Barry's Economics

Episódios

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  Diary Of A CEO Responded To My Takedown. I Wasn't Ready For This - Barry's Economics 14.09.2026 1h

  Steven Bartlett replied to my clip about Diary of a CEO. At half past midnight. Edited.Do you know Steven Bartlett? Not know of him. Know him?Most of us feel like we do. We know his voice, the lean-forward, the frown before he disagrees. And we've never met him. This video is about why our brains can't tell the difference, and what that same wiring does to a man that 50 million people are watching.It started because I wanted to take the Mickey. Then I read the research, and the piss-take died in my hands.Original Diary of a CEO video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbDQs_TcyN4&t=1058sStudies covered: Horton and Wohl on parasocial relationships (Psychiatry, 1956), Reeves and Nass, The Media Equation (1996), Quian Quiroga's single-neuron study (Nature, 2005), De Backer on celebrity gossip (Human Nature, 2007), Newman, Diesendruck and Bloom on celebrity contagion (Journal of Consumer Research, 2011), McCutcheon's Celebrity Attitude Scale (British Journal of Psychology, 2002), Dunbar's number (1992, 2016), Slovic on psychic numbing, Leary's sociometer (1995), Baumeister, "Bad Is Stronger Than Good" (2001), Rockwell and Giles on the phenomenology of fame (2009), Goffman, Hochschild, and Marwick and boyd on context collapse (2011). No sponsor. Nobody paid to be in this. If you want the channel to stay that way: patreon.com/BarrysEconomicsCREDITSWritten and produced by Barry FernsDirected and edited by John GordilloChannel management: Kenny WatersonMUSICImpromptu No. 2 in E flat major, Op. 90, D. 899, by Franz Schubert. Piano: Jenő JandóImprovisation 215 for piano, written and performed by Tomomi KatoI’m Barry, a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.No sponsors, ever.... this channel is funded by viewers:▶ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/barryseconomics▶ Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicsThis channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsMore about me: https://barryferns.co.uk/Mailing List Sign-up: https://tr.ee/0BKMVwYou can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first as his channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  Voldemort Is Not The Problem - Barry's Economics 07.09.2026 31min

  What if Voldemort isn't actually the main villain of Harry Potter? What if he's a symptom rather than the actual problem - a symptom of something truly sinister (I'm not saying that Voldemort isn't sinister btw)This week's video draws on research into how radicalisation develops across the world, alongside Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson's research on Why Nations Fail. And maybe rather than focussing on destroying these individual monsters, there is another routeI’m Barry Ferns, a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This video wouldn't be as amazing as it is without the help of my CGI and musically talented friend, Charlie Parkin.Find him on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mp3charlie/No sponsors, ever.... this channel is funded by viewers:▶ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/barryseconomics▶ Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicsThis channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review if you enjoyed the episode!More about me: https://barryferns.co.uk/Mailing List Sign-up: https://tr.ee/0BKMVwYou can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first as his channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/Sources & Further ReadingMcCauley, C. & Moskalenko, S. (2008)“Mechanisms of Political Radicalization: Pathways Toward Terrorism.” Terrorism and Political Violence, 20(3), 415–433.https://doi.org/10.1080/09546550802073367Acemoglu, D. & Robinson, J. A. (2012)Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty. Crown Publishing.
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  The Dark Side of Meritocracy: Why 'Hustling' is a Trap - Barry's Economics 31.08.2026 35min

