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Recently, I had the privilege of sitting down with Lex Fridman for a wide-ranging two-hour conversation. Lex is a professor of robotics and artificial intelligence at MIT and anextremely popular podcaster. In this latter capacity, he has spoken to significant players in a number of fieldsJoe Rogan, Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, and Sam Harris, to name just a few. Though his main interests are in the arenas of science and technology, he is quite open to discussing matters of a more philosophical and even religious nature. Fridman has a very engaging stylenot argumentative and confrontational, but rather curious, inquisitive. In the course of our two hours together, we talked about God, Jesus, life after death, morality, modernity, Nietzsche, Jordan Peterson, the Bible, faith, and the meaning of life.

Judging from the thousands of comments, the general reaction from his largely tech-oriented audience was quite positive. Many observed that they were pleased to hear a serious conversation about matters that went beyond what the sciences can describe. However, I dont want to focus on the encouraging reactions, but rather on the critical onesand there were plenty of them toofor they tell us a good deal about what young secularists are thinking in regard to religion.

Without a doubt, the most common negative reaction was that I was speaking gobbledygook, or tossing an unimpressive word salad, or using lots of words to say nothing at all. Much of this critique was focused on my opening exchange with the interviewer. Lex asked me very simply, Who is God? I responded, not sentimentally or piously, but rather in the technical language of philosophy. I said that God isipsum esse subsistens(the sheer act of being itself), in contradistinction to anything other than God, in which essence and existence are distinguished. I went on to clarify the meaning of these terms in the manner of Thomas Aquinas, attempting to be as precise and technically correct as possible. To be sure, there are many ways to talk about God, but I chose, with Lexs audience in mind, to use a more intellectual approach.

What most struck me in regard to my critics is that none of them actually engaged the argument I was making or endeavored to formulate a counter-position; they simply pronounced that what I was saying was gibberish. Anyone even vaguely acquainted with the Western philosophical tradition would know that I was, in point of fact, operating out of a system of thought developed by some of the most brilliant thinkers in the tradition: Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, Boethius, Plotinus, Bonaventure, and yes, Thomas Aquinas. It was, to be sure, not scientific speech, but it was perfectly rational, philosophically disciplined speech. That so many in the comment boxes simply did not know what I was talking about was a sobering reminder of how narrow and cramped our educational system has become. In my responses to some of these critics, I said, Would you accuse a theoretical physicist, who was using the technical language of his discipline, of word salad, if you did not immediately understand him? Wouldnt you perhaps summon the humility to admit that you had a lot to learn? I am reminded of something Cardinal Francis George used to saynamely, that before we can even broach the question of the relation between science and religion, we have to reintroduce people to philosophy, the rational discipline that effectively mediates between them. Sadly, many in the Lex Fridman audience didnt know what to do with the sort of philosophical language in which much of our doctrine of God is expressed.

The second most common criticism was that my very Catholicism effectively disqualified me. How can you listen to a representative of the most corrupt institution in history? complained one commentator. Religionespecially the Catholic religionis responsible for the deaths of millions, said another. Here is my favorite: Of all the differing variations of Christianity, Catholicism is by far the most cynical, repugnant, crass variant. Its done more harm to the human species than any other religion, its kept us back from progressing. Um ... just off the top of my head: how anyone, after the murderous secularist and atheist regimes of the twentieth century, which piled up tens of millions of corpses, can, with a straight face, argue that Roman Catholicism is the source of the greatest corruption in history simply beggars belief. This sort of canard can only be construed as the result of the intentionally distorted recounting of history far too typical in our colleges and universities. Secondly, this is such a cheap trick of our woke era: identify your opponent as a member of a supposedly oppressive group, cancel him, and thereby conveniently avoid any obligation to make an argument or respond to one. Thirdly, even if we grant (as we should) that lots of Catholics have behaved badly in the course of a two-thousand-year history, what precisely does this prove? That Catholicism is essentially corrupt? That its doctrines, sacraments, liturgies, saints, and culture are fatally compromised? Hardly. That human beings are a bad lot? Sureand in point of fact, the Catholic teaching regarding the ongoing effects of original sin even in those who are baptized would lead us to expect as much. In a word, this sort of criticism is little more than a red herring, an intentional distraction from the issue at hand.

