On this episode of the Hayek Program Podcast, Nina Bandelj delivers a keynote lecture at the 2023 Markets & Society conference on the social life of money for children. Drawing on research about what she calls the “parenting economy,” she shows that parents increasingly treat children as human capital investments, using savings plans, loans, and educational spending to secure their futures. Bandelj argues that the financialization of family life reflects parental pressures and social inequality, calling for children to be seen as a shared public responsibility rather than private investments.

Dr. Nina Bandelj is Chancellor's Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of California, Irvine and the President of the Sociological Research Association. Her articles have been published in top discipline and specialty journals such as the American Sociological Review, American Journal of Sociology, Social Forces, Theory and Society, and Socio-Economic Review. She has published various books, including Overinvested: The Emotional Economy of Modern Parenting (Princeton University Press, forthcoming), Money Talks: Explaining How Money Really Works (Princeton University Press, 2017) coauthored with Frederick Wherry and Viviana Zelizer), and Socialism Vanquished, Socialism Challenged: Eastern Europe and China, 1989-2009 (Oxford university Press, 2012) coedited with Dorothy Solinger.

**This lecture was recorded October 22, 2023 at the second annual Markets & Society conference.

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On this episode, Chris Coyne and Peter Boettke explore the life and legacy of economist Kenneth E. Boulding, Boettke's former professor and mentor. Boettke recalls his experiences in Boulding's Great Books in Economics course and their conversations outside of class about peace, economics, and poetry. The conversation outlines Boulding’s path from studying chemistry at Oxford and an unusually early publication in the Economic Journal to his formative time in Chicago with Frank Knight and his later academic years. Coyne and Boettke discuss why no “Boulding school” emerged, how Boulding's ideas can and are still inspiring new research on institutions, civil society, and peace, and more.

This is the first episode in a short series of episodes that will feature a collection of authors who contributed to the volume 1, issue 2 of the Markets & Society Journal or to a forthcoming special issue from The Review of Austrian Economics.

Dr. Peter J. Boettke is Director of the F.A. Hayek Program for Advanced Study in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, the BB&T Professor for the Study of Capitalism at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, and a Distinguished University Professor of Economics and Philosophy at George Mason University. He has published numerous books, including The Historical Path to Liberty and Human Progress (Universidad Francisco Marroquín Press, 2025) coauthored with Rosolino Candela, The Socialist Calculation Debate: Theory, History, and Contemporary Relevance (Cambridge University Press, 2024) coauthored with Rosolino Candela and Tegan Truitt, and The Struggle for a Better World (Mercatus Center, 2021).

Show Notes:

• Kenneth Boulding’s article, “After Samuelson, Who needs Smith?” (History of Political Economy, 1971)
• James Buchanan’s article, “What Should Economists Do?” (SEJ, 1964)
• Frank Knight’s article, “The Theory of Investment Once More: Mr. Boulding and the Austrians” (QJE, 1935)
• Kenneth Boulding’s book, The Image (University of Michigan Press, 1969)
• Kenneth Boulding's AEA address, "Economics as a Moral Science" (The American Economic Review, 1969)
• Kenneth Boulding’s book, Stable Peace (University of Texas Press, 1978)
• Kenneth Boulding’s book, Three Faces of Power (SAGE Publications, 1990)
• Albert Hirschman’s book, Exit, Voice, and Loyalty: Responses to Decline in Firms, Organizations, and States (Harvard University Press, 1972)
• Raghuram Rajan’s book, The Third Pillar: How Markets and the State Leave the Community Behind (Penguin Press, 2020)
• Center for Research on Conflict Resolution
• Journal of Conflict Resolution

**This episode was recorded September 10, 2025.

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On this episode, Chandran Kukathas delivers a lecture at the Mercatus Center on capitalism, human nature, and the meaning of life.

Kukathas argues that capitalism is less a fixed system than a constantly evolving set of rules and relationships, shaped by our restless desire to transform the world. He shows how politics, rent-seeking, and shifting definitions of capital are woven into its fabric, making it impossible to separate “pure markets” from the social and political contexts in which they operate.

Kukathas challenges both critics and defenders who treat capitalism as the source of every social ill or success, urging instead a sober recognition of human limits, the diversity of our ends, and the case for modest, freedom-preserving reforms.

Dr. Chandran Kukathas is Lee Kong Chian Chair Professor of Political Science at School of Social Sciences at Singapore Management University and a Distinguished Affiliated Fellow at the F.A. Hayek Program for Advanced Study in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at the Mercatus Center. He is the author of many books, including Dialogues on Immigration and the Open Society (Routledge, 2025) and The Liberal Archipelago: A Theory of Diversity and Freedom (Oxford University Press, 2007).

