Mike Carruthers

There's so many things to talk about.

I want to jump right in.

And let's start with the superstar effect.

Can you explain what that is and why it's important and how it affects money?

He is Ricky Ricardo.

And so how does that affect me?

So what's the lesson that I should learn from that?

Let's talk about tariffs, because you hear that word a lot in the news.

But I'm not sure I understand completely all the little details of how tariffs work, and they clearly affect prices.

So how do they work?

One factor that seems to be affecting people's money and the economy in a big way is AI, because people are concerned that it's going to or that it is replacing jobs, putting people out of work.

So I'm curious what you have to say about it.

Well, I guess the scary thing about AI is, you know, the ATM affected jobs for bank tellers, but not many other people.

AI affects all kinds of jobs.

Credit cards have become such an integral part of people's financial life today.

And I know they impact our money in ways that a lot of people may not realize.

So I want to ask you about that next.

We're talking about the forces that affect your money, some of which you may not realize.

I'm speaking with Alex Maiassi from the podcast Planet Money, and he's author of a book called Planet Money, A Guide to the Economic Forces that Shape Your Life.

So let's talk about credit, Alex, specifically credit cards, since they've really become the tool we use to buy so many things.