This is Dennis McMahon and welcome to Positively Vermont Today my special guest is Ali Richards the CEO of the Permanent Fund for Vermont's children Welcome Ali. Thank you so much. It's a pleasure to be here. Thank you And this is a very important issue and a very interesting organization that you're heading But first tell us a little bit about yourself. Sure. I Grew up in Vermont little town called Newberry I went to Oxford High School and actually got my first taste of the political policy world as a high school student I was the student member on the State Board of Education appointed by Governor Dean So that was sort of a very interesting to see how important it is to have Internships opportunities like that As a young person to really see the world and your place in it and what you might be able to contribute I went out of state for college and then I ended up working in Washington, DC For a couple years still thinking about politics trying to have the biggest impact I could as a younger person ended up working on the first Obama presidential campaign and After he was elected. I was really a little bit disenfranchised by the lack of civil discourse and work happening productive work happening Down at the federal government. So I actually ran home as fast as I could to really make a difference So that's I was so pleased to have a place like Vermont to come back to and really be able to To work on something that I really feel passionately about I worked in the governor's office under governor Shumlin for a few years and did a lot of Policy work mostly ended up turning into an education work as education rose to the top as one of these key fundamental aspects of our state that we need to focus on and Really learned a lot in that role and then transitioned over to run the permanent fund about two and a half years ago Right well tell us about the fund. What exactly thoughts about its history? I understand it's very interesting great So the permanent fund for Vermont's children. It was founded in the year 2000 by some business Men and women who decided they wanted to have the greatest possible impact on the future of Vermont a state that they loved And so they ended up focusing on early childhood education and not everybody makes that leap right off the bat So why if you care deeply about the sustainable future for the state is early childhood education your single focus? and it really comes down to this logic model of What we know about the science and the research the brain science shows you that 80 percent of a child's brain and the foundation of sort of their future success and resiliency against Chronic disease or addictive behaviors executive function the ability to sort of manage emotions and handle complex situations is really Fully in place by age three that's 80 percent of that foundation and 90 percent of the foundation by age five So if these are the most crucial years in a child and family's life Where are kids in Vermont? And that's a question. That's also true for this the whole country And the truth is you know, there have been many changes We don't make any statement whether it makes sense to be in the workforce or not We just went to the data and seven out of ten kids in Vermont under six have all available Caretakers or parents in the workforce, which means they're just no longer at home during these crucial years for the most part And so we'll get into this in a little bit later, I think but we started looking then at well, okay, if they're not at home, where are they and We saw that we almost had a crisis level of the amount of Childcare regulated childcare that was available to this population in need and then how much of that was actually affordable for families And how much of that was high quality? And so our mission of high quality affordable Childcare for all who need it in Vermont by 2025 came from that logic model of we really want to have a thriving future for our state of Vermont and here's a linchpin issue sort of a root cause issue So just a little bit more about the history because it is sort of interesting and it has been now 18 years We're a supporting organization of the Vermont Community Foundation. So they we are affiliated with them. They're our back office and We partner with them on many things and then the founders sort of started by saying, let's just pool sort of lots of different folks that are interested in early childhood who have done philanthropic work in early childhood and Target sort of a policy issue that we think we can really move the needle on so they started experimenting on how to make the biggest impact using philanthropy in early childhood education and The first way to do it was Leveraging each other's resources. So let's pool some funding We've all been doing this work for you know a while in this space and we haven't moved the needle on Quality access or affordability for zero to five high quality early childhood education. So let's let's see what we can do So at that time They pooled this was in about 2005 When they sort of starting it started experimenting of how to make a really big difference in this area They pooled resources and created the Vermont Community preschool collaborative Which is one of the projects of the permanent fund partnered with the Turrell fund and Hennerson Foundation and other early childhood partners and They said okay Well, we want to take the pre-k law that's on the books and it's voluntary You can it's voluntary for a town to offer pre-k and they said well It's very hard for a town to start offering pre-k because even though they're allowed to it's not mandatory And you don't get funding for it until the second year So what this philanthropic group was able to do with some resources and being nimble was say, okay We're gonna go town to town give startup grants build relationships connect the dots and before you knew it 20% of communities had been offering pre-k 80% started offering pre-k because of the work we were doing in communities and that led to this idea of for policy makers Well, wait a minute now It depends where you happen to wake up in the morning if you have access to pre pre kindergarten education That's an equity issue and we really tried to prefer to not do that in Vermont when possible So that led to a universal pre-k law Which we now have in Vermont was the first state in the country to have a universal pre-k law for three and four-year-olds With a sustainable funding source. So what was what does that mean? It means higher quality and more affordable for families in Vermont so now we have You know 80% almost of our Students I think actually it's 73% as of the last census who are three and four-year-olds are that are eligible for for pre-k Are actually taking advantage of it It's amazing and the study show that that pre-k really is such a tremendous heads up Advantage I was involved in pre-k programs in another state and we were replicating grants We finally established one and Just the benefits are amazing Absolutely, and that's something that's interesting a lot of people approach this work from different angles some Just see that this is sort of a almost a moral imperative This is what kids and families need and some say well, you know what there's also a cold hard capitalist case for this too It's one of the best return on investments. You can possibly get as you're saying Dennis, you know, it's this idea of If you if you help kids and families Between in this crucial age of their development zero to five, you know, you save down the road on health care costs You save on even substance abuse You can save on special education and other areas. So it sort of depressurizes costs Down the road So we actually worked with the Vermont business roundtable a couple years ago and did a return on investment study And we showed that in Vermont if you actually made the investment to create a system of high-quality Affordable early childhood education zero to five It would be a sort of one to three return on investment just the tip of the iceberg with the data We had available to us which is pretty pretty good as as return on investments go We have a very very good the website which really explains all the problems in fact There's some alarming statistics shown there the way they grow the 70 80 90 percent What if you could explain that again? Absolutely, so one of the first things that we did when we decided our mission is high-quality affordable Early care and learning for all by 2025. That's one other thing I wanted to mention earlier actually at your question of the history of the permanent fund We've given ourselves a deadline of 2025 and I can tell you you know running this organization Nothing holds people's feet to the fire my own included like a deadline So we've created that urgency for ourselves and a very focused mission with a very focused deadline And we're marching forward sort of to that date And we actually will go away the permanent fund will go away in 2025 a little funny right with the permanent fund So and it's I almost like that because it makes me sort of explain We're the permanent fund for the we're trying to create permanent lasting change that will live on beyond our lifetime We're using philanthropy as a change agent for this lasting change So so that's sort of our deadline in our mission and one of the first things we said was we need to understand The population the universe the data Before we can even set out to figure out our strategy and how we're gonna get this done So we did a real high-level Census-based supply and demand analysis, which I think is what you're referring to and That's where we realized seven out of ten kids just to create our sort of you know demand Number seven out of ten kids under six in Vermont have all available parents in the workforce But half of those do not have access to regulated care and only a third is considered quality So I think some of these numbers we just renewed this report It's called the stalled at the start report and we found that um 51% of Vermont infants and toddlers