Libertarian Radio - Best Of The Bob Zadek Show

Most people tune out when academics speak in terms of regression analysis and ?agent-based modeling.? Nonetheless, we want to understand the long-term economic trends that these methods seek to illuminate in order to plan for the future. Don Boudreaux is a master of making complex economic ideas comprehensible to the layperson. He provides this service free of charge every day for the thousands of visitors to his blog, Cafe Hayek (currently down due to a malicious hacking attack). Boudreaux?s short but powerful letters to the editor are the stuff of any libertarian?s dreams ? the equivalent of a Total Knock Out in boxing. The larger battle for economic freedom is not fought solely in public discussion forums like the WSJ editorial page ? it?s being waged in academic journals and in the academic marketplace of ideas. Boudreaux recently edited the Fraser Institute?s *What America?s Decline in Economic Freedom Means for Entrepreneurship and Prosperity,* a volume of five essays, each thick with research that

Bob does a regular show with a very special guest ? a walking embodiment of the libertarian ethos: David Boaz. Since joining the Cato Institute in 1981, Boaz has been pivotal in transforming the once-obscure think tank into a powerhouse ? setting the gold standard for libertarian public policy analysis. More than 15 years ago, at a time when far fewer people had even heard of libertarianism, Boaz wrote and edited a volume titled Libertarianism: A Primer. Today, most voters know the contours of what a libertarian is, but a majority still do not identify along said lines. Clearly, given the iron-clad moral and logical reasoning behind libertarian ideas, the message clearly has not gotten far enough. But we may be near a tipping point if Boaz is correct about the "Libertarian Moment," to which he synced the arrival of his revised version of his Primer, The Libertarian Mind: A Manifesto for Freedom. Tune in for the full hour, this Sunday at 9am Pacific t

This week, instead of the usual encore show, we will be airing a remix of the best segments from previous shows on the topic of illegal immigration. This subject is so dear to Bob's heart (and mind) that he has been compelled to revisit it half a dozen times, and he will continue to do so for as long as it remains an issue. Bob's stance on immigration: Let them all in.In defending this position, he has interviewed former two-term Governor and Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson, Cato Institute immigration expert Alex Nowrasteh, Huffington Post reporter Elise Foley, and Sophia Campos, an aspiring professional and undocumented student at UCLA. This one-hour special will include select segments from each of these interviews, along with lively debate between Bob and his numerous callers. Few subjects elicit such strong emotions from across the spectrum as illegal immigration. This is all the more reason to learn the facts and get answers to the questions yo

?Be nice? may be excellent advice for children on the playground, customer service workers, and indeed, for most people in most situations. Being nice, however, does not always advance what Jonathan Rauch calls "the liberal science" ? the ongoing process of public criticism that gradually brings us closer to the truth. Thanks to robust rights to free thought and expression, new ideas have been able to overturn ancient dogmas and superstitions. As a long-time editor of The Atlantic and scholar at the Brookings Institution, Rauch?s own writings and opinions have been forged in the crucible of free public debate, and he thinks all knowledge claims should be subject to this same process ? even if it sometimes leads to "psychic harm," i.e., hurt feelings. The recent massacre in France is just one more in a long line of assaults on free expression. But the greater danger, described in Rauch?s book The Kindly Inquisitors: New Attacks on Free Thought, is not necessarily violent fundamentalism, but the failure by

As a class, ?capitalists? tend to get stereotyped in the starkest of terms. They are heroes to some and villains to others; the captains of industry or the robber barons of old. Rarely do we actually get to hear a successful capitalist explain what his work is about. As former Chairman and CEO of BB&T and current CEO and President of the Cato Institute, John Allison is both a capitalist and defender of capitalism par excellence. In his last book, Allison shed light on the financial crisis, and how phony ?crony capitalism? broke the system in 2007-2008. His latest message may be even more important. In his newest book, The Leadership Crisis and the Free Market Cure, Allison combines equal parts moral philosophy, personal confession, and business advice. It is his goal to help others achieve their own version of Aristotle?s ?Eudaimonia,? or the Good Life, through hard work. He will join Bob to explain how his 10 core values translate into business and personal success, and to lay out his continued vision fo

