There is nothing better than when a difficult topic dissolves into light-hearted banter, leaving you accidentally face-to-face with a true comédie humaine. And, despite the somber subject matter, our conversation with Sabrina Joy Stevens was marked by a wonderful lightness. Now, having survived several apocalypses in quick succession, one begins to harbor deep doubts about the meaning of political activism. That’s why, after more than two decades in the Outrage Industry, Sabrina Joy Stevens turned her back on Groupthink Inc. in 2020. Then again, this period has provided her with a veritable treasure trove of experiences. Anyone wishing to understand the fascinoma of woken thinking – and, by extension, the mystery of how our political discourse has slipped into the realm of Moral Economics – will find such insider knowledge worth its weight in gold. If the road to hell, as one wise thinker has observed, is paved with good intentions, introspection reveals that these lofty goals often serve as little more than a veneer, beneath which entirely different motivations lie. On the one hand, there is the downright addictive dopamine rush that sets in when a petition just posted online grows into a viral campaign; on the other, there is the fantasy of self-empowerment, almost obsessively fixated on bringing down a supposed wrongdoer. Viewing this Erotic Resentment through the lens of individuated psychology reveals that Wokistan’s political activism is inextricably linked to the rise of the Smartphone, Social Media and the triumph of the Attention Economy. In any case, being trapped in one’s own echo chamber amounts to declaring war on reality itself.

Since starting her Leaving Groupthink Inc. Substack, Sabrina Joy Stevens has been working as a speaker and strategy consultant, helping her clients to navigate the complexities of the Moral Economy. Her work and commitment have been widely recognized in various media outlets, including The Boston Globe, MSNBC, TIME.com, Education Week, and The Hill.

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If you’d asked if the market for urban singles looking to date might be organized simply with the swipe of a finger in 2010, most people would disbelievingly have shaken their heads—and with great conviction. But just how much the World has changed since then is evident from a look at the numbers alone. More than half of American couples who married in 2024 met on a dating app. Naturally, this shift has serious implications, one of which is evident in the observation that a decisive bottleneck for young men lies in their inability to make a lasting impression in a photograph. Consequently, what is ominously labeled the Attention Economy has become a highly personal, even intimate matter—an issue that, for Orion Taraban, a San Francisco-based psychologist who treats young men, isn’t merely a daily practice but has led him to understand the Dating Market as a form of Economy.

Orion Taraban is a truly unusual figure in his field, having specialized in coaching a large cohort of young men in the art of having a successful and fulfilling life—and sharing his insights with a large audience through his highly successful PsycHacks YouTube channel. And because he’s a product of his time, Taraban isn’t just available for personal conversations—he can also be experienced as an Avatar—an AI entity that carries his voice and thoughts and can serve his clients 24/7.

Orion Taraban has published

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When the remarkable anthropologist Mary Douglas observed that a civilization begins where someone cannot be held responsible for misdeeds committed in the dreams of others, we can conclude, by extension, that a culture begins its decline when it succumbs to phantastical enemy stereotypes. The current Free Speech crisis we’re witnessing is symptomatic of this decline. And having enacted blasphemy laws in the name of diversity—Great Britain stands out in particular. This brought our attention to Ben Jones, who, as Director of the Free Speech Union, deals daily with cases where an overreaching State punishes unwelcome expressions of opinion in a manner reminiscent of George Orwell’s Thoughtcrimes.

Dr. Ben Jones is the Case Management Director at the Free Speech Union, founded in 2020 by Toby Young. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Warwick after completing his dissertation titled The Lived Experiences of Ex-Muslims in Great Britain. His interest in issues of Freedom of Speech began when he was elected President and Chair of the Exeter Union Debate Society, which was originally founded in 1893 at the University of Exeter. His book, Island of Strangers, was published in 2026

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