WEBVTT
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All aboard All aboard All aboard Got ya train tickets Got ya train tickets Got your train tickets Once the crow crows and the train is boarding the station it is time for Uncle Gary's Two Cents Journey.
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Welcome to episode two of this unique Martastic podcast called Uncle Gary's Two Sense Journey.
00:00:38.479 --> 00:00:41.920
It's not a literal train, but a journey.
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We don't need tickets, just a little of your time, imagination, and your undivided attention.
00:00:50.479 --> 00:01:10.079
I'm Gary Corbin, aka Uncle Gary, your main host, celebrating 50 years as a cancer survivor and a crazy one-legged black and gay male who is chronologically 69 but spiritually a rebellious teen.
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And I am your conductor, Jimmy Mac.
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Didn't I promise I was coming back?
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Together, we will continue to take you on a global life scope, edutainment, and cultural think tank journey.
00:01:28.239 --> 00:01:33.439
Where we ask questions while seeking answers to life's challenges.
00:01:33.680 --> 00:01:42.640
Answers are not always guaranteed, but we aim to explore pathways to potential solutions.
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Today's questions are What's a Never Tell Story?
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Part one.
00:01:55.840 --> 00:02:05.920
As a bonus, we will lighten things up by launching an ongoing segment that asks, What makes people happy?
00:02:06.560 --> 00:02:35.360
Our segment entitled What's a Never Tell Story Part 1 is based on a true story in which a writer is faced with a Hamlet style to be or not to be crossroads as he struggles with whether to tell a story about the disturbing dark family secret about how he was born.
00:02:35.759 --> 00:02:40.159
And there are some stories that should never be told.
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In What's an Exit Center, do the names Dr.
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Jack Kovorkin and Terry Shivo ring a bell?
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We will take a journey back in the late 90s when a heated debate raged over end-of-life care for terminally ill patients.
00:03:00.639 --> 00:03:02.319
Both Shival and Dr.
00:03:02.479 --> 00:03:08.000
Kovorkin, who was very controversial, are now deceased.
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But our conductor Jimmy Mack will opine on his wishes should he find himself as a terminally ill patient facing end of life care.
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As you can see, today's episodes are largely about life and the choices we make.
00:03:31.199 --> 00:03:38.400
At times we will cover some deeply controversial and serious topics.
00:03:38.639 --> 00:03:50.479
So to lighten things up, this episode will introduce the first segment of an ongoing series titled What Makes People Happy?
00:03:50.879 --> 00:03:59.039
We are deeply grateful that of all the things you could be doing with your time, you decided to spend it with us.
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So fasten your seat belts because the journey will be well worth the trip.
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And the question is what happened to your leg?
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The year was nineteen seventy five when I was eighteen and had just begun my first year in college.
00:05:15.199 --> 00:05:38.399
What began as a strange sensation in my right knee led to what felt like a thickening mass in the knee, and it eventually evolved into severe pain and a visit to the hospital emergency room where I had difficulty bending my leg at the knee.
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I was a teen actor with a drama group in Baltimore who became very popular with the assistance of after school programs for inner city youth.
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As a result, I decided to major in theater with the primary ambition of becoming an actor someday.
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However, a diagnosis of osteogenic sarcoma, this rare form of bone cancer, changed my life and everyone who loved me forever.
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Especially my mom and grandmother, both of whom are now deceased.
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My mom died of breast cancer seven years later, and my grandmother two decades after that she passed away after a long battle with complications from a massive stroke.
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Nevertheless, their strength, courage, and love are the my main driving forces to this day.
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One of the most asked questions over the past fifty years is what happened to your leg?
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This question is triggered by my walk which involves a noticeable limp, as I use a full right leg prosthesis.
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I have worn out so many of them over the past fifty years that I have stopped counting.
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But one of the most memorable moments of the question what happened to your leg was an innocent young girl.
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Now this question has been asked a thousand times, but it was the time the question came from a sweet little girl whom I estimate to be no more than six or seven years old.
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Mister, what happened to your leg?
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I remember that incident above all else, not just because of her sweet kindness and innocent little voice, but also her total lack of judgment or pity.
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One of the biggest challenges in life is navigating the stigma of being part of more than one group that society feels the need to stigmatize and even be so downright and unnecessarily cruel to.
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In addition to that, one statement that people often make after first learning what happened to my leg is I'm so sorry to hear that.
