Shows / The David McWilliams Podcast
The David McWilliams Podcast
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…
Episodes
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:40 The Opium Wars
In this episode, we dive into the harrowing impact of the opioid epidemic in North America, recounting firsthand observations of addiction's toll in cities…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:39 Letter from America with Evan Solomon
As we delve into America in this pivotal election year, grappling with its geopolitical challenges, culture wars, and internal conflicts, Evan Solomon makes a…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:38 Rich in Poor Houses
Why do wealthy people live in houses originally built for the less affluent? Despite vast improvements in living standards over the years — lower infant…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:37 The Rwanda-isation of Ireland
The Tories are seeking revenge for Brexit by exploiting immigration policy. Having been out-foxed, out-thought and out-gunned by Dublin on Brexit negotiations…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:36 Cod & Chips: The Story of Irish/Italians
Last week, the football team I play with went on a trip to Italian organised by one of our lads Camilio Borza a member of the Irish Italian tribe. In the the…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:35 The Political Fallout of Housing
This podcast delves into the intricate interplay of politics and housing, a phenomenon not unique to Ireland but deeply emblematic there. It examines how the…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:34 Istanbul: The Centre of our World
In part two of our mini-series on Turkey, we delve deeper into the electrifying economic history of Istanbul, from the Byzantine to the Ottoman empires and up…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:33 The Future is Turkish!
This is the first of 2 podcasts on Turkey following a quick visit to Istanbul where the inflation rate is currently at 69% annually, and the currency, the…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:32 Humanomics
The majority of my tribe, economists have been getting it wrong for decades, if you go back and look at economic research from the seventies, nobody is talking…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:31 What Elon's travails tell us about the New Cold War?
Elon Musk is to 2024 what Howard Roark was to 1943. In Ayn Rand's book Fountainhead, her hero Roark was brilliant, single-minded and flawed. Musk is a modern…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:30 Common Law or Common Sense? Nimbyism's Grip on Housing
In this week's episode, we plunge headfirst into the contentious issue of Nimbyism – should property ownership grant individuals the power to stop…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:29 Eat the Rich with Nick Hanauer
Are we truly living in a Plutocracy', where we are governed by the wealthy elites instead of those we voted for? As election season heats up around the globe…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:28 The Souk Versus The Citadel with Bassem Youssef
Palestine is one of the most, if not the most, tragic national stories of the 21st century. Divided, humiliated, abused, and abandoned by both West and East…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:27 Sam Bankman Fried and Male Over-Confidence with Michael Lewis
Crypto entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced Thursday to 25 years in prison for fraud on hundreds of thousands of customers that unraveled with the…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:26 The Curse of Inheritance
Inheritance is a tricky one. We all want to leave something to our kids if possible, yet inheritance for society makes inequality permanent, favouring the…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:25 Should We Copy The Swiss Or Is That Too Cheesy?
How best to run an economy and a country, bottom up or top down? A trip to Switzerland got me thinking should we invert power, making the local more…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:24 The Dehumanisation of Curiosity
The US House of Representatives has just approved a bill with the potential to ban Tiktok from America. But this story is about much more than corporate…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:23 The Economics of the Creative Mind with Ed Guiney
The primary driver of economic growth is the innovative human mind. In this episode, we sit down with Ed Guiney, the visionary co-founder of Element Pictures…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:22 The Irish Government, as trustworthy as a Kate Middleton photo-album?
No one trusts them, the Irish government or Katie M's doctored photos. For them its part of the national theatre, for us its a national threat. How did the…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:21 Bitcoin is Still Not Money
Bitcoin is being touted as a revolutionary asset, but in reality, it's often the wealthy transferring wealth to unsuspecting individuals, marketed as a stroke…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:20 Why Is China Getting So Rich?
For International Women's Day, we're thrilled to welcome Alice Evans, who is currently immersed in writing a book on gender equality across different cultures…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:19 ADHD Nation
In this episode, we delve into the concept of black swan events and explore how they resonate with contemporary art & culture. A black swan event, a term…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:18 Stuck in 1980s
This week, we return to the theme of acceleration and confront a stark reality: much of Ireland is stuck in 1984. Despite boasting an economy that has expanded…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:17 What is Éire Accelerationism and Why Does it Matter? with Will O'Brien
Forty years since its inception, the DART and the lack of substantial progress in transport infrastructure reflects a systemic failure in Ireland's approach to…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:16 The Joy of Maths with Colm O'Regan
This week, we delve into the perennial question: Why do so few students depart school with a genuine love for mathematics? Is the way we teach maths the crux…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:15 The Murder of Navalny - What's Next for Putin and Europe?
Next week, the war in Ukraine enters its third year. and last week Putin's regime murdered its only real political opponent, Alexi Navalny. Putin has…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:14 A Climate Warning from the Past
Amidst the backdrop of the hottest January on record, surpassing pre-industrial averages by 1.6 degrees, join us this week as we embark on a gripping…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:13 The Return of the Kennedys with Pippa Malmgren
With the election year in full swing, we're shining a spotlight on the resurgence of the Kennedys. Joining us to navigate the intriguing rise of independent…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:12 Unveiling the Drivers of the World Economy with Martin Wolf
In this week's episode, we delve deep into the dynamic forces shaping our global economy, from seismic demographic shifts to the transformative rise of…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:11 The Bitter Lessons of Brexit with Martin Wolf
Almost eight years later, we shine a spotlight on Brexit and how it has come to the forefront of public discourse. We explore the destructive impact of…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:10 The Gen Z Gender Schism
For the second installment in our Milei series, we delve into what's causing the political gender divergence within Gen Z. We are joined this week by John…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:09 Public Sector Productivity, Who Pays?
