Really True Fiction

Big thanks to Graham King for joining me on episode 90!   In this episode we chat about the great film Boogie Nights (1997) by Paul Thomas Anderson. In this episode we wrangle with notions of: The essence of Faustian bargain being that you don't even ask for what you really want, and the isolation that comes with not knowing what you want The importance of apologies Exploitation The desire to make something good The state of film and quality films Stigma Plucking knowledge and art from the teeth of taboo and custom Surrogate parental instincts Flattery from insecurity Great films giving homage to other great films The mindblowing cinema that is Boogie Nights Additional Spoiler: Magnolia - 8:20   Thank you everyone for listening to the show. Please feel free to leave a rating and review!

Welcome to a bonus episode of Really True Fiction. Those with a keen eye will have noticed that our last two episodes were on 1984 and Brave New World. So, for a bonus, Dan and I do a bit of a compare and contrast between them; seeing as they are both very famous and of a similar ouevre. In this bonus episode we talk about: 1984 being a better novel, sociopathic vs. beaurocratic evil, what is a more realistic villainy, the ennui of BNW, 1984 as a society that has actually been achieved in history, media/art/culture portrayals as more accurate in BNW, 1984 as more insightful on the manipulation of language, the different takes on hedonism, speaking as indecipherable from thinking, blasphemy, and which world we find more bleak.   Thanks for listening to this mini-adventure into classic dystopia!

Welcome to part two of our double bill on famous dystopia! In this episode Dan Holder and I delve into the 1931 novel Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. While disecting Huxley's vision of a dys(u?)topia, we chat about:  How this should've been an essay Is this even dystopia? Boring mantra and cliches; and how they are the death of thought The passing of fads vs art Hedonistic "happiness" Ignorance of what you might want Biological manipulation Side effects of technology External vs Internal reasons for doing things Chestertons fence Scientific "arrogance" The ego when it is asked to elaborate on a conviction  Disagreeability in thinkers   There is also spoilers for the movie Gattica at 40:05.  This episode was a blast, talk soon!

In this episode my friend Dan Holder and I dive into maybe the most referenced/least read book ever: 1984. In this episode we chat about Orwell's favourite pub, paying attention to the little things in life and how thought crime makes us lose those things, how Winston is attracted to all the little things that will get him in trouble with the Party, post truth and how word manipulation unmoors us from ourselves, how Totalitarianism gets right to the deepest part of being human, class structure, joining in on a mass feeling, and how the mind must be destroyed and re-made for true tyranny to take hold. This was a lot of fun, I hope you enjoy it!

Finally, we made it. I was very grateful to once again be joined by Dan Holder, Lydia Rollinson and Graham King to finish off the Harry Potter books. In this last instalment of the series we talk about: Students becoming more excellent than their teachers, changing your opinion of someone because they can change, believing in the cause, accepting help from others, leaving your safe havens for the bigger world, not hurting those who don't deserve it, being an inspiring figure, how emotions can blind you to other things that are going on, Voldemort's downfall being Harry's strengths, how tyranny is bad for everyone, upper party is the only beneficiary, opportunities costs when people of talent work on propaganda, how the journey can have sucky parts, getting the better of your low moments, feeling hurt and despair, Promethean vs. Hero, what it feels like when your crush isn't into you, deciding the right thing to do, kindness as compound interest, and seeing old friends.   Thank you to everyone who listens to this episode, this series, and this podcast. What a trip to Hogwarts it has been. See you at the next episode!

Welcome to the first foursome for Really True Fiction! A big thanks to Dan, Lydia and Graham for joining me to chat about the (best?) sixth Harry Potter book. In our conversation we cover such ground as: Relationships as status vs feeling, the monster in the chest, Ginny's subtle art of not giving a fuck, being blinded by bias, humanized villains, evil downstream of fear, what happens when you refuse a tyrant, Malfoy starting in pride, standing up to optics and propaganda, scapegoating, solving problems as the actual best form of PR, navigating popularity, navigating management, Dumbledore's patience, and how women might not get along.   Thanks again for listening!

