Vlad Vexler | Democracy is in crisis

Vlad Vexler is in the S tier of political philosophy on KZbin, you can try your best to change my mind. A unique and eloquent interpreter of the philosophical undercurrents in today’s politics, Vlad has become a go to voice for many about Russia and democracy. In this episode we talk about the Western democratic crisis, about how we should talk about politics, about Russian propaganda and much more. It was an absolute pleasure.
Vlad's Channel: / vladvexler
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[@DRACULA_FLOW]

English speaker here and huge fan of the very sweet Vlad Vexler. If you make more episodes in English I will happily watch them. I've never seen you before but found this episode because Vlad linked it.

[@unvergebeneid]

There was a very brief moment when KZbin allowed you to subscribe to playlists instead of whole channels. I wish they brought this back because I'd like to subscribe to the English language playlist here!

[@gjk282]

This is one of the most complete representation of the most relevant aspects of Vlad Vexler's thinking (as per my limited understanding after having been a listener to Vlad's channel for 2 years). Thank you, and congratulations on a very, very well conducted interview where you did not only let Vlad shine, but also actively contributed with what and how you conversed.

[@charmquark6366]

I second that!

[@patrickdowney1995]

Agreed. Great questioning and well done for helping bring out some of the best of Vlad.

[@operatorunknown4987]

I’m so glad you got Vlad Vexler as a guest. I value his views very highly, i think his views are very valuable. This podcast should be shown to every politician in the west.

[@JT-do8dr]

Vlad on myös minun suosikki. Mahtavaa että saitte hänet vieraaksi!

[@B_r_u_c_e]

Another beautiful lesson from Vlad Vexler.

[@eliassalmi3930]

Todella kova vieras! Jo useamman vuoden seurannut Vlad Vexleriä ja hieno nähdä suomalaisen haastattelemana.

[@juusojuuso9214]

Upea vieras, heti kuunteluun!

[@mikharju]

Hoo! Vlad Futucastissa! Molempia olen kuunnellut jo jonkin aikaa ja ovat oikein hyviä. Vasta alussa olen, mutta luotan, että tulee tosi hyvää tavaraa. (Hi Vlad! You are awesome, but take it easy and rest as needed.)

[@DarkestAlice]

Thank you, for this excellent conversation. All the best to Finnish democracy!

[@seanmellows1348]

Vlad Vexler is always worthwhile. Great stuff, thanks.

[@ralfmatters448]

That was a tonic. The questions were playing into Vlad's strong suit and he performed brilliantly. I will share this with my grandson who is interested in politics.

[@20310288]

Should've pinned Vlad's channels in the comments!! Anyone who hasn't listened to him is missing out :)

[@rasmusalmqvist5960]

Hey Vlad.. long-time subscriber of yours here. Will listen to the two of you when I go out running later today. ❤

[@VladVexler]

Enjoy your run!

[@rafaelfonsecaaugusto3438]

Great interview. I agree with vlad, the questions were particularly good and explorative

[@jessicarowley9631]

Wonderful show today. So many great questions and answers. Please! More in English, I am English and my only foreign language is ancient Greek!

[@marcussassan]

Vlad! Always appreciate what you have to say. Following you to another eye opening and wonderful conversation.

[@hartyewh1]

Vlad on tuttu, mutta Futucast ei joten katsotaans mitä täältä löytyy👍

[@Jukka-cs6ll]

Löytyy

[@kyrill007]

Oh, that was brilliant! Thank you.

[@BooleanDisorder]

Mr. Vexler is like an ambrosia for my intellectual palate. I feel refreshed.

[@markwickens2756]

I am a regular listener of Vlad Vexler in English and Futucast in Finnish. So, I felt very confused, but also very pleased, when those two channels came together in this interview! Thank you! Keep up the good work!

[@vanessak.sanders1292]

Vlad is ALWAYS has terrific and insightful!

[@garad123456]

Olen seurannut Vladia jonkun aikaa ja futucastia paljon pidempään. Tämä oli yllättävä vieras. Erittäin hyvät kysymykset myös Isakilta

[@benf1111]

Listening to Vlad is always a treat.

