WEBVTT - Introducing Ronald Young Jr. Solvable’s Newest Host 0:00:15.076 --> 0:00:24.476 Pushkin Solvable listeners, I want to introduce you to Ronald 0:00:24.556 --> 0:00:27.596 Young Junior. You might be familiar with his name from 0:00:27.596 --> 0:00:31.996 other work in podcasting, leading shows like Time Well Spent 0:00:32.276 --> 0:00:35.956 and Leaving the Theater. He's a sometimes guest contributor around 0:00:36.076 --> 0:00:40.116 NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour. We are really excited to 0:00:40.156 --> 0:00:43.036 make it official that Ronald is going to be the 0:00:43.076 --> 0:00:46.196 newest host of Solvable. Thank you, thank you for having me. 0:00:46.236 --> 0:00:48.916 I'm so so excited to be here so publicly on 0:00:48.996 --> 0:00:55.236 the team. Believe it or not, Hosting Solvable is not 0:00:55.316 --> 0:00:58.916 my main job. My main job is being CEO of 0:00:58.956 --> 0:01:03.836 Pushkin and Pushkin. Over the last year in Lockdown has 0:01:03.876 --> 0:01:06.876 like doubled in size. We have almost fifty people now 0:01:07.316 --> 0:01:10.596 and it's exciting. There's a lot going on, but it's 0:01:10.636 --> 0:01:13.396 sort of crowded out the time that I like to 0:01:13.436 --> 0:01:18.156 spend preparing and figuring out guests. And also, I'm not 0:01:18.236 --> 0:01:20.356 really a host. I don't know if you noticed that 0:01:20.596 --> 0:01:24.476 I think trained. I'm an untrained to host. I have 0:01:24.636 --> 0:01:28.476 certain host qualities, mainly that I'm really interested in talking 0:01:28.516 --> 0:01:31.116 to the guests on the show, and I have a 0:01:31.116 --> 0:01:34.436 lot of drive to learn, But I don't have that 0:01:34.836 --> 0:01:38.596 quality of hostliness which I hear in your voice, and 0:01:39.036 --> 0:01:42.196 I really want to know how that's done. Well. First 0:01:42.236 --> 0:01:44.236 of all, I don't know if that's that's the message 0:01:44.236 --> 0:01:47.476 I want to be saying, Like we got host Steven 0:01:47.556 --> 0:01:51.996 Kosterson coming on host Oar show. No, I don't mean though, 0:01:52.276 --> 0:01:54.236 you know, I've always found it easy to talk to people. 0:01:54.556 --> 0:01:56.836 I've always found it easy to connect with folks and 0:01:57.516 --> 0:02:00.196 ask questions that I'm curious about, and mostly because as 0:02:00.236 --> 0:02:03.396 a child I was always encouraged to ask questions, whether 0:02:03.396 --> 0:02:06.316 it was to friends, the families, to teachers, and I 0:02:06.396 --> 0:02:09.196 think that's what helps with being a good host and 0:02:09.356 --> 0:02:11.316 with conducting good interviews, which you do a great job of. 0:02:11.836 --> 0:02:13.476 Well thank you, Ronald, But yeah, no, I think that 0:02:13.676 --> 0:02:16.596 just that basic quality of curiosity. You know, if you 0:02:17.036 --> 0:02:18.836 if you don't want to know, you can't read someone 0:02:18.916 --> 0:02:21.836 else's questions. I mean, the producers on the show do 0:02:21.956 --> 0:02:24.276 suggest a lot of great questions for us, but ultimately 0:02:24.596 --> 0:02:26.396 you ask the ones that are your questions, that are 0:02:26.396 --> 0:02:28.636 the things you want to know. Yes, it's funny because, 0:02:28.676 --> 0:02:31.356 like you know, working with the Solvable team, it certainly 0:02:31.556 --> 0:02:33.396 is a team effort. But I think what makes a 0:02:33.436 --> 0:02:35.756 good host, And what makes a good interviewer is the 0:02:35.796 --> 0:02:38.916 ability to read the conversation and to know when it 0:02:39.036 --> 0:02:40.956 needs to take a turn, when it's about the pivot, 0:02:41.276 --> 0:02:45.356 or when your curiosity might push the interviewee a little 0:02:45.436 --> 0:02:47.756 deeper into their subject matter and even make them more 0:02:47.796 --> 0:02:50.356 comfortable and ready to answer more questions as they go. 0:02:50.476 --> 0:02:52.476 So and I really enjoy doing that. So this is 0:02:52.516 --> 0:02:54.716 a very exciting role for me. You do do something, 0:02:54.756 --> 0:02:56.996 I mean, since we're on this topic, you know, I 0:02:57.076 --> 0:03:00.196 do think being a really good host goes beyond just 0:03:00.436 --> 0:03:03.196 the flow of the conversation asking the right questions. There's 0:03:03.236 --> 0:03:07.236 something about creating this environment, this kind of comfort, and 0:03:07.316 --> 0:03:09.476 even this sense of place. And here is what I 0:03:09.556 --> 0:03:11.516 don't feel that I really know how to do. But 0:03:11.596 --> 0:03:13.476 I hear in your voice, you know, and a lot 0:03:13.556 --> 0:03:16.636 of the people who are just really good hosts of shows, 0:03:16.796 --> 0:03:18.996 Terry Gross, you know, you just feel like you're at 0:03:19.076 --> 0:03:22.796 her place. Yeah, like you're in her world, and you know, 0:03:22.836 --> 0:03:25.876 and the guest is coming into her world, and you 0:03:26.036 --> 0:03:29.116 feel as a listener, you're made to feel welcome and 0:03:29.276 --> 0:03:32.396 comfortable there. How do you do that, Ronald? You know, 0:03:32.516 --> 0:03:34.076 I wish I could say there was a trick. I 0:03:34.116 --> 0:03:35.636 wish I could tell you, hey, do this thing and 0:03:35.716 --> 0:03:37.756 this will this will work. But for me, it's just 0:03:37.956 --> 0:03:41.756 it's hospitality. It's really being genuinely interested in what they 0:03:41.836 --> 0:03:44.676 have to say. It's paying attention to them, not necessarily 0:03:44.796 --> 0:03:46.876 thinking so far ahead that you can't be president in 0:03:46.916 --> 0:03:50.796 the conversation, creating that warm sense of environment. It really 0:03:50.876 --> 0:03:54.276 comes from like a genuine place inside people. And I 0:03:54.356 --> 0:03:55.796 think most people that talk to you will tell you 0:03:56.676 --> 0:03:58.556 that this is who I am all the time. So 0:03:58.796 --> 0:04:01.756 it makes it easier for me to just bring this 0:04:01.956 --> 0:04:04.796 with me to a hostly role, whereas some people I 0:04:04.876 --> 0:04:07.316 think are very good at being a host, and then 0:04:07.676 --> 0:04:09.396 you know in the rest of their lives are not 0:04:09.596 --> 0:04:12.756 nearly as hospitable or friendly. And I can't say anything 0:04:12.796 --> 0:04:16.396 about Terry Gross, but I know that good host is 0:04:16.476 --> 0:04:19.276 being able to create that sense of hospitality in the 0:04:19.356 --> 0:04:21.796 conversation that they're having in that moment. Yeah, I mean, 0:04:21.836 --> 0:04:25.796 I think of the great hosts of my childhood, Dick Cabot, 0:04:26.196 --> 0:04:29.996 who was on TV obviously long before your time, but 0:04:30.356 --> 0:04:33.116 back in the days before cable when there are only 0:04:33.156 --> 0:04:36.316 a few channels every night, Dick Cabot was having these 0:04:36.396 --> 0:04:40.356 interesting people on his show, and he's charming, he's charmed 0:04:40.396 --> 0:04:42.716 by the gas and a lot of what he's trying 0:04:42.716 --> 0:04:47.276 to do is, of course, just inject wisecracks. I've got 0:04:47.316 --> 0:04:49.676 a clip here that's a good example of that. It's 0:04:50.076 --> 0:04:53.396 Cabot talking to the comedian Don Rickles. I know it's 0:04:53.396 --> 0:04:55.196 hard for you to be serious, but it is. I 0:04:55.236 --> 0:04:57.716 think people don't admit that deep down inside. If I 0:04:57.836 --> 0:04:59.436 may be serious for a moment, that you do something 0:04:59.516 --> 0:05:02.276 on the stage that all of us would like to 0:05:02.396 --> 0:05:06.876 do if we had no class. The other host I 0:05:06.956 --> 0:05:08.756 think about all the time as I grew up listening 0:05:09.156 --> 0:05:12.236 the radio growing up in Chicago, the Studs Turcle here, 0:05:12.316 --> 0:05:15.676 just as one example is Studs Turkle interviewing Muhammad Ali 0:05:15.756 --> 0:05:18.596 in nineteen seventy five. Why do you think it is? 0:05:19.476 --> 0:05:22.796 And Ohish in this particular theater, so many different people 0:05:22.836 --> 0:05:26.916 are why were they rooting for you the outsider? Well, 0:05:27.956 --> 0:05:30.636 I think the mass is root for me because they're scuffling. 0:05:31.396 --> 0:05:34.156 They've been a persecuted and they figure them about the 0:05:34.716 --> 0:05:41.996 haigh taxes and whatever. They've underdogs. People are basically underdogs 0:05:42.036 --> 0:05:44.876 as the whole. And the things that I say from 0:05:44.916 --> 0:05:48.756 black mind people and the freedom involved people and the 0:05:48.836 --> 0:05:50.796 way I speak out in the title that they have 0:05:51.076 --> 0:05:53.756 and the and I don't let this stop me from 0:05:53.916 --> 0:05:57.356 recognizing everyday man, I think this is what they're wanting, 0:05:57.356 --> 0:05:59.476 whether they'd be black or white. The mass of people 0:05:59.516 --> 0:06:02.556 are hard working people. The amazing thing about Studs Tircle, 0:06:02.596 --> 0:06:05.356 I mean Studs Turcle. He was so good at talking 0:06:05.476 --> 0:06:08.276 to anybody, you know, on a day to day He 0:06:08.356 --> 0:06:12.276 would have you know, a janitor, and then he would 0:06:12.316 --> 0:06:15.396 have you know, an opera singer, and then he would 0:06:15.476 --> 0:06:20.036 have you know, a former vice president or politician, and 0:06:20.236 --> 0:06:21.876 he just part of what was great about him was 0:06:21.956 --> 0:06:25.196 he would talk to everybody the same way. Yeah, I think. 0:06:25.436 --> 0:06:27.796 I mean, there's a sense of empathy that comes with 0:06:27.916 --> 0:06:30.276 no matter who's in the room. It should be able 0:06:30.316 --> 0:06:32.836 to be extended to anyone who's sitting opposite from you, 0:06:33.116 --> 0:06:35.396 whether they be the janitor or the president of the 0:06:35.516 --> 0:06:38.476 United States. The other thing is not being afraid to 0:06:38.636 --> 0:06:41.756 ask even a question that may not sound as smart 0:06:41.756 --> 0:06:44.236 as you think it does. I think Larry King once said, um, 0:06:44.556 --> 0:06:46.476 he was on a was on he was talking to 0:06:46.596 --> 0:06:49.276 Jesse Thorne, my friend Herbie Cohen, who wrote, you could 0:06:49.316 --> 0:06:53.756 negotiate anything. We grew up together. He says to me, Larry, 0:06:53.836 --> 0:06:58.876 A secret of your success because you're dumb, and dumb 0:06:59.076 --> 0:07:02.356 is the great road to success because you're not afraid 0:07:02.436 --> 0:07:06.836 to say I don't know, tell me help me. That's 0:07:06.876 --> 0:07:09.596 a lot of my interviews. Help help me. That you're 0:07:10.356 --> 0:07:14.476 you're a brain surg You've got brain surgery tomorrow morning. 0:07:15.516 --> 0:07:19.396 Think about it tonight when you go in, do you 0:07:19.516 --> 0:07:22.356 check your hands if they're steady? And so then all 0:07:22.396 --> 0:07:24.756 of a sudden you have this very poignant moment because 0:07:24.876 --> 0:07:27.316 Larry King asked a question that it's like, wow, I 0:07:27.356 --> 0:07:29.076 would have and even me, I was sitting there, I 0:07:29.116 --> 0:07:30.756 was like, Ronald, do you do I do that? I 0:07:30.836 --> 0:07:33.356 was like, I want to make sure that I do that. 0:07:33.556 --> 0:07:35.676 But having that empathy allows you to just be in 0:07:35.796 --> 0:07:37.476 the seat across from you, like I said, whether it's 0:07:37.516 --> 0:07:40.116 the janitor or the president of the United States. Yeah. 0:07:40.476 --> 0:07:43.196 So for this show, you know, we do interviews with 0:07:43.356 --> 0:07:48.436 a particular kind of focus. How is problem solving and 0:07:48.556 --> 0:07:52.676 how are people who have ideas about solving problems making 0:07:52.716 --> 0:07:55.396 the world better incapable of making the