It is November 2026 and for this month the Spirit of ‘76 theme is Economics. We have covered Stoicism, History, Religion, War, Tyranny, Liberty, Future, Ethics, Justice, and Immigration, so we turn to Economics. Kitchen table issues are the most critical for voters, and this month as Americans go to the polls this will be first in mind.
Economics is a challenging topic and that makes it one of my favorites. It will surely be the deciding factor in the US midterm elections that are coming up in just a few days. Inflation and the cost of living was the biggest issue in the last Presidential election, and the pressures have only increased since then. Government policy in the form of tariffs and trade wars has been a major contributor to higher prices, as well as the war with Iran. Slow job growth over the last couple of years has led to fears of stagflation and these worries have led the Federal Reserve to a hawkish interest rate policy. We will provide some insight into these issues this month.
Economics is the study of how people and societies make choices under conditions of scarcity. Because time, money, labor, and resources are limited, we must decide what to produce, how to produce it, and who gets what—and those decisions shape prices, wages, firms, governments, and everyday life. Economists examine how incentives and institutions influence behavior, how markets coordinate (and sometimes fail to coordinate) our plans, and how policies affect prosperity, inequality, and stability. In short, economics asks how we organize our common life when we can’t have everything at once.
Our Daily Bread is the 12th single from the Spirit of ‘76 album. This country rock song is about the plight of a farmer in America who is struggling to keep his land and his family fed. I wrote this song in the summer of 2025 and it’s only become more relevant in the fall of 2026. Inspired by the Lord’s Prayer, this track is my first and only attempt at country.
Thinking Thursdays Schedule in November
| November 5th, 2026 | From Factory Floors to Knowledge Work: Did Daniel Bell Predict Post-Industrial Society? |
| November 12th, 2026 | The Price of Protection: Economic Consequences of Trump’s Second-Term Tariffs |
| November 19th, 2026 | How the Federal Reserve Sets Interest Rates—and Why Presidents Can’t |
| November 26th, 2026 | Shock Therapy in the Heartland: How Trump-Era Policies Rewired American Farming |
Remember, it’s Economics, stupid.
Thank you for reading,
Jared Endicott
Realizing News
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