The Econoclasts is a new podcast from UnHerd hosted by economist Yanis Varoufakis and journalist Wolfgang Munchau. While they don’t always agree politically, they are united in one conviction: the consensus is rotten. Mainstream economics has consistently failed to predict the events that shape our world, yet this broken orthodoxy still dominates policy and media. Each week, they choose two pillars of the established orthodoxy — the “settled facts” — and shatter them, cutting through the spin to connect the dots between money, geopolitics, and the real forces shaping our future.
Curated by: UnHerd (58 videos)
📰 Subscribe to UnHerd today at: https://bit.ly/3Qdkd5y This week, Yanis Varoufakis and Wolfgang Munchau take aim at Europe’s core illusions. Are Europe’s ‘values’ anything more than a slogan when its leaders fail to defend a French ICC judge sanctioned by the Trump administration? And why is Europe fixated on rapidly increasing defence spending to 3.5% of GDP – is this target a genuine strategy to counter Russia and achieve independence, or is it a doomed exercise that will only funnel money inefficiently and increase Europe’s reliance on American arms suppliers? The Econoclasts is the podcast from UnHerd in which Yanis Varoufakis and Wolfgang Munchau each week pick pillars of the economic orthodoxy – so-called ‘settled facts’ – and shatter them. Why? Because, while they don’t always agree politically, they’re united in one conviction: the consensus is rotten and the establishment’s model is failing. Watch it on the UnHerd website: https://unherd.com/watch-listen/the-sham-of-european-values/ Listen to the podcast: plinkhq.com/i/1685475850 Advertise on UnHerd @ zoe.white@unherd.com Follow UnHerd on social media: Twitter: https://x.com/Econoclasts Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/unherd/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unherd/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@unherdtv //TIMECODES// 00:00 - 01:04 - Intro 01:04 - 01:46 - Today’s topics 01:46 - 02:14 - Unmasking the Myth of European Values 02:14 - 04:09 - European Inaction: US Sanctions French judge 04:09 - 05:18 - Europe’s response to US and hypocrisy 05:18 - 07:43 - Values versus interests in foreign policy 07:43 - 09:36 - Hypocrisy in policy; U.S. relationship 09:36 - 12:13 - Trade policy & the difficulty of imposing values 12:13 - 14:33 - Does Europe uphold its own values? 14:33 - 17:46 - The EU’s ambition vs. real priorities 17:46 - 18:37 - Defence spending targets and inefficiencies 18:37 - 20:00 - Spending problems and innovation gap 20:00 - 27:18 - Military Keynesianism: Europe vs. the U.S. 27:18 - 28:05 - Why military Keynesianism doesn’t work in Europe 28:05 - 30:39 - Germany: Industry, society, and military spending 30:39 - 34:56 - Financial integration and EU’s political limitations 34:56 - 36:31 - Is the EU a dead end? 36:31 - 39:54 - Closing thoughts #UnHerd #UkraineWar #EuropeanUnion