Revolution 2.0

Summary This is not a podcast about race, sexual preference or left vs. right. This is a podcast about how agendas are so important to some that a supporting alternate reality, a series of lies, is created to support the agenda. The alternate reality, the lies, is then defended as the truth For the next 10 minutes, we will talk about what this means for everything from our personal integrity to the future of the republic. Transcript This is not a podcast about race, sexual preference or left vs. right. This is a podcast about how agendas are so important to some that a supporting alternate reality, a series of lies, is created to support the agenda. The alternate reality, the lies, is then defended as the truth. For the next 10 minutes, we will talk about what this means for everything from our personal integrity to the future of the republic. Let’s start by stopping calling this a hoax. A hoax is something much more lighthearted; perhaps damaging, but more like a joke or a prank. This was a well-stage

Summary Socialism in much in the news. At first glance, it might sound appealing. Needs driven by inequality will be erased. Everyone gets what they want, and no one is the worse for it. How does socialism stand up to a deeper dive into what it is and how it works? For the next 10 minutes, we will unpack those two questions: 1. What is socialism? and 2. How does it work? Transcript Socialism in much in the news. At first glance, it might sound appealing. Needs driven by inequality will be erased. Everyone gets what they want, and no one is the worse for it. How does socialism stand up to a deeper dive into what it is and how it works? For the next 10 minutes, we will unpack those two questions: 1. What is socialism? and 2. How does it work? Firsts, let’s first pause for a mutual goal check. I am assuming that we are all looking for an economic system that simultaneously rewards talent and hard work, while taking care of those who truly need it. Do you agree? (I realize this is thumbnail summary.) Now,

Summary Life is indeed hard, and it is correctly designed to be that way. As soon as we get that, life becomes dramatically more manageable. And we then have a chance to lead our best lives. Those who cry foul, teaching all who will listen that if life is hard that means that something must be unfair, are doing all of us and our society a huge disservice. For the next 10 minutes, we will unpack why life being hard is exactly the way it should be. Transcript Life is indeed hard, and it is correctly designed to be that way. As soon as we get that, life becomes dramatically more manageable. And we then have a chance to lead our best lives. Those who cry foul, teaching all who will listen that if life is hard that means that something must be unfair, are doing all of us and our society a huge disservice. For the next 10 minutes, we will unpack why life being hard is exactly the way it should be. Let’s start with an observation: We all learn more from the hard times than we do from the easy times. I do

Summary The term “celebrity opinions” is neither an oxymoron, nor is it a signal that we are about to hear the truth. “Expert opinion” is different. A celebrity is clearly qualified to give an expert opinion in their sport or art, but that’s it. Kanye West and Robert De Niro can give a legitimate expert opinion on rap or acting, respectively, but their opinions on finance or politics, are about as valuable, as, well, my opinions on rap and acting. For the next 10 minutes, we will unpack the difference between opinions from experts, and opinions from non-experts who have all the credibility on the subject matter at hand as, well, the guy in front of you in the line for coffee or movie tickets. (And I have not forgotten about Liam Neeson.) Transcript The term “celebrity opinions” is neither an oxymoron, nor is it a signal that we are about to hear the truth. “Expert opinion” is different. A celebrity is clearly qualified to give an expert opinion in their sport or art, but that’s it. Kanye West and Robert

Summary Have you heard about the man from India who plans to sue his parents for being born without his permission? The remedy he seeks is lifetime financial support. Everyone sees this man, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-47154287 (Raphael Samuel), as somewhere between being the most entitled person on earth, or simply a lunatic. Perhaps both. We’ll look at Mr. Samuels’ demands of his parents, and compare them with the Green New Deal’s demands of American taxpayers. The https://cleantechnica.com/2019/02/08/heres-the-full-text-of-congress-green-new-deal-resolution-introduced-by-rep-alexandra-ocasio-cortez/ (Green New Deal), among other things, requires: “4.15 providing all of the people of the United States with– (i) high-quality health care; (ii) affordable, safe and adequate housing; (iii) economic security; and (iv) access to clear water, clean air, healthy and affordable food, and nature.” Pause for clarification:  Robert Hockett, Cornell law professor and adviser to Rep. Ocasio-C

Summary Ralph Northam, Governor of Virginia, should resign. But not for the reasons that most people are citing–the outrageous photo on his medical school yearbook page showing youths, one in blackface and the other in full KKK garb. He originally admitted to having been one of the men, and later simply denied it. He is clearly backpedaling, and not telling the truth. Perhaps to soften the lie, he then admitted to having appeared in blackface at least once when impersonating Michael Jackson. Once again, it is not the original action that brings people down; it is the coverup. (See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate_scandal (Watergate).) People who make mistakes, repent and learn from them can be valuable teachers and leaders. Northam has demonstrated neither repentance nor learning. He is simply stonewalling, hoping that the news cycle will forget about him, and that he will not have to resign. And he is the same man who accused his 2017 gubernatorial election opponent of racism multiple times du

