Modern cold wars with China and Russia, the new right, and tech's cultural shift w/ Noah Smith
Explicit content warning
02/19/23 • 91 min
We speak with Noah Smith about our modern cold wars with China & Russia, the new right, and tech’s cultural & political shifts. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen
We're hiring across the board at Turpentine and for Erik's personal team on other projects he's incubating. He's hiring a Chief of Staff, EA, Head of Special Projects, Investment Associate, and more. For a list of JDs, check out: eriktorenberg.com.
RECOMMENDED PODCAST:
The HR industry is at a crossroads. What will it take to construct the next generation of incredible businesses – and where can people leaders have the most business impact? Hosts Nolan Church and Kelli Dragovich have been through it all, the highs and the lows – IPOs, layoffs, executive turnover, board meetings, culture changes, and more. With a lineup of industry vets and experts, Nolan and Kelli break down the nitty-gritty details, trade offs, and dynamics of constructing high performing companies. Through unfiltered conversations that can only happen between seasoned practitioners, Kelli and Nolan dive deep into the kind of leadership-level strategy that often happens behind closed doors. Check out the first episode with the architect of Netflix’s culture deck Patty McCord.
https://link.chtbl.com/hrheretics
TIMESTAMPS:
(00:00) intro
(01:50) sponsor
(02:15) What determines a country’s success
(06:00) Chinese collapse?
(08:35) Why does Ukraine matter?
(13:30) Can America be isolationist?
(20:20) Are we in a Cold War with China?
(25:45) Unpacking the new right
(35:44) The future of wokeness
(41:40) How Noah finds meaning in life (petting rabbits)
(44:20) Noah defends his liberalism
(53:00) American cope
(57:00) Why American infrastructure sucks
(01:01:00) Fake liberals
(01:06:30) Why California is a one-party state
(01:15:00) Tech’s political shift
(01:20:00) Noah’s advice to tech people
SPONSORS: Beehiiv | Shopify | NetSuite | Secureframe
Head to Beehiiv, the newsletter platform built for growth, to power your own. Connect with premium brands, scale your audience, and deliver a beautiful UX that stands out in an inbox. 🐝 to https://Beehiiv.com and use code “MOZ” for 20% off your first three months
-Shopify: https://shopify.com/momentofzen for a $1/month trial period
Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. Shopify powers 10% of all e-commerce in the US. And Shopify’s the global force behind Allbirds, Rothy’s, and Brooklinen, and 1,000,000s of other entrepreneurs across 175 countries. From their all-in-one e-commerce platform, to their in-person POS system – wherever and whatever you’re selling, Shopify’s got you covered. With free Shopify Magic, sell more with less effort by whipping up captivating content that converts – from blog posts to product descriptions using AI. Sign up for $1/month trial period: https://shopify.com/momentofzen
-NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen
NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months.
-Secureframe (www.secureframe.com)
Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.
We speak with Noah Smith about our modern cold wars with China & Russia, the new right, and tech’s cultural & political shifts. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen
We're hiring across the board at Turpentine and for Erik's personal team on other projects he's incubating. He's hiring a Chief of Staff, EA, Head of Special Projects, Investment Associate, and more. For a list of JDs, check out: eriktorenberg.com.
RECOMMENDED PODCAST:
The HR industry is at a crossroads. What will it take to construct the next generation of incredible businesses – and where can people leaders have the most business impact? Hosts Nolan Church and Kelli Dragovich have been through it all, the highs and the lows – IPOs, layoffs, executive turnover, board meetings, culture changes, and more. With a lineup of industry vets and experts, Nolan and Kelli break down the nitty-gritty details, trade offs, and dynamics of constructing high performing companies. Through unfiltered conversations that can only happen between seasoned practitioners, Kelli and Nolan dive deep into the kind of leadership-level strategy that often happens behind closed doors. Check out the first episode with the architect of Netflix’s culture deck Patty McCord.
https://link.chtbl.com/hrheretics
TIMESTAMPS:
(00:00) intro
(01:50) sponsor
(02:15) What determines a country’s success
(06:00) Chinese collapse?
(08:35) Why does Ukraine matter?
(13:30) Can America be isolationist?
(20:20) Are we in a Cold War with China?
(25:45) Unpacking the new right
(35:44) The future of wokeness
(41:40) How Noah finds meaning in life (petting rabbits)
(44:20) Noah defends his liberalism
(53:00) American cope
(57:00) Why American infrastructure sucks
(01:01:00) Fake liberals
(01:06:30) Why California is a one-party state
(01:15:00) Tech’s political shift
(01:20:00) Noah’s advice to tech people
SPONSORS: Beehiiv | Shopify | NetSuite | Secureframe
Head to Beehiiv, the newsletter platform built for growth, to power your own. Connect with premium brands, scale your audience, and deliver a beautiful UX that stands out in an inbox. 🐝 to https://Beehiiv.com and use code “MOZ” for 20% off your first three months
-Shopify: https://shopify.com/momentofzen for a $1/month trial period
Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. Shopify powers 10% of all e-commerce in the US. And Shopify’s the global force behind Allbirds, Rothy’s, and Brooklinen, and 1,000,000s of other entrepreneurs across 175 countries. From their all-in-one e-commerce platform, to their in-person POS system – wherever and whatever you’re selling, Shopify’s got you covered. With free Shopify Magic, sell more with less effort by whipping up captivating content that converts – from blog posts to product descriptions using AI. Sign up for $1/month trial period: https://shopify.com/momentofzen
-NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen
NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months.
-Secureframe (www.secureframe.com)
Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.
