Podcasts about TAS

In this profound episode of the Reformed Brotherhood, Tony Arsenal and Jesse Schwamb delve deeply into the Parable of the Tares (Matthew 13:24-30), exploring its implications for Christian assurance. Building on their previous discussion, they examine how this parable speaks to the mixed nature of the visible church, the sovereignty of Christ over His kingdom, and most significantly, the doctrine of assurance. Through careful theological reflection, the hosts unpack how true believers can find solid ground for assurance not in their own works or fruit-checking, but in the promises of Christ and the testimony of the Holy Spirit. This episode offers both encouragement for those struggling with doubts and a sobering challenge to those resting in false assurance. Key Takeaways The Parable of the Tares teaches that the visible church will be mixed until the final judgment, containing both true believers (wheat) and false professors (tares) who may appear outwardly similar. True assurance is not based primarily on good works but on the promises of Christ, the inward testimony of the Holy Spirit, and the evidences of grace in our lives. False assurance is a real danger, as many who think they belong to Christ will discover at the final judgment that they never truly knew Him. The Westminster Confession of Faith (Chapter 18) provides a helpful framework for understanding biblical assurance as the proper possession of every Christian. Christ's role as the divine Master of the house (the world) and Lord of the angels is subtly yet powerfully affirmed in this parable, grounding our assurance in His sovereignty. Good works are the fruit of assurance, not its cause—when we are secure in our salvation, we are freed to serve Christ joyfully rather than anxiously trying to earn assurance. The final judgment will bring perfect clarity, revealing what was hidden and separating the wheat from the tares with divine precision that humans cannot achieve now. The Doctrine of Assurance: Reformed Understanding The Reformed tradition has always emphasized that believers can and should have assurance of their salvation—a conviction recovered during the Reformation in contrast to Rome's teaching. As Tony noted when reading from the Westminster Confession of Faith (Chapter 18), this assurance is "not a bare conjectural and probable persuasion grounded upon a fallible hope, but an infallible assurance of faith founded upon the divine truth of the promises of salvation." This assurance rests on three pillars: the promises of God in Scripture, the inward evidence of grace, and the testimony of the Holy Spirit witnessing with our spirit. What makes this understanding particularly comforting is that it shifts the foundation of assurance away from our performance to God's faithfulness. While self-examination has its place, the Reformed understanding recognizes that looking too intensely at our own hearts and works can lead either to despair or to false confidence. Instead, we're directed to look primarily to Christ and His finished work, finding in Him the anchor for our souls. The Problem of False Assurance One of the most sobering aspects of the Parable of the Tares is its implicit warning about false assurance. Just as the tares resemble wheat until maturity reveals their true nature, many professing Christians may outwardly appear to belong to Christ while inwardly remaining unregenerate. As Jesse observed, "The tares typically live under false assurance. They may attend church, confess belief, appear righteous, yet their hearts are unregenerate. Their faith is maybe historical, it's not saving, it could be intellectual, but it's not spiritual." This echoes Jesus' warning in Matthew 7 that many will say to Him, "Lord, Lord," but will hear the devastating response, "I never knew you." The parable teaches us that this self-deception is not always conscious hypocrisy but often the result of spiritual blindness. As Jesse noted, referencing Romans 1, Ephesians 4, and 1 Corinthians 2, the unregenerate are "not merely ignorant, they're blinded... to the spiritual truth by nature and by Satan." This understanding should prompt humble self-examination while simultaneously driving us to depend not on our own discernment but on Christ's perfect knowledge and saving work. Memorable Quotes "Assurance is the believer's arc where he sits Noah alike quiets and still in the midst of all distractions and destructions, commotions and confusions." - Thomas Brooks, quoted by Jesse Schwamb "When we are confessing, repenting, seeking like our status in Christ because of Christ, then we have confidence that we are in fact part of the children of God. When everything is stripped away from us and all we're crying out is only and completely and solely and unequivocally Jesus Christ, then I think we have great reason to understand that we should be confident in our assurance." - Jesse Schwamb "The sacrifice and the service that a husband performs for his wife, whom he loves and trusts and is committed to and knows that she's faithful and committed to him, that is not causing that faithfulness. It's not causing that trust and that love. It is the outcome and the outflow of it." - Tony Arsenal on how good works flow from assurance rather than cause it Resources Mentioned Scripture: Matthew 13:24-30, Matthew 7:21-23, Romans 1, Ephesians 4, 1 Corinthians 2, 2 Timothy 3:5 Westminster Confession of Faith: Chapter 18 "Of Assurance of Grace and Salvation" Thomas Brooks: "Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices" YouTube Channel: My Wild Backyard Khan Academy: Educational resource recommended during "Affirmations and Denials" segment Full Transcript Jesse Schwamb: Welcome to episode 466 of the Reform the Brotherhood. I'm Jesse. Tony Arsenal: And I'm Tony. And this is the podcast with ears to hear. Hey brother. Jesse Schwamb: Hey brother. We're going back to the farm again. Can't stop. Won't stop. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. I'm stoked. [00:01:02] Discussion on the Parable of the Tears Tony Arsenal: The last week's discussion was interesting and I think, um, it's gonna be nice to sort of round it out and talk about some things you might not think about, uh, when you first read this parable. So I'm, I'm pretty excited. Jesse Schwamb: Oh, what a tease that is. So if you're wondering what Tony's talking about, we're hanging out. In Matthew 13, we are just really enjoying these teachings of Jesus. And they are shocking and they're challenging, and they're encouraging, and they're awesome, of course. And so we're gonna be finishing out the Parable of the Tears and you need to go back and listen to the previous conversation. This, this is all set up because we have some unfinished business. We didn't talk about the eschatological implications. We have this really big this, this matza ball hanging over us. So to speak, which was the, do the TAs in this parable even know that they are tarry, that they are the TAs? And so in this parable, the disciples learn that the kingdom itself, God's kingdom, the kingdom that Jesus is enumerating and explaining and bringing into being, they are learning that it's gonna be mixed in character. So that's correcting this expectation that the kingdom would be perfectly pure and would have, would evolve righteous rule over all of the unrighteous world. And so it's a little bit shocking that Jesus says, listen, they're gonna be. Tears within the wheats that is in the world, the seed that God himself, the sun has planted and that they're gonna exist side by side for a long time. And so we, they have to wait patiently and give ourselves to building up the wheats as the sons of the kingdom and be careful in their judgment, not to harm those who are believers. We covered a lot of that last week, but left so much unsaid we couldn't even fit it in. This is gonna be jam packed, so I'm gonna stop giving the tees instead start moving us into affirmations and denials. [00:02:45] Affirmations and Denials Jesse Schwamb: It's of course that time in our conversation where we either affirm with something really like or we think is undervalued or we deny against something that we don't really like or is a little overvalued. So as I usually say to you, Tony, what have you got for us? [00:03:00] YouTube Channel Recommendation: My Wild Backyard Tony Arsenal: I am affirming a YouTube channel. Um, I, I think the algorithm goes through these cycles where it wants me to learn about bugs and things because I get Okay, like videos about bugs. And so I'm, I'm interested. There's been this, uh, channel that's been coming up on my algorithm lately called My Wild Backyard, and it, it's a guy, he's like an entomologist. He seems like a, a like a legit academic, but what he does is he basically goes through and he talks about different bugs, creepy crawlies, looks at like snakes, all that kinds of stuff. It seems like his wheelhouse is the stuff that can kill you or hurt you pretty bad. Nice. But, um, it's interesting and it's. It's good educational content. It's, you know, it's not sensationalized, it's not, uh, it's not dramatized. Um, it's very real. There's occasionally an instance where he, he's not, sometimes he will intentionally get bit or stung by an, uh, by an animal to show you what it does. So he can experience and explain what he's experiencing. And sometimes he just accidentally gets bit or stung. And so those are some of the most interesting ones. So like, for example, just looking at his, his channel, his most recent, um, his most recent video is called The most venomous Desert Creatures in the US ranked the one previous was. The world's most terrifying arachni isn't a spider. And then previous to that was what happens if a giant centipede bites you? So it's interesting stuff. If you are one of those people that likes bugs and likes creepy crawlies and things, um, this is definitely the channel for you if you're not one of those people. I actually think this probably is the channel for you too. 'cause it kind of demystifies a lot of this stuff. Um. You know, for example, he, he will commonly point out that, um, spiders don't wanna bite you and they just wanna leave you alone. And, and as long as you leave them alone, even, even something like a black widow, which people are terrified of, and I think, right, rightfully so. I mean, they can be scary. Those can be scary bites. He'll, he'll handle those, no problem. And as long as he's not like putting downward pressure on them, uh, they have no interest in biting, they really just want to get away. So even seeing that kind of stuff, I think can help demystify and, and sort of, uh, make it a little bit easier. So my Wild Backyard, he can find it on YouTube. Um, he's safe for kids. He's not, he's not cussing even. I mean, I think occasionally when he gets bit on accident, you might, you know, you might have a beep here or there, but, um, he's not, he's not regularly swearing or things like that. And he does a pretty good job of adding that stuff out. Jesse Schwamb: What a great title for that, isn't it? This, yeah. Confluence of your backyard. That space that seems domesticated is also stealing its own. Right. Wild. And there's a be Yeah. Both those things coming together. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. It, it's interesting stuff and it's really good. I mean, it's really compelling videography. He does a good job of taking good photos. You'll see insects that you usually won't see, or spiders you usually won't see. Um, so yeah, it's cool. Check it out. [00:05:51] Discussion on Spiders and Creepy Crawlies Jesse Schwamb: What are you, uh, yeah, I myself would like to become more comfortable with the arachni variety. If only be, I mean, I don't know. It's, it's a weird creature, so my instinct is to be like, kill them all. And then if I can't find them and I know they're around, then we just burn everything that we own. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Jesse Schwamb: They just can't sink into the ground fast enough. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. There's something about the way they move, like their, their bodies don't move the way you would anticipate them to. Right. And it freaks, it just weirds out human sensibilities, so. Right. Jesse Schwamb: They're also like, I find them to be very surprising. Often. It's not kind of a, a very like, kind of measured welcome into your life. It's like you just go to get in the shower and there's a giant spider. Yeah. Oh yeah. Although I guess that spider, he's, he or she's probably like, whoa, where'd you come from? You know, like, yeah. He's like, I was just taking a Tony Arsenal: shower. You know what's interesting? Um, I saw another video was on a different channel, um, like common jumping spiders. Yeah. Which there are like hundreds of species of common jumping spiders. Jesse Schwamb: True. Tony Arsenal: Um, but spiders and jumping spiders specifically, actually you can form almost like a pet bond with, so like the, that jumping spider that like lives in your house and sees you every day. He, he probably knows who you are and is like, comfortable with you. And they've done studies that like you can actually domesticate jumping spiders, so they're not as foreign and alien as you might think. Although they certainly do look a little bit strange and weird. And the way their bodies move is almost designed to weird out people like it just the skinness, like the way their legs skitter and move it, it just is, it's, it triggers something very primal in us to That's wild. Be weirded out by it. Yeah. Jesse Schwamb: It's wild. I love it. That's a good, a affirmation. I'm definitely gonna check that out. I, any, anything? I really want to know what the, what like the terrifying arachni is. That's not a spider. Tony Arsenal: It's a, well, it's called a camel spider, but it's not really a spider. Oh, Jesse Schwamb: I know what you're talking about. That is kind of terrifying. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. They, they actually don't have any venom. Um, yeah. Check out the video. I mean, it, it was a good video. Um, but yeah, they're freaky looking and, um, but even that, like he was handling it No problem. Yeah. Like it wasn't, it wasn't aggressive with him once Wow. Once it figured out it wasn't, he wasn't trying to hurt him and, and that it couldn't eat him. Um, it, it just sort of like hung out until he let it go. So Jesse Schwamb: yeah, just be careful if you watch it one before bed or while in bed. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Probably not right before bed. Yeah. You'll, you'll get the creepy crawlies all night. Jesse Schwamb: I love it. But there's something somewhat. Like invigorating about that isn't there? Like it's, it's kind of a natural, just like kind of holy respect for the world that God has created, that they're these features that are so different, so wild, so interesting and a little bit frightening, but in the sense that we just draw off from them because they're so different than what we are. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Jesse Schwamb: And you know, again, there's places you would be happy to see them, but maybe your bathtub or like shooting out, like, you know, like where you live, the jumping spiders are legit and they will just pop out on you, you know? Yeah. You're just doing your own thing and then all of a sudden they're popping out. I think part of that is just that what, what gets me is like them just, you know, like I remember in my basement here, once one popped out from a rafter and then I was holding, happened to be holding up broom. My instinct just naturally was to hit it. I hit it with the broom and it went across the room and fell on an empty box and sounded like a silver dollar had hit the box. Like it was just a massive, I mean, again, like, it's like fish stories, like it's a massive spider. It was a big spider. Yeah. But you just don't expect to, to see that kind of thing. Or maybe, maybe I should, but anything that moves in that way, and again, like centipedes, man, forget it. We have those too, like in our basement. Like the long ones. Oh yeah. Yeah. That thing will come like squiggling down the wall at you, like eye level and you just wanna run up the stairs screaming like a little girl. Tony Arsenal: Yeah, you do run up the stairs screaming like a little girl. It's not that you want to, it's that usually you do. I don't mean like you specifically, although probably you specifically. Yeah. Oh yeah. Oh yeah. There's, yeah, you just react. Well, j Jesse enough freaking out. I mean, we're getting close to Halloween, so I suppose it's appropriate, but, uh, enough of that. What are you affirming or denying today? Jesse Schwamb: Once again, without like any coordination, mine is not unlike yours. I know you and I, we talk about the world in which we live, which God has created, and this lovely command, this ammunition to take dominion over that. And one of the things I appreciate about our conversations is I think you and I often have maybe not like a novel. Kinda perspective on that, but one that I don't hear talked about often and that is this idea of taking dominion over what it is possible to know and to appropriate, and then to apply onto wisdom. [00:10:27] Affirmation: Khan Academy Jesse Schwamb: And so my information is in that realm. It's another form of taking ownership of what's in the wild of knowledge that you can possess. And again, equal parts. What an amazing time to be alive. So I'm affirming with the website, Khan Academy, which I'm sure many are familiar with. And this website offers like. Thousands of hours. Uh, and materials of free instructional videos, practice exercises, quizzes, all these like really bespoke, personalized learning modules you can create for topics like math, science, computing, economics, history, art. I think it goes like even starting at like. Elementary age all the way up into like early college can help you study for things like the SAT, the LSAT AP courses, and I was revisiting it. I have an open account with them that I keep in love and I go back to it from time to time. And I was working on some stuff where I wanted to rehearse some knowledge in like the calculus space, do some things by hand, which I haven't done. And I was just like, I'm blown away at how good this stuff is. And it's all for free. I mean, you should donate if you. You get something from this because it's a nonprofit, but the fact that there are these amazing instructional videos out there that can help us get a better understanding of either things we already know and we can rehearse the knowledge or to learn something brand new essentially for free. But somebody's done all the hard work to curate a pedagogy for you. Honestly, this is incredible. So if you haven't looked at that website in a long time or maybe ever, and you might be thinking, what, what do I really wanna learn? Lemme tell you. There's a lot of interesting stuff there and it's so approachable and it's such a good website for teaching. And if you have children in particular, even if you're looking for help, either helping them with their own coursework or maybe to have like kind of a tutor on the side, this is so good. So I can't say enough good things recently about Khan Academy 'cause it's been so helpful to me and super fun to like just sit and have your own paced study and in the private and comfort of your own home or your desk at work or wherever it is that you need to learn it. To be able to have somebody teach you some things, to do a little practice exercises, and then to go on to the world and to apply the things you've learned. Ah, it's so good. Tony Arsenal: Nice. Yeah, I've, I've never done anything with Khan Academy. I'll have to check it out. There's, um, there's some skills of needing to brush up on, uh, at work that I am probably not gonna be able to find in my normal channels, so I'll have to see if there is anything going on there. Um, but yeah, that's, that's good stuff. And it's free. Love freestyle. It's, and of course, like Jesse Schwamb: things like this are legion. So whatever it is, whatever your discipline or your field of study or work is, there's probably something out there and, uh, might, I humbly maybe encourage you to, if you use something like that and it's funded by donations, it's worth giving, I think, because again, it's just an amazing opportunity to take dominion over the knowledge that God has placed into the world and then to use it for something. I mean, I suppose even if all it is is you just wanna learn more about, like for me, I, I find like the subjects of, of math and science, like just endlessly fascinating and like the computing section I was looking at, I, I don't know much about like programming per se, but there is such a beauty. Like these underlying principles, like the, the organization of the world and the first level principles of like physics for instance, are just like baffling in the most glorious kind of way. How they all come together. So having somebody like teach you at a very like simplistic level, but allow you to grasp those concepts makes you just appreciate it leads me to doxology a lot when I see these things. So in a weird way, it ends up becoming maybe not a weird way and the right way. It becomes worship as often as I'm sitting at my desk and working through like a practice problem on like, you know, partial differential equation or, or derivatives is what I was working on today. And ah, it's just so good. I don't know, maybe I'm the only one. I, it's not be super nerdy, but you, are you ever like at your desk studying something? And it might not be like theological per se, but you just have a moment where you're overcome with some kind of worship. Do you know what I'm talking about? Tony Arsenal: Yeah, I, um, this we're the nerdiest people on the planet, but let's Jesse Schwamb: do it. Um, Tony Arsenal: when I find a really fun, interesting. Uh, Excel formula and I can get it to work right. Uh, and it, and then it just like everything unlocks. Like, I feel like I've unlocked all the knowledge in the universe. Um, but yeah, I hear you like the, the Excel thing is, is interesting to me because, like, math is just the description. Like it's just the fabric of reality is just the way we describe reality. But the fact that we can do basically just take math and do all these amazing things with it, uh, in a spreadsheet is really, uh, drives me to praise. Like I said, that's super nerdy, but it is. Oh, you're speaking my language. Jesse Schwamb: I, we have never understood each other better than just this moment right now. We, we had some real talk and, uh, a real moment. Tony Arsenal: Yes. Welcome to the Reformed math cast. Jesse Schwamb: We're so glad that you're here. Tony Arsenal: Yes. We're not gonna do any one plus one plus one equals one kinds of heretical math in, up in here. Jesse Schwamb: No. Tony Arsenal: Well, Jesse, I have a feeling that, excuse me. Wow. Jesse Schwamb: We don't edit anything out. Listen, I'm choked up too. It's it, listen, love ones just so emotional. The moment Tony and I are having it. We're gonna try our best right now to pivot to go into this text, but it's, it's tough because we were just really having something, something special. You got, you got to see there. But thank you for trying to Tony Arsenal: cover for me for that big cough. Jesse Schwamb: This is like presuppositional editing. You know, we don't actually do anything in post. It's not ex anti editing. It's, it's literally presuppositional. [00:15:52] Theological Discussion on Assurance Jesse Schwamb: But to that end, we are in Matthew 13. This is the main course. This is the reason why we're here. There's lots of reasons to worship, and one of them is to come before and admire and love our God who has given us his specific revelation and this incredible teaching of his son. And that's why we're hanging out in Matthew 13. So let me read, because we have just a couple of really sentences here, this really short parable and that way it'll catch us up and then we can just launch right back into we're, we're basically like, we're already in the rocket. Like we're in the stratosphere. We're, we're taking it all the way now. So this is Matthew chapter 13. Come hang out here. It's in the 24th verse. And this is what we find written for us. This is the word of the Lord. He put another parable before them saying. The Kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the weeds and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also, and the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds? He said to them, an enemy has done this. So the servant said to him, then, do you want us to go and gather them? But he said, no less than gathering the weeds, you root up the weed along with them. Let both grow until the harvest. And at harvest time, I will tell the reapers, gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but to gather the wheat into my barn. Tony Arsenal: That's good stuff. That's good stuff. Um, you know, we, we covered most of. I don't know, what do you wanna call it? The first order reading of the parable last week. Jesse Schwamb: Right. Tony Arsenal: On one level, the parable, uh, as Christ explains it, uh, a little bit down further in the chapter is extremely straightforward. It's almost out, it's almost an allegory. Each, each element of the parable has a, a, a figure that it's representing. And the main purpose of the story is that the world and specifically the church, um, is going to be a mixed body until the last days, until the end of time. And so there's, there's the Sons of God or the Sons of the Kingdom, uh, and then there's the sons of the evil one. And we talked a lot about how. These two figures in the parable, the, the, the weeds or the tears? Um, tears is a better word because it's a specific kind of, uh, specific kind of weed that looks very much like wheat at its immature stages. Right. And you can't actually discern the difference readily, uh, until the weed and the wheat has grown up next to each other. Um, and so, so part of the parable is that. The, the sons of the kingdom and the sons of the enemy, or the sons of the evil one, they don't look all that different in their early stages. And it's not until the sort of end culmination of their lives and the end culmination of things that they're able to be discerned and then therefore, um, the, the sons of the devil are, are reaped and they go off to their eternal judgment and the sons of the kingdom are, uh, are harvested and they go off to their eternal reward. What we wanted to talk about, and part of the reason that we split this into two episodes. Is that we sort of found ourselves spiraling or spiraling around a question about, uh, sort of about assurance, right? And false assurance, true assurance. And there is an eschatological element to this parable that I, I think we probably should at least touch on as we we go through it. Um, but I wanted to just read, um, it's been a little while since we've read the Westminster Confession on the show. So I wanted to read a little bit from the Westminster Confession. Um, this is from chapter 18, which is called of assurance of grace and salvation. This is sort of the answer to Jesse's question. Do the, do the tears know their tears or, or could they possibly think that their wheat? So this is, uh, section one of chapter eight. It says, although hypocrites and other unregenerate men may vainly deceive themselves with false hopes and carnal presuppositions or presumptions of being in favor with God in the state of salvation. Which hope of their shall perish yet such as truly believe in the Lord Jesus and love him in sincerity, endeavoring to walk in all good conscience before him may in this life be certainly assured that they are in a state of grace and may rejoice in the hope of the glory of God, which hope shall never make them ashamed. And so we, in the reform tradition at least, which is where we find ourselves in the reform tradition, um, we would affirm that people can. Deceive themselves into believing that they're in proper relation with God. Jesse Schwamb: Right? Tony Arsenal: And so it's not the case that, uh, that the weeds always know they're weeds or think they're weeds. It's not even the case. And this was part of the parable. It's not even the case that the weeds can be easily distinguished even by themselves from, uh, from the weeds. So there is this call, uh, and this is a biblical call. There's a call to seek out assurance and to lay claim to it. That I think is, is worth talking about. But it's not as straightforward as simple proposition as like, yeah, I'm confident. Like it's not just like, right, it's not just mustering up confidence. There's more to it than that. So that's what I wanted to start with, with this parable is just maybe talking through that assurance. 'cause I, I would hate for us to go through this parable. And sort of leave people with maybe you're a weed and you don't know it. 'cause that's not right. That's not the biblical picture of assurance. Um, that's the, that's the Roman Catholic picture of assurance that like, yeah, there's no such thing as assurance and people might not realize, but assurance of salvation is actually one of the, one of the primary things that was recovered particularly by the Reformed in the Reformation. Um, and so I think we, we often sort of overlook it as maybe a secondary thing. Um, but it really is a significant doctrine, a significant feature of reformed theology. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. I'm glad you said that because it is a, is a clear reminder. It's a clearing call as the performers put forth that it is. Under like the purview of the Christian to be able to claim the assurance by the blood of Christ in the application of the Holy Spirit in a way that's like fully orbed and fully stopped. So you can contrast that with, and really what was coming outta Catholicism or Rome at the time. And I was just speaking with a dear brother this past week who. Grew up in the Catholic church and he was recounting how his entire religious experience, even his entire relationship, if we can call it that in a kind of colloquial sense with God, was built around this sense of deep-seated guilt and lack of true performance, such that like assurance always seemed like this really vague concept that was never really fully manifested in anything that he did. Even while the church was saying, if you do these things, if you perform this way, if you ensure that you're taking care of your immortal sins and that you're seeking confession for all the venial stuff as well, that somehow you'll be made right, or sufficiently right. But if not, don't worry about it. There's always purgatory, but there'd be some earning that you'd have to accomplish there. Everywhere along the way. He just felt beaten down. So contrasting that with what we have here. I don't believe, as you're saying, Tony, that's Jesus' intention here to somehow beat up the sheep. I, I think it is, to correct something of what's being said about the world in which we live, but it's at the same time to say that there are some that are the TAs is to say there are some that are the children of God, right? That there are some that are fully crisply, clearly identified and securely resting in that identity without any kind of nervous or anxious energy that it might fall out of that state with God that, that in fact their identity is secure. And as I've been thinking about this this week, I, I'm totally with you because I think part of this just falls, the warning here is there's a little bit of the adventures in Romans one here that's waiting for us, that I like what you said about this idea of, of self deception and maybe like a. Subpart to this question would be, are the, are the terrors always nefarious in their lack of understanding? So we might say there's some that are purposely disruptive, that the enemy himself is, is promulgating or trying to bring forward his destruction, his chaos by way of these tears. But are, are there even a subgroup or another group, uh, co-terminus group or, you know, one in the same hierarchy where there's just a lot of self deception? I, I think that's probably where I fall in terms of just trying to explain that. Yes, I think it was present here is a real quantity, a real identity where they're self-deceived. Imagining themselves to be part of God's people, yet lacking that true saving faith. And this just, I'm gonna go in a couple places where I think everybody would expect in the scriptures, if we go to like Ephesians four, they're darkened and they're understanding alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them. And one Corinthians, when Paul writes, the natural person does not accept the things of the spirit of God, and he's not able to understand them because they're spiritually discerned. And then the book that follows the God of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers. And of course then like everything in Romans one, so I bring all that up because E, even at the end, we're gonna get there, the Es, this eschatological reality when you know God is separating out the sheep and the goats. Still, we find this kind of same trope happening there. But the unregenerate, what I'm reading from this. Importantly is that the unregenerate, they're not merely ignorant, they're blinded, as we all were on point to the spiritual truth. Yeah. By nature and by Satan. That that is also his jam. He loves to blind, to lie, to kill, steal, and destroy. So thus, even if they're outwardly belonging to the church, they're outwardly belonging to the world. They're outwardly belonging to some kind of profession. They cannot perceive the reality of their lost condition apart from divine illumination. Who can, that might be stating the obvious, but I think that's like what we're getting after here. I I, I don't know if there's like any kind of like conspiracy here. It's simply that that is the natural state of affairs. So why wouldn't we expect that to be reflected again in the world and that side by side, we're gonna find that shoulder to shoulder. We are, there are the children of God, and there are those that remain blind and ignorant to the truth. