Afleveringen
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Gen Z has been told a lot of things about loneliness: that itâs caused by phones, social media, remote work, dating apps, the pandemic, the decline of third places and a culture that makes staying home easier than ever. But what if the more uncomfortable truth is that loneliness is also something people have to actively fight?
Host Megan McArdle talks with Wall Street Journal editor Emma Camp about her essay âLoneliness Is for Cowards,â why so many young people seem afraid of embarrassment and rejection, and how to start making real friends again.
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For a lot of men, friendship doesnât disappear all at once. It fades slowly: a missed call here, a canceled plan there, a few busy years that become a decade. Before you know it, the relationship has moved to the background of life, where it can feel easier to assume the bond will survive on memory than to do the awkward work of reaching back out. Andrew McCarthy wanted to understand why that story is so common.
Host Megan McArdle is joined by the actor, director and author, whose new book, âWho Needs Friends: An Unscientific Examination of Male Friendship Across America,â follows his 10,000-mile journey to reconnect with old friends and ask men what friendship means to them.
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Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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A trillion dollars seems like enough money to solve almost anything. We could end world hunger, wipe out medical debt, shrink the federal deficit and still have plenty left over. So when people talk about Elon Muskâs potential trillion-dollar fortune, or the wealth of billionaires more broadly, itâs natural to ask: Why don't we simply tax the rich and use the money to fix our countryâs biggest problems?
Host Megan McArdle argues that while taxing billionaires may sound morally obvious, billionaire wealth is often a stock of assets rather than a flow of spendable income â and that distinction makes wealth taxes far more complicated than they appear.
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Populist candidates have a way of making politics feel simple. They tell voters that the problem is obvious, the villains are known and the solution is to break through corrupt institutions standing in the way. That message can be emotionally powerful, but what happens after populists win? Why do they so often win the crowd but lose the plot?
Host Megan McArdle is joined by Richard Hanania, a political scientist and writer whose ideological journey has taken many turns. His new book, "Kakistocracy," argues that populism tends to produce worse leaders, weaker institutions, more corruption and a politics driven by resentment and conspiratorial thinking. They discuss why populism is so appealing and whether liberal democracy can rebuild trust.
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As European tourists travel across the United States for World Cup matches, many are discovering an America they didnât expect: vast landscapes, friendly strangers, huge portions, small-town surprises and a sense of abundance that Americans often take for granted. Their reactions are going viral, offering a fresh reminder that the United States can look very different from the outside than it does on social media or the news.
Host Megan McArdle argues that Americans have become too pessimistic about their own country â and that seeing America through European eyes can help us rediscover what is still dynamic, generous, innovative and worth taking pride in.
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There was a time when shopping for clothes meant walking into a department store and hoping the limited sizes and styles available at that exact moment might fit. Then, the internet changed everything. Online shopping didnât just make fashion more convenient; it expanded what retailers could offer, what customers could demand and who got to dictate trends.
Host Megan McArdle is joined by Shawn Grain Carter, a professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology and former Bloomingdaleâs buyer who helped launch the Macyâs website. They discuss the shift from department store floors to the infinite shelves of the internet.
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Millions of Americans have moved to the South in recent years. The usual explanations â lower taxes, cheaper housing and warmer weather â are only part of the story. Host Megan McArdle explores the economic and historical forces driving the century-long transformation of Americaâs fastest-growing region.
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Host Megan McArdle talks with culture writer Kat Rosenfield about how dating apps, therapy-speak and online gender wars have changed romance â making flirtation feel risky, rejection feel catastrophic and desire feel suspect. They discuss the lost art of approaching people in real life, what older courtship norms got right and Rosenfieldâs new novel, âHow to Survive in the Woods.â
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Political parties keep asking voters to overlook scandals, bad judgment and unstable behavior because the other side is worse. Senate candidates Graham Platner and Ken Paxton are only the latest examples. Host Megan McArdle argues that character still matters in politics â and that voters are not helpless victims of polarization.
