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The EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep16 - The Temin Series - Chapter Fourteen: ConclusionAmerica’s Two Economies: Unpacking the Divide, Policies, and a Path Forward
This episode reviews the concluding chapter of American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s The Vanishing Middle Class. Temin argues that the United States functions as a dual economy, where a high-wage, highly educated FTE (finance, technology, and electronics) sector serves its own interests while neglecting the much larger low-wage sector.
He shows how this neglect is reinforced by policies such as mass incarceration, housing segregation, and underfunded public education—often justified through racecraft—even though the low-wage sector is predominantly white. To addre...
2025-09-1319 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep15 - The Temin Series - Chapter Thirteen: ComparisonsThe Great Divide: How “Dual Economies” and Political Choices Shape Our Unequal World
This episode reviews Chapter Thirteen of American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s The Vanishing Middle Class. Temin expands his analysis of the dual economy—defined by a prosperous FTE (finance, technology, and electronics) sector and a struggling low-wage sector—linking the decline of the American middle class to policies that disproportionately benefit the former.
The chapter then broadens the scope to a global context, noting how inequality within countries has grown even as inequality between countries has narrowed, largely due to rapid e...
2025-09-1314 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep14 - The Temin Series - Chapter Twelve: Personal and National DebtsThe Dual Economy: Unpacking Personal Debt and National Liabilities
This episode reviews Chapter Twelve of American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s The Vanishing Middle Class. Temin explores how debt operates at both the personal and national levels within the dual economy, underscoring the stark disparities between the financially secure FTE (finance, technology, and electronics) sector and the indebted low-wage sector.
The chapter examines how individual debts—such as mortgages and student loans—fall disproportionately on the low-wage sector, often as a result of public policies that subsidize housing markets while reducing support for higher...
2025-09-1320 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep13 - The Temin Series - Chapter Eleven: American CitiesInvisible Cracks: How Policy and Neglect Broke American Cities
This episode reviews Chapter Eleven of American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s The Vanishing Middle Class. Temin traces the decline of American urban infrastructure and public services, particularly since the 1970s, linking it to the migration of affluent populations to the suburbs and the corresponding reduction in federal support for cities.
The chapter highlights how decisions such as Milliken v. Bradley accelerated suburban flight, leaving urban schools and infrastructure increasingly neglected. Temin points to the dangers of lead contamination in older school buildings—rooted in h...
2025-09-1314 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep12 - The Temin Series - Chapter Ten: Public EducationAmerica’s Two-Tiered Education System: Is Public School a Broken Promise?
This episode reviews Chapter Ten of American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s The Vanishing Middle Class. Temin examines the crisis in public education through the lens of the dual economy, showing how disparities between the FTE (full-time equivalent) sector and the low-wage sector are reflected in schools.
The chapter traces how historical forces—including racecraft, gender roles, and Supreme Court decisions—have contributed to an unequal distribution of resources, leaving many urban schools segregated and underfunded. Temin critiques privatization efforts and short-term reforms...
2025-09-1318 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep11 - The Temin Series - Chapter Nine: Mass IncarcerationMass Incarceration: The Hidden Costs of America’s Dual Economy and Racial Divide
This episode reviews Chapter Nine of American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s The Vanishing Middle Class. Temin examines how the dual economy model—divided between the full-time equivalent (FTE) sector and the low-wage sector—shapes government activities, particularly through the rise of mass incarceration in the United States.
He argues that the FTE sector, driven by the interests of the wealthy, prioritizes tax cuts and the dismantling of the welfare state, resulting in reduced social programs and expanded privatization. Alongside these sh...
2025-09-1321 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep10 - The Temin Series - Chapter Eight: Concepts of GovernmentDemocracy or Plutocracy? America at the Crossroads
This episode reviews Chapter Eight of American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s The Vanishing Middle Class. Temin examines different forms of government—democratic, oligarchic, and autocratic—distinguishing them by who holds power. While the United States is often described as a democracy, Temin argues that its historical legacy of slavery and its widening economic inequality have pushed it closer to an oligarchy, specifically a plutocracy in which the wealthy wield disproportionate influence.
The chapter highlights key moments that reinforced this trajectory, from constitutional compromises over slavery to mod...
2025-09-1317 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep 9 - The Temin Series - Chapter Seven: Preferences of the Very RichUnseen Hands: How America’s Ultra-Rich Shape Policy and Power
This episode reviews Chapter Seven of American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s The Vanishing Middle Class. Temin explores the disproportionate political influence of the extremely wealthy in the United States, focusing on the top 1 percent and even smaller, more affluent subsets.
The chapter introduces the “Investment Theory of Politics,” which argues that the wealthy treat politics much like a market, investing in policies that protect and expand their interests. Temin illustrates how the very rich often push for reduced government spending, lower taxes, and dere...
2025-09-1317 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep8 - The Temin Series - Chapter Six: The Investment Theory of American PoliticsBeyond the Median Voter: Unpacking America's Investment Theory of Politics
This episode reviews Chapter Six of American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s The Vanishing Middle Class. Temin introduces America’s “triple split”—economic inequality, racial divisions, and gender disparities—and examines how these fractures shape politics and policy.
The chapter critically assesses the Median Voter Theorem, which suggests that political candidates converge toward the center of voter preferences. Temin finds this theory inconsistent with the realities of a dual economy, where the interests of the low-wage sector are routinely disregarded despite their numerical majority. He...
2025-09-1324 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep7 - The Temin Series - Chapter Five: Race and GenderUnpacking America's Persistent Inequalities
This episode reviews Chapter Five of American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s The Vanishing Middle Class. Temin examines the historical and ongoing impact of “racecraft” and gender discrimination in the United States, beginning with the experiences of economist W. Arthur Lewis to introduce the concept of an ingrained American racial system. He argues that while race lacks a scientific basis, it has functioned as a powerful social construct to justify inequality since the colonial era—evolving from the criminalization of witchcraft to systemic exclusion through Jim Crow laws, the War on Drugs, a...
2025-09-1323 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep6 - The Temin Series - Chapter Four: The TransitionThe Broken Ladder: How Education Became a Debt Trap, Not a Path to Opportunity
This episode explores the growing difficulty for individuals in the low-wage sector to move into the high-wage (FTE) sector through education. Rising tuition costs and shrinking public funding for higher education have left many students burdened with significant debt, which often hinders rather than facilitates upward mobility.
The text highlights how disparities in social capital, particularly among minority students, make it harder to translate degrees into well-paying jobs. It also critiques the role of for-profit colleges and current student loan policies...
2025-09-1318 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep 5 - The Temin Series - Chapter Three: The Low Wage SectorThe Unraveling American Dream: How Policy, Race, and Economics Shaped the Low-Wage Sector
This episode reviews Chapter Three, “The Low-Wage Sector,” from American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s The Vanishing Middle Class. Temin argues that the low-wage sector in the United States was not an inevitable byproduct of technological advancement but was deliberately created and expanded through political, economic, and social forces.
He highlights how President Nixon’s Southern Strategy and the War on Drugs disproportionately targeted African Americans, setting the stage for policies that suppressed wages and limited opportunities for large segments of the p...
2025-09-1328 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep 4 - The Temin Series - Chapter Two: The FTE SectorFrom Bretton Woods to Billionaires: How the 60s & 70s Rewrote America’s Economic Rules
This episode examines the turbulent decades from the 1960s through the 1980s, when social upheaval and political realignment reshaped the American economy. It traces how the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War placed heavy strains on President Johnson’s administration, ultimately contributing to the collapse of the Bretton Woods monetary system.
The narrative then turns to President Nixon’s “Southern Strategy” and the rise of a new conservative movement, spurred by the Powell Memo and the creation of influential think tanks such...
2025-09-1319 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep3 - The Temin Series - Chapter One: The Dual EconomyThe Dual Economy: How the American Dream Got Divided (and What It Means for You)
This episode reviews American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s The Vanishing Middle Class, focusing on Chapter One, “The Dual Economy.” It introduces Temin’s adaptation of W. Arthur Lewis’s 1954 theory to explain the growing economic inequality in the United States. Temin argues that the American economy is divided into two distinct sectors: the FTE sector, made up of highly skilled workers in finance, technology, and electronics, and the low-wage sector, consisting of less-skilled workers.
He highlights the stagnation...
2025-09-1320 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep2 - The Temin Series - Introduction to The Vanishing Middle Class: A Dual Economy DivideAmerica's Vanishing Middle Class: How a "Dual Economy" Threatens National Unity
This episode reviews American economist and economic historian Peter Temin’s introduction to his book The Vanishing Middle Class. It explores the growing income inequality in the United States, arguing that the nation is dividing into rich and poor and shifting from a “one-humped” to a “two-humped camel” income distribution. Temin contends that the disappearance of the middle class, along with the legacy of American history—particularly slavery and racial segregation—complicates this divide. He introduces the Lewis model of a dual economy to explain how two distinct e...
2025-09-1317 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS3 Ep 1 - The Temin Series, An Introductory Debate - The Vanishing Middle Class: The Dual Economy, is it Economic Fate or Political Design?The Vanishing Middle Class: A Dual Economy
This short debate starts our Temin Series. In this episode, we consider arguments presented by American economist and economic historian Peter Temin's book, The Vanishing Middle Class. His book explores the concept of a dual economy in the United States, analyzing how it has led to a vanishing middle class and deepening inequality. It posits that American society is divided into an "FTE (finance, technology, and electronics) sector" and a "low-wage sector," with the former holding disproportionate political and economic power. The text traces the historical roots of this division, h...
2025-09-1320 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep18 - Many Laws, Many OrdersThe Multiplicity of Legal Orders
This episode reviews Chapter Five of Kitty Calavita’s Law and Society, which explores the concept of legal pluralism—the coexistence of multiple legal systems and practices within the same place and time. The discussion highlights examples such as the overlapping layers of federal, state, and local laws in the United States, as well as the complexities of administrative law, with its decentralized decision-making and potential for uneven outcomes. It also examines supranational frameworks like the European Union and the World Trade Organization, showing how these systems interact with national and local laws...
2025-09-1140 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep 17 - Brown v. Plata (2011)Is the Eighth Amendment Protection Violated If Prisoners Are Deprived of Basic Sustenance? Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy rules that if a prison deprives prisoners of basic sustenance, including adequate medical care, the courts have a responsibility to remedy the resulting violation of the Eighth Amendment. Justice Antonin Scalia believes that a ruling that may result in the release of 40,000 prisoners is unwarranted and unprecedented
2025-09-1116 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2. Ep 16 - Arizona v. United States (2012)Is It Unconstitutional for States to Imprison Undocumented Immigrants? Justice Anthony Kennedy argues that a recent state law making it a crime to be an undocumented immigrant in Arizona impinges on the U.S. federal government's authority to regulate immigration. Justice Antonin Scalia argues that it is not unconstitutional for a state to supplement U.S. federal immigration law with its own, harsher penalties for illegal immigration.
2025-09-1110 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep15 - Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt (2016)The central question explored in this episode is whether states can constitutionally require physicians performing abortions to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals, making abortion clinics comparable to ambulatory surgical centers. Is It Unconstitutional for a State to Require Physicians Who Perform Abortions to Have Admitting Privileges at a Nearby Hospital and for Abortion Clinics to Haye Facilities Comparable to an Ambulatory Surgical Center?
2025-09-1112 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep 14 - Virginia v. Black (2002)Are Blanket Prohibitions on Cross Burnings Unconstitutional? This episode explores the constitutionality of blanket prohibitions on cross burnings, specifically referencing the Supreme Court case Virginia v. Black
2025-09-1113 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep 13 - Safford et al., v. Redding (2009)Is a Strip Search of Middle School Students aimed at Finding Drugs Prohibited Under the Fourth Amendment? This episode explores the legality of strip searches of middle school students for drugs, specifically focusing on the case of Safford Unified School District v. Redding. The text delves into the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable searches as it applies to students in a school setting, examining the differing opinions of Supreme Court justices on what constitutes a reasonable search.
2025-09-1111 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep. 12 - Roper v. Simmons (2005)Does the "Cruel and Unusual Punishment" Clause of the Eighth Amendment Bar the Imposition of the Death Penalty on Juveniles? This episode presents an "issue brief" exploring the constitutionality of the death penalty for juveniles under the Eighth Amendment's prohibition of "cruel and unusual punishment." Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy holds that the Constitution prohibits the execution of a person who was under the age of 18 at the time of the offense. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia believes that the Constitution does not preclude the execution of a juvenile.
2025-09-1112 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep 11 - Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)Is Same-sex Marriage Protected by the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution? Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy holds that marriage is a fundamental right, and bans on same-sex marriage are unconstitutional under the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts argues that there is no place for the Court, as unelected lawyers, to make the determination of what defines "marriage," as that is the job of the legislature and not the judiciary.
2025-09-1115 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep 10 - NFIB v. Sebelius (2012)Does the Constitution's Commerce Clause Allow Congress to Require Uninsured Individuals to Buy Health Insurance? This episode explores the constitutional debate surrounding the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) individual mandate, specifically whether the Commerce Clause empowers Congress to require individuals to purchase health insurance. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg argues that, under existing Supreme Court interpretations of the Constitution's Commerce Clause, Congress has the constitutional authority to require uninsured Americans to buy health insurance or pay a penalty. Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., argues that a federal mandate to buy a service or product exceeds Congress's power under the Commerce C...
2025-09-1115 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep9 - Maryland v. King (2013)Does the Fourth Amendment Prohibit the Police from Collecting a DNA Sample from a Person Arrested But Not Yet Convicted on Felony Charges? This podcast explores whether the Fourth Amendment prohibits collecting DNA samples from individuals arrested but not yet convicted of a felony. It presents excerpts discussing the Supreme Court case Maryland v. King, focusing on the majority opinion by Justice Anthony Kennedy and the dissenting opinion by Justice Antonin Scalia.
2025-09-1116 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep. 8 - Hamdi v. Rumsfeld (2004)Should U.S. Citizens Who Are Declared to Be "Enemy Combatants" Be Able to Contest Their Detention before a Judge? Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor ruled that the Authorization for Use of Military Force, passed by Congress, does not authorize the indefinite detention of a person found to be an "enemy combatant." Justice Clarence Thomas believes that the detention of an "enemy combatant" is permitted under the federal government's war powers.
2025-09-1115 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep 7 - Town of Greece v. Galloway (2013)Is It Constitutional to Open a Town Meeting with a Prayer? This episode explores the constitutionality of opening town meetings with prayer, a debate highlighted by differing Supreme Court opinions in Town of Greece v. Galloway (2014). Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the Majority, affirms the right of local government bodies to hold a prayer prior to conducting official business, maintaining that the history of the United States is consistent with such a practice, and thus, the Establishment Clause is not implicated. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, dissenting from the Court's opinion, argues that prayer prior to local tow...
2025-09-1111 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep 6 - Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin II (2016)Are Race-Conscious Public University Admissions Policies Permitted Under the Fourteenth Amendment? This episode explores the complex legal question of whether race-conscious admissions policies in public universities are permissible under the Fourteenth Amendment. It presents two opposing viewpoints from a Supreme Court case, Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin II.
2025-09-1117 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep 5 - Elonis v. United States (2015)Does a Facebook Poster Need More Than "General Intent" for a Post to Be Considered a "True Threat" and Punishable Under Criminal Law? This episode explores the complex question of what constitutes a "true threat" under criminal law, specifically in the context of Facebook posts, as examined in the landmark Supreme Court case Elonis v. United States. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts holds that more than a general-intent standard is required to hold a Facebook poster criminally liable for the contents of the post. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Anthony Alito argues that the majority is unclear as to...