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. And, and you know, it, again, I, I, um, I don't know why I'm surprised. Uh, I certainly shouldn't be surprised. Um. But Matthew is like a masterful storyteller Yeah. Here, right. He's a masterful, um, editor and narrator. Um, and he's, he's put together here, of course, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Um, and, and there's some good reason to think in the text we're not gonna get too, in the nitty gritty here, there's some good reason to think in the text that Christ actually delivered these parables as a set as well. So it's not just, it's not just Matthew coating these, although it could be. Um, but it, it seems like these were all delivered probably as like a common set of parables. And the reason I say that is because when we start to look at this parable and the one we previously went through, the parable of the soils, um, or the parable of the sower. Um, what we see is the answer to your question of why do some people, you know, why are some people deceived? Well, yes, there is secondary causation. The devil deceives them. They blind themselves. They, you know, suppress the, the, the truth and right unrighteousness. But on a, on a primary causation level, um, God is the one who is identi, is, is identifying who will be the sons of the, you know, devil and the sons of the kingdom. Mm-hmm. This is another, and yet another example of election is that the, the good sower sowed good seed, and the good seed was the elect and the enemy. Although in God's sovereignty, God is the one who determines this. The enemy is the one who sows the reprobate. Right? So all, all men. Star, and this is, I, I guess I didn't really intend to go here, but this is good evidence in my mind for, um, infra laps, Arianism versus super laps. Arianism, right infra laps, arianism or sub lapse. Arianism would say that God decrees, uh, to permit the fall and then he decrees to redeem some out of the fall, right? Logically speaking, not temporally speaking. Super laps. Arianism, which is the minority. It's the smaller portion of, of the historic tradition, although modern times, I think it's a little bit louder and a little bit more vocal, but super relapses. Arianism would argue that God, um, decrees. Sort of the, the decree of election and reprobation is logically prior to the decree of the fall. And so in, in that former or in the super laps area model, the fall becomes a means by which the reprobate are justly condemned. Not, um, not the cause of their condemnation, but a way to sort of justify the fact that they will be separated from God, right? Because of their reprobate. [00:28:36] Exploring the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares Tony Arsenal: I know that there's, there's probably some super lab streams that would nuance that differently and some that are probably just screaming straw man, uh, in a coffee shop somewhere and, and people are thinking you're crazy. Um, but by and large, that's actually a rel, a relatively accepted, um, explanation of it. There are certainly potential problems with, uh, sub, sub lapse agonism as well. But in this, in this parable, what we see is the people who are, um, who are elect, are sowed into the field and the people who are reprobate are also sowed into the field. And so God saves the people who are sewed into the field that are, they elect, he saves them out of this now mixed world by waiting and allowing them to grow up next to the reprobate, um, in sort of this mixed world setting. And then he redeems them out of that. Um, and, and, and so we have to sort of remember. Although it is a pretty strict, sort of allegorical type of parable, it's still a parable. So we shouldn't, we shouldn't always draw like direct one-to-one comparisons here. It's making a theological point, but, um, but it's important for us to re remember that, that it is ultimately, it is God who determines who is the elected and who is not. But it's, it's our sin. It's the devil deceiving us. It's the secondary causes that are responsible for the sons of the devil, right? It, the, the men come to the, to the sower and say, who is done this? He says it was an enemy. Jesse Schwamb: Right? Right. Tony Arsenal: He doesn't say like, well, actually I put the seed there and so, you know, I'm, I, it's not an equal distribution. He's not sowing good seed and bad seed. He sows the good seed and the devil sows the bad seed. [00:30:24] Theological Implications and Assurance Tony Arsenal: Um, and, and that's a, I think that's an important theological point to make. And as far as assurance goes. We, we can't depend on our ability to perceive or sort of like discern election in a raw sense, right? We have to observe certain kinds of realities around us. Um, and, and primarily we have to depend on the mercy and, and saving faith that God gives us. That's right. Um, you know, our, our assurance of faith does not primarily come from fruit checking. Um, we have to do that. It's important, we're commanded to do it, and it serves as an important secondary evidence. But a, a, a person who wants to find assurance. Of salvation should first and foremost look to the promises of Christ and then depend on them. Um, and, and so that's, I think all of that's kind of wrapped up into this parable. It's, it's, it's amazing to me that we're only like two parables in, and we're already, you know, we're already talking about super lapse arianism and sub lapse arianism, and it's, it's amazing. I, I love this. I'm loving this series so far, and we're barely scratching the surface. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, it's all there. I think you're right to call that out. It strikes me, like, as you were speaking, it really just hit me higher that I think you're right. Really the foundation on this, like the hidden foundation is assurance and it's that assurance which splits the groups, or at least divides them, or it gives us, again, like the distinct, kind, discrete compartments or components of each of them. So. Again, I think it's help saying, 'cause we wanna be encouraging. That's, that's our whole point here is when the Apostle Peter says, be all the more diligent to make certain about his calling and choosing of you. That herein we have the scripture saying to us, time and time again, be sure of what God has done in your life. Be confident in that very thing. And so if assurance is, as we're saying, that's the argument hypothesis we're making. That's the critical thing here. [00:32:11] False Assurance and True Faith Jesse Schwamb: Then the division between the children of God and the children of the devil is false versus true assurance. So the tears, I think what we're saying here, basically they typically live under false asserts. They may attend church, confess, belief, appear righteous, yet their hearts are unregenerate. Their faith is maybe historical. It's not saving, it could be intellectual, but it's not spiritual. And of course, like just a few chapters before this, we hope those famous verses where Jesus himself drops the bomb and says, listen, many of you, he's talking to the people, the, the disciples around him, the crowds that we're gathering and thronging all about. He says, many of you're gonna say to me, Lord, Lord, do we not prophesy your name? Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Jesse Schwamb: And then I will declare to them, I never knew you depart from me. These are not people who knew they were false, they thought they belonged to Christ. Their shock on judgment day is gonna reveal this profound self-deception. And that self-deception is wrapped up in a false type of assurance, a false righteousness. So I think one of the things that we can really come to terms with and grab a hold of is the fact that when we are. Confessing, repenting seeking like our status in Christ because of Christ. Then we have confidence that we are in fact part of the children of God. When everything is stripped away from us and all we're crying out is only and completely and solely and unequivocally, Jesus Christ, then I think we have great reason to understand that we should be confident in our assurance. [00:33:38] Historical Perspectives on Assurance Jesse Schwamb: You know, I was reading this week from Thomas Brooks and did incidentally come across this, a quote, an assurance and reminded me of this passage, and here's what he writes. You know, of course he's writing in like 16 hundreds, like mid 16 hundreds. It's wild, of course, but we shouldn't be surprised that what you're about to hear sounds like it could have been written today for us. In this conversation, but, uh, he writes, assurance is the believer's arc where he sits Noah alike quiets and still in the midst of all distractions and destructions, commotions and confusions. However, most Christians live between fears and hopes and hang, as it were, between heaven and hell. Sometimes they hope that their state is good. At other times they fear that their state is bad. Now they hope that all is well and that it shall go well. Well with them forever. Then they fear that they shall perish by the hand of such corruption or by the prevalency of such and such temptation. They're like a ship and a storm tossed here and there, and. I think that he's right about that. And I think the challenge there is to get away from that. I love where it starts, where he says, what wonderful turn of phrase assurance is the believer's arc or Noah, like, you know, we're sitting and the commotion, the destructions, the commotion, the confusions of all the world. That's why to get this right, to be encouraged by this passage, to be challenged by it is so critical because we're all looking for that arc. We all want to know that God has in fact arrested us so completely that no matter what befalls us, that everything, as we talked about before, all of our, all of the world, in fact is subservient to our salvation. But that's a real thing that cannot be snatched away from us because God has ordained it and intended it, built it, created it, and brought it to pass. And so I think that's all like in this passage, it's all the thing that's being called us to. So. I, I don't want us to get like too hung up. It's a good question, I think to ask and answer like we were trying to talk about here, but you're right. If we focus too much just on the like, let's gaff for these tears. Who are they? Like let's people's, like Readers Digest in People's magazine these tears. Like who are they? Do we have a list of them? Who do we think they are? How could it be me? Is it really me? Am I, am I anxious about that? Really what we should be saying is following what Peter calls us to do that is to be all the more diligent to make certain about his calling and his choosing. So even there like our emphasis and focus, isn't it like you're saying Tony about like, let me do some fruit inventory. I got like a lot of good bananas. I got a lot of ripe pears. Like, look at the tree. This, this is good. Even there, the emphasis is to turn our eyes on Jesus, as it were, and to make certain about his work, his calling and his choosing of us. And I think when we do that, we're falling down in worship and in yielding and submission to him, rightfully acknowledging that the righteousness of Christ is the one that is always in every way alien to us and imputed. And that is what makes us sons and daughters of God, that good seed sown by Jesus himself. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. I just wanna read, I wanna um, round out a few more paragraphs here out of the Westminster confession because I do think, you know, when we even talk about assurance, we're not even always all saying the exact same thing. And I think that's important because when we talk about assurance of faith, we need to be understanding that this is the rightful, not only the rightful possession of all Christians, but it's the rightful responsibility of all Christians to seek it. So here's, here's section two of that same chapter. It says, this certainty referring to assurance. This certainty is not a bare conjectural and probable persuasion grounded upon a, a fallible hope, but an infallible assurance of faith founded upon the divine truth of the promises of salvation, the inward evidence of those graces unto which these promises are made, the testimony of the spirit of adoption, witnessing with our hearts that we are the children of God, which spirit is the earnest of our inheritance, whereby we are sealed to the day of redemption. So. One of the, the things that I think is, is important here is people read this and say the inward evidences of those graces unto which these promises are made. They read that and they think that it's referring to like good work and like spiritual renewal, but it's, it's not, it's the inward evidence of those graces unto which of the promises are made. So it's this inner, inner renewal. It's the spirit testifying to our spirit. And then, um, chapter, uh, section three here, it says. This infallible assurance doth not so belong to the essence of faith, but that a true believer may wait long and conflict with many difficulties before he be partaker of it, yet being enabled by the Spirit to know the things which are freely given of God. He may without extraordinary revelation there, right there is response to Roman Catholicism in the right use of ordinary means at attain there unto. And therefore, it is the duty of everyone to give all diligence, to make his calling and election. Sure. And thereby his heart may be enlarged in peace and in joy in the Holy Ghost, in love and thankfulness to God and in strength and cheerfulness in the duties of obedience. The proper fruits of this assurance so far is it from inclining men to looseness? Right. [00:38:53] The Role of Good Works in Assurance Tony Arsenal: So we often hear and and I, I think there are good, um, there are good reformed Christians that put. The emphasis of assurance on, or they, they put an overemphasis, in my opinion, on how good works function within our assurance. Right. They, they often will ask us to look to our good fruit as sort of, not the grounding, but as a strong evidence. But at least in terms of the confession here, the cheerfulness in the duties of obedience is the fruit of assurance. Jesse Schwamb: That's right. Not Tony Arsenal: the cause or grounding of assurance. So rather than, this is what this last line says. It says so far, is it from inclining? Mental looseness assurance should drive us to obedience and fruitfulness in Christ. And so yes, it is in a certain sense an evidence because if that fruitfulness and obedience is absent from our lives, there's a good reason for us to question whether this infallible assurance is present in our lives. But the assurance is what drives us to this obedience. Um. You know, like, I think you could use the analogy of like a married couple. A married couple who is very secure in their relationship and in their, uh, love for one another and their faithfulness to each other is more likely to cheerfully serve and submit to each other and to respect each other and to sacrifice for each other than a couple that's maybe not so sure that the other person has their best interest in mind. That's or maybe isn't so sure that this thing is gonna work out. I think that's the same thing, like the sacrifice and the service that a husband, uh, performs for his wife, whom he loves and trusts and is committed to and knows that she's faithful and committed to him. That is not causing that faithfulness. It's not causing that trust and that love. It is the outcome and the outflow of it. It's good evidence that that love exists, but it's not caused by it. And assurance here is the same kind of dynamic assurance is not. We can't assure ourselves of our salvation by doing good works. No matter how many good works you do, there are lots and lots of people who are not saved and who will not be saved, who do perfectly good works in appearance. Right. They have the, the outward appearance of godliness, but lack its power. Right, right. Out of right outta Paul, writing to Timothy there. Yes. So that's, that's important for us as we continue to parse all this out, is yes, the fruit is present. Yes. The wheat is to, is discernible from the tears by its final, fruitful status. Right? It grows up to be grain, which is fruitful rather than weeds and tears, which are only good to be burned, but it is not the fruit that causes it to be wheat. It's wheat that causes the fruit to grow. If, if it wasn't wheat, it wouldn't grow fruit, not because the fruit makes it grain, but because it is in fact wheat to start with. Jesse Schwamb: Right. Yeah, that's right on. So I think like by summation we're kind of saying. At least the answer to this question. You know, do the tears know that they're tears? Yes and no. Some do, some don't. I think, yes, there are some that are gonna be consciously hypocritical, willfully rejecting Christ while pretending for worldly gain. I think that's, that's certainly plain to see. And at the same time, do the tears know the tears? Sometimes? No. There's self deceived under spiritual blindness and they have some kind of false assurance. And this idea of, again, coming in repentance before God and seeking humbly to submit to him is I think one of those signs of that kind of true assurance, not a false assurance. And you already stole where I was thinking of Tony by going to Second Timothy again. Thomas Brooks in precious remedies against Saint's device is one of like the best. Books ever. I know that he's really outspoken. He loves to harp on the fact that one of Satan's most effective snares is to make men and women content with a form of godliness without its power. Yeah. And that's often what we're talking about here, I think, is that Satan loves to fish in the shallow waters a profession. And really that can happen in any kind of church or religious culture, that there is this shallowness where that loves religious appearance, prayer, knowledge fellowship, but not the Christ behind them. And so whether we're looking to somebody like Brooks or Jonathan Edwards and we're trying to parse out what are our true affections, not in a way again, that somehow leans well, I feel enough, then somehow that justifies, not inwardly, but again, definitely trying to understand our conviction for conversion tears. For repentance that. Really what we're after is not like just the blessings of Christ, but Christ himself, which I think really leads us to this eschatological perspective then to round all everything out because you know, we talked about before, there's an old phrase, it's like everywhere. A lot of people talk in heaven. Not everybody's going there. And so this idea of like, people will talk about be so great to be there and it's sometimes this, the heaven that they speak of is like absent Christ, you know, as if like, if Christ wasn't there, at least in their perspective, it still wouldn't be half bad. And so I think that does lead us to understand what is this in gathering? What is this? You know, bringing everything into the barn and burning everything else up. And like you just said, if at the beginning you cannot tell the injurious weed aside from that beautiful kernel of wheat that's coming up, but if in the end you can see what's happening in the end, then that brings us all to consummation. What does it mean in this parable? Tony Arsenal: Yeah. [00:44:19] Eschatological Judgment and Assurance Tony Arsenal: And, and I think this actually sort of forces us to grapple a little bit with, with another sort of persnickety feature of this parable that, that I think, I think personally sometimes gets overlooked is we are very quick to talk about this parable to be about the church. And it is. Right. And, and there's reasons to talk like that. But when Christ explains the parable, he doesn't say the field is the church. He says the field is the world. Right. And so we have to, we have to, we have to do a little bit of, um. We have to do a little bit of hermeneutics to understand that this is also speaking of the church, right? It's not as though the church is some hermetically sealed off body that the dynamics of the world and the, the weed and the tears like that, that doesn't happen in the church. But when we talk about the end of the age here, he says the son of man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom. All causes of sin in all lawbreakers. Right? So, so the, the final eschatological judgment, it's all encompassing. And I dunno, maybe I'm, maybe I'm becoming a little bit post mill with this, um, the, the world is already the Kingdom of Christ. Right? Right. That's right. It, it's not, it's not just the church on earth that is the kingdom of Christ. And so when we talk about this eschatological reaping, um, what we see is, is very straightforward. There are those who are, uh, who belong to Christ, who were sown by him into the world, who were, uh, were tended by him, who were protected by him, who he intended to harvest from the very beginning, right? The good sower sows good seed into the field, and that good seed is and necessarily will be wheat. It's not as though, um, it's not as though, and again, this is one of those ways where like the parables sometimes, uh, are telling a little bit of a different story. Even though they're sharing some themes in the first parable, in the parable of the sower, he sows the same seed into the world. But the seed in that first parable is not the, is not the person receiving the seed. The seed is the one is the word of God. Yes. And so the word of God is sewn promiscuously, even to those who will be hard soil and who will be rocky soil and have thorns. The word of God is, is sewn to all of those people. Across the whole world in this parable. The seed that is the good seed that is sown is and always was going to be weed that was, or wheat, which was going to grow into fruitfulness and be gathered into the barn. Right? That was a foregone conclusion. The, the, when the sower decided to sow seed, all of that said he is the one who did that. He's the one that chose that. He's the one that will bring us to completion, right? And then also the ones that are not of his kingdom, the sons of the devil, they will also be reaped at the end. Actually we'll be reaped before the, you know, they'll be reaped and gathered and, and tossed into the furnace before the sons of the kingdom are gathered together. Jesse Schwamb: Right. Tony Arsenal: So it, again, this is a parable and even though this is Christ's explanation of the parable, I don't think that Christ was intending to give us like a strict timeline. Right. I don't think he was encouraging us to draw a chart and try to map out where this all happens in order. Um, I do think it's relevant that, that, at least in the explanation of this parable, I mentioned it last week, that, that the rap, the rapture is actually the wicked being raptured. They're the ones that are gathered and taken out of the world and cast into the fiery furnace before the, before the righteous are gathered together and, and brought into Christ Barn. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, there's a great unmasking that's happening here in this final stage. I mean, that's critically the point. I think there's a lot of stuff we could talk about open handedly and kind of hypothesize or theorize what it means. But what is plain, I think, is that there's this unmasking, this unveiling of the reality of the light of Christ's perfect judgment. But that judgment is for both parties Here it is coming and what was hidden beneath outward religion or more, a facade is gonna be revealed with eternal clarity. That's just the reality. It is coming. So in some ways it pairs. I think at least well in this, well purposely of course in this teaching because Jesus is saying, hold on, like we talked about last time. Do this is not for you to judge. You are ill-equipped. You are not skilled enough to discern this. And therefore though, you wanna go in hot and get spicy and try to throw out all the weeds. Wait for the right time. Wait for the one like you're saying, Tony has from all of eternity past intended for it to be this way. Super intending his will over all things in the casting of the seed. And as we say, Philippians, of course, finishing that good work, which was started, he will finish. It is God's two finish again. And so he says, listen, that day is coming. There's gonna be a great unmasking. Uh, get ready for it. And the scriptures bear witness to that in so many other ways. So. There's such a journey in these like handful of verses, isn't there? I mean, it's really wild. The things that not like we come up with or we read into the text, but as we sit in it a little bit, as we just spend even a cursory amount of time letting it pour over us, that we find there's like a conviction in a weight in these things that are beyond just the story and beyond just even like the illustrations themselves. What we find is, again, it's as if Jesus himself in his brilliance, of course, through the power of the Holy Spirit, is illuminating the mind in the spirit to open up our conception, understanding of the kingdom of God by bringing it to us through his perspective in our own terms, of course, which is both our language and like the context of the world in which we live, and that simple example of farming and seed. And again, even just that there are these interest weeds that look like wheat. I went on this like rabbit hole this week and did a lot of research on like tears and Yeah, like especially people in like the Midwest United States who like know a lot more about agriculture than I do have a lot to say about this. It's not just like we shouldn't be surprised like. Isn't it incredible that like there are actually weeds out there that look like, yeah, it's a brilliance of just knowing that this teaching is so finely tuned. Like we can even just talk about that. Like the world is finely tuned. This teaching is so finely tuned to these grant theological principles that we can at one point be children and appropriate them enough and assume them into our own intellectual capacity so that we can trust in them. And yet even as like adults with like, let's say like the greatest gift of intellectual capacity, still find that we cannot get to the bottom of them because they're so deep. They draw us into these really, really grand vistas or really like extremely deep cold theological waters. And I just find. That I am in awe then of what Jesus is saying here because there's a truth for us in assurance that we ought to clinging to. And there's also like stuff that we should come back to. We shouldn't just stop it here and put it out of our minds until the next time we, we want to just be stimulated by something that's interesting or that we want to just grab somebody and shake them cage style, cage two style and say like, look at this great thing that I just learned about this, this particular parable. But instead, there's so much here for us to meditate on. And in that, I think rather than the Christian finding fear in this parable, what they should find is great comfort. We should be Noah alike sitting in the ark saying, it is well with my soul. And our reason for that is because we know God has cast a seed through his son Jesus Christ. And to be a child, a child of God is the greatest thing in all the universe. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. And I, I think that, um, transitions nicely to, uh, I'll make this point quick because we're coming up on time here. Um. [00:52:04] Christ's Divinity and Sovereignty Tony Arsenal: The other little subtle thing that Christ does here in this parable is he, he absolutely asserts his divinity and sovereignty overall creation. Jesse Schwamb: That's right. Yep. Tony Arsenal: Right. It, it's almost like a throw. There's a couple little like lines that are almost throwaway lines, right in the, the first, the beginning of the parable here. Um, the parable itself, uh, he says, um, the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed into a field. And then he says, um, the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, right? And then when he interprets the parable, he says, well, the, the servants are, the field is the world, right? So he's the master of the world, and the servants are the angels. So he's the master of the angels. And then if, if there was any doubt left in your mind. Says in verse 41, the son of man will send his angels. That's right. And they will gather out of his kingdom, which is the world, all the causes of sin and all lawbreakers, and throw them into the fiery furnace. Right? So we have this, this robust picture that there is election. The the good sower sows good seed into the world, and the good seed will necessarily grow into wheat and will be preserved and protected and ultimately harvest Well, why can we have assurance that that will be the case? Well, because the master of the house is the son of man who is the Lord of the universe and the creator of all things. And his angels do his will. That's right. So, so the whole thing is all wrapped up. Why can we have assurance? Because God is a good God and Christ is a good savior, and the savior of the world is the creator of the universe, right? If any of those facts were not true. Then we couldn't have assurance. If God wasn't good, then maybe he's lying. If Christ wasn't the savior of the world or the God of the universe, the creator of the universe, then he wasn't worthy to be the one who saves. All of this is wrapped up in the parables, and this is what's so exciting about the parables. In most of the instances that we look up, especially of the sort of longer parables, these kinds of dynamics are there where it's not just a simple story making a simple point, it is making one primary point. Usually there's one primary point that a, that a parable is making. But in order to make that primary point, there's all these supporting points and supporting things that have to be the case. If the, if the good sower was not the master of the house and a, a competent, uh, a competent landowner who knew the difference between wheat and weeds, even at the early stage, right? His, his servants go and go, what happened? What's with all of these weeds? They can tell the difference somehow, Jesse Schwamb: right? Tony Arsenal: He's immediately able to go, well, this was an enemy. Jesse Schwamb: That's right. Tony Arsenal: And while they're bumbling around going, should we go rip it all up and start over? He is like, no, no, no, no. Just wait until, wait until it all grows up together. And when that happens, the Reapers will come and they'll take care of it and they'll do it in my direction, right? Because he's competent, he's the savior, he's the creator, he's the good master, he is the good sower. Um, we can be confi

