Shows / Hrkn to .. Thought for the Week
Hrkn to .. Thought for the Week
Each week we reflect on key issues, drawn from a wide range of areas: economics, politics, the environment, matters of physical and/or spiritual life, and, often, the search for a more egalitarian form of capitalism — including opportunities for young people from all backgrounds to achieve their potential. We've published these commentaries as a written record since August 2017, and as an audio podcast since March 2022. Visit https://shareradio.co.uk for more
Episodes
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: The gateway to a new, genuinely democratic world order?
American politics underwent a sea change last week; it may have been fuelled by populism being thoroughly disillusioned by the economic consequences of Trump's…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Young entrepreneurs and attitudinal transformation
One of the most welcome features of the UK Budget is the encouragement given to entrepreneurs to start their businesses, scale them to full commercial…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: First steps towards S4D&C (Stock for Data & Creativity)
The news that Anthropic and Elon Musk have committed to make a start in sharing their wealth creation is a significant step towards 'Stock for Data &…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Are public stock markets at risk of becoming dysfunctional?
40th anniversary: in October 1986 the City of London underwent a total transformation in the 'Big Bang', leading to twenty years of dynamic growth which ended…
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Thought for the Week: A motley crew of politics
Logic should be one of the two main drivers for politics, but it's sadly lacking in today's line-up. In 2026 we've experienced first-hand what climate change…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Reflections on Authority
There are many different interpretations of 'authority', but the sharpest distinction is between a top-down, dictatorial style and an understanding of what…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Quids in for the wealthier — Quids out for the disadvantaged
Quids in — Quids out: last week HM Treasury published its annual savings statistics, including their assessment of 827,000 unclaimed Child Trust Funds as at…
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Thought for the Week: Instrumental music — the crowning glory of creation?
Unlike gravity, light and time, sound doesn't carry through empty space; its travel relies on the created atmosphere. However speech and singing require…
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Thought for the Week: Control via human participation — for all
The spate of warnings about the existential risks for humanity as a result of insufficiently controlled Artificial Intelligence may remind some listeners of…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Bond markets — how did we get in this mess?
The origins of the looming crisis in world government bond markets started forty years ago; recent challenges such as the pandemic and Trump have turned the…
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Thought for the Week: Resolving democracy's shortcomings
MPs, led by Alex Sobel, are calling for a national commission to prepare proposals for electoral reform; their talk is about some form of proportional…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Preparing for a first Budget
With the summer holidays drawing to a close in the next few days, the new team at HM Treasury will be busy looking at fresh ideas for the Budget on 28th…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Stand by for desalination
Months of drought are gradually waking us up to the fact that climate change really is a serious concern: if we're not going to stop it, then we have to take…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Why we should be concerned about illiteracy
Literacy rates for young people have improved significantly over the past fifteen years following Tony Blair's call for 'Education, Education, Education'; with…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Choice, Targeted Support & Inter-generational Fairness
In response to Andy Burnham's invitation to join his cross-party working group on overhauling social care arrangements throughout the United Kingdom, Sir Ed…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Philanthropists must retain and provide common sense
Not surprisingly, the proposal from Gary Lineker and his millionaire colleagues for a wealth tax has been met with ridicule — Robert Colvile writing in the…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Are individual freedom and egalitarianism incompatible?
Thomas Jefferson's claim that all are created equal with the rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness attracts lip service from politicians but not…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Government must open, monitor and then deliver savings accounts to break the cycle of deprivation
The wish to tackle inter-generational rebalancing — to break the cycle of deprivation — leads directly to establishing long-term savings accounts for…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Participation for all does not mean government domination
The major economic challenges confronting humanity — including the chronic and acute polarisation of wealth — are global in character, just as the major…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Celebrating Independence Day with Trump Accounts
As the United States approaches the 250th anniversary of its independence, what better way for Donald Trump to anchor his legacy in the minds of all young…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Leading in Uncertainty
One of the extraordinary sights in nature is starling murmurations — hundreds of thousands of birds in what looks like a co-ordinated dance, but without any…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Hunt for a resolution to the UK public finance crisis
Starmer's clarion call for the 2024 General Election was 'Change', somewhat different from Tony Blair's 'Education, Education, Education'. However, in contrast…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Looking through the black hole of economics
On 29 August 2023 our commentary described the black hole of economics as its failure to recognise the opportunity to use the human life-cycle in order to…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: AI — Keeping humanity in charge
The direct nature of Pope Leo XIV's AI encyclical took some of his colleagues by surprise: as an AI expert Franciscan friar who has advised the Vatican says…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: How democratic socialism has failed the young — and how egalitarian capitalism can turn the tide
There has been a spate of reports on youth unemployment recently, and Alan Milburn will warn of 'a generational, societal and economic catastrophe’ if we don't…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: The inter-generational journey of hope
Journeys of hope move forwards, not backwards; they need to keep moving, not get stuck in a rut. They need to build progress as we go forward, by discovering…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Stealth Taxes & Policy Stagnation
The collapse in electoral support for both Labour and the Conservatives shows the extent to which central governments have become a black hole for people's…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Breaking the cycle of deprivation
Paul Johnson's new book, 'Challenging Inequalities', sets out graphically the barriers to opportunity for young people whose early years are spent in…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Why intergenerational rebalancing must be global