This week, we explore the intersection between inflation, public sector pay and productivity, or value for money to the taxpayers who pay the public sector…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:08 People Before Bonnet
Dublin, like many cities, needs to make a decision to reinvent itself for the 21st century. It's a battle between the past and the future. There is no urban…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:07 Javier Milei and Understanding the Political Extremes Part One
Last week at Davos, Javier Milei, delivered a fiery speech that spared no one, from Keynesians to Globalists. Despite some controversy, Milei's libertarian…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:06 The Problem of Success and Why We Need To Change Our Minds
Ireland wasn't ready for the economic success we have experienced over the past 40 years. However, with success comes more social responsibility that the Irish…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:05 Protecting Global Trade - the Economics of the Houthi Problem
The Houthis - who are they? And why are the US and UK bombing them? What has it got to do with your world? America is keeping shipping routes open and that's…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:04 How Culture and Language Leads to Economic Growth
Join us as we explore the connection between culture, language, and economic growth. We are joined by John Burn-Murdoch and his data-driven expertise as we…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:03 The End of the Starsky & Hutch Super-Cycle
January if often the time for looking ahead, but all too often, we don’t look far enough. Today’s episode is about looking at the end of a 40 year cycle and…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:02 The Year of Insurrection
2024 is going to be a monumental year - 50% of the planet that is eligible to vote is going to vote! But the real power lies in the media: who tells the…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2024:01 The Economic Growth Equation & the Great 2023 Book Review
We start today by breaking down the mathematical formula to economic growth before moving to my best reads of 2023… and a sneak peek of a book coming out in…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
2023 in review
What a year it’s been! On the last episode of the year we take a look back at the incredible year (sometimes good, sometimes bad) that 2023 has been across the…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
The shifting political landscape - a conversation with Naomi Klein
Happy Christmas! Here's a fascinating discussion that I've had with Naomi Klein this year that covers a wide range of political topics - something to ponder on…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
The economics of imagination
As I spend my last night in Los Angeles, I’ve come to appreciate the drive of this city where so many creative endeavours are born. Hollywood is the core of…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
What happens in Vegas!!
Live from Las Vegas we talk about 2024, the upcoming American election, falls in global interest rates, potential American isolationism, the Gutenberg Bible…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
Bitcoin is back, why?
Time to eat humble pie? Despite us saying last year it that Bitcoin was a BS idea, its value has risen over 150% this year! What’s behind the surge? We talk…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
The Paradox of Prudence
Ireland has a massive deficit in public infrastructure and a massive surplus in the public finances. Economists are advising the government to save on the…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
Putin's Back!
Putin's back, swanning around the Gulf visiting Saudi Arabia and the UAE, telling the world that he was never really away. Things are going his way. Meanwhile…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
Shane MacGowan, the Diaspora and the coming 2nd Irish Republic.
We mark the death of Shane MacGowan by looking at the Irish Diaspora, particularly in England and its impact on English popular culture. From there we look at…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
Liberal democracy under threat?
Liberal democracy in the western world is all too often taken for granted. But its enemies, nationalists, theocrats, Marxists and isolationists - are rising…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
Riots in Dublin and the Power of Crowds
After the riot, the analysis. We look at the power of crowds, why crowds love destruction, why they grow and how they the dissipate. Plus, of course the…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
What does Argentina’s U-turn mean?
From tantric sex expert to President, Javier “chainsaw” Melei is a new type of populist - and anarchy-capitalist one! What does this mean, is this guy…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
The Economics of the AI Revolution
The board of Chat GPT may be firing its CEO, but that doesn't mean this revolution is slowing down. A whistle wind tour from the dawn of time with Stanley…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
Why 1923 still Matters
Anti-semitism, inflation, threats to democracy, despotic leaders and fragile governments, if you thought it was today, its is - but hold on. It's happened…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
The World in 2024. The NATO-Sphere
Today we kick-off a new three part series that looks at the state of the big economic blocs in the world. Part one is the state of the US as it enters an…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
BiBi Netanyahu - The Most Important Politician in America
How is the Israeli tail is wagging the American dog? America's election is exactly one year from now and Joe Biden is in bed with Netanyahu, but his own party…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
A live podcast straight from Kilkenomics
John and I sat down at the Watergate Theatre in Kilkenny and had a natter, covering all classes of topics from economics, to James Joyce, WB Yeats and a whole…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
The roots of the Israel-Palestinian Conflict pt4
We go way back to 70 AD before coming bak to today. Demography demands a two state solution, and the Israeli's know this. But a trap has been set for America…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
We need to talk about the pay gap
It's not world shattering to announce that there is a pay discrepancy between men and women - but it's important to note that this gap has been maintained…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
The Roots of the Israel-Palestinian Conflict pt3
In the third instalment of our series we explain the period of 1993 to the present in the Middle East. Why the peace accords floundered, the impact of 9/11…
- The David McWilliams Podcast
The impending commercial property crash
The commercial property market is struggling to swallow the interest rate hikes aiming to bring down inflation. Can the mass building of the last decade, built…