In episode 465 of The Reformed Brotherhood, hosts Tony Arsenal and Jesse Schwamb explore Jesus's parable of the wheat and tares (weeds) from Matthew 13. This thought-provoking discussion examines Christ's startling teaching that good and evil will always coexist within the visible church until the end of time. The brothers carefully unpack the theological implications of Jesus's command not to separate wheat from weeds prematurely, challenging our natural tendency to judge others while offering wisdom about God's sovereign plan for final judgment. This episode wrestles with difficult questions about church purity, assurance of salvation, and how believers should approach the reality of false professors within Christ's church—providing biblical guidance for faithfully enduring in a mixed communion. Key Takeaways The Coexistence of True and False Believers: Jesus teaches that the visible church will always contain a mixture of genuine believers and false professors until the final judgment. The Danger of Premature Judgment: Christ explicitly warns against attempting to completely purify the church before the harvest (end of age) because doing so would damage the wheat (true believers). Proper Biblical Interpretation: Unlike some parables, Jesus provides a detailed allegorical explanation of this parable—the sower is Christ, the field is the world, the good seed represents believers, and the weeds are the sons of the evil one. The Challenge of Discernment: One of the most difficult theological pills to swallow is that it's often impossible to perfectly distinguish between true and false believers. Final Judgment as God's Prerogative: The separation of wheat from weeds is reserved for the angels at the end of the age, not for current church leaders or members. The Reality of False Assurance: Some professing Christians may have false assurance of salvation while genuinely believing they are saved. The Importance of Theological Integrity: Public theologians and pastors have a moral responsibility to be transparent about their theological convictions and changes in their beliefs. Deeper Explanations The Difficult Reality of a Mixed Church Jesus's teaching in the parable of the wheat and weeds directly challenges our natural desire for a perfectly pure church. By instructing the servants not to pull up the weeds lest they damage the wheat, Christ is establishing an important ecclesiological principle that will hold true until His return. This means that no matter how rigorously we apply church discipline or how carefully we examine profession of faith, we will never achieve a perfectly pure communion this side of eternity. The visible church—which can be understood as those who profess faith and are baptized—will always include both true and false believers. This reality should cultivate humility in how we approach church membership and discipline. Jesus isn't suggesting that all attempts at church purity are wrong (as other Scripture passages clearly call for church discipline), but rather that perfect purification is impossible and attempts at achieving it will inevitably damage true believers. This teaching directly refutes movements throughout church history (like Donatism) that have sought absolute purity in the visible church. The Problem of Discernment and Assurance One of the most challenging aspects of this parable is Christ's implicit teaching that true and false professors can appear nearly identical, especially in their early development. Like tares growing alongside wheat, false believers can profess orthodox doctrine, participate in church life, and exhibit what appears to be spiritual fruit. This creates profound implications for how we understand assurance of salvation. As Tony notes, while "assurance is the proper and rightful possession and inheritance of every Christian," there's also the sobering reality of false assurance. Some may sincerely believe they are saved when they are not, raising difficult questions about self-examination and spiritual discernment. This doesn't mean believers should live in perpetual doubt, but rather that we should approach assurance with both confidence in God's promises and healthy self-examination. True assurance must be grounded in the finished work of Christ rather than merely in our experiences or behaviors, while false assurance often lacks this proper foundation. The brothers wisely note that final judgment belongs to God alone, who perfectly knows who belongs to Him. Memorable Quotes "The visible church is set before us as a mixed body. Maybe everybody else's churches, but certainly not my church, like the one that I actually go to on the Lord's day. So it seems like there might be this shocking statement possibly that he has for us, whether you're Episcopalian or Presbyterian or independent or Baptist or Christian life assembly, whatever it is, that no matter what we do to purify the church, our churches, we're never gonna succeed in obtaining a perfectly pure communion." - Jesse Schwamb "I think that's what I find shocking. It is like a massive statement of reality that is at equal points totally sensible. And other times we would think, 'well, surely not in the church Lord, like of all the places, like aren't we talking about a kind of purity of your people?' ...and what I think he's striking at, which I do find a little bit wild, is that Jesus is essentially saying, at least to my ear, anything we try to do, even the purest preaching of the gospel, is not gonna prevent this in every age of the church." - Jesse Schwamb "I'm affirming that assurance is the proper and rightful possession and inheritance of every Christian." - Tony Arsenal Full Transcript Jesse Schwamb: Welcome to episode 465 of The Reformed Brotherhood. I am Jesse. Tony Arsenal: And I'm Tony. And this is the podcast with ears to hear. Hey brother. Jesse Schwamb: Hey brother. Guess what? It looks like you and I are taking another trip back to the farm on this episode. Tony Arsenal: Yes. For a couple episodes. Jesse Schwamb: For a couple episodes. Yeah. [00:01:01] Exploring Jesus' Parables in Matthew 13 Jesse Schwamb: Because what, Jesus will not stop leading us there. We're looking at his teachings, specifically the parables, and we're gonna be looking in Matthew chapter 13, where it seems like, is it possible that Jesus, once again has something very shocking for us to hear? That is for all the ages. 'cause it seems like he might actually be saying, Tony, that good and evil will always be found together in the professing church until the end of the world. Like in other words, that the visible church is set before a mixed body. I mean. Maybe everybody else chose churches, but certainly not my church, like the one that I actually go to on the Lord's day. So it seems like there might be this shocking statement possibly that he has for us, whether you're Episcopalian or Presbyterian or independent or Baptist or Christian life assembly, whatever it is, that no matter what we do to purify the church, our churches, we're never gonna succeed in obtaining a perfectly pure communion. Could that possibly be what Jesus is saying to us? I don't know what we're gonna find out. Tony Arsenal: We are. We are gonna find out. Jesse Schwamb: It's gonna be definitive. And if now that makes sense. If you don't even know why we're looking at Jesus' teachings, you could do us a favor even before you go any further. And that is just head on over in your favor, interwebs browser to or reform brotherhood.com, and you can find out all of the other episodes, all 464 that are living out there. There's all kinds of good stuff, at least we think so, or at least entertaining stuff for you to listen to. And when you're done with all of that in a year or two, then we'll pick it up right back here where we're about to go with some affirmations or some denials. [00:02:39] Affirmations and Denials Jesse Schwamb: So Tony, before we figure out what Jesus has for us in Matthew 13, in the parable of the weeds, or the tears, or the tears in the weed, what gets all of that? Are you affirming with, are you denying against, Tony Arsenal: I am denying. First of all, I'm denying whatever this thing is that's going on with my throat. Sorry for the rest of the episode, everyone. Um, I'm denying something that I, I think it is. How do I want to phrase this? Um, maybe I'll call it theological integrity, and maybe that's too strong of a word, but maybe not. So the listener who's been with us for a little while will remember that a while back. Um, you know, we've, we've talked about Matthew Barrett and he was a Baptist, uh, who's heavily involved in sort of the theology, proper controversies. He wrote Simply Trinity, which is just a fantastic book. He was a teacher or a professor at Midwestern, um, Baptist Theological Seminary. And he recently, um, uh, converted is not the right word. I hate calling it a conversion when you go from one faithful Bible tradition to another. But he recently, um, changed his perspective and joined the Anglican Church. And at the time I kind of, you know, I kind of talked about it as like, it's a little bit disappointing, like the reasons he cited. [00:03:57] Theological Integrity and Public Disclosure Tony Arsenal: Where I'm bringing this into a matter of sort of theological integrity. And it's not, it's not just Matthew Barrett. Um, there's other elements of things going on that I'll, I'll point to too is it's often the case when someone who is in some form of professional theological work or professional vocational ministry, that as they start to change perspectives, um, there comes to be like an inflection point where they should notify whoever it is that they are accountable to in that job or vocation, uh, uh, and then do the right thing and step down. Right? And so with Matthew Barrett, um. He continued to teach systematic theology at a Baptist Theological Seminary, which has a faith statement which he was obligated to affirm and hold in good faith. He continued to teach there for quite some time, if, you know, when he, when he published the timeline and he's the one that put all the timelines out there. So it's not like people had to go digging for this. Um, he continued to teach under contract and under that, that faith statement, um, for quite some time after his positions changed. I remember in college, um, sim very similar situation, one of my professors, um, and I went to a Baptist college. It was a General Baptist college. Um, one of my professors became Roman Catholic and for quite some time he continued to teach without telling anyone that he had converted to Roman Catholicism. Um. And I think that there's a, there's a, a level of integrity that public theologians need to have. Um, and it, it really makes it difficult when something like this happens to be able to say that this is not a moral failing or some sort of failure. Um, you know, James White has jumped on the bandwagon very quickly to say, of course we told you that this was the way it was gonna lead. That if you affirm the great tradition, you know, he was very quick to say like, this is the road to Rome. And I think in his mind, um, Canterbury is just sort of one, one stop on that trip. Um, it becomes very hard after the fact to not have this color and tarnish all of your work before. 'cause it starts to be questions like, well, when, when did you start to hold these views? Were you writing, were you, were you publicizing Baptist theology when you no longer believed it to be the truth? Were you teaching theology students that this is what the Bible teaches when you no longer thought that to be true? Um. Were you secretly attending Anglican services and even teaching and, and helping deliver the service when you were, you know, still outwardly affirming a Baptist faith statement. And the reason I, I'll point out one other thing, 'cause I don't want this to be entirely about Matthew Barrett, but there's a big, uh, hub glue going on in the PCA right now. Um, a guy named Michael Foster, who some of our audience will probably be familiar with, um, he and I have had our desktops in the past, but I think he and I have come to a little bit of a, of a uneasy truce on certain things. He, uh, went to work compiling a, a list and there's some problems with the data, like it's, it's not clean data, so take it for what it's worth. But he compiled a list of. Every publicly available church website in the PCA. So something like 1800 websites or something like that. Huge numbers. And he went and looked at all of the staff and leadership directories, and he cataloged all the churches that had some sort of office or some sort of position that appeared to have a, a woman leading in a way that the Bible restricts. And that more importantly, and starting to say it this way, but more importantly, that the PCA itself restricts. So we're not talking about him going to random church websites and making assessments of their polity. We're talking about a, a denomination that has stated standards for who can bear office and it's not women. Um. So he compiled this and people in the PCA are coming out of the woodwork to basically defend the practice of having shepherdess and deacons. There was one that he cataloged where, um, the website actually said, uh, that was the pastor's wife and the title was Pastor of Women. Um, and then as soon as it became public that this was the case, they very quickly went in and changed the title to Shepherd of Women or Shepherdess of Women or something like that. So it's, it's really the same phenomena, not commenting, you know, I think we've been clear where we stand on the ordination of female officers and things like that, but not that all that withstanding, um, when you are going to be a part of a body that has a stated perspective on something and then just decide not to follow it, the right thing to do the, the upstanding morally. Uh, in full of integrity move would be to simply go to another denomination where your views align more closely. PCA churches, it's not super easy, but it's not impossible to leave the PCA as an entire congregation and then go somewhere like the EPC, which is the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, which still on the spectrum of things is still relatively conservative, but is in general is in favor of, uh, female officers, elders, and diegans. So I, I think, you know, and you see this with podcasters, there was the big, there was a big fu and Les became a Presbyterian, and then when Tanner became a Presbyterian on the pub, I think it is, um, incumbent on people who do any form of public theology and that that would include me and Jesse when our views change. There comes a point where we need to disclose that, be honest about it, um, and not try to pretend that we continue to hold a view that we don't be just because it's convenient or because it might be super inconvenient to make a change. I don't even want to pretend to imagine the pressures, uh, that someone like Matthew Barrett would face. I mean, you're talking about losing your entire livelihood. I, I understand that from an intellectual perspective, how difficult that must be, but in some ways, like that kind of comes with the territory. Same thing with a pastor. You have a Baptist pastor or a Presbyterian pastor. It can go both ways, I think. I'm more familiar with Baptist becoming Presbyterians. I don't, I don't see as many going the other direction. But you have a, a Baptist pastor who comes to pay to Baptist convictions and then continues to minister in their church for, I've, I've seen cases where they continue to minister for years, um, because they don't, they don't have the ability to now just go get a job in a Presbyterian context because there's all sorts of, um, training and certification and ordination process that needs to happen. Um, so they just continue ministering where they are, even though they no longer believe the church's state of, you know, state of faith statement. So that's a lot to say. Like, let your yes be yes and your no be no, and when we really all boil it down. So I think that's enough of that. It, it just sort of got in my craw this week and I couldn't really stop thinking about it. 'cause it's been very frustrating. And now there are stories coming out of. Doctoral students that, um, that Barrett was teaching who have now also become Anglican. Um, so, you know, there starts to be questions of like, was he actively pros? I mean, this is like Jacob Arminius did this stuff and, and like the reform tradition would look down on it, where he was in secret in like sort of small group private settings. He was teaching convictions very different than the uni. I'm talking about Arminius now. Not necessarily Barrett. He was teaching convictions very different than the, the stated theology of the university he taught for, and then in public he was sort of towing the line. You have to ask the question and it is just a question. There's been no confirmation that I'm aware of, but you have to ask the question if that was what was going on with Barrett, was he teaching Baptist theology publicly and then meeting with, with PhD students privately and, and sort of convincing them of Anglican theology. I don't know. I'm not speculating on that, but I think it, the situation definitely right, brings that question to mind. It forces us to ask it. Um, and had he. Been transparent about his theological shifts sooner than that may not be a, a question we have to ask. Um, the situation may not be all that different, but we wouldn't have to ask the question. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, that's totally fair. I mean, disclosure is important in lots of places in life and we shouldn't think that theological dis disclosure, especially like you're saying among our teachers, among our pastors, it is a critical thing. It's helpful for people to know when perspectives have changed, especially when they're looking to their leaders who are exhibiting trust and care over their discipleship or their education to express that difference. If there's been a mark, change it. It's worth it. Disclose, I'm guessing you don't have to over disclose, but that we're talking about a critical, we're talking about like subversive anglicanism, allegedly. Yeah. Then. It would be more than helpful to know that that is now shaping not just perspective, but of course like major doctrine, major understanding. Yeah. And then of course by necessary conviction and extension, everything that's being promulgated or proclamation in the public sphere from that person is likely now been permeated by that. And we'd expect so. Right. If convictions change, and especially like you're talking about, we're just talking about moving from, especially among like Bible believing traditions, just raise the hand and say loved ones, uh, this is my firm conviction now. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. I think if someone walks up to you and says, do you think that we should baptize babies? And you're like, yeah, I think so. Then you probably shouldn't be teaching at a Baptist seminary anymore. Like, seems like a reasonable standard. And that seems to be what happened, at least for some period of time. Um, you know, and, and it, that's not to say like, I think, I think there are instances where the church, a given church or um, or a university or seminary or, or whatever the situation might be, can be gracious and recognize like, yeah, people's perspectives change and maybe we can find a way for you to continue to finish out the semester or, you know, we can bridge you for a little while until you can find a new, a new job. Um, you know, we'll, we'll only have you teach certain courses or we'll have a guest lecturer come in when you have to cover this subject that is at variance and like, we'll make sure we're all clear about it, but it doesn't seem like any of that happened. And that's, um, that's no bueno. So anyway, Jesse. What are you affirming and or denying Tonight? [00:13:43] Music Recommendations Jesse Schwamb: I'm just gonna go with something brief. I suppose this is an affirmation of me. I'm saying that like somewhat tongue in cheek, but maybe it's, wait, I'll rephrase. It's because this will be more humble. I'm affirming getting it right, even more than I thought. So I'm just gonna come back to the well and dip it into something that I mentioned on the last episode. So the keen listener, the up-to-date listener might remember. And if you're not up to date, uh, just let this be fresh for you. It'll, and I, it's gonna be correct because now I have posts, you know, I'm on the other side of it. I've clear hindsight. I am affirming with the album Keep It Quiet by Gray Haven, which I affirmed last week, but it came out on the same day that the episode released. And since you and I don't really like record in real time and release it like exactly as it's happening, I only did that with some, a little bit of reservation because I only heard they only released three songs in the album. And I thought I was overwhelmed that they were, they were so good that I was ready to jump in and loved ones. Oh, it, it turns out. I was so correct and it was, it's even better than I thought. So go check it out. It's Grey, GRE, YH, and they are, this is the warning, just because I have to give it out there and then I'll balance it with something else for something for everybody here today. So, gr Haven is music that's post hardcore and metal core. You're getting two cores for the price of one, if that is your jam. It has strong maleic sensibilities. It's very emotional, it's very experimental. But this new album, which is called, um, again, keep It Quiet, is like just a work of arts. It real like the guitar work is intricate haunting, lovely, and it's bold, like very intentional in its structure and very el loose in its construction. It's got hook driven melodies and it's got both heart and soft. It really is truly a work of art. So if you're trying to, to put it in your minds, like what other bands are like this? I would compare them to bands like, every Time I Die, Norma Jean, let Live Hail the Sun. If you just heard those as combinations of words that don't mean anything to you, that's also okay. No worries. But if you're looking for something different, if you're looking for something that's maybe gonna challenge your ear a little bit, but is like orchestral and has all of these metal core post hardcore, melodic, textured movements, there's no wasted notes in this album. It's really tremendous. If that's not your thing. I get, that's not everybody's thing. Here's something else I think would be equally challenging to the ear in a different way. And that is, I'm going back to one other album to balance things out here, and that's an album that was released in 2019 by Mark Barlow, who I think is like just. So underrated. For some reason, like people have slept on Mike Barlow. I have no idea why he put together an album with Isla Vista Worship called Soul Hymns, and it's like a distinct soul and r and b album of praise with like these really lovely like falsetto, harmonies. It's got these minimalistic instrumentation, warm keys, groove oriented percussion, like again, like these false soul driven melodies. It's contemplative. It's got a groove to it. This is also equally a beautiful album for a totally different reason. So I think I've given two very book-ended, very different affirmations, but I think there's something for everybody. So my challenge to your loved ones is you gotta pick one or the other. Actually, you could do both, but either go to Gray Havens, keep it quiet, or go to Mike Bellow's Soul hymns. I do not think you will be disappointed. There's something for everybody on this one. Tony Arsenal: Yeah, I, it was funny because as you were saying the names of those bands, I literally was thinking like Jesse could be speaking Swahili and I wouldn't know the difference. And then you, you, you know me well, yeah. Uh, I haven't listened to Gray Haven. Uh, I probably will give it a couple minutes 'cause that's how it usually goes with songs that meet that description. Uh, I can always tell that the music that Jesse recommends is good from a technical perspective, but I never really, I never really vibe with it. So that's okay. But I mean, lots of people who listen to our show do so check that out. If, if you ever. Want a good recommendation for music. Jesse is the pers so much so that he can recommend amazing music before it's even available and be a hundred percent correct, apparently. That's right. So Jesse Schwamb: affirm with me everybody, because turns out I was right. Uh, it was easy to be correct when of course I had all of that fair sightedness by being able to listen to those. Yeah, those couple of songs, it, this is a kind of album. Both of these, both of these albums. When I heard them, I reacted audibly out loud. There are parts of both of 'em where I actually said, oh wow. Or yeah, like there's just good stuff in there. And the older you get, if you're a music fan, even if you're not, if you don't listen to a lot of music, you know when that hook gets you. You know when that turn of melody or phrase really like hits you just, right. Everybody has that. Where the beat drops in a way. You're just like, yes, gimme, you make a face like you get into it. I definitely had that experience with both of these albums and because. I've listened to a lot of music because I love listening to music. It's increasingly rare where I get surprised where, you know, like sometimes stuff is just like popular music is popular for a reason and it's good because it's popular and it follows generally some kind of like well established roots. But with these albums, it's always so nice when somebody does something that is totally unexpected. And in these, I heard things that I did not expect at all. And it's so good to be surprised in a way that's like, why have I never heard that before? That is amazing. And both of these bands did it for me, so I know I'm like really hyping them up, but they're worth it. They're, they're totally worth it. Good music is always worth it. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. I, uh, I think that is a good recommendation. I will check those out because, you know, you're a good brother. I usually do, and I trust your judgment even though it, you'll like the second one. Yes. Hopefully. Yeah. Yeah. Jesse Schwamb: You'll like the second one. Second one is like, just filled with praise and worship. And like, if, if you're trying to think, like say, here's how I'd couch the proper atmosphere for Mark Barlow's soul hymns you're having, you know, it's, it's a cold and chilly. A tal evening, the wind is blowing outside. You can hear the crisp leaves moving around on the pavement and the sun has gone down. The kids are in bed, the dinner dishes are piled up in the sink. But you think to yourselves, not tonight. I don't think so, and you just want that toneage to put on. You want that music as you dim the lights and you sit there to just hang out with each other and take a breath. You don't just want some kind of nice r and b moving music. You don't want just relaxing vibes. You want worshipful spirit filled vibes that propel your conversation and your intimacy, not just into the marital realm, but into worship and harmony with the triune God. If you're looking for that album, because that situation is before you, then sol hymns is the music you're looking for. Tony Arsenal: See, I'm gonna get the, I'm gonna get the recommendations backwards and I'm gonna sit down with my wife with a nice like evening cup of decaf tea and I'm gonna turn the music on. Yes, it's gonna be like, yes. That was me screaming into the microphone. That was not good for my voice. Well, the good news is it's gonna, it's gonna wake the kids up. That's, I'm gonna sleep on the couch. That's, it's gonna be bad. That's, Jesse Schwamb: honestly, that's also a good evening. It's just a different kind of evening. It's true. So it's just keep it separated again, uh, by way of your denial slash affirmation. Tony disclosure, I'm just giving you proper disclosure. Everybody know your music KYM, so that way when you have the setting that you want, you can match it with the music that you need. So it's true. Speaking of things that are always worth it. [00:21:30] Parable of the Weeds Jesse Schwamb: I think the Bible's gotta be one of those things. Tony Arsenal: It's true. Jesse Schwamb: And this is like the loosest of all segues because it's like the Sunday school segue into any topic that involves the scriptures. We're gonna be in Matthew 13, and how about we do this? So this is one of these parables and in my lovely ESV translation of the scriptures, the, we're just gonna go with the heading, which says the parable of the weeds. You may have something different and I wanna speak to that just briefly, but how do we do this, Tony? I'll hit us up with the parable and then it just so happens that this is one of the parables in the scripture that comes with an interpretation from our savior. It's true. How about you hit us up with the interpretation, which is in the same chapter if you're tracking with us, it's just a couple verses way. Does that sound good? Tony Arsenal: Let's do it. Jesse Schwamb: Okay. Here is the parable of the weeds. Jesus puts another parable before them saying The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sewed good seed in his field. But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sewed weeds among the weeds and went away. So when the plants came up and bork rain, then the weeds also appeared, and the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds? He said to them, an enemy has done this. So the servant said to him, then, do you want us to go and gather them? Then he said, no. Lest in gathering the weeds, you root up the wheat along with them, but let them grow together until the harvest and at harvest time, I will tell the reapers, gather the weeds first, and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn. Tony Arsenal: Alright, so then jumping down. To verse 36. We're still in Matthew 13, he says, then he left the crowds and went into the house and his disciples came to him saying, explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field. He answered, the one who sows the good seed is the son of man. The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angel. Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age, the son of man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom, all that, all causes of sin in all lawbreakers and throw them into the fiery furnace. It is that in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their father. He who has ears let him hear. Jesse Schwamb: So let me start with just like a little bit of language here, which I've always loved in this passage because where else in like the contemporary context, do you get the word tear? Yeah. Aside if you're like using a scale, and that's a totally different definition. I like this. I like the word tear. It force, it forces to understand that what's common to our ear, why that's being used, it often is translated weed. Here's just like my, my little like linguistic addition to the front end of our discussion and is the reason I like it is because here does have a specific definition. If like you were to look this up in almost any dictionary, what you're gonna find is it's like a particular type of weed. It's actually like an injurious weed that is indistinguishable in its infant form from the outgrowing of green. So I like that because of course that is exactly why. Then there's all this explanation of why then to not touch anything in the beginning because one, it causes damage to it looks like everybody else. I just thought I'd put that out there as we begin our discussion. Tony Arsenal: Yeah, yeah. You know, I, um, I am a homeowner and I don't own the land that I'm on, but I'm responsible for the land that I'm on. And we have this really gnarly weed problem. There's this, uh, sort of floor growing, uh, carpeting weed called, uh, I think it's called like a carpeting knob, head weed or something like that. Some really descriptive thing. And I went out there the other day and there's really nothing you can do about this other than to rip it up. But I went out there the other day to start to pull some of it up and it totally wrecks the yard. Like it totally pulls up the grass, it destroys the sod. And when you're done, this is why it's kind of nice that I don't have, I'm not responsible for the land as I'm not gonna have to pay to resod the land. But when you're done pulling up this weed, you have to resod the whole place. You have to regrow all the grass because it, first, it takes over for the grass, and then when you rip it up, it rips the roots of the grass up as well. And so this parable, um, on one level is immediately obvious, like what the problem is, right? The situation is such. That the good, uh, the good sower, right? He's a good sower. He knows what he's doing. He understands that simply ripping up the weeds. Even if you could distinguish them right, there's this element that like at an early stage, they would be very difficult, if not impossible to distinguish from, uh, from wheat. Even if you could distinguish them, you still wouldn't be able to pull up the weeds and not do damage to the grain. And so we, we have this sort of like, um, conflict if you wanna follow like literary standards, right? We have this conflict and as we come to sort of the climax of this, of this plot is when all of a sudden we see that, that the problem needs a resolution and there is a resolution, but it's not necessarily what we would think it would be. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, I think that's what I find shocking. It is like a massive statement of reality that is that like equal points or equal times totally sensible. And other times we would think, well why surely not in the church Lord, like of all the places, like aren't we talking about a kind of purity of your people, the very people that you're assembling together, the chief of which is Christ and the apostles being the building stones and Christ of course being the cornerstone. And I, I think that's what I find and I wonder the people hearing this, if they thought like, well, surely Lord, that not be the case like you are bringing in and ushering in this new kingdom. Isn't this new kingdom gonna be one of absolute purity? And, and what I think he's striking at, which I do find a little bit wild, is that Jesus essentially saying, at least to my ear, anything we try to do, even like the purest preaching of the gospel, is not gonna prevent this in every age of the church. The same state of the things that's existed in that is in the time of the early fathers. In the first century, and the church as it stands right now in the land and the time of the reformers, and of course with the best ministers at this hour right now and on your next Lord's day, and everyone after that, there is always and ever will be a visible church or a religious assembly in which the members are not all wheat. Yeah. And then I like what you're saying. It's this idea that. There's a great harm that's gonna come about if you try to lift them up because you cannot tell. So, and this is what's hard, I think this does influence like how we interact with people online. Certainly how we interact with people in our own congregations, but we are going to have no clear convicted proofs. We might only have like probable symptoms if we're really trying to judge and weigh out to discern the weeds from the weeds, which at most can only give us some kind of conjectural knowledge of another state. And that is gonna sometimes preemptively judge cause us to judge others in a way that basically there's a warning against here. It, it's, it's not the right time. And ba I think mainly from the outside where I find like this parable coming together, if there's like maybe a weird Venn diagram of the way Christians read this and the way unbelievers hear this, the overlap between them is for me, often this idea of like hypocrisy and you know. When people tell me that the church is full of hypocrites, either like Christian or non-Christian, but typically that's a, a, you know, statement that comes from the non-Christian tongue. When people say that the church is full of hypocrites, I do with a little bit of snark, say it's definitely not full of hypocrites. There are always room for more in the church and, and there's like a distinction of course between the fact that there is hypocrisy in the Christian or whether the Christian is in fact or that person is a hypocrite. So like when I look through the scriptures, we see like Pharaoh confessing, we see Herod practicing, we see Judas preaching Christ Alexander venturing his life for Paul. Yeah, we see David condemning in another, what he himself practiced and like hezeki glorifying and riches Peter. Doing all kinds of peter stuff that he does, and even all the disciples forsaken Christ, an hour of trouble and danger. So all that to say, it goes back to this like lack of clear, convicted proofs that I think Jesus is bringing forward here, but only probable symptoms. And I'm still processing, of course, like the practicality of what you're saying, Tony, that in some ways it seems like abundantly clear and sensible that you should, you're, you're gonna have a problem distinguishing. But our human nature wants to go toward distinguishing and then toward uprooting sometimes. And the warning here is do not uproot at the improper time. And in fact, it's not even yours to uproot because God will send in the laborers to do that at the time of, of harvest. And so there will be weeds found among the wheat. It's just like full stop statement. And at the same time it's warning, do not go after them now. Tony Arsenal: Yeah, I, I'm sure this, um, I, I'm sure this will spill over into a second conversation, but we, I think we have to talk a little bit about the interpretation here before we, before we even like talk more about the parable itself, because if you're not careful, um, and, and. I need to do a little bit more study on this, but it, it's interesting because Matthew almost seems to want you to sort of blend these parables together a little bit. Jesse Schwamb: Yes. Tony Arsenal: Right. These, these, there's three, um, there's three, maybe four if you count the parable of the treasure in the field. But there's three agricultural parables that have to do with sowing seed of one, of, one way or another. And in each one the seed is something different. And I, it almost seems to me. And then on top of that, the parables are like interwoven within each other. So like right smack in the middle of this, we have the parable. Uh, is given. Then the next parable of the mustard seed, which we're gonna talk about in a future episode, is given, and then the explanation of this parable of the tears is given. Um, and so we have to talk a little bit about it and sort of establish what the seed is, because we just spent three weeks talking about the seed in the par of the sower. Um, or the parable of the, of the soils. And in that parable, the seed was the word of God in this parable. And this is where I think sometimes, um, and again, this is like the doctrine of election in parable form, right? Yes. I think sometimes we read this and we, we misstep because the seed is not, uh, is not the word of God in this. The seed is the believers. Jesse Schwamb: Yes. Tony Arsenal: Right. So the good seed is sewn into, uh, into the field, which, you know, I think maybe there'll be some, we, we can save this for, for next week. But a little sneak peek is, it's not always clear exactly what the field is. Right. And I think we often, we often talk about the field as though it's the church that doesn't necessarily align a hundred percent with how Christ explains the parable. So we'll have to, we'll have to talk through that a little bit. I affirm that it is the church in, in a, a broad sense. Um, but, but the, the way that Christ explains it slightly different, but the, the seed is sewn into the world. The sons of the kingdom of heaven are sowed into the, into the world. And then the seed of the enemy, the bad seed, is the sons of the devil that's also sewn into the world. And so these two seeds grow up next to each other. If we think about the seed here as though it's the word of God, rather than the, the actual believers and unbelievers that elect in the ate, we're gonna make some missteps on how we understand this because we're not talking about, um, the, the seed being, you know, doctrine being sewn into the world. And some of it grows up good and some of it grows up bad or good doctrine and bad doctrine. We're talking about the believers themselves. Sorry, Jesse is mocking my rapid attempt to mute before I cough, which I, I did. That was pretty good. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, that was, that was pretty good. Listen, this is real. Podcasting is how it goes. Yeah, I'm with you. Thank you for pulling out that distinction. 'cause it is critical. We, we have some overlap of course, with Jesus being really ascribed as the farmer, the son of man, right. He's sowing this good seed, but not the word. It's believers or the sons of the kingdom. And it is into his field, which is the world. Part of that world of course, is necessarily the church, right? But while everybody's sleeping, this enemy, the devil, he comes, he sows weeds or unbelievers, the sons of the evil one among this weed, they grow, go up together. And of course, like if I were servants in this household, I'd ask the same thing, which was like, should we get the gloves out? Yeah. Just pull those bad boys out. Like and, and so again, that's why I find it very so somewhat shocking that. It's not just, you could see like Jesus saying something like, don't worry about it now because listen, at the end of all time when the harvest comes, uh, I'm gonna take care of it. Like it's just not worth it to go out now. Right. That's not entirely The reason he gives, the reason is lest they uproot the wheat by mistake. So this is showing that the servants who are coming before Jesus in the parable, in this teaching here to really volitionally and with great fidelity and good obedience to him to want to please him to do his will. He there, he's basically saying, you are not qualified to undertake this kind of horticulture because you're just not either skilled enough or discerning enough to be able to do it right. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. And you know, I think, um. Maybe just a word of meth methodology too. Um, this parable also flies in the face of all of the, like, parables are not allegories, kind of kind of people. Um, and this is, we talked about this in our introductory episode. You have to take each parable for what it's worth, this parable very much is explained like a traditional allegory, right? Right. [00:35:39] Understanding the Parable's Symbols Tony Arsenal: It's got, it's got several different elements and Christ goes through and the first thing he does is tell you what each element represents, right? The sower is the son of man, the field is the word. The good seed is the sons of the kingdom of the weed. It's like, he's like clicking down all of the symbols and then he explains how all of it works together and like a good, all like a good allegory. Once you understand what each element and each symbol is, the rest of it actually is very self-explanatory, right? When you understand who's what in the parable. The outcome and the sort of the punchline writes itself as it were. And I think this is one of those parables that we would do. [00:36:18] Challenging Our Sensibilities Tony Arsenal: I think we would do well to sort of let marinate a little bit because it does challenge a lot of our sensibilities of what, um, what is real in the world, what is real in terms of our interaction with the world, right? What's real in terms of the role of unbelievers in the life of a Christian, um, whether we can identify who is or isn't an unbeliever. Um, I think we, you know, I, I'm not one of those people that's like, we should assume everyone's a Christian. And I'm certainly not one of those people who's like, we should assume nobody is a Christian. But I think there are a lot of times where we have figures either in public or people in our lives. Like personal acquaintances that have some sort of outward appearance. And, and that's like the key here that that distinction between weeds is a, is not a great translation as you said. Right. Because right. That distinction between wheat and weeds, to go to my analogy, like it's very clear what is grass and what is this like carpeting, knob weed. Like there's no, there's no doubt in my mind, which is the weed and which is the grass. Um, that's not what we're talking about here. And so it does, it does say here, I mean, it implies here that it's not going to be easy to distinguish the difference between exactly. The, a son of the kingdom and a son of the evil one. And I think that's a, that's a. A theological pill that is very difficult to swallow. Yes. [00:37:43] Personal Reflections on Identifying Christians Tony Arsenal: Because a lot of us, um, and this goes back to like what I, what we were saying in the last, the last parable, A lot of us were reared in our Christian faith on sort of this idea that like, you can check your fruit or you can check other people's fruits and you can determine, you can easily identify who's a Christian and who's not. I remember when I was in high school, you know, I got, I was converted when, when I was 15 and, um, I got to high school and it felt very easy to me to be able to identify the people who were play acting Christianity and the people who were real Christians. That felt like the most natural thing in the world to me. Um, it, it's an interesting story, but one of the people that I was absolutely sure was not a Christian. That he was just doing kinda civic Christianity. He was in confirmation 'cause his parents wanted him to. Um, and I had good reason to believe that at the time he was very worldly. He, he, um, did not seem to be serious about his faith at all. There was good reason to make the assessment that I did. And then I ran into him on Facebook like 15 years later and he's a pastor at the Lutheran Church and he's, you know, he loves the Lord Jesus Christ. And he would not explain it as though he had a later conversion story. It's not as though he would say like, well yeah, in high school I pretended to be a Christian. And then, you know, I got through college and uh, I really became like I got converted. He would, would grow this, or he would explain this as slow, steady growth from an immature state that knew the facts of the gospel and in a certain sense trusted that Jesus was his savior and didn't fully understand the ramifications of that. I mean, who did at 15 years old? Mm-hmm. Um. And, and that it was a slow, steady growth to the place that he's in now. [00:39:21] The Difficulty of Distinguishing Believers Tony Arsenal: So I, I think we should take seriously, and maybe this is the takeaway for this week at least, and we can, we can talk about it more, is we should take seriously the fact that the Sons of the Kingdom and the Sons of the evil one in this parable are not only inseparable without doing damage, but in many ways they are not easily distinguishable. Jesse Schwamb: Right. On. Tony Arsenal: Um, and that, that's a baked into the parable. And I think we do spend a fair amount of time and I, I'll. I'll throw myself on on this. You know, this, we, I'm not just saying we, um, we as a genuine statement, like I have participated in this. I'm sure that I still do participate in this sometimes intentionally. Other times, uh, subconsciously we spend a fair amount of time probably in our Christian lives trying to figure out who is a Christian who's not. And it's not as though that is entirely illegitimate, right? The, the, as much as we kind of poke at the, the, um, workers in this who sort of are kind of chumps, right? They're sort of like the idiots in this. They, they don't seem to know how this happened. They propose a course of action that then the master's like, no, no, that's not, that's not gonna work. They can tell the difference, right? They can see that some are weeds and some are are weeds, and they're asking, well, what do we do about it? But at the same time he is saying like, you're not really competent to tell the difference, Jesse Schwamb: right? On Tony Arsenal: a good, uh, a good. Competent farmer could probably go out and take all the weeds out. Just like a really good, I dunno, landscape technician, I'm not sure what you would call it. I'm sure someone could come into my yard and if I paid them enough money they could probably fix this knobby grass, weed, whatever it is. Um, infestation. They could probably fix it without damaging the lawn. Like there are probably people that could do it. I am not that competent person and the workers in this are not that competent person. And I would say by and large in our Christian life, we are not that competent person to be able to identify who is and who isn't, um, a Christian who is or isn't a son of the kingdom versus a son of the devil. Jesse Schwamb: And there's sometimes like we just get history reprised, or it's like, again, the same thing microwaved over and served to you three or four times as leftovers. So it's also gonna remember like any as extension that like any attempt to like purify the church perfectly, and this has happened like donatism in the fourth century I think, or even like now, certain sectarian movements are completely misguided. Yeah. And Jesus already puts that out ahead of us here. It's almost like, do not worry what God is doing because God again is, is doing all the verbs. So here's a question I think we should discuss as we, we move toward like the top of the hour. And I think this is interesting. I don't know if you'll think it's interesting. I, I kind of have an answer, but I, I'll post it here first. [00:42:01] Visible vs. Invisible Church Jesse Schwamb: So the setup like you've just given us is two things. One, we got the visible church, we talk about the visible church. I think a lot across our conversations. Yeah. And we might summarize it, saying it's like the community of all who profess faith, maybe even the community of all who are baptized. Right. Possibly. Yeah. And it's going to include then necessarily as Jesus describes it here, true and false believers. So that's one group. Then we've got this invisible church, which as you said is the elect. Those who are known perfectly to God. So the good seed is those elect true believers. The weeds, then the weeds to me, or the tears, even better, they sound a lot like that. Second and third soils that we talked about previously to some, to some degree. I'm not, I'm not gonna lump them all in because we talked about receiving the word and it taking root, all that stuff, but to some degree, and also probably like a soil one. But here's, here's the way I would define them up and against or in contradistinction to the elector believers. They're the reprobate. They're false professors or they're children of the evil one. Now here's the question, Doni, Alex, I, I think this is very interesting. I'm trying to build this up for like more dramatic effect. 'cause now I'm worried it's not that good. The question is, I'm going to presume that this good seed, the elect, true to believers, the confidence of perseverance of the saints, the justification in sanctification of God's children is in fact though we at some points have our own doubts, it is made fully aware and known to the good seed. That is, we should have, as you and I have talked about before, the confidence that God has in fact saved his elect. So the question that on the other side is for the ta, do the tears always know that they are the tears? Tony Arsenal: Yeah, I mean, you know, I think, um, I've said this before and I, I mean it, and I think it takes probably more. More discussion than we have time for tonight. And and that's fine because we can do as many episodes on this as we want to. 'cause this is our show and you can't stop us actually. Jesse Schwamb: Correct. [00:43:56] Assurance of Faith and False Assurance Tony Arsenal: Um, I've said before that assurance is the proper and rightful possession and inheritance of every Christian. Jesse Schwamb: Amen. Tony Arsenal: Right. So I, I am not one to say that the technical terminology is that assurance is not of the essence of faith. Um, I think we have to be really careful when we say that it's not, but we have to be equally careful when we say that it is. Because if we say that assurance is of the essence of faith, then what that means is someone who doesn't have assurance, doesn't have faith. Um, the reason I say that we can say that is because there's a sense that that's true, right? If you don't believe you're saved, then you don't believe you're saved and you don't trust that you're saved. But that doesn't mean that you always have full awareness of that confidence. And, you know, I think, um, I think. I think you're, you're right that, um, it may not always be, let me put it this way. I, I think that we have to consider the entire life of a Christian when we're, when we're making that analysis. And in a certain sense, like, I'm not even sure we should be making that analysis. That's kind of the point of the, the, um, the parable here, or at least one of the points. But, um, when that analysis is made, we'll, we'll channel a little bit of RC sprawl. It's not as funny when he's actually, uh, gone. I don't really mean channel RC sprawl. We will, uh, speak in the tradition of RC sprawl, um, in the final analysis, whatever that means. Whenever that is. You have to consider the whole life of a Christian, the whole life of a believer. And so there may be times in the life of a believer where they don't possess that full assurance of faith or that that full assurance is weak or that it seems to be absent. But when we look at the entire life of a believer, um, is it a life that overall is marked by a confident trust, that they are in fact children of God? Um, that a confident, uh, a confident embracing of what the spirit testifies to their spirit, to, to borrow language from Romans, I think in, in the life of a true elect Christian, um, that with the perseverance of the saints, uh, with the persistence of the saints and the preservation of the saints, um, I think that yes, those who are finally saved, those who are saved unto salvation, if you wanna phrase it that way. They finish the race, they claim the prize. Um, that assurance will be their possession in their life as a Christian. Jesse Schwamb: Right on. Tony Arsenal: All of that to say, I think there are, are, there's a good case to be made for the fact that there is also people who have false assurance, right? And this is where it takes a lot more, you know, finagling and jockeying and theological explanation of how can we know we have true assurance versus false assurance. You know, it's kinda like that question, like, does an insane person know they're insane? Well, does a false, does someone with false assurance know that their assurance is false? I don't think, I don't think so. Otherwise, it wouldn't be false assurance. Um, if they knew it wasn't real assurance, then they wouldn't have any kind of assurance. So I, I think I agree with you at least where, where I think you're going is that we do have to, we do have to make some judgements. We have to look at our own life, right? Um, there is an element of fruitfulness in this parable, right? We'll talk about that. I, I think we'll get into that next week. But it's not as though this is entirely disconnected from the parable of the soils. Both of them have a very similar kind of. End point. [00:47:20] Final Judgment and Eschatology Tony Arsenal: At the end of all things, at the end of the harvest, when the end of the age comes, and the reapers, the angels are sent, what they're gathering up are fruitful Christians, right in the parable, he sends out the, it's funny be, I love my dispensational brothers and sisters, but in this parable, like the rapture is the rapture of the unbelievers, right? The angels go out and reap the unbelievers first. The, the weeds are bundled up and thrown into the fire, and then the, the fruitful wheat is gathered into the barns. Um, there is this delineation between the fruitless weeds and the fruitful wheat or the, the grain that has borne, you know, borne fruit. That is part of what the, the outward. Elements of this parable are, so we should talk about that more, of what is this trying to get at in terms of not just the difference between weeds and wheat and how that maps up to those who are in Christ versus those who are not in Christ, but also like what is this telling us about the, the end of the age eschatology. All of that's baked in here and we haven't even scratched the surface of that Jesse Schwamb: yet. Yeah, we, we, I, and we just can't, even on this episode, probably, you're right, we're gonna have to go to two so that, I guess it's like a teaser for the next one. I'm told they're with you. It's interesting. I've been thinking about that, that question a lot. And I do like what you're saying. You know, at the end here, it's almost as if Christ is saying at the time of harvest, things become more plain, more evident In the beginning. The chutes are gonna look really, really similar, and you're gonna go in and you're gonna think you're guessing properly or using your best judgment, and you're gonna get it wrong in the end when he sends out those who are harvesting. I liken this passage here in the explanation as you read to us starting in verse 36, how there's this comparison of heat and light. And so there is the heat and light of the fiery furnace into which, as you said, all of those who are the children of the enemy will be gathered up and burned. And then there's that contrast with in verse 43, then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their father. So there is like a reward that comes from the bearing of the fruit and that made evidence by a different type of heat and light. So I do struggle with this question because. It's easy to answer in some ways if we're defining the weeds in pirate or the tears in pirates as false professors typically. Let's say false professors of a nefarious kind, then it seems pretty plain that somebody, right, that the enemy has implanted certain people to stir up trouble with the intention to stir up trouble that is in fact their jam. Or they know that even if they're putting on heirs, that they're in fact play acting that the hypocrisy is purposeful and that it is part of like the missional efforts that they're doing to disrupt what God is doing in the world. So I might think of somebody like when we go, when we're looking in, um, Exodus, and we find that at least to some degree, all of Pharaoh's magicians can replicate everything that Moses is doing. Moses doing that by the power of God. But the magicians are so good and whatever means they're using, but they know, I presume they know they're not, they're not using Yahweh, they're not drawing their power or their influence from Yahweh. Tony Arsenal: Right? Jesse Schwamb: But it's so convincing to the people that Pharaoh is like, eh. Obviously I've seen that before because we just, we just did that here. Come back with your next trick until God flexes his mighty muscles in a really profound way, which cannot be replicated. And at some point there's a harvest that happens there. There's a separation between the two, those who are truly professing, the power that comes from God, the one true God, and those that are just replicating the cheap copy, the one that's just pure trickery and smoke and mirrors. So. That's an easy category. I'm with you. And I'm not saying that this is an invitation to bring the kind of judgment here that we've just spoken against. I'm not condoning this. What I do find interesting though is if the enemy is crafty, is it possible that they're always going to be forms of terror in the world that do feel that they have very strong conviction and belief about biblical things? Maybe there's, there's strong hobby horses or there are misguided directions here that pull us apart, that become distractions. Or maybe it's just even attitudes, uh, things that can be divisive, disruptive, derogatory that again, pull us away. For making the plain things, the main things and the main things, the plain things, which in some ways draws us back to like the whole purpose of you and I talking every week, which is we wanna get back to what the scripture teaches. We wanna follow the our Lord Jesus Christ very, very closely. I'm gonna clinging to the hymn of his rob as we walk through life so that we do not fall to those kind of false convictions. So I'm not, please hear me, loved ones. I'm not trying to call into question your faith as Tony just said. I am saying that there, this is kind of scary, just like we talked about. There are elements of the parables of the, of the soil that were equally scary. And so it's just in some ways to say, we gotta keep our heads not theological, swivel. We, we gotta be about the Lord's business, and we gotta be about understanding through prayer and study and communion with him, what it is that he wants to teach us in the purest way, knowing that the church itself and the world, of course, is never going to be entirely pure. At the same time, it is our responsibility to, as you already said, test for ourselves to understand what is that true gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Because some tears are going to be maybe easy to identify and with without, you know, throwing too much shade or. I was gonna say spilling the TI don't think that works here, but I'm not young anymore, so I'm trying to use or or put on blast. Yeah. I'm looking at you Mormons or Jehovah's witnesses. Like it's, it's easier there to be like, yeah, right, this is wrong. It is a false profession, but we've just gotta be careful even in our own hobby, horses not deviates into ground. I think that doesn't preclude us from being children of the light and children of the kingdom, but can still be disruptive or uh, you know, just distracting. But either way, yeah. I think what's scary to me about this is exactly what you said, Tony, is, is could it be that there are people that are very sincere about the Christian faith, but are sincerely wrong? Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Jesse Schwamb: And what does that mean for God's elected purpose? What does that mean for our understanding of how to interact in our churches in the world? Does that make sense? Tony Arsenal: It does. And I'm not sure whether you were trying to set up the, what might be the first genuine reformed brotherhood cliffhanger, but you did. Because we're on minute 54 of a 60 minute podcast, and, uh, there's no way we're gonna get into that and not go for another 60 minutes. So, Jesse, I, I'm, I'm glad that we are taking our time. Um, I know that sometimes it's easy when you put out a schedule or you put out a sort of projected content calendar to feel like you have to stick to it. But I wanna give these parables, the time they deserve and the effort and the, uh, the, uh, study and the discussion that they deserve. And I think the questions you're posing here at the end of this episode are really, really important. And they are questions that this parable forces us to ask. Right, right. It's not as though we're just using this as a launching pad. Um. If the workers can't tell the difference between the, the seed and the, or the, the weeds and the weeds, it's reasonable to think that the weeds themselves may not be able to tell the difference. Right? The sons of the evil one, um, are probably not in this parable, are probably not the people like in the back, like doing fake devil horns, right? And like, you know, like there's, there's probably more going on that we need to unpack and, and we'll do that next week. Jesse Schwamb: I love it. So we've got some good stuff coming then, because we've gotta, this is like, do you ever remember when you were in, uh, you know, doing your undergraduate postgraduate work, you'd get like a topic or an assignment or a paper and you'd be super stoked about it and you start reaching it, be like, okay, researching it. And you'd be like, all right, I've got some good topics here. And then you get into it, you're like, oh, but I'm gonna have to talk about this. And Oh, like before I could talk, I'm gonna have to explain this. Sometimes when we get into these, as you and I have been talking, that's what it feels li

