A lot of the students at my university are talented musicians. The top choir is known as the Choir of the West. Thanks to them for their special guest appearance on the humble blog.
Pacific Lutheran University’s Choir of the West
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Category Archives: Education
Remember Working in Offices?
These guys consistently crack me up.
You’re Boring Me
We could hold the 2020 Presidential election tomorrow because everyone of voting age made up their mind a long time ago.
Let’s do it. Then let’s take all the money that would’ve be spent in both campaigns over the next five months and use it to strengthen our anemic public health system. Or let’s give it to Dan, Dan, The Transportation Man to hire the newly unemployed to build new bridges, highways, and airports.
Our partisanship is so acute, everyone is an ideologue. Reported sightings of “moderates,” “undecideds,” “independents,” or “centrists” are a myth. There’s no color wheel, only deep red and blue.
I know this because I read your tweets, see your Facebook posts, and listen to you. And there’s one thing all of you have in common, you’re incredibly predictable. So much so, I know what you’re going to say before you say it. Because you’ve said it so many times before. I could write your tweets and Facebook posts and finish your arguments. You mistakenly think repeating yourself enough will cause others to “see the light” and suddenly adopt your way of thinking, voting, being.
Of course, a reader of the humble blog in recent months could say the same thing about me. That you know what I’m going to write before I write it. No subtly, no nuance. I am you.
When it comes to interpersonal communication, there’s nothing more counterproductive than the receiver thinking, “I know what you’re going to say before you say it.” Because instead of truly listening, they just wait, wait, wait for a slight pause to say what they wanted to all along.
Instead of trying to understand why others believe what they do, we just make the same assertions over and over as if we will wear down the other. But our approach is futile because our group affiliations are indestructible. Our team identities are set in stone.
What counts as political “dialogue” in these (dis)United States is a series of highly predictable mutual monologues on continuous loop. We’re stuck in the largest, most predictable, worst Zoom meet up of all time.
Time to “leave the meeting”.
What I Look (Most) For In A President
A cheerleader. Someone to help me feel better about myself.
Someone who calls me a warrior. I like imagining myself as a taller Jon Snow.
Someone who boosts my national pride by telling me my country has two or three times more tests than all the other countries combined.
Someone who has confidence that I can Transition to Greatness and Make America Great Again.
Podcasts to Ponder Plus
“When the Dan Hotel in Jerusalem was leased by the government to house recovering COVID-19 patients, the new guests gave it the nickname, “Hotel Corona.” The nearly 200 patients inside already had the coronavirus; and so, unlike the outside world on strict lockdown, they could give each other high fives and hugs and hang out together.
What was even more surprising than what they could do was what they were doing. Patients from all walks of life – Israelis, Palestinians, religious, secular, groups that don’t normally mix – were getting along and having fun. They were eating together, sharing jokes, even doing Zumba. And because they were documenting themselves on social media, the whole country was tuning in to watch, like a real life reality TV show.”
34 minutes of joy and hope.
2. Malcolm Gladwell, Revisionist History, A Good Walk Spoiled.
“In the middle of Los Angeles — a city with some of the most expensive real estate in the world — there are a half a dozen exclusive golf courses, massive expanses dedicated to the pleasure of a privileged few. How do private country clubs afford the property tax on 300 acres of prime Beverly Hills real estate? Revisionist History brings in tax assessors, economists, and philosophers to probe the question of the weird obsession among the wealthy with the game of golf.”
In my junior and senior year of college I was a teacher’s assistant at the Brentwood Science Magnet School for the best third grade teacher ever, Marilyn Turner. I parked across from the school on the leafy border of the Brentwood Country Club next to the chain-linked fence Gladwell describes with great disgust. This excellent story hit home.
3. What Does Opportunity Look Like Where You Live? An interactive story, made even more interesting by putting in the name of the county you live in (if a U.S. citizen). The New York Times is unrivaled when it comes to interactive, data-rich, compelling story telling.
[Some readers have informed me they can’t access the New York Times articles I link to. You have to register at the New York Times to access them. Registration is free.]
Sunday Assorted Links
1. A Coronavirus Turf War in Klickitat County. Washington State. Part of our fifteen minutes of fame. Or embarrassment. A microcosm of the country.
2. Inside Trump’s coronavirus meltdown. This is what it’s come to. Even the conservative Financial Times skewering the President.
