A friend recently suggested I check out Jason Silva's Shots of Awe series on YouTube. Like many of the other friends I'm blessed with, he's a razor in the figurative knife-drawer, so I knew I'd just received an assorted box of brain candy.
I was surprised to find that I was having a bit of a struggle when viewing some of these, and not because of the subject matter. It was the delivery that was getting in the way for me. I’m sure that Jason Silva is completely sincere and honestly excited about the subject matter he presents. However, I admit that I can’t completely suppress my preference that he’d dial the exclamations and gesticulations back a notch to keep from eliciting my reactive fear of cultists and religious zealots. I have to actively work my way past Jason’s enthusiasm to take in his message.
I freely admit that this is just one of many “features” I have: I’m almost immediately suspicious of people who are this excited about so many things. It stems from periodic, attenuated exposure to some unbalanced personalities in my life and suspicion towards people who are always “up”. In most cases this reaction has probably served me well, but I also acknowledge that it may be a stumbling block. I may very well be jealous of the energy. Many people are attracted to and respond positively to Silva’s enthusiasm, as evidenced by the number of YouTube subscriptions, Twitter followers, TV appearances and other outlets that he uses. Good for him!
The critical essays which follow are primarily intended as practice in the writing thereof, and result from a bonafide effort on my part to get past the excitement and listen to what's being said.
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