Sam and Emma host Claudia Goldin, Professor of Economics at Harvard University, to discuss her recent book Career and Family: Women’s Century-Long Journey Toward Equity, on the history of women’s entry into the workforce and how they transitioned from a choice between career or family, to an opportunity to have both – even with many lingering effects of inequity today. After Professor Goldin clarifies the boundaries of her data collection, and why she focuses on women with a college degree, they begin walking through the numbers – starting with women who graduated in the first two decades of the 20th Century, she, Sam, and Emma explore how college-educated women had an almost perfect 50/50 split between those who had a family and those that had a career, before we see a transition to family as women began getting married earlier throughout the 30s, 40s, and 50s. This led up to the late 60s and 70s, when, alongside changing infrastructure and social values, a shift started to occur, delaying the median age of marriage year by year over the next four decades. This brings Professor Goldin to the question of why this occurred, looking at social developments, from shifting away from policies explicitly aimed at excluding married women from certain segments of the workforce, to later technological advancements with birth control and growing policies to make it accessible, before they dive into the state of gender inequity in careers today. Claudia Goldin walks Sam and Emma through the “time bind,” which is the greater rate of promotion and pay received by those who have lower caregiving responsibilities, and therefore can engage in “greedy work,” putting in hours and levels of effort that many people simply do not have the time for. They wrap up the interview with a quick debate on whether the effect of the pandemic on what constitutes reasonable levels of work will be lasting, and why, if not, we must see a reduction in the price of flexibility or price of care, if we want to reduce the inequity from this contrast. Sam and Emma also cover the recent economic issues roiling Afghanistan, leading to extreme famine, as well as Madison Cawthorn’s statements on the floor, dubbing women “eternal vessels” for his reproductive capacities, and the dismissal of the disgraced Chris Cuomo for defending the disgraced Andrew Cuomo.

And in the Fun Half: Sam, Emma, and the MR Crew cover the DSA decision on Jamaal Bowman, Jenna from San Fran boosts our egos, a caller discusses Verizon’s recently announced partnership with Lockheed Martin, and Ilhan Omar flames the cowardice and corruption of the GOP to a shocked Jake Tapper. Kim Iversen, presents a new, pro-white twist on an old media critique, Mindy gives us a perfect uplifting holiday story, and Josh from Chicago discusses the very real effects of Theresa May’s gutting of the NHS. Trump reminds Mark Levin that we need to talk about Russia, and Sydney Watson, one of those classic, anti-protester anarchists, gives Nick Fuentes his first visceral experience with a woman, plus, your calls and IMs!