Over the years, I have made a slew of suggestions as to how we religious people canimprove our evangelical strategies, but I wonder whether I might offer a challenge to those too ready to dismiss religious claims out of hand. First, dont cavalierly characterize philosophy as word salad, and perhaps even try to study it. And second, drop the woke posturing and have the courage to enter into real argument with those who dont share your worldview.

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Some critics of religion need to pick up their game - Angelus News

By Rob Rains

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. It was just another game during a long, six-month season, a Thursday night in the middle of August. For Jordan Walker, however, it represented something that excites the Cardinals top prospect every time he comes to the ballpark.

It was an opportunity for him to get better.

Thats the way he carries himself every night, said Ryan Ludwick, the Cardinals roving minor-league hitting instructor. He doesnt carry himself in a way like, Ive got this, Im the best. When he takes the field, he wants to get better.

The game between the Springfield Cardinals and Arkansas Travelers was the 176th game of Walkers professional career, all coming in the last 17 months. It has been a quick rise to the top of the prospect rankings for the 20-year-old Walker, who was the youngest player, at 19, in the Texas League when this season began.

Blessed with physical size and natural athleticism, Walkers career had a nice launching pad, but talking to those who have spent time with Walker since the Cardinals made him their first-round pick in the 2020 draft produces the same answer about whats his most impressive skill and the reason people use the words superstar and cornerstone when describing his potential, terms that are not thrown around lightly.

He just hits the ball so much harder than everybody else. Thats pretty special, said Tyger Pederson, Springfields hitting coach. He also has a special commitment to getting better. The way he goes after the game, in all aspects, he is trying to do everything he can to get better.

Every day hes the kind of kid who you have to say enough is enough. He always wants to work. He wants to be perfect. Hes always striving for his best.

On this night, what shows up in the box score is that Walker hit two home runs and the Cardinals beat the Travelers 5-4. That represents only part of Walkers day. What the box score doesnt show is what makes Walker such a special prospect.

Here is an inside look at one day in the grind that sometimes gobbles up even the best prospects and spits them out along the way and what Walker is doing to make certain that wont happen to him.

1:30 p.m.

Walker makes the short drive to Hammons Field from the apartment he shares with three of his teammates. Its an hour before the team has been told to report, and five and a half hours until game time.

Walker is here early so he can spend time working with trainer Alex Wolfinger, who he knows will be busy as it gets closer to game time.

His day began as it does on most days when the team is at home, with a bowl of Coco Crisp cereal, followed by either playing video games with one of his roommates, Masyn Winn, or watching television.

Walker will spend most of the next few hours either hitting in the batting cage, attending the team hitters meeting or taking live batting practice on the field.

He wants to find out information about the pitcher starting for Arkansas, Prelander Berroa, who he has never faced before and who has only been in the league for a few weeks following his promotion from A ball.

There are a lot of metrics but I dont like looking at too many of them because it gets you out of the swing and hit it approach, Walker said. I want to see what he throws, how his ball moves. We have video from last week.

Pederson also provides a scouting report which will help Walker and his teammates know what they should work on in the cage.

Hes always looking to challenge himself, Pederson said. He stands the closest to the (pitching) machine out of anybody, to simulate the most velocity and the most challenging pitches. He doesnt shy away from any challenge, thats for sure.

He works on everything. He has a great routine and sticks with it.

One of the challenges in the 10-team Texas League for hitters is that they face the same teams often, especially in their own division, and see a lot of the same pitchers.

Its always challenging when you face the same team over and over, Pederson said. Once they get the scouting report on you they are obviously going to try to pitch to it. They are going to try to find ways to get you out, no different than us trying to find ways to hit them.

He (Walker) is always trying to stay ahead of the curve. Hes one of those guys who doesnt like to get beat. If he does, we go to work and try to find ways to beat them. More often than not this year hes been pretty successful at beating them.

Walker is coming into the game with a .308 average, which ranks fifth in the league. He has the fourth most hits in the league and ranks third in doubles and extra base hits. The longest he has gone without a hit this season has been two games.

One of the changes Walker has made to his pre-game routine in recent weeks is to take at least one round in the batting cage against a high velocity machine using foam balls. Teammate Mike Antico introduced him to the drill.

We can crank it up pretty high and get swings in, Walker said.

It helps me get my foot down and get my timing right.

