Insights Into Things

In this third "Getting to Know You" episode we learn more about Madison through a series of questions, some of which we've never asked before and others are a status check on what's changed since our last "Getting to Know You" podcast.
This session was inspired by some back to school questions Madison was answering this week. Her answers as with everything in the world today are colored by the current state of the COVID-19 crisis.
Surprising, despite the bleak outlook on the world today Madison is able to maintain a positive perspective on things. We asked a series of questions from habits and hobbies to family and friends and delve deeper into her personality. We learn a few things that even as her dad I wasn't aware of. It was an eye opening and fun podcast this week. There are some great questions in this episode that I encourage other parents to engage their kids with, you might be pleasantly surprised at the answers you get.

In our Disney Detective, Marriott is opening a New Hotel on WDW property. And Mulan on Disney+ without the fee? And a Boycott as well?
Then in our Tales from the Edge of the Galaxy, 'Disney Reportedly Has A Big Problem With The Mandalorian Season 2. And for our Entertainment News, What is the fate for Black Panther?
Chadwick Boseman Left Behind A Legacy & 'Batman' production halted due to Covid-19 Finally we’ll finish up with our Insightful Picks of the week....

We flash back to our first podcast about braces and take a look at how far Madison has come in her journey. We'll recap what she's already gone through in phase one of her braces. We'll discuss what has happened in phase two since the original podcast in the series. Then we'll take a look at what is yet to come now that's in phase three and the home stretch.
Madison conveys her struggle with some of the challenges of getting braces. She'll talk about the discomfort she's felt at the various points in the process and how she's dealt with it. We will some up with some advice that Madison can share to others who are going through the process or may be getting ready to go through the process.

This week we look at the challenges, concerns and changes to how school will work in the coming weeks amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic. What are schools doing to confront early surges in infections, what infrastructure is in place for remote learning, what impact will remote and hybrid learning solutions have on our children and when can we expect a return to some normalcy.
We'll look specifically at what Madison's school is doing. The changing environment, evolving messaging and the recommendations coming down from the Federal Government, CDC and other respected organization. There's a lot of fear, anxiety and uncertainty about the risks of sending our kids back to school under these conditions and we'll talk about all of it this week.

Disney Detective explores the possibility of famed Disney Imagineer Tony Baxter returning to help remake Journey Into Imagination with Figment. Disney+ will reportedly be moving some of it's more mature content to the streaming service along with parental controls. And we'll take a look at 12 unique items from Disney's Secret Vault.
Tales from the Edge of the Galaxy will take a look at George Lucas' reaction to the Mandalorian and how his faith in the franchise is once again restored. Entertainment News will look at NBC's efforts to revitalize Broadway and Netflix just dropped a teaser trailer for the upcoming season of "The Crown".

This week we're talking about the various things that Madison did this summer in quarantine. COVID-19 has seen the normal summer vacation time period turned on it's head. With a summer filled with stay at home days it's proven challenging to keep Madison occupied and entertained. Without the usual weekend trips, vacations and outdoor activities to draw on we had to get creative with different projects, virtual camps and other things to keep her challenged, engaged and motivated. We'll discuss all of the things we've done to accomplish exactly that in this weeks episode.

This week's Disney Detective segment takes a look at a new animation school Disney will be embarking on that builds upon Walt Disney's legacy with the hope of producing the talented animators of tomorrow at the Promise Youth Animation Academy. Tales from the Edge of the Galaxy introduces us to a new Star Wars Holiday Special, this one done in the style of Lego's that draws on some of the concepts of the original cult classic 1977 Star Wars Holiday Special.
In Entertainment news we learn that Flash Gordon's Brian Blessed discovered a fan of his 1980 campy sci-fi film in an unexpected person. Quentin Tarantino has thoughts on what the next Star Trek movie should be and the original series episode it draws inspiration from. We'll also look at how New York Comic Con will continue it's story legacy in a similar way to other popular comic book conventions during the COVID-19 lock down.
Finally we'll finish off with two great Insightful Picks of the week. One a second season recommendation that's already appeared on the show and the other a pop-culture documentary that no geek should miss.

Everyone has or will have to face the prospect of mental, physical or emotional burn out at some point in their lives. With the stress of school and pressures of socializing at an awkward age many teens reach a burn out phase early on. In this episode we'll look at some of the signs and symptoms to keep an eye on. We'll talk about some of the common causes of burn out. We will also look at ways to cope with burn out and how to recover from it while also understanding that burn out and stress, while they may be linked are two different and distinct problems to deal with.

We explore the controversial topic of voter suppression in this episode. We'll take a look at the various forms of voter suppression dating back to the founding of our country up until the present time. We'll investigate the various laws that on the surface were portrayed as a method of preserving the integrity of our voting system but in reality were tied to the ever present but rarely proven fear of voter fraud.
We dive deep into the current voter suppression techniques employed today that are designed to manipulate, inconvenience and disenfranchise a large portion of the voting public. We'll discuss the corrupt, racist and anti-democratic motivations for such schemes and how they are eroding our political system.
Finally we'll look to the future of voter suppression and the impact it will have on our country as a whole. All in an attempt to educate the voting public. Because if there's one thing politicians fear it's an informed, educated and motivate block of voters who are immune to the tried and true manipulative techniques that all politicians employ to gain themselves political office.

Bag checks are in the news this week in our Disney Detective segment. Disney's Hollywood Studios is implementing new Artificial Intelligence Bag Check Scanners that have already proven effective in speeding up lines and detecting illicit items such as weapons in Epcot. Then we'll take a look at bag checks gone wild at Disney when 69 year old Hester Burkhalter was subjected to a bag check that ultimately led to her arrest and a full body cavity search after it was revealed that she was carrying CBD oil into the park. Finally we'll take a look at the latest movie role that Tom Hanks will be taking on for Disney studios.
In Tales from the Edge of the Galaxy we'll take a look at just how Star Wars got their titles wrong. A fan video shows that the titles of all nine primary Star Wars movies work much better when they are applied to different movies. The videos gives the alternative titles and their reasoning and will leave you wondering if perhaps there wasn't a larger theme at play with the naming of the movies.
Entertainment news this week is all about Disney's latest live action remake Mulan. In an unexpected change of policy speculated on in the podcast a few weeks ago Disney will be streaming the movie on Disney+ but with a catch. While that news was a welcome change of heart to most of us, one theater operator in France didn't take the news so well. We have that story and his reaction this week as well.
We'll finish this week up with a bit of a reversal of roles in our Insightful Picks of the Week, with Michelle highlighting a documentary and Joe a surprising non-documentary pick this week.