Glenn and Louis discuss the causes of economic inequality among nations, based on Louis’s recent book,
The Good, the Bad, and the Economy. Louis describes the different hypotheses explaining
global inequality, contrasting them with his own focus on
cultural attitudes propagated across generations within ethnic groups. Glenn wonders whether a
history of conquest, colonization and enslavement and/or possible genetic differences between populations might explain some of Louis’s findings. Can the
countries left behind ever catch up? Glenn suggests that
modern communications technology is making cultural differences across nations less relevant. So is
foreign aid a waste of money? And does
democracy follow economic growth, or vice versa?