First up, Steve gives listeners a heads up on the economy, healthcare and trade.

...And, what kinds of societies allow for ideas to flourish? Deirdre McCloskey, economics and history scholar and author of 17 books, talks with Steve about why the human race has experienced unprecedented prosperity in the past 200-300 years. What were the forces that brought about innovation in some societies but not others? What were the reasons the merchant class, once looked down upon by aristocrats, came into having respect? Why did the evolution of societal well-being in countries and empires with tremendous wealth and success, suffer? Hear why when people have the freedom to have a go, and only then, can society thrive.

Lastly, Steve's Read of the Week are two articles. From the Wall Street Journal about women's fashion designing for an array of body types: https://www.wsj.com/articles/high-fashion-is-no-longer-just-for-tall-thin-women-11558463793 and Commentary Magazine about the American writer, Herman Wouk: https://www.commentarymagazine.com/culture-civilization/herman-wouk-1915-2019/

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