  Life's a Meritocracy, right?We like to think meritocracy rewards the people who are most talented, driven and capable.But what happens when the very things you're told will help you get ahead can actually work against you?In this second part of the meritocracy series, I look at the "hustle penalty" and the hidden costs of how you present yourself when you're trying to move up.Sometimes the harder you try to look like you belong, the more obvious it becomes that you don't.I’m Barry, a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.Luisa is currently developing a show about Mary Magdalene and how different the world would look if the Bible was translated by women? Her show is a self financed project that is being supported by individuals on Patreon: https://patreon.com/luisaomielanShe has a run of it in January the the Kings head in Islington.No sponsors on Barry's Economics, ever.... this channel is funded by viewers:▶ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/barryseconomics▶ Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicsThis channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsMore about me: https://barryferns.co.uk/Mailing List Sign-up: https://tr.ee/0BKMVwYou can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/Sources & Further ReadingRudman, L. A. (1998)Self-Promotion as a Risk Factor for Women: The Costs and Benefits of Counterstereotypical Impression Management.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74(3), 629–645.https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.74.3.629Bourdieu, P. (1979/1984)Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste.Harvard University Press.Rivera, L. A. (2015)Pedigree: How Elite Students Get Elite Jobs.Princeton University Press. Rivera's research examines how elite employers' definitions of "merit" can favour candidates from privileged backgrounds.Rivera, L. A. & Tilcsik, A. (2016)"Class Advantage, Commitment Penalty: The Gendered Effect of Social Class Signals in an Elite Labor Market."Giles, H. (1970)"Evaluative Reactions to Accents."Kang, S. K., DeCelles, K. A., Tilcsik, A. & Jun, S. (2016)"Whitened Résumés: Race and Self-Presentation in the Labor Market."Friedman, S. & Laurison, D. (2019)The Class Ceiling: Why It Pays to Be Privileged.Salganik, M. J., Dodds, P. S. & Watts, D. J. (2006)"Experimental Study of Inequality and Unpredictability in an Artificial Cultural Market."Science, 311(5762), 854–856.Salganik, M. J. & Watts, D. J. (2008)"Leading the Herd Astray: An Experimental Study of Self-Fulfilling Prophecies in an Artificial Cultural Market."
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  Why The Rich Think The Poor Are Lazy - Barry's Economics 24.08.2026 33min

  Why do we work? The obvious answer is:Because we have to.But what if that's only part of the story? This week's video looks at the biggest lie you've been told about your own motivation, scarcity, UBI experiments and the rather uncomfortable possibility that if we looked at the studies and acted on them we come.... become more powerful than we could possibly imagine.It might give us the freedom to actually do something.I’m Barry Ferns, a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.No sponsors, ever.... this channel is funded by viewers:▶ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/barryseconomics▶ Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicsThis channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow & leave a review for future episodesMore about me: https://barryferns.co.uk/Mailing List Sign-up: https://tr.ee/0BKMVwYou can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first. His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/Sources & further readingBruce K. Alexander et al.The "Rat Park" experiments, Simon Fraser University, c. 1978–1981Alexander, Coambs & Hadaway, Psychopharmacology (1978)Sendhil Mullainathan & Eldar ShafirScarcity: Why Having Too Little Means So Much (2013)Mani, Mullainathan, Shafir & Zhao"Poverty Impedes Cognitive Function", Science (2013)Ross Levine & Yona Rubinstein"Smart and Illicit: Who Becomes an Entrepreneur and Do They Earn More?", Quarterly Journal of Economics (2017Finnish Basic Income ExperimentFinal results, Kela / Ministry of Social Affairs and Health (2020)Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration (SEED)Preliminary results (2021)Evelyn Forget"The Town with No Poverty" (2011), analysis of the Mincome experimentGiveDirectlyUniversal Basic Income study, Kenya, ongoing since 2011
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  The Iceberg Is Innocent: The Titanic's True Villain - Barry's Economics 17.08.2026 31min

  The real Tragedy of the Titanic Wasn't The Iceberg.This week's video is what we get wrong about tragedies.This is a story about who gets killed, what power does to us, and how to change course so the when disaster hits - it doesn't need to be a tragedy.I’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.No sponsors, ever.... this channel is funded by viewers:▶ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/barryseconomics▶ Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicsThis channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsMore about me: https://barryferns.co.uk/Mailing List Sign-up: https://tr.ee/0BKMVwYou can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first – his channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  The Psychological Trick That Keeps You Arguing About Immigration - Barry's Economics 10.08.2026 32min

