Tag: Social Media

Episode 113: Be Engaged, Not Enraged… Discussing Braver Politics with Braver Angels Rick & Barbara

I started this podcast a couple years ago with the slogan, “Bettering the World, One Attitude at a Time”… That is more than just a mission statement for me, that has become one of my central purposes in life. Why you might ask? In many ways, it’s because I see our world, but more specifically our country, has in certain ways become broken.

What can we do if our country ‘s political system is broken?
In addition to doing the Derate the Hate podcast, I have become quite involved with the organization Braver Angels. Braver Angels has become one of the country’s leading organizations working to depolarizeย  and mend our social fabric. As I began to hear more about the latest initiative that Braver Angels was working on, Braver Politics,ย I wanted to know more. I thought who better to reach out to than my friends Rick and Barbara!

How can I engage without being enraged?
Would you like to become more involved in the political discussion, without becoming part of and enraged shouting match that accomplishes nothing? Take a listen to my conversation with my friends Rick Hotchner and Barbara Thomas, (who you may remember from Episode 48) where we are discussing Braver Politics… Let me know what you think!

Episode 105: Building Unity by Asking The Follow-Up Questions… with Michael Ashford

One of the best ways we can have better, more meaningful and productive conversations is by asking better questions. My guest this week has made an art form out of communicating effectively and asking incredibly insightful and meaningful questions.

Michael Ashford is a former award-winning newspaper reporter, and editor of the Emporia Gazette in Emporia, Ks. His years of journalism experience sharpened his interviewing skills and taught him how important listening and asking follow-up questions is to get the full and real story.

He has transferred that skill set into the podcasting space, now focusing on the power of storytelling. He is still a self-described independent journalist, digging below the surface of cliches and clickbaity headlines to uncover nuance and detail that lives within the most important issues we face these days.

Episode 103: Those Who Imply Correlation Equals Causation to Perpetuate Hate and Division

Have you ever heard someone use the phrase, “Correlation does not imply Causation”? More importantly, have you ever taken the time to think about what that means? Quite often there are those on social media, in the main stream media, or opportunist politicians that love to take a situation, ignore all variables except those that will get them the traction they desire, and run with a narrative that stirs the most division, animosity and anxiety amongst those of differing thoughts and opinions…

One can find countless examples of this each and every day in their news feed on most social media platforms, most mainstream news channels,ย  or by checking out the YouTube channel of most of your widely publicized politicians. This is not a hard thing to spot once you are conscious of it, and knowing what to look for, especially in this age of toxic public discourse. Take a listen to this week’s solo episode and let me know what you think. Stay tuned in the next few weeks as I have some incredible guests joining me for more great conversations. Above all, keep bettering the world by sharing this content with your networks.

Episode 100: What is Color Us United? …with Christian Watson

Christian Watson, my guest this week, is a podcaster, YouTuber, and spokesperson for “Color Us United”. Christian is a profound thinker who’s work both with, and outside of Color Us United, is invaluable in the cause of raising awareness of toxic ideologies, battling harmful woke mob mentalities, building unity and bettering the world in which we live. Join me for this conversation where Christian explains what Color Us United is, what they do, and learn about the value system that drives him to do the work that he does.

Topics & Quotes from Conversation
~ social media and the internet ecosystem
~ “not everyone is consumed by bad ideas”
~ megalomania
~ Woke mobs and virtue signaling
~ CRT and 1619 project
~ “I’m not going to sell my integrity for just a few clicks”
~ “True success does not come from selling yourself to people for their temporary affection”

Episode 51: Hate is Human Trafficking and Child Exploitation

How big of a problem is Human Trafficking in the United States today?ย 
If you are anything like me, you probably know it’s happening but don’t give much thought to how big of an issue it really is. After this interview with Amy Storer, I now realize it is a much more prevalent evil among us than I ever would have guessed.
Parents, this is definitely an episode of the Derate the Hate podcast you should not miss, and you’re going to want to share it with every parent you know!
Have you ever stopped to think, What are some of the consequences that the Covid Lockdowns pose for our children? This is another question that comes up in this week’s interview.

Are your children safe online? Is my child safe online?
There are many things the internet is good for, but it is not a good place for kids according to this week’s interview guest, Amy Storer.

Episode 17: Keyboard Warriors

Welcome back my friends, Wilk here from Wilksworld.com and in episode 17 I am discussing the sadness that is the way that some people are treating others in and on social media sites.
We all know the kind, those #KeyboardWarriors that we all know about, those that say the most vile and savage things to people they know they will never meet. It is my opinion that most of these members of what I call the Basement Dwelling Bedwetter Brigade are unfortunately unable, or have traditionally in most cases been those that were likely picked on and bullied most of their lives and were never really able to stick up for or never had the courage to stand up for themselves.
The dumpster fire known as social media has given these #keyboardwarriors a forum to take their swing, get a punch in because they’ve never been able to do it in real life and what better time to do it than when your “opponent” is someone who you’ll never have to really interact with in real life, right? These folks are in fact hurting and miserable people that want everyone else to be as miserable as they are, so what do hurt people do, they hurt people.
In this weeks feel good story I talk about a gentleman out of Alabama by the name of Rodney Smith that started a movement called the 50 Yard Challenge where he inspires and encourages youngsters from ages 7 to 17 to go out and mow 50 lawns for free as part of this challenge. Rodney has inspired upwards of 1000 young people to start this challenge and he has personally traveled to around 25 states to give those who have completed the challenge a special gift. This is a special man making special things happen, way to go Rodney! (Read more here)
As always, please subscribe to the Derate The Hate podcast wherever you get your audio, leave us a review from a desktop or laptop computer, share us with your friends any way you can and above all, when you get back out there, be kind to one another, be grateful for everything you’ve got, and make each and every day the day that you want it to be…