Facing the Menace

In this episode, we’re not looking away. We’re acknowledging the cracks in our democracies and asking what can still be done. Recorded live at the Conduit Club in early 2024, this powerful conversation brings together two sharp, prescient voices: political strategist and pollster Paul Hilder, and author and journalist Ece Temelkuran. Paul has worked on elections across Europe, uncovering the deeper trends shaping our politics. Ece, whose book How to Lose a Country warned of creeping authoritarianism back in 2019, draws urgent lessons from Turkey and beyond. Their insights feel even more vital now than they did then.

Chapters

• (00:00:02) - How to Save Democracy
• (00:01:31) - Poland's election result
• (00:03:49) - Paul Krugman on the UK election
• (00:12:01) - The challenges of right-wing populism
• (00:14:59) - Germany's huge demonstrations against immigration plan
• (00:18:25) - This is What Politics Might Look Like in 2030
• (00:19:59) - How the Polish election affected the election
• (00:30:43) - Dissolving the Democracy
• (00:37:19) - The European establishment's choice between socialism and fascism
• (00:44:51) - Democracy in the age of Trump
• (00:51:06) - The role of faith
• (00:55:12) - AJ on Hope and Its Impact
• (00:59:48) - How to Save Democracy