Practical Utopia: Recent Episodes
Practical Utopia
Jon and Andy grew up in the same town, but have taken different paths through their lives. Jon is conservative, and Andy is liberal. Their hope is that long-form discussions on key issues may help expose people to points of view they may not otherwise hear, and to show that constructive dialogue and disagreement is a normal, healthy thing.
We continue our discussion of the pandemic, highlighting some members of the medical community whose voices were silenced-perhaps unjustly.
We have an open and honest conversation about the pandemic, and things we still question or need answers to.
Jon and Andy touch on some upcoming episodes involving some "hot button topics", and talk through the art of respectful disagreement.
We continue our discussion of men's mental health, focusing on our own mental health journeys.
Jon and Andy have an important conversation about men's mental health in this country, focusing on military veterans and our own mental health journeys (continued in part 2). CONTENT WARNING: DISCUSSION OF SUICIDE
Andy and Jon give an intro to the premise of the podcast, some background on where they came from, and the purpose of their journey.
On September 16, 2020, Dan Bryan joined a group that no one wants to ever be a part of. His son Ethan was 16 years old and on his way home from Fall baseball practice at West County High School outside Park Hills, MO when his vehicle collided head-on with a truck. Dan's grief was immense, and after Ethan's funeral, he was given a gift by the principal of West County High School. It was a book written by a man named Ethan D. Bryan about his year-long journey of playing catch with a different person every day for 365 days. When Dan found the energy to open up the book, he devoured the content. Late in 2021, Dan decided that he was going to embark on his own catch journey. He came up with the saying "Baseball Seams To Heal", and this is a little bit of insight into his journey and some things he has learned and experienced along the way.