Interview: The Spouter Leafbox Podcast

is an imaginative writer from Oakland, California known for his intriguing work of speculative philosophy published on Substack as The Spouter.
Viewed through a Marxist lens, The Spouter presents an unconventional narrative on petroleum's role in shaping contemporary history.
Our discussion spans a range of captivating topics. We examine the historical significance of petroleum and Jed's efforts to ignite a revolutionary approach to climate discourse.
We navigate through the complex interplay between humanity and fossil fuels—oil, coal, and gas—analyzing them from various viewpoints: religious, materialistic, Marxist, speculative, and literary. This multifaceted exploration aims to challenge and transform the conventional narrative surrounding climate change.
We also wander into the realms of hyperstition and cybernetics, reflecting on the impact of analog technology, typewriters, and the role of speculative philosophy. We touch upon literary masterpieces like Thomas Pynchon's "Gravity's Rainbow" and Reza Negarestani's "Cyclonopedia," among other intriguing subjects.
Jed encourages a spirit of open-minded inquiry. He argues that while you may not align with all his ideas, they serve as a catalyst for sparking new questions and fostering a more nuanced, complex perspective on history and current affairs.
Get “Noided” as The Spouter argues…
Intro Music Sample from Acediast / “Malformed Canticle of Despondent Langour”, Tristidigezh Records 2022.
Time Stamps
1:57 - Typewriters and analog technology 4:33 - Finding Inspiration in Cyclonopedia for the project The Spouter6:19 - Schizophrenia Reading and Cybernetics Role of Speculative Philosophy 11:41 - The Concept of Sentient Oil 15:30 - Capitalism and Other Hyperobjects 19:30 - Hyperstition 20:07 - The Global Warming Discourse23:47- Cybernetics, environmentalism and control/fragmentation of reality 34:04 - Communism as hyperobject40:24 - Sentient oil seen thru religious analysis - discussion on the Jinn50:24 - Discussion on return to religion in society 55:10 - How to regain humanism60:21 - Paranoid sensibility / Parapolitical sensibility - Getting “noided”61:55 - Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon 65:35 - On possession by the hyperobject68:14- Jed's book and where to find his writing 70:05 - Material Analysis in Understanding History
Further Reading / Notes from (The Spouter)
Cited and Recommended
Cyclonopedia: Complicity with Anonymous Materials. Reza Negarestani, Re:Press 2008.
Knot of the Soul: Madness, Psychosis, Islam. Stefania Pandolfo, University of Chicago Press, 2018.
- Re: Jinn
Thirst for Annihilation: George Bataille and Virulent Nihilism. Nick Land, Routledge, 1992.
- Nick Land did coin the term “Hyperstition”, though probably not in this book. This one is probably the most relevant to our conversation.
Anti-Oedipus: Capitalism and Schizophrenia Volume 1. Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari. Try to get the translation from University of Minnesota Press, 1983. (I haven’t read the Penguin translation.)
A Thousand Plateaus: Capitalism and Schizophrenia Volume 2. Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari. Minnesota, 1983
Hyperobjects: Philosophy and Ecology after the End of the World. Timothy Morton, University of Minnesota Press, 2013.
The Ecological Thought. Timothy Morton, Harvard University Press, 2012.
- This was what I was reading when the phrase/slogan “Modernity is the process of oil getting into everything” arose – the text might not say exactly that, but this is where it is from, and I consider it foundational to my work.
Ecology and Socialism: Solutions to Capitalist Ecological Crisis. Chris Williams, Haymarket Books, 2010
- Recommended. Much easier to parse than John Bellamy Foster’s ecological socialism.
The Closing Circle: Nature, Man & Technology. Barry Commoner, Random House 1971.
- An example of good/less compromised ecological writing of the type suppressed by the suspect texts listed below.
Cited and Argued With
The Progre