  This video is about why immigration is always the argument. Not whether the arguments are right. But why that particular argument, and not wages, or land, or who owns what, is the one that keeps being handed to you.I go through the neuroscience, the leaked internal documents, the 2.7 million posts study, and the numbers on what people believe about immigration versus what is actually happening around them. Then I explain why you still can't win the argument, and why winning it was never the point.SoI’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.No sponsors, ever.... this channel is funded by viewers:▶ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/barryseconomics▶ Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicsSOURCESLeDoux, J. (2000). Emotion circuits in the brain. Annual Review of Neuroscience, 23, 155–184Arnsten, A.F.T. (2009). Stress signalling pathways that impair prefrontal cortical structure and function. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 10, 410–422Haidt, J. (2001). The emotional dog and its rational tail. Psychological Review, 108(4), 814–834Rathje, Van Bavel & Van Der Linden (2021). Out-group animosity drives engagement on social media. PNAS, 118(26)Frances Haugen, internal Facebook documents and testimony to US Congress and UK Parliament, 2021Ipsos, Perils of Perception, 37-country studyDustmann, C. & Frattini, T. (2014). The Fiscal Effects of Immigration to the UK. The Economic Journal, 124(580)Bauer et al. (2023). Shifting Punishment onto Minorities. The Economic Journal, 133(652)This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsMore about me: https://barryferns.co.uk/Mailing List Sign-up: https://tr.ee/0BKMVwYou can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  I've Watched Genius Comedians Vanish - Here's Why | Barry's Economics 04.08.2026 26min

  I've been a comedian since I was 15 and in that time I've watched some of the most talented people of my generation become household names. And I've also watched some of the most talented people of my generation disappear completely.Not because they weren't good enough or because they didn't work hard enough.Because talent and recognition are two completely different things.This video started with a conversation with James Acaster. I asked him a simple question:Who is the most influential comedian people have never heard of?His answer was Luisa Omielan.What followed was a conversation about influence, recognition, success and why some people shape entire industries without receiving the credit they deserve.Along the way, it led me into Abraham Wald's famous work on survivorship bias during World War II, Daniel Kahneman's research on how we create stories about success, and a much bigger question:What if meritocracy isn't wrong because talent doesn't matter?What if it's wrong because we've confused talent with visibility?This is the first in a series about meritocracy.What we get right about it.What we get catastrophically wrong about it.And what the science actually says about how success works.Sources ReferencedWald, A. (1943) – A Method of Estimating Plane Vulnerability Based on Damage of SurvivorsTaleb, N.N. (2007) – The Black SwanKahneman, D. & Tversky, A. (1974) – Judgment Under Uncertainty: Heuristics and BiasesKahneman, D. (2011) – Thinking, Fast and SlowDuckworth, A. et al. (2007) – Grit: Perseverance and Passion for Long-Term GoalsI’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review if you enjoyed this episode!More about me: https://barryferns.co.uk/You can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  The Psychological Trick That Kills Every Wealth Tax - Barry's Economics 27.07.2026 17min

  Why Doesn't It Seem Possible to Tax The Rich Even a Little Bit More? Well...There's a trick that's been used against the public for over seventy years. It's completely legal, it's very well funded, and it's working on you right now.It doesn't involve lying. That's the clever part. You never have to say anything false. I want to show you how this trick works, and you'll spot it everywhere. In every news debate, every panel show, every politician saying "we need to be careful here."And I want to show you the one time in British history we actually beat it. Which matters, because the same trick is being run again, right now, on the biggest question in the countryI’m Barry Ferns, a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.No sponsors, ever.... this channel is funded by viewers:▶ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/barryseconomics▶ Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicsThis channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsMore about me: https://barryferns.co.uk/Mailing List Sign-up: https://tr.ee/0BKMVwYou can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  Nobody succeeds alone - here's what they're not telling you - Barry's Economics 20.07.2026 31min