Jump on the Hogwart's Express! We are going to back school!   I'm very pleased to be joined by Dan Holder (who joined me on the Master and Commander episode) and Lydia Rollinson to talk about the fifth Harry Potter book. It was a total blast to have two Brits on to talk about a very British, as well as very archetypal, story. Talking about Order of the Phoenix we discuss the clash between Harry Potter and Evangelical Christianity in the 90s, avoiding hard problems, anxiety in regards to bureaucracies, Harry's blindspots, what it would be like to see your memories like a movie, adopting multiple perspectives, paternal/maternalism, moral philosophy, adults apologizing to children and many more topics. Thanks so much for listening to Really True Fiction! Additional spoilers: The Farewell - 1:21:20

For this episode of Really True Fiction I am pleased to have Stuart Kaija and Graham King on as guests to discuss the 2013 novel The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson (winner of the Pulitzer prize). I had never heard of this book before it being introduced to me for this episode and I thorougly enjoyed it. It is, broadly speaking, about the experiences of a young North Korean man through his rise, and fall, and rise again, and fall again in the North Korean's state apparatus.  In this episode we discuss how the subconcious does the dirty work, how propaganda is never about the content of what it is talking about but rather a reminder that the government is always there, the lies of totalitarianism and how it corrodes the nature of an inner life, among many other facets. Enjoy!   Additional Spoilers: Call of Duty Black Ops - 33:30 Fight Club - 35:55

Welcome back!   In the first new episode in over a year, I was very happy and enlightened with sit down and chat with my friend Dan Holder. When I asked Dan what story he would be most interested in talking about for RTF he quickly replied Master and Commander.   As I learned, Master and Commander is a 20+ book series on the adventures of Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin. As such, we condensed the series down to watching the 2003 film Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World; starring Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany. I absolutely loved this film and can't believe I didn't see it when it first came out.   In this episode we discuss: The British fleet and what it meant to the British psyche The role of duty and how historical pieces help us view how people in the past had different mindsets than today Superstition at sea and how that affects people The beauty of the Galopagos Islands and how they engender a sense of secular spirituality in me Many other elements of the film and books.   A big thanks to Dan in joining me for this episode, and stay tuned for more!

In this episode we are discussing Franz Kafka's The Trial; written in 1914 but not published until 1925. This is an incredible and seminal work in modern literature and should be read by everyone. In this episode we talk about: - The style of a story that puts the audience in touch with the feelings of a character - If you don't know what you have done wrong than everything comes to mind and it is paralyzing and demoralizing - Bureaucracy as modern tyranny - The importance of trust in society - The bullet or the knife are never relative - Jostling and career maneuvering as the primary reason for people in these industries, not the betterment of the people they are "helping" - Irrelevancy is the bureaucrats kryptonite; and they will do anyting to avoid that - Why even have options? We really appreciate everyone who listens. Please feel free to support the show by giving a rating or review on whatever platform you listen to it.  Email: reallytruefiction@gmail.com Direct download: https://reallytruefiction.libsyn.com/  

Welcome to our second foray into the world of F. Scott Fitzgerald. In this episode we discuss his first novel This Side Of Paradise. We talk about: - How it might feel to have peers die on mass, Eros and Thanatos, egoism vs. narrcacism, the resentment of educated people towards those who make more money than them, hedgehogs vs foxes, butthurtedness, definite optimism and pragmatism, speed and velocity, conformity, personality vs personage, the flywheel life, and cynicism.    Thank you for listening to Really True Fiction, please tell your friends if you think they would be interested in this podcast. You can send us an email at: reallytruefiction@gmail.com You can listen to all episodes at: https://reallytruefiction.libsyn.com/ May the force be with you!    

For this eigthieth episode of RTF I am pleased to be joined by Alex Cormier to talk about the Kubrick film The Shining. Alex and I co-host a radio show called Full Spectrum Cinema, and you can find the link for that posted below. In this episode we discuss: - Stephen Kings horror is better shown in his human monsters vs his supernatural ones - The different ways Wendy and Jack fail as parents, and how Danny is scared to misbehave - Jack's substance abuse, "how did it get to this Jack?" -  How the ugly can destroy the creative - Not facing hard things, undermining Jack's masculinity, Danny and Theseus, and the cinematic beauty of this film. Thanks again to everyone who listens. All episodes of Really True Fiction can be found at this link: https://reallytruefiction.libsyn.com/ And here is the mixcloud link for Full Spectrum Cinema: https://www.mixcloud.com/lexacorm/ May the force be with you  

A update minisode for RTF. This is all about why there haven't been as many new episodes and what the future will be. Part of the reason are the new creative projects David and I have embarked on. Please see links for those projects. The Canadian Story https://www.thecanadianstory.com/ The Liberal Soul https://theliberalsoul87.libsyn.com/ Nothing To Fear https://anchor.fm/nothingtofear Full Spectrum Cinema https://www.mixcloud.com/Lexacorm/

Welcome to our only tradition at RTF: a Christmas episode. For our third foray into traditional Christmas tales we tackle the Frank Capra classic It's A Wonderful Life. Additionally, as per our prerogative of doing a classic cartoon as well, we wax our thoughts on the Frosty the Snowman animation. In this episode we talk about imagination coming back to help us in hard moments, shifting perspective, defeating solipsism, the limits of markets to combat consumerism, how hard it can be to see what you are to others, and what the next existential frontier could look like. We at Really True Fiction wish you and yours a Merry Christmas and we are very grateful that you listen to the show.  https://reallytruefiction.libsyn.com/

