P&C drink and review Experimental Black IPA from Bell’s, then discuss Christian nationalism.
First, what the heck is Christian nationalism? Pigweed started with three theories.
A: An invention of the left to denigrate patriotic Christians.
B: It’s a real movement that is way overdue if we’re going to save this great nation.
C: It’s a real movement that is a threat to religious liberty and will transform America into a theocracy.
Were Christian nationalists behind Jan. 6, and do they want to create something like The Handmaid’s Tale? That’s what the left wants us to believe.
The opposite is the case. The left is trying to eliminate the influence of Christianity. The Amy Coney Barrett nomination process showed that clearly. We’ve come to the point that being a sincere believer might disqualify you from public office.
Four separate Supreme Court cases – that have never been overturned – say that the United States is a Christian nation.
What does that mean? Is it contrary to pluralism? Does it mean that we round up unbelievers and make them second-class citizens?
Quite the opposite. It’s because we’re a Christian nation that we give rights and respect to other people.
The fact is that all law is based on some system of morality. The only question is what morality you are going to use.
P&C drink and review Hell or High Watermelon from 21st Amendment Brewery (X: @21stAmendment), then, with special guest Longinus, discuss the cost of professional sports.
Why are we, in the words of Pigweed, willing to spend so much money to watch grown men play children’s games?
But that’s not to the point. The boys are focused on the cost of a baseball or football game. Why has it increased so much? Is it worth it?
From 1970 to the present – in today’s dollars – the cost for a family of four to attend a baseball game is about 4x. Who pays this, and why?
Along with this increase in prices, we have an increase in coverage. When Pigweed was a lad, there was one, one-hour show on sports. Now, we have several 24×7 sports stations talking about sports all year long.
There’s also the moral question. In a world that can’t decide what a woman is, sports provides some clear guidelines. The player is either in or out. The ball is in the strike zone or it’s not.
Another angle – people can’t sit quietly with their own thoughts. They need a distraction. Every bar and restaurant has constant sports.
Is sports filling a hole left by the lack of religion, or community? Also, to what extent is this a public question? Is it in the local government’s interest to get people involved in local sports?
P&C drink and review Crew Cab IPA from Big Truck brewery, then invite special guest Longinus to help them discuss a novella by Marquez. This is part of P&C’s on-going “shortcut to the classics” series.
The book is written by an old man about an old man who is reflecting on his life.
On his 90th birthday, the unnamed protagonist — who is a confirmed bachelor and frequent patron of brothels — wanted to give himself a night of wild love with an adolescent virgin. The book is about his reminiscenses, but mostly about his relationship with this one girl.
The protagonist has lived 90 years with no love in his life, but now, at the end, he falls madly in love with a very young girl, with whom he doesn’t have sex.
The book presents some deep reflections on love, sex, passion, and jealousy. In one sense, it’s a very raunchy and disturbing book, with difficult themes. In another sense, it’s an interesting commentary on love.
The main characters in “Memories of My Melancholy Whores” are:
The unnamed narrator: An aging journalist reflecting on his life and longing for connection on his 90th birthday.
Rosa Cabarcas: The owner of a brothel who arranges an encounter for the narrator.
Delgadita: A 14-year-old virgin girl offered by Rosa as part of a birthday gift to the narrator.
Florina de Dios Cargamantes: The narrator’s mother.
Damiana: The narrator’s maid.
In “Memories of My Melancholy Whores,” a nameless, aging journalist on his 90th birthday decides to treat himself to a night with a virgin. Accustomed to paying for companionship, he seeks a return to a youthful experience he never had. He contacts Rosa Cabarcas, a former madam, to arrange this encounter.
Rosa procures Delgadita, a young, impoverished girl, to fulfill the narrator’s request. However, the initial plan for a sexual encounter goes awry. Delgadita, exhausted from caring for her family, sleeps through the night heavily sedated.
