1. 1968 - Born to be wild
How did two old, unpopular men end up running for the world’s most demanding job? The answer lies in the peculiar politics of the generation born in the era of the bomb.
The generation born in the 1940s grew up in a land of endless growth and possibility, ruled by a confident, moderate elite. But just as they were embarking on adult life, all that started to come apart. The economy faltered, and the post-war consensus came under pressure from two sides: from the radical right, who hated government moves on civil rights – and from the ‘New Left’, as boomers rebelled against their parents’ generation and its war in Vietnam.
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Transcript
Converted by AI
The Intelligence
The global asylum system is broken—this is how to fix it
Also on the daily podcast: the rise of superstar coders and a free London performance puts a spotlight on modern fame
21:49
Editor’s Picks
The delusions plagueing Britain’s warming summers
A handpicked article read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist
08:02
Babbage
Scientists are using AI to invent proteins from scratch
Our podcast on science and technology. Scientists can design and make novel proteins. One day they may even be able to build entire genomes.
38:17
The Intelligence
Another delay of hostilities in Trump’s global trade war
Also on the daily podcast: Brazil’s broken football machine and England falls out of love with its lawns
21:53
Editor’s Picks
An insight into Jeff Bezos’s approach to life
A handpicked article read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist
07:12
Drum Tower
China is closing the gap with America in high-tech weaponry
Our weekly podcast on China. This week, we examine the role Chinese weapons played in the recent India-Pakistan conflict—and what it means for the future of warfare
43:56