The term "Fake News" gets thrown around all the time, but what is it? Sometimes it's just a phrase people use to discredit information or sources they don't like. But there are also people who spread misinformation to further their own agenda. So how do you avoid getting stuck in a bubble without being a victim of misinformation? We give you 5 helpful tips on how to spot Fake News and use a skeptical eye to assess information.
“There’s an argument that “political correctness” is just a bogeyman term invented to lash out against polite society without seeming crude or uncivil. That what we call “political correctness” is actually politeness, and we just don’t wanna be polite! But this is just plain wrong. There’s a difference between being PC and being polite, and I can prove it!”
You probably know a couple who both work full time to support their children, but even with their dual incomes, they’re finding it more and more difficult to afford health insurance. Everyday incidents like sports injuries, asthma, and blood pressure, combined with their anxiety over rising premiums, are turning their American dream into sleepless nights. Why can’t people catch a break? It wasn’t always this way!
There are many reasons why American health care is super expensive. One of the biggest ones is that patients don't have any real way of knowing what any given service or procedure costs. And because the patients don't know any better, providers have no compelling reason to even attempt to keep prices low. But what if they did? Here's how that might look.
Bob thinks that automation is going to leave everyone broke and unemployed. But people have been saying that throughout the entire history of human development, and yet the opposite has always been true. While automation can be disruptive, it also frees people to spend their time doing even more productive things and continually makes all of society wealthier in the process.
Bob gets upset at the existence of rich people, thinking that there is a permanent class of people at the top, and a permanent class at the bottom, but Seamus helps him understand that over time, people are actually constantly moving up and down the income distribution. Most of us start nearer to the bottom and work our way up as we gain experience and skills.
Bob's excited about Universal Basic Income and thinks that it would be a great way to help people for less money than the inefficient welfare programs we already have. That could be true, but only if it is completely the current system, and that's... unlikely. Find out why in this episode of Common Sense Soapbox!
Bob finds out that if he wants to significantly reduce his carbon footprint, he can! He just has to give up a bunch of other things, first. We all want a healthy environment and a beautiful planet to live on, but different people have different ideas about how to get there and not everyone is always so realistic about what their plans will cost. Fortunately, we *can* have an awesome environment and a great standard of living at the same time!
Previously on Common Sense Soapbox, Seamus told Bob that tons of the most commonly proposed solutions to environmental problems were going to cost trillions and lower everyone's standard of living, so Bob isn't as keen on making the sacrifices climate activists are demanding. That means he doesn't want to save the planet, right? Actually...
Bob gets a job as a taste-tester so he can get enough capital to start his own business, and learns that his skills at the company fill just some of the many valuable roles necessary to make the business work. Division of labor and trade are critical to technological development and economic progress for whole civilizations and without it, people would still be stuck in the stone age.
It might seem really simple, but for all the hate the concept of money gets, it's actually incredibly important to a functioning economy because it solves several fundamental problems for people trying to get what they want, starting with the "double coincidence of wants". In a barter system, both you *and* the person you're hoping to trade with have to want what each other has at the same time. But most of the time, that doesn't happen. Money makes it possible for you to get what you need without needing to have *exactly* what someone else wants.
Bob can't get anyone to trade him technology for ripened taco meat, but he's still not sold on the use of money. After all, inflation steals some of the value of money over time. But is that a problem inherent in money, or is it because of governments poof-ing money into existence to pay for things they can't actually afford?
Bob's journey has taken him from being an economic ignoramus to becoming a wealthy, self-made entrepreneur. It took a long time, but all he ever really had to do was listen to what other people wanted and use his ideas, talents, skills, and resources to give them something they actually valued. The Bore-No-More King finally made it. But now, he misses his friends from the past and concocts a new plan to rub his success in their faces.
Chinese censorship of its own people is pretty terrible, but why should we in the US be bothered by it? Well, the effects don't simply stop at China's borders. China's speech restrictions affect tons of things that Americans want, need, and consume, from our entertainment to the information we use to shape our public health strategies. Now, China has upped the game with their new national security law regarding Hong Kong, criminalizing anyone, anywhere in the world advocating democratic reform for Hong Kong. Not only should the right of people all over the world to speak freely be protected for principle's sake but also because silencing anyone can impact everyone.
When Seamus is arrested for spying on other people’s conversations about economics, it becomes pretty clear that the government doesn’t actually frown on monitoring the actions and communications of individuals. They just frown on OTHER people doing it. Despite the initial outcry when Edward Snowden leaked the details of the US government’s domestic surveillance apparatus to the public, the broad and often warrantless collection of metadata continues to happen. Constant surveillance leads to serious problems, not least of which is self-censorship.
Seamus is stuck in jail after that surveillance misunderstanding, but he still manages to find himself in one of the many protest-turned-riots that have been happening all over the US this year. The rioters and their supporters brush off the consequences of their destructive behavior with the cavalier claim that “insurance will cover it.” But even leaving aside the fact that that’s definitely NOT how insurance works, riots have other, long-term effects that no insurance plan, no matter how comprehensive, could possibly cover.
