Beyond the Blindfold readers have asked for real life examples of how the power of context can be applied. That’s why I’ve created the Twisted Lens video and essay series, to delve into hot and controversial topics of the day.
Remember, consensus is not the goal (I did say the topics are controversial!).
If you disagree, be prepared to defend your position and let's have a respectful exchange of ideas so we can all learn from each other.
Ostriches don't really bury their heads in the sand, but it's a beautiful metaphor for a conversation about concussions. We all know the story by now - now Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (or CTE) has destroyed the lives of countless athletes, construction workers, firefights and others - who are susceptible to head trauma in their daily lives. So here is the big idea: if we really believe the science, then why are highly dangerous activities, sots in particular, still legal?
Share your perspective on my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages or YouTube Channel.
An economist once told me that the cure for high prices …was high prices. I didn’t understand at first but I do now. With high prices back in the news, better known as inflation, it can be very frustrating but the secret is, we the consumers, hold the power.
Let's Twist the Lens and consider high prices from a new perspective!
Share your perspective on my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages or YouTube Channel.
In a word, the Hockey Canada situation is impossible. Impossible for the old board of directors to have continued and nearly impossible for the new board to regain the trust of the citizens, the sponsors and the players.
So what to do? The new Board needs our help so here are some controversial ideas as we look at hockey Canada – and other major sporting bodies – in a new and very uncomfortable way.
Share your perspective on my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages or YouTube Channel.
The right to bear arms is not a single dimensional issue and as recent events in the US and around the world have shown, its not an outdated or historical idea either. The founding fathers understood how dangerous the world could be and had the wisdom to enshrine the right to protect yourself right in the US constitution. The fact that gun violence has become so prevalent is our failing as a modern society, and shows we have not figured out a way to balance the security of our country while protecting our most vulnerable.
Where do you stand on this debate?
Share your perspective on my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages or YouTube Channel.
Does carrying an umbrella cause it to rain? It’s a much more complex question than it might appear. Planning for negative events is a choice—and not always a good one. I seldom plan for negative events and banish all thoughts of failure from my mind. I try to commit to success, and always work from ‘yes' to ‘no'.
It's hard to say whether my approach is optimizing or limiting…but “umbrellas cause rain” is how I make many decisions. How do you make decisions?
Let me know what you think on my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages or YouTube Channel.
Social accountability is an ancient idea. What is new today is the way it is meted out online. But what’s the line between accountability, and cancel culture? Let’s Twist the Lens. I’m all for accountability, but how do we make sure we are judging others fairly, especially when we are anonymous avatars behind screens, and not face to face? Let me know what you think on my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages or YouTube Channel.
Prohibition doesn't work—from a curfew for my children, to substance use, to the right to choose. In its purest form, “prohibition" means to ban or exclude. In practice, it means to control—as in one group telling another group what it can or cannot do. It never works for anything or anyone, beyond the short term. Before there were laws, there was only personal choice, in every aspect of human life. And as it was in the beginning, and will always be in future, intensely personal decisions of all kinds will always fall back to the individual. Do you agree or disagree? Let me know where you stand by heading to my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
I love high real estate prices, want them to go even higher and don’t care about the kids. Am I a horrible person, or just honest? The uncomfortable truth is that most home owners care more about leveraging our real estate for a comfortable retirement than someone else getting a great deal on their first home, despite what we might say at a cocktail party... While I don’t expect everyone listening to agree, I’d like to hear your thoughts and solutions.
