Listen

Description

Yes, we, too, decided to talk about the American Eagle controversy.

 

First, though, John offers trivia about state names.

 

Tim begins by explaining his fascination with the Sydney Sweeney topic , both as an ink blot for people’s preconceptions and as a microcosm for societal forces. John doesn’t see what the big deal is all about.

 

We touch on goodness, truth, and beauty and link those back to the response to the ad.

 

In contrast to presentism, Tim offers his philosophy whereby we use the wisdom of the past to judge today, and in this case, we come up short.

 

Tim’s whack-job is anyone who uses the word “dog whistle” in a political discussion.

 

For his heroes, John highlights Rev. Robert Dowd, the President of Notre Dame, who visited Japan to promote peace as well as lawyers who defend the worst among us.

 

Referred to in this podcast:

Sydney Sweeney’s American Eagle Jeans Ad Is Just Her Latest Controversial Project - The New York Times

Social media meltdown over Sydney Sweeney's jeans ad, eugenics, Nazi dog whistle accusations, and over-wokeness, explained

Statement from University President Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C., on the anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima |

 

We’d love to hear from you.

 

What did we miss? Send trivia answers, comments or questions to IDEASFIRST@SUBSTACK.COM.

 

Please, share, comment, and subscribe.

 

Thanks for listening.

 



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ideasfirst.substack.com