#AcademicRunPlaylist - 1/9/26

Getting out for a bit today was cathartic, and while taking in the natural world I listened to talks for my #AcademicRunPlaylist

First was an informative talk by Gerald Cohen on the December employment numbers and the state of the US economy more broadly at the Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKUx_I6YggA

Next was an engaging conversation on the state mandatory arbitration in Delaware and beyond and what it means for different corporate stakeholders at Stanford Law School with Priya Cherian Huskins, Jeff Mahoney, Gregory V. Varallo, and Joseph Grundfest https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iq71wIeVHnA

Last was "Marketcrafters" by Chris Hughes. This book provides a great individual-focused history of how much intentional, ideologically-driven effort has gone into shaping US financial markets in the last century. On this front it's excellent, demonstrating clearly that the "free market" is a myth - government and society and ideology always shape financial market transactions. It falters in the last three chapters, pivoting to non-financial markets despite essentially ignoring them in earlier periods. Still highly recommend https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Marketcrafters/Chris-Hughes/9781668050170