that are likely to need care do not have access to any regulated program and 77% of that group don't have access to high quality programming and it for infants Which are our babies? It's even worse so 98% of Infants likely to need care in some counties do not have access to child care. So as you can sort of see We do have a bit of a crisis on our hands with how much child care is available How much is and how much is quality and then for affordability many many families can't Afford this some pay up to 40% of their gross household income on child care more than housing or other Parts of their household budgets and you mentioned the word quality now. How is that in short other state regulations? Or how do you get involved with that? Great question? quality One way to talk about it is sort of what it actually looks like on the ground. It's a nurturing consistent caregiver with Friendly and stimulating bright environment exposure to lots of vocabulary And different activities outdoor play and an outdoor space Nutritious food. So there are sort of these elements of what does it actually look like to really get that high quality for this return on investment? These outcomes for these kids that we're looking for and And actually, you know a part of it is is really health care related Access to developmental screenings and then referrals into other services. So the ultimate sort of prevention and early intervention So that's that's quality and it's rate. It's there. We have what's called our star system. It's a Step-ahead recognition system and so that's what what is called our quality rating system But we actually call it a recognition system And so it's voluntary But you basically as a program you earn points in the quality system and it's state regulated through the agency of human services And you have to meet certain requirements and minimum standards And then there are also some federal Requirements as well and head start for is a great example of a very high quality program that has, you know, even higher standards That is for low-income Zero to five year olds tell us some of the projects your groups that involved in in the past and what are your current projects great great question and So for example, the pre-k work was one example of a type of project We would do and the other one was we did peer-to-peer mentoring So we created a cohort of very high quality early childhood educators in the state of Vermont And we paid them to go out and work with their peers in childcare programs and pre-k programs to improve their quality and We went from 14% just so quickly on the sort of background side You know early childhood education happens in a few different settings. It happens in homes home-based child care It happens in centers and happens in public programs pre-k classrooms And and so we did a mentoring program and on the home-based providers. We realized we had a bit of a gap They needed some support Didn't have access to a lot of mentoring or resources and only 14% of home-based providers were even Participating in the quality rating system. So we did our mentoring work and move that to 78% of home-based child care In the star system and it's actually holding there. So we did another analysis last year and said We're actually moving the needle on quality of current child care But when we look at these numbers like you say they're alarming we do not have enough physical child care So it's great the quality is going up, but it's not gonna work for anyone if they can't access it So we've actually pivoted to what's called make way for kids And it's a grant and technical assistance program Which actually we're going community by community and we're increasing the number of child high quality child care spaces for children and our goal is actually to increase 500 new places for kids zero to five this year alone, and you know, it's really exciting Dennis as we just got our Applications back from that. We weren't sure if there was a Network of folks out there in Vermont who really wanted to open child care expand their child care centers their pre-case and we had an overwhelming response of people from Incredible backgrounds who said I've always wanted to do this and I just needed a little support So it's small startup grants and it's a team that comes in and looks at your situation locally and in your program Helps you with a business model helps connect dots to businesses to health care hospitals higher-ed institutions and say how can we actually make this work for us in this town and I also want to mention If our mission is high-quality affordable early care and learning The way that we do that in the permanent fund is through let's grow kids, which is a public awareness Public will campaign. It's really a movement building a movement and then there's Vermont birth to five So those are our sort of signature projects and if you want to think about it, you know, let's grow kids is this You know high-level strategy of changing the way we do business in the state of Vermont getting Vermonters To be a part of this movement to understand the importance of child care in their lives And then on the other side from on birth to five and they work very closely together Is actually doing program work in the state? So technical assistance professional development grants to improve the quality of child care the accessibility of child care And also streamline the system to make sure that it is as efficient as possible Those those two programs look very successful Could you give us some examples of how those programs have changed things for people you've been working with? Absolutely, actually and and thank you for that question. So let's grow kids is a little different. It's sort of You know, how do you measure something before you've reached your success of changing state policy to add public investment? You know and and create sort of a different policy Context for this this situation. So we've had to sort of I always say, how do you digest the elephant? How do you break it into these chunks because that's a pretty big mission that we're after the whole thing is a big It's pretty big. That's right. It's a it's a large enterprise and And you know, so let's grow kids We've had to say well, how are we as you say changing the hearts and minds and making progress one example is The media, you know, when we first started no one was really talking about early child education pre-k child care and Now we get about five to ten stories in the press a week You know it changes week to week, but we have on average, you know every week that goes by we have some stories on the brain Development on the shortage of child care programs You know on various sort of things that are moving through the legislature that affect this issue So it's all of a sudden elevated into people's consciousness consciousness and you know Vermont edition had a great episode a couple weeks ago about getting young people to move to the state of Vermont and Childcare dominated that issue with callers and others who said well wait a minute. Why aren't we talking about child care? You know, no other state has this right. Could you just imagine the effect? High quality affordable child care as a policy would have on getting young families and businesses to move to Vermont We really have a chance to corner the market on this and it will really help our demographic Challenges that we're facing as a state. So so that's one piece of let's her kids another one is You know the funding into the system two years ago We started working with our sort of advocacy apparatus and we helped work with partners to get a million dollars increase Annually into the system, which is just really a small step It's a significant funding but for for high quality affordable child care, you know, sort of a very first step then We saw it elevated to a gubernatorial issue another great example of how we're changing sort of the needle Both Sue Minter and Phil Scott when they were running for governor made this one of their key issues in their campaigns And really elevated it and then when Governor Scott was elected He made this the largest increase of any area in his first budget address So not he proposed nine point six million dollars increased into child care and we ended up working together to get two point five Which is still a big step up in a very tough, you know budget year Right here in Burlington Mayor Weinberger has also really taken on this issue and understands economic development the workforce development implications of it and he has reallocated $500,000 to create high quality affordable slots for low-income families in Burlington alone annually So you're starting to see things pop up. We're seeing businesses step up And really, you know say how can I be a part of this problem? I we thought we might have a little bit of a you know a Pitch to make with businesses to see how important is this to your to your bottom line to your workforce? And we didn't we started working with businesses and they said You got us we see every single day how the lack and of the lack of affordable and accessible child care is really affecting The absenteeism and the recruitment and retention of our employees and not to mention their sort of productivity throughout the day so We you know have these wonderful businesses all across Vermont in all different sectors and all different sizes stepping up to say How can we be a part of this solution here? Well notice there's a word there. It's a very interesting website collaborative philanthropy. Mm-hmm. Tell us what that's about So that's I would say one of our key strengths about sort of the culture of the permanent fun and who we are So we happen to be sort of the on-the-ground operator, but we would not be here today without other family foundations individuals There's two things about our name that are a little misleading. One is the word permanent And the other one is fun because we're actually not in doubt. We fundraise annually for our work And yes, yes for our expenses. That's right