Preserving Democracy: A Call for Civility with Richard Gephardt

Preserving Democracy: A Call for Civility with Richard Gephardt

(Conversation recorded on October 17th, 2024)

As the trust in the U.S. presidential election process continues to be in question, alongside growing polarization and dwindling good-faith conversations, the precarity of our democratic systems is becoming increasingly worrisome. Amongst the rising tensions, calls for civility are sorely needed – regardless of who wins.

In this conversation, Nate is joined by former Congressman Richard Gephardt to discuss the importance of democracy as a system of self-governance, as well as the need for respecting differing views in order to keep that system intact. Richard highlights the unique historical context of U.S. democracy, emphasizing the ongoing commitment of citizen participation required for its survival.

How can we encourage bipartisan collaboration and compromise toward effective policy action beyond the current election cycle? In what ways do our rapidly evolving information systems, including social media and artificial intelligence, deepen our political divides? Despite the domestic and global challenges facing us, is there hope for the future of the American "democratic experiment"?

About Richard Gephardt:

Richard Gephardt is an attorney, author, lobbyist, and politician who served 28 years in the United States House of Representatives. He is the President and CEO of the Gephardt Group, where he works to inspire a new understanding of citizenship based on activism to bring about economic, social, and political change.

Gephardt previously served as the United States House Majority Leader (1989-1995) and House Minority Leader (1995-2003). He is the author of three books, including An Even Better Place and The American Immigrant: The Outsiders.

Show Notes and More

Watch this video episode on YouTube

---

Support The Institute for the Study of Energy and Our Future

Join our Substack newsletter

Join our Discord channel and connect with other listeners

Avsnitt(372)

The Three Most Important Words We're Taught Not to Say

The Three Most Important Words We're Taught Not to Say

In this week's Frankly, Nate considers the ways in which our social species overvalues false-confidence rather than the more honest and inquisitive response of "I don't know." He invites us to conside...

24 Okt 202526min

Challenging Monopoly Power: Why Local Business is Better for People, the Planet, and Your Wallet with Stacy Mitchell

Challenging Monopoly Power: Why Local Business is Better for People, the Planet, and Your Wallet with Stacy Mitchell

Monopolistic business practices have been illegal in the United States for more than a century. Yet, monopoly power continues to accelerate in our modern commercial landscape. Large, powerful corporat...

22 Okt 20251h 27min

What Sloths Teach Us About the Superorganism

What Sloths Teach Us About the Superorganism

In this week's Frankly, Nate reflects on the multiple metaphors brought to mind via a single photograph, which depicts a sloth climbing a barbed wire fence in Costa Rica. Beyond evoking compassion for...

17 Okt 202517min

Will Coral Reefs Be Gone by 2050? How Bleaching, Acidification, and Ocean Heating are Killing Coral Reefs with Ove Hoegh-Guldberg

Will Coral Reefs Be Gone by 2050? How Bleaching, Acidification, and Ocean Heating are Killing Coral Reefs with Ove Hoegh-Guldberg

Twenty-five years ago, a landmark paper warned that the world's coral reefs could vanish by 2050. Now, halfway to that projected date (and amid ever more frequent coral bleaching events), that grim pr...

15 Okt 20251h 30min

Is the U.S. Electric Grid Stable? Policy, Renewables, and Who Is Responsible If The Grid Fails with Meredith Angwin

Is the U.S. Electric Grid Stable? Policy, Renewables, and Who Is Responsible If The Grid Fails with Meredith Angwin

For many people in the modern world, electricity powers everything we do. Yet we take for granted how power flows in the background, seemingly always accessible to us just by flipping a switch. In fac...

8 Okt 20251h 24min

Peak Oil, Ponzi Pyramids, and Planetary Boundaries

Peak Oil, Ponzi Pyramids, and Planetary Boundaries

To view the graphs Nate is referring to in this episode, please click here. --- In this week's Frankly, Nate returns from New York City Climate Week with fresh reflections on the disconnect between o...

3 Okt 202521min

Moral Ambition: Redefining Success for the Global Good with Rutger Bregman

Moral Ambition: Redefining Success for the Global Good with Rutger Bregman

The overarching definition of success today often looks like the accumulation of stuff – money, cars, property, clothing – anything that signals wealth. This means that success is also synonymous with...

1 Okt 20251h 15min

The Influence of Psychopaths: Why Humanity Is Better Than We Think

The Influence of Psychopaths: Why Humanity Is Better Than We Think

In this week's Frankly, Nate reflects on intraspecies predation (ours) and the impact psychopathic actors have on the mean and median of human behavior – in the past all the way up to our modern socie...

26 Sep 202522min

Populärt inom Vetenskap

dumma-manniskor
p3-dystopia
svd-nyhetsartiklar
kapitalet-en-podd-om-ekonomi
allt-du-velat-veta
rss-ufo-bortom-rimligt-tvivel-2
rss-vetenskapsradion-2
rss-vetenskapsradion
det-morka-psyket
sexet
medicinvetarna
rss-experimentet
paranormalt-med-caroline-giertz
rss-odla
rss-spraket
dumforklarat
rss-geopodden-2
vetenskapsradion
bildningspodden
rss-tidsmaskinen