[@geiers6013]

I understand a few of Vlads points much better now and completely agree. I imagine our overreaction to russian interference like an alergic overreaction by the immune system. In that really doing far more damage than the interference ever could do alone.

[@NoHairMan]

Great conversation!

[@ADarrell]

Yes, more English please as I'm here because of Mr. Vexler.

[@sebastiangrumman8507]

I agree with 90% of what Vlad says, where I diverge is on US politics. The US ship-of state has left the snug harbor and hit the ocean swell. Not only that, the US has entered the squall-line as of January 6, 2021. And now, with two attempts on a US presidential candidates' life in two months, (13 July and yesterday, 15 September) the US is clearly in more than just bumpy water.

[@gustavl3107]

This was Vlad at his best, very few speak with the precision and clarity that he does!

[@inkeldinky]

one of vlads best interviews

[@adrianward5795]

Thanks Vlad, thoroughly enjoyed this podcast, great interview 👍❤️

[@jacpretful]

Brilliant, I highly recommend this talk! I don't like where our democracies are headed with the rise of populism and authoritarianism, but it's comforting to know that a philosopher (Vlad) understands it and can articulate it for us.

[@phaedrussocrates7636]

Thank you

[@begr_wiedererkennungswert]

Looking for S-tier Brawl-Stars brawlers, finding S-tier philosopher.

[@asphaltpilgrim]

Superb convo. Such important ideas which people sadly will not appreciate until after the fact.

[@tiagoinka]

Exceptional guest, very insightful questions. What a sensational job!

[@javiermontiero4982]

I don't hear it almost at all so I'm very happy to hear Vlad touch on the point that both US presidential candidates have been and are accusing the other as being a threat to democracy and that this behavior is toxic. I'm SO profoundly frustrated with my American politics because for the last ten years, that's been the primary fear mongering tactic employed during presidential campaigns. It has absolutely been true (because trump IS a grave threat to our democracy) but much like reality TV has desensitized everyone to cartoonish behavior and wild antics, everyone has also been desensitized to this very real danger. The few people who are legitimately taking this seriously are being ignored or downplayed because everyone they're shouting it to aren't listening anymore, they've heard it all before many, many times now. We've shot the cannon indoors and now can't hear the danger closing in on us.

[@EggBastion]

We've shot the cannon indoors so true

[@user-fm4hd3zw3q]

Always love me some VV Chat. Also love Finland. Visited there for the first time in April. Loved it! Greetings from 🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺

[@Thyinternet]

Vlad is phenomenal always ❤

[@csebastian3]

I really enjoyed this! Your questions were great. The discussion was very thought-provoking.

[@healthdoc]

The most important part of the Harris/Walz political campaign is to keep the message future leaning. We’re not going back to the negativity and demeaning political bickering of the past. Only a hopeful future can promote joy. We’re not going back.

[@methylenedioxy818]

The algorithm brought me here from Vlad's channels, which I love. Outstanding discussion from 2 outstanding KZbinrs! The best on these topics I've heard yet! Too bad I can't understand Finnish, as I'm curious what else the host discusses.

[@JaakkoKesoYle]

I accept all new Futucast episodes in any language

[@stephenkilroy8170]

Great interview , the discourse was a light in the darkness that is politics currently

[@vonries]

I thought I was clicking on one of Vlad's videos. I'm glad I found your channel. I like finding new sources that I think I might be able to trust.

[@matsfrommusic]

The absolutely worst thing about the world today is the extreme agendas and rhetorics and quite frankly just plain madness in politics that ordinary people seem perfectly fine with, be it to interact with or to be associated with. I don't know when this shift happened exactly or what caused it, it all feels like a horrible fever dream we can't escape. I mean, Haitians eating cats...come on!! This last couple of years have change me, my views of the world significantly for the worse. I feel so sad for my kids and the generations to come, because this is just too much, too much bad at the same time to ever be fixed, I believe it's just going to get worse I'm afraid :(

[@ak5659]

There've always been people like this. Growing up it seemed to me about ten percent of the population. It seemed to start climbing very, very slowly in the early 2000's. Then about 2015 or so it just exploded. In the late 80's I worked on a group home for people with psychiatric issues. Behavior that would have warranted a next day appt with the psychiatrist is now a regular feature of Congress. Inexplicably, it spreads like a disease. My mother and sister used to be rational adults. By the time they cut me off for not travelling six hours for a family function when I'd just had open heart surgery, the y both acted like they had TBI. y I used to teach people with cognitive and language impairments. I can tell you that trump presents with many more symptoms than Biden ever has. Yet everyone was concerned with Biden.

