We Must Return to the Radical Roots of Liberalism (w/ Matt McManus)
Current Affairs6 Touko 2025

We Must Return to the Radical Roots of Liberalism (w/ Matt McManus)

🦩 This episode originally aired on April 29, 2025. Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs!

Liberalism and socialism are often treated as opposites — but what if they’re actually part of the same fight for freedom, equality, and democracy? We’re joined by political theorist Matt McManus, author of The Political Theory of Liberal Socialism, a new book that challenges conventional narratives about liberalism, socialism, and the history of political philosophy.

McManus explains how thinkers from John Stuart Mill to John Rawls argued that true freedom requires not just political rights, but freedom from domination in the workplace and economy. He also addresses the deep confusion around the word "liberal" today — why many leftists recoil at liberalism after decades of association with hollow technocrats like Matt Yglesias — and why the older liberal tradition, rooted in egalitarian principles, is worth retrieving.

0:00–6:45 Why Political Philosophy Matters

6:45–23:34 Recovering the Radical Roots of Liberalism

23:34–27:20 John Rawls Was More Radical Than You Think

27:20–32:30 Can Liberalism Be Saved From Its Hypocrisy?

32:30–38:42 What Separates Liberal Socialists From Other Socialists

38:42–46:06 Why Understanding Liberalism and Socialism Still Matters Today

🌹 The Political Theory of Liberal Socialism: https://www.routledge.com/The-Political-Theory-of-Liberal-Socialism/McManus/p/book/9781032647234

🦩SUBSCRIBE TO CURRENT AFFAIRS MAGAZINE: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership

🦩 PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/c/CurrentAffairs

🦩THE MYTH OF AMERICAN IDEALISM: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/738224/the-myth-of-american-idealism-by-noam-chomsky-and-nathan-j-robinson/

Jaksot(600)

Is Trump an "Aberration" Or the Logical Conclusion of the Right-Wing Project? (w/ David Austin Walsh)

Is Trump an "Aberration" Or the Logical Conclusion of the Right-Wing Project? (w/ David Austin Walsh)

Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs !Today we talk to David Austin Walsh, a postdoc at Yale and the author of Taking America Back: The Conservative Movement and the Far Right, a new b...

5 Heinä 202441min

What Will New Weight-Loss Drugs Do to Us? (w/ Johann Hari)

What Will New Weight-Loss Drugs Do to Us? (w/ Johann Hari)

Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs !Bestselling author Johann Hari, whose Lost Connectionsand Stolen Focus have previously been discussed on this program, returns today to discuss hi...

3 Heinä 20241h 3min

Inside the MAGA Movement on the Ground (w/ Isaac Arnsdorf)

Inside the MAGA Movement on the Ground (w/ Isaac Arnsdorf)

Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs !Who actually comprises the MAGA movement? Where do Trumpian politicians come from? How do they defeat "establishment" Republicans on the local and...

1 Heinä 202426min

How The Dollar Became America's Most Powerful Weapon (w/ Saleha Mohsin)

How The Dollar Became America's Most Powerful Weapon (w/ Saleha Mohsin)

Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs !When we think of American power, we often think of missiles, guns, and tanks. But operating in the background is an incredibly powerful weapon who...

28 Kesä 202430min

In Praise of Excess (w/ Becca Rothfeld)

In Praise of Excess (w/ Becca Rothfeld)

Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs !Becca Rothfeld is the nonfiction book critic for the Washington Post. Her new essay collection, All Things Are Too Small: Essays in Praise of Exce...

26 Kesä 202438min

What Would a Left Foreign Policy Look Like? (w/ Van Jackson)

What Would a Left Foreign Policy Look Like? (w/ Van Jackson)

Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs !We know the left is, generally speaking, anti-war and anti-imperialist. But if a left-wing government ever took power in the U.S., what would its ...

24 Kesä 202441min

How Cars Make Life Worse (w/ Daniel Knowles)

How Cars Make Life Worse (w/ Daniel Knowles)

Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs !Daniel Knowles is a reporter for The Economist (yes, that one). His book Carmageddon: How Cars Make Life Worse argues that cars are a problem, and...

21 Kesä 202434min

Debunking Popular Talking Points on Israel-Palestine (w/ Ben Burgis)

Debunking Popular Talking Points on Israel-Palestine (w/ Ben Burgis)

Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs !Ben Burgis is a philosopher and occasional contributor to Current Affairs, who runs the Philosophy for the People Substack and hosts Give Them An ...

19 Kesä 20241h 35min

Suosittua kategoriassa Komedia

nikotellen
anni-jaajo
tuplakaak
antin-matka
olipa-kerran-otsikko
ihan-oikeesti
rss-saarinen-shoy
antin-palautepalvelu
rss-nikotellen
antin-elokuvakerho
puurojengi
naakkavalta
rss-kaheli
kasper-ja-mikko-suomen-suosituin-podcast
rss-kuukka-vehvilainen-hartlin
ela-viitti
everypodi
rss-sami-jorma
rss-ruokacast
mysteeripodcast