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Words & Numbers — Education
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.

Copyright: © Creative Commons

Latest Episodes:

Episode 282: What Happened to Health Care Jul 06, 2022

Show notes

No matter what we do to tweak our healthcare system, we seem to end up with the same problems decade after decade. Proponents of socialized medicine say that healthcare is simply too complex of a problem to leave to profit-seeking actors in the marketplace. Proponents of free market medicine say that healthcare is a product like any other product and that much of the complexity that exists is actually due to government regulations themselves. This week, we talk with an economic historian and ask, what happened to healthcare in this country?

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

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Quick Hits and Foolishness of the Week

https://www.vice.com/amp/en/article/wxn8qx/amtrak-spent-11-years-and-dollar450-million-to-save-acela-riders-100-seconds

https://www.railpassengers.org/site/assets/files/3480/1.pdf

https://news.gallup.com/poll/394283/confidence-institutions-down-average-new-low.aspx

Foolishness of the Week

https://abcnews.go.com/US/couple-fined-1500-parking-driveway/story?id=86181089

Topic of the Week

https://history.umbc.edu/facultystaff/full-time/christy-ford-chapin/

https://www.amazon.com/Ensuring-Americas-Health-Creation-Corporate/dp/1107622875/ref=sr_1_1

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Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 281: Declared Independence Jun 29, 2022

Show notes

Historian Rob McDonald joins us on this Fourth of July week to talk about the events leading up to the founding, and his observation that the Founders thought less that they were declaring independence from Great Britain than that Parliament and the King had effectively declared the colonies independent by failing to fulfill the basic functions of government.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits and Foolishness of the Week

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/this-gorgeous-leather-is-made-from-the-hide-of-an-invasive-predatory-fish/

https://www.inversaleathers.com

https://www.fb.org/newsroom/cost-of-july-4th-cookout-17-higher-compared-to-year-ago

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.wsj.com/articles/as-gas-prices-surge-stations-now-hold-up-to-175-of-your-money-when-you-swipe-11656277411

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Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 280: The End of the Experiment in Unlimited Government Jun 22, 2022

Show notes

For one-hundred years, the United States has been conducting an experiment in unlimited government wherein politicians spend far beyond the government’s means, kicking the fiscal can down the road for future generations to pay. The future has finally arrived and we are that future generation. The inflation we’re experiencing now is the beginning of the price we’ll be paying for a century of unlimited government.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits and Foolishness of the Week

https://www.wuft.org/news/2022/06/02/gainesville-residents-and-city-officials-gather-to-strategize-how-to-tackle-affordable-housing-issues-in-the-city/

https://www.sightline.org/2014/09/29/zoning-inclusionary-v-exclusionary/

https://dailytravelpill.com/montane-mansion-hong-kong-monster-building/

https://news.yahoo.com/affordable-housing-california-now-routinely-120027201.html

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/19/holiday-weekend-sees-massive-amount-of-flight-cancellations.html

Topic of the Week

https://www.aier.org/article/a-time-for-reckoning/

Join the Conversation

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 279: The Pain of Drug Laws Jun 15, 2022

Show notes

Critics of drug laws focus on the costs, both in dollars and lives, of incarcerating people for an act that often hurts no one. Lost in the discussion is the cost of making it harder for people who suffer from chronic pain to obtain drugs they need to function.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits and Foolishness of the Week

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-05-31/yellen-says-i-was-wrong-last-year-on-the-path-of-us-inflation

https://www.newscientist.com/article/2322693-damaged-liver-repaired-inside-machine-for-three-days-before-transplant/

Foolishness of the Week

https://news.yahoo.com/justin-trudeau-points-u-gun-193328676.html

Topic of the Week

https://nationalpost.com/pmn/news-pmn/crime-pmn/canada-to-temporarily-decriminalize-some-drug-possession-to-tackle-abuse-problem

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 278: Consumers' Hidden Profit Jun 08, 2022

