Does Italy have any way out of its current box high levels of zero per capita income growth for now what 18 years? Doesn't it all have to end badly? Or is there a magic escape? It's a really good question. The interesting question I think is to what extent is the Chinese states kind of like Italy writ large? So you can see the same kinds of problems with this massive bloated state sector in China. But I really don't know enough to say I'm not being there.
The one concept most valuable for understanding the news today might be Henry Farrell’s theory of weaponized interdependence. Whether it’s China’s influence over the NBA, the US ban of Huawei, or whether social media should be regulated on a global scale, Henry Farrell has played a key role articulating how global economic networks can enable state coercion.
Tyler and Henry discuss these issues and more, including what a big tech breakup would mean for security and privacy, why political economics suggests Facebook’s Oversight Board won’t work, what Italy might reveal about China’s future, his family connection to Joyce, his undying affection for My Bloody Valentine, why Philip K. Dick would have reveled in QAnon, why Twitter seems left-wing, and being a first generation academic blogger.
Read a full transcript enhanced with helpful links.
Recorded October 7th, 2019 Other ways to connect