If Books Could Kill

Bullshit Jobs

Peter and Michael discuss "Bullshit Jobs" by anarchist anthropologist David Graeber. The result: two professional podcasters debating which jobs are real and which jobs are fake. Where to find us:  * Our Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod] * Our merch! [https://ifbookspod.dashery.com/] * Peter's newsletter [https://stringinamaze.net/] * Peter's other podcast, 5-4 [https://www.fivefourpod.com/] * Mike's other podcast, Maintenance Phase [https://www.maintenancephase.com/] Sources: * On the Phenomenon of Bullshit Jobs: A Work Rant [https://strikemag.org/bullshit-jobs/] * 37% of British workers think their jobs are meaningless [https://yougov.com/en-gb/articles/13005-british-jobs-meaningless] * Average Annual Hours Worked by Persons Engaged for United States [https://fred.stlouisfed.org/data/AVHWPEUSA065NRUG] * The times they are not changin’: Days and hours of work in Old and New Worlds, 1870–2000 [https://personal.lse.ac.uk/minns/huberman_minns_eeh_2007.pdf] * ‘Bullshit’ After All? Why People Consider Their Jobs Socially Useless [https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/09500170231175771] * Alienation Is Not ‘Bullshit’: An Empirical Critique of Graeber’s Theory of BS Jobs [https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/09500170211015067] * Many people feel they work in pointless ‘bullshit’ jobs, research confirms [https://es.britsoc.co.uk/many-people-feel-they-work-in-pointless-bullshit-jobs-research-confirms] * The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline of Leisure [https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/027046769301300454]  * Study: Leisure Time Declines [https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1992/2/19/study-leisure-time-declines-pthe-average/] * USA Consumption as percent of GDP [https://www.theglobaleconomy.com/USA/consumption_GDP/] * The Significance of Task Significance: Job Performance Effects, Relational Mechanisms, and Boundary Conditions [https://selfdeterminationtheory.org/SDT/documents/2008_Grant_JAP_TaskSignificance.pdf] * Task significance and meaningful work: A longitudinal study [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0001879117300702] * Americans’ job satisfaction in 2024 [https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2024/12/10/job-satisfaction/] Thanks to Mindseye [https://mindseye-music.bandcamp.com/track/the-place-beyond-the-clouds-2] for our theme song!

The Millionaire Next Door

It turns out that the key to wealth is buying the right kind of watch, marrying the right kind of wife and being the right kind of white. Where to find us:  * Our Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod] * Our merch! [https://ifbookspod.dashery.com/] * Peter's newsletter [https://stringinamaze.net/] * Peter's other podcast, 5-4 [https://www.fivefourpod.com/] * Mike's other podcast, Maintenance Phase [https://www.maintenancephase.com/] Sources: * Uneasy Street [https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691191904/uneasy-street?srsltid=AfmBOoqPw0mBIMUVJ_XaYVbCmAelcQFWVSLNiOulwHwd96mpXYnQu5LJ] * A Century of Wealth In America [https://www.hup.harvard.edu/books/9780674495142] * Family, Education, and Sources of Wealth among the Richest Americans, 1982–2012 [https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/aer.103.3.158] * Wealth Elite Moralities [https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0038038518768175] * The insane growth of America’s millionaire class [https://thehustle.co/originals/the-insane-growth-of-americas-millionaire-class] * The Extraordinary Rise In The Wealth Of Older American Households [https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w34131/w34131.pdf] * Planning & Progress Study 2025 [https://news.northwesternmutual.com/planning-and-progress-study-2025] * Striking Out on Their Own: The Self-Employed in Bankruptcy [https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1982213] * How Many Households Meet The Net Worth Guidelines Of The Millionaire Next Door? [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/294091013_How_many_households_meet_the_net_worth_guidelines_of_The_Millionaire_Next_Door] * Paying Tribute to Thomas Stanley and His ‘Millionaire Next Door’ [https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/07/your-money/paying-tribute-to-thomas-stanley-and-his-millionaire-next-door.html?searchResultPosition=6] * Pity the Billionaires [https://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/03/business/yourmoney/pity-the-billionaires.html?searchResultPosition=52] * What Rich Women Want [https://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/04/business/mutual-funds-report-what-rich-women-want.html?searchResultPosition=53] * The deserving or undeserving rich? [https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s43545-022-00593-4.pdf] * The Evolution of Top Incomes [https://eml.berkeley.edu/~saez/piketty-saezAEAPP06.pdf] Thanks to Mindseye [https://mindseye-music.bandcamp.com/track/the-place-beyond-the-clouds-2] for our theme song!