Show Notes:

• Thomas Hobbes’ book, Leviathan
• G.A. Cohen’s book, Why Not Socialism?
• Elijah Millgram’s book, The Great Endarkment
• Alasdair MacIntyre’s book, After Virtue

**This lecture was recorded August 13, 2025.

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On this episode, Nathan Goodman is joined by Michael Clemens to discuss why immigration policy matters not just for migrants themselves but for broader economic growth. Drawing on his influential work, including “Economics and Emigration: Trillion-Dollar Bills on the Sidewalk?” (JEP, 2011) and “The Place Premium: Bounding the Price Equivalent of Migration Barriers” (REStat, 2019), Clemens explains how even modest liberalization of migration can create enormous gains, why exchange is positive-sum, and how complementary skills across the workforce drive production. Together they assess the claim that immigration undermines culture and institutions and revisit historical panics ranging from the Chinese Exclusion Act to the Dillingham Commission.

Dr. Michael Clemens is a professor in the Department of Economics at George Mason University and a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. He helped build the research program on international migration at the Center for Global Development.

Show Notes:

• Samuel Bazzi, et al., “The Confederate Diaspora” (NBER, 2025)
• Timur Kuran’s book, Freedoms Delayed: Political Legacies of Islamic Law in the Middle East (Cambridge University Press, 2023)
• Chloe N. East, et al., “The Labor Market Effects of Immigration Enforcement” (Journal of Labor Economics, 2023)
• Mexican Migration project

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On this episode, Peter Boettke chats with political theorist Chandran Kukathas on his latest book, Dialogues on Immigration and the Open Society

(Routledge, 2025), which addresses the most important ethical and political questions about immigration and aims to teach by questioning rather than preaching. He urges conceptual clarity about terms like “civilization,” “state,” and “immigration,” and argues that framing debates strictly as “justice” disputes is unhelpful amid deep moral disagreement. Building on his book, Immigration and Freedom, he warns that immigration control often curtails citizens’ freedoms and highlights how restrictive policies can create a hostile climate toward migrants even where overall public support for immigration remains strong.

Dr. Chandran Kukathas is Lee Kong Chian Chair Professor of Political Science at School of Social Sciences at Singapore Management University and a Distinguished Affiliated Fellow at the F.A. Hayek Program for Advanced Study in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at the Mercatus Center. He is the author of many books, including Immigration and Freedom (Princeton University Press, 2021) and The Liberal Archipelago: A Theory of Diversity and Freedom (Oxford University Press, 2007).

Show Notes:

• F.A. Hayek’s book, New Studies in Philosophy, Politics, Economics, and the History of Ideas

• F.A. Hayek’s book, Law, Legislation, and Liberty: Volume 19

• John Rawls’ book, A Theory of Justice

• Milton and Rose Friedman’s book, Free to Choose

• Free To Choose: The Original 1980 TV Series

• David Schmidtz’s book, Elements of Justice

• Stephen Macedo’s book, Liberal Virtues

• Michael Clemens’ paper, “Why Don't Remittances Appear to Affect Growth?” (The Economic Journal, 2018)

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On this episode, Nathan Goodman interviews sociologist Timothy Dunn on the militarization of the U.S.-Mexico border and its consequences for human rights. Dunn discusses how U.S. border militarization grew out of the Cold War era “low intensity conflict” doctrine and was expanded by both parties through the 1990s strategy of “prevention through deterrence.” While this policy reduced crossings in urban areas like El Paso and San Diego, it pushed migrants into deserts and mountains, ultimately contributing to thousands of migrant deaths. Dunn explains how U.S. military training and interventions in Central America fueled violence and migration, how financial institutions and drug war policies have perpetuated instability, how political entrepreneurs use crisis narratives to expand coercive power, and how programs like Operation Lone Star model a new wave of militarized enforcement. He calls for more humane immigration reforms grounded in human rights, economic realities, and the everyday resilience of immigrant communities.

Dr. Timothy J. Dunn is a Professor of Sociology at Salisbury University in Maryland. He is the author of Blockading the Border and Human Rights: The El Paso Operation that Remade Immigration Enforcement (University of Texas Press, 2009) and The Militarization of the U.S.-Mexico Border, 1978-1992: Low-Intensity Conflict Doctrine Comes Home (University of Texas Press, 1996).

