Beer and Conversation Podcast

The boys drink and review Mas Lima from Oscar Blues, then ask whether the Democrats want to win another election. They’re not acting that way.

In fact, the Democrats seem intent on losing even more. They’ve attached themselves to ideas and issues that 80 percent of the public reject, such as …

* Castrating confused children
* The border and immigration
* Standing up for gang members
* Rejecting voter ID

Democrats have latched themselves to an extreme ideology the voters reject. If they ever want to win another election, they need to move towards the center.

The boys drink and review Delicious IPA from Stone, then discuss prisons, and whether we’re in a digital version of one.

The “panopticon” is a prison design invented by the philosopher Jeremy Bentham. The idea is that if you make prisoners feel as if they’re constantly under surveillance, the prisoners will regulate themselves and the guards won’t have to bang them about so much.

Modern prisons have adopted some of Bentham’s ideas, but so have many other institutions.

Foucault said this idea was the blueprint for all modern institutions. Schools, hospitals, and other organizations enforce conformity by defining what is “normal” and by constant surveillance.

Stephen Cave added the concept of a “freedom quotient” by which we can determine how much freedom a person can exercise in any given situation.

The boys tie it all together and ask whether the modern world is a digital prison. We know we’re being surveilled. We know we’re supposed to follow what the powerful have defined as “normal.”

P&C drink and review a blonde ale from the Brookeville Beer Farm, then discuss the process of de-extinction — bringing animals back from the graves of history.

Using DNA from dire wolf fossils from 13,000 and 72,000 years ago, Colossal Biosciences claims to have brought the dire wolf back from extinction.

What they really did was edit the genes of a gray wolf to look a little more like a dire wolf. The pups — Romulus, Remus, and Khaleesi — are white and a little large, but they’re not dire wolves. They’re just gray wolves that have had some work done.

The project raises larger questions. Is de-extinction a good idea? Should we bring back extinct species?

The boys discuss.

P&C drink and review an excellent Scottish ale from Bellhaven, then discuss judicial tyranny.

Judges have a legitimate role in checking the power of Congress and the president. But can that power be taken too far?

Recently we’ve had a rash of “universal injunctions” against the Trump administration. Is that a proper use of judicial power, or have they taken it too far?

It seems that Congress has become irrelevant. The president and the courts legislate while Congress has hearings on things.

What are the limits on judicial power?

P&C drink and review a special Stout from Guinness then discuss the controversy over Snow White.

No, not that one. The boys start off with a comparison of the Disney version of the story with the version from the brothers Grimm. Disney filed off some of the rough edges.

They also discuss Tolkien’s dislike of Disney, and why. They examine the role of fairy tales, and whether it’s right to dial things back for the kids.

Late in the show they also discuss “Snow Woke” with Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot.

Are children better off with our watered down, saccharine stories, or did they grow up better when the heard about the dangers of life.

In this provocative episode, Pigweed and Crowhill explore a troubling question: Why does the modern political left seem so comfortable with violence? From vandalism and verbal threats to outright attacks on political opponents, the boys examine real-world examples — from keyed Teslas and firebombed dealerships to violent rhetoric at rallies and social media.

They also take a philosophical turn, asking what might be going on psychologically and morally. Is victimhood being used as a moral loophole to justify aggressive behavior? Why do some on the left excuse or applaud violent actors, from radical activists to international terror groups?

Expect sharp commentary, cultural analysis, and a discussion of figures like Slavoj Žižek.

The boys drink and review Bitburger, a German Pilsner, then discuss Crowhill’s book about Jordan Peterson’s religious views, and what we can piece together of his religious journey.

Jordan Peterson is a Canadian clinical psychologist who broke onto the public scene after Canada decided to tell people how they can and can’t speak. He wasn’t having any part of it.

Part of Peterson’s mystique is his very public struggle with religious questions.

His recent book, “We Who Wrestle With God” is his latest foray into the topic, mixing evolutionary biology, Jungian archetypes, the Bible, and timeless religious and moral questions.

It’s full of interesting insights, but it’s a bit of a jumbled mess.

Crowhill makes an attempt to systematize and organize Peterson’s thoughts into a coherent system. In today’s episode, Pigweed, Crowhill, and special guest Longinus, discuss the book and draw out some of its key points.

With special guest Longinus, the boys drink and review a mexican lager, then dive into one of the most obscure and incomprehensible poems on the planet.

Eliot’s The Waste Land is one of the most important — and most confusing — poems of the 20th century. The poem includes fragmented voices, obscure references, and a bleak vision of modern life. What exactly was Eliot trying to say, and why has this chaotic mess of a poem endured for over a hundred years?

In this episode, we dig into the madness:

Why the poem reads like a literary fever dream

How World War I, ancient myths, and personal breakdowns all bleed into the text

The role of religion, sex, and disillusionment in shaping the poem’s core message

And why lines like “April is the cruellest month” still hit hard today

Whether you’re a student drowning in footnotes or a lit lover trying to make sense of Eliot’s masterpiece, this is your no-BS guide to The Waste Land. Bring your sense of curiosity — and maybe a glass of something strong.