The Citizens United case, in which the Supreme Court affirmed speech rights for corporate ?persons,? was alleged by some to herald the end of democracy ?of the people, by the people, and for the people.? But are corporate interests really able to purchase politicians and their votes? Perhaps more importantly, is there any evidence that ?bought? politicians stay bought? Michael Munger, Director of Duke University?s interdisciplinary Philosophy, Politics, and Economics program, studies how political favors are exchanged between actors in government and the private sector. Munger has no doubt that money can influence policy in wasteful or destructive ways, but he sees something other than campaign finance as the culprit. In a recent New York Times article on the role of money in politics, Munger was quoted talking about the deals that take place after the election, behind closed doors ? a phenomenon known as ?rent-seeking.? Bob is joined by Professor Munger, a  frequent EconTalk guest and former candidate f

Sixteen years ago, Virginia Postrel published The Future and Its Enemies, a manifesto for her personal philosophy of "dynamism." Dynamists like Postrel favor the spontaneous, evolving forces of free markets over the "stasist" philosophy common to reactionary conservatives and government technocrats. Even more than left versus right, Postrel argues, politics is a battle of the "stasists" versus the "dynamists." Nowhere is this seen more clearly than in the debate over compensation for kidney donors. Postrel, the editor of Reason during most of the 1990s, is a spokesperson for a new charity, the American Living Organ Donor Fund (ALODF). She also once donated a kidney to a friend in need. But many people with failing kidneys are not as lucky as the beneficiary of Postrel's altruism. Markets and financial incentives could save the lives of thousands of wait-listed patients on dialysis, but the National Kidney Foundation has resisted even m

Lenore Skenazy first made waves after writing a column about how she let her nine-year-old son ride the New York City subway home alone. This was followed by a public outcry, including the accusation of "World's Worst Mom," which led Lenore to defend her position on TV programs like The View, The Today Show, and Anderson Cooper 360. Skenazy eventually repurposed her accusers' label for a TV reality series titled, "World's Worst Mom," in which she helped to keep "helicopter parents" from hovering so close to their children. What has changed in America? Parents no longer send kids out to play in their neighborhoods. Strangers are presumed guilty until proven innocent. Even halloween candy is viewed suspiciously (despite no reports of any kid poisonings, ever). Lenore Skenazy believes this is no way for a free society to operate. Not only is it dreary, but it might be completely unnecessary. Perhaps it's time we looked at the numbers and broke down the risks, as Lenore does in her book, "Free Rang

Since the initial waves of political correctness and subsequent censorship swept across college campuses in the 1990s, many cases have been fought and won in favor of free speech. The overturning of unconstitutional speech codes, for example, seemed to herald a new era for individual rights in higher education. These victories resulted in no small measure from the tireless efforts of FIRE ? the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. Yet the battle is hardly over. Bob's guest tomorrow will be Greg Lukianoff, President of FIRE. As Greg explains in his new broadside, "Freedom From Speech," there are several new threats to free speech brewing. Colleges are beginning to include ?trigger warnings? on standard humanities curricula. Controversial commencement speakers are being subject to "disinvitation campaigns," and a general culture of outrage is preventing a robust debate. This "chilling effect" can be observed both in academia and, increasingly, in society at large. Greg joins the show to disc

Following the Great Recession of 2007-2008, regulators jumped at the opportunity to "remedy" (i.e., regulate) perceived market failures in credit markets. Although government-sponsored enterprises like Fannie Mae were responsible for many of the bad loans that created the crisis, politicians alleged it was the free market and payday lending that needed to be reined in. The 2011 Dodd-Frank Act increased regulators' responsibilities, and even gave rise to a new agency ? the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. As the first appointee of the agency's "Consumer Advisory Board," Elizabeth Warren became known as a savior of sorts for victims of so-called "predatory lending." But do these laws, bureaus, and advisory boards protect or harm consumers? In this episode, Bob's guest is George Mason University Law School professor Todd Zywicki, one of Warren's most knowledgeable and outspoken critics. Zywicki and his co-authors recently finished a detailed study on this topic, "Consumer Credit and the American Econom

