Discourse Lab

Literature & Meaning w/ Liza Libes

In this episode Clay is joined by Liza Libes [https://lizalibes.com/]. Liza is an author, content creator, and voracious reader of classic fiction. She is also the owner and operator of Invictus Prep [https://www.invictusprep.org/], a college consulting company that helps applicants leverage the power of narrative to get into their dream school.  This is an episode that can be divided into two main parts.  The first part consists of Liza’s unique and fascinating origin story as the daughter of Soviet immigrants, as well as her and experience with woke, professors, TAs, and students at Columbia University.  * Starting at 04:02  In the second part, Liza brings her considerable literary knowledge to bear on questions like “Why is it important to read classic fiction?”, “Is modern literature any good?”, and “Why are Russian novelists particularly talented?”. She also shares her takes on Sally Rooney, Ernest Hemingway, the new Harry Potter HBO show, and much more. * Starting at 54:35 You can follow Liza on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/pensandpoison/], X [https://x.com/pensandpoison], and YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@pensandpoison]. And of course, please get yourself a copy of one of Liza’s fantastic collections of poetry [https://www.amazon.com/stores/Liza-Libes/author/B0G1MY447L?ref=ap_rdr&shoppingPortalEnabled=true&ccs_id=cabed65f-e1ad-4ab3-bd55-f010ce5341b4]. Books mentioned in this episode  * Harry Potter — J. K. Rowling * Vanity Fair — William Makepeace Thackeray * The Master and Margarita — Mikhail Bulgakov * Anna Karenina — Leo Tolstoy * The Brothers Karamazov — Fyodor Dostoevsky * The Iliad — Homer * Mansfield Park — Jane Austen * Metamorphoses — Ovid * Wuthering Heights — Emily Brontë * Animal Farm — George Orwell * 1984 — George Orwell * The Sun Also Rises — Ernest Hemingway * The Plague — Albert Camus * The Fall — Albert Camus * The Stranger — Albert Camus Articles by Liza mentioned in this episode (from her Substack [https://www.pensandpoison.org/]) * Leave Literature Alone [https://www.pensandpoison.org/p/leave-literature-alone] * Harry Potter Changed my Life  [https://www.pensandpoison.org/p/harry-potter-changed-my-life?utm_source=publication-search] * The Real Problem With the New Harry Potter Series  [https://www.pensandpoison.org/p/the-real-problem-with-the-new-harry] * The New York Times is Wrong About Motherhood [https://www.pensandpoison.org/p/the-new-york-times-is-wrong-about] * The Publishing Industry is Allergic to Money  [https://www.pensandpoison.org/p/stop-blaming-capitalism-for-your] * Why Modern Movies Feel So Empty  [https://www.pensandpoison.org/p/why-modern-movies-feel-so-empty?utm_source=publication-search] Please rate and review us on your podcast player of choice! It’s the best way to support us.  Subscribe on Apple [https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1821077076?app=podcast&at=1000lHKX&ct=linktree_http&itscg=30200&itsct=lt_p&ls=1&mt=2], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/6W8um0Anilpmv54RuxVnXo?utm_medium=share&utm_source=linktree], and YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@Discourse_Lab] Follow us on Instagram [https://instagram.com/the_discourselab] and X [https://x.com/TheDiscourseLab]

Lootin' & Shootin'

In this episode the boys discuss the recent White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting, Hasan Piker’s recent controversial conversation with The New York Times, deontic thinking on the left, and more! Mentioned in this episode: * ‘The Rich Don’t Play by the Rules. So Why Should I?’ [https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/22/opinion/shoplifting-political-protest-microlooting-whole-foods.html] - The New York Times * Read White House Correspondents’ Dinner suspect Cole Allen’s full anti-Trump manifesto [https://nypost.com/2026/04/26/us-news/read-whcd-gunman-cole-allens-full-anti-trump-manifesto/] - The New York Post * Understanding Committed Leftists in the United States Right Before the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election [https://jspp.psychopen.eu/index.php/jspp/article/view/14347/14347.pdf] - Journal of Social and Political Psychology  Please rate and review us on your podcast player of choice! It’s the best way to support us.  Subscribe on Apple [https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1821077076?app=podcast&at=1000lHKX&ct=linktree_http&itscg=30200&itsct=lt_p&ls=1&mt=2], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/6W8um0Anilpmv54RuxVnXo?utm_medium=share&utm_source=linktree], and YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@Discourse_Lab] Follow us on Instagram [https://instagram.com/the_discourselab] and X [https://x.com/TheDiscourseLab]

