Making Sense - Sam Harris - Making Sense with Sam Harris

Dec. 7, 2020 - Making Sense - Sam Harris

01:32

Making Sense with Sam Harris

# william j perry truth decay synthetic media chris don harris david miliband economic collapse evonne noah ferraro gabriel dance graham wood james dillard jonathan haidt making sense podcast michael sandel nuclear war ricky gervais robert plowman self censorship siddhartha mukherjee social fabric erosion stephen fry

Sam Harris and Robert Plowman confront a society fractured by nuclear threats, synthetic media, and the erosion of truth, where nuance is absent and honest dialogue feels offensive. Harris details his deep concern over self-censorship and the binary nature of modern arguments, noting that the danger of blundering into war today mirrors Cold War risks. By reaching out to thinkers like Jonathan Haidt and William J. Perry, the episode suggests that addressing these existential crises requires reclaiming complex, uncomfortable conversations before social fabric and moral consensus collapse entirely. [Automatically generated summary]
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Transcriber: large-v3-turbo

Time	Text
What Went Wrong 00:01:31
	There's so much here that's confusing.
	So let's first talk about what went wrong and what could have not gone wrong.
	Your whole podcast is about just having honest conversations about topics.
	It's offensive to your and my sense of justice.
	You actually care.
	How has my mind been fundamentally warped?
	So the topic today is the threat of nuclear war.
	Slow erosion of the social fabric.
	Synthetic media revolution.
	Collapse of our economy.
	The role of religion in public life.
	Morality and moral disagreement.
	Breakdown of truth.
	I'm scared that us two in a room will egg each other on.
	You can't have a subtle argument anymore.
	There's no place for nuance.
	Everything has to be binary for the right people to agree and disagree.
	It's not a healthy place for society to be when everyone is afraid to say anything.
	I've learned to exercise censorship on myself in a way that is deeply disturbing.
	I don't feel that I should have to.
	I appreciate who you are, really, and you elevated me and those ideas.
	I'll never forget you for it.
	Real danger during the Cold War was blundering into a nuclear war, and I believe that that is the same situation today, and with at least the same likelihood today.
	You're so full of Christmas cheer.
	Today I'm speaking with Robert Plowman.
	Here I reached out to Jonathan Haidt, William J. Perry.
	I am here with Gabriel Dance, Siddhartha Mukherjee, David Miliband, Graham Wood, Ricky Gervais, Stephen Fry, James Dillard, Chris Don Harris, Michael Sandel, Evonne Noah-Ferraro.
	Welcome to the Making Sense Podcast.

Time

Text

What Went Wrong 00:01:31

There's so much here that's confusing.

So let's first talk about what went wrong and what could have not gone wrong.

Your whole podcast is about just having honest conversations about topics.

It's offensive to your and my sense of justice.

You actually care.

How has my mind been fundamentally warped?

So the topic today is the threat of nuclear war.

Slow erosion of the social fabric.

Synthetic media revolution.

Collapse of our economy.

The role of religion in public life.

Morality and moral disagreement.

Breakdown of truth.

I'm scared that us two in a room will egg each other on.

You can't have a subtle argument anymore.

There's no place for nuance.

Everything has to be binary for the right people to agree and disagree.

It's not a healthy place for society to be when everyone is afraid to say anything.

I've learned to exercise censorship on myself in a way that is deeply disturbing.

I don't feel that I should have to.

I appreciate who you are, really, and you elevated me and those ideas.

I'll never forget you for it.

Real danger during the Cold War was blundering into a nuclear war, and I believe that that is the same situation today, and with at least the same likelihood today.

You're so full of Christmas cheer.

Today I'm speaking with Robert Plowman.

Here I reached out to Jonathan Haidt, William J. Perry.

I am here with Gabriel Dance, Siddhartha Mukherjee, David Miliband, Graham Wood, Ricky Gervais, Stephen Fry, James Dillard, Chris Don Harris, Michael Sandel, Evonne Noah-Ferraro.

Welcome to the Making Sense Podcast.