{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"11 - Capitalism & Monopoly: Why The Best Board Games Make The Worst Reality","description":"Looking for a game to play over the holidays? Why not try the real world global economy? Too late, you\u2019re already playing it!  Have you ever noticed how the most popular board games just so happen to reflect core components of our civilization? Settlers of Catan involves the extraction of raw materials. Risk is the imperialism and war between nations. Monopoly demonstrates the pitfalls of capitalism. Now in the real world, I rarely celebrate resource extraction, imperialism, or capitalism. But the board game versions are so much fun. Maybe that\u2019s why we\u2019re all playing it at a global level. As horrible as the side effects of these things are, enough people are having so much fun playing.  And not just those winning. Sure, winning is awesome. But don\u2019t count out how much fun it is to be down just enough to think if you keep trying you can get back in it. Your competitiveness takes over and you can\u2019t put the game down.  And then for even more people, they have no choice in the matter, they have to play, even though there\u2019s no hope for winning, they\u2019re just trying to survive and stay in the game.  At this point, most of the world has been roped into this game of conquering, exploitation, and finance. We\u2019re so convinced this is just normal life, most people don\u2019t even think they\u2019re playing a game. But unlike most board games, it doesn't come with an instruction manual. That is\u2026 until now.  In this episode, we use sociologist Immanuel Wallerstein\u2019s seminal text, World-Systems Analysis, as our instruction manual to the game of colonization and exploitation. We explore how dominant countries rise and fall, the dance between capitalism and the state, and the unexpected truth about what real power looks like.  Join us for a deep dive into empires, markets, mafias, and everyone\u2019s favorite Monopoly piece: the thimble. Macro-economics has never been this entertaining and fun for the whole family.   If you\u2019d like to support Human Nature Odyssey, please subscribe wherever you listen, leave a review, and join us on Patreon for exclusive audio extras, writings, and notes. For full episode transcripts, essays, and additional context, visit: resilience.org\/human-nature-odyssey-podcast   CREDITS Additional Writer ... Weslie Lechner Voice Acting ... Patrick Boylan and Weslie Lechner   CITATIONS World-Systems Analysis: An Introduction [book] by Immanuel Wallerstein (2004) The Emergence of France [article] by Gabriel Fournier and John Frederick Drinkwater (2024) The secret history of Monopoly: the capitalist board game's leftwing origins [article] by Mary Pilon (2015)   Music: Celestial Soda Pop By: Ray Lynch From the album: Deep Breakfast Courtesy Ray Lynch Productions \u00a9 \u24c5 1984\/BMI  All rights reserved.   1.  Amazon: Celestial Soda Pop  https:\/\/amazon.com\/music\/player\/albums\/B000QQXURI     2.  iTunes:  https:\/\/music.apple.com\/us\/album\/celestial-soda-pop\/3242445?i=3242425 3.  Spotify:   https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/track\/2THDVIVytLuGX7S7UghuC1?si=20ea63807bba401f     ","author_name":"Human Nature Odyssey","author_url":"https:\/\/www.resilience.org\/human-nature-odyssey-podcast\/","html":"