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Reasons for Hope in 2024; Plus the Bill Gates Problem

On this episode of the Start Making Sense podcast, John Nichols previews politics for this year, while Tim Schwab talks about Big Philanthropy.

Jon Wiener

January 4, 2024

Bill Gates speaks at the 2019 New York Times Dealbook.(Mike Cohen / Getty Images)

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Reasons for Hope in 2024: John Nichols, plus the Bill Gates Problem | Start Making Sense with Jon Wiener
byThe Nation Magazine

Hope is different from optimism – it’s an embrace of uncertainty, and a basis for action. The polls look bad for Joe Biden, but Democrats’ chances are much brighter in the House, and perhaps the Senate. John Nichols talks about reasons for hope in 2024, starting in the tipping point state of 2020, Wisconsin.

Also: Bill Gates is now the 6th richest man in the world, with 104 billion dollars. He’s spent the last 20 years giving away some of his money–the Gates Foundation gave away $7 billion in 2022. But with the money comes a host of problems. Tim Schwab will explain; his new book has a great title: “The Bill Gates Problem: Reckoning with the Myth of the Good Billionaire.”

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Hope is different from optimism: It’s an embrace of uncertainty, and a basis for action. The polls look bad for Joe Biden, but the Democrats’ chances are much brighter in the House, and perhaps the Senate, too. This week, John Nichols gives us some reasons to have hope in 2024, starting with the tipping point state of 2020—Wisconsin.

Also on this episode: Bill Gates is now the sixth-richest man in the world, with $104 billion to his name. He’s spent the last 20 years giving away some of his money—the Gates Foundation gave away $7 billion in 2022. But with that money comes a host of problems. Tim Schwab, author of The Bill Gates Problem: Reckoning with the Myth of the Good Billionaire, comes on the podcast to discuss.

The Nation Podcasts

Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.

American Origins of the Israel – Palestine Conflict, plus Climate Hope | Start Making Sense
byThe Nation Magazine

The most important event in the history of Israel and Palestine was not the 1948 founding of Israel and the Nakba, or Israel’s 1967 occupation of Palestinian territories. It was the outlawing of immigration of Jews (and others) to the US from Russia, Poland, and Eastern and Southern Europe. That was the purpose of the immigration restriction act passed by Congress in May, 1924, 100 years ago this month. Without that, the Jews of Europe would never have moved to Palestine, Harold Meyerson argues.

Also: The New Yorker’s award-winning climate writer Elizabeth Kolbert talks about her fascinating new book, “H is for Hope: Climate Change from A to Z.’”

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Jon WienerTwitterJon Wiener is a contributing editor of The Nation and co-author (with Mike Davis) of Set the Night on Fire: L.A. in the Sixties.


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