Mars Bar-isation of the Irish Electorate & Other Yarns
19 November 2024 - 42 minsThis week, we're tackling two seismic shifts in politics: Ireland’s sugar-rush election and Trumpism’s ripple effects across Europe. As Irish politicians shower voters with freebies—from energy credits to student grants—are they ignoring the storm clouds brewing overseas? Meanwhile, Germany is picking up the phone to Russia, reshaping the geopolitics of Europe as Trump’s influence pushes allies to rethink old alliances. What does Ireland’s obsession with giveaways say about its political class, and how will Trumpism challenge Ireland's economic model? From Olaf Scholz to selection boxes, and from bounties (both the chocolates and political ones) to balanced budgets, join us as we explore how...
Series Episodes
The Death of the Night-Time Economy: Why Ireland is Closing Down After Midnight
This week, we analyse the collapse of Ireland's night-time economy, noting that 2,205 pubs, one in four nationwide, have closed since 2005. With regional closure rates hitting 37% in Limerick and 33% in Cork, the discussion highlights how high excise duties and archaic licensing laws are strangling a $4 billion industry that supports 92,000 jobs. The episode explores why a country that markets itself on fun is systematically shutting down its social infrastructure. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
37 mins
15 September Finished
Fairway Diplomacy: How Golf Became Ireland's Secret Weapon Against Trump
Donald Trump touches down in Doonbeg this weekend for the Irish Open at his own golf course, and we're asking whether Ireland should protest or play along. We unpack the extraordinary Irish-American relationship: 40 daily flights to the US, $1.3 trillion in American investment, 300,000 jobs, and a bond built more on kitchen tables than diplomacy. We're joined by Donal Casey, former CEO of Rory McIlroy Inc., to talk golf's economics, why LIV Golf failed despite Saudi billions, and how the fairway - not the barricades, might be Ireland's smartest move with America's most unpredictable president. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
40 mins
10 September Finished
Germany’s Seismic Shift: The Rise of the AfD
A deep dive into the AfD’s 44% victory in Saxony-Anhalt and its implications for the European Union. We analyse the collapse of Germany’s political center, the demographic divide among young voters, and the historical tensions between East and West that are reshaping the continent’s future. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
42 mins
8 September Finished
The AI Culture Wars
We explore the new ideological divide between Silicon Valley’s techno-optimists and institutional economists like Daron Acemoglu. Will AI drive shared prosperity or concentrate wealth among a new technocratic elite? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
37 mins
3 September Finished
Ireland's Immigration Numbers Don't Add Up And Housing Is Paying the Price
Our population's just hit 5.5 million, and 72% of that growth is migration, not births. Five years ago 57% of work permits went to doctors, nurses and scientists. Now it's just 30%. We crunch the CSO numbers and ask the question nobody wants to: how many migrants can Ireland's housing market actually take before something breaks? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
36 mins
1 September Finished
Jackson Hole Reckoning: The $40 Trillion Debt Crisis and the End of Fiscal Exceptionalism
As global central bankers convene for the Jackson Hole symposium, the interrogation of American fiscal credibility takes center stage. With US national debt surpassing $40 trillion and interest payments now exceeding the defense budget, the Treasury faces a critical standoff with the bond market. This analysis explores the limits of yield manipulation, the threat to the dollar’s role as global collateral, and the inevitable market-driven correction facing a politically paralyzed Washington. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
36 mins
27 August Finished
