Former Navy U.S. Seal and founder of the private military company Blackwater Erik Prince says that “We are fighting wars the wrong way.” Stephen Bryen is known as the “Yoda” of the Arms Trade. Time Magazine comments, “He knows every sinkhole in the regulatory swamp. Ignore him at your peril." He is also a former Deputy Undersecretary of Defense and founder of the Defense Technology Security Administration. This week, we are discussing Erik’s new paper “Too Big to Win: How the Military and Industrial Complex and the Neocons Keep America Losing.” One of the central questions posed by Prince – How has America transitioned from a post-Cold War era of dominance to its current state of disarray?

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In this lively episode of the Bill Walton Show, Bill talks with Jim Pinkerton in a thought-provoking discussion about investing in the turbulent waters of today's toxic political climate. With a focus on the stark Red-Blue divide in America, Jim offers a contrarian view that it’s fertile ground for what he terms "directional investing."

Drawing from his upcoming book, "The Secret of Directional Investing: Making Money Amidst the Red-Blue Divide," Pinkerton—a veteran of the Reagan and George H.W. Bush administrations and a long-time Fox News contributor—unpacks the intriguing idea that political polarization, while daunting, can be a goldmine for the astute investor and entrepreneur.

The conversation digs into a deeper exploration of Federalism and the concept of states as laboratories, not just of democracy, but also micro-economic innovation hubs. Pinkerton paints a picture of a "United States of Arbitrage," where individuals and businesses pick states for their cultural climates and regulatory frameworks, much like how businesses today scout for tax havens.

Bill and Jim weave through topics with ease, touching on the explosive potential of AI and its voracious energy demands, the dynamics of state-driven economic incentives, and the possible futures shaped by these forces. They muse on how states compete to attract burgeoning industries by aligning social policies with corporate needs, imagining a nation where your address might reflect your ideology as much as your lifestyle.

“If a red state were really on its game, thinking for itself,” says Jim, “it would announce to the world that any student who got an 800 on his or her math SAT would get a free ride.”

The episode doesn't just dissect current trends; it offers a visionary look at how today's divisions could be tomorrow's opportunities, making it a must-listen for anyone intrigued by the intersection of politics, economics, and the future of innovation in America.

Also, you’ll learn which state seems to think its idea of economic development is transgender surgery, hoping to become to transgenderism what the Cleveland Clinic or Johns Hopkins are to cancer.