Slate Money – "Jordan's Last Episode Edition"

Date: March 17, 2018
Host: Felix Salmon
Guests/Co-hosts: Anna Szymanski, Jordan Weissmann
Episode Milestone: 200th episode & Jordan Weissmann’s (temporary) farewell

Overview

This milestone episode of Slate Money marks both a moment of celebration and transition, featuring Jordan Weissmann’s final regular appearance as co-host. The trio (Felix, Anna, and Jordan) celebrate with wine and Prosecco while tackling a series of listener questions—ranging from economic wonkery to more personal fare—reflecting on core Slate Money themes and revisiting memorable arguments. The episode is relaxed, introspective, and unfiltered, both in tone and content.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Universal Basic Income (UBI) & Inflation

[03:41–11:12]

• Listener Question: Wouldn’t UBI just raise prices for everything and cause inflation?
• Jordan’s Take: Inflation depends on funding method. If the government just prints money, some inflation is expected. If funded via tax hikes/redistribution, inflation may not rise much—"There may be no increase in the total money supply." (06:06)
• Felix: Points out the local effect—goods needed by poorer communities (staple foods, housing) may rise as more money concentrates there. However, competition (e.g., Walmart) limits price hikes for many goods.
• Anna: Points out that inflation is not solely a monetary phenomenon; psychological factors and policy maker "trauma" from the 1970s still loom.
• Jordan: Predicts future monetary policy could be more relaxed about inflation once millennials gain power, due to lack of lived inflation experience.

Notable Quote:

Jordan (07:14): "You have to ask, where's the equilibrium? ... On net, are they still better off?"
Felix (08:05): "Walmart will continue to keep prices down. It's not like Walmart will suddenly take the opportunity to raise prices..."

2. McDonald’s, Getting “Swole,” and Weight Loss

[11:16–23:47]

A series of lighthearted listener questions lead Jordan to reflect on:

a) The “Swole” Resolution

• Jordan admits he did not get significantly muscular as per his New Year’s resolution but did lose 25 pounds through dietary changes, portion control, and exercise.

b) McDonald's and Food Choices

• Still eats McDonald’s occasionally (Egg White Delight for breakfast) but less frequently.
• Emphasizes the importance of standardization and portion control in fast food (e.g., comparing McDonald’s options to bodega sandwiches).

c) Alcohol and Weight Loss

• Switched from beer to wine, reducing caloric/fat intake.
• Wine, being “dry,” contains fewer sugars/carbs than beer ("Beer is liquid bread and wine is liquid grapes"—Felix, 17:52).

d) On McDonald's Broader Impact

• Jordan revisits his defense of McDonald’s, acknowledging its role in standardizing baseline quality/safety and shaping American food/access culture.
• Now feels more ambivalent due to environmental and labor concerns attached to the McDonald’s/franchise model and its capitalist implications.

Notable Quotes:

Jordan (13:00): "It's been about nine months of fairly hard work..."
Felix (21:04): "Jordan, you're just repeating yourself, yeah, we had a whole episode..."
Jordan (22:24): "I don't recant. I'm going to complicate my answer, but I'm not going to recant fully because I still like their breakfast."

3. Housing as an Asset, Home Speculation, and Millennials

[24:05–33:38]

• Millennial Homebuying Habits: Discuss survey claims that 35% of millennials buy homes sight-unseen. Hosts are skeptical, chalking it up to market absurdity—tight markets mean most buyers have only minutes to decide.
• Housing Speculation: Is house flipping/speculation problematic? Jordan says speculation is part of price discovery in a market, but housing isn’t quite like other assets due to supply constraints (zoning, geographic issues) and its social importance.
• Should Housing Be an Asset?:
  • Jordan: Housing shouldn't be "the" asset for middle-class families, but in the US it is—"Unfortunately, that's where we are and probably always will be in America." (33:38)
  • Anna notes the knock-on effects for mobility and human capital when housing gets too expensive in prosperous regions.

Notable Quotes:

Jordan (27:33): "You don't get to test drive your house...with a long-term purchase you'd get to do [that], but you do not."
Jordan (33:01): "Should it just be completely dictated by the rules of the market? ...I think the answer is no, not entirely."

4. White-Collar Crime: Martin Shkreli & Elizabeth Holmes

[33:38–46:16]

• Context: Shkreli received a 7-year prison sentence for securities fraud; Holmes (Theranos) settled SEC charges for fraud with significant civil penalties but no prison.
• Divergence in Legal/Justice System:
  • Hosts lament the system criminalizes defrauding investors more harshly than actions that harm patients or the public.
  • Jordan: "What makes me uncomfortable...in the end, the reason Martin Shkreli was able to cock a snook at the entire country was for something he did. It was for an honest scam." (42:36)
  • Anna: Sees distinction in intent and public safety risk, but is also skeptical of efficacy of long jail sentences for deterrence.
• White-Collar Crime Deterrence: Felix argues that because prosecution rates are so low, tough sentences may be justified for deterrence.
• Holmes’ Punishment Adequacy: Unresolved feelings among the hosts about whether the penalties for Holmes match her harm, especially compared to Shkreli.
• Use of Securities Laws: The group notes that securities law becomes a kind of "catch-all" for corporate malfeasance due to insufficiencies in other areas of regulation.

Notable Quotes:

Felix (44:08): "I think that we have a ridiculous system in this country where we put too many people in prison and we put them in prison for too long."
Jordan (45:25): "My sort of big theory of white-collar crime: it's prosecuted so rarely that when you do find someone guilty, they really should go to prison because otherwise it's no deterrent at all."

5. Personal Farewells and Final Numbers

[46:22–End]

• Jordan’s final number: "4," the number of pours of wine he had during the episode (46:22).
• Hosts reminisce about PI Day, past live events, and encourage listeners to suggest new guests as the show transitions.

Memorable Moments & Quotes

• On co-hosting logistics:

  Jordan (01:21): "Knowing how we do guest booking on this show, I feel like 15 minutes before the show [I’ll be called in again]."

• On leaving Slate Money:

  Felix (01:11): "Although I still suspect that somewhere and somehow we're gonna drag him back on this show."

• On devoutness to McDonald's breakfast:

  Jordan (14:10): "An Egg McMuffin is like one of the great national dishes of the United States."

• On portion control vs. food quality:

  Anna (14:53): "That's exactly what it is. Because actually the yolks are not bad for you... they're much more nutritious than just egg whites."

• On speculation and housing's social value:

  Jordan (32:19): "You can't treat [housing] as a pure asset the way you would a bond or a stock..."

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:41] – Universal Basic Income & Inflation
• [11:16] – McDonald’s, Weight Loss, “Swole” Updates
• [24:05] – Housing Speculation, Millennial Homebuying
• [33:38] – Shkreli vs. Holmes, White-Collar Sentencing
• [46:22] – Jordan’s Final Number & Farewell

Tone & Style

Lively, candid, occasionally irreverent, with frequent self-mockery and friendly jabs—a classic Slate Money episode featuring both serious economic analysis and playful banter.

Conclusion

Jordan’s send-off episode encapsulates everything that’s made him a beloved co-host—witty, self-aware, and able to make connections between everyday decisions (like breakfast choices) and systemic economic realities. While he’s stepping away from the show, both the hosts and audience seem confident he’ll be back—possibly when guest logistics fail or economic news warrants his return.