Park Bench Ontology

They told us fantasy games were dangerous, but reality was the real cult. In Episode 8, Gavin looks at how the Satanic Panic became a rehearsal for today’s culture wars — a simulation of evil that kept us from noticing the system running the show.Featuring dark humor, theory, and a touch of absurdism, this episode dives into the spectacle of fear, nostalgia, and control that defines our era.Park Bench Ontology — “Simulation / Spectacle: The Real Satanic Panic.”

This week, Gavin looks at necropolitics — the philosophy of who gets to live, who’s left to die, and how power hides behind empathy.From Charlie Kirk’s empathy shaming to the way immigrants, women, and Black people are turned into election-season mascots, Park Bench Ontology cuts through the moral theater of politics with dark humor and existential clarity.💀 Necropolitics: Living Isn’t the Point Anymore — a comedy of collapse for anyone trying to stay human under capitalism.#PhilosophyPodcast #ComedyPodcast #Necropolitics #BlackAbsurdism #PoliticalPhilosophy #ExistentialComedy #LoFiPhilosophy #CriticalTheory #MarkFisher #PoliticalSatire

Everyone loves to talk about “freedom” — but what kind?The freedom we’re sold isn’t liberation; it’s consumption. It’s “freedom” as brand — the right to choose between identical prisons.In this episode of Park Bench Ontology, I talk about how control got cute — how social media, the market, and even self-help language turned freedom into obedience.Because under capitalism, the illusion of choice is the control.Originally uploaded as ‘Necropolitics.’ Correct title: Freedom From Freedom.🔗 Watch full episodes & support:🌐 Website: https://gavinstephens.ca📼 YouTube: https://youtube.com/@parkbenchontology🎵 TikTok: @parkbenchontology📷 Instagram:@countgavin🐦 Bluesky/Twitter: @gavinbstephens.substack.com🎧 Listen to the podcast: https://pod.link/uncolonized

In this episode of Park Bench Ontology, Gavin dives into the strange world of psychopolitics — where control doesn’t come from force anymore, it comes from vibes. From influencer culture to “mental health awareness” campaigns, the systems of power learned how to smile while keeping you compliant.Why are we all marketing ourselves while pretending it’s freedom? How did surveillance turn into self-expression? And why does every form of rebellion now come with a brand kit?This episode explores how capitalism evolved past discipline into dopamine — how control got cute, and why that’s the scariest form of power yet.🎧 Listen if you’ve ever felt like even your thoughts are trying to sell you something.#Psychopolitics #ParkBenchOntology #CapitalistRealism #ByungChulHan #SurveillanceCulture #DigitalControl #AfroAbsurdism #ComedyPodcast #ExistentialComedy #CriticalTheory #MediaTheory #LoFiOntology #PhilosophyPodcast #CulturalCritique

The future isn’t coming — it’s being rewritten. In Episode 4 of Park Bench Ontology: Hauntology, I explore how capitalism erases anything that doesn’t produce value, from WWE’s most absurd gimmicks to the mistakes that make life human. We also unpack how older generations insist theirs was the “best era,” when really culture just keeps repeating itself — sanitized, packaged, and sold back to us.Listen & Subscribe: https://pod.link/uncolonizedWatch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ParkBenchOntology

In this week’s episode of Park Bench Ontology, we dive headfirst into capitalist realism—the idea that capitalism is the only system that feels “real” and inevitable—and what it means when our identities, style, and culture are co-opted by the market. I share my own bizarre experience buying an Old Navy Malcolm X shirt, and why it made me rethink how we consume revolutionary imagery while participating in the very system it critiqued.We talk symbolic violence, brand culture, and the absurdity of resistance in a consumerist world—and I unpack how capitalism doesn’t just sell products, it sells identity.🔑 Topics covered:Capitalist realism and cultural inevitabilityConsumerism vs. authenticityThe commercialization of revolutionary symbolsExistential dread in everyday capitalismIf you’ve ever wondered why your rebellion looks suspiciously like a mall display, this episode is for you.Listen & Subscribe: https://pod.link/uncolonizedWatch the full episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOStPFwaNyn895S43bUk9HoaZdFEIXlQc

Some guy once told me he was proud to be white. But “whiteness” was never a culture — it was manufactured as a team sport by the people in power. In this episode of Park Bench Ontology, I break down how the invention of whiteness became a tool of control, division, and identity politics that still shapes our world.This is existential comedy for the collapse: part history, part philosophy, part absurd truth-telling.🎧 Listen, share, and subscribe to Park Bench Ontology for more deep dives into identity, culture, and capitalism.

Tony Soprano’s panic attacks aren’t just mob stress — they’re existential dread. In this episode of Park Bench Ontology, we dive into Ernest Becker’s The Denial of Death and how it explains Tony’s breakdowns, projection, and the absurd ways people cope with mortality.🔗 Follow & Support:🌐 Website: http://gavinstephens.ca🎙️ Podcast: https://podbio.me/parkbenchontology📷 Instagram: countgavin🐦 Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/gavinbstephens.substack.com📼 YouTube: https://youtube.com/parkbenchontology#sopranos, #sopranos #existentialism #analysis, #denialofdeath, #ernestbecker, #philosophy, #podcast, #park, #bench, #ontology, #mortality, #psychology, #popculture, #philosophy, #lo-fi philosophy, #comedy #podcast, #death #anxiety, #comedypodcast 

Uncolonized is Evolving…New Season. New Ontology.From Uncolonized → Park Bench OntologyFor years, Uncolonized has been our space to challenge culture, identity, and power. That work isn’t ending — it’s mutating.We’re evolving into Park Bench Ontology: a lo-fi philosophy podcast about collapse, comedy, and the strange theatre of being human. Think zine-brained philosophy meets Adult Swim absurdity — sitting on the park bench, staring at capitalism’s weird machinery, and laughing so we don’t scream.The first episode drops 22/09/25. It’s called "For the Love of Don Rickles." I discuss insults, comedy, and death.Same feed. New lens.