Thanks for joining us into our first foray in Chinese Sci Fi. The Three Body Problem is a 2005 novel by Cixin Liu. It is the first part of a trilogy; which we will do eventually. This novel is partially about the three body problem in physics, and partially about many other things. Some of the things we chat about in this episode are: how cool it is to read a Chinese take on Sci Fi, what the ethos of science is, what physics could be like in other places, the weird optimism of science and humanity, meliorism and it's importance, the importance of religious freedom, the older generations letting the younger ones push them around, and science vs. ideology. *The Ted Chiang short story we couldn't remember the title of in the recording is called Hell Is The Absence of God* Thanks for joining us again. If you love the dulcet and mellifluous tones of David's voice, you can hear him more at The Canadian Story podcast at this link: https://www.thecanadianstory.com/

Welcome back once again to the fourth installment in the Harry Potter franchise. We all grow up a bit with this one. In this episode we talk about things existent and varied such as: the first time you travel and being to get over some of your inborn solipsism, the uncomfortability in knowing someone's fate when they don't, not needing universal popularity, finding the similarities between ourselves and not the differences, classic rights arguments, self-aggrandizement vs. actually helping someone, valuing the things in a person that they care about, thinking your way thru media, and older generations remembering historical evils.  We hope you enjoy the new episode!

Welcome to a very special bonus episode of Really True Fiction. This bonus is a follow up to episode 73 where we talked about the novel Dune. With the release of the massive Denis Villeneuve film last month, we got the gang back together to give our thoughts on the movie as well as a few more broad perspectives on the story. David and Luke are super pleased to be joined once again by friend of the podcast Josiah Martinoski to talk all things Dune. Hilariously, we attempted a recording the week before this one but the audio was unusable, so we had to try again. But one of the great things about Dune is that even though we were talking about the exact same movie a week later, we ended up having a fairly different chat.  Some of the elements of the film we discuss are its themes around isolation, environmentalism, fatalism, loyalty and culture, as well as all the usual cinematic and technical aspects that make Villeneuve films the stunning experience that they are. We hope you enjoy this bonus episode! Additional Spoiler: Donnie Darko - 28:05

We're back baby! After a lengthy hiatus we are super pumped to be bring you a new episode of Really True Fiction. In honour of the fact that The Matrix 4 is coming out this December, and also of the fact that this movie is just made for RTF, we are doing the 1999 film The Matrix. In this episode we discuss the importance of archetypal stories and the somewhat inscrutable human need to know things, The Matrix as a version of Plato's cave, the point of the Matrix as choice, the impossibility of actually being blue pilled, the need of belief post red pill and how that moment is ongoing and recursive. PS. We are still figuring out recording logistics and as such you may hear a few dogs barking in the background.  Once again thank you everyone who listens and enjoys the podcast. We are hoping to be bringing episodes again semi-regularly. If you are interested in the other podcasts that David and Luke have started, please check out the links included below. David - The Canadian Story: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-canadian-story-david-parker-zach-gerber-MLvBPHITSFq/ Luke - The Liberal Soul: https://theliberalsoul87.libsyn.com/

This episode is a little bit more personal than most of the previous solo ones. In this episode, I discuss the Greek myth of Prometheus. I subsequently talk about my concept of a Promethean and how they relate to the liberal soul. After, I relay a few honorable mentions, plus my top five Prometheans that have given me fire in my life. There is no source text for this episode (other than the myth itself), so it's a little bit more spontaneous than most of the solo episodes. I hope you enjoy it. Some of the specifics of this episode include: - The fact that Prometheus translates to foresight - Go through the Prometheus story; also noticing how great it is that he is saved by a human. - The difference between a Promethean and a hero - My top five Prometheans. Happy Twentieth episode and thank you for listening!

Welcome back to another episode of The Liberal Soul. For todays episode I was happy to be joined by Alex Cormier. Alex and I cohost a show on local radio called Full Spectrum Cinema; and in every episode we choose a movie and talk about it for an hour. Naturally, Alex seemed like a perfect guest for the podcast. We talk all about movies; why we love them and what they have meant for us in our lives. Some of the specific things we discuss are: - Some of the early films in our lives that were meaningful to us.  - Films that made us feel new things - Some of the factors that made us think about films as more than just entertainment. - How great movies leave you thinking more about them, and how more context can help you appreciate them. - Adaptations vs. original screenplays - Our thoughts specifically on David Lynch and Richard Linklater - How movies have made us think differently about the world - And how our even getting together is an example of emergence and self made community. Thank you for listening to the show. Please tell any friends who you think may enjoy it.

