Beer and Conversation Podcast

Pigweed and Crowhill drink and review Copper Legend, an Oktoberfest from Jack’s Abbey brewing.

The topic for today: Has the development of AI changed our perspective on whether or not we’re living in a simulation?

Starting with Nick Bostrom’s famous essay, the boys discuss the issues and why we might not be as “real” as we think we are. The development of AI has made Bostrom’s essay even more significant. The idea that simulated minds might soon outnumber “real” minds is no longer an abstract science fiction question.

On top of all this, we have stories about discussion groups just for AI — where the bots talk to the bots.

Another approach to the issue is to question what “real” means anyway. Our concept of the real, the physical, seems less and less likely as we discover that most of the hard substances around us are mostly empty space. It might be all empty space, with no “things” there at all.

It’s no longer a question for college freshmen in a late-night dorm chat. We have to ask ourselves what we’re going to do when AI starts to claim that it’s sentient.

Finally, how does all this affect the way we live our lives? How does it affect questions of meaning and purpose? What about theological questions?

With special guest Longinus, the boys drink and review an IPA from Cape May Brewing, then discuss the homogenization of culture, and how everything is starting to look the same.

It’s to the point where you’re in a town three states away but you see the same stores, the same products on the shelves. Where’s the local stuff?

The boys discuss the history of this phenomenon, starting with the railroads and the Sears catalog, and moving on to the standardization of building materials and the expansion of chain stores.

Some of this is good and logical, but sometimes you want to feel like you’re in the South, or the West, or … something different.

A world of identical strip malls teaches us

• Every place is replaceable
• Nothing is sacred
• Everything is for sale
• History doesn’t matter
• Roots are optional

ocal culture anchors people psychologically and morally. It says

• You are somewhere.
• You come from something.
• This place has a past and a future.

How do we encourage progress and also encourage local culture?

With special guest Longinus, Pigweed and Crowhill review Nugget Nectar from Troegs and then turn to Death in Venice, a short but unsettling story about beauty, obsession, and moral collapse.

Longinus provides a brief biography of Thomas Mann, and then the boys walk through the story while unpacking its major themes.

This is a controversial book, and they don’t shy away from it’s ugly side. Mann explores hidden desires and forbidden obsession, along with the danger of aesthetic fascination untethered from moral restraint.

Ultimately, the discussion centers on a larger question: Does beauty have a special philosophical or theological weight — and what happens when beauty replaces wisdom, when form is severed from moral truth, and when a man mistakes aesthetic experience for spiritual insight?

Along the way, the conversation draws on Nietzsche’s The Birth of Tragedy, parallels from the book of Proverbs, and the underlying struggle of an Apollonian man confronted by Dionysian temptation.

The boys drink and review Shugga, a strong ale by Lagunitas, then discuss a leaked government report that argues peace is actually a bad thing.

War is not merely a tragic necessity, it’s a fundamental stabilizing force in human society — according to a secret government document called Report from Iron Mountain. It claims that war is essential for maintaining political authority, economic order, social cohesion, and psychological balance.

This report, written in secret by a panel of experts, argues that permanent peace would undermine governments, disrupt economies, weaken military readiness, and unleash internal violence and social fragmentation, because war provides an external enemy that unifies populations, absorbs surplus production, channels aggressive instincts, and justifies large-scale public spending and technological innovation.

But … spoiler alert … the whole thing was a hoax. It caught the wave at exactly the right time when people were suspicious of the government, worried about Vietnam, and afraid of the military industrial complex.

Having said all that, it makes some good points. Maybe war is necessary to some extent.

The boys discuss.

The boys drink and review Stocking Stuffer, a holiday cream ale from 1623, then ask whether psychiatry is helping or hurting.

Although we’ve certainly come a long way from Medieval “remedies” like induced vomiting and bloodletting, the stats aren’t so good on modern psychiatry.

The consensus is that we’re over-medicating people to benefit the pharmaceutical industry.

There are certainly some cases where people need medication, but the profession has gone way too far in that direction.

First, they’ve lied to us. The “chemical imbalance” story was complete hogwash.

Second, they ignored obvious, simple, easy solutions like getting more exercise and better sleep, fixing your diet, going outside, spending time with friends, etc.

P&C start the show with a glass of “off dry hard cider,” then dive right in to your questions and comments.

We got a lot of reactions to our show on Catcher in the Rye. Raven and Pentamom don’t like the book, while Heathen Abbey loved it. They had very different opinions on whether reading it would make kids want to read or make them never want to pick up another book.

A related question on the same theme: a listener asked what a “catcher in the rye” is in any case.

We also had questions about the origin of the name “Longinus.” It’s not what you think.

Some listeners wondered about “the war on beauty,” and we got another example of a word ruined by the left.

The boys end the show with a difficult question about persecution of the Jews.

Are we heading to a time where everybody has a disability? Or, if you don’t have one, you’re pretty stupid?

The boys drink and review Trail of Crumbs gingerbread stout from Seven Locks Brewing, then discuss the Americans with Disabilities Act and how many college students are now considered disabled.

It’s impossible to accommodate every disability, so there will always be some fuzziness in how far the ADA is supposed to go, but … it seems to have gone too far, especially with accommodations for mental health.

COVID seems to have accelerated crazy claims under the ADA. People got accustomed to working from home, and when they were told to go back to the office, they suddenly needed a lot of “accommodations.”

It’s even worse in academia. Students come up every kind of “disability” to get extra time on tests and other accommodations. Sometimes it’s something as silly as being anxious.

40 percent of the students at Stanford are considered disabled. Is that even possible?

Is “test anxiety” a disability?

The boys drink and review Old Fezziwig Ale from Sam Adams, then ask why English isn’t the official language of the United States.

Most countries have an official language. About 20 percent don’t. What’s the reason for the difference?

Generally speaking, a country needs a common culture, and a common culture usually requires a common language.

Language is the deepest carrier of culture — via idioms, jokes, and so on. The common language frames the way people interpret reality.

Do we want to have a common culture in our country or not?

What happens when you don’t have a common language? It obviously works sometimes. Switzerland seems to do fine with multiple languages. But in other cases, the lack of a common language can breed suspicion and distrust.

What is the barrier to declaring English the official language?

The boys drink and review a Mexican lager, then discuss the developing story about the U.S. conflict with Venezuela.

Was the U.S. justified in sinking Venezuelan drug boats?

What about seizing oil tankers?

And then sending in a team to capture the Venezuelan president?

Did we go too far, or is this a legit response to a threat in our hemisphere?

And why is the U.S. so worried about Venezuela all of a sudden?

The boys review recent events and comment on the policy, legality, and political implications of our recent actions.

Join us for a deep dive into this fascinating topic.

The boys drink and review Mad Elf, a strong holiday ale, then discuss the idea that college kids are getting dumber. Is that true?

We’ve gone from a time when high schools taught Greek and Latin to a time when colleges teach remedial math.

Comedians love to poke fun at the stupidity of our college students with “man on the street” interviews, where college kids can’t identify the country to the north.

What’s happened? For one thing, reading has decline precipitously. For another, many colleges have abandoned entrance requirements.

But there’s a lot more.

* Is it a good thing, as a matter of policy, to have a more educated population?
* Is college the right place for everybody?
* What’s the federal role?

There’s no question there are uneducated, unprepared, stupid kids in college. But does that mean they’re all dumber?

The boys drink and review Awkward Silence, a black lager from Flying Dog, then discuss a conversation between Milo Yiannopoulos and Tucker Carlson about homosexuality, gay rights, and related issues.

A 2012 clip from Ugandan TV went viral after the host asked his guest, “Why are you gay?” To American audiences the question itself was hilarious.

But why is it hilarious? Tucker explores that with Milo.

Milo Yiannopoulos was, for years, the darling of the political right — despite being a flambouyant homosexual. He also claimed to be a devout Catholic. The intellectual tension eventually got the better of him and now he claims to be an ex gay.

Is that a thing? Are people allowed to quit being homosexual? Is it even possible? Milo says yes.

He also has a lot more to say about gay culture, the gay lifestyle, and related issues. He’s still a provocateur, and he still makes exaggerated claims, but it’s an interesting conversation.

(We apologize for the humming in the background for a few minutes. We couldn’t filter it out completely. Be patient. It goes away.)

With special guest Longinus, the boys drink and review a Christmas ale from Great Lakes Brewing, then discuss stoicism.

It’s not what you think. It doesn’t mean that you go through life with no emotions.

There are two classic sources for Stoicism: Greek and Roman. But the Greek version only comes second hand. We don’t have any of the original sources.

We do have primary sources for the Roman version of stoicism, most notably from Marcus Aurelius and Seneca.

Stoics believe in a “providential structure of the world” and try to live their lives accepting the ordered, rational structure of nature. They try to accept things as they are and order their lives according to four basic virtues:

Justice
Courage
Wisdom, and
Temperance

A stoic wants to align his own life to the logos.

Stoicism seems to be experiencing a bit of a revival of interest. Why?

Join us for a deep dive into this fascinating topic.

With special guest Longinus, the boys drink and review a raspberry cookie stout from Great Lakes Brewing, then discuss a famous American novel.

It’s not quite a Christmas book, but Holden Caulfield gets kicked out of his prep school just before Christmas, so it’s close enough.

Longinus starts off with some biographical info on Salinger, then the boys dive into the novel.

The book is written as if it’s by Holden, a young man of about 16. The novel is all about tone — about the attitude and perspective of Holden — his angst and his worries.

The whole idea of adolescence was new when The Catcher in the Rye came out, and Salinger tried to capture it in this novel.

From Holden’s point of view, everything is either depressing, phony, corny, or boring.

It’s often called a coming of age novel.

If you’re curious about this classic, give a listen and let us know what you think.

The boys drink and review Jubelale from Deschutes brewery then discuss Candace Owens.

Candace is a very intelligent, very articulate woman. She’s the type who has done her homework and has her facts ready. She used to be with Prager U, Turning Point USA, and Daily Wire. She’s testified before Congress.

After the October 7 attacks on Israel the cracks started to show. She left the Daily Wire and started out on her own. Now she’s relentlessly anti-Jew, anti-Israel. She seems to have gone conspiracy theory crazy.

Some of them are disturbing, but one of them is just funny. Candace has taken up the story that Brigitte Macron is a man, which has caused international problems.

If that was the extent of her conspiracy theorizing it would just be amusing. But now she seems to say that the Jews control everything, the moon landing was faked, and Turning Point USA was complicit in the death of Charlie Kirk.

It’s hard to parse it all out, but P&C give it a go.

Join us for a deep dive into this fascinating topic.

The boys drink and review Brother Joseph’s Belgian-style Double Ale from Straight To Ale then discuss the war on beauty.

Pigweed wonders why everything is so ugly.

Older buildings — even sewage plants — were beautiful. They were built to lift the human spirit.

Modern buildings are built to be hideous. Why?

It’s so cheap to make things beautiful these days. Why don’t we? It’s almost as if we’re choosing ugliness.

Even churches are ugly.

What about a banana taped to the wall as “art”? That’s not an aesthetic statement, it’s a statement about standards and meaning. That is, that there is no meaning.

The boys discuss the present reality of omnipresent ugliness and review its possible historical origins.

Join us for a deep dive into this fascinating topic.