[@henriikkak2091]

Tuttu vieras. Erinomaista sisältöä, Futucast.

[@Uranus_is_the_size_of_a_planet]

It's so bizarre that Destiny and Vlad are among the just a few political channels/thinkers in English worth watching. There's an infinite ocean of channels and I can hardly name anyone except for these two.

[@VladVexler]

Interesting that’s your experience - I haven’t interacted with Destiny but mutual followers often suggest we should.

[@Maxarcc]

@@VladVexler I would love to see you two talk as well. Destiny has a podcast called Bridges, and I think it would suit your style wonderfully.

[@ak5659]

I'm partial to Silicone Curtain as well.

[@Uranus_is_the_size_of_a_planet]

@@ak5659 Agree, there're a few good podcasts out there. They cover a more narrow set of topics tho. Ryan McBeth and Mark Galeotti are excellent too but have a limited scope to their expertise. I should have mentioned Sam Harris along with Destiny and Vlad, he too has a good understanding of politics, ethics and law and generally shows good faith.

[@patrickdowney2778]

22:14 Vlad thoroughly enjoying the interview.

[@daiakunin]

Excellent conversation! Since English is my native language I'd enjoy more English conversations.

[@jeremygibbs7342]

35:50 Your statement on the loss of accepted facts shook me. I never considered we cant return to shared facts. I would be quite interested to hear further thoughts on how we can improve/repair this loss.

[@ak5659]

Yeah, this is a topic I REALLY want to hear more about from Vlad. As far as I can see here in the U.S., Semmelweis Effect has hit Covid levels of spread. An ever growing percentage of the population simply will not accept any information that doesn't fit their narrative on the topic in question. And so many of such people spout utter word salad with amazing levels of conviction. Time after time I've watched people I'd think would know better just fall for the garbage hook, line, and sinker.

[@stevenweiss2575]

Wow, so my phone that is always listening to me 😅, directed me to your site for the first time cuz I often listen to Vlad Vexler. That was great, and perhaps I will return. I love listening to Interviews of Vlad, I think he comes across best in such a format.

[@raemont1328]

Great Talk!

[@margaretsaleeby9531]

Extremely enriching discussion!

[@johnharrison8418]

well done both of you!

[@danwylie-sears1134]

With the level of polarization in the US in recent decades, it's hard to imagine my political opponent on one issue today being my political ally on another issue tomorrow. In a unitary system with winner-take-all plurality elections, you get one vote: it's for the party. Don't want anti-abortion absolutism, but do want the tax burden further shifted off the rich and onto the middle class and poor? Too bad: you have to take one package deal or the other. And without anything tangible at stake, people make their peace with that. The key part of that is what's not mentioned in Duverger's Law: a unitary system. We used to have very significant state and local politics. There was even a saying (associated with Tip O'Neill), "all politics is local". Now, it's implicitly taken for granted that all politics is national. If you support a primary challenge, even in a safe district or a one-party state, you're seen as diverting resources that should have been spent on a general election in a swing state or a swing district. I think one of the major roots of the change is modern finance. Formerly, people who wanted "expansionary monetary policy" (i.e. some unexpected inflation, so that you can make your debt payments for less than your creditors bargained for) were stuck on the opposite side of a major issue from people who wanted "prudent monetary policy" (i.e. a higher risk of deflationary crash, but your debtors have to pay you more than they bargained for). People with lots of money at stake as creditors or borrowers were stuck on opposite sides of that issue, no matter how little they might align on any other issue. So factions within each major party were stuck disagreeing. With modern finance, anyone with enough money can hedge against inflation risk, and anyone with enough money can seek a higher return by taking the opposite side of that deal. So they're free to align on the basis of other issues.

