Words & Numbers

Money is an excellent tool for facilitating exchange. It solves problems like how to save while avoiding spoilage and how to exchange with people who don’t want what you’re offering. But we’ve come to rely so heavily on money that we’ve forgotten what exchange really is. In this first of two episodes, we discuss the nature of exchange.   Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/a-checkout-line-where-slower-is-better-supermarket-jumbo/ https://gizmodo.com/9-horrifying-facts-from-the-facebook-whistleblowers-new-1847791184 Foolishness of the Week https://freebeacon.com/biden-administration/psaki-unfair-and-absurd-to-say-companies-would-raise-prices-in-response-to-tax-increases/ Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.com/groups/130029457649243/ More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.c

Money is an excellent tool for facilitating exchange. It solves problems like how to save while avoiding spoilage and how to exchange with people who don’t want what you’re offering. But we’ve come to rely so heavily on money that we’ve forgotten what exchange really is. In this first of two episodes, we discuss the nature of exchange.   Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/a-checkout-line-where-slower-is-better-supermarket-jumbo/ https://gizmodo.com/9-horrifying-facts-from-the-facebook-whistleblowers-new-1847791184 Foolishness of the Week https://freebeacon.com/biden-administration/psaki-unfair-and-absurd-to-say-companies-would-raise-prices-in-response-to-tax-increases/ Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.com/groups/130029457649243/ More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.c

People who are pro-market often complain about unions. But unions are associations of people, just as corporations are associations of people. If it is people’s right to form one, then it is also their right to form the other. But, as it is bad for government to protect corporations from competition, so too is it bad for government to protect unions from competition. In this episode, we take a look at unions separate from government protection.   Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_21_4613 https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/27/fed-chair-powell-to-warn-congress-that-inflation-pressures-could-last-longer-than-expected.html Foolishness of the Week https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/federal-authorities-safety-box-seizures-owners-fight-back Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://w

As politicians run out of revenue sources, they increasingly turn their attention from the rich to the middle class. Congress is considering a tax plan that effectively imposes a death tax on the middle class. Interestingly, politicians are calling it "a capital gains tax." Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://implementationscience.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13012-017-0637-1 Foolishness of the Week https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/sep/20/ivermectin-shortage-horse-owners-covidhttps://www.aier.org/article/a-subtle-catastrophe/ Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.com/groups/130029457649243/ More James at Smoke & Stories https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig Let Us Know What You Think mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com Antony Davies on Twitter https://twi

This episode is a potluck. There's no specific topic, we're just discussing things in the news that caught our interests. Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/13/top-earning-new-yorkers-could-face-61point2percent-combined-tax-rate-under-house-plan-californians-may-face-59percent-rate.html Foolishness of the Week https://www.aier.org/article/a-subtle-catastrophe/ Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.com/groups/130029457649243/ More James at Smoke & Stories https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig Let Us Know What You Think mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com Antony Davies on Twitter https://twitter.com/antonydavies James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In an interesting twist of economics, it turns out that governments have no control over who ultimately pays a tax. Politicians can say they’re taxing consumers or taxing producers or taxing anyone else, but the market decides who ultimately pays the tax. And there’s nothing politicians can do to stop it.   Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/03/tech/apple-child-safety-tools-reversal/index.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/a-virgin-plastics-tax-could-help-save-the-oceans/2021/06/18/3ecb9cde-cd8d-11eb-8cd2-4e95230cfac2_story.html https://www.atr.org/democrats-eye-national-plastic-tax Foolishness of the Week https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/sep/05/covid-coronavirus-work-home-office-surveillance Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.com/groups/130029457649243/ More James

Commonwealth Foundation Vice-President Nathan Benefield disagreed with our take on term limits from a couple of episodes ago. So we invited him to give arguments in favor.   Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hitshttps://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CPIAUCSL https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/mcdonalds-others-consider-closing-indoor-seating-amid-delta-surge-us-2021-08-30/ Foolishness of the Week https://apnews.com/article/health-education-coronavirus-pandemic-school-boards-35db5c9eec87b85ca8eb95a64c2f6dd7 Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.com/groups/130029457649243/ More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://youtu.be/rMIWa-0Woyo Let Us Know What You Think mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com Antony Davies on Twitter https://twitter.com/antonydavies James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHa

The CDC has mandated a moratorium on evictions. Under the CDC’s rules, landlords may not evict renters who haven’t paid their rent. But it is unclear that even Congress would have the constitutional authority to issue such a mandate. How then can the CDC do so? Clark Neily joins us to discuss this interesting question.   Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Topichttps://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/09/04/2020-19654/temporary-halt-in-residential-evictions-to-prevent-the-further-spread-of-covid-19 https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf/20a169_4f15.pdf Quick Hitshttps://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/quentin-quarantino-meme-artist-raises-over-5-million-for-afghanistan/ https://www.nptrust.org/philanthropic-resources/charitable-giving-statistics/ https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-budget/where-do-our-federal-tax-dollars-go Foolishness of the Week https