2025-09-1119 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep 4 District of Columbia v. Heller (2008)Is There a Constitutional Right to Possess a Firearm for Private Use? This source delves into the significant debate surrounding the constitutional right to possess a firearm for private use, specifically through the lens of the landmark 2008 Supreme Court case, District of Columbia v. Heller. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia argues that the Second Amendment protects the right of a private citizen to own a handgun for self-defense. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens argues that a previous case, United States v. Miller, held that the Second Amendment did not protect the right of a private citizen to own a...
2025-09-1115 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep 3 - Florida v. Jardines (2013)Is a Dog Sniffing for Drugs Outside a Home a Search Prohibited by the Fourth Amendment? This episode explores whether a drug-sniffing dog's presence outside a home constitutes an unreasonable search under the Fourth Amendment, drawing heavily on the Supreme Court case Florida v. Jardines. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia finds that it is a search and a violation of the Fourth Amendment when police obtain evidence by allowing a trained dog to physically enter and occupy an area outside a home in which permission has not been obtained from the home owner. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Anthony Alito d...
2025-09-1111 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep 2 - How Law Reflects and Reshapes SocietyThis chapter from "Invitation to Law & Society" explores the complex relationship between societal structures and legal systems, arguing that law is not a transcendent, universal concept, but rather a social product that evolves in tandem with economic and cultural conditions. It examines how thinkers like Max Weber, Henry Maine, and Émile Durkheim theorized the co-evolution of law and society, highlighting the shift from traditional to rational law and from status-based to contract-based legal frameworks. The text also scrutinizes how economic forces shape legal systems and the legal profession, with Karl Marx's materialist perspective influencing analyses of issues like the c...
2025-09-0922 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS2 Ep. 1 - Beyond The Black Robes: Unpacking the Human Realities and Hidden Influences of Real LawThis episode offers an insightful exploration into the field of "law and society," challenging the common, idealized views of law as merely a collection of rules or an abstract, gravity-like force. It reveals law as a dynamic social product that is profoundly interconnected with everyday life, not separate from society.
2025-09-0920 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS1 Ep 4 - Integration and ComplexityThis excerpt, titled "Research Integration: A Comparative Knowledge Base" by Julie Thompson Klein, published by SAGE Publications in 2013, focuses on integration as the core methodology in both interdisciplinary (IDR) and transdisciplinary (TDR) research. The text provides a historical overview of the concept of integration, tracing its evolution from ancient Greek philosophy to modern approaches. It compares various methods and means of achieving integration, such as using common language, bridging concepts, and employing models and frameworks. Furthermore, the article highlights four key principles of integration: the principle of variance, platforming, iteration, and communicative rationality, underscoring the importance of adaptability, foundational work...
2025-09-0921 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS1 Ep 3 - Unpacking Interdisciplinarity to Solve Our Toughest ProblemsExplore the evolving landscape of knowledge in this episode, as we delve into Julie Thompson Klein's Taxonomy of Interdisciplinarity. We'll demystify the core vocabulary, distinguishing between multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary approaches, originally shaped by the OECD typology.
2025-09-0324 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS1 Ep 2 - Beyond the Box: Student Voices on InterdisciplinarityThe research encourages students to reflect on their interdisciplinary program and learning, revealing key themes such as openness, creativity, bridging, and perspective-taking. These themes are connected to the theory and practice of interdisciplinary education and the study of metacognition. The student perspectives ultimately substantiate the value of IE from multiple viewpoints and suggest areas for further research. The analysis also links these student-identified attributes to existing literature on personality traits, metacognition, and 21st-century skills, aiming to develop a vocabulary and conceptual framework for new interdisciplinary programs.
2025-09-0120 minThe EDU101’s PodcastS1 Ep 1 - Beyond The SilosThe research encourages students to reflect on their interdisciplinary program and learning, revealing key themes such as openness, creativity, bridging, and perspective-taking. These themes are connected to the theory and practice of interdisciplinary education and the study of metacognition. The student perspectives ultimately substantiate the value of IE from multiple viewpoints and suggest areas for further research.
2025-09-0120 min