In light of some thoughts about longevity and aging being bizarrely inflected with a lingering sense of aesthetic priority-- not to mention the aesthetic function of our identities, politics, society writ large-- I wanted to talk a little about the extent to which reducing our aesthetic sensibilities and styles of thinking may open the door to substantive action in important arenas. And may make you less depressed, who can say.

The show is fully self-funded. I do no monetization, no slop, no grind culture nonsense. If you’d like to support the show and/or encourage me to continue, the best way to do so is on whatever platform you’re using. Like, subscribe, leave comments, and of course share it with anyone you think may be interested.

This Place is Weird is a weekly video and podcast about marketing and consumer culture, with relevant topics from science, religion, politics, philosophy, economy, and so on. The focus is on peculiar and unexpected views of the quotidian and ordinary, that is to say that I discuss what is weird. This place, if you look at it quite clearly, is extremely weird. That place being the United States, capitalism, Modernity, planet Earth, the global North, et cetera. If you’re watching on YouTube and prefer audio format since there’s minimal editing, the show should be available on every major podcast network. If you’re listening and would rather see me talking and gesturing (and maybe in the future with some more visuals), the show is available on YouTube under my personal account: Alexander Rose (not the musician).

A short episode in which I discuss the notion that gambling is a symptom of a much more serious and much more insidious disease rather than a pathology in its own right. The disease is simple: a failure of stability, politics, and imaginations for the future. This isn't about gambling addiction as a mental health pathology, but about a socio-cultural analysis of why gambling is everywhere.

The show is fully self-funded. I do no monetization, no slop, no grind culture nonsense. If you’d like to support the show and/or encourage me to continue, the best way to do so is on whatever platform you’re using. Like, subscribe, leave comments, and of course share it with anyone you think may be interested.

This Place is Weird is a weekly video and podcast about marketing and consumer culture, with relevant topics from science, religion, politics, philosophy, economy, and so on. The focus is on peculiar and unexpected views of the quotidian and ordinary, that is to say that I discuss what is weird. This place, if you look at it quite clearly, is extremely weird. That place being the United States, capitalism, Modernity, planet Earth, the global North, et cetera. If you’re watching on YouTube and prefer audio format since there’s minimal editing, the show should be available on every major podcast network. If you’re listening and would rather see me talking and gesturing (and maybe in the future with some more visuals), the show is available on YouTube under my personal account: Alexander Rose (not the musician).

Many feel like owning a home is a key part of the American Dream. Why is this? From Thomas Jefferson's yeoman farmer to a functional buyoff of a frustrated middle class, I trace some of the history of this phenomenon. Importantly, it is now a nexus of massive industries and complex webs of incentives and material interests, leaving the homeowner totally responsible for their home while also curtailing the personal liberty they allegedly sought when they bought it. It's weird.

The show is fully self-funded. I do no monetization, no slop, no grind culture nonsense. If you’d like to support the show and/or encourage me to continue, the best way to do so is on whatever platform you’re using. Like, subscribe, leave comments, and of course share it with anyone you think may be interested.

This Place is Weird is a weekly video and podcast about marketing and consumer culture, with relevant topics from science, religion, politics, philosophy, economy, and so on. The focus is on peculiar and unexpected views of the quotidian and ordinary, that is to say that I discuss what is weird. This place, if you look at it quite clearly, is extremely weird. That place being the United States, capitalism, Modernity, planet Earth, the global North, et cetera. If you’re watching on YouTube and prefer audio format since there’s minimal editing, the show should be available on every major podcast network. If you’re listening and would rather see me talking and gesturing (and maybe in the future with some more visuals), the show is available on YouTube under my personal account: Alexander Rose (not the musician).