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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.

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Latest Episodes:

Episode 272: Markets With Limits, Pt. 1 Apr 27, 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.

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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

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Antony Davies on Twitter

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Episode 271: Our Dual Natures Apr 20, 2022

Show notes

Humans have dual natures. We are, simultaneously, individuals and members of a shared society. That each of us should be free arises from our status as individuals. But, what arises from our status as members of a shared society are obligations to one another. What economists call “economic freedom” is really the encoding of the appropriate balance of our two natures into the rule of law.

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Quick Hits

https://worldhappiness.report/ed/2022/happiness-benevolence-and-trust-during-covid-19-and-beyond/#ranking-of-happiness-2019-2021

https://www.fraserinstitute.org/economic-freedom/map?geozone=world&page=map&year=2018

https://nypost.com/2022/04/14/biden-shakes-hands-with-thin-air-after-north-carolina-speech/

https://www.wsj.com/articles/decade-high-mortgage-rates-pose-threat-to-spring-housing-market-11650101401

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.kentucky.com/news/nation-world/national/article260445977.html

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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 270: A Conversation with Award Winning Students, Pt. 3 Apr 13, 2022

Show notes

This is the final installment of our talk with the economics students of Mount Hebron High School. The students have won the state economics championship 16 times, the national championship six times, and recently won the international championship for the first time.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

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Quick Hits

https://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/topics/income/

https://data.oecd.org/emp/hours-worked.htm

https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2019/may/how-much-us-households-employer-insurance-spend-premiums-out-of-pocket

https://www.fox5ny.com/news/chipotle-tests-chip-making-robots

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.statista.com/statistics/253743/academy-awards--number-of-viewers/

Topic of the Week

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F79X_-PwKhg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ke38g7fFvtk

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More James at Smoke & Stories

https://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 Twitter

https://twitter.com/JamesRHarrigan

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Episode 269: A Conversation with Award Winning Students, Pt. 2 Apr 06, 2022

Show notes

This week, we talk with the economics students of Mount Hebron High School who have won the state economics championship 16 times, the national championship six times, and recently won the international championship for the first time. 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://www.wsj.com/articles/oberlin-college-loses-appeal-ohio-gibsons-bakery-v-woke-pc-cancel-culture-crt-critical-race-theory-libel-emotional-distress-racial-profiling-higher-education-11648829090?mod=hp_opin_pos_1

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/a-historic-all-black-town-wants-reparations-to-rebuild-as-a-e2-80-98safe-haven-e2-80-99/ar-AAVKiWv

Topic of the Week

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F79X_-PwKhg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ke38g7fFvtk

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 268: A Conversation with Award Winning Students, Pt. 1 Mar 30, 2022

Show notes

This week, we talk with the economics students of Mount Hebron High School who have won the state economics championship 16 times, the national championship six times, and recently won the international championship for the first time. 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://www.thedrive.com/news/44445/canada-has-a-railroad-for-fish-thats-only-200-feet-long-heres-why

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Bayside+Canadian+Railway/@45.1588746,-67.1399627,156m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x4ca6016202a5eb6f:0xdd7c0d6ee9b1c34a!8m2!3d45.1586153!4d-67.1396707

https://thehill.com/opinion/finance/599768-biden-is-planning-a-new-digital-currency-heres-why-you-should-be-very-worried

Foolishness of the Week

https://thehill.com/regulation/599821-thomas-scrutiny-intensifies-after-latest-revelations

Topic of the Week

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F79X_-PwKhg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ke38g7fFvtk

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 267: Ten Years of ObamaCare Mar 23, 2022

Show notes

Now that a decade has passed since the Affordable Care Act reached full implementation, it’s a good time to look back at what we were promised, what we got, and what we didn’t get..

