Words & Numbers

Rumors have been circulating recently that the Trump Administration is considering including drug dealing among those crimes that can be subject to capital punishment. That's just a nice way of saying "the death penalty." In an effort to signal to his supporters that he's "tough on crime" and serious about the opioid crisis, President Trump has indicated his positive view of the death penalty for drug offenses in countries like Singapore and the Philipines. But what is the current status of the death penalty in the United States today? How has the Supreme Court ruled on the death penalty in the past? And isn't this a legislative issue, anyway? Join James Harrigan and Antony Davies as they discuss this and more on this week's episode of Words and Numbers.   Quick hits Altruistic business https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/new-jersey-businessman-drops-fees-for-shivering-neighbors/  Falling space junk http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5486985/Lower-Michigan-crash-site-falling-Chinese-space-station.html  https://www.npr.org/2011/09/21/140641362/where-falling-satellite-lands-is-anyones-guess  Foolishness of the week https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/scientology-appears-poised-launch-tv-network-1093640  Topic of the week: Capital punishment https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/maps-and-graphics/countries-that-still-have-the-death-penalty/  https://www.cnn.com/2013/07/19/us/death-penalty-fast-facts/index.html  https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/02/world/asia/philippines-drug-war.html  http://news.gallup.com/poll/1606/death-penalty.aspx  http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/09/29/support-for-death-penalty-lowest-in-more-than-four-decades/  https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/death-penalty-international-perspective    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Last week, President Trump announced his intention to place tariffs on steel and aluminum. Unfortunately for the president—and everyone else, should these tariffs be imposed—more than a century of economic data make it very clear that tariffs are a net negative for the economy. But what are tariffs, anyway? Why are they so awful? And, if they are, why does any country impose them? Join Antony Davies and James Harrigan as they talk about this and more on this week's episode of Words and Numbers.   Quick Hits   United replaces bonuses with lotteries https://www.bizjournals.com/chicago/news/2018/03/02/united-airlines-replaces-bonuses-with-lottery.html   China bans things https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/01/asia/china-letter-ban-trnd/index.html https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/5701287/china-xi-jinping-president-winnie-the-pooh-banned/ http://www.latimes.com/world/asia/la-fg-china-reincarnation-law-20160307-story.html Foolishness of the Week http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/bs-md-ci-children-soda-bill-20180213-story.html  Topic of the Week: Trade and Tariffs http://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2018/03/that-was-then-this-is-now-13.html http://money.cnn.com/2017/01/23/news/economy/trump-tariff-power/index.html http://www.walkerd.people.cofc.edu/Readings/Trade/iowacarcrop.pdf http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=61826 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_largest_trading_partners_of_the_United_States https://japantoday.com/category/business/toyota-us-tariffs-will-'substantially'-increase-car-prices http://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2018/03/that-was-then-this-is-now-13.html     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After the horrific school shooting in Parkland, FL, on February 14th, the "debate" about gun control has reignited in the US. Pundits on both sides of the issue are over-generalizing, taking assumptions to the extreme, and generally talking past each other. But one thing that remains constant is persistent cry for "common sense" gun regulations. What constitutes "common sense" varies from person to person, but they all involve the restriction or outright ban on certain types or styles of firearms. If the War on Drugs taught us anything, it's that prohibition doesn't work, but at the same time, any number of school shootings is too many. So if bans aren't a good option, what might be? Join James Harrigan and Antony Davies as they talk about this and more on this week's episode of Words and Numbers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the last two and a half generations, the number of students who go on to attend college, as a percentage of the population, has tripled. In 1959, about 20 percent of high school students went on to college. Since relatively few people were earning degrees, having one all but guaranteed getting a good, high-paying job. As a result, parents, high schools, and colleges began encouraging more and more high school students to go to college. Today, about 60 percent of high school students go on to college. But has the big push to get kids into college done anything to improve outcomes? Is the average $250,000 investment in a four-year degree at all worth it? If not, what alternatives exist? Join Antony Davies and James Harrigan as they talk about this and more on this week's episode of Words and Numbers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Regulatory capture is a problem in this country. It happens pretty easily. Politicians can't be experts in everything, so they turn to actual experts for help with regulating various industries. The experts tend to be those who have already enjoy some measure of success in their field. The regulatory suggestions that these experts give politicians tend to make life easier for the already-established