Table of contents below:
Graham Griffiths is a political risk analyst with a particular focus on the Gulf. He studied philosophy and economics before getting an MA in Middle East studies.
Topics discussed:
Political risk analysis: 4:48
Importance of consulting services: 13:34
Factoring in the unpredictable: 22:06
Graham's educational background in economics and philosophy: 28:10
Is 'middle eastern studies' a scam?: 32:56
A critique of analytic philosophy: 40:00
Philosophy between theory and practice (philosophy is more about asking questions): 45:00
Universalism vs relativism in philosophy: 52:50 (Political correctness)
Reconciling cultural diversity and ethical values within the consulting sphere: 58:20
Political risk analysis job profile: 1:06:00
The importance of factoring in geopolitical developments in the analysis before making final recommendations: 1:11:00
The socio-economic impact of COVID-19 on the region: 1:18:00
An overview of Douglas Hofstadter's Gödel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid: 1:26:00
Intellectual play: 1:28:47 A discussion of Nassim Taleb's books: 1:31:00
The feasibility of wanting to be anti-fragile: 1:34:40
Dislocating experiences COVID vs war: 1:48:00
Graham's experience learning Arabic, and the difference between fus7a and local languages: 2:00:00
Relevant links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_graham_rhys
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