Rutger Bregman
@rutgerbregman.com
Historian | Author of ‘Utopia for Realists’ (2014), ‘Humankind’ (2020) and ‘Moral Ambition’ (2025) | Co-founder of The School for Moral Ambition | moralambition.org | rutgerbregman.com
The best conspiracies are the ones that change the world.
In 1884, the Fabian Society plotted to bring us the 8-hour workday and votes for women. In 1947, a handful of intellectuals met in Switzerland to roll back the state. They called themselves 'neoliberals.'
In 1884, the Fabian Society plotted to bring us the 8-hour workday and votes for women. In 1947, a handful of intellectuals met in Switzerland to roll back the state. They called themselves 'neoliberals.'
February 9, 2026 at 1:01 PM
The best conspiracies are the ones that change the world.
In 1884, the Fabian Society plotted to bring us the 8-hour workday and votes for women. In 1947, a handful of intellectuals met in Switzerland to roll back the state. They called themselves 'neoliberals.'
In 1884, the Fabian Society plotted to bring us the 8-hour workday and votes for women. In 1947, a handful of intellectuals met in Switzerland to roll back the state. They called themselves 'neoliberals.'
Just before Trump's re-election, I attended a tech conference in Silicon Valley. Over dinner, a tech bro spoke in ways that reminded me of 1930s fascists. I pointed this out. He replied, without irony:
"Yeah, I think we should get a little fascy."
"Yeah, I think we should get a little fascy."
February 6, 2026 at 1:30 PM
Just before Trump's re-election, I attended a tech conference in Silicon Valley. Over dinner, a tech bro spoke in ways that reminded me of 1930s fascists. I pointed this out. He replied, without irony:
"Yeah, I think we should get a little fascy."
"Yeah, I think we should get a little fascy."
One of the most effective things you can do right now to fight Trump and ICE is to cancel your ChatGPT subscription.
February 4, 2026 at 1:14 PM
One of the most effective things you can do right now to fight Trump and ICE is to cancel your ChatGPT subscription.
Europe loves to lecture the world about values, but morals without power is just vibes. We regulate AI we don’t build, sell handbags instead of hardware, and rely on others for our security and energy.
If we really believe in liberal democracy, we’d better be willing to back it up.
If we really believe in liberal democracy, we’d better be willing to back it up.
February 3, 2026 at 1:17 PM
Europe loves to lecture the world about values, but morals without power is just vibes. We regulate AI we don’t build, sell handbags instead of hardware, and rely on others for our security and energy.
If we really believe in liberal democracy, we’d better be willing to back it up.
If we really believe in liberal democracy, we’d better be willing to back it up.
Finally. A voice for the voiceless.
February 2, 2026 at 12:37 PM
Finally. A voice for the voiceless.
ICE's $100M ad campaign is using the same playbook as the Gestapo & Stasi. The goal? To make repression sound reasonable and patriotic.
January 29, 2026 at 2:15 PM
ICE's $100M ad campaign is using the same playbook as the Gestapo & Stasi. The goal? To make repression sound reasonable and patriotic.
We’re hiring a marketing specialist at the School for Moral Ambition (NYC).
If you’re a marketer who wants to work on something meaningful with a small team, this might be for you.
If you’re a marketer who wants to work on something meaningful with a small team, this might be for you.
January 27, 2026 at 1:06 PM
We’re hiring a marketing specialist at the School for Moral Ambition (NYC).
If you’re a marketer who wants to work on something meaningful with a small team, this might be for you.
If you’re a marketer who wants to work on something meaningful with a small team, this might be for you.
We think of wars as the pinnacle of human violence. The numbers tell a different story.
Every year, humans slaughter around 80 billion animals. That's more suffering than all wars combined.
Every year, humans slaughter around 80 billion animals. That's more suffering than all wars combined.
January 26, 2026 at 1:29 PM
We think of wars as the pinnacle of human violence. The numbers tell a different story.
