I lose it every time I hear the part when Karl gets so close to understanding the proverb about the old man planting a seed, he gets so so close and Ricky and Steve sound so proud, and then he says "but I'm sort of guessing he enjoyed gardening anyway"
@@AA-fn9xz I think Karl brings up a pretty traditional challenge to the very concept of altruism here. If you derive pleasure from something, like providing for future generations, is it truly altruistic? It's a legitimate argument in moral philosophy.
@@Cuchulainn1984 The flaw with that objectivistic line of thought is that it's attributing equal pleasure to the altruistic deed and the satisfaction. If I donate all my free money to the homeless, I'l get a feeling of satisfaction when I do so, but that feeling will fade far faster than the pleasure I could have derived from that money. Yet I would not regret doing so. In terms of value it's an inequal exchange done out of empathy.
@@greedosspeedo1464 This is valid as long as you interpret "deriving pleasure" in a cheap hedonistic sense. I read it in a more egoist way. An action that pleases you is one that satisfies the ego. This doesn't mean optimizing pleasure over time, this means doing those things you like best. That might be an action that will cause you discomfort in the future.
That's actually a profound thought though. You should ask yourself *why* the old man enjoys gardening. It probably isn't because he likes crawling about in dirt all day. No, it's because gardening carries a certain meaning that pleases him. He knows the tree will grow to be mighty and tall in he plants that tiny seed today. That in many years townspeople will come sit in the shade of it. His tiny action right now will have huge consequences on the future. It makes him feel powerful. Something like that. The point is that the ostensibly moral action of planting that seed is actually thoroughly selfish.
The animators did an amazing job, it's so interesting and fun with the background sounds, music and little tiny intricate details. Even though you've listened to all the podcasts and stuff, re watching this is so awesome
You gotta give Karl props for how well he always does in the improv situations Ricky keeps throwing him into. Professional actors wouldn't be half as good as he is.
@@hayaokakizaki4463 can you back any sources for this claim? As I was told and have read many times that she was tired from working and her feet was hurting so she decided not to move and that it wasn't planned a planned protest she simply had enough of being treated like she was less than the white people and actually got arrested for just sitting there, but even so.. you can't blame her for what she did no one got hurt she just simply decided to sit somewhere on a bus no harm in that
+Creamy McGee “Anyone can love a rose, but it takes a great deal to love a leaf. It’s ordinary to love the beautiful, but it’s beautiful to love the ordinary” -Unknown
President Pilkington: “Where’s your mum?” Little Ricky: “She... She left... It’s just our dad and he’s a vegetable...” President Pilkington: “Right i’ll put you in a home.” *dials phone* FUCKING SAVAGE
And yet, I'd take England against any other country any day of the week :) It has it's faults, but as does every other country - relatively speaking you really don't have much to whinge about if you are born in England.
That kind of thinking is how societies collapse. People create governments to oversee the stability of society and make sure people get the support they need.
@@BGcam I don’t think they’re saying “these people and these behaviors must be monitored at all times”, I think what they’re trying to say is that society should heavily discourage bad or unhealthy habits, and the traits of a society that enable these bad habits should be abolished.
@@JacOfAllTrades. I think it's more about personal responsibility and the responsibility of the parents. Karl's point is that everyone's got a closet, stick you fat kid in yours instead of expecting a government cop out. With that being said he is a grumpy fucker so haha
2:00 when Carl brings up that he enjoyed gardening anyway after basically getting the essence of the proverb, he does the thing that he always does. He reduces things, takes the pomposity out of them and puts them in a context that maybe others haven't thought of. In other word what he's saying here is that old man in the proverb, like every human being will do things for mixed reasons, not just out of altruism but also out of a simple enjoyment of gardening (or more generally whatever altruistic activity he chooses to engages with). It's like he's not just focussing on what you're meant to "get" from the proverb. Instead he extends the meaning: the idea that an altruistic act is hardly ever devoid of some kind of enjoyment of that act. And Merchant annoyingly zeroes in on Karl focussing on "gardening". When what Karl really is focussing on is the enjoyment aspect of altruism. Of course sometimes he does miss the point but still he's really interesting how he thinks
Ricky and Steve often miss Karl's points because they're already convinced he's an idiot. But picking apart everything he says definitely adds to the comedy.
He means the actual flowers were tied together with an elastic band to make a bunch. He didn't specify how the flowers (as a bunch) were tied to the lamp post.
Around 8 minutes Karl totally owned the conversation. Why didn't you make him wear a helmet? Why didn't you make him wear shoes when he went out this morning?
