Videos
Weapons of mass distraction
Once again the west finds itself back in a familiar position with the press parroting one assured narrative, while the public is increasingly sceptical about their claims. So what is really going on? And have we not learned anything from interventions in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya? Here to discuss the role of the media in support of the Western headlong rush to war is the economist and political analyst, Shabbir Razvi and former army officer, detective and counter-terrorism intelligence officer Charles Shoebridge.
HSCB – A rebel bank with a cause
Artists and film-makers Hilary Powell and Dan Edelstyn took over a co-op bank to enact community driven debt relief, by the people for the people, in a bid to educate the public about how money and credit are actually created. And instead of putting the Queen on their money, they are making heroes out of the Garys, Sarahs, Tracys and Steves who are fighting for economic justice amid the fallout of the current system we are forced to live under.
RBS: the Hillsborough of British Business
If we were to tell you that you are a shareholder in a British bank you might be surprised. If we were to mention that that bank has been consistently running at a loss for a decade you may begin to worry about your investment. If we then said the organisation you’re invested in is accused of asset stripping compromised businesses to make a quick buck you probably wouldn’t believe us. Joining us to discuss RBS’ recent return to profit and whether it is now going to repay the British taxpayers is businessman, RBS victim and former CEO of Torex Retail PLC, Neil Mitchell.
Who are the real Olympic winners?
The sales pitch that is always used when bidding for the Olympics is that the legacy of the games will regenerate a part of the host country. This sounds wonderful in theory but in practice is the best policy for urban renewal to pay for expensive custom built sporting venues that are only used a handful of times? If not, we ask: who are the real Olympic winners?
The business of common sense
A cursory glance around the business world globally and you can tell that all is not well. Systems are broken. Bureaucracy is running riot. Management frequently does more harm than good. And despite the constant chat about culture, you can often find more culture in a pot of yoghurt. So as businesses begin to acknowledge how disengaged staff really are. We ask. How do you now build a business, an organisation that people genuinely want to work for?
Question everything
In a sensationalist world that operates at breakneck speed, many of us get caught careering between stimulus and response, rarely stopping to think critically about why we do what we do. More fundamentally, with nationalism on the rise, we ask: can philosophy enable us to think differently about our true identity? Stine Jensen is a Danish philosopher who lives in the Netherlands, a country and people that are not afraid of big or new ideas. We went there to meet her to find out about the importance philosophy has in our modern distracted world. We also wanted to know if Plato was right. Is the unexamined life really not worth living?
If it’s not working, redesign it
At a time when the planet faces its biggest environmental challenge and humans struggle to redefine work in the face of automation, there has never been a better time to imagine a different reality. Daan Roosegaarde is a Dutch designer who is addressing some of the most pressing issues we face. We travelled to his studio in Rotterdam to talk about the importance of making the necessary leap to a brave new world.
The great British train robbery
Privatising British Railways was meant to bring innovation, efficiency, competition and therefore lower fares but the reality, well it’s been very different. The former British Prime Minister and devout neo liberal Margaret Thatcher was in favour of mass privatisation but even she claimed that privatising the British Rail System was ‘a privatisation too far’ but this didn’t stop her successors. So on this program we ask. Was the neoliberal dream of rail privatisation actually the great British train robbery?