Words & Numbers

In this episode, we look at the story of a young boy who found purpose working for the DC Metro and later became a transportation engineer, and we examine a proposal for the U.S. to screen tourists’ social media accounts before entry, highlighting the logistical and constitutional problems such a system would create. We cover the week’s “foolishness,” including In-N-Out removing order number 67 from its queues and a Montreal lottery winner who chose a disastrous payout option, and discuss what these cases reveal about human judgment and bad incentives. We also explore the Mandela Effect and why memory often fails us. Later, we’re joined by Todd Huntley to talk about U.S. drug interdiction on the high seas, the legal gray zone between warfare and law enforcement, the risks of escalating conflicts with countries like Venezuela, and the constitutional limits on presidential war powers. 00:00 Introduction and Overview 00:30 The DC Metro Kid Who Became an Engineer 02:44 U.S. Plans to Screen Tourists’ Social Media 05:43 Foolishness of the Week: In-N-Out Removes Order #67 08:10 Foolishness Part Two: The Montreal Lottery Payout Disaster 11:16 The Psychology of Bad Financial Decisions 12:34 The Mandela Effect and Faulty Memory 14:36 Reunions and Remembering the Past 18:24 Guest Introduction: Todd Huntley on Drug Boat Strikes 20:16 How U.S. Drug Interdiction Changed with Drone Warfare 23:08 Is This War or Law Enforcement? The Legal Debate 26:44 International Waters, Venezuela, and Escalation Risks 30:13 Regime Change in Venezuela 32:45 The Positive Case for Blowing Up Boats 36:42 The Negative Case for Blowing Up Boats 41:11 Who Is Conducting the Strikes? 43:40 Congress, War Powers, and Constitutional Limits 48:57 Closing Thoughts with Guest 52:10 Outro Banter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, we look at a series of recent arrests tied to online posts, comparing Britain’s policing culture and firearms laws with American norms and examining how “feeling threatened” has become a legal standard. We discuss Alaska’s new AI-driven digital identity system and the fears surrounding automated benefits, digital currency, and government control. We highlight the week’s “foolishness” involving a racist outburst at a Cinnabon, and then turn to market news as Bitcoin drops and DJT stock continues to collapse. Our main topic explores whether AI can ever be sentient, what genuine inquisitiveness looks like, how people project humanity onto algorithms, and why the real risks stem from human psychology rather than runaway machines. We close with a discussion of how AI affects relationships, personal responsibility, and why students shouldn’t rely on it to think for them. 00:00 Introduction and Overview 01:01 British Man Arrested Over Social Media Post 02:46 Police Overreach and “Feelings as Law” 05:14 Global Jurisdiction and Ridiculous Laws 06:51 Alaska’s AI-Driven Digital Identity System 07:35 AI Applying for Benefits on Your Behalf 09:17 Digital Currency and Government Control Fears 12:11 Foolishness of the Week: The Cinnabon Racism Incident 13:22 Why Do Racists Get GoFundMes? 14:30 Bitcoin’s Drop and the DJT Stock Collapse 19:36 Can AI Become Sentient? 22:05 The Inquisitiveness Test for Consciousness 26:31 Will AI Replace Human Relationships? 30:30 What Long-Term Interaction Reveals About AI 36:46 Asking AI About Sentience 40:00 Real Risks: Errors, Psychology, and Human Behavior 43:15 AI as a Mirror of Human Behavior 45:02 Practical and Realistic Uses of AI 50:18 Why Students Shouldn’t Rely on AI for Schoolwork 53:40 Drug-fueled Observations on Human Behavior Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, we examine why arts education often maintains higher standards even as liberal arts programs shrink in schools and universities, and what students lose when curriculum narrows to job training. We discuss how platforms like X are adding country-of-origin labels to identify foreign influence and bot activity, and highlight the “foolishness of the week” involving the controversy over the “world’s strongest woman” and the broader questions it raises about biology and competitive fairness. We turn to Australia’s proposal to ban social media for kids under sixteen, exploring the practical limits of age verification, the tension between parental authority and government regulation, and why teens remain vulnerable to algorithmic manipulation. We close by considering where society should draw age boundaries, how platforms shape behavior, and what genuine responsibility looks like in the digital age. 00:00 Introduction and Overview 00:29 The State of Arts Education Today 02:57 Why Liberal Arts Are Disappearing From Schools 05:45 What a Liberal Arts Education Actually Provides 06:59 X Adds Country-of-Origin Labels 09:56 Foolishness of the Week: “World’s Strongest Woman” 11:31 Biology, Fairness, and Competition in Sports 17:51 Age Rules and Arbitrary Lines 20:53 Australia’s Proposed Social Media Ban for Under-16s 23:21 Why Age Verification Won’t Work in Practice 26:08 Should the Government Regulate Children’s Social Media Use? 27:32 Algorithmic Bubbles and Teen Vulnerability 33:45 96% of Australian Children Ages 10-15 Use Social Media 34:55 Where to Draw the Line: 13, 16, or 18? 