In 1973, Star Trek: The Animated Series debuted as a Saturday morning cartoon, but early reviewers quickly realized it was something far more ambitious. A contemporary article from the Pantagraph (Bloomington-Normal, IL) praised the show's complex themes and emotional storytelling, declaring it a breakthrough in children's animation that adults could take just as seriously. This week, The Trek Files welcomes back Adam Kotsko, author of Late Star Trek, to explore the deeper legacy of TAS from its psychological depth and allegorical storytelling to its role as the franchise's first major reinvention. With Gene Roddenberry at the helm and the original cast returning, The Animated Series wasn't just a placeholder between live-action runs; it was a bold step into new narrative territory. Was it canon? Does it matter? Adam and Larry unpack how TAS laid the groundwork for later series, balanced nostalgia with innovation, and helped define Star Trek's long-standing ability to evolve with its audience.

In 1973, Star Trek: The Animated Series debuted as a Saturday morning cartoon, but early reviewers quickly realized it was something far more ambitious. A contemporary article from the Pantagraph (Bloomington-Normal, IL) praised the show's complex themes and emotional storytelling, declaring it a breakthrough in children's animation that adults could take just as seriously. This week, The Trek Files welcomes back Adam Kotsko, author of Late Star Trek, to explore the deeper legacy of TAS from its psychological depth and allegorical storytelling to its role as the franchise's first major reinvention. With Gene Roddenberry at the helm and the original cast returning, The Animated Series wasn't just a placeholder between live-action runs; it was a bold step into new narrative territory. Was it canon? Does it matter? Adam and Larry unpack how TAS laid the groundwork for later series, balanced nostalgia with innovation, and helped define Star Trek's long-standing ability to evolve with its audience.

A shape-shifting “soft weapon,” Kzinti honor, and billion-year tech—are some powers too dangerous to exist? Dom Bettinelli and Jimmy Akin connect TAS's “The Slaver Weapon” to Larry Niven's Known Space.

A shape-shifting “soft weapon,” Kzinti honor, and billion-year tech—are some powers too dangerous to exist? Dom Bettinelli and Jimmy Akin connect TAS's “The Slaver Weapon” to Larry Niven's Known Space. The post The Slaver Weapon (TAS) appeared first on StarQuest Media.

In this week's episode of Mom Stomp Annie & Jo catch up on Jo's first day subbing, LA's Comic Con and Taylor's one bop. They're talking the importance of attendance, cool TAs, and 6-7 still going strong and spinning wheels REIGNING SUPREME. *This podcast is not appropriate for kids.Instagram and TikTok - momstomppodcastEmail - thismomstomps@gmail.comVM hotline - 213-640-7494Weekly memo and episode recap (which includes links to all things referenced in the ep) here: https://momstomppodcast.substack.com/

Finding clients is hard enough - finding GOOD ones? Feels damn near impossible. I enlisted the help of Tas Bober to help navigate this complex field of getting client work, and explored topics related to CRO/client work as well!We got into:- Bringing confidence to the client relationship (you don't always have to cave in to EVERY little freaking thing they want you to do)- Running from bad clients when they don't pass the vibe check (and how to find shitty clients BEFORE they pay you)- How to talk to clients (and stakeholders) appropriately without talking DOWN at them (hint: treat them like they're children. It works.)Timestamps:00:00 Episode Start4:12 Detecting Client Red Flags BEFORE Signing A Contract With Them8:46 What To Do When A Client Gives You The ‘Ick'16:07 Importance of Setting (And Enforcing) Boundaries20:30 Setting Success Metrics for Engagement Upfront29:46 When “Leading With Data” Doesn't Make Make Sense…?46:20 Tas' BIGGEST Pro Tip (Don't Just Skip To This Timestamp Ya Leetches)Go follow Tas Bober on LinkedIn:⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/tasbober/ ⁠Go check out her podcast "Notorious B2B": https://www.linkedin.com/company/notorious-b2b/posts/⁠Also go follow Shiva Manjunath on LinkedIn:⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-manjunath/⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to our newsletter for more memes, clips, and awesome content!⁠⁠https://fromatob.beehiiv.com/

Rudens krāšņākais periods ar lapu krāsošanos pamazām sākas, tā kulminācija vēl priekšā, bet rudeni raksturo arī kāda dabas norise, kurā iesaistītas zivis. Tas ir lašu nārsts. Sigulda ir viena no vietām, kur “zelta rudens” baudītājiem ir arī iespēja piemērotos apstākļos no Gaujas tilta redzēt, kā šis lielās zivis dažkārt saulē uzmirdz, veidojot nārsta ligzdas. Un laši ir vienas no zivīm, kas Latvijas ūdeņos izjūt klimata pārmaiņas. Lašus ietekmē ne vien kopējās vides izmaiņas, bet tiem ir arī specifiskas ūdens temperatūras prasības. Vēl mazliet cimperlīgākas ir tikai foreles. Bet lašiem ir svarīga ūdens temperatūra ne tikai nārsta laikā, bet arī vasarā, jo laši ir ziemeļu zivs, kam nepatīk silts ūdens. Ne vien nepatīk, bet var izrādīties arī nāvējošs. Pagaidām lašu nārstam vēl ūdens par siltu, bet šis arī ir jautājums – vai klimata pārmaiņu dēļ nārstošana kļūst arvien vēlāka un vai arvien siltāks ūdens rudeņos var kā nelabvēlīgi ietekmēt lašu nārstu? Izrādās, ka arvien siltāks laiks uz lašiem atstāj lielāku ietekmi nevis nārsta laikā, bet vasarā. Bet pirms runāt hidroloģiskajiem un meteoroloģiskajiem datus, vides zinātniskā institūta „Bior” pētnieks Jānis Bajinskis skaidro, kā vispār laši saprot, kad ir īstais laiks nākt uz nārstu, no jūras peldēt uz upēm. Piemērotākā temperatūra lašu nārstam ir ap 7-8 grādiem. Jautājums, cik ilgi zivīm nākas gaidīt, jo ir gadi, kad ūdens ilgāk saglabājas silts. Skatot datus 30 gadu periodā, viens no vēsākajiem rudeņiem bija 1993. gadā. Toreiz Gaujā, kas ir viena no mūsu 13 lašupēm, jau 15. septembrī ūdens temperatūra stabili noslīdēja līdz 8 grādiem un zemāk. Bet pērn, 2024. gadā, kad bija siltākais septembris novērojumu vēsturē un arī oktobris bija relatīvi silts, ūdens temperatūra Gaujā līdz 8 grādiem noslīdēja tikai 15. oktobrī – mēnesi vēlāk. Lielākoties ūdens temperatūra līdz 8 grādiem nokrītas periodā no septembra otras puses līdz oktobra sākumam un šīs svārstības patiesībā nav ļoti lielas. Esot zināmi gadījumi, kad atsevišķi indivīdi sāk nārstot ātrāk un tad ir risks, ka siltākā ūdenī ir vairāk, piemēram, patogēnu, kas var uzmesties ikriem, kādas baktērijas vai sēnītes un ikri iet bojā. Bet siltāki rudeņi un siltāks ūdens uz nārstu atstāj ietekmi caur citiem procesiem – tā ir upju aizaugšana. Jānis Bajinskis skaidro, ka tā jau ir nopietnāka problēma. Otra lieta, kas nav saistīta ar nārstu, bet kur temperatūra ietekmē lašus, ir vasarā. No vienas puses – mazliet siltāks ūdens palīdz lašu mazuļiem ātrāk izaugt, ja ūdens temperatūra ir līdz 20 grādiem, bet ja kāpj virs 20 grādiem, sākas problēmas. Lasis ir vairāk ziemeļu zivs un tam nepatīk silts ūdens. Izrādās pēdējās vasarās ir gadījumi, kad pārāk silta ūdens dēļ laši pat iet bojā, ko arī „BIOR” pētnieki karstās vasarās ir novērojuši.

3. oktobrī VEF Kultūras pilī gaidāma pirmizrāde Franča Lehāra operetei "Džudita", kas pilnība Latvijā tiek iestudēta pirmoreiz. Iestudējumu veido starptautiska komanda -  režisors Gernots Kranners un scenogrāfs Hervigs Libovickis no audrijas, kostīmu māksliniece Aleksandra Brandnere no Vācijas, bet muzikālā vadība būs diriģenta Atvara Lakstīgalas ziņā.  Titullomā - Itālijā dzīvojošā Anta Jankovska un Pirmā Starptautiskā Marinas Zirdziņas vokālistu konkursa laureāte Anastasija Dogoņenko, Oktavio - Dainis Skutelis vai Andrejs Krutojs. Pār­ējās lomās: Jolanta Strikaite, Patrīcija Kozlovska, Emīls Kivlenieks, Nauris Indzeris, Inmārs Sikle, Henrijs Kozlovskis u. c. Sarunā Operetes teātra valdes priekšsēdētāju Agiju Ozoliņu-Kozlovsku un dziedātājiem Antu Jankovsku un Daini Skuteli vispirms noskaidrojam, kad radās ideja šo opereti uzvest Latvijā un doma par starptautiskas komandas iesaisti.  Abiem solistiem lūdzām raksturot savas lomas un savu pirmo sadarbību ar režisoru Gernotu Kranneru. Pievēršamies arī Lehāra mūzikas valodai, kas šajā darbā  ir stipri atšķirīga no citām viņa operetēm, runājam par 2. un 3. plāna varoņiem un VEF Kultūras pils Lielās zāles piemērotību. Noslēgumā - vēlējums klausītājiem, kam jāgatavojas. Agija Ozoliņa-Kozlovska: “Operetes “Džudita” Latvijas pirmiestudējums ir unikāls gan dēļ šī skatuves darba pasakaini skaistās muzikālās vērtības, gan dramatikā dziļuma, mākslinieciskās un vizuālās interpretācijas. Tas ir patiess stāsts par izvēlēm, kas maina dzīvi, stāsts ne tikai par mīlestību, nenovēršamām alkām pēc dzīves, brīvības un tuvības, pat mirklī, kad viss var momentā sabrukt. Operete ietver Lehāra spalvai raksturīgās brīnišķīgas, atmiņā paliekošas melodijas, kuras neiztrūkstoši ir pasaulslavenāko solistu koncertrepertuārā, kā piemēram, slavenā Džuditas ārija „Manas lūpas skurbina kā vīns” vai Oktavio ārija “Draugi, Šī dzīve ir bauda!”, kuras mūsu klausītāji varēja baudīt arī šī gada Starptautiskajā operetes festivālā. Operete “Džudita”to klausoties, pārņem tevi un piepilda dvēseli ar siltumu, gaismu, mīlestību”.

Have you ever drawn a blank when asked how you're feeling? Or maybe you experience constant inner buzzing, numbness, or anxiety without any words to describe it. You're not broken—and you're not alone. In this deeply informative and compassionately nuanced episode, Jennifer, Elizabeth, and guest Matt Bush unpack alexithymia: a common and often misunderstood trauma-related trait that involves difficulty identifying, describing, or connecting with emotions. More than emotional “numbness,” alexithymia involves disrupted communication between the body and brain, making healing feel elusive. The hosts break down the neurological roots of this trait, how it differs from emotional numbing in PTSD, and why traditional talk therapy often isn't enough. You'll learn how interoceptive training—like what's taught in NeuroSomatic Intelligence (NSI)—can help bring emotional awareness back online. Whether you're a practitioner, trauma survivor, or someone just feeling disconnected, this conversation offers hope and concrete tools to rewire the nervous system for emotional clarity, embodiment, and relational healing. Timestamps: 0:43 – What Is Alexithymia? 3:00 – Why It's Common After Trauma 4:40 – The TAS-20 Scale: 3 Key Features 7:00 – Lived Experience + Relationship Impact 10:00 – Alexithymia vs. Emotional Numbing 14:40 – Trauma's Impact on Emotional Mapping 17:00 – Neurological Underpinnings (Insula, DMN, etc.) 20:00 – Substance Use, Shutdowns & Coping 26:00 – Functional Freeze & Stress Sensitivity 30:00 – How Neuroplasticity Supports Change 33:00 – NSI Tools for Rewiring Emotional Awareness 36:00 – Practical Steps to Start Feeling More 40:00 – Emotional Expression, Relationships & Health Outcomes Key Takeaways: Alexithymia is not a disorder but a trainable trait, often shaped by trauma and nervous system adaptations. Traditional talk therapy may not fully address alexithymia due to its neurological roots—interoceptive training is key. It differs from emotional numbing in PTSD; each involves distinct brain networks (e.g., DMN vs. salience network). Emotional awareness isn't just about language—it starts with sensing the body. Healing emotional disconnect can improve not just mental health, but physical health and relational dynamics. Resources Mentioned: NeuroSomatic Intelligence Coaching Certification → www.rewiretrial.com Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) Referenced Studies: Vandervoort Meta-analysis (2013) Journal of Global Health Reports (2025) Gharlic & Doba (2015) Brewer & Kuehnerberg (2016) PTSD + Alexithymia Therapy Outcomes (2008)   If this episode gave you clarity, comfort, or tools for your healing, share it with someone who needs it. Don't forget to subscribe on your favorite audio platform or hit the bell on YouTube so you never miss an episode.

Topics:  - Is the NBL App the worst in Australian professional sport? - A quick 'whip around' and 'first impressions' of each team after two rounds - How Jaron Rillie and JaVale McGee are the most emblematic storylines of the NBL - Who is the bigger coaching fraud on the sidelines? Lash, Goorjian or Wells? - Who's better out of MEL or TAS? Subscribe and follow The NBL POCKET PODCAST on Patreon and Twitter - Connect with the show via - Patreon: patreon.com/nblpocketpodcast Twitter: Joseph @nblpocketpod Mastodon: Andrew @canion@social.lol | @nblpp@nbl.social Website: https://www.nblpocketpodcast.com Discord: https://discord.gg/bnqSYK4C

Māksla, zinātne, filozofija - tā bija viduslaiku dižo prātu neparastā aizraušanās ar alķīmiju. Aiz tās slēpās kas vairāk par metāla pārvēršanu zeltā un mūžīgās dzīvības eliksīra meklējumiem. Alķīmiķu paveikto tolaika šodien varam meklēt dažādās zinātnes jomās. Vēl stipri pirms mūsdienu ķīmijas un medicīnas, tapa zinātniska kustība, kas uzdeva ļoti radikālu jautājumu - vai no dažādiem metāliem var iegūt zeltu? Vai no vienkāršām sastāvdaļām var iegūt pašu dārgāko? Šīs idejas mūsdienās šķiet vai nu absurdas, vai simboliskas, taču tolaik tās nebija nedz muļķīgas, nedz mistiskas - alķīmija bija nopietna zinātniska aizraušanās, kas pulcēja vienlaikus daudz sekotāju un daudz skeptiķu. Par alķīmiju raidījumā Zināmais nezināmajā stāsta Rīgas Stradiņa universitātes Anatomijas muzeja vadītāja, medicīnas vēsturniece Ieva Lībiete un vēsturnieks, Latvijas Universitātes Humanitāro zinātņu fakultātes profesors Andris Levāns. "Ja mūsdienu cilvēkam prasītu, ko viņš ir dzirdējis par alķīmiju, tas būtu no nevērtīgiem metāliem iegūt zeltu, noteikti būtu dzirdēts filozofu akmens vai dzīvības eliksīrs. Tas viss šķistu tāds diezgan mistisks un ezotērisks, un noslēpumains. Bet tas misticisms droši vien alķīmijā ir radies apmēram tikai ap 19. gadsimtu, kad sāk skatīt alķīmijas vēsturi vairāk atsvešināti no dabaszinātņu vēstures un sāk skaidrot dažādus alķīmiķu eksperimentus vairāk kā tādus spirituālus meklējumus nekā zinātniskus, tiešām laboratorijā veiktus eksperimentus. Līdz ar to var teikt, ka šobrīd šī sajūta dominē," skaidro Ieva Lībiete. "Bet, ja mēs paskatāmies zinātņu vēsturē, alķīmijas plašāka izpēte ir attīstījusies, sākot no 20. gadsimta otrās puses. Šobrīd akadēmiskie pētnieki, kas nodarbojas specifiski ar alķīmijas vēsturi, to vērtētu kā daļu no zinātņu vēstures. Un pašos pirmsākumos tas nebija nekas mistisks vai ezotērisks, tā bija tiešām praktizējoša zinātne ar savu teoriju un praksi, kas bija balstīta tā laika izpratnē par pasaules kārtību un par vielas un substances dabu. Tur nebija klāt misticisma. Tas ir kaut kur laika gaitā pievienojies, noslāņojies." "Piekrītu, ka tas misticisms vai tā misticisma gaisotne, kurā mēs esam iegremdējuši šodien nesaprotamo vai maz saprotamo parādību alķīmija, patiešām ir diezgan jauna. Savukārt ir viena cita lieta, kas acīmredzot pavadīja tos, kurus laikabiedri sauca par šiem alķīmijas mākslas meistariem vai adeptiem, tā ir noslēpumainība. Noslēpumainība noteikti ir pavadījusi visus tos cilvēkus, kuri ar to ir nodarbojušies, par kuriem zināja vai par kuriem runāja, ka viņi nodarbojas ar alķīmiju un ka viņi ir iesvaidīti tās noslēpumos, jo patiesi tās bija zināšanas, kuras nebūt nebija domātas visiem," norāda Andris Levāns. "Tā bija pietuvošanās noslēpumam. Tas, ka mēģināja noslēpt šīs zināšanas, kuras patiešām uzskatīja kā lielu vērtību, jo tas nodrošināja vai varēja nodrošināt piekļuvi ne tikai garīgām bagātībām, respektīvi, kaut kādiem izziņas pirmavotiem, bet arī materiālām [bagātībām]. Tad, ja patiešām atklāja veidu, kā pārvērst, respektīvi, transmutēt vielu dabu, ka tu liek kļūt vienam metālam par citu," turpina vēsturnieks. "Tā noslēpumainība un piekļūšana noslēpumam ir saistīta vēl ar robežsituāciju.  Ja jūsu mērķis ir patiešām izskaidrot lietu dabu līdz tam stāvoklim, ko saucam par prima materia, tas stāvoklis, kur lietas, vielas zaudē savas fizikālās un citas īpašības, kuras tām piemīt šobrīd. Tātad viss atgriežas tādā pirmstāvoklī, respektīvi, tajā stāvoklī, kuru, iespējams, pazinis ir vienīgi Dievs. Jautājums ir: vai jūs, ja nokļūstat šajā stāvoklī, nenonākat konfliktā, piemēram, ar kristīgās baznīcas dogmatiku. Vai arī jūs pēkšņi uzņematies to, vai gribat pretendēt uz to lomu, kas bija piešķirta tikai Dievam, kurš radīja no pirmmatērijas visas tās lietas un pasauli, , kas ir mums apkārt. Tie jautājumi, kuri kļūst neērti, un līdz ar to veidojas konfliktsituācijas arī ar tā laika sabiedrību." Taro kāršu izcelsme un nozīme Taro kārtis ietver sevī senu zināšanu sistēmu, un simbolu veidā kārtis stāsta gan par cilvēka dzīves liktenīgiem notikumiem, gan paša rīcību, kas likteni var arī mainīt. Attieksme pret taro kārtīm vēsturē ir bijusi gan vēlama, gan noraidoša, un plašāk par kāršu izcelsmi un nozīmi stāsta pētnieku Ingus Barovskis. Cilvēkiem visos laikos interesējuši divi jautājumi - kas notiks pēc nāves un kas notiks nākotnē? Kartomantija ir pasens nākotnes zīlēšanas paņēmiens, izmantojot gan parastās spēļu kārtis, gan taro kārtis. Tā sarunas iesākumā skaidro Latvijas Universitātes Humanitāro zinātņu fakultātes pētnieks Ingus Barovskis, un viņš arī norāda, ka literatūrā informācija par taro kāršu izcelsmi ir ļoti atšķirīga. Bet izskatās, ka līdz Eiropai šīs kārtis mērojušas garu ceļu, un pēc tam laika gaitā mainījusies arī to nozīme – te izklaidei, te maģijai. Taro kāršu kava sastāv no 78 kārtīm. Ir 22 Lielie Arkāni. Tie simbolizē cilvēka dzīves lielos posmus, liktenīgus notikumus un dvēseles ceļu, piemēram, kārtis “Muļķis”, “Pakārtais”, “Zvaigzne”. Un ir 56 Mazie Arkāni, kas sadalīti četros elementos (zižļi, kausi, zobeni un pentakli) un attēlo ikdienas dzīves aspektus – domas, emocijas, darbības, materiālās lietas. Par taro pirmsākumiem turpina Ingus Barovskis.  

Raidījumā Pievienotā vērtība runājam par eksportu, kuru kā maģisko risinājumu daudzām ekonomikas problēmām piemin regulāri.  Pašu mājās ir labi, bet vietas, kur augt, ir tik, cik ir. Tas attiecas arī uz uzņēmējiem, kuriem eksports ir viena no iespējām, kā izaugt lielākiem par savu vietējo tirgu. Bet pagaidām, vismaz, ja skatās uz datiem, diez ko diži Latvijas uzņēmējiem kopumā ar to došanos uz ārvalstu tirgiem neklājas.  Ar eksporta datiem iepazīstina Katrīna Zariņa, Latvijas tirdzniecības un rūpniecības kameras valdes locekle. No visiem Latvijas uzņēmumiem, eksportējot tikai trīs procenti un, ja mēs skatītos uz uzņēmumu sarakstu, kuru eksporta vērtība ir virs 5 miljoniem eiro, tad sarakstā būtu tikai pāris simti uzņēmumu. Bet ko darīt un kādēļ tā? Vispirms jārēķinās, ka ar atvērtām rokām un sarkano paklāju nevienā eksporta tirgū uzņēmumu nesagaidīs, saka uzņēmēji. 

In this episode of the Effortless Swimming Podcast, Brenton Ford and Tas discuss the key takeaways from their recent training camp in the Maldives. They cover essential themes such as identifying bottlenecks in swimming technique, the importance of community support, overcoming self-doubt, and the significance of consistency in training. The conversation emphasizes practical strategies for improvement, including the use of simple cues, the power of reframing concepts, and the benefits of practicing techniques on land. The hosts also highlight the value of rhythm in swimming and the effectiveness of contrast drills to enhance performance. 00:57 Identifying and Focusing on Bottlenecks 04:13 Simplifying Drills and Progression Sets 07:26 The Importance of Community in Swimming 11:23 Believing in Yourself and Overcoming Doubts 15:37 Consistency Over Perfection 19:54 Process and Feel Over Data 23:54 Simple Cues Unlock Big Changes 26:11 Breaststroke Technique Insights 28:08 The Importance of Reframing Concepts 29:56 Rhythm in Swimming: The Waltz Analogy 33:13 Practicing Technique on Land 36:18 Using Contrast Drills for Technique Improvement 40:04 Sighting and Pack Swimming Strategies

No 23. - 30.septembrim visā Eiropā norisinās "Eiropas Sporta nedēļa". Latvijā tās ietvaros katram ir iespēja piedalīties dažādos pasākumos un uzzināt, cik svarīgi ir kustēties. Kas notiks un kur, interesējamies raidījumā Kā labāk dzīvot. Stāsta Eiropas Sporta nedēļas koordinatore Dace Kaspare, trenere Liene Knope, Laila Bankovska, kuras ikdiena rit birojā, bet atrod laiku fiziskām aktivitātēm, Latvijas Veselības un fitnesa asociācijas valdes priekšsēdētājs Gints Kuzņecovs. Limbažu novadā Eiropas sporta nedēļa tika atklāta ar sporta nodarbību pirmsskolas audzēkņiem. Limbažos bija arī žurnāliste Daina Zalamane. Gints Kuzņecovs aicina pievienoties uzņēmumu komandām "Biroja izaicinājumam" - izveidot komandu un vingrot birojā, bet ikviens arī var arī izmantot treneru sagatavotus video un vingrot gan kopā ar kolēģiem, gan individuāli arī citās dienās. Iedvesmojoši video ar vingrojumu ieteikumiem pieejami šeit. Laila Bankovska atzīst, ja strādā biroja, ir sevi jāpiespiež un jāatrod laiks, lai kaut ko darītu, citādi var just, ja kādu laiku nav bijusi fiziski aktīva, sāk sāpēt mugura, ceļi. Tas ir motivators un atgādinājums, ka kādu laiku nav nekas darīts. Protams, laika visam nepietiek, tāpēc jāizvēlas prioritātes, tāpēc arī kopā ar ģimeni jāizvēlas, vai atpūsties pie televizora, vai ēst sviestmaizītes visiem kopā dabā.      

