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Words & Numbers

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Words & Numbers
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  • Words & Numbers

    Episode 524: The Ratchet Effect

    17/09/2026 | 57 mins.
    Ant and James dissect the constant involvement of government in "emergencies," which seem to happen once a decade. For some reason.

    0:00 Introduction and Episode Preview
    0:50 The Ig Nobel Prize: Are Rich People More Selfish?
    5:13 Rising Oil Prices and the Real Cost of Policy Decisions
    7:20 Trump’s $5,000 Checks and the Inflation Problem
    10:22 The Lindsay Clancy Trial and a Bizarre Jury Split
    12:22 Foolishness of the Week: A Five-Year-Old, a Pond, and CPS
    15:32 Foolishness of the Week: Punished for Stopping a Mass Shooter
    18:17 The Affordability Crisis and Government Intervention
    19:58 The Ratchet Effect: Why Government Power Never Shrinks
    21:15 From the Great Depression to COVID: A Century of Expanding Government
    24:14 The 2030s: Social Security and the Coming Wealth Tax
    25:50 The 2040s: The Debt Crisis and a Digital Dollar
    32:27 The 2050s: Population Decline and Universal Basic Income
    34:11 How Temporary Government Powers Become Permanent
    35:27 Socialism, the Berlin Wall, and North vs. South Korea
    40:11 Social Security Insolvency and America’s Growing Debt
    42:11 Property Taxes, Ownership, and the Erosion of Economic Freedom
    47:01 How Young People Can Prepare for Social Security’s Future
    50:21 Retirement Savings and the Coming AI Bubble
    54:32 AI Regulation, Government Protection, and the Ratchet Effect
  • Words & Numbers

    Episode 523: It’s Always 9/11

    10/09/2026 | 54 mins.
    Ant and James reflect on 9/11, both the day and its legacy.

    0:00 Introduction and Episode Preview
    0:24 Citizens United, Super PACs, and Money in Politics
    6:48 Corporate Donations, Trump, and Political Influence
    10:50 AI Is Putting an Entire Industry Out of Business
    13:56 AI, College Cheating, and the Future of Education
    17:28 Foolishness of the Week: Trump Threatens to Halt Trade
    20:48 Why Trade Deficits Aren’t What Politicians Think
    22:24 25 Years Later: Remembering 9/11
    25:25 Where We Were When the Attacks Happened
    29:03 How 9/11 Changed America Overnight
    31:39 Fear, Terrorism, and the Wars That Followed 9/11
    34:22 How 9/11 Changed the Nature of War
    35:17 The War on Terror and America’s “Wars on Nouns”
    42:28 TSA, Security Theater, and the Post-9/11 Surveillance State
    44:30 The Militarization of American Law Enforcement
    46:06 Did Americans Trade Freedom for Security?
    48:31 Fear, Crime, and the Lasting Legacy of 9/11
    50:32 Closing Thoughts: Have Some Charity in Your Heart
  • Words & Numbers

    Episode 522: Disinteresting Rates

    03/09/2026 | 53 mins.
    What's the deal with bonds and interest rates? Find out on Words & Numbers, where we will use both words and numbers to get to the bottom of things.

    0:00 Introduction and Episode Preview
    0:42 Free Speech and the First Amendment
    7:45 Rutgers Dean Caught Recording Students
    09:55 Renaming the Great Lakes “Lake America”
    11:41 Foolishness of the Week: George Santos Gets Banned From Kalshi
    14:27 Is the Government Running Out of Places to Borrow?
    20:24 Why Treasury Investors Are Demanding Higher Returns
    22:10 The Federal Debt and the Interest Rate Spiral
    24:06 Can the Government Tax Its Way Out of the Deficit?
    26:24 Will the Government Eventually Monetize the Debt?
    27:43 The Federal Reserve vs. the Treasury
    33:05 Scott Bessent’s Plan to Push Interest Rates Down
    36:42 Is the Treasury Gambling on Short-Term Debt?
    41:37 Is the Treasury Trying to Conduct Monetary Policy?
    44:38 Are We Seeing the Beginning of a U.S. Debt Crisis?
    49:03 Can Social Security Force Congress to Confront the Debt?
    51:35 Closing Thoughts: Find an Excuse to Be Nice
  • Words & Numbers

    Episode 521: A Priest Walks Into a Podcast

    27/08/2026 | 1h 2 mins.
    A priest shows up. Antony doesn’t confess, James doesn’t convert, but they all talk about human dignity.

    Checkout Fr. James Martin, SJ 's book, 'Work in Progress.'
    https://www.amazon.com/dp/0062694480

    0:00 Introduction and Overview
    0:29 The Ultimate Quiet Quitting Story
    4:32 Scott Bessent’s $950 Billion Bond Buyback Plan
    8:05 Is the Treasury Conducting Its Own Monetary Policy?
    12:14 Foolishness of the Week: American Airlines Does It Again
    16:57 Father James Martin on Pope Leo, AI, and Human Dignity
    20:50 What Happens When AI Meets Humanlike Robots?
    22:48 AI, Loneliness, and Replacing Human Relationships
    24:57 Can Free Markets Serve the Common Good?
    29:22 Property Rights, Poverty, and the Role of the Church
    34:53 Who Gets to Define the “Common Good”?
    36:17 Subsidiarity, Data Centers, and Local Decision-Making
    41:18 Human Rights vs. Human Flourishing
    43:38 Wealth, Profit, and the Morality of Capitalism
    48:00 What Did Jesus Mean by “The Poor Will Always Be With You”?
    51:22 Individual Charity vs. Community Responsibility
    55:15 Social Media, Human Dignity, and the Loss of Community
    1:00:09 Father James Martin’s Work in Progress
  • Words & Numbers

    Episode 520: The Death of Data

    20/08/2026 | 47 mins.
    When government statistics are under question, it gets pretty hard to know what the hell is actually going on.

    00:00 Introduction and Episode Preview
    00:32 Civil Disobedience, Crime, and Flock Cameras
    06:17 License Plate Tracking and the Surveillance State
    10:52 Rising Treasury Yields and Federal Borrowing
    12:20 Surge Pricing, Markets, and Government Intervention
    15:48 Monopolies, Standard Oil, and De Beers
    20:01 Foolishness of the Week: Trump Tariffs on Brass Instruments
    24:02 The Death of Reliable Government Data
    27:00 Why Politicizing Economic Data Matters
    30:21 Immigration Data, Jobs, and the Economy
    33:01 Immigration and Social Security
    36:39 Migrant Workers, Business Planning, and Regulation
    41:39 Why Reliable Data Keeps Prices Lower
    44:06 Final Thoughts on Kindness and Grace
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About 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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