The Great Antidote: Recent Episodes
Juliette Sellgren
Adam Smith said, "Science is the great antidote to the poison of enthusiasm and superstition." So join us for interviews with the leading experts on today's biggest issues to learn more about economics, policy, and much more.
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In this final episode of The Great Antidote, I sit down with my mom, Veronique de Rugy (does this feel like a Mr. Big name reveal for some of you?!), to reflect on the podcast and the remarkable journey of the past five years. Together, we revisit how the show started, the ideas that shaped it, the moments that changed me, and the people whose support made everything possible. This episode is a reflection on learning, growth, and gratitude—and a thank-you to everyone who has been part of this project.
Veronique de Rugy is the George Gibbs Chair in Political Economy and Senior Research Fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. She is also an incredible mother (just ask me (if you don't trust me, you can ask my sister)).
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Philosopher Rebecca Lowe (Mercatus Center) joins me to do an ideas-only deep dive: what freedom really is, why it matters, how it intersects with equality, and how to tell coercion from choice. We talk charitable argument (steelmanning), the social value of clear definitions, and Rebecca’s agent-focused view of freedom—plus why doing something freely can have value even when the act is bad.
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Why is D.C. trying to shut down a rideshare app that pays drivers more and charges riders less? Jack Nicastro of Reason joins to unpack Empower’s battle with regulators, what “innovation vs. permission” means in real life, and how markets—not mandates—keep people safe.
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Is tech panic new—or just history on repeat? Judge Glock (Manhattan Institute) walks through what past tech scares (lead gasoline, CFCs, TV) got right and wrong, why “externalities” matter more than vibes, and how to think about AI regulation today—transparency mandates, liability vs. preclearance, “AI pauses,” and realistic optimism. We end with his own journey from socialism to markets.
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Markets don’t work without trust. Tawni Ferrarini joins Juliette Sellgren to explore how honesty and reputation make exchange possible — from medieval trade networks to blockchain and Amazon reviews — and why decentralized trust systems matter in today’s economy of polarization, misinformation, and weak institutions.
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AEI Economist Derek Scissors joins Juliette Sellgren to unpack the reality of China’s economy, U.S.–China relations, and whether China is truly a threat. From demographics to debt and political control, Scissors explains what’s really driving China’s trajectory, and why it matters for America’s future.
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This week, Juliette Sellgren sits down with Martina Bacik, the 21-year-old founder of the Economics Olympiad that has grown to 120,000 students in 35+ countries, and Tawni Hunt Ferrarini, coauthor of Common Sense Economics. Together they explore why teaching economics early matters, how competitions and books ignite curiosity, and what inspiring young people can teach us about building a hopeful, prosperous future.
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Why does freedom matter? How can we defend it in an age of rising authoritarianism? In this episode, I sit down with Tom Palmer to explore the ideas, virtues, and strategies that keep liberty alive.
We cover:
· The rise of authoritarian movements and global threats to liberty
· The morality of freedom: how to know what to fight for and when
· January 6th as a failure of duty, and what true constitutional leadership requires
· Trump, responsibility in office, and the role of virtue in political life
· How persuasion, clarity, and even humor (à la Bastiat) can advance freedom
Palmer draws on decades of experience—from supporting dissidents in the USSR before the Berlin Wall fell to working in Ukraine’s struggle against Russia today, and fighting for self-defense rights, marriage equality, and freedom from conscription in the U.S.
The through line is clear: defending freedom takes more than theory—it requires virtue, duty, and clarity of purpose to make liberty resilient and worth fighting for.
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In this special episode of The Great Antidote, Amy Willis of Liberty Fund takes the mic to interview Juliette Sellgren, the voice behind the show. Together, they reflect on the evolution of the podcast—from its early days to the hundreds of guests it has featured—and how Juliette herself has grown in the process.
They talk about what it means to foster curiosity, how Juliette approaches reading (and recommends you do, too), and what makes for a great question. They also discuss the future of the podcast, the future of Juliette, and how The Great Antidote continues to explore the ideas of liberty and flourishing through meaningful conversation.
We explore questions like:
- What have been the most surprising lessons from interviewing economists, philosophers, and thinkers about liberty?
- How has Juliette’s own worldview changed since the podcast began?
- What is her approach to reading—and how does it fuel her curiosity?
- If she could have dinner with any past guest (or figure), who would it be?
Juliette Sellgren is the creator and host of The Great Antidote, a podcast by Liberty Fund that explores the ideas, institutions, and people behind a free society. She’s a researcher, writer, and lover of questions whose work bridges classical liberal ideas and public conversation.
Whether you're a longtime listener or just tuning in, this behind-the-scenes episode offers an honest, reflective look at the voice behind the mic—and what’s next.
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What happens when people stop trusting rules—and start rewriting them?
In this episode, we are joined by economist Edward Lopez about the life and legacy of James M. Buchanan, the Nobel Prize-winning founder of public choice economics. We begin by unpacking Buchanan’s biography and intellectual roots: what shaped his worldview, who influenced his thinking, and why his work remains foundational to understanding government, rules, and freedom.
From there, we dive into the rich ideas in The Limits of Liberty—a dense but powerful book in which Buchanan asks: How can free individuals live together without descending into chaos or coercion? Lopez shares with us Buchanan’s key questions, his analytical framework, and the underlying principles that guide his work—especially his emphasis on rules, consent, and the boundaries of state power.
We explore questions like:
- Who was James Buchanan, and why does his work matter today?
- What makes Buchanan a “consummate Smithian” and a classical liberal?
- What are the central ideas in The Limits of Liberty—and why are they still so relevant?
- How does public choice theory reshape how we understand politics, institutions, and individual freedom?
Edward Lopez is a professor of economics and the BB&T Distinguished Professor of Capitalism at Western Carolina University. He directs the Center for the Study of Free Enterprise and is the past president of the Public Choice Society. His work focuses on the intersection of law, economics, and political processes, especially in the tradition of public choice and constitutional political economy.
If you’ve ever wondered what holds free societies together—or what happens when the rules start to break—this episode is for you.
Want to explore more?
- Intellectual Portrait Series: A Conversation with James Buchanan
- Pierre Lemieux, Lessons and Challenges in The Limits of Liberty, at Econlib.
- Randy Simmons on Public Choice, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Sandra Peart on Ethical Quandaries and Politics Without Romance, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Edward Lopez, Socialism from the Bottom Up: Where Lawson and Powell Meet Hayek and Buchanan, at Econlib.
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What makes some states thrive while others trap people in place? And what does it really mean to be free to move, grow, and flourish?
In this episode, I talk with economist Justin Callais about the deep connections between personal fulfillment, economic mobility, and institutional quality. We begin with the personal: why real change starts internally, and how self-mastery and agency are prerequisites for meaningful, external progress. Then, we zoom out to ask: what kinds of systems make it easier for people to rise?
We explore questions like:
- What is economic mobility—and what does it look like in practice?
- Why is Utah the top-performing states on the Archbridge Institute’s Social Mobility Index, while Louisiana lags behind?
- How do factors like governance quality, opportunity, and freedom of movement shape people's life outcomes?
- What role do individuals, institutions, and state policies play in promoting (or restricting) upward mobility?
Justin Callais is the chief economist at the Archbridge Institute. He studies development economics, polycentric governance, and the institutional roots of freedom and flourishing.
If you’ve ever wondered why where you live matters—or what it takes to build a society where people can truly move up in life—this conversation is for you.
Want to explore more?
- James Heckman on Inequality and Economic Mobility, an EconTalk podcast
- Raj Chetty on Economic Mobility, an EconTalk podcast
- Arnold Kling, The Kids Are...Different, at Econlib
- Kerianne Lawson on Equal Economic Freedoms, a Great Antidote podcast
- Jeremy Horpedahl on the Real Cost of Thriving Index, a Great Antidote podcast
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Remember the Amazon HQ2 frenzy? When nearly every U.S. state competed to become Amazon’s next home, offering billions in tax breaks and incentives? I do — I grew up right next door to Crystal City, Virginia, the site Amazon ultimately chose.
In this episode, I talk with economist Peter Calcagno about targeted economic incentives—the controversial policy tool that fueled the Amazon HQ2 bidding war and countless other corporate deals.
We explore questions like:
- What are targeted incentives?
- Do they actually create economic development and job growth?
- Why do politicians favor targeted incentives over other tools?
- Who wins—and who loses—when states compete this way?
Peter Calcagno is a professor of economics at the College of Charleston and director of the Center for Public Choice and Market Process. He’s also a fellow at the American Institute for Economic Research, where he studies public choice theory and fiscal policy.
If you’ve ever wondered whether government subsidies for big business pay off—or if they just create unfair advantages—this conversation is for you.
Want to explore more?
- Peter Calcagno, Follow the Money, at EconLog.
- Russell Sobel, Who Really Gains from Billions in Economic Development Incentives? at Econlib.
- Lauren Heller, Prosperity Without a Price Tag, at Econlib
- Randy Simmons on Public Choice, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Art Carden, From Here to Serenity: How Public Choice Makes Me Less Cynical, at Econlib.
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What if modern economics has overlooked what truly makes us human?
In this episode, Bart Wilson joins us to explore humanomics—an approach to economics that reintroduces meaning, culture, and moral judgment into how we understand economic behavior.
We talk about how economists miss the mark by assuming too much about how rational we really are—and too little about what it means to be human.
Wilson shares insights from his experimental work with non-human primates, showing how comparing monkey behavior to human decision-making can reveal deep truths about markets, cooperation, and fairness.
We explore big questions all economists should grapple with: What is humanomics, and how does it challenge traditional models? What makes human goals different from animal instincts? Can monkeys and other animals help us understand moral behavior in economics?
Bart Wilson is a professor of Economics and Law at Chapman University and the Director of the Smith Institute for Political Economy and Philosophy. He is the co-author (with Vernon Smith) of Humanomics and the author of Meaningful Economics. His research spans experimental economics, moral philosophy, and decision-making in both humans and non-human primates.
Join us for a wide-ranging and thought-provoking conversation about the future of economics, human nature, and what monkeys can teach us about meaning.
Want to explore more?
- Maria Pia Paganelli, "Humanomics: Moral Sentiments and Wealth of Nations for the Twenty-First Century," at Econlib.
- Vernon Smith on Markets and Experimental Economics, an EconTalk podcast.
- From the Shelf with Arnold Kling: Bart Wilson, Jack Hope, and Chris Martin, a discussion of Nichaol Raihani's The Social Instinct.
- Charles Noussair on Experimental Economics and Testing Institutions, a Great Antidote podcast.
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What is it like to grow up under a dictatorship? The speakers of The Dissident Project don’t have to wonder — they’ve lived it. And they’ve escaped.
In this episode, Grace Bydalek joins us this week to discuss her work with The Dissident Project, which brings survivors of authoritarian regimes into American high schools to share their powerful, firsthand stories. From Cuba and Venezuela to Russia and beyond, these voices bring the reality of life without freedom into the classroom.
We talk about why these stories matter — especially for students who may never have questioned their own liberties. Why high schoolers? Why now? And does this kind of civic education actually make a difference?
Join us for a moving and timely conversation about freedom, resilience, and the importance of living for something larger than yourself.
Grace Bydalek is the Director of The Dissident Project, an initiative of the nonprofit Young Voices dedicated to educating American students about the dangers of authoritarianism. She is also a visiting fellow at the Independent Women’s Forum, a ministry apprentice at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, and is currently pursuing a master’s in theology. Oh — and she’s also an actor.
Want to explore more?
- Daniel DiMartino on Life in Venezuela and Immigration, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Arthur Brooks on Love Your Enemy, an EconTalk podcast.
