Cato Event Podcast

Racial classification is ubiquitous in American life. Job applications, university admissions, government contracts, and much more involve checking a box stating whether one is black, white, Asian, Hispanic, or Native American.David Bernstein has written a surprising and revealing book on how these classifications came about, with the federal government playing a leading role. It asks:Should Pakistani, Chinese, and Filipino Americans be in the same category despite obvious differences in culture, appearance, religion, and more?Why does the government not allow Americans to classify themselves as biracial or multiracial?How did a dark‐​complexioned, burka‐​wearing Muslim Yemeni come to be classified as generically white while a blond‐​haired, blue‐​eyed newcomer is classified as minority if arriving from a country where Spanish is spoken?Why does the government require biomedical researchers to classify study participants by official racial categories that have no scientific basis

Generations of people have been taught that population growth makes resources scarcer. In 2021, for example, one widely publicized report argued, “The world’s rapidly growing population is consuming the planet’s natural resources at an alarming rate.… The world currently needs 1.6 Earths to satisfy the demand for natural resources … [a figure that] could rise to 2 planets by 2030.” But is that true? After analyzing the prices of hundreds of commodities, goods, and services spanning two centuries, Marian Tupy and Gale Pooley found that resources became more abundant as the population grew. That was especially true when they looked at “time prices,” which represent the length of time that people must work to buy something. The authors also found that resource abundance increased faster than the population―a relationship that they call “superabundance.” They conclude that, on average, every additional human being creates more value than he or she consumes. Please join us for the official launch of Cato’s la

The virus that causes COVID-19 has now become endemic after it first emerged two and a half years ago. In the pandemic’s early days, many countries’ public health officials curtailed economic and social activity to various degrees, prescribed social distancing, enforced lockdowns, required masking, and pushed for other nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) to reduce illness and death. Those NPIs imposed an enormous economic and social cost by greatly reducing individual liberty in exchange for promised health benefits. Elsewhere, most famously in Sweden, public health officials were fiercely criticized for implementing less‐​harsh “light touch” NPI measures. Sweden’s approach presents a fascinating quasi‐​natural experiment to evaluate the merits and demerits of the more liberal approach to managing the COVID-19 pandemic and to evaluate whether the loss in personal and economic freedom was partly compensated by a decrease in illness and death. Sweden’s outcomes on viral spread, excess mortalit

Planning difficult conversations in your classroom this year? Join us for the last of our Summer with Sphere webinar series and learn techniques and how to plan for these conversations. Hear from a MS and HS teacher on how they prepare their students for civil discourse in their classes. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since the early years of the Trump administration, “great power competition” has been Washington’s go‐​to formula to describe its approach to foreign policy. The concept holds that Russia and China represent the biggest challenge to U.S. interests and demands a robust, competitive policy response. In a new book, Ali Wyne lays out a thoughtful critique of great power competition and proposes an alternative guiding framework for U.S. foreign policy that is proactive instead of reactive, mindful of the limits of Russian and Chinese power, and leaves greater room for great power cooperation on common threats. Please join us for a discussion with the author and a panel of experts. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Taliban has held power in Afghanistan for one year. While the United States and its allies maintain sanctions on the group, Afghans are living through a humanitarian and economic disaster. The Taliban has made several promises, such as offering amnesty to soldiers who were members of the Afghan National Security Forces, working toward an “Afghan Islamic–inclusive government,” engaging other stakeholders in a “transition council,” and allowing girls to attend schools. However, the group also “grossly violated” its commitment not to give shelter to al Qaeda, according to the Biden administration, by allowing Ayman al‐​Zawahiri to stay in a safe house in Kabul. What does the Taliban’s evolution (if any) mean for U.S. policy? Does the United States have tools available to push the group in the direction policymakers want it to go? What U.S. interests remain in Afghanistan? To discuss these questions, please join our distinguished panel of experts. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 202

More than a decade ago, Tunisia’s Jasmine Revolution gave hope to the Arab world, showing oppressed peoples that longtime dictators can be peacefully ousted. That hope soon failed, brutally, in Egypt, Syria, and Yemen, but Tunisia kept on track throughout the 2010s, proving to be the best democratic hope in an otherwise autocratic and turbulent Middle East.Yet since July 2021, Tunisia’s trajectory has taken an increasingly worrisome reversal as well. President Kais Saied suspended the parliament, claimed all executive power, prohibited public gatherings, arrested political opponents, and imposed travel bans. As Cato senior fellow Doug Bandow recently observed on a visit to Tunisia, this authoritarian turn risks the freedoms Tunisians have been enjoying in the past 10 years and can throw the country back to arbitrary rule by a strongman. The change is concerning for the broader Arab and Muslim world, where Tunisia used to be a rare example and source of inspiration. Join us as we discu

Why did those opposed to or in favor of the Constitution write under pseudonyms? Why did Occupy Wall Street protestors wear Guy Fawkes masks? Why do so many people seek to maintain a level of anonymity in their online activities—including web surfing and posting on social media? In the debate over the right to conceal one’s identity versus the potential harms of anonymity, is it possible to strike a constitutionally sound balance? In his latest book, The United States of Anonymous: How the First Amendment Shaped Online Speech, Jeff Kosseff tackles these and other questions through primary‐​source research and interviews with participants in the debates, as well as through court cases that have shaped the current legal and political climate impacting anonymous speech and the First Amendment. Join us for a discussion about Jeff Kosseff’s timely new book. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has produced big changes in NATO and EU states. But shock at Russia’s aggression and fear of its future intentions seem to point in one direction, whereas its dismal military performance and its vulnerability to economic punishment seem to point in another. NATO and EU expansion are once again on the table. Will the aftermath of the war strengthen NATO and, with it, the central U.S. position in European security? Or can Russian aggression impel greater non‐​NATO security cooperation, giving European states and the EU a larger role to play and a greater say over security affairs in Europe? On the first day of NATO’s summit in Madrid, please join Nicole Koenig and Barry Posen for a discussion of what the war in Ukraine suggests about the future of European security. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The experiences of black Americans do not fit neatly into our nation’s political culture. As the authors argue, those on the right fail to acknowledge the gravity of past injustices and rights violations, while those on the left ignore decades of failed paternalism and unintended consequences of government policy. But there is an alternative: classical liberalism, a philosophy based on free markets, individual rights, and vibrant civil society.Exhausted by extremism on both sides, in their new book, Black Liberation through the Marketplace: Hope, Heartbreak, and the Promise of America, economic philosopher Rachel Ferguson and historian Marcus Witcher argue that classical liberalism provides the building blocks for a free and prosperous society for all. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

State‐​level drug paraphernalia laws increase the risk of infection or overdose for drug users by preventing legal access to clean needles, syringes, and products to test drugs for deadly contaminants. Every state except Alaska criminalizes the possession and/​or sale of illicit drug paraphernalia. Thus, Alaskans can legally operate needle exchange programs and other harm‐​reduction measures. Recognizing that harm‐​reduction strategies reduce overdoses and disease, many states are considering reforms to their drug paraphernalia laws. To discuss the impact of drug paraphernalia laws on health and how states can implement better rules, we are pleased to have Corey S. Davis, the director of the Harm Reduction Legal Project of the Network for Public Health Law and adjunct faculty at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University; Robin Lutz, executive director of the Alaskan AIDS Assistance Association, which has provided harm‐​reduction services in Alaska since 1985; and Haley B. Coles, executive direc

Tax policy not only funds governmental efforts but is often itself a driver of policy outcomes. Elected officials in recent years have pushed for or acted upon tax policy as a means for shaping everything from childcare to environmental policy. In this webinar, we’ll explore the role taxation plays in our democracy, the many ways in which it affects our lives, and the current state of debate around taxation in America.Our panel will feature Alex Muresianu, federal tax analyst at The Tax Foundation and Niko Lusiani, the director of the Corporate Power Program at the Roosevelt Institute. Allan Carey, director of Sphere Education Initiative, will moderate the conversation. Zoe Callaway, manager of education and outreach at the Tax Foundation will offer professional development. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The digitalization of financial services has made banking and trading more convenient than ever. But laws that were written before the digital era now collect untold amounts of consumer data to which the government has easy—and often unfettered—access. Recent legislative attempts have sought to expand that access even more. Does financial convenience have to come at the cost of financial privacy? Can cryptocurrency provide better privacy protection? Is it time to rethink how financial privacy is treated in a digital era? Join us for an outstanding virtual program featuring Marta Belcher, Paul Belonick, Michael Mosier, and Jennifer Schulp to discuss financial privacy in the digital era. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The United States remains the world’s dominant exporter of weapons. Between 2017–2021, the U.S. share of the global arms market was 108 percent greater than that of Russia, which is the second‐​largest exporter. Since 2009, the United States has approved more than $1 trillion in weapons sales and delivered roughly $736 billion worth of weapons to 167 countries during the Obama, Trump, and Biden administrations.A new Cato Institute update to the Arms Sales Risk Index evaluates the risk that these exports create for global human rights, international stability, and U.S. security.Representative Sara Jacobs (D‑CA), Cato’s Jordan Cohen, and Jeff Abramson from the Arms Control Association will discuss the 2021 Arms Sales Risk Index and current efforts to weigh and mitigate risks that the sale of U.S. weapons can pose. The discussion will be moderated by Cato’s Eric Gomez. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On March 26, 2020—two weeks after schools around the country were shuttered and suddenly almost everyone was receiving education at home—Cato convened an expert panel to give advice and answer questions about homeschooling. It is unlikely anyone who participated in that discussion expected we would still be dealing with school closures two years later.While there are lags in official data, it appears that homeschooling has greatly increased since March 2020. Is that accurate? What has the experience been like for families, including longtime homeschoolers and newbies who started during the pandemic? What lessons have been learned?We’ll mark the two‐​year anniversary of school closures with a panel discussion on homeschooling today. Featuring a diverse group whose experiences include urban homeschooling, hybrid homeschooling, and forest schools, this panel is designed to assess the current state of homeschooling and help parents understand the wide variety of options available to them. See acast.com/

Public schooling, by forcing people with diverse values and needs to fund a single system of government schools, inevitably produces conflict. Such conflict has reached a fever pitch over the last several years, with Americans battling over critical race theory, LGBTQ issues, COVID-19 masking, and more. Logically, school choice would defuse such conflict, enabling diverse people to choose what they think is best rather than having to fight for control of a single system. But is there evidence of that working? If so, where? And how does that not lead to Balkanization?Three experts in education and pluralism will discuss whether and how school choice can foster peace in a large, diverse society. The event will focus on questions and comments from audience members. We hope anyone interested in the role of education in bringing diverse people together will join us. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A generation ago, humanity witnessed the fall of the Berlin Wall, the disappearance of the Eastern European bloc, and the breakup of the Soviet Union. Many thought that the victory of liberal democracy and competitive enterprise over communism and central planning would usher in a lasting era of peace and prosperity, but now the West appears to be undergoing an existential crisis. Across some of the most successful societies in history, liberal institutions are under attack from the far left and the far right. What brought about this stunning crisis of confidence in Western values and institutions and the ascendency of political and economic populism?Please join us to hear two leading thinkers and commentators on the rise of free societies explain the reasons for the growth of illiberalism and what, if anything, can be done to reverse that trend. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.