Ludwick has had a chance to observe and work with Walker when he is town, as he did in 2021 when Walker was in A ball. Making his fourth visit to Springfield this summer, Ludwick is not surprised that Walker has found a new way to prepare which he thinks will help him improve offensively.

He always wants to do more, Ludwick said. We try to tell him 50 swings is enough. He doesnt need to take 500. He would take 1,000 if he could. He loves to work.

Hes very instinctual and into the game. Hes willing to listen and he applies. In that regard in the six years Ive been here as a coach hes off the charts as far as the prospects Ive seen I think the skys the limit.

4:16 p.m.

After the meetings and his work in the batting cage, Walker and his teammates have spent a little time resting and playing cards in the clubhouse. Their game of choice at the moment is called Presidents.

Now its time to get back to work as Walker steps to the plate for live batting practice. He takes several rounds, then picks up his glove and jogs to the outfield.

This is where Walkers work ethic is on display again. Its only been a couple of weeks since the organization decided it was time for him to make the move from third base to the outfield, a decision Walker instantly supported.

I want to be a big leaguer, and whatever they see as the fit for me I want to do it, Walker said. Im having a lot of fun with it. Its been a fun change for me.

Walker uses his time while his teammates are hitting to work on reading balls off the bat and getting jumps, the areas where he believes he needs the most work.

I want to become an elite outfielder; I want to be someone who they can rely on to make the plays, Walker said. My goal is to be a complete player.

Manager Jose Leger is convinced that Walker will do whatever is necessary to make that happen.

Its a matter of repetition, Leger said. His athleticism is going to play out there and definitely the arm. . He cares, he battles. He finds a way.

When batting practice ends and Walker heads back to the clubhouse, he makes certain Winn has his order for his pre-game meal correct a five-piece Zaxbys chicken tenders meal with double toast, no cole slaw and fries. He will get their smoothies while Winn places the order through DoorDash to have it delivered to the clubhouse.

Tonight will be Walkers 11th game in the outfield as he starts in center. He already has spent time in left and right as well. Ludwick, who played 956 games in the outfield during his 12 years in the majors, saw Walker there for the first time the previous night.

Its like hes played out there for two years, Ludwick said.

Pederson has worked with Walker about that aspect of his game as well, and Walker has relied on tips and suggestions from his teammates who have a lot more experience playing in the outfield.

The first day we told him about the change (in positions) he we was like, Tyger, lets go. Lets get to work, Pederson said. Every game he stands next to me and when situations come up we talk through different defensive approaches, what we are thinking and how we want to keep guys off second base, where we want to throw the ball, things like that.

Hes all in. Hes taken a real liking to it and has a real joy about it. Hes already got a few outfield assists. He throws the ball extremely well.

7:55 p.m.

Walker, batting third for the Cardinals, heads to the plate for his second at-bat of the scoreless game with one out in the third inning and a runner on first.

He struck out on four pitches in his first at-bat against Berroa, taking a ball before a swing and miss, a foul and another swing and miss. Its a similar result in this at-bat a swing and miss, followed by a ball, then two more swinging strikes.

The guy was really good, Walker would say after the game.

This team usually likes to go fastballs away and then off speed but he was throwing his slider that looked like a fastball. I didnt really feel lost at the plate but he made some really good pitches. Sometimes you just dont hit them.

Even though he is still early in his career, one of the in-game adjustments that Walker has already been able to make is to realize that a key to being successful is to relax more at the plate.

One of the things Ive been working on this season is not worrying too much about what happens in the first two at-bats; you can always make it into a good game, Walker said. Never counting yourself out is something Ive learned from my teammates, especially Chandler Redmond. Hes really been talking to me about that.

8:41 p.m.

The good news for Walker as he prepares for his third at-bat, leading off in the sixth, is that the Travelers have changed pitchers. Berroa came out of the game after striking out eight in four innings.

Walker fouls off the first pitch from Jake Haberer, then launches the second pitch over the left-field wall for a game-tying homer.

Youre going to see him chasing pitches now and then and probably have a poor at-bat, and looking like he has no idea, and then the next at-bat he will get you, Leger said. Hes just a natural hitter who has the ability to put the ball in play and find a way to put the barrel on the ball. Ive been amazed.

Hes kept me on my toes. Its not easy to coach third when he is hitting because youve got to look out for some balls coming your way too.

Other managers always want to praise how good he is. He is not a polished hitter and still gets it done. The kid just turned 20. To be at the Double A level and doing what he is doing is amazing.