- Bryan Caplan, Communism, in the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics.
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Ryan Streeter is the executive director of the Civitas Institute at the University of Texas at Austin. Today, he tells us about his time in the intersection of think tanks, government, and academic communities. We talk about cities, the importance of mobility and growth, how to foster those characteristics, skepticism of government, and living in and creating a community that fosters social cohesion and critical thinking.
Want to explore more?
- Alain Bertaud on Urban Planning and Cities, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Raj Chetty on Economic Mobility, an EconTalk podcast.
- Scott Winship on Poverty and Welfare, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Charles Murray on Dignity and the American Dream, a Future of Liberty podcast.
- Jeremy Horpedahl, Americans are Still Thriving, at Econlib.
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We’ve talked about objectivism before on the podcast, but that was fairly introductory. Today, for the first time ever, I host two guests on the podcast to discuss the limitations of objectivism and where it fails to depict the good life. We talk about how they got interested in Rand’s thought, how they philosophically dealt with works that were mostly fiction, and where their philosophy, individualistic perfectionism, diverges from Rand’s and fills in some important blanks.
Den Uyl is a resident scholar at Liberty Fund, and Rasmussen is a professor emeritus in philosophy at St. John’s University and senior affiliated scholar at the Center for Economic Inquiry at Creighton University. Together, they have written extensively on the subject, including editing a collection called The Philosophic Thought of Ayn Rand. They’ve written a lot on the topic at the Journal for Ayn Rand Studies. Den Uyl has a book on the subject, titled The Fountainhead: An American Novel.
Want to explore more?
- Jennifer Burns on Ayn Rand and the Goddess of the Market, an EconTalk podcast.
- Timothy Sandefur on Freedom's Furies, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Caroline Breashears, Adam Smith, Ayn Rand, and the Power of Stories, at Econlib.
- Craig Biddle on Philosophy and Objectivism, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Dianne Durante on Innovations in Sculpture, a Great Antidote podcast.
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Join us today for a fun conversation about all things government, UK and US, with Lord Daniel Hannan of Kingsclere!
Lord Hannan is a member of the House of Lords. Today, we talk about how the U.K.’s legislative is structured, what is up with executive power, the importance of the West and cohesion on the freedom front, and the idiocy of tariffs.
Want to explore more?
- Yuval Levin on Burke, Paine, and the Great Debate, an EconTalk podcast.
- Phillip Klein on Fight Club Conservatives versus Disney, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Robert Higgs, Government Growth, in the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics.
- Troy Senik on Grover Cleveland, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Is There a Role for Monarchy in a Free Society? A Liberty Matters forum at the Online Library of Liberty.
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Bob Ewing is the founder of the Ewing School and hosts a Substack called Talking Big Ideas (go check it out). He has also gifted me most of the great books that I’ve read.
Today, we talk about how he got started and how many of the great lessons in life are learned. We talk about counter-intuitive ideas, how to find the answers to them, and how to effectively communicate them. He talks to us about kettle bells and quotes (almost) every great author under the sun.
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We talk a lot about civil society and the importance of local, communal networks which hold us up when we’re down and inspire us to be good, striving members of society. But what does that actually look like? How do civil institutions get built, and what does it take?
Today, I’m excited to welcome Rachel Ferguson to the podcast. She is the director of the Free Enterprise Center at Concordia University in Chicago and an affiliate scholar at the Acton Institute. She is the president of the board at Love the Lou, a neighborhood stabilization project which we are talking about today.
Join us for an honest and inspiring conversation about why civil society matters, how it is built, what threatens it, and what the implications of civil society (or the lack thereof) are on the ground. How do institutions we speak of conceptually actually change people’s lives, in real and concrete ways? Tune in to find out.
Want to explore more?
- Megan McArdle on Failure, Success, and the Up Side of Down, an EconTalk podcast.
- Arnold Kling, The Role of "We" versus the Role of "I," at Econlib.
- Anna Claire Flowers on F.A. Hayek and Social Structure, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Aviral Chawya. Social Cohesion and Economic Prosperity, at AdamSmithWorks.
- Anthony Gill on Religion, an EconTalk podcast.
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Jo Jensen is the founder of MovieGoer and she’s currently the SVP of Digital and Entertainment Strategy at Touchdown Strategies, a PR firm. and is an Aspen Institute Civil Society Fellow. Since all fellows have ventures over there, she’s currently writing a book called “America Has a Girlfriend Problem.”
Today, we talk about the anxiety of my generation and how to unplug, attempting to grow comfortable with discomfort. We talk about how things have changed and how we can become more active, willing to take leaps that will either succeed or teach us fundamentally important lessons.
We also talk about her work with growing audiences and relationships. The first step is always caring about others and seeing their potential. Then we move on to talk about America’s Girlfriend Problem, addressing the issues which disproportionately affect single women in America today.
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What is Universal Basic Income (UBI) and why is it so popular among economists and freedom lovers relative to other types of poverty policy solutions? What does it even mean to “solve a problem” or to “learn” in the social sciences?
Join us today to explore the answers to these two questions and many more. Today, I am excited to welcome on Peter Van Doren to talk about the history of poverty policy and policy debates and the reality about universal basic income. We talk about some pretty conclusive economic studies which highlight the effect of UBI type policies and what to make of them!
Peter Van Doren is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute and the editor of Regulation, a quarterly magazine about applied microeconomics and economic policy issues.
Want to explore more?
- Michael Munger on the Basic Income Guarantee, an EconTalk podcast.
- Thomas Koenig, Adam Smith, Francis Fukuyama, and the Indignity of the UBI, at Speaking of Smith.
- Bruce Meyer on Poverty, an EconTalk podcast.
- Scott Winship on Poverty and Welfare, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Clark Nardinelli, Industrial Revolution and the Standard of Living, in the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics.
- Jeremy Horpedahl on the Real Cost of Thriving Index, a Great Antidote Podcast.
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Welcome back. Continuing our ongoing exploration of what it means to be an individual living in a liberal society, today I am happy to host Charlotte Thomas to talk to us about what it means to learn and the importance of the liberal arts.
Join us to find out what it truly means to be “educated” and how to do it. A mix of personal, inspirational, and relatable, Professor Thomas brings her knowledge of teaching in the classroom into our conversation. Of course, rather than simply lecturing, teaching and learning in the liberal arts context means discussing, connecting, and questioning.
Charlotte Thomas is a professor of philosophy and Great Books at Mercer University. She also runs the Association for Core Texts and Courses. She is also the author of “The Female Drama: The Philosophical Feminine in the Soul of Plato’s Republic.”
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The most common statistic cited regarding marriage and relationships in the United States is that the 50% of all marriages end in divorce. Another one that is gaining traction is that more Americans than ever before will end up unmarried and alone.
Nobody likes these statistics.
How did we get from the 60s, hairdos and stay at home moms, to a 50% divorce rate and a high probability of dying alone? Should we care? How do we balance the benefits of modernity – women in the workplace, higher incomes, more interesting jobs – with the benefits of structured families, love, and children?
Today, UVA Professor Brad Wilcox is here to explain to us how we can have both: better economic status and better family life. After all, the highest indicator of long-term happiness, meaning, and satisfaction is close relationships. He is the director of The National Marriage Project and the author of Get Married: Why Americans Must Defy the Elites, Forge Strong Families, and Save Civilization.
Want to explore more?
- Emily Oster on The Family Firm, an EconTalk podcast.
- Jessica Todd Parker on Beauty, Family, and Photography, an EconTalk podcast.
- Amy Willis, Could Too Much Division of Labor Be Bad? at Speaking of Smith.
- Erik Rostad, Friedrich Engels' The Origin of the Family, at Speaking of Smith.
- Patrick Fitzsimmons, Adam on Polygamy and Kin Networks, at AdamSmithWorks.
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Thomas Jefferson was a complicated figure. Essential to the start of our country and the university I attend, he is impossible to ignore. Yet, he held slaves, and at the same time said “all men are created equal.” What’s up with that?!
Yet, we need to be able to talk about him. We also need to be able to acknowledge the contributions he has made to the world, while also acknowledging the flaws in his character and behavior. His legacy is complicated, and he was a complicated person. We all are. So how do we reconcile these parts of him? Join us in our attempt to understand this.
Today, we talk about Thomas Jefferson and his complicated relationship with slavery. Cara Rogers Stevens, professor of history at Ashland University and codirector of the Ashbrook Scholars Program, joins us to talk about this. She is also the author of Thomas Jefferson and The First Against Slavery, which informs much of our conversation.
Want to explore more:
- Read the Complete Works of Thomas Jefferson at the Online Library of Liberty.
- Hans Eicholz, 1776 and All That: Thomas Jefferson on Adam Smith, at AdamSmithWorks.
- Darren Staloff on the American Founding, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Understanding Jefferson: Slavery, Race, and the Declaration of Independence, a Liberty Matters forum at the Online Library of Liberty.
- Jeffrey Rogers Hummel, U.S. Slavery and Economic Thought, in the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics.
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Trade is all the rage these days. Or, at least, raging about trade is. Today, we unpack what trade and free trade are, and how to talk about it. We also address the abundance of lawyers in trade policy.
Douglas Irwin is a professor of economics at Dartmouth College and the author of several books including Clashing Over Commerce and Against the Tide: An Intellectual History of Free Trade.
Want to explore more?
- Douglas Irwin, International Trade Agreements, in the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics
- Samuel Gregg on National Security and Industrial Policy, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Why Industrial Policy is (Almost) Always a Bad Idea (with Scott Sumner), an EconTalk podcast.
- Colin Grabow on the Jones Act 2: Treason and Cruises, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Jon Murphy, Does National Security Justify Tariffs? at Econlib
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Today, I am excited to host Anna Claire Flowers to discuss F. A. Hayek and the mesocosmos. The mesocosmos is a fancy way to describe all the social groupings on the spectrum between the extremes of individualism and society. Think families, neighborhoods, farmers markets, firms, and universities.
We talk about the importance of characterizing this missing middle piece of social organization and how it can resolve issues than a single individual or government can. She characterizes some of the important aspects of these associations for us. We talk about the family's role in particular, and what benefits it brings to individuals and society.
Anna Claire Flowers is pursuing a PhD in Economics from George Mason University. She is a PhD Fellow with the Mercatus Center and a Graduate Fellow with the F.A. Hayek Program for Advanced Study in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics for 2024-2025.
Want to explore more?
- Bruce Caldwell on Hayek: A Life, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Amy Willis, Could Too Much Division of Labor be Bad? at Speaking of Smith.
- Dan Klein on Hayek and the Band Man, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Viviana Zelizer on Money and Intimacy, an EconTalk podcast.
- Profile in Liberty, Friedrich A. Hayek, at Econlib.
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Welcome back! Happy New Year! Glad to be back! Come one, come all!
Eric Leeper is the Paul Goodloe McIntire Professor in Economics at the University of Virginia. He also is a visiting scholar at the Mercatus Center at GMU. Today, we talk about inflation. He explains to us how inflation theory has evolved and how we forgot about the relationship between the fiscal and monetary sides of the economy.
Want to explore more?
- John Cochrane on Monetary versus Fiscal Policy, A Great Antidote podcast.
- Leonidas Zelmanovitz, The Boundaries of Fiscal and Monetary Policy, at Econlib.
- Allen Meltzer on Inflation, an EconTalk podcast.
- Thomas Hoening on Inflation and the Federal Reserve, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Maryann Keating, Adam Smith and the Public Debt, at AdamSmithWorks.
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Not often do we find people who make the case for how race, liberty, and equality belong together. Even less often do we find them making arguments in the height of racially and economically troubled times. And EVEN LESS do we find audio clips of them doing so.
