236 – Ethical Pessimism (feat. Roy Scranton)

Cultures of Energy

Dominic reports from a delayed birthday trip to Los Angeles and we learn about how Mike Brady (of Brady Brunch fame) nearly perished in a helicopter crash. Then (5:55) Roy Scranton returns to the podcast after nearly eight years away. We’re talking about his provocative and important new book, Impasse: Climate Change and the Limits of Progress (Stanford UP, 2025). We begin with the philosophical origins of the concepts of optimism and pessimism in debates over Leibniz and Voltaire and from there explore what Roy means by “ethical pessimism.” Roy explains how pessimism might do more for us than the too-often empty rhetoric of hope and optimism because optimism verges toward narcissism and often defers relieving the suffering of the world into an imaginary future. From there we talk about signs of civilizational collapse (or “simplification”), the psychology of optimism, the virtues of depressive realism, pacifism and pessimism, religion and the apophatic tradition, and what comes after collapse. Listening to Roy may make you feel weirdly better about feeling hopeless these days. Finally (55:32) Cymene, Dominic and a nervous Brijzha take their first-ever trip in an automated Waymo vehicle and share a new song about Shadow (which can be found on Spotify here). Please listen and share! Hang in there, everyone, peace and love.