We all have a tendency to repeat things we hear. But when many people start repeating the same thing, we come to believe that the thing must be true. Unfortunately, this happens a lot when it comes to politics and government. This is the first of a two-part episode in which we discuss incorrect things that people tend to think are correct simply because they get repeated.   Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hitshttps://reason.com/2021/08/06/apple-will-start-checking-your-messages-for-dick-picks/ https://www.eksposure.com/mobile-photography-statistics/ https://enough.org/stats_exploitation https://www.wsj.com/articles/burial-crypt-for-sale-los-angeles-11628773222 Foolishness of the Weekhttps://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2021/08/12/philadelphia-mask-mandate-vaccine-requirements-businesses/ Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.c

We all have a tendency to repeat things we hear. But when many people start repeating the same thing, we come to believe that the thing must be true. Unfortunately, this happens a lot when it comes to politics and government. This is the first of a two-part episode in which we discuss incorrect things that people tend to think are correct simply because they get repeated. Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hitshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtbSP3GG_YI https://www.siliconrepublic.com/companies/the-interview-john-beckett-entrepreneur-who-built-the-first-ryanair-website-video https://www.nationalreview.com/news/small-time-landlords-hanging-on-by-their-fingernails-as-eviction-moratorium-drags-on/ https://www.nationalreview.com/news/biden-admin-to-implement-limited-eviction-moratorium/ https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/07/there-are-about-1-million-more-job-openings-tha

We all have a tendency to repeat things we hear. But when many people start repeating the same thing, we come to believe that the thing must be true. Unfortunately, this happens a lot when it comes to economics and public policy. This week, we discuss incorrect things that people tend to think are correct simply because they get repeated.   Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/how-a-wasp-inspired-a-new-tool-for-keyhole-surgery-delft/ https://interestingengineering.com/biomimicry-9-ways-engineers-have-been-inspired-by-nature Foolishness of the Week https://oceansasia.org/covid-19-facemasks/ Topic of the Week https://www.downsizinggovernment.org/government-cost-overruns Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.com/groups/130029457649243/ More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://youtu.be/rMIW

If there’s a single core principle in economics, it’s that people respond to incentives. Whether governments intend to, imposing taxes on people causes those people to change their behaviors. Consequently, governments end up collecting less tax revenue than they anticipated and often cause people to waste their time and money attempting to avoid those taxes. Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits Lottery and Saving https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2021/07/22/canada-lotto-OLG-Lotto-Max-Anne-Hickey-five-years/2681626992009/ https://www.olg.ca/en/lottery/play-lotto-max-encore/odds-and-payouts.html Philip Morris https://apnews.com/article/philip-morris-marlboro-britain-496ac5b559d6cfe5b85d56b39f383905 Foolishness of the Week https://www.fox5ny.com/news/san-francisco-considering-congestion-tax-on-high-earning-drivers Topic of the Week https://www.thefemale

Over the past century and a half, the federal government has quietly morphed from a government based on a constitution to a government based on a constitutional tradition. As it has done so, the Supreme Court has come to replace the Constitution as the limiting force on government. As the Supreme Court is, itself, part of the federal government, this transformation has fueled a runaway government that only ever gets larger and more powerful at the expense of the state and the people. Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://www.commonwealmagazine.org/exxons-corporate-coup https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/realestate/the-new-real-estate-normal/ar-AAMir6k Foolishness of the Week https://www.reuters.com/world/us/branding-us-left-aoc-makes-push-into-political-merchandise-2021-07-19/ Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.

Consumer prices have been rising more than usual since February. James and Ant discuss the nature of inflation, what causes it, and when it is and isn’t a bad thing. Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://democracyjournal.org/arguments/ranked-choice-voting-is-not-the-solution/ https://nypost.com/2021/07/11/hotel-maid-prevents-potential-shooting-at-mlb-all-star-game-report/ Foolishness of the Week https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGhDkZJkbMI Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.com/groups/130029457649243/ More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://youtu.be/rMIWa-0Woyo Let Us Know What You Think mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com Antony Davies on Twitter https://twitter.com/antonydavies James R. Harrigan on Twitter https://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/ad

