When Connection Becomes Performance (Part II)

The conclusion to Matt's and my conversation about the Internment during WWII and what it means for Americans and the world today. Not only what happened but why we should care and continue to study this period, even eighty years later... are we really so far removed from the country that incarcerated a whole 'race' of people that we're not liable to do it again?If you didn't listen to the previous episode, I highly highly highly recommend you listen to that one before this one...we don't do much of a recap but jump right in where we left off, so you might miss quite a lot by starting with Ep. 4.Matt's professional bio is available here: https://pages.palomar.edu/mestes/For books mentioned, here's George Takei's graphic memoir about his own experience during the Internment: https://amzn.to/4sARXtEAnd Farewell to Manzanar by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston: https://amzn.to/4vtz66NA great place to start learning more about the Japanese-American Internment and experience is densho.org. https://www.densho.org

Mark Twain once quipped that history doesn't "repeat...but if often rhymes."This week on The Last Question I talk with history professor Matt Estes about a period in U.S. history that I think is often overlooked but could be remarkably instructive in our present day.Professor Estes teaches history at Palomar College near San Diego and is a historian whose own history is interwoven with the history he studies. He's a long-time friend and once was my high school world history teacher; today he remains a go-to resource for me in my own work and today as someone well-qualified to speak to the experience of Japanese-American families imprisoned by their own country after the Japanese Empire's attack at Pearl Harbor in 1941.Matt's professional bio is available here: https://pages.palomar.edu/mestes/For books mentioned in this week's episode, here's George Takei's graphic memoir about his own experience during the Internment: https://amzn.to/4sARXtEAnd Farewell to Manzanar by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston: https://amzn.to/4vtz66NA great place to start learning more about the Japanese-American Internment and experience is densho.org. https://www.densho.org

I recorded this one sort of on a whim, though as much to maintain my self-imposed weekly rhythm as to keep a previous plan to share some words of wisdom from St. Porphyrios of Kavsokalyvia. I think my encountering the experience and recent trials of Ben Sasse and his family only add urgency to the question of what I (and you?) are doing with our time remaining and whether the "evil" we're fighting is the right target for our attention.As for Mr. Sasse, you should listen to his recent interview with New York Times contributor Ross Douthat, linked here: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/09/opinion/ben-sasse-death-pancreatic-cancer.htmlYou can learn more about St. Porphyrios here or from the 2003 book Wounded by Love, which I read from in this episode.If you're at all curious about my writing or topics we've touched on previously, find me on Substack at The Original (aclazarus.substack.com).Thanks for listening, and/or watching, and your support. 🙏

Simple enough question, isn't it? When all we seem good at is hating one another, then why not lean into it? But we also don't seem to hate the same folks all the time; we move and adjust and adapt to our surroundings (and fears). So I figured I'd ask, who's it gonna be tomorrow?The Last Question is back in what I'm calling "Season Three," though I wasn't ever too serious about "seasons" before. Clearly the show's first and (stalled) second iterations have come and gone and we're onto something else; something new; something much closer to the kind of work I want to do and that I think is important.This first episode talks a bit about the show, the near future, and a couple books you need to check out for yourself. In the meantime, consider these links to learn more about where I'm coming from and the creators I mention in the episode!ACLazarus on Substack and YouTube.Vesper Stamper on Substack or her website.Dr. Alan Harrelson on Substack, YouTube, or at the Pipe Cottage.Stay tuned for more questions and conversations with interesting people...on all sorts of stuff.

This is the story I had to share; this is the story that brought TLQ back.Abbot Fr. Gherasim Iscu will be glorified as saint by the Romanian Church in 2025. Forgive me for referring to him as a saint in the interim; it's hard to find another example quite like him.Christian or not, "spiritual" or not, you need to hear this. For the full story, visit: https://orthochristian.com/148639.html.Visit my Substack newsletter, The Original; and if you like my work and are willing and able, consider subscribing or becoming a paid supporter.May God bless and keep you and thank you. 🙏

More than two years since I've recorded an episode...and oh how things have changed.This is take three of what was supposed to be a short teaser of things to come. I'm back to the podcast, and to writing and publishing online, but for very different reasons than where I was this time two or three years ago.While TLQ will always remain free, I've released my first video to supplement the audio episode for paid supporters of my Substack newsletter The Original. Would love if you came over and gave it a read and let me know what you think (even, or especially, if you think it sucks). In the meantime, stay tuned for a story I think everyone needs to hear--no matter what you believe, or even if you don't know what you believe. It's that important.arunlazarus.substack.com

For leaders in uniform, or not. Doesn't matter where you work or what you do...if you want to "succeed" in an uncertain future...or, you might say, win the future war no one's imagined yet, think about these three things: devolve, flex, and fail.Thanks, as always, for your support and listening. I'm expanding my work on this podcast and through Decoherence, my platform on Substack. Check it out and consider supporting through a subscription if you like the conversations we're having and value asking tough questions, no matter how hard the answers might be.

Concluding the two-parter, back to talk about our subconscious narratives and how I fell afoul of mine and into the trap of "personal branding," "social media," and the performance art of today's digital discourse.Click here to listen to Bari Weiss interviewing Jonathan Haidt on her podcast, "Honestly." Referenced this week.Full link:https://www.honestlypod.com/podcast/episode/1f94f74c/why-the-past-10-years-of-american-life-have-been-uniquely-stupid

You and me this week, talking about career transition...and the story embedded deep within us. Does it drive our decisions, or do our decisions fulfill its outcomes? Aren't those the same question?Didn't plan a two-part episode, but we went farther down the rabbit hole that I thought. That's what makes it fun, after all...stay tuned for Part II coming next week!Click here to watch Jordan Peterson's interview of OSU professor Angus Fletcher. Full URL below:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ytoU1ZXjJw&t=3s

It's you and me this week! Missed recording for last week, back today talking about where I was and what's coming up for 2022.