I sat down with Rob Henderson, author of “Troubled” and known for coining the term “luxury beliefs,” to explore how status, envy, and social mobility shape society. Rob shares how growing up in foster care, enlisting in the Air Force at 17, and eventually attending Yale and Cambridge forced him to confront what material success can—and can’t—deliver. Hunter-gatherer societies suppressed status through rigid egalitarianism, but as civilizations grew, status competition became an increasingly powerful force. Today, elite strivers hijack class politics to engage in their own battle between the “haves” and the “have-mores,” while serious discussions about class have begun to shift from left to right.

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Learn more about the “Troubled” movie: https://troubledthemovie.com/

Follow Rob on X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/robkhenderson

Read Rob’s work on Substack: https://www.robkhenderson.com/

Purchase a copy of “Troubled”: https://www.amazon.com/Troubled-Memoir-Foster-Family-Social/dp/1982168536

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Outline:

[0:00] The sociology of status

[7:36] Class analysis flipped from left to right

[15:57] The haves, the have-nots, and the have-mores

[21:41] The traits that build wealth

[26:59] Narcissism comes in 2 flavors

[38:31] How do you keep the loudmouths under control?

[43:38] Why do we care about status?

[51:36] How gratitude advances civilizations

[55:22] Finding a stable identity keeps envy in check

[1:04:08] The state of sex relations in 2026

[1:15:46] We aren’t built for comfort

[1:25:27] Can the military fix TikTok-fried kids?

[1:37:25] Healthy cultural norms aren’t self-enforcing

[1:49:46] Elite hypocrisy on marriage and family

[1:58:09] Is it just “kids these days” or something else?

[2:03:10] Is religion a necessary anchor for moral culture?

[2:12:14] Adapting “Troubled” into a movie

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Purchase a T-shirt, hoodie, and more over on our merch store: https://shop.dadsavesamerica.com/

Watch the video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/j149A5_9AWA

Make a tax-deductible donation to Dad Saves America: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://secure.anedot.com/emergent-order-foundation/dad-website?⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Visit our website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.dadsavesamerica.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

I sat down with philosopher and author Dr. Stephen Hicks to unpack the West’s trajectory from medieval Christianity to modern progressivism. We explore the psychological fallout of online information overload and a failing education system that is fueling a socialist resurgence. Dr. Hicks breaks down how the rediscovery of Greco-Roman writings by figures like St. Thomas Aquinas—and, a few centuries later, the Protestant Reformation—set the stage for the Enlightenment, gradually developing the ideas that would eventually become “classical liberalism.” We also track the parallel development of leftist thought, from Jean-Jacques Rousseau and the French Revolution to Marx and today’s woke reign of terror.

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Follow Dr. Hicks on X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/SRCHicks?s=20

Check out Dr. Hicks’ Peterson Academy courses: https://petersonacademy.com/instructors/stephen-hicks

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Outline:

[0:00] What is “the truth”?

[6:06] “Expert consensus” and misinformation

[18:27] Filtering through information overload

[30:31] The evolution of adulthood and education

[39:53] Religion, literacy, and the Protestant Reformation

[45:12] Did Christianity invent individualism?

[59:44] Collectivism is the problem, not religion

[1:08:40] Was the abolition of slavery a Christian movement?

[1:20:16] Did Christianity lay the foundation for the Enlightenment?

[1:31:51] How Christendom revived Greco-Roman thought

[1:41:18] Rousseau and the French Revolution

[2:04:50] The blank-slate view of moral agency

[2:11:02] Rousseauean socialism vs Marxism

[2:19:09] How Marxism survived each of its failures

[2:28:11] What unifies the wide range of leftist ideas?

[2:43:13] The link between mental health and education

[2:54:22] Why philosophy matters

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Purchase a T-shirt, hoodie, and more over on our merch store: https://shop.dadsavesamerica.com/

Watch the video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/hCjuUIlJ0uU

Make a tax-deductible donation to Dad Saves America: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://secure.anedot.com/emergent-order-foundation/dad-website?⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Visit our website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.dadsavesamerica.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

I sat down with Rudyard Lynch, creator of WhatIfAltHist and History102, to revisit his civil war prediction. He argues that the current psychological crisis is delaying an inevitable political crisis, drawing on the Mouse Utopia experiment, screen addiction, and the decay of internet discourse. Rudyard reflects on what he got right, what he got wrong, and why embracing honor culture might be our path back to sanity. We also get into the relationship between Christianity and socialism, the role of masculinity in leadership, and why “reasonable liberals” fail to confront the Marxist threat.

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Follow Rudyard on X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/whatifalthist

Check out WhatIfAltHist: https://www.youtube.com/Whatifalthist

Check out History102: https://www.youtube.com/@History102-qg5oj

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Outline:

[0:00] Updated civil war predictions

[4:19] Antisemitism and Israel discourse

[13:49] Psychological and political crises

[25:05] Socialism, Nietzsche, and nihilism

[33:14] The Age of the Last Men

[38:48] Woodrow Wilson and the rise of progressivism

[46:17] “The system,” society, and bureaucracy

[56:47] Why decency dies on the internet

[1:02:32] Is good leadership fundamentally “masculine”?

[1:06:15] Sex differences vs. sexism

[1:12:22] Why faith in honor culture matters

[1:20:28] Did Christianity give birth to socialism?

[1:30:20] Stephen Pinker and the “reasonable liberal” problem

[1:39:08] “Progress” is just spiritual sterilization

[1:43:36] “Rationalists” are just conformists

[1:49:39] Classical liberals overplayed the equality card

[1:53:33] Are libertarian values still valid in our culture?

[2:01:00] Victim culture on the right

[2:05:16] The neo-middle ages

[2:10:42] Is broad social trust still feasible?

[2:17:29] Why you should unplug from the internet

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Purchase a T-shirt, hoodie, and more over on our merch store: https://shop.dadsavesamerica.com/

Watch the video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/RDmkKZ7vAkI

Make a tax-deductible donation to Dad Saves America: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://secure.anedot.com/emergent-order-foundation/dad-website?⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Visit our website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.dadsavesamerica.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