experts and harder for those competing with them. This kind of thing happens all too often and leads to gross regulatory overreach, such as Uber working to ban private ownership of self-driving cars. How do we prevent this or, at the very least, strike it down after the fact? Join James Harrigan, Antony Davies, and special guest Robert McNamara from the Institute for Justice as they discuss this and more on this week's episode of Words and Numbers. Quick hits http://triblive.com/news/education/career/13275149-74/carlow-university-launches-micro-masters-program  https://micromasters.mit.edu/  https://www.edx.org/micromasters  Foolishness of the week http://reason.com/blog/2018/02/08/jeff-sessions-advice-to-pain-patients-ta  Topic of the week: Occupational licensing and regulatory capture http://ij.org/staff/robert-mcnamara/  https://cei.org/blog/uber-wants-make-it-illegal-operate-your-own-self-driving-car-cities  https://repository.law.umich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2720&context=articles    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The fact that the United States' yearly deficit spending is set to soon top $1 trillion — an amount that is itself larger than most governments' entire operating budget — might be an indicator that the federal government has gotten too large. No matter which party is in power, the federal government and its attendant spending never really ceases to grow. We're taught in school a rose-colored tale of selfless public servants righteously chosen by solemn, considering voters to go to Washington to diligently represent their constituency's best interests. But is it true? Join James Harrigan and Antony Davies as they talk about this and more on this week's episode of Words and Numbers. Quick hits Federal deficit to top $1 trillion http://reason.com/archives/2018/01/04/trillion-dollar-deficit-deja-vu The DNC is broke http://theweek.com/speedreads/752743/dnc-reportedly-dead-broke-rnc-nearly-40-million Foolishness of the Week http://reason.com/blog/2018/02/02/inside-the-insane-battle-over-arizonas-d Topic of the week: The Security State and the Therapeutic State https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/whitehouse.gov/files/omb/budget/fy2018/hist03z2.xls https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CPIAUCSL https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/POP       Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Immigration is, as happens fairly routinely, an important topic in the national conversation these days. It's generally well-accepted that the United States is "a nation of immigrants," and yet there remains a stubborn skepticism about new immigrants. These concerns generally branch into two broad categories: economic concerns and social concerns. Economically, citizens seem to think that immigrants are "taking our jobs" or "a drain on the system." Socially, citizens are of the belief that immigrants are "undermining American culture." But are any of these concerns warranted? Join James Harrigan and Antony Davies as they discuss this and more on this week's episode of Words and Numbers. Quick Hits: Denver hires homeless people https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/denver-hired-homeless-people-perform-day-labor-city-100-landed-regular-jobs/  Koch donating $400 million to candidates https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/27/politics/koch-republican-election-candidates-donate/index.html  https://nrf.com/resources/consumer-research-and-data/holiday-spending/halloween-headquarters  https://www.cnbc.com/2017/07/04/fourth-of-july-spending-by-the-numbers.html  https://www.opensecrets.org/overview/topindivs.php  Foolishness of the week https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/01/24/580228837/a-dozen-camels-disqualified-from-saudi-beauty-pageant-over-botox-injections  Topic of the week https://www.migrationpolicy.org/programs/data-hub/charts/Annual-Number-of-US-Legal-Permanent-Residents  http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/04/27/5-facts-about-illegal-immigration-in-the-u-s/  http://www.pewhispanic.org/2016/11/03/size-of-u-s-unauthorized-immigrant-workforce-stable-after-the-great-recession/  http://www.businessinsider.com/major-us-companies-founded-by-immigrants-2017-2  http://startupsusa.org/fortune500/#appendix  http://money.cnn.com/2017/04/19/news/economy/undocumented-immigrant-taxes/index.html  https://itep.org/wp-content/uploads/immigration2016.pdf  https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/advocacy/United_States.pdf https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/advocacy/United_States.pdf https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2016/09/undocumented-immigrants-and-taxes/499604/  http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/commentary/despite-the-rancor-there-is-much-that-unites-americans-20171116.html    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Socialism is, whether we like it or not, in the national dialogue. And there are numerous people who claim to be socialists who, nevertheless, have a hard time defining what socialism actually is. Socialism, in it's purest form, indeed, has never been tried. But, by the same token, neither has undiluted capitalism. To understand which works better, we have to think about means and ends. Almost all of us want the same ends, but we disagree sharply as to the appropriate means. So how do we find the most efficient, most humane means? Join Antony Davies and James Harrigan as they talk about this and more on this week's episode of Words and Numbers. Quick hits Sweden could launch its own cryptocurrency http://www.businessinsider.com/sweden-cryptocurrency-e-krona-riksbank-2018-1  People believe that companies may five times more profit than they actually do