These people are inspiring. They stand up against the currents of the time to speak their minds, for the benefit of everyone. In doing so, they garner respect and build coalitions across ideological lines, because they have to. We can learn from them and aspire to be like them today.
In a really unique episode, I am excited to welcome David Beito to the podcast to talk about Rose Wilder Lane’s column, "Rose Lane Says," and how she brought together these three concepts of race, liberty, and equality to make an appealing case for freedom. He shares with us a clip of Lane herself, speaking on these issues.
Want to explore more?
- Timothy Sandefur on Freedom's Furies, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Nico Perrino on Individual Rights and Free Expression, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Rachel Ferguson on Black Liberation Through the Marketplace, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Alice Temnick, Prudence on the Prairie, at Speaking of Smith
- Mustafa Akyol, Liberty Was Islam's First Call, at the Online Library of Liberty
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Adam Smith was a man who read the Stoics. He liked them, too, talking them up in The Theory of Moral Sentiments, particularly in the section on grief.
Then he lost two of his closest relations (old timey, right?), David Hume and his mother. These world-shaking events caused him to reevaluate what he said about grief in TMS and change our interpretation of his commentary on grief.
So what did he say about grief before, and how did the actual experience of grief change his mind? How does grief work, and how do we get through hard times? How do art and philosophy play different roles in the human experience?
Today, I’m excited to welcome Liberty Fund’s Sarah Skwire back to the podcast. She is a Senior Program Officer there, and a resident scholar on people-who-thought-things-and-wrote-things. I truly enjoyed this conversation and I hope you do too!
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This year’s Nobel Prize winners in economics are Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson, and James Robinson, who wrote on the importance of inclusive institutions to economic growth. But what on earth are ‘inclusive institutions’ and how do they differ from exclusive ones?
Inclusive institutions are norms, either written or unwritten, about things like property rights, democracy, and the rule of law. But what other institutions are important to economic growth, if there are others?
Some of this year’s winners endorse a strong antitrust regime. How do you reconcile the importance of property rights to growth with a desire to limit and take down companies built upon those rights?
At the time this episode was recorded, everyone in economics was talking about the Nobel Prize, both this year’s winners and their research. But what other economists (and their work) should we be looking to?
Today, I am excited to welcome David Henderson back to the podcast. Henderson is the Wall Street Journal’s go-to writer when it comes to the Nobel in economics and an Emeritus Professor of Economics at the Naval Postgraduate School and a research fellow with the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. His substack is titled I Blog to Differ, so go check it out! He answers questions just like these in our interview, so tune in to hear the answers!!
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Picture a policy conversation, perhaps in Washington, about national security. Who’s sitting around the table? It might be the President, national security advisors, military personnel, or generals, but not economists. And yet, national security is often used as a reason to intervene into the economy.
At the mention of national security, it seems economists often shut their mouths and run away (or hide under a rock, or something). But why? How should economists think about and engage with concerns about national security?
Today, the wonderful Sam Gregg joins us to talk to us about industrial policy and national security. He is the author of The Next American Economy and he is the Frederick Hayek Chair in Economics and Economic History at the American Institute for Economic Research.
He explains how national security is often used as a justification for industrial policy, and how industrial policy actually harms both national security and economic strength. Join us to hear about the economic policy that improves national security!!
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How do you teach about a man who does not fit neatly into a box? Hayek is one such man, and today, we tackle the difficult task of putting him in a box. We conclude that we cannot put someone like F. A. Hayek into boxes such as “economist” or “philosopher” or “political theorist”, because he did it all. How and when do you teach the ideas of a man who did it all?
I’m excited to welcome Tawni Hunt Ferrarini to the podcast today to talk to us about teaching Hayek and his most important ideas. Ferrarini is a co-author of Common Sense Economics and an economic educator worldwide. We go through multiple ideas of in-class examples and places his thought could be applied in the context of modern education. Keep listening to hear me talk about how I, Pencil is scary.
Want to explore more?
- Explore the Common Sense Economics website.
- Tawni Hunt Ferrarini, Real Life Economics: Rational or Complex, at EconTalk.
- Ryan Yonk on the China Dilemma, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Come explore Hayek with us in these two upcoming Online Programs led by Dr. Ferrarini:
- A Timeless [asynchronous] discussion, October 28-November 3 in the LF Portal.
- Dive Deep into Hayek's "Use of Knowledge in Society," a one session Virtual Reading Group, November 13th.
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It’s often said that if you want to get to know someone, you should look through their garbage. Now, I don’t recommend this method of getting to know someone (it’s kind of gross). But biographers often have the luck of getting to know the people they study by looking through their stuff- that stuff not being actual garbage.
For example, Bruce Caldwell spent time with Hayek’s skis and botanical photographs. You might be thinking, why do I care? Why does anyone care? Hayek didn’t even write about skiing or photography!
That’s exactly the point: the minutia of life, those characteristics that are seemingly irrelevant to the output of an academic can give insight into their uniqueness. Hayek’s context, his family, and youth and involvement in certain political parties, shines a light on what, why, and how he thought, which helps us to better understand him and his ideas.
Join me today in conversation with Bruce Caldwell, one of Hayek’s biographers, to explore the context of Hayek and what it means to be a biographer. Caldwell is a research professor of economics at Duke where he is the Director of the Center for the History of Political Economy. He is also the co-author of the book Hayek: A Life, among other works. He also believes Santa Claus exists (stay tuned to hear why!).
Want to explore more?
- Don Boudreaux on the Essential Hayek, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Bruce Caldwell on Hayek, an EconTalk podcast.
- Rosolino Candela, Using Reason to Understand the Abuse and Decline of Reason, an Econlib Liberty Classic.
- Peter Boettke, Hayek's Nobel at 50, at EconLog.
- Peter Boettke, Hayek's Epistemic Liberalism, in Liberty Matters at the Online Library of Liberty.
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The title of this episode might confuse you: what on earth do Adam Smith and F. A. Hayek have to say about social justice? A surprising amount, given how much we talk about it!
Smith makes a big point of critiquing men of pride and vanity. What happens when those ultimately negative aspects of humanity go too far, into the territory of what he calls “domineering”? What happens when small acts of domination are aggregated throughout a society?
So here we are, talking about slavery, Jim Crow, and the civil rights movement, through the lens of Hayek and Adam Smith. Our tour guide on this perilous journey towards the implementation and understanding of justice is the wonderful Jacob Levy.
Levy is the Tomlinson Professor of Political Theory at McGill University. He is also the coordinator of the research group on Constitutional Studies at McGill.
Want to explore more?
- Jacob Levy, Rationalism, Pluralism, and the History of Liberal Ideas, a Liberty Matters symposium at the Online Library of Liberty.
- Don Boudreaux on the Essential Hayek, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Steven Horwitz, Spontaneous Order in Adam Smith, at AdamSmithWorks.
- Dan Klein on Adam Smith's Justice, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Rosolino Candela, Private Property and Social Justice: Complements or Substitutes? at Econlib.
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The month of October 2024 marks the 50th anniversary of F. A. Hayek winning the Nobel Prize. Winning such a prize is obviously a big deal, but someone wins one every year, so what’s the big deal about this guy?
Well. Hayek’s contributions to the field of economics are significant because they spoke to more than simply economics. Spontaneous order, price signals as information, and the pretense of knowledge all might come to mind, but they might not. (Maybe you’re new to this! If so, helloooo there!) These concepts branch into philosophy, social structure, and the nature of the human mind. Stick with us to learn the depths and beauty of Hayekian thought, in the first of this series!
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Do you ever take a moment to think about the fact that Americans, the people of the land of the free, spent 13 years under Prohibition? Did you know that Americans used to seriously “drink like a fish”? And no, I’m not talking about fraternity men in college. I’m talking about everyone, everywhere, from George Washington’s parties to lunchtimes in the manufacturing factories (until Henry Ford put a stop to it, you know, for efficiency purposes). Then Prohibition happened.
What were the forces that drove Prohibition into existence? Our first and only constitutional amendment to be repealed, what was so severe about America under prohibition that it only lasted 13 years? How did a guy smuggle whiskey into America in an egg carton?
All that and more on this episode with Wabash Professor Nicholas Snow. Tune in!
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What does it actually mean to run a think tank, to create harmony within an office building full of idea-confident folk? Some have called the think tank a monastery, some have called it an academic social club, and some have even called it a policy incubator. What truly is it and how on earth do you lead one?
Leading a think tank is a multifaceted job, because you have your own scholarship to do too. Today, I’m excited to welcome the president of AEI, Robert Doar, to the podcast for a similarly multifaceted conversation. Doar talks to us about his work on poverty and, more recently, the Nixon impeachment, as well as his job as the president of AEI. Stay with us till the end to hear us talking about our favorite books!
Want to explore more?
- Daniel Rothschild on Liberalism and Think Tanks, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Yesim Sayin on the DC Life and Policy, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Undivide Us: Ben Klutsey on Exploring and Confronting Polarization, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Max Borders, Can We Have Welfare Without the Threat of Violence? at Econlib.
- Richard Gunderman, Joy in Economics...And Tolstoy? at Econlib.
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Even though I hope you’ve been avoiding the election news like I have (as you would the plague), admittedly, it’s hard to do. It’s like someone is blasting it outside your window at 5 AM. Or like a billboard outside your front door that you can’t help but see every time you step outside. Bummer.
Fortunately, AEI’s wonderful Yuval Levin joins us today to talk about the remedy to the plight of election season and America’s recent malaise (not to echo Jimmy Carter…): the American constitution. Now, I know, you might be rolling your eyes and thinking “Those classical liberals are at it again, always talking about the founding…” But seriously. Remembering and embracing the spirit upon which America was founded—one of intellectual and political dynamism—is key to striking the balance between life, politics, and disagreement that has felt so off-kilter recently.
Levin is the director of Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies at AEI, as well as the founder and editor of National Affairs. He recently released the book American Covenant, which we are talking about today. Join us today for a livelier, timelier version of what you learned in your 7th-grade civics class.
Want to explore more?
- How the Constitution Can Bring us Together, an EconTalk podcast with Yuval Levin.
- Yuval Levin on a Time to Build, an EconTalk podcast.
- Darren Staloff on the American Founding, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Christy Lynn Horpedahl, A Skeptic's Guide to the Perfect Commonwealth, at Speaking of Smith.
- Understanding Jefferson: Slavery, Race, and the Declaration of Independence, a Liberty Matters Forum at the Online Library of Liberty.
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Growth is essential to human life. Always has been, always will be. From the moment we are born, we grow, and we continue to throughout our lives, whether that is physically, mentally, or otherwise. Societies grow too.
But what is growth? Real growth is replicable, durable, and sustainable (and not in the sense that immediately comes to mind). Your seven-year-old doesn’t shrink back down after she grows an inch. It might happen when she’s ninety, but that’s gravity (and don’t you think she’s had a good run at this point? We should accept that it’s ok to have a growth recession every now and again). So how have intellectuals conceptualized the growth of societies, environments, and economies over time? And how should we think about growth?
The wonderful Henry C. Clark joins us on the podcast today to answer these questions and more. He is the program director of the Political Economy Project at Dartmouth College and the author of several books including the newly released The Moral Economy We Have Lost: Life Before Mass Abundance. Go check it out!
Want to explore more?
- Henry Clark on the Enlightenments, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Pierre Desrochers, From Prometheus to Arcadia: Liberals, Conservatives, the Environment, and Cultural Cognition, at Econlib.
- Robert Pindyck on Averting and Adapting to Climate Change, an EconTalk podcast.
