Righting What's Left Meg Hansen

Meg Hansen (Senior Fellow, MCC/Danube Institute) moderates a deep dive into the anatomy of statesmanship with John Burtka – ISI President and author of a new book, Gateway to Statesmanship: Selections from Xenophon to Churchill (2024).

The discussion addresses the following topics and much more.

– What is the relationship between statesmanship and populism?

– In the era of the Deep State and technocrats, how can a new generation of morally excellent and politically savvy statesmen arise?

– How has Christianity (in its Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox forms) influenced Western ideals of political leadership?

– How did European advice to kings and princes differ from non-Western sources? Do these differences continue to impact the political landscape today, especially in China and the Islamic world?

– Which statesmen from history could serve as role models for succeeding in the uniquely challenging political landscape of the 21st century? Which examples from the past should we not follow today?

Act 60 (amended as Act 68) is an education financing law that has been called Vermont’s Titanic because it is slowly but surely sinking the state into icy waters of unanchored education spending. In this episode, we examine the history of the controversial law, and three unexpected consequences that have followed as a result of its implementation.

Further Reading:
Woolf, Art."Vermont's taxes encourage education spending."
https://amp.usatoday.com/story/money/2017/07/26/woolf-vermonts-taxes-encourage-education-spending/513132001/

VT's Health Care Advocate and other healthcare authorities have consistently opposed all federal measures that would have made health insurance more affordable for Vermonters. On the one hand, the state's political class kills all measures that would have brought Vermonters financial relief, and on the other hand, its members complain about the unaffordability of health insurance in Vermont.

This episode explains why the two remaining insurance companies in Vermont keep raising premium rates and why this trend is bound to continue year after year.

Articles Referenced:

Hansen, Meg. "Health insurance mandate a step backward for Vermont health care."
https://www.manchesterjournal.com/stories/health-insurance-mandate-a-step-backward-for-vermont-health-care,542082

--. "Sticks and no carrots: Association Health Plans in Vermont."
https://www.reformer.com/stories/meg-hansen-sticks-and-no-carrots-association-health-plans-in-vermont,544857

Kaiser Health News. "Did The ACA Create Preexisting Condition Protections For People In Employer Plans?"
https://khn.org/news/did-the-aca-create-preexisting-condition-protections-for-people-in-employer-plans/

VTDigger. "Health insurance rate increases approved — 12.4% for BCBS, 10.1% for MVP."
https://vtdigger.org/2019/08/08/insurance-rate-increases-approved-12-4-for-bcbs-10-1-for-mvp/

What does Vermont's "record low" 2% unemployment rate actually indicate? This Thursday Thoughts episode unpacks the grim truth behind this often-repeated statistic.

In this episode, we will see how Montpelier systematically impoverishes Vermonters, how our politicians continually cry about racism to distract from their anti-economic growth agenda, and why I agree with the state's very first executive director of racial equity that Vermont needs a demographic change.

Articles Referenced:

Gleason, Patrick. "As Maryland Becomes Sixth State To Pass $15 Minimum Wage, Vermont Lawmakers Look To Follow Suit."
https://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickgleason/2019/04/06/as-maryland-becomes-sixth-state-to-pass-15-minimum-wage-vermont-lawmakers-look-to-follow-suit/#59046ef856a2

McCoy, Pattie. "$15 minimum wage is bad economic policy."
https://vtdigger.org/2019/04/03/pattie-mccoy-15-minimum-wage-bad-economic-policy/

VTDigger. "Q&A: Racial Equity Director Xusana Davis focuses on blindspots."
https://vtdigger.org/2019/08/18/qa-racial-equity-director-xusana-davis-focuses-on-blindspots/

The episode discusses the origins of the opioid crisis, and the role played by the Sackler family (now worth multi-billions), the FDA, and bad actors in the medical and pharmacy professions.

References:
Keefe, Patrick Radden. "The Family That Built an Empire of Pain."
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/10/30/the-family-that-built-an-empire-of-pain

Macy, Beth. Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company that Addicted America.
https://www.amazon.com/Dopesick-Dealers-Doctors-Company-Addicted/dp/0316551244

Meier, Barry. Pain Killer: An Empire of Deceit and the Origin of America's Opioid Epidemic.
https://www.amazon.com/Pain-Killer-Empire-Americas-Epidemic/dp/0525511105

National Geographic. "This Is What Happens to Your Brain on Opioids."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDVV_M__CSI