Happy Hour Econ

39 Episodes

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Slavery, Capitalism, and the Historical Record

2026-09-2831:03

A recent CNN debate put a pointed question before a national audience. Is capitalism bound up with racism and slavery? Slavery predates writing, and it predates capitalism by thousands of years, yet a growing body of scholarship argues that the modern American economy rests on the forced labor of enslaved people. In this week's Happy Hour Econ, Lou and Phil test those claims against the historical record and revisit what the defenders of slavery themselves had to say about free markets.

Sanctions Impossible

2026-09-2119:56

Nothing says we're doing something quite like a fresh round of economic sanctions. They're cheap, they're popular, and they let politicians look tough without adding much pain at home for Americans. But do they actually work? From Iran to Cuba, with oil tankers quietly dodging the rules in between, Lou and Phil look at who really ends up picking up the tab when a nation gets cut off. Pour something strong and press play on this episode of Happy Hour Econ.

Oh, Canada

2026-09-1423:57

Somewhere between tariffs, resurrected 1930s legislation, and a rebranded Great Lake, the United States decided to start a trade war with its most polite neighbor. Section 338 of the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act—yes, that Smoot-Hawley—has been dusted off from the legislative graveyard to justify slapping Canada with tariffs nobody can quite explain the reasoning behind. Lou and Phil sort through the legal mess, the retaliatory liquor store bans, and a history lesson on the one war America actually lost, all while asking who really foots the bill when two friendly countries start slapping tariffs on each other. Pour yourself a drink and settle in for an episode that's equal parts economics lecture and international incident.

Dolly Parton: An American Success Story

2026-09-0729:40

Dolly Parton was so beloved that her passing briefly brought the nation together. She was a country music icon and savvy entrepreneur who built a genuine business empire from a childhood spent in a one-room Appalachian cabin. Lou and Phil look at how she held onto her publishing rights when so many artists signed them away, turned a struggling stretch of Tennessee into a tourism powerhouse with Dollywood, and quietly gave away hundreds of millions of books through her Imagination Library. It's a rags-to-riches story that somehow undersells just how much she actually built. Pour one out for Dolly and tune in for Lou and Phil's full toast.

Not In My Cloud (Or Backyard)

2026-08-3130:32

Is it "dā-ta center" or "dăt-a center"? Lou and Phil can't agree, but they're united on one thing: these giant server farms have become the most contested real estate in America. Between grid strain, water bills, and surveillance worries, there's plenty to be suspicious of, and just as many overblown claims borrowed straight from old fights over Bitcoin and net neutrality. Settle into your favorite seat at the bar for the full conversation on this week’s Happy Hour Econ with Lou and Phil.

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