To Whom Do You Listen?

 

Who do you trust? Now that all the conventional authorities are shown to be liars?

Who are your favourite commentators among the streamers? A topic at a recent meeting I was unable to attend.

I recently watched a “Backstage” round table from the Daily Wire, and was impressed with the intellectual level of the conversation. This is what university ought to be like, and isn’t. Daily Wire has been taking a lot of criticism lately from other parties on the right: Candace Owens, Steven Crowder. I suspect this has mostly to do with the greater antisemitism: Daily Wire is just too good and too successful. It provokes envy among others on the right.

I especially love to listen to Michael Knowles. I am a liberal; he is a conservative. But it is fascinating to hear the conservative position. He has a background in Italian literature. He is schooled in theology and the traditions of Western thought. I learn from him. But he is also soothing to listen to: he always has an upbeat attitude.

I love Andrew Klavan. He obviously also has a strong background in the Humanities. I loved to hear him arguing with Knowles about what Dante really meant. He adds great wisdom; in part, I expect, from his more advanced age. I do not always agree with his take on Christianity and Christian ethics; but then, he is an Anglican. They tend to be pretty loose on these things. His monologues are always intensely funny.

Ben Shapiro is great. Everyone knows Ben Shapiro is great. He talks fast and never wastes your time. He can always hold my complete attention. Because he is deeply schooled in Judaism, he can often teach me new things and new perspectives. What Would Moses Do?

Speaking of talking fast, I love to listen to Brett Cooper. She doesn’t have nearly as much to say; her purview is more pop culture and relationships. But like Michael Knowles, she has a sunny attitude, and rock-solid common sense.

I am put off by Matt Walsh. His gruffness irritates me; his tone is authoritarian. I think his instincts are authoritarian. I also seem to learn nothing new from him; perhaps in part because we agree on so much. This makes him less interesting to listen to. 

Jordan Peterson: an associate at Daily Wire. I admire his courage; but I have always found Peterson vague and philosophically ungrounded; not intellectually rigorous. He is, after all, a psychologist, and all psychology is like this. A clear thinker would not have entered the field. So time spent listening to Jordan Peterson, I’m sad to say, is time wasted.

Candace Owens has always put me off. Now that she is feuding with Daily Wire. I think categorically that she is in the wrong. She is infected with the poison of antisemitism. She is also not on the same intellectual level as the others; she is prominent because she likes to fight. The point is to stir things up, not to seek the truth. Yellow journalism.

Which brings us to Alex Jones. Like Owens, but more so, his main interest is in stirring things up and being controversial. He is a brilliant entertainer, and a lot of fun to listen to, so long as you understand what he is about—I just don’t have the time. But attempts to ban him or sue him are pure evil. 

Steven Crowder is also primarily an entertainer. He is often fun to listen to; but he is not particularly deep in his analysis. I generally do not have the time.

I find myself listening often to Tim Pool—and wondering why. I find him irritating, for the same reason I love Ben Shapiro. Pool always takes five minutes to say what should take one minute. And most of that is just repeating the same point in other words, and expressing personal opinions. His strength is that he is first with a comment on each news story. He is a news source.

Carl Benjamin, aka Sargon of Akkad, is good for keeping tabs on what is happening in the UK. He seems well grounded in the classical tradition. The main problem is merely that we do not hear from him that often.

Also from the UK, I like Calvin Robinson, from what I have heard; but I have not heard enough from him to say anything definitive.

Canadian commentators? I do want to see anything new put out by JJ McCullough. JJ is not that well schooled in a classical sense, but that is not his thing. His specialty is cultural literacy, meaning in his case pop cultural literacy. This is a special interest of mine, and relates to my work. He is also a great presenter.

Viva Frei is the best of Canadian streamers on politics and current events. Like Ben Shapiro, he talks fast, gets to the point, and does not waste your time. Even better are his sessions with the American lawyer Barnes. Barnes seems always to have an unexpected perspective on things, he is clear and unambiguous about it, and he is often right when I was wrong.

Whatsherface is absolutely brilliant for a comic take on the news. I must see each new video of hers as soon as it is out. Not deep analysis, nothing new learned, but both useful as an overview of the week and highly entertaining.

Mr. Sunshine Baby. He is all clickbait, all the time. But like Tim Pool, his strength is that he is always first on the scene. I often find myself watching his videos despite the low quality, for the news value.

Some other streamers worth mentioning: Joe Rogan comes across as a regular guy with common sense and street smarts. As an interviewer, he stands in for the average guy; nobody has ever done this better than Rogan. He seems to have no prejudices; you get the straight goods. I only wish I had more time to listen to his “long form” interviews.

Megyn Kelly often shows up in my feed. This is no doubt because she is highly active. A good news source, the straight goods, not great analysis. 

Everyone knows about Tucker Carlson. Enough said; a must-watch.

Bill O’Reilly is back with his own videocast. I have caught it recently, and find it worthwhile. I think he is a bit of a blowhard. But he has been around the block, and so can have some unique insights.

Dinesh DeSouza: do not like. I catch someone in a lie, and they lose me forever. DeSouza is not honest.

This is also why I’m soured on Scott Adams. He is at least honest about the fact that he is trying to manipulate you. And I am myself a student of rhetoric, and love it when it is well done. But truly good rhetoric must be strictly honest, and not manipulative. Adams manipulates. This also means he takes a great deal of time to make his points. More time than  I have to spare.

William Lane Craig: his purview is narrow, the issue of the existence of God, but he is the best at it. He is also a model of a fine debater—speaking of my interest in rhetoric. My one complaint is that he is too ready to appeal to authority.

Bishop Barron. I’d rather see him pope than Francis, and he often has valuable insights. But he turned me off like a switch with the declaration early in his series on Catholicism, the one that made his public name, that we are destined to become gods. That sounds to me satanic. He has since famously claimed that “we have reason to hope” that everyone ends up in heaven. Sounds like the same tendency to human arrogance.  So he is unsound on doctrine.

I usually make a point of listening to Jimmy Dore when he posts something new. He is a leftist; our basic attitudes and assumptions are different. That makes him interesting to listen to. Other than poisoning the well with terms like “war pig,” he does seem to try to be honest about things. 

I often find myself listening to Styxhexenhammer. Did I spell that right? His views on religion are apparently the opposite of mine, and he tends to be repetitious and to draw things out. But like Jimmy Dore, he is interesting in order to hear a different but thoughtful take on things. 

I’m sure I’ve missed some great ones. Please, by all means, add your own suggestions in the comments.