Chris Swauger (Walkers manager in Peoria in 2021) told me, This kid is going to be special. Not that I didnt believe him, but you always want to see it first for yourself to say if hes right or say no, hes wrong. He was right. By far he is the best player in this league.

One of the players who has helped push Walker to get better is Winn, his close friend who considers Walker my brother from another mother.

Hes going to obviously be a perennial All-Star and is going to be a great player when he gets to the show, Winn said. Just getting to see his journey through the minor leagues its fun to watch.

I think I bring a little bit of energy and he kind of calms me down a little bit. We are kind of that fire and ice combo. If he gets a hit, I want to get a hit.

9:13 p.m.

Walkers parents, Derek and Katrina, are finishing up dinner with their older son, Derek Jr., at their home outside of Atlanta during the game. As he does for almost every game, Walker has the broadcast feed of the game streaming on his Ipad.

My wife is not happy about it because a lot of the time I am watching it during dinner, Derek Walker said. I have the volume turned down low. Thats the compromise.

He had waited until there was a break in the conversation earlier to inform his wife and son that Jordan had hit a home run.

There was a runner on second with two outs in the seventh when Walker came to the plate again, with the Cardinals trailing 3-2 and another new pitcher, Devin Sweet, on the mound.

After swinging and missing the first pitch, Walker didnt miss the second, this time going to the opposite field, hitting his second home run of the game over the wall in right center to give the Cardinals the lead.

Watching on his Ipad, Derek Walker saw it, and then casually slipped it into the dinner table conversation. Oh by the way Jordan hit another home run, he said.

The home run was Walkers 15th of the year, matching the goal he had set in discussions with his dad before the year began, one more than his total in A ball last season.

Since Walker was a junior in high school, setting goals for the season had been a ritual. Back then, the goals were colorfully illustrated in a print out of a PowerPoint presentation that was taped to the wall in Walkers bedroom.

The goals have changed as a professional, to some not so specific numeric targets, but Walker does still like to set some of them. Two for this year that Walker revealed were the 15 homers and 15 stolen bases. He already has 17 steals, three more than last years total, with nearly a month left in the season.

What we instead tried to focus on was not so much the outcome, because thats harder to control as a professional, Derek Walker said. More of the focus on goals surrounded technique; for instance, not trying to step out of the batters box as much; a general goal of staying healthy, goals like that.

This home run was noteworthy in the fact that Walker was able to hit an outside pitch over the opposite wall instead of trying to pull it, something else he and the coaches have been working on.

Working with the foam ball machine has helped me with that, Walker said. It was nice to see that one go out when youve been putting in the work trying to hit that pitch with more consistency.

Ludwick was pleased to see the result as well.

He talks a lot about handling pitches away better, Ludwick said. Hes aware that he pulls the ball with a lot of power and hits the ball the other way really hard but doesnt produce the same amount of power as he does to the pull side. That comes with growth.

He can flat out hit. He knows he is going to evolve as a player. He knows theres room for growth It looks like hes just tapping the ball and it comes off the bat at 115 (exit velocity). Holy crap. Hes 20 years old. He doesnt act like hes 20. Its actually like hes 26.

The hopes are with this organization that you have the Alberts and the Yadis. When you draft a player and bring him through the organization you are always looking for that bonafide cornerstone player. He has cornerstone written all over him.

Added Leger, Hes got the attitude, the aura, that he will be a superstar. Hes got that in him. Hes very humble and a great teammate. He cares. He has fun. There is always a smile on his face. Hes eager to learn. He listens

He wants to be elite, thats the bottom line.

9:57 p.m.

The Cardinals get a walkoff win on a wild pitch, which comes with Walker on-deck. He is quick to join the celebration of players jumping around in back of home plate.

As much fun as Walker is having this season, and as much as his parents have enjoyed watching him, all three cant help but think at moments like this about someone who would be enjoying it perhaps even more.

Charles Peterson was an area scout for the Cardinals who took Walker under his wing as the two became close in 2019 and 2020 throughout the draft process.

He definitely liked Jordan a lot and in my opinion had big visions for what Jordan could do, Derek Walker said. He was very high on Jordan.

In the summer of 2019, Peterson was one of the coaches at the East Coast Pro showcase, where Walker struggled.

