Reiss and I discuss how over-centralization is hollowing out many of our local economies and sense of connection.

We explore why rebuilding decentralized systems may be the only path to restoring both economic sovereignty and meaning in daily life. Topics include:

• The collapse of local food production through the story of One Mighty Mill who is trying to rebuild America’s organic flour supply chain from scratch
• The Mumbai food ecosystem — a thriving, decentralized market now under siege by delivery apps
• How “business-in-a-box” platforms and AI-assisted design can enable true decentralization
• Why tariffs, robotics, aging populations, and lower religiosity are going to shape the next era of production

Chapters:

00:00 Decentralizing the US Food System: One Mighty Mill

08:39 Mumbai's Decentralized Food System

13:08 Business in a Box Enabling Decentralization

19:52 Key Trends Driving Decentralization: Tariffs, Robotics & More

30:16 America’s Literacy Problem & Getting The Population To Care

31:19 Finding Sources Of Meaning As Family & Faith are Declining

34:02 Why Economic Opportunity Is King

42:02 Short-Term Pain For Long-Term Gain

44:34 VC’s Newest Muse: Vertical Integration & Trillion-Dollar Outcomes

47:17 Why We’ve Lost The Motivation To Fight For What To Believe In

53:24 All Humans Play Status Games

59:28 The Mickey Mouse Economy

01:03:00 Hidden Powers Of Decentralization

Follow Jordan on X: https://x.com/jrwolfe

Statistics:

• Stone Mills in the U.S. Stats - www.onemightymill.com
• 54% of adults in the U.S. have a literacy rate below a sixth grade level - https://www.thenationalliteracyinstitute.com/2024-2025-literacy-statistics#:~:text=21%25 of adults in the,were born outside the US.
• How the Global Religious Landscape Changed From 2010 to 2020 - https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2025/06/09/how-the-global-religious-landscape-changed-from-2010-to-2020/
• How has marriage in the US changed over time? - https://usafacts.org/articles/state-relationships-marriages-and-living-alone-us/
• The Experiences of U.S. Adults Who Don’t Have Children - https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2024/07/25/the-experiences-of-u-s-adults-who-dont-have-children/
• Does proximity matter in shopping behavior? - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0965856425000990

Resources Mentioned:

• Book - The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play it by Will Storr - https://www.thescienceofstorytelling.com/books
• Article - The Mickey Mouse Economy by Oren Cass - https://www.commonplace.org/p/our-mickey-mouse-economy
• The UK and India just signed a 'historic' free trade deal - https://www.weforum.org/stories/2025/05/uk-india-free-trade-deal/
• Why Gen Z is Saying “No” to Romance and What it Means for Us All - https://firstthings.org/why-gen-z-is-saying-no-to-romance-and-what-it-means-for-us-all/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
• Reinventing Retail: How local kirana stores are adapting to India’s quick commerce boom - https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/sme-sector/reinventing-retail-how-local-kirana-stores-are-adapting-to-indias-quick-commerce-boom/articleshow/122082309.cms?utm_source=chatgpt.com&from=mdr
• The Protolabs Network Standard - https://www.hubs.com/partner-network/

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