thomas friedman

In this episode, Eric Hsu and Louis Everuss discuss how some sociologists have come to theorize the phenomenon of globalization. They do so by examining what’s come to be known as the ‘Great Globalization Debate’, as described by David Held et al.’s highly influential work, Global Transformations. Eric and Louis believe fans of the cult television show, the Sopranos, will especially enjoy this episode, as they probably spend too much of it doing a bad impersonation of the deplorable Sopranos character, Richie Aprille.

Music and sound effects for this episode come from various sources and is licensed under the Creative Commons 0 License/the Creative Commons Attribution License 3.0 or is covered by a SFX (Multi-Use) License. Tracks include:

https://freesound.org/people/Tuben/sounds/272044/ https://freesound.org/people/funnyman850/sounds/194812/ https://freesound.org/people/colorsCrimsonTears/sounds/562296/ https://freesound.org/people/florianreichelt/sounds/563765/ https://freesound.org/people/Fupicat/sounds/607207/ https://freesound.org/people/Kagateni/sounds/404359/ https://freesound.org/people/JPMusic82/sounds/415511/

The opinions expressed in the Sociology of Everything podcast are that of the hosts and/or guest speakers. They do not reflect the opinions of anyone else at UniSA or the institution at large.

The Sociology of Everything podcast | www.sociologypodcast.com

President Putin has very quickly precipitated a crisis in Europe with Russia’s military attack on Ukraine. We are witnessing the largest military invasion in Europe since the Second World War.

Vladimir Putin has finally begun to play out his hand.

So: How are we to understand where things are going to go from here?

Thomas Friedman, writing for the New York Times, argues that the “only place to be for understanding this war is inside Russian President Vladimir Putin’s head.” That's right. 

This is a war that ultimately is not traced to Russia or to Ukraine, but to the head of Vladimir Putin. This is his war. This is his doing.

Friedman summarizes, “Putin is the most powerful unchecked Russian leader since Stalin. And the timing of this war is a product of his ambitions, strategies, and grievances.”

What we see here is what happens when you mix a powerful military and a dictator with political and military opportunity.

Putin really is the singular leader of virtually every dimension of Russia. 

That is an extremely dangerous and inherently deadly proposition.

Watch carefully … and watch prayerfully.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President Putin has very quickly precipitated a crisis in Europe with Russia’s military attack on Ukraine. We are witnessing the largest military invasion in Europe since the Second World War.

Vladimir Putin has finally begun to play out his hand.

So: How are we to understand where things are going to go from here?

Thomas Friedman, writing for the New York Times, argues that the “only place to be for understanding this war is inside Russian President Vladimir Putin’s head.” That's right. 

This is a war that ultimately is not traced to Russia or to Ukraine, but to the head of Vladimir Putin. This is his war. This is his doing.

Friedman summarizes, “Putin is the most powerful unchecked Russian leader since Stalin. And the timing of this war is a product of his ambitions, strategies, and grievances.”

What we see here is what happens when you mix a powerful military and a dictator with political and military opportunity.

Putin really is the singular leader of virtually every dimension of Russia. 

That is an extremely dangerous and inherently deadly proposition.

Watch carefully … and watch prayerfully.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Known as the “land of lousy options,” North Korea has posed problems for the US for decades. But now, the country is testing its missiles regularly and the situation is increasingly dire. What are the best solutions for dealing with this escalating crisis? In this episode, speakers at the Aspen Ideas Festival work to demystify the North Korea subject, cut through the rhetoric, and examine what solutions are possible. Elizabeth Economy, director of Asia Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, joins Fareed Zakaria, host of CNN’s “Fareed Zakaria GPS,” and Thomas Friedman, foreign affairs columnist for The New York Times. Their conversation is led by Evan Osnos, a staff writer at The New Yorker.

aspenideas.org