for let's grow kids from up birth to five the staffing in the grant-making and and we Really work very closely with other funders So again individuals and mostly family foundations all with ties to Vermont And the Turl fund and the 80 Henderson Foundation are two funders who again have been in this space for a long time decades and have really sort of worked to Help us leverage Funding and make a much bigger difference when we sort of came together and pooled resources and pooled sort of our brains and our Experiences in the field and in this work. Well, you could really see it was sort of a catalytic event that shot us to the next level Creating Vermont birth to five let's grow kids And really putting us on a path to actually be able to move on this really ambitious But achievable goal in the time frame that we've set out for that's amazing What are the issues we're now almost in the middle of the legislative session and what are the issues you're pushing today? Another great question. So, okay, this is this is the again how to digest the elephant Money does public investment is needed because currently how do we pay for? You know today high quality early child education. There's some federal money very little federal money that comes in There's some state funding and through pre-k Which is more significant now and child care financial assistance and then parents pay in many cases Much more than they can afford and then the rest of it is sort of on the backs of those who provide it in other words childcare providers don't take a livable wage and In some cases You know the average I believe is twenty six thousand dollars as an annual salary for childcare providers So and they know they can't charge parents anymore Because they're already charging them too much in many cases childcare providers Don't take salaries or benefits because they're trying to balance their budget and not charge parents more So something's got to give in this business model and that's you know, some public investment is certainly going to make a difference here so currently there is a bill to well, there's a work in the legislature Through the budget to increase 9.6 million dollars for childcare financial assistance and that is just to keep up with inflation So we are nine nine point six million dollars behind in inflation for our current funding mechanism That's childcare financial assistance. So that is a first step if you were able to make an investment like that today It's a it's it's the first big step in the right direction to creating the system And then it allows the field to adjust because there are a lot of market factors here so it allows them to sort of hire up and and You know really start improving their quality and starting to get parents to be able to afford Their services, that's great. We have a wonderful website and there's a great deal of information on that And I'm sure that you're available for people to contact you and Just maybe tell our guests in the studio audience and in broad What what you like as a parting message? Well, I guess I would say We are trying as I said earlier We are trying to change the way that we do business as a state of Vermont So we need Vermonters to be a part of this movement. You can sign our petition. Let's go at let's grow kids .org You can talk to your legislators You can be a part of figuring out the solution to this thorny problem and then moving it forward If you're a business you can work with us to see how you can support your own child care needs for your employees And I would just say the most important thing is be a part of the solution join the campaign And you know if you're an early childhood educator or provider you can be in touch with us with our grant making program But really we need to say as a state of Vermont that we're gonna get this done And it's gonna be a really collective effort. That's great. Well, thank you very much. My special guest today has been Ali Richards Thank you Ali CEO of the permanent fund for Vermont's children And this is Dennis McMahon for positively Vermont


High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending by Emily Bronte Read for LibriVox.org by Adam Carroll High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending Midnight and moonlight in bright shining stars Darkness and glory rejoicingly blending Earth rising to heaven and heaven descending Man's spirit away from its drear dungeon sending Bursting the fetters and breaking the bars All down the mountain sides wild forests lending One mighty voice to the life-giving wind Rivers their banks and their jubilee rending Fast through the valleys a reckless course wending Wider and deeper their waters extending Leaving a desolate desert behind Shining and lowering and swelling and dying Changing forever from midnight to noon Roaring like thunder like soft music sighing Shadows on shadows advancing and flying Lightning bright flashes the deep gloom defying Coming as swiftly and fading as soon High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending by Emily Bronte Read for LibriVox.org by Betsy Bush April 2008 High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending Midnight and moonlight in bright shining stars Darkness and glory rejoicingly blending Earth rising to heaven and heaven descending Man's spirit away from its drear dungeon sending Bursting the fetters and breaking the bars All down the mountain sides wild forests lending One mighty voice to the life-giving wind Rivers their banks and their jubilee rending Fast through the valleys a reckless course wending Fast through the valleys a reckless course wending Fast through the valleys a reckless course wending Fast through the valleys a reckless course wending Rivers their banks in their jubilee rending Fast through the valleys a reckless course wending Wider and deeper their waters extending Leaving a desolate desert behind Shining and lowering and swelling and dying Changing forever from midnight to noon Roaring like thunder like soft music sighing Shadows on shadows advancing and flying Lightning bright flashes and a deep gloom defying Coming as swiftly and fading as soon End of poem this recording is in the public domain High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending by Emily Bronte Read for LibriVox.org by Brianna Roup A date is Saturday, April 12th, 2008 It is 1054 a.m. and I'm coming from Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending Midnight and moonlight and bright shining stars Darkness and glory rejoicingly blending Earth rising to heaven and heaven descending Man's spirit away from its dreared dungeon sending Bursting and feathers and breaking the bars All down the mountain sides wild forests Lending one mighty voice to the life-giving wind Rivers that banks in their jubilee rending Fast through the valleys a reckless course wending Wider and deeper their waters extending Leaving a desolate desert behind Shining and lowering and swelling and dying Changing forever from midnight to noon Roaring like thunder like soft music sighing Shadows on shadows advancing and flying Lightning bright flashes a deep gloom divine Coming as swiftly and fading as soon End of poem. This recording is in the public domain High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending by Emily Bronte Read for LibriVox.org by Eleanor Matheson in Orlando, Florida High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending Midnight and moonlight and bright shining stars Darkness and glory rejoicingly blending Earth rising to heaven and heaven descending Man spirit away from its drear dungeon sending Bursting the fetters and breaking the bars All down the mountain sides wild forests lending One mighty voice to the life-giving wind Rivers that banks in their jubilee rending Fast through the valleys a reckless course wending Wider and deeper their waters extending Leaving a desolate desert behind Shining and lowering and swelling and dying Changing forever from midnight to noon Roaring like thunder like soft music sighing Shadows on shadows advancing and flying Lightning bright flashes a deep gloom defying Coming as swiftly and fading as soon End of poem. This recording is in the public domain High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending by Emily Bronte Read for LibreVox.org by Eloise Oizon High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending Midnight and moonlight and bright shining stars Darkness and glory rejoicingly blending Earth rising to heaven and heaven descending Man spirit away from its drear dungeon sending Bursting the fetters and breaking the bars All down the mountain sides wild forests lending One mighty voice to the life-giving wind Rivers that banks in their jubilee rending Fast through the valleys a reckless course wending Wider and deeper their waters extending Leaving a desolate desert behind Shining and lowering and swelling and dying Changing forever from midnight to noon Roaring like thunder like soft music sighing Shadows on shadows advancing and flying Lightning bright flashes a deep gloom defying Coming as swiftly and fading as soon End of poem. This recording is in the public domain High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending by Emily Bronte Read for LibriVarx.org by Kristen Hughes High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending Midnight and moonlight and bright shining stars Darkness and glory rejoicingly blending Earth rising to heaven and heaven descending Man spirit away from its drear dungeon sending Bursting the fetters and breaking the bars All down the mountainsides wild forests Lending one mighty voice to the life-giving wind Rivers that banks in their jubilee rending Fast through the valleys a reckless course wending Wider and deeper their waters extending Leaving a desolate desert behind Shining and lowering and swelling and dying Changing forever from midnight to noon Roaring like thunder like soft music sighing Shadows on shadows advancing and flying Lightning bright flashes a deep gloom defying Coming as swiftly