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PODCAST

Acton Unwind

Acton Institute

Acton Unwind is a weekly roundtable discussion of news and current events through the Acton Institute"s lens on the world: promoting a free and virtuous society and connecting good intentions with sound economics. Host Eric Kohn is joined by Acton Institute experts for an exploration of news, politics, religion, and culture.

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All Episodes

48:13

How Important Are the “Twitter Files” and Twitter...

Acton Unwind ·

2022/12/12

This week, Eric Kohn, Dan Hugger, and Dylan Pahman tackle the “Twitter Files,” the internal documents from the social media company that have been released by several independent journalists like Matt Taibbi and Bari Weiss. What, if anything, do they tell us about the way Twitter was run previously? Is there even enough information in what was released to draw meaningful conclusions about the pre–Elon Musk regime? Next, with Jimmy Lai sentenced to more than five years for his conviction on “fraud”

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58:48

Ukraine Moves to Ban Russian Orthodox Church

Acton Unwind ·

2022/12/05

This week, Eric Kohn, Dan Hugger, and Dylan Pahman discuss the move by Ukraine’s government to prevent churches affiliated with Moscow from operating in Ukraine. How dangerous is this? And why is trying to determine what constitutes a legitimate religion always problematic? Then the guys turn their attention to the protests in China and the delay of Jimmy Lai’s National Security Law trial in Hong Kong. How big of a threat to the Chinese Communist Party are these protests? And why should we focus

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61:35

Sam Bankman-Fried's Fall & The Sentencing of...

Acton Unwind ·

2022/11/21

This week, Dan Hugger, Michael Matheson Miller, and Stephen Barrows examine the collapse of the crypto currency exchange FTX and the sentencing of former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes. How should we think about fraud in business? What is the role of corporate governance in securing the common good? How should investors and prospective clients best do their due diligence on companies they use and invest in? How do disreputable corporate leaders utilize regulatory and ideological capture to deceive

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52:02

What the Midterm Elections Say About American Civic...

Acton Unwind ·

2022/11/14

What the Midterm Elections Say About American Civic Health This week, Eric, Dan, and Dylan take a look at the surprising 2022 midterm election results to break down what they say about the health of American civic and political life. What does it mean that we’re seeing record participation in the political process but increasing dissatisfaction with the state of political life? What impact did the issue of abortion have, and did we all underestimate how important it would be? Then Dan gives an

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53:49

Is Affirmative Action History?

Acton Unwind ·

2022/11/07

This week, Eric Kohn, Dan Hugger, and Dylan Pahman discuss affirmative action in college admissions shortly after two cases involving the University of North Carolina and Harvard were argued before the Supreme Court. Was affirmative action ever justified in college admissions? If so, is it still justified? And if it goes, should it be replaced with something else to help the historically disadvantaged? Then the guys examine a recent study highlighting the positive benefits to the environment from

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41:48

Musk sinks his teeth into Twitter

Acton Unwind ·

2022/10/31

This week, Eric Kohn and Dan Hugger discuss Elon Musk’s finalized takeover of Twitter. Can he make it better? Is it possible to make Twitter better? Perhaps more important to Musk, can he make it profitable? And will Musk’s acquisition change the nature of the platform in how it serves as a public salon for the media elite? Then the guys discuss the presidential election in Brazil. What does the defeat of Jair Bolsonaro mean for Brazil and for the rise of populist leaders worldwide? Subscribe to our

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53:50

Truss Interrupted

Acton Unwind ·

2022/10/24

This week, Dan Hugger, Dylan Pahman, and John Pinheiro discuss the undoing of the Truss government in the United Kingdom. What caused the unraveling? Does “neoliberalism” have a future? What does the current political crisis in the United Kingdom tell us about the future of American conservatism and the right more generally? How should this inform our thinking about the conflict between classical liberals and the “New Right”? Our panel then explores technology through the lens of the new “Unplugged

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55:29

The Iranian Uprising (Almost) No One Is Talking About

Acton Unwind ·

2022/10/17

This week, Eric Kohn, Dan Hugger, and Dylan Pahman discuss the protests in Iran over the death of a 22-year-old woman who had been arrested for improperly covering her head. Why isn’t there more media coverage of these protests after five weeks? Is the Iranian regime actually in danger? And what, if anything, should countries like the United States being doing to encourage these human rights protesters? Then the guys examine a new study from the Center for the Study of Partisanship and Ideology on

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52:04

Columbus or Indigenous People's Day: Why not both?

Acton Unwind ·

2022/10/10

This week, Dan Hugger is joined by Sarah Negri and John Pinheiro to discuss the national debate around Columbus Day and the ongoing escalation of the war in Ukraine. What should we as American’s in general, and Christian’s in particular mark of Columbus’s Legacy? What is Indigenous Peoples’ Day and need its celebration be in conflict with Columbus Day? What is the relationship between Columbus Day and the Italian American Community? What do the latest escalations by the Russian Federation kinetic,

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54:01

Into the Metaverse

Acton Unwind ·

2022/10/03

This week, Eric Kohn is joined by Dan Hugger and Dan Churchwell to discuss the theme of the Fall 2022 issue of Acton’s magazine, Religion & Liberty: What is the metaverse? What is its relationship to science fiction literature? And what is the impact of technology on society and culture, and how we should think through the consequences, intended and unintended, of technology and the metaverse on our lives? Dan Hugger’s Fall 2022 R&L cover story is entitled, “The Metaverse Does Not Exist.” Dan

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59:38

What happened at NatCon3?

