The Curious Task

Andrew Work — Has The Extradition Law Conflict Pushed Hong Kong Toward a More Liberal Environment?

Alex Aragona speaks with Hongkonger Andrew Work. Relying on his first-hand experience with the Hong Kong extradition law protests, he explores whether recent political tensions have pushed Hong Kong toward a more liberal environment.

References

1. Lion Rock Institute

Link: https://www.lionrockinstitute.org/en/ 

2. “What was Hong Kong’s ‘Occupy’ movement all about? By Reuters

Link: https://www.reuters.com/article/world/what-was-hong-kongs-occupy-movement-all-about-idUSKCN1S005M/ 

3. “Government Structure” by GovHK

Link: https://www.gov.hk/en/about/govdirectory/govstructure.htm 

4. “Carrie Lam” by Britannica

Link: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Carrie-Lam 

5. “Hong Kong-China Extradition Plans Explained” by Jeff Li

Link: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-47810723

Eric Mack — Why Not Socialism?

Alex Aragona asks Eric Mack to explore his views on what socialism is and if it's the answer to the problems proponents say it can solve.

References

1. “John Locke” by Eric Mack 

Link: https://www.amazon.ca/John-Locke-Eric-Mack/dp/0826429815 

2. “Libertarianism” by Eric Mack

Link: https://www.amazon.ca/Libertarianism-Eric-Mack/dp/1509519297 

3. “The Essential John Locke (Essential Scholars)” by Eric Mack 

Link: https://www.amazon.ca/Essential-John-Locke-Scholars-ebook/dp/B0861HV225 

4. “The Road to Serfdom: Texts and Documents – The Definitive Edition” by F.A. Hayek and Bruce Caldwell

Link: https://www.amazon.ca/Road-Serfdom-Documents-Definitive-Collected/dp/0226320553 

5. “Democratic Socialists of America” 

Link: https://www.dsausa.org/ 

6. “Ludwig Von Mises: Early Life, Economic Views, Theories” by Investopedia

Link: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/l/ludwig-von-mises.asp#:~:text=Ludwig%20von%20Mises%20argued%20against,wealth%20and%20capital%20over%20time. 

7. “Why Not Socialism” by G.A. Cohen

Link: https://www.amazon.ca/Why-Not-Socialism-G-Cohen/dp/0691143617

Paul Robinson — Does Military Intervention Work?

Alex Aragona chats with Paul Robinson as he offers his thoughts on whether or not military intervention works (and explores what is meant by "works").

References

1. IRRUSIANALITY 

Link: https://irrussianality.wordpress.com/

Pierre Desrochers & Joanna Szurmak — Is Overpopulation Hurting the Planet?

Alex Aragona chats with Pierre Desrochers and Joanna Szurmak as they explore whether or not an increasing population necessarily harms the planet. 

References from Episode 5 with Pierre Desrochers and Joanna Szurmak:

• You can purchase Pierre Desrochers and Joanna Szurmak’s book Population Bombed!: Exploding the Link Between Overpopulation and Climate Change on Amazon Canada at this link.
•  You can read Thomas Malthus’ book An Essay on the Principle of Population here.
• You can read Garrett Hardin’s article Lifeboat Ethics here.
• You can read Matt Ridley’s article How Technology Evolves here.
• You can purchase the book Factfulness: Ten Reasons We’re Wrong About the World by Hans Rosling, Ola Rosling, and Anna Rosling Rönnlund on Amazon Canada at this link.

James Harrigan — Can We Have Principled Politicians?

Alex Aragona asks James Harrigan to explore his thoughts on whether or not we can have principled politicians that represent us.

References from Episode 4 with James Harrigan:

• You can read more about James Madison’s thoughts on the importance of checks and balances, which James Harrigan refers to during the podcast, at this link. 
• You can read The Federalist Papers by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison for free on the online Library of Congress here.
• Herbert Croly’s book The Promise of American Life that James mentioned on the podcast can be purchased on Amazon Canada here.
• You can read more about Modern Monetary Theory here.

Jacob Levy — Does a Liberal Society Need to be Democratic?

Alex Aragona and Jacob Levy explore Jacob's belief on whether or not a liberal society requires democratic institutions.

References from Episode 3 with Jacob T. Levy:

• Check out the article Political Libertarianism by Jacob T. Levy here
• Buy the book Rationalism, Pluralism, and Freedom by Jacob T. Levy here

Peter Jaworski — Should Markets Have Limits?

Alex Aragona and Peter Jaworski explore Peter's perspective on what the limits of markets should be. The conversation also explores the ethics surrounding paid blood and plasma donations.

References from Episode 2 with Peter Jaworski:

• Buy the book Markets Without Limits here
• Check out the Donation Ethics website here

Nigel Ashford — What is Classical Liberalism?

Alex Aragona and Nigel Ashford explore what Nigel considers to be the basic tenets of classical liberalism.

References from Episode 1 with Nigel Ashford: 

• More on the Masterpiece Cakeshop case here
• Read up on the Doing Business Index rankings here
• Read On Liberty by John Stuart Mill here