And I consume a lot of podcasts...
My tastes are varied; I listen to astronomy and science presentations, and to current political events in lectures from the RSA, the LSE, and Gresham College (all UK productions, though I am no Anglophile). I also listen to religious topics; more on that in a moment. But most often find myself listening to skeptical podcasts: For Good Reason, Point of Inquiry, Quackcast, Righteous Indignation, Skeptics With a K, Skepticality, Skeptoid, The Skeptic Zone, The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe, and Token Skeptic.
Skepticism is an interesting term and an unconventional hobby. Most skeptics are not practicing scientists, though many good ones are medical doctors. Most skeptics are not educators, but many engage in public outreach intended to popularize critical thinking and science literacy. Many, if not most skeptics are atheists, but not all aim their critical thinking toward religious topics. There a some skeptics who have hijacked the title to support their denialism of anthropogenic global warming or the efficacy of vaccinations. There are some who regard skeptics as cynics or reflexive debunkers or both.
I listen to a variety of topics from a variety of perspectives because to do otherwise is to invite confirmation bias, tunnel vision, and stagnation. I still listen to On Being, but the rebranding seems to have taken even more of the edge off the extremely even-handed work done by Krista Tippett when the show was called Speaking of Faith. I listen to Reasonable Faith and Unbelievable religion podcasts precisely because I disagree with the hosts on most all issues. If all I listened to was Reasonable Doubts and Chariots of Iron I might find reinforcement for my worldview, but I want to be careful not to climb into an echo chamber and then lock the door from inside. We all know people who have done that, but how many of us are aware that we run the same risk ourselves?
Recently I added two podcasts to my listening queue. MonsterTalk (an official podcast of Skeptic magazine, as is Skepticality) takes a skeptical view of cryptozoology (Nessie, sasquatch, the chupacabra, that sort of thing). It features, among others, Karen Stollznow, who is also one of the hosts at Point of Inquiry.
The other new podcast is especially challenging. Skeptiko is hosted by Alex Tsakiris. His proposed agenda:
"Figure stuff out. Dig into the research data. Explore the possibility that the existing materialistic paradigm might be overturned (and may already be at a tipping point). Talk to really smart people on both sides of the issues. Treat all guests with respect."
Mr. Tsakaris is deeply interested in phenomena such as NDE, OBE, ESP, PSI, PK, and other parapsychology topics. He regards himself as a skeptic of the "existing materialistic paradigm" but most of the time he comes off as a poster child for confirmation bias. Interestingly, Tsakaris is no fan of organized religion or evangelical Christianity, but regards parapsychological phenomena as proof of the existence of the soul and evidence that the mind survives death. He is prone to describe anecdotes and case studies of untestable and unverifiable phenomena as data and evidence.
So why do I listen? Certainly to keep my wits sharp, to make sure my baloney detector is working, and to keep my argumentum armamentarium well stocked. But also to make certain that I do not become set in my ways of thought, that I remain open to new ideas, and the lenses, filters, and blinders of my worldview do not interfere with perceiving my slice of reality as accurately as possible.
5 Leadership Tips for 2012 leads to other leadership ideas...
Mike Myatt, author of Leadership Matters...The CEO Survival Manual, has some simple ways to improve your life in 2012. His post is worth reading even if the only sentence you read is this one:
"Smart leaders recognize it’s much more valuable to step across mental lines in the sand than to draw them."
While crawling around the Forbes website I encountered another titled "Nine books to read before your organization dies" by Stephen Denning. One of them is free. Denning has his own book, The Leader's Guide to Radical Management: Reinventing the Workplace for the 21st Century, which I am more likely to read than Myatt's.
UPDATE: I posted as follows to Mr. Myatt's blog and at LinkedIn...
Thank you for this thought-provoking list for leaders at all levels. C-level executives have an added burden; they must decide whether they work for the shareholder or the customer. How they think about this issue will affect their approach to these other five items, any other list, and their leadership style in general. They choose this burden voluntarily, but still I don't envy them.
The Nine Practices of the Successful Security Leader...
If you're a business security professional this brief paper published by The Security Executive Council ought to be required reading for everyone on your security teams, your peers, and your superiors! All nine are excellent, but I especially like "Winning respect by refusing to exploit fear, uncertainty and doubt." Read this today as you prepare for a successful 2012.
He says it as well as anyone, except maybe for our classmate Theresa Crawford. Many of us are so angry about what has gone before, or so frightened by the prospect of an uncertain future, we are unable to pause, reflect, and embrace the fact that the only time we have is now, and the only people who truly matter are our families and friends. Love and be loved. There is little else that really matters. Have a fine Christmas one and all.
photo credit: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/NASA-Apollo8-Dec24-Earthrise.jpg
The TSA is very proud of their recent detection of artfully concealed daggers and inert grenades in carry on bags...
...but why did they let the passengers carrying these items pass through the checkpoint and board their flights after confiscating the contraband?
In November of this year TSA administrator John Pistole touted the detection of thousand pistols in 2011 alone, to defend his organization's mission and its value to the traveling public. But how many cases resulted in criminal prosecution at the federal, state, or local level? How many were forgetful cops and other lawfully armed citizens? How many of these offenders were terrorists or wanted criminals? If none of the detected and confiscated items were in the hands of criminals or terrorists precisely what harm has been averted? If those who violate these rules are not hijackers or terrorists who precisely is the TSA defending us against?
I reiterated my question to the TSA personnel administering their blog: Has there ever been an arrest, indictment, prosecution, conviction, or imprisonment arising from the detection of a prohibited weapon at a TSA checkpoint? Certainly there must be some they can point us to. I look forward to their response and will share it when it arrives.
UPDATE: Here's one I found. Anyone else?
Reupdate: Here we go. 1080 firearms, 689 firearms arrests. Much better. Perhaps the TSA should emphasize the arrests arising from their stops rather than parading the grenades and artfully concealed knives, then explaining why passengers carrying them were allowed to board their flight anyway.
Updates continue, with cupcakes: The TSA is same outfit that prevented a cupcake from passing through the security checkpoint at Las Vegas International Airport because the frosting was gel-like, possessing an almost liquid character because it conformed somewhat to the inside of its container, which meant the entire confection exceeded the three ounce limit, plus it wasn't presented in a one quart ziploc baggy...oh never mind!
Photo credit: TSA
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