The Last Question

The conclusion to Matt's and my conversation about the Internment during WWII and what it means for Americans and the world today. Not only what happened but why we should care and continue to study this period, even eighty years later... are we really so far removed from the country that incarcerated a whole 'race' of people that we're not liable to do it again? If you didn't...

Mark Twain once quipped that history doesn't "repeat...but if often rhymes." This week on The Last Question I talk with history professor Matt Estes about a period in U.S. history that I think is often overlooked but could be remarkably instructive in our present day. Professor Estes teaches history at Palomar College near San Diego and is a historian whose own history is interwoven wi...

I recorded this one sort of on a whim, though as much to maintain my self-imposed weekly rhythm as to keep a previous plan to share some words of wisdom from St. Porphyrios of Kavsokalyvia. I think my encountering the experience and recent trials of Ben Sasse and his family only add urgency to the question of what I (and you?) are doing with our time remaining and whether the "evil" we&#39...

Simple enough question, isn't it? When all we seem good at is hating one another, then why not lean into it? But we also don't seem to hate the same folks all the time; we move and adjust and adapt to our surroundings (and fears). So I figured I'd ask, who's it gonna be tomorrow ? The Last Question is back in what I'm calling "Season Three," though I wasn't ever too...

This is the story I had to share; this is the story that brought TLQ back. Abbot Fr. Gherasim Iscu will be glorified as saint by the Romanian Church in 2025. Forgive me for referring to him as a saint in the interim; it's hard to find another example quite like him. Christian or not, "spiritual" or not, you need to hear this. For the full story, visit: https://orthochristian.com/148639...

More than two years since I've recorded an episode...and oh how things have changed. This is take three of what was supposed to be a short teaser of things to come. I'm back to the podcast, and to writing and publishing online, but for very different reasons than where I was this time two or three years ago. While TLQ will always remain free, I've released my first video to supplement...

For leaders in uniform, or not. Doesn't matter where you work or what you do...if you want to "succeed" in an uncertain future...or, you might say, win the future war no one's imagined yet , think about these three things: devolve, flex, and fail. Thanks, as always, for your support and listening. I'm expanding my work on this podcast and through Decoherence , my platform on Su...

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

You and me this week, talking about career transition...and the story embedded deep within us. Does it drive our decisions, or do our decisions fulfill its outcomes? Aren't those the same question? Didn't plan a two-part episode, but we went farther down the rabbit hole that I thought. That's what makes it fun, after all...stay tuned for Part II coming next week! Click here to watch Jo...

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

This week, Jim Warner joins me on the podcast. An ICBM and GLCM veteran, Mr. Warner today serves as the Executive Director of the Association of Air Force Missileers. It was through his letter to members that I found Cole Smith's Guardian editorial. We cover his career spanning more than 40 years, experience in leadership as the Cold War gave way to the 1990s, and responds to questions raised...

That's how we can have mature conversations, in my opinion. This week on TLQ, a solo episode--why I think it's critical we have a conversation about what the world can look like in the future. And why we should start talking about it now . Humans are naturally irrational and can hold two seemingly opposite views at once. So let's stop oversimplifying our problems and get down to real b...

I'm excited to share this week's episode, a conversation with writer, filmmaker, and nuclear ops veteran Cole Smith. Though we were stationed together, I don't know Cole well...but knew I should talk with him after coming across an article he wrote recently for The Guardian based on his experience as a U.S. nuclear operator. No matter how you feel about his article, or the subject of n...

It's been a rough-and-tumble couple weeks. High stress, a lot of change, tons of questions. We've emerged looking skyward and genuinely excited about what's to come, and I've emerged determined to keep this train on the tracks and rolling forward. I missed the boat on last week's episode, which will now be Episode 3. For now, enjoy Season 2, Episode 2, with my friend and fellow...

Enough with the "Arun talks with" third-person thing. It's me and just me...so I'm back, with "Season 2" of The Last Question . I've been putting off this project and don't know why. But I know I want (and perhaps need) to return. So that's what I'm doing. Here. Now. As me. And only me. Season 2, Episode 1.

We continue the COVID-19 mini-series this week, asking a critical question: What Positive(s) Did COVID-19 Give Me? Ask this question for yourself to find key lessons you can leverage as the world wrestles with the "Delta" variant. This week, an important idea that helps break down the otherwise restrictive dichotomy we perceive between conventional work environments and working "from h...

Core values matter. If you don't have an anchor or guidepost against which to judge your actions, how do you know if you're the best version of yourself you can be? Arun shares his three core values, three words he's focused on for the better part of 20 years. What are YOURS? Email us at ask@thelastquestion.blog.

This week, a critical reminder in how hard ... rather, IMPOSSIBLE ... it is to control what anyone else thinks or does. We can attempt to influence others, but it all starts with understanding where the other's starting point is and what concerns them. "It's not about thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less." Email us at ask@thelastquestion.blog.

Stop wasting time. We don't have enough to be playing around with this gift. Email us at ask@thelastquestion.blog.

We overcome struggle only after we can see the good in them. Arun continues his mini-series on what good he received from COVID-19. This week, a discussion about what he found "important" and not in the work environment and how the pandemic oriented his mind different toward those tasks that truly matter in the long-run. Send your questions, comments, feedback to: ask@thelastquestion.blog.

Arun pulls out a couple key lessons from Tim Grover's book "Relentless." Grover was a long-time coach and confidant to the likes of Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and Dwayne Wade (and many more). The book's description of "Coolers, Closers, and Cleaners" provides a backdrop to how we should think about where and how we focus our efforts in daily life. Send your questions, com...

There must be positive lessons from our worst tragedies. If there is no positive impact, no "silver lining," then all of our effort to build a better future is for naught. This week, Part II of Arun's series that asks, What Did COVID-19 Give You? His answer this week focuses on his own development and what he was able to do for himself with the time and space only a worldwide emergency...

Arun welcomes fellow veteran, colleague, and friend Joey Utah to TLQ. Joey served on active duty as a security forces member at several locations in North America and Korea. Listen and learn as they exchange stories, experiences, and ideas about what leadership is and isn't. Email us your questions, feedback, and requests at: ask@thelastquestion.blog.

We push our crises into history books too quickly. We don't talk enough about what we've learned, what we've gained, what good has come ... from crisis. From disaster. From the worst tragedies in our lives. This mini-series asks, "What Did COVID-19 Give You?" To start the conversation, Arun answers the question for himself. He has several answers he'll share over the coming...

I used to hate this question, but no matter how you phrase it, asking it matters. Interrogating your response matters, too, if you're serious about evolving as a leader and getting better. This week, ponder what your leadership philosophy is ... what matters most to you in terms of HOW and WHY you lead. Email us! ask@thelastquestion.blog .