[@TheKirstebee]

I’d love more English episodes- watched a previous one and was very impressed with your intelligent and interesting interview

[@TheKirstebee]

I agree with Vlad that you ask excellent questions! Keep up the great work - the world needs more insightful journalists like you! Vlad as always facilitates our thinking about politics and how we can all contribute to the strengthening of our democracies 💚🙏🇦🇺

[@somedudeok1451]

What I don't get is how Vlad can say that we need to pursuade everybody before enacting an all but objectively necessary policy. If a large minority refuses to agree that climate change is an extreme threat to our society - tough luck - we need to and will implement climate change mitigating policy, whether you want to or not! Because we have to. Same with immigration. A modern country simply cannot function properly without immigration (you see what happens to countries with negative or stagnant population growth) and so, whether the uninformed or misinformed voter likes it or not - we will let people into the country. If you are going to be a child about some of the most important political decisions humanity is facing, then your opinions don't deserve respect. I'm sorry! We don't let people who refuse to understand traffic rules drive cars and we cannot let people who refuse to understand political issues decide our policies.

[@zatramander]

Great interview! Love to you both.

[@MonicaIsaksenIsaksen]

Please make more in english ❤️

[@kcgeil]

I respect Vlad but I'd take issue with his terming of the situation as Democracy is in crisis, as if it's a natural consequence of the system. Well its in crisis, but largely due to the actions of the kremlin in concert with the far right, since 2014.

[@bigbobah22]

Great interview! More English speaking episodes plz :)

[@danwylie-sears1134]

It's not even majority rule. It's rule of "the people", or rule according to "the general will". Either way, it's a mystical unity that (when push comes to shove) you're either with or against.

[@ivangohome]

Loved it ❤

[@ak5659]

I'd definitely listen to more English language broadcasts. right now I'm focusing on improving the languages in which I have some fluency, starting with Polish. I'm not looking to add any more languages at this stage in my life.

[@Michael-el]

I know it would be a huge time commitment but it would be great if you could also do more podcasts in English.

[@Ace4ev3r]

Big up for more English episodes ❤

[@taxicabnumber1729]

To be honest, I *am* freaking out. Historically we didn't have a stable democracies for thousands of years, true. Historically we also didn't have nuclear weapons.

[@MrOsquu]

Paras vieras!

[@southend26]

This is great! Please more in English!

[@Gustav641]

We tend to choose facts that are in line to how we would like things to be. That is why I think it is important to pay attention to arguments that are based on alternate facts, to those facts that we intentionally discard or do not notice. This concerns specially arguments in economy or banking and finance. However, these days the term 'alternate facts' is demonised in our media.

[@jimgraham6722]

The full democracies are for the most part doing fine. Why? Because they are full democracies, operating for the benefit of the vast majority of their population, not just democracies in name but dysfunctional for many. There's a big difference. The full democracies have strong constitutional and institutional protection for their democratic way of life. Sadly only 10% of countries make the cut, but life in any one of them but particularly the top ten, is mostly happy and pleasant. They are: 1 Norway 10 2 Iceland 9.58 3 Sweden 9.39 4 New Zealand 9.26 5 Denmark 9.22 6 Ireland 9.15 7 Canada 9.15 8 Australia 9.09 9 Finland 9.03 10 Switzerland 9.03 11 Netherlands 8.89 12 Luxembourg 8.81 13 Germany 8.61 14 United Kingdom 8.53 15 Austria 8.42 16 Mauritius 8.22 17 Malta 8.15 18 Uruguay 8.12 19 Spain 8.08

[@nilsen93]

I disagree with the "settled topic of immigration" argument presented here. Such an analysis would work, if the republican party (at the behest of Trump), and right-wing media at large, were not filled with bad faith actors looking to keep immigration as a hot topic that they can run on. In this instance it is not arrogant centrists ignoring the conviction of the other side. It is liberal politicians coming together with some republicans in order fix it with bipartisan means, and it got sabotaged by the same politicians running on immigration as a key issue.

