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Massive jobs revision, Kamala wealth tax, polls vs prediction markets, end of race-based admissions

(0:00) Bestie intros! (1:59) Labor department revises down nonfarm payrolls by 818K (15:02) MIT publishes data from first incoming class post race-based admissions ban (36:16) Decision 2024: State of the race, Polls vs prediction markets (52:33) Tale of two tickets: Private sector vs. Public sector (1:05:19) Kamala Harris supports Biden's tax plans, including a 25% wealth tax on those with more than $100M in assets Follow the besties: https://twitter.com/chamath https://twitter.com/Jason https://twitter.com/DavidSacks https://twitter.com/friedberg Follow on X: https://twitter.com/theallinpod Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theallinpod Follow on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@theallinpod Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/allinpod Intro Music Credit: https://rb.gy/tppkzl https://twitter.com/yung_spielburg Intro Video Credit: https://twitter.com/TheZachEffect Referenced in the show: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/21/nonfarm-payroll-growth-revised-down-by-818000-labor-department-says.html https://x.com/RealEJAntoni/status/1826290040374243821 https://x.com/DavidSacks/status/1664788807059660800 https://www.statista.com/statistics/269959/employment-in-the-united-states https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/FEDFUNDS https://polymarket.com/event/fed-interest-rates-september-2024?tid=1724345228774 https://x.com/chamath/status/1826360792351957141 https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/15/us/harvard-asian-enrollment-applicants.html https://www.natesilver.net/p/nate-silver-2024-president-election-polls-model https://x.com/Polymarket/status/1826469365069271419 https://blockworks.co/news/polymarket-july-all-time-high-trading-volumes https://www.semafor.com/article/08/19/2024/harris-camp-signals-it-backs-biden-bid-to-raise-taxes-on-wealthy-corporations https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/dnc-election-2024-harris-walz/card/harris-backs-tax-increases-proposed-by-biden-pkuLeYl6f1kXrhN4kWgQ https://www.crfb.org/blogs/kamala-harris-agenda-lower-costs-american-families https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/131/General-Explanations-FY2024.pdf #allin #tech #news

Jason CalacanishostDavid FriedberghostChamath Palihapitiyahost
Aug 23, 20241h 31mWatch on YouTube ↗

CHAPTERS

  1. 0:00 – 3:50

    Cold Open: Bathroom Banter and Bestie Intros

    The episode opens with lighthearted banter about ‘nature pees’ and joking about sitting versus standing to urinate, quickly segueing into the show’s signature intro. This sets an informal, comedic tone before pivoting hard into macroeconomics.

  2. 3:50 – 9:00

    The 818,000-Job Shock: How Wrong Is the BLS?

    The besties unpack the Labor Department’s huge downward revision in nonfarm payrolls, noting it’s the largest since 2009. Sacks argues the pattern of consistently downward revisions shows the jobs narrative never matched what operators and investors were seeing on the ground.

  3. 9:00 – 15:00

    Bad Data, Big Decisions: Why Macroeconomic Measurement Is Broken

    Chamath and Friedberg argue that inaccurate employment data means GDP estimates and Fed decisions are also miscalibrated. They call it unacceptable that the U.S. relies on laggy, error‑prone surveys despite abundant real‑time payroll and SaaS data available.

  4. 15:00 – 25:20

    Fed Crossroads: Rate Cut Timing, Soft Landing, and Massive Deficits

    Friedberg outlines the Fed’s triad of inflation, unemployment, and rates, while Sacks questions whether the economy is truly achieving a ‘soft landing’ or just being propped up by outsized deficits. They see cuts as likely but caution the underlying fiscal picture is precarious.

  5. 25:20 – 35:00

    MIT’s Post–Affirmative Action Class: Meritocracy, Race, and Fit

    New MIT class data after the Supreme Court’s affirmative action ban shows a jump in Asian‑American representation and declines for Black and Latino students. The group debates whether this represents overdue fairness for Asians or a loss of diversity, while re-centering on mission fit over demographics.

  6. 35:00 – 43:10

    Cracking Credentialism: Non-Elite Schools, Co-ops, and Real Merit in Hiring

    The besties turn from admissions to the labor market, arguing the real fix is for employers to stop overweighting Ivy pedigrees. They champion recruiting at ‘non‑top’ tech schools, co‑op programs, and evaluating candidates by outputs and portfolios rather than diplomas.

  7. 43:10 – 53:00

    Decision 2024: Neck-and-Neck Race, Convention Bumps, and Prediction Markets

    With the DNC underway, the panel reviews Nate Silver’s polling models and Polymarket odds that have swung back toward Trump even during Harris’s convention. They stress the probabilistic nature of all forecasts and highlight differences between polls, betting markets, and actual vote tallies.

  8. 53:00 – 57:40

    Do VP Picks Matter? JD Vance, Tim Walz, and Media Framing

    The group reviews data suggesting JD Vance is the least popular modern VP pick while Walz polls better, but Sacks argues VP selections historically matter little to outcomes. He blames negative media coverage and JD’s willingness to debate ideas for his low favorability, contrasting it with Walz’s ‘pep talk’ style.

  9. 57:40 – 1:06:10

    Tale of Two Tickets: Public-Sector Lifers vs Private-Sector Capitalists

    Chamath and Friedberg frame 2024 as a stark choice between a Democratic ticket that has spent its entire career in government and a Republican ticket steeped in private enterprise and investing. They debate whether voters will prefer technocratic insiders or business‑savvy outsiders to manage an enormous federal apparatus.

  10. 1:06:10 – 1:12:30

    Inside the Biden–Harris Tax Agenda: Unrealized Gains, Corporate Hikes, Buyback Taxes

    The conversation zeroes in on Biden’s 2025 budget proposals, which Harris’s campaign is said to ‘endorse,’ including a 25% minimum tax on unrealized gains over $100M, a corporate rate hike, and a quadrupled buyback tax. Friedberg lays out the fine print, and the others scrutinize constitutionality, practicality, and likely behavioral responses.

  11. 1:12:30 – 1:21:00

    Will a Wealth Tax Kill American Entrepreneurship—and Who Really Pays?

    Beyond mechanics, the panel explores second‑order effects: capital flight, new ‘exit tax’ financing products, and the limited budget impact of such taxes. They tie this to a broader drift toward a semi‑socialist political equilibrium driven by the expanding share of the economy tied to government spending.

  12. 1:21:00 – 1:31:42

    Closing Rant: Kamala’s Silence, Socialist Drift, and Capital Flight

    As the show wraps, Jason vents frustration that Harris isn’t doing substantive interviews or long‑form questioning, saying it’s becoming disqualifying for him. Sacks underscores that even aggressive wealth taxes won’t close the deficit without serious spending cuts, warning that if voters choose this path, they’ll need to live with the economic consequences.

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