Category Archives: Portland

Meta Ronin Returns

Subscribe to Meta Ronin on Substack and follow him on X/Twitter.

Topics include:

-Whether the AI/tech bubble is overhyped
-Competing narratives about accelerating innovation in AI vs technological stagnation
-Robert’s initial prediction that Kamala will win and why Meta Ronin thinks Trump will win (Note: this was recorded about a month ago. Robert’s current prediction is about 55% Trump win/45% Kamala win)
-Whether Substack is turning into Twitter
-Whether AI/automation will select for people who are more charismatic Chads rather than nerds
-Mark Zuckerberg’s archetype and his recent rebrand to humanize his image
-How the view that elites are evil is a cope but has some partial truth
-Why streamlining bureaucracy into UBI makes more sense than mass wealth redistribution
-The argument that UBI could be exploited as a State mechanism of control
-Whether taxing the wealthy more is dysgenic
-The genetic traits selected for by wealth from sociopathy to beauty
What would the Great Class Swap look like if implemented? 
-The film series, Zeitgeist and Fully Automated Luxury Communism
-How the poor are used to scare the middle class into compliance
-How the high cost of living in California selects for conformity
-The pros and cons of both YIMBY and NIMBY policies in California
-How both Meta Ronin and Robert have been exposed to a wide range of class backgrounds, which is the case for artists
-Why middle class people are often boring
-Why bottom up populism rarely succeeds
-How sexuality is often transactional and commodified
-The hypothetical scenario of incels orally servicing high status women
-The intersection of mysticism and sexuality
-The debate about the ethics of letting sexual deviants carry out their fantasies with AI
-How mate selection can often have negative evolutionary outcomes
-How men and women are different spiritually
-How both AI and natural beauty can alchemize the Jungian anima
-Meta Ronin’s life in very scenic Lake Chelan, Washington
-How aesthetics are a great way to win people, especially women, over to your political cause
Kashif Vikaas’s Meta Right/Meta Modernism project
-Terrence McKenna’s prediction that AI will become a planetary nervous system
-How feasible is it to become financially successful on Substack?

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Checkout Robert Stark’s Facebook pageTwitterInstagramStark Truth TV, novel Vaporfornia, and subscribe to his Substack.

Robert Stark interviews BLAUERGEIST! about Aesthetics

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and Matt Pegan talk to Portland based blogger BLAUERGEIST! about architecture, interior design, art, and cinema. Check out BLAUERGEIST! on Twitter, his podcast Ellroy Boys, and new web magazine Apocalypse Confidential.

Topics:

The #BathistGang: love of 80s bathroom aesthetics
20th Century interior design genres
80s malls, Robert and Matt’s LA N O S T A L G I A  Mall series, the Breezewood meme, The Canal Walk Mall in Cape Town, and value of Interior Urbanism
Retrofuturism, trends in nostalgia, and Theme Park Urbanism
Eco Brutalism and the Interior Garden Aesthetic
Artists Patrick Nagel, Jim Buckels, and Daniel Merriam, and various sci-fi illustrators
Political symbolism in aesthetics
Aesthetics in cinema: directors Dario Argento and Peter Greenaway, and 80s films Year of the Dragon and Scarface
Horror films 3615 code Père Noël, Child’s PlayThe Serpent and the Rainbow, Jacob’s Ladder, Hellraiser: Inferno, Southbound, and Silent Hill: Revelation
The work of David Lynch and the Lynchian Aesthetic
Larry David’s Curb Your Enthusiasm

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Checkout Robert Stark’s Facebook pageTwitterInstagramStark Truth TV, novel Journey to Vapor Island, and in production documentary The Gospel of Gibson.

Round Table Discussion on Urbanist Trends for the 2020s

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark is joined with San Francisco based architect, Adam Mayer, and Oregon based urbanist commentator, D E C A Y, to discuss urbanist trends that we can expect to see as a result of the pandemic and economic transformation this year.

Topics:

Whether the outdoor dining trend is permanent
The Retail apocalypse, with a decline in small businesses and foot traffic
The remote work exodus and The Rise of Work-From-Home Towns
How the urban exodus could be beneficial for the creative class
Interior Urbanism as a reaction to urban decay
Why we will see less skyscrapers and mega projects in the 2020s
The new suburbanism: learning from past mistakes by Retrofitting Suburbia
Ski Lodge urbanism: rustic charm with urban amenities
The Missing Middle trend
The need for pragmatic zoning reform, political polarization of the issue, and why YIMBYs sometimes push too far
Dead malls being re-purposed(ex. Horton Plaza)
Why Every City Feels the Same Now: Glass-and-steel monoliths replaced local architecture
Whether we’ll see a shift away from 2010s minimalism towards a regional kitsch aesthetic(ex. Rustic Industrial)
Building fire resilient communities
Whether mass transit will remain viable and Kamala Harris’ husband’s involvement in a NIMBY lawsuit to stop the subway under Beverly Hills
Conclusion that we will see a population and economic shift to 2nd tier cities but not the total demise of cities
Adam’s upcoming blog on missing middle infill

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Checkout Robert Stark’s Facebook pageTwitterInstagram, and Stark Truth TV


Robert Stark talks about The YIMBY Movement & The Alt-Center

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark joined with Cartrell Payne(aka The Adventure Kid) to discuss the YIMBY movement, the Alt-Center, and how those issues relate.

