The Curious Task

Matt Bufton speaks with Sean Speer about the observed return to "normie politics," and whether it's a trend that will stick.

References:

The politics of transgression versus the politics of normalcy by Sean Speer

Thanks to our patrons, including Kris Rondolo, Amy Willis, and Christopher McDonald.

To support the podcast, visit: https://patreon.com/curioustask

In this conversation from 2020, Alex Aragona speaks with Jason Sorens as he explores what it takes for a group to secede or gain independence from a state, and whether Alberta could leave Canada.

References from Episode 32 with Jason Sorens:

In this conversation, Alex speaks with Graeme Thompson about the current economic tensions between Canada and the U.S., and the broader geopolitical contexts that surrounds those tensions.

References

1. Graeme Thompson: Canadians No Longer Take Geopolitics Seriously—and Our Neglect Is Going to Cost Us (The Hub, 2024) https://thehub.ca/2024/03/22/graeme-thompson-canadians-no-longer-take-geopolitics-seriously-and-our-neglect-is-going-to-cost-us/

2. Top Risks 2026: Implications for Canada (Eurasia Group, 2026) https://www.eurasiagroup.net/issues/Top-Risks-2026-implications-for-canada

3. Top Risks 2025: Implications for Canada (Eurasia Group, 2025) https://www.eurasiagroup.net/issues/Top-Risks-2025-Implications-for-Canada

4. Top Risks 2026: Canada (RBC Thought Leadership and Eurasia Group, 2026 — Graeme Thom...

In this episode from 2021, Alex speaks with Geoff Kellow about the life and writings of Benjamin Franklin and whether they can help us better understand the connection between markets and virtue.

References

1. “The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin” by Benjamin Franklin

Link: https://www.amazon.ca/Autobiography-Benjamin-Franklin/dp/1508475091 

2. “Benjamin Franklin and Adam Smith: Two Strangers and the Spirit of Capitalism” by Geoff Kellow

Link: https://read.dukeupress.edu/hope/article-abstract/50/2/321/134723/Benjamin-Franklin-and-Adam-SmithTwo-Strangers-and?redirectedFrom=fulltext 

3. “The Wealth of Nations” by Adam Smith

Link: https://www.amazon.ca/Wealth-Nations-Adam-Smith/dp/1680920960<

In this conversation from 2023, Alex speaks with Rachel Lomasky about hot-button issues surrounding machine learning and artificial intelligence and the limitations and definitions of each, especially when it comes to ethical decision-making. 

References

1. Rachel’s Articles, Law&Liberty 

Link: https://lawliberty.org/author/rachel-lomasky/ 

2. “Artificial Intelligence (AI) vs. Machine Learning” by Columbia Engineering

Link: https://ai.engineering.columbia.edu/ai-vs-machine-learning/ 

3. “Transcending Technopessimism” by Rachel Lomasky 

Link: https://lawliberty.org/transcending-technopessimism/

In this conversation from 2024, Alex speaks with Matt Zwolinski about whether a truly "free market" exists, delving into concepts of freedom, coercion, and property rights. They examine critiques of markets from left-leaning thinkers, such as Robert Hale, as well as conservative perspectives, while discussing libertarian approaches to balancing coercion and freedom in market societies. Zwolinski also references his own Substack essays and reflects on ideas for minimizing coercion without dismissing critiques.

Matt Zwolinski's Substack, Bleeding Heart Libertarian
Link: https://bleedingheartlibertarian.substack.com/

"Coercion and Distribution in a Supposedly Non-Coercive State" by Robert Hale (1923)<...

In this conversation from 2021, Alex Aragona chats with Ross Emmett and Steve Slivinski as they explore the policies that can hurt businesses, and their work on the Doing Business North America index.

References from Episode 80 with Ross Emmett and Steve Slivinski

In this conversation from 2025, Matt speaks with Ethan Nadelmann about vaping, e-cigarettes, and pouch nicotine alternatives to cigarettes within the broader context of health policy and the drug war. They discuss the misconceptions surrounding nicotine, harm reduction strategies, and how opposition to non-combustible nicotine mirrors past drug war policies. Ethan highlights international case studies, the role of public health organizations, and the influence of figures like Michael Bloomberg in shaping the global discourse - and misinformation - around alternatives to cigarettes.

References

"Thinking Seriously About Alternatives to Drug Prohibition" by Ethan Nadelmann
https://www...

In this conversation from 2025, host Matt Bufton interviews historian Steve Davies about the political realignment happening across the Western world. Steve explains how traditional divisions in politics, such as socialism versus capitalism, have been replaced by a new axis centered on nationalism versus globalism. He critiques both "national collectivism" and "technocratic liberal progressivism" while discussing the implications for classical liberalism. The conversation also touches on the influence of leaders like Donald Trump, Justin Trudeau, and Emmanuel Macron, and explores what the future holds for liberal ideas in a shifting political landscape.