In this episode I give a very introductory opening to the idea of Pragmatism; the first American philosophy. I have come to think about Pragmatism and it's relationship to Liberalism by its adherence to reality and practical, real world effects. For this introduction, I discuss some of the lectures of Pragmatism by the great psychologist and philosopher William James. Some of the points I discuss in this episode are: - How Pragmatism was the first philosophy given to the world by American thinkers - Pragmatism - what do you practically mean? - Layer of analysis and materialism as a basis for it but not always the most interesting part of it - The truth as utility at not merely as principle - How Pragmatism is a reality based philosophy that shifts the onus and responsibility of decision making and question asking back onto individual people Here is a link to all eight lectures if you are interested: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/5116/5116-h/5116-h.htm

I was pleased to be joined by some friends from high school, Russ Fountain and Eric Wahn, to discuss their love and affinity for all things mountain biking. We talk about how they first came to love mountain biking, some of the influences on that passion, the love/hate relationships they have with trail building, how mountain biking allowed them to go to Germany to help out with some trails there, and how the relationship with the bikes and nature affects their feelings about it all.  Just a big thank you again to Russ and Eric for joining the podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider subscribing to The Liberal Soul on whatever app you use for your podcasts. Here is a link to the full podcastography: https://theliberalsoul87.libsyn.com/

Here is the conclusion of my four part series on the book The Open Society And Its Enemies by Karl Popper. This episode finishes up Popper's observations on Marx as well as his general overview on how we should best think about history. In this episode I discuss Popper's thoughts on: - How upon success revolutionary leaders become the new ruling class - and how there are many different classes; not just two. - How modern democracies are not what Marx knew as capitalism - political intervention as a less sexy but also less violent reform instead of revolution - The impoverished conception of Marx's practical program - Violence ended the exact moment it is not needed is the point of revolution - The Left Wings ambivalence and ambiguity toward violence is something to be suspicious of - equality or table turning? - The working class are realists and Marx had a lack of imagination in regards to Capitalism - the world today doesn't mean the world forever - We can use our thoughts to change our environment - the ethos of The Liberal Soul is about reflection and being able to change your mind - Honesty is making sure other people know what you mean by your words - traditions need to be analyzed before celebrated - Rationalism vs Irrationalism  - Equality before the law - not a fact but a political demand based on a moral decision - One can only learn if you take others seriously Thank you once again for listening to The Liberal Soul. If you enjoy the podcast please subscribe and leave a rating or review. 

*Mild spoilers for season two of House of Cards in this episode* Welcome to part three of a four part series on the book The Open Society And Its Enemies by Karl Popper. If you haven't listened to the first two parts yet I would highly recommend that you do, as the book builds through the parts and I will make references in todays episode that will have more context if you are familiar with the previous two episodes. In part three, I discuss Popper's take on how Aristotle and Hegel have intellectually contributed to the closed society ethos; and also begin with how Marx did. In this episode I discuss: - Teleology and its application to the forms from Plato - that it is process driven Essentialism, and that there is in fact no such thing as static reality. - Competing arguments is how we live and it is necessarily so - Hegel as a politically useful philosopher - he had ability to use language to his own ends. His contribution was beginning our sense of Nationalism in the modern sense, and how that always needs an enemy. - Heroism as only being as good as the cause for which one is a hero in - The "ya but how" heuristic - How economies and ideas are a two way street - How economic power is dependent on political and physical power. Thanks again for listening, have a great day!

Just a couple of rebels sitting around trying to take down the Empire. In this episode of The Liberal Soul I am so pleased to be joined by my wonderful friends Alex Wan and Billie Schultz. The three of us also do the Nothing To Fear podcast where every week we watch a scary movie and talk about it so you don't have to!  However, in today's episode we go back to our roots: Star Wars. The saga is one of the first things that bonded us and was one of the first movies that made us fall in love with movies. In this episode we talk about: - Our first experiences with Star Wars (for both Alex and Billie it was The Empire Strikes Back, but not so for me) - How it was all about adventure and very cleverly blew past the details - How we view the original trilogy now and how you don't really need to care about the plot because of how charming the characters are - Our relationship to the prequel and the sequel trilogies  - And finally how meeting your legends is a hard thing to do. Thanks so much for listening. Here is a link to the Nothing to Fear podcast if you want to check that out (which I highly recommend): https://anchor.fm/nothingtofear

