Author Mark W Sasse recalls a childhood trip to the world's first commercial oil well - Drake's Well - built in 1859. This remarkable achievement by Edwin Drake started an oil boom in Western Pennsylvania.

This experience allows him to ruminate about the oil industry, the innovators of modern society, and whether the climate change pushers in this day and age should be trusted or not.

The Crossing Ideas Podcast seeks to understand the world of today through a lifetime of international travels.

Author Mark W Sasse recalls getting caught up in the anti-Russian protests of March 2022 in Tbilisi Georgia, just after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. He talks about visiting Stalin's underground printing press in Tbilisi and theorizes how activism hasn't really changed much at all through the years. Learn more about Stalin and his roots in Georgia, and then see how that relates to the Georgian take on the Ukranian War.

Oh, and there's a statue of Reagan to explore in Tbilisi as well. Can't leave that out.

Tbilisi, Georgia. I've visited there four times. There's something unique in the air. A place steeped in culture, the Georgian Orthodox Church, their claim to being the birthplace of wine, their precarious setting south of Russia, with the mighty Caucasus Mountains standing guard. In this episode, I delve into the wonderful sights and sounds of Tbilisi, and check out its heart and soul: its bathhouse culture. In doing so, I begin to ponder about the culture of my own country. Is America still a melting pot? What can I learn about my home through experiencing the rough and tumble culture of this proud eastern European country?

Let's find out.