Why progress is hard to see

The Gray Area with Sean Illing

Vox Media Podcast Network

Politics, News, News Commentary, Philosophy, Society & Culture

4.5 • 11.1K Ratings

🗓️ 11 May 2026

⏱️ 52 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

If someone asked you to describe the state of the world right now, odds are you’d reach for the bad news first: political division, AI panic, war, ecological crisis, unraveling everywhere. And none of that is imaginary. But Rebecca Solnit thinks the pessimistic view is incomplete. We’re good at seeing catastrophe and reversal, and much worse at seeing the slower, more positive transformations that unfold over decades. Solnit’s new book, The Beginning Comes After the End, is an argument for noticing those changes without denying the darkness of the present. She joins Sean to talk about hope, backlash, political despair, and why fragile victories are still victories worth defending. Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling) Guest: Rebecca Solnit We would love to hear from you. To tell us what you thought of this episode, email us at thegrayarea@vox.com or leave us a voicemail at 1-800-214-5749. Your comments and questions help us make a better show. And you can watch new episodes of The Gray Area on YouTube. New episodes drop every Monday and Friday. Listen to The Gray Area ad-free by becoming a Vox Member: vox.com/members. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Support for this show comes from Odu.
0:03.0	Running a business is hard enough, so why make it harder with a dozen different apps that don't talk to each other?
0:09.7	Introducing Odu, it's the only business software you'll ever need.
0:13.9	It's an all-in-one fully integrated platform that makes your work easier, CRM, accounting, inventory, e-commerce, and more.
0:22.1	And the best part, O-DU replaces multiple expensive platforms for a fraction of the cost.
0:27.8	That's why over thousands of businesses have made the switch.
0:31.1	So why not you?
0:32.4	Try O-D-O-4-free at O-D-O-O-O-O-O-com.
0:41.0	Support for this show comes from O-D-U.
0:43.9	Running a business is hard enough, so why make it harder with a dozen different apps that don't
0:49.1	talk to each other?
0:50.5	Introducing O-Doo.
0:52.0	It's the only business software you'll ever need. It's an all-in-one fully integrated
0:56.7	platform that makes your work easier, CRM, accounting, inventory, e-commerce, and more. And the best part,
1:04.1	O-DU replaces multiple expensive platforms for a fraction of the cost. That's why over thousands of
1:10.2	businesses have made the switch.
1:12.0	So why not you?
1:13.3	Try Odu for free at Odu.com.
1:16.3	That's ODOO.com.
1:22.3	If someone asked you about the state of the world right now, what would you say?
1:30.2	Odds are it would be negative.
1:32.3	That is the vibe of the moment.
	...

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