Despite the lack of physical intimacy, the narrator becomes unexpectedly attached to Delgadita. He begins to care for her well-being, buying her clothes, books, and arranging for her education. They spend time together reading and talking, forming a unique and tender bond.
Through his interactions with Delgadita, the narrator reflects on his own life filled with loneliness and missed opportunities for love. He experiences a sense of renewal and awakens to a form of love he had never known.
The novel explores themes of aging, regret, the power of human connection, and the unexpected ways love can manifest. It’s important to note that the age difference between the narrator and Delgadita raises ethical questions, a point some readers find problematic.
The boys drink and review Super Thick Pastry Stout from Old Mother Brewing in Frederick, Maryland, then discuss the Big 5 personality characteristics.
There are a lot of personality tests out there, like Myers Briggs and the Enneagram. Those aren’t as solidly based in science as the Big Five.
You can remember the Big Five with with of two acrostics, OCEAN or CANOE. They are …
The Big Five personality traits, also known as the Five Factor Model (FFM), are a widely accepted framework for understanding human personality. They represent broad dimensions of individual differences in personality. Here’s a brief explanation of each:
Openness to Experience features characteristics such as imagination, insight, and a broad range of interests. Individuals high in openness are often curious about the world and other people, eager to learn new things, and open to new experiences, including unconventional ideas or novel solutions. They tend to be creative and appreciative of art and beauty.
Conscientiousness involves high levels of thoughtfulness, good impulse control, and goal-directed behaviors. Highly conscientious individuals are organized, reliable, and diligent. They plan ahead, work systematically, and carry out tasks with attention to detail. This trait is often linked with academic and career success.
Extroversion is characterized by excitability, sociability, talkativeness, assertiveness, and high amounts of emotional expressiveness. Extroverts derive energy from social interaction, are often enthusiastic and action-oriented, enjoy being around people, and are often perceived as full of life and energy.
Agreeableness includes attributes such as trust, altruism, kindness, affection, and other prosocial behaviors. Individuals who score high in agreeableness tend to be cooperative, compassionate, and friendly. They are more inclined to help others and value getting along with people.
Neuroticism is associated with emotional instability, anxiety, moodiness, irritability, and sadness. Individuals high in neuroticism may experience more frequent and severe negative emotions than their peers. They tend to respond worse to stressors, are more likely to interpret ordinary situations as threatening, and can struggle to bounce back from challenging events.
After the boys conclude their discussion of the Big Five, Pigweed relates a story from Mrs. Pigweed, who went to pronoun class. P&C review some of the material from the class and conclude it’s a huge smoking pile of nonsense.
At the end of the show, Crowhill takes a shot at reading “the worst sentence ever written” by Judith Butler.
The boys drink and review Planetary hazy IPA from the Ministry of Brewing, then discuss the decline of religion in the west.
The boys review some of the stats on the decline in church attendance, the rise of the “nones,” and how religion has less and less influence on western civilization.
But there are some important elements of society that are heavily and positively influenced by religion.
Many science-minded people think it’s good that religion is in decline. The so-called “new atheists” say we can craft a new morality based on reason. Is that really working?
This aligns with the the ideas of the enlightenment — that reason could replace religion. But does that work?
Richard Dawkins recently revealed that he was a “cultural Christian.” Is that all we have?
The P&C show has frequently discussed an evolutionary psychology explanation for religion. Societies with religion edged out those without.
There’s a quote attributed to Chesterton that says “when men cease to believe in God, they don’t believe nothing, they believe anything.”
There is a God-shaped hole in our hearts. If that hole isn’t filled with God, it will be filled with something else, like environmentalism, wokeness/activism, identity/narcissism/transgenderism.
Neitzche feared that when religion died, it would be replaced with hyper-nationalism and other ills. “I didn’t see this coming….but, I’m not surprised.”
There are lots of indications that the concept of God underwrites many of the social norms that we rely on.
There’s also the issue of archetypes and evolutionary psychology.
