Topic: Scapegoat

The psychological preconditions for mass formation include widespread social isolation, a lack of meaning-making, and "free-floating" anxiety. Desmet explains that when a narrative provides an object for this anxiety—such as a virus or a political group—the masses connect to it to regain a sense of control. This process creates a new, artificial social bond that is intolerant of "dissonant voices" and leads to the dehumanization of a common scapegoat.

Russian billionaires and supermarket CEOs warn of an impending global food crisis due to halted fertilizer and grain exports. The host argues the Biden administration is using the war in Ukraine as a scapegoat for domestic economic failures and inflation that began prior to the conflict.