https://www.civic-life.org/s/free-piehttps://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!yLad!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F81222aca-4cb6-44f6-abe4-e1426f92c092_262x262.pnghttps://www.civic-life.org/s/free-pieSubstackSun, 15 Nov 2026 01:50:54 GMThttps://www.civic-life.org/p/michael-walzer-on-equality-socialism-d34https://www.civic-life.org/p/michael-walzer-on-equality-socialism-d34Wed, 11 Nov 2026 13:03:38 GMTOne of the most respected political philosophers of his generation as well as one of the most prolific, Michael and I met at his home in New York City to talk about his commitment to democratic socialism, the relationship between equality and pluralism in a good society, helping to start Dissent magazine and editing it pro bono for decades, just and unjust wars (regarding both theory and specific wars), the civil rights movement, the New Left, New York intellectuals, his relationship to Judaism -- and the unpublished history of the Second World War he wrote at age eleven. It was a rare gift and honor to talk with him. This is the second of a two-part conversation.

]]>https://www.civic-life.org/p/michael-walzer-on-equality-socialismhttps://www.civic-life.org/p/michael-walzer-on-equality-socialismWed, 04 Nov 2026 13:02:22 GMTOne of the most respected political philosophers of his generation as well as one of the most prolific, Michael and I met at his home in New York City to talk about his commitment to democratic socialism, the relationship between equality and pluralism in a good society, helping to start Dissent magazine and editing it pro bono for decades, just and unjust wars (regarding both theory and specific wars), the civil rights movement, the New Left, New York intellectuals, his relationship to Judaism -- and the unpublished history of the Second World War he wrote at age eleven. It was a rare gift and honor to talk with him. This is the first of a two-part conversation.

]]>https://www.civic-life.org/p/peter-wood-on-the-crisis-of-higherhttps://www.civic-life.org/p/peter-wood-on-the-crisis-of-higherWed, 28 Oct 2026 12:04:15 GMTPeter has spent a lifetime in higher education -- as a professor of anthropology, a university administrator, a college provost, and currently the president of the National Association of Scholars. At our Civic Life office in New York City, we talk about free speech, reforming U.S. higher education, the pursuit of truth, the meaning for Americans of a civilizational heritage, populism, patriotism and liberal elites, creating a curriculum at a small Christian college, why Americans are (as he sees it, sadly but justifiably) so angry -- and the value of reading novels and poetry. Peter is soft-spoken, as smart as they come, and a terrific conversation partner. I greatly enjoyed our time together.

]]>https://www.civic-life.org/p/robert-shapiro-on-a-life-of-rescuinghttps://www.civic-life.org/p/robert-shapiro-on-a-life-of-rescuingWed, 21 Oct 2026 12:02:32 GMTRobert is the founder and leader of Stray Pride Animal Rescue, a grassroots civic project whose mission is to rescue and provide good homes for “misunderstood and unwanted” animals. Especially reptiles. He’s been doing this for a long time and he and his fellow workers (all volunteers) are very good at it! At our Civic Life office in New York City, we talk about how he got involved in this work, rescuing baby turtles from dumpsters, his philosophy, his method -- and how he got the money to start the initiative by creating T-shirts for causes he believes in (“The truly educated never graduate”). He’s a native New Yorker, a Queens kid. He’s a ranked handball player. He does profoundly creative things for profoundly decent reasons -- one needn’t talk about civics all the time to do civics -- and it was a great pleasure to talk with him.

]]>https://www.civic-life.org/p/marina-galisova-on-communism-freedomhttps://www.civic-life.org/p/marina-galisova-on-communism-freedomWed, 14 Oct 2026 12:00:45 GMTA translator, civic activist, and the managing editor of .týždeň magazine (“The Week”) in Bratislava, Slovakia, Marína and I met at the magazine’s office in Bratislava to talk about listening as a child to “Voice of America” on the radio with her father, the impact of Ronald Reagan calling Soviet-bloc communism an “evil empire,” the role of anti-communist dissidents, Czechoslovakia’s “Velvet Revolution,” translating important books, the meaning and ending of the Viktor Orbán era in Hungary (Slovakia borders Hungary), the rise of nationalism, the future of liberalism, keeping a weekly magazine going -- and why she loves hard rock music. We began our friendship several years ago when she interviewed me for .týždeň, and what a joy now, for both of us, to continue and deepen the conversation. 

]]>https://www.civic-life.org/p/r-r-reno-on-christian-nationalismhttps://www.civic-life.org/p/r-r-reno-on-christian-nationalismWed, 07 Oct 2026 12:03:28 GMTThe editor of First Things magazine, R. R. “Rusty” Reno is an old friend. In his office in New York City, we talk about how he became a conservative, his Christian witness, the legacy of Richard John Neuhaus (First Thing’s founding editor), Christian nationalism, what Rusty welcomes as “the return of the strong gods,” liberalism and populism, the idea of resurrecting Christian society, the deepest meanings of freedom -- and his passion for rock climbing. We have agreements and disagreements, all rooted in mutual respect and curiosity. It’s a free-wheeling and enriching conversation.

]]>https://www.civic-life.org/p/welcome-to-real-conversationhttps://www.civic-life.org/p/welcome-to-real-conversationWed, 30 Sep 2026 13:04:06 GMT“Makes no difference if it’s sweet or hot -- just give that rhythm everything you’ve got.” The rhythm we’re looking for is talking with rather than about each other. Favoring longcuts over shortcuts. Showing genuine interest in who we’re talking to. We’ll give that rhythm everything we’ve got. Welcome to our podcast.

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