Episodes

  • Half Birthdays?!!!

    Half Birthdays?!!!
    Feb 2 2025
    Here's a rational rant about numerous ways we infantize American youth. The end result is wrapped up by "Super Bowl" rings for youth football champions. Lest we forget what history has clearly taught...that failure is mandatory for success.

    *Photo by Ron Jones
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    14 mins
  • Eras and Civilizations

    Eras and Civilizations
    Jan 30 2025
    Another short passage from the brilliant American psychologist Robert Linder and his book, "Prescription for Rebellion." Today, Linder and Chapter V "Adjustment: Causes and Consequences." What have been the life patterns of mankind? Here's the bumper sticker version according to Linder.

    Source: "Prescription for Rebellion" by Robert M. Linder (1952).
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    4 mins
  • Free Your Rebellion

    Free Your Rebellion
    Jan 28 2025
    "The problem that faces humankind at this moment in history is a problem in conversion." --Robert Linder

    Here's another brief share by American psychologist Robert M. Linder. This passage comes from his book, "Prescription for Rebellion." Consider the attributes of rebellion and non-conformity to the contribution and elevation of mankind...the arts, free thinkers, those who dared to question...and resist.

    Source: "Prescription for Rebellion" by Robert M. Linder (1952).
    *Photo by Ron Jones @ The Last Book Store, Los Angeles, CA
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    6 mins
  • Shiny Gray Seniors

    Shiny Gray Seniors
    Jan 26 2025
    I made another observation while at Costco last week. This time it was a nice senior couple in front of me in line that was dressed really nice--so nice it got me thinking that they were out of step with the current times.
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    8 mins
  • Feral Fire Show Correction!

    Feral Fire Show Correction!
    Jan 26 2025
    I've already updated my show notes from my earlier episode today entitled, "Feral Fire History of California", but many of my listeners never read the show notes. Therefore, I felt obligated to do a quick podcast update. I have referred to the total number of acres burned in California for the years 2019, 2020, and 2021, but those numbers represented the FIRE SUPPRESSION COSTS in US dollars. To see the full referenced report, see below. I'm sorry about the confusion!

    "California Fire History: A Visual" by the Western Fire Chiefs Association. Original date of publication November 17, 2022. My version was updated on April 24, 2024. The link above was just updated a few days ago.

    *"Thompson Fire" photo by Ron Jones
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    6 mins
  • Feral Fire History of California

    Feral Fire History of California
    Jan 25 2025
    "Most of California is built to burn: it has fires to match its mountains." -Stephen Pyne, Fire Historian

    *ERROR CORRECTION: At 20:40 into the episode, I made a reading error by reporting "Cost of Fire Suppression" in CA mistakenly as the total volume of "Acres Burned." The specifics for "Costs of Suppression" in CA for the three years I mentioned were: 2019=$447 million; 2020=1.23 million; and 2021=$1.17 million. Sorry for the error. (Source: "History of California Wildfires," November 2022; Western Fire Chiefs Association)

    Like many, I was overwhelmed by the catastrophic fires recently in Los Angeles. I felt obligated to dive into the actual history of fires in my home state of California. While I thought I had a decent understanding of Native wisdom of forest management to clean the forest and prevent mega-fires, I quickly realized during my last couple of weeks of research that there was a lot more to understand. I hope this episode helps you to better understand the long history of California fires and how important native wisdom was to prevent the current biblical force fires by having more "good" (significantly smaller) cultural burns.

    "We need more burning by good fire-a lot more-while pushing for less by bad fire." -Stephen Pyne

    In summary, it's not a water problem; it's a fuel problem.

    Here are some important references I mentioned in the episode:

    Fire Historian, author, and Arizona State University emeritus professor Stephen Pyne's "Fire Fundamentals: A Primer on Wildland Fire for Journalists"

    Coalition of Prescribed Fire Councils (great source of graphics for statistical summaries per year for US fires)
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    1 hr and 15 mins
  • FLASHPOINT!

    FLASHPOINT!
    Jan 11 2025
    I warned people years ago about a "flashpoint" in Los Angeles that would rage across SoCal like a wildfire ripping residents into anarchy and chaos beyond the Watts and Rodney King riots...the figurative and literal flashpoint has arrived. My deeper concern is that the predicted and pending anarchy and chaos in LA could be a flashpoint for the whole country. Stay aware and on alert.

    *Photo Credit: "Thompson Fire" by Ron Jones
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    13 mins
  • LA FIRES

    LA FIRES
    Jan 10 2025
    *LANGUAGE DISCLAIMER!
    Los Angeles fires straight talk and NO BS as a Southern California native whose family moved to California in the 1890s. Enough is enough.

    *Photo Credit: RJ Yoga @ Huntington Beach, CA
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    36 mins