Category: Uncategorized

The boys review F. Scott Fitzgerald’s famous classic work

Pigweed and Crowhill drink and review Vulpulin Tropical Pale Ale from Sly Fox Brewing, then review The Great Gatsby.

With special guest Longinus, P&C continue their “shortcut to the classics” series, picking a short work by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Following a quick biography of the man, the boys review the plot and discuss the meaning of the text.

The book is often considered a classic treatment of the roaring 20s. The writing is top-notch, and the story is interesting, but the characters are less than admirable.

Themes in the book include issues of class, old money vs. new money, the east vs. the midwest, family, faithfulness, and the American Dream.

P&C review the failures of the system and discuss alternatives

The boys drink and review Flying Dog’s Hop Electric hazy IPA, then discuss public education.

The extreme dysfunction of America’s public schools came to the attention of parents during Covid lockdowns. They were able to peer into the classroom and see and hear the nonsense their children have been taught.

The sensible among them were outraged, and the responsible among them are making other arrangements.

But it’s worse than that. Interest groups prevent schools from kicking out disruptive kids, and many parents don’t prepare their kids to be ready to learn.

P&C discuss local vs. top-down “public” education and ask whether the government be in charge of it.

And how does education fit in with having a shared, common culture?

What does cultural literacy mean in a multi-cultural society?

P&C drink and review Thirst Monster Kolsch from Union Brewing, then discuss cultural literacy. 

Is it just about “dead white males”? Is there some benefit to reading the Bible and the western canon? 

We say yes, for three reasons. It helps everyone understand the world they live in; it helps bind the culture together with common stories; and it allows people to enjoy our shared culture more. 

The boys discuss woke efforts to get rid of “man” as the description of the species, and the narcissism of pronouns.

The boys drink and review Sweetwater’s Glacial India Pale Cold Ale, then discuss the man of the week, pronouns, and other gender confusions.

A regular listener objected to “man” of the week. The boys discuss.

Do we have to change “fireman” to “fireperson”? What is the point here?

And how does this relate to pronouns and other “gender” issues of the day?

Some people think it’s “inclusive” to say “he or she,” or other silliness. The boys discuss that at length.

The sunshine state is an odd mix of wonderful and redneck.

The boys drink and review a homebrew dry hop experiment, then discuss Florida. Both of the boys have spent some time there, but Crowhill has spent about a year there, off and on.

The state is quite a mixed bag. It’s the vacation capital of the world, but it has some unique issues.

One thing you quickly notice is that it’s filled with lizards: anoles, iguanas and alligators. They’re usually not a problem, but they’re omnipresent.

While you expect Florida to be a paradise of bikinis and sand, there are a lot of people wearing bikinis who probably shouldn’t.

And it’s a touch too casual. C’mon, people. Can we please wear some decent clothes to dinner?

Then there’s “Florida man.”

P&C discuss these and other topics about the Sunshine State.

Where did this crazy town come from and how did it develop?

P&C drink and review a homebrew IPA, then discuss this weird place in the middle of the desert. How did a town founded by the Mormons becomes known for gambling? Why did a city spring up in that location? How did it develop? How did it take on some of its unique characteristics? Why did it get associated with prostitution, easy marriage, and divorce?

Along with special guest Longinus, the boys discuss the history and development of this strange town, and how it became the city we have today. Why did it shift from a western town with cowboy themes to more of a Miami-like, resort feel? And when did the mob get involved?

In another edition of P&C’s “shortcut to the classics,” the boys review a classic moral tale

Along with special guest Longinus, the boys drink and review Pigweed’s homebrew clone of Steady Eddy IPA, then discuss Melville’s last major work.

The story of Billy Budd is carefully crafted to create a tale of moral confusion and conflict. Set after the French revolution, and very shortly after two significant mutinies in the British fleet, the innocent Billy has run afoul of the law on a British warship. His case cries out for leniency, but it’s not a time for leniency.

The story makes you believe Melville was struggling with the conflict between justice and mercy.

This is a short, dense work, that’s well worth your attention.

It’s as if people are vying to be more of a victim than others. Is that a sound political base?

P&C drink and review BMore Sour from Oliver Brewing, then discuss the intersectional coalition.

“Intersectionality” is the complex cumulative way in which multiple forms of discrimination combine or intersect. It seems to turn “being a victim” on its head. People vie to have more victim boxes to check so they can be more oppressed and therefore — in a peculiar way — have more power.

Along with these categories is the assumption that people who check the same boxes have the same lived experiences and therefore the same opinions.

The Democratic Party seems to have abandoned its traditional base and has adopted something like this intersectional coalition as its new foudnation. Will it work? Does this intersectional coalition have enough in common to stay together?

When did juries start, and what is their function?

