Econception

Paul Mueller and David Kotter examine one of today's most debated policy proposals: Universal Basic Income (UBI).

As advances in artificial intelligence reshape the economy, some argue that unprecedented productivity could make work optional. But what would that mean for the social safety net, individual responsibility, and human flourishing?

Drawing from a clas...

While inflation has dominated headlines in recent years, understanding true economic affordability requires looking beyond raw price tags. In this episode of The Economist Next Door, we dive into the gap between headline inflation numbers, consumer perception, and real purchasing power. Joined by economists Dr. Anne Bradley (The Fund for American Studies / Institute for...

What happens when families, churches, neighborhoods, and civic institutions begin to disappear?

Economist Paul Mueller and political philosopher Luke Sheahan explore the ideas of Robert Nisbet, the overlooked thinker who warned that people deprived of meaningful community would drift toward loneliness, despair, or political fanaticism. From ancient Rome to the modern w...

Social Security is facing a serious financial crisis. By 2032, the program's trust fund is projected to be depleted, triggering automatic benefit reductions unless Congress acts. But the problem runs deeper than a looming funding shortfall. Social Security was built for a different era—one with more workers supporting fewer retirees and shorter retirement periods.

In t...

Recessions are often explained as the inevitable result of excess: too much borrowing, too much speculation, too much optimism, or some hidden imbalance waiting to be corrected. But what if that story is wrong?

In this episode of The Economist Next Door, host Paul Mueller talks with Tyler Goodspeed, chief economist at ExxonMobil and author of Recession: Th...