Episode description

Friends,

Welcome back to our Saturday coffee klatch with Heather Lofthouse. Today we examine:

— The temporary ceasefire between Hamas and Israel. What does it really mean?

— Black Friday holiday sales. My personal relationship to the day. Consumer spending is up, so why are so many people down on the Biden economy?

— Bob’s new Substack series on the reality of American capitalism and whether American capitalism is compatible with the common good. Is it?

— The mess at OpenAI and what it means. Has OpenAI sacrificed safety for big money? What does this mean for AI in general? Who should be balancing safety and profits?

— Nikki Haley’s political rise. Will she get the Republican nomination?

— My 1994 Thanksgiving speech predicting that a growing class of angry and frustrated people would become susceptible to a demagogue. Bob reveals a secret about that speech.

— Heather’s mother-in-law, Julia, who is visiting over Thanksgiving. And what Bob is grateful for (hint: her first name is Heather).

Thanks for joining us!