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

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Quick Hits

https://advisor.visualcapitalist.com/ranked-the-biggest-u-s-tax-expenditures/

https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-budget/where-do-our-federal-tax-dollars-go

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-senate-approves-bill-that-would-make-daylight-savings-time-permanent-2023-2022-03-15/

Foolishness of the Week

https://reason.com/2022/03/04/d-c-managed-to-lose-4-million-on-its-own-sports-betting-app/

Topic of the Week

https://www.thebalance.com/causes-of-rising-healthcare-costs-4064878

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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 266: Subsidiarity, Solidarity, and the Common Good Mar 16, 2022

Show notes

The Catholic Church likes subsidiarity. Politicians like federalism. Economists like free markets. It turns out that, if you can adequately define “the common good,” the three - subsidiarity, federalism, and free markets - pretty much boil down to the same thing. This week is the first half of a four-way discussion with two Catholic theologians, a political scientist, and an economist on subsidiarity and the common good.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

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Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

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Quick Hits

https://nypost.com/2022/03/04/hundreds-of-people-are-booking-airbnb-rentals-in-ukraine-heres-why/

https://scoop.upworthy.com/polish-moms-leave-baby-strollers-at-train-station-for-ukrainians-moms-who-need-them

https://www.cato.org/commentary/pick-time-stick-it

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/national-international/california-lawmaker-proposes-25-tax-on-real-estate-investors-to-level-playing-field/2834287/

Topic of the Week

https://stvincent.academia.edu/JasonKing/CurriculumVitae

https://stvincent.academia.edu/ChristopherMcMahon/CurriculumVitae

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Let Us Know What You Think

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Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

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

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Episode 265: Higher Education Fraud? Mar 09, 2022

Show notes

Is there a massive class action suit awaiting colleges and universities that promise certain educational outcomes and don’t deliver? Colleges and universities are admitting students they know won’t succeed and happily cashing their tuition checks. There are scary parallels here to bankers who gave mortgages to borrowers the banks knew couldn’t afford to repay those mortgages.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

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Quick Hits

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

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

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

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CES1021100001

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/IPUCN2211W200000000

https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/04/politics/biden-buy-american-domestic-manufacturing/index.htmhttps://www.wsj.com/articles/andrew-cuomo-chris-cnn-cancel-culture-pc-political-correct-sexual-harrassment-accusation-new-york-governor-church-speech-11646599202l

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.fox5ny.com/news/sony-unveils-new-gold-plated-walkman

Topic of the Week

https://www.npr.org/2022/02/16/1081107925/education-department-devry-university-borrower-defense-student-loan-relief

https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=73

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Let Us Know What You Think

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Antony Davies on Twitter

https://twitter.com/antonydavies

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

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Episode 264: Should Cities Invest in Sports Stadiums? Mar 02, 2022

Show notes

Politicians often argue the benefits of raising taxes to pay for sports stadiums, citing all the economic benefits that accrue from attracting major sports teams. But if there were significant economic benefits, wouldn’t private investors have an incentive to pay for the stadiums on their own? Why do we need tax revenues to fund them? This week, economist Lauren Heller joins us to talk about the economics of sport stadiums.

Get a 20% discount on the mask not named in the episode by clicking below and using the coupon code wordsandnumbers.

https://www.getunmask.com/?ref=8Dgb483n98NjG

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

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Quick Hits

https://russiandefpolicy.com/2021/12/27/russian-military-pay-still-lags/

https://www.cnas.org/publications/commentary/when-do-economic-sanctions-work-best

https://www.wsj.com/articles/self-driving-trucks-start-to-propel-land-rush-near-major-cities-11646053200

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/airline-news/2022/02/25/mask-mandate-travel-cdc-guidelines/6938530001/

Topic of the Week

https://www.berry.edu/academics/fs/lheller

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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 263: The Fall of Amazon Feb 23, 2022

Show notes

The life cycle of birth, maturation, death, and new life plays out in markets in the same way and for the same reasons. Entrepreneurs come up with new ideas. If customers like those ideas better than they like dollars in their pockets, they pay the entrepreneurs and the new ideas mature. But with maturation comes some ossification as once nimble companies get bogged down by their own bureaucracies. This creates opportunities for new entrepreneurs to come along and replace the old. Amazon, once the nimble upstart that gave customers what they wanted at prices they were willing to pay, may be showing signs of its oncoming and inevitable decline.

Get Your Copy of Cooperation and Coercion Now!

http://www.cooperationandcoercion.com

Show Your Support for Words & Numbers at Patreon

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Quick Hits

https://www.facebook.com/HistoricPhotographs/posts/2026578217515918

Foolishness of the Week

https://www.breitbart.com/tech/2022/02/21/report-apple-store-employees-want-to-unionize-use-android-phones-to-avoid-tim-cooks-snooping/

Topic of the Week

https://www.salesforce.com/blog/jeff-bezos-lessons-blog/

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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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