One argument for the existence of God is that without God everything goes to crap. Is that where we are? Is God necessary, whether he exists or not?
The boys drink and review Tmave Pivo, a Czech Dark Lager by Ten Eyck brewing.
54% of people in America think the government has too much power. Does the federal government do too much? Is it too big?
Government debt has been a problem for a while, but recently it has spiked to almost unbelievable levels. Is this a good thing? How do we stop it?
What is the federal government supposed to do, and how does that match with what the federal government actually does? There are some things the government does — and spends money on — that have no justification in the constitution.
The Ben Franklin players finish the show with a dramatic reading.
The boys drink and review Giant Flaming Zombie Polar Bear Double IPA by Atlas Brewing, then discuss Frank Herbert’s Dune and J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings.
Which one is better? Where are they similar, and where are they different?
Dune is a great work of science fiction and the Lord of the Rings is a great work of fantasy. They have a lot of things in common, including a medieval fee, knights, castles, great houses, wizard-like characters, and immense, involved world building.
There are strong differences as well. Dune looks to the future while the LOTR looks to the past, and has more of a nostalgic feel. Dune is technological, but in the LOTR, it’s usually the bad guys who use technology.
The LOTR has a much clearer moral universe, with more differentiation between the good guys and the bad guys. It’s not exactly clear who the good guys are in Dune.
Tolkien was a devout Catholic, and the LOTR is infused with a religious sensibility, even though there is not actual religion in the book. Herbert was not a believer and presents religion as a tool to be manipulated for political ends.
The LOTR is very mythological, and sometimes even sacramental, while Dune is speculative and includes psychedelics.
The P&C Man of the Week this time is James Carville. (Starting about 34:00.)
The boys drink and review Delicious IPA from Stone’s Brewing, then try to work through the confusing world of gender and the horrible legacy of gender theory.
Isn’t “gender” about language? How did it come to describe people’s sexuality?
Enter John Money, the disgusting pervert who is the father of gender theory. He promoted the idea that gender is not connected with sex, and that gender is malleable. He coined the terms gender role and sexual orientation.
Money was behind the tragedy of David Reimer, who after a horrible accident during a circumcision lost his entire penis. Money convinced the parents to raise the boy as a girl.
It was a catastrophe, but it became the proof — among sexologists and perverts — that sex was just a social construct, and that if you raise a boy as a girl, he’ll be a girl.
It didn’t work out that way and it ruined poor David’s life. He never took to his female “identity,” and eventually committed suicide.
We’re coming to a point of reckoning. Children who had this butchery done to them are growing up, and they’re starting to sue the monsters who did this to them.
It won’t be long before we look back on this “gender theory” nonsense the way we look back on the Satanic panic. But how many children will have to be butchered before we get there?
The boys drink and review Crowhill’s homebrewed Viking Stout, then catch up on recent news with electric vehicles.
There has been concern about fires and EVs. They burn hot, and it’s hard to put them out. With some experience behind us now, while there are still concerns, it’s not as bad as feared.
EVs are still mostly a luxury item. They’re great as a second car, but they can’t completely replace gasoline vehicles. They don’t work well in the cold. They take a long time to charge. There aren’t enough charging stations. They don’t have enough range. It would be a disaster if people tried to evacuate Florida in EVs.
Home charging is not an option for people who live in apartments, or otherwise don’t have access to home charging options.
Government goals for EV production and adoption have been way too optimistic. After a solid flood of early adopters, demand has softened considerably.
EVs are not as green as people expect. They usually get their power from coal. The materials required to make them are mined in environmentally unfriendly ways. They’re not easy to dispose of or recycle. The metals used to create EVs release toxic chemicals into the soil that are toxic to important bacteria.
EVs are also much heavier than gasoline cars. Parking garages, safety guard rails, and other infrastructure will have to be re-engineered to deal with the increased weight. It also affects passenger safety in crashes.
