The Trump era is ushering in a new age of right wing counterculture, one defined by masculinity and transgression. In this episode of Interesting Times, Ross speaks with Jonathan Keeperman, the founder of Passage Press, about the influence of an edgy, reactionary, right-wing “vibe shift” on American politics and culture.

2:09 - Jonathan Keeperman’s Lomez days
5:25 - 2014: An inflection point in American culture?
7:40 - The emergence of a “conservative counter elite”
9:41 - The creation of a right wing counterweight to the dominant left
12:32 - What makes something “conservative art”?
15:18 - Are David Lynch films right wing art? Is Girls?
18:11 - Is there such a thing as good left wing art?
19:32 - Right wing counterculture’s obsession with “vitalism”
22:56 - Longhouse culture: Is the “over feminization” of society making America weaker?
27:55 - Is the longhouse argument just a “long male whine”?
30:41 - Is right wing counterculture anti-Christian?
35:48 - Trump as mythic hero
43:31 - What is the function of racism in right wing counterculture?
53:50 - Are racist means transgressive or just racist?
1:05:43 - Will the rightward vibe shift show up in pop culture?
1:07:37 - Why every high school senior should read “Moby Dick” and watch “No Country for Old Men”

(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)

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The New Culture of the Right: Vital, Masculine and Intentionally Offensive

Interesting Times with Ross Douthat

The New Culture of the Right: Vital, Masculine and Intentionally Offensive