Martin Henson
@martinhenson.bsky.social
Retired academic. Thinking in public. Economics, politics, philosophy—especially where the wires cross. MMT-friendly. I read systems as flows. Reading is important: Musil, Rabelais, Sterne, and Gombrowicz this year - but thinking mostly about now.
Gary Stevenson is an important voice in explaining the whats, whys and wherefores of inequality - and it’s a shame he doesn’t get the difference between the government and a household. Richard Murphy puts him right … #inequality #mmt #richardmurphy #garystevenson
Why the UK can’t go broke – and why Gary Stevenson shouldn't imply it could
YouTube video by Richard J Murphy
youtube.com
August 9, 2025 at 5:13 AM
Gary Stevenson is an important voice in explaining the whats, whys and wherefores of inequality - and it’s a shame he doesn’t get the difference between the government and a household. Richard Murphy puts him right … #inequality #mmt #richardmurphy #garystevenson
3/3 … (which pushes up their price and thus of indirect benefit to those holding shares). So … give us a break Mr Elhedery!
HSBC boss says Rachel Reeves putting up bank taxes would harm UK growth
Georges Elhedery’s comments come amid speculation the chancellor could make such a move in autumn budget
www.theguardian.com
July 31, 2025 at 6:55 PM
3/3 … (which pushes up their price and thus of indirect benefit to those holding shares). So … give us a break Mr Elhedery!
2/3 … capital adequacy - making greater lending for investment possible. But this is massively overstated, especially in the context of HSBC’s distribution of over US$8B in dividends in the first half of this year and nearly US$10B in buying back its own shares …
HSBC boss says Rachel Reeves putting up bank taxes would harm UK growth
Georges Elhedery’s comments come amid speculation the chancellor could make such a move in autumn budget
www.theguardian.com
July 31, 2025 at 6:54 PM
2/3 … capital adequacy - making greater lending for investment possible. But this is massively overstated, especially in the context of HSBC’s distribution of over US$8B in dividends in the first half of this year and nearly US$10B in buying back its own shares …
1/3 - Elhedery engaging in smoke and mirrors. He hope’s we understand his concern as meaning that the banks will have less money to lend - but this is not how banks lend at all. His defence against pointing that out would surely be that greater retained “earnings” would increase the banks equity …
HSBC boss says Rachel Reeves putting up bank taxes would harm UK growth
Georges Elhedery’s comments come amid speculation the chancellor could make such a move in autumn budget
www.theguardian.com
July 31, 2025 at 6:53 PM
1/3 - Elhedery engaging in smoke and mirrors. He hope’s we understand his concern as meaning that the banks will have less money to lend - but this is not how banks lend at all. His defence against pointing that out would surely be that greater retained “earnings” would increase the banks equity …
Prem on fire, as usual. And a reply that cannot be dignified by the word “response”. @premnsikka.bsky.social #premsikka #privatisation
House of Lords Water 23 July 2025
YouTube video by Prem Sikka
youtu.be
July 30, 2025 at 12:45 PM
Prem on fire, as usual. And a reply that cannot be dignified by the word “response”. @premnsikka.bsky.social #premsikka #privatisation
No doubt these are quite radical - but for a non-believer they are shocking: "Wait! You’re allowed to hug and smile? And that’s a reform?!" or comical - a friend was offered a job in Saudi Arabia. The incentive? We won't take your passport. If the irony is not obvious - it's about a prior pathology.
Pope Leo XIV banned these 7 Catholic traditions… and many are in shock!
YouTube video by Pope Leo XIV – Divine Testament
youtu.be
July 28, 2025 at 7:49 PM
No doubt these are quite radical - but for a non-believer they are shocking: "Wait! You’re allowed to hug and smile? And that’s a reform?!" or comical - a friend was offered a job in Saudi Arabia. The incentive? We won't take your passport. If the irony is not obvious - it's about a prior pathology.
Prem is right on the money yet again.
Public ownership is the only way to save the water industry
Public ownership is the only viable alternative but is opposed by the government
leftfootforward.org
July 26, 2025 at 12:55 PM
Prem is right on the money yet again.
