Each election cycle, we’re treated to politicians and their supporters crying about the disappearing middle class. So many people repeat the mantra that most of us just accept it as fact. It turns out that those people are right - the middle class is disappearing. Where they get the story wrong is that it isn’t bad news. It’s excellent news.

Foolishness of the Week: 09:12 Main episode: 15:32

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Quick Hits https://www.techradar.com/pro/security/the-ftc-bans-ai-impersonations-of-individuals-and-unveils-greater-powers-to-win-stolen-money-backhttps://www.cnn.com/2024/03/17/health/marriage-divorce-rates-wellness/index.html

Foolishness of the Week https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/21/24079371/google-ai-gemini-generative-inaccurate-historical

Topic of the Week https://youtu.be/b8soxNZzVlE?si=mtZFd4hAN-VmLQpt

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Spike Cohen, 2020 Libertarian Party Vice-Presidential nominee, joins us this week for a two part series in which we discuss the upcoming election, the Libertarian Party, the future of politics in America, and his work in single-issue activism - You Are the Power.

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Topic of the Week https://www.youarethepower.net https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spike_Cohen

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Spike Cohen, 2020 Libertarian Party Vice-Presidential nominee, joins us this week for a two part series in which we discuss the upcoming election, the Libertarian Party, the future of politics in America, and his work in single-issue activism - You Are the Power.

Foolishness of the Week: 11:05 Main episode: 13:14

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Quick Hits https://www.thecollegefix.com/gmu-economist-reported-to-dei-office-for-criticizing-plan-to-mandate-dei-courses/

https://masoncore.gmu.edu/mason-core-course-categories/just-society/

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/03/11/nearly-half-of-parents-financially-support-adult-children-study-shows.html

Foolishness of the Week https://www.mediaite.com/news/tucker-carlson-already-pushing-stolen-election-conspiracy-theories-about-2024/

Topic of the Week https://www.youarethepower.net

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spike_Cohen

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The United States has been a two party system almost since its inception. In modern times, this has led to the Democrats and Republicans having a virtual monopoly on the political landscape. Despite the fact that a plurality of Americans don’t identify with either party, they won’t allow a third party to compete. And what’s the only thing worse than a two-party system? A one-party system.

Foolishness of the Week: 06:08 Main episode: 09:41

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Quick Hits https://archive.triblive.com/opinion/featured-commentary/in-defense-of-price-gouging/ https://www.cnbc.com/2024/03/01/the-us-national-debt-is-rising-by-1-trillion-about-every-100-days.html

Foolishness of the Week https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/16/opinion/ezra-klein-biden-audio-essay.html

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Last week, we recorded live from Hampden-Sydney College. This week’s episode is the Q&A from that recording.

Foolishness of the Week: 09:21 Main episode: 10:05

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Quick Hits

https://studyfinds.org/is-everyone-angry-toxic-outrage-culture-consuming-society-like-never-before/

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13119241/Trump-threatens-biggest-stock-market-crash-HISTORY-loses-Biden-claims-five-things-DOJ-investigate-Haley-wild-speech-MAGA-fans-South-Carolina-primary.html

Topic of the Week

https://www.hsc.edu

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Last week, we talked about the incongruity of not only having a majority of voters not like either major party candidate, but to have those two candidates appear twice in back-to-back elections. This week, we explore what happens when a President is incapable of fulfilling the duties of the office.

Foolishness of the Week: 11:01

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Quick Hits https://www.gofundme.com/f/stand-with-trump-raise-the-settlement

Foolishness of the Week https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2024/02/15/barbara-lee-minimum-wage/72611446007/

Topic of the Week

https://www.hsc.edu

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Last week, we talked about the incongruity of not only having a majority of voters not like either major party candidate, but to have those two candidates appear twice in back-to-back elections. This week, we explore what happens when a President is incapable of fulfilling the duties of the office.

Foolishness of the Week: 09:59 Main episode: 12:50

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Quick Hits https://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2024/02/blazing-saddles-five-funny-facts-at-50/

Foolishness of the Week https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/taylor-swift-biden-psyop-conspiracy-b2489364.html

Topic of the Week https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/amendment-25/

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The Trump vs Biden election of 2020 was noteworthy because, for so many voters, it wasn’t a matter of selecting the person they thought was best suited for the job so much as a matter of selecting the person they thought was least ill-suited. As if it isn’t weird enough that, out of 200 million or so adults, the best we could do was to bring Trump and Biden to the fore, here we are in 2024 apparently set to do the same thing all over again.

Foolishness of the Week: 09:10 Main episode: 13:33

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Quick Hits

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/06/trump-election-case-appeals-court-denies-ex-president-immunity.html

Foolishness of the Week https://studyfinds.org/mixed-reality-headsets/

Topic of the Week https://www.wsj.com/politics/elections/biden-trump-campaign-longest-ever-age-7e849b34 https://www.statista.com/statistics/1102189/voter-turnout-us-presidential-primaries-state/

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People used to scared about the federal debt. But it's been so huge for so long that people have lost interest. Yet, despite people's lack of attention - or perhaps, in part, because of it - the debt has continued to grow. For the past 50 years or so, it has been doubling every 8 to 9 years. Foolishness of the Week: 09:10 Main episode:  13:36

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Quick Hits

https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2023/12/06/new-fafsa-may-launch-with-old-inflation-data-resulting-in-less-college-aid.html?fbclid=IwAR1Z0ny8wwaMEEA0nyaJGxEGF3Hvbeq9XtAJpVmQLYtfyMdKNmDS-loexes

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2024/01/27/is-the-journalism-death-spasm-finally-here-00138187

Foolishness of the Week

https://nypost.com/2024/01/26/news/un-fires-staffers-who-allegedly-took-part-in-october-7-hamas-terrorist-attacks-on-israel/

Topic of the Week

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Many people share an intuition that “excess” profits are a sign of something having been stolen from labor. Karl Marx shared this intuition and formalized it in his writings on the surplus value of labor.

Foolishness of the Week: 05:48 Main episode: 11:55

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Quick Hits

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPkJH6BT7dM

https://studyfinds.org/childless-millennials-parents/

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/jan/19/us-inflation-caused-by-corporate-profits

Topic of the Week

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/GFDEBTN

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Let Us Know What You Think mailto:[email protected]

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#AntonyDavies #JamesRHarrigan #WordsAndNumbers #economics #government #politics #policy #libertarian #classicalliberal #podcast #educational