Category Archives: Culture

Robert Stark and Matthew Pegas talk about the Film Joker

1980's, aesthetics, alienation, Alternative Right, American Culture, Anarchism, Architecture, Art, Cinema, Cities, Class, comedy, Crime, Culture, Despair, Donald Trump, Economics, Film, Hollywood, humor, Incels, income inequality, Joker, Leftism, Loserdom, Matthew Pegas, Media, Memes, Mental illness, Millennials, Morality, Neoliberalism, Neon, New York, Nihilism, Oligarchy, Philosophy, Political Correctness, Psychology, Race Relations, Sexuality, Social Isolation, Social Rejection, social status, Spree Shootings, Taxi Driver

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and Matthew Pegas talk about the film Joker (2019 ) and it’s sociological significance to our current zeitgeist of despair.

Topics:

The social crisis of despair in America
The alienated loner in our society
Theme of humiliation
Oppositions to the film from the Woke Neoliberal Establishment, while Michael Moore Calls ‘Joker’ a Masterpiece
Woke media’s allegations that ‘Joker’ validates White Male rage
Marc Maron on ‘Joker’: Don’t Blame Movies for Criminal Actions of the Mentally Ill
Dark comedic nihilism with no moralistic narrative of good vs. evil
Cult following online among memers and dissident rightests
Director Todd Phillips, his background in lighthearted sex comedies, and how he stopped making comedies due to “Woke Culture”
How the film is as controversial as it can afford to be within Hollywood
Plutocratic mayoral candidate Thomas Wayne who could symbolize a caricature of Trump, but also echoes Hillary Clinton’s Basket of deplorables phrase
Class warfare theme
The Anarchist theme of creating chaos and tearing down society
Symbolism of the clown
Mental health
Comparison’s to Taxi Driver
Aesthetics of the film set in Gotham City, based on gritty New York City in the early 80s

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Checkout Robert Stark’s Facebook page, Twitter, Instagram, Stark Truth TV, and novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark interviews Brandon Adamson about The Rats of Nationalism

aesthetics, Alternative Right, Andrew Yang, Art, Board Games, Brandon Adamson, Conspiracy Theories, Culture, Film, Gender, Literature, Memes, Nationalism, Police State, Politics, Psychology, Sexuality, Social Media

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark talks to Brandon Adamson of Altleft.com about his new book The Rats of Nationalism. It’s available on Amazon.

Topics:

The board game Candy Land and how it relates to political dissidents
How Brandon has never been into conspiracy theories but became interested in this topic after first hand experience on social media
How most people’s conception of fed infiltrator is mistaken and incomplete
How the proliferation of certain memes, political figures and ideas is not entirely organic
Pinksheet Yang; de-radicalizing dissident rightest, giving them a path back into respectable society
Easily programmable people
How psyop motivations are often counter-intuitive(example of modern art)
The various film references in the book including The Secret of NIMH, which served as an inspiration for this book
The problems with anonymity
Why Brandon was never interested in activism
The symbolism of the color blue
The importance of being sincere and real

Click Here to download!

Checkout Robert Stark’s Facebook page, Twitter, Instagram, Stark Truth TV, and novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark interviews filmmaker Éva Gárdos about her film Budapest Noir

acting, aesthetics, Architecture, Art, Budapest Noir, Cinema, Culture, Éva Gárdos, Film, Film Noire

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark talks to filmmaker Éva Gárdos about her new film Budapest Noir.

Topics:

The historical setting of the film in 1936, just prior to Hungary turning fascist
The sense of what was about to happen and people not seeing what was going to happen to them
Éva’s experience as an editor
The costume and set design
The city as a character
The novel Budapest Noir and where it differs from the film
Location scouting
The set design for the Bauhaus mansion and significance of that architectural genre
The Film Noir genre and murder mystery angle
Selecting actors, and theater background of Hungarian actors
Éva’s film An American Rhapsody starring Nastassja Kinski and Scarlett Johansson
The American release for Budapest Noir planned for January of 2020

Click Here to download!

Checkout Robert Stark’s Facebook page, Twitter, Instagram, Stark Truth TV, and novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark and Matthew Pegas talk about Urbanist observations from trip to San Diego

1980's, 80's music, aesthetics, American Culture, Andrew Yang, Architecture, Basic Income, Calexit, California, Cities, Class, Culture, demographics, Economics, Environment, Erasure, Historic Preservation, History, Immigration, John C. Portman Jr, Los Angeles, Malibu, Malls, Matthew Pegas, Mexico, Middle Class, Music, Politics, Postmodernism, San Diego, Santa Barbara, Silicon Valley, Skyscrapers, Suburbia, SWPL, Travel, Urbanism, Wealth, Wilderness

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and Matthew Pegas talk about their recent trip to San Diego and their observations on cultural and urbanist trends.

