Join the editors as they conclude their discussion of myth and politics, re-examining the relationship between belief and material reality, and evaluating the prospects for a global social narrative. What is the relationship between material conditions and myth or belief in myth? Is a global myth or universal human social identity possible? What principal lesson can we learn about democracy from a discussion of political myths?

Next week we'll be covering a new topic, so stay tuned!

Further Reading:

• Imagined Communities, by Benedict Anderson.
• "Anarchy is what States Make of It," by Alexander Wendt.
• Readings from previous episodes in this series of Bird's Eye.

Table of Contents

00:00:00 - Intro & Housekeeping
00:00:37 - Celebrities sing Imagine by John Lennon
00:01:51 - Why the hell would we ever play that?
00:02:59 - Today's topic
00:03:21 - Main Questions
00:00:33 - What is the relationship between myth and reality?
00:04:16 - Is a global, rather than national, myth possible?
00:04:42 - What is liberal democracy's greatest challenge regarding myth?
00:06:22 - Series Recap and Refresher
00:06:32 - Ep. 2: Myth & American Politics
00:08:04 - Ep. 3: QAnon & The Future of American Myth
— 00:12:09 - Post-truth politics
00:19:15 - Ep. 1: The Basics of Myth & Politics
00:20:04 - Global Myth
00:20:22 - The history of non-national myths
00:22:34 - The history of super-national myths: Christianity
00:24:14 - The history of the growing scale of myth: Germany
00:29:25 - Contemporary proofs for global myth: UN
00:31:29 - Contemporary proofs for global myth: EU
00:34:10 - The challenges of European myth-making
00:37:27 - Contemporary failings of global myth: NATO
00:42:51 - Alien invasion? Independence Day style global team-up?
00:43:56 - The constant in-group/out-group dynamic: Christianity, Germany, EU
00:47:35 - The shortcomings of global human myths, human rights
00:50:05 - The role of assimilation
00:51:28 - The force/cohesion dynamic in Christian Europe & Islamic empires
00:55:18 - Myth as a key to free society
00:57:14 - The Central Democratic Challenge with Myth
00:58:08 - The promise of neither force nor cohesion
01:00:00 - Liberalism's sneaky coercion
01:01:28 - Why Liberal Democracy cannot escape myth
01:07:15 - Signing Off

Bird’s Eye - Q, American Paranoia, and Reactionary Backlash

Join the editors as they continue their discussion of the role of myth in political life, examining the “QAnon” conspiracy theory.

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