and fading as soon End of poem. This recording is in the public domain High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending by Emily Bronte Read for LibriVarx.org by Leanne Howlett High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending Midnight and moonlight and bright shining stars Darkness and glory rejoicingly blending Earth rising to heaven and heaven descending Man spirit away from its drear dungeon sending Bursting the fetters and breaking the bars All down the mountainsides wild forests Lending one mighty voice to the life-giving wind Rivers, their banks and their jubilee rending Fast through the valleys a reckless course wending Wider and deeper their waters extending Leaving a desolate desert behind Shining and lowering and swelling and dying Changing forever from midnight to noon Roaring like thunder like soft music sighing Shadows on shadows advancing and flying Lightning bright flashes a deep gloom defying Coming as swiftly and fading as soon End of poem This recording is in the public domain High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending by Emily Bronte Read for LibriVarx.org by Mark Smith High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending Midnight and moonlight and bright shining stars Darkness and glory rejoicingly blending Earth rising to heaven and heaven descending Man spirit away from its drear dungeon sending Bursting the fetters and breaking the bars All down the mountainsides wild forests Lending one mighty voice to the life-giving wind Rivers, their banks and their jubilee rending Fast through the valleys a reckless course wending Wider and deeper their waters extending Leaving a desolate desert behind Shining and lowering and swelling and dying Changing forever from midnight to noon Roaring like thunder like soft music sighing Shadows on shadows advancing and flying Lightning bright flashes a deep gloom defying Coming as swiftly and fading as soon End of poem This recording is in the public domain High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending by Emily Bronte High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending Midnight and moonlight and bright shining stars Darkness and glory rejoicingly blending Earth rising to heaven and heaven descending Man spirit away from its drear dungeon sending Bursting the fetters and breaking the bars All down the mountainsides wild forests Lending one mighty voice to the life-giving wind Rivers, their banks and their jubilee rending Fast through the valleys of reckless course wending Wider and deeper their waters extending Leaving a desolate desert behind Shining and lowering and swelling and dying Changing forever from midnight to noon Roaring like thunder like soft music sighing Shadows on shadows advancing and flying Lightning bright flashes a deep gloom defying Coming as swiftly and fading as soon End of poem This recording is in the public domain High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending by Emily Bronte Read for LibriVox.org by Rachel Linton Bristol, UK High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending Midnight and moonlight and bright shining stars Darkness and glory rejoicingly blending Earth rising to heaven and heaven descending Man's spirit away from its dreared dungeons Sending bursting the fetters And breaking the bars All down the mountainsides wild forests Lending one mighty voice to the life-giving wind Rivers, their banks and their jubilee rending Fast through the valleys A reckless course wending Wider and deeper their waters extending Leaving a desolate desert behind Shining and lowering and swelling and dying Changing forever from midnight to noon Roaring like thunder like soft music sighing Shadows on shadows advancing and flying Lightning bright flashes the deep gloom Defying, coming as swiftly and fading as soon End of poem. This recording is in the public domain High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending by Emily Bronte Read for LibriVox.org by Sergio Baldelli Rome 2008 High-Waving Heather Needs Stormy Blasts Bending Midnight and moonlight and bright shining stars Darkness and glory rejoicingly blending Earth rising to heaven and heaven descending Man's spirit away from its dreared dungeons Sending bursting the fetters And breaking the bars All down the mountain sides Why the forests slending One mighty voice to the life-giving wind Rivers, their banks and their jubilee rending Fast through the valleys A reckless course wending Wider and deeper their waters extending Leaving a desolate desert behind Shining and lowering and swelling and dying Changing forever from midnight to noon Roaring like thunder like softer music sighing Shadows on shadows advancing and flying Lightning bright flashes the deep gloom Defying, coming as swiftly and fading as soon End of poem. This recording is in the public domain


Fabiano, a draw with Hikaru with the black pieces. We had him in earlier He was quite surprised with your choice of the Queen's Gambit accepted.  It wasn't I mean it wasn't Something that I thought up just before the game. I played against Anishin in London and you know, I liked the opening I thought it would come as a bit of a surprise to him because it is still a very rare choice in my repertoire and I was hoping that he would go for Say it a premature attack in the game But um, but he played pretty solidly he took on C5 and went for the ending and Now when yesterday the pairings came out you were not exactly very happy to have a double black against Hikaru But the game went pretty well for you. How do you feel going into the last round with the white pieces? I mean my chances to win the tournament are pretty much over I mean, I'm probably like a point behind and and I can't count on everyone losing So but I mean that probably ended when I when I lost to Nigel So I just want to play, you know, I think after I lost Nigel I played like three pretty good games At least no no big mistakes or anything So if I just you know finish on a decent note, then they'll be fine fine for me Right now for a good finish at the end you would have to probably go a bit all out tomorrow. I Mean I have white. I hope So So I shouldn't do anything crazy. I mean I I think I'll have chances to play normally and press for a win Right now just coming back to today's game. Where do you think he could have missed his chances? Or how are you able to equalize so quickly with black? Yeah, I I mean the Quincy I'm accepted is very it's just very solid and even the ending white has a very small advantage But if black plays well, it's usually symbolic Why don't we see it so much at the top level then? I'm not I'm not sure, you know the the most recent game I can remember where which was extremely theoretically important at the top level was Kremlin Karyakin from the candidates and you know, they played this very critical e4 line and And white scored a pretty convincing victory So maybe that game or some others, you know convince players that that it's not such a That it's not the best opening, but I think that you know, it's it works pretty well Right. Well, we wish you all the best for the last game. Hope to see you tomorrow back in the studio. Thanks


Matt here for Lately Sports Cars ripping two boxes for Chad C. We have one box of 21-22 mosaic basketball fast break and one box of 2022-23 chronicles basketball. Again, these are for Chad C. Good luck, Chad. Start off with your mosaic fast break. Luke S is up after this. Luke, Simon, Chris, Joshua, Scott, Morley, and then I'm able to, depending on what time that one ends, I might be able to get Terrence's in too before I'm done for the day. I'm just coming a debut and Luca. It's Porzingis Disco and Aldama and Jalen Suggs, National Pride rookie. Well, Chad, let's see a big hit for you. Jalen Suggs, National Pride rookie disco. We'll do Diallo and fast break Otto, Devin Macel, Christopher, and Thor. Blue Disco, Taylor and Horton Tucker, Kominga, Rookie, Tray Murphy, Scotty Barnes debut, Josh Giddy, Rookie, Santial Dama, Rookie Disco, and Jonathan Kominga, Rookie. Is that a variation? Yep, that is the Rookie Variation Kominga, Luns Wagner, and Cameron Thomas. That was a yokish face there. Damian Lillard, Mosaic, Parallel, Bam, Disco, Scotty Barnes, National Pride, Yannis, Montage, Tray, Brandon Boston, Isaiah Jackson, Disco, and Purple Disco to 50, D'Anthony Melton, Great Brown, Book Knight, Vantons, Rookie Disco, Edwards, Rigo Bearer, Isaiah Stewart, Blue Disco, used to 85, Jalen Green, Rookie, I have a mobility rookie, and Mitchell. Now, this is several personals. I just have everything, I just put everything up here for this one. Here we go, Chad, Chronicles, Basketball. Thanks, Stacks, appreciate it. Keegan Murray, Hardy and Sohan, Max Christie to 249. Hoops Premium, LeBron. Nope, no Donnie. It's Walker Kessler, Hoops Premium, Stock, Rookie, Black, One of One. Nice. There you go, Chad, the One of One, Walker Kessler, Rookie. Here you go, Chad. Quest granted. That's awesome. Congrats, Steph and LaRavia. Thanks, Timmy. Ty Ty, Benedict Matherin, Jaden Ivey. This is to 49. Benedict Matherin, Luka, and to 99. There's my boy, Horace Grant. Score, Otto. That's right. I haven't seen goggles in a while. LeBron, Marquis, and Ty Eason. He was my favorite Bulls player. Runs Wagner. There's Chad Holmgren. Rookie to 149, Vertex. Grant Walker Kessler. This is Rookie, Hoops Premium, Stock, Red to 149. There you go. Got the One of One and another card to work on the Kessler Rainbow, Chet Holmgren, and Anthony Edwards. Mitchell. Rookie, Jersey Otto to 99, Malachi Brannum. Good break here. Here's AJ Griffin, Benedict Matherin. Hardy Baldwin. There's Jake LaRavia, Rookie to 149. Simone Fontecio, Jason Tatum to 149, and Keegan Murray. Marjan Bochamp. That is Palo Banquero. Absolute Rookie to 75. Excellent box for you, Chad. Congrats. There's Palo, Dynagon, Rookie. Jaylen Williams, Phoenix Rookie. John Davis and Jaden Hardy. That'll do it for your boxes. Appreciate it, Chad. Congrats on that One of One. We'll get these right out to you.