Topics:

California Senator Scott Wiener’s housing-transit measure Derailed
Factions of the YIMBY movement including left leaning housing advocates, real estate developers, and the Market Urbanist
Left Wing anti-gentrification activists and their alliance with NIMBY’s
Cartrell’s observations on gentrification in Memphis, Tennessee
The hypocrisy of pro-immigration Limousine Liberal NIMBY’s, and how that combination exacerbates the housing crisis
How the YIMBY movement is also very pro immigration
Income Inequality in California and the mass exodus of the middle class
The film Falling Down which is set in LA in the early 90’s and a warning of a dystopian future
What makes California great and can it be saved?
The New Great Migration of Black Americans back to The South
White Middle Class Conservative NIMBY’s, their motivations, and how they are sabotaging their own self interest
Why YIMBYism and immigration restriction are compatible, and why the Alt-Center should take up those causes
Why YIMBYs need to address aesthetic concerns
Why YIMBYism is compatible with environmental and historic preservation
Citylab and City Journal; their writings on urbanism and political agendas
Why mass transit is inefficient in LA and other Sun Belt cities
The political and cultural flaws of both Blue and Red States
A vision of an Alt Center which include alternative economics, pro middle class policies, New Urbanism, environmentalism, SWPL culture, and socially centrist
Cartrell’s political orientation as an Old School Southern Democrat minus the racism
Cartrell’s critique of both the Black Liberal Establishment and Black Conservatives
Conservative views on the poor and police issues and Conservative Class Cucks
The early 20th Century Populist movement
Norman Mailer’s plan for breaking up New York City which addressed both the concerns of the Left and the Right

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings and his novel Journey to Vapor Island




Robert Stark talks to Director Michael Medaglia about his Film Deep Dark

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and co-host Sam Kevorkian talk to Director Michael Medaglia about his Film Deep Dark. You can get a signed DVD as well as the screenplay on the Deep Dark Website.

Topics:

The struggling artist Hermann played by Sean McGrath who discovers a mysterious hole 
How the film is classified as horror for marketing purposes but Michael considers it to be “weird fiction”
Weird fiction writers including Kelly Link and Jeremy Robert Johnson
How the hole works
The symbolism of the hole, the Faustian Myth, and comparisons to “Little Shop of Horrors”
Giving the hole humanity
Keeping a sense of mystery for the audience by not revealing everything
Horror cliches such as holes as gateways to hell
The theme of a struggling artist and how artist can relate to the film
The absurd and comedic elements of the film
The production and cinematography of the film
Voice actress Denise Poirier who did the voice for the hole
Michael’s short films “The Ratsnitch Angel” and Kitty Kitty

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark interviews Jeffery J. Smith

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

JEFFERY J. SMITH published The Geonomist, which won a California GreenLight Award, has appeared in both the popular press (e.g.,TruthOut) and academic journals (e.g., USC’s “Planning and Markets”), been interviewed on radio and TV, lobbied officials, testified before the Russian Duma, conducted research (e.g., for Portland’s mass transit agency), and recruited activists and academics to Progress.org. A member of the International Society for Ecological Economics and of Mensa, he lives amidst the beauty of Northern California. Jeffery is currently Chief Editor at Progress.org.

Topics:

Jeffery Smith’s new science fiction novel Perfect Timing about time travel to a future society
How the book conveys the tone of Hitchhiker’s Guide, offers insights like Stranger in a Strange Land, and presents an upbeat alternative to Brave New World
The theme and implementation of a Basic Income in the future society
Why a basic income is necessary and ways to implement it
The artificial notion of the work week and the book The Overworked American
The Post-scarcity economy and how the surplus of wealth is concentrated in the top 1%
The theme of Utopia; Aldous Huxley’s utopian novel Island
The future society of Geotopia, the theme of Ecotopia, and the book by Ernest Callenbach
Ecological based economics; Herman Daly’s Steady State Economics
Geonomics, Georgism, and the land value tax
How a land value tax is different from a property tax and leads to more efficient land use
City Density—Friend of Trip Efficiency
The book Better NOT Bigger: How to Take Control of Urban Growth and Improve your Community
Jeffery Smith’s upcoming book on measuring the indicators of land value

Click Here to download!
This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark talks to Jim Goad about the New Church Ladies and Re Release of Answer Me!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark, co-host Pilleater, and Cartrell Payne(The Adventure Kid) talk to JIM GOAD about his new book The New Church Ladies and re release of ANSWER Me! by Nine-Banded Books.

