# Lower Expectations of Humanity (Yuval Levin)

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/uncertain-things-1365822/lower-expectations-of-humanity-yuval-levin
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/uncertain-things-1365822/lower-expectations-of-humanity-yuval-levin.md
Podcast: [Uncertain Things](https://stenobird.com/podcast/uncertain-things-1365822)
Published: 2025-07-21T11:52:00+00:00
Episode link: https://uncertain.substack.com/p/yuval-levin-jacobins-freedom
Audio file: https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/168742010/7bfd8175341051eef98183dcaca1d10f.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/uncertain-things-1365822/episodes/lower-expectations-of-humanity-yuval-levin
Duration seconds: 3509

## Resource

AEI Senior Fellow Yuval Levin rejoins the pod to discuss the enemies of continuity. He and Adaam debate the definition of conservatism and whether it’s the Annihilist urge that dominates the contemporary left or something else entirely. Oh, and if that’s not nerdy enough for you, they also go on a semi-Burkean detour to adjudicate whether beauty in art is related to truth (because someone had to!). On the agenda : -Cultural continuity and the modern conservative [00:10] -The hubris of knowledge [10:19] -Who are the enemies of continuity [17:54] -Solipsism as morality [26:28] -Rousseau and the new Jacobins [31:23] -Redemptive destruction [39:00] -Is despair anti-conservative? [48:54] -Beauty [53:31] Also: - Our previous chat with Yuval Levin about Edmund Burke and Thomas Paine - Adaam on the Jacobin temptation - Yuval on American renewal - Ken Goshen on why contemporary art sucks Uncertain Things is hosted and produced by Adaam James Levin-Areddy and Vanessa M. Quirk. For more doomsday thoughts, subscribe to: http://uncertain.substack.com. Get full access to Uncertain Things at uncertain.substack.com/subscribe

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## Transcript

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