A weekly show about politics and liberty, featuring conversations with top scholars, philosophers, historians, economists, and public policy experts. Hosted by Trevor Burrus. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
https://www.libertarianism.org/podcasts/free-thoughts
Gesamtlänge aller Episoden: 17 days 4 hours 46 minutes
The Up Side of Down
Megan McArdle joins us to talk about her new book The Up Side of Down: Why Failing Well is the Key to Success (2014). We don’t tend to think of failure as a good thing. But McArdle says that recognizing failure—and in some cases embracing it—is a crucial part of what makes American culture, markets, and society successful. But she also says we’re getting worse at dealing with failure...
Discrimination Law in an Overlawyered America
Walter Olson joins Aaron and Trevor for a discussion on the evolution of discrimination law in the American legal system. They talk about common carrier obligations, preferential treatment and employee discrimination suits, the disparate impact of anti-discrimination laws—especially in hiring decisions—and the role of law schools and academia in perpetuating this cycle...
The Specter of Wall Street
Mark A. Calabria joins Aaron and Trevor for a discussion on banking regulations in the United States. Calabria gives a short history of banking regulation and explains the incentives built into the regulatory system that governs banking and investments here in America.
Why are people so angry at “Wall Street” all the time? What exactly is Wall Street, anyway?
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Why Not Capitalism?
This week Jason Brennan joins Aaron and Trevor to discuss his newest book, Why Not Capitalism?, which is a response to G. A...
The Structure of Liberty
Aaron and Trevor join Randy Barnett to discuss his book The Structure of Liberty, which was recently re-released in an updated edition. Barnett describes five rights—informed by natural law—that are crucial for properly structuring a society. He also shows how libertarian theories successfully counter the structural societal problems of knowledge, interests, and power.
Show Notes and Further Reading
Randy E...
Regulations Gone Wrong
Aaron and Trevor talk with Peter Van Doren about regulatory failure in markets, specifically phone service, banking, electricity, internet, and health care. Van Doren shows how regulation in these markets works as a hidden tax by cross-subsidizing competing services and distorting real prices.
Who loses when regulations have unexpected consequences: the companies or the consumers the regulations are meant to protect?
Hosted on Acast...
Why Aren't There More Black Libertarians?
Besides the horrendous affront to human rights that was American slavery, black people in America have been and continue to be singled out for “special treatment” by the government in other ways, too: the federal drug war, minimum wage laws, the failure of public schooling, licensing restrictions on opening businesses, gun control laws, the indignity of welfare, and many more...
Intellectual Privilege
Tom W. Bell joins Aaron and Trevor for a discussion on intellectual property, specifically copyright law in the United States. Is there one libertarian stance on intellectual property?
What’s wrong with copyright law in America today? Should we even have copyright at all? And if we should, how can we make it better than it is now?
Show Notes and Further Reading
Tom W. Bell, Intellectual Privilege (book)