The Genius of Thomas Sowell
Thomas Sowell might well be our greatest living Intellectual. His accomplishments span 6 decades and include over 40 books and thousands of columns and articles written on a wide range of topics, from economics to sociology to history to race and culture. It is hard to name another intellectual who has studied and written on as wide a range of topics in such a profound way. This podcast will discuss his ideas and is intended to provide a place for admirers of his work to discuss his contributions with other like minded thinkers.
Episodes
In today’s episode we explore the theme of “Honesty.”
Sowell wrote about honesty in his latest book “Social Justice Fallacies,” and also in his 2000 classic “Basic Economics.”
In addition, his 1993 collection of essays called “Is Reality Optional?” contains an essay about honesty which has a very unexpected spin to it.
We learn that honesty is not just a moral virtue, it’s also a form ...
This episode features a deep dive into Theodore Dalrymple's 2001 masterpiece
"Life at the Bottom," one of Thomas Sowell's favorite books, and one of my all time favorites as well.
I strongly suggest you read or listen to this book as soon as possible, You can thank me later. I prefer the audiobook to the written book, just because the audiobook narrator does such a fantastic...
This episode features:
1) The Causes of WW2:
A presentation of Sowell's essay "Intellectuals and War," from Sowell 2010 classic "Intellectuals and Society."
In particular, I discuss the 6 causes of WWII, from Sowell's perspective.
2) My conversation with Victor Davis Hanson, (VDH):
VDH is a Classicist and Military Historian at the Hoover Institution...
This episode was inspired by the outbreak of war between Israel and the Palestinians which started on October 7, 2023.
I explore Sowell's views on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict through two columns written by Sowell, one in 2006 and the other in 2014:
2006 Column: “There is no Middle East Peace Process”
2014 Column: "Cease the Cease Fires"
Our special guest for...
In this episode, I explore the work and ideas of Amy Chua.
Amy is not only a tenured Professor of Law at Yale University, she is also a bestselling author of several books. Her most famous books was published in 2011 and is called "The Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother."
Amy told me that she was a huge fan of Thomas Sowell but what I didn’t know at the time is that Thomas Sowell is a...
This episode features my conversation with Jason Riley, author of THE definitive Thomas Sowell biography published in 2021:
"Maverick: A Biography of Thomas Sowell"
I give a broadstroke overview of the 9 chapters of Maverick, then talk about the book - and Thomas Sowell in general - with Jason Riley himself.
He and I also talk about Sowell's new book "Social Justic...
I met Dr. Gad Saad at the Stanford Academic Freedom conference last November.
See Episode #27.
Lo and behold, Gad Saad is a big fan of you-know-who!
Plus he has a lot in common with Sowell, as you will learn by listening to my interview with him today.
We talk about two of Gad Saad's books:
1) The Parasitic Mind (2020)
2) The Saad Truth about Happiness (new)
I ...
This episode explores Thomas Sowell's views on love and marriage.
In his 1980 book "Knowledge and Decisions," Sowell tells the story of two farmers working one plot of land, and we use that story as a metaphor for the foundations of marriage.
I interview Dovid Feldman, who I view as a true expert on the subject of marriage.
Dovid is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapis...
Thomas Sowell calls "Disparate Impact" ideology the "grand dogma" of our time.
But what is disparate impact and why is it so important?
On this episode we take a deep dive into disparate impact ideology and how it has changed America.
Joining me to discuss this important subject is Heather Mac Donald.
Heather is a fellow at the Manhattan Institute for Po...
In this episode, we take a deep dive into the Cold War and what lessons can be learned from it. In particular, we reflect upon some key teachings of Thomas Sowell with regard to how price-coordinated, Capitalist societies perform in comparison with command-style, communist and socialist economies.
Peter Robinson joins me in the second half of the show to talk about his views about Sowell and the Cold...
In today's episode I interview Professor Amy Wax from Penn Law School.
If you don't know Amy Wax, buckle up, you're in for a real treat.
Amy is truly one of a kind and you'll know what I mean after you listen to the episode.
I named this episode “Fight the Good Fight” because Amy Wax reminds me of the crucial importance of fighting for what you believe in. And not just fi...
In today's episode I explore the dynamics of radically changing your mind on important subjects.
Thomas Sowell himself experienced just such a shift in his thinking and so did our guest today, Dr. Joel Brown.
You can find Dr. Brown on Twitter under the handle @JoelBrownMD
We have a surprise guest on this episode as well: her name is Priyanka Wolan.
• Priyanka is an accomp...
In today’s episode, I share with you my experience of the Academic Freedom Conference which took place at Stanford University on November 4th and 5th.
Here are some resources which will enhance your enjoyment of the episode:
1) Here's a LINK to the Academic Freedom Conference website.
2) Here's a LINK to the Youtube channel for the conference.
3) Here's a LINK to the book...
In this episode, I have a conversation with Dr. Steven Pinker, Professor of Cognitive Science at Harvard University.
We talk about what Sowell gets right and what he gets wrong. We talk about why Sowell is not better known in academia and what this tells us about Sowell, and also about academia.
Here are some useful links to things mentioned in the episode:
• Here's a LINK to the t...
When you study Thomas Sowell, you are inevitably introduced to other intellectuals Sowell cites in his books. These are the thinkers Sowell looks up to and draws inspiration from. One such thinker is the British Psychiatrist Theodore Dalrymple.
In this episode we explore Dalrymple's book "Life At The Bottom" and what it has to teach us about the ideas which perpetuate poverty and othe...
In today’s episode, I take a look at Thomas Sowell’s intellectual career from a slightly unusual perspective and I do that by comparing Sowell with two other public intellectuals of his generation: Alan Dershowitz and Woody Allen.
In my view, Sowell, Dershowitz and Allen have 10 major things in common, and you'll just have to listen to the podcast to find out what they are.
Here's a LINK to ...
In this episode we discuss Sowell's 1997 book "The Quest for Cosmic Justice."
In particular, we discuss how pursuing a vision of universal equality leads paradoxically to an increase in inequality and to the fostering of envy and resentment in society.
Here are some useful links to deepen your appreciation of the episode:
• "The Quest for Cosmic Justice" b...
In this episode we discuss Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. We talk about what Clarence Thomas has to say about Sowell and also about what Sowell has to say about Clarence Thomas.
Here are some useful links to deepen your appreciation of the episode:
• Billy Joel SINGS "Angry Young Man" live at Shea Stadium. Lyrics HERE.
• Full VIDEO of Clarence Thomas at the Old Parklan...
In this episode, we discuss Sowell's views on the subject of Abortion.
I open the episode with a discussion of Madonna's 1986 music video "Papa Don't Preach" and what the story of that song has to teach us about Abortion.
You will appreciate this episode much more if you watch the video before listening, you can find it HERE on Youtube.
Sowell tells us about...
NEW NEWS THAT'S NEWSWORTHY:
1) Basic Books (Sowell's publisher) is teaming up with The Genius of Thomas Sowell Podcast to offer listeners a chance to win 4 Sowell books. Enter at SowellBooks.com for a chance to win!
2) We are having our first, live, in person Book Club meeting on Saturday, July 9, 2022 in Los Angeles. This is a free event. We will be discussing Sowell's 2020 ...
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