In this episode, host we speak with Nick Soutter — American author, philosopher, and journalist behind In Time Media and the dystopian novel The Water Thief.

Soutter has spent years dissecting the moral and political decay of democratic societies and the slow rise of corporate authoritarianism.

Together, Theo and Nick explore the erosion of democracy in the United States and across the Western world, from the Trump phenomenon and “pay-to-play” corruption to the creeping power of corporations like Musk’s and Thiel’s techno-feudal empires. Soutter argues that what we are witnessing is not just political backsliding, but the birth of a system where private power supplants public will — echoing the warnings of his own fiction.

This wide-ranging conversation delves into:

• Why democracies are faltering and how complacency has become our greatest enemy.
• The transformation of capitalism into neo-feudalism.
• The psychology of authoritarianism and why ordinary people are drawn to strongmen.
• The failure of modern media, education, and marketing in defending truth.
• What the “No Kings” protests mean for the future of democracy.

Soutter leaves us with a grim but galvanising message: the arc of history may bend toward progress, but only if we keep fighting to hold it there.

📘 Nick Soutter’s book: The Water Thief
🎧 His show: In Time Media

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