“Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers. It may not be difficult to store up in the mind a vast quantity of facts within a comparatively short time, but the ability to form judgments requires the severe discipline of hard work and the tempering heat of experience and maturity.”
As we gradually move away from our own experiences and onto larger topics, we wanted to consider the first jobs in our lives, who we worked with and what we learned during those initial experiences.
“Look again at that dot. That’s here. That’s home. That’s us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every “superstar,” every “supreme leader,” every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there — on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.”
One of Kip's favorite videos, we felt it would be worthwhile for both of us to watch and consider its implications. We discuss the various ideas brought up in the speech and examine the video as an evocative medium
“An ounce of performance is worth pounds of promises.”
“The highest levels of performance come to people who are centered, intuitive, creative, and reflective - people who know to see a problem as an opportunity.”
“Don’t lower your expectations to meet your performance. Raise your level of performance to meet your expectations. Expect the best of yourself, and then do what is necessary to make it a reality.”
As we reflect on our respective years thus far, our first a capella and improv performances stand out as defining moments for both ourselves and our groups. We wanted to discuss some of the ideas and preparations that go into the days and weeks leading up to the first shows.
“The only valid censorship of ideas is the right of people not to listen.”
“Censorship is saying: ‘I’m the one who says the last sentence. Whatever you say, the conclusion is mine.’ But the internet is like a tree that is growing. The people will always have the last word - even if someone has a very weak, quiet voice. Such power will collapse because of a whisper.”
In this episode we welcome our first guest and friend of the show, Armand Hernandez, who wanted us to discuss ideas surrounding censorship. We actually cover self-censorship, some of the benefits of censorship and what we learn about those that restrain or withhold certain ideas.
“Stories you read when you’re the right age never quite leave you. You may forget who wrote them or what the story was called. Sometimes you’ll forget precisely what happened, but if a story touches you it will stay with you, haunting the places in your mind that you rarely ever visit.”
In this episode, we wanted to continue with some of the Halloween spirit and discuss some of the things which haunt us, both trivial and serious.