Topics:

San Diego’s reputation as a smaller, cleaner, nicer version of LA and its unique attributes
The layout of the city with a centralized downtown near the waterfront surrounded by suburban sprawl
San Diego and Orange County among the largest areas of upper middle class sprawl in the nation
Politics of San Diego as a historically Republican stronghold that has trended Democratic in recent years
Demographics of San Diego and how they relate to overall CA trends
The most stereotypical American City located in CA while the State is culturally drifting apart from the rest of the Country
After decades of suburban sprawl, San Diego eyes big shift to dense development
The historic Gaslamp Quarter which is the one section that feels truly urban
Horton Plaza: Will this PoMo wonderland in San Diego be saved?
Architect Jon Jerde’s inspiration for Horton Plaza from Ray Bradbury’s “The Aesthetic of Lostness” extolling the virtues of getting “safely lost”
Wealthy beach community La Jolla and it’s village layout
The importance of investing in communal places that the public can enjoy, particularly in wealthy areas
Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve
The Victorian Hotel del Coronado
Friendship Park at the US/Mexico Border and political symbolism of the border wall
The Inland Empire
Heavenly Action by Erasure, the soundtrack of the trip with a message that friendship, love, and positivity can conquer anything

Click Here to download!

Checkout Robert Stark’s Facebook page, Twitter, Instagram, Stark Truth TV, and novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark interviews Alt-Centrist Jonathan Edwards

aesthetics, Alt Center, Alternative Right, American Culture, Andrew Yang, Aristocratic Individualism, Art, automation, Basic Income, Bernie Sanders, California, capitalism, censorship, Corporations, Culture, demographics, Donald Trump, Economics, Environment, Homosexuality, Immigration, Jonathan Edwards, Journey to Vapor Island, Leftism, Matthew Pegas, Middle Class, Political Correctness, Politics, Sexuality, social capital, Social Isolation, social trust, Socialism, Spree Shootings, technology

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and Matthew Pegas talk to Jonathan Edwards about the Alt-Center phenomenon and Andrew Yang. Check out Jonathan on Twitter.

Topics:

Background as a Democrat, Bernie Sanders/Jill Stein supporter, and parting ways with the Left due to the focus on identity politics and censorship
Angela Nagle’s book Kill All Normies
Interest in dissident centrism, which has unfortunately not taken off due to polarization
The need for the Alt-Center to become a sustained cultural and intellectual movement
Left Wing solutions to reactionary grievances
The decline in the dissident right’s enthusiasm over Andrew Yang
Yang’s out of the box stances, and his missed opportunity to be the dissident center candidate rather than a standard liberal democrat with a UBI
Why a UBI and automation may remove the incentive and justification for mass immigration
Deepfake technology
Observations as a California native on the State’s income inequality and lack of social cohesion
The Idea of Homonationalism as an alternative to left wing LGBT identity politics
The need for society to support both outsider artist and normative family values
How Woke Capital uses identity politics to distract from economic injustices
Robert’s novel Journey to Vapor Island
The need for grand aesthetic visions in politics
The need to invest in the arts and culture
Importance of environmentalism

Click Here to download!

Checkout Robert Stark’s Facebook page, Twitter, Instagram, Stark Truth TV, and novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark talks to Rachel Haywire about funding the Transgressive Arts

aesthetics, Alexander Dugin, alienation, Alt Center, Aristocratic Individualism, Art, automation, Basic Income, capitalism, censorship, Class, Culture, Economics, Francis Nally, Matthew Pegas, Philosophy, Political Correctness, Politics, Psychology, Rachel Haywire, Radical Center, social capital, Socialism, Transhumanism

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark, Francis Nally, and Matthew Pegas talk to Rachel Haywire about her proposal to fund the transgressive arts. Rachel Haywire is a candidate for President for the Transhumanist Party.

Topics:

The stifling of creative expression by the gatekeepers
How transgressive arts creates an outlet for alienated people to express themselves
Imperium of the mind, building virtual worlds where one can express their deepest darkest desires
Making art profitable by giving creators access to tools to reach their market
Image control and how people at the top are not giving consumers what they want
Increase the importance of merit and decrease importance of credentialism
How aesthetics are the backbone of civilization
The need to view economic systems as tools to bring about desired social outcomes
How a basic income would create a cultural renaissance
Automate bureaucracy to fund the basic income
How creative endeavours are more immune from automation
Will you let me into the Verso Loft?
Recent Debate Among U.S. Transhumanist Party Presidential Candidates(note show recorded before debate)

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Checkout Robert Stark’s Facebook page, Twitter, Instagram, Stark Truth TV, and novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark interviews Filmmaker Steve De Jarnatt

1980's, 80's music, aesthetics, Brandon Adamson, Cherry 2000, Cinema, Culture, Film, Film Noire, Hollywood, Los Angeles, Miracle Mile, Sexuality, Steve De Jarnatt, Synthwave, The Cold War

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and Brandon Adamson talk to filmmaker Steve De Jarnatt. Steve is best known for the film Miracle Mile.