We are living in what Cory Doctorow calls the “Enshittocene” - ‘Gig nursing apps may determine pay by … how often they bid for shifts, or how much credit card or other kinds of debt they might hold.’ Those carrying debt are judged desperate and offered lower rates of pay. #corydoctorow #gigeconomy
Uber for Nursing: How an AI-Powered Gig Model Is Threatening Health Care - Roosevelt Institute
Through original interviews with 29 “gig” nurses and nursing assistants, Katie J. Wells and Funda Ustek Spilda find that on-demand nursing companies encourage nurses to work for less pay, fail to prov...
rooseveltinstitute.org
July 19, 2025 at 5:59 PM
We are living in what Cory Doctorow calls the “Enshittocene” - ‘Gig nursing apps may determine pay by … how often they bid for shifts, or how much credit card or other kinds of debt they might hold.’ Those carrying debt are judged desperate and offered lower rates of pay. #corydoctorow #gigeconomy
Welcome to the polycrisis! You can’t even escape on a nature trail …
July 19, 2025 at 5:53 PM
Welcome to the polycrisis! You can’t even escape on a nature trail …
I was listening to this during my morning walk around the lake - and I passed a young woman pushing a child (not more than two) in a pram. The child was looking at an iPhone #novaramedia #novara #downstream #jonathanhaidt
'10 Year Old Girls Are Going To Sephora, It's Insane' | Aaron Bastani Meets Jonathan Haidt
YouTube video by Novara Media
youtu.be
July 19, 2025 at 3:44 PM
I was listening to this during my morning walk around the lake - and I passed a young woman pushing a child (not more than two) in a pram. The child was looking at an iPhone #novaramedia #novara #downstream #jonathanhaidt
Back in 2017 someone interrupted a King’s College economics professor, saying “That’s your bloody GDP. Not ours.” Looks like the most profound statement made in economics in the last ten years … #poverty #inequality #economics
July 19, 2025 at 3:27 PM
Back in 2017 someone interrupted a King’s College economics professor, saying “That’s your bloody GDP. Not ours.” Looks like the most profound statement made in economics in the last ten years … #poverty #inequality #economics
Who’s enjoyed this? I have!
Thatcher, Farage and toe-sucking: Adam Curtis on how Britain came to the brink of civil war
Chaos, distrust and so many sex scandals … Ahead of his epic new series Shifty, the great documentarian charts the UK’s slide towards Whitehall’s worst nightmare
www.theguardian.com
July 19, 2025 at 3:25 PM
Who’s enjoyed this? I have!
Homo economicus has finally gone mad. My regret just now is not having micro-efficiently ignored this article. #homoeconomicus #economics
The secrets of self-optimisers: why ‘microefficiencies’ are on the rise
Whether brushing their teeth in the shower or wearing slip-on shoes to save time, people are finding all sorts of ways to fine-tune their routines. Are these fun life hacks or symptoms of a snowed-und...
www.theguardian.com
July 19, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Homo economicus has finally gone mad. My regret just now is not having micro-efficiently ignored this article. #homoeconomicus #economics
6/6
So the problem isn’t that government debt burdens our grandchildren — that’s a myth. The real issue is that the current system takes public savings and redistributes them upwards, fuelling inequality. #PublicDebt #RethinkEconomics
So the problem isn’t that government debt burdens our grandchildren — that’s a myth. The real issue is that the current system takes public savings and redistributes them upwards, fuelling inequality. #PublicDebt #RethinkEconomics
Debt is Higher and Rising Faster in 80 Percent of Global Economy
Fiscal Policy under mounting uncertainty means government budgets need resilience—particularly in countries whose economic weight makes them influence global trends
www.imf.org
July 19, 2025 at 3:01 PM
6/6
So the problem isn’t that government debt burdens our grandchildren — that’s a myth. The real issue is that the current system takes public savings and redistributes them upwards, fuelling inequality. #PublicDebt #RethinkEconomics
So the problem isn’t that government debt burdens our grandchildren — that’s a myth. The real issue is that the current system takes public savings and redistributes them upwards, fuelling inequality. #PublicDebt #RethinkEconomics
5/6
Some of that interest goes to pension funds, and will end up in pensioners’ hands — good. But roughly two-thirds goes to the already-wealthy, who use it to push up asset prices — housing, land, stocks — putting them further out of reach. #WealthGap
Some of that interest goes to pension funds, and will end up in pensioners’ hands — good. But roughly two-thirds goes to the already-wealthy, who use it to push up asset prices — housing, land, stocks — putting them further out of reach. #WealthGap
Debt is Higher and Rising Faster in 80 Percent of Global Economy
Fiscal Policy under mounting uncertainty means government budgets need resilience—particularly in countries whose economic weight makes them influence global trends
www.imf.org
July 19, 2025 at 3:00 PM
5/6
Some of that interest goes to pension funds, and will end up in pensioners’ hands — good. But roughly two-thirds goes to the already-wealthy, who use it to push up asset prices — housing, land, stocks — putting them further out of reach. #WealthGap
Some of that interest goes to pension funds, and will end up in pensioners’ hands — good. But roughly two-thirds goes to the already-wealthy, who use it to push up asset prices — housing, land, stocks — putting them further out of reach. #WealthGap
4/6