Saturday Assorted Links
1. How to lose 60 pounds in three months.
2. Cities are transforming as electric bike sales skyrocket.
“Bicycles are the ideal mode of transportation as cities emerge from quarantine, made even more appealing now that summer is approaching in the US and Europe. They’re fast, comfortable, convenient, and allow you to socially distance while being active. When paired with an electric motor, e-bikes can make even long commutes a relaxing and sweat-free experience. They also help maintain the dramatic air quality improvements seen in cities around the world since coronavirus confinements began.
In some US cities, multilane roads and car parking can take up 50 to 60 percent of all real estate. In addition to robbing residents of parks and other open areas, it makes social distancing on congested sidewalks nearly impossible. What better time to rethink transportation models and reclaim space allocated to CO2-belching vehicles from a bygone age? If not now, when?”
3. The man feeding a remote Alaska town with a Costco card and a ship.
“When the barge pulled into Gustavus on a recent Wednesday, it was cause for celebration.
‘It’s like Christmas when the load gets here,’ says Parker. ‘Everyone is waiting for it. Word gets out, and they all seem to know when it’s coming.'”
Too bad Millennials are so soft.
4. Meet the “hot-tub monks” of California.
“. . . you withdraw from the world to return better equipped to live in it.”
Gotta Love the Finns
A joke circulating around Helsinki:
“So, we now have to stay 2 meters away from each other? Why so close?”
Wednesday Assorted Links
1A. Coronavirus risks. Know them, avoid them.
“The reason to highlight these different outbreaks is to show you the commonality of outbreaks of COVID-19. All these infection events were indoors, with people closely-spaced, with lots of talking, singing, or yelling. The main sources for infection are home, workplace, public transport, social gatherings, and restaurants. This accounts for 90% of all transmission events. In contrast, outbreaks spread from shopping appear to be responsible for a small percentage of traced infections. (Ref)
Importantly, of the countries performing contact tracing properly, only a single outbreak has been reported from an outdoor environment (less than 0.3% of traced infections). (ref).”
Let’s all go outside. And stay there.
A scientist who writes clearly.
“Basically, as the work closures are loosened, and we start to venture out more, possibly even resuming in-office activities, you need to look at your environment and make judgments. How many people are here, how much airflow is there around me, and how long will I be in this environment. If you are in an open floorplan office, you really need to critically assess the risk (volume, people, and airflow). If you are in a job that requires face-to-face talking or even worse, yelling, you need to assess the risk. If you are sitting in a well ventilated space, with few people, the risk is low.”
1B. Why you’re unlikely to get the coronavirus from runners or cyclists.
“Fortunately, increasing your distance, decreasing the duration of your exposure, and improving the ventilation of the air around you can all lower your risk. And being outdoors generally helps you do all three.
‘The risks of virus transmissibility in the air outdoors is likely quite low in those contexts, although this risk hasn’t been definitively measured,’ Rasmussen said. ‘Outside, things like sunlight, wind, rain, ambient temperature, and humidity can affect virus infectivity and transmissibility, so while we can’t say there’s zero risk, it’s likely low unless you are engaging in activities as part of a large crowd (such as a protest). Solitary outdoor exercise is likely low-risk.'”
This, I think, is a key insight. And challenge:
“Psychologically, different people have different levels of tolerance for risk. For some people, any risk that can be minimized, should be, no matter how small. For others, the recommended 6-foot distance, with masks, and the known decay of both the amount and the infectiousness of the virus — that’s good enough.
‘The people who are 26-footers should know, though, that the 6-footers are not being foolhardy or endangering others unnecessarily,’ Kasten said.”
And likewise, “6-footers” should be as patient and kind as possible to those they perceive to be overly and unnecessarily cautious.
2A. Traffic is down, but 100mph speeds are seen on Beltway, police say.
2B. 18 year-old Canadian sees your 100mph and raises it. A lot!
“Schmidt said when he was first sent a photo of the radar gun showing 308 km/h he thought the officer was joking and had been down at an airport training his laser on planes taking off.
‘This is ridiculous. This is unbelievable. This is irresponsible and I certainly hope this person will not be any position to drive a vehicle for a very long time.'”
Why Is This A Global Competition To You?
If everyday Americans are still losing their lives and we’re still seeing more cases everyday.
Pressing Pause 