What Charles told Katrina and I was that he was able to see Jordan work through it in the batting cage, watching him day to day, and that was one of the things that impressed him and went into his calculus about deciding what Jordan was going to do, Derek Walker said.

At another event that December, with a bunch of scouts from different teams there, sort of like speed dating, Charles said he watched Jordan from the time he walked in the door until the time he walked out. What he was looking for was the intangibles. He knew how good of a player he was but he looked at how the other players gathered around him. He wanted to see how Jordan and I interacted when we talked with other scouts. He wanted to see if I was doing the talking or Jordan. Jordan did it.

That was some of what he said he noticed which kind of helped seal the deal in his mind about Jordan being the right player.

Just two months after Peterson celebrated when the Cardinals made Walker their first-round pick, he was dead. Peterson was 46 when he died on Sept. 13, 2020 from complications caused by Covid.

I dont talk about it too much because it really did upset me when he died, the younger Walker said. He was a great guy and I miss him a lot.

Derek Walker knows how much Peterson would be enjoying watching Walker -and dreaming about his future.

Katrina and I think about that a lot, he said. We would love to be able to call him for some chats about how Jordan and the Cardinals are doing.

One comment that Peterson made to the Walkers which they have not forgotten came after Walker signed his contract, turning down a scholarship to Duke.

He said his vision was to see Jordan, Nolan Gorman and Dylan Carlson being announced and running on the field together at the 2025 World Series, Walker said.

Jordan Walker doesnt like to think much about the future, preferring to stay in the moment but he is willing to make an exception in this case.

I would love nothing more than for that to happen, he said.

Follow Rob Rains on Twitter @RobRains

Read the original:
A day in the life of Jordan Walker work ethic and daily dedication to get better has made him Cardinals' top prospect - Webster-Kirkwood Times, Inc.

Renowned Canadian psychologist Dr. Jordan Peterson says young people, especially boys, are facing a "demoralization" in the world and he's urging the Christian church to become more involved in reaching the next generation.

In a recent YouTube video titled "Messages to Christian Churches," Peterson explained that when he took a "psychological approach" while talking about the Bible, the majority of his listeners turned out to be young men.

"That is not a phenomenon that can be easily accounted for, but let me try," Dr. Peterson said. "Now in the West, because of the weight of historical guilt that is upon us, a variant of the sense of original sin in a very real sense, and because of a very real attempt by those possessed by what might be described as unhelpful ideas to weaponize that guilt, our young people face a demoralization that is perhaps unparalleled."

"This is particularly true of young men, although anything that devastates young men will eventually do the same to young women," he added while referring to anti-natalism and nihilism.

Quick Start Podcast: The Facts on the Alleged Alzheimers Research Fraud

Peterson continued, "When they are children, boys are hectored for their toy preferences, which often include toy weapons, such as guns, and their more boisterous playing style, as boys require active rough and tumble play even more than girls, for whom it is also a necessity. When in grade school, boys are admonished, shamed and controlled in a very similar manner by those who think that play is unnecessary, particularly if it's competitive, and who value a docile, harmless obedience above all."

He said the indoctrination of such an "extremely damaging ideology" is accomplished with three accusations.

"Number one: human culture, particularly in the West, is best construed as an oppressive patriarchy motivated by the desire, willingness and the ability to use power to attain what are purely selfish and self-serving ends," he explained.

"Accusation number two: human activity, particularly that undertaken in the West, is fundamentally a planet despoiling enterprise. The human race is a threat to the ecological utopia that existed before us and could hypothetically exist after in our absence."

"Accusation number three: the prime contributor both to the tyranny that makes up the oppressive patriarchy and structures all of our social interactions past and present and the unforgivable despoiling of our beloved mother Earth is damnable male ambition, competitive and dominating, power-mad, selfish, exploitative, raping and pillaging," he said.The psychologist explained that people in the West are facing "an all-out assault at the deepest levels."He said young men who are "deeply conscientious, capable of guilt and regret," consider that "in pain, every deep impulse that moves them out into the world for the adventure of their life, even that impulse drawing them to women, is nothing but the manifestation of the spirit that is essentially satanic in nature."

This belief is not only wrong "theologically, morally, psychologically, practically and scientifically," but it is also "anti-true," he noted.