Maybe if you cared more about the death of civilians and less about the moralistic decision of who is to blame, there would be fewer deaths. Do you know how many people lose their hearing because they don't believe factory machines cause ear damage? Do you know how many preventable deaths were prevented because of the traffic light and the seatbelt? Using your same logic we should get rid of the speed limit and license plate as well. Public safety isn't about who's responsible. Needless danger for the sake of looking "cool" isn't a a fucking freedom.
@@mariogiunta1989 freedom does not mean without rules.This absolutist argument can be used to justify plenty of things which even you would agree is not freedom.
Ricky turned the Rosa Parks story that he did with Karl into a comedy bit, I've noticed that Ricky has taken a lot of Karl's thoughts and ideas and turned them into jokes.
@@devstuff2576 I think it was just a general observation that he specifically got some ideas from Karl on the podcasts in particular don't really need to be snarky about it do you
Karl is usually the one to make me laugh but sometimes Stephen Merchant just comes out of left field with a gem like "I'm a rapist" and it catches me so off guard
@Brad Smith I don't think so, Gervais has made it seem like he cares about the well being and safety of everyone in general (at least the idea of them), and I think he believes government intervention is the best way to do that. Could be wrong but I got that impression from the podcasts and such.
What's loveable about Karl is that he simply has common sense. He's very wise and big picture seeing in many ways. He's basically a combo of Larry David, Jesse Lee Peterson (they'd be a brilliant interview together lol)( and tiny bit of Russ brand, tiny bit of Katie Hopkins.. ) but KARL IS SOOOO similar to Jessie Lee Peterson in many respects, both work in radio, working class up bringing, not pompous, he's just honest and not racist, he sees TRUTH AND CHARACTER AND DIESNT GIBE FREE PASSES BASED ON HISTORICAL ROMANTICISM .. te regards Sarah parks opinion is😘😘😘 perfect!🤣 Because ... Jesse Lee who was alive in the south and black at that time 😏😏... said the same thing lol... . he's a realist and humble and isn't trying to impress anyone.. it's refreshing. And the world is fucking overpopulated and its bullshit, Karl realised that too, and he saw VR REALOTY
He was. I am usually one to defend Ricky as being right the vast majority of the time, but this is one of the rare times that Karl was far wiser than Ricky and Steve.
The whole "I feel like I'm being treated like a slave" is a metaphor? Karl isn't literally imply that he feels like a slave, he just feels like he's being treated like expendable shit
"Why didn't you force him to wear a helmet? You made him a vegetable!" Well if that's the logic, why is unhealthy food allowed? How many people are dying from cardiovascular diseases?
@Nobody comments are not funny you troglodyte use public transportation, or don't use a motorcycle. You're being quite pretentious for someone who's wrong.
8:33 He just destroyed his own argument. People still smoke even through they know the dangers, just like people still drank during prohibition full well knowing the dangers. Placing artificial repercussions isn't going to change that.
But what are the fucking statistical consequences??? If a law on average creates a favorable consequence in the future such as that the state doesnt need to give extra care to the crippled person because a percentage of citizens use helmets now, why would we not do that??? It's simply pragmatic. We all agree you should wear a helmet, and if it was compulsory, some percentage of the population would that wouldnt otherwise. Why wouldnt we do that? For some woowoo meaningless principle of 'responsibility'?
@@ThorMNs Because for every menial task the state makes mandatory resources are needed to uphold that law. Insurance is the only case in which I see the necessity of mandatory self protection.
The point is whether something is dangerous or not we should still be able to choose if we want to do it. You guys still struggling over there with the whole concept of freedom huh?
And Steve Merchant thinks slaves built the pyramids, just goes to show how ignorant Steve and Ricky actually are. They really aren't clever enough to pull of this whole "smart jerk" trope. At least Karl doesn't pretend like he knows more than he does.
Karl is the best irl representation of absurdist philosophy. Ricky and Stephen are still stuck in the enlightenment while Karl has surpassed existentialism.
You don't seem to understand absurdism. What Karl is is a cretin. He is a conservative, in one breath he's saying that wearing helmets is about 'personal responsibility' or that it's not governments business to tell people what to do and in the same breath he's saying that government shouldn't allow some people to reproduce. He is a typical conservative, an absolute idiot that hates poor people and minorities.
@@RifleEyez he’s right don’t be a nonce. Karl goes on and on about saving bugs but his attitude towards Rosa Parks was disgusting seeing as he was completely serious
Karl actually hit the nail on the head on two points; 1) there is beauty in death, and 2) The problem is everyone is looking for someone to blame. And actually, what he said about wasps hunting crickets is partially true.
Sam Johnston, It's not just the cost of healthcare. These people might be dead or unable to work, so you have to consider all the potential work they would have done which they now won't.
Does the population need controlling? Population growth is slowing worldwide and population totals are trending downwards wherever women are educated, in work and/or have access to reproductive planning. I don't think killing people/hoping they die early is at all necessary.
