🏠 Who Killed the Starter Home?

In the 1970s, a modest three-bedroom house was an attainable path to family life—not a luxury. So what changed?

In this episode of The Roger Retrospective, we trace the history from the New Deal mortgage and GI Bill to Levittown, Co-op City, zoning, supersized homes, Wall Street’s mortgage machine and the 2008 crash.

How did the country that pioneered mass homeownership make the starter home so unaffordable?

The answer may point back to something America once built remarkably well: a small, simple, affordable place to start.

🎙️ The Roger Retrospective — Today’s world, through the lens of history.

For decades, America told its young people the path to success was simple: go to college, get a degree, and find a white-collar job.

Then artificial intelligence arrived — and suddenly some of the most future-proof workers in America may be electricians, plumbers, welders, machinists and HVAC technicians.

In this episode of The Roger Retrospective, we trace how America went from a nation of apprentices and craftsmen to the industrial powerhouse that became the Arsenal of Democracy — and then gradually came to regard skilled trades as a second-tier career path. From Benjamin Franklin and Henry Ford to the GI Bill, the China Shock, globalization and today's massive AI data-center boom, it's the story of how America stopped teaching people to build things just as it discovered it desperately needs them again.

Perhaps AI's greatest irony is that the technology designed to replace human work may restore the value of some of America's oldest skills.

Today's world, through the lens of history.

From Concorde flights and a Moody’s Aaa rating to one of the deepest collapses in modern history. Roger Horn sits down with RVX CIO Ray Zucaro to examine how Venezuela went from “Dame dos” prosperity to crisis — and what the reversal still teaches investors and policymakers. Despite the profound challenges and economic destruction, Venezuela retains substantial natural resources beyond crude oil, and many investors are now exploring how to participate in potential growth opportunities.