Talk about big picture. Today we take on topics like – what is the role of government?

Dan Miller is our sole guest. He’s  a policy advisor (and former Executive Vice President) of the Heartland Institute, which, it’s probably safe to say, is a conservative think tank.  Dan’s also a former talk-show host, Editor of Crain’s, and business Editor at the Sun-Times.

Dan’s not a fan of public school teachers and their unions.  When your humble host mentions that he thinks teachers occupy one of the highest rungs of esteem on the public payrolls, he begs to differ.  “Those same teachers are the ones who’ve caused our pension problems to be an enormous burden…”, he explains, and adds, “So when you say oh, yes, I’m all in favor of education, it’s for the kids – it isn’t for the kids – c’mon, Ken –  it goes to the teachers’ pensions, it goes to a nine-month work year…”

You can judge for yourself whether the disagreement that ensues is enlightening. But it’s pretty interesting to watch.