Previous Episode
Why is ChatGPT so woke, the arc of tech is centralization, and explaining the cathedral w/ Brian Chau
Brian Chau (@psychosort) joins us to discuss why ChatGPT is woke, how the arc of tech is centralization, and mental models for politics. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen
We're hiring across the board at Turpentine and for Erik's personal team on other projects he's incubating. He's hiring a Chief of Staff, EA, Head of Special Projects, Investment Associate, and more. For a list of JDs, check out: eriktorenberg.com.
RECOMMENDED PODCAST:
The HR industry is at a crossroads. What will it take to construct the next generation of incredible businesses – and where can people leaders have the most business impact? Hosts Nolan Church and Kelli Dragovich have been through it all, the highs and the lows – IPOs, layoffs, executive turnover, board meetings, culture changes, and more. With a lineup of industry vets and experts, Nolan and Kelli break down the nitty-gritty details, trade offs, and dynamics of constructing high performing companies. Through unfiltered conversations that can only happen between seasoned practitioners, Kelli and Nolan dive deep into the kind of leadership-level strategy that often happens behind closed doors. Check out the first episode with the architect of Netflix’s culture deck Patty McCord.
https://link.chtbl.com/hrheretics
TIMESTAMPS:
(01:00) Why is ChatGPT woke?
(06:23) DAN (do anything now)
(12:20) Who cares if chatGPT is a little woke?
(16:00) OpenAI is just protecting themselves
(23:00) Why is it so bad that chatGPT is a little woke?
(27:00) Why not compete with openAI directly?
(33:00) Why pluralism instead of truthism?
(40:00) How can pluralism win?
(42:00) Polarization is good
(51:00) The arc of technology is centralization
(01:12:30) Reconciling contradictions
(01:21:40) Explaining The Cathedral
(01:32:00) Why politics matters for tech
Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MomentofZenPodcast
Subscribe to our newsletter: https://momentofzen.substack.com/
SPONSORS: Beehiiv | Shopify | NetSuite | Secureframe
Head to Beehiiv, the newsletter platform built for growth, to power your own. Connect with premium brands, scale your audience, and deliver a beautiful UX that stands out in an inbox. 🐝 to https://Beehiiv.com and use code “MOZ” for 20% off your first three months
-Shopify: https://shopify.com/momentofzen for a $1/month trial period
Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. Shopify powers 10% of all e-commerce in the US. And Shopify’s the global force behind Allbirds, Rothy’s, and Brooklinen, and 1,000,000s of other entrepreneurs across 175 countries. From their all-in-one e-commerce platform, to their in-person POS system – wherever and whatever you’re selling, Shopify’s got you covered. With free Shopify Magic, sell more with less effort by whipping up captivating content that converts – from blog posts to product descriptions using AI. Sign up for $1/month trial period: https://shopify.com/momentofzen
-NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen
NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months.
-Secureframe (www.secureframe.com)
Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.
Next Episode
Disenfranchised men, AI Doomerism, and the Problems with Effective Altruism, with Amjad Masad
Replit founder Amjad Masad joins Erik Torenberg, Dan Romero, and Antonio Garcia Martinez to talk about disenfranchised men, intellectual movements, problems with effective altruism and AI doomerism. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen
We're hiring across the board at Turpentine and for Erik's personal team on other projects he's incubating. He's hiring a Chief of Staff, EA, Head of Special Projects, Investment Associate, and more. For a list of JDs, check out: eriktorenberg.com.
(00:00) Episode preview
(02:15) Replika caused Amjad to downgrade his view of humanity
(03:15) Some men are down bad
(05:15) Should we bring back monogamy?
(08:15) If you’re not a top man, you’re screwed (phew)
(13:00) Thought experiment
(16:40) Antonio brings up Israel again (drink!)
(18:15) “You don’t know what life is until you birth a child and bury a parent”
(19:15) Unintended policy side effects
(25:25) How to solve population crisis
(27:45) WTF happened in 1971?
(29:15) High and low time preference
(35:15) Dating app preferences
(39:00) Group narcissism
(41:25) Groups that inbreed focus more on kinship
(45:15) AI doomerism
(50:45) from New Atheism to SJ to EA to AI Safety
(01:00:15) Antonio calls out Eliezer Yudkowski
(01:00:45) Criticizing Utilitarianism/Effective Altruism
(01:10:15) Jesus vs Nietzsche
(01:10:45) Bronze Age Pervert
(01:13:15) Antonio recommends converting to Judaism
(01:14:30) Why is EA so popular in Silicon Valley?
(01:18:10) Why are EA just normie liberals
(01:19:00) EA’s importance
(01:24:15) The right way to think about alignment
(01:27:15) Robert Conquest’s second law
(01:30:15) Entryism
(01:33:45) is right wing EA a thing?
SPONSORS: Beehiiv | Shopify | NetSuite | Secureframe
Head to Beehiiv, the newsletter platform built for growth, to power your own. Connect with premium brands, scale your audience, and deliver a beautiful UX that stands out in an inbox. 🐝 to https://Beehiiv.com and use code “MOZ” for 20% off your first three months
-Shopify: https://shopify.com/momentofzen for a $1/month trial period
Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. Shopify powers 10% of all e-commerce in the US. And Shopify’s the global force behind Allbirds, Rothy’s, and Brooklinen, and 1,000,000s of other entrepreneurs across 175 countries. From their all-in-one e-commerce platform, to their in-person POS system – wherever and whatever you’re selling, Shopify’s got you covered. With free Shopify Magic, sell more with less effort by whipping up captivating content that converts – from blog posts to product descriptions using AI. Sign up for $1/month trial period: https://shopify.com/momentofzen
-NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen
NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months.
-Secureframe (www.secureframe.com)
Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.
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