Forrest Maready is an author who previously worked in the film, television, and advertising industries. He joins me to discuss his recent book, The Age of Envy: 1848-Present.
To begin, I ask Forrest about his background. We hear about what it was like to work on movies and his unique take on Christianity. Moving on to his book, I ask about the significance of 1848. Forrest explains why he centered his book around three events that took place that year. This leads to a discussion on how the steam-powered printing press, train, and telegraph changed how humanity perceives itself—and not always for the best. Envy, Forrest argues, is in many ways downstream from technology. And as we all know, envy is a central component of leftism.
In the second half (available to subscribers), we explore whether envy is inevitable, given how natural inequality is. This leads to a consideration of democracy and how it measures up to pre-democratic political systems. I argue that while we must be pragmatic – there’s no bringing back monarchy – we should be honest about how mass democracy impedes certain political reforms. Shifting gears, Forrest discusses the concept of post-truth. How can nations continue to exist when people have widely different conceptions of reality? We wrap up the show by pondering if envy will destroy civilization—or if there’s a way out of the madness.
