You Are Insufficiently Grateful for Modernity | Interview: Chelsea Follett

No one ever accused Jonah Goldberg of nostalgic longing for the Middle Ages. Accordingly, he’s grown tired of the tradbros and hippies who claim that the premodern world was just better. In that vein, he welcomes the Cato Institute’s Chelsea Follett, author of The Grim Old Days. Listen in as Chelsea and Jonah discuss the causes and effects of the Industrial Revolution, life expectancy, working hours, grandparents, sanitation, animal welfare, health and wellness, childhood, environmentalism, smartphones, Rousseau’s “noble savage,” witches, and romanticization of the past.  Show Notes: —Chelsea Follett - The Grim Old Days: An Introduction to the Preindustrial Past —Corey Robin - The Reactionary Mind: Conservatism from Edmund Burke to Donald Trump —Juliet B. Schor - The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline Of Leisure —Jonah’s book: Suicide of the West —Steven Pinker - The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined The Remnant is a production of ⁠The Dispatch⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a nonpartisan perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including the Saturday Ruminant, audio versions of all our articles and newsletters, and Jonah’s twice-weekly G-File—⁠click here⁠. Instructions on how to set up your members-only feed can be found here, and if you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member ⁠by clicking here⁠.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices