Seize the Moment Podcast

On episode 213, we welcome Edward Simon to discuss the mythological history of the tale of Faust and Mephistopheles, god and the devil in theology, whether both figures can represent internal struggles between right and wrong, why so many identify with Faust’s decisions, whether the story implies that willful ignorance is just as evil as maliciousness, how Faust was redeemed in Goethe’s telling, whether denial of his dark side contributed to Faust obsessively pursuing power and pleasure, the mischaracterization of the seven deadly sins as extreme prohibitions, modern cautions about Faustian bargains, and how Viktor Frankl’s emphasis on meaning can be a check on our hedonistic temptations. Ed Simon is the executive director of Belt Media Collaborative and editor in chief of literary journal Belt Magazine. A staff writer for LitHub, his essays and criticism have appeared in the New York Times, the Atlantic, the Paris Review Daily, the New Republic, the Washington Post, and Aeon. His new book, available July 9th, is called Devil's Contract: The History of the Faustian Bargain. | Ed Simon | ► Website | https://edsimon.org ► Linkedin  | https://www.linkedin.com/in/edsimonwriter ► Devil’s Contract 1 | bit.ly/PenguinRandomHouse1 ► Devil’s Contract 2 | https://amzn.to/3UuFl8p Where you can find us: | Seize The Moment Podcast | ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/SeizeTheMoment ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/seize_podcast ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/seizethemoment ► TikTok | https://www.tiktok.com/@seizethemomentpodcast      

On episode 212, we welcome Mark L. Ruffalo to discuss the misunderstanding of the so-called “medical model” of psychiatry, why there’s a gap between mainstream medicine and trauma-informed care, the ways in which biology and environment interact to produce mental illness, the difference between responsibility and blame, Judith Herman and the historical misuse of personality labels to mistreat women, how Lithium saved lives, modern psychoanalysis and its misrepresentation in pop culture and academia, addressing the stigma of mental illness, resolving the problem of poly-diagnosis, the DSM as the punching bag of contrarian academic thought, and the chemical imbalance hypothesis as the foundation for psychotropic medications. Mark . Ruffalo, M.S.W., D.Psa., is a psychotherapist in private practice in Tampa, Florida, and serves as Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine and Adjunct Instructor of Psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine. He has broad clinical experience in the psychoanalytic treatment of mood disorders, personality disorders, and psychosomatic illness, and has particular interest in the psychotherapy of schizophrenia. | Mark L. Ruffalo | ► Website | https://www.drruffalo.com ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/MarkLRuffalo ► Linkedin | https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-l-ruffalo-71929063 ► Psychology Today |  https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/contributors/mark-l-ruffalo-msw-dpsa Where you can find us: | Seize The Moment Podcast | ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/SeizeTheMoment ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/seize_podcast ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/seizethemoment ► TikTok | https://www.tiktok.com/@seizethemomentpodcast    

On episode 211, we welcome Mark Tuitert to discuss stoic philosophy, Mark winning the Olympic gold medal in speed skating in 2010, our cultural obsession with winning, why success doesn’t lead to long-term happiness, the stoic focus on character in cultivating a good life, Mark’s relationship with his dad and how suspending judgment improved it, if one can be a stoic and a winner at the same time, perverting stoicism in an attempt to control how successful you are, Mark’s reframe of his mother’s mental illness, and what he enjoys most about his life. Mark Tuitert won the gold medal in speed skating in the 1500-meter event at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. After retiring from competitive speed skating, Mark has continued to make a positive impact as a bestselling author, successful entrepreneur with a global health and food business, host of the podcast Drive, motivational speaker, and representative for some of the largest organizations in the world. He has been featured on TED TALK, and also serves as an on-air speed skating pundit for Dutch Broadcaster NOS. His new book, available on April 9, 2024 is called The Stoic Mindset: Living the Ten Principles of Stoicism. | Mark Tuitert | ► Website | https://marktuitert.nl/en ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/marktuitert ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/marktuitert ► Facebook | https://www.instagram.com/marktuitert ► Youtube | https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaF8syFKypTvetACdhc1p-w ► The Stoic Mindset Book | https://amzn.to/3IOG66Y Where you can find us: | Seize The Moment Podcast | ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/SeizeTheMoment ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/seize_podcast  ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/seizethemoment ► TikTok | https://www.tiktok.com/@seizethemomentpodcast  