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Now they mean well, but it always felt like a different degree of unsettling to me.
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This was not the case with this little girl.
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This little girl's response revealed an understanding that losing a leg and having to walk with an artificial leg for the rest of my life is not inherently a bad thing or should trigger an oh my God response.
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I don't recall her exact words from that day many years ago, but at that young age she handled the situation with an attitude and understanding that it was just part of life and that some people have to navigate it differently.
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She was only concerned about solutions.
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Through the eyes of a chow, she helped me feel that it was very possible to continue on with every opportunity to reach my fullest human potential.
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But another question besides what happened to my leg is how I'm going to navigate dispending the rest of my life as an amputee.
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It began the morning of my surgery, which was followed by incidents of me screaming at the top of my lungs for seemingly hours after waking up in the operating room, and it became clear that my leg was gone forever.
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But the next day, my mom and grandmother decided enough was enough.
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They loved me dearly, sometimes in an overprotective way, but they were also experts in delivering tough love.
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I forget who uttered these words, probably my mom.
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But it was you are gonna get your behind up out of that bed, be grateful that you are alive and get moving on with your life.
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We are not gonna put up with anything else.
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From that day forward, that is exactly what I have done.
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What happened to my leg?
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In some ways it is symbolic of the life-changing event that honors the hard work my mother and grandmother put into molding and shaping the man they wanted me to become, and the man I am today.
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This story is based on a true story, however, names and certain circumstances have been changed to protect the identity and concerns of real life individuals who were involved in this story.
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Still we believe the message speaks for itself.
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And now what's a never sell story?
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For the rest of this story, we will refer to the 15-year-old as Mary, who is a little over seven months pregnant.
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As the girls cross a bridge, they spot a snake moving across it.
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Nothing terrifies Mary more than a snake.
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Horrified, Mary runs, bumps into a hard surface, and faints.
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When Mary awakens in a hospital room, she is told by a scary-looking nurse that she gave birth to a baby boy prematurely, and the infant might not survive.
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However, a few weeks later Mary had to make a life-changing decision that was too much for any teenage mother to confront.
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After what we will call a worst case scenario with her mother's boyfriend, should Mary keep the baby despite the way she brought him into the world?
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The answer came after Mary's mother and sister placed the baby in her arms.
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Mary decided to keep him and name the baby Gus.
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When Gus became a grown man in his mid-twenties, he found himself having to help his grandparents bury his mama, Mary.
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Unfortunately, a fierce argument between family members over the funeral arrangements led to a family member blurting out the words At least I wasn't born like you were.
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That moment changed everything in Gus's life, and every day afterward he relived the hints and whispers from most of his life, but he never had the courage to ask his mother for clarification.
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The most memorable moment was in his early teens when he wrote a high school report on the 1973 Supreme Court Roe v.
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Wade decision, which led to the first discussion with his mom when she admitted having to make a huge decision when he was a baby and she decided not to give him up.
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At that moment, Gus was too afraid to probe further doing that conversation.
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Yet despite both of them concluding that the dilemma stemmed from Mary being practically a child herself, there was a feeling in the air that there was more to the story, but both chose the safer course and ended the conversation before it got too deep.
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But on his grandfather's deathbed, the whole story was finally revealed to Gus due to his relationship with his grandfather who he referred to as his best friend in the world, especially after Mary's death.
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Grandpa, how was I born?
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Gus asked and demanded.
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The frail old man answered with all the strength and determination he could muster without using the word that rhymes with grape.
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Gus's grandfather confirmed the worst case scenario, but he also demanded that Gus live the rest of his life with these words in mind.
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There's a name for babies born like you and the way people think that you should never have been born.
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But never let them define who you are or who your mother is.
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There's too much goodness at your core, your spirits and your souls.
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The world could be a judgmental and downright nasty cruel place, but I am proud of the woman and man you and your mom became.
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Your mother loved you and was proud of you.
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If I had to do it all over again in another world, I would not have any other daughter and grandson over you two, and I know God would have it that way too.
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Now fast forward to this moment.
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Gus's intense recollection is abruptly interrupted.
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Gus is on his way to London.
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One of his favorite cities in the world.
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His plane is about to land in London.
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And a new chapter in his life begins.
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Gus Harper, an emerging writer, has just won a distinguished literary fellowship to create new work after beating out hundreds of writers worldwide.
