Greetings from The University of New Hampshire![i] I will start by sharing that the wedding was perfect. Everything went as planned. I didn’t even fall off the chairlift that was taking us to the top of the mountain where we held the ceremony (we’re about 20 feet off the ground in the above pic). Bride and groom are legally hitched now. And the party was lots of fun. We’re still recovering from the craziness of planning such a big event, but happy for everyone. This is also why this week’s newsletter is late (again).
Have a great rest of your week and see you on Sunday. Let me know what you think in the comments. As usual, willing good for all of you!
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Read
What: Psyche, Fiction has a special power to give us insight into our flaws
https://psyche.co/ideas/fiction-has-a-special-power-to-give-us-insight-into-our-flaws
Why: This article makes for a strong argument in favor of the liberal arts, without being about that at all. I mean, it makes a strong argument to me. This is what the liberal arts (especially the study of literature and philosophy) should teach us. Why is fiction so powerful? Because we enter into the experience of another, and we can see ourselves in a different way. From the piece:
An interesting aspect of this ‘experience-taking’ is that it seems to bypass rational reasoning. And this is likely why empathising with fictional characters can be a useful tool for gaining insight into personal flaws. When confronted by a loved one about a fault, you might instinctively push back with an argument for why they are wrong. But experience-taking is immersive: it doesn’t confront you with reasoning, but rather transports you into a narrative world, where you can temporarily mute your self-related beliefs and desires as you adopt a character’s perspective instead.
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Watch
What: Leadership Connections with Peter Wright (61 min)
Why: My ACHE of NNE board colleague Dr. Tiffany Love interviews our mutual friend, Peter Wright, President and CEO of Northwestern Medical Center in St. Albans, VT. Peter was one of my first Health Leader Forge interviews back in 2015 – hard to believe it has been 10 years! Peter is an excellent leader and this interview is great for anyone looking for an example to contemplate.
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Listen
What: Conversations with Tyler, David Commins on Saudi Arabia, Wahhabism, and the Future of the Gulf States (52 min)
Why: Despite American tendencies to be isolationist, the Middle East, and Saudi Arabia in particular have influenced my life and the lives of most Americans over the last 50 years. From exports of oil to Wahhabism, there is no ignoring Saudi Arabia. I gained some insight from this interview, and I have bought Commins book. I’ll let you know what I think. But the podcast was very interesting.
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What: Uncommon Knowledge, The Age of Depopulation With Nicholas Eberstadt (55 min)
Why: In the early 90’s, a friend convinced me to give money to a charity focused on zero population growth. His argument was that we were going to run out of resources. Not only was the resource depletion argument flawed, so was the problem of population growth. It was still possible to make that argument in 1993 or so, but today we can see that human populations worldwide are starting to collapse. This is problematic for many reasons, not least of which is the fact that our social safety net programs (Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, etc.) were built on the assumption that we would have an ever-expanding population. The math stops working if the old start outnumbering the young (which they do now). But it’s not just about budget issues. What does it mean to live in a greying world? Some interesting topics discussed here.
[i] It occurred to me, after nearly 10 years of writing this newsletter, that when I write my “greetings from UNH" that people might think I am speaking on behalf of the institution. Please understand that all opinions expressed here are my own, and do not represent the institutional positions of UNH.