The Colin McEnroe Show

Ram Dass' 1971 book, "Be Here Now," was the gateway drug into spirituality for a lot of young people seeking answers in the era of Vietnam. Dass first tried being a psychology professor at Harvard, where he and colleague Timothy Leary sought God through experiments with psychedelics. Then, he went to India and found his guru, who taught him how to feel high without the drugs.  Many young people followed him to India, The chose to feed the hungry and serve the people, just as Ram Dass tended  to the dying, the blind, and the incarcerated. They searched for meaning away from the political tumult of 1960's America. There are parallels to today. Ram Dass died last month. But his words and life are inspiring a new generation of followers who are  using the teachings of Ram Dass to find something bigger than  the division and hatred evident in this political moment.  GUESTS:  Chris Grosso is a writer, public speaker, and author with Simon & Schuster. He’s also the host of The Indie Spiritualist Podcast on Ram Dass Be Here Now Network. Mirabai Bush - is a Senior Fellow of the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society and a founding board member with Ram Dass of the Seva Foundation. She is co-author with Ram Dass of Walking Each Other Home: Conversations on Loving and Dying Sharon Saltzberg is the Cofounder of the Insight Meditation Society in and the author of 10 books, including NYT bestseller, “Lovingkindness." Her newest book, “Real Change: Mindfulness To Heal Ourselves and the World,” will be published this summer.  Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

America and Iran have not had an easy relationship since 1979, when 52 Americans were held hostage for 444 days by students supporting the Iranian Revolution. The resulting rise of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini further weakened the relationship. Decades later, Iran is still seen by much of the democratic world through the lens of political tension, war and mistrust of political leaders who for decades have called for death to America and the destruction of Israel. Yet over those decades, the people and culture of Iran have been quietly changing at the grassroots level, unnoticed amid the amplified political rhetoric that has kept Iran divided from much of the world. Connecticut is home for many Iranians who make our state a more diverse and desirable place to live and work. Yet, we don't mingle with one another enough, sticking instead to those with whom we feel most comfortable. Maybe it's time we take another look at Iran.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

They're in the books we read, the shows we watch, and the art we hang on our walls. They conjure notions of might, magic, romance, and more. Castles, perhaps as much as any other architectural structure in history, define the landscape of our fantasy and imagination. But is our imagination an accurate lens through which to view these fortresses of ol'? And why, after hundreds of years, does our culture's fascination with these structures seem to be on the rise? This hour, we speak with experts and enthusiasts about the reality and mystique of castles. This show is the sixth part of a new experiment: Radio for the Deaf. Watch a simulcast of signers from Source Interpreting interpreting our radio broadcast in American Sign Language via Facebook Live.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last month, we launched a whole other show. It's a weekly show airing on Saturdays at noon and hitting your podcast feeds on Fridays most weeks hopefully. It's called Pardon Me (Another Damn Impeachment Show?). It's about all the latest trends and tech in the world of industrial welding. Wait, no. That's not right. It's about the impeachment, silly. And so this hour, in lieu of your regular Monday Colin McEnroe Show, we present to you the fifth episode of our new impeachment show, Pardon Me. It's a little bit of a new adventure for us, and we hope you'll come along for the ride. GUESTS: Vanessa Friedman - Fashion director and chief fashion critic for The New York Times Michael Gerhardt - The Burton Craige University Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence at the University of North Carolina School of Law in Chapel Hill and the author of several books including Impeachment: What Everyone Needs To Know Bill Yousman - Professor of media studies at Sacred Heart University Chion Wolf - Producer, photographer, and announcer at Connecticut Public Radio Thanks to Eugene Amatruda. Email us your questions at pardonme@ctpublic.org. Pardon Me is a production of The Colin McEnroe Show on Connecticut Public Radio.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President Obama's lists of his favorite books, movies, and TV shows of 2019 are out. They include a number of titles that are showing up on proper critics' lists -- The Irishman, The Last Black Man in San Francisco, Parasite, Unbelievable, Watchmen, etc. -- but there are some surprises too. At the same time, here are all the books President Trump recommended in 2019. One other movie that shows up on Obama's list is Greta Gerwig's new version of Little Women, which is being celebrated as "a cinematic achievement" and "a masterful, passionate, all-in kind of adaptation." Some other stuff that happened this week, give or take: The Best (and Worst) Food Trends From the Past Decade The Absolute Best Way to Fry an Egg, According to 42 Tests A Serious Conversation With the Man Who Made Cats Wait, What Went Down Between John Boyega and Star Wars Fans on Twitter Last Night? The Game of Thrones Creators Just Departed From Their Upcoming Star Wars Trilogy Bumble dating app blocked Sharon Stone after users thought her profile was fake This Toilet Patent Makes Workers Uncomfortable Taking Long Bathroom Breaks KISS Frontman Gene Simmons' Cereal Hack Is Melting Down Social Media Adam Sandler is the uniter we need right now Has J.K. Rowling figured out a way to break our cancel culture? GUESTS: Rebecca Castellani - A music writer for the Red Hook Star Revue Cara McDonough - A freelance writer; you can read her blog at caramcduna.com Carolyn Paine - An actress, comedian, and dancer; she is founder, director, and choreographer of CONNetic Dance Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Chion Wolf contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The stereotypes around homeschooling have existed for decades. Since the modern homeschooling movement began in the late 20th century, those who favored this educational approach have largely been perceived as white, anti-establishment, radically Christian, and ultra-conservative. But while this description does apply to some, the trend lines tell a different story. In recent years, homeschooling has been increasingly adopted by an ever more culturally and ideologically diverse segment of the population.  This hour we speak with experts about the realities, controversies, and efficacy of homeschooling.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since 2014, we've gathered some of our heaviest hitters in the jazz world to talk about the year in jazz. From concept albums to masked musicians to tunes unlike anything you've ever heard, enjoy some great songs from this last crazy trip around the sun!Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

