Episode 198: Hosts Richard Kyte and Scott Rada are off this week, so we looked back through our show archives and are sharing four of our favorite ethical dilemmas from the past few months.

Topics include whether to reimburse someone for the cost of gas, what to do if you think someone at your gym doesn't belong there and how important it is not to spoil the ending of a popular TV show.

Episode 197: It’s easy to complain about what’s wrong with the country. It’s much harder to suggest meaningful solutions — especially when those solutions are bound to be unpopular.

Hosts Richard Kyte and Scott Rada take a different approach. Instead of lamenting what’s broken, they each offer three ideas they believe would make life in America better. The catch? Most people don’t seem to want them.

Among the six proposals discussed are calls for ambitious housing reforms, a nationwide ban on cellphones in K-12 schools and the introduction of religious education into public school curricula. Kyte argues that American students are missing a crucial understanding of how religion shapes history, culture and personal identity — knowledge he says is essential to navigating the modern world.

Rada’s own list includes a push for year-round school calendars, a politically fraught but practical shift aimed at minimizing learning loss and offering teachers more balanced breaks throughout the year. He also calls for an end to single-family zoning, which he sees as a key driver of unaffordable housing and urban sprawl.

The two also take on one of the third rails of American politics: Social Security. Kyte proposes gradually raising the retirement age and means-testing benefits.

The episode closes with a conversation about public service. Rada argues that elected officials and their staff are vastly underpaid, leading to a lack of expertise in government and an overreliance on special interests to shape legislation.

“This might be our least popular suggestion,” Rada said. “But it’s hard to get smart policy when the people writing it are stretched thin and planning their exit strategy.”

Episode 196: The Amish are often portrayed as paragons of simplicity, faith and hard work — living peacefully in the countryside, growing food without chemicals and raising barns as a community. In an era of rapid change and digital burnout, their lifestyle can seem idyllic, even enviable.

But are we overlooking serious ethical concerns in favor of nostalgia?

Hosts Scott Rada and Rick Kyte explore why Americans tend to romanticize the Amish while ignoring the costs experienced by many within those communities. The conversation begins with a moment of contrast: a social media post condemning a retailer’s retreat from diversity initiatives followed immediately by another celebrating Amish businesses as wholesome alternatives. That tension — between modern values and traditional practices — drives the discussion forward.

Together, the hosts dive into issues often absent from mainstream depictions of Amish life: restricted educational access, lack of medical care, gender inequality and the practice of shunning those who choose to leave. At the same time, they acknowledge the benefits that come with strong social ties and belonging — qualities that many modern communities struggle to maintain.

Throughout the discussion, Rada challenges whether we give the Amish a pass simply because their lifestyle appears peaceful or quaint, while Kyte urges listeners to consider what broader society might learn from their sense of purpose and interdependence. It’s a back-and-forth that wrestles with fairness, freedom and the limits of tolerance.