Hey there, it's Steven Dubner.
One thing I love is going through the Freakonomics Radio archive and resurfacing some of our favorite episodes and some of our favorite people, like Richard Thaler.
The episode you're about to hear was first published in 2021.
We've updated facts and figures as necessary.
I hope you enjoy it.
And if not, you can blame Thaler.
I know we're talking about nudge, but I also know that you like what you like and you don't like what you don't like.
And you can be a little, no offense, you can be a little touchy sometimes.
Touchy?
You call me touchy?
No, no, no, not touchy.
Touchy.
What?
I don't even know what word you're saying.
Sensitive?
We could go with sensitive, but maybe the best word to describe the man on the other microphone today is cranky, at least situationally cranky.
He's pleasant enough, most of the time, but in certain circumstances, he becomes a bit of a crank-opotomous.
Especially when something isn't working the way it's supposed to.
Like when you go to pay your taxes, or get a mortgage, and you're suddenly tossed into a quagmire of fine print and red tape.
Or think about navigating the health care system, or managing your retirement savings.