DOC TAYROC'S [UNSOLICITED] ECONOMICS HOT THOUGHT

Marx and the Death of the Author, Part IX: What is reality? (Part 1/2)

Pop psychology is often problematic, there's an entire podcast that inadvertently returns to this central argument, 'If Books Could Kill', since pop psychology often comes to us in the form of self-help books. Nonetheless, some pop psychology is born of a genuine desire to help, sometimes it really is one of those 'the road to hell is paved with good intention' things....

Further update for all those concerned, the family health emergency largely seems to have been resolved, there is one follow-up appointment on Thursday, with a blood test for the family member, here's hoping that gives the full clean-bill of health. Now, without further ado...

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In a recent book review, namely...

He's home, he's healthy. Prognosis is good.

This week's Marx and the Death of the Author is delayed a bit due to a family medical emergency.

Don't worry, prognosis is good, and we currently believe they're coming home today.

Thanks for the continued support!

This might be the first time I've reviewed a book so close to launch, but the topic she covers has been living 'rent free' in my head recently, and so this got pushed to the front of queue.

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A little over two years ago, I was diagnosed as being neurodiverse. AuDHD is the specific flavour of neural spiciness, if you're curious. Upon hearing the diagnosis, some of my colleagues on the left were...

DOC TAYROC'S [UNSOLICITED] ECONOMICS HOT THOUGHT

What J.J. Abrams' Star Trek and Star Wars tells us about neo-liberalism, part 3: It's just vibes, man

I hate TED talks, and I hate what they did to academia. Let me open by saying that. TED Talks are what MBAs who coasted through their undergrad and postgrad think intellectual lectures are like. They're all flash, no substance. They're entertaining but only as deep as a single pint glass. The fact that so many of the losers that brought us...

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'There is no society' and 'money doesn't grow on trees' these are two platitudes that come straight to us from the Thatcher's mouth, things she said either in interviews or during the Prime Minister's Questions (PMQs) on the floor of the House of Commons. These could also be the mottos of the neo-liberal era, set in stone and placed lovingly on the desks of every Tory and post-Blair Labour MP in all of Britain and their...

DOC TAYROC'S [UNSOLICITED] ECONOMICS HOT THOUGHT

What J.J. Abram's tells us about neo-liberalism, Part II: Let the Wookie Win

As mentioned in last week's entry, by the mid-1970s the 'golden age of science-fiction' was almost certainly over. The pulp magazines that had carried the genre from the turn of the last century through the Second World War had almost all gone out of business, and Star Trek had ruffled a few too many feathers with its genuine dream of a better world, and the far-out...

DOC TAYROC'S [UNSOLICITED] BOOK REVIEW - THE AUTOMATIC FETISH by Beverley Best

This is the worst kind of search engine optimisation

If you're a first time reader, you may know that one of my relatively long running series on this blog is 'Marx and the Death of the Author'. For better and for worse, part of the trick with engaging with it will inevitably be engaging with Marx. Can't literarily kill the...

DOC TAYROC'S [UNSOLICITED] ECONOMICS HOT THOUGHT

What J.J. Abrams' Star Trek and Star Wars tells us about neo-liberalism, Part I: What the hell is a Ferengi?

NOTE: I've been extremely busy these last couple of weeks, and so for the next few weeks I'm going to do this lighter faire whilst I get everything back on schedule. Marx and the Death of the Author will return soon.

I am a child of the 1990s and early 2000s, and as such, it should be of no surprise that a huge part of shaping...

DOC TAYROC'S [UNSOLICITED] BOOK REVIEW - WHY MARX WAS RIGHT by Terry Eagleton

For years, when teaching different economic epistemological methodologies, I would try to divide everyone (problematically, as discrete variables tend to be) into three categories: neoclassical/neo-liberal, Keynesian, and Marxist. Before anyone hops down to the comment section, I know that this isn't a perfect grouping, and yes I've had debates...

This week's book review and Marx and the Death of the Author are both delayed due to a busier than expected Bank Holiday weekend. Watch this space, they'll be here soon...

DOC TAYROC'S [UNSOLICITED] ECONOMICS HOT THOUGHT

Marx and the Death of the Author VIII: The Marxist Mathematician

One of my listed specialities, and a topic that I've spent no small amount of time thinking about is computational statistics. That is, the ways in which computers do maths. As such, I've taught modules on statistics, coding, econometrics (ugh), and calculus. When some of my colleagues find out I teach, and even (God-forbid) enjoy these topics (albeit not econometrics per...

DOC TAYROC'S [UNSOLICTED, BONUS] ECONOMICS HOT THOUGHT

The Case for Cautious Optimism in Britain

You might have noticed, and if you're British you've hopefully certainly noticed we just recently had a series of English Council elections, as well as Scottish and Welsh parliamentary elections here. As you've no doubt heard, it was an absolute embarrassment for Starmer's Labour Party, an alleged victory for Reform, and a good showing for Green, Plaid Cymru, and the Scottish National Party....

DOC TAYROC'S [UNSOLICITED] BOOK REVIEW - BUTLER TO THE WORLD by Oliver Bullough

Yeah, I mentioned this book in the Tax Haven Ireland review, and so it was only a matter of time before it got its own entry.

Time for me to be a cliche, I do like my panel shows, they're my 'remember to resurface and breathe' brain-off telly. Even then, I'll admit I'm a bit picky, and so the usual suspects for me are 'Would I Lie To...

DOC TAYROC'S [UNSOLICTED] ECONOMICS HOT THOUGHT

Marx and the Death of the Author VII: And How Does One Primitively Accumulate?

My PhD says it is in 'development economics', and the focus of my professional work to date has been on 'developing' countries, namely Nigeria, Mozambique, Kenya, South Africa, India, and Sri Lanka. Having spend over a decade in 'development economics' one begins to question some of the core tenements of the discipline. For example, what constitutes a 'developing'...

This week's Marx and the Death of the Author was due to be posted today, but due to other obligations it will be delayed until either tomorrow or Friday

DOC TAYROC'S [UNSOLICITED] BOOK RECOMMENDATION - TAX HAVEN IRELAND by Brian O'Boyle and Kieran Allen

In a previous post I touched on the odd character that is Irish identity. Indeed, recently I was talking to a colleague about how one of my least favourite geographic groupings is 'Sub-Saharan Africa', as it covers roughly three-quarters of one of the largest continents, and seems to be based entirely on the 19th century racialised concept of...

Presented without comment. https://tribunemag.co.uk/2026/05/mark-rowleys-right-wing-crusade