This episode is part two of a four part series on the book The Open Society And Its Enemies by Karl Popper. Please listen to episode one before this as it will give context for this episode. In this episode I discuss: - Plato's formulation about who should rule is a useless question - rather we should ask how we can make institutions that prevent bad rulers from doing too much harm, as many to most rulers are below average in real life. - Shortcomings in a democratic state are the responsibility of the citizens in that state and should not be blamed on democracy itself. - Focusing on the question of who should rule will turn the education of leaders into a kind of race or competition rather than having those students focus on their studies for its own sake. They will rather be focused on furthering their careers instead. - My formulation of the Noble Truth to counteract against Plato's the Noble Lie - we have to create and discovering our own meaning in life by consciously selecting our own stories to live by. - The concept of philosopher as made clear by the distinction between Socrates and Plato; the former as a lover and seeker of wisdom and the latter as a proud possessor of knowledge. - The difference between the Utopian and Piecemeal social engineer - Plato as noticing the strain from the rise of democracy, and took advantage of existing sentiments to use language duplicitously to attempt to bring a more closed society.  - And how we can't return to the closed society without becoming beasts.  

First episode on George Orwell. My guest for this episode is my great friend Danica Weager. We take as our launchpad the Orwell essay Politics and the English Language. It's been a goal of this podcast to also talk about language and how we use it. Orwell is the perfect writer in this regard. In todays episode we talk about: - The ease of invoking names without understanding the underlying principles - The Liberal ethos "yes things are bad, but we can improve them" - What we mean by the words is more important than the words themselves - Part of the liberal ethos is to concretize your points with vivid examples - How nominalizing verbs makes language boring - How the disciplines that are mediated through people have the vaguest language - And how Orwell had the power to face unpleasant facts. https://www.orwell.ru/library/essays/politics/english/e_polit/

Welcome to part one of a four part mini-series on the book The Open Society And Its Enemies by Karl Popper. This book is a Promethean level of fresh air intellectually when it comes to understanding how a free society can operate; and what are the kind of mentalities that are opposed to that. Even though it is mentioned as unknowing in the episode, this book was published in 1945. It comes in two volumes, and for this episode I will be talking about the first half of volume one. In today's episode I discuss that parts of Poppers argument that deal with: - Historicism as Popper's catch all idea for the undergirding of all those interested in the closed society - How a turbulent world or social structure often inspires people to feel a need to return to a closed society - with all the tribal myths and stories about the greatness of a given people coming back into the fore - Plato's theory on the forms/ideas - postulating the idea of perfection - Plato's conclusion that change is evil and rest is divine - and how he begins to apply this idea to that of the State - How the concept of something being socially constructed does not necessitate that is is completely arbitrary. That in fact a better way to think about social constructions is asking what kind of problem are they purporting to solve. - The underlying fear of people that ethical obligations are the our responsibility - How Plato would twist the meaning of words to his own designs - And how borderline moral and intellectual cases are welcome in an open society because it keeps our thinking sharp. I hope you enjoy this first part, and there are three more to come. 

Welcome to double digits of The Liberal Soul! For today's episode I will be talking about Jonathon Haidt's book from 2012: The Righteous Mind (Why good people are divided by politics and religion).  I wanted to do this episode to draw in some moral psychology into political and religious philosophy. Haidt's careful consideration of why people believe different things and his analogies for how the mind has different default settings is really fascinating and useful for navigating a world with other people who don't agree with you. I highly recommend the book if you have time. Some of the highlights in this episode are: The phenomenon of moral dumbfounding, how babies appear to have a moral sense, Moral Foundations Theory, how people are pulled to being more objective if they have an audience with unknown opinions, exploratory vs confirmatory thought, and how (in my view) the pillars in MFT can often be in conflict with each other. I hope you enjoy the episode!

In this solo episode I talk about the 1841 essay Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson. This essay had a profound effect on my life when I first read it, and I still go back to it every year or so for inspiration. Emerson talks about the psychological importance of non-conformity, of trusting your own mind, and being the author of your own creations and endeavors. Here is a link to the essay if you are interested in reading it: https://archive.vcu.edu/english/engweb/transcendentalism/authors/emerson/essays/selfreliance.html

In this episode of The Liberal Soul, I speak with musician, sound engineer, and my cousin Zach Gerber. Zach lives in Ontario and has been involved professionally in music for the last decade. Zach is a touring musician with the Canadian band Walk Off The Earth, so he has lots of great stories about festivals and concerts. Music being my first love, I wanted to have an episode talking to Zach about music and how it has shaped our lives. Some of the things we talk about are: - Zach's beginnings in music and sound engineering - Some of the great stories Zach has from interacting with other big name acts at festivals - Our first memories of music, and music's ability as truth telling - The universalization of music and how it becomes circular with appreciation and inspiration - What music has had the deepest impact on our lives - Music as good and necessary for the misfits of the world - Lots and talk about pop punk bands and especially Jimmy Eat World - And finally, what role music plays now in our lives that we are a little older. Thanks for listening! Don't forget to subscribe to the show on whatever podcast app you use! 

