Ryan Research Podcast

Ryan Research Pub Talk are conversations that took place on live-streamed Twitter Spaces. The host Peter Ryan is joined by Juan David Rojas, Alex Bronzini-Vender, Geoff Shullenberger, Theo McDonald, Michael Cuenco, and other impromptu speakers.

We discussed Yanis Varoufakis' UnHerd essay "Donald Trump’s economic masterplan". He defined his view of Trump's masterplan as the following Trump combining the incompatible goals of 1.) a hegemonic dollar and low-yielding US Treasuries with 2.) a depreciated dollar and more domestic manufacturing through the shock therapy of tariffs as a stick to hit foreign central banks with. The essay link:

https://unherd.com/2025/02/why-trumps-tariffs-are-a-masterplan/

Speaker Links:

https://x.com/rojasrjuand

https://x.com/alexbronzini

https://x.com/g_shullenberger

https://x.com/tbald101

https://x.com/1TrueCuencoism

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Dr Jostein Hauge is a political economist and an Assistant Professor in Development Studies at the University of Cambridge, based at the Centre of Development Studies and the Department of Politics and International Studies. He is the author of The Future of the Factory: How Megatrends are Changing Industrialization, published by Oxford University Press. The book investigates how industrialization pathways are shaped by recent technological developments, new forces of globalization, and the threat of ecological collapse. It also charts new pathways for industrial policy and global governance. 

In our chat, we discussed his inspiration to explore his economic ideas; the economic history of industrial development; why manufacturing is more important than we think; how power relations shape economics more than comparative advantage; and how the rise of China and Trump's trade wars intersect with his ideas. 

Check out his book here: https://www.amazon.com/Future-Factory-Megatrends-Changing-Industrialization/dp/0198861583 

His website: https://www.josteinhauge.com/ 

His Twitter: https://x.com/haugejostein 

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Ryan Research Pub Talk are conversations that took place on live-streamed Twitter Spaces. The host Peter Ryan is joined by Juan David Rojas, Alex Bronzini-Vender, Geoff Shullenberger, and other impromptu speakers. 

We discussed Ezra Klein's and Derek Thompson's new book "Abundance". We dissect the book and its wider intellectual sphere to understand what exactly they mean by "abundance" and if that is good, bad, or neutral.

Make sure to subscribe to Peter Ryan and Ryan Research on Twitter, YouTube, and Substack. 

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This was a free portion of the full episode. Click here to subscribe and access the full episode:

https://ryanresearch.substack.com/

Theo McDonald is a journalist for the Irish Independent and his work has appeared in other publications like the Business Post, UnHerd, The Currency, and more. He recently released a comprehensive report on the Irish Housing Crisis. Irish politicians have since leveraged it as an essential piece of research to understand and solve the crisis.  

In our episode we discuss his report, the history of Irish housing market, the forces at work corrupting it (like vulture funds), and some ideas of how to solve it.

You can follow Theo at the below links:

His Twitter:

https://x.com/tbald101

His Substack:

https://theomcdonald.substack.com/

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Make sure to subscribe to Ryan Research on YouTube and Substack. 

You can follow Ryan Research on Twitter at:

https://twitter.com/Ryan_Research

And Ryan Research's host Peter Ryan on Twitter at:

https://twitter.com/_PeterRyan

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This was a free portion of the full episode. Click here to subscribe and access the full episode:
https://ryanresearch.substack.com/p/east-asian-economic-development-oliver

Oliver Kim is a PhD candidate in Economics at UC Berkeley. His advisors are Edward Miguel, Benjamin Faber, Jón Steinsson, and Barry Eichengreen. His research interests are in development and economic history. One example of his work was a focus on rural roots of China’s miracle—in particular, the end of collective agriculture in the early 1980s—by applying machine learning to historical satellite imagery. His other research includes both historical work on the rise of East Asia and contemporary fieldwork in Kenya.

In our episode we discuss the historical economic development of East Asia in the 20th century. Notable cases include South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and China. 

You can follow Oliver at the below links:

His Twitter:
https://x.com/oliverwkim

His Substack:
https://www.global-developments.org/

His website:
https://oliverwkim.com/

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Make sure to subscribe to Ryan Research on YouTube and Substack. 