The boys drink and review Sun Camp by Dewey Beer Company, then discuss the potential strategic reasoning behind Trump’s threatening statements towards Canada and Greenland.

The boys react to a LinkedIn post that flips your mental map of the world — literally. What if you looked at the globe from the top down? Suddenly, the Arctic isn’t a frozen afterthought, it’s the new front line.

❄️ Is climate change turning ice into opportunity?

As the Arctic melts, it opens up shipping lanes and exposes a treasure trove of natural resources: oil, gas, rare earths, and more. Russia’s already militarizing. China’s nosing in. And the U.S.? Scrambling to catch up.

What’s at stake for the U.S.?

* Security: Russian nukes and Chinese icebreakers are already in the game.
* Resources: Greenland’s rare earths could break China’s monopoly.
* Influence: Whoever controls the Arctic will shape global trade, energy, and power.

Greenland matters more than you think, and so does Canada. The North is becoming a high-stakes geopolitical chessboard, and the U.S. can’t afford to ignore it.

The boys drink and review “Pub Ale” from Black Abbey Brewery, then discuss nonprofits and non-governmental organizations.

What does “nonprofit” really mean? Does that mean nobody’s making any money? Hardly.

Governments love to outsource shady operations, and nonprofits are often the cover. In this video, we expose how the nonprofit and NGO world isn’t always the virtuous, do-gooder space it pretends to be. From political manipulation to financial shell games, we dig into how “nonprofit” doesn’t always mean “non-corrupt.”

You’ll learn:

How governments use NGOs to bypass legal and political accountability

Why the nonprofit label is often more about image than ethics

Real-world examples of abuse and power games hiding behind charity work

This isn’t about attacking the entire sector. There are plenty of honest orgs doing great work. But if you work with, donate to, or depend on nonprofits, you need to see how the system can be gamed.

No, this isn’t a sneaky conversion attempt. You can be a full-blown skeptic and still get a ton of value out of going to church (or any place of worship). In this light-hearted, irreverent, and maybe a little provocative video, we lay out the reasons why showing up on Sunday might actually be good for you—even if you don’t believe in God or a word of the sermon.

We’re talking real-life benefits like:

✅ Getting over yourself in a world obsessed with self-esteem
✅ Hearing actual moral instruction (not just Twitter rants)
✅ Being reminded of bigger, more important things than your inbox
✅ Singing with other humans (awkward, yes—but surprisingly good for the soul)
✅ Taking an hour off from your iPhone addiction
✅ Meeting people outside your social media echo chamber
✅ Practicing patience and attention in a world of dopamine hits
✅ Finding ways to help others through charitable work
✅ Connecting to a long human tradition
✅ And maybe—just maybe—being surprised by something you didn’t expect

Think of this as a modern survival guide to ancient wisdom, minus the preaching. Whether you’re curious, cynical, or just looking for something meaningful to do on a Sunday morning—this one’s for you.

👀 Watch now, and let us know what your reason would be.

Are we being controlled by fear or by pleasure?

The boys drink and review an imperial pilsner, then discuss the contrasting visions of the future by Orwell and Huxley.

P&C explore the strange relevance of 1984 and Brave New World — from constant surveillance, censorship, and thought control, to mindless entertainment, dopamine addiction, and emotional infantilization. Both dystopian visions offer chilling insights into modern society.

We break down the contrasting methods of control: Orwell’s world of pain and suppression vs. Huxley’s world of pleasure and distraction. Drawing from key quotes, real-world parallels, and cultural trends.

For more information on this topic, read The Price of Mass Amusement.

The boys drink and review an IPA from Lost Rhino, then discuss the distressing direction of the state of Maryland. It’s as if Maryland wants to follow all the most disastrous liberal policies they can find.

Pigweed and Crowhill review problems with our horrible governor, stupid new laws and taxes, and the general tax and spend stupidity of the state.

Maryland is a deep blue state that is on its way to recession.

P&C reflect on some odd facts about Lent, then discuss the possibility of a new Druze homeland in the middle east. All while drinking two Irish stouts.

Pigweed starts off with some observations about St. Patrick’s Day and Lent, and the amusing / horrible answers from ChatGPT.

The boys also address a question in Louisiana about whether alligator is “a fish” for purposes for the Lenten fast.

In the Middle East, Syria is falling apart. Long time leader / dictator Assad is gone, but it hasn’t turned out as well as people hoped. Syria has become a violent basket case.

The Druze are a very old offshoot from Islam that still survives (barely) in the Middle East. They’ve been hunted and persecuted by Muslims for centuries. They’re spread across Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Israel, and have no autonomy of their own.

Now there’s a movement for the Druze to carve out their own homeland, which would create another non-Muslim area in the middle east, which will set the Muslims’ hair on fire.

The boys drink and review Crowhill’s Extra Special Bitter, then discuss the philosophy of anarchism and how it’s different than anarchy.

Hobbes (see episode 487) believed that the life of man in the state of nature is so horrible that no matter how bad the sovereign is, he’s better off under the sovereign than not.

Anarchists take the opposite view — that men can and do cooperate, and we don’t need rulers to oppose their coercive authority on us.

P&C discuss the good aspects of anarchism, then point out some of its weaknesses.