The Political Orphanage

Why do some places pump out inventions and progress, while innovation lags elsewhere? Science writer Matt Ridley has surveyed the history of innovation, from Roman numerals to CRISPR. He's identified the factors society needs for innovation to flourish--and what it often does to smother it. He joins Heaton to discuss best practices for civilization and the history of inventions, all in his new book, "How Innovation Works."

Today we explore the week's most awesome yet under-reported headlines, from a wine heist, to multiple dangerous bird encounters, to an American hero and recreational pirate. Comedian Chad Prather and producer emeritus Josh Jennings join Heaton to sort things out. Episode contains choice language and some sexual content--parents be warned!

John Locke is the nerd at the bar. Jean-Jacques Rousseau is the guy in a leather jacket on a motorcycle. Hobbes is the grizzled cynic. What worldview did these three Social Contract theorists push on modern society, and what were they fighting against? Brian Wilson of the Combat & Classics podcast joins Heaton in an exploration of the tectonic plates of Western Civilization.

Jack Helmuth and Brian Sack of the Questionable Material podcast join Heaton to sort out the week's best and least discussed headlines, from boars on cocaine to English catapult crimes to larceny performed by ambitious children.

Much of the discussion about the pandemic centers around the lockdown as the exclusive or main policy tool to use against the pandemic: a giant On or Off switch we strategically employ to flatten the curve. What if there are smarter ways of looking at this?

Ep 51

Katherine Mangu-Ward is the editor-in-chief of Reason Magazine, the nation's foremost libertarian publication. She joins Heaton to weigh in on Justin Amash's presidential aspirations, and whether he is more apt to hurt Trump or Biden in 2020.

Season 2, Ep 50

(NSKF) As part of my ongoing commitment to providing levity and sanity during quarantine, I am for some length of time resurrecting an old segment: Friday Release Valve, where I grab some comedy buddies to go over the week's undeserved headlines.

Turner Sparks and Andrea Jones-Rooy join me to talk about: when a government accidentally declares you dead, how to fix basketball using firearms, Cambodian machete making, and Canadian gambling ordinances. Season 2, Ep 49

How does Russian propaganda work now, compared to the Soviet era? What power structures have kept Putin in place for decades? And what does Putin think about democracy, subverting American media, and Trump? Michael Weiss is Director of Special Investigations at the Free Russia Foundation, a columnist for Foreign Policy, and editor-at-large at The Daily Beast. He joins Heaton to peer into the mind of the Russian state.

Season 2, Ep 48

Matt Ridley is a science writer, member of the House of Lords, and author of the amazing book, "The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves." He joins Heaton to talk about how, overall, life is dramatically and empirically better than the rest of recorded history--and why.

Season 2, Ep 47

Last week Bernie Sanders dropped out, ending the closest bid to an outright socialist presidency in American history. Brian Brushwood and Justin Robert Young join the program to talk about the impact of Sanders, student loan forgiveness, and Medicare for All.

Season 2, Ep 46