Summary The Declaration of Independence in 1776 (Revolution 1.0) was the Founders’ Love Letter to America. Revolution 2.0™ is mine. Dr. Martin Luther King called the Declaration’s breakthrough vision for a new nation “a promissory note”. I have called that vision a “statement of direction.” Whatever the descriptor, let these words sink in: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” I am in love with that vision, with the people who risked everything to give that vision life, with the people who have not only kept it alive for us, but have delivered on its promise the past 2 ½ centuries, and with you, my brothers and sisters. We are the inheritors of both this breakthrough vision and the responsibility for continuing to deliver on the promissory note, to continue to more forward with the Declaration’s statement of direction, to fulfill t

Summary We are being told by a growing crowd that health care and housing are human rights. “Human rights” being another way of saying “should be provided by taxpayers.” Given that in most cases people can live longer without healthcare and housing than food, the next thing we hear will be that food is a human right. And not long after that, clothing. And isn’t some sort of entertainment necessary for good mental health? When the necessities of life are all seen as human rights, who will work–and why? For the next 10 minutes, we will unpack what that means for all of us and our futures as individuals and as a Republic. Transcript We are being told by a growing crowd that health care and housing are human rights. “Human rights” being another way of saying “should be provided by taxpayers.” Given that in most cases people can live longer without healthcare and housing than without food, the next thing we hear will be that food is a human right. And not long after that, clothing. And isn’t some sort of

Summary If you think that healthcare and higher education are expensive now, wait until they are free. When people pay for goods or services with their own money, they are price sensitive, and shop carefully, balancing their needs and wants with what those things cost. When they shop for the same goods or services with taxpayer money, price sensitivity is replaced by the simple desire to have what they want. Healthcare and college costs are soaring far faster than inflation for just these reasons. For the next 10 minutes, we will unpack what that means for the future of our Republic. Transcript If you think that healthcare and higher education are expensive now, wait until they are free. When people pay for goods or services with their own money, they are price sensitive, and shop carefully, balancing their needs and wants with what those things cost. When they shop for the same goods or services with taxpayer money, price sensitivity is replaced by the simple desire to have what they want. Healthcare a

Summary Identity politics is quickly becoming a dangerous trend. It is bad enough when we do it to ourselves, for example, “I am Asian, therefore I will vote for Asian candidates because only they will have my best interests in mind.” It gets far worse when the identity group is assigned to us, and then we are kept in line, by being told, for example, “You are a woman, and if you don’t vote for women candidates wherever possible, you are being a traitor to your gender.” Nazi Germany identified groups; Jews, homosexuals, the mentally ill, gypsies, and more, and assigned them to concentration camps. Note the name: these identified groups were concentrated in camps, not wanting them to mingle with the rest of the populace, and making it easier to punish them. WWII America forced the relocation and incarceration in concentration camps in the western interior of the country of between 110,000 and 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry. Oh, and the US Supreme Court was just fine that. Powerful forces, political and

Summary This is a highly controversial subject, but it should not be. Using simple common sense, it becomes so very clear cut. In the United States alone, we perform over one million–one million–abortions each and every year. I start with this concrete fact to alert all of us to the critical nature of this discussion, and to the vital importance of getting the answer to this much discussed and controversial question absolutely right. The core of this question is life and death on a massive scale. Many times bigger than all of our war deaths, gun crime fatalities, deaths due to alcohol and other drugs. Anything. For the next 10 minutes, we will unpack this critical and controversial subject–and come up with some answers. Transcript This is a highly controversial subject, but it should not be. Using simple common sense, it becomes so very clear cut. In the United States alone, we perform over one million–one million–abortions each and every year. I start with this concrete f

Summary Don’t like this choice? How about a choice between leftover cube steak and a bunless hot dog? This is how about a third of the electorate saw the 2016 Presidential choice. In round numbers, about a third hated DJT, another third hated HRC, and the last third hated the choice. Yes, many voters genuinely wanted one candidate or the other, and were quite happy with their choice. I am in the third that was unhappy with the choice I faced. Of the 17 Republican primary candidates, I saw Trump as my 18th choice, but then Republicans selected him as their standard bearer. Despite Sanders’ best efforts, that result was never in doubt on the other side; there was never a chance that Clinton would not be the Democratic candidate. If you were happy with your choice, then I’m happy for you. However, with 130 million votes being cast, that means about 43 million voters were disgusted with the choice they faced. For the next 10 minutes, we will unpack what that means for the future of our Republic. Transcript D