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The Sim Prosperity Game

Nov 18 2010 2:16am

CS episode #188 isn't out yet, but I wanted to just suggest a specific idea to go along with one of the thoughts I included in the recent soon-to-be released episode.

In the show I had discussed the idea of having classes that American school children would have to take every year from the 6th grade onward through the end of high school that was focused in helping them take advantage of the powerful wealth-creating (or "prosperity-creating if you prefer) system we have in the U.S..  This is an idea that we have been pushing since the first season of Common Sense, but since talking about it today, new approaches and teaching tools keep flooding into my mind for options and methods that would make it such a more interesting, modern,  useful and (for the students themselves) fun and addictive learning tool.

Video games is what comes to mind first.  A sort of Sims-meets-Second Life-meets-The old board game The Game of Lifein a role-playing style that lets students figure out what they are good at (what sort of skills they bring to the table), what the like to do, and then let them attempt to make those goals reality while encountering obstacles and opportunities and tasks/quests (like "You must finish 2 years at a community college to achieve your next goal"). They should be confronted with real world challenges ("Must take 2 semesters of auto shop to gain the skills necessary for working in the automotive field") along with forks in the road forcing them to make hard choices.  They need to be confronted with wild cards too "Oh no! You are fired from your job!"  Or "You are discovered by a theatrical agent who offers you a part in a Broadway musical" or maybe even more controversial; "You find out your girlfriend is pregnant!"---all the while having a monthly financial burn rate determined by your housing costs and other spending habits (do you drive a fancy car? A clunker? Take the bus?).

What a great and engaging teaching tool this could be.  I could see it allowing kids to see where multiple outlets and individual decisions take them.  I think you could also throw in tools that helped the players figure out what talents they had, what they were good at, and also shoot for careers they liked that either sounded interesting, or that took them nearer to goals they had (like making money, or becoming famous performing). The obvious imitation of life's possibilities would also, inevitably, lead to some failures.  It would be a great tool to try to have to come back from such failures in the game and deal with the setbacks while developing "back-up" plans to implement if the primary plan fails or is significantly delayed (and as a way to try multiple solutions and then compare how well they worked out, or what their individual upsides and downsides of each choice was).

I love this idea the more I think about it.  I think it could be useful as hell if done right (and I have lots of ideas about it) I want 10% of the profits if anyone here does it!






"Common Sense" FLASHBACK EXTRA

Nov 02 2010 6:20pm

We know people would like it if we released more content, so we always look for ways to cheat a bit to satisfy the demand. This is obviously easier with Common Sense  than with Hardcore History, because we have so many more older shows to work with.

By "cheating" I mean repackaging older stuff and re-releasing it (under the assumption that the older it is, the less likely most people would have heard it already). Now the key to doing this is to try to find something that still has any relevance. With Hardcore History, this would be easier. Those shows have essentially an unlimited shelf-life.  Unfortunately Common Sense doesn't...yet that's the one with all the material lying around that we can most easily repackage.

So, just for fun, we found a couple of very old CS shows that seem to still be interesting to listen to today (although they made a lot of listeners mad at the time!). We discussed the subject of "Jobs" way back in January 2006, in two successive podcast episodes (CS #33 Jobs for Average Joes and CS #34 Bootcamps for Buttheads). So we spliced together the monologues from both those episodes into one "Common Sense Flashback Extra" for you all.

We have two separate links for downloads...one for phones, one for computers and the like. Hope you find it an enjoyable way to kill a little time. ;)

Here's the MP3 file (for computers and such):
http://www.dancarlin.com/clips/cswdca33-34jobs4.mp3

Here's the M4A link for iPhones/iPod Touch:
http://www.dancarlin.com/clips/cswdca33-34jobs4.m4a

Hope you like it! I wish we had the same trove of usable material to easily do this for the HH show too.






Deep into the Plak Tow

Oct 25 2010 5:16pm

Well, as some of you may have figured out from my current lack of involvement in the discussion board lately, we are deep into the insanity that normally accompanies the release of a new HH show.  Everything seems to go "on hold" when we get to this point.  A thousand apologies to all.

In addition, this Roman Republic topic is taking longer than expected (this is a now common problem. I am picking these grand historical stories...which I should  know will take forever to do, and then I always seem surprised when we figure out that fact).

The real irony (and sadness) of this series is that my original idea was to talk about Cleopatra.  Then we tried to think of how much background we needed to tell that story right, and we thought; "Well, you have to explain Caesar".  But to do THAT you have to explain the conditions that created Caesar, and so you get to Marius and Sulla (and THEY make no sense without the Grachii). So, that's how you get sucked into the black hole of the Roman Republic. Now, in order to not be doing "Death Throes of the Republic" #10 we have decided to end the series at Caesar's death, which, of course, means we are excising a ton of the Cleopatra stuff which was the whole original idea for doing all this!