Pilna spektra gaismas lampas interneta veikalos ir pieejamas cik uziet. Lielākoties tās piedāvā augu audzēšanai, nevis cilvēka mājokļa apgaismošanai. Kāpēc cilvēkiem nepieciešama pilna spektra gaisma, interesējamies raidījumā Kā labāk dzīvot. Skaidro oftalmoloģe Anda Balgalve un gaismas un cirkadiāno ritmu pētniece Baiba Bieļa. Klausītājs jautā, vai, esot telpā ar seju pret plaši atvērtu logu, var saņemt pilnu spektra gaismu ziemā? "Tas pat ir ļoti ieteicams, jo tad mēs saņemam gan to nepieciešamo luksu daudzumu, gan pilnu spektru, gan arī ķermenis saprot, kādus gadalaiks," skaidro Baiba Bieļa. "Ķermenim ir jāsinhronizējas ar ārējo vidi, ar temperatūru, ar gaismu, lai saprot, kāds ir gadalaiks, jo mēs pavadām laiku iekštelpu klimatā un īsti nepiedzīvoju ne gaismas, ne temperatūras svārstības, kas būtu nepieciešamas." Protams, labāk iet ārā no telpām. Runājot par saulesbrillēm, Anda Anda Balgalve mudina tās neizmantot, ja acis ir veselas un nav kādi īpaši apstākļi, piemēram, augstu kalnos. Viņa arī min, ka jebkuru optisko briļļu materiāls sargā no ultravioletā starojuma. "Protams, ja braucam pie stūres, satiksmes drošība, [liekam saulesbrilles], bet acu jutīgums mums ir arī tāpēc, ka mēs nepiedzīvojam gaismas spektra pārmaiņas no rīta līdz vakaram. Acīm tieši ir nepieciešama tā rīta daļa, kad ir infrasarkanais spektrs un tās spektra pāreja, un arī gaismas spilgtums, kas pa dienu palielinās, tas arī ir kā acs trenažieris. Mēs ejam zāli, muskuļus trenājam, bet asc ir jātrenē tāpat, un viņu trenē tās gaismas spektra pārejas. Tad arī zūd problēma ar acu jutīgumu, par redzes atjaunošanu, ko Londonas universitātē pēta. Tā infrasarkanā daļa mums ir deficīts, jo mēs esam visu laiku telpās, un tas infrasarkanais spektrs ir visu dienu. Viņš tā kā pretdarbojas tam zilā un UV nodarītajiem kaitējumam, veic tādu atpakaļuzlādi šūnu mitohondroju līmenī. Izstrādājas šūnu melatonīns ne tikai miega melatonīns," skaidro Baiba Bieļa. Viņa mudina rītos cilvēkus, kas dodas sportot, nelietot saulesbrilles. Tieši tad vajadzētu saulesbrilles noņemt, jo rīta pirmā stunda ir bez UV spektra, saule nav tik augstu.   Viskaitīgākais ir uzlikt nekvalitatīvas saulesbrilles, kas neaizsargā no UV starojuma. "Par UV spektru varbūt nedzirdēta lieta ir tā, ka acī sākas dopamīna sintēze," bilst Baiba Bieļa. "Mēs patiesībā esam radīti, lai būtu zilās gaismas "narkomāni", un tas ir arī viens no iemesliem, kāpēc arī mums patīk sauļoties. Piemēram, bērniem patīk gaismas stimuls, patīk kustīgs attēls. Tāpēc mums arī patīk tehnoloģijas, mums ir gan garīgi stimulējoša, gan fizioloģiski stimulējoša šī zilās gaismas iedarbība uz visu dopamīna sistēmu. Mums patīk."  

Vakar, 22. septembrī, Ziemeļu puslodē sākās astronomiskais rudens. Bet no Ziemeļpola ar katru dienu arvien plašāk izplešas tumsa. Ir sākusies polārā nakts. Pie mums dabā rudens iestājas tik pakāpeniski, ka par to runājam jau kopš augusta otras puses. Atšķirībā no mūsu platuma grādiem, kur astronomisko gadalaiku robeža dabā faktiski nav ne jūtama, ne saredzama, Arktikā izmaiņas ir daudz straujākas un tur, runājot par pavisam tāliem ziemeļiem vēl aiz polārā loka, šajās dienās iestājas nakts. Sākumā tiešām tikai ap pašu Ziemeļpolu, bet jo dienas, jo tumsa izplešas tālāk uz dienvidiem. Tur dabā faktiski nav četru gadalaiku – drīzāk ir tikai ziema un vasara vai diena un nakts. Un šajās dienās Arktikā beidzas kušanas sezona, kad Ziemeļu ledus okeāna ledus atkal sāks pieņemties apjomā. Cilvēkiem šķiet, ka aiz Polārā lokā kā izslēdz gaismu ap šo laiku, tā tikai martā, kad ir pavasara ekvinokcija, atkal ieslēdz. Tā gluži nav. Šodien, 23. septembrī, polārā nakts iestājas tikai nelielā aplītī ap pašu Ziemeļpolu. Citviet Arktikā dienas ir īsas un ļoti strauji kļūst īsākas, bet tur vēl nav polārā nakts. Ja pie mums dienas garuns sarūk pa 3-5 minūtēm, tur pa 10-20 minūtēm un pat pusstundu. Piemēram, Svalbārā, kas ir aptuveni 80. paralēle, kas ir krietni aiz polārā loka, polārā nakts iestāsies tikai aptuveni pēc mēneša un tā ilgs četrus mēnešus. Tas nozīmē, ka saule sāks virs apvāršņa parādīties jau februāra otrajā pusē. Savukārt vēl tālāk uz dienvidiem pie 70. paralēles, kur jau ir Norvēģijas kontinetālā daļa, apmēram, kur ir Tromse, polārā nakts ilgst aptuveni divus mēnešus, bet tieši uz polārā loka, kas ir 66,5 grādu paralēli, nakts ir tikai vienu diennakti - ziemas saulgriežos. Tātad pusgadu gara nakts ir tikai Ziemeļpolā.  Neraugoties uz to, protams, no saules saņemtais siltums pēc rudens ekvinokcijas ir tik niecīgs, ka gaisa temperatūru vairs ļoti būtiski nespēj ietekmēt, to šajā gada daļā nosaka gaisa masu plūsmas, tādēļ arī aiz polārā loka, kad ir iestājusies tumsa, temperatūra tāpat mainās - ir aukstāki periodi un ir siltāki. Bieži mēdz būt tā, ka Skandināvijas pašos ziemeļos ziemas vidū ir kāda diena, kas ir siltāka, nekā pie mums, jo tur ir aizplūdusi kāda silta gaisa masas no Atlantijas okeāna.

Koalīcija ir konceptuāli vienojusies par nākamā gada budžetu, bet viegls ceļš diez vai ir gaidāms, jo Zaļo un zemnieku savienība nāk ar savām prasībām budžeta atbalstam. Par vienu no tām – pievienotās vērtības nodokļa samazinātu likmi atsevišķiem produktiem vienošanās esot panākta, tomēr ir vēl arī citi jautājumi, kur vienoties varētu būt grūtāk. Tas ir lauku skolu tīkls un diskusija par mežu likumu arī varētu būt karsta. Katrā ziņā attiecības koalīcijā nākamā gadā gaidāmo Saeimas vēlēšanu apstākļos ir interesants temats. Tas ir viens no tematiem nedēļas notikumu apskatā, ko kopā ar žurnālistiem apspriežam raidījumā Krustpunktā. Analizē TV3 raidījuma "Nekā personīga" žurnāliste Guna Gleizde, Latvijas TV Ziņu dienesta kolēģis Ģirts Zvirbulis, Romāns Meļņiks no TV24 un Latvijas Universitātes pētnieks Mārtiņš Pričins.  

If you want a boost of inspiration for your leadership and management, this episode is for you. I sit down with the incredible Tasneem Bhamji — strategist, transformation leader, and founder of Office Real Talk — to unpack what it really takes to lead with impact in high-pressure environments.Tasneem's journey from journalism graduate to senior leader in banking and digital strategy has been marked by resilience, determination, and a refusal to let labels define her. Together we explore: navigating loneliness in leadership, why one-to-ones matter more than you think, how to build frameworks and systems that actually help, and the underrated skill of simply being easy to work with.This is a conversation about leadership in the real world — one that blends strategy and humanity, and one that challenges you to stop working from someone else's list and start building your own.If you're ready to uncover your own extra-Ordinary approach to leadership, tune in now.Connect with Tas on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tasneem-bhamji-a1056390/Office Real Talk - https://www.instagram.com/officerealtalk/Inside This EpisodeTasneem's unconventional journey from journalism to bankingWhat “Office Real Talk” is really about, and why tough love mattersWhy labels like “career woman” can be damaging — and what to do about itThe underestimated power of one-to-ones and how to make them workBuilding systems and frameworks that stop you drowning in the to-do listHow to balance strategy and humanity in leadershipThe underrated skill every leader needs: being easy to work withWhy coaching doesn't always mean big set-piece sessions — it's in the daily interactionsWhat to do when self-doubt creeps in, even as a senior leaderWhy leaving people (and places) better than you found them should be every leader's goalIf you're ready to go further, I coach executives and teams on precisely these challenges — systems, followership, performance, and culture. Reach out to explore coaching: info@dollywaddell.comMy book The extra-Ordinary Leader is available now: https://www.dollywaddell.com/store/p/the-extra-ordinary-leader

Androgēnā alopēcija liek daudzām sievietēm visā pasaulē raizēties par savu matu rotu un, ko tur slēpt, ietekmē arī psihoemocionālo komfortu. Kā palīdzēt un ko var solīt mūsdienu medicīna, lai matu izkrišanas problēmas sagādātu iespējami mazāk problēmu, skaidrojam raidījumā Kā labāk dzīvot. Analizē dermatoloģe Jekaterina Pudova, dermatoveneroloģe Kristīne Poiša un ģimenes ārste, matu slimību speciāliste Inga Zemīte. "Alopēcija ir termins, kas apraksta, ka mēs zaudējam matus," skaidro Jekaterina Pudova. "Ja arī pacientam tikko ienākot kabinetā var redzēt, ka ir matu apjoma izmaiņas, iemesli tam var būt dažādi, tie var būt arī dažādi alopēcijas veidi, līdz ar to arī terapija būs atšķirīga." "Matam ir gan sava augšanas, gan izkrišanas fāze. Vidēji mats aug no diviem līdz līdz astoņiem gadiem un dzīves laikā šīs fāzes var samazināties. Arī pie dažādām slimībām var samazināties arī mata augšanas cikls," skaidro Kristīne Poiša. Inga Zemīte norāda, ka cilvēkam uz galvas ir apmēra 100 tūkstoši matu. "Cilvēks sāk redzēt, ka viņam mati sāk pasliktināties tad, kad viņš ir zaudējis 50 procentus no saviem simts tūkstošiem," norāda Inga Zemīte. "Tas nozīmē, ka mēs mēs nezinām, ka zaudējam matus. Mēs nezinām, ka mums no simts tūkstošiem ir palikuši 70 tūkstoši. Tad, kad paliek 50 tūkstoši, spīd cauri, tad meklējam palīdzību." "Androgēna alopēcija nozīmē, ka matiņš sāk miniaturizēties vīrišķā hormona iespaidā," skaidro Inga Zemīte. "Sieviete atnāk saka: Dakter, man visi hormoni ir pārbaudīti, man nav androgēnā alopēcija. Es saku: Bet ja jūs uztaisītu analīzes visiem pasaules vīriešiem, viņiem visiem hormoni būtu kārtībā, bet 70% no vīriešiem izkrīt mati. Androgēnu alopēcija nav atkarīga no hormoniem lielākajā daļā gadījumu, tā ir atkarīgi no mata saknītes īpatnības reaģēt uz šo hormonu. Un tā ir ģenētiski nosacīta īpatnība. Mata saknē ceļš, caur kuru hormons spēj matu miniaturizēt, ir iebūvēts. Taču androgēnā alopēcija dzīves laikā lēnām parādās. Ir pētījumi pierādījuši, ka no 20 līdz 30 gadu vecumam apmēram 12% sieviešu ar androgēnā alopēcija; no 30 līdz 50 gadiem - 20 procentiem. Un kā ir 50 gadi, kā sākas menopauze, 57% sieviešu ir androgēnā alopēcija. Tā ir ļoti viegli diagnosticējama slimība.  Katram otrajma pacientam, kas ienāk kabinetā, varu teikt, ka viņam ir androgēnā alopēcija. Tad ir jāskatās tālāk, kas tai ir licis parādīties. Kad to visu savāc kopā, saliec pa plauktiņiem un mati sāk atjaunoties, tā diezgan patīkama situācija gan pacientam, gan arī mums kā ārstiem, jo tas gandarījums jau ir liels.  Runājot par blaugznām un matu mazgāšanu Inga Zemīte noraida mītu, ka matu mazgāšana ir kaitīga.  "Ja cilvēkam ir alerģijas pret kāda konkrēta šampūna sastāvdaļu, tad viņam nevajag šo šampūnu lietot. Bet mazināšana nav nekāds bubulis"," atzīst ārste. "Ja tās blaugzniņas un plēksnītes parādās, tas nozīmē, ka viņas ir mehāniski nepietiekoši bieži labi noņemtas no galvas ādas. Un kas to dara? To dara šampūns. Tie pretblaugznu šampūni, kas aptiekās ir, to var paņemt, ieputot, paturēt piecas minūtes, izskalot. Pirmajā brīdī, ja blaugzniņas ir jau kādu laiku krājušās, var pavairoties, un tad cilvēks saka, ka šis šampūns man neder. Bet kādreiz tas liecina par to, ka viņš patiesībā strādā diezgan labi, jo viņš sāk atlobīt to, kas tur ir krājies." Parastā situācijā pietiek, ka galvu biežāk mazgā. Ja blaugznas nepāriet, viņa iesaka tautas metodi: Pulverizatorā ieliet vienu ēdamkaroti ābolu etiķa, četras ēdamkarotes ūdens, sakratīt, izsmidzināt uz galvas un atstāt apmēram piecas minūtes un tad mazgāt ārā.  Procedūra jāveic reizi nedēļā. 70% cilvēku blaugznu jautājumu tas atrisina.  

Pavērsiens ASV un Baltkrievijas attiecībās. Čārlija Kērka slepkavības atskaņas. NATO uzsāk misiju "Austrumu sardze". Aktualitātes pasaulē analizē Elīna Vrobļevska, Austrumeiropas politikas pētījumu centra pētniece, Rīgas Stradiņa universitātes Sociālo zinātņu fakultātes lektore, politologs Andis Kudors, Latvijas Universitātes Ekonomikas un sociālo zinātņu fakultātes pasniedzējs, un politologs Veiko Spolītis. Ledlauzis Baltkrievijā Ir pagājuši jau trīs mēneši, kopš uzzinājām, ka no Baltkrievijas cietuma pēkšņi atbrīvoti 14 politieslodzītie, tajā skaitā gan Svetlanas Cihanouskas vīrs, gan pāris Latvijas valstspiederīgo. Toreiz uzzinājām, ka Minskā bija ieradies īpašais ASV sūtnis Kīts Kellogs. Šī vizīte nebija iepriekš izziņota, tāpēc daudziem notikušais bija liels pārsteigums. Pagājušajā nedēļā sekoja turpinājums. Līdzīgi kā iepriekšējā reizē, nereklamēti Minskā atkal ieradās ASV īpašs sūtnis, šoreiz Kelloga vietnieks Džons Kols. Sabiedrība par vizīti uzzināja tikai pēc tam, kad nākamajā dienā, 11. septembrī, no cietuma tika atbrīvoti 52 politieslodzītie, kas gandrīz visi ieradās Lietuvā. Viens no atbrīvotajiem – disidents Mikola Statkevičs – atteicās pamest valsti, un nu jau viņš ir atkal apcietināts un atrodas Baltkrievijas cietumā. Pārējie ir deportēti, arī šoreiz starp atbrīvotajiem ir divi Latvijas valstspiederīgie. Kola sarunas ar Lukašenko esot ilgušas piecas stundas. Visas detaļas mēs nezinām, tomēr šoreiz atbrīvošana no cietuma nav notikusi tāpat vien. Piektdien, 12. septembrī, ASV paziņoja, ka tiek atceltas visa veida noteiktās sankcijas Baltkrievijas nacionālajai lidsabiedrībai „Belavia”. Šīs sankcijas tika noteiktas vēl pirms Krievijas iebrukuma Ukrainā, kad 2021. gadā Minskā ar viltu piespieda nolaisties „Ryanair” lidmašīnu, kas bija ceļā no Atēnām uz Viļņu. Toreiz Baltkrievija praktiski to nolaupīja, lai varētu arestēt opozīcijas blogeri Ramanu Prataseviču. Tagad Amerikas puse toreiz noteiktās sankcijas ir atcelusi. Tāpat ASV delegācija paziņoja, ka atkal atvērs vēstniecību Minskā. Tas nozīmē, ka Savienoto Valstu un Baltkrievijas attiecībās ir noticis pavērsiens, un ledus, kas bija izveidojies jau vairāku gadu garumā, ir atkal salauzts. Kērka slepkavības atskaņas 10. septembra vakarā Savienotās Valstis pāršalca ziņa, ka Jūtas štatā vietējā universitātē ir sašauts kārtējais politiķis, šoreiz ASV prezidenta Donalda Trampa sabiedrotais, konservatīvais influenceris Čārlijs Kērks. Drīz vien uzzinājām, ka no gūtajiem ievainojumiem Kērks ir miris. Politiskās slepkavības Savienotajās Valstīs nav nekas jauns. Tomēr šoreiz slepkavība ir izraisījusi plašāku rezonansi nekā parasti. Visā valstī tika izsludinātas nacionālās sēras, un Tramps lika nolaist ASV karogus pusmastā līdz pat nedēļas beigām. 31 gadu vecais Kērks bija konservatīvo republikāņu jaunākās paaudzes pārstāvis, kuram bija miljoniem sekotāju sociālajos medijos. Kērks apmeklēja ASV universitātes, aicinot studentus debatēt ar viņu un pārraidot šīs debates soctīklos. Uz tām bieži tika uzaicināti studenti, kas bija Kērka viedokļu pretinieki. Zīmīgi, ka slepkavība notika vienā no tikšanās reizēm, kad Kērkam jautāja par viņa attieksmi pret biežajām publiskajām apšaudēm. Kērks jau iepriekš bija daudzkārt aktīvi iestājies par amerikāņu tiesībām nēsāt šaujamieročus, sakot, ka zaudētas dzīvības reizēm ir neizbēgams upuris, kas jāmaksā par šādu brīvību. Kērka slepkavam izdevās aizbēgt, un pirmajās dienās izvērtās visdažādākās spekulācijas, kas aiz šīs slepkavības stāv. Tāpēc tad, kad slepkavu izdevās aizturēt, pārsteigums bija liels. Izrādījās, ka tas ir 22 gadus vecais Tailers Robinsons, kurš pats nāk no konservatīvas vides. Noslepkavotā Čārlija Kērka ļoti aktīvā publiskā darbošanās ir tā, kas šoreiz ir raisījusi tik plašu rezonansi. Turklāt šoreiz tā ir izpletusies krietni pāri Amerikas robežām. Kērks bija aktīvs ne tikai politikā, bet arī kristīgajā vidē. Arī Latvijā daudzi konservatīvie kristieši viņu ir pasludinājuši par ticības mocekli. Tajā pašā laikā Kērka politiskie uzskati bija ļoti strīdīgi. Viņš bieži izteicās kritiski par Ukrainu, un analītiķi saka, ka viņa retorika šajā ziņā bija piesātināta ar Krievijas propagandu. Austrumu sardze Piektdienas vakarā NATO ģenerālsekretārs Marks Rute paziņoja par jaunu NATO misiju „Austrumu sardze”, lai nodrošinātu drošību Polijā un Baltijas valstīs. Misija ir atbilde Krievijas dronu incidentam Polijas gaisa telpā 10. septembrī. Lai gan oficiāli alianse to neuzskata par tīšu uzbrukumu, tomēr ar šo misiju cer nodrošināt reģiona drošību un atturēt kremli no tālākām provokācijām. Pašlaik misijā iesaistījušās četras valstis – Dānija, Vācija, Francija un Lielbritānija, kas katra nodrošinājusi vairākus iznīcinātājus, kuri veiks pretgaisa aizsardzības misijas. Informācija par konkrētiem misijas plāniem gan netiek izpausta, tomēr Latvijas amatpersonas pieļāvušas, ka šī varētu kļūt par patstāvīgu misiju NATO Austrumu flangā. Paralēli publiski parādās runas, ka NATO varētu aizsargāt Ukrainas rietumu gaisa telpu. Ukraina jau kopš kara pirmajām dienām ir lūgusi NATO sargāt tās debesis.

Šoreiz klausītāju rosināts temats par to, kā laikapstākļi un klimats ietekmē augsni. Jeb konkrētāk, kā mainās ūdens jeb hidroloģiskais režīms augsnē, piemēram, pēc meža nociršanas, kad augsne ir traktoru izbraukāta un sadragāti augi un visa veģetācijas sega. Pēc sarunas ar diviem jomas speciālistiem izkristalizējās divi galvenie virzieni, kā laikapstākļi, klimats un augsne mijiedarbojas gada siltā daļā, kad augsnei ir būtiska loma ūdens gan novadīšanā, gan arī sausuma periodā tā saglabāšanā, kā aukstajā periodā – ziemā, kad notiek augsnes sasalšana. Tas savukārt būtiski ietekmē būves un šajā sadaļā Latvijā jau ir labi novērojama klimata pārmaiņu ietekme. Vasarā bieži ir problēmas ar sausumu un zemē, kas saulē pārkaltusi, ūdens neuzsūcas. To droši vien ir pamanījuši visi, kas darbojas dārzā, pietiek pat ar puķu podiem istabā – ja tā kārtīgi iekaltē, grūti pēc tam augsni samitrināt. Kāpēc tā notiek, skaidro ģeoloģijas doktors, Latvijas Universitātes Ģeoloģisko procesu izpētes un modelēšanas centra vadītājs Andis Kalvāns. Sausās vasarās, šķiet, visātrāk izžūst izravētie un uzrušinātie mazdārziņi. Augsne ir tiešā saulē, uzrušināta labāk žūst. Varbūt labāk to nedarīt? Pētnieks gan skaidro, ka rušināšana ir svarīga, vajadzīga un pareiza, jo uzrušinot augsnes virsējo slāni, tiek sagrautos saites ar dziļākiem slāņiem. Šie kanāliņi, pa kuriem ūdens pārvietojas, tiek pārrauti. Rezultātā, uzrušinātā augsnes kārta ātri izžūst, bet tā pasargā dziļākus augsnes slāņus no izkalšanas. Tāpēc mazdārziņu īpašniekiem bieži šķiet, ka zeme kā pulveris, bet tas pulveris patiesībā slēpj mitrāku augsni zem sevis. Andim Kalvānam arī jautājam, kādas izmaiņas notiek augsnē pēc meža nociršanas. Lielākā ietekme ir tā, ka samazinās virsma, no kuras lietus ūdeņiem iztvaikot, taču arī tam, ka augsne tiek izbraukāta, arī ir nozīme. Labā ziņa - ja mežs atjaunojas, vismaz Latvijas apstākļos dažos gados atjaunojas arī augsnes hidroloģiskā režīma īpašības. Savukārt ziemā augsnes sasalšana ir būtiskākā no augsnes īpašībām, kas ietekmē daudzas būves un arī ceļu infrastruktūru. Tas, ka ziemas kļūst arvien siltākas ietekmē arī augsnes sasalšanas dziļumu. Kas attiecas uz augsnes sasalumu un būvniecību, Ministru kabineta noteikumos ir īpaša sadaļa “Būvklimatoloģija”, kur ir aprakstīts, kādiem klimatiskajiem apstākļiem būves Latvijā tiek pakļautas. Tur minēts arī augsnes sasalums. Bet izrādās, ka noteikumi netiek līdzi klimata pārmaiņām. Latvijas Universitātes Eksakto zinātņu un tehnoloģiju universitātes ģeoloģijas nodaļas profesors Māris Krievāns stāsta, ka pēdējās desmitgadēs augsnes sasalums ir daudz seklāks, nekā noteikumos norādītais.

Sācies jaunais mācību gads, un līdz ar tā sākumu ēterā atgriežas latviešu valodas stunda. Ar Rīgas Stradiņa universitātes pasniedzēju, filoloģijas doktori, valodnieci Diti Liepu un Latvijas Universitātes profesoru, valodnieku un tulku Andreju Veisbergu tiekamies raidījumā Kā labāk dzīvot. Ierakstā uzklausām, ko par latviešu valodas lietošanu uz ielas, skolās un medijos, kā arī par paaudžu atšķirībām valodas izmantošanā domā iedzīvotāji kādā Kurzemes mazpilsētā. Pēc vasaras pārtraukuma valodnieki atgriežas ar dažiem atgādinājumiem un novērojumiem. Pirmais, ko min Andrejs Veisbergs, ir divdabja lietošana, kur nevajadzētu lietot. Piemēram, klātesošs, kur vienkārši var teikt ir klāt vai piedalās. Viņam piekrīt arī Dite Liepa. Abi valodnieki norāda, ka vārdu klātesošs, līdzesošs, atbalstošs, palīdzošs vietā visur var lietot darbības vārdu. Šādi divdabja teicieni ir garas neskanīgas konstrukcijas. Tā varētu būt laika mode, jo divdabja teicieni šobrīd daudz dzirdami mediju valodā. Vārds klātesošs varētu būt ienācis angļu valodas ietekmē. Tāpat Andrejs Veisbergs min vārdkopas mājas tirgus lietojumu Iekšējais tirgus vietā. Tas ir tiešs pārnesums no angļu valodas. Savukārt Dite Liepa norādā, ka pēdējā laikā daudz dzirdējusi latviešu valodas vārdus, kas ir daudzskaitlī, lietojam vienskaitlī, piemēram, emocija, baža, iesna.

Burghley is in the books, Cornbury has wrapped, and the Agria European Championships at Blenheim Palace are around the corner. Perfect timing to lift the lid on a big push behind the scenes. Nicole sits down with BETF chair Sian Rodway and British Eventing's Rosie Williams to unpack the British Eventing Training Foundation's new officials campaign, why it matters for safety and fairness, and how anyone from fence judges to future course designers can climb a clear pathway. Nicole gives us a Stats Centre update, and we finish with a masterclass segment from Philip Surl and Alec Lochore on the TA and course designer partnership, control tents, and what “gold standard” really looks like on the ground. Episode Highlights Why a dedicated training foundation safeguards education when budgets get tight What the new officials pathway actually is and how you get on it The roles explained in plain English: stewards, TAs, scorers, controllers, fence judges Training the trainers and testing under pressure so standards stay high Fundraising targets, course walks with legends, and how to get involved Season check-in: Cornbury, Agria European Championships, and the young horse pipeline Guests Nicole Brown, host Sian Rodway, Chair, British Eventing Training Foundation Rosie Williams, Chief Executive, British Eventing Philip Surl, British Eventing Technical Advisor Alec Lochore, International Course Designer and Technical Delegate Check out the BE Stats Centre here. Follow @britisheventing on Instagram to stay up to date with all the action.  Want to find out more about BETF? Visit their webpage here. Eventing Manager 2.0 is live!

Put on your best private detective hat and prepare to get into character as we talk step into the Holodeck and prepare ourselves for inevitable disappointment. In ‘The Practical Joker,' the Enterprise computer gets wacky while Bones, Sulu and Uhura fail to enjoy a primitive Holodeck. In ‘My Way,' Odo uses AI to make girls like him and we get a lot of song and dance numbers (and the best IDW comics pitch) as we meet Vic Fontaine while in Strange New Worlds' Space Adventure Hour, La'an gets to beta-test the Holodeck and nearly kills everyone on the Enterprise doing so. Typical. Bloody Typical.Miles is a Jerk!

SHOW NOTES: The Practical Joker (07:50) My Way (28:49) Space Adventure Hour (55:03)

TALKING POINTS: The Knives, Doctor Who, the Southern Reach series (and the only film where Miles nearly wet himself in the cinema) Brighton Wok the Legend of Ganja Boxing, TAS actually pulling off some Shacting, Unfortunate stains, a noncanonical reason for Chekov's absence from TAS, Romulan pranks are usually pretty deadly, Hamboning, Odo secretly being a gossipy bitch, Miles and Charlie talk relationship advice, Tom Jones in Star Trek, we come up with the PERFECT IDW Comic pitch, Miles hates when 50s SF TV and Cinema is immediatly shown to be crap, The Last Frontier feels too mean spirited to be affectionate, the cast getting to play, Uhura and Scotty is a great contrast to Uhura at the start of Strange New Worlds, the L'an and Spock pairing seems weird and the show is obsessed with making us know Spock ***ks, Vulcan Walk of Shame, Charlie has tried to Riker a chair (Update: Charlie can still Riker a chair)

PEDANT'S CORNER: Top of the Pops and Old Grey Whistle Test are BBC Music shows, there was some BS about flags in the British News hence the strange tangent about flags. Neighbors and Home and Away are two long running Australian soap operas that were incredibly popular in the UK back in the day.

