Bad Philosophy » culture

Episode 098: Eticat

StephenTorrence — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 15:14:29 +0000

When was the last time you held a door open for a stranger? Refrained from shaking hands with someone while you were sick? Cringed at dipping from that bleu cheese sauce your friend just dipped in after taking a bite from his chicken strip? Likely you don’t remember specific instances. Etiquette is just a part of what you do. But is there a deeper structure to the actions we take in the name of etiquette? Could there be a science to determine the ideal model for human interaction? In a recent article for Charlie’s Diary, Karl Schroeder poses this question and offers some interesting thoughts on how we might “re-wild etiquette.” Too tempting a topic to pass up, we decided to get the band back together, having Kevin Saunders, Eric Beutlich, and I all in the same place for the first time in years! Magic, beer, and some fresh baked cookies definitely went down. So grab your salad fork, put on your Sunday best, and prepare for some good ol’ fashioned BF! Have a listen…

This Week’s Post-show Song Pimpage: “Etiquette Song” by the Animaniacs

Question(s) Answered in This Week’s FormSqueeze:

Can you copyright the copyright sign?

Episode 068: Unfortunate Convenience

StephenTorrence — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 19:53:16 +0000

After another long and completely unnecessary hiatus, we’re back for another rip-roaring episode! Last week Kevin joined me after returning from his whirlwind theatrical tour of the Czech Republic and greater Eastern Europe. This got us talking about language, culture, music and of course Homestar Runner. Have a listen!

This Week’s Post-show Song Pimpage: 4 Renditions of the Czech National Anthem

Episode 034: A Squishy Affricate

StephenTorrence — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 14:01:57 +0000

You’d think that after 50 years, the nations of North and South Korea would have kissed and made up. But these days as we light up our barbecues and relish the summer heat, the Korean peninsula is once again on the brink of war. From across the seas in Ulsan, South Korea, Julie Meadows joins to compare the cultural, political, and linguistic quirks of her locale alongside me, Kevin and his former roommate Jordan Mueller (first heard in the background some time ago). So as you reflect on Memorial Day this summer, remember the lost, have a nice heaping helping of mother hand tasty blue director of a bureau, and enjoy this week’s BF…

This week’s post-show song pimpage: “Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue” by Toby Keith. Buy it on iTunes, or we’ll put a boot in your ass.

Episode 012: Close Enough for Brains in Vats

StephenTorrence — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 23:00:50 +0000

Technology is a tricky thing. When it works, it’s wonderful, and when it doesn’t… heads explode. For the most part, BF’s first foray into high-tech recording went swimmingly. We did have a couple of complications, but despite having to crowd around a single AKG condenser microphone, our intrepid panel managed to record one of the best BFs yet. Dr. Webb joined us to tackle Kevin’s simple-yet-deep question: “Is man unnatural?” As you can see by the tag list, said tackling took us on a bit of a wild ride. Less “Bad,” more “Philosophy,” totally BF. Enjoy the show…

Remember you can watch the episode on Stickam. We looked darn spiffy. Really.