- Sandra Peart and David Levy, Happiness and the Vanity of the Philosopher: Part1, at Econlib.
- Deirdre McCloskey and Economists' Ideas About Ideas, a Liberty Matters forum at the Online Library of Liberty.
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Some questions are hard to ask. Some questions you don’t want to ask. Some questions are hard for you to hear the answers to. Like, how do you tell someone, politely, that they eat with their mouth open? Between a rock and a hard place, you know you gotta do it. You really don’t want to, but you know you can’t stand to watch it anymore either.
Candace Smith is a wonderful teacher of etiquette and the creator of the Etiquette: For the Business of Life blog. Her philosophy on the importance of etiquette is that if the world was a little more polite, that we’d live in a much kinder world. Join us today for a conversation about how to make that change in your life and community today!
Want to explore more?
- Candace Smith, Etiquette and Adam Smith, at Speaking of Smith
- Dan Klein on Smith: Self-Command, Pride, and Vanity, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Leonidas Montes, The Importance of Self-Command, at AdamSmithWorks.
- Sarah Skwire, The Science of Dining, at the Online Library of Liberty.
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What does it mean for something to be ESG when two of those words are adjectives and one is a noun? I mean think about it. “Environmental, social, and governance” doesn’t really describe anything. It’s also a good example of cacophony. So can someone please explain what it means?
Today, luckily, Paul Mueller, senior research fellow at the American Institute for Economic Research, comes to my rescue. He explains what ESG means and how it relates to CSR (corporate social responsibility, ESG’s more comprehensible predecessor). He answers a question that’s been plaguing me forever, which is, why are free marketeers generally against these types of movements, even though they are private endeavors?
Want to explore more?
- Paul Mueller, A Short Guide to ESG, at AIER.
- Paul Mueller, ESG Puppeteers, at AIER.
- Dwight R. Lee, Corporate Social Responsibility: The Seen and the Unseen, at Econlib.
- David Henderson, ESG Feeds Inflation, Hurts Economic Growth, at Econlib.
- Read the entry on Corporate Governance in the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics.
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What’s in a price? Good question. How can you be “enslaved” to something like a price, to something that doesn’t eat, sleep, or breathe? Good question. What does it mean to wage a war against this inanimate enslaver? Good question.
Join me today with Ryan Bourne, the R. Evan Scharf Chair for the Public Understanding of Economics at the Cato institute. Bourne paints a picture of a bloodless yet economically catastrophic war. It's one which leaves us vulnerable as the weapons of the market (dollars) diminish in our pockets (inflation) and the state of war (price controls) depletes the quality and quantity of our conquests (market interactions) until they are vastly inferior to the opposition’s (free markets).
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Michael Cannon is the Cato Institute’s director of health policy studies and it is his third time on the podcast. He has been on The Washingtonian’s list of most influential people for four years in a row.
Today, we talk about why people think the American healthcare system is “free market” and the role of prices in determining health outcomes--- and how unfettered markets improve the lives of everyone in need of healthcare. He tells us about the ways government intervention, like patchwork, distorts and attempts to undistort prices, and how it leaves us all worse off. He leaves us with a bit of hope though, so tune in for a sunbeam of optimism in the thundering sky of our health policy landscape!
Want to explore more?
- Michael Cannon on Medicare, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Michael Cannon on Employer-Sponsored Healthcare, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Keith Smith on Free Market Healthcare, an EconTalk podcast.
- Explore all the EconTalk episodes on healthcare. There are a lot!
- Richard McKenzie and Katherine Shelton, How Free-Market Kidney Sales Can Save Lives- and Lower the Total Cost of Kidney Transplants, at Econlib.
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Charles Noussair is the Eller Professor of Economics at the University of Arizona and the Director of the Economic Science Laboratory. He also serves as the President of the Economic Science Association. Today, we talk about experimental economics, how it complements other types of economic research, and how economic experiments are conducted. He tells us about a recent macro experiment that tests institutions for growth and welfare, such as electoral systems, political speech, and corruption. He explains the difference between extractive and inclusive economic institutions. Finally, he explains how experimental economics applies to everyone’s lives, not just to economists.
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Sandra Peart is a Distinguished Professor of Leadership Studies and the President of the Jepson Scholars Foundation at the University of Richmond, as well as a coauthor of Towards an Economics of Natural Equals: A Documentary History of the Early Virginia School, with David Levy. She is also a distinguished fellow of the history of economics society.
Today we talk about the importance of humility in discussing important ideas in addition to the importance of asking the right questions, ethical questions. She leads us through the intellectual landscape of the 60s, post World War II, and the birth of the Virginia School of Economics, which was intent on asking important questions about humanity and the nature of equality. We talk about James Buchanan, Warren Nutter, Gordon Tullock, and their influences such as Adam Smith and Frank Knight. We talk about how public choice and experimental economics both critique and improve the field of economics.
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Daniel Di Martino is a PhD candidate in Economics at Columbia University and a graduate fellow at the Manhattan Institute—where he focuses on high-skill immigration policy he also founded the Dissident Project to teach high school students about the evils of socialist regimes. Today we talk about his life in Venezuela and the economic realities he faced growing up, particularly inflation and shortages. He explains how poor institutions, even democratically elected ones, can turn a trusting and prosperous society into a mistrusting and thieving one (watch out ladies, they’ll even steal the hair from your head). We talk about the incentives involved in immigration policy and the immigration situation in places like New York City and Miami today.
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Anne Bradley is an economics professor at the Institute of World Politics and the Vice President of Academic Affairs at The Fund for American Studies. Today, we talk about the political economy of terrorism: what terrorism is, what makes a terrorist, and what the war on terror does to attempt to prevent terrorism. We talk about how economics is uniquely positioned to pose questions and find answers about this area usually dominated by those studying defense and international relations, and how the human element of economics informs her framing of the issue.
Want to explore more?
- Anne Rathbone Bradley, The Economics of al-Qaeda, at Econlib.
- Gary Shiffman on the Economics of Violence, an EconTalk podcast.
- Robert P. Murphy, Ensuring- and Insuring- Air Security, at Econlib.
- Chris Coyne on Manufacturing Militarism, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Kristi Kendall on Human Action and Inspiring Through Ideas, a Great Antidote podcast.
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Craig Richardson is a professor of economics at Winston-Salem State University, and the director of the center for the study of economic mobility there. Today, we talk about a ton of things, from a breakdown of compelling narratives to magic. He tells us why Elizabeth Warren is more interesting to listen to than economists, although she doesn’t understand economics as well as economists do. We talk about the importance of relationships and trust in society, from multinational corporations and small towns to the communication of big ideas. We talk about the lack of awe and magic in economics and communication, and he explains to us why bringing back the wow factor will help us personally and professionally.
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Dan Klein is a professor of economics at George Mason University. Today, He talks to us about another of Smith’s great ideas: self-command. We discuss what the difference between command and control is, and how its important in today’s society. He describes the pride man and the vain man, including details such as their reactions to unwanted estimation (usually bad, not valuing them as they value themselves or want you to value them). We discuss whether Adam Smith is a reason-oriented philosopher. This episode is jam-packed, so check it out!
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Katherine Mangu-Ward is the editor-in-chief of Reason: the Magazine for Free Minds and Free Markets. Today, we talk about what it is like to be an editor-in-chief and what that job description actually entails. She talks to us about the recent AI issue of Reason, in which they grapple with the big questions regarding the future of AI, what the valid concerns are, and what the less valid concerns are. We talk about how "tech bros" are responding to AI fears and whether being optimistic for the future has a place in this discussion.
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Ryan Yonk is a Senior Research Faculty at the American Institute for Economic Research where he is the director of the Public Choice and Public Policy Project. He is also a co-author of The China Dilemma: Rethinking US-China Relations Through Public Choice Theory, with Ethan Yang.
Today, we talk about the book and how to apply public choice thinking to a topic like international relations, and how it diverges and critiques the mainstream thought on this topic. He gives us examples and breaks down how this analysis can help US policy makers and citizens think about China. I ask him if he is optimistic or cynical about the future of US-China relations. His response might shock you, so tune in to find out!
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Erik Matson is a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University and the Deputy Director of the Adam Smith program. He recently released a new book, New Paternalism Meets Older Wisdom: Looking to Smith and Hume on Rationality, Welfare, and Behavioral Economics. Today we talk about paternalism, and how new paternalists differ from classic paternalists and how this arose. We talk about the difficultly of knowing one’s own preferences and how important freedom and choice are to the discovery of the good life and how to obtain it.
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Alice Temnick joins us today on The Great Antidote, she is an IB economics teacher at the United Nations International School in Manhattan and is an education consultant for Liberty Fund’s Adam Smith Works. We continue a previous conversation on Adam Smith, this time exploring his time at Glasgow and his Belle Letres, lectures from his time there. We talk about why he left the University and the ways that we as modern day learners benefit, but how it impacted his students at the time.
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Russell Sobel is a Professor of Economics and Entrepreneurship at the Baker school of Business at The Citadel and he just put out a new book with the Fraser Institute, The Essential Joseph Schumpeter. He has also written an introductory economics textbook and many, many papers on the economics of entrepreneurship.
Today, we talk about what an entrepreneur is, what institutions ---both cultural and governmental --- uplift entrepreneurs, and why we want more entrepreneurs. He explains the work of the economist Joseph Schumpeter, walking us through his views on entrepreneurship to his pessimistic view that capitalism necessarily ends in socialism. We talk about ways to prevent that, if indeed we are on that path.
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Byron Carson is an associate professor of economics and business at Hampton-Sydney College in Virginia. He is also the author of a recently published book, Challenging Malaria, which we talk about today. He explains to us what malaria is and the different ways that individuals and private interests responded to it before the invention of pesticides. We talk about why it is so difficult for larger groups to respond quickly and how individuals moving towards an emergency solution can align with societal interests. He gives examples of private malaria prevention action and private COVID prevention action, giving us insight into how we as members of our communities can solve problems held up by collective action.
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Matt Mitchell is a senior fellow in the Center for Economic Freedom at the Fraser Institute and senior research fellow at the Knee Regulatory Research Center at West Virginia University .
Today, we talk about what socialism really means and what it meant for a country like Estonia, which was first occupied by Hitler and then Stalin. He tells us about what life under occupation was like and how Estonia broke away from socialism. Join us for stories of oppression, cultural resilience, and to hear what makes real the realities of socialism.
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Kristi Kendall is the director of Undivide Us, a documentary about political polarization in America, what it does to us, and how to fix it, along with many other productions.
Today, we’re going to be talking about what’s in a documentary, or film generally, that makes it so moving, especially with members of my generation. We talk about Ludwig von Mises’s human action model, and how it’s actually applicable to inspiring action in media. We discuss how to inspire and make our communication relevant to audiences, and how audiences have changed over time.
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Stan Veuger is a senior research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, with a myriad of different research areas including the political situation in the Netherlands, which he’s written about at The Unpopulist, and the “Implications of Cannabis Legalization for the U.S. Federal Budget”, a paper which he wrote with Alex Brill and Brian J Miller for AEI.
Today, we talk about both. He explains not only the Dutch political situation, but the differences between Dutch populism and populism elsewhere. We talk pros and cons about the American system versus parliamentary systems of government and their ability to get us to the correct political outcome. Then we pivot to cannabis, talking about what the costs of legalization are and correcting the record of what’s to come on the road to legalization. We talk trade, healthcare, and more, Veuger explaining to us the different ways legalization could cost the government- and as a result, taxpayers- in the future.
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Giandomenica Becchio is a professor of economics and the history of economic thought at the University of Torino. Today, she tells us about feminist economics and why it’s an important criticism of neoclassical economics. Without understanding the role of typical gender and family roles, we cannot correctly understand or think about the true division of labor between genders in the workforce and in the home.
