The Best Paragraph I've Read...

Is "Follow Your Dreams" Terrible Job Advice? Do New Workers Have Unrealistic Job Expectations? Is Society to Blame After Years of Delaying Bad News to Young People? Follow Opportunities Instead?

The Best Paragraph I've Read: "Having worked in most facets of the entertainment industry since 1974, from a bottom-rung production assistant to the top of NBCUniversal’s headquarters at 30 Rock, I agree that the problems in today’s workplace are real. But I also think many management experts have identified the wrong problem. The real problem is that too many of us, young and not so young, have been told too many lies about what it takes to succeed at work—and not nearly enough truths. All those bright, shiny aphorisms that are spoon-fed to young employees, like “follow your dreams” and “know your worth” and many more? Well, the truth is that they don’t really work at work. “Follow your dreams” is the exhortation of many college commencement speeches, but it is nightmare job advice" This paragraph comes from an essay in the Wall Street Journal. The essay is titled: "Follow Your Dreams and Other Terrible Career Advice." The essay is written by Bonnie Hammer. You can read the full essay here: https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/careers/follow-your-dreams-and-other-terrible-career-advice-3f23590b Zac & Don discuss whether following your dreams is bad career advice for new workers.

Disney Adults! Is Disney A Religion? Is Disney the Last Piece of Cultural Glue that Binds Our Society? Or Has Disney Indirectly Shaped Our Imaginations Towards Consumption & Individualism?

The Best Paragraph I've Read: "SarahRachul grew up in the 1990s, during the so-called “Disney Renaissance”, when Disney debuted a string of critically successful films and re-released its earlier classics on VHS. Merchandising reached new heights: 7,000 products were released to promote 1997’s Hercules alone. It was, Rachul says, “almost like you couldn’t avoid having [Disney] as part of your childhood”. She wept when she saw Goofy in the parks because the anthropomorphic dog was her late grandfather’s favourite character, and her grandfather was her best friend. For Rachul, hugging Goofy was like having “this little piece of my grandpa back”. Over the past 100 years, the Walt Disney Company has entwined itself with our families, memories and personal histories. In many ways, Disney is a religion that one is born into, the same way a 15th-century English baby was predestined to be baptised Catholic. Choice doesn’t necessarily come into it – we see Mickey Mouse around us like our ancestors saw the cross; a symbol that both 18-month-olds and 80-year-olds recognise." This paragraph comes from The New Statesman. The essay is titled: "The Disney Adult Industrial Complex." The author is Amelia Tait. You can read the full essay here: https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/2024/02/disney-adult-superfan-industrial-complex Zac & Don wonder about Disney's hold on our society's imagination and collective knowledge. They wonder if Disney is the final piece of glue that most people in America have in common. They also discuss the idea of the Disney Adult and whether the essay's author is correct that Disney could be seen as a religion.

Once Normal in School: 5th Grade Crossing Guards? Smoking Lounges? Wandering Washington DC Alone? Running Your Teacher's Errands? & More! In Thirty Years Will We See Allowing Cell Phones As Crazy?

The Best Paragraph I've Read: "Education has changed drastically over the years, but you might be surprised at the absolutely wild things that were once deemed "normal" when your parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents were in school." This paragraph comes from BuzzFeed. The article is titled: "Imagine The Lawsuit If That Happened Today" Older Adults Revealed 29 Things That Used To Be "Normal" in Schools. The author is Michaela Bramwell. You can read the full article here: https://www.buzzfeed.com/michaelabramwell/previously-normal-things-in-schools Zac & Don share their favorite things that used to be normal in schools. They share their own stories of being in school which connect to the items on the list. They also wonder what it says about American expectation of school twenty, thirty, and forty years ago. Finally they discuss the latest findings from study on middle school cell phone bans. Zac & Don also reference the following findings of a cell phone ban in middle schools. You can read the findings here: https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2024/04/the-norwegian-ban-on-smart-phones-in-middle-schools.html

Posture! Does It Matter? How Did America Cope with Poor Posture in 1914? Should We Worry About the "Marginal Decade" of Our Lives? Can We Do Anything Today to Improve the Last Ten Years of Life?

The Best Paragraph I've Read: As Beth Linker explains in her book “Slouch: Posture Panic in Modern America” (Princeton), a long history of anxiety about the proximity between human and bestial nature has played out in this area of social science. Linker, a historian of medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, argues that at the onset of the twentieth century the United States became gripped by what she characterizes as a poor-posture epidemic: a widespread social contagion of slumping that could, it was feared, have deleterious effects not just upon individual health but also upon the body politic. Sitting up straight would help remedy all kinds of failings, physical and moral. This paragraph comes from The New Yorker. The article is titled: "The Truth Behind the Slouching Epidemic." The article is written by Rebecca Mead. You can read the full article here: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/04/15/slouch-posture-panic-in-modern-america-beth-linker-book-review Zac & Don discuss whether it matters if you have good posture. They also reflect upon their own posture and discuss when posture mattered most in American history. In addition they talk about the marginal decade of one's life and whether there is anything we can do now to get ready for a better last ten years of living. Zac & Don also reference the following article: "How to Die in Good Health." Author: Dhruv Khullar

Weiner Dogs! Table Saws! Python Meat! Time for Gov Regulations? Are Dachshunds Suffering? Should we Only Allow Table Saws with Finger Detection Technology? Are Pythons the Solution to Food Insecurity?

The Best Paragraph I've Read: "Dachshunds, the German dog breed known for their distinctive long bodies and short legs, face an uncertain future if proposed changes to an animal protection law are approved, Germany’s kennel club said. A draft of the bill, from the German Ministry of Food and Agriculture, was published in February and aims to combat “torture breeding,” or breeding to produce animals with characteristics that will cause them to suffer, and to regulate the online trade of animals. However, the draft contains requirements that could end the breeding of certain dogs, such as the dachshund, according to a statement from the V.D.H., Germany’s kennel club." This paragraph comes from the New York Times. The article is titled: "Germany's Beloved Dachshund Could Be Threatened Under Breeding Bill." The author is Derrick Bryson Taylor. You can read the full article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/28/world/europe/dachshund-dog-breeding-ban-germany.html Zac & Don discuss whether banning the breeding of dachshunds is an example of too much regulation creep. Zac also reflects on his own dachshund and whether he seems to be in pain. Zac & Don then consider whether it is too much regulation to mandate that all table saws have finger saving technology. Finally, they wonder if the government should require that more python meat be sold. The following articles are also discussed in the podcast: "How Much Would You Pat to Make Sure You Never Sawed Off a Finger?" Author: Ben Blatt https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/30/upshot/table-saws-safety-cost.html "Python farming as a flexible and efficient form of agricultural food security" https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-54874-4