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Heidegger in Ruins: Philosophy, Fascism, and the Politics of Being
🕑 Added 2025-11-12 16:00:12 +0000 UTCIn this episode, Breht speaks with Dr. Richard Wolin, author of Heidegger in Ruins: Between Philosophy and Ideology, about the dark entanglement between Martin Heidegger’s philosophy and his lifelong commitment to National Socialism. Heidegger is often hailed as the most important philosopher of the 20th century, yet his work was deeply shaped by the reactionary politics of his time. Wolin explains how Heidegger’s central ideas -- Being, Dasein, authenticity, rootedness, and the “decline of the West” -- became intertwined with fascist notions of destiny, hierarchy, and belonging. They discuss the long history of attempts to sanitize Heidegger’s record, what the Black Notebooks reveal about his true convictions, the interwar period in Germany and the conservative revolution, Heidegger's spiritual racism, and how the same civilizational despair and longing for renewal echo through today’s far-right political movements. This conversation explores how the search for meaning and authenticity, when divorced from solidarity and democracy, can turn toward reactionary myth-making, hierarchical exclusion, and fascist authoritarianism.
Check out Dr. Wolin's articles in the LA Review of Books HERE
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Revolutionary Left Radio
I am glad its helpful - I send my sincere love and solidarity to you and your family, Elias. I hope things take a turn for the better.
B Grimez
Salute fellow Rev Lefters!!! you can never be clean, everyday you shower you can never be full, everyday you eat you can never quench thirst, everyday you drink you can never be perfect, everyday you shed imperfection -B Grimez
Elias Hartwood
Your show has been helping me get through demeaning jobs that I hate for over a year now. 😂 Genuinely a breath of fresh air during a very difficult time for my family.
