@Marc Clayton Likewise, Marc Clayton, I have little-to-no idea who you are.
Can only go by what you're saying in black and white here on the page and I'm betting you don't quite know who you are, or what you're not, either.
Your lip service sounds very familiar, have heard the likes of your pitter-patter before... On the surface, to untrained ears and eyes, you appear to know what you're talking about but, in reality, you're a time/energy vampire... and your words via this constant knee-jerk defence of the ego and your justifications make you look either intentionally delusive, schizophrenic, or stupid.
Needless to say, you're probably a nice person, am leaning towards the latter because that old saying comes to mind: "Stupid doesn't know it's stupid" (and a little "knowledge" can be dangerous!)
You're probably not stupid in all areas of life, however, in this court where Stephen's knowledge simply reigns supreme over yours, it's laughable to compare yourself to him, it truly is... Sure, we're all equally connected to our Creator (so we're all equal by those means) but this isn't what I'm saying here; sparse knowing in the bigger picture can be dangerous.
Stephen has done way more leg work than the average bear but, by the sounds of it, you haven't even grazed a knee in the right areas so it would be prudent to sit back quietly and listen when Stephen is speaking instead of the constant jibber-jabber/defence mechanisms and justifications kicking in.
It takes years and years to reveal the many complex layers of this arena, and based upon the words and contradictions you're using/saying, it's clear to see you've not spent your many years looking into even an inkling of what Stephen inherently knows through not only deep research but also firsthand knowledge... It often takes those years of other experiences to piece together what Stephen's up to now with Dick Yardley and Stephen's doing a great service to everyone by taking the time to interview Dick every week, twice a week.
You've flip-flopped around quite a lot in this thread, Marc, but going back to an earlier thing you said about Stephen proving himself to you... Stephen doesn't need to prove anything to anyone... It's up to others to use their nous to determine their own truth for themselves about everything and everyone... and even then, everyone's own "truth" is purely subjective due to our unique perceptions... To be more accurate, when people are talking, we should say "my truth" and not "the truth".
Instead of more ego trips and justifications, perhaps go away and come back again once you've done some actual digging or have some skin in this particular game... Or not... It's up to you... You could keep digging that hole deeper here if you want, you're a "nice person" after all and surely can't ever be wrong... and (when not busy) this is actually a little entertaining seeing what lip service rubbish you're going to produce next :D