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Gus takes a deep breath as an overwhelming feeling washes over him.
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His heart pounds, his mind races, and Gus faces the biggest decision of his personal and professional life.
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He won the fellowship in part because of this story he's developing titled What's a Never Tell Story?
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But Gus is at a crossroads that reminds him of his favorite literary character Hamlet to tell or not to tell a story.
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On one hand, would his telling the story be the ultimate betrayal a son could commit against his own mother?
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Or is he actually helping hundreds of people in the world to have a chance to be free of a life of secrecy and shame to not suffer with that horrible label and a belief that people like him should never be born?
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Should stories like his never be told or should they be told to set people free.
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One of the most popular posts of Uncle Gary's Cultural Think Tank Weekend editions across our social media platform asks the question What makes people happy?
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There is no secret that the state of our country and the world contains an avalanche of bad news that triggers overwhelming feelings of depression, anxiety, and hopelessness.
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We at Uncle Gary's also recognize that this program addresses many highly sensitive and deeply serious topics.
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To lighten things up, offer a ray of hope and sunshine, we are pleased to offer an ongoing special feature to Uncle Gary's Two Sense Journey entitled What Makes People Happy?
00:21:04.480 --> 00:21:09.359
First, our staff will share some of the people, places, and things that make us happy.
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Then we will invite you, our listeners and supporters, to share what makes them happy.
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This special feature, or shall I say, series, will have us in the coming weeks hitting the streets and asking the people to share what makes them happy.
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Meanwhile, one source that provides an annual analysis of global happiness is the World Happiness Report.
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The report self describes as the world's foremost publication on global well being and how to improve it.
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It is published by the University of Oxford's Well Being Research Center in partnership with Gallup, the UN's Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and its editorial books.
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Board.
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In twenty twenty six, the World Happiness Report ranks the top five happiest countries as follows Number five, Norway, Number four, Switzerland, Number three Iceland, Number two Denmark, Number Other Finland.
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The report highlights that Nordic countries continue to dominate the top five rankings due to social support, life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, low corruption, and a culture of generosity.
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Finland retains the top spot it has held for several years, with citizens enjoying a robust social welfare system, a strong work life balance, and a sense of security and freedom.
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Denmark and Iceland follow closely, with Denmark excelling in health care and happiness amongst older adults, while Iceland excels in strong community cohesion and generosity.
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But what makes people happy on a broader scale?
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One interesting finding from a recent Gallup poll is that sharing meals contributes to happiness.
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This factor is on par with the influence of income and employment and drives higher life satisfaction and a more positive outlook across ages, genders, cultures, and regions.
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According to a recent report from the World Economic Forum, the top five things that make people happy are number five, the ability to forgive, number four, positive thinking, number three, meaningful work, number two, family and relationships, and number one, health and well-being.
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Two universal factors that appear in most studies indicate that a country's economic circumstance and trust or lack thereof regarding its governments and leadership significantly impact its citizens' happiness, unhappiness, health, and well-being.
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Another interesting finding from the Happiness Report's March 2025 edition also reports a sharp decline in the rankings of the United States and Great Britain.
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At number 24, the US had reached its lowest ranking ever, and Britain's 23rd place was its lowest since 2017.
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This is Michelle Avery on behalf of Uncle Gary's Two Sense Journey, produced by Uncle Gary's Global Media.
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We encourage you to look them up and see what you will find there.
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But for this episode, because of time limits, we are going to broach the subject of end of life care, and our conductor Jimmy Mac has his own personal views on the subject.
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So now what's an exit center?
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I agree with Dr.
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Kavokian's conviction that mentally competent adults should have the right to make decisions regarding our own bodies.
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Those who choose to carry on should be given the tools they need.
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And in our environment of limited resources, there will be more of them to help.
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But we who choose to end an unwanted existence should also be given the tools to achieve what we desire.
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Toward this end, I envision where there are competitive, professionally managed government inspected facilities known as the exit centers.
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Exit centers will offer compassionate, carefully regulated opportunities for those wanting to make their end of life transition.
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There the individual would make certain of their decision and that their earthly affairs are in order.
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After these preparations, the patient would select the method by which the final exit will occur.
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If I were choosing my final exit, for instance, I would select the plan that offers a sumptuous, scrumptuous last supper, and then receive an overdose of a drug that I had always wanted to try, but never did, because I was afraid it would off me to the pearly gates.
