philosophy

Interview: Eric Bayruns García on Race and Epistemic Injustice — Epistemic Unruliness 35

In this episode, Emily and Rachel talk with the inimitable Eric Bayruns García, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Cal State San Bernardino, about two recent articles. Specializing in philosophy of race, epistemology, and Latin American philosophy, Bayruns García’s writing and teaching addresses racial injustice, colonialism, and epistemologies of ignorance, among other topics. In this episode we discuss two recent articles, “How Racial Injustice Affects News-Based Inferences,” in Episteme, and “Expression-Style Exclusion,” in Social Epistemology. We begin by discussing Bayruns García’s motivation for both articles and the research out of which they arise. Next, we delve into the difference between knowledge and understanding, and the implications of considering expression-style exclusion for the neoliberal university. We conclude by hearing Bayruns García’s thoughts about the stakes and implications of both pieces for radical politics and transformation. Tune in for this awesome conversation between giddily reuniting CUNY alums!

Requests for texts for us to discuss? Dreams for us to interpret? Advice questions for us to answer? Email us at alwaysalreadypodcast AT gmail DOT com. Subscribe on iTunes. Follow us on Twitter. Like our Facebook page. RSS feed here. Patreon here. Thanks to Bad Infinity for the intro music, “Post Digital,” from their album FutureCommons; always already thanks to B for the outro music. For the mp3 of the episode click here.

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Ep. 60 – Eugene Thacker, In the Dust of This Planet: Horror of Philosophy

In what could be their first trio podcast, co-hosts James, Emily, and B tarry with the Preface and a Chapter titled “Occult Philosophy” from Eugene Thacker’s In the Dust of this Planet: Horror of Philosophy, vol. 1. Before launching in, James shares some good news, and B befriends a finger monster. The team was at first hesitant about the text. But why? Perhaps they were a bit bewildered by Thacker’s arguments concerning the history of the philosophical “in-itself”? Or the world-for-us? Or their overall relationship to the horror genre? Was this Thacker’s critique of the Western canon? Or is Thacker’s archive unknowingly neo-colonial?  Does the archive show us the limits of knowledge (as the promise of horror as the fear of the unknown forebodes) or does it reproduce “the ruse of [Western] reason” by another name and through another’s pen? But why the Hell is post-colonial and anti-racist critique the “easy” critique anyway? Join and listen as all three of our co-hosts discuss one of the many purposes and pitfalls of academic publishing, the perils of public anti-intellectualism, and the dynamism of genres.

Support us on Patreon to help us upgrade our recording equipment, potentially provide episode transcripts, and more – plus, you may have the chance to jump your request to the top of the request queue. Thanks to Bağlan for requesting Thacker. Requests for texts for us to discuss? Dreams for us to interpret? Advice questions for us to answer? Email us at alwaysalreadypodcast AT gmail DOT com. Subscribe on iTunes. Follow us on Twitter. Like our Facebook page. RSS feed here. Thanks to Bad Infinity for the intro music, “Post Digital,” from their new album FutureCommons; always already thanks to B for the outro music. For the mp3 of the episode click here.

 

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Interview: Charles Mills on Racial Liberalism

In this very special episode, John talks with Charles W. Mills (Philosophy, The Graduate Center, CUNY) about his new book, Black Rights/White Wrongs: The Critique of Racial Liberalism (Oxford UP, 2017). Mills walks us through some of the main arguments and concepts from the book, including the terminology of racial liberalism, the importance of white supremacy as a concept, his critiques of Kant and Rawls, the prospects for a “black radical liberalism,” and much more. But, the two build out the conversation to also discuss whiteness in the academy, race and ontology, the ongoing importance of historical materialism, whether liberalism can be reconstructed, and race and pedagogy in the political philosophy/theory classroom.

We were thrilled to have the opportunity to speak with Mills – don’t miss out on the dialogue.

Support us on Patreon to help us upgrade our recording equipment. Requests for texts for us to discuss? Dreams for us to interpret? Advice questions for us to answer? Email us at alwaysalreadypodcast AT gmail DOT com. Subscribe on iTunes. Follow us on Twitter. Like our Facebook page. RSS feed here. Thanks to Leah Dion for the intro music, and to Bad Infinity for music during the break and for the outro. Get the mp3 of the episode here.

 

 

 

Ep. 39 – Marcuse and Radiohead: A Special Episode with Theory for Turntables podcast

Tune in to this week’s very exceptional episode of the Always Already Podcast! John, B, and Emily are joined by special guests Matt and Ryan from the Theory for Turntables Podcast for a spectacular crossover brand synergy event featuring a discussion of Marcuse’s One Dimensional Man, and Radiohead’s OK Computer. In this episode, we ask about Marcuse’s prescience of 21st century capitalism — what still resonates, and what would Marcuse make of the freelance economy? We also attempt to situate OK Computer alongside Marcuse’s critical social theory — is the auteur of the album the one-dimensional man? is he the philosopher? We close our discussion with several juicy cliff-hangers. Stay tuned for the second part of the crossover event, available over in the Theory for Turntables stream!

Also in this episode, your favorite segments My Tumblr Friend From Canada and a very special edition of One or Several Wolves. We discuss our own neoliberal subjectivities (one dimensionality, perhaps?) in relationship to our new Patreon account, and our guests engage in an excellent dream analysis, replete with veganism and father figures.

Remember to support us on Patreon to help offset/reimburse the cost of our fancy new microphone, which we have named Lacan.

Requests for texts for us to discuss? Dreams for us to interpret? Advice questions for us to answer? Email us at alwaysalreadypodcast AT gmail DOT com. Subscribe on iTunes. Follow us on Twitter. Like our Facebook page. Get the mp3 of the episode here. RSS feed here. Thanks to Jordan Cass for the music.

 

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RADIOHEAD THOM YORKE (VOCALS, GUITAR) JONNY GREENWOOD (GUITAR, DRUMS) O2 ARENA LONDON 8-10-2012 PHOTOGRAPH BY: ANGELA LUBRANO PLEASE CONTACT: LIVEPIX 1A LARCHWOOD CLOSE, BANSTEAD, SM7 1HE, UK Telephone: 01737 373732 Mobile : 07958 961 625 e-mail: live@livepix.biz

 

 

Ep. 34 – Maggie Nelson, The Argonauts

Join Rachel, Emily, and B as they delve into Maggie Nelson‘s memoir The Argonauts. As they discuss the power of the memoir genre as a tool for thinking critically about social life, they explore its political potential. How can the memoir, like poetry and other ‘forms’ of writing, allow for the kinds of destabilizing ‘epistemic unruliness’ that familiar forms of academic discourses disallow? If the memoir is thinking, and thinking-politically, what kinds of everyday experiences can be politicized and theorized? Listen as they consider Nelson’s contemplations of the queerness of pregnancy; the function and status of canonical philosophers in the memoir; and the general problem/inadequacy of words.

Thanks to listener @angellemke for suggesting The Argonauts.  Requests for texts for us to discuss? Dreams for us to interpret? Advice questions for us to answer? Email us at alwaysalreadypodcast AT gmail DOT com. Subscribe on iTunes. Follow us on Twitter. Like our Facebook page. Get the mp3 of the episode here. RSS feed here. Thanks to Leah Dion and to B for the music.

 

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