Locusts and Pirates: What’s Your Favorite Recession? with Tyler Goodspeed | Hoover Institution

About this episode

Tyler Goodspeed joins the GoodFellows to discuss economic recessions, the Iran conflict, and historical predictions.

If unexpected wars and oil shocks have been big features of recent history, so too are economic recessions – another downturn perhaps ahead in 2026. Tyler Goodspeed, a former Hoover Institution fellow and author of the forthcoming book, Recession: The Real Reasons Economies Shrink and What To Do About It, joins GoodFellows regulars Sir Niall Ferguson, John Cochrane, and Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster for a tutorial on economic conditions and lessons past and present. After that: The three fellows discuss the latest in the Iran conflict including the feasibility of a peace agreement by week’s end as demanded by President Trump, the odds of land forces entering the equation in the near future, plus possible economic hardship ahead should the fighting linger. Finally, in the “lightning round”: why the late Stanford biologist Paul Erlich was so amiss in predicting a doomed planet (not unlike climate alarmists) and H.R.’s favorite Chuck Norris jokes in honor of the recent passing of the famed Hollywood tough guy. Subscribe to GoodFellows for clarity on today’s biggest social, economic, and geostrategic shifts — only on GoodFellows.

People in this episode

Hosts: Sir Niall Ferguson, John Cochrane, Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster

Guest: Tyler Goodspeed

Topics covered

• economic recessions
• Iran conflict
• peace agreements
• economic hardship
• historical lessons
• climate predictions
• Chuck Norris jokes

Keywords

• recession
• Iran conflict
• economic conditions
• peace agreement
• Paul Erlich
• Chuck Norris

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Hoover Institution

Books & works: Recession: The Real Reasons Economies Shrink and What To Do About It

Places: Iran

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