My Dinner With Andreessen

🌈 Abstract

The article describes the author's visit to the $33.75 million mansion of venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, and the disturbing views expressed by Andreessen and his guests during the visit.

🙋 Q&A

[01] The author's visit to Andreessen's mansion

1. What were the author's initial impressions of Andreessen's mansion and the people he met there?

• The author noted the mansion had several unusual features, such as a sculpture by French artist Jean Dubuffet and an armed guard at the gate.
• The author met Andreessen's wife, Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen, who showed off the couple's art collection.
• The author also met Andreessen's guests, who seemed to react with shock to the author's casual description of his afternoon walk in San Francisco.

2. What topics were discussed during the gathering at Andreessen's mansion?

• The discussion covered a range of topics, including David Hackett Fischer's book on American political culture, the anti-Enlightenment philosopher Julius Evola, 1970s New Left historiography, Corey Robin's "The Reactionary Mind", and Jonathan Haidt's work on personality and ideology.

3. What were some of the concerning views expressed by Andreessen and his guests during the gathering?

• A British former journalist-turned-computer tycoon proclaimed that the Chinese middle class doesn't care about democracy or civil liberties.
• Another attendee seemed to view politics as engineering problems that could be solved with better technology.
• The group strongly criticized Senator Elizabeth Warren for blocking "innovation in the banking sector", despite the author's view that such innovation contributed to the 2008 financial crisis.

[02] Andreessen's comments on rural America

1. What were Andreessen's views on people who choose to remain in rural, impoverished areas?

• Andreessen made it clear that he believed people who chose not to leave such places deserved whatever impoverishment, neglect, and alienation they suffered.

2. How did the author respond to Andreessen's views on rural America?

• The author tried to argue that small towns provide important human benefits like kinship, friendship, and cultural traditions that are worth preserving.

3. What was Andreessen's disturbing response to the author's defense of rural communities?

• Andreessen jokingly said he was "glad there's OxyContin and video games to keep those people quiet", implying he welcomed the chemical and technological subjugation of rural populations.