Kanye 'Ye' West on Engineering, History, and Societal Control

The interview features Kanye "Ye" West discussing his evolving perspective, emphasizing engineering and product development over traditional entertainment metrics. He posits that engineering is the only essential subject for education, dismissing history and subjective information as tools for indoctrination. Ye views life as a series of "engineering opportunities" and sees himself, alongside figures like Elon Musk, as a new kind of global leader, more influential than traditional political figures. He highlights the importance of objective metrics like product influence (e.g., Steve Jobs, Shakespeare) over subjective notions of greatness or beauty, and critiques the "trauma economy" that he believes exploits pain for profit.

Ye introduces his vision for a new living cell design, an open-source architectural concept focused on happiness, regenerative systems, and community. This design incorporates natural light, air, and a constant water flow, aiming to create "water cities" that prioritize human well-being over industry-driven structures. He connects this architectural vision to his personal motivation, rooted in family and the desire to promote family unity as "heaven on earth," even if his own family situation is challenging. He also critiques the current food and medical industries, accusing them of profiting from sickness and advocating for localized, healthier food systems.

A significant portion of the discussion delves into Ye's controversial views on history, race, and societal control. He argues that history is written by victors and that dwelling on the past, particularly historical traumas, serves to perpetuate a "trauma economy" that benefits certain powers. He controversially equates Planned Parenthood with a "Holocaust Museum" for black people, citing abortion statistics as a form of genocide and population control. He attributes this to media and music industries, which he claims are often controlled by Jewish individuals, leading to a cycle of pain and consumption.

Lex Fridman challenges Ye on these points, particularly the use of "Jewish media" due to its historical association with antisemitic propaganda. Ye, while acknowledging the pain, asserts his own identity as "Jew" (not Jewish) and argues that his perspective would be understood differently if this were accepted. He ultimately frames his controversial statements as a deliberate act to expose how pain is exploited to create consumers rather than communities, and to encourage free thought and open dialogue. He calls for a shift from "I" to "we" and "they" to "us" to foster collective responsibility and accountability, emphasizing the need to move beyond historical grievances to focus on present "engineering opportunities" for the human species.

"The only thing that we really need to teach in school is engineering. We don't need to teach history. We don't need to teach anything that is subjective."

"History was just written by the victors."

"The biggest mistake from the past that we keep making is looking at the past too much. Giving too much value to the past."

"You are a human being with engineering challenges and I consider challenges to be opportunities in front of you."

"The people who run the emotions of the world and run the world off of people's emotions right now are uh social engineers."

"The impact on the collective intelligence of our species, that what's permeates throughout the rest of time."

"My mission in life is still to promote families at all costs and make famil family's existence easier."

"50% of black deaths a year is actually abortion. It's not It's not the cop with the knee. It's not black-on-black violence and gang violence. It's not heart attacks. It's actually abortion."

"They have uh criminalized free thought."

"What we need to do is turn I to we so we take the responsibility and turn they to us. So we take accountability to us."

"They make Bambi's mom die in the beginning, right? And off that pain comes a purchase of ice cream... to make us be consumers and we need to be a community not just consumers."

"If we are Jew, then we weren't [kings]. We were the people that Moses freed."