New post war old Dutch cleanser famous for chasing dirt presents Nick Carter famous for chasing crime Every week at this time two great names are joined as new post war old Dutch cleanser brings you one of the most resourceful and daring characters in all detective fiction Nick Carter master detective That's see your magnificent. Oh, well, thanks. You've just solved the mystery all we've got to do now is catch the killer Oh, but how do we do that Nick by turning you into a ghost by turning me into a what that's me I'm going to make you up into the scariest ghost that was ever seen and tonight. You're going to haunt a chess club Now for the case of the jeweled queen today's adventure starring Lon Clark as Nick Carter brought to you by a new post war old Dutch cleanser in his small basement apartment Cluttered with chess books and chess sets old Jeremy Hawthorne sits over a chessboard and listens absently while two hard-eyed men talk to him Well, you listen to me Hawthorne. Oh, yes. Yes, of course, mr. He told you his name twice already pal as here's my boss, mr. Monk. Oh, oh, yes Mr. Monk, I swear if you don't pay attention, I'll do cruise Okay Yes, Bishop to Queen Bishop or the only possible move Unless Knight I got a thousand dollars for you. Yeah, what's that? Well, a thousand dollars. I woke him up Look, you remember the old National Chess Club the old marble mansion on East 20th. Oh, oh, yes Do I not I'm the last surviving member What great old days we had at the club And it's been closed now for me see 40 years and it's been falling to pieces all that time That's right If it hadn't been for that terrible scandal the club would still be I'm not interested in the club or its scandals I'm interested in you.  No, no, I'm the guy with a thousand bucks. I'll pay it to you That's you for what for your right title and interest in the club my dear sir You're cheating yourself. There isn't anything in the club, but old books and old furniture Hardly worth fifty dollars. I'll pay you a thousand dollars for everything in the building Everything that your property is the last surviving member all you have to do is sign this release mr. Monk Ridiculous the place is a liability it may be so hot when you just sign the paper and take this thousand dollars I'll take the liability Oh by the way Pepsi, I haven't asked you to marry me for over two weeks Please don't you ever get tired of hearing me say no why? Hey Nick Nick stop the car quick I just remembered something a murder. Oh, yeah, although there were 10 murders with Arshen thrown in It's nothing like that.  He's a guy I play chess with by mail. Oh Now I've heard everything. No, no kidding. Patsy. I'm up to my neck in a red hot correspondence game with Hawthorne I just remembered I forgot to mail in my latest move. Hey get back in the car chest champion. We're late for dinner already I'll lend you a postcard. We'll take a second Nick. I'll be right back. Oh He's probably fling open the door and howl check And fear old man Hawthorne to death Oh Patsy did I ever tell you the story about the man who won a chess game because he couldn't talk cannibal? Another Nick Carter special on the way. It seems this man was captured by cannibals down a new Guinea And while they were boiling the pot It's good at scubby. What's the matter with it doesn't sound as though he's making a chess move either Hey, Nick Nick you got to come into Hawthorne's place right away. This is awful. What's the matter scubby? You need advice on your next move. I'll say I do Hawthorne's dead. Oh, he's committed suicide No doubt about it Hawthorne's dead all right. He climbed up on a chair and hanged himself from one of the water pipes But why Nick scubby says he didn't have a problem in the world a lot outside of chess Well, he just lived for his chess problems. The old guy was happy. He was That's what's bothering me. What? Look at this note Hawthorne Apparently left here on the chess table neatly printed in ink I Made a years old and I'm tired Chess is a boy. There's nothing left Nick. Why did you say Hawthorne? Apparently left the note because the note is printed in ink so what Hawthorne's got an ink stain on his forefinger true enough scubby But tell me this where's the ink bottle the what the bottle of ink and the pen Hawthorne used or the fountain pen or anything That'll write an ink. Holy smoke. You're right. I've been through this room thoroughly and there isn't any ink So how could Hawthorne write that note? Well, maybe there's a pen in his pocket. Oh, no I've searched him. There's nothing on it, but some small change in a handkerchief Then he didn't write that note. No scubby. He positively did not Some kind friend obligingly wrote that note for Hawthorne with his own pen and then kindly helped Hawthorne commit suicide You mean that someone murdered him go to the head of the class fancy.  That's scubby is what I'd like to find out So would I where do we start? Well Here's the picture as I see it now someone was here with Hawthorne just before he was murdered Someone who had the pen that Hawthorne used to write with accounting for the angst ain't on the finger right But what did Hawthorne write? Well, certainly not the suicide note. That was written for him after he was killed Now when this something this is interesting, huh? Why here on the floor under Hawthorne's feet The rhinestone medallion see The letter M in the center a medallion with a letter M recognize it scubby sure I do that's from the club mark The nightclub on the west side. Yeah, there's a dancer there named Jenny Valentine She does a solo tap dance and throws the souvenirs to the customer Oh, what would an old chess player be doing in a nightclub catching souvenirs? You mean what would a nightclub dancer be doing in Hawthorne's rooms playing chess Nick? Maybe that medallion the key to this murder Could be scubby Hey, look you kids stand by and wait for Matty in the homicide squad. Uh-huh. Well, what are you going to do? I'm going down to the Monk Club and try to catch a souvenir Anything but love Mr. Monk, Mr. Monk. Oh, hi. Yes, come on in. Is it okay, Mr. Monk? Is what okay? Well the money I owe you the five grand. Oh, uh, no, but I told you how to get the queen Didn't you believe me? Yeah. Well, did you see Hawthorne? Did you buy it from him? Yeah You owe the club $6,000 now. What do you mean? Listen, Sonny You come here to the club and you drop five grand You can't pay so you hand me a story about this this bequest your uncle left to the chess club Oh, it's true I swear if the club was closed before they had a chance to find out what he gave them they never knew what they had Mr. Monk that queen is worth $20,000 maybe 30 Well, that was the deal if I steered you into it you'd cancel the money I owe you listen punk the word was if it's what you said I look I haven't got the queen yet It cost me another grand already if I get it.  Oh sure, but after all I went to William everybody in the club can hear you you're making so much noise.  No Now that's a man for you Chasing after me for three months solid and all of a sudden bump the freeze Don't be mad at me.  I'm going to the bar, and I hope I never see you again Monk baby.  I'm going over with Cruz. Are you gonna? I'm gonna take care of it You just leave that to me, honey From tomorrow on it's just gonna be you and me and 40 grand Okay, but I've got the addressing room now Cruz may get ideas if we see this Say it again about you and me monk you and me and 40 grand You say the sweetest thing how we say An admirer very good-looking You like my dance I haven't seen it so I wouldn't know And what are you hanging around my dressing room for miss Valentine? I'm Nick Carter the detective. That's right Now get out of here. I'm not quite ready to leave yet miss Valentine. I'd like to ask you about this medallion Well, what about it? Why'd you give it to Jeremy Hawthorne? Jeremy? Hey, hey, look, I I throw hundreds of those things around every night, but how should I know who catches them? Of course miss Valentine, but you do know Hawthorne. All right, so don't deny it You showed her on your face when I mentioned his name Get out of here. I Came up here to ask you what you know about a chess player who had the misfortune and at Carter I'll ask the questions around here. Oh Hello, Monk Do I also say hello to the 45 you're playing with make one fancy play Carter You can get intimate with a slug don't you knock when you sneak into dressing rooms. I know Besides you and I are gonna sneak right out. Monk. I think this is my play Jenny. Let me take it Okay, okay, but listen get on your feet Carter We're going up to my office. All right It's nice and sound proof up there We can play just as rough as you want to and if you want to play some parlor games, that's all right, too I've just one game. I'm not in the mood for Monk. Oh, what's that two men played with a gun or a rope? It's called murder. Oh Nick was right in his guest that Hawthorne was known to both Jenny and Monk We'll see where that leads him in just a moment when we hear what Monk has to tell him in his private soundproof office Now back to the case of the jeweled queen today's adventure with Nick Carter brought to you by new post war old Dutch Clencher at the point of a gun Nick is ushered into Monk's soundproof office on the second floor of the Monk Club Monk closes the door sharply and Sit down Carter. Thanks. Now listen.  That's why I use a rod when you're around put your cars in the table Monk Carter This is one deal that's on the level What deal the deal with Hawthorne? Oh Wow, this is very interesting Go ahead Monk sing your song. Well a rich kid named Hopkins got in the red for me for five grand So so he couldn't pay and so his old man wouldn't hand over the dough So Hopkins tears me into a deal a squared what deal you going for history any? I've read a book or two.  There was this English Queen Elizabeth I've heard of her. Oh, no, there was a tournament held in her honor once a kind of Joust our Elizabeth was impressed with a way a guy by the name of Sir Charles Blunt what she was so impressed that she sent him a present the next day a chess piece It was a jewel Queen. I think I've read the story. Well now according to the books Essex was a jealous of a gift he ups and fights a duel with Blunt and afterwards the chess Queen disappeared So I've heard a quarter that Queen's worth of fortune and I own it all legal all fair all Square how so? Well Hopkins uncle uncovered it 50 years ago. He sent it to the National Chess Club as a request along with some books and stuff Well, but he died right after that and the club went bust before they knew what they owned that jewel Queen is stored away somewhere in the club cellar and You own it. I do I bought it fair and square from the last living club member old Jeremiah Hawthorne I got a bill of sale of the club property signed by him this afternoon for a thousand bucks So that's how we got the ink stain on his finger. What? Nothing at a night. I'm going down to the clubhouse and get what I own all legal and above board, right? Except for one little detail monk Name somebody murdered Hawthorne. Well, I it's a dirty double-cross and Hawthorne's been murdered And he didn't have a thousand dollars.  