The real question isn’t “how much debt” but who benefits. In 2025–26, the UK government will pay out over £100B in interest on its bonds. That’s £100B in free income — not for the public, but for those who hold the bonds. #Inequality
The real question isn’t “how much debt” but who benefits. In 2025–26, the UK government will pay out over £100B in interest on its bonds. That’s £100B in free income — not for the public, but for those who hold the bonds. #Inequality
Debt is Higher and Rising Faster in 80 Percent of Global Economy
Fiscal Policy under mounting uncertainty means government budgets need resilience—particularly in countries whose economic weight makes them influence global trends
www.imf.org
July 19, 2025 at 2:59 PM
4/6
The real question isn’t “how much debt” but who benefits. In 2025–26, the UK government will pay out over £100B in interest on its bonds. That’s £100B in free income — not for the public, but for those who hold the bonds. #Inequality
The real question isn’t “how much debt” but who benefits. In 2025–26, the UK government will pay out over £100B in interest on its bonds. That’s £100B in free income — not for the public, but for those who hold the bonds. #Inequality
3/6
Calling this “borrowing” is misleading. The UK government is the issuer of the currency. It doesn’t need to borrow its own IOUs to spend. Bonds are not loans; they’re just an interest-bearing swap for the cash already in circulation. #MMT
Calling this “borrowing” is misleading. The UK government is the issuer of the currency. It doesn’t need to borrow its own IOUs to spend. Bonds are not loans; they’re just an interest-bearing swap for the cash already in circulation. #MMT
Debt is Higher and Rising Faster in 80 Percent of Global Economy
Fiscal Policy under mounting uncertainty means government budgets need resilience—particularly in countries whose economic weight makes them influence global trends
www.imf.org
July 19, 2025 at 2:58 PM
3/6
Calling this “borrowing” is misleading. The UK government is the issuer of the currency. It doesn’t need to borrow its own IOUs to spend. Bonds are not loans; they’re just an interest-bearing swap for the cash already in circulation. #MMT
Calling this “borrowing” is misleading. The UK government is the issuer of the currency. It doesn’t need to borrow its own IOUs to spend. Bonds are not loans; they’re just an interest-bearing swap for the cash already in circulation. #MMT
2/6
Government debt is public savings. When the government spends more than it taxes, it issues bonds. These bonds soak up excess liquidity — not because the government needs your money to spend, but to tidy up the monetary system. #Economics
Government debt is public savings. When the government spends more than it taxes, it issues bonds. These bonds soak up excess liquidity — not because the government needs your money to spend, but to tidy up the monetary system. #Economics
Debt is Higher and Rising Faster in 80 Percent of Global Economy
Fiscal Policy under mounting uncertainty means government budgets need resilience—particularly in countries whose economic weight makes them influence global trends
www.imf.org
July 19, 2025 at 2:57 PM
2/6
Government debt is public savings. When the government spends more than it taxes, it issues bonds. These bonds soak up excess liquidity — not because the government needs your money to spend, but to tidy up the monetary system. #Economics
Government debt is public savings. When the government spends more than it taxes, it issues bonds. These bonds soak up excess liquidity — not because the government needs your money to spend, but to tidy up the monetary system. #Economics
1/6
The IMF calls it “public debt”, as if the public is in debt — when in fact, it’s the other way round. The five pound note in your pocket is government debt. It’s a liability for the government, yes — but for you, it’s an asset. #MMT #PublicDebt
The IMF calls it “public debt”, as if the public is in debt — when in fact, it’s the other way round. The five pound note in your pocket is government debt. It’s a liability for the government, yes — but for you, it’s an asset. #MMT #PublicDebt
Debt is Higher and Rising Faster in 80 Percent of Global Economy
Fiscal Policy under mounting uncertainty means government budgets need resilience—particularly in countries whose economic weight makes them influence global trends
www.imf.org
July 19, 2025 at 2:57 PM
1/6
The IMF calls it “public debt”, as if the public is in debt — when in fact, it’s the other way round. The five pound note in your pocket is government debt. It’s a liability for the government, yes — but for you, it’s an asset. #MMT #PublicDebt
The IMF calls it “public debt”, as if the public is in debt — when in fact, it’s the other way round. The five pound note in your pocket is government debt. It’s a liability for the government, yes — but for you, it’s an asset. #MMT #PublicDebt
This kind of ridiculous overreach by the police, if tolerated by state oversight, would be a sign of a police state. Now, the article ends with a government spokesperson implicitly criticising the police in this case - but are those just words? Will there be a change of policy and, an apology?
Armed police threatened to arrest Kent protester for holding Palestinian flag
Officers accused Laura Murton who also had a sign saying ‘Free Gaza’ of supporting a proscribed organisation
www.theguardian.com
July 19, 2025 at 2:49 PM
This kind of ridiculous overreach by the police, if tolerated by state oversight, would be a sign of a police state. Now, the article ends with a government spokesperson implicitly criticising the police in this case - but are those just words? Will there be a change of policy and, an apology?