Culture vs. Economics: The Battle for America's Political Soul with Thomas Frank
10 October 2024 - 33 minsThis week, we’re stepping away from the usual economic focus to dive into the culture wars dominating U.S. politics as the election looms. Despite strong job growth, voters seem more driven by cultural identity than economic gains. With Thomas Frank, author of What’s the Matter with Kansas, we explore why the working class has shifted towards the Republicans, while Democrats have embraced the highly educated elite. Frank breaks down how these cultural divides are playing out in key swing states, revealing how identity, not economics, has become the driving force behind voter decisions. As we head into one of the most consequential elections in recent history, we have to ask—will culture cont...
How Trump Could Kill the Dollar
Monetary historian Brendan Greeley explains why the dollar's power has nothing to do with the Fed, why crypto is just a bank in disguise, and why politicising the dollar might be the fastest way to end its reign as the world's reserve currency. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
48 mins
28 May Finished
Why Nobody's Having Babies Anymore
Birth rates are collapsing, not just in rich countries, but everywhere from Mexico to Tunisia. The FT's John Burn-Murdoch joins us to unpack the surprising culprit, why young people aren't just having fewer kids, they're not even coupling up, and what it means for the future of work, wealth, Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
50 mins
26 May Finished
Britain Is Broke
Britain is running out of money, in a currency it prints itself. We unpack the gilt market panic, Starmer's impossible bind, and why the UK is starting to look more like 1970s Italy than the country that invented modern finance. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
36 mins
21 May Finished
Immigration: What's The Plan?
No policy. No plan. No housing. Sinead O'Sullivan is back to explain why Ireland took in more immigrants per head than any country in Europe, and why the middle class is about to feel what the working class has been shouting about for years. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
44 mins
19 May Finished
China Is Winning, Trump Doesn't Know It Yet
China is winning, and Trump doesn't know it yet. As the two leaders sit down in Beijing today, we explain why the Chinese think America is an empire in decline, and why they might be right. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
39 mins
14 May Finished
Why Your Barista Has a Master's Degree
What happens when a country produces more graduates than it has elite jobs to give them? According to Peter Turchin, the Russian-American thinker behind End Times, that's exactly the moment civilisations start to crack. This week, we get into his theory of "elite overproduction" and ask whether Ireland is staring straight into it. We unpack the stats: most educated population in the EU, master's degrees doubling in 15 years, and nearly one in three graduates working in jobs that don't need a degree. We talk about why the barista with a first-class honours and the barman with an economics master's are not just funny anecdotes, they're leading indicators of political instability. We look at how the public sector is quietly absorbing the overflow that the private sector can't, why AI is about to pour petrol on the fire, and why historically it's not the abject poor who revolt, it's the relatively rich and bitterly disappointed. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
34 mins
12 May Finished