In this episode of The Liberal Soul I take a little detour down a Karl Popper path and discuss a section from his book The Open Society And Its Enemies. There is an incredible section of that book where Popper dissects the difference between individualism and egoism; and how Plato conflated them for his own propaganda. By equating individualism with egoism, Plato made it easy to dismiss as uncaring, selfish, and without interest in altruism. Popper points out a simple logic in error from Plato that leads to this (intentional?) misunderstanding.  Popper points out that individualism in the philosophic sense is contrasted against collectivism, not altruism. By stating that individualism is a synonym of egoism, Plato forgoes the responsibility of arguing the merits or demerits of collectivism (which is unsurprising given his totalitarian ambitions discussed in The Republic). In this formulation, Popper argues that a person can be a Individualist Altruist (caring for the wellbeing of individual people). This is the idea I explore in this episode. In this episode I talk about: - The example of the individualist - altruist in the figure of Charles Dickens - The phenomenon of NIMBY (not in my back yard), and the longer, deeper, further and harder work it actually is to help people who are struggling and suffering. - Pericles sense of justice vs. Plato's. - Music and the arts as a prime example of the benefit and need for individualism - How the quirky individual is no good for a collectivist culture or state - Some quotes from Plato demonstrating his intentional dishonesty - Some of the totalitarian ideas in Christianity inherited from Plato - And how individualism isn't just an abstract idea to make it work; it needs to be alive in the hearts of people. 

Annyeong! In this episode of The Liberal Soul I talk to my good friend David Harris. David lives in England and we met each other while living in Gwangju, South Korea. It was a real pleasure having Dave on the podcast; he is a ton of fun to talk to. We spend most of this episode talking about football (soccer) and what it means often to people living in England. Some of the things we talk about are: - How we met and what a Hash is - The Tottenham Hotspurs and how there are many professional football leagues in England - Hockey Vs. Soccer and the FA Cup - Football fandom and how it very much is a communal, working class sport from the beginning - The historical place football plays for England - How it is such an international and connecting thing for people, and how it is such a release.   Thanks for listening! Please subscribe to The Liberal Soul and leaving a rating or review if you feel so inclined. 

This episode is the second in a two-parter talking about the book A Thousand Small Sanities by Adam Gopnik. In part two, I'll be talking about Gopnik's observations of why the Right and Left politically dislike liberals.  Some of the things I talk about are: - Liberals and Conservatives having different temperaments - and that they both share a tragic view of life but the liberal believes in the possibility of incremental improvement over time - Strong man politics is the norm in the human history, not the aberration. The question isn't "how does it arise" but rather "what has ever kept it from happening?" - Clan or identity based groups end up having internal schisms (who is the REAL Conservative?). They will build their own out groups internally after they get their way. Because of the panoply of human diversity, there will always be misfits even in closed societies.  - Liberal states are uncomfortable places if you don't want your dogma debated - Free markets being a liberal invention in their inception, not a conservative one - Liberals are anti-essentialist and anti-determinist, and this often puts them at odds philosophically and logically with Leftists and Reactionaries.  - Liberals are concerned with what makes humans similar, and understand an obsession with what makes us different is venom - Liberals are unequivocally committed to free speech, and because of the underlying conceptions around power and cognition, this often puts them at odds with Leftists. 

In this episode of The Liberal Soul I talk with my friend Cole Kander. I wanted to talk to Cole because he and I have had a very similar life trajectory. We were both born and raised in a very Protestant house and church culture, and we both have decided that kind of life isn't for us. I know this can be a really hard thing to talk about for many people, so I'm really proud of Cole being able to put himself out there like this. Some of the things we talk about are: - Our religious upbringings and how it affected our younger selves - Creationism Vs. Evolution and the empirical claims of Christianity - How people rationalize their beliefs - The Four Horsemen and what they did for our understanding of Christianity (especially Christopher Hitchens) - An example of human sacrifice in the Bible (the name we were looking for and couldn't find was Jephthah's daughter) - Some criticism of how Jordan Peterson talks about Christianity, and what he seems to assume about Christians. - How we feel at this stage in our life about other people believing - How bad actors are attracted to where people's attention is already oriented  - And finally, what gives our lives meaning if it isn't God.  There are also spoilers for the movie Surrogates mentioned in this episode. Thanks for listening! Here is a link to The Liberal Soul: https://theliberalsoul87.libsyn.com/ 

