If you don’t question the obvious, you’re living inside someone else’s story. In this father–son episode of Occasionally Philosophical, Mark and Doug start with a simple question from Mark’s childhood — “Is this table really solid?” — and follow it all the way to capitalism, propaganda, AI, GTA 6, media consolidation, and why getting constantly interrupted makes you feel invisible. We talk about metacognitive awareness (thinking about your thinking), how parents can plant critical-thinking seeds with “silly” games, why capitalism is just one story among many, and how books like Ishmael, Propaganda, and Manufacturing Consent blew our minds. We also dig into AI in education, influencer culture, audience capture, universal basic income, and that depressing gap between worker productivity and wages (including Mark’s real-life dealership commission example). If you’ve ever felt like you’re stuck inside someone else’s narrative — economic, political, or personal — this episode is an invitation to start writing your own.