Show notes

We all see the profits companies make when they sell things for more than it cost them to produce. Companies carefully measure these profits, and many are required to publicly report them to the penny. What we don’t see, but is every bit as real, is the “profit” consumers make when they buy from those companies. A consumer’s “profit” occurs when the consumer pays less for a thing than the maximum the consumer was willing to pay. The fact that we readily see companies’ profits and don’t readily see consumers’ profits contributes to many people’s misunderstandings about economics.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits

https://wordsandnumbers.libsyn.com/episode-243-the-nature-of-exchange-pt-1

https://wordsandnumbers.libsyn.com/episode-244-the-nature-of-exchange-pt-2

Foolishness of the Week

https://apnews.com/article/california-race-and-ethnicity-san-francisco-voter-registration-6bc187073ed7477f654b63d869bacdf7

Topic of the Week

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLXKazEbRJ8

Join the Conversation

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 277: UNC Wilmington: Cooperation & Coercion, Pt. 2 Jun 01, 2022

Show notes

James and I were invited to kick off UNC Wilmington’s annual Business Week with a live recording of Words & Numbers. The talk was loosely based on our book, Cooperation & Coercion. If you’ve read the book, you’ll still find fresh material in these episodes. The first part of this two-part episode is the presentation. The second part is the audience Q&A.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits and Foolishness of the Week

Quick hits and the foolishness of the week have gone on vacation for a few weeks. In their places, we’ll be talking about unintended consequences.

Topic of the Week

https://www.wilmingtonbiz.com/insights/robert__burrus/csb_business_week_2022_-_connecting_uncws_cameron_school_of_business_to_its_powerful_network/3365

Join the Conversation

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Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 276: UNC Wilmington: Cooperation & Coercion, Pt. 1 May 25, 2022

Show notes

James and I were invited to kick off UNC Wilmington’s annual Business Week with a live recording of Words & Numbers. The talk was loosely based on our book, Cooperation & Coercion. If you’ve read the book, you’ll still find fresh material in these episodes. The first part of this two-part episode is the presentation. The second part is the audience Q&A.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits and Foolishness of the Week

Quick hits and the foolishness of the week have gone on vacation for a few weeks. In their places, we’ll be talking about unintended consequences.

Topic of the Week

https://www.wilmingtonbiz.com/insights/robert__burrus/csb_business_week_2022_-_connecting_uncws_cameron_school_of_business_to_its_powerful_network/3365

Join the Conversation

Words & Numbers Backstage

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 275: Economics Is About A Lot More Than Money May 18, 2022

Show notes

Most of what the public knows about economics is really macroeconomics - the field of economics that deals with interest rates, inflation, unemployment, and GDP. Economics is really about human behavior, and there’s a lot more to it than simply macroeconomics. Economist Matt Ryan joins us this week to talk about his work in applying economics to interesting topics from sports betting to police making traffic stops.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits and Foolishness of the Week

Quick hits and the foolishness of the week have gone on vacation for a few weeks. In their places, we’ll be talking about unintended consequences.

Topic of the Week

https://www.duq.edu/academics/faculty/matt-ryan

Join the Conversation

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 274: The CBO Predicts the Future May 11, 2022

Show notes

The Congressional Budget Office is the government entity that produces forecasts about the effects of new taxes and spending on the economy and the federal budget. Four years ago, we did an episode in which we showed that the CBO had a track record of under-estimating future spending and over-estimating future tax revenues. With four years behind us, we revisit the topic and ask whether the CBO has gotten any better and what it’s now forecasting for the future.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits and Foolishness of the Week

Quick hits and the foolishness of the week have gone on vacation for a few weeks. In their places, we’ll be talking about unintended consequences.

Topic of the Week

Historical CBO forecasts

https://www.cbo.gov/about/products/budget-economic-data#3

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 273: Markets With Limits, Pt. 2 May 04, 2022

Show notes

There are some things that people have an emotional reaction to buying and selling: sex, body parts, votes. There are other things whose quality people aren’t able to judge. Is it possible that markets shouldn’t or can’t handle these things? Philosopher James Stacey Taylor joins us to discuss his latest book, Markets With Limits.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/wordsandnumbers

Quick Hits and Foolishness of the Week

Quick hits and the foolishness of the week have gone on vacation for a few weeks. In their places, we’ll be talking about unintended consequences.

Topic of the Week

Markets With Limits by James Stacey Taylor

https://www.amazon.com/Markets-Limits-Merits-Market-Critical-Arguments/dp/1032171480/ref=sr_1_1

Join the Conversation

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More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig

Let Us Know What You Think

mailto:wordsandnumberspodcast@gmail.com

Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

James R. Harrigan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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