072 - Fred Roeder: Dubai, Governance & The Evolution of Cities

Dubai, Evolution of Cities, USA Cities, Healthcare, Education, Pharmaceuticals, Saudi Arabia, Consumer Choice, Innovation, Democracy. Timothy Allen talks with Fred Roeder. Today I have another conversation for you that I recorded in Dubai. I am speaking with a gentleman by the name of Fred Roeder. Fred is the managing director of the Consumer Choice Center which is a consumer advocacy group focusing on pro-growth policies or, as Fred put it: promoting abundance for consumers. Fred is also a Dubai resident, having chosen to relocate there recently, so there’s a fair bit of chat in our conversation about the UAE and the benefits of living in the Middle East as well as subjects like the evolution of cities, governance incentives, innovative US cities, healthcare and we discuss the pros and cons of the democratic system. Enjoy the conversation. TIMESTAMPS: (0:30) Introduction to episode. (2:58) Who are you? (6:56) Dubai is a platform. (14:03) Dubai's leaders treat their citizens as customers. (19:23) Does Dubai incentivise other governments to become more competitive? (25:07) Do countries become inherently less attractive over time? (31:29) Are any cities in the West innovating? (38:09) What will Dubai innovate in the future? (43:54) What happens when the state gets too big?. (46:54) A new weight loss drug that reduces compulsiveness. (54:08) Healthcare in Dubai and medical tourism. (59:09) What is Dubai getting wrong? (1:01:58) What is going on in Saudi Arabia? (1:06:27) Pros and cons of the democratic process. Make a small weekly donation to support the show: ⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/FreeCitiesPodcast⁠⁠ Free Cities Telegram Community: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://t.me/+im6c6r4jQkUzMjU0⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LIBERTY IN OUR LIFETIME CONFERENCE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://libertyinourlifetime.org/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TWITTER: Fred Roeder: https://twitter.com/FredCyrusRoeder Timothy Allen: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/MrTimothyAllen⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Free Cities Foundation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/freecitiesfound⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ WEBSITES: Consumer Choice Center: https://consumerchoicecenter.org/ Free Cities Foundation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://free-cities.org/⁠⁠⁠⁠