Finale of The White Lotus, Illusions, Book News

Conversation with Hanania + links and recommendations

I recently spoke with Richard Hanania about the season 2 finale of HBO’s The White Lotus.

Check it out:

Also on Spotify and Apple Podcast.

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Links and recommendations:

• Why China Loves Conservatives by Eric Hendriks-Kim

• René Girard and the Rise of Victim Power by Geoff Shullenberger

• The “Toxic Male Gaze”: Should men staring at women be illegal? by Jennie Cummings-Knight

• Among the Academic “Anywheres”: Illusions of Belonging by Joseph H. Manson

• The Real Magic of Rituals by Dimitris Xygalatas

• The Evolution of ADHD by Justin Garson

• Follow me on Instagram here. The platform is less volatile and more chill than Twitter, so I post some spicier excerpts from my readings on my IG stories

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Three interesting findings:

1. People generally think that certain insults are uniquely hurtful depending on whether the target is a man or a woman. People judge saying “ You are a slut” to be more offensive to women, along with saying “You’d have sex with anyone,” “You don’t look good,” “Your body is ugly/busted,” “You are fat,” and “Your body stinks.” People judge saying “You are boring” to be more offensive to men, along with insults such as “Nothing you say is funny,” “You are poor,” “Your job sucks,” and “You are a pussy.” Interestingly, there are two types of insults people tend to agree are equally insulting to both sexes: “No one would have sex with you,” and “Your family is embarrassed of you.” (source).

2. In the U.S., the risk of suicide for separated or divorced people is nearly twice that for married people (source). The comedian Bill Burr has joked that the biggest problem with having a family that relies on you is that it takes the option of suicide off the table.

3. Compared with parental income, parental educational attainment is a stronger predictor of a person’s attitudes, behaviors, and opinions. Having an adjunct professor parent who earns $40K predicts upper middle class attitudes far more than having a truck driver parent who earns $65K. This is why researchers use parental education level as a fundamental objective indicator of social class. (source). Relatedly, relative to income, education more strongly correlates with political orientation. A PhD who drives a taxi for a living votes like other PhDs, not like other taxi drivers.

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Publishers Marketplace (the “outlet of record” for book deals) recently announced my forthcoming book: