Conan O’Brien Criticizes Lack of Soul in Modern Politics
Conan O’Brien calls out politicians for losing their soul during the midterm elections.
2 min read
Former NBC late-night host Conan O’Brien delivered a philosophical critique of modern politics during a speech at the 27th annual New Yorker Festival on Monday. Speaking about the state of American politics ahead of the midterm elections, O’Brien expressed deep concern over the apparent loss of personal integrity among public figures.
A Soulless Political Landscape
“I think it’s one of the things I’ve been thinking about lately, about politics and what’s happening lately,” O’Brien told the audience. “I don’t mean this in a strictly religious sense; I was raised Catholic, and this is not how I mean it, but you have to have a soul. You have to have a set of things that you will do and won’t do. You have to have a conversation with yourself about who you are. You have to have an inner monologue going all the time about what it is you’re trying to do.”
O’Brien continued, “And when I see the way some people are behaving, the ad that Ramaswamy ran, I look at it and I think, well, you have no soul if you do that. You have no soul. And if you have no soul, what are we talking about?” The comedian used the example of Vivek Ramaswamy’s political ad to illustrate his point about the perceived soullessness in politics.
A Comparison to Automobile Design
“And this could be for any faith, or if you have no faith. I’m talking about soul in almost like this biological sense,” O’Brien explained. “That’s what I’m seeing now that makes me so sad, is that what’s happening in our culture.”
To further illustrate his point, O’Brien drew a parallel between the homogenization of modern car designs and the supposed soullessness of contemporary politics. “You saw this with cars, and it’s going to seem like I’m going off the track, but I’m not. Cars used to look wildly different, each one. And then they started using a wind tunnel to design them, and all the cars started looking the same because it turns out that shape is the most aerodynamic. And that’s why a Ford, and a Maybach, and a BMW, and a Porsche all look like this, ’cause it’s the most aerodynamic shape,” he explained.
“I think that in modern politics, we’ve gotten to the point where someone figured out if you don’t have a soul, you’re more aerodynamic and you will go faster… It’s the most nihilistic thing I’ve ever seen. And I’m looking at some of these people who seem to be in control now, or in charge. They’re not in control, but they’re in charge. And they never have a moment, I’m convinced, where they sit and think about what they would do, what they wouldn’t do,” he concluded.
Source: Breitbart