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This is the narcotic that would be administered by the anesthesiologist.
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However, in the irony of this circuitous world, the intent now is that it does unalive me so that I can enter the next celestial sphere with a smile of anticipation.
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I don't know where that celestial sphere is, but when I come to if I do come to, then I will know that life was just a dream and an in and not a home.
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Fortunately, I do not currently need or want enhanced euthanasia, but I'd like to know it's there.
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Should I feel that my time is right, my time is nigh for such a life altering decision.
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Technically, you know, we already have euthanasia, but it's limited to our beloved pets to ease their suffering.
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So why can't we extend this mercy to us, the people who want it?
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Something to think about.
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I thank you for listening.
00:30:05.519 --> 00:30:10.799
This is Jimmy Mac for Uncle Gary's Two Sense Journey.
00:30:11.200 --> 00:30:18.880
I get so caught up in the middle, thinking of drowning his blue eyes.
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Well, we've done it again.
00:30:22.319 --> 00:30:28.559
This concludes episode two of Uncle Gary's Two Sense Journey.
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On behalf of myself, Gary, Uncle Gary Corbin, my co-host Jim, conductor Jimmy McMilleschi, and the lovely Michelle Avery.
00:30:44.480 --> 00:30:56.880
And my co-producer Ron Balcaris, we are extremely humbled and grateful for the support of all of you, our global family.
00:30:57.599 --> 00:31:02.640
Please be on the lookout for win our next episode.
00:31:02.880 --> 00:31:04.799
Episode three drops.
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Morning, evening, afternoon, and night.
00:31:15.359 --> 00:31:18.720
Until then, we're signing off.
00:00:06.559 --> 00:00:28.559
All aboard All aboard All aboard Got ya train tickets Got ya train tickets Got your train tickets Once the crow crows and the train is boarding the station it is time for Uncle Gary's Two Cents Journey.
00:00:28.800 --> 00:00:38.159
Welcome to episode two of this unique Martastic podcast called Uncle Gary's Two Sense Journey.
00:00:38.479 --> 00:00:41.920
It's not a literal train, but a journey.
00:00:42.159 --> 00:00:50.240
We don't need tickets, just a little of your time, imagination, and your undivided attention.
00:00:50.479 --> 00:01:10.079
I'm Gary Corbin, aka Uncle Gary, your main host, celebrating 50 years as a cancer survivor and a crazy one-legged black and gay male who is chronologically 69 but spiritually a rebellious teen.
00:01:10.640 --> 00:01:13.920
And I am your conductor, Jimmy Mac.
00:01:14.480 --> 00:01:17.200
Didn't I promise I was coming back?
00:01:17.680 --> 00:01:28.000
Together, we will continue to take you on a global life scope, edutainment, and cultural think tank journey.
00:01:28.239 --> 00:01:33.439
Where we ask questions while seeking answers to life's challenges.
00:01:33.680 --> 00:01:42.640
Answers are not always guaranteed, but we aim to explore pathways to potential solutions.
00:01:43.200 --> 00:01:47.840
Today's questions are What's a Never Tell Story?
00:01:48.159 --> 00:01:48.879
Part one.
00:01:55.840 --> 00:02:05.920
As a bonus, we will lighten things up by launching an ongoing segment that asks, What makes people happy?
00:02:06.560 --> 00:02:35.360
Our segment entitled What's a Never Tell Story Part 1 is based on a true story in which a writer is faced with a Hamlet style to be or not to be crossroads as he struggles with whether to tell a story about the disturbing dark family secret about how he was born.
00:02:35.759 --> 00:02:40.159
And there are some stories that should never be told.
00:02:40.560 --> 00:02:44.800
In What's an Exit Center, do the names Dr.
00:02:44.879 --> 00:02:48.960
Jack Kovorkin and Terry Shivo ring a bell?
00:02:49.280 --> 00:03:00.159
We will take a journey back in the late 90s when a heated debate raged over end-of-life care for terminally ill patients.
00:03:00.639 --> 00:03:02.319
Both Shival and Dr.
00:03:02.479 --> 00:03:08.000
Kovorkin, who was very controversial, are now deceased.
00:03:08.240 --> 00:03:20.960
But our conductor Jimmy Mack will opine on his wishes should he find himself as a terminally ill patient facing end of life care.
00:03:22.639 --> 00:03:30.560
As you can see, today's episodes are largely about life and the choices we make.
