Categories
Conversations Politics Society

Conversation on Social Security

We begin by discussing what the goal of social security is so that we can agree on our starting point. The original concept of Social Security in America was to create a financial floor for retirees, disabled and survivors. We look at who is funding the social security program and how they are doing so. The negative aspects of social security is that you do not have access to the money, you family doesn’t get the money if you die and you cannot control the investments. The positive aspects are that you cannot outlive the benefits, it will always pay until you die and the payments increase annually to compensate for inflation. We discuss asset allocation and how social security fits in with a retirement portfolio. Do we need social security to protect people from making bad decisions about their retirement? How do we ensure that people can retire comfortably.

A link to the chart that Colin created to show a suggested retirement schedule and the retirement that it would allow.

Link to the YouTube Video of the conversation.

Brother VS. Brother
Brother VS. Brother
Conversation on Social Security
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Categories
Conversations Politics Society

Conversation about alleviating poverty

Great News! Poverty levels having been dropping for the past 100 years and the situation is continuing to improve around the world. This is a fact that most people either are unaware of or ignore. That does not mean we should announce that the mission has been accomplished but it does warrant acknowledging.

Another fact is that in the US, poverty has decreased until the mid 1960’s and has not changed much since that time even though we have gradually increased the amount of money that we have used to address the issue. Colin addresses the problem of means tested and we discuss the issue of government assistance when thresholds cause the assistance to suddenly disappear.

We consider how much money people need to pay average bills. How much does government complicit in the problem by restricting free markets such as minimizing housing density and rent control?

Link to the YouTube video.

Brother VS. Brother
Brother VS. Brother
Conversation about alleviating poverty
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Categories
Conversations Politics

Conversation about America’s role in the world

In recent history, America has taken on the role of the world’s police. Was that wise? Should we try to hold onto that position? What are the alternatives.

In our history of interference, much of the impact has been negative rather than improving situations. Would a laissez-faire approach be better for the people of the world? If we give up the role of the world’s police, should we instead give the United Nations more authority and power to police?

Link to the YouTube video.

Brother VS. Brother
Brother VS. Brother
Conversation about America's role in the world
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Categories
Conversations Society

Conversation about alternative media sources

What is a media outlet and what are the resources beyond the mainstream media. What are the new media outlets and are there historical comparisons.

How does the bias compare between the mainstream media and some alternative sources.

Finally, we examine how to collect your news, regardless of the source.

Link to the YouTube video.

Brother VS. Brother
Brother VS. Brother
Conversation about alternative media sources
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Categories
Conversations Society

Conversation on Media Bias

Left Wing Media, Right Wing Media, it is all biased. How do we find good sources of information? What can we do about the bias problem? What about non-traditional media platforms? And how biased is too biased? We discuss all of this and more.

Link to the YouTube video.

Brother VS. Brother
Brother VS. Brother
Conversation on Media Bias
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Categories
Conversations Economy Society

Conversation on Monopolies & Trust Busting

Are monopolies possible without government approval? Can a monopoly exist for non-essential goods? How much oversight should we expect the government to exert over the marketplace.

Of course, the conversation cannot be complete without addressing government intervention. Will allowing the market to self-correct without government intervention cause excessive collateral damage?

Link to the YouTube video.

Brother VS. Brother
Brother VS. Brother
Conversation on Monopolies & Trust Busting
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Categories
Strategies

Conversation Strategies – Connections

To often, we attack, find fault, challenge and undermine the person we talk to. If we occasionally create a bridge to them, they are more likely to hear what we are saying.

Link to the YouTube video.

Brother VS. Brother
Brother VS. Brother
Conversation Strategies - Connections
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Categories
Strategies

Conversation Strategies – Making Faces & Body Language

We take a look at how our presentation can impact how we are received. Because our goal is for the person we are talking to to be reception and listen, this can be a useful tool to add to our arsenal.

Link to the YouTube video.

Brother VS. Brother
Brother VS. Brother
Conversation Strategies - Making Faces & Body Language
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Categories
Conversations Politics Society

Conversation on Vaccine Mandates

In their first episode, Colin & Brian discuss the pros and cons of requiring vaccines, in particular with respect to the current Covid-19 pandemic

Link to the YouTube

Brother VS. Brother
Brother VS. Brother
Conversation on Vaccine Mandates
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Categories
Conversations Politics

Conversation on the 2 Party System

Discuss the problems with the 2 party system in America and looking at other options. Increased competition in the political system would be beneficial.

A common hypothesis regarding 2 party systems is that it forces candidates from both parties will gravitate toward the middle and we see that does not happen. We discuss Rank Choice Voting and how it can increase the number of political parties. Why change away from the 2 party system will probably not happen from the government, but will require the voter to get involved.

We digress into the problems with good intentions in governing and end the conversation agreeing that we need more options.

Link to the YouTube video

Brother VS. Brother
Brother VS. Brother
Conversation on the 2 Party System
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