In this week's Words & Numbers, Ant and James tackle the misunderstood world of corporate stock buybacks—are they economic malpractice or just savvy business? The duo then pivots to publicly funded media, taking aim at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and questioning its continued reliance on taxpayer dollars in an age of abundant private alternatives. They also examine the federal government's rare (and tiny) budget surplus in June, dissecting whether it's a meaningful trend or a statistical blip. Along the way, Steve Miller cancels his tour for baffling reasons, Trump forgets he appointed Powell, and the guys reflect on why government tax revenue stubbornly sticks to 18% of GDP—no matter the policy. As always, they ask: what’s the data say, and so what?
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Quick Hitshttps://loudwire.com/steve-miller-cancels-tour-natural-disasters/
Foolishness of the Weekhttps://www.npr.org/2025/07/17/nx-s1-5469904/npr-pbs-cuts-rescission-senate-vote
Words & Numbers Backstagehttps://youtu.be/i73H047bID8?si=zUTcXrBYDolwTVgl
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/MSPUS
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/LES1252881500Q
https://www.bankrate.com/real-estate/average-home-size/#space
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CUUR0000SETA01
More James at Smoke & Storieshttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjILow4-ZJpBV-NnmSusZJ_vCuzKUJ4Ig
More Ant on YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/antonydavies
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