Did you ever wonder why the US dollar is the 800lb gorilla of global finance? What does the US gain by this? China wants to dethrone the US dollar and now Iran is charging Strait of Hormuz tolls in either cryptocurrency or Chinese yuan. Is the dollar about to be knocked off it's pedestal?

Paul Krugman is a Nobel prize winning economist. He excels at explaining complex topics in layman's terms. This episode is considerably longer than my normal at about 26 minutes.

If you'd find this article easier to read, here's the link: The Dollar’s Special Status: Sources and Threats

Harvard political theorist Danielle Allen wrote a series ofarticles for the Washington Post in 2023 and 2024.  That series was called "Democracy Refreshed".  Here is the 8th and final article where she examines the expansion of presidential power and how to overcome that problem.

If you wish to read the article instead of listening, here's the link: Opinion | The Founders didn’t envision a Mar-a-Lago executive branch - The Washington Post

Harvard political theorist Danielle Allen wrote a series ofarticles for the Washington Post in 2023 and 2024.  That series was called "Democracy Refreshed".  Here is the 7th articlewhere Danielle answers some FAQs about democracy renovation.

If you prefer to read the article instead of listening, here's the link: Opinion | What is democracy renovation? Here’s what to know. - The Washington Post

Harvard political theorist Danielle Allen wrote a series ofarticles for the Washington Post in 2023 and 2024.  That series was called "Democracy Refreshed".  Here is the 6th articleon the importance of urgently fixing our civic education.

If you prefer to read the article instead of listening, here's the link: Opinion | Civics education won’t succeed if we sell kids a broken democracy - The Washington Post

Harvard political theorist Danielle Allen wrote a series ofarticles for the Washington Post in 2023 and 2024.  That series was called "Democracy Refreshed".  Here is the 5th articleon the dangers AI poses for our democracy unless we renovate first.

If you wish to read the article instead of listening, here's the link: Opinion | Artificial generative intelligence could prove too much for democracy - The Washington Post

Harvard political theorist Danielle Allen wrote a series ofarticles for the Washington Post in 2023 and 2024.  That series was called "Democracy Refreshed".  Here is the 4th articleon how to free the Supreme Court from pernicious politics.

If you prefer to read the article rather than listen, here's the link: Opinion | The Supreme Court needs term limits. Justices can do it themselves. - The Washington Post

Harvard political theorist Danielle Allen wrote a series ofarticles for the Washington Post in 2023 and 2024.  That series was called "Democracy Refreshed".  Here is the 3rd article. In the first two articles she advocated for a larger House of Representatives. In this article she answers the question about whether our Capitol could handle it.

If you want to read the article instead of listen, here's the link: Opinion | What the U.S. Capitol would look like with a bigger House - Washington Post

Harvard political theorist Danielle Allen wrote a series of articles for the Washington Post in 2023 and 2024. That series was called "Democracy Refreshed". Here is the 2nd article on how to kill gerrymandering and grow the House.

If you want to read the article instead of listening, here's the link: Opinion | How to fix gerrymandering and the electoral college at the same time - The Washington Post

Harvard political theorist Danielle Allen wrote a powerful series of articles for the Washington Post in 2023 and 2024 on Renovating Democracy. That series was titled "Democracy Refreshed". Here is the first article on why we need to grow the size of the House of Representatives as the first and most important step in renovating our democracy.

If you want to read the article instead of listen, here's the link: Opinion | Expanding the House of Representatives would help fix U.S. democracy - The Washington Post

Harvard political theorist Danielle Allen wrote a powerful series of articles for the Washington Post in 2023 and 2024 on Renovating Democracy. That series was titled "Democracy Refreshed". Consider this episode the introduction to the series even though it came at the end.

If you want to read instead of listen, you can find that article here: Opinion | Will you join the supermajority for constitutional democracy? - The Washington Post