Cato Event Podcast

Socialism has failed every time it has been tried, yet it still appeals to parts of the American public that have little or no experience with it. Irreverent but honest economists Robert Lawson and Benjamin Powell will describe what they saw when they visited real-life examples of socialism in Cuba, North Korea, and Venezuela and other countries that are living with the socialist legacy. Using anecdotes and informed by scholarship, they will explain why socialism is often catastrophic, why Sweden is not an example of socialism, and why many of the claims of socialist politicians in America are so wrong-headed. Matt Kibbe will describe how young Americans’ views on socialism have evolved in recent years. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Six months after Nicolás Maduro was declared a “usurper” by Venezuela’s National Assembly and Juan Guaidó was sworn in as interim president, political gridlock has set in. The ongoing talks in Barbados between the regime and representatives of the democratic forces do not hold the promise of a swift solution to the crisis engulfing Venezuela. Luis Almagro, secretary general of the Organization of American States, will describe what’s at stake and discuss international efforts that can be made to put pressure on Maduro’s regime. María Corina Machado, former member of the National Assembly and prominent leader of the opposition, will assess the process of restoring democracy so far and offer a strategic vision. Pedro Urruchurtu will briefly explain how Venezuela got to this point. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since the 2016 election, college campuses have erupted in violent protests and demands for safe spaces and the silencing of views that activist groups find disagreeable. Who are the leaders behind these protests, and what do they want? In Panic Attack, libertarian journalist Robby Soave answers these questions by profiling young radicals from across the political spectrum.Soave documents a multitude of competing post-liberal political views among the young, from the Democratic Socialists of America to Turning Point USA. He explicates the ideologies and social conditions that have fostered these nascent movements, paying special attention to the identarian concerns that often animate Generation Z activists. Although these budding radicals are politically inexperienced and often poorly organized, they have already redrawn the lines of political debate around speech and censorship, and their break from the strictures of postwar party politics has the potential to permanently reshape America’s political landscape. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The ancient Greeks believed that the mythical Gorgon could turn those who stared at it to stone. The Pentagon’s surveillance technology named after this creature, Gorgon Stare, has used its aerial near-panopticon surveillance capabilities to turn Salafist insurgents into targets. But should such a powerful, virtually all-seeing aerial spying system be allowed to operate over American communities? Arthur Holland Michel, Deputy Director of the Center for the Study of the Drone, tackles this question in his new book, Eyes in the Sky: The Secret Rise of Gorgon Stare and How It Will Watch Us All. Join us on June 25 at 1:00 p.m. as an expert panel talks with Michel about his book and about Gorgon Stare’s implications for the constitutional rights of Americans. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For many Americans, the distinction between military policy and domestic law enforcement is clear: the U.S. military is deployed abroad and tasked with defense of vital national interests, while at home police officers protect life, liberty, and property by investigating and deterring crimes. But as Christopher Coyne and Abigail Hall explain in their book Tyranny Comes Home: The Domestic Fate of U.S. Militarism, years of policy decisions at home and abroad have eroded this distinction.Military equipment and tactics often find their way to police departments thanks to what Coyne and Hall call the “boomerang effect,” which can result in needlessly aggressive policing and violations of civil liberties. What are the origins of the boomerang effect? Can police militarization be reversed? Does modern policing require military-grade surveillance equipment? Join us for a book forum featuring Coyne and Hall, who tackle these and other pressing questions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Congress reformed America’s legal immigration system nearly three decades ago. Since that time, the system’s outdated and arbitrary immigration quotas have doubled wait times for green cards for legal immigrants. At the border, a new challenge has emerged in the form of illegal immigration and asylum seekers from Central America. Wide bipartisan agreement exists that both temporary and permanent immigration policies need to be reformed, yet Congress and the administration have failed to settle on the best approach. As the debate continues in Congress, join us as our speakers explain the problems with and solutions for America’s legal immigration system. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.