The Great Antidote

Send us a textWhat is it like to grow up under a dictatorship? The speakers of The Dissident Project don’t have to wonder — they’ve lived it. And they’ve escaped.In this episode, Grace Bydalek joins us this week to discuss her work with The Dissident Project, which brings survivors of authoritarian regimes into American high schools to share their powerful, firsthand stories. From Cuba and Venezuela to Russia and beyond, these voices bring the reality of life without freedom into the classroom.We talk about why these stories matter — especially for students who may never have questioned their own liberties. Why high schoolers? Why now? And does this kind of civic education actually make a difference?Join us for a moving and timely conversation about freedom, resilience, and the importance of living for something larger than yourself.Grace Bydalek is the Director of The Dissident Project, an initiative of the nonprofit Young Voices dedicated to educating American students about the dangers of authoritarianism. She is also a visiting fellow at the Independent Women’s Forum, a ministry apprentice at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, and is currently pursuing a master’s in theology. Oh — and she’s also an actor.Want to explore more?Daniel DiMartino on Life in Venezuela and Immigration, a Great Antidote podcast.Arthur Brooks on Love Your Enemy, an EconTalk podcast.Bryan Caplan, Communism, in the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics.Support the showNever miss another AdamSmithWorks update.Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Send us a textRyan Streeter is the executive director of the Civitas Institute at the University of Texas at Austin. Today, he tells us about his time in the intersection of think tanks, government, and academic communities. We talk about cities, the importance of mobility and growth, how to foster those characteristics, skepticism of government, and living in and creating a community that fosters social cohesion and critical thinking. Want to explore more?Alain Bertaud on Urban Planning and Cities, a Great Antidote podcast.Raj Chetty on Economic Mobility, an EconTalk podcast.Scott Winship on Poverty and Welfare, a Great Antidote podcast.Charles Murray on Dignity and the American Dream, a Future of Liberty podcast.Jeremy Horpedahl, Americans are Still Thriving, at Econlib.Support the showNever miss another AdamSmithWorks update.Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Send us a textWe’ve talked about objectivism before on the podcast, but that was fairly introductory. Today, for the first time ever, I host two guests on the podcast to discuss the limitations of objectivism and where it fails to depict the good life. We talk about how they got interested in Rand’s thought, how they philosophically dealt with works that were mostly fiction, and where their philosophy, individualistic perfectionism, diverges from Rand’s and fills in some important blanks. Den Uyl is a resident scholar at Liberty Fund, and Rasmussen is a professor emeritus in philosophy at St. John’s University and senior affiliated scholar at the Center for Economic Inquiry at Creighton University. Together, they have written extensively on the subject, including editing a collection called The Philosophic Thought of Ayn Rand. They’ve written a lot on the topic at the Journal for Ayn Rand Studies. Den Uyl has a book on the subject, titled The Fountainhead: An American Novel.Want to explore more?Jennifer Burns on Ayn Rand and the Goddess of the Market, an EconTalk podcast.Timothy Sandefur on Freedom's Furies, a Great Antidote podcast.Caroline Breashears, Adam Smith, Ayn Rand, and the Power of Stories, at Econlib.Craig Biddle on Philosophy and Objectivism, a Great Antidote podcast.Dianne Durante on Innovations in Sculpture, a Great Antidote podcast.Support the showNever miss another AdamSmithWorks update.Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Send us a textJoin us today for a fun conversation about all things government, UK and US, with Lord Daniel Hannan of Kingsclere! Lord Hannan is a member of the House of Lords. Today, we talk about how the U.K.’s legislative is structured, what is up with executive power, the importance of the West and cohesion on the freedom front, and the idiocy of tariffs. Want to explore more?Yuval Levin on Burke, Paine, and the Great Debate, an EconTalk podcast.Phillip Klein on Fight Club Conservatives versus Disney, a Great Antidote podcast.Robert Higgs, Government Growth, in the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics.Troy Senik on Grover Cleveland, a Great Antidote podcast.Is There a Role for Monarchy in a Free Society? A Liberty Matters forum at the Online Library of Liberty.Support the showNever miss another AdamSmithWorks update.Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Send us a textBob Ewing is the founder of the Ewing School and hosts a Substack called Talking Big Ideas (go check it out). He has also gifted me most of the great books that I’ve read. Today, we talk about how he got started and how many of the great lessons in life are learned. We talk about counter-intuitive ideas, how to find the answers to them, and how to effectively communicate them. He talks to us about kettle bells and quotes (almost) every great author under the sun. Support the showNever miss another AdamSmithWorks update.Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Send us a textWe talk a lot about civil society and the importance of local, communal networks which hold us up when we’re down and inspire us to be good, striving members of society. But what does that actually look like? How do civil institutions get built, and what does it take? Today, I’m excited to welcome Rachel Ferguson to the podcast. She is the director of the Free Enterprise Center at Concordia University in Chicago and an affiliate scholar at the Acton Institute. She is the president of the board at Love the Lou, a neighborhood stabilization project which we are talking about today. Join us for an honest and inspiring conversation about why civil society matters, how it is built, what threatens it, and what the implications of civil society (or the lack thereof) are on the ground. How do institutions we speak of conceptually actually change people’s lives, in real and concrete ways? Tune in to find out. Want to explore more?Megan McArdle on Failure, Success, and the Up Side of Down, an EconTalk podcast.Arnold Kling, The Role of "We" versus the Role of "I," at Econlib.Anna Claire Flowers on F.A. Hayek and Social Structure, a Great Antidote podcast.Aviral Chawya. Social Cohesion and Economic Prosperity, at AdamSmithWorks.Anthony Gill on Religion, an EconTalk podcast.Support the showNever miss another AdamSmithWorks update.Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Send us a textJo Jensen is the founder of MovieGoer and she’s currently the SVP of Digital and Entertainment Strategy at Touchdown Strategies, a PR firm. and is an Aspen Institute Civil Society Fellow. Since all fellows have ventures over there, she’s currently writing a book called “America Has a Girlfriend Problem.” Today, we talk about the anxiety of my generation and how to unplug, attempting to grow comfortable with discomfort. We talk about how things have changed and how we can become more active, willing to take leaps that will either succeed or teach us fundamentally important lessons.  We also talk about her work with growing audiences and relationships. The first step is always caring about others and seeing their potential. Then we move on to talk about America’s Girlfriend Problem, addressing the issues which disproportionately affect single women in America today. Support the showNever miss another AdamSmithWorks update.Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Send us a textWhat is Universal Basic Income (UBI) and why is it so popular among economists and freedom lovers relative to other types of poverty policy solutions? What does it even mean to “solve a problem” or to “learn” in the social sciences?  Join us today to explore the answers to these two questions and many more. Today, I am excited to welcome on Peter Van Doren to talk about the history of poverty policy and policy debates and the reality about universal basic income. We talk about some pretty conclusive economic studies which highlight the effect of UBI type policies and what to make of them!  Peter Van Doren is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute and the editor of Regulation, a quarterly magazine about applied microeconomics and economic policy issues.Want to explore more?Michael Munger on the Basic Income Guarantee, an EconTalk podcast.Thomas Koenig, Adam Smith, Francis Fukuyama, and the Indignity of the UBI, at Speaking of Smith.Bruce Meyer on Poverty, an EconTalk podcast.Scott Winship on Poverty and Welfare, a Great Antidote podcast.Clark Nardinelli, Industrial Revolution and the Standard of Living, in the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics.Jeremy Horpedahl on the Real Cost of Thriving Index, a Great Antidote Podcast.Support the showNever miss another AdamSmithWorks update.Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Send us a textWelcome back. Continuing our ongoing exploration of what it means to be an individual living in a liberal society, today I am happy to host Charlotte Thomas to talk to us about what it means to learn and the importance of the liberal arts.  Join us to find out what it truly means to be “educated” and how to do it. A mix of personal, inspirational, and relatable, Professor Thomas brings her knowledge of teaching in the classroom into our conversation. Of course, rather than simply lecturing, teaching and learning in the liberal arts context means discussing, connecting, and questioning.  Charlotte Thomas is a professor of philosophy and Great Books at Mercer University. She also runs the Association for Core Texts and Courses. She is also the author of “The Female Drama: The Philosophical Feminine in the Soul of Plato’s Republic.” Support the showNever miss another AdamSmithWorks update.Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Send us a textThe most common statistic cited regarding marriage and relationships in the United States is that the 50% of all marriages end in divorce. Another one that is gaining traction is that more Americans than ever before will end up unmarried and alone. Nobody likes these statistics. How did we get from the 60s, hairdos and stay at home moms, to a 50% divorce rate and a high probability of dying alone? Should we care? How do we balance the benefits of modernity – women in the workplace, higher incomes, more interesting jobs – with the benefits of structured families, love, and children?  Today, UVA Professor Brad Wilcox is here to explain to us how we can have both: better economic status and better family life. After all, the highest indicator of long-term happiness, meaning, and satisfaction is close relationships. He is the director of The National Marriage Project and the author of Get Married: Why Americans Must Defy the Elites, Forge Strong Families, and Save Civilization. Want to explore more?Emily Oster on The Family Firm, an EconTalk podcast.Jessica Todd Parker on Beauty, Family, and Photography, an EconTalk podcast.Amy Willis, Could Too Much Division of Labor Be Bad? at Speaking of Smith.Erik Rostad, Friedrich Engels' The Origin of the Family, at Speaking of Smith.Patrick Fitzsimmons, Adam on Polygamy and Kin Networks, at AdamSmithWorks.Support the showNever miss another AdamSmithWorks update.Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.