For this second season of Byte-Sized Virtue, we continue to take the episode structure in a bit of a different direction, at least in part. This is the second episode drawn from a discussion between Withstand the Fury Dragon and an friend old friend of his, Paul, whose philosophical musings he has consistently enjoyed and respected. And rather than talk about any specific Virtue or Principle from Ultima, or its real-world equivalent, they will be tackling a range of topics that…well, you’ll just have to listen.

Listen to the Episode

In this episode, for example, the discussion ranges over a number of topics, including Deadpool (which Paul greatly enjoyed and which WtFD hasn’t yet taken the time to see) — Paul describes this fourth wall-breaking film as a “cinematic palette cleanser” for the superhero movie genre.

Some discussion of Google and their approach to DMCA claims (e.g. against YouTube videos) also ensues, which gets intermixed with a discussion of the FBI’s attempt to compel Apple’s assistance (under the All Writs Act) to produce a custom version of iOS that will make the iPhone of one of the San Bernadino terrorists easier for the FBI to unlock. Coincidentally, the audio for this episode was recorded on the same day that Apple issued their public statement of refusal to do so.

Twitter’s inauguration of its Trust & Safety Council also comes up for discussion; WtFD discusses the concept and technical considerations of shadowbanning, and also expresses some reservations that Twitter, in particular, is moving beyond policing obvious trolls and into the realm of censoring opinions.

And to close, Withstand the Fury also briefly discusses Risen, the new Joseph Fiennes movie that tells the tale of a (fictional) Roman Tribune assigned to investigate a series of strange happenings that transpire during, and following, the crucifixion of an itinerant Nazarene rabbi in the city of Jerusalem.

And an apology: There won’t be a regular Spam Spam Spam Humbug episode this week. However, we have a fun topic to discuss next week, involving WtFD’s Beaver Scout groups…and BioWare.