http://www.aei.org/publication/the-public-thinks-the-average-company-makes-a-36-profit-margin-which-is-about-5x-too-high-part-ii/?utm_content=bufferaa12b&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer  https://taxfoundation.org/state-gasoline-tax-rates-2017/  http://gasprices.aaa.com/  http://fortune.com/2017/06/07/fortune-500-companies-profit-apple-berkshire-hathaway/ Topic of the Week: Socialism https://www.usnews.com/opinion/economic-intelligence/articles/2017-03-08/celebrate-american-womens-economic-freedom-on-international-womens-day www.wsj.com/articles/antony-davies-and-james-r-harrigan-for-gender-equality-you-cant-beat-capitalism-1425684094  https://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2016-09-19/we-need-to-find-the-right-mix-of-government-and-markets  http://www.antolin-davies.com/research/elp.pdf  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Attorney General Jeff Sessions sent the country into a tizzy not long ago when he declared that the federal government would start cracking down on state-legal marijuana. This is problematic, but it's a symptom of a larger problem. Article I, Section 8, of the US Constitution lists the things that the federal government may concern itself with. Marijuana — indeed, any drug — is not on that list. In fact, a great many things that the federal government concerns itself with are not on that list. So how did we get to the point of having federal laws and regulations about marijuana and a number of other things? We had to have a Constitutional amendment to ban alcohol, so why doesn't the government need one to ban marijuana? James Harrigan and Antony Davies discuss this and more on this week's episode of Words and Numbers. Quick hits Sarah Silverman https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/sarah-silverman-befriends-troll-insulted-pays-medical-treatment/  CT considers raising its excise tax on cigarettes. Again. http://www.courant.com/opinion/op-ed/hc-op-lafaive-ct-cigarette-tax-smuggling-0109-20180108-story.html  What will mass-market driverless cars look like? https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-01-12/gm-drops-the-steering-wheel-and-gives-the-robot-driver-control  Foolishness of the Week https://mobile.nytimes.com/2018/01/10/business/economy/irs-debt-collection.html    Topic of the Week: Federalism and Constitutional Amendments Federalism and marijuana http://reason.com/archives/2018/01/10/federalists-cant-support-a-cannabis-crac  Article One, Section 8 of the US Constitution https://www.usconstitution.net/xconst_A1Sec8.html  Wickard v. Filburn https://www.oyez.org/cases/1940-1955/317us111  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wickard_v._Filburn  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Despite its passage some time ago, recent attention has been brought to the impending implementation of a Washington, D.C., regulation that will require all professional childcare workers to have a college degree. This has raised a great hue and cry as it will ban a number of existing childcare workers from their chosen profession as well as having the effect of dramatically increasing the cost of childcare in the District — which is, incidentally, already incredibly high when compared to the rest of the country. Unintended consequences happen all the time in everyday life, but when legislators and regulators act, the consequences are on a much larger scale. Unintended consequences abound in pretty much every aspect of regulated life to various degrees. Join Antony Davies and James Harrigan as they talk about this and more on this week's episode of Words and Numbers. Quick Hits  Man cited for sheltering the homeless (David Wilson) https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/elgin-greg-schiller-slumber-parties-homeless-cold-467714563.html  Philip Morris getting out of the cigarette business? https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2018/01/03/philip-morris-marlboro-wants-give-up-cigarettes-go-smoke-free/1001442001/  Foolishness of the Week  President Trump, apparently not interested in Steve Bannon’s criticism, seeks to block the release “Sloppy Steve’s” book. http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-book-20180104-story.html   https://www.mediaite.com/online/trump-rage-tweets-about-wolff-and-sloppy-steve-bannon-phony-book-is-full-of-lies/  Topic of the Week: Unintended Consequences  Gun buyback https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/ae0c/469a9f5d95dd2fc8112bcdadb614183aa520.pdf  Seat belt laws http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/260352  Payday lending https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970203806504577183240533438580  Fishing quotas https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12098697  CEO pay https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB116062249630690247  Three strikes law http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0887403405277001  Bounty on cobras http://freakonomics.com/podcast/the-cobra-effect-a-new-freakonomics-radio-podcast/  Mexico city air pollution http://faculty.haas.berkeley.edu/ldavis/Davis%20JPE%202008.pdf  California fuel economy mandates https://web.stanford.edu/~goulder/Papers/Published%20Papers/Unintended%20Consequences%20(Pavley%20Paper)%20-%20JEEM%20March%202012.pdf  Americans with Disabilities Act https://economics.mit.edu/files/273  Electrician licensing requirements https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF01044518  Red-light cameras http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/03/AR2005100301844.html  Cash for clunkers http://www.nber.org/papers/w16351  Venezuela https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/venezuelas-paradox-people-are-hungry-but-farmers-cant-feed-them/2017/05/21/ce460726-3987-11e7-a59b-26e0451a96fd_story.html?utm_term=.32c5dd1398b0 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices