The True Believer Cover
Podcast Mentions

The True Believer

Eric Hoffer

The True Believer

Podcasts 6
Quotes 17
The Joe Rogan Experience

Jack Carr mentioned that he went to Odessa, Ukraine in the early 90s, and visited the catacombs under the city. He was able to use this experience in his second book, True Believers.

"

So I went to the catacombs under the city, which allowed me to then put it in the second book, True Believers.

— Episode: #2165 - Jack Carr

Episode: #2165 - Jack Carr

Jack Carr mentioned that he went to Odessa, Ukraine in the early 90s, and visited the catacombs under the city. He was able to use this experience in his second book, True Believers.

"

So I went to the catacombs under the city, which allowed me to then put it in the second book, True Believers.

The Ezra Klein Show

Klein cited Hoffer's classic work to illustrate how those who seek to tear down societies are often driven by envy and a sense of personal inferiority. He used the book to underscore the psychological roots of scavengertype politics.

"

In his book, The True Believer, Eric Hoffer explains that those who tear down the societies in which they live are typically rooted in envy and are seeking to tear down all of those things.

— Episode: Ben Shapiro and I Talk Political De-esca...

Episode: Ben Shapiro and I Talk Political De-escalation

Klein cited Hoffer's classic work to illustrate how those who seek to tear down societies are often driven by envy and a sense of personal inferiority. He used the book to underscore the psychological roots of scavengertype politics.

"

In his book, The True Believer, Eric Hoffer explains that those who tear down the societies in which they live are typically rooted in envy and are seeking to tear down all of those things.

Episode: How Quickly Will A.I. Agents Rip Through the Econo...

Ezra mentioned reading Eric Hoffer's The True Believer to understand the psychology behind mass movements and strong beliefs.

"

Eric Hoffer the true believer which is a book on the nature of mass movements and the psychology of what causes people to have strong beliefs which I read because I think that we're AI technologists have strong beliefs

The Megyn Kelly Show

It was cited as one of the few books the Unabomber referenced in his manifesto and was discussed as a lens for understanding fanaticism and extremist mindsets.

"

I've worked many investigations besides Unabomber, but one of the few books cited by the Unabomber in the manifesto was the true believer by Eric Hoffer.

— Episode: Lindsey Graham's Legacy, McConnell's "Pr...

Episode: Lindsey Graham's Legacy, McConnell's "Proof of Lif...

It was cited as one of the few books the Unabomber referenced in his manifesto and was discussed as a lens for understanding fanaticism and extremist mindsets.

"

I've worked many investigations besides Unabomber, but one of the few books cited by the Unabomber in the manifesto was the true believer by Eric Hoffer.

They're craving for selfsacrifice by sacrificing themselves for an impossible cause. They mask their own perceived failures and shortcomings. And that's exactly what Hoffer describes in The True Believer.

Behind the Bastards

The book "True Believer" was mentioned and it was described as being a short read that explains how Hitler rose to power and is relevant to the modern fascist movement.

"

Everybody should read True Believer because it gets into all of this, and it's a real short book, and the death of democracy.

— Episode: The Silly Bastards Behind the Modern Fas...

Episode: The Silly Bastards Behind the Modern Fascist Movem...

The book "True Believer" was mentioned and it was described as being a short read that explains how Hitler rose to power and is relevant to the modern fascist movement.

"

Everybody should read True Believer because it gets into all of this, and it's a real short book, and the death of democracy.

Episode: The Silly Bastards Behind the Modern Fascist Movem...

The book was recommended for its exploration of fascist tactics and the rise of Hitler, specifically how they gained the sympathy of German centrists and conservatives.

"

Everybody should read True Believer because it gets into all of this and it's a real short book.

The Daily Stoic

It was mentioned that James Mattis, when young, hitchhiked to meet the author, Eric Hoffer, and that Hoffer gave Mattis advice to write down everything interesting he found. The book is implied to be influential.

"

Eric was the one who told me, 'Make sure you write down everything interesting you find,' and I have ever since.

— Episode: Make Sure You Write Down Everything Inte...

Episode: Make Sure You Write Down Everything Interesting Th...

It was mentioned that James Mattis, when young, hitchhiked to meet the author, Eric Hoffer, and that Hoffer gave Mattis advice to write down everything interesting he found. The book is implied to be influential.

"

Eric was the one who told me, 'Make sure you write down everything interesting you find,' and I have ever since.

Stay Tuned with Preet

It was discussed in relation to the rise of Trump and demagogues, specifically exploring the psychology of followers.

"

One of the things that fascinates me about Donald John Trump is that he's not a politician. He never has been, but what he is is a salesman.

— Episode: Revisiting Patterns of Change (with Heat...

Episode: Revisiting Patterns of Change (with Heather Cox Ri...

It was discussed in relation to the rise of Trump and demagogues, specifically exploring the psychology of followers.

"

One of the things that fascinates me about Donald John Trump is that he's not a politician. He never has been, but what he is is a salesman.

Eisenhower was really into a book called True Believer by Eric Hoffer.

And Eric Hoffer was a longshoreman in San Francisco and he was studying the rise of Hitler and Mussolini and of course everybody was studying the rise of Hitler and Mussolini in the 1940s and the 1950s and he said this is stupid.

The real question to look at is why does a population adhere to people like this and boost them to a position of power?

And what he discovered was a number of phases and what those phases were was first of all to take a population that has been destabilized in some way either religiously or culturally or politically to feel that it is no longer of significance the way it had in the past.

Episode: America, Racism & Patterns of Change (with Heather...

It was mentioned as a book that Eisenhower was influenced by, which detailed how a population can be manipulated to accept a dictator. The professor explained it as a framework to understand how demagogues come to power.

"

Eisenhower was really into a book called True Believer by Eric Hoffer.

And Eric Hoffer was a longshoreman in San Francisco and he was studying the rise of Hitler and Mussolini.

And what he said is that every generation has plenty of Hitlers and Mussolinis, but they don't come to power. The real question to look at is why does a population adhere to people like this and boost them to a position of power?

And what he discovered was a number of phases. And what those phases were was first of all to take a population that has been destabilized in some way, either religiously or culturally or politically, to feel that it is no longer of significance the way it had in the past.

Note: The book recommendations on this page are discovered automatically from podcast transcripts, and may be incorrect or incomplete.