Beer and Conversation Podcast

The Tolstoy entry in our shortcut to the classics series.

P&C drink and review Old Rasputin, by North Coast Brewing Company, then review a short novel by Leo Tolstoy. Literary contributor Longinus joined in this podcast.

Ivan Ilyich seems like a decent man. When he’s tempted to think he’s not living his life the way he should, he scoffs. He does what’s expected of him, and observes all the proprieties!

But when he suffers an injury that slowly and inexorably leads to his death, he suffers a terrible battle with his conscience.

This short, dark story is worth a read, and some reflection.

Why are some people drawn to constant, unsolvable emotional crises?

P&C drink and review Crowhill’s Kentucky Brown Ale, then discuss people who are drawn to drama — in their own lives, or in the lives of their significant others.

You may be addicted to drama if …

* Life is a roller coaster.
* You storm in and out of relationships. And you sabotage them.
* Drama is a bad addiction. You hate it and need it at the same time.
* You’re Loud. Childish. Agressive. There’s a lot of yelling and crying.
* You compliment people a lot.
* You create emotional situations that can’t be solved.
* You’re drawn to social media.

P&C discuss.

Was it a good thing for society?

The boys drink and review Schlafly’s Salted Caramel Stout, then discuss the sexual revolution and the pill.

What was the sexual revolution about? Where did it come from, and why?

The boys start with Rousseau and Freud, then review technical and social changes that led up to the changes in the 1960s. There seemed to be a general trajectory towards men and women participating equally in society.

The three pillars of the sexual revolution were divorce, contraception and gender roles. P&C discuss the ups and downs.

The boys take a look at people who dress up as cartoon animals

P&C drink and review Hardywood Rum Barrel Pumpkin, then discuss the world of furries.

What is this furry business all about? Is it an excuse for kinky sex? A way for ugly people to hide behind a cute mask?

No. It’s a combination of comics, cosplay and cartoons, with a bit of escapism and childish fun.

P&C both thought they were going to be fairly negative about furries, but after looking into it a bit, they both ended up pretty sympathetic.

An old friend and podcast fan answers some of P&C’s questions

P&C drink and review Manor Hill brewing’s Amber Ale, then discuss Judaism.

Special guest JR reacts to questions about the first commandment, Jews as the chosen people, proselytizing, whether Jews believe in an afterlife, and what Jews think of Jesus.

They cover the divisions in Judaism: Orthodox, conservative, reformed, etc, and ask why so many Jews are liberal, when it seems it’s the conservatives who are more pro-Israel?

JR addresses the role of Israel in modern Judaism. Plus a lot more.

Why are comic book superheroes so popular?

P&C drink and review Crowhill’s Christmas ale, then discuss comic books.

The boys review their own personal experience with comics, then discuss modern issues with comic books, and movies based on comics.

Is this another example of extended childhood? Or are these superhero movies fulfilling some deep psychological need?

Also, the woke are ruining this too.

Finally, a true dog whistle.

P&C drink and review Southern Tier Nitro Coconut Truffle, then discuss the “Let’s Go Brandon” story.

The “Let’s Go Brandon” chant should have been a 2-day thing. Brandon Brown won his first NASCAR race. Kelli Stavast hears the crowd chanting “F Joe Biden,” and interprets it as “Let’s Go Brandon.” It’s funny and silly, and that should have been that.

But then, people who have a bone to pick with Joe Biden started picking it up as a less crude way of making their disappointment known.

The boys open the mail bag and answer some interesting questions.

Pigweed and Crowhill drink and review Bell’s Amber Ale, then go through reader comments.

They start with an update on The Flashman Incident and a review of indulgences and the crusades.

One listener called the boys out on camping, and another corrected a mistake in the Frankenstein episode.

A listener asks if there’s a racial component to Night of the Living Dead? EricEatsBrains laid a huge philosophical question on the boys, and then MarshaMarshaMarsha asked if P&C support the ERA.

