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: Debt is the Achilles' Heel of Democracy
The scale of the nominal national debt is staggering, but when you add in unfunded pension schemes (state and public sector) and HM Treasury indemnities to the…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Egalitarian Capitalism should replace Socialism
Most of us believe in personal freedom within a fairer society, but that combination isn't currently on offer from any of the political parties seeking your…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Learning takes a Lifetime
We all have so much to learn from others as well as from our own experience. In his April 2015 Track Record, Sir Martin Jacomb, who died on 8th June, referred…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: AI — An Exciting and Fearsome Tool
Tools have accompanied us since the dawn of humanity, but few are as exciting and fearsome as Artificial Intelligence. That's why the Pope chose to talk to G7…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Say Farewell to Socialism, Sir Keir
Spot the difference (if you can) between the communist and socialist perspectives on welfare, as defined by byjus.com. After seventy-five years it's crippled…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekMoral Compass Missing
Nothing seems to shake the populist following of Mr. Trump, which includes a substantial proportion of the evangelical Christian community. Is their moral…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Assess the Individual, not just their Party
Not my platitudes — but we do indeed need bold reforms, vision, groundbreaking solutions and to lead the edge of change. Our key concerns and calls for action…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: AI raises the urgency for disintermediated participation
Professor Hinton, the 'godfather of AI', warns that the challenges of Artificial Intelligence are not just economic but also strategic. His quotation of Putin…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Recognising Individual Achievement
Individual achievement is recognised in many walks of life, and that recognition spurs people on to achieve even greater things. With education, good exam…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Three Presumptions for Re-thinking Politics
England delivered a withering verdict on its ruling Conservative Party last week, but the motley spread of replacement parties plus low turnout revealed a…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: The Illusion of Legacy
Voyager-1's legacy includes greetings in 55 languages, 35 sounds from life on Earth (such as whale songs, laughter, etc.), 90 minutes of music including…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Logic and Reason in the Spotlight
In so many respects the news that greets us each day seems devoid of logic and reason. Whether it's international conflict, short-termist governments or the…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Action required for Default CTF Pay-out
The core of the problem with unclaimed, adult-owned Child Trust Funds (of which there are over £2 billion waiting to be claimed) is with accounts opened by…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Putting Dormant Assets to Work
Just in the United Kingdom alone, it has been estimated that there is £200 billion lying unclaimed as dormant assets. Better analysis is needed, more use…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Private Equity undermining the UK’s role in global finance
The Bank of England has sounded its strongest warnings yet of the danger to financial stability from Private Equity, and the London Evening Standard…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Mexican Stand-off over Health
Rachel Reeves points to a sea change in economic policy, 'As we did at the end of the 1970s, we stand at an inflection point': but there's no indication, apart…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Memory and Copyright
The science of memory and how it shapes us is the central question in Dr. Charan Ranganath's new book. It's an absolute truism that memory is deeply personal…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Shifting the Burden Stealthily
Jeremy Hunt's focus on young working people by making a further significant reduction in employees' NI is welcome, but his overall strategy is cloaked in…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Counteracting Fear and Greed
Rishi Sunak's call for tolerance in Downing Street on Friday 1st March was couched in terms of hard work and endeavour, which are generally associated with…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: New Approach needed for Bequests
The birth rate is falling swiftly, leaving wealthy old folk with their ever-greater reserves looking for a home. Meanwhile Professor Eric French and his…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: What's required for a good start to adult life
Much like Sir Keith Joseph, Michael Gove provides intellectual stimulus for the Conservative Party. 'Breaking the cycle of deprivation' was Keith Joseph's…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: The Word we stretch
With 1.45 billion speakers, English may be the most commonly spoken language across the world, but it displays a real poverty with the word ‘love’. It's not…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Manifesto for Manifestos (UK)
Universal provision of free health and social care plus the payment of interest on government debt comprise nearly two-thirds of UK public spending. We need…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: What is Truth?
We see distortion of the truth in holocaust and genocide denial, in Donald Trump’s refusal to accept his myriad of indictments, and in Putin's denial of…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Participation for All
Huge disparities in wealth lie at the heart of most of humanity's problems, including conflict. The route towards participation for all relies on respect for…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: The £2 Billion Challenge
The UK sub-postmasters' scandal is not just an issue for politicians: it deeply questions the quality and integrity of corporate governance, auditors and the…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Copyright, and Ownership for All
Steamboat Willie, the original Mickey Mouse, steps into the public domain after 95 years of copyright restriction. Copyright law has been with us for over 300…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Year: A Global Manifesto for 2024
It's time to step up the role and democratic legitimacy of the United Nations in a way that prioritises peace, harmony, freedom and a fair standard of living…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Shadow over Christmas — Massacre of the Innocents
The Holy Family's flight in Egypt was followed by the 'massacre of the innocents' in and around Bethlehem. Today's Middle Eastern tragedy is again denying…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Respect for Others, not Solidarity, is what matters
Christmas is with us again, celebrating the birth of Jesus over two thousand years ago. This year, however, it is overshadowed by the horrific events in the…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: More Focus on Young People, please!
