This episode features an interview of criminal justice researcher Jonathan Blanks from 2015 by Trevor Burrus and Aaron Powell, hosts of the Free Thoughts podcast. They discuss civil liberties and police misconduct in America. Is there an upward trend in incidents of police misconduct, and if so, why? Is this just a few bad apples, or something more integral to the nature of policing in America? Just how dangerous is it to be a law enforcement officer in America? Dangerous enough to justify the military hardware the police seem to enjoy using so much?
Category: Liberty Voices
Stephan Kinsella: How to Think about Property (41m)
This episode features a talk by libertarian theorist and patent attorney Stephan Kinsella from 2019. He explores the roots and structure of property rights.
Doug French: Why Democracy Doesn’t Work (58m)
This episode features a talk by economics professor Doug French from 2013. The true believers always tell us we are just one election away from liberty. It never happens. French blends Hoppe, Hayek, and Maslow to explain why, despite voters best intentions, sociopaths are elected and freedom is lost.
Christopher Coyne: Why Humanitarian Action Fails (46m)
This episode features a lecture by economics professor Christopher Coyne from 2014. He discusses the sometimes disastrous unforeseen consequences of poorly-planned humanitarian interventions around the world.
Jason Brennan: Is Democracy Just? (46m)
This episode features a lecture by philosopher and political scientist Jason Brennan from 2017. Brennan looks at justice and democratic government.
Michael Malice: North Korea 101 (48m)
This episode features an interview of author, podcaster, and celebrity ghostwriter Michael Malice from 2017 by Trevor Burrus and Aaron Powell, hosts of the Free Thoughts podcast. What’s North Korea like? Do the people there really believe the popular legends we’ve heard about the Kim family? Which is Kim Jong-un: a spoiled heir to a political dynasty, a paranoid lunatic with a big gun and 25 million hostages, or a coldly rational devious mastermind?
Anthony Gregory: The Total State (1h4m)
This episode features a lecture by historian and author Anthony Gregory from 2013. He discusses the modern evils of fascism and communism, their commonalities and differences, and their continuing significance today.
Carl Watner: For Conscience’s Sake (31m)
This episode features an audio essay written by historian and voluntaryist Carl Watner in 1992, which comprises Chapter 9 of Everything Voluntary: From Politics to Parenting, edited by Skyler J. Collins and published in 2012. He explores the voluntaryist roots of religious freedom.
Donald Boudreaux: Resisting the Growth of Governments (57m)
This episode features a presentation by economics professor Donald Boudreaux from 2001about the nature of government. He says that even in the face of public choice-type of environment that is constantly pushing the state to grow, ideas do matter and can constrain what the state can do.
Christopher Preble: War Is the Health of the State (54m)
This episode features an interview of U.S. foreign policy academic Christopher Preble from 2015 by Trevor Burrus and Aaron Powell, hosts of the Free Thoughts podcast. They ask whether there exists a single libertarian foreign policy that all libertarians would agree with; talk about the idea that war powers, resolutions, and laws passed during wartime don’t recede in times of peace; give a quick rundown of American military history; and discuss the rise of a permanent private industry supplying the military. When should the United States go to war? When did the American military really start to get massive? How much do we spend on the military today? Relative to recent history? Is the military open to the same kinds of critiques that libertarians make about other government programs?