Wisdom of Crowds

Shadi Hamid & Damir Marusic
  • 4.4 (116)
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  • UPDATED BIWEEKLY

Agreement is nice. Disagreement is better. wisdomofcrowds.live

  1. Just How Worried Should We Be About AI?

    1D AGO

    Just How Worried Should We Be About AI?

    Damir and Sam are joined by Cambridge philosopher Henry Shevlin of the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence for a raucous and rambling conversation about the state of artificial intelligence. Is it about to get conscious, take all of our jobs, and destroy the world? Or is all this industry hype? Henry starts off the conversation asserting that AI already has a kind of “agency,” even if it’s not yet the full kind that some skeptics are looking for. Damir and Sam push back on AI’s reliability and proclivity to hallucinations, and wonder whether AI can create anything genuinely novel or creative. The conversation turns to autonomy and risk. Can “artificial superintelligence” ever be reached, asks Sam? Henry points to AI coding agents already improving themselves. Damir objects to anthropomorphizing AI and prefers treating these systems as powerful tools capable runaway failures — but nothing more. Henry disagrees, ending the conversation with a plea for AIs getting consideration as moral entities at some point. Required Reading: * “Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies,” by Nick Bostrom (Amazon). * The Creative Mind: Myths and Mechanisms, by Margaret Boden (Amazon). * “Disambiguating Anthropomorphism and Anthropomimesis in Human-Robot Interaction,” by Minja Axelsson and Henry Shevlin (arxiv.org). * “Real Patterns,” by Daniel C. Dennett (Rutgers). * A relevant tweet by Séb Krier (X). * AlphaGo Move 37 analysis (DeepMind). * Conway’s Game of Life (Wikipedia). This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wisdomofcrowds.live/subscribe

    1h 11m

  2. FEB 3

    American Exceptionalism on Trial

    This episode features a full-length debate between Shadi Hamid and Trita Parsi —two thinkers who fundamentally disagree about the role of American power in the world. Released jointly with The Disagreement podcast and hosted by Alex Grodd, the conversation reflects a shared Wisdom of Crowds ethos — one that treats disagreement not as a failure of understanding, but as a tool for thinking more clearly about first principles. Rather than trading talking points, Hamid and Parsi engage each other’s strongest arguments in a sustained, good-faith exchange. Shadi draws on themes from The Case for American Power to defend a position that has fallen out of favor across much of the political spectrum: that American power, when used with moral purpose, can still play a necessary role in reducing global suffering. His argument is aimed in part at a disillusioned left that has come to see U.S. power primarily as a source of harm rather than a potential instrument of humanitarian good. Against this, Trita — one of the most incisive critics of American interventionism — offers a sustained challenge, grounded in historical failures, unintended consequences, and the limits of even well-intentioned power. Does the world need the United States to act, and if so, when — and at what cost? How should past disasters constrain present ambitions? And if American power is curtailed, what realistic alternatives exist, and who bears responsibility when things go wrong? This debate doesn’t resolve those questions — but it models what it looks like to take them seriously, in conversation with someone who sees the world very differently. Required Reading/ Listening: * The Disagreement podcast. * Shadi Hamid, The Case for American Power. (Amazon) * Shadi’s 2024 debate with Daniel Bessner hosted by The Disagreement. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wisdomofcrowds.live/subscribe

    57 min
  3. What the New Right Actually Believes

    JAN 27

    What the New Right Actually Believes

    This week Christine Emba and Sam Kimbriel are joined by Laura K. Field, a political theorist and the author of the new book Furious Minds: The Making of the MAGA New Right. It’s a sharp, readable taxonomy of the thinkers, factions and subcultures that helped build the MAGA coalition—from the Claremont world and national conservatism, to post-liberal Catholicism, to harder-edged online currents. Laura explains how she came to write about this subject, and how she became convinced the movement wasn’t going to take an off-ramp after January 6. The three trace how these ideas migrate from argument to power. They dissect liberalism’s blindspots, which somehow persist to this day. And they look at the right’s internal fractures — and what those tensions might mean for the coming succession fight in the Republican Party. Required Reading: * Furious Minds: The Making of the MAGA New Right, by Laura K. Field (Amazon). * Why Liberalism Failed, by Patrick Deneen (Amazon). * “The Flight 93 Election,” by Publius Decius Mus (Claremont Review of Books). * “Inside Stephen Miller’s Dark Plot to Build a MAGA Terror State,” by Greg Sargent (New Republic). * “Why the MAGA-DOGE Coalition Will Hold,” by Patrick Deneen (UnHerd). This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wisdomofcrowds.live/subscribe