References

"The Great Realignment...

In this conversation from 2022, Alex speaks with Andrew Smith about capitalist peace theory and discusses a Canadian case study as an example of mutually beneficial exchange leading to peace and prosperity. 

References

1. “Canadian Entrepreneurs and the Preservation of the Capitalist Peace in the North Atlantic Triangle in the Civil War Era, 1861-1871” by Andrew D. Smith and Laurence B. Mussio

Link: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/enterprise-and-society/article/abs/canadian-entrepreneurs-and-the-preservation-of-the-capitalist-peace-in-the-north-atlantic-triangle-in-the-civil-war-era-18611871/228FB9ECC4A2E2BA40799185F77B0239

In this episode from earlier this year, Alex speaks with Darrell Bricker about whether Canada is at a breaking point, drawing from Bricker and John Ibbitson’s book Breaking Point to explore Canada’s economic stagnation, regional alienation, generational anxiety, and fragile national identity. Bricker argues that Canada’s challenges are serious but not fatal if Canadians are willing to stop kicking hard problems down the road and start building a country that younger generations can actually believe in.

References:

In this conversation from 2023, Alex speaks with Nathan Goodman about the implications of Climate Change for immigration policy and how coercion and polycentricity factor into that conversation.

References: 

- Adapting to Climate Change through Migration: Justus Enninga and Nathan Goodman https://www.thecgo.org/research/adapting-to-climate-change-through-migration/

- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Summary for Policy Makers https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg2/chapter/summary-for-policymakers/#:~:text=Climate%20change%2C%20through%20hazards%2C%20exposure,adapt%20and%20mitigate%20within%20limits 

- Beyond Markets and States: Polycentric Governance of Complex Economic Systems: Elinor Ostrom ht...

In this conversation from 2024, Alex speaks with Erwin Dekker about the economics and public policy perspectives on art, examining various theories on how art derives its value in communities. Dekker explores the idea of the separation between art and state, discusses cultural significance and individual perception in determining the worth of art, and how art's intangible qualities challenge traditional economic valuation.

References

"Realizing the Values of Art: Making Space for Cultural Civil Society" by Erwin Dekker and Valeria Morea

Link: https://www.amazon.ca/Realizing-Values-Art-Cultural-Society/dp/3031245970 

Erwin Dekker's Website
Link: h...

In this conversation from 2021, Alex Aragona speaks with Aeon Skoble as he outlines his ideas on what anarchism is, how we should think on it, and how it overlaps with classical liberal ideas.

References from The Curious Task Episode 99 with Aeon Skoble

In this episode from 2022, Alex speaks with David Friedman about the history of legal systems around the world from an economic standpoint.

References

1. “The Machinery of Freedom: Guide to Radical Capitalism” by David D. Friedman

Link: http://www.daviddfriedman.com/The_Machinery_of_Freedom_.pdf 

2. “Law’s Order: What Economics Has to Do with Law and Why It Matters” by David D. Friedman

Link: http://www.daviddfriedman.com/Laws_Order_draft/laws_order_ToC.htm 

3. “Who Is David Ricardo and What Is He Famous For?” by the Investopedia Team

In this episode from 2025, Matt Bufton speaks with Don Boudreaux about tariffs, free trade, and the economic misunderstandings that drive protectionist policies. Don critiques the balance of trade doctrine, drawing from historical examples and economic theory to explain why tariffs harm both consumers and producers. The discussion covers the impact of tariffs on the U.S. and Canada, how politicians exploit economic misconceptions, and why a policy of unilateral free trade would be the best path forward.

References

Globalization by Don Boudreaux

The Essential Hayek by D...

In this conversation from 2023, Matt speaks with Mark Mercer about academic freedom, the changing mission of universities themselves, and what role faculty, administrators, and students should play in shaping the future of the institution. 

References:

In this episode from 2021, Alex Aragona speaks with Dennis Rasmussen about his findings on how the American Founding Fathers truly felt about the experiment they designed and built as time went on.

References

Alex Eames speaks with Moshe Lander about whether Canada’s billion-dollar FIFA bill is a smart investment, or if politicans and taxpayers are being sold a bill of goods. Moshe argues that while the World Cup will absolutely be fun and meaningful for fans, the public was sold a dollars-and-cents case that does not really hold up once you factor in temporary jobs, displaced spending, security costs, and FIFA’s ability to push expenses onto host cities.

References

Alex speaks with Darrell Bricker about whether Canada is at a breaking point, drawing from Bricker and John Ibbitson’s book Breaking Point to explore Canada’s economic stagnation, regional alienation, generational anxiety, and fragile national identity. Bricker argues that Canada’s challenges are serious but not fatal if Canadians are willing to stop kicking hard problems down the road and start building a country that younger generations can actually believe in.