Show Notes:

• Handbook on Human Security, Borders and Migration (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2021) edited by Natalia Ribas-Mateos and Timothy Dunn
• Todd Miller’s book, Empire of Borders: The Expansion of the US Border around the World
• Jason De León’s book, The Land of Open Graves: Living and Dying on the Migrant Trail
• Gary Becker’s article, "Crime and Punishment: An Economic Approach" (Journal of Political Economy, 1968)
• Mexican Migration Project
• MacArthur Fellowship Recipient: Kelly Lytle Hernández
• No More Deaths / No Más Muertes
• Coalición de Derechos Humanos
• Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights
• ACLU | Immigrants’ Rights

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On this episode, Nathan Goodman interviews political theorist Jacob Levy about the rule of law and its tensions with modern immigration enforcement. Drawing on his 2018 article, “The rule of law and the risks of lawlessness,” Levy explains that the rule of law requires laws to be general, predictable, and applied equally. Referencing thinkers like Montesquieu, Fuller, Hayek, Oakeshott, and Shklar, Levy argues that immigration control often violates these principles, especially when it involves militarized policing, extrajudicial punishment, and fear-based governance, which ultimately threatens both civil liberties and democratic institutions.

Dr. Jacob T. Levy is Tomlinson Professor of Political Theory and associated faculty in the Department of Philosophy at McGill University. He is the coordinator of McGill’s Research Group on Constitutional Studies and was the founding director of McGill’s Yan P. Lin Centre for the Study of Freedom and Global Orders in the Ancient and Modern Worlds. He is a Senior Fellow at the Niskanen Center. He is the author of The Multiculturalism of Fear (Oxford University Press, 2000) and Rationalism, Pluralism, and Freedom (Oxford University Press, 2014).

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On this episode, Peter Boettke chats with Mark Pennington on Mark's latest book, Foucault and Liberal Political Economy: Power, Knowledge, and Freedom (Oxford University Press, 2025). Pennington argues that Foucault's ideas on self-creation, disciplinary power, and biopolitics align with key liberal concerns about social control and individual agency. He critiques how both liberals and Foucauldian critics have misunderstood or ignored these connections, and drawing on thinkers like Hayek, Buchanan, and Ostrom, he calls for a liberalism that emphasizes pluralism, resists technocratic overreach, and engages more deeply with the insights of the humanities.

Dr. Mark Pennington is Professor of Political Economy and Public Policy in the Department of Political Economy at King’s College London. He holds a PhD from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Pennington is currently director of the Centre for the Study of Governance and Society.

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On this episode, Nathan Goodman speaks with Abby Hall on the "boomerang effect," where U.S. military tools and tactics used abroad—like drones—are repurposed for domestic border enforcement. Hall discusses how restrictive immigration policies, such as the Secure Fence Act and Operation Streamline, often lead to unintended consequences like increased migrant deaths and overwhelmed asylum systems. She advocates for more open immigration pathways to improve both humanitarian outcomes and resource allocation. The conversation also highlights how past U.S. interventions in Latin America have contributed to current migration patterns and emphasizes the importance of humility and flexibility in policy research.

Dr. Abigail R. Hall is an Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Tampa and a Senior Affiliated Scholar at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. She has published numerous books, including her most recent satirical book, How to Run Wars: A Confidential Playbook for the National Security Elite co-authored with Christopher J. Coyne (2024). She holds a PhD in Economics from George Mason University and is an alum of the Mercatus PhD Fellowship.

Show Notes:

• Hall's article, "Border Fencing, Migrant Flows, and Crossing Deaths"
• Hall's article, "The Unintended Consequences of U.S. Asylum Policy"

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On this episode, Nathan Goodman chats with economist Ben Powell about common myths surrounding mass immigration, including fears of job loss, wage suppression, and fiscal burdens. Drawing from his book, Wretched Refuse?: The Political Economy of Immigration and Institutions, Powell presents cross-country evidence showing that immigration does not undermine culture, institutions, or productivity. Instead, it often correlates with improvements in economic freedom and institutional quality. He also highlights the importance of focusing on targeted policy solutions rather than broad restrictions.

Dr. Benjamin Powell is the Executive Director of the Free Market Institute at Texas Tech University, a Professor of Economics in the Rawls College of Business at Texas Tech University, and a Senior Fellow with the Independent Institute. He is the Secretary-Treasurer of both the Southern Economic Association and the Association of Private Enterprise Education and the Treasurer of the Mont Pelerin Society.

If you like the show, please subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and tell others about the show! We're available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and wherever you get your podcasts.

Virtual Sentiments, a podcast series from the Hayek Program, is streaming. Subscribe today and listen to season three, releasing now!

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