Peterson also pointed out that the Christian church is "there to remind people, especially young men, that they have a woman to find, a garden to walk in, a family to nurture, an ark to build, a land to conquer, a ladder to Heaven to build, and the utter terrible catastrophe of life, to face stalwartly in truth, devoted to love and without fear."

He continued, "Invite the young men back, say, literally, to those young men, 'You are welcome here. If no one else wants what you have to offer, we do. We want to call you to the highest purpose of your life. We want your time and energy and effort and your will and your goodwill. We want to work with you to make things better, to produce life more abundant for you, and for your wife and children and for your community, and your country, and the world.'"

Dr. Peterson then pointed out the problems within the Christian church.

"We are more abundant, sometimes, far too often, corrupt, and sometimes deeply so," he said. "We're outdated, as are all institutions with their roots in the dead but still often wise past."

He shifted attention towards Protestant churches, saying, "You're the worst at the moment." Catholic and Orthodox should also invite young men, Peterson said.

"Put up a billboard saying 'young men are welcome here.' Tell those who have never been in a church exactly what to do, how to dress, when to show up, who to contact and, most importantly, what they can do. Ask more, not less of those you are inviting. Ask more of them than anyone ever has. Remind them who they are in the deepest sense, and help them become that."

Peterson concluded the message by saying, "You're churches for God's sake. Quit fighting for social justice. Quit saving the bloody planet. Attend to some souls. That's what you're supposed to do. That's your holy duty. Do it now, before it's too late. The hour is nigh."

Thousands of viewers commented on the video and some even said they were motivated to go back to church.

***Please sign up forCBN Newslettersand download theCBN News appto ensure you keep receiving the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***

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Psychologist Jordan Peterson Says Society Is Harming Boys, and the Church Must Save Them: 'That's Your Holy Duty' - CBN.com

This weeks announcement that Stan Grant will be permanent host of the ABCs Q&A follows widespread speculation about the future of the program. On some estimates, ratings have fallen by more than 50% from a peak of over 600,000 during its first decade under Tony Jones, who served as host from 2008.

Hamish Macdonald succeeded Jones in November 2019 but resigned in July last year, describinghis 18-month tenure as a bruising experience. Aside from being attacked on Sky News for his far left Green agenda, he was relentlessly trolled on social media, with virulent accusations of bias from both the left and the right.

Curiously, the BBCs Question Time Q&As prototype has followed a parallel trajectory. Its ratings have fallen precipitously, from nearly nine million to just over a million and the decline coincides with the replacement of veteran host David Dimbleby by seasoned BBC personality Fiona Bruce, whose own brand of charisma is no match for the gravitas of her predecessor.

Question Time is something of a cuckoo in the nest. In its 43-year history it has consistently featured leading commentators and parliamentarians; its two most longstanding presenters, Dimbleby and Robin Day, were the equivalent of BBC royalty. But since its takeover by a commercial production company in 1998, the program has crossed the line into terrain more generally associated with tabloid media.

Now its producers prefer guests like Brexiteer Nigel Farage, conservative psychologist Jordan Peterson and John Lydon (alias punk rocker Johnny Rotten), who serve to ratchet up the controversy. Its been claimed that paid audience plants are instructed to ask heavily weighted questions, and that the chairing is biased. And Bruce endures the kind of social media onslaught that drove Macdonald out.

Reports of disastrous ratings may themselves be a form of motivated attack. Audiences now have many more viewing options than the original live transmissions, and the BBC has persistently asserted that audience figures are higher than some surveys suggest.

Q&A is in much the same situation: while Sky claims the lefty lovefest has scored as low as 228,000, the ABC estimates the regular following through 2021 at more than 400,000. But thats still quite a drop-off since the programs heyday.

Are we just jaded with celebrity opinion shows, especially those founded in the leftright dramaturgy? The predictability is at times exhausting.

Macdonalds best episode was his first, in February 2020, when he chaired a session on the bushfires with a panel that included Kirsty McBain, then mayor of Bega, and Andrew Constance, Liberal MP for the area. The panel sat on office chairs in a semi-circle, genuinely sharing what they had all just been through, including Macdonald himself, who had reported from an evacuation centre as the fire front approached.

A few weeks later, though, it was back to business as usual, with the presenter in a glossy suit fielding the play of leftright argy-bargy in the studio.