Every year, humans slaughter around 80 billion animals. That's more suffering than all wars combined.
Every year, humans slaughter around 80 billion animals. That's more suffering than all wars combined.
Rome didn’t fall overnight. It rotted in public first.
Tell me this all doesn’t sound too familiar…
Tell me this all doesn’t sound too familiar…
January 23, 2026 at 1:16 PM
Rome didn’t fall overnight. It rotted in public first.
Tell me this all doesn’t sound too familiar…
Tell me this all doesn’t sound too familiar…
Sometimes you get a few minutes on live TV with a billionaire. I tried to make them count! 😅
January 21, 2026 at 4:00 PM
Sometimes you get a few minutes on live TV with a billionaire. I tried to make them count! 😅
It's that magical time of year when private jets descend on a Swiss mountain village to discuss climate change and poverty! Anyway, here's my annual reminder. I'll stop posting this when they stop avoiding the real issue: their own massive tax avoidance 💰
January 19, 2026 at 1:00 PM
It's that magical time of year when private jets descend on a Swiss mountain village to discuss climate change and poverty! Anyway, here's my annual reminder. I'll stop posting this when they stop avoiding the real issue: their own massive tax avoidance 💰
For most of history, progress was a flat line. Then everything took off like a rocket. The only question now: does this story end in liftoff... or collapse?
A short excerpt from the incredible video The Market Exit made - one of my favorite interviews. Check it out: www.youtube.com/@TheMarketExit
A short excerpt from the incredible video The Market Exit made - one of my favorite interviews. Check it out: www.youtube.com/@TheMarketExit
January 16, 2026 at 1:00 PM
For most of history, progress was a flat line. Then everything took off like a rocket. The only question now: does this story end in liftoff... or collapse?
A short excerpt from the incredible video The Market Exit made - one of my favorite interviews. Check it out: www.youtube.com/@TheMarketExit
A short excerpt from the incredible video The Market Exit made - one of my favorite interviews. Check it out: www.youtube.com/@TheMarketExit
In 1935, a publisher named Allen Lane walked into a train station and asked a radical question:
“Why shouldn’t a great book cost as little as a pack of cigarettes?”
That question led to the paperback revolution. Books in kiosks, corner shops, train stations. Books not for elites, but for everyone.
“Why shouldn’t a great book cost as little as a pack of cigarettes?”
That question led to the paperback revolution. Books in kiosks, corner shops, train stations. Books not for elites, but for everyone.
January 14, 2026 at 1:00 PM
In 1935, a publisher named Allen Lane walked into a train station and asked a radical question:
“Why shouldn’t a great book cost as little as a pack of cigarettes?”
That question led to the paperback revolution. Books in kiosks, corner shops, train stations. Books not for elites, but for everyone.
“Why shouldn’t a great book cost as little as a pack of cigarettes?”
That question led to the paperback revolution. Books in kiosks, corner shops, train stations. Books not for elites, but for everyone.
8% of workers perceive their job as socially useless, while another 17% are doubtful about the usefulness of their job. Source: Dur and Van Lent (2019).
(And no, these are not all government bureaucrats. In fact, there are three times as many BS-jobs in the private sector as in the public sector.)
(And no, these are not all government bureaucrats. In fact, there are three times as many BS-jobs in the private sector as in the public sector.)
January 12, 2026 at 2:00 PM
8% of workers perceive their job as socially useless, while another 17% are doubtful about the usefulness of their job. Source: Dur and Van Lent (2019).
(And no, these are not all government bureaucrats. In fact, there are three times as many BS-jobs in the private sector as in the public sector.)
(And no, these are not all government bureaucrats. In fact, there are three times as many BS-jobs in the private sector as in the public sector.)
Many are laughing at how clownish this administration feels, but historians of fascism aren’t laughing, some are packing their bags.
Crackdowns on universities. Pressure on judges. Tactics straight out of Hungary and Poland, now showing up here.
