Ed and Ron (mostly Ron) empty out the overflowing stack of stuff and roam wherever intellectual curiosity takes them. On the docket: how Adam Smith's invisible hand actually works; what we should make of the latest government files on UFOs and UAPs (color us skeptical); whether standing desks are really healthier than sitting; the strange economics and crony capitalism of the college textbook market; encouraging news in the fight against dementia; and, in what may amount to professional heresy, the case against CPA licensing.
And because no serious program on economics, business, and human flourishing would be complete without it, we'll investigate an important question of Western civilization: Does Britain really have more cheeses than France?
SHOW NOTES
Segment one
How does Adam Smith’s invisible hand work? “Capitalism, as Told by Its Enemies” https://thedispatch.com/article/capitalism-socialism-dictionary-bias/
“How Walmart Improves the Lives of Everybody, Especially the Poor” by Stephanie Rugolo https://www.cato.org/blog/how-walmart-improves-lives-everybody-especially-poor
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy https://plato.stanford.edu/
“Capitalism does not carry us in its heart” —French novelist and minister André Malraux via Joe Pine’s substack https://transformationsbook.substack.com/p/at-the-heart-of-business
Segment two
Crony capitalism for college textbooks https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/colleges-against-books/
"Rule 164" refers to a 2016 U.S. Department of Education regulation allowing universities to bundle the cost of digital textbooks and course supplies directly into tuition and fees. More info here: https://www.thecollegefix.com/obama-era-rule-could-be-driving-students-away-from-physical-books/
Starting in the fall of 2027, incoming freshmen in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts at the University of Michigan will not receive traditional letter grades on their external transcripts or GPAs for their first semester. Instead, their official transcripts will show a grade of "pass" or "no credit”. More info here: https://www.thv11.com/article/news/nation-world/university-michigan-freshmen-first-semester-grades-transcripts/507-e4700d53-8a1c-4667-bc96-efe0ce903f87
“The End of Reading is Here” By Rose Horowitch https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/2026/08/reading-crisis-postliterate-age/687618/
Segment three
UFOs and UAP https://www.nationalreview.com/2026/08/will-the-pentagons-latest-ufo-files-satisfy-the-alien-theorists/
The Fermi Paradox as described by the SETI Institute https://www.seti.org/research/seti-101/fermi-paradox/
Why standing at your desk may be little better than sitting https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2026/08/14/why-standing-at-your-desk-may-be-little-better-than-sitting/
“Chipotle Burrito Abundance” by Gale Pooley https://galepooley.substack.com/p/chipotle-burrito-abundance
“Wall Street Is Sending Software Companies a Message About AI Pricing” by Mark Stiving https://impactpricing.com/blog/wall-street-is-sending-software-companies-a-message-about-ai-pricing/
Segment four
“The Case Against CPA Licenses (Yes, Really)” via The Net Gains on September 17, 2025 https://www.thenetgains.co/p/the-case-against-cpa-licenses-yes-really
“Bootleggers, Baptists, & CPAs: Rethinking Licensure” featuring Ron Baker https://cpatrendlines.com/2025/09/04/bootleggers-baptists-and-cpas-rethinking-licensure-in-the-profession-arc/
“Britain has more cheeses than France. The whey ahead may be harder” https://www.economist.com/britain/2026/08/10/britain-has-more-cheeses-than-france-the-whey-ahead-may-be-harder
Monty Python’s The Cheese Shop https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hz1JWzyvv8A
Bonus Content is Available As Well
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