She talks to us about how to measure these statistics, the history of the field, and the differences between types of feminists. We later discuss how to account for religion or other cultural preference-shaping institutions in measuring what equality looks like. She tells us about her favorite feminist economist, Barbara Birdman.
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David Henderson is a research fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution and the editor of the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics. He is also an emeritus professor of economics with the Naval Postgraduate School. Today, we talk about another famous economist who has recently passed, Robert Solow. Henderson tells us about the Solow model, a still relevant model used in macroeconomics relating to economic growth, and we discuss its origin and its flaws. He talks to us about Solow’s career, his reputation, and his attitude (Solow had a career-long grudge against Milton Friedman). Henderson leads us on a multi-media experience, where he reads us quotes from a book containing and interview of Solow about Friedman, and you can listen to it here, on the podcast!
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David Boaz is a distinguished senior fellow of the Cato Institute and for over more than four decades, he was the executive vice president. He has written many books, including The Libertarian Mind and Libertarianism: A Primer. Today, we talk about the historical origins and importance of liberalism and rehash the discussion of what to do about it and the current disillusionment with it.
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Thomas Stratmann is a Distinguished University Professor of economics and law at George Mason University, a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Institute, and the creator of the Reservation Economic Freedom Index.
Today, we talk about reservations in America and the economic wellbeing of Native Americans. He explains to us how he got interested in reservation economics and the barriers to increased economic wellbeing for Native Americans, also explaining why economic wellbeing is an important metric to focus on. He has great stories about trade and property rights in Native American history, too!
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Kristi Kendall is the director of the documentary Undivide Us, about the toxic polarization in America and practical steps to solving it through deep, face to face conversations in our communities.
Today, we talk about the production of the documentary and how to communicate ideas through film. She tells us about how her career led her to directing the documentary and why she did it, all while explaining the roles in the filmmaking industry to us.
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Alice Temnick teaches IB Economics for the United Nations International School in Manhattan and is an education consultant with Liberty Fund’s Adam Smith Works and Econlib. Today, we begin what is going to be a long conversation about Adam Smith and education. We begin with Adam Smith’s upbringing and education and talk about our own. We discuss how important being a student is to being a teacher. Stay tuned for more!
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Alain Bertaud is an urbanist and a senior research scholar at the NYU Marron Institute of Urban Management. He is the author of a book about urban planning that is titled Order Without Design: How Markets Shape Cities. He has worked as an urban planner in a multitude of cities around the world.
Today, we talk about his view of a city and what he’s observed as an urban planner. He gives us examples and draws connections between how culture and regulation shape cities --- he means literally; cities shaped by regulation are shaped like donuts. We discuss the problems with central planning from old Soviet cities to today's urban sprawl caused by zoning regulation. He explains how being a "free market urban planner" is not a contradiction and shares personal stories about how he came to this career.
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Ben Klutsey is the Director of Academic Outreach and the Director of the Program on Pluralism and Civil Exchange at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. He is also one of the masterminds behind a recent documentary, Undivide Us, which tackles the affective polarization in America and how to remedy it through thoughtful conversation.
We talk about Ben’s journey and how it led him to this project, the findings of the Undivide Us documentary, and potential solutions to the divisions in society today. Near the end, we discuss the relationship between technology and affective polarization, and the limitations of virtual interactions. Ben gives advice to individuals and institutions longing for deeper connections across perceived boundaries and divisions.
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Robert Lawson is the Jerome M. Fullinwider Centennial Chair in Economic Freedom and is director of the Bridwell Institute for Economic Freedom in the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University.
Today, we talk about James Gwartney, a great economist who recently passed but leaves a significant legacy, from accessible and interesting textbooks to the creation of the Economic Freedom of the World index. Unlike many academics, he even left his desk to pursue his ideas! We discuss Gwartney’s life and how his work has transformed the teaching of and measurement in economics.
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Adam White is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and the Co-Director of the C. Boyden Gray Center for the Study of the Administrative State at George Mason University. He also leads seminars with the Hertog Foundation, one of which I had the chance to attend this summer.
Today we talk about the American judicial system, from its structure to its founding to its role in American society. We address whether courts function differently today than we have in the past, looking at the issues debated like court-packing and precedent.
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Brent Orrell is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where his research lights the path in job training, workforce development, and criminal justice reform. Today, we talk about the state of work in the United States and the main issues that the labor market faces. We talk about the importance of meaning and dignity in one’s work and how it is tied to economic growth. Tune in for some good advice and good conversation!
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Lauren Hall is the author of several books, the author of the wonderful Substack The Radical Moderate’s Guide to Life, and a professor at the Rochester Institute of Technology. Today, we talk about radical moderation, what that is, and why it's important. We talk about the importance of breaking away from the political binaries and models we currently have and how to do so.
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Cheryl Miller is the executive director of the Hertog Foundation, an educational philanthropy organization in Washington, DC. Today, we talk about the mission of the foundation and the importance of the humanities in policy making and being a human more generally. We talk about the state of the youth, optimism, and Edith Wharton!
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Kerianne Lawson is a faculty scholar at the Challey Institute for Global Innovation and Growth as well as an assistant professor of economics at North Dakota State University.
Today, we talk about a lot of different topics including the implementation of property rights in South Africa through the Khaya Lam project and the realities of differences of economic freedom by gender. We talk about finding your career path and what economics is as well!
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Bob Ewing is the founder of the Ewing School, which helps clients with public speaking and listening skills, and writes the Substack Talking Big Ideas. Today we talk about communication, breaking it down into the components of speaking and listening. We discuss why communication is so important and how it can bring value and guide success, and what success might mean.
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Albert Zambone is the author of Daniel Morgan: A Revolutionary Life. He is also the host of the podcast Historically Thinking, where he teaches listeners not only history but how to do it. Go check it out if you haven’t.
He also has a doctorate in history from the University of Oxford. Today, we talk about what history is, why it’s so important, how to do it, and what it tells us. We touch on culture and narratives, and the education system as well.
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John Bitzan is the Menard Family Director of the Sheila and Robert Challey Institute for Global Innovation and Growth at North Dakota State University.
Today we are talking about the findings of their annual survey on American College Student Freedom, Progress and Flourishing, which has some shocking and non-shocking results. Tune in for more as we look at the statistics, try to find causes, and look for solutions.
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Today, I am excited to welcome on Vincent Geloso. He is an assistant professor at George Mason University, specializing in the measurement of living standards.
We talk about his new study with Chelsea Follet of the Cato Institute titled “Global Inequality in Well-Being Has Decreased across Many Dimensions” , which discusses a new way of measuring global inequality, the Inequality of Human Progress Index.
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I am excited to have Chelsea Follett on to talk to us about her new book Centers of Progress: 40 Cities that Changed the World. The title speaks for itself. She is a policy analyst at the Cato Institute’s center for global liberty and prosperity and the managing editor of humanprogress.org.
We talk about a few key characteristics of centers in progress, the connection between cities and progress, and some interesting cases of progress!
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Lawrence Reed is the president emeritus of the Foundation for Economic Education and of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. He is currently the Humphreys family senior fellow at FEE. Visit his website lawrencewreed.com. Today we talk about the best and worst presidents in American history and the reasons why. We start with the role of the presidency, which informs the rest of the discussion.
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Peter Boettke is a professor of economics and philosophy at George Mason University, as well as the author of several books.
Today we talk about a book called Mainline Economics, which is a collection of Nobel lectures from what he defines as “mainline economists”.
A mainline economist’s methodology of economics falls in the tradition and lineage of Adam Smith. We talk about the benefits of this type of economics and how it diverges from mainstream economics, along with when and why that happens.
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Former Senator Phil Gramm began as a professor of economics at Texas A&M, then became a representative in the House, later becoming a senator. And now, he’s written a book with John Early and Robert Ekelund called The Myth of American Inequality: How Government Biases Policy Debate.
We talk today about his book and observations of the system during his time in office, identifying problems with the way the census and other measuring tools bias the data and conversations that follow.
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Jeremy Horpedahl is the director of the Arkansas Center for Research in Economics and an associate professor at the University of Central Arkansas . Today we talk about American Compass’s Cost of Thriving Index (COTI), what it says and why it is wrong.
The COTI shows that Americans today have a higher cost of thriving than ever before, but in a paper with AEI’s Scott Winship, Horpedahl corrects the index and shows that the cost of thriving has instead decreased. Some of the corrections are essential to the average American’s life, for example accounting for changes in taxation in the past few decades. Listen in to hear more about the cost of thriving today, why it has decreased, and how I cannot pronounce COTI for the life of me.
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Jeremy Lott is the managing editor at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, but he also has written some Adam Smith comics for Adam Smith Works, and written an impressively wide range of books, from a novel about William F. Buckley Jr.’s faith to children's books like Growlilocks to comics like Movie Men. Today, we talk about his experience creating in so many different mediums and the purpose of art, as well as the ideas of Adam Smith and their place in America today.
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Today, I host Lawrence White on the podcast. He is an economics professor at George Mason University with a specialty in the history and theory of banking and money and is the author of several books including Better Money: Gold, Fiat, or Bitcoin.
We talk about why on earth money and monetary policy come across as so intimidating, then he takes us on a tour of the different currencies we’ve used. We talk about federal banks, the debate between Hamilton and Jefferson, and the use of cryptocurrencies.
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Aaron Ross Powell, formerly of the Cato Institute (at the time of this interview), and currently the host of podcasts ReImagining Liberty and Zooming In, talks to us about his new book with Paul Matzko called Visions of Liberty.
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The Great Antidote is on a break from recording new content right now, but please enjoy this rerun of one of our favorites in the meantime. Happy Summer and catch you soon with new content!
Arnold Kling is an economist and the author of the book The Three Languages of Politics: Talking Across Political Divides. His substack, In My Tribe, explores many areas of economics and policy. Today, he talks to us about the divide in politics, explaining the need for his book and giving current examples. We explore affective polarization and the rise of polarization generally.
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The Great Antidote is on a break from recording new content right now, but please enjoy this rerun of one of our favorites in the meantime. Happy Summer and catch you soon with new content!
Scott Winship, resident scholar and the director of poverty studies at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), joins us this week to discuss the United States's "War on Poverty", the welfare state, and the future of anti-poverty policy.
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The Great Antidote is on a break from recording new content right now, but please enjoy this rerun of one of our favorites in the meantime. Happy Holidays and catch you soon with new content!
William B. Allen, resident scholar and former chief operating officer of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education, talks to us today about the book he recently edited, The State of Black America. He tells us about his upbringing and the current narrative about racism and policy in the United States. Is it a problem? What should we do about it?
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Emily Hamilton is a senior research fellow and the director of the Urbanity Project at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University.
Today, we talk about the current housing market and the regulations that prevent the building of more affordable, diverse, and abundant types of housing. Hamilton tells us the story of DC and similar areas, where deregulation of housing has begun, explaining the effects. We talk about NIMBY arguments against deregulation, her responses to them, and what deregulation would mean for Americans.
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This week is going to be a little different. Today I am excited to share with you a recording of the play Enquiry Concerning Hereafter by Duane Kelly. (You can also read the script here.)
The play is about the friendship between (and deaths of) Adam Smith and David Hume. Enjoy!
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This week is going to be a little different. Today I am excited to share with you a recording of the play Enquiry Concerning Hereafter by Duane Kelly. The play is about the friendship between Adam Smith and David Hume. Enjoy!
