Words & Numbers

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**Words & Numbers**

Words & Numbers is one of the highest-rated economics podcasts in the world. Each episode, Antony Davies and James R. Harrigan dig into economics, political science, and current events to explain what’s actually happening and why it matters.

Latest Episodes:

Episode 517: A Cornucopia of Foolishness Jul 31, 2026

Show notes

All foolishness all the time, with the connoisseur of foolishness himself, Wes Westmoreland.

00:00 Introduction

00:43 American Airlines Travel Horror Stories

06:25 Is the GOP Becoming Socialist?

12:34 Goldfish Rights, Animal Rights, and Ethical Contradictions

17:03 Tim Walz’s “Gender Dolls” for Children

20:32 Crossbow Mishap at the County Fair

22:07 Zohran Mamdani, Grocery Stores, and Reparations

24:16 Democrats, Republicans, and the 2026 Midterms

29:57 Iran, Endless Wars, and Foreign Policy Failures

34:05 Anthony Fauci Takes the Fifth 111 Times

41:46 Final Thoughts and Closing Remarks

Episode 516: Save Our Children! | Guest: London River Jul 23, 2026

Show notes

The adult entertainment industry has been sounding the alarm about the erosion of our rights for years. Adult actress London River joins us to explain.

00:00 Introduction and Episode Preview

00:43 Zohran Mamdani’s Housing Proposal and Rent Control

03:44 Foolishness of the Week: Do Goldfish Have Rights?

07:51 Introducing London River

09:55 The SAVE Act and Online Age Verification

11:35 Why Adult Websites Oppose ID Verification

13:26 Parents, Government, and Protecting Children Online

17:55 Privacy, Databases, and the Future of the Internet

20:23 Is Age Verification a First Amendment Issue?

24:01 Free Speech, the Second Amendment, and Government Overreach

26:02 Supreme Court Rulings on Online Speech

29:14 Why the Adult Industry Is the “Canary in the Coal Mine”

31:29 Defending Free Speech Before It’s Too Late

35:47 Soft Authoritarianism and Expanding Government Power

38:13 Final Thoughts and Closing Remarks

Episode 515: Government’s Footprint Jul 16, 2026

Show notes

What do population growth rates and movement among the states have to do with one another? More than you might think.

00:00 Introduction and Episode Preview

00:56 Thomas Massie on Congress and Presidential Power

03:34 A Promising New Alzheimer’s Treatment

07:03 Foolishness of the Week: California’s Town Council Refuses to Leave Office

08:40 America’s Population Slowdown and Why It Matters

11:03 Immigration, Social Security, and Demographic Challenges

12:11 States Competing for Residents

17:19 Technical Difficulties

17:55 Does Bigger Government Lead to Better Outcomes?

20:20 Why Americans Are Leaving High-Tax States

23:26 Government Growth, Incentives, and Long-Term Stability

26:19 Immigration, Welfare, and Population Policy

28:38 Remote Work Is Reshaping State Economies

30:36 Competition Between States and the Future of America

31:51 Final Thoughts and Closing Remarks

Episode 514: Birthright Citizenship Jul 09, 2026

Show notes

Is birth enough to determine who should be a citizen? We (and the

Supreme Court) weigh in.

00:00 Introduction and Disclaimer

00:39 Disclosure Day, Spielberg, and Hollywood’s Creativity Problem

05:26 Foolishness of the Week: Air Conditioning and Energy Politics

13:58 Trump’s Meme Stock and Cryptocurrency Profits

23:39 Birthright Citizenship and the 14th Amendment

26:28 What Does “Subject to the Jurisdiction” Mean?

30:18 Original Intent vs. Constitutional Text

33:50 Textualism, Originalism, and Justice Scalia

37:03 Can Birthright Citizenship Be Changed?

42:34 Why Constitutional Intent Isn’t Always Enough

47:13 The Limits of Constitutional Interpretation

52:39 How Constitutional Amendments Should Work

56:46 Supreme Court Justices, Brown v. Board, and Closing Thoughts

Episode 513: The Real Independence Day Jul 02, 2026

Show notes

Was July 4, 1776 the actual day of our independence from Great Britain as most Americans believe? While James is indisposed, historian Rob McDonald joins me to discuss the actual facts of America’s founding.

Episode 512: What Do You Meme? Jun 25, 2026

Show notes

Memes are apparently unavoidable, and most of them suck. Here we talk about some of the suckiest ones.

