Gil Duran's exceptional new book, The Nerd Reich: Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy, explains how technofascists like Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, Curtis Yarvin, JD Vance, and Marc Andreessen are not-so-quietly dismantling America as we know it.
Derek discusses this science fiction nightmare we’re now all living through. Interview:
Journalist Gil DurĂ¡n argues that a small circle of Silicon Valley billionaires and venture capitalists have concluded that democracy is in their way — and that they should be governing in its place.
"My book is about a cult of Silicon Valley billionaires who believe that in the 21st century, technology will make democracy obsolete. And it goes back a few decades. In 1997, if you want to know the full root of it, there was a book that came out called The Sovereign Individual that predicted that in the 21st century, technology would result in the end of democracy and nation states like the United States. Specifically, the book said that two technologies - one, something called cybercurrency, which we would today consider crypto, and another called advanced automation, which is basically AI - would collapse the economy and thereby the government itself and would lead to the rise of a new cognitive elite, these sovereign individuals, wealthy individuals who, by making the right investments and the right moves, would be able to profit from the destruction of the United States and other democratic nation states."
We here on the Find Out Podcast are a big fans of Democrats winning elections and we couldn't be happier with this week's news that Attorney General Ken Paxton (R-TX), who was endorsed by Trump, won his runoff election, unseating the incumbent U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) as the Republican nominee. Why are we excited about this? Because Paxton, who has been impeached by the Republican Super Majority in the Texas state legislature for embezzlement, busted for an extramarital affair and is generally hated by Cornyn voters and his fellow Texas Republicans, this creates an excellent opportunity for State Rep. James Talarico (D-TX) to finally flip Texas Blue. The last time Texas Democrats came close to flipping this seat was in 2018 when U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) narrowly defeated Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-TX) by 2.6%. On this episode, we'll make the case for why someone like Paxton is worse than Cruz. Talarico's ability to communicate effectively with religious Christian voters, coupled with Hispanic and Latino voters turning on Trump in large numbers, makes this a must watch race that could help the Democrats win the U.S. Senate this year.
We'll also discuss why conviction is the best weapon for Democrats to counter Republican messaging when pitching massive changes like universal health care. We also enjoyed watching Chelsea Handler and Pete Davidson destroy Tony Hinchcliffe at the Netflix Roast of Kevin Hart. We also crack down on corporations using investments in AI data centers to justify mass layoffs but those investments haven't been paying off. Also, we'll highlight how the tech billionaires like Marc Andreessen, Peter Thiel and Elon Musk want cheaper workers while J.D. Vance and Stephen Miller want more white workers.
Contents
00:00 Welcome to the Find Out Podcast!
00:28 Paxton Destroys Cornyn in the Texas Runoff
08:40 Talarico's Crossover Appeal & Why He Can Win
19:34 Republican Senate Defense Nightmare & the 2026 Map
25:47 Democrats' Messaging Problem (And How to Fix It)
45:52 The Universal Healthcare Argument Nobody's Making
1:00:06 Podcast Tour Idea Listener Moments & Wrap-Up
So it is especially surprising that one of the first federal agencies to come under scrutiny from the incoming administration is one that has returned billions of dollars to many of the same consumers who were counting on leaders in Washington to look out for their wallets…