Crackdowns on universities. Pressure on judges. Tactics straight out of Hungary and Poland, now showing up here.
January 9, 2026 at 12:59 PM
Many are laughing at how clownish this administration feels, but historians of fascism aren’t laughing, some are packing their bags.
Crackdowns on universities. Pressure on judges. Tactics straight out of Hungary and Poland, now showing up here.
Crackdowns on universities. Pressure on judges. Tactics straight out of Hungary and Poland, now showing up here.
Every major movement in history was built by people who didn’t fully agree with each other.
If someone’s with you 70–80% of the way, they’re not your enemy, they’re your ally.
If someone’s with you 70–80% of the way, they’re not your enemy, they’re your ally.
January 2, 2026 at 1:23 PM
Every major movement in history was built by people who didn’t fully agree with each other.
If someone’s with you 70–80% of the way, they’re not your enemy, they’re your ally.
If someone’s with you 70–80% of the way, they’re not your enemy, they’re your ally.
Forget “Follow your passion.” At the School for Moral Ambition, we say: Follow the Gandalf 🧙
Gandalf didn’t ask Frodo about his passions. He said: “Here’s a world-sized problem. You’re the one to fix it.”
So… which big, solvable, overlooked problem could you be the unlikely hero for?
Gandalf didn’t ask Frodo about his passions. He said: “Here’s a world-sized problem. You’re the one to fix it.”
So… which big, solvable, overlooked problem could you be the unlikely hero for?
December 30, 2025 at 1:57 PM
Forget “Follow your passion.” At the School for Moral Ambition, we say: Follow the Gandalf 🧙
Gandalf didn’t ask Frodo about his passions. He said: “Here’s a world-sized problem. You’re the one to fix it.”
So… which big, solvable, overlooked problem could you be the unlikely hero for?
Gandalf didn’t ask Frodo about his passions. He said: “Here’s a world-sized problem. You’re the one to fix it.”
So… which big, solvable, overlooked problem could you be the unlikely hero for?
Reposted by Rutger Bregman
I'm late to the party, but this guy, and these lectures are *SUPERB!*
They encapsulate the modern world extremely accurately
Rutger Bregman, Reith Lectures 2025
youtu.be/fUJ-qEmQGhM
They encapsulate the modern world extremely accurately
Rutger Bregman, Reith Lectures 2025
youtu.be/fUJ-qEmQGhM
Are we living through the fall of civilisation? | The Reith Lectures 2025
YouTube video by BBC Sounds
youtu.be
December 20, 2025 at 12:12 AM
I'm late to the party, but this guy, and these lectures are *SUPERB!*
They encapsulate the modern world extremely accurately
Rutger Bregman, Reith Lectures 2025
youtu.be/fUJ-qEmQGhM
They encapsulate the modern world extremely accurately
Rutger Bregman, Reith Lectures 2025
youtu.be/fUJ-qEmQGhM
Reposted by Rutger Bregman
This Rutger Bregman lecture series is fascinating. And also very inspiring. Available on Youtube (in Canada, anyway). Here is lecture 2: Can Ordinary People Change the World?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwj0...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwj0...
Can Ordinary People Still Change the World? | The Reith Lectures 2025
YouTube video by BBC Sounds
www.youtube.com
December 20, 2025 at 12:13 AM
This Rutger Bregman lecture series is fascinating. And also very inspiring. Available on Youtube (in Canada, anyway). Here is lecture 2: Can Ordinary People Change the World?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwj0...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwj0...
Reposted by Rutger Bregman
If I could recommend just 1 non-fiction book that I read in 2025 it would be Moral Ambition by Rutger Bregman.
It left me energized and clear-eyed with a new perspective on my own values. It's the my only re-read of the year and I'll read it again.
#booksky
It left me energized and clear-eyed with a new perspective on my own values. It's the my only re-read of the year and I'll read it again.
#booksky
December 24, 2025 at 7:09 PM
If I could recommend just 1 non-fiction book that I read in 2025 it would be Moral Ambition by Rutger Bregman.
