Viewpoint Episodes

Learn how great institutions, like the Nobel Prize, can become outdated—and when they do, they start misrepresenting the very excellence they’re supposed to honor. Supporting links 1. Nobel Peace Prize [Wikipedia] 2. List of female Nobel laureates [Wikipedia] 3. Nobel Prize Organization [website] 4. Minneapolis for Nobel Peace Prize [The Hill] 5. The problem with Nobel’s ‘rule of three’ [CNN] Contact That's Life, I Swear Visit my website: https://www.thatslifeiswear.com Twitt...

Public health isn’t just a government line item. It’s the invisible shield that protects all of us. When that shield weakens, so does our collective safety. Diseases don’t wait for bureaucracy to catch up. They spread in the silence left behind when experts are told their work no longer matters. Supporting links 1. USAID [Wikipedia] 2. Will the next pandemic be caused by coronavirus again? George Fu Gao Interview [NSR] 3. Ebola...

Learn how the loss of faith in institutions and leaders fuels instability, with some leaders exploiting divisions rather than uniting the country. Supporting links 1. Thomas Friedman [Wikipedia] 2. National Security Strategy [Wikipedia] 3. Identification of Migrants in the EU [Robert Bosch Stiftung] 4. Trump wants to recreate a white America that never existed [The Guardian] Contact That's Life, I Swear Visit my website: https://www.thatslifeiswear.com Twitter at @RedPhantom Blu...

Why are Gen Z is most challenging generation to work with, according to surveys? 1. ‘Problems’ With Gen Z in the Workplace [Forage] 2. Gen Z is most challenging generation to work with [KRON4] 3. Why Gen Z and Millennials View Work So Differently [YouTube] 4. 5 Reasons Why ‘Gen Z’ Is Struggling In The Workplace—By A Psychologist [Forbes] Contact That's Life, I Swear Visit my website: https://www.thatslifeiswear.com Twitter at @RedPhantom Bluesky at @rickbarron.bsky.social Email ...

History isn't neat, and it shouldn't be. Ken Burns dismantles sanitized narratives by showing how the U.S. was "forged in violence"—a fact that doesn't diminish the nation's ideals but strengthens our understanding of them. Supporting links 1. Ken Burns [Wikipedia] 2. Ken Burns [Website] 3. Ken Burns [YouTube] 4. Ken Burns [Facebook] 5. What Ken Burns Won't Say About the American Revolution [P...

Text us your thoughts on the podcast Timothy D. Synder, professor of history at Yale and author of On Tyranny, among many other books, summarizes the oligarchs’ coup and America’s democracy under siege. 1. American democracy may not survive another Trump campaign [Business Insider] 2. Timothy Snyder on How Corporate America Is Bending to Trump [Democracy NOW!] 3. Who is Viktor Orban, Hungarian PM with 14-year grip on power? [BBC] 4. How Viktor Orban pulled off the unthinkable: Hungar...

Text us your thoughts on the podcast Former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien didn’t mince words when asked about the idea of Canada joining the United States. His response? A resounding no! Supporting links 1. Former Canada PM HITS Trump Where IT HURTS THE MOST [YouTube] 2. U.S. will ‘suffer much more’: Chrétien on possible trade war [CTV Question Period] 3. Jean Chrétien [Wikipedia] Contact That's Life, I Swear Visit my website: https://www.thatslifeiswear.com Tweet us at @RedPhantom ...

Text us your thoughts on the podcast The threat of a nuclear arms race is building. What would it feel like to live through a nuclear attack? supporting links 1. Role of nuclear weapons grows [SIPRI] 2. Is the world in a new nuclear arms race? [The Week] 3. Election 2024: Is the United States Looking at a New Nuclear Arms Race? [Council on Foreign Relations] 4. Atomic Bomb Survivors [National Park Service] 5. Now, I Am Become Death, The Destroyer of Worlds [That’s Life, I Swear Po...

Text us your thoughts on the podcast When we bring up the narrative of immigration at the Mexican border, it hits a raw nerve with the public. How and when do we fix this mess? Let’s explore some alternative recommendations. supporting links 1. Democrats vote with GOP on resolution denouncing Biden’s ‘open-border policies’ [The Hill] 2. Democratic Mayors need Federal Help Over Migrant Crisis [VOA News] 3. Senate Republicans block Ukraine/Israel aid demanding border policy changes [PBS] ...

A cranky history teacher at a remote prep school is forced to remain on campus over the holidays with a troubled student who has no place to go. supporting links 1. The Holdovers [IMDb] 2. Wethersfield Cove [Website] 3. National Lampoon (magazine) [Wikipedia] 4. Paul Giamatti [imdb] 5. Dominic Sessa [imdb] 6. Da'Vine Joy Randolph[imdb] Contact That's Life, I Swear Tweet us at @RedPhantom Listen to audios: -Apple https://apple.co/3MAFxhb -Google https://bit.ly/3L2K4Iu -Spotify ht...