During this perineum week in-between Christmas and the New Year, we decided to take your calls.  We thought about a lot of asking you to weigh in on some disturbing and heavy topics. In the end, and by popular demand, we decided to keep it lighter. That doesn't mean you can't call with a concern that weighs heavy on your mind. We just thought you could use a break.  We'll get you started with one guest talking about goats and Christmas trees. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cats -- the new feature film based on the musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and starring James Cordon, Judi Dench, Jennifer Hudson, Taylor Swift, and others -- opened last weekend and grossed $6.6 million in the U.S. It is the 19th-worst opening for any movie in very wide release in history. The 18 movies that opened to less money on a similar number of screens are mostly a bunch of stuff that you don't remember ever existed: Hoot, The Seeker: Dark Rising, Fun Size, Hardcore Henry, Keeping Up with the Joneses, The Wild Thornberrys Movie, etc. Oh, and I forgot to say: In addition to being a financial disaster, Cats is also... terrible. It earned a C+ CinemaScore from audiences (which is really bad). And it's at 18% on the Tomatometer (which is really rotten). It's so bad that Universal released an updated version to theaters early this week that has hopefully slightly less bad special effects. Plus: This is the last Nose of 2019. (It's the last Nose of the 2010s, even!) And so we might just spend some time talking about our favorite stuff of the year -- movies, television, books, music, kitchen gadgets, barbershops -- whatever.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We wake up to coffee from a pod, listen to music on our pod devices, drive to work in our Smart cars, Fiats, or other increasingly pod-shaped vehicles, sit all day in a cubicle (pod), relax after work in a hip, new float pod, wash our clothes using detergent pods, and while we wait for them to dry, we listen to our favorite podcast. Sound about right? What is it about pods that we're so drawn to? And why do an increasing number of our products and services all feature the word pod in their name? Is it possible the pod's slick, liminal aesthetic, or the allure of its Pandorian promise holds some sway over our subconscious? Might Freud have something to say about its curvature, or its role in nature as a place of transformation, emergence, and ultimately independence? Perhaps it's the pod's minimalism and symmetry which appeal to us as we negotiate an increasingly chaotic world. Or is it simply an efficient design suited to meet the needs of our busy lives? This hour, we speak with experts and discuss the mystery of the pod in consumer- and pop-culture. We'll also look back over recent history and explore the possibility that we are, and always have been, pod-people! GUESTS: Blanka Domagalska - Lecturer at Otis College of Art and Design teaching courses on product Design, with expertise in art history, media and cultural theory, philosophy and aesthetic liminality Elvina Beck - Co-founder and CEO of Podshare, a membership based real estate startup designed to allow low cost pod living in major cities Kotaro Aoki: Former philosophy major at Wesleyan University and self professed pod napper Jim Knipfel - Novelist and author of a series of critically acclaimed memoirs including Slackjaw, Quitting the Nairobi Trio, and Ruining It for Everybody; he also authored the longrunning "Slackjaw" column which appeared in several publications Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe and Chion Wolf contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.