@@yehheapsmadaybut And feeding people nothing but vitamin enriched gruel paste is cheaper than raising/growing/processing all the food we currently do. What's your point?
5:30 it's not the role of the government to protect people. Their job is to protect the rights of the people. If some idiot wants to not wear a helmet, they can make that choice. Even if it was the law, he could still choose to not wear one. It is entirely their fault, not anybody else's.
As a black man, I love Karl's frank honesty here. So many people try and pretend they are 'anti-racism', when in reality it's just a smoke screen. I doubt they even care. I wasn't there, but the whole Rosa Parks thing is romanticised by people who had a similar vantage point as me.
That's what I love about Karl. Most people, especially people on tv, like to go on about how if they were on the bus, if they were in the Civil War, if they were in Nazi Germany, they would have stood up for people and said something, because its easy to say you would be the hero. Karl stops and says "but yeah how many stops do I got left"? He actually stops to consider what his mindset would be like if he were in that situation. "Listen we're all just trying to get home yeah?" "Maybe she was a trouble maker". This man is amazing!
@@Drtruman The part about Rosa Parks specifically. Because being mythologized is something that can be said about literally any historical event. But that doesn’t really take away, nor should we minimized the bravery involved in challenging systemic injustices. To the point that it doesn’t really matter if it was planned or not.
7:10 Totally agree with Karl. Why was the dad not able to think it through for himself? Because regulations and rules decided everything for him, so he never had to properly think. And the regulation still can't force me to stop at a stop sign. Transfering a little concious decision making back to the citizens? I'm for it... If you're not, you prolly think people are immoral idiots that would steal, rape and murder around if it wasn't forbidden...
Since Ricky and that other guy are so into regulations -- why don't they want a parenting license, which shows you're actually able to properly bring up your kid(s)? Oh - now all of a sudden it's too Orwellian regulated?
Only issue with this podcast is that Ricky thinks he’s much cleverer than he is and often underestimates the depth of stuff Karl says. Karl starts to realise wage slavery and Ricky is all “no actually” as if philosophers and economists haven’t grappled this idea for decades and he can just solve it
Karl talking about wage slavery and stuff. Like they treat him like he’s stupid but he’s really not. Like the bit about “the guy got some joy out of planting the tree” in the metaphor, understanding that even if you don’t benefit doing good does bring you some joy too.
Dear God when karl said "I'm gonna put you in a home". I was eating a burrito and I laughed so hard I had beans come out my nose and now it's burning. Karl is a national treasure
Karl despite being constantly mocked and misrepresented, retains his integrity and always puts forward his view (and insightful it is) with the greatest civility.
This is one of the first times I paid attention to the sound of the episode than the visuals, the score is actually really good, it's almost cinematic!
Psst. Little piece of trivia... On the album cover theres a guy in the background to the right of the car on the oncoming side of the road. He was alive a very long time and in an interview in old age he said "i still dont like the beatles" source: an old ass vsauce video most likely on an unrelated topic
The people building the pyramids were hired workers well compensated for their labours, they considered the building of the pyramids a great honour, greater even as when they died they would be buried next to the pyramids. Since to them the pharaoh was a god on earth this was a high honour.
Ricky: “I want our society to be more egalitarian, more free” Also Ricky: “the government should force people to do things they don’t want that has arguable benefits because the government knows better.”
@@pinata111colada it’s actually a pretty contested subject, while helmets are at least moderately effective in preventing skull and some brain injuries they don’t protect from concussions and they don’t protect against spinal and neck injuries, some of the most common in motorcycle accidents. Helmets are something around 60 or 70% effective against injuries that only happen 10% of time. Then there’s the ethical considerations of forcing someone to do something with their body. Now don’t misunderstand me I’m not saying you shouldn’t wear a helmet, I’m saying it’s hypocritical to say you “I want people to be more free” while at the same time supporting laws that make certain actions that those people do with their life and property compulsory.
@@monauralsnail0669 Even if helmets may not be really effective in preventing all head injuries, it's a hell of a lot more safe than wearing nothing. I think you misquoted Ricky there. Ricky mentioned that he was an egalitarian, enforcing laws do not contradict that axiom. In fact, I'll even say that if he did say he wanted people to be more free, enforcing laws can actually do that regardless. For example, by enforcing people to wear helmets, you may have saved a life there. Even though the person had to wear a helmet, now they won't be forced to live as a vegetable for the rest of their damn life. Besides, the law enforces you to do shit all the time, it is an inevitable agreement you made when you joined society. If you don't like it become full monke or some shit. As long as the government is running to the people's interests (democratic), then it is not hypocritical and definitely preferable.