This early Inappropriate Conversations episode gently suggests that we don't value imagination sufficiently in a world where entertainment is as pre-packaged as it is today. We take our fun seriously, as Jello Biafra once sang for Dead Kennedys. Perhaps the introduction to this TalkBack episode implies that too many adults are waiting for directions, hesitant to hold elected officials accountable or literally following marching orders to "take back your country" by putting up a "fight" at the U.S. Capitol. The fine line here is somewhere between too much misguided imagination and not enough genuine inspiration.

http://www.inappropriateconversations.org/e/66-child%e2%80%99s-play-and-imagination/

Ten Areas of Agreement about Abortion, Part 1

Or, 

both parts edited together for SoundCloud

I never took a class in debate or participated in a club when I was in school. I've also never seen it as some sort of sport. To me, matters worth debating should be taken more seriously than that, and we ought to commit to higher standards than anything we've seen on television in decades. I'm not only referring to the presidential election cycle. No, my complaint covers punditry today in its entirety. 

Introductory material includes perspectives on this and the previous presidential election, recorded on the official election day in 2020 with important references to past Inappropriate Conversations podcasts.

http://www.inappropriateconversations.org/e/55-a-better-way-to-debate/

http://www.inappropriateconversations.org/e/190-dear-family-member/

http://www.inappropriateconversations.org/e/195-telling-your-stories-before-its-too-late/

http://www.inappropriateconversations.org/e/24-elections-are-not-horse-races/

We have become so accustomed to the twist ending that some film critics seem to dismiss films from recommendation for no other reason. I consider this a "sixth sense" effect, referring to M. Night Shyamalan. Done properly, though, stories of this sort can deliver two good movies, even great ones, from different genre within the same film. This Halloween-themed episode from 2014 celebrates one of the best. 

Introductory material encourages voting in 2020, even from registered voters who despair for one reason or another. 
Vote, perhaps as the ultimate patriotic act of defiance to some who seem obsessed with stopping people from participating in the 2020 election. 
Vote, even if you believe you already know how your state will lean in the presidential election. It may matter more than just the tally itself.

http://www.inappropriateconversations.org/e/152-anticipating-the-bang/

Now that I've committed to TalkBack episodes being part of the structure going forward, along with new episodes of both Inappropriate Conversations and Walk The Earth, it's a good time to note that no past podcast I've ever recorded seemed quite as set for a reprise as this one, #IC #138. I am surprised that six years have gone by since I was slightly shaken by the news that someone from my high school graduating class had died. Hillary wasn't the first, there have been others since 2014, and inevitably more to come. It seems that Hillary took the chance to tell her story, though, on stage, a year earlier. We are blessed to live in an era where missing that event, and missing the actual events even at school, isn't the last word. To some degree, podcasts and YouTube videos are preserving a record. For now. 

http://www.inappropriateconversations.org/e/138-missing-someone-i-never-knew/

The fear that dearest friends would not be close to us anymore is real. So is the burden.

Different Drummer: Alan Parker

I have questions about immigration and the current state of our policies as a nation. I don't profess to have a lot of answers, but I will admit that some of the possibilities seem both obvious and disturbing. For example, what have we become?

Different Drummer: Peter Falk

One question I don't ask directly: Am I becoming increasingly self-referential? 
Allow me to answer with links.

188: Constitutional Crisis

152: Anticipating the Bang

42: "The Morning After" for classic Made-for-TV Movies

103: The Thriller Is Gone

187: Television Debut (1972-73)

105: Press Coverage

15: Declaring War on "Just Say No"

195: Telling Your Stories (Before It's Too Late)

59: Ten Areas of Agreement about Abortion - part 1

60: Ten Areas of Agreement about Abortion - part 2

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