P&C try to field these and several other tough reader questions.

Does the federal government have the authority to mandate the vaccine?

P&C drink and review Pigweed’s winter warmer beer, then discuss the vaccine mandates.

The federal government can tell federal workers what to do. Where do they get the right to tell private employees what to do?

This same cast of characters just recently told us they had no authority to issue a mandate, and had no intention to. Now they’re issuing a mandate. What gives?

It seems as if the government is always moving the goal posts. What we said yesterday was Gospel, which contradicts what we say today, which is also Gospel, and you’d better get in line or we’ll cancel you.

P&C address other questions, such as …

• Is Covid like smallpox?
• Is Covid an emergency?
• Does an emergency justify any proposed action?
• Will the mandate create a bigger problem than it’s intended to solve?

It seems that we now have a professional / government / “expert” class that despises the general population. Or … have we always had that, and they’re only now saying it out loud?

Is it okay for parents to scare their children straight?

P&C review Crowhill’s Kentucky Common, then discuss Wrinkles the Clown.

Parents have been heard to say, “We don’t spank, we use the discipline clown.”

E.g., “You’d better be good, or I’ll call Wrinkles.”

“Hello, Wrinkles,” [child wailing in the background], “I have some very bad children here.”

The story of Wrinkles is very interesting, and more complicated than you might think. What should we think of a clown designed to scare children?

As Democrats go down in flames, what should we learn?

Democrats suffer surprising losses in Virginia and several other off-cycle elections. It seems to be a pretty clear repudiation of Biden and the ultra-left focus of the Democrats.

In Virginia, McAuliffe insulted parents repeatedly, and tried to make the campaign about Trump. Youngkin walked a careful path, neither endorsing Trump nor alienating Trump supporters.

Parents in Virginia punched back against the lies they’ve been repeatedly told, and repudiated the “your children belong to us” attitude of McAuliffe and the Democrats.

P&C drink a Jungle Bird cocktail and discuss the results.

Educators have gone mad, and parents are fighting back

P&C drink and review Sierra Nevada’s Amber Marzen, then discuss the catastrophe that public education has become, highlighting some recent developments.

The education establishment believes parents have no say in what their children are being taught. Parents are punching back, which provoked a school board association to collude with the Biden administration to call these parents “domestic terrorists.”

In Loudon county, school are covering up sexual assault to protect their stupid bathroom policies. In Fairfax county, teachers are lying about critical race theory.

The boys say it’s time to start paying attention to school board elections.

Goofy lyrics, funny lyrics and famously misheard lyrics

P&C drink and review Kostritzer Schwarzbier (a dark lager), then discuss weird song lyrics.

The boys discuss song lyrics in general — why do some people care, and others don’t — why is it so easy to misunderstand lyrics? Then they move on to stupid lyrics, sappy lyrics, and some famously (and hilariously) misheard lyrics.

You’ll have to endure some singing on this one, and, unfortunately, we had to use our audio backups, so the quality isn’t up to our normal standards.

Where did we get the idea of re-animated corpses?

P&C drink and review Schlafly’s pumpkin beer, then get ready for Halloween with a discussion of zombies.

The boys start with an overview of the history of zombies, from probable origins in Haiti, to the classic Night of the Living Dead, and then on to modern evolutions of the concept. Along with special guest Longinus, P&C discuss the meaning of the zombie. Why is it such an enduring concept for movies and TV shows?

Just in time for Halloween, the boys review a classic horror story

Along with special guest Longinus, P&C review “The Fear,” an imperial pumpkin beer from Flying Dog, then continue their “shortcut to the classics” series with a discussion of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.

Considered one of the first horror novels, and also one of the first science fiction novels, the book has inspired more than its share of plays and movies, although most of the movies depart from the book in many details. You may be surprised what is and is not in the book.

Our favorite literary critics review the plot and a few of the more prominent themes.