The Liberty Exchange

In this episode, Jonathan Fortier and Bruce Pardy discuss some of the ways that the government response to COVID (both in Canada and abroad) revealed the fragility of individual freedom in the face of political power and explore the various reasons that political, legal and civic institutions failed to protect individual liberty in a time of apparent crisis. The conversation explores aspects of the Canadian trucker protest as, in a sense, representative of the wider international and democratic opposition to authoritarian governments. Jonathan and Bruce conclude with some reflections on the centuries-long tendency to “move power around” from one place of authority to another, without questioning the legitimacy of exercising power over others. The conversation concludes with some thoughts about the administrative state, and the manner in which it stands in opposition to accountable government and a robust individual freedom. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jonathan Fortier talks with Don Boudreaux, Professor of Economics at George Mason University, about the legacy of F.A. Hayek. Don provides a quick overview of the background and context of Hayek’s Nobel Prize, the intellectual rivalry with Keynes, and a general survey of Hayek’s important insights and their ramifications for understanding free societies. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Jonathan Fortier talks with Brook Manville and Josiah Ober about their recent book, The Civic Bargain: How Democracy Survives (Princeton, 2023). Manville and Ober identify essential qualities for robust democracies, and explore how Ancient Athens, Republican Rome, Parliamentary Britain and the American Founding each struggled to develop and maintain key practices and institutions to preserve their political orders.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Jonathan Fortier talks with Jason Sorens, Senior Research Fellow at the American Institute of Economic Research and Founder of the Free State Project. They discuss the origins and purposes of the Free State Project, the question of secession, the lessons that other American states might learn from the FSP, analogues with other secessionist movements around the world, and then turn to a discussion of the Cato-supported publication, “Freedom in the 50 States.” Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode Jonathan Fortier talks with Gene Healy about the growth in the scope and power of the office of the American President, and some of the ways that this has negative consequences for political accountability and individual liberty. Healy’s book, The Cult of the Presidency, first published in 2008 by the Cato Institute, will be reissued this coming autumn in advance of the American presidential election. The conversation turns partly on what has changed in the intervening 16 years, but also on a number of other topics, such as the delinquency of Congress in the face of Executive over-reach, the growth of the administrative state, the influence of technology in presidential reach, the unintended consequences of the presidential race, and much more. Healy’s research and insights are presented with a unique grace and wit that makes this a compelling account of the changes to the nation’s top political position and associated implications for a free society. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For a philosophy that seeks to allow us the choice in how we pursue our own interests, some argue liberalism leaves us unmoored or adrift. Dan Klein thinks differently. In a wide-ranging conversation with Libertarianism.org Director Jonathan Fortier, they discuss the transcendence of the divine, joy, beauty, community, and virtues such as benevolence and friendship. They also explore the concept of quasi-religious political ideologies and how thinking liberally with “the higher things” in mind can lead to a more equal and just world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our Centers of Progress theme this week has revolved around the history and nature of cities, and their role in promoting values central to free societies –including a respect for liberty, individual rights, free speech, and cosmopolitanism. But putting those values into action is much more complicated than it sounds. Sanford Ikeda, Professor Emeritus at the State University of New York, Purchase College has a deep knowledge of urban planning with a particular expertise in the work of Jane Jacobs, a giant of twentieth-century theory of urban design. In this episode we focus on how thinking about cities offers a particularly good avenue towards economic and social theory. Professor Ikeda’s work explores how different approaches to the design and growth of cities can either enable or be in tension with individual liberty and human flourishing. Further Reading:A City Cannot Be a Work of Art: Learning Economics and Social Theory From Jane Jacobs by Sanford Ikeda Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When ideology overtakes thinking for oneself—who is to blame? Is the state solely responsible, or do many of us outsource our moral responsibility to ideology? According to Václav Havel, the line between ruler and ruled might be less apparent than we think.To close out this week celebrating the 10th anniversary of Havel’s Place, Libertarianism.org Director Jonathan Fortier is joined by Flagg Taylor, Associate Professor of Political Science at Skidmore College. They discuss Havel’s varied range of influences and contemporaries, the spiritual depravations of planned economies, and what it means to live authentically in both post-totalitarian and liberal consumerist societies.***Further Reading:-Flagg Taylor-Havel and the Ideological Temptation by Flagg Taylor-Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation-Power of the Powerless by Václav Havel-The Garden Party and The Memorandum by Václav HavelMore from Libertarianism.org:The Velvet Revolution and Václav Havel - The Liberty ExchangePoet Turned President: Václav Havel - Portraits of LibertyA Monument to Free Speech: Havel’s Place - Portraits of LibertyNo Liberty without Responsibility by Paul MeanyHavel’s Masterwork: The Power of the Powerless by Jonathan Fortier Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.