135 – Cool Ellul with Jason Thacker
Saving Elephants | Millennials defending & expressing conservative values
Release Date: 07/18/2023
Saving Elephants | Millennials defending & expressing conservative values
Those who identify as pro-immigration and pro-nationalist are often at odds with one another. But what if a healthy dose of nationalism is the very thing that could bolster our immigration? Nathan Brown and Robert Haglund argue in their new book that “much of the dysfunction in contemporary American politics is a consequence of the failure by our elites to understand the crucial relationship between immigration and nationalism.” Nathan and Robert join Saving Elephants host Josh Lewis to explore the history and controversy of immigration in America, what the Left and the...
info_outlineSaving Elephants | Millennials defending & expressing conservative values
Does the Right have a radical problem, particularly among young men? Saving Elephants assembles another insightful panel to offer their...insights. The panelists include: - President of America's Future - Proffessor at the University of Pikeville - VP of NoCapFund Lura Forcum - President of the
info_outlineSaving Elephants | Millennials defending & expressing conservative values
Disillusioned with the rigidity of political tribalism, J.J. McCullough left his role as conservative journalist and commentator and became a content creator. His YouTube channel, offers his one million subscribers weekly deep dives about countries, cultures, and Canada. But while politics is not the focus of his channel, some of his content is still tinged with the overtures of his past life. J.J. joins Saving Elephants host Josh Lewis to discuss how his political philosophy can inform his work without his work being subsumed to a set of ideological commitments, how this...
info_outlineSaving Elephants | Millennials defending & expressing conservative values
Justin Stapley and I have been on similar journeys these past many years seeking to better understand our worldviews and the ever-changing political moment and how best to restore sanity and integrity to our politics. But while I've been diligently producing podcast episodes for these past seven years, Justin has launched a dizzying array of projects. In his own words: There's an ongoing joke between myself and that every time I'm on his podcast, I've rebranded. And he's not necessarily wrong, lol. Here's the various blogs and efforts I've done since 2016... Never Tyranny was my...
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One cannot BE a conservative. One can only aspire to conservatism. So says John Wilsey in his new book . Perhaps Roger Scruton’s was a worthy endeavor but too audacious of a title. John Wilsey joins Saving Elephants host Josh Lewis to flesh out the aspirational nature of conservatism and how it grounds the individual. They explore the religious roots of American conservatism and the challenges of bringing up a new generation of conservatives without the giants of the past conservatives had to look to for inspiration and encouragement. About John Wilsey...
info_outlineSaving Elephants | Millennials defending & expressing conservative values
In the wake of Charlie Kirk's shocking assassination, Americans are bracing for further political attacks. But is further violence inevitable? And what can be done to prevent things from escalating? Saving Elephants host Josh Lewis assembles a roundtable to discuss these sobering and important issues. The panelists include: - Host of - Host of - Host of - Host of - Host of
info_outlineSaving Elephants | Millennials defending & expressing conservative values
Is Trump correct that Canada is destined to be America’s 51st state? Or is there simply too much distinction between Canada and the United States to collapse us both into one homogenous mess? If conservatives in the U.S. are trying to conserve the American revolution, what are Canadian conservatives hoping to conserve? How might these two liberty-loving nations help each other better understand each other through comparison? Joining Saving Elephants host Josh Lewis is Shawn Whatley to make sense of it all. About Shawn Whatley Shawn Whatley hosts , a weekly...
info_outlineSaving Elephants | Millennials defending & expressing conservative values
Few forerunners of the modern conservative movement are as important, little known, and underappreciated as Frank Meyer. Meyer possessed the IT factor that made women want him and men want to be associated with him. He used that in his early years to advance Marxism in England—building an impressive Marxist organization that had the attention of UK’s government, dating the Prime Minister’s daughter while calling for the violent overthrow of the Prime Minister’s government, and becoming a national celebrity as the nation debated whether he should be exiled. But later...
info_outlineSaving Elephants | Millennials defending & expressing conservative values
Some Americans warn Trump's antics in this second term are flirting with fascism while others say that's totally whacked. So which is it? Is Trump a fascist or nothing of the kind? Join our livestream as our panelists engage over the topic. Panelists include: Josh Lewis (host), Mike Taylor, Blake Fischer, John Giokaris, Steve Phelps, and Kent Straith
info_outlineSaving Elephants | Millennials defending & expressing conservative values
Steven Hayward has been involved in so many conservative institutions and organizations it may be simpler to list where he hasn’t left a mark. This conservative man-about-town joins Saving Elephants host Josh Lewis as they unravel what it means to be a conservative, how Straussians might make peace with Burke, and why Josh shouldn’t be so critical of the Trump administration. About Steven Hayward Steven F. Hayward is a fellow of the Public Law and Policy Program at Berkeley Law and visiting professor in School of Public Policy at Pepperdine University. Steven frequently...
info_outlineModern views on how future technology is likely to change our lives range from bloviatingly aspirational visions of utopia to musings on whether the latest advancement in AI will destroy humankind in our lifetime or merely enslave us all in Matrix-style battery capillaries. Yet debates on whether technology is a neutral tool for our benefit or a near-unstoppable force leading us to a particular destiny are nothing new. In 1964, French philosopher and sociologist Jacques Ellul wrote The Technological Society, in which he argued technology had a totalizing effect that could potentially dehumanize our world in its never-ending effort to make all things efficient and “useful”.
While he’s somewhat critical of Ellul’s determinism, this episode’s guest—Jason Thacker—gleans much wisdom from Ellul’s warnings. Saving Elephants host Josh Lewis and Jason Thacker discuss competing views of technology and how they might help us for a foundation for dealing with the technological challenges we face in our digital public square.
About Jason Thacker
From https://jasonthacker.com/
Jason Thacker serves as an assistant professor of philosophy and ethics at Boyce College in Louisville, KY. He also is a research fellow in Christian ethics and director of the research institute at The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. He is the author of several books including Following Jesus in the Digital Age and The Age of AI: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Humanity. He also serves as the editor of The Digital Public Square: Christian Ethics in a Technological Society and co-editor of the Essentials in Christian Ethics series with B&H Academic. He is the project leader and lead drafter of Artificial Intelligence: An Evangelical Statement of Principles, and his work has been featured at Slate, Politico, The Week, USA Today, Christianity Today, World Magazine, The Gospel Coalition, and Desiring God.
He is a graduate of The University of Tennessee in Knoxville, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies. He also holds a Master of Divinity from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, where he is currently a PhD candidate in ethics, public theology, and philosophy. He serves as an associate fellow with the Kirby Laing Centre for Public Theology in Cambridge, an advisor for AI and Faith, fellow in science and technology at the Land Center for Cultural Engagement at Southwestern Seminary, and a research fellow with the ERLC Research Institute. He is married to Dorie and they have two sons.
You can follow Jason on Twitter @jasonthacker
About The Digital Public Square
Brooke was one of the contributing writers to the recently published book The Digital Public Square. In The Digital Public Square, editor Jason Thacker has chosen top Christian voices to help the church navigate the issues of censorship, conspiracy theories, sexual ethics, hate speech, religious freedom, and tribalism. Many of the contributing writers (David French, Bonnie Kristian, Bryan Baise, and Brooke Medina) have been prior guests on the Saving Elephants show.