The Culture We Deserve

We are apparently so nostalgic for the Obama years that we are happy to forget whatever lessons we may have learned in the last eight years. New York Magazine declared Obamacore the time of Broad City, Hamilton, and Bad Feminist (like these were good things) -- ignoring what he truly gave us, which is Silicon Valley disruption overlords, girlbosses, and Hamilton (as a bad thing). Plus: Robin DiAngelo plagiarism scandal and the end of the woke/anti-woke grifter. For show notes and references: http://theculturewedeserve.substack.com

In Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, when a scrappy crew of kids tries to save America to get the truth out about a corrupt businessman, the businessman swarms the state with pamphlets, newspapers, parades, radio broadcasts to maintain his power. Controlling the narrative sometimes just means out-talking your opponent, and many of our most pernicious new media stars just overproduced content until they rose to the top: Twitch streaming leftists, podcast bros, Mr. Beast endurance videos. Now we have the IDF livestreaming war crimes and bots out-posting the victims of a celebrity's sexual assaults to take over search results. Nico and Jessa discuss the culture of chronic posting and asks where is the CIA when you need them? For show notes and references: http://theculturewedeserve.substack.com

Just a small town guy, beloved by children, sent to Washington to do the right thing -- is Tim Walz our chance to live in a Frank Capra film? Jessa and Nico watch Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and read Nancy Pelosi's new memoir to talk about the two archetypes of American public service, the aw shucks good guy versus the professional power player. But after Obama and the bailouts of the big banks, is it even possible to have hope anymore? Show notes and references: http://theculturewedeserve.substack.com

If your idea of a woman is small, frail, vulnerable, and weak, how do you look at women in sports? Well, by assuming that every woman who is strong, competitive, and accomplished might secretly be a man. Some people decided to spend the week Transvestigating athletes instead of any other thing in the world they could be doing. Jessa and Nico talk about women in sports, Michele Kang's comment that women athletes are treated like they are "small men," the downside of professionalizing sports, and the first fight event with men competing directly against women, the Craig Jones Invitational. For show notes and references: http://theculturewedeserve.substack.com

There's trouble in the tradwife multi-verse, restarting the convo about whether tradwives are Nazi bait or helpless babies who need saving from their own marriages. Also: are the Democrats running Kamala Harris as a candidate or as the symbol of womanhood crushing the patriarchy? That didn't exactly work for Hillary Clinton, but Harris has less baggage. From cat ladies to tradwives to white women for Kamala, we look at how our archetypes of womanhood have changed from 2016, and what that means for the future of politics.

How did a guy with as little charisma and charm as JD Vance end up as Donald Trump's running mate? Because of his authenticity. He symbolizes the American Dream -- the dream to transcend where you come from and then destroy everyone who disappointed you along the way. As one of the only real bootstrap men remaining, he is a potent symbol that is useful for both the right and the left. Jessa and Nico discuss his journey, from liberal media darling to populist puppet, and how authenticity gets weaponized in a time of great inequality. This week's sponsor: http://betterhelp.com/culturewedeserve For shownotes and resources: http://theculturewedeserve.substack.com

Congratulations to all the TikTok astrology girls, you were right about someone trying to shoot the former president mid-July. Please enjoy life under government surveillance. There's a slogan from the American Evangelical community, God Doesn't Call the Qualified, He Qualifies the Called. It's used to justify everything from sending teens off to do missionary work in countries they know nothing about to supporting a presidential candidate like Trump. Nico and Jessa wonder whether this has moved from being an Evangelical slogan to an American mindset. And what has truly changed since 2016? This week's sponsor: http://betterhelp.com/culturewedeserve For shownotes and references: http://theculturewedeserve.substack.com

The elites are feeling weird again. Biden blames the Elites for pushing him to retirement, Marine le Pen and other populists are claiming to protect the little people against the Elites, the New York Times keeps hiring Harvard Men to write op-eds about how the Elites have failed us.... Everyone wants to go to Yale, but no one wants to be caught out as an Elite. Jessa and Nico talk about a new level of Nazi daddy issues, why rightwing think tanks are making art now, and what makes an Elite elite. This week's sponsor: http://betterhelp.com/culturewedeserve For shownotes and references: http://theculturewedeserve.substack.com

Alternative title for this episode: Don't let the Prez sundown on me. Why is the inability to retire or withdraw, damn the consequences, a recurring problem in American politics? From Biden to RBG to Mitch McConnell, the powerful all want to die in the saddle. Is it the baby boomers, or is it what that generation represents: infinite growth, unquestioned power, top of the world baby. Jessa and Nico discuss the long American 20th century, how to bow out gracefully, and why cancel culture is a poor substitute for real accountability. This week's sponsor: http://betterhelp.com/culturewedeserve For shownotes and references: http://theculturewedeserve.substack.com

Is American culture hostile to children? With certain hotels, resorts, restaurants, and other public spaces forbidding the presence of kids, and the government ending its extremely popular pandemic-era family aid program, and the endless social media complaints about screaming children and bad parenting, yeah okay maybe. But is this a new development, or are we inventing a golden age where children were treasured and welcomed? What would a society that actually accommodated children (or women, or disabled people, or the impoverished etc etc) look like? Jessa and Nico talk about the history of feminist urban planning, the real reason no one wants to end remote work (our cities are broken), and depopulation hysteria. This week's sponsor: http://betterhelp.com/culturewedeserve For shownotes and other resources: http://theculturewedeserve.substack.com