  This is the final part of my conversation with Gary Stevenson, recorded before his documentary came out, and it's the most personal of the three episodes. We talk about why meritocracy is a myth, why success is mostly survivorship bias, and why Gary treats fame and politics as a game (his words, not mine, and he's honest about what that's covering for).He also breaks down Jeff Bezos's "why are nurses paying taxes" clip and explains the oldest trick in the book: bribing you with your own money.And he gives me my 100,000 subscriber play button, which meant more than I can easily say. This channel exists because of Gary's callout in May, and because of the community around it. This episode is about that community, and how you can be part of it, whether that's making videos, joining a party, talking to your friends and family, or just sharing the ideas in your own words.NB: The full uncut conversation is on my PatreonI’m Barry Ferns, a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.No sponsors, ever.... this channel is funded by viewers:▶ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/barryseconomics▶ Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicsThis channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsSubscribe or follow for future episodes!More about me: https://barryferns.co.uk/Mailing List Sign-up: https://tr.ee/0BKMVwYou can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  The Trick The Rich Play On The Poor - Barry's Economics 13.07.2026 35min

  Part 2 of my Conversation with Gary Stevenson - the economist who quit a trading job that made him millions and has spent the years since campaigning for a wealth tax, and this week his documentary "How to Get Filthy Rich" aired on Channel 4, Wednesday 8th July at 9pm.Gary came in for a two and a half hour conversation, and this is the second of three episodes we've cut from it. "How to Get Filthy Rich" aired Wednesday 8th July, 9pm, Channel 4.I’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicshttps://patreon.com/BarrysEconomics?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLink / barryseconomics Follow and leave a review if you enjoyed this episode!More about me: https://barryferns.co.uk/Mailing List Sign-up: https://tr.ee/0BKMVwYou can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomicsReddit: / barryferns
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  The Channel 4 Documentary Everyone's About to Watch - Barry's Economics 08.07.2026 30min

  Gary Stevenson quit a trading job that made him millions and has spent the years since campaigning for a wealth tax, and this week his documentary "How to Get Filthy Rich" airs on Channel 4, Wednesday 8th July at 9pm.Gary came in for a two and a half hour conversation, and this is the first of three episodes we've cut from it. We talk about the billionaire he interviewed who's never once walked in the park his flat overlooks, what trading floors actually do to the people inside them, and why he thinks cynicism functions as a tax on ordinary people. How to Get Filthy Rich airs Wednesday 8th July, 9pm, Channel 4.I’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review if you enjoyed this episode!More about me: https://barryferns.co.uk/Mailing List Sign-up: https://tr.ee/0BKMVwYou can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  The Psychological Trick That Keeps you Obedient - Barry's Economics 30.06.2026 33min

  Why do poorer people love Period Dramas like Downton Abbey, that adore the very Privileged aristocracies that kept their great-grandparents in poverty? Why do we worship Billionaires despite their clear exploitative behaviours?This is the psychology of how shows about the British class system became comfort viewing for the people it should enrage. And how we fall in love with the Myths of the Super Rich today.I love Downton Abbey too. That's the problem. In this video I use John Jost's System Justification Theory and Robert Sapolsky's research on the neurobiology of inequality to explain why people at the bottom of a hierarchy so often defend it, and why a beautiful house full of deferential servants works less like escapism and more like an anaesthetic.We get into why "poor but happy" stories make inequality feel fair, how years of low status physically rewire the brain and leave you more risk-averse and more attached to whatever stability exists, and the one hopeful catch: the moment you can name what a story is doing to you, it starts to lose its power. You don't haveto stop watching Downton. Just watch it the way a doctor watches a cigarette advert.Sources & further reading:Jost & Kay (2003), "Complementary Justice", J. Personality & Social PsychologyJost & Hunyady (2002), "The Palliative Function of Ideology"Jost (2019), A Theory of System Justification, Harvard University PressSapolsky (1990), "Adrenocortical Function, Social Rank, and Personality Among Wild Baboons"Friestad & Wright (1994), "The Persuasion Knowledge Model"I’m Barry Ferns, a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsIf you enjoyed the episode, leave a review and follow for future episodesMailing List: https://barryferns.co.uk/You can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here: https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  Nigel Farage Has Already Won (And Nobody Noticed) - Barry's Economics 22.06.2026 28min