On 22nd May, following the Public Accounts Committee hearing in Westminster, our commentary was entitled 'Don’t waste the Child Trust Fund harvest!' It's now…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Democracy, Ownership and Young People
Oxford University Professor Ben Ansell is delivering this year's Reith Lectures on the future of democracy: whether it's in retreat across the world, whether…
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Thought for the Week: 21st Century Elephant Traps
In the old days we either telephoned someone for a quick answer to a question, or sent a letter which focused the attention of the recipient. Now huge volumes…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Health & Education Shortcomings hold back UK Growth
Adam Smith set out the foundation building blocks for economic growth in the Wealth of Nations, and capital and labour were the key components — Jeremy Hunt…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThough for the Week: Who should stay, Who should go?
A warm welcome back for David, now Lord, Cameron. Let's put the years of struggling in the wake of Brexit behind us, and look forward to a new global…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Democratising AI Ownership
In a world absorbed with tension and conflict, it says something about the significance of AI that Rishi Sunak was able to host the conference at Bletchley…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: What 'Love your enemy' means
This week's Thought proposes four key routes towards 'Loving your enemy', including a gradual transition from national to international law. This would mean…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Frozen tax thresholds lose votes
There's a rising crescendo of concern over HM Treasury's decision to leave tax thresholds frozen at current levels until 2028. At a time of high inflation, it…
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Thought for the Week: Unbridled Revenge is not the answer
Unbridled revenge leads to an escalation of the cycle of violence: in a world which possesses such an arsenal for mass destruction, we have to learn how to…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Curate's Egg
As the Party Conference season draws to a close, we check out last week's rather lacklustre Conservative event and add some thoughts to Sunak's agenda for…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Parenting Under Pressure
The scars borne by the younger generation reflect parents under pressure: from relationship breakdown, the demands of work, migration, the cost of living. So…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Cummings' Unintended Legacy
After the December 2019 election, Dominic Cummings brought HM Treasury under the heel of No. 10. Little did he realise that in 2023 the financiers would be…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, U-PHARSIN
Here is our 'writing on the wall': the clearest evidence yet that sea temperatures are undermining the Antarctic. Let's not turn a blind eye and follow the…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: How do the young become entrepreneurs without financial education?
Last week Jerome Mayhew MP drew attention to the dire state of financial education in the UK: a recent survey for Parliament suggested that 62% of young people…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: The Need for Fresh Expressions
While Pope Francis looks east to Mongolia, bringing praise for their religious freedom and forward-looking encouragement, The Times reports general confusion…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: The Black Hole of Economics
Enjoy this entertaining romp through capitalist economics from the demise of feudalism to Thomas Picketty’s book ‘Capital in the 21st Century’, but a careful…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Could Africa benefit from Incentivised Learning?
Last week we heard of sixty migrants dying in an attempt to reach Cape Verde across the Atlantic Ocean: young people risking all for a better life. But, as we…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: The Consequences of Unbridled Self-Interest
Pixar's 2008 computer-animated movie 'Wall•E' paints a depressing picture of the Earth laid waste by a combination of consumerism, corporatocracy…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Public Finance Disasters in small print
Government Debt at the end of June '23 was £2.53 trillion, or £38,000 for every person living in the UK. This will be increased by 10% as a result of HM…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Account Providers need to Take Action!
Dame Meg Hillier is Chair of the Public Accounts Committee, which has published its 25-page report into Child Trust Funds following the recent National Audit…
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Thought for the Week: Loneliness and Mental Health
In mid-2022 there were 716,000 people economically inactive in the United Kingdom because of mental health and neurological conditions, including depression…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Monopolies are not the answer
With aggregate annual licence fee income of £3.7 billion, a degree of self-interest and parochialism which permeates its coverage, and swiftly-reducing…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Financial Legacies
The shining towers and ivory walls of the City of London — many of our financial trials and tribulations can be traced back to October 1986, when the clear…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: The Social Merits of Long-Term Ownership
What is the psychological effect of individual ownership — and, notwithstanding the low starting point, how can we bring a sense of ownership right across…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Russia in Crisis
Last Saturday's trail of chaos exposes the challenge facing Russia, absorbed in conflict and with its people living in fear and poverty. Plans are urgently…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: The Rise and Fall of Honesty
'What is Truth?', were Pilate's last words to Jesus on Good Friday. We all experience being economical with the truth, although the Privileges Committee…
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Thought for the Week: Understanding Entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurial activity is the throbbing heart of business and economic growth, but Evelyn Partners have discovered that 40% of business owners are planning…
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Thought for the Week: Repurposing and Reforming Inheritance Tax
Former Chancellor of the Exchequer and Children's Minister Nadhim Zahawi MP set out a strong case for abolishing inheritance tax in last Wednesday's Telegraph…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Debt, Equity and (long-term) Risk
Andrew Griffith MP, Economic Secretary to HM Treasury, wants to see a greater appetite for risk to encourage investment in British business. It's good to hear…
Hrkn to .. Thought for the WeekThought for the Week: Don't waste the Child Trust Fund harvest!
There's currently over £1.7 billion sitting in mature Child Trust Funds belonging to over 900,000 mainly low-income young adults throughout the UK who don't…