The boys drink and review Negra Modelo for Cinco de Mayo, then discuss the jury system.

Pigweed was recently called to jury duty, and the boys discuss the history and development of the jury system and some of the interesting details about it.

What does a “jury of peers” mean? How are juries selected?

The main purpose of a jury is protection against arbitrary government power. Is it doing that effectively?

What is jury nullification, and is it a good thing or not?

What should we do when a jury is under public pressure to reach a pre-determined verdict? Should we replace citizen juries with professional juries?

Cringe comedy, earring boy, anti-intellectualism, Lee Greenwood, and mandatory breathalyzers in cars

P&C drink and review a strong ale from Lagunitas, then do five topics in five minutes each.

1. Do you like cringe comedy? Do you feel embarrassed when someone else is doing something embarrassing? Do you like that sort of comedy? Does that say anything about you?

2. Earring boy. Are we allowed to think less of someone if they dress like an idiot? At some point, “being me” is no excuse — unless you can work in some gender fluidity thing. Then all bets are off.

3. Anti-intellectualism. The boys discuss three possible definitions. (1) You never study anything in any depth. (2) You’re not interested in so-called intellectual things. (3) You’re skeptical of elite intellectuals.

4. Lee Greenwood and his patriotic song. What’s with the “at least” part? It seems to take away from the positive tone of the song.

5. Snuck into the “infrastructure” bill is a proposal to make breathalyzers required on all new cars. Isn’t this assuming guilt? And what does it have to do with infrastructure?

The right rejoices while the left melts down. What’s all the fuss about?

The boys drink a whiskey sour, then discuss the implications of Elon Musk’s purchase of the social media platform Twitter.

Musk claims that he wants to create an inclusive arena for free speech. This has caused the left to melt down.

I thought the left liked free speech.

Part of the problem is the lack of transparency. Twitter has some hidden algorithm that promotes, demotes or even bans certain content. Is it fair? Is it slanted to the left or the right?

Twitter has become a dumpster fire, and many conservatives believe it is biased against them. Is it? Will Elon make it better or worse?

Has the left’s reaction simply confirmed everything the right has said about Twitter all along?

The bystander effect, the Stanford prison experiment, and other weird stuff.

The boys drink an experimental beer with backyard hops, then discuss some popular psychology ideas that might not be true.

The bystander effect. The rape and murder of Kitty Genovese created a viral story that promoted the idea of bystander apathy.

The Stanford prison experiment. After normal kids are randomly assigned as prisoners and guards, the guards become abusive and the prisoners became compliant.

The Milgram experiment. People are willing to inflict extreme pain on innocent people if an authority figure urges them on.

In each case, there are profound questions about the legitimacy of the conclusions, but those questionable conclusions are firmly implanted in the public mind.

Jonathan Haidt says the last 10 years have been uniquely stupid. Why? Because of social media.

The boys drink and review a homebrewed Old Ale, then discuss Jonathan Haidt’s essay on how and why the last ten years have been uniquely stupid.

He points the finger at social media, and a few particular features: retweets, likes and shares. “We might have just handed a four year old a loaded weapon.”

The problem is that outrage spreads faster than sensible talk. A Republic requires time to slow things down and insulate public policy from the mania of the moment.

Social media amplifies polarization. It’s a major source of the fights and divisions, and it accentuates the outrageous. Common ground is considered a betrayal by the true believers. Those who express sympathy for opposing groups get friendly fire from their bad judgment.

The cure is to convince people to interact with others who don’t share their beliefs. But nobody does that.

Unfortunately, it’s going to get worse. There are technologies in place that will make this problem much bigger.

Haidt offers some suggestions for how to fix this mess, which the boys discuss.

What is it, who believes in it, and when is it supposed to happen?

The boys drink and review Sprucey Goosey from 1623 brewing, then discuss the Christian idea of the rapture of the church.

The modern view of the rapture was popularized by John Darby in the 19th century, along with “dispensational premillennialism.” That has become the default position of American Evangelicals, although it was not the majority view of the church through history.

P&C try to unpack some of the elements of eschatology — the millennium, the rapture, and the tribulation — then explain the basic idea of the rapture, and how it fits in with different ideas about the end of the world. They also discuss some of the major personalities involved in promoting or predicting the end of the world, like Harold Camping.

P&C try to take the measure of a very unmeasured man

The boys drink and review 1621 Brewery’s East Bound and Brown Indian Brown Ale, then look back on Donald Trump and assess his good and bad qualities.

Now that we have some distance, what can we learn about the Trump phenomenon?

The boys recommend two bird’s eye view perspectives to govern how we view Trump. First, there is “Donny from Queens.” Second, there is the observation that the right takes Trump seriously but not literally, while the left takes him literally but not seriously.

The boys review a few lists of accusations against Trump and try to parse them according to those two rules.