References:

In this episode from 2022, Alex speaks with James Harrigan about popular culture as a source of social change and the many ways in which the export of American pop culture has shaped the world.

References

1. “Brown v. Board of Education” by the National Archives

Link: https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/brown-v-board-of-education 

2. “Roe v. Wade” by Britannica

Link: https://www.britannica.com/event/Roe-v-Wade

In this episode, Alex speaks with Matt Zwolinski about whether markets are coercive, and why the answer is more complicated than either “markets are voluntary” or “capitalism is coercion.” They discuss Robert Hale’s classic argument, the limits of standard libertarian responses, and why a better liberal defence of markets has to take real-world coercion seriously without treating all coercion as morally equal.

References:

Matt speaks with Matt Dinan about why AI is not so much ruining liberal education as exposing it's main shortcoming: treating education as a system of credentials rather than a challenging process of reading, writing, discussing, and learning how to learn. Dinan argues that the best response is not to become an "AI cop", but to design courses that incentivize students to learn skills they will need in any scenario where AI has an impact on our society - for better or for worse.

References

In this episode from 2022, Alex speaks with Moin Yahya about debates both new and old surrounding the causes and history of inflation.

References:

Inflation and Paper Money: An Historical Perspective: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4076420 

In Defense of the Free-Banking Stablecoins: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4056359 

George Selgin's page at the Cato Institute:

https://www.cato.org/people/george-selgin 

Thanks to Our Patrons

Thanks to our patrons, including Kris Rondolo, Amy Willis, and Christopher McD...

Matt speaks with Nadine Strossen about why free speech is under pressure across the political spectrum, from left-wing campus cancel culture to right-wing government coercion and censorship pressures. Strossen argues that the answer to hateful or harmful ideas is not censorship, but a stronger culture of free expression, viewpoint neutrality, and fighting bad speech with better speech.

References

Matt speaks with Casey Kennedy, co-founder of Acton Academy Calgary Central, about what makes the Acton model different from traditional schooling: guides instead of teachers, Socratic discussions instead of lectures, mastery instead of grades, and an emphasis on letting kids struggle, fail, and become passionate about the process of learning itself. Casey also explains why she and her husband started the school for their daughter, how her earlier work in Dallas and Sierra Leone shaped her view of education, and why she believes every child has a “genius” that education should help uncover.

References

Matt speaks with James Czerniawski about proposed bans on children using social media and AI, exploring concerns around mental health, digital literacy, free speech, privacy, and the consequences of regulation. James argues that while online harms are real, outright bans are ineffective and often counterproductive, advocating instead for parental awareness, digital literacy, and a more optimistic approach to AI.

References

James’ website: https://jamesczerniawski.com/

James’ author page at the Consumer Choice Center: https://consumerchoicecenter.org/author/james/

The UK Online Safety Act: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/online-safety-act-explainer/online-safety-act-explainer

Alex sits down with Holly Doan to discuss Accountability Journalism and the role that non-mainstream journalistic media has in the current Canadian political landscape. They discuss the decline of traditional newsrooms, subsidies for Canadian media companies and the lack of transparency that has led us to a climate where the press is struggling to keep up with the times.

References

Blacklock’s website:

https://www.blacklocks.ca/

The Hub article on government subsidies for traditional Canadian media outlets:

https://thehub.ca/2025/05/05/the-names-of-media-outlets-receiving-government-mandated-funding-released-only-days-after-election/

Carney’s CBC funding announcement:

In this episode, Alex speaks with Aris Trantidis about his book Clientelism and why it matters for anyone concerned with democracy, public choice, and the modern state. Trantidis explains clientelism as a system of political exchange in which politicians trade targeted favours, contracts, regulation, and other private benefits for support, campaign resources, and loyalty - arguing that this dynamic is not a "bug" but a structural feature of politics that can distort markets and democracy.

References

In this episode from 2020, Alex Aragona speaks with Dan Griswold as he explores the benefits of open markets and free trade, and whether you can "win" a trade war.

References

1. “Mad About Trade: Why Main Street America Should Embrace Globalization” by Daniel Griswold

Link: https://www.amazon.ca/Mad-About-Trade-America-Globalization/dp/193530819X 

2. “Section 232 Investigation on the Effect of Imports of Steel on U.S. National Security” by U.S Department of Commerce

Link: https://www.commerce.gov/issues/trade-enforcement/section-232-steel 

3. “China Section 301-Tariff Actions and Exclusions Process” by Office of the Un...

In this episode from 2022, Alex speaks with Thomas Bunting about politics, democracy, social progress and more as they relate to baseball and athletics more broadly.

