The Other Hand

What is with all these extreme Catholics in positions of power & influence in the US? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is J D Vance nomination Trump's big strategic error? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Reflections on Hillbilly Hypocrisy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Has Simon Harris managed to change the narrative? He's 'taken back control' of at least some of the key issue. We shouldn't underestimate the powerful psychological impact of wiping out Sinn Fein's aura pf 'electoral inevitability'. Is ' buying the next election' with a giveaway budget really a sensible strategy? Even politically? Is it true to FG's self-image as the party of fiscal rectitude? Is...

Is Keir Starmer already getting lucky? Only one month's data, but GDP growth smashed estimates in May. US and Irish inflation down again. IFAC warns about an 'overheating' risk to the Irish economy. Why we should all, in fact, get to love overheating. Nvidia, AI & the US stock market: amazing growth Biden is losing his friends. He should make Kamala Harris President now. Orban has a very dodgy...

The Irish political scene looks as fluid as that in France, the UK and elsewhere. The polls are getting it wrong and plenty of voters don't make up their minds until they enter the polling booth. We take a deep dive into all of this with renowned Irish political analyst and commentator, Tull McAdoo. Why is Sinn Fein's vote collapsing? Will they recover? Maybe their last General Election result was...

In conversation with author, blogger and columnist, Professor Chris Grey Post the Labour landslide election victory, some of us have smiles on our faces. Does the result mean we can now really turn the page on the chaos and mendacity of the last 14 years? Is Keir Starmer relying on dumb luck for success? Is this the last chance saloon for the UK? "Stability, Investment and Reform". How deliverable...

The Irish finance minister is drowning in cash. Booming tax revenues the clearest indicator - much better than GDP - that the economy remains robust. Politics over economics: Charlie McCreevy once said when finance minister, "If I have it, I'll spend it'. It's not what the budgetary watchdog or the central bank would endorse - quite the opposite of course. But if its bad economics, is it good poli...

In this podcast we welcome back regular guest, Professor Shane O'Mara, neuroscientist and professor at Trinity College Dublin. I a review of an important new book by Dan Davies, professor Brad de Long of Berkley asks the question: given we are over 15 times better off than our pre-industrial ancestors, why are we so miserable. Davies gives one answer: things have become so complex, few people know...

The French elections will likely reverberate across Europe. Perhaps even alter the course of the war in Ukraine. The UK will now see the final death throes of the Tory Party. Farage is on the cusp of another victory. Of sorts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The most inept election campaign in history? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is The Other Hand behind the demise of Sinn Fein? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

An immediate post-budget Irish election? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How far can EU rate cuts diverge from the US? And much more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jean-Claude Juncker, ex-head of the EU Commission, once famously said that policymakers know what is the right thing to do, but don't know how to get re-elected if they do it. That is true too much of the time. But is there a unique opportunity for the Irish government, for once to do the right thing and to be rewarded for it at the ballot box? Finance Minister McGrath has promised a tax-cutting b...

UK election dominates headlines that should be about China simulating war Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Inflation falls in the UK but *only* to 2.3%. Cue weeping and wailing and much hot air. The narcissism of small differences. Does anybody know what really causes inflation? Does the ECB understand the connection (or lack of) between interest rates and inflation? The human aspects of all this are often lost in dry discussions of monetary policy and inflation. But the human dimension is real, big an...

Opinion polls on both sides of the Atlantic tell fascinating stories. Sinn Fein has lost momentum. Have they peaked too soon? Rishi Sunak's Tories are now polling at lower levels that the nadir of Liz Truss' government. That really is some going. Trump breaks wind audibly in court, hears stories about his sexual peccadillos and goes up in the polls. It is said that SF are suffering because 'they h...

We might need 80,000 new houses a year - or we might not. It all depends on so many imponderables. One of them being the level of immigration. We now see that everywhere as a problem to be solved. Is it solvable? Biden is trying to keep cheap Chinese electronic vehicles out of the US. Europe is thinking about doing the same. That's all to protect domestic car manufacturers who don't know how to pr...

The State the UK is in & much more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In conversation with Professor of Experimental Brain Research, Shane O'Mara. Robert Kennedy Junior says a worm has eaten part of his brain. Is this possible? Yes - but his 'brain fog' and other symptoms could have been caused by something else. Partly eaten or not, his possible brain injuries are not likely to have led to a predisposition to conspiracy theories. RFK is a prominent anti-vaxxer, for...

The economic consequences of the war in Gaza have so far been very limited. The oil price has been well-behaved, all things considered. But that war is shaping up to be a forever war. That's the logical conclusion that flows from observing two sides committed to the other's destruction. If the war costs Biden the election then another logical conclusion is that the great Bidenomics experiment is o...

Unemployment edges up on both sides of the Atlantic - things are definitely showing early signs of slowing down. Whatever the outlook there are very good reasons to quietly ditch the 2% inflation targets that apply to the FED, BoE and ECB - particularly in the US, too much harm will be caused by a drive to 2%. Quietly adopt 3% inflation targets and get on with interest rate cuts. That 2% number wa...

The border never went away you know. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A packed podcast: It may be the ultimate social faux pas, but dare we say the latest Revenue annual report contains a wealth of fascinating data? Back taxes owed by SMEs could be - maybe are - a real problem Short-termism: anyone wondering why some companies and countries don't inest enough in themselves need look no further than META's (Facebook) results this week. The shares tanked because the t...