Giovanni’s Superfan Sidebar 11/21/2016 – Stephen Dubner

Giovanni’s Superfan Sidebar 11/21/2016 – Stephen Dubner

A real time blog where Superfan Giovanni does recap and commentary on the show as it happens and opines on all things ACS

Guest Stephen Dubner

Recorded 11-18-2016 – Release Date 11-21-2016

Production Number #1954

Show Page

Adam opens the show with a tease for the interview with Stephen Dubner, Adam plugs ‘The 24-Hour War’ and Carolla Drinks for the holidays.

Ashley Madison

TAK 032 – Stephen Dubner – Subscribe to PodcastOne Premium

Adam opens the show to a Dawson intro with Stephen on the line, he compliments Adam’s long snapping ability as demonstrated recently on Bill Simmons ‘Any Given Wednesday’ series finale.

Stephen tells Adam about taking his son to Steelers games, he shares how they would observe the long snapper practicing and how important that job actually is.

Stephen used an injured long snapper as a metaphor for his son about the necessary work and jobs in life that you’re not aware of until someone isn’t doing them.

 

Adam runs his idea for long-snappers being prime for bribing to fix NFL games by organized crime, Stephen is talking about how Long Snappers are viewed by everyone else on the team, Stephen tells Adam to run future bribe ideas by him off air and not publicize them on his show.

Adam and Stephen are talking about match fixing in sports and Stephen talks about incentives and the role they place in compromising someone’s ethics and he talks about how life evolved in the modern era and why he likes sports for releasing pent up aggression and animalist tendencies, an outlet for purging negative behaviors.

Adam is asking who is the most dedicated player on the team, Adam is now listing his reasons for why the Long Snapper might be the most dedicated player, the most team spirit.

 

Stephen is now giving his thoughts on who would be most likely to take a bribe based on their position, he mentions James Harrison and Adam is now going over as legendary play.

Stephen is now talking about James further and teases a story, Adam interrupts and explains that there is no way James Harrison talks about Stephen nor Adam as much as they are talking about him here now.

Stephen is sharing a story about James and starts with Franco Harris and a book he wrote and gets to the crescendo with him attending a dinner with his son and his son’s friend whose father had recently died.

Stephen starts tearing up as he predicted and Adam is really cool about it and supportive, Stephen is sharing how James offered some pizza to Stephen’s son’s friend, perhaps the person who needed that the most, Adam calls it “the pizza play” and files it away with the legendary play from earlier.

 

Adam is now talking about Stephen’s comments about media, Adam brings up the voting breakdown and how heavily focused it seems to be on race and gender.

Adam has Stephen hold it and think about the question.

 

Smart Mouth

Doing whatever you’re doing man – Adam

 

Stephen talks about the echo chamber of social media and how people can ignore the views they don’t agree with and how foolish that is.

Stephen shares his belief in journalism and gets to “identity politics” and Adam has him stop and explain that a bit.

Stephen is going in depth on how regressive these discussions and breakdowns can actually be, he brings up his own family and their history, he’s crushing it.

 

Adam is now talking about the race conversation in media that has been ratcheted up since the two-term black president, he shares his “asshole, not a racist” theory.

Stephen brings up poker after Adam shares his history of having asshole neighbors, Adam quickly goes over his theory on how he would be sure his neighbors were racist, he would have no other conclusion to draw.

Stephen is now honestly breaking down Adam’s logic and he shares a “salesperson or librarian” question and he says this is like something they ask at Google when interviewing someone.

 

Stephen is bringing up the possible fortuitous outlet of people being allowed to be jerks online, in lieu of actually hitting someone or doing something else in anger.

Stephen talks about internet pornography and the decline in sexual assaults, Adam has a “milking machine” intervention for sexual predators that Stephen seems to enjoy.

Adam is now bringing up the “rape is not sexual” theory that he used to rant against, Adam is talking about the 100-guilty overcompensating white people to the 1 racist white person he believes are out there.

Adam teases a new story with his dad.

 

Seeso

All that mirth – Adam

 

Adam plugs Stephen’s podcasts and Adam shares his love of listing to ‘Freakonomics’ which he says he’s done “over and over” and he tells Stephen about taking his dad to lunch.

Adam shares his father’s uncertainty if there was a diner nearby his home of the last 14 years, Adam describes the diner they found straight out of ‘Blues Brothers’ and he shares how he told the waitress they would have to take all of the food to go.

Adam shares how the guy behind the grill come out from behind and explained to him that they aren’t a fast food restaurant, he didn’t pipe up and point out that the food was very late and he left a $10 tip just to be nice and not leave them thinking he was another rude, racist white Trump supporter.

 

Stephen is now saying that just because someone is black doesn’t preclude them from being all the things anyone else is, good, bad, a jerk whatever.

Stephen is talking about being noble vs. reductive and Adam thinks that the people who need to bang the drum of racism are only going to escalate things as Obama exits the White House.

Stephen isn’t sure about that and brings up the biggest issue in his mind, Adam cuts him off and shares his preference for the best system, if it’s good do it.

 

Stephen shares how much he learns about our flawed systems and institutions as he gets older, he makes a fine point about the quality of life in 2016 and he shares how scientists in Illinois have now improved upon photosynthesis and we will soon have ever better producer and harvests.

Adam shares another theory he has and Stephen mocks him for the quantity of theories he seems to have, Adam is talking about the human need to complain about the things we lack and the unfair things in life.

Stephen shares his poor upbringing and how he feels he hit the jackpot with his family, he talks about the system working pretty well for most people and the role of assimilation in human psychology.

 

Stephen brings up the smartphone and how it’s the ultimate example of the eternal want for more in humans, Adam talks about competition driving coemption and moves on to a live read.

 

Reverie Bed

Adam has been using it for 3 years now, treat yourself edition

 

Adam plugs Stephen’s projects and Stephen thanks Adam and calls him a true intellectual. Adam wraps things up with an observation about the compliments that bookended the interview, great episode!