Reclaiming Power and Agency When Everyone's Depressed (with David Storey)
From How My View Grew by Amiel Handelsman
November 12, 2025 · 49 min · Season 4 · Episode 3
About this episode
Amiel Handelsman and David Storey discuss the collective depression in America and the importance of reclaiming power and agency through community and phone-free environments.
Another engaging riff with David Storey, Boston College philosophy professor and Spartan Race athlete. This time I take center stage. We explore why Americans are collectively depressed, why Democrats ignore power politics, why turning off phones and turning toward each other feels great, and how all of this is related. I make a case for phone-free schools. Dave helps me see even bigger benefits. We get political. We get personal. We refuse to give advice or answer the question, "What should the average person do?" **Key takeaways** 11:00 Feeling bottled up? Recapture the oomph and lock arms with others 15:00 The Tit-for-Tat strategy from the Prisoner's Dilemma 21:00 Reclaiming power. "Don't step on me." 23:00 Two reasons Democrats get complacent about power politics 28:00 Want advice on what to do? Instead, ask yourself these four questions 32:00 Conscious phone use through PSAs and intentional points of friction 35:00 It's time to make public spaces public again 38:00 Stricter phone policies in schools free teachers to teach, not police 41:00 Adults exerting their agency. "Trust your moral compass." 45:00 Moving beyond the hyper-individualistic story of America 47:00 Laughter…
People in this episode
Host: Amiel Handelsman
Guest: David Storey
Topics covered
- collective depression
- power politics
- phone-free schools
- personal agency
- community engagement
Keywords
- depression
- power politics
- community
- phone use
- education
- agency
- personal growth
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Boston College, Spartan Race
More episodes of How My View Grew
- The Final Five Minutes · January 20, 2026 · 5 min
- Six Ideas for Democrats Who Have Not Given Up · October 8, 2025 · 5 min
- Status Differences Matter · September 24, 2025 · 5 min
- Five Thoughts That Are Not Profound Or Useful · July 31, 2025 · 5 min
- David Storey (Part 2): Alpha Energy Plus Economic Populism Plus Christianity Equals? · July 16, 2025 · 27 min
- David Storey (Part 1): Raw Egg Nationalists and the Rise of the Manosphere · July 2, 2025 · 28 min
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