SUNDAY NIGHTS—NEW RADIO PROGRAM on internet

[darinhouston]

I think our Buddhist friend is an excellent caller.

[Jason]

I'm with Matt. I live in Nashville and don't often run into people like I hear on this program. I'm actually finding out quite a bit about other beliefs, especially those not cataloged in the "big five" religions. One thing I've found out so far is that Christianity really does sound like the most rational option given all the rest. I've also discovered that being rational isn't always important to people. Keep on keepin' on.

[brian]

If you could let us know what equipment you are currently using, and what codec or other equipment you think you need, I could also do some looking into what might be a workable solution.

By the way, I really enjoy the Road to Find Out program. I guess I've listened to so many of your lectures and radio broadcasts that I already know what the answers will be to the questions callers ask on the Narrowpath, so the Road to Find Out definitely gives some radically different viewpoints to answer to.

[steve]

I am currently using a portable unit made by Comrex, which is called an Access Portable. It interfaces through the internet with a Comrex Access rack-mount unit, which is installed at KKMC. I am assuming I would need another Access rack-mount unit to install at KSCO for the Sunday night show—unless some other company makes a codec that is compatible with the Access. I have found cheaper codecs on the internet, but I ave not done the necessary resaerch to know if they will interface seamlessly with the Comrex units.

[darinhouston]

I think we'll need to know what KSCO has in place.

[steve]

I will check. They have another host who broadcasts remote from his home in San Diego. My impression is that he is using an ISDN codec of some kind.

[Jason]

**Nerd Alert**
Steve, what kind of specs are you running on your laptop? Not that I'm planning to broadcast anything but I am curious whether or not it takes a top shelf system to do what you do. Also... Mac or PC?

[steve]

My laptop is just a two-year old MacBook without any special modifications. I only use it for the call-screening functions, not the audio broadcasting. I do this by connecting to the KKMC studio call-screening computer, via Gotomypc.com—which I can do from any Internet-enabled computer (are there any other kind anymore?).

The Comrex unit is not a computer, but a hand-held, battery-powered, VOIP-type device that I connect to the internet via DSL cable (Alternately, I can use a Verizon Wireless air card—but that always seems to introduce a delay that becomes awkward in two-way on-air conversations). YOu can see and read about this unit at http://www.comrex.com/products/access_portable.html

All I have to do is plug my microphone and headphones into this device, and that infaces me with the studio in Salinas, where the calls are received and the show is produced and distributed to other stations and to the internet.

[kaufmannphillips]

Jason wrote:
I live in Nashville and don't often run into people like I hear on this program. I'm actually finding out quite a bit about other beliefs, especially those not cataloged in the "big five" religions. One thing I've found out so far is that Christianity really does sound like the most rational option given all the rest.

"Rational" is in the eye of the beholder, of course. After one spends years studying a religious text, and practicing a religious ethic and/or discipline, and celebrating religious ritual (which would include worship, even with a drum-kit), it is not surprising if one finds it to be sensible, enlightening, and even "rational."

Religious life brainwashes the practitioner. In the proper use, this can be a positive thing. But the practitioner has to remain cautious about what it is they are washing with.

[Jason]

"Rational" is in the eye of the beholder, of course. After one spends years studying a religious text, and practicing a religious ethic and/or discipline, and celebrating religious ritual (which would include worship, even with a drum-kit), it is not surprising if one finds it to be sensible, enlightening, and even "rational."

By "rational" I mean one point logically leads to the next. Steve has had quite a few callers whose beliefs don't have any kind of logical flow to them. I was saturated with all sorts of "new age" beliefs growing up (wasn't raised in a Christian home) but later, as an adult, began to find that I was holding onto beliefs that didn't adhere to any rule of logic or was, at best, inconsistent. A good example of this is the caller who says that Christians are judgemental and therefore Christianity is false. Also, don't think that I'm saying rational = true. I believe you are a rational man, based on many of your posts, but I still think your conclusions are wrong. It doesn't make you irrational.