'Contemporary global inequalities are close to their early 20th century level, at the peak of Western imperialism': the World Inequality Report in 2022 laid…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Why individual choice works
Adam Smith's 'Wealth of Nations', now celebrating its 250th anniversary, celebrates the role of competition from the perspective of service providers; however…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Delivering participation through share ownership
Merryn Somerset Webb is Editor-in-Chief of MoneyWeek and a contributing editor and weekly columnist for the Financial Times. She has published a book called…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Epic Anger
Temper tantrums do not solve fights in the playground, and they certainly don't resolve international disputes. If we are concerned about young people under…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: £1 billion birthright being denied for young adults in poverty
The young owners of over two-thirds of all Child Trust Funds reach adulthood at the end of March 2026, but very large numbers of HMRC-allocated accounts remain…
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Thought for the Week: Imagining the divine perspective
The current state of humanity could well be giving rise to a degree of despair in divine quarters: we certainly don't seem to have learnt much over the past…
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Thought for the Week: Breaking the world’s addiction to oil
For the past fifty years the world's conflicts have been powered by our addiction to oil, while the climate has continued to suffer. If concern about our…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: We are all complicit
Donald Trump's comment about Keir Starmer being 'No Churchill' wholly overlooks Churchill's part in destabilising Iran when the UK and US were the prime movers…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Entrepreneurial resolve could be the answer
The past half-century has provided a generally well-structured approach to employment and career opportunities, but there's little reliability or…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Economic Chaos
President Trump has learnt the hard way that he can't just impose tariffs by Executive Order. The U.S. Supreme Court may be beefed up by his own nominees, but…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: What matters for young people
There are a host of big issues facing young people, but lowering the voting age to 16 is not one of them. Student debt post-graduation is one of the biggest…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: What is Truth?
Starmer has learnt the hard way that without truth there can be no trust. But throughout society people feel that they cannot take anything at face value, and…
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Thought for the Week: Universal participation — the logical approach
Universal Basic Income is frequently cited as the way to cope with the growing spectre of AI-driven mass unemployment; but there are few, if any, workable…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: The need for a moral compass for young people
There's been much discussion about the social media and NEET challenges for young people over the past week: the Bigger Picture reports on debates in…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Responding to Greenland tariffs, & ID verification
We're getting increasingly used to Donald Trump's bullying tactics; it's time to encourage U.S. tech leaders to persuade him to back off, by applying the same…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Focusing on future generations
We're looking forward to a significant step forward towards inter-generational rebalancing as a result of Share Alliance's two-day conference in May: the first…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Global leadership requires participation for all, not domination
Trump's assault on Venezuela casts a major question mark over his claim to be a peacemaker — resorting to military action to deal with criminal activity is a…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Sharing love at Christmas
There's not much love being shared between Russia and Ukraine this Christmas. Putin calls for respect, but respect for others doesn't come naturally for him…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: 2025 — a watershed year
The first year of Trump's Mark 2 presidency has seen huge swings in critical areas for the future of humanity, including climate change, the risk of…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: The 1,700-year-old omission
Few would disagree with St. John's conclusion that the nature of our conscious creator — of God — is love. In the Christian faith, it's at the heart of the two…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Inter-generational Incoherence
Labour MPs' celebration of the Chancellor's abolition of the 2-child welfare benefit cap in last week's Budget statement completely eclipsed the outstanding…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Not seeing the wood for the trees
Is it the cacophony of everyday noise or the fact that 'a week is a long time in politics' which is driving long-term thinkers out of the centre ground? You…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: UBI rejected by voters
Unemployment is not just an economic scourge — it also substantially undermines mental well-being, as Tom Paxton described so vividly in his 1964 song, 'A Job…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Welfare should be targeted, not universal
Universal publicly-funded welfare, including health care and education, has proved a very expensive Marxist experiment in western democracies. Far from…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Share 2025
This commentary takes stock of all things 'Share' as at Autumn 2025. The Share Foundation has made substantial progress: it's enabled over 100,000 young people…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Data — Exploitation and Denial
General Data Protection Regulation was introduced in 2016, but it's already past its sell-by date. With 56% of UK web browsers choosing to accept all cookies…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Pride comes before a fall
(Prince) Andrew is not alone in undergoing a seismic fall from grace which has been amplified by a prolonged absence of remorse and contrition: politicians…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Economic misconceptions within politics
Politicians of all parties seem to think that we can both cut immigration and achieve significantly higher economic growth, notwithstanding the fact that there…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Listening to our conscience
Conscience has challenged humanity for millenia: so much so that its entry on Wikipedia includes 22,000 words. However securing that moral yardstick is not…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Guidance, Reaction and Experience
We all benefit from a blend of guidance, reaction and experience in our journey through life, and most of all in those formative years of childhood and…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Love Your Enemy
There's a strange convergence of aggression which is drawing both international conflict and personal hatred into the mainstream; social media bears…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Calling for Global Democracy
Rather than seek global convergence, nation states are digging in deeper in all the three areas that conspire to drive them apart — conflict, threats and…