  Everyone is still trying to take Nigel Farage down... and every attack makes himstronger. Here's the uncomfortable truth: If you attack him: he's already won, and almost nobody hasnoticed why.Farage isn't the disease. He's the symptom. In this video I show that the entire Political strategy of beating him has failed for decades because he isn't competing in the market for policies, not at all... he's competing in the acknowledgement market, and that's a market the mainstream parties abandoned 45 years ago.Using Seligman and Maier's research on learned helplessness, the real history ofrising inequality since 1979, and a bit of economics about why some demand isinelastic, I lay out how the gap he's filling was built.... by governments of bothparties.... and why the only thing that actually shuts him down isn't attacking theman. It's closing the gap that created him.This isn't a defence of Nigel Farage. It's an argument that the way we fight him is handing him the win.No sponsors, ever.... this channel is funded by viewers:▶ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/barryseconomics▶ Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicsSources & further reading:Maier & Seligman (2016), "Learned Helplessness at Fifty", Psychological ReviewHope & Limberg (2020), "The Economic Consequences of Major Tax Cuts for the Rich", LSEIMF Staff Discussion Note (2015), "Causes and Consequences of Income Inequality"Römer (2022), "Poverty, Inequality Statistics and Knowledge Politics Under Thatcher"Trussell Trust / House of Commons Library (2025), food bank statisticsI’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review if you enjoyed the episode!Mailing list sign-up: https://barryferns.co.uk/You can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  An Earl Stole The Sandwich. The Rich Still Use The Trick - Barry's Economics 15.06.2026 12min

  In 1762, the Earl of Sandwich asked for meat between two slices of bread. Did he invent the Sandwich? Maybe Not - As People had been doing this for centuries. But he had power, prestige, and profile, so he got to "name" it.Economics works exactly the same way."Job Creators." "GDP growth." "Trickle-down." These aren't neutral terms but are the stories written by people with naming rights. Filmed in Sandwich, Kent. Yes, really.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://paypal.me/barryseconomicsIf you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  The Real Reason For The Zombie Boom? Follow The Money - Barry's Economics 08.06.2026 37min

  For seventy years, the world barely made zombie films. Then, right around the turn of the century, that changed, and we haven't stopped since. The biggest Franchises of all time: The Walking Dead. The Last of Us. Game of Thrones. World War Z. 28 Days Later. Why now? Why all at once?This isn't a video about horror - it's why millions of people, with no coordination between them, started picturing the exact same thing at the exact same moment in history.Featuring the behavioural science of George Lakoff, Richard Thaler, Daniel Kahneman and Walter Mischel's famous marshmallow test, plus design ethicist Tristan Harris on "the race to the bottom of the brainstem," and the Facebook founder who went on the record about exactly what these apps were built to do to you.Stick around to the end. I promised hope, and unlike most zombie films, this one actually has survivors.I’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review if you enjoyed the episode!Mailing List: https://barryferns.co.uk/You can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  What Banksy Shows Us About Power - Barry's Economics 01.06.2026 23min

