We've Got Sowell
Blue Yeti ·
October 12, 2011 at 6:23pm
As we mentioned on the show last week, this week's Ricochet Podcast will be delayed until Friday, but for very good reason: Thomas Sowell, economist, author, philosopher, and our most requested guest will be making his podcasting debut.
Have a question for our distinguished guest? Leave it in the comments. We'll get to as many as we can. We'll also be giving away copies of his new book, The Thomas Sowell Reader. Should be a fun and fascinating show.
P.S. Another oft-requested guest, Coffee and Markets host Ben Domenech will stop by in the second segment.
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May '11
Re: We've Got Sowell
Please ask Dr. Sowell what his take on Cain's 9-9-9 plan is.
What one human attribute is an absolute "must have" in a candidate without which Dr. Sowell would not even consider voting for that candidate?
Would Dr. Sowell consider a Cabinet post (e.g. of Commerce, Housing and Urban Development, Education or Labor) if offered? What would he promote as that Cabinet member?
Who are Dr. Sowell's 3 favorite authors? Why?
What are Dr. Sowell's 3 favorite books? Why?
Edited on October 12, 2011 at 9:38pmAug '10
Re: We've Got Sowell
Given the data we have from the last decade, does Dr Sowell believe macroeconomics will be able to make definitive claims on how debt affects the economy, just like they talk about interest rates, monetary supply, and "aggregate demand"?
When talking about debt levels, does it matter if we are talking about private debt vs publicly held debt?
Democrats claim government must spend money to help realize the American Dream. The Tea Party wants to be left alone as part of the American Dream. The OWS protesters talk about the death of the American Dream. Question: who gets to define what, exactly, the American Dream actually consists of?
(or: if someone defined the American Dream at some point in the past, is that definition still relevant today?)
Dec '10
Re: We've Got Sowell
Pretty much everyone can see that the patient will soon die without chemotherapy and may die early even with it. What is the formula and do you trust Mitt Romney to administer the medication? If not, and he is the nominee, will you vote for him anyway?
What?... I thought he was Dr. Sowell.
(Yeah, my question is self-serving. Is there a problem with that?)
Edited on October 13, 2011 at 12:33amDec '10
Re: We've Got Sowell
Dr Sowell, I cannot wait to listen to the podcast! Thank you, sir, for your time. I first heard you on Rush's show years ago, when Walter Williams was guest host. Have been a huge admirer ever since. Also, I passed that admiration along to my kids. My youngest daughter, now a college junior, read Basic Economics this past summer on her vacation.
I believe in what I call ABO for the next election. That is -- Anyone But Obama.
(Which, at this point, means our candidate should be Mitt Romney). We must defeat the Obama Administration and begin to right the ship.
Do you agree that we must put up the most electable candidate to achieve ABO, or hold out for a more purist Conservative Candidate?
Jan '11
Re: We've Got Sowell
No question, just a request for him to eat healthy, stay out of drafts, and keep on writing - for many more years. He's truly a national treasure.
Apr '11
Re: We've Got Sowell
Grendel: Are there 2 or 3 (or 5-6, or 9-10) choke points whose removal/relief would go a long way toward freeing us to turn back the clock to make us a freer and more prosperous nation.
I think of things like repealing the Progressive hat trick, viz., the 16th thru 19th Amendments
You're in favor of repealing the 19th Amendment?
Jeez, Grendel. For Pete's sake.
But more to the point of the original post, Thomas Sowell? Hurray!
May '10
Re: We've Got Sowell
Grendel
That's a good point. It is always a mistake to forget mobility. However, you have to further determine whether, if Taxpayer-A and Leech-B exchange places to become Taxpayer-B and Leech-A, they also at the same time exchange interests and voting behavior, in which case you in effect have permanent classes and the same voting results.
Maybe, but remember Joe the Plumber: Obama's error was in assuming lowly Joe was incapable of "Stage Two thinking" (to use another Sowell-ism) and would therefore be receptive to "spreading the wealth". Not so, because Joe anticipated Stage Two -- that soon enough he'd acquire some wealth of his own. He voted accordingly, even though at that time he might very well have had "Leech" status.
Oct '10
Re: We've Got Sowell
raycon: The Herman Cain 9-9-9 tax plan is creating a lot of negative response from conservatives. How does that plan stand up against what we know from Romney, Perry et.al.?
How can it be made to work... repeal the 16th amendment, of course, but what is realistic? ยท Oct 12 at 9:31am
Here's what althouse thinks of Cain's 999 plan.
Edited on October 13, 2011 at 12:18pmMay '10
Re: We've Got Sowell
Dr Sowell, what one change to the tax code do you believe would be most beneficial to recovery?
Apr '11
Re: We've Got Sowell
Dr. Sowell, even as late as the mid 60s, a significant percentage of blacks still voted for Republicans. What happened and how do we get the black votes back?
Oct '10
Re: We've Got Sowell
John Marzan
raycon: The Herman Cain 9-9-9 tax plan is creating a lot of negative response from conservatives. How does that plan stand up against what we know from Romney, Perry et.al.? Oct 12 at 9:31am
Here's what althouse thinks of Cain's 999 plan.
Edited on Oct 13 at 03:18 am
Oct 12 at 8:17pm
The radicals of East Germany have now gotten themselves a relatively conservative capitalist economy. How?
To conserve what has now become the status quo in the US is to be a leftist progressive.
Herman Cain is, by definition, a radical... as are those of us who have spent our lifetime calling ourselves conservatives while the definition has flipped 180 degrees.
Oct '10
Re: We've Got Sowell
Dr. Sowell, thank you for Basic Economics. As the first text I've read on the topic I consider myself sufficiently "corrupted." Free markets as an idea are hard for some to grasp because the structure and results occur absent of a hierarchy or defined rules. A market reflects the value that individuals place on certain allocation of scarce resources. Does this mean that free markets can be different depending on the culture or value systems of the consumers? If a culture values ice cream over cheese, is that the best allocation of scarce milk? Is there a risk to a market associated with the value ascribed to indulgence by a society? Or, with the freedoms and accountability inherent in a free market, does that work to change perceptions and values of a society? If a society considers life priceless, does that "artificially high" price in the absence of economic justifications prevent a truly free market from ever occurring?
Jun '10
Re: We've Got Sowell
Does Dr. Sowell accept graduate students, and if so, how much does a plane ticket to Stanford cost?
Jun '10
Re: We've Got Sowell
I remember seeing Dr. Sowell talk about how as a young academic, he was offered a job as a photographer, but did not take the job and continued on to become a professor. Dr. Sowell remarked that if he could go back in time, he would've left academia and accepted the photographer position.
Why do you say this Dr. Sowell? I suppose we all would have lost a great deal if you had become a professional photographer rather than an academic.
It's an interesting observation to think about, especially for young academics (there are many here on Ricochet).
Would you become an academic if you were making the choice today? That is, if you were to choose something to do for the next 40 years, would you choose the academic life?