The McGill International Review

Dig Deeper: Secularization

Host Andrew Xu sits down with Jessica Grose, an opinion writer for The New York Times. They discuss modern society's lower participation rates in religious institutions, how that relates to a group that social scientists refer to as "nones," and how people are finding a sense of community outside of organized religion.

References

"Lots of Americans Are Losing Their Religion. Have You?" by Jessica Grose, The New York Times

"What Churches Offer That ‘Nones’ Still Long For" by Jessica Grose, The New York Times

"MIR Meets: Elizabeth Bruenig" by Blaise Brosnan, The McGill International Review

"The Church of Group Fitness" by Jessica Grose, The New York Times

"Why Americans Care About Work So Much" by Derek Thompson, The Atlantic

The War for Ukraine: Putin’s Federal Assembly Address

Host Marion-Inès Le Pape presents an analysis of Russian President Putin's Federal Assembly address of February 2023, focusing on the parallels he draws between the war in Ukraine and World War II. In particular, she examines Putin's use and abuse of history and his rhetoric of "de-Nazification", questioning what renders it critical to the his narrative.

MIR Meets: Darrell Owens

Host Andrew Xu sits down with Substack writer and housing policy analyst Darrell Owens, to discuss the causes of San Francisco's homelessness crisis, the non-partisan nature of NIMBYism, and the debate surrounding affirmative action.

References

"Seeking clarity in Cali’s homelessness crisis, with Darrell Owens" from Time to Say Goodbye

"Unhoused and Unwell on Transit" by Darrell Owens, The Discourse Lounge

"Black and Asian Hate in San Francisco" by Darrell Owens, The Discourse Lounge

"The Look of Gentrification" by Darrell Owens, The Discourse Lounge

"Fixing the police will take more funding, not less" by Matt Yglesias, Slow Boring

"The Distraction & Distortion of Affirmative Action" by Darrell Owens, The Discourse Lounge

"The Power of Race" by Scott Jaschik, Inside Higher Ed

"MIR Meets: William Deresiewicz" by Blaise Brosnan, The McGill International Review

MIR Meets: Tomiwa Owolade

Host Andrew Xu sits down with Tomiwa Owolade, the author of This is Not America: Why Black Lives in Britain Matter. They discuss the ways in which discourse surrounding race relations in the US is often inaccurately transposed onto that of the UK, and how this often leads to an overly reductionist view of the situation.

 

References

"The narcissism of America’s race politics" by Tomiwa Owolade, Unherd

"Please Stop Imposing American Views about Race on Us" by Tomiwa Owolade, Persuasion

"Tomiwa Owolade on What We Get Wrong About Race" from The Good Fight with Yascha Mounk

"Racism in Britain is not a black and white issue. It’s far more complicated" by Tomiwa Owolade, The Observer

"The problem with white saviours" by Tomiwa Owolade, Unherd

MIR Meets: Dylan Matthews

Host Andrew Xu sits down with Dylan Matthews, a senior correspondent for Vox and head writer for Future Perfect. They discuss Biden's resolution to the debt ceiling crisis, the intricacies of the US's tax system, and various aspects of the effective altruism movement.

 

References

"It’s Great to Have a President Who Knows When to Shut Up" by Matt Yglesias, The New York Times

"What doing other people’s taxes taught me about our broken tax code" by Dylan Matthews, Vox

"How effective altruism let Sam Bankman-Fried happen" by Dylan Matthews, Vox

"Effective Altruism Has a Novelty Problem" by Freddie deBoer

MIR Meets: Elizabeth Bruenig

Host Blaise Brosnan sits down with Elizabeth Bruenig, a staff writer at The Atlantic. They discuss the philosophical underpinnings of the Christian left, the increasing secularization of the modern world, and the normalization of fear and violence in American society.

 

References

"Christianity’s Got a Branding Problem" by Jessica Grose, The New York Times

"A Country Governed By Fear" by Elizabeth Bruenig, The Atlantic

Review Radio: The Power of Social Interaction

Host Andrew Xu sits down with Sheila Liming, an associate professor at Champlain College and the author of Hanging Out: The Radical Power of Killing Time. They discuss the inherent benefits that come with social interaction, the importance of awkwardness in conversation, and what it would mean for society to expand its definition of family.

 

References

"Hanging Out: The Radical Power of Killing Time" by Sheila Liming

"Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation" from The U.S. Surgeon General

"The 'Quiet Catastrophe' Brewing in Our Social Lives" from The Ezra Klein Show

"The Nuclear Family Was a Mistake" by David Brooks, The Atlantic

MIR Meets: Karmina Constantino

Host Ines Fahmi sits down with journalist Karmina Constantino, the incumbent Marshall McLuhan Fellow awarded by the Embassy of Canada in the Philippines in 2022. They discuss the importance of the free press, and the relationship and impact that media and politics have on each other.

MIR Meets: William Deresiewicz

Host Blaise Brosnan sits down with William Deresiewicz, the author of Excellent Sheep and The Death of the Artist. They discuss the degree of intellectual engagement of the American elite, the postmodern turn in post-war American literature, and the increased proliferation of different forms of art over time.

Une discussion avec Sara El-Yafi: Le Point sur le Liban

Compte tenu de la grave crise économique et politique au Liban, Marilou el Mabsout et Joseph Abounohra ont rencontré Sara El-Yafi, politologue libanaise de la Harvard Kennedy School. Sara retourne sur les causes de l’explosion du port de Beyrouth du 4 août 2020 et nous fournit une analyse de la situation actuelle.

 

Un grand merci à CKUT pour son aide dans la production de cet épisode.