Režisore Liena Šmukste ir atradusi vēl maz iepazītu nišu Latvijas teātra kopainā, un tas ir sajūtu teātris. Jaunākā no viņas sajūtu izrādēm ir Cēsu Mazā teātra iestudētā „Bezgalīgais ritums”, izrādes stāsts sakņojas Edvarta Virzas lauku dzīves poēmā „Straumēni”. Augusta sākumā izrāde viesojās vietā, kur šis Edvarta Virzas darbs sarakstīts – Jelgavas novada Salgales pagasta "Billītēs". Uz izrādi sabraukušie jau ir izstaigājuši dzejnieku Elzas Stērstes un Edvarta Virzas memoriālās mājas pagalmu, tiek sapulcināti pie saimniecības ēkas, šķiet, ratnīcas, tā vismaz mudina domāt lielās divviru durvis. Režisore mūs sagatavo gaidāmajām sajūtām. Mudina lielā kastē atstāt liekās mantas. Kad visi sasēduši, jāuzliek acu aizsēji, klēpī jāieklāj drāna, jo izrādes laikā sajūtu teātra aktieri gan šķaidīsies ar alu, gan apvēcinās pirtsslotām, gan rokās liks dažādus priekšmetus. Tā ir pavisam citādāka teātra domāšana, izrādes tapšanas paņēmieni. Pat skatītājus šai izrādē nemaz vairs nevar saukt par skatītājiem. Raidījumā Augstāk par zemi par izrādi saruna ar režisori Lienu Šmuksti un Cēsu Mazā teātra vadītāju Ilzi Liepu. Izrādē „Bezgalīgais ritums” Edvarta Virzas teksta nav nemaz tik daudz. Īsie lasījuma fragmenti tikai piesaka tēmas. Lūk, “Straumēnos” pienācis pavasaris. Izrāde „Billītēs” notiek augustā, vasaras izskaņā šeit putni ir pavisam klusi. Bet aktieru izdoma putnu balsu atdarināšanā patiešām liek brīnīties. Telpas sajūtu rada aktieru atrašanās dažādos telpas stūros, skaņas te pietuvojas, te attālinās. „Bezgalīgais ritums”, kas izstāstīts Edvarta Virzas „Straumēnos”, kaut kādā ziņā ir spēkā arī dzejnieku Elzas Stērstes un Edvarta Virzas mājās Jelgavas novada Salgales pagasta „Billītēs”. Tikai tas nav zemnieka darba vai dabas bezgalīgais ritums. Tas drīzāk ir stāsts, ka neviena netaisnība nav mūžīga. Mājas saimnieki – Edvarts Virza nomira Otrā pasaules kara gados. Elza Stērste par „tēvzemes nodevību” padomjlaikā tika notiesāta uz 25 gadiem spaidu darbos Sibīrijā. „Billītes” nonāca kolhoznieku ģimeņu rīcībā, tomēr jānovērtē, ka skaistie koki „Billīšu” pagalmā netika nopostīti, turpina kuplot pat Virzas dzejoli iedvesmojušais jasmīns. Tagad mājā saimnieko tās agrākie saimnieki, pagalmu man laipni izrāda Edvarta Virzas un Elzas Stērstes memoriālās mājas „Billītes”, vadītāja – dzejnieku mazmazmeita Diāna Jance.

Mientras en la cancha los Leones Negros ligaron su tercer empate consecutivo tras un intenso duelo en Tepatitlán, ese día también quedó marcado por un aniversario especial: el profesor Luis Alfonso Sosa cumplió cuatro años al frente del banquillo Melenudo. Sin embargo, la noticia más esperada no llegó desde el terreno de juego, sino desde las oficinas en Suiza, donde el TAS resolvió que el Ascenso regresará a partir de la temporada 2026-27, abriendo una nueva esperanza en el horizonte del futbol mexicano.

Testēšana, vai NATO ir gatavs rīkoties? Tā daudzi dēvē šīs nakts notikumus Polijā. Vai tas ir dēvējams par uzbrukumu NATO valstij, vai arī tā it vien Ukrainā notiekošā kara blakne? Arī jautājums, vai tās ir saistītas ar rietumvalstu gatavību garantēt Ukrainai drošību pēc tam, kad tiks apturēta pašreizējā karadarbība? Pagaidām gan nav nekādu pazīmju, ka tas varētu notikt, Krievija īsteno arvien masīvākus gaisa triecienus pret Ukrainu. Pēdējie notikumi ap karu un Ukraina mūsu uzmanības fokusā raidījumā Divas puslodes. Noslēgumā mazliet veltām arī uzmanību Francijai, kur ir kritusi kārtējā valdība. Francijas politiskā nozīme ir grūti pārvērtējama, bet kopš parlamenta vēlēšanām stabili funkcionējošu valdību izveidot tur nav iespējams. Aktualitātes komentē Austrumeiropas politikas pētījuma centra pētnieks Mārcis Balodis, portāla "LSM.lv" ārzemju ziņu redaktors Ģirts Kasparāns. Sazināmies ar atvaļinātu viceadmirāli Gaidi Andreju Zeibotu. Sankcijas karājas gaisā, lidroboti lido debesīs Pagājušajā naktī Ukraina piedzīvoja kārtējo masveidīgo Krievijas lidrobotu un raķešu uzlidojumu, jau atkal ir postījumi un cilvēku upuri. Tomēr pagājušā nakts iezīmēja jaunu bīstamu precedentu – vairāki Krievijas lidroboti, šķērsojuši Ukrainas rietumu robežu, ielidoja Polijas gaisa telpā, kur to notriekšanā tika iesaistīti Polijas un arī Nīderlandes gaisa spēki. Iedzīvotāji valsts austrumdaļā saņēmuši brīdinājumus, uz laiku apturēta lidostu, tai skaitā Varšavas Šopēna starptautiskās lidostas darbība. Polijas premjerministrs Donalds Tusks apgalvojis, ka fiksēti pavisam 19 gaisa telpas robežu pārkāpšanas gadījumi, trīs vai četri lidroboti notriekti. Polija pieprasījusi iedarbināt NATO līguma 4. pantu, kas paredz dalībvalstu konsultācijas nolūkā konstatēt draudus kādas dalībvalsts suverenitātei, teritoriālajai integritātei vai drošībai. Šis ir pirmais precedents kopš pilna mēroga kara sākuma Ukrainā, kad kādas NATO valsts militārās vienības veic tiešu pretdarbību Krievijas militāriem objektiem, un būtiskais jautājums ir, vai tā bijusi Krievijas mērķtiecīga provokācija un NATO reakcijas spēju pārbaude. Par to vedina domāt aizvadītās nakts notikumu militārais un politiskais fons. Krievijas vasaras uzbrukuma kampaņa Ukrainā, ja arī vēl nav beigusies, tad tuvojas noslēgumam bez būtiskiem panākumiem. Toties agresorvalsts turpina uzstādīt arvien jaunus un jaunus rekordus, ar raķešu un lidrobotu triecieniem graujot Ukrainas pilsētas. Vēl nepieredzēta mēroga uzlidojums tika piedzīvots svētdien, 7. septembrī, kad Krievijas raķete, cita starpā, trāpīja arī Ukrainas valdības ēkai Kijivā. Pēc tam Savienoto Valstu prezidents Donalds Tramps, žurnālistu jautāts, vai esot gatavs uzsākt jaunu sankciju kampaņu pret Krieviju, atbildēja, ka esot. Tas gan liek atcerēties visus iepriekšējos gadījumus, kad Kremlim ticis no Baltā nama saimnieka puses draudēts ar sankcijām, visiem brīdinājumiem un noteiktajiem termiņiem izplēnot bez rezultāta. Saskaņā ar šodien. 10. septembrī, parādījušos informāciju, Vašingtonas administrācija būtu gatava jaunām sankcijām pret Krieviju, ja to šai ziņā atbalstītu Eiropa, proti, tiekot sagaidīt, ka Eiropas Savienība noteiks importam no Ķīnas un Indijas simts procentu ievedmuitas tarifu, sodot šīs valstis par Krievijas fosilo izejvielu pirkšanu. Joprojām miglaina ir arī Savienoto Valstu iespējamā iesaiste drošības garantiju sniegšanā Ukrainai. Divdesmit sešas Ukrainas partnervalstis Eiropā pirms dažām dienām paziņoja, ka ir vienojušās par konkrētu iesaisti garantiju nodrošināšanā, Francijas prezidenta Emanuela Makrona vārdiem runājot, „uz zemes, gaisā un jūrā”. Lai gan ir skaidrs, ka jebkāda ārvalstu spēku izvietošana Ukrainā varētu notikt tikai pēc vienošanās par karadarbība pārtraukšanas, un ka šie spēki noteikti netiktu izvietoti Krievijas ieņemto apgabalu tiešā tuvumā, Kremlis jau reaģējis ar paziņojumu, ka jebkādi ārvalstu spēku Ukrainā tikšot uzlūkoti par leģitīmu mērķi. Parīzes sastrēgums Vakar, 9. septembrī, Francijas premjerministrs Fransuā Bairū iesniedza prezidentam Emanuelam Makronam savu atlūgumu. Sabijis amatā deviņus mēnešus, Bairū pirmdien saņēma pārliecinošu Nacionālās Asamblejas, Francijas parlamenta, neuzticības balsojumu. Iemesli ir līdzīgi tiem, kas samērā īsā laikā maksājuši amatu diviem viņa priekšgājējiem un nu likuši prezidentam jau trešo reizi gada laikā meklēt jaunu valdības vadītāju. Francijas ekonomikai neklājas spoži, valsts parādsaistību apjoms kļuvis par nozīmīgu apgrūtinājumu budžetam; kā biedinošs brīdinājuma zvans ir ziņa, ka Francijas valsts parādzīmju procentu likme pārsniegusi Grieķijas, Spānijas un Portugāles likmes. Premjerministra Bairū centieni panākt taupīgāku nākamā gada budžetu izgāzās, saduroties ar kreiso un labējo populistu pretestību. Budžeta līdzsvarošana prasītu sociālo izdevumu mazināšanu, kas ne kreisajiem, ne populistiem nav pa prātam, savukārt lielāki nodokļi bagātākajiem pilsoņiem un biznesam ir anatēma lielai daļai prezidenta partijas. Pēc pagājušajā gadā notikušajām ārkārtas vēlēšanām spēku sadalījums Nacionālajā Asamblejā ir apmēram līdzīgs starp prezidenta Makrona vadīto centrisko grupu, kreisajiem, kuru vidū ietekmīgākie ir mēreni kreisie sociālisti un radikālākā, populistiskākā „Nepadevīgā Francija”, un Nacionālās apvienības frakciju labējā flangā. Šāds izkārtojums nepavisam neveicina kompromisus, no „Nepadevīgās Francijas” puses pastāvīgi izskan aicinājumi prezidentam demisionēt, savukārt Nacionālā apvienība prasa jaunas ārkārtas parlamenta vēlēšanas, kurās tai varētu būt vēl labāki panākumi nekā līdz šim. Tikām sociālajos tīklos izplatījies aicinājums ļaudīm šodien iziet ielās, kavējot transporta kustību, šādi paužot protestu pret iespējamajiem taupības pasākumiem uz sociālā budžeta rēķina. Kustība ieguvusi apzīmējumu „Bloķēsim visu”, un atbalstu tai izteikusi „Nepadevīgā francija”. Par premjerministra Bairū darba turpinātāju prezidents Makrons izraudzījies līdzšinējo aizsardzības ministru Sebastjēnu Lekornī, kuram devis uzdevumu meklēt kompromisu budžeta jautājumos ar visiem parlamentā pārstāvētajiem politiskajiem spēkiem. Kā raidsabiedrībai CNN paudis Parīzes domnīcas „Institute Montaigne” analītiķis Dominiks Moīzī, Francijas Piektā republika šobrīd piedzīvo smagāko sastrēgumu savā vēsturē. „1968. gada maijā sauklis bija „Francijai ir apnicis”. Taču šodien Francija ir neapmierināta, nikna, pilna nepatikas pret eliti. Izklausās, ka režīma maiņa ir neizbēgama, tomēr es neredzu, kā tā varētu notikt un kas šo darbu varētu paveikt. Mēs atrodamies pārejas fāzē starp sistēmu, kas vairs nedarbojas, un sistēmu, ko neviens vēl nevar iedomāties,” sacījis eksperts.   Sagatavoja Eduards Liniņš.        

Steve Pearlman: Today on actual intelligence, we have a very important and timely discussion with Dr. Robert Neber of a SU, whose recent opinion piece in inside higher education is titled AI and Higher Ed, and an impending collapse. Robert is a teaching professor and honors faculty fellow at the Barrett Honors College at a SU.And the reason that I invited him to speak with us today on actual intelligence is his perspective on artificial intelligence and education. And his contention roughly that higher Ed's rush to embrace artificial intelligence is going to lead us to some rather troubling places. So let's get to it with Dr.Robert Niebuhr.Robert. We talked a little bit about this on our pre-call, and I don't usually start a podcast like this, but what you said to me was so striking, so, uh, nauseating. So infuriating that I think it's a good place to begin and maybe some of [00:01:00] our listeners who value actual intelligence will also find it as appalling as I do, or at least a point of interest that needs to be talked about.You were in a meeting and we're not gonna talk about exactly, necessarily what that meeting was, but you're in a meeting with a number of other. Faculty members and something interesting arose, and I'll allow you to share that experience with us and we'll use that as a springboard for this discussion.Robert Neibuhr: Yeah, sure. Uh, so obviously, as you can imagine, right, I mean, faculty are trying to cope with, um, a perceived notion that students are using AI to create essays. And, and, uh, you know, in, in the, where I'm at, you know, one of the backbones, um, in my unit to. Um, assessed work is looking at argumentative essays.So the, the sort of, the idea that, that this argumentative essay is a backbone of a, of a grade and assessment. Um, and if we're, if we're suspecting that they're, they're using ai, um, you [00:02:00] know, faculty said, well, why should we bother grading essays if they're written by bots? Um, and, and you know, I mean, there's a lot, there's a lot to unpack there and a lot of things that are problematic with that.Um, but yeah, the, the, the idea that, you know, we, we don't have to, to combat a, to combat the perceived threat of, of student misuse of ai, we just will forego critical assessment. Um, that, that was, you know, not a lone voice in the room. That that seemed to be something that was, that was reasonably popular.Steve Pearlman: Was there any recognition of what might be being sacrificed by not ever having students write another essay just to avoid them using ai, which of course we don't want them to just have essays write, uh, so of course we don't want them to just have AI write their essays. That's not getting us anywhere.But was there any conception that there might be some loss in terms of that policy? [00:03:00]Robert Neibuhr: I mean, I, I think, I think so. I mean, I, I imagine, uh, you know, I think. My colleagues come from, from a place where, where they're, they're trying to figure out and, and cope with a change in reality. Right? But, um, there, there is also a subtext, I think across, across faculties in the United States of being overworked.And, and especially with the mantra among, you know, administration of, you know, AI will help us ramp up or scale up our, our class sizes and we can do more and we can. All this sort of extra stuff that it would seem like faculty would be, um, you know, more of their time and, and more of their effort, you know, as an ask here that I think that's, that, that may be, that may have been part of it.Um, I, I, I don't know that the idea of like the logical implication of this, that, you know, if we no longer. Exercise students' brains if we no longer have them go through a process that encourages critical [00:04:00] thinking and art, you know, articulating that through writing, like what that means. I, I don't know that they sort of thought it beyond like, well, you know, this could be, we could try it and see was kind of the mentality that I, I sort of gauged from, from the room.But, uh, it's, I mean, it's a bigger problem, right? I think the, the, the larger aspect of. What do we, what do we do? What can we do as faculty in this sort of broad push for AI all over the place? And then the idea of the mixed messages. Students get right. Students get this idea, well, this is the future. If you don't learn how to, how to use it, if you don't, you know, understand it, you're gonna be left behind.And then at the same time, it's like, well, don't use it from my class. Right? Learn it, but don't use it here. And that's. That's super unclear for students and it's, it's unclear for faculty too, right? So, um, it, it's one of those things that it's not, um, I don't think in the short term it works. And as you, as you, as you implied, right, the long term solution here of getting rid of essay [00:05:00] assignments in, in a discussion based seminar that relies on essays as a critical, I mean, this is not a viable solution, right?We, we got the entire purpose of, of the program in this case.Steve Pearlman (2): And yet a lot of faculty from what you described and a lot of what I've read as well, is also moving towards having AI be able to grade. The students work not just on simple tests, but on essays. And as you point out in your article, that's potentially moving us to a place where kids are using AI to write the essays, and then faculty are using AI to grade the essays.And who, when did the human being get involved in between, in terms of any intellectual growth?Robert Neibuhr: Yeah. No, it, it's, I think it's a, it's, it's really, it's a, it's a really big, it's a really big problem because, um. Again, those long-term implications, uh, are, are clear as, as, as you laid out. But, um, it's also, I mean, like, again, like this notion that [00:06:00] there's, there's a tool that obviously can help us, you know, multiple avenues where AI can be, can be something that's, that's helps us be more efficient and all this, those sort of stuff that, that's, that's, that's true.Um, so it's, it's there. So we should gauge and understand it. Um, but it doesn't mean you just use it everywhere. You know, you, you can buy, I don't know, you can buy alcohol at the grocery store. It doesn't mean you have it with your Cheerios, right? I mean, there's a, there's a time and place polite society says, you know, you can consume this at these times with these meals or in this company, right?It's not all, all of this. So things, so, you know, the message that I think it's a level of respect, right? If we, we don't respect the students, if we don't lay out clear guidelines and. We don't show them respect, we don't ask for respect back if, if we use bots to grade and the whole thing just becomes a charade.And, and I, I think the, again, the system [00:07:00] begins to, to break down and I think people wind up losing the point of what the exercise is all about anyway. And I, I may not just the assignment or the class, but like higher education. Right. I mean, the, the, the point is to. Teach us how to be better thinkers to, to gauge, evaluate information, uh, you know, use evidence, uh, apply it in our lives as, as we see fit.And, and if it's, and if we're not prepped for that, then, then what did they prep us for? If, if, you know, the student's perspective, it's like, well, what did I just do? What did I pay for? That's, that's a, that's a huge long term problemSteve Pearlman (2): it seems like. Uh. That, what did I pay for? Question is gonna come to bear heavily on higher education in the near future because if students are able to use AI to accomplish some of their work, and if faculty are using AI to grade some of their [00:08:00] work and so on, and then the, you know, the, these degrees are costing hundreds of thousands of dollars.And it's an effectual piece of paper that maybe that loses value in essence also because the students didn't really get anything from that process or get as much as they used to because they're using ai. You know, is this moving towards some kind of gross reassessment of the value of higher education or its role in our society entirely?Robert Neibuhr: I mean, it it, I think it certainly. It certainly has the potential, right? I mean, I would, I would even look back and, and think of a, a steady decline, right? That this is, this is one of, of many pieces that have gone, gone down. And I, you know, I mean mentioning in, in your, in your question just now, right? That the sense of, you know, students as client or customer, uh, how that has changed the sort of the, the interface and, and [00:09:00] how, you know.Uh, we, we think of this, uh, this whole, this whole endeavor, right? I mean, um, and, you know, and this leads to things like, oh, retention numbers and, and all these sort of things that the mental gymnastics that happens to, um, you know, do all these things and, and the truth be told, right? Different paths for different people, right?There's not, you know, there's not a single, like, you don't have to get the degree in physics to be as successful, but the, the student as, as, as customer, I think also has, um. Solidified this, this notion, um, that we can le list the student feedback, right? And, and student feedback is important. So I'll qualify that that standards were, were low.I, I know for my own example, you know, even 20 years ago, right, that that undergraduates would have to produce a capstone thesis as part of their bachelor's degree. And I know firsthand that at from the time that, you know, [00:10:00] the history department had looked at, um, exit surveys of people who didn't finish their history degree.And they said, well, why didn't you finish your history degree? I said, oh, well, you know, I, whatever the program was, psychology, sociology, doesn't matter, whatever the other degree was. That degree program didn't require a thesis. So that was. That was easier, right? That was the student saying, you know what, I'm gonna opt out of the hard work and I'm gonna take, take this other one.And so the history department's answer kind of like the we'll stop grading essays was, we won't, we won't require a thesis anymore that'll stem the tide of our losses. Of course it didn't. Right? 'cause they're larger things going on and, and you know, some of it's internal, some of it's external and out of, out of, you know, history departments, you know, control.Um. But I, I think part of, part of this also then sort of, you know, cuts this, this notion of the rhetoric in the last, at least two decades of [00:11:00] college is your ticket to a successful career. Like, and it's just quantifiable, right? I mean, there's no doubt that, you know, if you have a college degree, your lifetime earnings will be such and such amount higher than, right?So there's, there's clear evidence there. There's, there's, there's tangible things, but that's become degraded, I think. To, to a, a simple binary like, oh, my piece of paper gets me this. And, and I think that mentality has been sort of seeping in. And I think this is kind of where, um, some of these things are, are coming from.Like it is just a piece of paper. I don't have to worry about, you know, what skillset I get in higher ed because I'm gonna learn on the job anyway. Uh, or I don't, like, students will say, I don't see this as valuable to what I'm gonna do. So it's, it's as kind of said the reckoning long term, like upending, the higher ed.I mean, I, I think as some of these questions linger and, and, and simmer and, and costs get higher and, you know, [00:12:00] parents get more, you know, upset and, and, and students with their loans. I mean, I, I, I can't see going in, in perpetuity in the direction that it's, it's going with or without ai, but I think AI maybe speeds this up.Steve Pearlman (2): In a sense, I see this as an extension of Goodheart's Law, which is that if we just focus on the measurement, then the thing that we're measuring becomes inval or valueless to us, uh, because the measurement becomes the value. And I see that happening with ai, right? The goal is to create a paper that gets an a, it doesn't matter if I use AI to do it, because I've achieved the goal, right?The, the, the outcome that I want. I've satisfied Good Heart's law. I have produced the outcome and the measurement has been achieved. I haven't learned to write a paper or think for myself or put a sentence together, but I've nevertheless achieved the outcome, and that seems true from both perspectives.There's the student perspective, which is that I've produced the paper, I've gone through a series of [00:13:00] steps that have made the paper happen. I didn't write it, but I used AI to do it in a worst case scenario and presented it, and then it happens from the teacher's perspective, which is that whether or not AI grades it.They have, in fact, nevertheless produced the artifact that I need to assess and achieve the assessment and everybody's happy. Uh, except you know that this is utterly undermining the fundamental premise of education itself, which is the development of the individual. Yeah. Do you think down the road. I know this is purely speculative and maybe it's overly hopeful in fact, but does the reckoning in higher education, and maybe even in secondary education and primary education come down to saying, look, um, you know, AI is something that students are gonna be able to use and be proficient in regardless of whether or not we exist.The only way that we're gonna carve out a meaningful existence for ourself is an essentially, almost a reversion to [00:14:00] what higher education was. Years ago, maybe it is not as much for everybody. Maybe it is more for those people who really want to become intellectuals, use their minds, develop the mindsets and the skills of the intellectual in the positive sense of that, and in whatever way they're contributing to society.Maybe there are fewer institutions, but they are holding the line further on the cultivation of the individual and those individuals. Maybe because there are fewer of them and because they are more specialized in certain critical thinking skills become, again, more valuable to society. Is that possible, do you think?Or is, am I pipe dreaming here? Because I just hope education doesn't implode entirely though. I think a reckoning is gonna be healthy.Robert Neibuhr: Yeah.Steve Pearlman (2): What do you think?Robert Neibuhr: Yeah, no, I mean, um, the, the, the first bit that crossed my mind as as you were talking was this sort of the, the saying. Something about, you know, some of [00:15:00] us can pretend all the time and get away with it.All of us can pretend some of the time, but we all can't pretend all the time. Right? Like this sort of sense of, of, you know, like there, there has to be, someone has to tell the truth, right? Like the emperor with no clothes, it's like, well, clearly there's something wrong here. Um, but I to to the, to the future and where this, where this sort of looks and where you, where you went towards the, the end of the question.Um. I mean, I, I don't, I don't know, but if, if the rhetoric about AI reshaping the workforce, if, if part of that comes true and, and if it's, if it's about, you know, um, one skilled, let's call 'em a critical thinker, because ideally that's what's, what's going on. But one skilled, critical thinker at a desk can, can, you know, enter in the, the correct.Keystrokes to enable a machine to do the work of what 10 people would've done. I, I don't know. Right. Let's assume the, sort of, the productivity is there across [00:16:00] white collar, um, professions. I, I don't think, I think if you give everyone a college degree and the, the act, the, the possibility for a meaningful job is so slim.You create a society that that is. Seething with despair and resentment. Right? And, and you know, I'm scholar of primarily the Cold War. And you look at, you know, across Eastern Europe, the, the, the correlation between high unemployment, yet high levels of degrees of, of bachelor's degrees and sort of resentment and the political, the search, right?Like there, you see, especially in the 1970s and eighties, there's this sort of lost. Um, there's a sense of hopelessness, like, I can't survive here in Poland or Yugoslavia or Bulgaria, or whatever it was. Um, and, and if I don't fit, then, then that's like the society has failed me. And if, if we have this scenario where everyone just gets pushed through and gets a degree, [00:17:00] but you know, they're, they're, they're doing something that they don't, they haven't been trained in or they don't enjoy, or it doesn't fit with anything, it doesn't realize their personal goals.It has to, the system has to collapse. We have to reshape it into something that's trade school, uh, or, or what, you know, various levels. Right. And, and I get the idea of maybe a liberal arts, uh, uh, you know, system that, you know, people who want to enter in and, and, you know, be the sort of intellectual, the philosopher kings, I suppose, right.But, um, but that there, there probably should be some sort of system that would, that would recognize that because it, it, it doesn't, it doesn't seem like society, we'd be playing too many games and, and fi you know, playing with fire if, if society is just sort of running on the status quo.Steve Pearlman (2): I wanna bounce your article in inside Higher Ed against another one that was fairly [00:18:00] contemporaneous and I'll put it in the show notes.And the title was, effectively, AI is changing. Higher education, and it was very neutral in its assessment. But within that was a survey, uh, that was conducted of thousands of college students, two thirds of whom reported that the use of AI was probably degrading their critical thinking skills. And the, the author build this as neutrally changing higher education and I.I think there's a prevailing attitude in among many faculty members, at least the literature that's coming out is so much rah rah about artificial intelligence that if anything, that neutrality of the author was conservative relative to I think a lot of how educators are viewing it, but I was very disturbed by that characterization.If two thirds of students report that [00:19:00] using AI is probably degrading their critical thinking skills. How, how the hell are we describing that as neutrally changing or having positive and negative effects? It seems to me that that has, uh, at least for the time being, should raise enough alarms for us to say, wait a second.That's not having a neutral effect at all. That's a terrible degradation of higher education, especially given that it wasn't really cultivating critical thinking skills to begin with, and now that students themselves. Are reporting that it's harming it, especially when students tend to overestimate their critical thinking skills in most research surveys about it.This seems like it, it's a pretty clear indictment of artificial intelligence's role so far in education.Robert Neibuhr: Yeah, no, I, I think, and, and this sort of, um, I'm not surprised that I, as you said, like this, I, I think seeing that as neutral or, or. Um, continuing [00:20:00] to just cheerlead the, a notion among administration faculty that, you know, this is the new direction no matter what.Right? Those people who think they're critical thinking, those students must be misguided somehow they don't understand, right? I mean, we get this sort of disconnected, um, mentality. Um, but that's, that's, um, that, that does it, it creates a, a, a serious issue for, for the whole system because then again, it's, um.How willing are, are those, how willing are those two thirds, uh, who responded that way? How willing are they to follow the rules? How willing are they to, to not say, well, you know, this is all kind of a sham, so I, you know, I'll bend a little bit. I'll, I'll sort of have more ai, do more of my work. Like who's gonna catch me mentality?And that's, I mean, that's. Not to say they're bad people for student for doing that. That's kind of a natural reaction. We've encouraged people to take this sort of approach, [00:21:00] um, and, and 'cause students increasingly, I've witnessed, anecdotally, I've witnessed the, the decline in punishing students for academic offenses, right?I mean, I remember 20 years ago, uh, as a, as a grad ta. Um, I, I caught two students that I, I was pretty sure that they, they copied each other and they, they had essays that were, they changed some words, but I was convinced, and it, and the, the dean's office concur, concurred. It does seem that way, but you understand that one student has a serious problem right now and his mother's very ill, and, you know, we can give him a break.And I'm not out to, you know, obviously if someone's. Circumstances or circumstances, those are real, right? I mean, I'm not some sort of, you know, like we have to always, but you have a heart, but you, you know, what does that, what message does that send? Uh, that it's, oh, but if I have a sad story or something's going on in my life, [00:22:00] it's okay.And, and I think this AI use and, and the, in the lack of clarity. Um, and this sort of, all this sort of push is, is simply en encouraging the kind of behavior that we o overall don't want. Um, so maybe it's neutral now, let's say give the guy the benefit of the doubt. Um, maybe it's neutral today. I don't think it's neutral in a year from now, or six months, right?I don't, I don't think that can be, it's a sustainable thing.Steve Pearlman (2): Let me touch on that. Uh, because I was around, I'm old enough to have been around when the internet hit higher education. And I remember at that time two things that fascinated me that I thought were very odd, uh, for, and the faculty were as they are now with ai, think racing to embrace the internet, uh, Google searches, uh, HTML, and you know, so forth.And one of the things that struck me as very odd was the push they felt [00:23:00] to incorporate the internet into their classes and teach students how to use it and so forth. Which I didn't understand because it was very clear that the students were far more adept at it than any of the faculty were, and they were becoming the digital natives that they are now.And so I don't know why anyone felt as though we were needing to teach them how to use the internet when they were far ahead of us, obviously, in all of that. And the second thing was that emerged at the same time, was. An argument that, that it was a lateral shift, that reading short little webpages and clicking on different links, and as things got shorter and shorter, uh, and webpages got more desperate and so forth, we would, it was just a neutral shift in how people thought, and it was not a degradation of the ability to focus long term to go deeper.And so on, and I said, well, how can it not be? If we look at the two formats, you have a book on one hand that is a contiguous [00:24:00] set of ideas developed more deeply, and then you have a number of different web pages that are skirting across many different HTML links to different short paragraphs about things.And I sort of tried to scream at the wind a little bit about it back then, but it was, it was obvious that it was blowing in the wrong direction. And it seems to me AI is that only times about a thousand in terms of what's happening. Once again, we see a clamor to teach students how to use AI and incorporate it into their lives when they're already far ahead of us in terms of what AI is doing and how to use it.And the second thing is this notion that, again, it's lateral if not beneficial when the evidence suggests otherwise. Can you, in your insight where, given your position, I'm wondering if you can help me appreciate. Why are what is behind the faculty rush in education to embrace this? Is it, I get a sense and I'll, and then I'll be quiet because I'm trying to ask you a question.I've only asked four [00:25:00] so far. But, uh, I get a sense that, in a sense I think the faculty kind of feel helpless. That, that there's a, there's a sense that if we can't beat this and we have no idea how we could possibly beat this, then we might as well just go with it. Uh, do you feel like that's accurate?Robert Neibuhr: I think, I think, um, yes.I, I, you know, maybe a little more, some nuance to the, yes. Um, I, I suppose on the one side, um, again, faculty coming, generally coming from, from a good place, right? I wanna, I wanna help my students and I think that's, you know, um, you know, rather, rather ubiquitous, uh, among, among faculty, I wanna help, I wanna help the students, uh, do better and, and succeed.I, I think if, if there's this, this huge push to say that AI is the future, AI is if we don't, if we don't talk about it, if we don't introduce it to students, if we [00:26:00] don't sort of teach them things about it, that we're doing the students a disservice. So I, I think there's this reflective, like, we don't have much time.We have to teach them something. Let's chisel together, you know, some sort of idea and, and you know, then I can feel good about, um, having passed on some sort of, you know, knowledge to my students and help me better prepare them. I think that's perhaps, um, part of it. Um. Yeah, I think a helplessness in terms too of, you know, I, I feedback or things I hear from faculty in my unit and, and, and elsewhere is, is this sort of helplessness that administration is, has a tremendous amount of power and is sort of pushing an agenda that faculty don't have the ability to push back against as well.Right? So like. Again, a [00:27:00] perfect world. Let's think about this. Let's figure out what's actually necessary, how we can, how we can prepare students. Let's, let's think about this and, and be, be reasonable about it versus the sort of top down push. And I think faculties across the country have, have lost an ability to, to be self-governing as they would've been, you know, 20 years ago or something like this.Uh, and, and you know, the sort of administrative superstructure that has has dominated. You know, universities, uh, in, in the recent years, um, just simply says, this is what we do. And, and part of this is I thinklike, like before, right? So my university is, I think, the biggest in the country. Um, uh, or certainly one of the top three or something like this. Um, and, and the notion of scaling up is kind of always on sort of the, the talking points of the, this, right? We, let's scale up, let's do something else to have a even bigger, or let's grow by this much.Or [00:28:00] that, that pressure then doesn't come with let's hire X number of faculty to take care of that, right? Let's hire this many more people to, to get. So it's asking more, but without giving more support. Um. And I think too, what you, what you mentioned with in the beginning, uh, of your question with sort of the way the internet was, I haven't thought this through.This is just sort of, you know, just on the spot here. Um, maybe this is, maybe this is not necessarily the, the best analysis, but my own sort of thought there is, you know, we don't, we don't, we no longer have a robust research librarian. Network at universities anymore, in my opinion. So in other words, like folks who would've been in charge of, um, perusing, you know, the, the publications and, and journals and being in touch with faculty, doing research to say, Hey, I know you're [00:29:00] a specialist in this.Here are the newest titles. Do you want me to buy this database? Or whatever the, the thing might be, right? Like those, the intermediaries between the material and then the faculty. Those, those folks have been largely eliminated and they're not rep being replaced as they retire. There's only a few, a handful of programs that could do library science as a, as a master graduate degree anymore in this country.So with the idea that, that the internet just equalizes us, I'm just as equipped as you would be or the research librarian would be to just go online and find whatever I need. And that's, that's also not. Necessarily true, right? I mean, I, I may be in touch with the things going on in my field, but there's so much going on that I don't have time to, to, you know, and in a sense of research, I am overburdened in a way, and, and letting me fend for myself.Um, you know, maybe it works, maybe it doesn't. [00:30:00] But we've hollowed out the level of specialists who would be that point of reference to go in and, and look at all of those things. Sort of filter a bit and help in the process. And I think that's, you know, that's something I think the internet may have, may have helped, uh, do.And the way that so much became online in the last 20 years in terms of, of, you know, research materials, primary sources, all this sort of stuff. And, and the down, the downfall I would say of, of that profess.Steve Pearlman (2): That seems to me indicative that issue with librarians seems indicative to me of a larger issue.And it's one that you mentioned as well earlier of, um, this, the value of AI to the administration in terms of economizing further economizing further, further economizing instruction. Uh, so what risk do you see or do you hear on the ground? The tremblings of AI [00:31:00] replacing faculty members for certain tasks.I mean, we went from faculty members to adjuncts to teaching assistants doing most of the work. And I, I, I have to think, and there's already publication about it, of administration seeing AI as the next great cost saving measure.Robert Neibuhr: A hundred percent. Yeah. No, I, I think I, I think that's exactly right. I mean, the, the notion that you'd have sort of like.Sort of like at the grocery store, you have two or three checkouts that are open that has a person there checking you out versus the one person loading over 15 self checkouts. I, I, I think that's certainly, and it, especially thinking about economizing and scale and, and saving money. I mean, this has to be, I see it now with, with the, the way that, um, you know, students that used to be.A hundred students, 150, 200 maybe in a class was really big and you had a faculty member with three or four or five TAs or whatever the [00:32:00] breakdown would be. I, I have, I know people at, at my university have six, 700 students in the class. That's, I, I, I don't, how do you, you lose, I mean, that's, I mean, that's just incomprehensible to me in terms of the point of higher ed.Right? I mean, like, you don't, you're not fostering any. Any connectivity, you're not, I mean, it may as well be a bot because you, the student will never interact, you know? Right. Maybe the faculties of noble laureate, you'll never interact with that person. There's, there's very little, um, so that's, that's, that's I think, uh, you know, a, a huge piece of, of where this will go.And I, yeah, I think faculty are vulnerable, that they've been made more vulnerable over the last decades and, and, and Yeah. I don't see it voting well, my advice to the. Faculty. I began the podcast, right? This notion of let's stop grading, you know? I said, well, you know, I mean, we should think of ways that we remain [00:33:00] relevant, right?I mean, if, if we, if we propose that, well, we just won't grade essays. We won't assign essays, then for sure they can get someone, the administration can hire someone at lower pay to do what we're doing in the classroom. That's not. That's not a far stretch of anyone's imagination. Um, so I, I mean, I don't want to be a part of the, you know, the, the group that nullifies myself by taking away the prime thing that I can give.Right. Um, but not to ramble, but I, you know, part of the, this fear too is, is a student yesterday had sent me, um, uh, something that was really interesting. So, uh, we're a Cold War class. Cold War seminar. He read a book by, uh, John Lewis Gatis, and, and he, he read it. He, he had some notes. He understood a lot and really, really bright guy.And, and then he, he said, you know, I put into ai, I forget which, which program, but he put into AI created a [00:34:00] podcast that talks about this book. Holy cow. It was, I listened to 10 or 15 minutes of it. It was two people talking. They, they, it mimicked. It mimicked. I mean, it was, it could have been real had I been in the car listening, I would've thought this was a, a, you know, a book talk about Candice's last book on the call.It was, it was insane how good it sounded. And, uh, you know, uh, that's, that would be easy for, uh, you know, recreate, you know, Dr. Nebo in a, in a discussion seminar. So, you know, my, they can get my image and they can get my voice, and who knows? I mean, that, that can't be that thing.Steve Pearlman (2): No, and you know, it, you raised the point about chatting with bots and it, I'll piggyback on what you're saying right now.I can understand if we're gonna have an interaction with bots as an, as a tutor, and potentially valuably. So I'm not against all usages of ai, where if we're learning, say, the layers [00:35:00] of the earth's crust. Uh, as a very simplistic example, but nevertheless, we can rely on the AI to be relatively accurate in coaching us about the layers of the earth crust.But now there are also ais who will interact with you as Hamlet. Well, you could pull out any 50 Shakespeare scholars and have them respond to prompts and that you'll get different responses. All of them thoughtful. But this bot who is deciding, uh, but based on what algorithms are we deciding its responses as Hamlet to prompts that are not within Hamlet, that now we're crossing quite the Rubicon in terms of where we're putting trust in bots to educate our students or coach our students.In ways that I don't think are reliable, and it's not, even if the, even if the bot gives what might be very thoughtful hamlet responses and very reasonable ones, they are a selection of, of an [00:36:00] interpretation of Hamlet based on certain people. I guess that it's searching across the internet as opposed to others, and now that's equally dangerous to me as far as I can conceive.Robert Neibuhr: Yeah, I think, you know, that I've, I've. The same, the same sort of idea of the sort of book, book summary. And, and, and I mean, I, I, I think it's so even a fact, even just fact as you said, like just scientific facts that we know that can be provable. If, if we wind up having queries to the AI and say, okay, what is this?And it gives us the right answer and we check it, we know it, but at at a point, right? I mean, we have to say, okay, you know, it's been right 52 times. I trust it now, and who's to, and if I stop and check like, you know what, I verified, this is good, and now down the road it lies to me. Or, or again, this other, you know, avatar, other sort of per ai sort of driven personality or, or, or, [00:37:00] you know, this comes in and, and now I don't realize that I'm taking an information at face value.And again, I lose that critical thinking. I, I lose that ability. That's also reasonable, right? If I checked it so many times, what, what else can I do? I'm a busy person, right? We're all busy people. How can I keep referring back and verifying? Um, and that's gonna, I think that's gonna be a huge problem. If, if we wind up at some point saying, yep, that's good.And then, and thenSteve Pearlman (2): we're, we're duped down the road. It reminds me of an old Steve Martin joke. He would say that, um, he thought it would be a great practical joke to play on kids. Uh, if you raise them to speak wrong when they get to school, so all their words are incorrect and they have no idea. Yeah, it sort of seems like the same problem, right?A certain point. The AI might be telling us everything that's wrong. We have no idea that it's wrong, and we're living in that world where everything is distorted and we don't know what we don't even know. That's a terrifying prospect. Thanks for [00:38:00] bringing that up. I try to bring up the hide behind. So as, as we wrap this up, where, what didn't I ask you about?Where, what's the thing that you think we also need to talk about here that I didn't shed enough light on for this conversation?Robert Neibuhr: Oh, I don't, I mean, I, I guess I, I, my, my own sense is that, that the conversation. Any conversation about higher ed um, needs to be grounded in the basic principle of, of the point, like the, the value that, that we get from it, the, the goals that it, it it brings us.Um, and, and, um, you know, that if, if that's at the center, if, if the idea of, you know, instilling, uh, you know, students with the tools to. Actually survive in a dynamic world. You know, [00:39:00] my degree today might totally change into the reality. It might totally change in 10 years, whatever, if I'm still equipped to respond to that change.That's been a successful education. Right. And, and, and the, the point of the, the critical thought, the reflection, um, the, you know, preparing for, um. Really the, for our context in the United States, I mean, I think it's, it's also part of the, the whole experience with, or experiment with, with democracy, right?Inform citizenship. I mean, this is all part of it. If, if it's just, um, if the narrative about higher ed is simply the paper mill or green mill for a job to get some sort of, you know, a higher number of, of a wage, or if it's about, you know. Finishing just tick boxes and hitting goals without being ever checked or questioned.I mean, that's, that's, um. That's not the right, that's not the point. I, I don't think. Right. I mean, the, the, you know, what are, what are, how are we growing, how are we building ourselves? [00:40:00] How are we preparing for uncertain futures? And if the conversation they should always be, be, be centered on, on that, uh, whether it's AI or whether it's, you know, any other stuff.But that, that would be the only thing I would sort of stress. But I, we've talked about that already, but I think that's, I try to think of that in, in terms of any of these,Steve Pearlman (2): um, sort of conversations. I wanna ask you one last question that just came to mind. What if, I'm sure we have a lot, we have a lot of parents listening.I'm curious as to what message you would send to them if they have either students, children in college or children headed to college in the somewhat near future. What's the message for them at this point with respect to all of that? Because I don't exactly know what it is.Robert Neibuhr: Yeah, I mean, I, it's, I, it, it seems, what, what I think is, is, is is not gonna be a popular [00:41:00] or not gonna be, you know, what folks, you know, necessarily can, can even, you know, want to hear or, or, you know, could even act on it.But I, I, I guess part of it is, is to, can. Ensure you're involved and, and understand, you know, ask, what's the syllabus? I mean, I'll digress for a second, right? I mean, I, I, this is one of those things that I've had a critique about for, for a while. Um, sort of my grumpy old man coming out. But I mean like the, the sort of sense of like universities.Let's build a really luxurious dorm facility. Let's build up the sports center. Let's have, when, when the TV crew comes for the game day, we'll have brand new flowers. The, the sort of superficial wowing that happens. And parents, the, the, the tours are a big part of this, right? I mean, the tours show all the goodies.And not to say that that's a bad thing, right? I mean, you know, dorms were substandard 30 years ago in large, right? I mean, there's, there's an argument for why these things [00:42:00] are good. Um, but, but I think a lot of the, the, there's been a, a, a cleavage between what parents are told the experience is gonna be and what they're actually sort of shown and informed.And then of course, students want independence. Students want, you know, they're, they're on their own now, their decision makers and in large part, and there's a sort of disconnection there. And I, I think it's, it's hard, it's a big ask, but if parents can, can remain. Ask the tough questions. Like how many books in a library, how many, you know, how many, uh, you know, full-time faculty, how many, you know, go down the list of academic credentials.Um, and then look at the syllabi. Look at the assignments from from your students, right? Or, or think about, uh, if they're already in there or if they're going right. Think about that as something you would, you would do. Um. And, and, you know, keep people's feet to the fire, right? I mean, to use of a tired metaphor, but I [00:43:00] mean, keep, keep that as much as you can and, and, you know, try to push back because if, if students are customers, um, parents are the, are the ones paying for it ultimately.So they're detached their, the true customer. I, I suppose. And if they start calling up the deans and saying things like, what is, what's going on here? Um, maybe things will, will change. Maybe there'll be a, a response. Um, but stay informed, I guess, as, as much as I possibly can, I think wouldSteve Pearlman (2): be the, well, that seems Sage elite to me.Robert, thanks so much for being on actual intelligence. I appreciate it and, and, uh, as you're thinking evolves on this, maybe we can have you back in the future sometime and continue the discussion.Robert Neibuhr: Sounds great. Thank you.Steve Pearlman (2): Thank you. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pearlmanactualintelligence.substack.com

