Uploaded July 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
In this episode of Liminal News, I speak with political writer, civic tech pioneer, and longtime democracy advocate Micah Sifry about the creeping authoritarianism in the United States—and whether there's still time to reverse course.
Micah and I talk about everything from grassroots resistance to digital surveillance, from the failures of liberal institutions to the underestimated power of local organizing. We also explore what’s happening beneath the radar—why the media isn’t telling the full story, and what real, distributed defiance might look like.
Micah brings decades of hard-won insight to the table—from co-founding Personal Democracy Forum and Civic Hall to writing about third-party movements and campaign finance reform. I found this conversation both sobering and energizing, and I hope it sparks some sense of strategic urgency in you, too.
🧠 About Micah Sifry:
MIcah Sifry is a writer, speaker, and organizer focused on democratic innovation. He co-founded Civic Hall and the Personal Democracy Forum and authored Spoiling for a Fight: Third-Party Politics in America. He's spent years helping build digital tools and communities to support more participatory democracy.
micahsifry.com
⏳ Chapters:
00:00 – Opening reflections: psychedelics and personal power
02:30 – Ayahuasca initiation in Gabon
06:00 – Tech bros, crypto libertarians & the psychedelic right
11:00 – Weaponizing sacred tools: who benefits?
16:15 – Surveillance, control, and the new elite
20:00 – The failure of liberal institutions
26:30 – Martial law, panic, and planned chaos
31:00 – Is this the end of the psychedelic dream?
36:15 – Can a new spiritual framework emerge?
41:30 – The myth of the hero & the failure of old narratives
47:00 – From narrative collapse to real-world action
52:00 – Final thoughts: soul force vs. spectacle
—
📩 Subscribe to Liminal News on Substack
substack.com/@danielpinchbeck
🔗 FOLLOW DANIEL PINCHBECK
📸 Instagram → instagram.com/danielpinchbeck
🧵 Threads → threads.net/@danielpinchbeck
📘 Facebook → facebook.com/danielpinchbeck.author
🐦 Twitter / X → twitter.com/pinchbeck
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💼 LinkedIn → linkedin.com/in/danielpinchbeck
📚 Goodreads → goodreads.com/author/show/26172.Daniel_Pinchbeck
📚 Explore My Books
tinyurl.com/mrsmtpwv
🌐 Join Our Online Community, e-Courses, Seminars & more! – The Liminal Institute
https://www.liminal.news
🖥️ Official Website
pinchbeck.io
🎧 Also available on:
Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/4dk2HIaOeosK7d4IEY7szb?si=47ada2ca4d6b4c48
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/liminal-news-with-daniel-pinchbeck/id1541925540
—
👉 If you enjoyed this conversation, please like, comment, and subscribe to support independent media and help spread the message.
#MichelSifry #LiminalNews #CivicTech #DigitalDemocracy #GrassrootsOrganizing #SurveillanceState #DemocracyUnderThreat #Authoritarianism #DanielPinchbeck #PoliticalAwakening #ProgressivePolitics #Indivisible #Resistance #HopeAndAction
In this episode of Liminal News, I speak with political writer, civic tech pioneer, and longtime democracy advocate Micah Sifry about the creeping authoritarianism in the United States—and whether there's still time to reverse course.
Micah and I talk about everything from grassroots resistance to digital surveillance, from the failures of liberal institutions to the underestimated power of local organizing. We also explore what’s happening beneath the radar—why the media isn’t telling the full story, and what real, distributed defiance might look like.
Micah brings decades of hard-won insight to the table—from co-founding Personal Democracy Forum and Civic Hall to writing about third-party movements and campaign finance reform. I found this conversation both sobering and energizing, and I hope it sparks some sense of strategic urgency in you, too.
🧠 About Micah Sifry:
MIcah Sifry is a writer, speaker, and organizer focused on democratic innovation. He co-founded Civic Hall and the Personal Democracy Forum and authored Spoiling for a Fight: Third-Party Politics in America. He's spent years helping build digital tools and communities to support more participatory democracy.
micahsifry.com
⏳ Chapters:
00:00 – Opening reflections: psychedelics and personal power
02:30 – Ayahuasca initiation in Gabon
06:00 – Tech bros, crypto libertarians & the psychedelic right
11:00 – Weaponizing sacred tools: who benefits?
16:15 – Surveillance, control, and the new elite
20:00 – The failure of liberal institutions
26:30 – Martial law, panic, and planned chaos
31:00 – Is this the end of the psychedelic dream?
36:15 – Can a new spiritual framework emerge?
41:30 – The myth of the hero & the failure of old narratives
47:00 – From narrative collapse to real-world action
52:00 – Final thoughts: soul force vs. spectacle
—
📩 Subscribe to Liminal News on Substack
substack.com/@danielpinchbeck
🔗 FOLLOW DANIEL PINCHBECK
📸 Instagram → instagram.com/danielpinchbeck
🧵 Threads → threads.net/@danielpinchbeck
📘 Facebook → facebook.com/danielpinchbeck.author
🐦 Twitter / X → twitter.com/pinchbeck
🔵 Bluesky → https://bsky.app/profile/danielpinchbeck.bsky.social
💼 LinkedIn → linkedin.com/in/danielpinchbeck
📚 Goodreads → goodreads.com/author/show/26172.Daniel_Pinchbeck
📚 Explore My Books
tinyurl.com/mrsmtpwv
🌐 Join Our Online Community, e-Courses, Seminars & more! – The Liminal Institute
https://www.liminal.news
🖥️ Official Website
pinchbeck.io
🎧 Also available on:
Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/4dk2HIaOeosK7d4IEY7szb?si=47ada2ca4d6b4c48
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/liminal-news-with-daniel-pinchbeck/id1541925540
—
👉 If you enjoyed this conversation, please like, comment, and subscribe to support independent media and help spread the message.
#MichelSifry #LiminalNews #CivicTech #DigitalDemocracy #GrassrootsOrganizing #SurveillanceState #DemocracyUnderThreat #Authoritarianism #DanielPinchbeck #PoliticalAwakening #ProgressivePolitics #Indivisible #Resistance #HopeAndAction