You can follow Ryan Research on Twitter at:
https://twitter.com/Ryan_Research

And Ryan Research's host Peter Ryan on Twitter at:
https://twitter.com/_PeterRyan

Support the show

Miquel Vila is a consultant and analyst of international politics. Miquel holds a master's degree in Chinese Studies from Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF) and Beijing Foreign Studies University (BFSU) and a master's degree in International Security from the University of Groningen (UOG). His field of specialization is geoeconomics, industrial policy, and nationalism. His region of expertise is the Indo-Pacifc with a focus on China. He writes at his Substack "The Business of Power" and has recently published a book "The End of the Chinese Alternative" (soon to be translated to English).

In our discussion, we chatted about the Great Financial Crisis and its role in opening up the era of multipolarity. We go over trends in the post-industrial western world, especially Europe, and compare it to the rapidly industrialized China. Other aspects include nationalism, populism, EU federalism, geopolitics, industrial policy, and more.

Listen the audio version of this podcast here and on all major podcast apps.

You can follow him on Twitter:   @miquelvilam 

You can find all his work here: https://www.businessofpower.com/

If you enjoyed this podcast make sure to subscribe and follow @_peterryan on Twitter too.

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Thomas Fazi is a journalist from Rome, Italy. He's the author of The Battle for Europe: How an Elite Hijacked a Continent – and How We Can Take It Back (Pluto Press, 2014), Reclaiming the State: A Progressive Vision of Sovereignty for a Post-Neoliberal World (co-authored with Bill Mitchell; Pluto Press, 2017) and The Covid Consensus: The Global Assault on Democracy and the Poor—A Critique from the Left (co-authored with Toby Green; 2023). His articles have been published in UnHerd, Compact, and more.

In our discussion, we talked about the state of Europe. The economic structure and consequences of the European Union (EU), European Central Bank (ECB), and eurozone currency union (euro). The history of post-war Europe and had it shifted into the neoliberal federalist consensus and how the left rather than oppositional went along with it. Finally, we discuss Fazi's recommendations for bringing politics and finance back to the national level for optimal democratic control. 

You can follow him on Twitter: @battleforeurope.

You can find all his books here: https://thomasfazi.net/my-book-the-battle-for-europe/

If you enjoyed this podcast make sure to subscribe and follow @_peterryan on Twitter too.

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Juan David Rojas is a Miami-based Compact columnist, covering the Iberian Peninsula and Latin America. He is also a contributor to American Affairs. He was an intelligence fellow at Florida International University’s Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy.

In our chat, we discuss the economic history of Latin America. We provide an in-depth and nuanced description of events and ideologies that shaped it. Topics include imperialism, capitalism, Marxism, protectionism, neoliberal financialization, and more. Countries in focus included Brazil and Argentina.

You can follow Juan at these links below:
https://twitter.com/@rojasrjuand
https://compactmag.com/columnist/juan-david-rojas
https://americanaffairsjournal.org/author/juan-david-rojas/

Make sure to subscribe to Ryan Research here and on substack:
https://ryanresearch.substack.com/

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Julius Krein is the editor of the American Affairs journal, has contributed to numerous publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, and the Times Literary Supplement. He also has a background in private sector finance.

In our chat, we discussed the history of American economic development, the trends that led to growth and decline, how the current order serves consumption / speculative financialization, and how a productive economy based on domestic manufacturing is optimal. 

Follow him at:
https://twitter.com/JuliusKrein

Visit his American Affairs journal:
https://americanaffairsjournal.org/

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Rian C. Whitton works as a researcher for Bismarck Analysis and writes an independent Substack called Doctor Syn. His primary areas of interest are automation, industrial policy, energy markets, geopolitical strategy, Britain’s place in the world, and cultural commentary.

In this episode, we discuss industrial strategy across countries with a special focus on the United Kingdom.

Rian's Substack:
https://riancwhitton.substack.com/

Bismarck Analysis:
https://www.bismarckanalysis.com/

Follow Rian on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/RianCFFWhitton

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