by Bruce Cook
I've recently started listening to The Jordan Harbinger Show podcast. It was a recommendation from Ryan Holiday's show, The Daily Stoic, which I'm definitely a fan of. So far, I've liked a few of the Harbinger episodes that I've 'tasted'. That said, Jordan has a ton of podcasts available covering a wide range of topics and he does a great job of categorising them so you can easily find stuff you're interested in... which is how I found his recent episode entitled 'The Olympics' as part of his 'Skeptical Sunday' series.
As a lifelong sports fan and a former employee of the US Olympic Committee (now USOPC, to include Paralympic), this caught my eye. Jordan's primary contributor to this episode is David C. Smalley, described as "fact checker and comedian." Hmmm...
I enjoyed listening to this 42 minute episode, but I have to say it was one of the most ill-informed pieces of sensationalism I have ever heard... and most anyone with even a smidgen of experience in the business or administrative side of sport would have recognised that within about 10 minutes of listening. The US Olympic & Paralympic Committee is FAR from perfect, but Jordan and David C focused on (and mis-analysed) the wrong stuff. Judge for yourself here.
Regardless of what the rest of the world thinks, my very strong view is that in this particular case, Jordan got it very wrong. So, what's the point? The point is that I now have to make a judgement on Jordan Harbinger - just as we all have to make judgements on people and organisations we encounter every day.
Just because someone does something wrong - or something we disagree with - does that make them altogether bad? Single acts of 'wrongness' should certainly be considered in our broader judgement, but a character or quality judgement typically requires more evidence. Past acts, circumstances, and the views of the wider public must all enter the equation.
If anyone is going to make a difference in this world, they have to put themselves out there. We must occasionally go out onto a limb. This is the only way society advances. We must applaud the risk takers and be willing take risks ourselves. Leo Buscaglia championed this view as the only way to be truly free. The price we pay is the potential scrutiny of people we respect. If that respect is mutual, most people will cut you some slack when you occasionally miss the bulls-eye.
But my point isn't about how we should all go out in take more risks. It's that we need to give people a break - especially if they're generally decent people who are out there trying to do right not only for themselves, but for the rest of us. We need people like that, and maybe if we kick them in the teeth a bit less, they might keep trying.
Do you ever wonder why we can't seem to find any decent politicians? Because it's a terrible job! If you're a high-quality individual who gets elected to any significant office and makes a valiant effort to better society, it's very likely that you're still going to be ridiculed and spat upon by hurtful throngs. It's hardly worth it. Only the most resilient or corrupt are comfortable with the game... and there are far too many of the latter.
So where does this leave me on Jordan Harbinger? I say "nice try Jordan, but I know better. I'm now going to put this episode aside and move on to one of your better efforts. But keep 'em coming. We need people like you."
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