00:03:31.199 --> 00:03:38.400
At times we will cover some deeply controversial and serious topics.
00:03:38.639 --> 00:03:50.479
So to lighten things up, this episode will introduce the first segment of an ongoing series titled What Makes People Happy?
00:03:50.879 --> 00:03:59.039
We are deeply grateful that of all the things you could be doing with your time, you decided to spend it with us.
00:03:59.360 --> 00:04:05.599
So fasten your seat belts because the journey will be well worth the trip.
00:05:00.639 --> 00:05:05.199
And the question is what happened to your leg?
00:05:07.279 --> 00:05:14.240
The year was nineteen seventy five when I was eighteen and had just begun my first year in college.
00:05:15.199 --> 00:05:38.399
What began as a strange sensation in my right knee led to what felt like a thickening mass in the knee, and it eventually evolved into severe pain and a visit to the hospital emergency room where I had difficulty bending my leg at the knee.
00:05:39.519 --> 00:05:50.959
I was a teen actor with a drama group in Baltimore who became very popular with the assistance of after school programs for inner city youth.
00:05:51.839 --> 00:05:59.439
As a result, I decided to major in theater with the primary ambition of becoming an actor someday.
00:06:01.120 --> 00:06:15.120
However, a diagnosis of osteogenic sarcoma, this rare form of bone cancer, changed my life and everyone who loved me forever.
00:06:16.240 --> 00:06:22.879
Especially my mom and grandmother, both of whom are now deceased.
00:06:24.000 --> 00:06:38.399
My mom died of breast cancer seven years later, and my grandmother two decades after that she passed away after a long battle with complications from a massive stroke.
00:06:39.600 --> 00:06:48.319
Nevertheless, their strength, courage, and love are the my main driving forces to this day.
00:06:50.480 --> 00:06:57.040
One of the most asked questions over the past fifty years is what happened to your leg?
00:06:57.759 --> 00:07:06.879
This question is triggered by my walk which involves a noticeable limp, as I use a full right leg prosthesis.
00:07:07.519 --> 00:07:15.759
I have worn out so many of them over the past fifty years that I have stopped counting.
00:07:17.600 --> 00:07:27.600
But one of the most memorable moments of the question what happened to your leg was an innocent young girl.
00:07:28.240 --> 00:07:42.480
Now this question has been asked a thousand times, but it was the time the question came from a sweet little girl whom I estimate to be no more than six or seven years old.
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Mister, what happened to your leg?
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I remember that incident above all else, not just because of her sweet kindness and innocent little voice, but also her total lack of judgment or pity.
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One of the biggest challenges in life is navigating the stigma of being part of more than one group that society feels the need to stigmatize and even be so downright and unnecessarily cruel to.
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In addition to that, one statement that people often make after first learning what happened to my leg is I'm so sorry to hear that.
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Now they mean well, but it always felt like a different degree of unsettling to me.
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This was not the case with this little girl.
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This little girl's response revealed an understanding that losing a leg and having to walk with an artificial leg for the rest of my life is not inherently a bad thing or should trigger an oh my God response.
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I don't recall her exact words from that day many years ago, but at that young age she handled the situation with an attitude and understanding that it was just part of life and that some people have to navigate it differently.
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She was only concerned about solutions.
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Through the eyes of a chow, she helped me feel that it was very possible to continue on with every opportunity to reach my fullest human potential.
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But another question besides what happened to my leg is how I'm going to navigate dispending the rest of my life as an amputee.
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It began the morning of my surgery, which was followed by incidents of me screaming at the top of my lungs for seemingly hours after waking up in the operating room, and it became clear that my leg was gone forever.
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But the next day, my mom and grandmother decided enough was enough.
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They loved me dearly, sometimes in an overprotective way, but they were also experts in delivering tough love.
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I forget who uttered these words, probably my mom.
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But it was you are gonna get your behind up out of that bed, be grateful that you are alive and get moving on with your life.
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We are not gonna put up with anything else.
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From that day forward, that is exactly what I have done.
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What happened to my leg?
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In some ways it is symbolic of the life-changing event that honors the hard work my mother and grandmother put into molding and shaping the man they wanted me to become, and the man I am today.
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This story is based on a true story, however, names and certain circumstances have been changed to protect the identity and concerns of real life individuals who were involved in this story.
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Still we believe the message speaks for itself.
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And now what's a never sell story?