world better? And 0:07:55.556 --> 0:07:57.796 that's the thing that that can be a big range 0:07:57.876 --> 0:08:00.396 of stuff. Yeah, if you look out there, Let's say 0:08:00.396 --> 0:08:02.236 you're your house is near the water, and you look 0:08:02.276 --> 0:08:03.876 out there and you're just like, the water seems to 0:08:03.916 --> 0:08:06.236 be creeping closer and closer. And if you're only thinking 0:08:06.276 --> 0:08:08.356 about what's going to happen when the water reaches your 0:08:08.396 --> 0:08:10.556 house and all the horrible things that can happen as 0:08:10.596 --> 0:08:13.276 the water continues to rise and the flooding. When you 0:08:13.316 --> 0:08:15.276 start to think about all that, it kind of changes 0:08:15.316 --> 0:08:18.156 your posture versus if you think, how do we stop 0:08:18.196 --> 0:08:20.236 the water, how do we get the people out? How 0:08:20.276 --> 0:08:22.356 do we keep my house dry? And I think in 0:08:22.516 --> 0:08:26.036 terms of this podcast, I like that it's it's pivoting 0:08:26.396 --> 0:08:29.036 from us talking so much about what the issue is, 0:08:29.076 --> 0:08:31.476 because in most cases we know what the issue is. 0:08:31.996 --> 0:08:34.076 What we really need to know is what's the best 0:08:34.116 --> 0:08:37.516 way forward. How can we like either neutralize whatever this 0:08:37.636 --> 0:08:40.116 problem is or at least adjust our lives so that 0:08:40.236 --> 0:08:41.956 the problem isn't what it is. Do we need to 0:08:41.996 --> 0:08:44.236 build a bridge, maybe we need to build our houses higher, 0:08:44.436 --> 0:08:46.716 whatever that means in order to get out of the water. 0:08:46.956 --> 0:08:48.476 I think it gives a bit of optimism to the 0:08:48.516 --> 0:08:51.796 world that I think is one necessary right now. It 0:08:51.996 --> 0:08:54.756 is optimistic. I mean, it's looking at things that are 0:08:55.076 --> 0:09:00.116 in many cases terrible. But the show always makes me 0:09:00.236 --> 0:09:04.316 feel really good because the people we interview believe in 0:09:04.676 --> 0:09:07.396 positive change in a very practical way. I mean not 0:09:07.556 --> 0:09:10.596 just in a I have faith way, but I've looked 0:09:10.636 --> 0:09:15.116 at this and I'm working on ameliorating this thing. Yes 0:09:15.196 --> 0:09:17.636 it is. Yes, That's what makes me feel good about listening. 0:09:19.236 --> 0:09:21.556 There's a lot of doomscrolling over the last year. We 0:09:21.596 --> 0:09:23.716 talked about doomscrolling, which is when you're just looking at 0:09:23.756 --> 0:09:26.396 your phone, just looking at all the headlines that have 0:09:26.476 --> 0:09:28.396 to do with COVID, all the horrible things that are 0:09:28.396 --> 0:09:30.356 happening with the election, all the horrible things that are 0:09:30.396 --> 0:09:34.796 happening with the presidents or politics in general. We're just doomscrolling. 0:09:35.036 --> 0:09:38.316 It feels good for someone to come with you with 0:09:38.476 --> 0:09:42.076 a problem and a solution, or at least a proposed solution, 0:09:42.316 --> 0:09:45.076 or saying we're working towards a solution for this problem. 0:09:45.316 --> 0:09:48.116 It makes me look at the problem as temporary rather 0:09:48.196 --> 0:09:50.156 than as something that's going to grow and overtake us. 0:09:50.436 --> 0:09:53.356 And that just makes me feel really good. When you 0:09:53.436 --> 0:09:56.116 step back and get the big picture of what's been 0:09:56.196 --> 0:10:01.916 happening globally over the last forty years been tremendous human 0:10:01.996 --> 0:10:06.236 progress and almost everything that counts. There are billions fewer 0:10:06.356 --> 0:10:08.956 people living in extreme poverty, that is, you know, living 0:10:09.276 --> 0:10:13.276 less than two dollars a day. Hunger has become fundamentally 0:10:13.316 --> 0:10:16.796 a problem in conflict zones or where you have political breakdown. 