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The Saving Elephants Podcast
The Saving Elephants Podcast features engaging conversations about conservative values and ideas with a mercifully modern twist. Tired of political shock-talk and rank punditry? Curious about what conservative thinkers of yesteryear had to say but don't have time to read some terribly long, boring book they wrote? Join us!
New episodes every 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month.
Listen to individual episodes below or subscribe by clicking on these platforms:
182 – Partying Like It’s 1776
On July 6 Saving Elephants assembled an august team of commentators to commemorate the advent of the United States turning the big...
16 hours ago
181 – Escaping the Housing Trap with Chuck Marohn
The housing market today is in an increasingly unsustainable paradox: younger Americans need houses to be more affordable so that they...
Jul 1
180 – Uncap the House with Jeff Mayhugh
What if the surest way to reduce the harmful effects of self-serving politicians in Washington D.C. is to have more of them? Joining...
Jun 17
179 – I, Tony with Tony Woodlief
What if the real division in America isn’t between Republicans and Democrats, Red States vs Blue States, or liberals and conservatives...
Jun 3
178 – Revolt of the Independents with Lura Forcum
The 2024 presidential election witnessed a historic number of independent voters—more independents voted than Democrats and they came...
May 20
177 – Dear Mr. President with Destry Edwards
Former president Chester A. Arthur is probably best remembered for his mutton chops and as a trivia question. But he did play a...
May 6
176 – Consuming News Responsibly
In this era of information overload it’s easy to join the ranks of the too online, filtering our every thought through the latest thing...
Apr 15
175 – The Two James Burnhams with David Byrne
James Burnham was one of the most significant intellectual influences on the conservative movement of the twentieth century. As an...
Apr 1
174 – Triggering Straussians with Greg Collins
In his perpetual quest to mildly trigger his Straussian pals, Josh invites fellow Millennial and Burkean conservative Greg Collins on to...
Mar 18
173 – The Fertility Gap with Clara Piano
The Right has long had a thing or two to say about the importance of the family and its role in national stability and prosperity. But...
Mar 4
172 – The History of American Conservatism with George Nash
In 1976 historian George H. Nash wrote The Conservative Intellectual Movement in America Since 1945 , a celebrated historical accounting...
Feb 18
171 – Reality Therapy Redux
At the end of 2024, Ryan Rogers joined the show to share his experiences with fanatical wokism as a graduate student. He later had...
Feb 4
170 – Tribalism is Dumb with Andrew Heaton
Comedian, author, and political satirist Andrew Heaton joins Saving Elephants host Josh Lewis to explore where our political tribalism...
Jan 21
169 – Unsolicited Advice with Blake Fischer
With the 2024 elections in rearview both parties are trying to grapple with what lessons they should learn. Who better to offer...
Jan 7
168 – The Perennial Burke with Daniel Klein
As Saving Elephants host Josh Lewis is wont to do, here is yet another episode exploring the political and philosophical brilliance of...
Dec 17, 2024
167 – The Woke Mind with Ryan Rogers
“I do not believe,” wrote F. A. Hayek in his book The Fatal Conceit , “that the widely held conception of ‘social justice’ either...
Dec 3, 2024
166 – Independent Idiosyncrasies with Brett Loyd
“The biggest takeaway from the 2024 election,” writes Justin Longo of the Independence Center , is that “independents have officially...
Nov 19, 2024
165 – Take Courage
Saving Elephants host Josh Lewis flies this election day episode solo to offer his thoughts on how your vote is more likely to impact...
Nov 5, 2024
164 – What is a Woman with Kimberly Ross
Saving Elephants meticulously avoids many cringeworthy tropes in today’s “conservative” media and opts instead for deeper conversations...
Oct 15, 2024
163 – Where Does the Conservative Go from Here?
In a world where both political parties are moving away from free market oriented policy solutions, a robust defense of our international...
Oct 1, 2024
162 – Harmonizing Sentiments with Hans Eicholz
The Declaration of Independence audaciously declares certain “truths” to be “self-evident”. And, in so doing, offered a justification...
Sep 17, 2024
161 – American Covenant with Yuval Levin
In this era of polarization and partisan bickering, Americans of all political persuasions are calling for the nation to come together. ...
Sep 3, 2024
160 – FreeCons with Avik Roy
The great fusionist project of ordered liberty advocated by Frank Meyer, William F. Buckley, and M. Stanton Evans is defended and...
Aug 20, 2024
159 – The Prudential Lincoln with Allen Guelzo
Was Abraham Lincoln a racist? Were his efforts at emancipation the mere cold calculations of a politician whose sole aim was to win the...
Aug 6, 2024
158 – Fashionable Fusionists with Samuel Goldman
In an age of rampant informalities, shoddy attire, and the kind of milieu that makes People of Walmart a possibility, conservatives stand...