Diaspora nav tikai kultūras vai emocionālās piederības simbols, tā ir arī globāli aktīva un ekonomiski kompetenta kopiena, kuras ieguldījumi var būtiski stiprināt Latvijas ilgtspējīgu attīstību. Tā ir sacījusi Latvijas Universitātes tenurprofesora Inta Mieriņa. Viņas teikto apstiprina arī Pasaules Bankas dati, ka 2022. gadā no ārvalstīm caur Latvijas bankām mājsaimniecībām ieskaitīts vairāk nekā miljards eiro, un tas veido līdz pat 4% no iekšzemes kopprodukta. Tas ir liels pienesums, un tieši ārzemēs dzīvojošo tautiešu pārskaitījumi savām ģimenēm ir lielākā sadaļa. Pirms trim gadiem tas Latviju ierindoja otrajā vietā Eiropas Savienībā. Bet, ja mēs runājam par uzkrātajām investīcijām, tad gan mēs atpaliekam no kaimiņvalstīm par aptuveni 10 miljardiem eiro.  Šoreiz saruna par to, kā diasporas investīcijas varam pārvērst veiksmes stāstā, un vienlaikus, protams, skaidrojam, ko vispār saprotam, sakot vārdus diasporas investīcijas. Raidījumā Globālais latvietis. 21. gadsimts sarunājas biedrības "Ar pasaules pieredzi Latvijā" līdzdibinātājs Miks Muižarājs, Latvijas Universitātes Ekonomikas un sociālo zinātņu fakultātes asociētā profesore Baiba Bela, Daugavas Vanagu Centrālās valdes priekšsēdis un Lestenes biedrības valdes priekšsēdētājs Aivars Sinka un Latvijas investīciju un attīstības aģentūras pārstāve Danuta Pīlapa.

La nueva Corte abre oportunidad para justicia indígena, Brasil despluma a Estados Unidos en importaciones de pollo mexicanas y el beisbol se abre paso como nuevo escaparate para las marcas, con Gonzalo Soto y Ari Ortega00:00 Introducción02:12 Nueva Corte abre oportunidad para justicia indígena; "es paso a paso", dicen expertos05:16 Brasil despluma a EU en importaciones de pollo de México07:20 Agencia de Transformación pasa funciones satelitales y espaciales a Promtel11:39 El beisbol se abre paso como nuevo escaparate para las marcas15:32 David no puede con Goliat: el TAS da la razón a la FMF

Augustā noslēgusies kārtējā "Mana jūra" ekspedīcija Latvijā, bet Ženēvā nesekmīgi beigušās sarunas par plastmasas lietojumu un piesārņojumu pasaulē. Kāda šobrīd situācija ar plastmasas ražošanu un pārstrādi pasaulē un ko pētījumi stāsta par plastmasas ceļu dabā? Raidījumā Zināmais nezināmajā analizē Jānis Ulme, Vides izglītības fonda pārstāvis, Jānis Brizga, Latvijas Universitātes pētnieks, biedrības "Zaļā brīvība" pārstāvis, un Inta Dimante-Deimantoviča, Latvijas Hidroekoloģijas institūta vadošā pētniece un mikroplastmasas laboratorijas vadītāja. "Mikroplastmasa ir plastmasas piesārņojuma nākotne," atzīst Inta Dimante-Deimantoviča. "Globāli raugoties, plastmasas atkritumi, nonākot vidē, tos ietekmē saules gaismā, dažādi citi apstākļi, kā rezultātā plastmasa kā materiāls sadalās aizvien mazākās daļiņās un uzkrājas vidē mikroplastmasas veidā. Un mikroplastmasas veidā arī kļūst ļoti mobila, jo tiek aizpūsta ar vēju, aiznesta nokrišņiem, tiek apēsta, pēc tam izdalīta un atkal apēsta. Viss tas, kas no lielā plastmasas piesārņojuma netiek savākts un pārstrādāts, agri vai vēlu atgriežas mikroplastmasas veidā.  "Turklāt arī mazliet bezcerīgā problēma ir tā, ka nepietiek ar to, ka mēs, piemēram, sakām - mums šajā pludmalē viss ir kārtībā, te viss ir tīrs, te viss ir savākts, te piesārņojuma nebūs, jo mēs tiešām par to rūpējamies un un mūsu atkritumu menedžments ir augstā līmenī. Plastmasai, jo sevišķi mikroplastmasa ir globāls raksturs. Tas nozīmē, ka var būt tik tīrs, cik vien vēlamies, bet mums to atnesīs no citurienes. Līdz ar to arī ierobežošanai, kopīgai nostājai jābūt globālai, lai šo piesārņojuma veidu apkarotu un un novērstu, turpina Inta Dimante-Deimantoviča. Arī Latvijā visos paraugos, ko zinātnieki ievāc, vienmēr ir mikroplastmasa un tās daudzums pieaug. To apliecina arī ekspedīcijas "Mana jūra" dati. Gadu no gada piesārņojuma klātbūtne dažādās pludmalēs var atšķirties. Apvienoto Nāciju organizācija ziņo, ka gadā pasaulē saražo ap 400 miljonu tonnu platsmasas un tā pārsvarā visa nonāk atpakaļ dabā. Tas, ka drīz sāksim slīkt plastmasā, vairs nav tikai tēlains izteiciens, jo arī pētījumi apliecina, ka plastmasas izstrādājumi ir ne tikai mums apkārt, bet mūsu organismā. Par šo jautājumu nesen aizvadītas ANO sarunas Ženēvā, bet tepat Latvijā - ikgadējā piekrastes ekspedīcija, kurā noskaidrotas tīrākās un piesārņotākās pašmāju pludmales. Gliemju čaula sniedz informāciju arī par "mājiņas" īpašnieka vecumu Vai zinājāt, ka pēc gliemju čaulas var noteikt tās īpašnieku vecumu? Bet ja runājam par čaulas krāsu, tad dažām jūrā dzīvojošām gliemju sugām to nemaz nevar redzēt apauguma dēļ, savukārt skaistais zaigojošais perlamutrs sedz čaulas iekšpusi. Vairāk par gliemju „mājiņām” stāsta zooloģe Digna Pilāte. Jautājums, kāpēc vairākiem ūdenī mītošiem gliemjiemtā krāsa ir vajadzīga, smaidot teic Digna Pilāte.  Skatot tās mīkstmiešu sugas, kurām ir čaula, varētu teikt, ka tie ir gliemji, kuriem skelets atrodas ārpusē. Jo gluži kā cilvēkam ir kauli, tā gliemjiem čaula, tā teikt, strukturē ķermeni un gliemju gadījumā arī kalpo kā kaulaina mājvieta savam saimniekam. Lūkojam tās uzbūvi, formas un, protams, arī krāsu tām sugām, kurām tā ir ieraugāma arī gliemja dzīves laikā. Par to stāsta zooloģe, Latvijas Valsts mežzinātnes institūta “Silava” pētniece Digna Pilāte. -- Kā ik trešdienu ielūkojamies mūsu raidījuma viesu grāmatu plauktos un smeļamies iedvesmu aizraujošai lasāmvielai par zinātni un ne tikai. Šoreiz ar kādu sev nozīmīgu grāmatu iepazīstinās entomologs Uģis Piterāns. Viņš izvēlējies grāmatu somu valodā par Somijas blaktīm. Tā viņu mudinājusi atgriezties zinātnē.

Būtu ideāli, ja primāri mēs izvēlētos Latvijā ražotu pārtiku, bet mūsdienās tikai ar patriotismu cauri netiksi. Vietējam ražotājam nepieciešami trumpji, ar ko pārliecināt patērētāju izvēlēties pašmāju preci. Ar ko iespējams "pārtrumpot" importēto pārtiku? Raidījumā Kā labāk dzīvot vērtē Latvijas Pārtikas uzņēmumu federācijas padomes priekšsēdētāja Ināra Šure, Latvijas Lauku konsultāciju un izglītības centra Lauku attīstības nodaļas vadītāja Elīna Ozola, uzņēmuma "FOOD UNION" vadītājs Eiropā un Latvijā Artūrs Čirjevskis un Latvijas maiznieku biedrības pārstāvis maizniekmeistars Normunds Skauģis. "Mūsu pircējs izvēlas vidusceļu, gan skatās kvalitāti, gan skatās, kas ir iepakojumā, gan arī skatās uz drošību," norāda Ināra Šure. "Jo loģistikas ķēde ir īsāka, jo drošāka ir pārtika," turpina Ināra Šure. "Tas nozīmē, ka visērtākā un vislabākā ir vietējā pārtika ar savu kvalitāti, jo mūsu pārtikā ir trīs galvenie kritēriji – drošība, kvalitāte un atbalstām vietējo ražotāju. Šie "trīs vienā" ir svarīgākais, ko vajadzētu saprast pircējam, pat ja ir nedaudz dārgāks produkts, ir savai veselībai labāk, tautai un valstij labāk." Artūrs Čirjevskis salīdzina ar Dāniju un vērtē, ka tur sentiments pēc vietējiem ražojumiem ir mazāks, nekā novēro Latvijā. "Tādu plašu plauktu ar svaigiem produktiem, kā Latvijā, varbūt arī Baltijā, jūs nekur neredzēsiet. Tik daudz svaiga sortimenta - deserti, jogurti, biezpiena sieriņi. Lielākoties Rietumeiropā plauktā var redzēt 4-5 jogurtus un tie paši būs vienkārši, bez lielām ogām, iekļāvumiem," atzīst Artūrs Čirjevskis. Ināra Šure tomēr norāda, ka piena produktu segmentā vajadzētu vairāk orientēties uz vietējiem, jo tikai 50 % ir vietējais piens.  "Igaunijā gandrīz 90% pērk vietējo produktu, Lietuvā tas ir nedaudz zemāk. Mums ir izteikti tas, ka aizvedam pienu daudz uz Lietuvu un atved jau ar pievieno vērtību produktu. Tas nav pareizi. Svarīgas ir tirgotāju stratēģijas," vērtē Ināra Šure. Ar savu produkciju noteikti varam nodrošināt Latviju gan ar jogurtiem, gan sieriņiem, gan pienu. Tas, ka plauktā stāv importa jogurti, sviests, ir ļoti nepareizi no vietējo tirgotāju stratēģijām." 

Content note: This episode discusses abuse in a religious cult, gender dysphoria, body dysmorphia, and the negative impact of U.S. current events on marginalized people. Tas The Artist is an autistic, queer, disabled and deaf graphic artist, illustrator, and advocate who blends storytelling with a passion for accessible design. Tas supports fellow members of their community through vocational coaching, developing adaptive curriculum materials and advocating for workplace accessibility. Whether they are creating a surrealist horror piece or working in advocacy, Tas brings a thoughtful, inclusive, and innovative approach to every aspect of their professional life.  During this episode, you will hear Tas talk about: The unique circumstances of how they discovered that they are autistic What their childhood was like growing up as an undiagnosed autistic child in a religious cult How were they able to leave the cult and “deprogram” themselves How they discovered their passion for art, and how art helps them process their trauma What drew them specifically into the horror genre for their art Their experience with progressively losing their hearing in adulthood, and processing their hearing loss through their art Their work in digital accessibility and design, and how to make art more accessible The impact of current events on their life Learn more about Tas and their work at TasTheArtist.com or on LinkedIn. Watch the video of this interview on YouTube. Read the episode transcript. Follow the Beyond 6 Seconds podcast in your favorite podcast player. Subscribe to the FREE Beyond 6 Seconds newsletter for early access to new episodes. Support or sponsor this podcast at BuyMeACoffee.com/Beyond6Seconds! *Disclaimer: The views, guidance, opinions, and thoughts expressed in Beyond 6 Seconds episodes are solely mine and/or those of my guests, and do not necessarily represent those of my employer or other organizations. These episodes are for informational purposes only and do not substitute for professional medical advice. Consult a medical professional or healthcare provider if you are seeking medical advice, diagnoses, or treatment.*

Lai gan valstī vērojams darba roku trūkums, cilvēkiem ar invaliditāti atrast darbu joprojām ir problēmas. Cik pieprasītas darba tirgū ir personas ar invaliditāti un kā ieinteresēt darba devējus nodarbināt šādus cilvēkus? Par integrāciju darba tirgū sarunā piedalās biedrības "Ilgtspējīgas uzņēmējdarbības atbalstam" un sociālā uzņēmuma "Ligero" vadītāja Liene Reine-Miteva, Invalīdu un viņu draugu apvienības "Apeirons" vadītājs Ivars Balodis, kā arī sociālā mentore Inese Raisa-Reisa, kas darbojas kā asistents darba procesā. "Visgrūtāk ir cilvēkiem, kuriem ir intelektuālās attīstības traucējumi, kuriem neesam pievērsuši uzmanību tik daudz. Kur nav speciālas atbalsta politikas, nav speciāli integrējošu pasākumu, lai radītu izpratni par dažādām invaliditātēm. Darba devēji arī ir neizpratnē, nezina, kā rīkoties vienā vai otrā gadījumā. Labprāt ņemtu kādu darbā, bet nav gatavi ieguldīt daudz laika un pūļu, lai vienu vai otru lietu iemācītu. Rezultātā sabiedrība bieži ir neizpratnē," vērtē Ivars Balodis. Bieži vien arī paši cilvēki nav motivēti, jo sociālo pakalpojumu politika ir tāda, ka bieži strādāt ir neizdevīgāk, nekā saņemt pabalstu. Tas arī atspoguļojas nodarbinātībās situācijā. "Mēs cenšamies pārvarēt attieksmi, ka no vienas puses labprāt kaut ko nodrošinātu, no otras puses - ļaut cilvēkiem strādāt. Nebūs tā, ka tagad visiem ir jāstrādā, šim procesam jābūt no bērnības, jāmācās skolā kopā, jābūt atbalsta mehānismiem gan darba devējiem, gan pašiem cilvēkiem, jābūt sistēmai, kas darba prasmes un iemaņas iemāca. Tikai pēc tam varam runāt, ka sistēma ir mainījusies un attieksme ir mainījusies," atzīst Ivars Balodis. Kā cilvēki ar invaliditāti šobrīd tiek iesaistītidarba tirgu? Par pieredzi kādā no mazumtirdzniecības veikalu tīklā un ēdināšanas iestādē interesējās Daina Zalamane. Runājot par mentoru piesaisti cilvēku ar invaliditāti iesaistei darbā, Ivars Balodis vērtē, ka lielāka atbildība jāuzņemas valstij un finansējumam vajadzētu būt no Valsts nodarbinātības aģentūras budžeta.  "ja būtu atbilstošs atalgojums, mentorus varētu atrast ļoti daudz," uzskata Inese Raisa-Reisa. "Tikai vajadzētu atrast pareizo pieeju apmaksas sistēmai. Mums ir daudz bijušo mediķu, kas labi saprot šo tēmu, pedagogi visās vecuma grupās. Domāju, ka cilvēki būtu ieinteresēti." Liene Reine-Miteva piebilst, ka vērtīgas būtu apmācības mentoriem.

Marcelo Tas recebe Ricardo Araújo no Provoca. Ricardo Araújo Pereira é humorista, jornalista e escritor português, considerado um dos maiores nomes do humor em língua portuguesa. No programa, eles falam sobre a comédia e o riso, além de seus efeitos no ser humano desde a infância até a fase adulta. Na edição, ele e Tas comentam sobre seu trabalho como humorista: “A nós que temos esta obsessão, nos agrada perceber o modo como aquele brinquedo linguístico, que é o que uma piada é, como é que aquele brinquedo de linguagem funciona.”