Every year, Americans rightly honor civil rights icons who stood up for the principle of equality enshrined in our founding documents. Few are aware, though, of the ties between the civil rights tradition and the principles of classical liberalism. In Race and Liberty in America: The Essential Reader, Jonathan Bean has compiled an anthology of primary documents by both well-known leaders like Frederick Douglass and unsung heroes like individualist and abolitionist Lysander Spooner, Brooklyn Dodgers manager Branch Rickey, and others who helped strip government of the ability to discriminate on the basis of race. ?Classical liberalism,? writes Bean, a scholar at the Independent Institute and this Sunday?s guest, ?is a philosophy of individualism; its history is peopled by a mix of iconoclasts, contrarians, lone dissenters, courageous rebels, and powerful political leaders.? Tune in to learn from Bean how classical liberal ideas motivated these key figures in the struggle for civil rights. He and Bob will also d

Back in April, Bob interviewed Ed Hudgins about The Republican Party?s Civil War, in which Hudgins urged Republicans to emphasize the value of ?modernist achievers??those who disrupt status quo industries and demonstrate what free individuals can accomplish. Derek Khanna is one of the youngest yet most influential thinkers leading the charge on the innovation front in Washington D.C. Khanna regularly writes on disruptive innovation for Forbes.com, and recently had his article, "The Party of Innovation," featured on the cover of The American Conservative magazine. The piece advocated for common sense free-market reform in technology policy, and in the broader conservative movement. If his ideas are any indication of a trend, there may still be hope for Republicans to become known as the party of dynamism and innovation. Bob and Khanna talked about obstacles to forming new small businesses, and Khanna explained some recent reforms that may foreshadow more sweeping victories down the road.

Double-entry bookkeeping doesn't exactly have a reputation for excitement. Indeed, who among us spends weekends and evenings painstakingly tallying our assets against our liabilities when there are so many delightful distractions around? Jacob Soll, a historian and accounting professor at the University of Southern California, thinks accounting needs a makeover, if not a renaissance. Soll has demolished the boring accountant stereotype with his new book, "The Reckoning: Financial Accountability and the Rise and Fall of Nations." Soll's research takes us behind the scenes to reveal the ways that bookkeeping practices have shaped and been shaped by different cultures during critical historical periods. Find out whether modern governments and financial institutions can survive in a society that neglects the task of "keeping the books balanced." Or, are we prone to yet more financial crises?or worse, a moral reckoning with our debts?

For decades, the North Korean regime has kept its oppressive rule hidden from the rest of the world. But slowly, the truth has been emerging. Defectors like Yeonmi Park?who left the country in 2007 at the age of 15?have lived to tell the stories about their escape, and of the changing political landscape they left behind. Yet in spite of the continuing famines and desperate poverty, there are rays of hope, as markets slowly work their way into the North Korean social fabric. Bob speaks with Yeonmi Park about her previous way of life as one of the rising "black market generation" that is finally experiencing the power of spontaneous voluntary cooperation. Can the trend toward freer markets and trade be stopped now that it has a foothold? Or will North Korea's isolationist "juche" ideology hold fast against the rest of the world? You won?t want to miss this inside look into a country that appears to be slowly coming out of the shadows.

Alice Goffman is no Ivory Tower academic. The author of a harrowing new field study, On the Run: Fugitive Life in an American City, Goffman spent the better part of a decade immersing herself in a crime-ridden neighborhood in Philadelphia. Once established, she began to study people?s lives in light of certain trends in law enforcement that are shattering communities with deep existing fractures. New quotas for certain kinds of arrests, combined with increasingly efficient methods of policing the drug war, have set the stage for a real-life drama that rivals Shakespeare's darkest tragedies. While this struggle unfolds outside the view of most Americans, the conflicts and social ills being amplified by the modern criminal justice system should be of concern to everyone. Family members are turned against one another; children view arrest and detention as a rite of passage; and market forces show up in strange places as entrepreneurial energy is channeled into running from the law. Bob gets the inside scoop

