The Reason Roundtable

Is Economic Anxiety Driving People to Socialism?

28 snips
Dec 2, 2025
This discussion dives into why Americans feel poorer despite economic growth, highlighting the effects of bad governance and political risk. The group critiques a controversial claim about poverty levels and examines how tariffs and regulations drive costs up. They analyze rising support for socialism among young voters, fueled by economic anxiety. The conversation also touches on potential war crimes related to military strikes and the implications of a new federal hemp ban on the industry. Discussions about ICE actions raise concerns over constitutional protections.
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INSIGHT

Wealth And Anxiety Can Coexist

  • Americans can feel wealthy now yet anxious about an unstable future because political risk undermines economic expectations.
  • Katherine Mangu‑Ward argues government actors and policy distortions in healthcare and education create that instability.
INSIGHT

Elite Anxiety Drives Viral Poverty Narratives

  • Material measures show people are better off than decades past, even the poor.
  • Nick Gillespie says the essay claiming a $140,000 poverty line struck a chord because elites fear downward mobility and volatility.
ADVICE

Make Affordability The Political Goal

  • Undo policies that raise prices like tariffs, needless regulations, and wasteful spending to lower living costs.
  • Matt Welch suggests a political constituency should form around policies that make things cheaper.
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