In this episode we consider the limits of wealth distribution in society, inherent inequalities to life and the role of luck. We also explore the economic ideas of the commons and public goods and the role these play in free market and state capitalist societies. We also take a look at the social protection floor and why it is often conceptualised by society as something to be ashamed of. This leads us to consider the tight coupling of labour and income and the subsequent vulnerability of those without a job or in casual work, a class known as the precariat. All of this leads us to question social justice in wealth distribution and ask the question; could be another way to smooth the edges of income precarity?

Show notes

Inequality in nature and society – Scheffer et al. 2017
Iron & steel industry in Middlesbrough’s history
Teesside Steel Works - Wikipedia
Plunder of the commons – Guy Standing
We’re all state capitalists now – Niall Ferguson, Foreign Policy
The Precariat: A dangerous new class – Guy Standing

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