A few people have asked me over the past year or so what I listen to, since I don’t listen to any modern music. I spend my time listening to podcasts while driving or working out. I have run across some really good podcasts, although I know there are plenty of others out there that are probably better. These are my favorite ones (in no particular order) that deal with politics, economics, and, of course, religious thought:
LET MY PEOPLE THINK
Ravi Zacharias is a Christian apologist and author. This podcast takes excerpts from speeches he performs around the world. If you want to know about subjective and objective morality, the difference between various worldviews, philosophical viewpoints, and the Christian faith, then this podcast is a must. Since listening to Ravi through his YouTube videos and his podcasts, my understanding of Jesus, Christianity, and differing worldviews has increased dramatically.
ANDY STANLEY LEADERSHIP PODCAST
Andy Stanley is amazing. His views on leadership are second-to-none. I have received insight on how to deal with people and, more importantly, how not to deal with people. If you are trying to inch your way or sprint your way into a leadership role, whether at work, church, school, or even at home, then listen to this podcast. I guarantee every episode will leave you with a nugget worth keeping.
HILLSDALE DIALOGUES
Easily one of my favorite podcasts. It is hosted by Hugh Hewitt of MSNBC and always involves Dr. Larry Arnn, president of Hillsdale College, or one of his colleagues. Hewitt has been hosting this interview session every Friday for about four years. You can go all the way back to the beginning and listen from there. They started their podcast discussing old writings, like The Divine Comedy, the works of Shakespeare, and The Federalist Papers, along with historical figures, like Aristotle, Martin Luther, and Winston Churchill. They recently instituted current events into the podcast, but have tried to keep past historical events and figures as part of each episode. You will learn so much from this podcast that you’ll thank me later.
THE CLASSICIST WITH VICTOR DAVIS HANSON
This podcast is part of the Hoover Institution’s plethora of podcasts with interviews of lecturer and military historian, Victor Davis Hanson. From military issues (past and present) to political upheaval, Hanson is pointed, yet relaxed, almost nonchalant, in his responses. If you are looking for an understanding for how the world is today based on historical references or a singular and clear point of view in a political world of complexity, then take a moment to listen to this podcast.
LOUDER WITH CROWDER
If you don’t mind crude humor mixed with really disturbing news on exactly how the far-left is acting, then check out this podcast. It is very funny and even more politically incorrect, which I think the world could use a little more of. Stephen Crowder, the host of the podcast, has gotten in trouble with YouTube for some of his videos being too offensive, but in a world of hypersensitivity, it comes to be expected.
MALCOLM GLADWELL: REVISIONIST HISTORY
Of all the podcasts I listen to, Malcolm Gladwell’s is my favorite. If you’ve ever read any of his books, then you know his podcast is going to be good. In every episode, Gladwell takes the listener on a journey to a historical event, typically of modern times, and dissects it to where you can never look at it the same again. A man of his brilliance needs fear nothing, and he seemingly adheres. No topic is off-limits. From a terrorist turned good to a minster dealing with gay marriage in his family to integration in schools to McDonald’s fries, there will not be one episode where you will feel that you have wasted a moment’s time. His episodes will leave you laughing, crying, emotionally uplifted or emotionally downtrodden. Whatever emotion you feel from these episodes, it will often coincide with a necessity for self-reflection.
STRATEGIKA
Also a Hoover Institution podcast, this podcast discusses some of the most important military issues of the day. With Troy Senik conducting the interviews and always providing tough questions that need answering, the guests on the show, which include former generals, war historians, and former Secretaries of State, don’t shy away from telling it as it is or at least how it should be. If you want to know more about military issues in the US and around the globe, then listen in.
THE LIBERTARIAN
If you are looking to be in awe of someone’s brilliance, then listen to this podcast with Dr. Richard Epstein. As a lecturer at the University of Chicago and NYU, he brings a plethora of information and knowledge to the subject of law. With news coming in at light speed, it’s good to have a podcast that can decipher the ins and outs of the most important news from a legal standpoint. From corporate mergers to travel bans to healthcare, Dr. Epstein gives insight, historical relevance and precedents, and clarity in every answer. And be ready to listen, rewind and listen again. I have never heard someone speak so fluidly without seemingly taking a breath.
THE BEN SHAPIRO SHOW
Ben Shapiro has made a name for himself over the past few years for answering so concisely and so quickly that it leaves you speechless. His knowledge of so many different aspects of, in particular, political life, is quite exceptional. He is forthright and honest in his disparity of any and every group from far left to far right to right down the middle. From gun control to healthcare to anything in between, Shapiro does a really good job of giving really good answers, even if you don’t agree with him. If you like rule of law in a rather lawless political landscape, then you’ll definitely like this podcast.
POLITICAL ECONOMY
For anyone looking for more information on the economics of today’s world, then the podcast hosted by James Pethokoukis is a must. This podcast brings in just about everyone of note – Democrat and Republican. Pethokoukis exhibits his own knowledge in his questions and responses to every guest. Mixed in with good humor, this podcast will help understand the world of economics and the politics behind it.
UNCOMMON KNOWLEDGE
I believe this was my first podcast to download, but I can’t be sure. I ran across Uncommon Knowledge on YouTube before downloading the podcast. Host Peter Robinson may be the most educated man I have ever come across. I say this because he interviews authors of so very many different topics, including politics, military, economics, and history, and seems to know almost as much as the authors themselves. If you are a big reader or like politics or just want to more about the world around you, then listen to this podcast, and then go purchase the book of whoever was interviewed. You’ll find yourself downloading a lot of uncommon knowledge.
I hope you might download at least one of these 11 podcasts and give it a listen. If you do, then let me know what you think after checking them out. Besides, what else are you going to do while driving or working out, listen to today’s music? Yeesh.
Also, if you have any recommendations, feel free to tell me.