Geography of Prosperity w/ Bradley Schurman

In this episode Clay is joined by Bradley Schurman. Bradley is a demographic strategist and author whose work has focused on how demographic shifts are re-shaping economies, cities, and global power structures. His most recent project is The Geography of Prosperity Index [https://geographyofprosperity.com/gop/home], which he co-created with Jaymes Cloninger. The Geography of Prosperity Index ranks the largest 250 U.S. metro-areas on five key factors that are intended to represent future-readiness for a prosperous life. Listen to this episode to learn what prepares a city to prosper in the future, better understand the five factors Bradley and Cloninger used to create the index, hear which metro-areas are in the top 10, and much more!  You can follow Bradley on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/bradley.schurman/], Substack [https://substack.com/@bradleyschurman?utm_source=global-search], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@bradleyschurman] Mentioned in this episode: * The Super Age: Decoding Our Demographic Destiny [https://www.amazon.com/Super-Age-Decoding-Demographic-Destiny/dp/0063048752] * The Wheeler District  [https://www.wheelerdistrict.com/] * The Joys of Data Centers: Debunking the Backlash Against the $7 Trillion AI Building Boom [https://reason.com/2026/03/07/the-joys-of-data-centers/] Please rate and review us on your podcast player of choice! It’s the best way to support us.  Subscribe on Apple [https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1821077076?app=podcast&at=1000lHKX&ct=linktree_http&itscg=30200&itsct=lt_p&ls=1&mt=2], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/6W8um0Anilpmv54RuxVnXo?utm_medium=share&utm_source=linktree], and YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@Discourse_Lab] Follow us on Instagram [https://instagram.com/the_discourselab] and X [https://x.com/TheDiscourseLab]

War Bad. Space Good!

In this episode the boys discuss how the conflict in Iran is causing the MAGA right to fracture, and why the Artemis II mission is so incredibly cool.  Some clarifications: * The lunar impact crater “Carroll” was named after Commander Reid Wiseman’s late wife, who died of cancer in 2020. * Jeremy Hansen was the Canadian member of the crew. Mentioned in this episode: * The Devoted Actor  [https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/full/10.1086/685495] * Breaking History  [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/breaking-history/id1790502779] Please rate and review us on your podcast player of choice! It’s the best way to support us.  Subscribe on Apple [https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1821077076?app=podcast&at=1000lHKX&ct=linktree_http&itscg=30200&itsct=lt_p&ls=1&mt=2], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/6W8um0Anilpmv54RuxVnXo?utm_medium=share&utm_source=linktree], and YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@Discourse_Lab] Follow us on Instagram [https://instagram.com/the_discourselab] and X [https://x.com/TheDiscourseLab]

Populism, Immigration, and Power w/ Sagnik Basu

In their first-ever in-person episode, the boys are joined by Sagnik Basu. Sagnik is a content creator, producer, and community builder who helped get The Daily Caller and Breaking Points off the ground. He currently serves as the executive producer of Washington Post Opinions. He also hosted his own show [https://www.youtube.com/@thesagnikbasu/featured], where he had conversations with right-leaning figures like Emily Jashinsky, Saagar Enjeti, Robby Soave, and Discourse Lab’s own Anthony Rispo [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ciYuTvkm8U]. Listen to this episode to get Sagnik’s takes on populism, elitism, immigration, and much more!  You can find Sagnik on… * X [https://x.com/_sagnikbasu] * Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thesagnikbasu/] * TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@sssagnic] * YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@thesagnikbasu/featured] Mentioned in this episode: * Ship of Fools [https://www.amazon.com/Ship-Fools-Selfish-Bringing-Revolution/dp/1501183664/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.WhjQzghwUIz8_Z9bUmUU6XI7ZfraCSausAZKO3nMdlCKXV3pURkNK8dyU7krXQJ9X9xUtjvWPdJiIIhJxTBPUHpZILXqtyAH6HAgvXif2-xJEYk4eZODgtWESQ1RRVUnOzlzU6rMxsQ_3qoAbOQ80sM7gmn8L2YU6iosOY6_6HeyAeTtVCModL_OHd_UoxuCdj7fWy3G17ARFR-ZiGeygA.WTQVJD2SDVzOZ5FfHNILqyehpxYGqv59OeVQX3NR_AE&qid=1775536509&sr=1-1]by Tucker Carlson * Black Rednecks and White Liberals [https://www.amazon.com/Black-Rednecks-and-White-Liberals-audiobook/dp/B000F3T968/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1496FA3UZ57VD&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.5OtdzKnxR-9kJaiyaE9B_0Gl3ocl8FY5fYbnezp-3MSgLJqhEwq1Q2sSAF124s9cjIsbTvehofqQ6WfXIMcZ2hCLgmCl5ByABqGuZbqiTmohnkcKYZsUpSl6KG1mEH9SkRrXqe0O9R47x154nag57NG7sznzx45smMUegwyaXF4kjpKiHPFOwgrrqQxEiX4mvbSWZtlsFcE9LpI594M5zUqdfPaPbduKaXvALnKnmwk.SFrjzFjFIvJlfSeJ_OtzpX-32v8xV5g5DVDcjfvr_-M&dib_tag=se&keywords=Black+Rednecks+and+White+Liberals&qid=1775536489&s=books&sprefix=black+rednecks+and+white+liberals%2Cstripbooks%2C150&sr=1-1] by Thomas Sowell Please rate and review us on your podcast player of choice! It’s the best way to support us.  Subscribe on Apple [https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1821077076?app=podcast&at=1000lHKX&ct=linktree_http&itscg=30200&itsct=lt_p&ls=1&mt=2], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/6W8um0Anilpmv54RuxVnXo?utm_medium=share&utm_source=linktree], and YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@Discourse_Lab] Follow us on Instagram [https://instagram.com/the_discourselab] and X [https://x.com/TheDiscourseLab]