Acton Unwind ·

2022/09/26

This week, Eric Kohn and Dan Hugger are joined by two special guests—Stephanie Slade, senior editor at Reason magazine and Fellow in Liberal Studies at the Acton Institute, and Jack Butler, submissions editor at National Review—both of whom attended the National Conservatism 3 conference, to discuss all things pertaining to the conference and the National Conservatism movement. Subscribe to our podcasts The Will to Power Was Front and Center at NatCon III | Stephanie Slade, Reason Both Left and

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59:41

The New York Times Takes Aim at Orthodox Jewish...

Acton Unwind ·

2022/09/19

This week, Eric Kohn, Dan Hugger, and Dylan Pahman are joined by special guest Rabbi Jonathan Greenberg to discuss the recent New York Times article on New York City’s Orthodox yeshivas. Is the Times piece fair? What interest does the state have in the kind of education the children in Hasidic enclaves in New York City are receiving? And is America becoming increasingly inhospitable to Jews? Then the guys discuss the move by some state governors to send migrants who arrive at the southern border to

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61:30

Remembering Queen Elizabeth II & Mikhail Gorbachev

Acton Unwind ·

2022/09/12

This week, Eric Kohn, Dan Hugger, and Dylan Pahman discuss the legacies of two world leaders who have recently passed: Queen Elizabeth II of England and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. How should these two very different figures be remembered, and what will be their enduring legacies? How should we think about the legacy of the British Empire, which was dissolved under Queen Elizabeth’s reign with the end of British rule in Hong Kong? And how much credit should Gorbachev get for the

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55:05

Is there a case for canceling student loan debt?

Acton Unwind ·

2022/08/29

This week, Eric Kohn, John Pinheiro, and Dylan Pahman discuss every angle of the executive order from President Joe Biden granting up to $20,000 of student-loan-debt forgiveness to qualifying individuals. Is there a solid legal case for doing this? Can one argue persuasively that transferring debts from those who incurred them to those who did not—namely, the American taxpayers—is in any way just? Does it make sense to take this action without addressing the deeper problems in the student loan and

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62:22

Afghanistan, one year later

Acton Unwind ·

2022/08/22

This week, Eric Kohn, Dan Hugger, and Dylan Pahman reflect on what has transpired in Afghanistan in the year since the withdrawal of American forces from the country. Could the inevitable withdrawal have been better planned to prevent the debacle that ensued? What is the current state of the country’s economy, and of the rights of women and children? Could things be worse? Then the guys turn their attention to a possible earthquake in the American public school system, as major cities see declining

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66:13

No one is above the law or beneath contempt in Trump...

Acton Unwind ·

2022/08/15

This week, Eric Kohn, Dan Hugger, and Dylan Pahman explore some of the big picture questions raised in the wake of the FBI's executing a search warrant for Trump’s Florida digs, Mar-a-Lago. How should we balance practical political concerns with questions of the rule of law? Would more transparency help? Or would breaking the Department of Justice’s protocol, as former FBI director Jim Comey did about the Hillary Clinton private-server investigation, cause more harm than good? And are we capable of

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63:57

The future of Roe isn’t as simple as pro-lifers may...

Acton Unwind ·

2022/08/08

This week, guest host Dan Hugger, Sarah Negri, and Dylan Pahman discuss the diplomatic crisis unfolding in the wake of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. How should the United States respond to an increasingly aggressive Communist China? From there the discussion turns to the recent defeat of the proposed Value Them Both Amendment to the Kansas Constitution. What can we learn about the future of the abortion debate in America from this result? Then we discuss the recent Republican primary

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59:33

A recession by any other name still stinks

Acton Unwind ·

2022/08/01

David L. Bahnsen joins Eric Kohn, Dan Hugger, and Dylan Pahman on the show this week to discuss all things economics. Just what is a recession? How do we know? What should we do if we’re actually in one? What is the future of inflation? If inflation comes down, is it a good sign or would it be indicative of different problems in the economy? Are we at risk of investing too much in the power of government and politicians to both break and fix the economy? And are oil companies making record

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59:43

Political violence and the attack on Lee Zeldin

Acton Unwind ·

2022/07/25

This week, Eric Kohn, Dan Hugger, and Dylan Pahman discuss the rising concern about political violence in the wake of the attack in New York on Republican gubernatorial candidate Rep. Lee Zeldin. How do we stem this tide, and what role do politicians and rhetoric play in inciting such violence? From there the discussion turns to the elimination of cash bail in New York. Then, given President Biden’s trip to Saudi Arabia, how should we approach dealing with nations that violate human rights and,

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57:42

Bonus episode: Stranger Things 4

Acton Unwind ·

2022/07/22

In a very special bonus episode of Acton Unwind, Eric Kohn is joined by Dylan Pahman and Daniel Baas to discuss the fourth season of the hit Netflix series “Stranger Things.” They explore the show’s depiction of communism, the satanic panic of the 1980s, concepts of good and evil, and tease out some possible religious allegories. Supernatural thriller Stranger Things shows the all-too-human evil of communism | Dylan Pahman Cronyism vs. free markets in ‘Stranger Things’ | Dylan Pahman Stranger

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