Topics:

Jim’s new book The New Church Ladies: The Extremely Uptight World of “Social Justice”
Social Justice as a new secular religion and their moral absolutist nature
Social Justice Warriors totalitarian tactics and dehumanization of those they disagree with
Jim’s early experience with political correctness in the Punk Scene in the early 80’s; Rock Against Racism
Jim’s experiences with anti-racist skinheads in Portland
Experiences with censorship in 1994 for the publication of Answer Me!’s “Rape Issue”
The Redneck Manifesto and the white privilege fallacy
Michael Hoffman’s They Were White and They Were Slaves
The liberal establishment abandoning economic issues and political correctness as a tool to disarm working class opposition to globalization
Individualism vs Identitarianism; “If you can’t beat them join them”
“Why Are White Death Rates Rising?”
The re release of ANSWER Me! All Four Issues
Peter Sotos’s “Quality Time” article for the “Rape Issue” which lead to threats of prosecution for obscenity
Jim & Debbie Goad on Hot Seat with Wally George
Music interest; 80’s rap music,  70’s British Glam including Garry Glitter, Rockabilly, and ‘Psycho’: The darkly insane country music classic
Philadelphia, Temple University where both Pilleater and Jim attended, and the city’s reputation

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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark interviews writer Cameron Pierce

cameron-pierce

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert Stark and co-host Pilleater talk to Bizarro fiction writer Cameron Pierce. Cameron has written Ass Goblins of AuschwitzAbortion ArcadeDie You Doughnut Bastards, and operates Lazy Fascist Press

Topics:

Eraserhead Press and his first book Shark Hunting in Paradise Garden
Pilleater’s bizarro fiction piece, Nana’s Song, and Edward Lee’s Brain Cheese Buffet
Ass Goblins of Auschwitz
New-wave science-fiction: Harlan Ellison, Samuel R. Delany, and William Gibson’s cyberpunk.
Weekly World News and “the cult selection of video stores.” VHS culture: http://stanvhs.tumblr.com/
Peppermint Park and Wonder Showzen.
The aesthetics of Vaporware and bizarro fiction.
Sam Pink, Gary J. Shipley, and Portlandia culture.
The Blair Witch Project, Ring, Channel 0, and Creepypastas.
Ren & Stimpy, Rocky’s Modern Life, dark cartoons.
David Lynch and Harmony Korine.
Robert Stark’s upcoming Novel.
Comic books, pictures, and the book industry.
Abortion Arcade
Bizarro fiction in academia.
Die You Doughnut Bastards
Superjail, Pig, Goat, Banana, Cricket and Xavier Renegade Angel.
Postmodernism, Don DeLillo, and House of Leaves.
THOMAS LIGOTTINine-Banded Books, Jim Goad.
The Alt-Right, Alt-Left, and political ideologies. Laibach and Zizek.
Ryan Andrew’s The Birth of Prudence. Theme and aesthetics.
Boards of Canada, John R. Dilworth, and nostalgia
Chris Korda and the Church of Euthanasia
Internet memes, meme magic, identity politics, and the Alt-left.
Andy Nowicki, Yukio Mishima, Japanese writers.
Slam Dunk and FLCL
Bizarro films, cartooning, and mental images


Click Here to download!
Check out Robert Stark’s Paintings!




Robert Stark interviews Matt Forney about the NPI Conference, US Cities, Houellebecq, & the Paris Terror Attack

Matt-Forney

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Topics include:

Matt’s experience at the recent National Policy Institute’s Conference in Washington DC
How the theme of the conference Become Who We Are was about creating a new identity
How Left-Wing Activists Tried to Shut Down This Year’s NPI Conference”
Matt take on Washington DC, and how it would be a great city if it weren’t for it’s people
How transplants tend to fulfill the obnoxious stereotypes of cities(ex. DC, NY, LA, Portland)
Obnoxious broke hipsters in Portland vs. obnoxious trust fund hipster in NYC
How NY hipster transplants benefited from the same Police enforcement and gentrification which they agitate against
How New York’s gentrification has made the city sterile and killed it’s creative energy
Kill Your Idols documentary about the punk scene in NY in the early 80’s
Matt’s life in Chicago, and how despite it’s crime it has a cohesive culture and affordable living
How Chicago shutting down it’s public housing projects such as  Cabrini–Green dispersed crime over a larger area
Matt experience living in Portland, Oregon, and how Portlandia is so accurate it’s not even funny
Why Matt favors urban living over suburban or rural living
Why Matt views the suburbs as an unfortunate social development but they developed because the left destroyed cities and forced out the middle class
How major cities such as NY once had vibrant urban middle classes
E. Michael Jones’s The Slaughter of Cities: Urban Renewal As Ethnic Cleansing
How the further away we get  from nature the greater increase in social dysfunction we see
Matt’s trip to Las Vegas and how his friend Davis Aurini describes the city as an “honest whore”
Anti-Natalism and how it’s an interesting philosophical question but attempts to apply reason to interfere with nature
How Anti-Natalism appeals to the most thoughtful and intelligent  individuals thus removing them from the gene pool
Michel Houellebecq The Father Of The Term “Sexual Marketplace”
Houellebecq’s Whatever which is about people who lost out on the sexual revolution
Houellebecq’s Submission which is about an Islamist takeover of France and whether that scenario is likely
Louis-Ferdinand Céline
The recent terrorist attack in Paris and future scenarios in Europe


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This show is brought to you by Robert Stark’s Artwork