Questions are our jam at Intellectual Roundtable! Hosts Lee and Michael each choose a question from the long history of the blog, and revisit those questions in a discussion. In this episode, those questions are: "Are we too busy?" Both Lee and Michael agree that the answer to this question, for themselves as well as for most people they know, is a resounding "yes". That invites further exploration: Why are we so busy? Is the nature of being busy inherent in us as individuals, or is it imposed on us by our society? We talk at length about our ideas around busyness. "What are our responsibilities to others?" Michael's choice of question to revisit is a classic, and the answer can inform everything from your relationships to the people and community around you, to your political beliefs. Lee tries to define just how this sense of obligation develops, and Michael shares some stories about his personal relationship with service and how it developed. Feedback and comments on these or any of our past or current questions is always welcome at the URL intellectualroundtable.com.

This podcast finds hosts Lee and Michael revisiting two questions previously asked on the blog Intellectual Roundtable. This week's questions are: "What is one thing you feel the need to do every day?" Lee tells the story of how he has spent years experimenting with different daily activities, trying to find just the right one that is rewarding and sustainable. In turn, Michael shares strategies he uses for maintaining good mental health. "What is truth?" This weighty topic is simply stated, but is difficult to answer, and, at times, difficult even to discuss. But after searching for a useful definition, both Lee and Michael brainstorm things that anyone can do to seek out truth, and to recognize it when we see it. The questions are drawn from the hundreds of questions asked since the beginning of the blog, which is located at intellectualroundtable.com. everyone is welcome and encouraged to participate.

Show hosts Michael and Lee present two questions form the archives of the Intellectual Roundtable blog. In this episode, those questions are: What are you willing to sacrifice? Lee explores the ramifications of this question on both an individual as well as a societal level. Any person or culture needs to sacrifice something in order to grow or change. What does that mean for you? What do you believe? We all believe lots of things. In pondering this question, Michael distills his beliefs to five ideas, and he and Lee discuss them one by one. In the course of the conversation, Lee also shares his one overriding belief. Comments, opinions, and additional questions are all welcome at IntellectualRoundtable.com. Take a seat!

Asking questions is what we do at the blog Intellectual Roundtable. And be "we" I mean Lee and Michael, hosts of the podcast and creators of the blog. The two questions that are discussed in this episode are: What gives a person value? Lee and Michael discuss the different ways that an individual person might have value. It's easy to say everyone has value, but is that statement true? What does our behavior say about how we really feel? What makes you you? There are important moments that helps shape the trajectory of our lives. Michael raises this question to get us to try and think about what those moments might be. Lee also identifies an event that made him who he is today. Explore the archive of hundreds of questions at IntellectualRoundtable.com, and if you are moved to do so, you can leave a comment or even suggest a question of your own.

Hosts Michael and Lee discuss questions culled from their blog, Intellectual Roundtable. With three brand new questions every week at the blog, there is now a sizable archive. These questions mean something special, in some way: Where does authority come from? With this week's question, Lee wants to highlight just how ephemeral the concept of authority actually is. How does someone get it? And once they have it, how do they keep it? Michael tries to unravel how he sees authority arise from his point of view.  What does your favorite music say about you? Michael loves to listen to music, and he loves to ask questions about music. Here is a question about your own musical choice, and what conclusions you might be able to draw about yourself based on it. Michael offers some specific lyrics from songs that support his answer to the question. These questions an many more can be read and shared at intellectualroundtable.com.

At the blog Intellectual Roundtable there are three new questions each and every week. Here, hosts Michael and Lee talk about particular questions from the archive that resonated with them in some way. This week, that includes these: How can we encourage debate? Feeling like the entire world seems a little uncivil recently, Lee resurrected this question originally posted back in 2018. He then provides an actual list of steps that he uses when trying to have a productive discussion with someone who disagrees with him. What is the value of inefficiency? Michael's contribution this week has to do with the realization that inefficiency may not be such a bad thing. Often there is societal pressure to be more productive and therefore improve efficiency, but are there actually times when it might be better, for a variety of different reasons, to spend some time being inefficient? Efficient or not, you can have a debate by joining the conversation in the comments section at IntellectualRoundtable.com.

Each week, we post three brand new questions to intellectualroundtable.com. There are more than four hundred questions that have been asked, and so your hosts Michael and Lee like to choose two from that archive for a discussion for this podcast. The first question in this show is a binary choice: "Freedom or security?" Both, of course, are necessary in some amount. They conflict with each other, however, and finding a proper balance where you can feel both free and secure can be quite difficult, particularly in a world with as many dangers and problems as we face. The second question, as chosen by Michael, happens to be, "Is technology neutral?" Often, the promise from our ever-advancing technology is nothing short of salvation. But does technology have an agenda, and will it actually be able to find solutions, or will it just create new problems that must be fixed at some point in the future? Join us as we have our weekly conversation, and add your own thoughts in the comments section at the Intellectual Roundtable blog.

Give a listen as hosts Lee and Michael resurrect a pair of older questions from years gone by at the Intellectual Roundtable blog. This week's questions are: What makes a tradition? During a time that is filled with tradition, Lee wonders what goes into the process of turning a routine, everyday event into a full-fledged tradition. Michael discusses some examples of tradition in his life, and how they came about. What are you optimistic about? Both Michael and Lee are generally optimistic people, but here Michael remembers a time when we asked the blog readers for some examples of what encouraging signs they see on the horizon. They answered, and here Michael and Lee share some of their ideas as well. You can have a voice in answering these or other questions at IntellectualRoundtable.com.

Back with two more questions from an extensive backlog of questions at Intellectual Roundtable are your hosts Michael and Lee. The highlights in this episode are: How can we maintain wonder? Sometimes it is easy to become jaded and cynical. And yet, the world can be a fascinating place, full of wonder and awe. Lee asks how can we cultivate that sense of amazement at the world, instead of letting the sometimes-harsh realities of everyday living get in our way. Both hosts share what some blog commenters previously suggested, and offer their own strategies as well. How do you think others see you? Michael, on the other hand, spotlights this question that challenges you to see yourself through someone else's perspective. What, if anything, is the difference in how you want others to see you, and how you actually think they see you? Lee shares a story about a real-life experiment that inspired this question in the first place. These an other questions are available to read at intellectualroundtable.com.

Each week, Lee and Michael revisit two questions from the archives at intellectualroundtable.com. This week, the questions are: How much of our thoughts are our own? Lee's question seeks to determine just how much are we manipulated by the news and media that we consume? If you can point to any one thing in the world that is truly and uniquely yours, it would seem to be your own thoughts. But great effort is spent to try and modify those thoughts, to get you to buy some goods, vote for a particular candidate, or emotionally connect to a movie or TV show. How much can you really trust what you think? How much is enough? On the other hand, Michael's question ask you to question one of the basic tenets of our society. We are repeatedly told that we should want more: more money, more cars, more gadgets, more food, more everything. Ultimately, that's not sustainable, and moreover, it's not healthy for us either. So where is your limit? These and other questions can be found at Intellectual Roundtable, a place on the internet for examining the questions that everyone faces.