless and Bottomless Seas: Dugin's 4th Political Theory (Part XI)
The boys are back and are nearing the end of the book. Chapters 11 and 12 are where Dugin's animating principle of "Dasein" comes into conflict with his understanding of global geopolitics and the project of "Fourth Political Praxis."
Work Cited: Dugin, Alexander (2012). The Fourth Political Theory. Translated by Sleboda, Mark; Millerman, Michael. Arktos Media.
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4 snips
Feb 3, 2026 • 1h 22min
Pessimism is an Optimism: A Return to Dialectical Pessimism (REDUX)
This is a repost of an episode from 2003, but with an added leadoff that we recorded recently.
This episode discusses a topic that bears constant revisiting: our pessimism (because of intellect) and our optimism (because of will). No, it's not just a doomer affectation that we can use to sound as cool as we look; it's a critical method of engaging with the bleak reality that faces us.
The only way out is through, but getting through is possible.
Revolutionary Pessimism: The Worst is Yet to Come
https://www.christiansocialism.com/2020/05/12/covid-peter-fleming-revolutionary-pessimism-capitalism/
Pessimism of the Will
https://viewpointmag.com/2020/05/28/pessimism-of-the-will/
CRITICAL PESSIMISM AND THE LIMITS OF TRADITIONAL MARXISM
https://www.jstor.org/stable/657342
For A Refresher:
The Proper Amount of Bumming People Out: Pessimisms and Optimisms of Intellect and Will
https://regrettablecentury.podbean.com/e/the-proper-amount-of-bumming-people-out-pessimisms-and-optimisms-of-intellect-and-will/
Scattered Thoughts on Melancholia and the Organization of Pessimism
https://regrettablecentury.podbean.com/e/scattered-thoughts-on-melancholia-and-the-organization-of-pessimism/
Pessimism of the Intellect, Pessimism of the Will
https://regrettablecentury.podbean.com/e/pessimism-of-the-intellect-pessimism-of-the-will/https://regrettablecentury.buzzsprout.com/220523/889740-pessimism-of-the-intellect-pessimism-of-the-will
Music- Англия - Сказочный мир

Jan 27, 2026 • 1h 10min
Half a Revolution: The Pink Tide and 21st Century Socialism
This week, we get together to talk through a sort of brief overview of the era of the Pink Tide in Latin America and try to draw out some of the lessons and implications for the future of Socialism for the 21st Century...
What Happened to the Pink Tide? https://jacobin.com/2016/07/pink-tide-latin-america-chavez-morales-capitalism-socialism/
The Rise and Fall of the Latin American Left https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/the-ebb-and-flow-of-latin-americas-pink-tide/
What Is Socialism for the Twenty-First Century? https://monthlyreview.org/2016/10/01/what-is-socialism-for-the-twenty-first-century/
21st Century Socialism: What It Will Become and Why? https://ibw21.org/commentary/21st-century-socialism-what-it-will-become-and-why/
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Jan 25, 2026 • 17min
Patron Preview: Patron Q&A IV
Here it is comrades, the long-awaited fourth patron Q&A. We answer questions about America's humiliation, Chinese communism, AI in schools, and our favorite revolutionary books and/or pamphlets.
This is only half the questions we received this time, the second half will be posted in Patron Q&A V next week...
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Jan 21, 2026 • 16min
PATREON PREVIEW -- Regrettable Geopolitics 01/20/2026
The Iran Regime Change that Wasn't, Canada and China are Pals Now, Greenland Idiocy, Ukraine's Mass Desertion Crisis, Ukraine's Corruption Crisis, Ukraine's Fiscal Crisis, Ukraine's Fortification Crisis, Ukraine's Losing the War Crisis...
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Jan 20, 2026 • 1h 33min
From Dawn to Decadence, REDUX: The Boys are Back in Town (Part V) With Varn Vlog
Once again, the boys are back... again. We return to our long-neglected "Decadence Theory" project with Varn Vlog. This week, the boys try to get back in the swing of things with a reorientation episode.
Varn Vlog
https://www.patreon.com/c/varnvlog/posts
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Jan 14, 2026 • 1h 39min
The Left Needs a Utopian Vision (Part II of II)
This week, we finally finish off the a close reading of The Concept of Left by Leszek Kolakowski.
Kolakowski was a dissident Polish Marxist who later turned against the project altogether. However, before he did, he wrote much that is worth reading.
The Concept of the Left- Leszek Kolakowski
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Jan 7, 2026 • 16min
PATREON PREVIEW: Regrettable Geopolitics 01/06/2026
The Venezuelan Regime Change that Wasn't, Oil Companies don't Want Venezuelan Oil, Machado Sidelined by Trump, Israeli False Flags, Israel Persecutes Christians, AIPAC Goes Underground, The CIA's Role in the Ukraine War, Ukraine War Summary 2025...
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Dec 30, 2025 • 1h 43min
On Care For Our Common Home: Laudato Si and Christian Anti-Capitalism (Part IV)
This week, the Regrettable Christian Caucus finishes Chapter II of Laudato Si' by the late Pope Francis. You can follow along by grabbing the PDF from Verso or from the Vatican website.
This Papal Encyclical calls for urgent action to address the global environmental crisis, critiques consumerism, blind developmentalism, inequality, and profit seeking. The document calls for global political solidarity to transition to a sustainable economy and for the protection of the world's most vulnerable populations.
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Dec 22, 2025 • 16min
PATREON PREVIEW: Regrettable Geopolitics 12/20/2025
Well, here is a release that is back on our old schedule, but we won't be on this schedule for long. In fact, this is our last geopolitics episode of the year. We will resume in the New Year on a bi-weekly schedule.
Trump's Acts of Piracy, Genocide in Darfur, Officer Exodus from the IDF, Europe Hopes to Prolong Ukraine War, More Russian Gains and Ukrainian Losses...
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