More pod

Another podcast I’ve been listening to is Freakonomics, a spin-off by the two guys who wrote the book of that name.

It’s a series of magazine pieces in the tradition of American public broadcasting — like Radio 4 etc, only friendlier and even more determinedly liberal.

The idea is that it’s economists’ take on the world — outside and beyond the world of economics, that is. The one I listened to most recently posed the question: does it really matter at all who is president of the United States? The answer — you guessed it — seems to be, no, not much. It has an interesting time to getting there, too.

Some diversions . . .

Laptopistan

A youthful dodger on drums and a swinging bass player who would become a swinging snapper

Also . . .

An article of mine in The Independent about Wayne Rooney's swearing