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Steven Teles is a professor of political science at Johns Hopkins University and a senior fellow at the Niskanen Center. Today he defines and talks to us about a few words, including “liberaltarianism” – explaining how it diverges from libertarianism with an intellectual history and why – and “kludgeocracy”. We talk about the complexities of government organization and the causes- including regulatory capture. He tells us what he envisions to be potential solutions.
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Dan Klein is a professor of economics at George Mason University. Today he talks to us about Hayek’s conception of the Band-Man, and our political psychology today. He explains to us that although our modern world looks a lot different from the world in 10,000 BC, that human beings are the same, with similar tendencies and desires. He talks to us about the implications of this idea for politics and the search for meaning in one’s life.
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Christine McDaniel is a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University with a focus on international trade and globalization. Today we talk about the different trade actions undertaken by recent presidents and what that means for the American public. We discuss tariffs, NAFTA, the WTO, and more. McDaniel also lays out the different trade relationships between the US and various geographic regions and countries.
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David Henderson is a research fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution and the editor of the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics. He is also an emeritus professor of economics with the naval postgraduate school. He is the Wall Street Journal’s go-to writer for pieces on Nobel prizes and deaths in economics, which we talk about today, exploring a list of favorites. He tells us of their contributions to the field and some stories.
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John Cochrane is a renowned economist and senior fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. He writes a popular blog called The Grumpy Economist. He is also a former professor of economics and finance at the University of Chicago. He is the author of a recent book called The Fiscal Theory of the Price Level. Today we talk about the monetary and fiscal theories of the price level, or inflation, discussing what inflation is, how it’s caused, and how to fix it.
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Brian Hooks is the CEO and chairman of Stand Together, the president of the Charles Koch Foundation, and the co-author of Believe in People: Bottom-up Solutions for a Top-Down World. Today, we talk about the principles that guide Stand Together and the work that Stand Together does. He talks to us about how and why Stand Together is different from other philanthropic organizations, giving us the success story of one of their partners The Phoenix, a drug rehabilitation organization.
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Emily Chamlee-Wright is the president and CEO of IHS, the Institute for Humane Studies. Today we talk about the liberal sensibility, what it is and what happened to it. She explains to us the four corners of the liberal project and why they are important to a liberal society such as ours.
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Marian Tupy is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute and the coauthor of two books: Ten Global Trends Every Smart Person Should Know, with Ron Bailey, and Superabundance, with Gale Pooley.
Today we talk about Superabundance to address the doom and gloom, often environmentalist concerns about overpopulation. He talks to us about his research that shows why this is not the case, and explains what factors contribute to a state of superabundance.
Also, check out Human Progress, edited by Tupy, which is an innovative and successful version of the Good News Network, which relates to part of our later conversation about the relationship between media and superabundance.
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Yesim Sayin is the executive director and the founder of the DC Policy Center, a non-partisan, independent think tank that produces research and analyses on the local economy, workforce, education, housing, and other policy issues in the District of Columbia.
She talks to us about what makes DC unique compared to other cities, and how that makes the DC Policy Center unique as a think tank. We also talk about DC-specific policy issues and what we can learn from the center.
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Stephanie Slade is a senior editor at Reason, the magazine of "free minds and free markets" and a fellow in liberal studies at the Acton Institute. Today we talk about fusionism, the fusion of freedom and virtue.
We talk about the necessary relationship between seemingly contradictory ideals and the importance of civil society. She explains to us the history of fusionism and the need for it in today’s current political environment.
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Dr. Samuel Gregg is a distinguished fellow in political economy and senior research faculty at the American Institute for Economic Research. He recently wrote a book called The Next American Economy: Nation, State, and Markets in an Uncertain World.
We talk about the current consensus about the American economy and how it’s changed over time. He explains to us the renewal of enthusiasm for industrial policy, and what classical liberals can do to better the defense of free markets.
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Scott Lincicome is the director of general economics and trade at the Cato Institute. He recently coauthored and edited Empowering the New American Worker: Market Based Solutions for Today’s Workforce, which we talk about today.
In light of “Buy America” and continuous calls for bettering the position of the American worker, what really is the state of the American worker today? Who is the American worker? Lincicome answers these questions and more as we explore policy areas that hinder workers when they were intended to help.
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Mark Calabria was the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and the director of Financial Regulation Studies at the Cato Institute. Today, he is a senior advisor to the Cato Institute, and recently wrote a book on his experiences in the Agency, called Shelter From the Storm.
Today, he talks to us about the book, and saving the United States from a 2008-like financial crisis by respecting congressional statutes in agency behavior and resisting calls for bailouts. He explains what the agency is and what it looks like “on the inside”. He addresses free market skepticism about being in government and influencing change.
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Troy Senik is the author A Man of Iron: The Turbulent Life and Improbable Presidency of Grover Cleveland. He also was a white house speech writer and is the cofounder of kite and key media. Today, he talks to us about his new book and the life of Grover Cleveland. We talk about how Cleveland became president and the political scene of the time, as well as how and why he is often forgotten today. Senik characterizes Cleveland’s principled nature and his time in office. He also gives politicians and Americans both advice on what can be learned from this amazing yet inconspicuous figure in history.
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Nico Perrino is FIRE's Executive Vice President and the creator and host of FIRE’s So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast. He is also the codirector of the 2020 documentary Mighty Ira, which is about the life and career of former ACLU executive director Ira Glasser.
Today, he talks to us about FIRE’s name change and mission expansion. What changed and why? What is going on with civil liberties today? He responds to some criticisms of free speech, we explore social media and censorship. We also talk about his optimism for the future.
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Eli Dourado, a senior research fellow at the Center for Growth and Opportunity at Utah State University, talks to us today about energy abundance. We discuss at the most basic level what energy is and why it is significant to human life, making the clear case that we should aim for energy abundance. He responds to climate change worries and explains the regulatory barriers in the way of that future, and what that future would bring.
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Timothy Sandefur is the vice president for litigation at the Goldwater Institute and the author of six books, including Frederick Douglass: Self Made Man and Freedom’s Furies: How Isabel Paterson, Rose Wilder Lane, and Ayn Rand Found Liberty in an Age of Darkness. These three women lived in the time of the Great Depression, so he talks to us about the literary, historical, and political scenes of the time, painting a picture of their works and relationships in context. We discuss the parallels between their time and ours, and his optimism for the future.
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Chris Freiman, a professor of philosophy at William and Mary and the author of several books, talks to us about another philosophy of liberty: consequentialism. First, he talks to us about the importance of philosophy in defending liberty. Then he talks to us about the differences between consequentialism and other liberty philosophies, and we discuss the strengths and weaknesses in its defense of liberty.
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Chris Freiman, a professor of philosophy at William and Mary and the author of several books, talks to us about another philosophy of liberty: consequentialism.
First, he talks to us about the importance of philosophy in defending liberty. Then he talks to us about the differences between consequentialism and other liberty philosophies, and we discuss its strengths and weaknesses in its defense of liberty.
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Robert Tracinski is the editor of Symposium, a substack and podcast about liberalism, the author of several books, a columnist at Discourse Magazine, and he writes on his own substack The Tracinski Letter.
Today he talks to us about his view of liberalism and its current opponent: illiberalism, which comes from both the left and the right. We talk about their differences and their similarities, as well as his optimism and plan for the future.
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Ryan Hanley is a professor of political science at Boston College and the author of several books, including Our Great Purpose: Adam Smith on Living a Better Life.
Today, he talks to us about the foundations of Adam Smith’s theory of virtue and proceeds to lay this theory out for us. We talk about how Smith’s philosophy and economics intersect, and how Smith comes to make a case for markets being moral, instead of amoral as many economists claim. We also talk about the influences and openness of Adam Smith, particularly Jean Jacques Rousseau. Who would’ve thought?!?
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Eric Daniels is the assistant director of the Clemson Institute for the Study of Capitalism, as well as a professor with Clemson’s Lyceum Program.
Today, we talk about history as a discipline and profession, getting down to what it is and why so many podcast guests say it is so important. We break history down into a few components and even address Adam Smith as a historian!
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Kaytlin Bailey is the founder and executive director of the non-profit organization Old Pros, which aims at decriminalizing and destigmatizing sex work. Today, she talks to us about the history of the oldest profession and her experiences with it. She makes the case for decriminalizing sex work and addresses common objections, along with clarifying decriminalization versus legalization.
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Peter Boettke is a professor of economics and philosophy at George Mason University. He talks to us today about Don Lavoie, a late GMU economics professor, and his contributions. Lavoie’s work focused mainly on central planning and the answer to the socialist calculation problem, continuing the work of Mises and Hayek.
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The Great Antidote is on a break from recording new content right now, but please enjoy this rerun of one of our favorites in the meantime. Happy Holidays and catch you soon with new content!
Scott Bullock, president and general counsel of the Institute for Justice and who represented Susette Kelo in the Supreme Court case Kelo v. The City of New London, talks to us about civil asset forfeiture and eminent domain.
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The Great Antidote is on a break from recording new content right now, but please enjoy this rerun of one of our favorites in the meantime. Happy Holidays and catch you soon with new content!
Nadine Strossen, civil liberties activist and former president of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), joins us this week to discuss hate speech, its policy implications, and if we should be protecting it.
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The Great Antidote is on a break from recording new content right now, but please enjoy this rerun of one of our favorites in the meantime. Happy Holidays and catch you soon with new content!
Russ Roberts, host of EconTalk, author of several books, and research fellow at Hoover Institution, talks to us about his book How Adam Smith Can Change Your Life: An Unexpected Guide to Human Nature and Happiness.
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The Great Antidote is on a break from recording new content right now, but please enjoy this rerun of one of our favorites in the meantime. Happy Holidays and catch you soon with new content!
Dr. Samuel Gregg, Distinguished Fellow in Political Economy and Senior Research Faculty at the American Institute for Economic Research, joins us this week to discuss culture, the origins of morality, and the intersectionality between liberalism and Christianity.
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Daniel Rothschild is the executive director of the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. Today, we talk about liberalism and institutions, whatever that means.
After exploring their definitions, he talks to us about the role of each in society at the current moment, how this is a departure from the past, and potential paths forward. We also talk specifically about think tanks as an institution- both what they are and the role they play in upholding a liberal order.
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Craig Biddle is the founder and director of the Objective Standard Institute, as well as the author of several books including Loving Life.
Today, he talks to us about the importance of philosophy and the different components of philosophy. Then he explains the philosophy of objectivism, and we explore common objections to it. Listen in and stay tuned for more episodes on the various classical liberal philosophies!
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Henry C. Clark, professor at Dartmouth College and director of the Political Economy Project, talks to us today about Montesquieu.
Listen in to learn about his life and the political environment in Europe in the early 18th century, especially in following the death of Louis XIV after a 72-year rule. Learn about Montesquieu’s contributions, such as the idea of separation of powers, and stay a while as Professor Clark talks to us about Montesquieu’s influence on Europe’s political discourse and America’s founding. We also explore the similarities and differences between Montesquieu and Adam Smith!
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Colin Grabow on The Jones Act 2: Treason, Hurricanes, and Cruises
Episode description: Colin Grabow, a research fellow at the Cato Institute’s Center for Trade Policy Studies, talks to us today about the Jones Act. He gives us a refresher on what the Jones Act is, but for more details listen to our first episode on the topic, Colin Grabow on The Jones Act.
He talks to us about the recent treason charges against critics of the Jones Act, the effects of the Jones Act in times of emergencies -namely Hurricane Fiona- and the Jones Act for cruise ships, the Passenger Vessel Services Act.
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Dianne Durante holds a PhD in Classics from the University of Cincinnati and has been a freelance writer, lecturer, and tour guide for the over 30 years. She has written books on many topics, her books Innovators in Sculpture and Financial Programs of Alexander Hamilton are just a few. Today, we talk about art and art history, as well as their significance. She lays out what an innovation in sculpture is and leads us through some innovations in sculpture. We also talk about government involvement in art and the effects of that involvement on the art produced.
