Maggie's Farm

I am a long-time customer of The Great Courses Company (going back to when it was called The Teaching Company), although not nearly as many courses as Coyote and, surprisingly, not much overlap with the list in Tyler Cowen’s post. It is a great resource, as everyone says.

I want to put in a plug for a course not mentioned by Coyote or Professor Cowen: Tocqueville and the American Experiment by Professor William Cook. I bought this course in 2006, a couple of years after it came out, and enjoyed it. Ten years later, I retired from a career in business and ran for local office – what is called the selectboard in New England towns. I got elected at town meeting (another New England thing) last March, and it’s been very interesting. I am listening to that Tocqueville course again, because it is so much more meaningful to me now! Tocqueville had a lot to say about the importance of local government. I’ve started writing about him on my blog (link).

I highly recommend getting involved in local government for anyone who is retired and looking for something to do. It’s both interesting and rewarding.