OBEY

3/3/2021 - In this episode, I talk about Avik Roy's piece in National Review, "Restoring the Conservative Conscience". The piece talks about the lack of principles in republican and conservative politics, reflecting on Reagan, and building a winning coalition. He suggests building a coalition through working-class freedom based policies and pro-immigration policies. I explain why I don't see this strategy being effective based on my descriptive analysis of our representative democracy. 

Note: In hindsight, I would've added that "equality of opportunity" isn't an end worth striving for - this will luckily come up in future episodes since it comes up often, so I won't try to summarize an argument here.

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"Restoring the Conservative Conscience"

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Also, check out "Beyond Talking Points"! Two people with very different political ideologies talk policy and philosophy!

3/2/2021 - In this episode, we look at Mitt Romney's Wall Street Journal OpEd "Biden's Stimulus Is a $1.9 Trillion Clunker". It breaks down some of the failures of the stimulus package and reveals some of the dishonest arguments the left has used in favor of the bill. We add some additional commentary and then explain how Mitt Romney is still just a "democrat driving the speed limit" with his $618 billion compromise and $11 minimum wage proposal.

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Mitt's Op Ed

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Also, check out "Beyond Talking Points"! Two people with very different political ideologies talk policy and philosophy!

3/1/2021 - Back from a short hiatus to talk about the never ending minimum wage debate. I wade through several articles about the minimum wage to try and give an informed breakdown of the situation. We talk about the general left wing argument in favor of the view from Blooberg Businessweek and Noah Smith. Then we go into the main arguments against it: the CBO's projection on job loss, what demographics are losing the most jobs, the Kroger layoffs from earlier this year, restaurants/server's wages, automation, inflation, and the basic right to freely associate with other people. This is a long one and I apologize for any and all stuttering, repeating myself, and shuffling papers. 

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Twitter

@TheObeyPodcast

@MatthewTKeck

Also, check out "Beyond Talking Points"! Two people with very different political ideologies talk policy and philosophy!

2/10/2021 - In this episode, we use a Wall Street Journal Op-Ed as a springboard for talking about political issues. The way traditional conservatives use "religious liberty" as an argument allows the left to frame their stances as science vs. superstition. Conservatives are better off arguing why they're right on the issue itself. The same can be said for libertarians calling an issue unconstitutional instead of arguing why they're stance is moral regardless of appealing to the constitution. It's less effective to cite the 2nd amendment when you can make the ethical pro-gun argument instead. This is a better messaging strategy that the freedom movement should be conscious of.

2/9/2021 - On this episode, I attempt to synthesize the Gamestop/Robinhood short squeeze events and coverage into the potential media narrative regarding stock markers and capitalism. I start by breaking down the much reported Gamestop stock rally. Then I talk about the potential regulatory interventions it might lead to. I talk about real problems with recent economic interventions (too much stimulus, too low interest rates), and why Gamestop and unfettered capitalism could easily be used as a scapegoat when the next crash happens.

2/8/2021 - In this episode, I talk about the 2020 film "Promising Young Woman". The film is pretty much bad propaganda, so I talk about why. I also explain why that's a bad thing and surprisingly a good thing! Hint: We want more polarization if we want people to get why democracy can't work.

2/1/2021 - This one is a rant. I talk about the Overton Window and what is acceptable opinion in US politics. I take the unconventional stance that we need to be more polarizing, more vulgar, and more dismissive of statists; these tactics will be more emotionally appealing to people's intuitions. That's a lot more compelling then telling them to read a book that they will never read. Being a moderate cedes the moral high ground - this betrays the moral superiority of individual autonomy and freedom from violence and coercion. That's the summary. I - somehow - manage to make that 39 minutes of unadulterated ranting. 

01/26/2021 - In this one, we talk about Biden's pick for Secretary of the Treasury, Janet Yellen. We go through her track record at the Fed and what she's currently advocating for. We also talk about her thoughts on Bitcoin. Then I add in my thoughts on the upcoming narrative around the stock market and what they'll blame the next crash on. Spoiler alert, it's day traders and RobinHood users - not the Fed.

1/25/2021 - In this one, I talk about the poem that was performed at Biden's inauguration and culture in liberty. Then I really go into why unity is not an ideal that liberty oriented folks should be enticed by - in the context of Biden's speech and call for unity.

1/20/2021 - In this one, I stumble through a very important argument - so don't let the redundant points or stuttering overtake the message - that most markets are much more complex than politicians would have you believe and they set up perverse incentives whenever they intervene. We talk about eviction moratoriums and how the threat of future eviction moratoriums is probably motivating landlords to evict more tenants instead of working things out. We point to how businesses in malls are effectively renegotiating leases (WSJ, 1/12/2021) and it could make sense for residential land owners to be more flexible if they didn't have the looming threat of having their hands tied by future moratoriums. In short, second and third level consequences can be bad and are often overlooked.