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Phil Magness is the author of multiple books, a scholar at the American Institute for Economic Research, and the intellectual watchdog for academic writing.
Today we talk about Nancy MacLean’s book, Democracy in Chains, and debunks her claims about James M. Buchanan, the father of public choice economics, being a racist. He explains the peer review process and the types of errors made in journalistic malpractice, as well as the current state of academic honesty and integrity in academia.
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James Kirchick is the author of two books: Secret City and The End of Europe. Today, he talks to us about the intertwined history of gays in Washington DC and the history of the cold war and national security.
He explains how and why he came to write this book, along with how homosexuality became conflated with communism. Why were there so many gay men in the state department? What is the relationship between the history of the cold war and the history of gay Americans? What’s so significant about that relationship? Listen to find out!
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James Kirchick is the author of two books: Secret City and The End of Europe. Today, he talks to us about the intertwined history of gays in Washington DC and the history of the cold war and national security.
He explains how and why he came to write this book, along with how homosexuality became conflated with communism. Why were there so many gay men in the state department? What is the relationship between the history of the cold war and the history of gay Americans? What’s so significant about that relationship? Listen to find out!
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Michael Cannon, director of health policy studies at the Cato Institute, talks to us today about Medicare. He provides statistics on the size of Medicare spending and the history of how Medicare came into being. We also discuss the distortions that Medicare creates, and Cannon addresses calls for “Medicare for All”.
Do you know how much fraud there is in the Medicare system? Listen to find out.
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Rachel Ferguson is an economic philosopher at Concordia University Chicago and the director of the Free Enterprise Center, as well as an affiliate scholar with the Acton Institute. She is the co-author of Black Liberation Through the Marketplace: Hope, Heartbreak, and the Promise of America.Today, we talk about her book, which focuses on civil society and the classical liberal approach to many of the problems facing Black America today. We also talk about the history of free market thinkers and abolitionism, and the distinction between libertarians and classical liberalism.
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Timothy Sandefur, vice president of legal affairs at the Goldwater Institute, talks to us today about his book, Frederick Douglass: Self-Made Man.
He talks to us about the philosophy behind and the development of American slavery, highlighting Douglass’s escape from it. Listen to learn about Douglass’s journey from slave to abolitionist- as well as to explore the debate about slavery and our Constitution.
Matthew Continetti, is a senior fellow and the Patrick and Charlene Neal Chair in American Prosperity at the American Enterprise Institute. Today, we talk about his new book The Right: The Hundred-Year War for American Conservatism.
Continetti talks to us about the different terminology used to describe right-leaning ideologies, and how they’ve evolved over time. He also gives us a survey of the most important thinkers and events that have contributed to the history of the right.
Darren Staloff is a history professor at the City College of New York and the author of two books: Hamilton, Adams, Jefferson: The Politics of Enlightenment and the American Founding and The Making of the American Thinking Class: Intellectuals and Intelligentsia in Puritan Massachusetts.
He talks to us today about the ideas at the core of our Constitution, the people who fought for it, and the results of those political conflicts. What is so special about our constitutional republic?
David Epstein is the author of New York Times #1 bestsellers, Range and The Sports Gene, and an investigative reporter at ProPublica. Today, he talks to us about Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World. Listen for generalist success stories! He explains when best to use a generalist approach, in sports, versus a specialist approach, in chess. We talk about how to integrate the generalist approach into schooling and everyday life to improve learning, and he gives me advice on my guitar-learning journey.
Michael Cannon, Cato Institute’s director of health policy studies, talks to us today about health and health policy, reminding us of their definitions, goals, and importance. Learn about the origin of our current health care system, the different methods of obtaining health care (direct, government provided, employer-sponsored), and specifically employer-sponsored health care, which is the most common source of health insurance.
What is “universal health care”? Do we really have a free market for health care? Why is employer-sponsored health care the most common source of heath care in the United States? What are the incentives in that system? What are the effects of the policies that have made this the case?
William B. Allen, resident scholar and former chief operating officer of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education, talks to us today about the book he recently edited, The State of Black America.He tells us about his upbringing and the current narrative about racism and policy in the United States. Is it a problem? What should we do about it?
Your criminal sentence doesn’t end when you get out of jail. Criminal records prevent many Americans from entering jobs requiring occupational licensing. 66 million Americans have criminal records, 30% of jobs require occupational licensing. Licensed jobs range from electrician to medical professional to hair braider.
Matthew Mitchell is a senior research fellow and the director of the equal liberty initiative at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. Today, we briefly recap occupational licensing, what it is, and its effects. Then, we go on to talk about the unequal burden of occupational licensing, particularly on those with criminal records, and potential reforms.
Jon Murphy, recent PhD graduate from George Mason University and incoming instructor at Western Carolina University, talks to us today about Adam Smith’s theoretical and practical exceptions to free trade. We explore whether Smith would have endorsed The Jones Act through his endorsement of Britain’s Navigation Acts.
Weifeng Zhong, senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, talks to us today about the distinction between misinformation, disinformation, and propaganda. He leads us through his story of discovering the Tiananmen Square Massacre and how it led to the Policy Change Index project. We talk about hopes and fears for the future, along with some differences between the United States and China.
Jason Fichtner, vice president and chief economist at the Bipartisan Policy Center, talks to us about retirement and saving strategies. He takes us through different types of savings accounts, why you should start saving today, and why you should start saving today. We also talk about starting to save later in life, how to save for and pay off big expenses, and social security considerations.
Clark Neily, senior vice president of legal studies at the Cato Institute, talks to us about upcoming Supreme Court justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. We explore her unique qualifications and the hopes that this brings, amicus briefs and how they are filed, and her judicial philosophy.
Peter Van Doren is the editor of the quarterly journal Regulation and is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, where he specializes in housing, land, energy, and more. Today, he talks to us about what energy independence is, whether America is energy independent, and if that is a good thing. He also talks to us about energy more generally, including nuclear and green energy.
Daniel Klein, professor of economics at George Mason University and expert on Adam Smith, talks to us about Smith’s definition of justice. There are three types of justice: commutative, distributive, and estimative. Today we break down the differences between each and their applications in government and private life.
Walter Olson is the author of several books and a senior fellow at the Cato Institute's Center for Constitutional Studies. Today, we talk about the 2020 election and the increasing fears of election fraud. He talks to us about the different types of election fraud, the actual reality of election fraud, and voter suppression.
Inflation is always around, but it has been particularly worrisome recently. A startling departure from the United States' usual average of about 2% inflation, we faced 8.5% in the month of April. Where does inflation come from? What regulatory bodies aim to deal with inflation? How do they do it? Does it work?
Today, Thomas Hoenig talks to us and answers all these questions and more, including his personal experience as President of the Kansas City Federal Reserve and on the Federal Open Market Committee. He is currently a distinguished senior fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University.
Arnold Kling is an economist and the author of the book The Three Languages of Politics: Talking Across Political Divides. His substack, In My Tribe, explores many areas of economics and policy. Today, he talks to us about the divide in politics, explaining the need for his book and giving current examples. We explore affective polarization and the rise of polarization generally.
Randy Simmons is the author of Beyond Politics and the director of the Institute of Political Economy at Utah State University. Today, we talk about the field of public choice economics or, as economist James Buchanan calls it, "politics without romance". What exactly is Beyond Politics? What is a market failure? What is a government failure? Tune in for the answers to these questions and more.
Brian Knight, director of Innovation and Governance and a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, talks to us today about woke capitalism. What is woke capitalism? Is this debate new? Will it benefit companies or backfire? Listen for all that and more.
Jay Bhattacharya is a professor of medicine at Stanford University, a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, and co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration. Today we talk about the United States's response to COVID-19 and the silencing of dissenting voices in the scientific community in the time of this national emergency.
Philip Klein, author of two books and editor of National Review Online, talks to us today about the unprecedented move by Florida governor Ron DeSantis and the legislature to revoke Disney's special district status. We explore what special district status is, why this happened, what this means for conservatives (and the birth of fight club conservatives), and whether this is a threat to free speech.
Henry Clark, professor and program director of the Political Economy Project at Dartmouth College, talks to us today about the French and Scottish enlightenments. We talk about intellectuals who influenced Adam Smith and their influence on him, and discuss Smith's originality.
Kenneth Elzinga, Robert C Taylor Professor of Economics at UVA , author, and antitrust
expert, talks to us today about teaching economics, the importance of Christianity to his life and profession, and his work with antitrust.
Chris Coyne is an economics professor at George Mason University and the author of several books, including Manufacturing Militarism: US Government Propaganda in the War on Terror, coauthored with Abigail Hall. Today we talk about the US war on terror, propaganda, and its implications for free society.
Jason Brennan, professor of business ethics at Georgetown University and author of many, many books, talks to us today about the book he coauthored with Chris Surprenant, Injustice for All: How Financial Incentives Corrupted and Can Fix the US Criminal Justice System, and the distorting incentives in all areas of the criminal justice system.
Josh Rauh, professor of finance at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and senior fellow at Hoover Institution, talks to us today about his career journey, what public pensions are, the public pension crisis, and more.
Lauren Hall is professor and chair of political science at Rochester Institute of Technology and a prolific author. Her most recent book, The Medicalization of Birth and Death, was published in 2019.
She joins host Juliette Selgren to talk about the medicalization of birth in recent history; the role of hospitals, regulation, and liability; and young people's lack of appreciation for complexity.
James Otteson is a business ethics professor at the University of Notre Dame and author of several books, including What Adam Smith Knew. He talks to us about Adam Smith, his life, ideas, and notable works. Also, I recently moved to Liberty Fund's https://www.adamsmithworks.org/ , go check it out!
Abby Hall is an associate professor in economics at Bellarmine University and co-author of many books on defense in America with Chris Coyne. Their latest book is called Manufacturing Militarism: US Government Propaganda in the War on Terror. Today we talk about unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, a.k.a military drones), including the history of their use and the many consequences that come along with them.
Gary Leff, the chief financial officer at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University and writer of View From the Wing, talks to us about airlines, airline bailouts, and travel tips.
Jason Fichtner, the vice president and chief economist at the Bipartisan Policy Center, talks to us about social security, how it works, and the future of the program.
Today I talk with Jonathan Rauch, Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, contributing editor of National Journal and The Atlantic and author of many books including Kindly Inquisitors: The New Attacks on Free Thought. We discuss his newest book, The Constitution of Knowledge: A Defense of Truth, and the lack of free speech culture on college campuses.
Todd Zywicki is a professor of Law at George Mason University, Senior Fellow of the Cato Institute, and former Executive Director of the GMU Law and Economics Center. He has been on The Great Antidote previously to discuss the field of law and economics, and today we discuss the importance of federalism, the original structure of the legislative branch, and how the 17th amendment changed that structure.
Katherine Mangu-Ward, editor in chief of Reason Magazine, joins us in the first episode of season three to discuss libertarianism, Reason Magazine, and voting.
The tables are turned for the Season 2 Finale of the Great antidote, and Juliette is the one being interviewed by her podcast producer Ian Nemelka. Thank you to everyone for listening. We will be back in 2022!
Ike Brannon, former economic advisor to the U.S. Treasury and Senior Fellow at the Jack Kemp Foundation, joins us this week to discuss disaster relief, FEMA, insurance, and the future of disaster policy in the United States.
Dr. Samuel Gregg, research director at the Acton Institute, joins us this week to discuss culture, the origins of morality, and the intersectionality between liberalism and christianity.
