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All about the standing-upright chimps that really love to talk about themselves.

Can We … Talk?

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“People’s Economics,” the three-part series of talks held at the Sidhe Brewing Company in St Paul, are over. Viddy will be up soon so that everyone can see the result for themselves, but I’ll give you my take. It was a great experience and, as usual, the comments after my li’l schtick were the highlight.

There’s nothing better than people sitting down over a few beers and talking about real stuff.

For that reason, the rumors that this will be followed by “Barataria on Ice” are completely untrue. Besides, I can’t skate. The most important part wasn’t the performance but the chance for people to sit down and simply talk. Non-partisan, totally real, honest talk. And I think that we’re going to start seeing more of it, too.

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Charlie Brown Christmas

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Christmas is a time for remembering everything that has come before us. It’s not a kind of memorial day when we remember what we lost, but instead a day to remember the great gifts that have come to us over the many years. The circle of gratitude is widened every year as the holiday expands with new love and new memories.

This is a special Christmas because fifty years ago we received one of the great gifts of television, “A Charlie Brown Christmas”. In many ways this defines the tension of Christmas itself, even though very little in popular culture has been willing to decry the commercialism that is the true “War on Christmas”. And in the process it gave us a new definition of holiday cheer, bringing Vince Guaraldi’s cool jazz into the warm holiday like a sprig of winter itself.

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Empathy

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This is a repeat from two years ago, but I think it should be said often – especially this time of year and with the horrible politics we have lately.

Empathy. It’s a powerful concept that’s become one of the hot buzz words at the end of this year. Much has been written and said about it lately, and for good reasons. Our politics, which is little more than the collective values of people forced to share a social space with each other, is often rightly criticized for lacking in basic empathy. The message of Pope Francis comes down to a call for more empathy for those who are in pain, not power. But what is empathy?

There are many ways to define it, but the simplest is “The ability to share another person’s emotions.” Empathy defies not just logic, but space – it’s about stepping outside of yourself for at least a moment. It’s a connection to the pain that others feel beyond any logical argument. And true empathy comes when you can do this for people you otherwise don’t even like.

The lack of empathy goes many ways, however. This Christmas is a good time to truly practice empathy.

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As Words Fail

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The conversation among commuting comrades on the 94 bus turned to the San Bernadino shooting. More accurately, it turned toward it and then veered away:

“Can you believe this one?”
“It was like an place where they help developmentally disabled or something.”
“Yeah. That was messed up.”
“Totally.”

Details established, the words trailed off. Anything more was beyond us this Friday morning. The same conversation, more or less, repeated at work:

“They were a husband and wife.”
“Yeah, they had a six month old baby.”
“Unbelievable.”

From there it went nowhere. Where could it go? What was there left to say?

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People’s Economics

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Numbers get boring fast, but people usually don’t. Everyone has a perspective on the world, a way of looking at things earned through their experience swimming through this world which seems to get more in-your-face and crazy every day.

That’s why it’s time to take this show away from the ‘net, a medium that favors numbers and charts, and into a world full of people sharing their experiences freestyle. That’s what People’s Economics is about. The show is set – December 2, 9, and 16 at the Sidhe Brewing Company on St Paul’s up and coming Eastside.

Ready for this? I am! Your chair is still available and the weather looks like it’ll be clear!

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