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Video notes
The video is based on this excellent post by Joy Buchanan, who also appears in the video: https://economistwritingeveryday.com/2026/01/03/summary-of-you-wouldnt-steal-a-car/
Australian Lego Masters really is great. I encourage you to watch it by any legal means necessary.
Gary Becker is an absolute legend in economics. His paper on marriage changed my life. Not because it affected my marriage, but because of something far more important: I shifted my research focus from Latin American development to marriage.
Steven Levitt on Becker: “What is Becker’s secret? It doesn’t hurt to be incredibly smart. That isn’t really what sets him apart, though, I don’t think. He has four other traits that are just as important: he works harder than anyone else, he loves what he does, he is not afraid of criticism, and he has never stopped learning new things.”
The footage of me fake-stealing from Toys R Us is real. It’s from my senior-year high school Spanish video. I stumbled on it recently while going through a Google Drive of old family photos. I rewatched it with my son, who loved it more than any Econ Nerds video, and I was shocked at what was in it. It includes (1) me jumping off a bridge into the ocean (breaking the law), (2) multiple sexually explicit jokes, and (3) an ending where everyone who appeared moons the camera. I can’t believe I played this for the class without any repercussions. The 90s were a different time.
Recommendations
The Economist Writing Every Day newsletter, where Joy’s article first appeared, is excellent.
I had never seen The Blues Brothers until this year. It deserves its sterling reputation. Blues Brothers 2000, unfortunately, also deserves its reputation.
Have I mentioned how much I like Lego Masters Australia?
Sources
Anker, Anne Sofie Tegner, Jennifer L. Doleac, and Rasmus Landersø. “The effects of DNA databases on the deterrence and detection of offenders.” American Economic Journal: Applied Economics 13.4 (2021): 194-225.
Becker, Gary S. “Crime and punishment: An economic approach.” Journal of political economy 76.2 (1968): 169-217.
Buchanan, Joy, and Bart J. Wilson. “You Wouldn’t Steal a Car: Moral Intuition for Intellectual Property.” Available at SSRN 5757162 (2025).
d’Este, Rocco. “The effect of stolen goods markets on crime: evidence from a quasi natural experiment.” (2014).
Di Tella, Rafael, and Ernesto Schargrodsky. “Do police reduce crime? Estimates using the allocation of police forces after a terrorist attack.” American Economic Review 94.1 (2004): 115-133.
Ellis, Havelock. The criminal. Vol. 7. W. Scott, 1916.
Source for silver heist: https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2026/01/22/thieves-empty-a-dutch-silver-museum
Silver prices: https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/IP7106
Article on what is pirated: https://piracymonitor.org/muso-q1-and-may-2022-data/
