How’s everyone’s weekend going? Thanks for spending a portion of it with the Six.
Anyone remember Carl Sagan?
In the 1970’s and 80’s, Sagan was arguably the world’s most famous scientist. An Ivy League professor, Sagan wrote and narrated a PBS television show titled Cosmos, released in 1980. At the time, the show was the most watched program in the history of public television (reportedly seen by 500 million people all over the globe). A companion book to the series sold millions of copies.
Sagan’s bookish-yet-charismatic storytelling style (his use of the word “billions and billions” was famously parodied by comedians of the day like Johnny Carson) formed society’s opinion of science and scientists at that time.
That mostly shared opinion was how scholars like Sagan could achieve a certain level of authority of a subject matter while also, paradoxically, reveal how they did not have all the answers. It seemed what Sagan most wanted to impart on his viewers, what we all should strive for above all else, was to join him on a journey–– the seeking––of truths. We likely won’t get an absolute answer, Sagan emphasized, except to understand how science should always be about acknowledging what we don’t know.
A 1990’s audio clip of Sagan recently resurfaced, where he expressed concerns over the future of the planet. Here’s a portion of that clip:
We’ve arranged this society based on science and technology when no one understands anything about science and technology. This combustible mixture of ignorance and power sooner or later is going to blow up in our faces. Who is running the science and technology? (Another) reason I’m worried about this is that science is more than a body of knowledge it is a way of thinking. A way of skeptically interrogating the universe with a fine understanding of human fallibility. If we are not able to ask skeptical questions, to interrogate those who tell us something is true, to be skeptical of those in authority then we are up for grabs for the next charlatan –– political or religious –– who comes ambling along. It’s a thing (Thomas) Jefferson laid great stress on, how it’s not enough to enshrine some rights in the Constitution or Bill of Rights. The people had to be educated and practice their skepticism and education otherwise we don’t run the government the government runs us.
Knowing what we know now, pretty spot on foreshadowing.
Sagan pre-dates the cable news boom (he died in 1996) and if he’d lived, Sagan would likely have been a frequent guest.
What a much-needed voice of reason he would have been these past three years.
To tell Fauci how full of shit he was. To remind Americans of how they need to ‘practice skepticism,’ question authority and educate younger generations on the importance of discernment as it pertains to our politicians, health care leaders and policy makers.
How history informs the present.
Let’s proceed with the Six.
1. The Last of Us Reveals the Best of Us.
I don’t know if Carl Sagan would have watched the HBO TV show “The Last of Us” but he probably would have admired the program’s optimistic worldview in the face of a worldwide apocalypse. Like millions of Americans I’m hooked on the video game inspired show, a mix of “Walking Dead” World War Z grimness with “Station Eleven” utopianism. This excellent essay from The Free Press argues the success of “The Last of Us” is largely due to trust and dependency from the show’s characters. From the piece: “Post-apocalyptic tales are stories about trust disguised as stories about disaster. As fun as it is to watch people battle fungus-infected zombies, it’s even more thrilling to see paranoid people forced to trust one another—and even discover they were right to do so.” Excellent acting and storytelling also helps.
The culture war story of the past few weeks revolves around the discovery and destruction of a massive floating spy balloon suspected to have origins in China (“I ordered the hit!” proclaimed our daftly defiant president). Of course, no one really knows what the Statute of Liberty-sized vessel was doing above our air space. That didn’t stop bizarre comments over the incident, from MSNBC hosts toggling between being pro-balloon or pretending not to care to Bulwark editor Bill Kristol tweeting, “If the balloon had anti-black history messages stenciled on it, or if it were dropping anti-trans pamphlets down to earth, or if it were broadcasting denunciations of wokeness non-stop, MAGA would be pro-balloon. They’d be welcoming the balloon. They’d be worshipping the balloon.” Huh? All of this leads to wonder if #BalloonGate is the latest “disinformation” event to roll through our news feeds. The Washington Examiner with the story on a business model becoming more and more lucrative.
3. Got 6K Lying Around? That Will Get You Inside Super Bowl.
Today’s Super Bowl between the Eagles and Chiefs in Arizona pits the NFL’s best teams. There are storylines galore––Pat Mahomes vs Jalen Hurts; the first two brothers to square off in the game, Travis Kelce and Jason Kelce; Kansas City coach Andy Reid goes for ring No. 2 and immortality, etc. Hopefully it will be a compelling game as the commercials aren’t as entertaining as they used to be and the decidedly non-rock halftime show puts me to sleep. On my personal bucket list of in-person sports events, attending a SB has always ranked low (below the College World Series, which I’ve never seen live). From afar it’s always seems a bit corporate and stale. And not surprisingly, cost prohibitive for most. This article from Yahoo reports the “get in” price for a ticket hovering around $6,000, the average ticket price being closer to $10k. That would make for nice down payment on a Subaru Solterra if I were so inclined and environmentally conscious.
4. Fort Walgreens.
What’s behind the so-called “shoplifting epidemic” and the ever-spreading anti-theft measures stores are using to combat it? A lot, this writer for Curbed finds, from the boom in e-shopping to America’s addiction crises. To really understand, it’s best to join him on a tour through NYC’s Diamond District, and let the writer guide you through a truly modern American story.
5. Harrison Ford Knows Who the F**k He Is.
A quick internet search requesting the net worth of actor Harrison Ford yields north of $300 million. At 80 years of age, there is no conceivable way Ford could spend that amount of money over the remaining years of his life (one deceased ex-wife, five grown children). So why does Ford continue to take so many acting jobs? Aren’t people supposed to slow down while entering their ninth decade of existence? “(I) enjoy the experience of being onstage and telling a story with collaborators,” Ford tells the Hollywood Reporter. “I like playing an old guy. If I wasn’t having a good time, I would stop doing it.” Fortunately for us, Ford won’t stop acting whether it be the latest Indiana Jones movie (due out later this year) or two streaming shows, one of them a comedy where he plays a shrink. Yes, Harrison Ford as a grumpy shrink.
6. CostCo As Good A Place As Any To Bust A Move.
It’s a beautiful Sunday. Get up and dance. Wherever you are.
Thanks for reading everybody and enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Have a suggestion for The Sunday Six? Send email to jonjkerr@gmail.com.