Let me know by joining the conversation on my my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
Elon Musk has offered to buy Twitter. Why? In the name of #freespeech. And while money buys a lot of things, it does not buy freedom of speech. So, what is the true cost of free speech? Freedom of speech is a cornerstone of democracy. But in this era of social media, disinformation, trolls, bots and proxy servers, courts are having a terrible time enforcing it and applying the law evenly when it comes to digital content. So will we give up our online anonymity to protect this? I think the next few years will be a wild ride, whether or not Mr. Musk is successful in his bid. Tell me what you think around this free speech debate. What responsibilities do (or should) social media platforms have? Let me know by joining the conversation on my my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
The housing crisis isn’t a crisis at all. It's an easily solvable problem that only lacks political will and common sense. Instead, to mollify the masses, politicians use ineffective policies like the racially incendiary foreign ownership ban. If we truly want more affordable housing, the answers are easy and clear. Free up the land we already own, put Canadians to work building inventory, add more density and remove all the red tape Housing affordability is a heated topic—but I’d like to have a respectful exchange of ideas. What do you think about affordability? About the foreign ownership ban? Let me know by joining the conversation on my my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
Is crypto currency in fact a currency? In my opinion, no. I see it as an asset class closer in nature to commodities, like soybeans. Why? It has no stability and the value fluctuates wildly on any given day. Digital currencies of all kinds are most certainly the wave of the future, but without stability I'm not in a hurry to jump on board just yet. But even if it is not a currency in my eyes, I do see it as a revolution and a statement. These currencies are decentralized and cannot be controlled by any government or economic union, and are completely free from manipulation by “The Man"… And that is an idea I might just get behind. Do you hold crypto? If so, what made you join in? If not, why not, and do you think you ever will? Let me know by joining the conversation on my my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
Interest rates are going up, that’s a fact. What's not clear is, should I be happy or sad about that? I’m no economist, and the truth is, this stuff is incredibly complex and widely misunderstood. So today, we’re going to "twist the lens", and look at this topic from a broader view. In simplistic terms here’s what I've learned: anyone on a pension, or relying on saved money to survive, desperately wants higher rates. Younger people who need to borrow money to build equity and create wealth over time, or borrowers of national debt, want the lowest interest rates possible. When interest rates went up sharply last week, I was asked what I thought. These days, I tend to be more thoughtful, so I said, it really just depends... As I watch my mortgage payments go up (bad) along with my savings (good) Its enough to give me a headache. Are you concerned about rising interest rates? How do you think it will impact you? Let me know by joining the conversation on my my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
Is driving an Electric Vehicle a good idea? The answer seems to be yes... ish. Let’s twist the lens and look at the dark side of the bright future. EVs of course run on electricity, which is often created by burning fossil fuels including natural gas. The EV batteries need minerals and metals like lithium, nickel and cobalt which are strip mined using methods that pollute. In places like the Congo, toxic cobalt is mined by hand by children—at least 40,000 according to UNICEF. The more homework I do, the more the concerns pile up. Go ahead and buy your new EV—and let’s hope we all make the right choice… Do you drive an EV? Have you thought about getting one? Go my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
Is driving an Electric Vehicle a good idea? The answer seems to be yes... ish. Let’s twist the lens and look at the dark side of the bright future. EVs of course run on electricity, which is often created by burning fossil fuels including natural gas. The EV batteries need minerals and metals like lithium, nickel and cobalt which are strip mined using methods that pollute. In places like the Congo, toxic cobalt is mined by hand by children—at least 40,000 according to UNICEF. The more homework I do, the more the concerns pile up. Go ahead and buy your new EV—and let’s hope we all make the right choice… Do you drive an EV? Have you thought about getting one? Go my Instagram Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
This week, I’m exploring the idea of empathy. I support Ukraine and its people as they fight to defend their homeland. But, let’s twist the lens and extend our empathy to the people of Russia too.
Our elected officials are not doing this, and are missing a huge opportunity to display a level of empathy that illustrates, not just plays lip service, to our democratic way of life. Hear me out, and then take a few minutes to consider what I’m saying. After that, every perspective is fair game. Consensus is not my goal. Instead I’d like to have an interesting dialogue.
What do you think? Join in the conversation and follow along on my Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
You always hear “kids today are so smart”. But are they really more intelligent than their predecessors?
The latest generation certainly has—more than ever—better access to education, technology, nutritious food, healthcare and travel.