  Filmed in front of over 20 original Banksy works across London and Bristol.This is a video about what Banksy keeps showing us, how he actually works, and why (after all this time) he's still relevant and properly revolutionary.And the answer isn't actually "because his prints sell for a lot." In fact it's almost the opposite of that.Most people know Banksy as a street artist. This video is about what he's actually doing. What he keeps pointing at. Why the establishment can't touch him, and why that fact alone tells you something important about how power and money really work.Also - For the Banksy Tour Guide that helped me around Bristol - The Lovely Luke Sergent - go to https://blackbeard2banksy.com/ to book a tour from himREFERENCES:ELINOR OSTROM:https://www.actu-environnement.com/media/pdf/ostrom_1990.pdfGARRETT HARDINhttps://math.uchicago.edu/~shmuel/Modeling/Hardin,%20Tragedy%20of%20the%20Commons.pdfhttps://archive.org/details/makingofenglishw0000thom_p8v7Gerald Marwel and Ruth Ames Social Experiement:"Economists free ride, does anyone else?: Experiments on the provision of public goods"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/004727278190013X"Does Studying Economics Inhibit Cooperation" Study:https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257%2Fjep.7.2.159I’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review for future episodes!Mailing list: https://barryferns.co.uk/You can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  Elon Musk: A Predictable Tragedy - Barry's Economics 26.05.2026 34min

  Elon Musk. Tesla. Spacex. Cybertrucks. Solar Power... not your normal supervillain origin story. But the neuroscience explains everything.Do you remember when we all kind of liked Elon Musk?Electric cars. Space travel. Solar panels. He felt like the closest thing we had to a real-life Tony Stark.And now he's... this.Nobody's asking the right question. Not "what did he do?" but "what happened to him?" Because there's a scientific answer. And the unsettling part isn't what it says about Elon Musk. It's what it says about everyone with that much power.Fifty years of peer-reviewed research on power, wealth and the brain from Columbia, Berkeley and McMaster University, shows that power isn't a metaphor for corruption. It's a corruption toxin. It does measurable damage to specific neural pathways. This is the psychology of billionaires. This is the neuroscience of wealth and power. And this is why Elon Musk was always going to become this.Galinsky et al. (2006) :Power and Perspectives Not Taken, Psychological ScienceSukhvinder Obhi: Power and neural mirrorin, McMaster UniversityPaul Piff: Wealth, empathy and the dose-response relationship, UC BerkeleyRoger Fisher: Preventing Nuclear War, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, 1981I’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review if you enjoyed the episode!Mailing list sign-up: https://barryferns.co.uk/You can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  The Wealth Tax Debate Is A Trap - Barry's Economics 18.05.2026 11min

  The Wealth Tax Debate Rages OnBack and ForthUp and DownBut what does it miss?And Why Is It Always so Circular and Never Ending?I’m Barry Ferns, a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review if you've enjoyed the episode!Mailing List: https://barryferns.co.uk/You can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsBlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first – his channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  Change Is Possible Here's How - Barry's Economics 05.05.2026 19min

  This is the only comedian in the world who has actually changed tax law. (as far as I know)Not highlighted it - Changed it. With jokes, a mahogany buffet, and a few hundred letters from members of the public.On Barry's Economics, we spend a lot of time talking about what needs to change; inequality, taxation, who owns what, who decides what. Mark Thomas spent decades actually doing it.This conversation is about how change works. Not in theory but in practice.And it starts with the most powerful weapon the people who benefit from inequality have - the belief that nothing can change. Mark Thomas is proof that belief is wrong.I’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review for future episodes!Mailing List: https://barryferns.co.uk/You can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.socialIf you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first – his channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/
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  Why Politicians Keep Getting It So Wrong - Barry's Economics 27.04.2026 18min

  Every Political and Economic debate about poverty and inequality goes the same way. Left says redistribute. Right says grow grow grow. Round and round.Why is it so endlessly circular - and why does nothing ever actually get fixed? One reason could be that there's an entire category of evidence that never makes it into the roomWe account for bias in medicine, law, and aviation. We just don't do it in economic policy. This video is about why that has to change.Sources mentioned:Keltner, D. - The Power ParadoxKraus, M.W. et al. - Social class, solipsism, and contextualismMirror neuron / wealth research - Sukvinder ObhiI’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review if you enjoyed this episode!Mailing List: https://barryferns.co.uk/You can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first – his channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/