How can anybody value the economy above human life? Should we be willing to halt economic progress if it saves just one life? Well, as Ron finds out, the "economy" is just the name we used to describe the actions of millions of human beings, producing and trading goods & services with each other. All of our lives DEPEND upon the economy. When people aren’t allowed to work and produce, they’re made poorer, unhealthier, and unhappier. Also, slowing down production has major consequences, like rising rates of global and domestic food insecurity. In this sense, lockdowns may be causing more deaths than they’re preventing. If that’s the case, we should end them to save lives.
Social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook have done wonders for the world by making instant global communication a reality. But when these platforms start increasing censorship and deciding which news is fake or not, the power of the internet is jeopardized. Special guest Tim Pool joins Seamus, Bob, and Ron for some fact-checking of social media censorship on this episode of Common Sense Soapbox.
In this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Seamus explains to Bob and Og why so many people are leaving states like California and New York and moving to states like Texas and Florida. Could you guess that high tax burdens and crippling regulation are to blame? Giddy up and join us on this week’s exploration of failed and successful governance!
In this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Seamus explains to Bob the history of American health care, how 90% of private insurance came to be provided through employers as a result of WWII-era price controls and tax exemptions, and how decoupling insurance from employment could be the start of a better system.
In this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Seamus explains to Sarah, Ron, and Bob one thing that could vastly improve the US health care system and make it more affordable. Is it more spending? Is it more insurance? No. It’s something that would let the market drive down costs the same way it does in other well-functioning sectors: A functioning price system. 'What's that,' you say? Stay tuned and find out!
In this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Bob, Seamus, and Rob civilly discuss gun control as they fend off a savage horde of mutant boars: Are guns useful for self-defense? Is gun violence declining? How many people actually die each year from rifles? As Bob and Rob lay down some steaming-hot lead, Seamus lays down the ice-cold facts.
In this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Seamus explains to Sarah, Bob, and Ron how the hundred-year-old Jones Act makes the American shipping industry way more expensive than it needs to be. In short, an act that was supposed to protect the industry actually ended up killing it. Watch the episode to learn how.
In this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Ron, Sarah, Bob, and Seamus get detained by the Coast Guard on a military base. Bob quickly learns that everything is WAY more expensive than it should be, but why? Seamus explains how waste is a feature, not a bug, of military spending and describes the perverse incentives and lack of oversight that fuel it.
Military spending is out of control, but how does it stack up against social security, Medicaid, and Medicare? We're all for reducing defense spending, but it might surprise you to learn that we actually spend more on health care than the military. We even spend more just on social security than the military. Even if we took all the money from the military, somehow confiscated all the net worth of all the billionaires in the US, managed to double the amount of money the government collects in annual income tax revenue and found other ways to raise all the money we need to pay for the new massive social spending programs that have been proposed by Bernie Sanders and others (which is essentially impossible), the act of monetizing all of that money and getting it circulating in the economy would have another major problem.
In this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, the gang finds themselves washed up on a desert island. Bob posts an SOS on social media hoping someone will save them but gets fact-checked on an irrelevant detail. Seamus takes the opportunity to explain why checkers might not have our best interest at heart…
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Seamus, Bob, and Sarah are sheltered in place – hungry and eager to get out and work – but Ron isn’t letting them. Instead of producing more food, Ron has the ingenious idea to just give them more shells (money)! Seamus explains why issuing more currency instead of letting people produce is the worst thing you can do.
In this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Bob, Sarah, and Seamus are still stuck on the island. Desperate for food, Bob sneaks out at night to fish and comes back to sell them for a whopping 30 shells a piece. Seamus and Sarah reluctantly agree, but the increasingly-hysterical Ron accuses Bob of price gouging.
Our intrepid heroes have found that thanks to Ron's lockdown, their economy has gone from bad to worse, but as usual the man in charge is focused on one solution: Creating more money. Unfortunately, creating more money isn't the same thing as creating more goods & service, and now the island is suffering from hyperinflation. As it happens, there are a lot of people in the real world who think that more money is always the answer as well. Check out some of the links in the description to find out why that's not such a good idea.
After being rescued from their Island Lockdown, the crew returns to the safety and abundance of their daily lives. Sarah and Ron are ecstatic to get back home and raise their child. Only, Ron’s Bachelor of Science degree (in Art Therapy) convinces him he’s an expert in everything… Does he solely understand “the science” or is there something deeper he can learn?
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a detestable act of aggression and rightfully angers billions of people around the world who wish for peace. But to stick it to Putin, is it necessary to deplatform, condemn, and punish everyday Russian citizens? As Ron and Sarah jump in joy at Russian cats being banned from the International Cat Federation, Seamus suggests a better way…
People are fleeing states like California and New York in droves… What gives? As new residents pile in the neighborhood, Ron piles some dogs on the grill and questions why life in California is becoming unlivable. Seamus explains how restrictive taxes, zoning laws, and other mysterious policies are forcing residents away from once-wonderful states.