Put simply, there’s no free lunch. EVs are a marginal improvement in some ways, but they’re not the green panacea we’ve been told.
We need to put away the cultic, apocalyptic, emergency thinking and allow engineers and the market to figure this out.
The boys drink and review O’Hara’s Nitro Irish Red, then discuss Tucker’s trip to Moscow and his chat with Putin.
When only one side of a story can be told, you can be sure you’re not hearing the whole truth. It makes sense to try to hear the other side.
According to some, Putin is the devil and you can’t say anything nice about him or give him any platform. (Even though the same critics were jealous that they didn’t get the interview.)
Putin begins the interview with a half hour of his perspective on Russian history, but they eventually get into some interesting Q&A about Ukraine and other issues.
Some of Putin’s claims were absurd, such as blaming Poland for WWII. But there were other details about possible peace deals to end the Ukraine war that we don’t hear about much in the U.S.
After the interview, Tucker went on a tour of Moscow and said some very stupid things about grocery stores and subway stations in Russia. That undercut the significance of the interview and made him look stupid.
Pigweed, Crowhill, Longinus, and all three wives went to Baltimore to see an adaptation of The Oresteia, which was originally a 3-part play by Aeschylus. In this podcast they reflect on the play and related issues.
The play focuses on the web of vengeance within the family of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, starting with Agamemnon’s sacrifice of their daughter, Iphigenia, before the battle of Troy.
When Agamemnon returns home with Cassandra the prophetess of Apollo as a spoil of war, Clytemnestra invites him back in regal style, but then murders both her husband and his new girlfriend.
It then falls on Orestes, their son — urged on by their daughter Electra — to avenge the death of his father.
But then, who is to avenge Clytemnestra? How far does this go? Where does it end?
The play addresses issues of just war, faith, free will and determinism, religious and moral obligations, family relations, and vengeance and justice.
The show ends with a discussion of Troy and the alleged historical backdrop to the play.
In another edition of “shortcut to the classics,” P&C drink and review Pigweed’s homebrewed IPA, then discuss Lord of the Flies by William Golding. (Starting at 2:55.)
Pigweed gives a little biographical background on the author, then the boys delve into the heart of darkness and survival in this compelling short novel.
The story takes place on a deserted island, where a group of British boys find themselves stranded following a plane crash. With no adults to guide them, the boys attempt to govern themselves … with disastrous consequences.
“Lord of the Flies” is a compelling exploration of human nature, power dynamics, and the thin veneer of civilization that separates order from chaos. Through the eyes of Ralph, Piggy, Jack, and other vividly drawn characters, Golding poses urgent questions about leadership, morality, and the inherent savagery within us all.
As we discuss the novel’s themes, symbols, and the development of the characters and their interactions, we invite you to reflect on what “Lord of the Flies” reveals about the complexities of human behavior and how fragile “civilization” really is.
The boys drink and review Founder’s Dirty Bastard, a Scotch ale, then they discuss the distinction between Scotch and Scottish ale before they get into five topics in five minutes each.
#1 Why can’t we deport violent criminals who are here illegally? NYC mayor Eric Adams says he has to change the law before he can do that. How did we get into such a ridiculous position?
#2 Why did Sports Illustrated tank? Was it the internet? Online vs. offline issues? The overall decline in publishing? Or was it that they went woke? The media doesn’t want to admit that going woke sometimes causes you to go broke.
#3 Is the NFL responsible when people don’t dress warmly at a cold football game? Do we want a nanny state where every organization is telling you what’s best for you?
#4 Grammar and usage problems that bother P&C. It’s vs. its. Unnecessary apostrophes. Then vs than. Media and data are plural. Your vs. you’re. To, too, and two. Their, there, they’re. Principal vs. principle. Capitol vs. capital. Insure, assure, ensure.
#5 Voting for the good of the country even if it affects you negatively. Some people actually have the good of others in mind even when that requires incredible sacrifice.