We dont need this anymore. In many ways, the conventions of robust disagreement and both sides-ism are no longer a positive feature of civil society but rather a threat to it. As Republican Liz Cheney put it in a recent statement to the January 6th Committee, the normal sort of vitriolic, toxic partisanship has got to stop. And we have to recognise what is at stake.

Stan Grant has several times taken the helm as guest host of Q&A since Tony Joness departure. He prompted a furore in March this year when he expelled an audience member who expressed support for Putins invasion of Ukraine, asserting the program was contributing to media bias against Russia. There were calls of propaganda from the audience as the speaker proceeded to claim that Ukraine was responsible for all the violence.

Aired in the second week of the Russian invasion, this episode included speakers and audience members with family in the war zone. We encourage different points of view here, Grant said. But we cant have anyone who is sanctioning, supporting, violence.

Clearly caught off guard by an unscheduled audience intervention, Grant may have missed the essential point: that the statement, intentionally or not, was Russian propaganda. It was a critical moment for many reasons, one of which is that Grants subsequent appointment as host could signal a change in direction for the program.

That moment also raised the question of when we should call foul on claims about the right to express opinion, especially in a media culture increasingly subject to influence from organised, even state-run, propaganda. And what is propaganda? How does it manifest and how should we respond?

This, surely, would be a good focus for a Q&A program. Peter Pomerantsev, who has studied Russian propaganda for decades, would be the perfect guest. These are times in which we need sustained, forensic focus on complex issues. We need insight and analysis from people with knowledge and experience, not extemporised opinion from celebrities.

The Ukraine invasion is the starkest manifestation of the transformed geopolitical environment. With Donald Trump already moving to gather support for another tilt at the presidency, and the US justice department taking its time over the evidence against him, the future of American democracy is in jeopardy. In Australia we have a leader of the opposition who talks openly about war with China.

Jones, Macdonald and Grant have all had extensive experience as foreign correspondents. With domestic politics increasingly dwarfed by the massive geopolitical tensions of our era, those issues should be to the fore. Q&A, which originated as a premier platform for the opinion wars, now has an opportunity to lead the way out of them.

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Can Q&A lead us out of the opinion wars its helped to fuel? - The Conversation

Putin is continuing Russian Imperialism

Dear Editor:

A recent letter calling for negotiations between Russia's invading armies and a peaceful Ukraine is ridiculous and uninformed.

Russia breaks international laws and treaties. The latest examples are: Putins statement, Ukraine does not exist, and Russias shelling the seaport, Odessa, despite the just-signed treaty allowing the export of Ukrainian grain to starving populations.

Putin is continuing Russian imperialism and Ukraine is fighting for its existence. Ukraine has survived the Holodomor (a genocide by an artificial famine) inflicted by the previous communist regime and is now fighting an invader accused of war crimes and genocide.

Taras Makar

Penticton

Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it

Dear Editor:

It was very disappointing to read the Time for the Ukraine to negotiate with Russia (Herald,July 22).

If Russia was attacking Canada would the letter writer be giving the same advice? Ukraine is fighting for their very existence and he is grumbling about war profiteering. Shouldnt our government address the price gouging, rather than abandoning the Ukrainians?

Appeasing Russia through negotiations will just encourage further Russian adventurism. Remember how effective appeasement was with the Nazis. It did not lead to peace in our time.

Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it and Winston Churchill knew what he was talking about.

Steen Petersen

Nanaimo

Putin, like Pope Francis should offer an apology

Dear Editor:

Russias Putin could do well to follow the example of Pope Francis penitential pilgrimage to Indigenous Canada and Putin apologize and seek forgiveness and reconciliation from the Ukraine people for his slaughter of the Ukraine innocents.

Joe Schwarz

Penticton

Health-care workers in B.C. deserve our highest praise

Dear Editor:

We recently used the ambulance service, and one of us is now an inpatient in Victoria. I worked for more than 30 years in a regional referral hospital, so I know what the workload used to be.

I am astonished that hospital staff are able to retain their composure and kindness given the overwhelming workload that they now experience.

At least in my day we had peaks and valleys of workload and were given time to relax and breathe; not any more.

My thanks and my best wishes to health-care workers everywhere in B.C. in these troubled times.

Clifford Dezell

Victoria

No desire to engage in personal attacks

Dear Editor:

While I may not agree with others opinions, I do respect the right of individuals to hold an opinion and to express that opinion. I therefore will continue to present facts, but I have no desire to engage in personal attacks.

