Colin's Last Stand: Fireside Chats

Allow me to introduce you to Ben Smith. Ben is a small business owner, a father, a husband... and the mayor of a small, western Pennsylvania city called Butler, just north of Pittsburgh. I invited Mayor Smith onto Fireside Chats to talk about what it's like to be the mayor of Anytown, USA, and to discuss what problems his community faces, and what he's doing to remedy those issues. We talk a great deal about why he decided to run, what it was like running both the primary and general election, and how it's going now that he (unexpectedly) won. This is an awesome glimpse into local politics through the eyes of the man who runs the show.

Lieutenant Michael Autery is a US Naval officer, the host of the UNALIENABLE Podcast, and a man with a passion for all things liberty. In his military role, he's charged with defending and upholding the American Constitution at all costs, something that intrigued him so much that he became obsessive about the document, the men who wrote it, and the rights it bestows upon all Americans. I invited Lt. Autery to Santa Monica for a Fireside Chat not only on Constitutional adoration and a respect for the Bill of Rights, but to reflect on a time and place -- today, right now -- that seems hell-bent on stripping and diminishing some of those rights.

Late last year, my brother Dagan Moriarty -- Lead Animator and Designer at Sesame Workshop (for which he and his team recently won an Emmy!), and co-host of the retro/nostalgia podcast CLS: KnockBack -- sat down with me for a discussion about the Star Wars film The Last Jedi. To follow that up, Dagan and I went to see the new Star Wars movie Solo while we were recording Wave III of KnockBack in Philadelphia, and sat down to record a Fireside Chat chronicling our thoughts. Don't worry: We won't hold you to a life debt if you agree with our opinions.

Tourette Syndrome (also known as Tourette's Syndrome, or simply Tourette's) is a neuropsychiatric disorder that many have reduced to a caricature of a person screaming loudly and shouting curse words. But Tourette's is much more than that, a disorder that affects 1 in 100 school-age children, an ailment that shares heavy overlap with ADHD and OCD, and something that can alter one's ability to learn, find acceptance, and succeed in life. So I invited Anthony Flarida to have a Fireside Chat with me. Anthony not only has Tourette's; his son does, too. We discuss his experience dealing with this syndrome, how it has positively and adversely affected his life, and what it's like raising a child that suffers from the same problem.

Professor Greg Jackson holds a PhD in history, teaches at Utah Valley University, and hosts the podcast History That Doesn't Suck. I invited Jackson to Santa Monica to discuss modern academia, and what it's like teaching in a contemporary collegiate environment that, from the outside, seems to be burning to the ground. And so we focus our talk around the scourge of postmodernism. We also discuss history as a pursuit, a passion, and a profession. Why is history taught so poorly, and what can we do to make a new generation of young people passionate about the past?

Alex Schmitz likes the Star Wars Prequels. In fact, he kinda loves 'em. As a one-time film student who now works in the movie industry, Schmitz is especially well-equipped to defend what he views as underrated and underappreciated gems in the ever-growing Star Wars universe. So I invited him onto Fireside Chats to do just that. And believe it or not, he makes a pretty convincing case...

Patreon co-founder and CEO Jack Conte changed my life. Twice, in fact. When I first met him in 2014, his new company was a largely-unknown upstart, but today, Patreon is a world-renowned name with $100 million in venture capital and a singular mission: Fund the Creative Class. I sat down with Jack for an hour-long interview to pick his brain about the past, present, and future of the service. What mistakes have been made? What new features are coming in the future? How many more lives can the service touch like it touched mine? His answers are across-the-board exciting.

Marc Boggio is a good man who found himself in a profoundly unfortunate situation. While serving as a medic in the Canadian military, Corporal Boggio fell ill, and the unimaginable happened: He lost his leg. But this podcast doesn't tell a melancholy story. Quite the opposite. It's instead about how Marc snapped back, grabbed life by the horns, and made lemonade out of the lemons he was dealt. Prepare to be uplifted.

Let's call today's guest Drew. Drew is an EMT, but more importantly for the purposes of this podcast, he's an expert in surviving horrific disasters. He takes a particular interest in surviving Southern California-centric disasters, most notably earthquakes. Our conversation revolves around just that: A hypothetical earthquake hits LA. You're far from your home, perhaps on the way back from work. Then what? Steel yourselves. This one gets a little frightening.

Kelly Carlin is, like her father -- the famous comedian George Carlin -- a sort of modern-day philosopher, a rarity in today's climate that calls things exactly as it is. I invited her to Santa Monica to come talk to me about, well, everything, from politics to comedy, and everything in between. This a thought-provoking -- and dare I say important -- conversation, and I hope you enjoy it.

Matt Canoy went to Full Sail, where he thought he would make video games for a living. But that's not what he wanted to do. Instead, he wanted to engineer, and is currently working on two apps so secretive that we can't even talk about them. What we can talk about, though, is what one of those apps will cater to: The Social Media Market. And that got me thinking: Just what does the future of social media hold for all of us, anyway? Matt's an expert, and he's got some answers.

I met my pal Ryan McCaffrey when he started working at IGN in 2012, and we quickly became good friends. I wanted to invite him on Fireside Chats not only to discuss our days together at the world's biggest video game website, but to dive deep into his love of dogs, and my fledgling love of pups, too. His two Boxers -- the sadly deceased Maggie and the new baby Daisy -- have filled his life with love and joy, as has Lola in my life. That's what this podcast hinges on, and I hope you enjoy the conversation.

Kristin Wong is an expert in personal finance, and her new book -- Get Money -- is an ode to how anyone can grapple with cash, even if it seems daunting. So naturally, Kristin and I sat down for a conversation all about those dollars! How should you spend your money? How do you save? What do you do with credit cards, bills, and other impediments to financial growth that stand in your way? Whether you love personal finance (like me!) or are new to the game, you're going to learn something listening to today's show... and I bet you think about money just a little bit differently when you're done listening.

As moderator of the popular Rubin Report, a much-sought after public speaker, and an all-around political firebrand, Dave Rubin is one of the busiest and most active people I've ever met. He's also a good friend of mine, and has been a tremendous force for good in my own development as a political YouTuber, and podcaster. Today, Dave and I sit down for more than 100 minutes to chat about politics, his show, his personal life, his ups and downs, and much more.

The buzz around cryptocurrency is growing louder with each passing day, which is incredible since the buzz has been audible for awhile now. But it's a confusing and unusual world, one I don't quite understand. So I invited Reilly Smith onto the show to explain his craft to me. Mr. Smith works for LBRY, a crypto company with an interesting directive. I think you'll learn a lot listening to this episode of Fireside Chats. I sure learned a lot recording it.