The Paradox of Tolerance

This week we talk to “What Rough Beast” regular Cy Canterel about fractured realities, fascism’s fatal flaw, and why keeping a diary might be the most radical act you can do right now. She joined us for a live this past week.

We discuss:

* How the Renee Good murder revealed that motivated reasoning—not actual ambiguity—is fracturing American reality

* Why the paradox of tolerance matters now: what does a pluralist society owe people who … can’t handle plurality?

* The underground genealogy of the current moment (spoiler: it’s been brewing in evangelical Christianity since the 1960s)

* Iris Origo’s war diaries and why putting pen to paper might save your sanity when propaganda becomes a deafening cacophony

* The difference between teaching and indoctrination—and what happens when a Mormon girl looks at a map and asks “wait, what are the chances?”

* Why fascism is constitutionally terrible at survival (it’s suicidal by design) but also: the body count still matters

* Mutual aid, record-keeping, and how to not go insane while toggling between doomscrolling and actually living your life

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