Ukrainas militāri politiskās situācijas novitātes ir Ukrainas bruņoto spēku pieaugusī gaisa triecienu kapacitāte un tās ietekme uz Krievijas degvielas piegādi iekšējā un ārējā tirgū, parādījušās ziņas par Pentagona aizliegumiem amerikāņu tāldarbības raķešu lietošanai, kā arī Polijas prezidents uzlicis veto Ukrainas atbalsta likumprojektam. Pēc mēneša gaidāmās vēlēšanas Moldovā, kur nākas pievērsties Krievijas un Eiropas Savienības iesaistei, attiecīgi, pro- un antieiropeisko spēku atbalstam. Ārvalstu aktualitātes pārrunājam studijā kopā ar Latvijas Transatlantiskās organizācijas (LATO) vadītāju Sigita Strubergu un Latvijas Ārpolitikas institūta pētnieks un LATO valdes locekli Sandi Šrāderu. Maijas Sandu „pēdējā kauja” Šodien Moldovā paredzēta trīs Eiropas politikas smagsvaru vizīte – Kišiņevā sagaida Francijas prezidentu Emanuelu Makronu, Polijas premjerministru Donaldu Tusku un Vācijas kancleru Olafu Šolcu. Tas ir nepārprotams atbalsta žests Moldovas proeiropeiskajiem spēkiem – pie varas esošajai partijai „Rīcība un Solidaritāte” un prezidentei Maijai Sandu. Nākamās Moldovas parlamenta vēlēšanas, kurām jānotiek 28. septembrī, mediji jau nodēvējuši par prezidentes „pēdējo kauju” viņas valsts ceļā uz Eiropas Savienību. Iepriekšējās vēlēšanās 2021. gadā „Rīcība un Solidaritāte” pārliecinoši uzvarēja, iegūstot 63 no 101 deputāta vietas. Parlamentā iekļuva vēl tikai divi politiskie spēki: toreizējais Komunistu un sociālistu bloks ar 32 mandātiem un oligarha Ilana Šora dibinātā un sava dibinātāja vārdā nodēvētā partija ar sešiem mandātiem. Nākamais gads nesa Krievijas plaša mēroga iebrukumu Moldovas kaimiņvalstī Ukrainā, ukraiņu bēgļu plūsmu uz un caur Moldovu, destabilizētu ekonomisko un enerģētisko situāciju. Zīmīgi, ka dienās, kad krievu tanku kolonnas virzījās uz Kijivu, „Rīcības un Solidaritātes” reitingi būtiski kritās, pēc tam gan atkal atgūstoties līdz ar pozitīvākām ziņām no frontes. Izšķirošs moments bija Moldovas prezidenta vēlēšanas pagājušā gada oktobrī, vienlaicīgi ar konstitucionālo referendumu, kas ļāva valstij virzīties uz Eiropas Savienību. Maija Sandu tika ievēlēta uz otru termiņu ar apmēram 55 % balsu, savukārt referendumā proeiropeiskajiem spēkiem pozitīvā atbilde iegūta par mata tiesu – ar 50 un trīsdesmit piecām simtdaļām procenta. Kopš pēdējām vēlēšanām aizvadītajos gados „Rīcība un Solidaritāte” lielākoties palikusi sabiedrības aptauju līderos, tomēr pēdējos mēnešos tās pozīcijas nav spožas. Valdošajai partijai min uz pēdām jūlijā saformētais „Patriotiskais bloks”, kurā sociālistiem un komunistiem pievienojušās divas mazākas partijas – „Moldovas sirds” un „Moldovas nākotnes partija”. Oficiāli bloka lozungs ir starptautiski neitrāla un nepievienojusies Moldova, kas praksē, protams, nozīmē pavērt durvis Kremļa ietekmei. Daudz atklātāk prokremlisks ir Ilana Šora jaunais veidojums – bloks „Uzvara”, kura dibināšanas kongress jūlija sākumā notika Maskavā. Taču pēc tam, kad bloka saraksta „lokomotīve”, autonomā Gagauzijas reģiona gubernatore Jevgenija Gucula tika notiesāta uz septiņiem gadiem cietumā par nelegālu Krievijas finansējuma saņemšanu, Moldovas Centrālā vēlēšanu komisija atsauca bloka un arī to veidojošo atsevišķo partiju reģistrāciju vēlēšanām. Līdz ar to palielinājušās izredzes vēl diviem politiskajiem spēkiem: blokam „Alternatīva”, kura redzamākās figūras ir Maijas Sandu galvenais konkurents pērngada prezidenta vēlēšanās Aleksandrs Stojanoglo un agrākais premjerministrs Jons Kiku, kā arī partijai „Mūsu partija”. „Alternatīva” sevi vismaz oficiāli pozicionē kā proeiropeisku spēku, savukārt „Mūsu partijai” ir populistu un mērenu eiroskeptiķu reputācija. Ja vēlēšanu rezultāti aptuveni atbildīs pašreizējiem aptauju rādītājiem, tad „Rīcībai un Solidaritātei” var nākties meklēt sev kādu koalīcijas partneri. Ukraina rāda, ko spēj Strauji kāpušas degvielas cenas, milzu rindas pie benzīntankiem un degvielas iegādes normas dažos Krievijas reģionos – tāds ir Ukrainas gaisa uzbrukumu redzamais rezultāts. Kā ziņo laikraksts "The New York Times", Ukrainai jau izdevies izsist no ierindas apmēram sesto daļu no Krievijas naftas pārstrādes jaudām. Tai skaitā uz laiku tikusi apturēta piegāde pa naftas vadu „Draudzība”, pa kuru krievu naftas produktus saņem Ungārija un Slovākija. Ungārijas ārlietu ministrs Peters Sijarto jau paziņojis, ka viņa valsts atslēgšana no degvielas piegādēm esot uzbrukums tās suverenitātei. Tiek ziņots, ka Krievija savukārt turpina triecienus pa Ukrainas enerģētika infrastruktūru, draudot ar apkures problēmām nākamajā ziemā. Tomēr tendence ir nepārprotami iezīmējusies – Ukraina šai gaisa karā vairs nav „peramais zēns”, tās prettriecieni kļūst agresoram arvien sāpīgāki un līdz ar to Krievijas sabiedrībai pamanāmāki. Un tos nevar nepamanīt arī starptautiskajā arēnā, kur joprojām biezē migla ap Donalda Trampa un viņa administrācijas izredzēm apsēdināt Kremļa diktatoru un viņa Kijivas pretni pie viena sarunu galda, un šajā kontekstā joprojām aktuāls priekšstats, ka „Zelenskim nav kāršu”. Vēl viens potenciāls „trumpis” Kijivas rokās ir ziņa par sekmīgu Ukrainas spārnotās raķetes „Flamingo” izmēģinājumu noslēgumu. Raķetes darbības rādiuss ir līdz trīs tūkstošiem kilometru, kaujas lādiņa masa – līdz vienai tonnai. Tie ir rādītāji, kas pārspēj jebkuru līdzīgu ieroču veidu, kādu Ukrainai līdz šim nodevuši Rietumus sabiedrotie, pie tam liedzot tos lietot triecieniem Krievijas pamatteritorijā. Tikām neiepriecinošas ziņas pirmdien pienākušas no Varšavas, kur Polijas prezidents Karols Navrockis ar savu veto apturējis likumprojektu, kuram bija jāturpina poļu finansiālais atbalsts Ukrainai, tai skaitā pieejai globālajam saziņas tīklam Starlink no 1. oktobra. Tas, savukārt, draud iedragāt ukraiņu spēku taktiskās iespējas frontē un apdraud citas Ukrainas valdībai svarīgas informācijas drošu apriti un glabāšanu. Prezidenta Navrocka rīcībai ir iekšpolitiski motīvi. Nesen ievēlētais poļu politikas konservatīvās līnijas pārstāvis, kura platformā nozīmīgi ir „Polija pirmajā vietā” motīvi, vēlas apcirpt sociālās garantijas, kādas saņem Polijā patvērumu radušie Ukrainas bēgļi. Viņš grib, lai bērnu un veselības pabalstus turpmāk saņemtu tikai strādājoši bēgļi. Tas dotu Polijas budžetam nepilnu divu miljonu eiro ietaupījumu, tiesa, budžets būtu jāpārplāno. Sagatavoja Eduards Liniņš.    

Dažviet Latvijā jau piedzīvotas šogad pirmās rudens salnas, tūliņ klāt arī septembris, tāpēc šķiet, ka jau var izdarīt pirmos secinājumus par to, kā šī neparasti slapjā vasara ir ietekmējusi dzīvo dabu. Toms Bricis interesējies, kādu iespaidu uz kokiem un mežiem atstājis lielais ūdens daudzums. Mežzinātnes institūta "Silava" pētnieki šobrīd ievāc ziņas par tām vietām, kur slapjuma dēļ koki izrāda kādas nīkuļošanas pazīmes, ievāks materiālus un datus un šo neparasti slapjo un vēso vasaru izmantos, lai pētītu, kādi tad ir tie apstākļi, kuros koks jau vairs nejūtas labi, kādi koki ātrāk sāk paust nepatiku pret šādu vasaru un kādas tieši ir izpausmes. Un izrādās, ka veseliem kokiem tāda relatīvi īslaicīga applūšana vai pārmitra augsne netraucē un nav jau tā, ka ļoti plašas mežu teritorijas bijušas ilgstoši zem ūdens. Cieš šadā gadījumā jau neveseli koki, kuriem ir grūtības pielāgoties jebkādiem apstākļiem, kas nav ideāli, grūtības cīnīties pret jebkādu mazāko traucēki – slimību, kaitēkli vai nepiemērotiem laikapstākļiem. Un tā bērzu aleja, kas ieskauj daļu Vidzemes šosejas patiesi arī ir ar tādiem labi padzīvojušies un dzīves nogurdinātiem bērziem, tādēļ tur negatīvo ietekmi arī varēja tik labi saskatīt. Veseliem kokiem un veselīgam mežam šī vasara tomēr kopumā esot ar pluszīmi. Un kas īpaši labi – šogad egļu astoņzobu mizgraužu izplatība bijusi daudz, daudz mazāka, jo eglēm bija labākas dabiskās aizsargspējas. Tātad, ja eglēm dod labus augšanas apstākļus, nevis nomoka ar sausumu un karstumu, tad tās itin labi tiek galā ar šo kaitēkli. Tiesa, kukaiņu pētnieki uzsver, ka tādās vēsākās vasarās egļu astoņzobu mizgraužiem ir arī nepiemērotāks laiks lai vairotos, tās nav trīs paaudzes, kas var izaugt garā, karstā vasarā un pat lietainais laiks tos bremzē, jo apgrūtina pārvietošanos lidojot. Ja pieņemam, ka klimata pārmaiņu dēļ šādas ļoti slapjas vasaras mīsies ar ļoti sausām biežāk, kā klimata pārmaiņas varētu nākotnē ietekmē tieši koku sugu sastāvu Latvijā? To pētījis arī mežzinātnes institūts “Silava”. Skaidrojot to, kā mūsu koku sugas jutīsies nākotnē un vai parādīsies jaunas sugas, galvenā atziņa šķiet, ka tāda – straujas, pēkšņas izmaiņas mežu koku sugu sastāvā nav gaidāmas vismaz klimata pārmiaņu dēļ. To, kādi koki aug mežos, kāda ir sugu dažādība daudz būtiskāk līdz šim un tuvākajā laikā ietekmēs mežsaimniecība, nocērtot kokus un stādot vienu sugu, piemēram, tikai priedi, tikai egli vai bērzu. Kā saka pētnieks Oskars Krišāns, visvienkāršāk saprast gaidāmās pārmaiņas var tā – paskatāmies, kādas sugas tagad aug pie mums un tad paskatāmies šo sugu izplatības areālu. Tas, kas šobrīd aug gan Latvijā, gan Centrālajā un Rietumeiropā, tas pie mums arī paliks. Jautājums ir tikai par izskatu. Piemēram, priedes Rietumeiropā ir mazākas, bet egles pavisam sāk iet mazumā. Tāpat arī Latvijā – pie nosacījuma, ka klimats gadsimta beigās tiešām ir ievērojami sasilis, nokrišņu režīms kļuvis nevienmērīgāks, var būt tā, ka egles arī pie mums aug arvien sliktāk. Nav runa, ka tās izzustu, bet daudzos mežos vairs nebūtu dominējošas, neizaugtu par meža lielākajiem kokiem, biežāk paliktu pamežā, daudz mazākas. Un, protams, būs sugas, kas jutīsies pie mums labāk. Viens no piemēriem ir dižskābārdis, kas tagad ir tikai atsevišķās vietās, vairāk Kurzemē, bet redzam, ka Centrāleiropā tas ir ļoti izplatīts un domājamas, ka pie mums nākotnē jutīsies un vairosies arvien labāk.      

Join Sue for an upcoming Live Virtual Workshop where you will learn from Sue practical tips & strategies to make a difference. In this episode, we will discuss: ✅ TA Relationships: Consistent bonds aid autistic students without unhealthy dependency. ✅ Role Clarity: Teachers lead instruction; TAs support, not replace teachers. ✅ Predictability: Consistent TA assignments reduce anxiety and improve classroom stability. ✅ Collaboration: Teachers and TAs coordinate, leaving egos at the door. ✅ Behavior Communication: Behavior expresses needs when communication is limited. ✅ Generalization: Teach skills across contexts to prevent rigid, situation-bound learning. ✅ Student Agency: Let students choose support methods and TA use in secondary. Read more about this podcast in the show notes found via the link below suelarkey.com.au/teacher-assistant-classroom-strategies Join the Facebook group specifically for this podcast www.facebook.com/groups/suelarkeypodcastcommunity/ Join my Neurodiversity Network suelarkey.com.au/neurodiversity-network/ Follow my Instagram account for regular tips www.instagram.com/sue.larkey/ To learn more about teaching or understanding ASD, please visit my website below. elearning.suelarkey.com.au

As usual, AI slop shownotes for anyone who wants to read them. Enjoy!In this packed episode of The Two Jacks, Jack the Insider and Hong Kong Jack cut through a huge week in politics, policy, and sport. They kick off with life on the bike lanes and the four‑day work week debate before diving into Australia's productivity roundtable: where progress might actually come from, why energy costs and regulation matter most, and how timid politics strangles reform. They spar over tax design, housing, stamp duty, and the red tape that inflates costs without improving quality.From there, the Jacks range across global flashpoints and US turbulence—Israel–Australia tit-for-tat visas, the Ukraine–Russia talks fallout, the limits of sanctions, and whether the West has the will for long wars. Stateside, they dissect rising US inflation pressures, Congress's stock-trading problem, and the “picking winners” trap in industrial policy. Locally, they tackle the Greens in Tasmania, crime perception vs data, and Australia's defense priorities in a drone-dominated future—before a big sports wrap: AFL finals implications from homophobic slur bans, NRL ladder-shaping clashes, cricket's farewell to Bob Simpson, the Wallabies' breakthrough at Ellis Park, and Sydney's Allianz Stadium turf debacle.Timestamped segments and takeaways 00:00:01 – Cold open, weather and bike lanesBanter on soggy Sydney/Melbourne and bike lane hazards.Takeaway: Urban transport design vs pedestrian safety—light opener that foreshadows policy tradeoffs.00:02:23 – Four‑day work week and productivity roundtableJack the Insider outlines ACTU's four‑day week ask; government quickly cools it.Hong Kong Jack: flexible, case-by-case four‑day arrangements can work well; blanket mandates don't.Notable quote (Hong Kong Jack): “It really is a case-by-case basis… it can be done—it just can't be done across the board.”00:04:26 – Housing, commuting, and productivity dragLong commutes as a hidden productivity killer; WFH rights expanding in Victoria but role-dependent.00:06:47 – AI regulation “light touch”Productivity Commission signals minimal regulation; Jack the Insider flags creator rights concerns.00:07:51 – Where productivity gains might come fromHong Kong Jack: “The two obvious areas to attack are regulation and energy costs.”00:08:17 – Energy transition, prices, and investmentJack the Insider: transition and decades of policy drift drove high prices; grid infrastructure is the bottleneck.Coal vs renewables economics; investment won't return to coal due to horizon risk.00:12:00 – Cutting “red tape”: harmonization and tax settingsFederation frictions; harmonise state regs; stamp duty singled out as a worst tax.Building codes ballooning costs while quality supervision lags.00:14:24 – Build quality crises and supervision gapsMascot/Zetland examples; spate of vacated towers; cheap builds, high prices.00:15:40 – Political capital, timid reform, and election calculusIs Albanese Labor's John Howard—few big-ticket reforms, focus on winning?Take reforms to an election (GST precedent), but reformers often punished at the polls.00:24:45 – Israel–Australia visa spatSimcha Rothman's visa withdrawn; Israel responds by revoking visas for Australians to the Palestinian Authority; both sides flex sovereignty.Notable quote (Hong Kong Jack): “This is just how it works.”00:27:28 – Failed asylum seekers backlog nearing 100kProcessing delays create perverse incentives; most rejected claimants retain work/study rights—encourages low‑merit claims.Enforcement throughput is minimal; backlog self‑feeds.00:32:07 – Tasmania: Greens hold line on stabilityGreens won't back Labor no-confidence; Premier continues; different cultures in Tas vs NSW Greens.00:36:32 – Vale Terence StampPersonal memories; Priscilla role noted; a prickly but great actor.00:38:00 – Ukraine–Russia: Alaska talks flop, semantics vs substanceOptics criticised; ceasefire vs peace semantics; limits of sanctions and Western will.Debate: Can Ukraine regain Crimea/Donbas? Is a negotiated end inevitable? Historical echoes (appeasement vs long war).00:49:05 – US inflation watch and tariffsProducer prices beat; risks of re‑acceleration; fuel prices helping headline but underlying pressures rising.Tariffs' pass-through to consumers; political messaging vs data; Fed unlikely to cut on these numbers.00:54:24 – Crime, stats vs street realityDC deployments; media narratives vs lived experience; class/education divide shapes perceptions.00:58:26 – Drones, defense, and future warfareUS behind China on cheap drone swarms (DJI dominance); implications for Australia: missiles, subs, strike aircraft, drones, and a modern surface fleet.01:00:42 – Congressional stock trading and transparencyBipartisan enrichment via informational access; “broadcast trades in real-time” proposal; ban vs radical transparency.01:04:27 – Picking winners: Intel, Kodak lessonsGovernment stakes risk political logic over market logic; Kodak/Motorola as cautionary tales.01:08:05 – Crime again: data declines vs spikes that matterAustralia's violent crime historically higher in 1920s/1980s; present-day spikes (aggravated burglaries) shape sentiment; good recidivism programs often lack political incentives.01:13:08 – AFL: homophobic slur sanctions and finals stakesRankine case likely to set a benchmark; prior bans (3–6 weeks) cited; consistency required.Notable quote (Jack the Insider): “It's a bad word… it needs to be removed from the game.”01:19:01 – AFL form lines and umpiringAdelaide/Geelong threats; Collingwood's midfield clearance issues; four‑umpire system not working.01:21:33 – NRL, cricket, rugbyNRL: Storm beat Panthers; big clashes ahead; ladder permutations.Cricket: Vale Bob Simpson; fielding revolution; ODI series in Cairns; roster chat (Maxwell retired from ODIs; case for Tim David).Wallabies: first Ellis Park win since 1963; O'Connor–Jorgensen try a “thing of beauty.”01:27:16 – Allianz Stadium turf failureDrainage massively under-spec; costly resurfacing; modern stadiums should drain ~600mm/hr; Allianz reported ~40mm/hr.01:31:07 – Vegas tourism pivot and gougePricing up, volume down; “milk everything” model—$50/day minibar “storage” anecdote; vibe no longer value-driven.01:32:53 – Corporate team bonding and Beef WellingtonHong Kong's “Feather and Bone”-style classes; culinary nostalgia to close the show.Sign-off: where to contact The Two Jacks (Condition Release Program email, Substack, X DMs open).Notable quotes to pull“The essence of progress to a better life for Australians is improved productivity.”“The two obvious areas to attack are regulation and energy costs.”“It can be done—it just can't be done across the board.”“Drones and robotics are the future of warfare.”“It's a bad word… it needs to be removed from the game.”

The TAS Crew says goodbye in That Anime Show's last official episode. TAS may contain content and strong language that some listeners may find distressing or inappropriate for younger audiences. Listener discretion is advised. If you like what... Read More

Gaza – kara rati joprojām ripo Augusta sākumā Izraēlas kara kabinets apstiprināja plānu pilnībā pārņemt savā kontrolē Gazas pilsētu, pie kam premjerministrs Netanjahu pasludināja, ka galīgais mērķis ir pilnīga Gazas joslas okupācija. Tādējādi tiktu īstenota galīgā organizācijas Hamas atbruņošana un joprojām gūstā turēto izraēliešu ķīlnieku, dzīvu vai mirušu, atgūšana. Pēc tam Gazas josla tiktu demilitarizēta, paturēta Izraēlas drošības kontrolē, un pārvalde tajā nodota jaunām civilām institūcijām, kas nebūtu saistītas ne ar Hamas, ne ar palestīniešu varas struktūrām Jordānas rietumkrastā. Šādam uzstādījumam ir daudz pretinieku kā pašā Izraēlā, tā starp tās starptautiskajiem sabiedrotajiem. Pastāv saprotamas bažas, ka pilnīga Izraēlas militāra kontrole pār Gazas joslas teritoriju prasīs vēl daudz laika un asiņu, pie tam samazinās ķīlnieku izdzīvošanas iespējas. Tikām Hamas un citas palestīniešu frakcijas pirmdien vēlu vakarā nāca klajā ar paziņojumu, ka pieņem Ēģiptes un Kataras starpnieku ierosināto uguns pārtraukšanas plānu. Tas paredz karadarbības pārtraukšanu uz diviem mēnešiem, kuru laikā Izraēlai pēc noteikta grafika tiktu atdoti desmit dzīvi ķīlnieki un astoņpadsmit mirušo gūstekņu ķermeņi. Savukārt Izraēla šai periodā atbrīvotu tūkstoš simts vienpadsmit Gazas joslā sagūstīto, simt divdesmit piecus palestīniešu cietumniekus, kam piespriests mūža ieslodzījums, un atdotu simt astoņdesmit nogalināto palestīniešu līķus. Izraēlai būtu jāatvelk savi spēki uz apmēram kilometru platu joslu Gazas sektora robežas perimetrā, gan saglabājot kontroli divos t.s. militārajos koridoros. Paralēli uguns pārtraukšanas periodā notiktu sarunas par galīgo noregulējumu un atlikušo ķīlnieku atbrīvošanu. Šis plāns ir ļoti līdzīgs tam, ko jau agrāk izvirzījis Savienoto Valstu prezidenta īpašais sūtnis Stīvens Vitkofs. Izraēlas puse pirmdienas plānu nav tieši noraidījusi, taču izteikusies, ka nav ieinteresēta kādās daļējās vienošanās – Izraēla vēlas visu ķīlnieku atbrīvošanu. Kā izteicies Izraēlas valdības oficiālais pārstāvis Dāvids Mencers, situācija esot mainījusies, ciktāl premjerministram ir plāns Gazas joslas nākotnei. Tikām Izraēlas ielās svētdien izgājuši, kā lēš, četrsimt tūkstoši, protestējot pret valdības pieeju kara vešanai.   Uz sarkanā paklāja sarkanus pleķus neredz… Ne vienā vien pasaules medijā pēdējās dienās apspēlēts sarkanā paklāja motīvs. Fotogrāfu fiksētā aina, kad amerikāņu jūras kājnieki savienoto valstu bruņoto spēku bāzē Ankoridžā rūpīgi izklāj purpura krāsas celiņu līdz trapam, pa kuru tūdaļ jānokāpj agresorvalsts vadonim, kara noziegumos apsūdzētajam Vladimiram Putinam, daudziem šķiet simboliska. Par ko tādu personāžs, kas karikatūrās bieži tiek tēlots asinīm notriepta puskaila pundura izskatā, līdz nesenam laikam nevarēja pat sapņot. Bet, tā sacīt, uz sarkanā tepiķa sarkanus pleķus neredz. Tepiķa klājēja, Savienoto Valstu prezidenta Donalda Trampa pēdējā laika draudi par sankcijām, ja netiks pārtraukta karadarbība, pēkšņi pārvērtās godpilnā uzaicinājumā uz tikšanos. Nav nekāds brīnums, ka uz Putina repliku, ka „nākamreiz Maskavā”, Baltā nama saimnieks atbildēja savā ierastajā manierē miglaini, taču nebūt ne noliedzoši. Tiesa, ir arī tie, kas pauž, ka Aļaskā viss varēja beigties vēl daudz sliktāk. Tā Krieviju pametušais politologs un publicists Staņislavs Belkovskis pirms samita nerima atkārtot, ka abi dalībnieki paziņošot – viņiem kopīgiem spēkiem izdevies glābt pasauli no kodolkatastrofas, par ko „draugam Vladimiram”, protams, pienākas kāda daļa no Ukrainas zemes un suverenitātes. Tas nenotika, un, runājot par miera procesu, Ankoridžā formāli nav noticis vispār nekas. Sankciju piedraudējums un uguns pārtraukšanas prasījums Krievijai gan kaut kā izrādās izkūpējis gaisā – tagad Tramps runā par galīgu miera noregulējumu. Pretēju viedokli pauda vairāki no Eiropas valstu līderiem, kuri līdz ar Ukrainas prezidentu Zelenski pirmdien ieradās Vašingtonā. Sevišķi konkrēti to artikulēja Vācijas kanclers Frīdrihs Mercs, sakot – Putina un Zelenska tikšanās bez uguns pārtraukšanas viņam esot neiedomājama. Kopumā arī Vašingtonas tikšanās nepiepildīja pēc Ankoridžas joprojām pastāvošās bažas, ka prezidents Tramps mēģinās īstenot spiedienu, lai panāktu piekāpšanos Putina vēlmēm. Klātesošajiem Eiropas līderiem izdevās pavērst sarunu gaitu primāri Ukrainai sniedzamo drošības garantiju tēmā, gan bez kādiem taustāmiem rezultātiem. Kas attiecas uz turpmāko, tad tagad būtu jānotiek piesauktajām Ukrainas un Krievijas vadītāju sarunām klātienē, kurām kādā turpmākā posmā varētu pievienoties arī Donalds Tramps. Šo tēmu Baltā nama saimnieks steidzās apspriest ar savu Ankoridžas sarunbiedru, sazvanoties tieši tikšanās laikā ar eiropiešiem. Pirms aizlidošanas no Ankoridžas Putins pauda principiālu gatavību sarunām ar Zelenski, taču komentārā, ko par Kremļa vadoņa un ASV prezidenta telefonsarunām sniedza Putina ārpolitikas padomnieks Jurijs Ušakovs, šāds formāts vairs netika pieminēts, vien ekspertu sarunu izvēršana. Un, protams, ne vārda par iespēju pārtraukt asinsizliešanu.   Sagatavoja Eduards Liniņš      

Special Guest Austin Tindle joins Terri Doty and J. Michael Tatum for That Anime Show's fifty-second episode. TAS may contain content and strong language that some listeners may find distressing or inappropriate for younger audiences. Listener discretion is... Read More

Special Guest Jeremy Inman joins Terri Doty and J. Michael Tatum for That Anime Show's fifty-first episode (aka “The Sinkhole of Apathy”). TAS may contain content and strong language that some listeners may find distressing or inappropriate for... Read More

Special Guest Anthony Bowling joins Terri Doty and J. Michael Tatum for That Anime Show's fiftieth episode. TAS may contain content and strong language that some listeners may find distressing or inappropriate for younger audiences. Listener discretion is... Read More

Special Guest Jad Saxton joins Terri Doty and J. Michael Tatum for That Anime Show's forty-ninth episode. TAS may contain content and strong language that some listeners may find distressing or inappropriate for younger audiences. Listener discretion is... Read More

On the morning of January 13, 2010, two twin girls nicknamed Tas and Jas stood at the kitchen counter in their home in Conyers, Georgia, writing notes back and forth to each other in a little notebook, and giggling. The girls were late for school, and they were writing instead of talking because they didn't want to wake their mom up and get yelled at for missing the bus. They finished their notes and closed the notebook, then started getting ready to leave. When they would return home that afternoon, they would find their quiet home in this gated community in Georgia soaked with blood, and an unspeakable horror waiting for them in the master bathroom. For 100s more stories like these, check out our main YouTube channel just called "MrBallen" -- https://www.youtube.com/c/MrBallenIf you want to reach out to me, contact me on Instagram, Twitter or any other major social media platform, my username on all of them is @mrballenSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Alan's Soaps https://www.AlansArtisanSoaps.comUse coupon code TODD to save an additional 10% off the bundle price.Bioptimizers https://Bioptimizers.com/toddEnter promo code TODD to get 10% off your order of MassZymes today.Bizable https://GoBizable.comUntie your business exposure from your personal exposure with BiZABLE.  Schedule your FREE consultation at GoBizAble.com today.  Bonefrog https://BonefrogCoffee.com/toddThe new GOLDEN AGE is here!  Use code TODD at checkout to receive 10% off your first purchase and 15% on subscriptions.Bulwark Capital Bulwark Capital Management (bulwarkcapitalmgmt.com)Do you know how tariffs can affect your retirement?  Join Zach Abraham's FREE Webinar “Tariff Edition” Thursday May 22 at 3:30 Pacific. Sign up at KnowYourRiskRadio.com today.Renue Healthcare https://Renue.Healthcare/ToddYour journey to a better life starts at Renue Healthcare. Visit https://Renue.Healthcare/ToddLISTEN and SUBSCRIBE at:The Todd Herman Show - Podcast - Apple PodcastsThe Todd Herman Show | Podcast on SpotifyWATCH and SUBSCRIBE at: Todd Herman - The Todd Herman Show - YouTubeSeattle still trying to surrender to Antifa // Treasury Secretary Admits Massive Fraud Potential, Commits to Change // Thank GOD this Presbyterian Sect Has Stopped Making DisciplesEpisode Links:WATCH: Rep. Jasmine Crockett, the dumbest member of Congress, debuts new game called, 'Trump or Trans.'"It would be so beautiful to see your bodies hanging from the tree" - Trantifa/Antifa members threatened an elderly couple leaving a @Riley_Gaines_ event at the @UW campus. Police had to escort them as the militants followed. Video by @KatieDaviscourt:King County public defender among 30 arrested after Antifa occupation of University of Washington building; "We are working with law enforcement and through our own disciplinary processes to ensure those responsible face appropriate consequences for their actions," said UW President Ana Marie CauceREP DEAN: "When can I expect the FBI at my door?" KASH PATEL: "You know who was targeted by a weaponized FBI? Me. You should read the book." DEAN: "Should we worry more about your memory or your veracity?" PATEL: "Your lack of candor. Your accusing me of perjury. Tell the people how I broke the law… Have the audacity to actually put the facts forward instead of lying for political banter. So you can have a 20-second donation hit."SEN. KENNEDY: "Did Jeffrey Epstein hang himself or did somebody kill him?" KASH: "I believe he hung himself in a cell in the Metropolitan Detention Center." KENNEDY: "Are you going to release all the information about that...before I die?"The left got its wish. Ed Martin won't be U.S. attorney for D.C. Instead, he'll get a senior DOJ job heading the investigation into Biden-era weaponization of the DOJ against conservatives. Be careful what you wish for, libs. You just might get it!Treasury Secretary testified today that 1/3 of the 1.5 billion Treasury payments were Untraceable in 2024. He explains that 500 million transactions, where the US Treasury issued payments were missing a Treasury Account Symbol (TAS). THAT ENDS… now every single payment requires a TAS number.PC-USA has decided to stop making disciples … thank GOD! - Not The Bee.ICYMI. During COVID times, Saddleback Church instructed members on how to administer "self-baptisms" - "You should be the only person in the water" - Protestia

On Wed.'s No Dunks, the guys discuss Tyrese Haliburton's historic Game 4 triple-double and where it ranks among the best individual performances this postseason, Pascal Siakam's insane conditioning, the Knicks not being able to get a stop, Rick Carlisle pushing all the right buttons, KAT's knee, and John Haliburton sightings. That, plus Tas does a deep dive on the NBA All-Rookie Team-to-All-Star pipeline.▶️ Join No Dunks on Playback : https://www.playback.tv/nodunks