Doing the Best I Can, Kathryn Edin & Timothy Nelson: I bought this on Bryan Caplan’s recommendation, and it doesn’t disappoint. He’s right that it’s absolutely engrossing: the authors do extensive interviews that give readers a look into the lives of unwed urban fathers. The cultural difference is particularly puzzling as the authors point to […]
Recent Reading e7
Robert Nelson, The New Holy Wars I reviewed this for The Freeman in 2011 and reread it for an IHS discussion colloquium at Samford recently. Nelson reads economics and environmentalism as theological systems, meaning that they involve sets of transcendent ordering principles. It aged well; especially the chapter on Frank Knight. Neil V. Sullivan, Bound […]
Recent Reading E8
Jesse Burkhead, Public School Finance: Economics and Politics (Syracuse, 1964). As part of an ongoing investigation of the claims in Nancy MacLean’s “Democracy in Chains,” I was led to the three editions of James M. Buchanan’s textbooks “The Public Finances.” Buchanan’s citations are sparse, but in the second edition (I think), he refers readers to […]
A Bit of Recent TV: Omega
I finished “Salvation.” It’s fun brain candy popcorn tv with a sort-of-cliffhanger ending that makes me think a Season 2 is coming. There’s a nice, healthy dose of skepticism that the government will do the right thing, which makes it satisfying. On the exercise bike in the basement, I watched “Omega,” which is a set […]
A Quality YouTube Channel: University of Richmond
The University of Richmond’s Jepson School of Leadership Studies sponsors an annual Summer Institute for the History of Economic Thought with excellent lectures by Deirdre McCloskey and James M. Buchanan (several by Buchanan). Of particular interest are McCloskey’s lecture and Buchanan’s talk “Chicago Thinking: Old and New.” Most students of economic thinking who are familiar […]
Does Hayekian Economics Undermine Hayekian Politics?
I have Bowles’ Moral Economy on my desk awaiting my attention. I’ll inevitably get to it when I have something important and urgent I can put off in order to say, “Hey, I should really read that.” A lot of the themes Bowles discusses are at least touched on in Douglass C. North’s Understanding the Process […]
Let The Chips Fall Where They May
The supposed relationship between James M. Buchanan and the forces of “Massive Resistance” to school desegregation in Virginia is at the center of Nancy MacLean’s story in Democracy in Chains. As Phil has pointed out on his blog and as we discuss in our paper, MacLean attempts to link Buchanan to Massive Resistance via the […]
Art Carden Recommends
Not sure what gear to use or books to read? Here are some of my favorites. Uber: Use Promo Code bv9q0 Lyft : Use Promo code Have you tried MeetEdgar? Sign up with my #aff link and you’ll get $10 off instantly! BOOKS GEAR PARENTING ESSENTIALS: GEAR & BOOKS MOVIES & TV WE SUBSCRIBE TO […]
PARENTING ESSENTIALS: GEAR & BOOKS
We’ve experimented with a lot. Here are some of our favorite parenting resources. I resisted getting a trampoline, thinking it was a terrible idea. It’s one of the best purchases we’ve ever made. The net means kids aren’t falling on the ground, and they spend tons of time on it. Once again, the net means […]
MOVIES & TV
Here are some favorites. Without question, this is a great movie. The Flynn Effect says it’s not happening, but it feels a lot more plausible than the science suggests. Check out my blog post Thoughts on the Passing Scene: Season 2 of “Fear the Walking Dead”. I participate in various affiliate programs that allow me […]