Brian Gongol Show on WHO Radio - April 27, 2019
Please note: These show notes may be in various stages of completion -- ranging from brainstormed notes through to well-polished monologues. Please excuse anything that may seem rough around the edges, as it may only be a first draft of a thought and not be fully representative of what was said on the air.
Breaking news to watch
- Legislature closes
- Snowstorm in northeastern Iowa (NWS | DOT)
Segment 1: (11 min)
BUT FIRST: The opening essay
The frustrated pre-verbal child
Imagine how humans were once pre-verbal; how frustrating all of life would have been
The liberation not of getting everything you want, but of at least being able to describe what it is
Conflict with the Communist world used to give us the clarity of purpose that we didn't have a lot of coded conversations about real issues
We also buried a great number of meaningful things that we should have overcome -- in part because our attention was on an even larger peril, and in part because we didn't grasp a language for even describing what it was that needed further debate
Now we have a million platforms to talk and debate, and it's keeping us from a clarity of purpose about what's confronting us
We don't share a language for confronting attacks on our democratic system
We don't share a language for dealing with emerging health threats, both old and new
We don't share a language for addressing the wrenching social consequences of inevitable economic changes
We don't share a language for grappling with matters of resiliency in all its forms -- from weather extremes to municipal pension obligations
So it's no surprise that we're swimming naked on issues from AI development to China's Belt-and-Road program, from antibiotic resistance to "active measures" in cyberspace, and from opioid addiction to the looming entitlements crisis.
We don't know when the tide is going out on us, but swimming naked eventually exposes you.
We have to press the issues, fellow Iowans. We need to talk about them in plain English and demand clear, thoughtful, humble responses. We have to be tough on our "own" sides, especially because these big challenges don't neatly line up along conventional partisan boundaries.
We have to create the language to even have the debates, and that takes some effort. But these next-generation problems are too big to ignore, and we can't just act like frustrated toddlers when they evolve from threats on the horizon to imminent troubles.
The moral of the story:
Segment 2: (8 min)
Totally Unnecessary Debate of the Day
Totally Unnecessary Debate of the Day™:
— Brian Gongol Show (@briangongolshow) April 24, 2019
Last week's debate:
Totally Unnecessary Debate of the Day™:
— Brian Gongol Show (@briangongolshow) April 20, 2019
I'm getting ready for my traditional...
Segment 3: (14 min)
Iowa news
Verizon promises 5G to Des Moines -- one of the first 20 cities to get it
Interview
- Why did we make the cut?
- What's the timeline?
- Who can use it? What hardware is required?
- What performance effects should we anticipate?
- How much is the rollout costing Verizon?
- What impact will it have on subscriber costs?
The moral of the story:
Segment 4: (5 min)
The moral of the story:
Segment 5: (11 min)
The moral of the story:
Segment 6: (8 min)
The moral of the story:
Segment 7: (14 min)
The moral of the story:
Segment 8: (5 min)
The moral of the story:
Unsorted and leftovers:
This week
Hot (social) topics
By the numbers
Make money
Have fun
Clean up after yourself
Mind your business
Quote of the Week
Technology Three | The week in technology
Your role in cyberwar
Contrary to popular opinion
Hyperbole is going to kill us all
21st Century conservatism
Curiosity, competence, and humility
Have a little empathy
Inbox zero
Stop the deliberate ignorance
Tin Foil Hat Award
Yay Capitalism Prize
Capitalist solution of the week
Kickers
If you don't routinely read @fminus, Pearls Before Swine (by @stephanpastis), and @Argyle_Sweater, then you're depriving yourself of important episodes of human happiness. Do fix that.https://t.co/0CzpkvU3rS via @GoComics
— Brian Gongol (@briangongol) April 23, 2019
One year ago
Five years ago
Ten years ago
Programming notes
Live read: iHeartRadio app
iHeartRadio app
Live read: Contests
Live read: Smart speakers (hour 1)
Smart speakers
Live read: Smart speakers (hour 2)
Smart speakers
Calendar events to highlight
Recap
♫ Listen to the full episode from April 27, 2019 here
① Lots of candidates are descending on Iowa. Are we asking them the right questions?
② Debating the best Bond
③ and ④ 5G phones and billowing storm clouds: The Technology Three
⑤ Algorithms may be very good, but they don't necessarily send us to the things we need next.
⑥ What would you do to protect your kids? Most of us would say "nearly anything". So that ought to give us some perspective on what some of the families face when they try to send their kids across the border into the US.
⑦ Even Major League Baseball players pay attention to their working conditions. Millions of dollars in salary can only go so far.
⑧ Journalists need to ask the next question