00:00 Introduction and Disclaimer

00:51 Japan’s Food Tax and Why Groceries Shouldn’t Be Taxed

02:38 State Sales Taxes on Food Across America

05:04 Flat Taxes, Tax Complexity, and Scotland’s Simplicity

06:18 Remembering Historian Gordon Wood

07:37 AI Corporations and the Future of Legal Personhood

13:30 Foolishness of the Week: Trump’s Repeated Iran Peace Claims

18:08 Responding to Socialist Memes

19:04 Does Capitalism Create Billionaires Instead of Healthcare?

22:11 Obamacare, Health Insurance, and Government Bureaucracy

25:24 Why Misleading Memes Spread So Easily

29:12 Is Poverty a Product of Capitalism?

34:08 Elon Musk, Billionaires, and Wealth Creation

42:20 Infinite Growth, Capitalism, and the Laws of Thermodynamics

45:55 Why Political Memes Make Public Discourse Worse

48:13 Patreon Updates and Closing Thoughts

Episode 511: Happy Juneteenth! | Guest: Tom Krannawitter Jun 18, 2026

Show notes

You should absolutely care about Juneteenth. Tom Krannawitter joins us to talk about why.

00:00 Introduction and Overview

00:20 Two Dan Sullivans Running in Alaska

02:57 Lawyers Using AI in Federal Court

04:10 Foolishness of the Week: Switzerland’s Population Cap

10:12 Fear of Declining Living Standards

12:03 Juneteenth with Thomas Krannawitter

13:13 The Origins of Juneteenth

16:03 Why the 13th Amendment Completed the American Founding

18:59 Juneteenth and the Fourth of July

24:21 America’s Anti-Slavery Principles

30:17 Jefferson, Slavery, and the Declaration of Independence

32:46 The Truth Behind the Three-Fifths Compromise

37:05 Jefferson’s Personal Contradictions

43:36 Why America’s Founders Saw Slavery as Wrong

48:01 Why Juneteenth Should Unite Americans

52:04 Aristotle, Freedom, and Forgiveness

55:41 Black Wall Street and the Promise of Liberty

59:20 Jefferson’s Grave and the American Story

01:01:54 Lincoln, Equality, and Richard M. Johnson

01:07:15 Why Juneteenth Matters Today

01:08:18 Waypoints Teaching and Closing Remarks

Episode 510: Artificial Sanders Socialism Jun 11, 2026

Show notes

Ant and James change things up a bit this week by talking about a great idea from Bernie Sanders.

Most of that is true. Ant and James do, in fact, talk about an idea Bernie Sanders has.

00:00 Introduction and Disclaimer

01:19 IRS Tax Forms, Privacy, and Dual Citizenship

05:29 Public Opinion Polls and Political Popularity

09:17 Foolishness of the Week: Jill Biden and Joe Biden’s Debate Performance

15:02 Virginia’s New Electric Vehicle Tax

18:49 Trump, AI Regulation, and Government Oversight

20:53 Bernie Sanders Wants Public Ownership of AI Companies

23:44 Who Should Benefit from AI Wealth?

26:01 Why Government Ownership Would Hurt Innovation

29:44 Would AI Companies Leave the United States?

31:28 Is Bernie Serious or Just Campaigning?

33:15 Closing Thoughts

Episode 509: The Girlfriend Experience Jun 04, 2026

Show notes

Why look for a girlfriend when you can just build one yourself?

00:00 Introduction and Disclaimer

00:38 China Influence Operations and Free Speech

05:07 Pope Leo’s Slavery Apology

12:53 Kash Patel Website Hacked by Malware

15:44 The Growing Trend of AI Girlfriends

20:15 Why Young Men Trust AI Companions

24:19 Is AI Becoming Sentient?

29:06 The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence

33:04 AI Romance and Falling Birth Rates

39:40 Will AI Replace Human Jobs?

45:51 Closing Thoughts

Get the book by Ant & James:

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

⁠⁠http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com⁠

Antony Davies on X

⁠⁠https://x.com/antonydavies⁠

James R. Harrigan on X

⁠⁠https://x.com/JamesRHarrigan

Episode 508: Insider Everything May 28, 2026

Show notes

Should insider trading be allowed? It seems like a straightforward question, so how did we end up also talking about sports betting and Polymarket?

Get the book by Ant & James:

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

⁠http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Antony Davies on X

⁠https://x.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on X

⁠https://x.com/JamesRHarrigan

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