So once again, let’s twist the lens. There have been more “zero to one” inventions in the last 100 years, than in all of human history, and my kids and their friends—and to be fair, nor anyone in my generation—didn’t invent any of them. Most of the truly life changing, world changing inventions of this century were developed long before our time.
Kids today are great, but if they are in fact “smarter”, or can see further, it is because they are standing on the shoulders of giants.
What do you think? Join in the conversation and follow along on my Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
With the devastating war in Ukraine, most of the world is united against the invasion—save for the 5 countries that recently voted to reject the UN resolution condemning #Russia. But, there are some countries, including those who abstained from the vote, who would prefer to stay neutral. It’s time to twist the lens. Does true neutrality actually exist? And is “neutrality" in a time of war even possible, especially in today’s era of modern warfare and a globally interconnected economy? The Swiss, for example, continue to be the trading house for all Russian commodities, helping them fund the war. Is that neutral? Just as Hitler had designs to invade Switzerland, I doubt Putin is interested in respecting historical treaties anyway. So really, what’s the point? It might be the time for the so-called neutral countries to pick a side, because knowing who has your back and who doesn’t is critical in any kind of fight.
Tell me where you stand.
Join in the conversation and follow along on my Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
Time and choice are connected—a lesson I learned the hard way after choosing not to visit a friend in the hospital. He passed away that night. I no longer say, “I don’t have time”. The fact is, I do have the time! What this phrase really means is, I don’t consider whatever it is you’re asking me to do important enough to move it up my priority list. I used to struggle with being honest versus polite. Now I offer a reasonably honest answer. And that forces me to be honest with myself about my choices and priorities.
Tell me where you stand.
Join in the conversation and follow along on my Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
The Emergencies Act allows elected officials to grant themselves sweeping powers to strip away legal rights from regular citizens. It was enacted in February in response to the Freedom Convoy Truckers Protest, without so much as a whimper. We need to twist the lens. The bar for the Act is very high, because once it is in place, fundamental rights are lost. This legal threshold was NOT met. The debate I’d like to have today is not whether you agree with the truckers or not. The question is, do you think there was a better way for the Feds to achieve their desired outcome of ending the protest, without stripping away the rights of Canadians? I do!
Join in the conversation and follow along on my Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
The Olympics are officially dead. Doomed. I didn’t watch them this year and—judging from the fact that Beijing 2022 set record low ratings, drawing the smallest television audience in Games history—neither did many of you! Today in the Twisted Lens Episode 5, we look at the Games in a whole new way—why they no longer have the impact they once did, and what can be done to change that.
To join in the conversation and follow along on my Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
One of my favourite chapters in Beyond the Blindfold is Prohibition: The Seriously Dysfunctional Non-Solution. This week on Twisted Lens, I tackle the topic once again. In short, ask me about prohibition—i.e. forbidding something, including by law (drug use, speed limits, bed times for your kids and more)—and I will be quick to tell you it doesn’t work.
To join in the conversation and follow along on my Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
This week’s episode of the Twisted Lens looks at the intersection between free speech and protest for ideas we might find abhorrent and in ways that are distasteful and disruptive, yet lawful. This is a particularly timely thought experiment given the Freedom Convoy dominating the news over the last couple of weeks.
To join in the conversation and follow along on my Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
Welcome to the second episode of the Twisted Lens.
Thank you to everyone for the great feedback from Episode 1: The Unvaccinated and Universal Health Care. I love hearing from you, whether you agree or disagree. And if you disagree, tell me why!
What’s your context and perspective?
Today, let’s chat about the Olympic boycott.
What are your thoughts on the boycott?
To join in the conversation and follow along on my Instagram (@vincetaylorauthor) or Facebook pages.
Beyond the Blindfold readers have asked for real life examples of how the power of context can be applied. That’s why I’ve created the Twisted Lens video and essay series, to delve into hot and controversial topics of the day—from vaccine mandates to the Olympic boycott.
Remember, consensus is not the goal (I did say the topics are controversial!).
If you disagree, be prepared to defend your position and let's have a respectful exchange of ideas so we can all learn from each other.
Beyondtheblindfold
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