The Fourth Turning Revisited with Brandon Quittem

 
 

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“Theoretically Bitcoin is a monetary system to last 1,000 year instead of 50 years, what does that do to society? What if this institution doesn’t decay, what if it lasts, what if we can build on top of it a greater, more collaborative society? That’s entirely possible.”
— Brandon Quittem

SHOW DESCRIPTION

Location: Miami
Date: Tuesday 30th November
Company: Swan Bitcoin
Role: Director of Marketing

“History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.” This quote, credited to Mark Twain, is a good TD;LR for The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy by William Strauss and Neil Howe. In this seminal book, they theorize that American history can be subdivided into four recurring generational periods, which culminate in a crisis at the end of 80-90 year cycles. 

It is argued that we’re in the middle of a fourth turning crisis, an era of destruction when institutions are dismantled and rebuilt. In the year since I first spoke to Brandon Quittem about The Fourth Turning, economic and geopolitical events have further fuelled this belief. 

US global hegemony is waning, concern is growing that factional tensions in the US could escalate, there is increasing grass-root tension across the world countries over state-mandated pandemic controls. In the meantime, as economic indicators flash red, trust in politicians and central bankers is rapidly eroding.    

So are we witnessing the evolution of the fourth turning amidst the rise of Bitcoin?

In this interview, I talk to Brandon Quittem, a writer and advisor for Swan Bitcoin. We discuss what we can learn from previous turnings, Bitcoin’s role as a life raft in these uncertain times, and whether Bitcoin could fundamentally end these cycles.

TIMESTAMPS

00:02:34: Introductions
00:05:25: Critique against The Fourth Turning
00:07:34: Neil Howe, co-author
00:09:44: The Fourth Turning TLDR
00:16:25: Racism
00:19:07: Political and institutional turmoil
00:22:38: Money printing and a financial reset
00:27:13: How the fourth turning model fails
00:30:40: Bitcoin is optimism
00:37:03: Tensions in Asia and the US
00:50:09: New incentives
00:57:16: The post-truth world
01:08:42: The new influential bitcoiners
01:21:55: Bitcoin vs CBDCs and the crypto space
01:31:08: Bitcoin is a teacher
01:38:49: The real supercycle
01:40:53: Looking ahead to the first turning
01:45:59: Final comments

 

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SHOW NOTES

Connect with Brandon:

Mentioned in the interview:

Other Relevant WBD Podcasts:

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