On episode 210, we welcome Sabrina Little to discuss the virtues of ultramarathon running, the importance of desire in being good, the deification of American sports, if excellence in performance and good character are mutually exclusive, using envy to better oneself, the mindsets of Tom Brady and Michael Jordan, Sabrina’s athletic achievements, if there’s an objective basis for defining the good life, and how to become more community-oriented individuals. Sabrina B. Little is an Assistant Professor at Christopher Newport University. Sabrina's research is in virtue ethics, classical philosophy, and moral psychology. She is also a 5-time US Champion and World Championship silver medallist in trail and ultramarathon running. Her new book, available now, is called The Examined Run: Why Good People Make Better Runners. | Sabrina B. Little | ► Website | https://sabrinalittle.com ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/sabrinablittle ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/sabrinablittle ► Linkedin | https://www.linkedin.com/in/sabrina-little-54062375 ► The Examined Run Book | https://amzn.to/43lGaEC Where you can find us: | Seize The Moment Podcast | ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/SeizeTheMoment ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/seize_podcast  ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/seizethemoment ► TikTok | https://www.tiktok.com/@seizethemomentpodcast  

On episode 209, we welcome Robin Reames to discuss how the art of rhetoric is used to spread misinformation, how the concept of truth evolved from Ancient Greece to us, confronting fact-resistant individuals, the spectrum of misinformation and how some use science to mask it, cultivating negative emotions while offering harmful solutions to them, Donald Trump as a truth-teller and how that influences his audience, how con-men use our values against us, and how to help people distinguish which value is most important in a specific context. Robin Reames is associate professor of English at the University of Illinois at Chicago, specializing in rhetorical theory and the history of ideas. Her books include Seeming and Being in Plato’s Rhetorical Theory and The Rhetorical Tradition: Readings from Classical Times to the Present which was co-authored with Patricia Bizzell and Bruce Herzberg. Her new book, available on March 19, 2024, is called The Ancient Art of Thinking For Yourself: The Power of Rhetoric in Polarized Times. | Robin Reames | ► Website | https://psyche.co/users/robin-reames ► The Ancient Art of Thinking For Yourself Book  | https://amzn.to/3v3IPpQ Where you can find us: | Seize The Moment Podcast | ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/SeizeTheMoment ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/seize_podcast  ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/seizethemoment ► TikTok | https://www.tiktok.com/@seizethemomentpodcast  

On episode 208, we welcome Louis King to discuss Aim4theheart, working with Leila Steinberg, how 2Pac inspired Louis and Leon, emotional literacy and learning how to access and understand feelings, meeting Edi Mean of the Outlawz, Louis’ musical roots, how the music industry shortchanges its artists, selling music as crypto and empowering them, and Louis’ work as a music teacher helping underprivileged children. Louis King is the director of outreach, assemblies, and concerts at the AIM 4 The Heart organization. He has expressed his message of Emotional Literacy education behind the walls of San Quentin Prison to the halls of Princeton University + More. Louis King has traveled from San Quentin to Harvard sharing his message and teaching Emotional Literacy through music and art. He has toured the world with artists such as Earl Sweatshirt, Anderson .Paak and the Outlawz. He has been featured as a hip-hop performance artist on Netflix, HBO & Fox Sports and has worked on soundtracks such as Star Wars & Planet of the Apes. He’s currently working on web 3 project on Gala Music with some of the biggest Hip Hop Icons.  | Louis King | ► Website | https://www.aim4theheart.org ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/LouiiKing ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/louiiking ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/LouiiKing ► Famous in the Metaverse  | https://bit.ly/49BCAZl Where you can find us: | Seize The Moment Podcast | ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/SeizeTheMoment ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/seize_podcast  ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/seizethemoment ► TikTok | https://www.tiktok.com/@seizethemomentpodcast    

On episode 207, we welcome Constantine Sandis to discuss free will and determinism, the Libet experiments and criticisms of them, weakness of will and whether belief in it stems from a lack of understanding decisions, the difficulty in separating external and internal reasons for acting, self-deception and whether we can overcome it, if self-knowledge is possible and actually aids understanding, the psychological effects of priming, the significance of distinguishing the process of doing from the results, and the broad, practical purpose of analytical philosophy. Constantine Sandis is Director of Lex Academic, Visiting Professor of Philosophy at the University of Hertfordshire, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. His books include The Things We Do and Why We Do Them, Philosophy of Action: An Anthology, and Human Nature. His newest book, available now, is called From Action to Ethics: A Pluralistic Approach to Reasons and Responsibility. | Constantine Sandis | ► Website | https://www.constantinesandis.com ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/csandis ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/csandis ► Bluesky |  https://bsky.app/profile/csandis.bsky.social ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/csandis ► Linkedin | https://www.linkedin.com/in/constantine-sandis-723454a4/ ► Action to Ethics Book | https://bit.ly/3uO1MN7 Use discount code ACTIONETHICS35 which will give 35% off when entered at the checkout on Bloomsbury.com, and is valid until August 31, 2025. Where you can find us: | Seize The Moment Podcast | ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/SeizeTheMoment ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/seize_podcast  ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/seizethemoment ► TikTok | https://www.tiktok.com/@seizethemomentpodcast  