0:10:16.876 --> 0:10:19.636 You don't have areas of the world that are subject 0:10:19.676 --> 0:10:24.836 to famine as kind of natural disaster. There are people 0:10:25.036 --> 0:10:28.516 dying of various communical bold diseases. You know, despite the 0:10:28.596 --> 0:10:33.516 pandemic this year, number is getting better. And I've tried 0:10:33.596 --> 0:10:39.396 to find interviewees who recognize the progress we've made and 0:10:39.996 --> 0:10:42.836 are focused on accelerating it or talking about how we 0:10:42.876 --> 0:10:44.996 can extend it to other areas. I mean, it's going 0:10:45.076 --> 0:10:46.796 to put us all in a different mindset to say 0:10:46.836 --> 0:10:48.956 that how can we make it even better. I think 0:10:49.036 --> 0:10:50.836 that's the spirit of the show and it's continuing in 0:10:50.876 --> 0:10:54.316 the right direction of optimism. Ronald, our listeners are going 0:10:54.356 --> 0:10:56.676 to get to know you over the coming weeks and months, 0:10:56.876 --> 0:10:59.436 but I wanted to make it a little more personal 0:10:59.596 --> 0:11:03.476 and ask you about yourself. And you know, we've frame 0:11:03.556 --> 0:11:06.836 it to the extent you want around problem solving, but 0:11:07.036 --> 0:11:09.996 tell us a little bit about your career and you 0:11:10.076 --> 0:11:12.756 know what problems you've had to face. So shortly after 0:11:14.596 --> 0:11:18.316 Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman, they had that incident where 0:11:18.356 --> 0:11:21.796 George Zimmerman killed Trayvon Martin. I remember I was on 0:11:21.916 --> 0:11:24.196 Facebook and I was getting into arguments all the time 0:11:24.236 --> 0:11:27.916 with folks about racism, about you know, the rights of 0:11:28.036 --> 0:11:31.276 people to take the shortcut through the alley without being shot, 0:11:31.396 --> 0:11:33.756 like to think about I was thinking through all tho scenarios, 0:11:33.796 --> 0:11:35.756 and I was getting into these arguments over and over again. 0:11:35.956 --> 0:11:38.316 And there were several different Facebook discussions in which I 0:11:38.356 --> 0:11:40.956 would post this long post. People would jump into comments. 0:11:41.116 --> 0:11:42.876 I would argue with them in the comments. We'd go 0:11:42.916 --> 0:11:44.796 back and forth, and then people would say, Ronald, you're 0:11:44.836 --> 0:11:47.516 being rude, You're belittling people. This isn't right. Why do 0:11:47.596 --> 0:11:49.596 you talk like this? And I'm like, no, I'm not. 0:11:49.876 --> 0:11:51.676 I don't think you guys can hear my voice. Like 0:11:51.836 --> 0:11:53.916 you guys, you're just seeing my words and you're not 0:11:54.396 --> 0:11:56.756 You're not hearing my voice. So I thought, you know, 0:11:56.916 --> 0:11:59.356 maybe it would be easier to have these discussions if 0:11:59.396 --> 0:12:01.676 people could hear me. So as a result of that, 0:12:01.796 --> 0:12:04.316 I started a web show called ten Minutes with Ronald 0:12:04.356 --> 0:12:05.756 where I talked about it. She's like this, I talked 0:12:05.796 --> 0:12:07.356 about it. She's like, raise, I'll tell you. And I 0:12:07.356 --> 0:12:09.596 did old Facebook Live with Facebook Live or start. It's 0:12:09.596 --> 0:12:13.636 not talking about issues of police brutality, politics, all that 0:12:13.796 --> 0:12:15.916 talk about even movies that I liked. We talked about 0:12:15.956 --> 0:12:19.116 all of that, and people really responded positively to that 0:12:19.316 --> 0:12:22.436 because instead of reading my words, they could hear me. 0:12:23.156 --> 0:12:25.716 That led to me starting my podcast Time Well Spent, 0:12:26.076 --> 0:12:28.156 and it really it kind of pushed me down this 0:12:28.276 --> 0:12:31.716 path of really being able to push these types of 0:12:31.756 --> 0:12:34.956 transformative conversations that people are having in the comment section 0:12:35.076 --> 0:12:38.316 on the internet with no empathy, with no tone, like 0:12:38.516 --> 0:12:40.676 one whole. And I think that's one thing. We're striving 0:12:40.716 --> 0:12:44.956 towards a world of communication where everything is written and 0:12:45.156 --> 0:12:48.636 everything is in text form, and people think that that's effective, 0:12:48.676 --> 0:12:51.836 and I'm like, there are scenarios in which that is effective. 