Ep. 185 Dr. Keith Smith Explains the Scam in Medical Pricing and How to Fix It
Medical doctor Keith Smith returns to the show to explain how government intervention allows insurance companies to distort health care prices. Rather than merely diagnosing the problem, Smith has formed organizations that are providing affordable care to patients. Mentioned in the Episode and Other Links of Interest: The YouTube version of this interview. The Surgery Center…
Ep. 184 Nonviolent Solutions to Social Problems
Bob discusses three separate items all related to nonviolence: (1) Gene Sharp’s work, (2) Bob’s old dream of how to topple a tyrant, and (3) the winners of the Louis CK contest. Mentioned in the Episode and Other Links of Interest: Gene Sharp’s book, From Dictatorship to Democracy. #CommissionsEarned (As an Amazon Associate I earn…
Ep. 183 Ben Powell Argues that Immigrants Don’t Threaten Liberty
Standard economic analysis suggests that even large-scale immigration doesn’t hurt native citizens economically. But couldn’t the newcomers change the culture and political climate to hurt liberty? In his latest book, economist Ben Powell argues that this too is a baseless fear. Mentioned in the Episode and Other Links of Interest: The YouTube version of this interview. Ben…
Ep. 182 A Modest Proposal for Children in Libertarian Law
Bob explains his idea for the general legal principle under which children would constitute a particular case: Namely, treat the parent (or legal guardian) as a trustee acting upon behalf of the trustor, who is the future (adult) version of that child. Mentioned in the Episode and Other Links of Interest: Rothbard’s book Ethics of…
Ep. 181 Could Gold Discoveries Cause the Austrian Boom-Bust Cycle?
In a 2019 article, Bob quoted Mises who believed that new gold discoveries, in principle, could cause a (small) boom-bust cycle if the gold hit the loan market before other sectors. Walter Block and Bill Barnett have responded in a new article, arguing that in a free market, new commodity money can’t cause such distortions. Mentioned…