    1h 11m

  4. JAN 9

    Venezuela and Its Consequences

    Against the backdrop of Trump’s breathtaking snatch-and-grab operation against Venezuela’s nasty dictator Nicolás Maduro, Shadi and Damir debate the complexities of global politics, focusing on the tension between power and morality. They explore the implications of U.S. foreign policy decisions and debate the role of values in international relations. Shadi pushes Damir about the implications of his commitments, who in turn says ugly things you probably won’t like. Required Reading: * “Venezuela and the End of Hipocrisy,” by Shadi Hamid (WoC). * “The Great Unraveling Has Begun,” by Oona Hathaway (NYT). * “On the Legality of the Venezuela Invasion,” by Jack Goldsmith (Executive Functions). This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wisdomofcrowds.live/subscribe

    1h 13m

  5. 12/29/2025

    How Democracies Can Get Their Mojo Back

    As the year winds down, Shadi and Damir hosted Michael McFaul, a professor at Stanford University and former special assistant to President Obama and U.S. ambassador to Russia. His new book, Autocrats vs. Democrats: China, Russia, America, and the New Global Disorder is as good a start as any in trying to figure out how U.S. foreign policy could — and should — develop in the wake of a second Trump presidency. Required Reading: * Autocrats vs. Democrats: China, Russia, America, and the New Global Disorder, by Michael McFaul (Amazon). * The Case for American Power, by Shadi Hamid (Amazon). This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wisdomofcrowds.live/subscribe

    58 min

  6. 12/24/2025

    Holiday Special: The Case for a New American Founding

    This week, we have a special live episode for you. Wisdom of Crowds, in cooperation with Aspen’s Philosophy and Society program, threw a holiday party in DC, celebrating the release of our friend Osita Nwanevu’s new book, The Right of the People. Samuel Kimbriel sat down with Osita and the great Sam Goldman of the Hamilton School at the University of Florida, to kick off our celebration of America’s 250th with a debate of whether the constitution was a bad idea. Osita argues that it is time for a new American founding. The clash between our democratic principles and our long term inequalities requires a gradual but fundamental reworking of the American constitutional order. Goldman dissents, arguing both that, for all its flaws, the American system is superior to any comparable existing democracy of comparable scale—and that any plausible step to dismantle it is likely to lead to ruin. Kimbriel tries to keep the peace. Abandon arguing with your family over the holidays and argue with us instead! Required Reading: * The Right of the People, by Osita Nwanevu (Penguin Random House). This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wisdomofcrowds.live/subscribe

    1 hr

  7. 12/15/2025

    Why are Charismatic Demagogues So Attractive?

    This week, the great Nils Gilman joined Damir Marusic and Samuel Kimbriel on the pod to unpack the complexities of American foreign policy and its implications for Europe — and beyond. The conversation starts by trying to make sense of Trump’s latest National Security Strategy as a jumping off point, before pivoting into a discussion of populism. Why do some causes, projects — and people — provide meaning while others fall flat? For example, why is Trump’s nationalism more politically effective than calls to global climate action? And is there a better way to create meaning in an increasingly fragmented world? Required Reading: * Nils Gilman, “Climate Leviathan” (Substack). * Nils Gilman, “The Duopoly of Doom” (Substack). This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wisdomofcrowds.live/subscribe

    1h 14m

  8. 12/08/2025

    Do We Crave Intensity in Our Lives?

    Damir’s back from Ukraine, still buzzing — and feeling weird about it. He and Christine talk about the thrill and guilt associated with reporting from war zones, the ethical implications of war tourism, and the psychological toll on both journalists and civilians. The conversation then shifts to Trump and a possibly looming war with Venezuela. The Trump administration has cowed many a politician, but the fear seems to be ebbing. But have we gotten over our addiction to the thrill of political populism? Required Reading: * Damir Marusic, “My Night in Dnipro” (WoC). * Christine Emba, “Vibe Shift 2.0” (WoC). * Jason Willick, “There’s No Middle Ground on the Boat Strikes” (Washington Post). This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wisdomofcrowds.live/subscribe

    1h 21m
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4.4
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116 Ratings

About

Agreement is nice. Disagreement is better. wisdomofcrowds.live

Information

  • Creator
    Shadi Hamid & Damir Marusic
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
    251
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Wisdom of Crowds
  • Show Website
    Wisdom of Crowds

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