• Podcast

Although this is available as a podcast, I encourage you to see the video on YouTube.

In this episode, I discourage you from doing a colonoscopy without anesthesia, even though that's what I did.

I mention three reasons why you might want to avoid anesthesia:

1. You lack a ride.
2. You need to save money (if you lack insurance, you may have to pay extra for anesthesia).
3. You are against anesthesia due to a phobia.

In the episode, I mentioned I had "PTSD" about feeling the probe inside me after the procedure. I didn't mention that that sensation only lasted for three hours, and it was mild. I didn't want some people to think I suffered for days or weeks.

Being afraid of anesthesia is reasonable since, every year, patients have complications, albeit rarely.

Michael Jackson died because he overdosed on propofol, the same drug used to sedate you during your colonoscopy.

Luckily, your physician will be better than the Moonwalker's doctor.

I do not practice medicine, and believing everything you read online is stupid, so I encourage you to be skeptical about what I say.

Still, I may opt for sedation when I have to do a colonoscopy again at 60. Or I'll ask the doc to lube my ass up thoroughly!

Why some colonoscopies without anesthesia are painless

A friend explained why some colonoscopies have almost no pain and others are torture. As Mojca Hrabar said, some countries never use anesthesia during colonoscopies. So why did Charles Locher and I suffer, whereas others have not?

READ WHAT A FRIEND WROTE:

Most colonoscopies in Estonia are done without anesthesia. You only get anesthesia if you ask, and there must be a reason for them to agree. I have had 3 colonoscopies so far. The first one w/o anesthesia - it was a nightmare because the doctor was sadistic, and it hurt like hell. He would tell me to get myself together as if it wasn’t painful. I feared my colon was going to rupture. When I left the operating room, he said, “Don’t hate me for too long; I know it hurts.”

For the second one, I insisted on anesthesia for that exact reason.

The third one was without anesthesia, and it was very mild and had no discomfort at all because the doctor was humane and he used a flexible colposcope. It all depends on the doctor and whether it’s a flexible colposcope.

The first time, the doctor used a very inflexible colonoscope. The third time, they had a very flexible one.

The colonoscopes are probably all flexible; the difference is how well the doctor uses them. From my first colonoscopy, I remember that he was pushing a straight, inflexible metal tube inside me.

Dr. Peter Attia explains why you should do a colonoscopy every 1-3 years

You can read what Dr. Attia says or listen to this video:

Here's what one research study says about the risks of anesthesia during a colonoscopy. It was made in 2016, so there may be more recent data:

Reaction episode

One podcast listener reacts to this episode.

I answer this question and cite other useful advice I got after I released the above episode.

I wandered deep into the ass and I share what I learned.

Read more …

• Podcast

In the 229th episode of the WanderLearn podcast, I interview Vangile Makwakwa, a South African entrepreneur with a fascinating background.

She went to business school, dreaming of being an overworked and overpaid investment banker.

She finally listened to her soul, which told her to write nonfiction books. 

Her first book is Heart, Mind & Money: Using Emotional Intelligence for Financial Success.

Timeline 

00:00 Where is South Africa?

02:00 How to Overcome Depression

08:00 How to get out $60,000 of debt

14:00 Travel visa woes

17:30 Conclusion

Read more …

• Podcast

I admire and respect Ray Dalio, who suggests that China will replace the US as the next great superpower.
It's dangerous to disagree with someone as smart & successful as Ray, but I'll try.
Conventional wisdom is that China will blast past the USA to become
the new superpower.

In this video, I debunk that prediction.
Although China has many good things going for it and will undoubtedly get stronger this century, it has two things that will slow its dramatic rise down:

1. China's authoritarian/totalitarian tendencies will invite a Chinese revolution against the communist party.

2. China's demographics. That's what this video is about.
I examine Pew Research's 8-point report on China's demographics.

Feedback

Leave an anonymous voicemail on SpeakPipe.com/FTapon

Or go to Wanderlearn.com, click on this episode, and write a comment.