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For the rest of this story, we will refer to the 15-year-old as Mary, who is a little over seven months pregnant.
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As the girls cross a bridge, they spot a snake moving across it.
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Nothing terrifies Mary more than a snake.
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Horrified, Mary runs, bumps into a hard surface, and faints.
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When Mary awakens in a hospital room, she is told by a scary-looking nurse that she gave birth to a baby boy prematurely, and the infant might not survive.
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However, a few weeks later Mary had to make a life-changing decision that was too much for any teenage mother to confront.
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After what we will call a worst case scenario with her mother's boyfriend, should Mary keep the baby despite the way she brought him into the world?
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The answer came after Mary's mother and sister placed the baby in her arms.
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Mary decided to keep him and name the baby Gus.
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When Gus became a grown man in his mid-twenties, he found himself having to help his grandparents bury his mama, Mary.
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Unfortunately, a fierce argument between family members over the funeral arrangements led to a family member blurting out the words At least I wasn't born like you were.
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That moment changed everything in Gus's life, and every day afterward he relived the hints and whispers from most of his life, but he never had the courage to ask his mother for clarification.
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The most memorable moment was in his early teens when he wrote a high school report on the 1973 Supreme Court Roe v.
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Wade decision, which led to the first discussion with his mom when she admitted having to make a huge decision when he was a baby and she decided not to give him up.
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At that moment, Gus was too afraid to probe further doing that conversation.
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Yet despite both of them concluding that the dilemma stemmed from Mary being practically a child herself, there was a feeling in the air that there was more to the story, but both chose the safer course and ended the conversation before it got too deep.
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But on his grandfather's deathbed, the whole story was finally revealed to Gus due to his relationship with his grandfather who he referred to as his best friend in the world, especially after Mary's death.
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Grandpa, how was I born?
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Gus asked and demanded.
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The frail old man answered with all the strength and determination he could muster without using the word that rhymes with grape.
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Gus's grandfather confirmed the worst case scenario, but he also demanded that Gus live the rest of his life with these words in mind.
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There's a name for babies born like you and the way people think that you should never have been born.
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But never let them define who you are or who your mother is.
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There's too much goodness at your core, your spirits and your souls.
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The world could be a judgmental and downright nasty cruel place, but I am proud of the woman and man you and your mom became.
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Your mother loved you and was proud of you.
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If I had to do it all over again in another world, I would not have any other daughter and grandson over you two, and I know God would have it that way too.
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Now fast forward to this moment.
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Gus's intense recollection is abruptly interrupted.
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Gus is on his way to London.
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One of his favorite cities in the world.
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His plane is about to land in London.
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And a new chapter in his life begins.
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Gus Harper, an emerging writer, has just won a distinguished literary fellowship to create new work after beating out hundreds of writers worldwide.
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Gus takes a deep breath as an overwhelming feeling washes over him.
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His heart pounds, his mind races, and Gus faces the biggest decision of his personal and professional life.
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He won the fellowship in part because of this story he's developing titled What's a Never Tell Story?
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But Gus is at a crossroads that reminds him of his favorite literary character Hamlet to tell or not to tell a story.
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On one hand, would his telling the story be the ultimate betrayal a son could commit against his own mother?
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Or is he actually helping hundreds of people in the world to have a chance to be free of a life of secrecy and shame to not suffer with that horrible label and a belief that people like him should never be born?
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Should stories like his never be told or should they be told to set people free.
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One of the most popular posts of Uncle Gary's Cultural Think Tank Weekend editions across our social media platform asks the question What makes people happy?
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There is no secret that the state of our country and the world contains an avalanche of bad news that triggers overwhelming feelings of depression, anxiety, and hopelessness.
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We at Uncle Gary's also recognize that this program addresses many highly sensitive and deeply serious topics.
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To lighten things up, offer a ray of hope and sunshine, we are pleased to offer an ongoing special feature to Uncle Gary's Two Sense Journey entitled What Makes People Happy?
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First, our staff will share some of the people, places, and things that make us happy.
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Then we will invite you, our listeners and supporters, to share what makes them happy.
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This special feature, or shall I say, series, will have us in the coming weeks hitting the streets and asking the people to share what makes them happy.
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Meanwhile, one source that provides an annual analysis of global happiness is the World Happiness Report.
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The report self describes as the world's foremost publication on global well being and how to improve it.