I won't have to monk. I'll just help you hang it on yourself Thanks, don't you like the month club, Mr. Carter sure sure like it fine, but I don't like the people in it Good night. Good night, Mr. Carter. Come again soon. Just a minute. What? Wow Mr. Alfred Cruz isn't it? How are you Alfred? Last time we met. Carter, what do you want with Jenny?  Well, we should don't a Jenny's dressing room Don't see why that's any of your business. It sure is.  I have no intentions of chasing her Alfred And I will you please get out of my way.  You want a sample? You don't step aside Alfred. I see how you like this When you get up again, I hope you'll have more sense It's a matter scummy. I was coming down to meet you and I saw your car just on We'll take a look inside.  You're making the office whirl around in circles Nick. I'm scared Why'd you bring Jenny back in the car? Why haven't you reported her murder to Maddie? I'm going to just as soon as I figure this out. Oh, but maybe I was meant to find her and report it But she's still out in your car if anybody finds her. I know I know It was in the back seat with a neck twisted strangled Oh, she'd come to the car and was waiting to speak to me after I left the club only the killer came along and spoke to Her first Nick you've got to do something. I know I know I do I'm trying to think well my money's on monkeys army Maybe oh, what did Jenny tell you anything that could help? No Although she was friendly enough till she found out who I was This I already know How oh, I know a clue when I see it see that big smudge of powder and makeup. She left on Nick's leave Harder than makeup. I'm a patsy. You're magnificent. You've solved the case I've solved you just told me who murdered Hawthorne and Jenny Valentine Now all we got to do is catch him. But how? By turning you into a ghost by turning me into a what patsy I'm going to make you up into the scariest ghost that was ever seen and tonight. You're going to haunt the chess club Store down in the cellar. Okay. Come on You said it's a big see and I kid said the size of a cigar box What's in here is you or I got news for your cruise. You're not taking it out of here What I'm taking the Queen cruise and I'm leaving you behind.  It's too bad pal. Give me the Queen dirty double cross You and Jenny ain't gonna cross the cellar staring up at the head of the stairs in horror We'll hear what happens next in just a moment today's adventure with Nick Carter brought to you by a new post war Old Dutch Glendier as Monk and Cruz stand Transfixed in the cellar of the National Chess Club Nick whispers to patsy who stands at the head of the stairs in a glowing green drape And patsy smokes as Jenny pay for the love of mud day What are you trying to do play the Phantom of the Opera? Daddy Jenny, what is like a seer face?   Make a sucker out of me like she made out of Hopkins. Well, I showed you and I show you more Shot just went through your arm. It'll heal by the time you're due to take 40,000 volts sitting down That's right. Patsy the old story of thieves falling out. Huh? What do you mean, Nick? Well Cruz knew he was being double-crossed by Jenny and Monk so we decided to return the favor and double-cross them. Oh Well, is that why he went back and killed Hawthorne after Monk made the deal tried to frame Monk by dropping that medallion Then to fix Jenny he strangled her and left her in my car And in that way he figured Monk would take the rap for Hawthorne's murder and Jenny would be dead and both would be out Of his way exactly it collected Jewel Queen and live happily ever after Nick I still don't understand how I solve the case Why Patsy you did it when you saw that smudge of makeup on my arm. Will you please explain? I most certainly will explain Patsy the only person who could have touched me while I was in the Monk Club Who had makeup on his hand was Cruz remember?  That's right They must have smudged my arm with makeup which means he must have got it on his hands from Jenny's neck Well, I'll be darned so we had to be the man who strangled her Yeah, but what about the Jewel Queen the Jewel Queen goes to Monk you bought it legally so he's entitled to it Oh shucks. Oh don't feel bad Patsy if you want one I'll buy you a dozen tomorrow a dozen at the price Mr. Monk is out $6,000 dear the velvet box contained one very elaborate chest Queen made of wood Value about one dollar and fifty cents, but it wasn't the real Jewel Queen. No Patsy. It wasn't Queen Elizabeth's chest piece is still at large somewhere in the white white world Well, maybe Cruz will be able to ask her majesty where it is after he sits down in the hot seat Why Patsy that's not a nice thing to imply it isn't why not well I certainly hope good Queen best isn't in the same place Cruz is going Besides by then it'll be too late to do him any good Well Nick it's time you told us something about the adventure that new post war old Dutch cleansers going to bring us next week Right you are Bob It's a story which began with the theft of a priceless Egyptian relic from the art museum one night and during the robbery The watchman was killed in a strange and mysterious way Yes, and it took a device which records earthquakes to catch the murderer hold on a minute Nick I don't get the connection between such a device and an Egyptian relic. Oh, well neither did the killer Bob not until it was all Over what do you call this story Nick? I call it the case of the exploded alibi Nick Carter master detective is presented each week at this time and over these same stations by the kadahi packing company makers of new post war old Dutch cleanser Nick Carter master detective produced and directed by Jock McGregor is copyrighted by Street and Smith publications Incorporated Charlotte Manson is featured as patsy today's script was written by Alfred Bester Original music is played by Henry Sylvain. This program is fictional and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is purely Coincidental this is Bob Martin saying when minutes count use new post war old Dutch cleanser


Thanks to you, we did it. We hit the number 10 spot in all of YouTube. According to Social Blade, we are now in the top 10 of all MCNs and it's because you decided to grow with us and together we're in the top 10 on the road to number one in all of YouTube. To celebrate, I have a special gift for all of you. This is not... Oh! Break my microphone. This is not ex-flit licenses. This is not heartbeat. This is not another AMA. This is something unique. I don't believe anyone else has this. Any other MCN. It's brand new. And it is... Click the first video for a fireside chat with George where he shares our future and how he grew from $20,000 to $120,000 in just one month. And click the second video to see how to monetize all of your videos with just a few clicks to enable all ad formats and monetize in all countries. And we will grow together as a family because this is the freedom family. You are part of it, we are all part of it and we're all growing together. So grow with us and partner with freedom. That play now button right there on the video bar is all you need to click to get started.  What happened to being doctors and teachers? What happened to being your brother's keyboard?


That your success places a maw responsibility on you. I think that's wrong. But first, why capitalism is cane and looking out for number one can be noble. This is Bible. You often don't hear people say there's a moral case for capitalism, but I believe there is. Our next guest is Yaron Brooke. He is with the An Ryan Foundation or Institute, sorry, out of California. He joins us now from Toronto where he dropped by for a chat on that issue, the morality of capitalism. Mr. Brooke, thanks for dropping by. Thanks for having me on. People think capitalism, morality, no, no, capitalists are crooked, they're in bed with the government, they're buying people off. Is that what you're fighting against or are you supporting that? No, we're fighting against a whole perception of capitalism as based on fraud and based on buying off politicians. That's not capitalism. That's cronyism. That's what capitalism is evolved into because of the growth of the state and because of government intervention and the extent of regulation and taxes and so on. Businessmen, unfortunately, have become crony, crony, but that's not what capitalism really is about. Capitalism is about building stuff, creating, but more fundamentally it's about individual freedom and individual liberty. That's why it's the, I believe, the only moral economic system because it allows individuals to pursue their own happiness, to pursue their own rational values, to make the most of their own lives. We hear lots of complaints in Canada about, well, we've got the big banks. They make so much money. The big five or the big six, depending on how you count them, they make so much money. They're ripping us off and they perceive that as capitalism or the cell phone companies and our, I don't know if you know this, but mobile phone bills in Canada are among the highest in the developed world. People say, well, see, capitalists are ripping us off, but these are all, the most profitable industries in this country are all highly, highly, highly regulated by the government. And there's government oversight agencies and people move back and forth and a lot of back slapping and a lot of cronyism going on there. Look, you can't blame anything that happens in the world today on capitalism because capitalism doesn't exist in the world today. What we have today is a system of massive government regulations, particularly in the banking industry, at least in the United States, a market that I know more about. Banks are the most regulated industry in the country. Before the financial crisis, every bank in the United States was regulated by five different entities. So to me, it's kind of ludicrous when people blame the financial crisis or blame what goes on today on freedom in banking and there's not enough regulation. These banks are almost public utilities. They're almost controlled exclusively by the government. So when we want to look at capitalism, we have to look at errors in which the economy was freer, in which government was dramatically smaller, where there was less regulation. We have to look at countries which might be freer and evaluate. And when you do that, you