In this episode from 2024, Alex speaks with Bryce Tingle about corporations, how these unique legal entities are governed, how changes we have made to corporate governance has discouraged companies from joining Canada’s public markets, and how the decline in our public market is hurting Canadians. 



Episode Notes:

1. Bryce’s article “Returning Markets To The Centre Of Corporate Law”

https://jcl.law.uiowa.edu/sites/jcl.law.uiowa.edu/files/2023-09/Tingle_Final.pdf 

2. Bryce’s profile at UofCalgary

https://profiles.ucalgary.ca/bryce-tingle 

3. Jensen and Meckley’s “The Theory Of T...

In this episode from 2023, Alex speaks with Nigel Ashford about the prospects for a freer world and how the memory of history, the hope of younger persons, and the teaching of ideas can shape the future of classical liberalism. 

Further Reading:

https://libertarianism.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/socin003.pdf

Chapter 2 of this book: https://iea.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Blundell-interactive.pdf

https://fee.org/articles/the-tide-in-the-affairs-of-men/

https://cdn.mises.org/Intellectuals%20and%20Socialism_4.pdf

https://www.libertarianism.org/publications/essays/why-do-intellectuals-oppose-capitalism

http://wordlist.na...

In this episode, Alex speaks with Nick Cowen about why an “examined education” is better than an unexamined one. Drawing on his paper, Nick argues that exams are valuable not just as external assessments but as opportunities for students to test themselves, build confidence, develop resilience, and discover what they actually know rather than what they merely think they know.

References

In this episode from 2023, Alex speaks with Stefanie Haeffele about her book Living Better Together, which explores the work of Elinor Ostrom and Viviana Zelizer. 

Episode Notes:

"Living Better Together" by Stefanie Haeffele and Virgil Henry Storr:

https://a.co/d/hJNCxw6 

Viviana Zelizer's homepage at Princeton:

https://sociology.princeton.edu/people/viviana-zelizer 

Elinor Ostrom's bio and short autobiography on the Nobel website:

https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/economic-sciences/2009/ostrom/facts/ 

Nonneutrality of Money in a Social Perspective by Julia Włodarczyk

htt...

In part two of this episode from 2022, Alex speaks again with philosopher Eric Mack about "Anarchy, State and Utopia", this time touching on some of the challenges to Nozick's theory and Eric's own personal connection to Robert Nozick during his life.

References

1. Part 1 of Eric Mack’s The Curious Task Episode on “Why Read Anarchy, State, and Utopia?”

Link: https://thecurioustask.podbean.com/e/ep-145-eric-mack-why-read-anarchy-state-and-utopia/ 

2. Eric Mack’s Previous Episode “Why Not Socialism?” on the Curious Task Podcast

Link: https://thecurioustask.podbean.com/e/ep-7-eric-mack-%e2%80%94-why-not-socialism/

3. “Anarchy...

In this episode from 2022, Alex speaks with Philosopher Eric Mack about Robert Nozick's "Anarchy State and Utopia" and how the book shaped the conversation around natural rights theory, philosophical libertarianism, and the study of political utopias for decades to come.

References

1. Eric Mack’s Previous Episode “Why Not Socialism?” on the Curious Task Podcast

Link: https://thecurioustask.podbean.com/e/ep-7-eric-mack-%e2%80%94-why-not-socialism/ 

2. “Anarchy, State, and Utopia” by Robert Nozick

Link: https://www.amazon.ca/Anarchy-State-Utopia-Robert-Nozick/dp/0465051006 

3. “Robert Nozick” by Britannica

Link: https://www.britannica.com/biograp...

In this conversation from 2024, Alex speaks with Eric Schliesser about the growing declarations of the end of liberalism and what this means for the socio-political future in general.

Episode Notes:

In this episode, Matt speaks with Reem Ibrahim about whether Brexit can be considered a success six years after the UK left the European Union. They examine the classical-liberal case for Brexit (focused on sovereignty, deregulation, and free trade) and contrast it with a post-Brexit reality in which many EU-era regulations, trade barriers, and interventionist policies remain. While the most catastrophic “Project Fear” predictions did not come true, Ibrahim argues that Brexit’s promised freedoms have largely gone unused, leaving its long-term success still unresolved.

References

Brexit Referendum (2016) — https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/politics/eu_refer...

In this episode, Alex speaks with Franco Terrazano about government spending, taxation, and fiscal accountability in Canada, with a focus on how deficits, debt, and expanding bureaucracy effect affordability for ordinary Canadians. Franco outlines where federal spending has grown most rapidly, critiques the lack of clear priorities and performance measurement, and explains how interest payments on the debt increasingly crowd out core public services.

References

Canadian Taxpayers Federation  https://www.taxpayer.com/

Federal Budget of Canada (most recent edition)  https://budget.canada.ca/home-accueil-en.html

Public Accounts of Canada  http...