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It is published by the University of Oxford's Well Being Research Center in partnership with Gallup, the UN's Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and its editorial books.
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Board.
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In twenty twenty six, the World Happiness Report ranks the top five happiest countries as follows Number five, Norway, Number four, Switzerland, Number three Iceland, Number two Denmark, Number Other Finland.
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The report highlights that Nordic countries continue to dominate the top five rankings due to social support, life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, low corruption, and a culture of generosity.
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Finland retains the top spot it has held for several years, with citizens enjoying a robust social welfare system, a strong work life balance, and a sense of security and freedom.
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Denmark and Iceland follow closely, with Denmark excelling in health care and happiness amongst older adults, while Iceland excels in strong community cohesion and generosity.
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But what makes people happy on a broader scale?
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One interesting finding from a recent Gallup poll is that sharing meals contributes to happiness.
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This factor is on par with the influence of income and employment and drives higher life satisfaction and a more positive outlook across ages, genders, cultures, and regions.
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According to a recent report from the World Economic Forum, the top five things that make people happy are number five, the ability to forgive, number four, positive thinking, number three, meaningful work, number two, family and relationships, and number one, health and well-being.
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Two universal factors that appear in most studies indicate that a country's economic circumstance and trust or lack thereof regarding its governments and leadership significantly impact its citizens' happiness, unhappiness, health, and well-being.
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Another interesting finding from the Happiness Report's March 2025 edition also reports a sharp decline in the rankings of the United States and Great Britain.
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At number 24, the US had reached its lowest ranking ever, and Britain's 23rd place was its lowest since 2017.
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This is Michelle Avery on behalf of Uncle Gary's Two Sense Journey, produced by Uncle Gary's Global Media.
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We encourage you to look them up and see what you will find there.
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But for this episode, because of time limits, we are going to broach the subject of end of life care, and our conductor Jimmy Mac has his own personal views on the subject.
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So now what's an exit center?
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I agree with Dr.
00:26:21.920 --> 00:26:35.839
Kavokian's conviction that mentally competent adults should have the right to make decisions regarding our own bodies.
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Those who choose to carry on should be given the tools they need.
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And in our environment of limited resources, there will be more of them to help.
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But we who choose to end an unwanted existence should also be given the tools to achieve what we desire.
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Toward this end, I envision where there are competitive, professionally managed government inspected facilities known as the exit centers.
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Exit centers will offer compassionate, carefully regulated opportunities for those wanting to make their end of life transition.
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There the individual would make certain of their decision and that their earthly affairs are in order.
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After these preparations, the patient would select the method by which the final exit will occur.
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If I were choosing my final exit, for instance, I would select the plan that offers a sumptuous, scrumptuous last supper, and then receive an overdose of a drug that I had always wanted to try, but never did, because I was afraid it would off me to the pearly gates.
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This is the narcotic that would be administered by the anesthesiologist.
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However, in the irony of this circuitous world, the intent now is that it does unalive me so that I can enter the next celestial sphere with a smile of anticipation.
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I don't know where that celestial sphere is, but when I come to if I do come to, then I will know that life was just a dream and an in and not a home.
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Fortunately, I do not currently need or want enhanced euthanasia, but I'd like to know it's there.
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Should I feel that my time is right, my time is nigh for such a life altering decision.
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Technically, you know, we already have euthanasia, but it's limited to our beloved pets to ease their suffering.
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So why can't we extend this mercy to us, the people who want it?
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Something to think about.
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I thank you for listening.
00:30:05.519 --> 00:30:10.799
This is Jimmy Mac for Uncle Gary's Two Sense Journey.
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I get so caught up in the middle, thinking of drowning his blue eyes.
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Well, we've done it again.
00:30:22.319 --> 00:30:28.559
This concludes episode two of Uncle Gary's Two Sense Journey.
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On behalf of myself, Gary, Uncle Gary Corbin, my co-host Jim, conductor Jimmy McMilleschi, and the lovely Michelle Avery.
00:30:44.480 --> 00:30:56.880
And my co-producer Ron Balcaris, we are extremely humbled and grateful for the support of all of you, our global family.
00:30:57.599 --> 00:31:02.640
Please be on the lookout for win our next episode.
00:31:02.880 --> 00:31:04.799
Episode three drops.
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Morning, evening, afternoon, and night.
00:31:15.359 --> 00:31:18.720
Until then, we're signing off.