0:12:52.116 --> 0:12:56.156 But body language and tone are important. They're very, very important, 0:12:56.196 --> 0:12:58.516 and when we take those out of a conversation, all 0:12:58.556 --> 0:13:01.476 you're left with is the words, and in your mind, 0:13:01.876 --> 0:13:05.236 your imagination places the tone and the body language in 0:13:05.316 --> 0:13:08.676 the words. So even if Jacob you said me an 0:13:08.676 --> 0:13:10.996 email for Pushkin, that's like Ronald, have a nice day, 0:13:11.036 --> 0:13:12.876 and I'm like, well, don't talk to me like that. 0:13:12.956 --> 0:13:15.876 They'll tell me what you might have said it, like, hey, 0:13:15.956 --> 0:13:17.836 ro I don't have a nice day. But I couldn't 0:13:17.876 --> 0:13:20.436 see that. So I think this isn't necessarily a problem 0:13:20.516 --> 0:13:23.036 that I've solved, But at least for myself, what I'm 0:13:23.036 --> 0:13:25.516 working on solving is being able to present myself in 0:13:25.556 --> 0:13:27.916 a way where people could hear me see that I'm smiling, 0:13:28.036 --> 0:13:30.236 see that I'm upset, see that I'm sad, all of 0:13:30.356 --> 0:13:33.196 that through my tone based on the media that I'm 0:13:33.236 --> 0:13:36.436 putting forth, whether that being podcast form, video form, or 0:13:36.636 --> 0:13:39.196 whatever other form. But most of the work that I 0:13:39.316 --> 0:13:41.116 do is all has to do with being able to 0:13:41.556 --> 0:13:44.316 tell people's stories, talk to people on a personal level, 0:13:44.396 --> 0:13:46.356 talk to people one on one, or at least, you know, 0:13:46.516 --> 0:13:49.996 give them a piece of work from a podcast. The 0:13:50.036 --> 0:13:52.996 other thing what was interested to ask you is what 0:13:53.276 --> 0:13:57.556 you think the biggest or most interesting problems are right now? 0:13:57.756 --> 0:13:59.396 You know, we will have a meeting every week and 0:13:59.516 --> 0:14:02.156 try to come up with ideas and guests for the show, 0:14:02.756 --> 0:14:06.516 and I'm interested in what you're interested in, because inevitably 0:14:06.596 --> 0:14:09.156 what the host cares about is going to drive a 0:14:09.236 --> 0:14:14.876 lot of who we hear from unsolvable. I honestly, for me, 0:14:15.116 --> 0:14:17.996 the biggest problem that I'll always loop back to will 0:14:18.036 --> 0:14:21.716 always be around racism, and it's hard to get away 0:14:21.796 --> 0:14:24.956 from it because the more I read about history, the 0:14:25.076 --> 0:14:27.076 more I look at the history of the United States 0:14:27.996 --> 0:14:30.356 from the founding to now, and the more I think 0:14:30.396 --> 0:14:33.116 about all of the stories that have been told over 0:14:33.156 --> 0:14:35.236 the years, some that have been forgotten, some that have 0:14:35.356 --> 0:14:38.916 just recently been brought to light, it makes me realize 0:14:38.956 --> 0:14:42.996 that we've really missed the mark on really bringing the 0:14:43.076 --> 0:14:47.036 country together in a way that is actually meaningful and intentional. 