Jul 16, 2024
157 – Fifty Conservative Thinkers
In an age where what passes for the archetype conservative are the likes of Candace Owens, Bill Mitchell, Sean Hannity, Matt Gaetz, Tomi...
Jul 2, 2024
156 – Reappraising the Right’s Foreign Policy with Michael Lucchese
In February of 2004 the late Charles Krauthammer delivered the keynote address at AEI’s Annual Dinner. It was a year into the Iraqi war...
Jun 18, 2024
155 – Melodic Musings with Barney Quick
How might music point us to the good, the true, and the beautiful? What is the purpose of music, and we are guilty of misusing it? Why...
May 21, 2024
154 – That Old Burkean Saw with Cal Davenport
After a stint of episodes taking deep dives into obscure topics, Josh returns to some conservative first-principles by inviting long-time...
May 7, 2024
153 – Full-Time with David Bahnsen
David Bahnsen returns to the podcast to discuss his latest book: Full-Time: Work and the Meaning of Life. David holds a high view of...
Apr 16, 2024
152 – Humanist Conservatives with Jeffery Tyler Syck
Fusionism—the viewpoint advocated by the likes of William F. Buckley and Frank Meyer of order and liberty mutually reinforcing each...
Apr 2, 2024
151 – The God of This Lower World
What is the single most important virtue for a leader to possess? What quality can make the run-of-the-mill politician into a...
Mar 19, 2024
150 – We Don't Need No Indoctrination with Luke Sheahan
What is the purpose of higher education? Is it primarily to prepare us for the jobs of the future? Is it to ensure the leaders of...
Mar 5, 2024
149 – The Legacy of Roger Scruton with Fisher Derderian
Having published more than forty books on an astoundingly wide range of topics and holding noteworthy positions at the British Academy...
Feb 20, 2024
148 – Conservatism in Practice with Gov Mitch Daniels
The Saving Elephants podcast has welcomed a wide array of incredible guests who are on forefront of the conservative political movement. ...
Feb 6, 2024
147 – Where the Religious Right Went Wrong with JB Shreve
One of the strangest political developments over the past several decades has been the devolution of the Religious Right and large swaths...
Jan 16, 2024
146 – The Myth of Nationalism with Samuel Goldman
What does is mean to be an American? And why do we Americans obsess so much over the question of what it means to be an American? This...
Jan 2, 2024
145 – Smoking Yule Logs and Donning Gay Apparel
In 2021, Saving Elephants host Josh Lewis joined three other veteran podcasters on a new podcast endeavor: Are We Right? Cal Davenport,...
Dec 19, 2023
144 – Conservative Historian Redux with AD Tippet
Earlier this year Saving Elephants host Josh Lewis was on AD Tippet’s podcast, Conservative Historian. This episode is a re-podcast of...
Dec 5, 2023
143 – The Conservative Mind at 70 with Michael Lucchese
In 1953 a little-known political theorist Russell Kirk repurposed his doctoral dissertation as a book for publication. His book, The...
Nov 21, 2023
142 – Jiving with Jaffa with Seth Root
While Leo Strauss was famous for influencing men and women who became intellectual heavyweights in the conservative movement—names like...
Nov 7, 2023
141 – The Soul of Civility with Alexandra Hudson
Everyone supports civility, in theory, when the “other side” is behaving themselves. But what is the role of civility in an era of...
Oct 17, 2023
140 – Back to Burke
The name Edmund Burke is used quite liberally on the Saving Elephants podcast as host Josh Lewis makes no bones about being a “Burkean”...
Oct 3, 2023
139 – Perspectives from Across the Pond with Sarah Stook
The United States and United Kingdom have enjoyed and, at times, endured a symbiotic history, culture, politics, and global relationship....
Sep 19, 2023
138 – The Conservative Historian with Belisarius Aves
“History offers not simply a chronicle of events but, more importantly, opportunities to gain insights about the human condition from the...
Sep 5, 2023
137 – Political Theology with Jonathan Cole – Part 2
Christian or not, it’s undeniable that Western civilization, and the United States in particular, has deep historical roots in...
Aug 15, 2023
136 – Political Theology with Jonathan Cole – Part 1
“I never discuss anything else except politics and religion,” English writer, philosopher, and Christian apologist G. K. Chesterton once...
Aug 1, 2023
135 – Cool Ellul with Jason Thacker
Modern views on how future technology is likely to change our lives range from bloviatingly aspirational visions of utopia to musings on...
Jul 18, 2023
134 – Gilding a Mess with Avi Woolf
In the aftermath of the Civil War and prior to the first World War lies an often overlooked era in American history known as the Gilded...
Jul 4, 2023
133 – Grappling with Hate Speech with Brooke Medina
In this brave new digital world, opportunities for hate speech seem ubiquitous and increasingly dangerous. How should a conservative...
Jun 20, 2023
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