[@andreimustata5922]

Vlad's description of "post truth" seems to just describe information containing too much noise. The excess of noise is specific to today's information space, so it is worth asking if the "post truth" politician is in fact a product of today's information space or if there exist other important factors to today problem of "post truth" in the west.

[@ak5659]

One thing I think is adding to the polarization is that most of our social cleavage s run along almost identical lines. If you know a person's stance on two or three social issues .... yes, you do know his stance on a half dozen others. I think Covid ate up many people's life time allotment of patience for dealing with people holding beliefs that break laws of physics.

[@RealEuropatriot]

Your woldview IS YOU. We have a worldview problem. When peoples worldviews diverge too much, conflict happens.

[@danwylie-sears1134]

When you think about what a person is doing, it would be ridiculous to think about it in terms of electrochemical gradients causing ions to move through channels, and binding of motor proteins to actin filaments causing the shapes of dendrites to change, and so on, quadrillions of times over each second. You have to move away from a causal description and say that this person did what they did in order to accomplish some purpose, if you're going to have any hope of understanding it. It's a good idea to also have some notion of how it works causally, but you can't use the causal account as the primary way you think about it. When you multiply it by three hundred million, or by eight billion if you're talking about the whole world, the causal approach doesn't get any easier.

[@j.f.fisher5318]

As a former member of the American right, the biggest problem I see is those with power in my nation strategically bringing facts into dispute solely to influence policy because the facts were disadvantageous to them. The most clearcut being oil industry scientists confirming the validity of global warming but the oil industry making up disputes. Similarly in the center-right since at least the 90s, the fact that immigrants are universally guilty of less crime than citizens has been widely known, yet rightwing politicians routinely stoke fears of immigrant crime for purely political purposes. I could go on with debt, taxes, regulations, the formation of synapses in the fetal brain in the midpoint of a pregnancy, that guy in Germany with a funny moustache making it easier for the German people to arm themselves and the prevalence of the Kalashnikov in private hands in Iraq. In short, everything I grew up believing ranged between 50-100% lies without a single exception. All of it. That can't just be coincidence and I don't see how it's possible for a democracy to exist in that condition. It makes me very skeptical that democracy can be maintained going forward in the tradition of liberalism which we've known.

[@Crabbiy]

Good choice!

[@searcherholic3473]

I do worry about my being cut off from my wider family due to the primacy of my family unit/marriage

[@genrcflyer]

Make America Great Again, put it back the way it was before Reagan.

[@rikulappi9664]

A democracy is like a sailboat. It requires constant adjusting. Otherwise you float downwind at the best, you likely wreck the ship during the next storm and you definitely won't end up where you want - or anywhere anyone abroad wants for that matter.

[@rikulappi9664]

It takes a crew with seamanship to work together just to keep afloat. Where you want to end up is another matter - relevant but separate.

[@danwylie-sears1134]

We human beings are irrational. So you can treat us as though we're irrational, or you can treat us as though we're not human beings. We should treat each other as human beings. If you lay out some premises I accept, and proceed by valid reasoning from those premises to a conclusion that you would like to convince me of, that means you _have_ won the argument. Even if I don't change my mind at all. I would like to think that nine times out of ten I would either accept the conclusion or change my mind about at least one of the premises. But I very much would not like to think that it's ten times out of ten, because thinking that would mean that I was lying to myself, in a way that matters, and I want to avoid that kind of lie.

[@healthdoc]

What one thinks is a result of how one thinks. One’s world view is built upon a foundation of sensory information, arranged to best represent reality. Assumptions based on biased, scant or irrational evidence, will likely result in a distorted perception of reality.

[@braydeny]

He's the goat

[@prismpyre7653]

@49:50 the hell it isn't. and the NSA is sure listenin- and logging

[@noneofurbusiness906]

Good one

[@MuratGonullu-l3x]

Gonzalez Christopher Robinson Brian Harris Melissa

[@Mielenvapaus]

Ottakaa Juju vieraaksi! Tehnyt viime aikoina hyviä videiota tänne juutuubiin.

[@MuratGonullu-l3x]

Wilson Michael Martin Angela Lewis Timothy