0:14:47.636 --> 0:14:50.556 And I don't know, I don't know how to solve it, 0:14:50.676 --> 0:14:52.876 because I think for a lot of people, they just 0:14:53.036 --> 0:14:57.476 think racism is solved by diversifying a room. Racism is 0:14:57.556 --> 0:15:01.556 solved by, you know, acknowledging some of the hurt and 0:15:01.716 --> 0:15:04.636 racism is solved by those things. But to me, I 0:15:04.676 --> 0:15:07.396 think it's a multifaceted solution. I think this is another 0:15:07.436 --> 0:15:10.356 one of those thematic problems that has like many problems 0:15:10.476 --> 0:15:13.276 underneath that each need to be solved before we can 0:15:13.396 --> 0:15:16.836 really get to a place of harmony in the country 0:15:16.956 --> 0:15:21.476 and in the world. And it doesn't necessarily keep me 0:15:21.556 --> 0:15:24.236 up at night anymore. I mean, depending on what night, 0:15:24.316 --> 0:15:27.556 maybe it does, but it doesn't necessarily keep me up 0:15:27.636 --> 0:15:30.276 all the time. But it's something that I constantly think about, 0:15:30.316 --> 0:15:33.236 where I say, I know we're not there yet. I 0:15:33.596 --> 0:15:35.516 think we're heading in the right direction. A lot of 0:15:35.516 --> 0:15:38.476 people are acknowledging it. But I don't necessarily want to 0:15:38.516 --> 0:15:40.716 pivot this show to be in like solve racism right now, 0:15:41.316 --> 0:15:43.516 because I don't think it's that simple. But it is 0:15:43.596 --> 0:15:46.636 something that I think, like, what are the aspects of 0:15:46.716 --> 0:15:49.436 which we could be doing a better job and pushing 0:15:49.556 --> 0:15:54.796 even more forward beyond kind of the obvious initiatives or 0:15:54.876 --> 0:15:58.476 the splashy initiatives that we do. So yeah, that's kind 0:15:58.476 --> 0:16:00.036 of what I think about a lot. And I would 0:16:00.076 --> 0:16:01.956 love to hear from the listeners. I would love to 0:16:02.036 --> 0:16:04.796 know what problems keep y'all up at night. What are 0:16:04.876 --> 0:16:07.836 you guys thinking about? What would you like to see solved? 0:16:08.236 --> 0:16:12.036 Go to Twitter at pushkin pods hashtag solvable and tell 0:16:12.116 --> 0:16:14.076 us the type of problems that you'd love to hear 0:16:14.156 --> 0:16:16.636 us talk about solving I'm really glad you said that, Ronald, 0:16:16.676 --> 0:16:19.676 because we've always thought of this is a really participatory show. 0:16:19.836 --> 0:16:23.036 You know, we usually and by asking our guest what 0:16:23.276 --> 0:16:25.476 listeners can do if they want to get involved in 0:16:25.596 --> 0:16:28.556 solving the problem we're talking about. And you have your 0:16:28.596 --> 0:16:30.796 list of problems you're interested in. I have my list 0:16:30.876 --> 0:16:32.756 of problems I've been interested in. We get a ton 0:16:32.796 --> 0:16:36.636 of great ideas from our producers, but we really want 0:16:36.676 --> 0:16:39.676 to know what listeners think we should be doing, both 0:16:39.756 --> 0:16:43.556 specific guests and specific problems. And I'm really glad you're here. 0:16:44.036 --> 0:16:47.076 I'm excited now to be someone who's listening to the 0:16:47.156 --> 0:16:49.876 show with what you're going to do with it. I 0:16:50.076 --> 0:16:52.716 appreciate you guys bringing me on. I'm really excited to 0:16:52.756 --> 0:16:54.276 be a part of the team, and I'm excited to 0:16:54.276 --> 0:16:55.996 see where we go, Like I mean, this is gonna 0:16:55.996 --> 0:16:58.316 be We're we're gonna have a good year, all right, 0:16:58.436 --> 0:17:02.716 there's that optimism. Thank you, Ronald, Thank you, Jacob. I 0:17:02.756 --> 0:17:08.196 appreciate you. Solvable Senior producer is Jostin Fry. Booking by 0:17:08.276 --> 0:17:12.236 Lisa Dodd, Research by David Jah. Our Managing producer is 0:17:12.276 --> 0:17:16.316 Sasha Matthias and Meil LaBelle is the executive producer. If 0:17:16.356 --> 0:17:19.156 you like the show, please remember to share, rate, and review. 0:17:19.276 --> 0:17:21.916 It really helps us get the word out. You can 0:17:21.996 --> 0:17:25.676 find Pushkin podcasts wherever you listen, including on the iHeartRadio 0:17:25.756 --> 0:17:30.476 app and Apple podcast. I'm Jacob Weisberg and I'm Ronald 0:17:30.516 --> 0:17:32.716 Young Jr. Talk to you more next week.