The Worst Takes of 2025 [TEASER]

The boys catalog the definitive worst takes of the year, from the pundits who misunderstood our political moment to a guy who wants to have sex with a computer. To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

Elon Musk Part 2

The boys continue their discussion of Walter Isaacson's "Elon Musk." This is the part where Elon loses his mind.  Where to find us:  * Our Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod] * Our merch! [https://ifbookspod.dashery.com/] * Peter's newsletter [https://stringinamaze.net/] * Peter's other podcast, 5-4 [https://www.fivefourpod.com/] * Mike's other podcast, Maintenance Phase [https://www.maintenancephase.com/] Sources: * From self-proclaimed ‘socialist’ to Team Trump and DeSantis: Elon Musk’s curious politics revealed [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/elon-musk-twitter-deal-politics-b2345301.html]   * The Quiet Political Rise of David Sacks, Silicon Valley’s Prophet of Urban Doom [https://newrepublic.com/article/168125/david-sacks-elon-musk-peter-thiel] * Elon Musk biographer admits suggestion SpaceX head blocked Ukraine drone attack was wrong  [https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/sep/12/elon-musk-biographer-admits-suggestion-spacex-head-blocked-ukraine-drone-attack-was-wrong] * Elon Musk's Daughter on Dad's Biography: 'Sad Excuse for a Puff Piece' [https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/vivian-jenna-wilson-elon-musk-biographer-walter-isaacson-1235078112/] * Character Limit [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/737290/character-limit-by-kate-conger-and-ryan-mac/] * Twitter fulfilling more government censorship requests under Musk  [https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2023/5/2/twitter-fulfilling-more-government-censorship-requests-under-musk] * Elon Musk booed for nearly 5 minutes straight at Dave Chappelle show in San Francisco [https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2022-12-12/elon-musk-booed-dave-chappelle-show-san-francisco]  * New CNN Chief Trying to Please GOP Elite [https://fair.org/take-action/action-alerts/new-cnn-chief-trying-to-please-gop-elite/]  * Research finds more than 14 million preventable deaths by 2030 if USAID defunding continues, including more than 4 million children under five [https://ph.ucla.edu/news-events/news/research-finds-more-14-million-preventable-deaths-2030-if-usaid-defunding] * What the data says about Social Security [https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/05/20/what-the-data-says-about-social-security/#:~:text=As%20of%20April%202025%2C%2073.9%20million%20people,average%20retired%20worker%20received%20$1%2C999.97%20in%20benefits]  * Trump Administration, DOGE Activities Risk SSA Operations and Security of Personal Data [https://www.cbpp.org/sites/default/files/2025-03-25socsec.pdf] Thanks to Mindseye [https://mindseye-music.bandcamp.com/track/the-place-beyond-the-clouds-2] for our theme song!

Elon Musk

A biography that dares to ask: Is a lifetime of worker abuse and narcissism worth it to experience robot butlers? Where to find us:  * Our Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod] * Our merch! [https://ifbookspod.dashery.com/] * Peter's newsletter [https://stringinamaze.net/] * Peter's other podcast, 5-4 [https://www.fivefourpod.com/] * Mike's other podcast, Maintenance Phase [https://www.maintenancephase.com/] Sources: * What Elon Musk Gets Wrong about South Africa [https://www.thedial.world/articles/news/issue-10/elon-musk-walter-isaacson-south-africa-myths] * Elon Musk’s Anti-Semitic, Apartheid-Loving Grandfather [https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2023/09/joshua-haldeman-elon-musk-grandfather-apartheid-antisemitism/675396/]  * Elon Musk claims he was once one of the best Quake players around [https://www.pcgamer.com/elon-musk-claims-he-was-once-one-of-the-best-quake-players-around-everyone-laughs-but-wait-the-actual-best-quake-player-ever-says-musk-wasnt-very-good-but-hes-still-an-og/] * Watch Elon Musk Talk About Being an ‘Illegal Immigrant’ in Video From 2013 [https://gizmodo.com/watch-elon-musk-talk-about-being-illegal-immigrant-1851376973]  * Elon Musk’s dad Errol says he can ‘prove’ existence of emerald mine in new bombshell claim revealing its location [https://www.the-sun.com/news/7911051/elon-musks-dad-errol-emerald-business/]  * How Elon Musk Went from Superhero to Supervillain [https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2023/09/18/elon-musk-walter-isaacson-book-review]  * The Believer [https://www.gq.com/story/elon-musk-paypal-solar-power-electric-cars-space-travel] * Elon Musk: The Architect of Tomorrow [https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/elon-musk-the-architect-of-tomorrow-120850/]  * How Elon Musk Plans on Reinventing the World (and Mars) [https://www.gq.com/story/elon-musk-mars-spacex-tesla-interview] * Tesla factory workers reveal pain, injury and stress: 'Everything feels like the future but us' | Tesla [https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/may/18/tesla-workers-factory-conditions-elon-musk] * Hundreds of Tesla workers tested positive for the virus after Elon Musk reopened a plant, data shows [https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/15/business/tesla-workers-coronavirus.html] * Inside Tesla as Elon Musk Pushed an Unflinching Vision for Self-Driving Cars [https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/06/technology/tesla-autopilot-elon-musk.html]  * Tesla video promoting self-driving was staged, engineer testifies [https://www.reuters.com/technology/tesla-video-promoting-self-driving-was-staged-engineer-testifies-2023-01-17/] * Elon Musk Says His 'Running Robot' Will 'Actually Eliminate Poverty' As He Shares Video Of Tesla Optimus Jogging [https://finance.yahoo.com/news/elon-musk-says-running-robot-213110677.html]  * Elon Musk Wants ‘Strong Influence’ Over the ‘Robot Army’ He’s Building [https://www.wired.com/story/elon-musk-wants-strong-influence-over-the-robot-army-hes-building/]  * There’s a Very Simple Pattern to Elon Musk’s Broken Promises [https://www.wired.com/story/theres-a-very-simple-pattern-to-elon-musks-broken-promises/] Thanks to Mindseye [https://mindseye-music.bandcamp.com/track/the-place-beyond-the-clouds-2] for our theme song!