In episode 137 of Overthink, Ellie and David discuss the meaning of truth in our contemporary political and social landscape and how post-truth has increased in the recent years. They explore the different types of truth and the differences between misinformation vs disinformation and lying vs bullshitting. How do phenomenons like opinion overload, news fatigue, and information overload contribute to the spread of post truth? Is there a connection between post truth and postmodernism? And if so, how has academic postmodernism, or so called ‘pomo professors’, contributed to the rise of dishonesty and deception?

In episode 127 of Overthink, David and Ellie dive into what an oligarchy looks like, the dangers of a country’s power being in the hands of the wealthy few, and whether or not oligarchic rule is new for the US. They look to the ancient Greeks for ideas on which form of government is conducive to the good life and explore how Aristotle’s notion of pleonexia relates to the current state of the US. Your hosts investigate how oligarchy morphs into tyranny, and try to answer the question, “How can we resist an oligarchy?”

Ellie and David discuss civil disobedience in the present context of university activism for divestment from genocide in Gaza. They chart the concept in political theory, from Thoreau and MLK through to today. Together with guest Noëlle McAfee, Chair of the Philosophy Department at Emory University, they reflect on the relationship between legal protest, civil disobedience, and political dialogue, and think about why activism must be part of any healthy democracy.