Clark Neily, Rob McDonald, and Howard Baetjer join us for the second part of a free-wheeling conversation on government, history, and economics. Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://ourworldindata.org/co2-emissions https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/overview-greenhouse-gases https://www.showbiz411.com/2021/07/04/what-year-is-it-the-number-1-and-2-albums-on-itunes-are-40-queen-and-50-joni-mitchell-years-old Foolishness of the Week https://www.foxnews.com/sports/nationals-cancel-freedom-fireworks-fourth-of-july-citys-noise-curfew https://www.federalbaseball.com/2020/4/27/21227988/look-back-when-washington-nationals-wore-natinals-jerseys Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.com/groups/130029457649243/ More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://youtu.be/rMIWa-0Woyo Let Us Know What You Think mailto:wordsandnumberspo

Historian Rob McDonald joins us to answer the questions, how is it that Thomas Jefferson came to be a slave owner and what could he have done to free his slaves. The answer, it turns out, is much more complicated than people tend to appreciate. Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Foolishness of the Week https://www.pennlive.com/news/2021/06/police-break-up-exorcism-at-pa-home-depot.html Topic of the Week Rob McDonald https://teachingamericanhistory.org/blog/the-american-revolution-professor-robert-mcdonalds-new-core-document-collection/ Books https://www.amazon.com/Robert-M-S-McDonald/e/B006G5XJK6 Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.com/groups/130029457649243/ More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://youtu.be/rMIWa-0Woyo Let Us Know What You Think mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com Antony Davies on Twitter https://twitt

Clark Neily, Rob McDonald, and Howard Baetjer join us for the first of a multi-part free-wheeling conversation on government, history, and economics. Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/aumf-repeal-congress/2021/06/17/1bd1ec70-cf76-11eb-a7f1-52b8870bef7c_story.html https://www.fox5ny.com/news/crypto-currency-confusion-georgia-man-wakes-up-a-trillionaire Foolishness of the Week https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9704447/Manhattan-City-Council-candidate-26-caught-ex-girlfriend-leaked-dominatrix-video.html Topic of the Week https://www.cato.org/people/clark-neily https://www.westpoint.edu/history/profile/robert_mcdonald http://wp.towson.edu/baetjer/ Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.com/groups/130029457649243/ More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://youtu.be/r

Bob Luddy, founder of Thales College joins us this week to talk about a revolutionary model for higher education that attempts to break the guild system that is holding back innovation. Thales College is refusing to pursue accreditation and will not accept federal funding. This will both keep it out from under the regulatory thumbs of both the government and the existing higher education system. Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://bjs.ojp.gov/content/pub/pdf/p19.pdf https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/incarceration-rates-by-country https://www.cnn.com/2021/06/14/politics/fbi-qanon-threat-assessment/index.html Foolishness of the Week https://www.mediaite.com/tv/lester-holt-challenges-kamala-harris-on-claim-weve-been-to-the-border-you-havent/ Topic of the Week https://www.thalescollege.org https://www.thalesacademy.org/about/f

Philosopher Michael Huemer joins us this week to talk about anarchy, chaos, and the fact that the government has a monopoly on power. Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hitshttps://www.businessinsider.com/biotech-startup-trying-to-stop-rhino-poaching-2016-9 https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/05/el-salvador-becomes-the-first-country-to-adopt-bitcoin-as-legal-tender-.html https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2014-11-14/why-pay-15-million-for-a-white-canvas Foolishness of the Week https://news.artnet.com/art-world/italian-artist-auctioned-off-invisible-sculpture-18300-literally-made-nothing-1976181/amp-page Topic of the Week http://www.owl232.net http://fakenous.net https://www.amazon.com/Michael-Huemer/e/B001H6GHNU https://www.nytimes.com/1987/09/18/us/biden-admits-plagiarism-in-school-but-says-it-was-not-malevolent.html Join the Conversation Words &

Nav Bhatia, the first fan to be inducted into the basketball Hall of Fame, joins us this week to talk about his passion for basketball, life, and entrepreneurship. Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now! http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers Quick Hits https://www.councilforeconed.org/2021/05/25/mount-hebron-high-school-in-ellicott-city-md-clinches-the-21st-annual-national-economics-challenge-from-the-council-for-economic-education/ https://dnyuz.com/2021/05/29/an-arms-race-in-america-gun-buying-spiked-during-the-pandemic-its-still-up/ Foolishness of the Week https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/do-deficits-matter-anymore-biden-s-first-budget-signals-they-don-t/ar-AAKuHYg Topic of the Week https://indianexpress.com/article/sports/basketball/superfan-navdeep-bhatia-his-journey-from-1984-riots-to-nba-hall-of-fame-7326814/ Join the Conversation Words & Numbers Backstage https://www.facebook.com/gr