On episode 206, we welcome Mark White to discuss the drawbacks of antitrust laws, what rights consumers actually have, if trusts are unfair and unjust, the utilitarian argument against those laws, the flawed healthcare insurance system in the US and how its consumers struggle, whether it’s feasible to constantly have new entrepreneurs challenging trusts, the trading system in the NFL and how it prevents unfair competition, and what the economy could look like if antitrust laws are relaxed Mark D. White is Professor and Chair of the Department of Philosophy at the College of Staten Island/CUNY, where he teaches courses in philosophy, economics, and law, and is also a member of the economics doctoral faculty at the Graduate Center of CUNY. His books include A Philosopher Reads Marvel Comics’ Thor, A Philosopher Reads Marvel Comics’ Civil War, The Virtues of Captain America, Batman and Ethics, The Oxford Handbook of Ethics and Economics and A Philosopher Reads...Marvel Comics' Daredevil: From the Beginning to Born Again. His newest book is called Rights versus Antitrust: Challenging the Ethics of Competition Law. | Mark D. White | ► Website | https://www.profmdwhite.com ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/profmdwhite ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/profmdwhite ► Rights versus Antitrust | https://amzn.to/49HNVa7 Where you can find us: | Seize The Moment Podcast | ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/SeizeTheMoment ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/seize_podcast ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/seizethemoment ► TikTok | https://www.tiktok.com/@seizethemomentpodcast ► Patreon | https://www.patreon.com/user?u=32208666  

On episode 205, we welcome Jack Symes to discuss the possible existence of god, the strongest arguments for it, whether Pascal’s Wager justifies belief in god, the different religions and whether they make belief in god irrational, god necessarily existing and being all good, how evil can stem good, whether evil even exists, the simple god hypothesis, if atheism is epistemically justifiable, the debate between Richard Swinburne and Richard Dawkins, Jack’s philosophical development, and whether moral relativism negates the possibility of god’s existence. Jack Symes is a public philosopher and writer. He is the producer of The Panpsycast Philosophy Podcast and editor of the Bloomsbury series Talking about Philosophy. He is currently a Teacher and Researcher at Durham University, UK. He’s the editor of the book Philosophers on Consciousness: Talking about the Mind which features a number of prominent contributors, as does his newest book, available now, Philosophers on God: Talking about Existence. | Jack Symes | ► Website 1 | https://thepanpsycast.com/panpsycast2 ► Website 2 | https://www.jacksymes.co.uk ► Twitter 1 | https://twitter.com/ThePanpsycast ► Twitter 2 | https://twitter.com/_JackSymes ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/thepanpsycast ► Philosophers on God Book | https://amzn.to/49anwSo Where you can find us: | Seize The Moment Podcast | ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/SeizeTheMoment ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/seize_podcast  ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/seizethemoment ► TikTok | https://www.tiktok.com/@seizethemomentpodcast

On episode 204, we welcome Aaron James to discuss assholes, who they are and how they think, the difference between a regular asshole and someone with narcissistic personality disorder, whether all politicians are narcissistic and if regular people ever seek power, if assholes understand and care about the rules, how narcissists use the cover of autism to hide their bad behavior, using entitlement to disregard others’ feelings, the messiah figure and our pull toward it, why people love Donald Trump, the inherent complexity of those figures and why some people continue to love them, whether we can live with them, if humanity can tolerate a world with no good and bad guys, and a better narrative to good vs evil and how it can shape our national identity. Aaron James holds a PhD from Harvard and is professor of philosophy at the University of California, Irvine, Aaron was awarded the Burkhardt Fellowship from the American Council of Learned Societies, spending the 2009-10 academic year at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University He is the author of Fairness in Practice: A Social Contract for a Global Economy, the bestselling Assholes: A Theory, Assholes: A Theory of Donald Trump, Surfing with Sartre and numerous academic articles. His latest book, co-authored by Robert Hockett is called Money From Nothing: Or, Why We Should Stop Worrying About Debt and Learn to Love the Federal Reserve. | Aaron James | ► Website | https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/150710/aaron-james/ ► Faculty Website | https://www.faculty.uci.edu/profile/?facultyId=4884 ► Twitter |  https://twitter.com/OnAssholes ► Assholes: A Theory Book | https://amzn.to/49oANWX Where you can find us: | Seize The Moment Podcast | ► Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/SeizeTheMoment ► Twitter | https://twitter.com/seize_podcast ► Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/seizethemoment ► TikTok | https://www.tiktok.com/@seizethemomentpodcast ► Patreon |  patreon.com/user?u=32208666