This episode of The Liberal Soul is part one of a two part reflection on the 2019 book A Thousand Small Sanities by Adam Gopnik. I have mentioned this book a couple times in the first couple episodes, so I wanted to give it its due here. This book was the proximate impetus for this podcast as I recall being quite inspired and educated when I first read it. In part one I talk about: - Liberalism being an emergent philosophy with the discovery that other people have a moral conscience as well as ourselves. This helps us move out of solipsism because we can understand that other people feel the pull of the world as well as us. - Rhinoceros vs. Unicorn political theories - real vs. ideal - Human life has always been contentious, this is nothing new to the modern world - Liberals are passionate about self made community, and liberal people have made Liberalism - The human condition is messy, and everyone has a little liberal and conservative within their own hearts; liberalism makes room for this doubleness and fallibility. Our problems are stamped into human nature. - And finally, revolution isn't anathema to liberals, but it is the last resort. Liberals, if there is no other option, are willing to fight with minimum necessary force and forego any vengeance after winning. The liberal model is Cincinnatus, not Caesar. 

Hello RTF listeners. Here is the second episode from my new podcast The Liberal Soul. For the second episode of The Liberal Soul I'm very pleased to be joined by my cousin and cohost of our other podcast Really True Fiction: David Parker. In this episode, David and I chat about the seminal and foundational liberal essay On Liberty (1859) by John Stuart Mill. Here is a link  if you want to read it: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/34901/34901-h/34901-h.htm In our chat, David and I discuss: - liberty as a first person endeavor and taking it away fundamentally robs a person of the autonomy of their conscience and consciousness, not just their enfranchisement. - Without freedom of opinion even the true things that we know lose their vitality and we become lazy in teaching them - Both Socrates and Jesus were put to death for blasphemy  - Censorship makes you and your society stupid and doesn't create moral intellects - Principles cut both ways - that's their whole point. - The general difficulty in discerning harm and how it needs to be an ongoing negotiation - New ideas are the energy to prevent social entropy - a truly progressive take - Art needs individuals who think different - And finally, how the principles of the Enlightenment are universal and not just for the peoples of Europe and America. Finally, David is the host of The Canadian Story podcast. You can listen to that podcast here: https://open.spotify.com/show/1AP0ujpeDXnyk39hEHTSEG

Hey RTF Listeners! I recently started a new podcast called The Liberal Soul. This is the first episode and I'm including it on this show because it was directly inspired by many things David and I talked about on RTF.  This podcast is going to be about what it's like to be a person open to the world and curious about the passions of others. Also, it's a podcast where I will be talking about famous works (both fiction and non) in the history of liberal philosophy. Cheers!

For our 75th episode, we do a film that is sort of fiction? 2007's Into The Wild is a treasured film for both David and Luke. In this episode we talk about avoiding sanctimony, not jumping down others throats, camaraderie and hard work, the dichotomy of Los Angeles, homelessness, being hardwired for cross purposes, tragedy as emergent instead of super imposed, becoming a person worthy of others and the incredibleness that is Eddie Vedder. Hope you enjoy this episode in the big hard world.  Neil Degrasse Tyson response: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orCZUfnK1J0

A return to the wonderful and bizarre year of culture that was 1999. In this episode we are joined by my friend Danica Weager as a guest for our considerations on American Beauty: The greatest movie about nothing. We contemplate the slow sliding into personal hell that is unconscious living, finding meaning in life while still caring for others, vital masculinity, perfectionism/achievement, becoming what you pursue, the scourge of solipsism, worshipping others, the cult of self-help, and the deeper world of beauty behind the world.  Correction: Mena Suvari was born in 1979, not 1980. Additional Spoilers: Prisoner of Azkaban  34:10 Breaking Bad  37:25 Fight Club  38:06 The Hurt Locker  39:45

What a pain in the Arrakis! David and I want to say a big thank you to our guest Josiah Martinoski for this episode on the novel Dune. We dive into the Frank Herbert 1965 Sci/Fi classic. We talk about leadership, management, subterfuge, religion, competence, the macro vs micro world, and all the lore in between. Hope you enjoy it!  Additional Spoilers: Monsters Inc - 1:03:12 The Island - 1:17:08 The Matrix - 1:17:24 Foundation - 1:18:50 Captain America: Civil War - 1:33:10 Terminator - 1:35:30 Black Panther - 1:37:05 Notes From Underground - 1:43:11

A very Merry Christmas to everyone! This has been an extremely difficult year, and we hope you all can find a meaningful way to spend these holidays. In the meantime, sit back and enjoy our take on the classic 1843 Christmas tale: A Christmas Carol. Additionally, we also recorded a bonus intro on our thoughts on the modern classic from 1965: Merry Christmas Charlie Brown. We talk about all things Christmas (and a few things Yuletide) in this. So grab your stockings and hot chocolate, and start looking forward to longer days! https://reallytruefiction.libsyn.com/  