see that capitalism generates enormous amount of wealth. The poor live better under capitalism than under any other system. You see that during errors where there's real capitalism, there's real competition, there's real wealth creation, there's real innovation and those are the primary characteristics of capitalism. Where would we find that? Before we get on to the moral side, where would we find such examples? I can't think of any. The closest we've come to was in the 19th century in the United States. You saw that and you saw the largest expansion, economic expansion in human history, a huge migration into the country and massive quantities of wealth creation, the establishment of the middle class. Before the Industrial Revolution, all of us were poor. By 1900, 1920, 1950, a whole middle class was created. And the poor were far better off. But even today, look at a country like Hong Kong or like Singapore where they have at least economic freedom, they thrive. And when you look at their neighbors that don't have those same economic freedoms, they suffer and they're much poorer and they do a lot worse. So what we want is to the extent that a country is free, economically free, to that extent they do well from an economic perspective. Also capitalism is a system of generally individual freedom. So you get a respect for individual rights. You get a respect for freedom of speech. You get a respect for the civil liberties in addition to the economic liberties. The Rand Institute promotes the ideas of the founder, Ms. Rand, also promotes objectivism, an idea that she put forward. People that know a little bit about it might be saying, well, objectivism and morals, they don't connect there. And neither morals doesn't connect to capitalism. Explain the moral case. Well, I and Rand redefined, in a sense, morality. She challenged our existing morality, 2000 years of morality. It says that your moral purpose in life is to serve others. It's to sacrifice, it's to be selfless. Indeed, that conventional morality that's out there today is incompatible with capitalism. And as a consequence, capitalism is in decline. What she defined as a new morality, a morality of rational self-interest, of long-term rational self-interest, of the individual trying to make the most of his own life without sacrificing to others, but without expecting other people to sacrifice to him, without being exploited and without exploiting living your life and making the best of your life. That's a morality. And that's a morality that only capitalism respects. Capitalism is the system in which individuals are left free to pursue their own happiness without government telling them what they can and cannot do, how they should live, what they should do. And this is true both in the economic realm and in the social realm. Capitalism is the system, the social system of freedom, of individual liberty, of the pursuit of happiness. And Rand's morality, Rand's moral code, and she has a whole theory of morality is all about, at the end of the day, the pursuit of the individual, the pursuit of happiness. You're happy. I think where we part ways, perhaps, because a lot of what you say makes sense, but I think where we part ways is where you say, the idea that I have a moral obligation to look after somebody. Now I part ways with socialists because they say, well, the moral obligation to look after somebody who's down on their luck is that you're going to pay me an awful lot of taxes, and I'm going to pay my friend a very good civil service job, and then they're going to spend a little bit of the money and run it in effective program. I would actually say that there's a moral obligation to look after those who are down on their luck to help them up so that they have an opportunity. Do you say that that just doesn't exist, or how would that work in your view? I would say that you take on a moral obligation by choice if you so choose, but if it's consistent with your rational values, with your life, that a charity is OK, it can be a virtue, if it's consistent with your values. But this idea that as soon as you're born and you're successful and you work hard, that you somehow have this burden placed on you that your success places a moral responsibility on you, I think that's wrong. And I think it doesn't help the people who are struggling. I think their moral responsibility is to make the most of their lives. And when we give them these checks, when we hand them goodies, when we hand them favors, what we're doing is suppressing their ability to take care of themselves, to achieve their own personal happiness, to get a job, to get the self-esteem that that entails. So I think it goes both ways. You don't have. You are not born because you're successful. With a moral obligation, you can choose to help. And it's only wrong with choosing to help. But it's not a duty. It's a choice. You should never be forced to do it. If you do it, you should do it voluntarily because it's consistent with how you want to live your life. Mr. Brooke, an interesting talk and an interesting book for your Mark of Revolution. Thanks for dropping by. We'll chat again soon. I hope. Thank you. Absolutely.


It's a watching plus politics and we are looking at the infighting within the APC in Oshun state as the state is gearing up for its gubernatorial elections and we're being joined by Biadu Shomi. Mr. Shomi, thank you so much for joining us. Apologies for the hiccup in the connections. So let's talk about the Nolof lost between the former governor and the sitting governor and why this has dragged the party into a division that it is experiencing right now? Well, what is clear in Oshun state is that you have the former governor wanting to be a dominant influence on the current governor. The constitution of the APC is very clear. The governor is the leader of the party in the state, irrespective of what. Well, the former governor is also a minister at the federal level who is becoming to remain relevant in the affairs of the state. So there you have the conflict. Now you have the supporters of the former governor, Raouf Aragueshola, and the supporters of the incident of leader of the party in the state trying to slog it out for a return ticket. It's clear that Aragueshola is supporting the second time ticket for Uyethola and the supporters of Uyethola are the champions that it should be returned. Now, where else I found this also understanding is a corollary drawn by the minister for internal affairs about what happened in Lagos in relation to unbodied serving one term and then his own desire that Uyethola should also serve one term. I don't think anybody should be in that situation. Nobody should be so powerful to the extent that they can dictate what the electorates should do in terms of the tenure, termination, or elongation of any administration in Lagos. I don't think that is right. And I think it's at the cross of the present conflict, you know, the former governor wanting to terminate the current governor who is the leader of the party in the state. And I think that's what the party is all about. But this is not the first time we're seeing this. We've seen that tussle, you know, in the APC in, I think, Quira state. We've also seen that tussle in even the PDP in certain states. I think one of the reasons why the governor of Cross River states moved to the APC was because he was having to tussle the leadership of the party with certain other people who were strong men in the party. So, but this is not necessarily new, is it? But what is the party? The APC keeps saying that they're going about in different states to have some reconciliation of sorts. But how is this, is this being dealt with, especially what's happening in Oshun state now gearing up for an election? The whole idea is about the continuation of Godfatherism. You see Godfather wanting to remain in control. You also have new leaders wanting to be Godfather, not necessarily wanting to transform the political power to perpetuate themselves, you know, on the people. And one thing which I've learned, you know, from pedagogy of the oppressed is that an oppressed person, when liberated, does not necessarily want the liberation of Godfather oppressed person, or to perpetuate his own hegemony over them. That is the truism of what is going on in Oshun state. You have a situation where the former governor is determined to call the shots and dictate who becomes governor or not. I think that is what the battle is all about. I think the APC is particularly going towards election. But we still don't know if it's too early to tell whether after the summary, the party will pull itself together, dissolve their differences, and choose to forge ahead. That remains to be seen. But the speculation that is out there on the street, the faction that loses out, or that is bound to lose out in the battle portion, is likely going to theme up, you know, the PDP to ensure that the, to try and ensure that the governor does okay. But the fact of the matter is, they made reference to the fact that it took a faction of the PDP and led by Umi Shuri, you know, to ensure that Oyesula was elected. These are still, you know, on gestures, you know, and we don't know what would happen. We should not forget the fact that Umi Shuri himself has since he said he's done for the shop. So everything is up in the air. It's unfortunate APC is in crisis. But PDP has done internal crisis. You know, you still have the Adelaide with other party leaders there. So it's too early to call, to see about the effect of the political wrangling in APC, whether PDP will benefit from it or not. Let's talk about what happened in the primaries of the APC. This has been on the lips of many, the minister who had in his convoy gunmen who were shooting sporadically in the air. In fact, the tension at that governorship primary, some would term it as something that had automatically boiled over. Guns were, you know, used. People had to scamper for safety. And the shocking part is that those who were armed were members of the correctional service, which are the prisons. And of course, the NSCDC. It's very interesting to see this show of power by the minister at the primaries. And many people have queried this action. What are your thoughts? Yeah, the minister is certainly legally in control of the NSCDM. He made allegations to the fact that shots were fired at his bottle case. That may be true or not. I don't know. For the fact of the matter, he has made adequate arrangements for his own protection by the Nigerian civil defense of PC, you know, just as he's alleging that the minister is abusing the topic by using the NCCDC, you know, to terrorize members of the party with the govnot. Whether that is true or not, I also don't know because you have this issue of Aregbe asking that