The aim of this weekly podcast is to make economics easy, uncomplicated and accessible. With the world at a political, technological and financial tipping point, economics has never been so important to all of us and yet, it’s made inaccessible and complicated by so many.
I’ve always thought what is complicated is rarely important and what is important is rarely complicated.
That will be our motto.
Every week we are going to tease out some big economic or political issue facing us, not just here in Ireland but in Europe and further afield. Globalisation has brought us all together. We all face similar challenges whether you live in Dublin, London, Minnesota or Milan.
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The budget, despite all the posturing, should make you be afraid, very afraid. It reveals a complete lack of Leaving Cert economic thinking. Today we interrogate just one aspect to see if there is any logical and consistent economic heft behind all the political tinkering. We look at housing. Stay tuned for the verdict! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
To understand where we are, you have to appreciate the history - economic, political and social - and that’s what we’re setting out to do! Starting in Dorset St Dublin in 1904 with Leopold Bloom in Jame Joyce's Ulysses, we explore the history of Zionism and make our way from Bloom to the 6 Day War 1967. Stay tuned for part 2 next week when try to bring events from then up to the the current catastrophe. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
We're in North America this week thinking about the US economy. How come the USA is creating so many jobs, why are interest rates not biting, does macroeconomics have to have a massive re-think about monetary policy and if so, what does this all mean for you? Is the Fed flunking it? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Brexit was supposed to be simple, that was the promise! The reality however is a world of complex costs & frictions which has backed the UK into a structural cul-de-sac. Where does it go from here? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Long term interest rates spiked up in September. This will have an impact. Mortgage rates everywhere are up dramatically. Could it be time for the debt crunch? We know that there’s a delay between raising rates and the impact of those new rates, but no one knows exactly how long - while the economy appears to be doing fine, are we missing something, something big? A day of debt reckoning? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
How does one of the richest economy of the 19th century blow it? What are the lessons for the rest of us? As the saying goes, “The road to ruin is shorter than you think”. How does a good country go bad? And now that Argentina has completely come off the rails, can its be saved or is it about to become a "failed state"? If it does, could the Argentinean virus spread to the rest of Latin America? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Vienna, one of the world’s most liveable city, was created through a strong vision for its future and targeted taxes. Today, housing costs in Vienna are a third of its Irish counter part, we should be taking notes! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Today’s episode is a unique discussion with the writer Neil Howe about a completely different way to look at history, in chapters over decades and how history tends to repeat itself over given periods of time… and spoiler alert: Neil thinks we’re about to change chapter VERY soon! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The ECB has raised interest rates ten times in two years but the Euro is not getting stronger, it is getting weaker. What does this tell us about the European economy and inconsistency at the heart of European policy making. We head to Frankfurt and put the ECB in the dock. I rest my case! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The euro-tour continues as we dive into what makes Sweden tick - but not before one of our usual tangents on skin differences! Nevertheless, today is about the libertarian/socialist contradiction that is Sweden and how it always manages to punch above its weight. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
What does the latest G20 accord tell us about the new Cold War and speaking of wars, we examine the Rugby World Cup and more interestingly the Economics of Rugby. Will Saudi Arabia do to rugby what it’s trying to do to football, golf, F1 and probably tennis? Imagine Munster owned by a Sheik? Could it happen? As it spends billions in sports-washing, the RWC is surely a shop window event for potential buyers of the game! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
With the coming G20 summit in India we take a look at how the rise of india came to be, how it went from colonialism, to socialism and now to capitalism. Now a significant player on the international stage, will India succeed at becoming rich before it becomes old? Join us as we find out how its going to try Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
If we are to prepare a future that welcomes 10 million people in Ireland, we need take back control of public infrastructure project costs because these runaway costs are hindering our growth and reducing public confidence in the state. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Portugal’s current economic situation can only be explained through its rich & expansive history. As we tease out the various chapters of Portugal we uncover another nation that although is supposed to be rich, feels poor. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Ireland is an outlier within the European demographic, how can it shape it’s growth in a bloc that is going to be managing for an aging population? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The economy has two main levers: fiscal policies & monetary policies. Through these mechanism we have the means to ensure that our infrastructure keeps up with the population growth while simultaneously keeping the “far” parties of politics at bay… if we use them! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
China’s economic growth is far from what it used to be and cracks are currently appearing in a variety of sectors. Has China’s heroic growth in the last decades finally come to an inflection point? Join us as we break down what is currently happening and where it might go. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The European tour continues, next stop: Poland! An extraordinary country that is rapidly evolving - an evolution that might very well pull the axis of European power towards the East. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
As John returns from Washington DC we take a quick state of that nation before coming home to talk about how the Irish banks are actually stealing their customer's money. Interest income is the income of savers not the banks, if the banks don't pass that on, they are stealing customers income. That's what is happening! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Continuing our European tour we arrive in the the Iberian Peninsula. What makes Spain, this most brilliant of countries tick? With many European countries leaning to the right, Spain has been an interesting outlier - the centre has just held! Join us today as we’re joined with Prof Joe Haslam for a “tour de force” on Spain, its economics, politics, industry and future. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
One of the most talked about global movements is the DeGrowth movement which believes economic growth is the problem and if we can wean ourselves of the economics of growth, lots of good things will flow. Today, we interrogate this notion, is it a brilliant soundbite or a true and practical guideline for a new world? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Culture always mirrors, reinforces or leads economics & Oppenheimer has just returned nuclear energy to the center of the energy discussion. Is is the silver bullet to sustainable energy or the next catastrophe waiting to happen? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
After a quick top-up on last week’s Italian episode, we talk about Sinead O'Connor before she became Sinead O'Connor. From there we explore why music was always much more than entertainment and how the origins of music might have driven Stone Age productivity and the first economy of the cave man! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Italy, the cradle of European civilization often gets a bad rap, which I personally think is completely unjustified. Today's conversation looks at where the country stands but also how it's history gave it so much resilience - it's a fascinating discussion! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
How can some countries be doing well on paper but in reality, there is growing frustration and instability from the population, leading to more extremist ideology? The answer is all about insiders VS outsiders… Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The UK is a mess. Investment, productivity and GPD per head is all flatlining. Why? How can a once good country go bad. In today’s conversation we’re joined by economist Russel Jones to explore what happens when a people look backwards not forwards. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Americans might have engineered the impossible: a soft landing… which would be an absolute anomaly in economic cycles! While we look at how this might be happening, we also investigate the many camps claiming to have been right on the cycle and the outcome. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
On the eve of Bastille Day we head to France to explore the French economy. Who really runs France, the technocrats, big business or the political class of the people? How have the recent riots changed the country? More to the point, how closer is the Republic to being run by President LePen and what would that mean for Europe? Fascinating one this, hope you like it. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
We explore why the world is not in a recession despite everything. The US economy simply refuses to buckle under the pressure of high interest rates. A key difference between 2008 and now is that that this time around, the people are not in desperate debt but corporate America is. Companies with lots of debt will struggle. Which big company might go bust first? Look at Twitter and shudder! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Germany, Europe's most important economy, is at a turning point. It is now a massive industrial economy with no energy. For over one hundred years, Germany has managed this dilemma. But now without Russian gas, and after closing off its nuclear industry, how will Germany power itself? Plus, can its political system handle this transition without a lurch to the extreme? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