The majority of professional people who read about or listen to Jordan Peterson realize that he has gotten his reputation by stating the obvious. No more, no less. Google: What do people think of Jordan Peterson? Read his professional peers comments. As Peterson himself stated, I am an academic persona non grata.

Peterson has been suspended from Twitter for fat-shaming a lady and refusing to apologize. This is completely in character. Carry out some critical analysis of his comments and views. Read his 12 rules that are just common sense and ridiculous.

Pierre Poilievre is a Stephen Harper protg, but I understand the current anxiety of Canadians who are concerned about global inflation and the cost of living, but to continuously blame the Liberals for global inflation is not justifiable. And investors reluctance to invest in fossil fuels is global not just a Canadian Liberal problem.

If you support Pierre Poilievre, then at least admit that you prefer: a balanced budget over social safety nets; freedom from mandatory mask wearing no matter the danger to others; freedom to protest no matter the disruption of peoples lives and traffic movement; freedom from mandatory vaccinations no matter the health risks to others; freedom for unqualified (cannot meet Canadian standards) immigrants to practice their professions; freedom for oil companies to drill without meeting environmental standards; and the list goes on.

If you support the foregoing that is your choice and I respect your right to have that preference; however, I do not support your choice.

As a Humanist, that is my right, and I defend that right.

I cannot imagine the attack-dog antics of Pierre Poilievre as the Canadian prime minister, and certainly not on the world stage.

Patrick MacDonald

Kelowna

When you worry, you make it double

Dear Editor:

Most people, especially those on fixed incomes, have every right to be incensed about the unprecedented high cost of groceries and gasoline.

Recently my wife and I went grocery shopping and then filled up the gas tank of our 1998 Buick.

On the way home I listened to myself moaning and groaning about the rapidly rising prices for almost everything. Little by little I came to the realization I shouldnt let things I have no control over ruin my day. I decided to look on the bright side and figuratively put on rose-coloured glasses.

Immediately I realized the groceries and gas were an investment, not an expense.

The groceries in the trunk and the gas in the tank had doubled the value of our car. You can call me a cockeyed optimist but my frown instantly turned upside down.

Thats when I recalled those insightful words in the 1988 hit song, Dont Worry Be Happy, by Bobby McFerrin namely, In every life we have some trouble but when you worry you make it double.

Lloyd Atkins

Vernon

Pamphlet an attack on Canadas history

Dear Editor:

As a Canadian citizen I am absolutely appalled to learn that The Hon. Ahmed Hussen, the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion found it appropriate to spend $268,400 taxpayer dollars to develop and distribute the document titled Confronting and Preventing Hate in Canadian Schools. This document labels the Conservative Party as racist and directly attacks the Canadian Ensign, to list only a few.

It is true that the Canadian Ensign bears the crosses of Saint George, Saint Patrick and Saint Andrew. Yes, it bears the crests of France, Scotland, Ireland and England all Christian countries reflective of Canadas founding as far back as the early 1600s.

Members of the Royal Canadian Navy, the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Canadian Army fought with distinction and died under the Canadian Ensign in both World Wars and the Korean War.

I and my classmates sang God Save The Queen and Oh Canada while the Canadian Ensign was raised.

Mr. Hussen owes Canadian veterans who are buried overseas and who fought and died for his freedom an apology.

Bill Shumborski

Kelowna

Many reasons to stop feeding the ducks

Dear Editor:

When I was a kid, I remember seeing signs in Beacon Hill Park telling people why it was a bad idea to feed the wildlife (especially the ducks). This led me to not feed the ducks anymore.

I know a reason why feeding the ducks is a bad idea, a reason not listed on the sign: feeding endangers the ducklings.

When mother ducks see birdseed, they often get distracted by the food and leave their ducklings alone in the water (the ducklings seem to mostly prefer bugs). This leaves the ducklings unprotected.

Also, the birdseed seems to attract crows and seagulls, which both prey on ducklings. I recently saw a family of ducklings eating seeds dangerously close to a group of crows and a seagull.

I also saw another mother who only had one little duckling left (she had around 10 earlier in the week).

Something to think about the next time you want to feed the ducks.

Emma Dingman

Victoria

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Letters to the Editor: Wednesday, July 27, 2022 | Opinion | pentictonherald.ca - pentictonherald.ca