Episode 149 -- Carl Schmitt, Part 1
Summary
This episode examines Carl Schmitt, the German jurist known as the "crown jurist of the Third Reich," exploring his controversial legacy and recent resurgence among the tech right. The hosts analyze Schmitt’s core concepts, such as the "state of exception" and "friend-enemy distinction," linking them to his personal history, including his Catholic background and troubled marriage. They discuss how his abstract, authoritarian theories persist in modern political discourse, serving as a metaphor for the enduring influence of far-right ideologies in post-war society.
Topics discussed
Introduction: Carl Schmitt as a coda to Project 1933
Schmitt's post-war persistence and modern renaissance
Schmitt's writing style and key concepts
Biography: Catholic family and the Kulturkampf context
Personal life: Marriage, gender, and psychological drives
Early career and the book On Dictatorship
Article 48 and the Weimar Constitution's emergency powers
The Prussian coup and the definition of sovereignty
Political Theology and the friend-enemy distinction
Schmitt's pivot to Nazism and enduring legacy
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