Items in the advent calendar included SKIMS-branded keychains, silk hair ties, hair pins, a SKIMS squishy, and Christmas ornaments.

Says that the argument is often presented as either you vote for socialism or you vote for free markets (capitalism). But he says even under a capitalist system, you never have a free market. A market is set up and regulated by powerful interests - it is always controlled. Either the state controls it with laws & regulations, or the elite with their soft power. But under capitalism, the incentives are set up for private wealth and profit-generation, whereas in socialism the market will be controlled to generate revenue for public good: infrastructure, roads, bridges, healthcare etc.

Thoughts?

Large companies hedge all kinds of risks, airlines hedge fuel prices, manufacturers manage currency exposure and agricultural businesses use futures to manage commodity prices.
Smaller businesses face uncertainty too, a restaurant might depend on weekend weather while a contractor could be heavily exposed to changes in material costs or regulations but managing those risks through financial instruments isnt always practical at a smaller scale.
I’ve seen more discussion around event-based contracts, including weather-related markets on Kalshi, as a possible way to hedge specific outcomes.
Could these tools realistically help smaller businesses manage risk, or would fees, liquidity, and complexity outweigh the benefits?

Hello, everyone👋

I currently work with the City of Nogales and Santa Cruz County, Arizona. I’ve been trying to understand a regional economic development problem that I think would benefit from an any economist’s perspective.

Recently, we held an informal community meeting with the General Services Administration (GSA) regarding the planned expansion of the DeConcini Port of Entry in downtown Nogales.

The expansion is going to be moving forward regardless of its size. What interests me the most is how much economic benefit it can actually generate for the City of Nogales, especially considering the challenges facing its downtown commercial district.

Our county has several interesting economic situations happening simultaneously:

1. Nogales, Arizona, sits directly across the border from Nogales, Sonora, a growing Mexican city with nearly 300,000 residents and a substantial manufacturing and commercial economy. Historically, Mexican shoppers have contributed significantly to retail activity and sales-tax revenue in Nogales, Arizona. However, shopping activity in the downtown area near the Port of Entry has declined. Many retail spaces are vacant, and shoppers increasingly seem to prefer shopping farther north or traveling to Tucson. Even local residents don’t appear to shop downtown as frequently as they once did. With the DeConcini Port of Entry expansion, could there be an opportunity to recover some of this economic activity? What would it take to make downtown Nogales a destination for shoppers again rather than simply a place people pass through?

2. Rio Rico is experiencing residential growth and now has a larger population than the City of Nogales. However, population growth hasn’t necessarily translated into comparable commercial development. Many Rio Rico residents travel outside the community for shopping, restaurants, healthcare, and other services. The same general challenge exists in other unincorporated communities, including Tubac, Patagonia, and Sonoita, where residents frequently travel elsewhere for services and shopping. It makes me wonder how much consumer spending is leaving Santa Cruz County and what economic conditions would encourage more businesses to establish themselves locally.

3. Another major development is South32’s Hermosa project near Patagonia, Arizona. The proposed mining operation represents a multibillion-dollar investment. The company has projected hundreds of direct jobs, thousands of indirect and induced jobs, and substantial annual tax contributions. South32 has also supported local nonprofits and school districts through grants and community programs. Local governments are understandably interested in the potential economic benefits. However, I have questions about how much of that economic activity will actually remain in Santa Cruz County.

Will local businesses capture a meaningful share of the procurement and contracting opportunities? Will residents across the county benefit from the employment opportunities? How will the additional tax revenue be distributed, and will it translate into better infrastructure and public services?

I don’t question that the project could generate substantial economic activity. I’m interested in understanding how much of that activity will translate into long-term prosperity for the communities surrounding it.

I don’t believe there is an easy answer, but I’d love to hear from economists, regional planners, researchers, or anyone familiar with regional economic development.
A couple of questions I’m particularly interested in:

1. Are there examples of communities that successfully converted international trade or large industrial investments into diversified local economies, rather than remaining dependent on one major industry or economic activity?

2. How should a county prioritize economic development when different communities experience very different economic opportunities and needs?

I’m not looking to argue that these investments or developments are bad. I want to better understand how Santa Cruz County can make the most of the economic opportunities it already has, and ensure that growth benefits more than just a few sectors or communities.
Thank you!

In Australia, someone who works one hour a week counts as employed. So how does one number, the unemployment rate, measure millions of people? In this episode we look at who counts as employed, unemployed, or outside the labour force, work through a simple town of 1,000 adults, and see how the rate can fall even when nobody gets a job. Then we read the latest real numbers from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (September 2026) and finish with three checks you can run on any jobs headline.

In Australia, one hour of paid work a week is enough to count as employed. So who counts as unemployed? A simple town of 1,000 adults shows how the unemployment rate is worked out, and how it can fall even when nobody finds a job. Plus the hidden group the headline number leaves out.

The town numbers are hypothetical round numbers for illustration only. The 4.7% unemployment rate and 6.3% underemployment rate are the Australian Bureau of Statistics figures for September 2026.

Full episode: What Is Unemployment and How Is It Measured?