Though some use it disparagingly, the label of ?Bleeding Heart? is worn by others as a badge of honor. This apparent contradiction only starts to make sense when you contrast the frequently damaging results of government policy motivated by the undeniably noble sentiment behind caring for the poor. Matt Zwolinski, Professor of Philosophy at University of San Diego, is out to reframe the debate through what he calls Bleeding Heart Libertarianism. On this show, you?ll find out what this means and how it applies to recurring policy debates about welfare and more. In a nutshell, Zwolinski and his co-bloggers at BleedingHeartLibertarians.com seek to validate the concepts of social justice and responsibility to the poor within the framework of free-market advocacy. Can the union of these ideas translate into a viable political agenda? Later, Bob looks at President Obama?s expansion of executive power, with the release of five Taliban prisoners in exchange for U.S. solider Bowe Bergdahl. Bob

In most sectors of the economy, regulation is an inevitable hurdle to doing business. Certain Internet-based businesses, however, have been left alone for long enough to flourish in the hands of enterprising individuals. Jim Epstein is a producer at Reason TV who has been tracking the emergence of the so-called ?sharing economy."  Epstein joins Bob to discuss, among other things, his new video series telling the stories of people whose personal businesses are thriving with the help of new peer-to-peer information technology. Tech companies like Uber, Lyft, and Airbnb are facilitating leaps and bounds in private value creation. Regulators are having a hard time catching up. Epstein notes that even progressives are finding reasons to oppose regulation in this burgeoning field. Could this be the beginning of a  liberal/libertarian alliance? Either way, don?t expect regulators to sit on the sidelines for long!Elsewhere, in the food industry, regulation is nothing new ? but some

Bob is joined by former San Francisco mayor Art Agnos. Mayor Agnos is a progressive to the core, and a sincere advocate for the middle class. He makes a passionate case for rent control, and subsidized, affordable housing for lower and middle-class residents of urban areas (especially, of course, San Francisco). Mayor Agnos truly speaks from the heart, as well as the mind, making it difficult for Bob to rebut his distinctly non-libertarian views, although he tries. Of particular interest is Mayor Agnos? successful battle against the Golden State Warriors? attempted land grab on the San Francisco waterfront. You?ll learn how professional sports franchises often function as little more than mall developers in disguise.In the last half hour Bob addresses the issue of endangered species with investigative reporter Tawanda Kanhema of the Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. Kanhema has been documenting the fight to save the black rhinoceros ? including efforts to crack down on ivory sales ? on rhino-er.org. Bob

During the Constitution?s ratification process from September 1787 through mid-1788, each and every federalist (the supporters of ratification) promised America a federal government of limited (i.e. ?enumerated?) powers. For about 120 years we were provided with maximum freedom to pursue our lives as we see fit. Promise kept. Then what happened?The America we live in today is by no means the America that we were supposed to have. Were we given a flawed Constitution? One that mandated an all-controlling, all-seeing, liberty-denying Big Brother that was determined to make all of our personal decisions for us? Clark M. Neily III knows how we got from the government we were promised to the government we now have and he explains it in Terms of Engagement; How Our Courts Should Enforce the Constitution?s Promise of Limited Government. Clark joined Bob to discuss all this and more. You need to know how we got in this mess in order to know how to get out. A must-hear show.

Marc Levinson?s book ?The Great A&P and the Struggle for Small Business in America? has it all: rugged capitalism, crony capitalism, big time rent seekers using political power to kill competition, and the defense of the ?little guy? against the feared chain stores. It also outlines the destruction of the free market by the New Deal, gives details of the precursor to Walmart (Sam Walton did not invent the business model) and exemplifies some very nasty politics. A history of this iconic brand is a history of American business from the middle of the nineteenth century through the middle of the twentieth century. In this Sunday?s encore episode, Marc joins Bob to put the attack on free enterprise in a fascinating historical perspective. The mistakes of history keep on repeating themselves and resilient businesses overcome these obstacles. This topic, this book, is simply great stuff. You?ll love it.