More info

You can post comments, ask questions, and sign up for my newsletter at http://wanderlearn.com.

• Podcast
• Military

Listen to my two-part interview with Trent Hone, author of Mastering the Art of Command: Admiral Chester W. Nimitz and Victory in the Pacific.

Part 1 is mostly about history, including places in the Pacific that you should visit if you're into war history.

Part 2 is about contemporary military & political affairs, including Ukraine & Taiwan.

Part 1: History

00:00 Intro & Nimitz Seaplane crash
04:50 WWII history buffs should visit these Pacific sites
08:30 Iwo Jima
10:00 What if the Pearl Harbor attack had been more devastating?
12:25 What if the US had not dropped the 2 A-Bombs?
17:17 Why did Trent Hone write a book about Nimitz?
20:00 The pain of editing
24:00 The US military's secret sauce
28:00 Preview of next week's episode

Part 2: Future

00:00 Will hypersonic missiles make navies obsolete?
04:45 What would Nimitz say about today's US Navy?
06:00 Taiwan War Game
09:20 Will there be war in Taiwan?
11:00 What if we cut the US military to 25% of its size?
19:30 How will the Russo-Ukraine War end?

Read my review of Hone's book (and other military books).

Read more …

• Future
• Podcast
• Cryptocurrency

In the first 5 minutes of the video/podcast, I review the 9 predictions I made in 2022.

• I was correct 5 out of 9 times if you're judging strictly.
• I was correct 7 out of 9 times if you're a lenient judge.

People are great at laughing at predictions that failed and claiming that they "knew" a particular event would happen (after it happened).

After you look at my 2023 predictions, share what your predictions are!

Also, look at my predictions for the 2020s to see why none of them have come true so far.

Ten 2023 Predictions

1. Another country will make Bitcoin legal tender.

It will probably be a small Pacific Island nation, such as Tonga or Fiji. Meanwhile, Twitter will allow users to transact in cryptocurrency.

2. The WHO and CDC will officially declare that the COVID pandemic is over. The word "COVID" on Google Trends will hit a low that we haven't seen since 2019. 

The Spanish Flu pandemic lasted three years. So will COVID. As I said in 2020, once the vaccines were out, there was no point in fighting COVID anymore, just like we do little to protect ourselves from other transmissible diseases that kill five million people annually. It's endemic, and the WHO will finally admit it in 2023.

3. There will be an accident in outer space.

Perhaps two satellites collide. Maybe a country fires a rocket to destroy a spy satellite. Perhaps debris hits the space station.

4. Bitcoin will peak at $32,000 and close the year at $25,000.

What is 99% certain is that BTC will end the year at least 10% higher than it started.

5. Ethereum will drop to $700 but end at $1,800.

The US government may declare that ETH is a security, tanking the price to $700. But it will double by the end of 2023.

6. The US unemployment rate will double.

Expect the USA unemployment rate to soar above 5%. The bear market in stocks will continue, but midway through 2023, it will bottom out and begin its rise.

7. India overtakes China in population.

Since November 2022, there are now over 8 billion humans. In 2023, the population of India will increase while China decreases, allowing India to become the world's most populous nation. Before the end of this century, Nigeria will overtake China.

8. Putin is overthrown.

Putin will mobilize more Russians. The body bags, sanctions, and stalemate will wear down the Russian public. Putin's support will erode. Who replaces him will probably be worse, although there's a 20% chance that Putin will be replaced with a peacemaker.

9. The FDA approves a psychedelic drug.

Clinical trials will prove that Psilocybin is safe and helpful for specific conditions. The FDA approves it or something like it.

10. Carter will die before October 2023.

He will be the oldest ex-president of the USA. 

Previous predictions

To see my previous forecasts check out my predictions for 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022.

Feedback

Give anonymous verbal feedback to this show or the podcast by using the SpeakPipe link below.

Maybe you have:

• A gripe
• An idea
• A question