Watch This Awesome 7-Minute Video Essay Connecting “Game Of Thrones” To Rise Of Western Civilization

I have only watched one episode of Game of Thrones. It was on a flight to Europe, and because I grew so sick and tired of not knowing what everyone on Earth was talking about, I pressed play. I haven’t watched another episode since. I cringe whenever I hear the name of the series because when millions of people are all unanimously obsessed with something at the same time I assume it’s either one of two things: 1) a cult, or 2) a mass media manipulation. It’s for this reason I still a haven’t seen Breaking Bad, or The Good Wife, or Boardwalk Empire, or any of the millions of other TV series that have hijacked every single small-talk morning conversation in every office in every country in the world — but I digress. So it was with a bit of trepidation that I decided to watch a 7-minute Game of Thrones video essay this morning which explores the thesis: Why Dragons Halt Progress. I was glad I did though — this is a fascinating history lesson on how 21st century Western civilization is held together. (Source: Kottke)