If Books Could Kill

Peter and Michael discuss "Bullshit Jobs" by anarchist anthropologist David Graeber. The result: two professional podcasters debating which jobs are real and which jobs are fake.
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Sources:
On the Phenomenon of Bullshit Jobs: A Work Rant
37% of British workers think their jobs are meaningless
Average Annual Hours Worked by Persons Engaged for United States
The times they are not changin’: Days and hours of work in Old and New Worlds, 1870–2000
‘Bullshit’ After All? Why People Consider Their Jobs Socially Useless
Alienation Is Not ‘Bullshit’: An Empirical Critique of Graeber’s Theory of BS Jobs
Many people feel they work in pointless ‘bullshit’ jobs, research confirms
The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline of Leisure 
Study: Leisure Time Declines
USA Consumption as percent of GDP
The Significance of Task Significance: Job Performance Effects, Relational Mechanisms, and Boundary Conditions
Task significance and meaningful work: A longitudinal study
Americans’ job satisfaction in 2024
Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

It turns out that the key to wealth is buying the right kind of watch, marrying the right kind of wife and being the right kind of white.
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Mike's other podcast, Maintenance Phase
Sources:
Uneasy Street
A Century of Wealth In America
Family, Education, and Sources of Wealth among the Richest Americans, 1982–2012
Wealth Elite Moralities
The insane growth of America’s millionaire class
The Extraordinary Rise In The Wealth Of Older American Households
Planning & Progress Study 2025
Striking Out on Their Own: The Self-Employed in Bankruptcy
How Many Households Meet The Net Worth Guidelines Of The Millionaire Next Door?
Paying Tribute to Thomas Stanley and His ‘Millionaire Next Door’
Pity the Billionaires
What Rich Women Want
The deserving or undeserving rich?
The Evolution of Top Incomes
Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

The boys catalog the definitive worst takes of the year, from the pundits who misunderstood our political moment to a guy who wants to have sex with a computer.
To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

The boys continue their discussion of Walter Isaacson's "Elon Musk." This is the part where Elon loses his mind. 
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From self-proclaimed ‘socialist’ to Team Trump and DeSantis: Elon Musk’s curious politics revealed  
The Quiet Political Rise of David Sacks, Silicon Valley’s Prophet of Urban Doom
Elon Musk biographer admits suggestion SpaceX head blocked Ukraine drone attack was wrong 
Elon Musk's Daughter on Dad's Biography: 'Sad Excuse for a Puff Piece'
Character Limit
Twitter fulfilling more government censorship requests under Musk 
Elon Musk booed for nearly 5 minutes straight at Dave Chappelle show in San Francisco 
New CNN Chief Trying to Please GOP Elite 
Research finds more than 14 million preventable deaths by 2030 if USAID defunding continues, including more than 4 million children under five
What the data says about Social Security 
Trump Administration, DOGE Activities Risk SSA Operations and Security of Personal Data
Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

A biography that dares to ask: Is a lifetime of worker abuse and narcissism worth it to experience robot butlers?
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Peter's other podcast, 5-4
Mike's other podcast, Maintenance Phase
Sources:
What Elon Musk Gets Wrong about South Africa
Elon Musk’s Anti-Semitic, Apartheid-Loving Grandfather 
Elon Musk claims he was once one of the best Quake players around
Watch Elon Musk Talk About Being an ‘Illegal Immigrant’ in Video From 2013 
Elon Musk’s dad Errol says he can ‘prove’ existence of emerald mine in new bombshell claim revealing its location 
How Elon Musk Went from Superhero to Supervillain 
The Believer
Elon Musk: The Architect of Tomorrow 
How Elon Musk Plans on Reinventing the World (and Mars)
Tesla factory workers reveal pain, injury and stress: 'Everything feels like the future but us' | Tesla
Hundreds of Tesla workers tested positive for the virus after Elon Musk reopened a plant, data shows
Inside Tesla as Elon Musk Pushed an Unflinching Vision for Self-Driving Cars 
Tesla video promoting self-driving was staged, engineer testifies
Elon Musk Says His 'Running Robot' Will 'Actually Eliminate Poverty' As He Shares Video Of Tesla Optimus Jogging 
Elon Musk Wants ‘Strong Influence’ Over the ‘Robot Army’ He’s Building 
There’s a Very Simple Pattern to Elon Musk’s Broken Promises
Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!