Well, we finally did it. We've come out against voting... for policies you don't understand. Seriously. Voting is fine. But if you don't take the time to actually *learn* something about the public policy issues and candidates you're voting on, you're going to do much more harm than good -- even if you think you're doing the right thing.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Bubble Man and the crew go for a swim off a fine Florida beach. Bubble Man decides to wear his floaties — for his own safety, and others — but quickly becomes panicked when no one else does. Bubble Man makes an impassioned plea for mandatory floaty-wearing, and Seamus argues why that might not be a good idea.
Ok... It's not "all" true. But a lot of it is! In this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, the Men in Black appear at Bubble Man’s funeral. Bob frantically alerts the crew, but Ron dismisses it as a conspiracy theory. However, Ron soon learns that not every conspiracy is merely a theory — some smack of facts.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Ron calls “conspiracy” on the Federal Reserve being responsible for inflation. Florida Man rides in on a gator and asks Seamus just what in the world the Federal Reserve does. Seamus patiently explains the Fed’s history and how it might be behind steep inflation.
On this final episode of Season 7, Ron and Bob square off in a civil war of cinematic proportions. Ron’s arrogance and contempt reach explosive heights, leaving Bob with no choice but to assemble a team of reasonable fellows to fight back. This ultimately ends Ron’s reign of tyranny, paving the way for a new chapter of Common Sense Soapbox!
We find Florida Man and the crew reacting to Joe Biden’s attempts to tackle the most urgent problem of the modern era: ̶I̶n̶f̶l̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ ̶O̶v̶e̶r̶r̶e̶g̶u̶l̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ ̶U̶n̶e̶m̶p̶l̶o̶y̶m̶e̶n̶t̶... Junk Fees! And sure, fees that get hidden in fine print on airlines and at the bank can be annoying, but could banning them create unintended consequences? Why yes, yes it could…
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Bob’s tweet about pizza results in death threats and terrorist epithets. Seamus explains that the internet can be a great place of learning, but also a forum for baser instincts.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, the gang watches a congressional hearing on the “Twitter files”. Seamus explains the rampant censorship that’s strangled truth and honest discussion since 2020 — and certainly way before that.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Florida Man shows off his cash-stuffed mattresses as banks collapse. Seamus takes the opportunity to explain how reckless Federal Reserve policy has fueled this collapse.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Seamus explains why apocalyptic expert predictions are consistently incorrect.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Ron goes to prison and finds it not so easy to shame his fellow inmates. To make up for this lack, Ron invents an economic system of voluntary exchange. As our suspiciously-voiced narrator explains, that’s called capitalism.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Sarah utilizes Chat GPT to win a board game in place of her imprisoned husband Ron. Although Chat GPT may know a lot of facts, it's clear that it doesn't fully understand how to apply them to society at large.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, the crew visits Ron in prison. Ron blabbers about the profit motive of private prisons and their runaway exploitation. Seamus calmly explains that private prisons are hardly the main cause of America’s mass incarceration issues.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Florida Man finds the capital gains tax unfair, as it punishes his financial acumen. Although Sarah argues it forces the rich to pay their ‘fair share,’ Seamus explains it’s anything but — especially when it comes to inflation.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, ChatGPT wants to censor RFK, Jr. after he makes a few sensible (and unsensible) claims. Seamus makes a pitch for open debate in a persuasive and respectful manner.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Sarah and Bob discuss investing in fine art. Seamus (and Florida Man) deliver an economics lecture about wealth taxes with gator examples and all. Sarah decides that wealth taxes are a massive invasion of privacy.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Ron finds the socialist utopia of his dreams… in prison. Yeah, it’s not as great as he thinks.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Seamus gives the crew a lesson on how biased the American justice system really is.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Seamus explains the practical politics behind the hit song “Rich Men North of Richmond”. In addition, Florida Man wonders how a majority of congressmen are multimillionaires even though their yearly salary is $125,000.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Seamus and Florida Man explain why we shouldn’t let the chips fall where they may. Biden’s recently enacted CHIPS Act provides a gross amount of money to tech titans to manufacture chips and promote scientific research in the US. But as we’ve learned on CSS, bad things happen when the government attempts to manipulate the market.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Bob mocks San Francisco influencers and the crap they have to deal with. Instead of falling prey to our own condescension, Seamus suggests we treat these as teachable policy moments.
On this spooktacular episode of Common Sense Soapbox, the crew goes trick-or-treating on the steps of Congress. Seamus explains the ghastly reality of elderly politicians haunting the landscape and hampering progress.
Between international conflicts and Presidential elections, the news has glossed over this story pretty much entirely, but did you know that Fauci finally admitted that the NIH funded gain of function research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, adding to mounting evidence that covid was not only created in a lab with notoriously lax safety procedures, but that it was actually sponsored by the US government.
On this episode of Common Sense Soapbox, Seamus explains why Gen Z has a right to feel screwed over financially, but perhaps not to the degree they think (or feel).
On our final episode for Season 8, Ron catches up on headlines from the past year and finds himself at a parole hearing.