Hey, everybody.

Welcome back to the Blister Podcast on the Blister Podcast Network.

I'm Jonathan Ellsworth, and you can check out everything.

We're doing and reviewing over at blisterreview.com.

So we are posting this conversation a day later than normal, and that is entirely because,

like many of you, I imagine, these last several days have been really discombobulating.

On the one hand, we just witnessed some historic feats by some of the greatest athletes in our global outdoor industry,

and simultaneously we have been witnessing some horrific atrocities and executions of U.S. citizens.

And while there may be quite a bit of disagreement of what is acceptable and what is completely

unacceptable, I can't imagine that anybody on any side of the political spectrum right now

views the present situation as anything close to

positive. That I think we can at least agree on. And I would like to think that then gives us a bit

of hope that we might be able to at least come together to say, this is not right.

This is not what we want this country and our communities and neighborhoods to look like

and how we want them to function or fall into complete chaos and disarray.

So, yes, I am very much still processing what I am seeing,

and I am still very much processing, like many of you, I imagine,

exactly how we are going to put a stop to this and move forward. And yes, in some ways,

the confusing part is that while these horrific things were going on, some of the most

spectacular things I've ever seen were also happening. And I do think it's right to talk about these things to celebrate these achievement that

really do stand as kind of pinnacle efforts in human history.

And so, yes, I've been conflicted.

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