39:34 Parental Responsibility vs. Government Control 46:34 Closing Thoughts on Freedom, Parenting, and Policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, we open with a look at how news coverage distorts public perception of danger, from shark attacks to terrorism, and why our instincts so often fail to match the data. We analyze the betting markets in regards to potential 2028 GOP presidential candidates. We discuss Ohio’s new proposal to offer paternity testing at birth, raising deeper questions about truth, family, and whether the state should standardize knowledge people may prefer not to have. We explore what consent really means in modern politics, how taxation relates to self-ownership, and whether withdrawing consent is even possible inside a democratic system. We dig into the philosophy of “future selves,” weighing whether personal choices today can violate the rights of the person we eventually become, and how this idea might reshape debates about children, drug laws, responsibility, and property rights. We wrap with the growing implications of deepfake technology, including one startling clip that hits very close to home. 00:00 Introduction and Overview 00:31 America’s Real Causes of Death vs. Media Coverage 04:54 Heart Disease, Suicide, Homicide: Comparing Risk to Headlines 07:47 Terrorism Coverage and the Outlier Problem 09:27 Why Our Brains Misread Danger 11:48 New Ohio Bill on Paternity Testing 13:59 The Ethics of Mandatory vs. Optional Paternity Tests 17:05 PolyMarket Odds for 2028 GOP Presidential Candidates 21:48 What Yoga Can Teach Economists About Property Rights 23:31 Self-Ownership, Labor, and the Logic of Markets 27:01 Voting, Consent, and Withdrawing From the Regime 34:13 Environmental Ethics and “Not Stealing From the Earth” 36:23 Can You “Steal” From Your Future Self? 37:25 Identity Over Time: Are You the Same Person Decades Later? 42:08 Do Children Have Full Rights? And When Should They? 43:42 Drug Laws, Nanny States, and Personal Autonomy 45:21 Age Restrictions and the Problem of Arbitrary Lines 50:34 Should Your Future Self Be Considered a Separate Entity? 56:28 AI Voice Impersonation and AI Safety Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, we discuss the fallout from the government shutdown and how delays in federal economic data, including the Consumer Price Index and jobs reports, leave policymakers and the public effectively “driving without headlights.” We examine the broader risks of making monetary decisions without timely information and the political incentives surrounding data transparency. We turn to new reporting on Border Patrol surveillance, exploring constitutional concerns raised by nationwide license-plate monitoring, predictive algorithms, and civil asset forfeiture. We highlight the “foolishness of the week,” a Thanksgiving trend piece on secretly stoned dinner guests, before shifting to a Thanksgiving tradition of our own as we reflect on what we’re thankful not to have, from VAT taxes and debtors’ prisons to hostile borders, historic diseases, and restrictions on homeschooling and peaceful protest. 00:00 Introduction and Overview 00:33 The Government Shutdown’s Aftermath 04:55 Border Patrol’s Expanding 100-Mile Authority 07:13 Predictive Policing, License Plate Tracking, and Searches 11:24 Civil Asset Forfeiture and Presumed Guilt 13:41 Foolishness of the Week: The “Stoned Thanksgiving Guests” Trend 15:57 What We’re Thankful to Not Have 16:35 Value Added Tax 18:28 Vaccines and the Elimination of Deadly Diseases 20:50 Free Speech and Peaceful Protest 22:08 Women’s Rights 23:53 Guns as the Great Equalizer 28:08 Homeschooling Freedoms and Education Restrictions of the Past 32:40 Criminalization of Debt and Bankruptcy Laws 34:05 Why Jailing People for Using Drugs is a Stupid Idea 36:08 Friendly International Neighbors 37:11 Declining Poverty 38:46 Closing Thoughts on Gratitude and a Better World Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices