Key Thinking (Aloud)

Don't let me be misunderstood

I'm restraining myself. Sometimes I really just want to rant about something in this stupid world, but then I feel embarrassed by it, as if you'll judge me too much for saying something controversial or "wrong". But what if you don't actually understand what am saying? Or what if you think I don't understand you, but I do? Why is dialogue so hard anyways?

Serenity Now

I want the caution to accept things I cannot change, the daring to change the things I possibly can, and the wherewithall to know the difference.

Ideas Are Real

Do you believe in magic? Fate, destiny, astrology, tarot? When are weird events more than just coincidences? Maybe the energy we put into the world manifests in tangible ways. Or are we just imagining things?

On Age

Ok I admit it: I'm getting older. I care a little less about new music, career obsessions and even girls! Us millennials are no longer the "young people". And I'm noticing small things in Zoomers (Gen Z, born post 1996) that make me conscious of a subtle generation gap. Is it possible teens and college kids care way more about the pandemic, for instance? Are more supportive of a nanny state and authoritarianism? That's probably too vague, but they're coming of age in this very time. Also, "ag...

Can we move on?

It's ok to acknowledge mistakes - we all make them! I'm ok with embracing my regrets, and trying to use them to gain wisdom through accrued life experience. It's hard though, especially when obsesssing over every missed opportunity, every wrong turn in life while lying in bed at night... We don't make it any easier for each other, the way we scrutinize our social utterances, our trendy beliefs or angry rants - as if those momentary thoughts define each of us as people. Such a rigid, unforgivi...

How to Heal Homelessness

Homelessness is bad. That shouldn't be a controversial statement. Why aren't we doing more to solve it?? Is this really a politically divisive or difficult topic? The morality of it is clear: to let more and more people live in the streets is pathetic - it's an embarrassment! Let's honestly address this.

What Is Essential?

I'm not appreciating whatever rubric is being used to determine what is "essential" these days. I know what I need in my life, and I don't feel like the government understands it. I appreciate a concern for public health, but I think we're losing track of balance these days.

Chilling Out (Against Hate)

My take on the DC stuff, radical belief systems these days, threats to our livelihoods and how it's all just a bunch of noise, in a way. It's important that we regulate our emotional responses to all things, and prioritize in our lives things that actually matter to us, really. Like love, hobbies, bonding, etc, you know?

Journal of Where

I'm in California for the winter, and I'm identifying with it.

Between the Years

"Zwischen den Jahren" is the theme of this quick podcast ep. I'm on a bit of a holiday with my parents and brother, recording this in a very slow, somewhat dulled mindset. I talk about some holiday movies and what it means to be traveling right now.

Life is Balance

This is a stream-of-consciousness one, a little lighter, a little empathetic, and of course some politics, but also depth. Let's be one with the universe yall.

Why I won't declare my pronouns

Trans activism has been simmering for a while. I've been paying attention, wondering what my role is as a well-intentioned person who cares about progress and justice. I've decided that it does not include adding he/him to my bio, my by-line, my email signature or anything else. I have a few reasons for that. Does it make me a transphobe or bigot? You can tell me.

Sex Crime

A difficult and explicit look at abhorrent behavior, especially depicted in various films. Why Irreversible is the most traumatic film I’ve ever seen It’s important that we calibrate our moral intuitions Victims and villains: what are the rules? #metoo, Harvey Weinstein, _The Morning Show _and power dynamics Understanding maturity and agency The burden of male sexuality vs our higher ideals Michael Jackson (Leaving Neverland), paedophile who courted boyfriends R. Kelly (Surviving R. Kelly), ...

Libertarian Left

I'm embracing contrarian thinking. I've never thought of myself as controversial, but people tell me I am. I just appreciate nuance, and despise groupthink. It's important to seriously consider facts and goals before forming opinions, and this podcast offers a space to do that. LibLefts get made fun of a lot on reddit.com/politicalcompassmemes, and maybe that's fair. But it's how I identify, despite my contrarian attitudes toward other leftists, and my appreciation for centrism and other ways...

Fake News

Topics covered in this one: Podcasting as writing What is real? What can we trust? Covid news, election controversies The Social Dilemma and our individual realities Fake news masquerades generic ideas as facts Privacy vs vulnerability The Great Hack and weaponizing data We must be better at discerning information The psychology of conspiracy theories Vigilance against corruption Reality is satire The continued drama of the presidential election The current COVID lockdown Failures in jou...

My Mental Health

How are you feeling? I've been better, and I want to talk through it. Society doesn't really know how to address the topic of mental health - not intrapersonally, not interpersonally, not more broadly, regarding the least fortunate on our city streets. And we're not quite aware enough of our typical behaviors and socio-political attitudes, and how our mental health contributes to such topics. So let's reflect on all this.

I Voted (for Myself)

Some thoughts post election: I voted from Berlin, and I’m proud of that, even if my vote in New York doesn’t mean much. I really expected Biden to win easily, so again I have to eat my words, as the election remains too close to call. Too much deja vu, for sure. The Dems are pathetic. Regardless of what happens. I’m not too worried about Trump’s wild authoritarian LARPing. Leftists need to understand better why the’yre unappealing to average/swing voters. I wish we did more introspection and...

The LA Dodgers are Baseball Champions

I'm not a big sports fan. I think sports are an imperfect entertainment, an emotionally draining investment and a poor substitute for narrative fiction. But we love sports as a society for deep psychological reasons, and it IS satisfying when our team wins. The Los Angeles Dodgers are my favorite sports team, and they've (finally) won the world series. I'm especially happy for my dad, to whom this episode is dedicated. He's overjoyed. Me? I'm just relieved, happy that I'm not disappointed.

Do I Really Have to Vote?

Civic duty is important. But how much is voting a civic duty, really? Maybe it depends... Depending on your particular circumstances, voting can be really tricky, actually. One might wonder if it's even worth it... It probably depends on the urgency of the particular election, the details of your district, and the social pressure involved. Isn’t stigma a major factor in this decision? I'm personally having a tough time with all of it. There are quite few barriers for some, and apathy doesn't ...

Am I Getting Canceled?

I keep getting canceled. Not "officially" - I have no boss that can fire me. But I feel it all around, in so many of my social interactions and conversations. I feel the cold shoulder of prominent opinion turning on my provocative nature. Society doesn't seem to embrace contrarian thinking these days, and the room for challenging questions keep dwindling.

End the War on Drugs

Our modern political fight is full of tired slogans, ambiguous chants and outlandish demands. Let's get specific, and target a true enemy of the people: the war on drugs. This policy - American and global - unjustly targets minorities and the poor, it costs billions of dollars a year, and it infringes on the personal liberties of citizens. Insofar as the war on drugs aims to ameliorate the problem of drug abuse, it turns what is clearly a health issue, into a criminal issue, solving nothing. ...

Vote Biden I Guess

I'm looking forward to Donald Trump no longer being president, for many reasons. For that to happen, Joe Biden must be elected in November. If you live in a swing state, please vote for him. If you don't, I can't blame you at all if you don't feel like it. I outline the reasons why Biden - and the Democratic party generally - is hard for me to support these days.

More Bad Policing

This news story caught my eye today. I want to make a point about it: the police can be stupid, violent, poorly trained, misguided, aggressive and overly burdened... without being racist. Let's reform the police so this kind of story doesn't happen, even if the victim isn't black. Or can we only reform policing in the context of race?

Feminism is too big a word

What is feminism? Are you or I am feminist? It depends on the meaning of this word, and on context. Let's explore the ideas of this political movement over time, and also ponder its more personal, psychological implications.

White Fragility is Propaganda

Despite continual progress, the USA remains unequal and unjust across a variety of metrics. Insofar as race remains a major issue in the fight for social justice, we should be dealing with it. But is "White Fragility" a productive way to confront such issues? I answer a 20-question test to figure that out.

My Enneagram

The Enneagram is a model of nine personality types. It is commonly used in self-help, business management, and spiritual development.

Equality (Opportunity, Outcome and Morality)

The abstract concept of equality has become probably the number one virtue for many of us, especially in the current protest movement. But what is equality, exactly? How do we do we measure it? And at what costs should it be pursued? It's helpful to think of equality in at least two key ways: equality of opportunity, and equality of outcome. I advocate for the liberal freedom of equal opportunity, for which we must continually strive. I denounce the pursuit of equal outcomes, which is a radi...

CRT questions about Race

We need to think critically about the hard issues of race inequality. We could also just focus on police reform. But Critial Race Theory asks us to do something else: look inward, into our guilty, dark souls, and ask for something like redemption. Ok, my cousin studies this topic and sent me some introspective questions, so I'll answer them. Maybe it will help this whole national dialogue

Critical Race Theory

We need to think openly and collaboratively about the hard issues surrounding race inequality. We also need police reform. But the academic movement of Critical Race Theory asks us to do something else: look inward, into our murky souls, and ask for something like redemption. I’m skeptical of intersectionality and modern social justice. I think these movements miss the point, and careen way past our political goals. But my cousin studies this topic and sent me some introspective questions, s...

What can we know?

This is an epistemological look at current events: health, masks, epidemiology and ongoing virus issues - contextuslized as an ominous backdrop to the protest movement. What can we even know about the details of the protests, and of the fundamental bases for them?

Police Brutality vs Race vs Class

We react to injustice with outrage, appropriately enough. But would it make sense to temper our enflamed emotions with some reason and rationality? I'm not sure, but I'm gonna put it out there.

Chernobyl (vs Coronavirus)

Chernobyl (2019) is an HBO miniseries about the 1986 Soviet nuclear power plant disaster. It's excellent. Here's why. Note: the original file has been updated. The proper version is 58 min.

Thoughts on the Virus

Nerdom

Why I don't like Arizona

Immigration

Winter Depression

All of the Holidays

The Caribbean, explained

In preparation for a holiday to the Lesser Antilles, I thought I'd try and explain what this place even is. This episode is in conjunction with a more detailed article, with maps: https://www.journalofthere.com/content/2019/the-caribbean

Cultural Relativism

Let's start with a post on reddit about solo travel in Egypt...

Trigger Warnings & Safe Spaces

Should universities provide trigger warnings and safe spaces for their students? No.

Joker as Social Commentary

Joker

LGBT identity issues

LGBT is an acronym (one of several variants) that aims to encompass a myriad of individuals and indetities for the purpose of grouping together a series of political issues, all of which supposedly circle the topic of sexual identity. This is a lot to dissect: the political issues are diverse, and I wonder how helpful it is to nest this discussion around sexual identity.

Governmental Domain

I'm loosely tying together here some questions from isidewith.com, about the reach of government on commercial property, and the reach of religion on government property.

Government and buildings

Keep abortion safe, legal and rare

Abortion is a political issue, but really, it's a personal issue. It's also a moral one, and a social one. Let's delve into the many aspects of this very complex topic, and figure out why things get so political.

National Security

Should the President be able to authorize military force against Al-Qaeda without Congressional approval?Should the US assassinate suspected terrorists in foreign countries? It's important to think carefully about complex issues. There's nuance to all of them, and even if the answer seems clear, I'd like to consider the other points of view.

Welcome to the podcast

Hi everyone, my name is Keith. I'm an artist and writer from California, living in Berlin. I am embarking on a public thinking through of various issues - political, psycholgicial, philosophical. This is episode 1: an introduction, and a bit of background about me.