Re: <nettime> At Doge, AI faith has fully fused with Christian Nationalism

[Steven Kurtz via nettime-l <nettime-l@lists.nettime.org>]

www.natalism.org<http://www.natalism.org/>
Ryan, you are absolutely right. The natalist movement is points for Felix.
The venn diagram is at full intersect,  and these folks are curious (at least among the so-called intellectuals in the movement). You have Catholic integralists, CNs from the Claremont Institute, Trad Wives (lots of feminist apostates come to testify), and the TBs. They just had their big conference in Austin, so you can get a helpful list of the players at the site given above. I especially want to draw your attention to Malcom and Simone Collins. They are from the Techno-Puritan faction. They want to be CNs, but without the spiritual stuff. Peter Thiel acolytes. They also are big believers in technological intervention to enhance the reproduction of leaders and innovators.

In case we are getting way too obscure: For all attendees of the conference the underlying concern is that the leadership class (white people) is not reproducing fast enough for economic growth and innovation to continue at ever increasing rates. Essentially, it is a conference on positive eugenics. At this point natalism is not in the mainstream of conservatism, but it's on its way.

________________________________
From: nettime-l <nettime-l-bounces@lists.nettime.org> on behalf of Ryan Griffis via nettime-l <nettime-l@lists.nettime.org>
Sent: Monday, March 31, 2025 4:27 PM
To: nettime-l@lists.nettime.org <nettime-l@lists.nettime.org>
Cc: Ryan Griffis <ryan.griffis@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: <nettime> At Doge, AI faith has fully fused with Christian Nationalism

On the last episode of On The Media, Brooke Gladstone spoke with Jennifer Berkshire (co-author of The Education Wars: A Citizen’s Guide and Defense Manual) about the current right-wing attack on all levels of education. While the initial discussion centered on right-wing populist opposition to school voucher programs, it ends up getting into the CN and natalist movements’ ideological reasons for attacking education. Or, more specifically the democratic project that we think of as public education.

https://nam12.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wnycstudios.org%2Fpodcasts%2Fotm%2Farticles%2Fthe-latest-spin-on-signalgate-plus-a-crypto-president-is-born&data=05%7C02%7Csjkurtz%40buffalo.edu%7C3da10f81a5104d8b790d08dd70927a8e%7C96464a8af8ed40b199e25f6b50a20250%7C0%7C0%7C638790496640275517%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=a7fNzuoQelWX7nF9sYP5wnJwi7PlW%2Fbd%2BMV4IZ2bu9Q%3D&reserved=0<https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/articles/the-latest-spin-on-signalgate-plus-a-crypto-president-is-born>

There’s a brief excerpt of a speech by Scott Yenor, a politic philosophy prof at Boise State and affiliate of the CN org Society for American Civic Renewal and the Claremont Institute. This speech he gave a few years ago generated some coverage for obvious reasons:
https://nam12.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fyoutu.be%2FCJssyf7D6Q4&data=05%7C02%7Csjkurtz%40buffalo.edu%7C3da10f81a5104d8b790d08dd70927a8e%7C96464a8af8ed40b199e25f6b50a20250%7C0%7C0%7C638790496640299221%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=sQWsP91JhmUZ3Hl07Pku8jLq5m4ZAIGOUCpnDk7KZqs%3D&reserved=0<https://youtu.be/CJssyf7D6Q4>

At any rate, I only bring this up to throw out there some things that *do* seem to be a point of convergence between the TBs and CNs, which is blatant and celebratory misogyny and heteropatriarchy (and an equally virulent hatred for anything that impedes them celebrating it). I think this is probably more of a current for young white dudes who might fall into CN territory, or just as likely into the TB/right-wing troll camp.

Definitely not taking away anything from what Steve has offered, which maps 100% onto my experience growing up in an evangelical environment/household in the US South. I’ve watched, first-hand, the transformation of "values-based” Christian beliefs into nakedly political ones that employ the same moral force. Where I used to be able to appeal to those values in disagreements with family members, such appeals are now met with incredulity, anger, and endless what-about-isms.

Take care all.
Ryan
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