Joining Ed and Ron this week is Robin D. Hanson of associate professor of economics at George Mason University. Robin is the author of two fascinating books, The Age of Em and The Elephant in the Brain. He has worked with the Foresight Institute and DARPA, but perhaps his colleague at George Mason Bryan Caplan put it best: When the typical economist tells me about his latest research, my standard reaction is 'Eh, maybe.' Then I forget about it. When Robin Hanson tells me about his latest research, my standard reaction is 'No way! Impossible!' Then I think about it for years.

Ed and Ron are excited for their interview with George Gilder, author of the brand new book, Life After Capitalism: The Meaning of Wealth, the Future of the Economy, and the Time Theory of Money, published May 30, 2023. This is George’s fourth appearance on The Soul of Enterprise. He is Ron’s 42-year mentor, since his publication of Wealth & Poverty in 1981, which changed Ron’s life forever after. His latest book is a groundbreaking new theory of economics that, at last, explains capitalism as a knowledge-based system, not one revolving around incentives, greed, or materialism. It is truly groundbreaking, and you will want to hear what George has to say about how it will change our way of understanding economics, wealth, growth, technology, our standard of living, and the future of human flourishing.

We announced at the end of last week that we planned to talk about Peter Block's new book Confronting Our Freedom, however, this week we learned that Peter has agreed to join us in about a month. YES! Because of this good news we are pivoting to a topical show. There are a few newsworthy items, including a show review that we want to share with you. Of course, if you have any questions or topics you would like us to address, please send them to [email protected] or hit us up on Twitter - @asktsoe.

Ron and Ed last spoke to Dan Mitchell in May of 2020 when Covid was in full swing. We will get an update on the results of the C-19 spending policies and bring the conversation to current tax policies and proposals. Dan opines on his blog International Liberty at https://danieljmitchell.wordpress.com/author/danieljmitchell/ on a far range of subjects. This promises to be a fascinating conversation.

Ron and Ed welcome Cato Institute's vice president for international studies and director of its Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity, Ian Vasquez. Among other topic they will discuss the latest Human Freedom Index, of which Ian is a co-author. For those of you unfamiliar the Human Freedom Index presents the state of human freedom in the world based on a broad measure that encompasses personal, civil, and economic freedom. Human freedom is a social concept that recognizes the dignity of individuals and is defined here as negative liberty or the absence of coercive constraint. Because freedom is inherently valuable and plays a role in human progress, it is worth measuring carefully. The Human Freedom Index is a resource that can help to more objectively observe relationships between freedom and other social and economic phenomena, as well as the ways in which the various dimensions of freedom interact with one another.

Ron and Ed welcome back Joe Woodard, CEO of Woodard and host of the Scaling New Heights Conference at which Ron and Ed will be delivering keynotes and sessions. We'll chat about the conference and likely foray into AI and other issues facing the accounting profession. If you have a question for Joe, please Tweet us - @asktsoe.

Doug Sleeter was a well-known entrepreneur and thought leader in the accounting industry. He was the founder and former CEO of The Sleeter Group, a company that provided training, consulting, and research services to accounting professionals. Sadly, Doug Sleeter passed away in November 2019. - ChatGPT 3.5, March 2023 Yup, ChatGPT says Doug Is Dead. The good news, he is very much alive and has a bone to pick with ChatGPT. This one is personal.

We first spoke with Joe Pine way back in March of 2015 primarily about his books, The Experience Economy and Infinite Possibility. Our key takeaway from Joe's work is his Economic Value Progression graph which asserts that transformations are the highest level (at least in this world). This insight has become even more important as organizations move to subscription based models. We are looking forward to getting Joe's take and ask him about his recent piece in the Harvard Business Review - The New You Business.

It is with heavy hearts that Ed and Ron share the news of Dr. Reginald Lee's passing on March 8, 2023. He was a dear friend, a mentor, a teacher, and a maverick who was fearless in challenging the conventional wisdom of cost accounting. We were privileged to know him and be able to spend time with him. We will also keep his teaching and his legacy alive. Join us to celebrate the life and work of this dear friend, who leaves behind the imperishable crown of a good name. Read more tributes to Reginald at: https://www.hodappfuneralhome.com/obituaries/reginald-lee

Back in October of 2016, Ron and Ed interviewed Professor Timothy Chou of Stanford about his books Cloud: Seven clear business models and Precision: Principles, Practices and Solutions for the Internet of Things. This time around we are pleased to get an update on his work and talk a bit more about AI and the recent explosion of interest around ChatGPT.