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Is empathy destroying the West? That's the provocative claim at the center of Gad Saad's new book, "Suicidal Empathy." Host Megan McArdle is joined by Saad, a professor at the University of Mississippi, to discuss the trade-offs societies make in the name of compassion and whether America has the capacity to absorb differences.
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Eating food cooked at home has traditionally been considered a cheaper option to ordering takeout. So why are so many in Gen Z choosing food away from home? Host Megan McArdle explores how convenience, changing expectations and the modern economy have transformed the way we eat.
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Are humans alone in the universe? The answer is more complicated than science fiction might suggest. Scientists have discovered billions upon billions of potentially habitable planets. But if life is possible elsewhere, why havenât we found it?
Host Megan McArdle talks with astrophysicist Adam Frank, author of âThe Little Book of Aliens.â They discuss the search for alien life, why intelligent civilizations may be harder to find than microbes and the limits of what UFOs can reveal.
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The average wedding now costs $36,000, and many couples feel like they are being taken for a ride. From weekend bottlenecks and customization to family dynamics and the pressure to get everything right, the answer is more complicated than simple price gouging. Host Megan McArdle explores why modern weddings have become so expensive.
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The average American household is now worth more than $1 million. Yet Gen Z is increasingly pessimistic about its economic future. Why does it feel like so many people are falling behind? Is homeownership out of reach? And how can young people build wealth in an economy that seems both richer and more uncertain than ever?
Megan McArdle talks with Ed Elson, co-host of Prof G Markets, about wealth inequality, housing affordability, social media and the frustrations shaping younger generations' outlook.
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Peptides are suddenly everywhere â touted by influencers, biohackers and longevity enthusiasts as the next breakthrough in wellness. But what exactly are they, and how much do we actually know about the risks?
Host Megan McArdle talks with physician and Washington Post columnist Dr. Leana Wen about the booming peptide economy, the rise of gray-market injections and why so many people are turning to online health communities instead of doctors. As wellness culture pushes further into self-experimentation, how much risk are people willing to take in the pursuit of optimization?
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Trust in public health institutions has fractured since the covid-19 pandemic began, even as the threat of new outbreaks remains. Ebola is spreading in parts of Central Africa. Hantavirus has left some cruise ship passengers under quarantine. Neither is a repeat of covid-19 â and public health officials say the risk to most Americans remains low â but even distant outbreaks now provoke fear, skepticism and debate.
Host Megan McArdle talks with physician and Washington Post contributing columnist Leana S. Wen about what we learned from covid-19, why trust in public health infrastructure has become so fragile and whether America is better prepared for the next serious outbreak â or simply more exhausted and distrustful.
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Europe promises a life many Americans envy: longer vacations, universal health care, beautiful cities and a slower pace. But those benefits come with trade-offs.Host Megan McArdle looks past the usual America versus Europe arguments to explore what economic indicators reveal about quality of life.
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Boys and men are struggling across some of the most important measures: education, employment, family life and mental health. But too often, attempts to talk seriously about these problems get pulled into a culture-war fight. So, whatâs actually happening, who is struggling and how we can help them without the conversation being framed as men versus women?
Host Megan McArdle is joined by Richard Reeves, author of "Of Boys and Men," to break down the reality of the gender divide.
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Host Megan McArdle explores the rise of the celebrity candidate, from Ronald Reagan to Arnold Schwarzenegger to Trump himself. She explains how parasocial relationships shape modern elections, and why Trumpâs success depended on a unique mix of media savviness, outsider status, timing and luck that may be impossible to replicate. And she argues that if America wants a more stable political future, it will need to return to a more normal kind of politics.
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Prediction markets are having a moment. But what are they actually good for? Economist Robin Hanson has been thinking about this for decades. Long before betting markets went mainstream, he argued they could do more than forecast the future â they could help us make better decisions.
Host Megan McArdle talks with Hanson about how prediction markets work, why they often beat other forms of forecasting and how todayâs versions could be improved.
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