Tim Sandefur, vice president for litigation at the Goldwater Institute, joins us this week to discuss right-to-privacy, disclosure, and anonymity of donations.
Trevor Burrus, research fellow in the Cato Institute’s Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies and editor-in-chief of the Cato Supreme Court Review, returns once again to the show to discuss campaign finance, the first amendment, and what the Supreme Court has to say about it.
Scott Winship, resident scholar and the director of poverty studies at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), joins us this week to discuss the United States' "War on Poverty", the welfare state, and the future of anti-poverty policy.
Nadine Strossen, civil liberties activist and former president of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), joins us this week to discuss hate speech, its policy implications, and if we should be protecting it.
Randy E. Barnett, professor of constitutional law and Georgetown University and Director of the Georgetown Center for the Constitution, joins us this week to discuss (what else?) The Constitution of the United States, the 14th Amendment, the controversial 'Privileges and Immunities" clause, and what constitutional law might look like in the future.
Shikha Dalmia, columnist at the Week, and former senior analyst at Reason, joins us this week to discuss Nationalism, its history, and its rise in the modern world.
Megan McArdle, economic columnist at the Washington Post, joins us this week to discuss her ideas on personal failure, and why it is such an important and crucial part of development and growth.
Nick Gillespie, author, journalist, and former editor-in-chief at Reason joins us this week to discuss libertarianism, elections, voting, and his book Declaration of Independents.
Sally Satel, M.D., psychiatrist, lecturer at the Yale University School of Medicine, and Resident Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, joins us this week to discuss the misguided perception of addiction, policies aimed at fighting addiction, and the future of public health.
Tim Carney, columnist at the Washington Examiner and Resident Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, joins us this week to discuss the Export-Import Bank (EXIM), corporate welfare, and all the forms of cronyism in the United States.
Matt Welch, author, blogger, and journalist, joins us this week to discuss libertarianism, teachers unions, and the future of education in the United States.
Michelle Minton, senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, joins us this week to discuss vaping, tobacco use, sodium intake, and regulations for consumer products and practices viewed as "immoral."
Chris Edwards, director of tax policy studies at the Cato Institute, joins us this week to discuss the Biden administration's latest infrastructure endeavor, similar undertakings from US history, and what infrastructure actually means.
Colin Grabow, policy analyst at the Cato Institute’s Herbert A. Stiefel Center for Trade Policy Studies, joins us this week to discuss foreign trade, protectionism, and the Jones Act.
Liya Palagashvili, Senior Research Fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, joins us this week to discuss the gig and sharing economy, independent contractors vs, employees, and the future of work regulation.
Jason Riley, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, journalist, and authorjoins us this week to discuss the history of black America, the civil rights era, and the future of black empowerment.
Will Rinehart, Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Growth and Opportunity, joins us this week to discuss broadband access, broadband adaption, and plans to connect the "unconnected" and rural communities.
Lisa Snell, the director of K-12 education policy partnerships at the Charles Koch Institute, joins us this week to discuss funding for schools, the current state of education, and school choice.
Happy tax season! Adam Michel, Senior Policy Analyst at the Heritage Foundation, joins us this week to discuss the federal tax system, expenditures, and potential tax policy improvements.
Shoshana Weissmann, Senior Manager of Digital Communications and Policy Fellow at R-Street, joins us this week to discuss occupational licensing reform, quiet research, Section 230, and how to Twitter.
Lenore Skenazy, co-founder and President of Let Grow and author of "Free-Range Kids", joins us this week to discuss modern parenting, the nanny state, and the revolutionary free-range kids movement.
Todd Zywicki, Professor of Law at George Mason University, Senior Fellow of the Cato Institute, and former Executive Director of the GMU Law and Economics Center, joins us this week to discuss the national debt, financial regulation, minimum wage, and Law & Economics.
Brian Riedl, Senior Fellow at the Manhattan Institute and former staff director of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Growth, joins us this week to discuss the federal budget, tax reform, the national debt, and the future of U.S. economic policy.
Radley Balko, journalist, author, and criminal justice blogger, joins us this week to discuss the U.S. criminal justice system as a whole, the problems with crime labs, the militarization of the police, and the future of enforcement.
Welcome to Season 2 of the Great Antidote! Ron Bailey, the science correspondent for Reason Magazine, joins us this week to discuss human progress, the supposed impending apocalypse, COVID-19 innovations, and his new book "The End of Doom: Environmental Renewal in the Twenty-first Century."
The Great Antidote is wrapping up its first season with this very special episode. Juliette reflects back on some of her favorite responses to the now well-known question "What is the most important thing people my age (17) or in my generation should know but don't?"
Trevor Burrus, research fellow in the Cato Institute’s Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies and editor‐in-chief of the Cato Supreme Court Review,joins us this week to discuss guns, gun owners, and gun laws.
Tevi Troy, best-selling presidential historian, and a former senior government official joins us this week to discuss the U.S. presidency, executive staff, and presidents of the past.
Robby Soave, a Senior Editor at Reason, joins us to discuss college culture, activism, and intersectionality.
Scott Lincicome, Senior Fellow in Economic Studies at the Cato Institue and International Trade Attorney, joins us to discuss daylight-savings, free trade, and barriers to economic growth.
Eli Dourado, Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Growth and Opportunity at Utah State University, joins us to discuss economic stagnation, technology, and innovation.
John F. Cogan, a Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and a professor in the Public Policy Program at Stanford University, joins us to discuss the national debt, the federal budget, and entitlement programs.
Jennifer Huddeston, director of Technology and Innovation Policy at the American Action Forum, joins us for the second part of the antitrust series to talk about antitrust and big tech.
Don Boudreaux, GMU economics professor and blogger at Cafe Hayek, talks to us about the origins, purpose, and effects of antitrust laws in this two-part series about antitrust.
Jonathan Rauch, Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, contributing editor of National Journal and The Atlantic and author of many books including Kindly Inquisitors: The New Attacks on Free Thought, continues the conversation of free speech and talks to us about cancel culture.
Rachel Greszler, a senior research fellow in the Grover M. Hermann Center for the federal budget at the Heritage Foundation, talks to us about paid leave and whether it should be government-provided or mandated for employers to provide.
David Boaz, executive vice president of Cato Institute and author of The Libertarian Mind: A Manifesto for Freedom, talks to us about the libertarian mind and philosophy.
Greg Lukianoff, the President and CEO of FIRE and co-author of the book "The Coddling of The American Mind", talks to us about free speech, the evolution of free speech over time, and the coddling of the minds of young people in the United States.
Chris Freiman, a philosophy professor at William & Mary University and author of "Why it's OK to Ignore Politics", talks to us about the economic and moral arguments of voting
Scott Bullock, president and general counsel of the Institute for Justice and who represented Susette Kelo in the Supreme Court case Kelo v. The City of New London, talks to us about civil asset forfeiture and eminent domain.
Russ Roberts, host of EconTalk, author of several books, and research fellow at Hoover Institution, talks to us about his book How Adam Smith Can Change Your Life: An Unexpected Guide to Human Nature and Happiness.
Terry Anderson, a founder of the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) and senior fellow at Hoover Institution at Stanford University, talks to us about something that sounds like an oxymoron but isn't: free market environmentalism
Benjamin Powell, North American editor of the Review of Austrian Economics and director of the Free Market Institute at Texas Tech University, answers all the questions you could have about sweatshops.
Adam Thierer, senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University and author of multiple books about entrepreneurship, talks to us about permissionless innovation and evasive entrepreneurship.
Aaron Ross Powell, director and editor of Libertarianism.org and the cohost of the Free Thoughts podcast, talks to us about his new book with Paul Matzko called Visions of Liberty.
Ben Jones, assistant director of the Rock Ethics Institute at Penn State University, talks to us about the history of the death penalty, the evidence against the death penalty, and the philosophical case against the death penalty.
Dan McLaughlin, senior writer a the National Review and a former attorney, talks to us about DC statehood and the history of DC, and alternatives.
Brent Skorup, senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at GMU, talks to us about the future of technology, specifically drones, flying cars, and self driving cars.
Peter Van Doren, editor of Regulation, talks to us about the value of life and other science-y things.
Matthew Feeney, director of Cato Institute's Project on Emerging Technologies, talks to us about section 230 of the communications decency act and many common misunderstandings about it from all sides of the political spectrum.
Thomas Hazlett, former economic director of the Federal Communications Commission and Hugh Macaulay endowed professor of economics at Clemson, talks to us about the FCC, section 230, and the ways the government intervenes in technology.
George Will, columnist for the Washington Post, talks to us about conservatism, the current state of congress, the importance of a dynamic economy, and baseball.
Baylen Linnekin, food lawyer and author, talks to us about the different silly ways the government regulates food.
Deirdre McCloskey, author of many books, a professor of many topics, and columnist, talks to us about how we got rich, liberalism, and her sex change.
Andrea O'Sullivan, director of the Center for Technology and Innovation at the James Madison Institute, talks to us about bitcoin and other crypto currencies
In this special episode, Clark Neily, vice president for criminal justice at Cato Institute, talks to us about recent police abuse events, how we got here, and what to do about it.
Ed Glaeser, economics professor at Harvard University, talks to us about the housing crisis and the advantages brought on by urban life.
Randy Barnett, professor of legal theory at Georgetown University and the legal mind behind the legal challenge against Obamacare's individual mandate, talks to us about constitutional law, originalism, and his new book with Josh Blackman, An Introduction to Constitutional Law: 100 Supreme Court Cases Everyone Should Know.
David French, attorney, fellow at the National Review Institute, and senior editor of The Dispatch, talks to us about freedom of speech, especially on college campuses, and the freedom of religion.
Michael Strain, director of economic policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute and author of the book The American Dream is not Dead (but Populism Could Kill it), talks to us about the American Dream today and everything about populism!
Matt Mitchell, senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, talks to us about cronyism, Certificate Of Needs legislation, and occupational licensing.
Sarah Skwire, author and senior fellow at Liberty Fund, is the first woman to be interviewed on the podcast! She talks to us about how literature and its relation to markets and about feminism. She gives lots of good book recommendations!
Bryan Caplan, economics professor at George Mason University, regular blogger at EconLog, and author of Open Borders: The Science and Ethics of Immigration, talks to us about different aspects of immigration.
Chris Edwards, director of tax policy studies at Cato and editor of www.downsizinggovernment.org , talks to us about common misconceptions of wealth inequality (and income inequality)
David Henderson, author of multiple books and fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution, talks to us about why the COVID-19 lockdown should end now.
John Stossel, author and journalist who was been on ABC, Fox Business Channel, and is now partnering with Reason, talks to us about consumer protection, the nanny state, and ridiculous ways the government wastes your money.
Johan Norberg, author of several books and Executive Director of Free To Choose Media, talks to us about his video series Dead Wrong, Sweden, globalization, and organic farming.
Trevor Burrus, research fellow at Cato Institute's Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies and editor-in-chief of the Cato Supreme Court Review, talks to us about the war on drugs.
Vernon Smith, Nobel Prize winning economics professor at Chapman University, talks to us about experimental economics, intellectual influences, the value of mistakes, and the Nobel Prize.
In this interview with Don Boudreaux, GMU economics professor and blogger at Cafe Hayek, we explore policies that are loved by the public but are actually bad: price gouging, rent control, minimum wage, and tariffs.
Matt Ridley, former science and technology editor for The Economist magazine and best-selling author, talks to us about his book The Rational Optimist and the exchange of ideas and the importance of science.
In this interview with Tyler Cowen, economics professor at GMU and blogger at the Marginal Revolution, we talk about his book Big Business: A Love Letter to an American Anti-hero.