But, I do believe that as often as the Fall of the Roman Republic is referenced in regards to the current state of the U.S. republic, this is good stuff to know and to talk about. My hope is that we can do this without it becoming boring. On the surface that would seem impossible (because it's a wild and woolly story), but there are lots of names, it's very political and it can get complicated.  Let's just say that it certainly is a challenge.  Hopefully we can pull it off (and hopefully without us having to have a gazillion editions of this series before we are done!)






Sharing an Obsession

Oct 05 2010 9:08pm

If you were to go into my office in my home, you would notice a piece of hardware on my wall that dominates the room and draws the eyes of anyone who enters to its form immediately. It is a multi-faceted thing; a work of art, a representation of history and a piece of classic and deadly engineering combined in one object. Even though I have only owned it for a few years, it has become a family heirloom, something I will bequeath to my children. It is a sword.

Several years ago there was a newspaper article that I ran across about an American company that was making real historical swords. It was run by people who were absolutely passionate about the process and the history, and they had brought on board one of the greatest living sword experts in the world to help them do it right. That guy's name is Peter Johnsson (from Sweden). When Johnsson joined with Albion swords he made them one of the premier swordmaking companies in the world. Johnsson's role was to design these historical swords so that they don't just look the way they are supposed to, but feel and perform the way they are supposed to as well. I was enthralled. Like many history enthusiasts, the idea of owning a real, functional sword (not a replica, but a recreation) had always been something that appealed to me. After going to Albion's website and seeing the many types of designs they offered (and reading the testimonials) I began to be a bit obsessed with the idea of owning one.

The thing that did me in though was a local knife show where representatives from Albion showed up with some of their swords. Once I actually held one in my hand, I was hooked. They have a slogan they use, "Hold History in your Hand" and that is just what it felt like for me. Some of the testimonials on their website mentioned an almost "mystical" feeling when first holding a real sword...and while that sounds hyperbolic, I won't deny that I too had a feeling that was hard to explain. Even though the sword was anything but inexpensive, I bought it then and there.

Since that time I have had many run-ins with the guys over at Albion. They are really like the Mercedes or Porsche of western Swordmakers...standing by the quality of their products and developing a reputation among real sword enthusiasts as the best in the business. Their customer service is second to none.

To paraphrase Bill Cosby, I told you all that to tell you this. The other day, for no apparent reason, I got a flash of inspiration. Albion doesn't really advertise. They don't have to. Everyone in the sword world knows their work. But I just kept getting this thought in my head that I knew that with my audience of history enthusiasts that I could sell a bunch of swords for them. Now, longtime listeners know that we usually run advertisements for Audible.com on our shows (and they are a wonderful company as well), but I got in touch with the guys at Albion and almost begged them to let me sell some swords for them. I told them I didn't want money for this...I just wanted another sword! After considering this for a while, they agreed to let me try.

This is not a slam dunk by any means. These swords are expensive. They are magnificent to look at and hang on the wall (an art form really), they are also fully functional and usable, they will last several lifetimes if treated right and each design actually performs with the style and handling that the historical originals their designs are based on did. The work put into these objects doesn't come cheap. If you find a sword for sale online for two or three hundred dollars, you can be sure that you are not getting a real quality piece of historical material. You cannot buy an Albion for that. When you actually see and hold one of their creations though, you would not think them overpriced at all. They make an amazing and unique gift (even if you are buying it for yourself).

I hope that Albion remains in business forever, since they have about thirty swords I would like to own someday. But because of the audience we have for both our podcasts, I have the opportunity to get my second sword from them by telling you about them. Both my wife, and "Ben" (if he really exists) are tired of hearing me sing their praises...so now you get to put up with me doing so. But if you are as much of a history nut as I am, you might just thank me for it. Check out their website ( http://www.albion-swords.com/ ). See the designs they offer. Read the testimonials of people who own them. Search for reviews online. It is a wonderful company, helping to revitalize the almost lost art of western historical sword making. If you have ever wanted to own a REAL sword, these are the people to buy it from. If you mention my name to them, they will give you a small discount (and they will know we are doing what we said we would do for them)

Check out these links. The first two are of a guy actually using the very sword I own (showing its functionality), the third is someone showing you how truly beautiful these things are to look at (and they have many more designs far more beautiful than this one!).

If I sound a bit...uh...obsessed by them, I hope you will forgive me. We all have our weaknesses.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ue47v0tXbM&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wgIhsWGQRk&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33vmaIKB9Uo

(you may have to copy the links into your web browser manually. Sorry.)

Finally!

Oct 04 2010 10:40am

The Mainstream Media has caught on! Nothing provides a better chance for success than when these people finally see the light.  Hallelujah.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/03/opinion/03friedman.html?_r=1&pagewanted=print

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