It left me energized and clear-eyed with a new perspective on my own values. It's the my only re-read of the year and I'll read it again.
#booksky
It left me energized and clear-eyed with a new perspective on my own values. It's the my only re-read of the year and I'll read it again.
#booksky
Reposted by Rutger Bregman
This video will probably get fewer likes than my posts on taxing billionaires. That difference says it all. Factory farming only survives if we don’t look. It’s time to hold these companies accountable. Every donation is matched, so $1 becomes $2 through Dec 31, 2025. Donate: MoralAmbition.org/food
December 19, 2025 at 11:15 AM
This video will probably get fewer likes than my posts on taxing billionaires. That difference says it all. Factory farming only survives if we don’t look. It’s time to hold these companies accountable. Every donation is matched, so $1 becomes $2 through Dec 31, 2025. Donate: MoralAmbition.org/food
Factory farming isn't just about animals. It’s also about farmers trapped in crushing debt and contracts they can’t escape.
We’re currently building a fellowship to take this system on and only need to raise $8,100 more to reach our fundraising goal!
Donate + learn more: moralambition.org/food
We’re currently building a fellowship to take this system on and only need to raise $8,100 more to reach our fundraising goal!
Donate + learn more: moralambition.org/food
December 24, 2025 at 11:21 AM
Factory farming isn't just about animals. It’s also about farmers trapped in crushing debt and contracts they can’t escape.
We’re currently building a fellowship to take this system on and only need to raise $8,100 more to reach our fundraising goal!
Donate + learn more: moralambition.org/food
We’re currently building a fellowship to take this system on and only need to raise $8,100 more to reach our fundraising goal!
Donate + learn more: moralambition.org/food
Imagine if serving in government was as prestigious as landing a job at Google.
In Finland and Singapore, it basically is. Public service is seen as a privilege, a place where the most ambitious people go to solve the biggest problems.
That’s the culture we should be striving for.
In Finland and Singapore, it basically is. Public service is seen as a privilege, a place where the most ambitious people go to solve the biggest problems.
That’s the culture we should be striving for.
December 23, 2025 at 1:36 PM
Imagine if serving in government was as prestigious as landing a job at Google.
In Finland and Singapore, it basically is. Public service is seen as a privilege, a place where the most ambitious people go to solve the biggest problems.
That’s the culture we should be striving for.
In Finland and Singapore, it basically is. Public service is seen as a privilege, a place where the most ambitious people go to solve the biggest problems.
That’s the culture we should be striving for.
Reposted by Rutger Bregman
I’d highly recommend everyone give it a watch/listen. The series was famously censored by the BBC (statements about Trump that they were too frightened to air)
An excellent piece by @rutgerbregman.com
m.youtube.com/watch?v=fUJ-...
An excellent piece by @rutgerbregman.com
m.youtube.com/watch?v=fUJ-...
Are we living through the fall of civilisation? | The Reith Lectures 2025
YouTube video by BBC Sounds
m.youtube.com
December 21, 2025 at 2:13 PM
I’d highly recommend everyone give it a watch/listen. The series was famously censored by the BBC (statements about Trump that they were too frightened to air)
An excellent piece by @rutgerbregman.com
m.youtube.com/watch?v=fUJ-...
An excellent piece by @rutgerbregman.com
m.youtube.com/watch?v=fUJ-...
Reposted by Rutger Bregman
The BBC's Reith Lectures with @rutgerbregman.com are all uploaded now and worth a watch if you want some hope and inspiration going into the new year www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...
The Reith Lectures 2025 - YouTube
Rutger Bregman's 2025 Reith Lectures, called "Moral Revolution", explore the moral decay and un-seriousness of today's elites, drawing historical parallels t...
www.youtube.com
December 19, 2025 at 5:00 PM
The BBC's Reith Lectures with @rutgerbregman.com are all uploaded now and worth a watch if you want some hope and inspiration going into the new year www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...