Topics:

Plan for a website dedicated to Miracle Mile and Steve’s other films
How Steve was offered a fortune not to direct Miracle Mile
Proposal for the Miracle Mile script as “Twilight Zone the Movie” which Steve turned down
The 80’s aesthetic and revived interest in surreal 80’s visuals
The Tangerine Dream Soundtrack
The production of Miracle Mile, including blocking off Wilshire Blvd
The Miracle Mile neighborhood in LA
Why Steve thinks the likelihood of nuclear apocalypse is greater today
Why Cherry 2000 is very topical now
Whether there will be remakes of the films
Available on Kinolorber with the updated versions of the films

Click Here to download!

Checkout Robert Stark’s Facebook page, Twitter, Instagram, Stark Truth TV, and novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark interviews Will Durham about the Nevada Neon Project

aesthetics, Architecture, Art, Cities, Culture, Gambling, Historic Preservation, History, Las Vegas, Mid-Century Modern, Neon, Reno, Will Durham

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Will Durham has been collecting and preserving neon signs for over 25 years, and has one of the largest collections in the world. Check out the Nevada Neon Project on Instagram and Facebook.

Topics:

Collecting signs from closing businesses
The main focus of preserving signs
The process of rescuing a sign
Displaying signs to the public at events
Neon named Nevada’s official element
Walking tours of Downtown Reno
The decline of Reno as a gambling destination, revitalization, and what it means for neon
Newer signage, incorporating new neon, and businesses adopting older signs
The lack of historic preservation regulation
Collecting signage from larger casinos including the Peppermill, Harold’s Club, and Fitzgerald in Reno, and The Riviera in Las Vegas
Saving The Virginian’s Casino letters
The Eldorado Casino’s external neon silhouette
The Carson Nugget and Cactus Jacks in Carson City
The dwindling of neon at Lake Tahoe, and The Stardust Lodge

Click Here to download!

Checkout Robert Stark’s Facebook page, Twitter, Instagram, Stark Truth TV, and novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark interviews Logo Daedalus

aesthetics, American Culture, Anarchism, Andrew Yang, Architecture, Aristocratic Individualism, Art, Art Deco, automation, Basic Income, Cities, Comic Books, Culture, Cyberpunk, Donald Trump, Economics, Futurism, Incels, Instagram, Italian Futurism, Logo Daedalus, Mid-Century Modern, New York, Philosophy, Poetry, Politics, Retro Futurism, Skyscrapers, Social Media, Steampunk, Suicide, Surrealism, technology, Urbanism, Wyndham Lewis

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Logo Daedalus is the author of Selfie, Suicide: or Cairey Turnbull’s Blue Skiddoo and writes for Autistic Mercury. You can also check him out on Twitter.

Topics:

Logo’s novel Selfie, Suicide, a coming of age satire of a failed artist
Instagram inspired parody art museums
New York’s Staircase to Nowhere
How technology impacts politics
Wyndham Lewis
Andrew Yang
How the UBI could create a cultural renaissance
The Obama to Trump voters in the Rustbelt
Aesthetics as politics
Retro-futurist genres Steampunk, Dieselpunk, and Cyberpunk
Underground comics

Click Here to download!

Checkout Robert Stark’s Facebook page, Twitter, Instagram, Stark Truth TV, and novel Journey to Vapor Island




Scarcity of Positional Goods is the basis for Aesthetic Socialism

Aesthetic Socialism, aesthetics, Architecture, Cities, Culture, demographics, Economics, Post-scarcity economy, social status, Urbanism, Wealth

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aesthetic Socialism is the concept of viewing politics with aesthetics as one of the basic principles. I discussed the concept at length in my essay Aristocratic Aesthetic Socialism and show with Matthew Pegas and Giovanni Dannato. Aesthetics signifies one’s class and social status and influences and manipulates peoples decisions and economic output. Extreme inequality in aesthetics shapes the core foundations and social mechanisms of a society.

In politics the debate about the distribution wealth is primarily about the distribution of monetary assets and how to make basic needs widely available. Due to mass production and future trends in automation we are now entering a Post Scarcity Economy where many goods and services can be provided to a larger segment of the population.

We have the wealth, resources, and technology to provide basic services such as food and electronics that can be mass produced. In the future healthcare could be provided cheaply due to automation but the goods that are positional will remain increasingly scarce.

Positional Goods according to Lion of the Blogosphere “are goods and services that people value because of their limited supply and they convey a high relative standing within society.” These resources are positional because they are ranked in value to other resources.

Continue reading Scarcity of Positional Goods is the basis for Aesthetic Socialism →