The Rolling Stones deliver their most dynamic list of musical work in 40 years with ‘Hackney Diamonds’. At their age, this might be ‘The Last Time’ album. supporting links 1. The Rolling Stones through the years [Planet Radio] 2. The 10 best Rolling Stones songs of all time, ranked [Entertainment] 3. What Charlie Watts meant to the Rolling Stones [Entertainment] 4. Mick Jagger [Wikipedia] 5. Keith Richards [Wikipedia] 6. Ronnie Wood [Wikipedia] 7. Charlie Watts [Wikipedia...

Remember the fallen. Honor those who serve. Teach the next generation the value of freedom. It's the mission of Wreaths Across America. supporting links 1. Christmas Wreaths Across America [website] 2. Wreaths Across America [Wikipedia] 3. Morrill Worcester [Worcester Wreath Co.] 4. USS Missouri [USS Missouri Organization] Contact That's Life, I Swear Tweet us at @RedPhantom Listen to audios: -Apple https://apple.co/3MAFxhb -Google https://bit.ly/3L2K4Iu -Spotify https://spot...

Are you tired of hearing that college is the only path to success? Time to challenge that notion and explore why going to college might actually be pointless for some - not to mention the burden of debt that often comes with it. Yes, you have other options. If you liked this episode, please leave a rating/review on my website or iTunes. I welcome your feedback on my episodes, and I would like to hear what topics you might be interested in future episodes. Feel free to leave me a voicem...

The decline of traditional newspapers in the United States has been rapidly escalating for the past few decades. It’s also a threat to our democracy. supporting links 1. Vanishing Newspapers [UNC] 2. Newspapers Fact Sheet [Pew Research Center] 3. Local Newspapers Fact Sheet [Pew Research Center] 4. 5 facts about Fox News [Pew Research Center] 5. Demise of print newspapers may have far-reaching consequences for communities and the nation [The Hill] 6. Decline of Newspapers [Wiki...

On January 31, 2023, the third anniversary of the United Kingdom’s decision to vote to leave the European Union came and went. There were no parades or popping of champagne corks to celebrate the event. Why? supporting links 1. Brexit [Wikipedia] 2. What is the IMF and Why Does It Matter? [BBC News] 3. Prime Minster, Rishi Sunak [Wikipedia] 4. Covid impact on the UK Economy [GOV.UK] 5. The Truth About the UK Leaving the EU [Investopedia] Contact That's Life, I Swear Tweet us ...

Explore the intersection of Donald Trump, QAnon, and the ReAwaken America movement. Get the facts on conspiracy theories and make informed decisions. supporting links 1. ReAwaken Tour: Order you tickets online [ThriveTimeShow] 2. ReAwaken Tour [Wikipedia] 3. Sean Feucht Interviews Clay Clark | ReAwaken America Tour [YouTube/22m,30] 4. Michael Flynn’s ReAwaken Roadshow Recruits ‘Army of God’ [Frontline] 5. Inside the MAGA Road Show Barnstorming America/Clay Clark Founder [RollingSt...

Tracking your menstrual history for optimal sports performance: Learn how high schools are monitoring menstrual cycles to track female athletic performance and competition results. supporting links 1. 44 states currently ask high school female athletes about their ‘menstrual period’ [Outsports] 2. Florida Senate Passes “Don’t Say Gay or Trans” Bill [Human Rights Campaign] 3. Menstruation in Girls and Adolescents [ACOG] 4. The Impact of Menstrual Cycle Phase on Athletes’ Performance [...

As we get ready to see 2022 come to a close, I wanted to share three stories that I thought were, unexpected. The first is a about a small country that stood defiant against a giant bear and punched its nose. The second story is about a country that woke up realizing that freedom and democracy were more sacred and that deniers and psychos be damned. Finally, the story of three high tech egos that went beyond their Superman myth. supporting links 1. 5 major revelations about the collapse of c...

Why is there so much "breaking news" on TV? The label "breaking news" is an overused marketing message used to increase audience size or hold an audience longer. Viewers suffer from viewer fatigue from a constant blitz of "breaking news" messages and in-show graphics. News producers want more "breaking news" promotion, on-air and multi-channel promotion, to increase the size of viewership. supporting links 1. Take a break from Breaking News [BeMoreWithLess] 2. Is watching the News bad for menta...

The science is precise: COVID vaccines are a safe and effective way to prevent serious illness, hospitalization, and death from the coronavirus, and vaccine mandates effectively promote widespread vaccinations. Still, we battled in the United States to inoculate the nation against the coronavirus. Yet, conspiracies and defiant attitudes made a recovery daunting. Why? supporting links 1. Who isn’t getting vaccinated, and why [Vox] 2. The political fight over vaccine mandates [NPR] 3. Benefits...

So, let’s see. Inflation is on the rise. The Ukraine war could get to a nuclear state if Putin has his way. Wall Street is struggling. The Florida governor has attacked Micky Mouse. Apple’s iPod is going the way of the Walkman. Elon Musk wants to reinstate Trump’s Twitter account! It’s like our world is going topsy turvy. What else can go wrong. Oh, this just in. A leaked document from the Supreme Court revealed that the court is leaning towards overturning Roe v. Wade. Show Notes supporting l...