the Commissioner for Police should be removed. And then you have the ACC party leadership, you know, making allegations against Aregbe. I think this is part of the brickmanship, part of the game. It is almost impossible, you know, for the Nigerian police force not to remain neutral in this issue because the government is just for internal affairs in charge of another security officer. The police force will try to be professional and it seems to get drawn into a party, politically, two factions of the ACC. Let's talk about banding together. In fact, before then, the government of Oshoom State had said that anyone, and I'd quote them directly, irrespective of their office or station, caught disrupting the peace of Oshoom will answer to the law. And also the Oshoom State Police Command also said that when he was called, apparently, he did not have anything to say. And just as you said, they're trying to stay neutral on this particular matter. But then a Senator within the Oshoom APC is calling for some form of, you know, reconciliation. They're asking that both parties be reconciled. Do you see any reconciliation in the, let's say, the next few weeks or in the next coming months before the final primaries happen? Do you see anybody downing or sheathing their swords and embracing peace? I mean, we've seen that happening in a QTAPC where certain people have stepped back and said, let's walk in the interest of the party. Do we see that also happening in Oshoom State, being that these are two strong men? Yes. With politicians, anything is possible. Find a regressional knocking on the door, or your solar. It's not impossible. That is the way of politics in our country. But in relation to the current political control of the party, the party in a large you know, enjoys the party, the support of the leadership of the recognizing it is likely going to be for the solar in terms of delegates. And should that happen, there will be a need for reconciliation. Is it likely that that reconciliation will take place or not? That depends on how the party leadership at the national level. If they don't make efforts to reconcile, calling short and making demands to do that, then there may be a major problem for it. But the process of reconciliation is always there with politicians. You can never, never say no, that politicians can't do anything. They can do anything. They can wake up tomorrow morning and be reconciled. Well, they say no permanent enemies in politics, but interest. Well, I want to say thank you. Be able to show me is a political analyst. Thank you so much for speaking with us. We appreciate your thoughts. All right. Well, thank you all for staying with us to round up the show tonight. Nigerians are still screaming about their frustrations as regards the fuel scarcity and the long lines at petrol stations. Well, we'll leave you with that. I am Mary Anacorn. I'll see you tomorrow. Have a good evening. What makes you do something to this fuel scarcity? Because you cannot continue like this. Because people will suffer for it. People are suffering for it. Things are bad because of that scarcity of fuel. People cannot move to one another to do their own business to do. So if they can do something about it. I travel to Ok Mesih on Saturday. There is no NNPZ fuel station self-welfth from Ikodu to Ekiti. Our leader, they know what we are. We are Nigerians today. We are sleeping with fear. We are withdrawing on fear. With the fuel station on fear. This is not supposed to be like that. By now, we should be talking about building and restoring our infrastructures. The major one there is the refinery. So if you want to see any sincere government, they have to put our refineries back to workable position. This is all forgiving for all the leaders of Nigeria. We're talking about a nation over 200 million without a refinery. We probably have to go back to the likes of Qatar, to the likes of Dubai. Nations that are on their news in the early 70s, late 70s, even early 80s begging us. Drivers find it harder to get petrol. And as a result, bus fares are higher. And also at home, to get petrol for your generator is a bit harder now and more expensive. If we do not import petrol, if we make our petrol, there will probably be better ways of ensuring the quality is good. I hope the people here will listen, the people who distribute the fuel, and at least they will do the needful. We don't have to make life difficult for each other. I think they can do better.


Yeah, I Again, I kind of always operate from my belief system I believe that people are worthy of investment and I believe that investing in your people makes them feel valued and gives them new Skills and a new passion for their work. So I'm gonna take training as an example because I do a lot of training work Let's say you send someone in your staff You're offering an internal training you send someone in your staff team to this training and they learn a new skill And they are excited to use that skill That's awesome, right and so helpful because they're gonna leave that training excited to put that to use and it's gonna benefit you in the long run But they've also built cross departmental and cross functional relationships in that process And they've learned about what other people in your organization do and how they approach their work So they've expanded their picture of your organization. They didn't just pick up a new skill Now they're able to tap into other people in your organization more effectively and they're able to take on someone else's perspective When making decisions which will result in a better decision so when you think about Empowering your employees it can come it can show up in any number of ways but just taking that training example alone You're investing in them in one way Maybe you're expecting them to learn a new skill and be able to show up to work with that skill But you're investing in them in so many more ways than just training


Hey there friends. Thanks for checking in. It's time for another handgun showdown where the viewers of this channel decide Which company makes the better handguns this time? We have Glock versus CZ CZ is yet to lose a handgun showdown So we'll see if Glock can knock them off But before we do that, let's talk about the last handgun showdown where we featured diamond back versus Bursa and by a fairly large margin Bursa ran away with this one people love them and they especially love this BP 9 CC the AM2 the diamond back AM2 is a nice gun I don't think a lot of people quite understand how well it performs But it was a fun handgun showdown. We've got a good one today. So let's get to it Let's start with Glock and we'll begin with the Glock 26. I love this gun It performs just as well as all the larger glocks. It's just smaller It has a double stacked magazine that carries 10 rounds But the advantage here is it will accept the large larger mags any larger 9 millimeter mags Here's a 33 rounder. You put that in there and this thing is ready to rock and roll No problem known for its reliability and this one here has a 3.43 inch barrel and that Glock trigger that we are used to All around an excellent gun a lot of people carry the Glock 26 and they're fine with it They don't care what new releases are out there. Here's a Glock 43 X. We become pretty familiar with this one Very much a thinner gun. It does also carry 10 round magazines But after market companies gonna make 15 round mags. I'm looking forward to that but here we have a thinner gun as a thinner grip a lot of people are carrying this as well and once again you're getting the consistency with the trigger pull and And and the sights and and the aftermarket support that so many people love with Glock and and both of these are big hits with CCW, but if you talk about home defense, a lot of people including myself say that this Glock 21 Gen 4 Glock 21 is an outstanding choice. I love owning this gun. It's got the big night sight there big dot night sight and it has 13 rounds of 45 ACP with a long barrel of 4.6 inches and once again, you're getting that same trigger pull Close to the same trigger pull as the other two models and if you look across the Glock line You have consistency. I consider Glock a working man's gun. It's very much a duty gun. It's it's reliable It passes all types of torture tests people love them and they match up well with with other guns So everybody wants to compare it to see how well other guns aligned with Glock and there they are now Let's get to CZ now. Let's talk about the precise quality of CZ handguns. We'll start right here with the CZ P10s three and a half inch barrel 12 round magazines this one has an extension for a 14 round magazine striker fire gun was introduced last year very nice trigger pull and it's reset is very short It's got a tritium dot there serrated rear sights and it is optic ready They also make another model that does not have the night sight or optic ready Slide cut but this one is and it is a phenomenal gun a lot of people wondering. Hey, where are they? I don't know. They're they're few and far between but they are Kind of making their way out there. I'd like to see more people who want those get a chance to get them The ramy is a huge hit a lot of people love the ramy. I love the ramy. This is CZ's smallest handgun This is the bd model. So it does have the decocker puts it in quarter cock an aluminum frame Three inch barrel rubber grips 10 round magazines also comes with a 14 round magazine But it performs just like the larger cz 75 miles An amazing gun come standard with night sights And these do not last long at the gun store. I've had many people tell me hey, you know, I saw one I thought about it. I went back the next day to get it and it was gone And that's just what you're dealing with when you're talking about the ramy if you see one And you want it You better get it because it may not be there for very long on the large side of things here We have the cz 75 spo one. This is the steel model. I also have the phantom with the polymer frame. This has a steel frame It's a big heavy gun Many people consider this one of the finest shooting nine millimeter handguns 18 rounds In the magazine does have the rail there 4.6 inch barrel night sight standard double action Single action handgun and it is smooth And very accurate. I love these models. They all talk to me. They all have their own personality Cz has a wonderful reputation. So this is a great handgun showdown So there it is. Which one of these companies do you feel makes the better handguns? Is it Glock or is it Cz let me know leave comments I'll total them up and report the results with the next Handgun showdown if you like videos like this, please subscribe and share. I always appreciate thumbs up button Thanks for watching and you guys be safe