In a perhaps misguided attempt to relive our glory days, last week TPM enrolled in Glenn Beck’s online “university.”
The second installment of the Beck University lecture series was last night, and this time we learned the economic importance of hope, and that Beck University Professor David Buckner gets touchy at the airport.
The lecture, titled “Hope 101,” aimed to explain the basic principles of economics. What does this have to do with hope? Well, according to Beck’s introduction, “when it comes to our financial system in our country, it is hard to have hope.” He asked: “How does this financial system even work? What is true?”
Buckner aimed to answer those questions. He’s an adjunct assistant professor of psychology and education at the Teachers’ College of Columbia University, and is somewhat famous for once fainting during a live taping of Beck’s Fox News show.
His convoluted explanation of business principles began with this Kafkaesque anecdote:
Buckner was at the airport trying to get on an earlier flight on stand-by. An airline employee told him he would have to pay to get on the standby list, but that by doing so he would definitely not get a seat on the earlier flight. Further, he would also lose his seat on the later flight, and have to pay again to be put back on it.
Long, long, long story short, the airline employee chalked this all up to the company’s “policy.” Policy, Buckner explained, is “a premise upon which everybody makes decisions.” But when he asked her “why” this was the policy she couldn’t answer, and she “became belligerent” when pressed.
“I boarded that day,” said Buckner, “confused and a bit frustrated, because I didn’t understand where in the world we had lost the capability or the capacity to ask ‘why.'”
The point of his lecture, then, was “to discuss the ‘why’ so that we can understand then how to do better.” He continued: “How to have the confidence and hope that will drive us down the path to not only personal prosperity, but prosperity for our country.”
Got that so far? Asking “why” will help you understand the world, which will give you “confidence” and “hope,” which will make you rich!
Buckner then explained that the “key principles” of economics “have been betrayed by policymakers” because they don’t understand the “why.” Principle one, he said, is “how do we create wealth?”
“The number one concept to best understand wealth,” Buckner explained, “is to understand the value of your time.”
“Why?” Because once you understand the value of your time and how best to use it, you “won’t produce that which you are not the lowest cost at producing.”
Buckner elaborated, kind of: If Joshua is the most efficient pie-maker, and Jennifer can make cheaper cakes, then they should each play to their strengths to maximize output and minimize cost.
For example, “why am I here?” he asked. “Truthfully, I’m the cheapest.”
He concluded that we must understand the “foundation of the principles of truth, aligning with the promise of hope.”
In the Q&A session afterward, Buckner had this addendum: “Remember to always ask “WHY” not just ‘HOW.” You have Permission to THINK!!!”
“Permission To Think,” conveniently, is the the title of Buckner’s new book, as he reminded the class several times. Remember: The best use of his time is to shamelessly self-promote.