We return with the third book. In this episode, we are pleased to be joined by our friend Alex Wan as a guest. Alex is one of three cohosts (along with Luke and Billie, whom you can hear on episode 62) of the Nothing to Fear podcast. Alex joins us remotely to talk about the third Harry Potter novel The Prisoner of Azkaban (the darkest entry yet!). In this episode we hit many topics including: -Exposure to the bigger world as a crucial component of the heroes journey - Being 13 - The elites getting their way when butthurt - Sirius as being motivated by revenge (similar to Edmond Dantes) but changing his feelings to care when he is in Harry's presence - Harry as inspiration because of a harder path - The Jesus archetype  - How you view people from your past - The insufferability of being under the thumb of someone not worthy of you - Respecting children by negotiating with them - earning being right - Being an agent in your own life - The importance of educators treating kids well and maintaining a high level of work - The sadness of holding things against people they can't control - Parents and voters standing up against administrations and bureaucracies - Soul sucking vs. soul protecting - Acting well because you can't predict all the effects Additional Spoilers: Lost  31:20 You can listen to Alex more (and Luke and Billie) on the Nothing to Fear podcast linked here: https://anchor.fm/nothingtofear  

In this episode we conclude (for now) our thoughts on Hawkins, Indiana. We talk about Joyce, Hopper, Nancy, Jonathan, Steve and stuff about the show and 80s culture in general. We discuss being committed to your own eyes and ears, having the strength of your own opinion, being pulled by the truth over self-interest, the importance of being able to triage, and being able to see into the lives of people. Hope you enjoy! Here is the link to the Christopher Hitchens speech: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olefVguutfo Additional Spoilers: The Americans 6:45 Lost 1:15:03

We are back with our foray into Hawkins Indiana. We are starting with season one of the great nostalgic show! In this episode we talk about the kids of Hawkins (Will, Mike, Dustin, Lucas and Eleven) and all their travails. We talk about really listening when a person presents new information, being a young hero, the vitality of being a kid and not equivocating on ethical standards, the goofball facade, being a realist and nobly responding to the world after trauma. Hope you enjoy!

In this episode we dive into the second novel in the Harry Potter franchise: the nearly flawless Chamber of Secrets. In this episode we talk about initiating kindness, gossip, loneliness and betrayal, Enlightenment stuff, carrying on a vision, Harry's choice, rebirth, not being serious about reality, and intent vs. impact. Hope you enjoy this episode as much as we enjoyed reading this book. Additional Spoilers: True Detective 34:10

In this episode of Really True Fiction we talk about the 1951 Isaac Asimov novel Foundation. We discuss the Noble Lie vs. Noble Truth, Science as problem solving vs. ultimate truth, the tragic vs. utopian sense of life, and the importance of engaging with physical reality. We hope you enjoy! Additional Spoilers: The Social Network  23:50 The Matrix  28:18 Star Trek Beyond (major spoiler)  1:07:30 Watchmen  1:07:45 Breaking Bad Season 4 (major spoiler) Death of Stalin  1:29:50

Our first bonus! In this episode we discuss the South Park Pandemic Special (but really this is another meditation on the corona virus and the lockdown). This episode is also a first in RTF's attempt at remote recording (Luke was in Alberta and David was in Ontario). David was not at a location with a decent microphone, which is why you will hear a discrepancy in audio quality between our voices. However, we plan on rectifying that for the next actual episode, so fear not!

We begin the great journey! We have decided to do the Harry Potter books (though not all in a row). In this episode we talk about being born with fame and how that would make a person feel, the inability to let sarcasm go, the importance of naming things, the depression of incuriousity, the gross nature of superiorism, deeper truths, and how to organically be a team. Reading this book was a real treat and we are quite excited to do all of them. Additional Spoilers: Hysteria  1:00:10 1984  1:41:20 Crime And Punishment  1:45:15

In this episode we discuss the sequel to the 1982 classic. We talk about how, even though he is a replicant, K shows more subtle humanity than any other character in the movie. We also talk about the desire for relationship, Niander Wallace's desire to bring back slavery, Ryan Goslings acting, and the humans prejudice against the replicants (who are like them in basically ever manner).  Additional Spoilers: The Expanse  43:55

In this episode we dive into the 1982 Ridley Scott classic Blade Runner (based on the Philip K. Dyck novel Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?). We talk about the nature of personhood, the Turing Test, where we think Plato got things wrong, and what it means to treat another being as a person. This is one of our more philosophically heavy episodes; so be forewarned! Enjoy! Additional Spoilers: There are several spoilers for the movie Ex Machina and the show Westworld in this episode.