Frank Bruni in Conversation with Bret Stephens: The Age of Grievance

Join New York Times columnist and bestselling author Frank Bruni on the new politics of resentment - and Bruni’s new book, The Age of Grievance.
What happens when all sorts of grievances - the greater ones, the lesser ones, the authentic, the invented - are jumbled together? When our political disagreements are reduced to grievance and revenge? In his new book, Frank Bruni argues that the January 6 attack on the US Capitol, the rejection of the results of the 2020 election, the flourishing of conspiracy theories, and many other elements of our contemporary political culture are rooted in grievance - a potentially devastating erosion of the civility, common ground, and compromise necessary for our democracy to survive. How did we get here? What does it say about us, and where does it leave us? How has grievance come to define our current culture and politics, on both the right and left? Hear him for a frank analysis of our politics as he examines these critical questions and charts a new path forward.
Recorded Jun 13, 2024 at 92nd Street Y, New York.
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[@christopherj.osheav5807]

DATELINE KYIV OBLAST Excellent dialogue. A timely, informative and thought-provoking conversation. Thank you, gentlemen, V/r - IB An American in Ukraine (2019 - Present)

[@Ina-yn4kx]

Great discussion more like this thanks

[@hilarycohen1470]

Just love Frank’s use of language. Having trouble wrapping my head around his praise for Stephens, tho.

[@tracyclark7560]

guys, I had a genuine grievance, and was able to disseminate it because I graduated from college in public relations, others followed suit because they had publicity, journalism, philosophy ethics, even economics backgrounds and needed a job, which made griping a full-time gig for those who were not wronged, but using other people's issues that were; gays, suicide, me too, etc.. I realize I should listen to entire before making statement, but people grew up and learned how to write a sentence, string together thoughts, and these thoughts weren't nice, because bureaucracy isn't nice, corporations having gone into the courts saying their feelings, and net worth count the same as individuals, a whole host of unfair playing field stuff is happening to people, and when they are addressed, wealthy patriarch privilege sees it as a mess because our system is sick and needs need to be addressed. Write on people, tell it like it is, and the chips will fall all over the place, as they always have, but this time in a different way, in a different era.

[@robertetin1156]

Part of the reason ivy league and elite students find themselves sorting for overly woke or greivienced students is that ambitious students are encouraged to go straight to university instead of taking time to serve in the military or do national service of some sort. Consequently, too many have nothing to write about or to really distinguish themselves. Speaking from personal experience, I can attest that it is much easier to write a compelling personal statement about personal growth and perseverance in the face of hardship after coming back from a combat deployment to the middle east than after taking the SATs as a high school junior.

[@KaiCo-oi3fh]

You want to cast doubt on the many outstanding grievances currently brought to the surface in today's polarized Society with your misleading conclusion that such a high volume of festering issues is obviously inflated therefore guaranteeing smaller frivolous concerns are getting wrongful attention. The way you belittle Legitimate Personal Concerns Of the people Be a big or small to speak of them in such a dismissive way all to create cover that there's really nothing wrong... Everyone's just overly sensitive, shouldn't be taken seriously, no major change needs to happen. keep those in power in power...

[@joiedevie3901]

Bret Stephens cites at 10:15 that we have entered an age of identity, which has made our dynamics more complicated, which is an absolutely disingenuous statement at its best. This nation was founded on the cornerstone of identity politics when it was originally declared as a democracy as long as one was a property-owning white man. Identify was imbedded in the Constitution with the 3/5's clause that sought to mitigate the slave-holding states' insistence that their indentured populations be counted in national census for the proration of federal benefits, including their number of representatives in the House, while denying that same population any rights as citizens--again identity politics. The conservative interests of this nation invented identity politics and it has only evolved as they have allowed it. From the definition and redefinition of what made someone "Black" for legal treatment down to the application of race-based zoning that South Africa studied to implement its own apartheid, Stephens's notion that identity politics is some new incarnation of American socio-political discourse would be laughable if it were not so mendacious. The only time identity politics is an irritant to his ilk is whenever it is recognized for its historic role of conservative injustice and a just remedy is sought.

[@joannemccarthy1398]

Sorry, have lost all respect for the NY Times. J. McCarthy, MSW

[@letstalkaboutgermany8288]

Classic Bret: constantly interrupting Frank and talking over him.

[@chrisrecord5625]

It's not a monologue it's an interview.