John Merrick
@johnmerrick.bsky.social
Deputy editor: @the-breakdown.bsky.social
"Leftist pseudo-intellectual", The Critic
[email protected] / [email protected]
https://www.johnmerrick.co.uk/
"Leftist pseudo-intellectual", The Critic
[email protected] / [email protected]
https://www.johnmerrick.co.uk/
Pinned
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
For the New Statesman I tracked the career of the corporate raiding Thatcherite turned populist tribune, James Goldsmith
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
Reposted by John Merrick
I can't help read the opening of this in the voice of Adam Curtis (praise).
The Weekend Essay: James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism, by John Merrick
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
January 26, 2026 at 8:39 PM
I can't help read the opening of this in the voice of Adam Curtis (praise).
Reposted by John Merrick
The Weekend Essay: James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism, by John Merrick
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
January 24, 2026 at 1:10 PM
The Weekend Essay: James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism, by John Merrick
Reposted by John Merrick
ICYMI: for the @newstatesman1913.bsky.social i went back to the ground zero for contemporary politics, 1990, to track the career of the James Goldsmith and his turn against the reigning free market orthodoxies to a new form of populism and anti-globalism
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
January 26, 2026 at 9:36 AM
ICYMI: for the @newstatesman1913.bsky.social i went back to the ground zero for contemporary politics, 1990, to track the career of the James Goldsmith and his turn against the reigning free market orthodoxies to a new form of populism and anti-globalism
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
ICYMI: for the @newstatesman1913.bsky.social i went back to the ground zero for contemporary politics, 1990, to track the career of the James Goldsmith and his turn against the reigning free market orthodoxies to a new form of populism and anti-globalism
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
January 26, 2026 at 9:36 AM
ICYMI: for the @newstatesman1913.bsky.social i went back to the ground zero for contemporary politics, 1990, to track the career of the James Goldsmith and his turn against the reigning free market orthodoxies to a new form of populism and anti-globalism
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
Reposted by John Merrick
For the New Statesman I tracked the career of the corporate raiding Thatcherite turned populist tribune, James Goldsmith
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
January 24, 2026 at 1:37 PM
For the New Statesman I tracked the career of the corporate raiding Thatcherite turned populist tribune, James Goldsmith
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
The real issue is that we are far too online now. *Everyone* spends a huge proportion of there day online
It used to be said that the left was far too 'online', but it seems that this is increasingly (more) so for the right nowadays.
January 25, 2026 at 1:28 PM
The real issue is that we are far too online now. *Everyone* spends a huge proportion of there day online
Reposted by John Merrick
This is a great read.
For the New Statesman I tracked the career of the corporate raiding Thatcherite turned populist tribune, James Goldsmith
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
January 25, 2026 at 9:10 AM
This is a great read.
Reposted by John Merrick
Absolutely fascinating, must-read piece.
For the New Statesman I tracked the career of the corporate raiding Thatcherite turned populist tribune, James Goldsmith
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
January 24, 2026 at 7:26 PM
Absolutely fascinating, must-read piece.
Reposted by John Merrick
"While those like Nigel Farage & Rupert Lowe can dissemble, valorising the free market in everything except labour, Goldsmith told us what he, and they, really think"
A fantastic piece by John Merrick on the founder of the Referendum Party👇
A fantastic piece by John Merrick on the founder of the Referendum Party👇
The Weekend Essay: James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism, by John Merrick
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
January 24, 2026 at 4:08 PM
"While those like Nigel Farage & Rupert Lowe can dissemble, valorising the free market in everything except labour, Goldsmith told us what he, and they, really think"
A fantastic piece by John Merrick on the founder of the Referendum Party👇
A fantastic piece by John Merrick on the founder of the Referendum Party👇
Reposted by John Merrick
Characteristically excellent essay
For the New Statesman I tracked the career of the corporate raiding Thatcherite turned populist tribune, James Goldsmith
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
January 24, 2026 at 1:55 PM
Characteristically excellent essay
Reposted by John Merrick
The last ten years have seen a parade of billionaires entering politics and telling ordinary people how to fix its ills.
“Yet none of the new generation of plutocrats-turned-populists have been as penetrating as the original.”
nice profile of their godfather James Goldsmith
“Yet none of the new generation of plutocrats-turned-populists have been as penetrating as the original.”
nice profile of their godfather James Goldsmith
For the New Statesman I tracked the career of the corporate raiding Thatcherite turned populist tribune, James Goldsmith
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
January 24, 2026 at 5:18 PM
The last ten years have seen a parade of billionaires entering politics and telling ordinary people how to fix its ills.
“Yet none of the new generation of plutocrats-turned-populists have been as penetrating as the original.”
nice profile of their godfather James Goldsmith
“Yet none of the new generation of plutocrats-turned-populists have been as penetrating as the original.”
nice profile of their godfather James Goldsmith
For the New Statesman I tracked the career of the corporate raiding Thatcherite turned populist tribune, James Goldsmith
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
January 24, 2026 at 1:37 PM
For the New Statesman I tracked the career of the corporate raiding Thatcherite turned populist tribune, James Goldsmith
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
Reposted by John Merrick
This, by @johnmerrick.bsky.social, is an epic intellectual profile of James Goldsmith, the man who more than anyone else helped establish the character, temper and tone of British right-populism. Don’t miss it – part of a fantastic NS Weekend
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
James Goldsmith, godfather of British populism
Unlike Nigel Farage or Rupert Lowe, Goldsmith told the truth
www.newstatesman.com
January 24, 2026 at 1:20 PM
This, by @johnmerrick.bsky.social, is an epic intellectual profile of James Goldsmith, the man who more than anyone else helped establish the character, temper and tone of British right-populism. Don’t miss it – part of a fantastic NS Weekend
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
Reposted by John Merrick
Reposted by John Merrick
Political economy mates: can you suggest book reading on the political economy of Britain in the late 1980s to mid/end 1990s? Contemporary texts, or things written after, both are good. Thanks!
January 22, 2026 at 3:21 PM
Political economy mates: can you suggest book reading on the political economy of Britain in the late 1980s to mid/end 1990s? Contemporary texts, or things written after, both are good. Thanks!
Political economy mates: can you suggest book reading on the political economy of Britain in the late 1980s to mid/end 1990s? Contemporary texts, or things written after, both are good. Thanks!
January 22, 2026 at 3:21 PM
Political economy mates: can you suggest book reading on the political economy of Britain in the late 1980s to mid/end 1990s? Contemporary texts, or things written after, both are good. Thanks!
Reposted by John Merrick
"So there's no way back. Nostalgia just leads to suggesting that most of the world population can't be supported."
Historian David Edgerton on the history of technology
www.break-down.org/technology-a...
Historian David Edgerton on the history of technology
www.break-down.org/technology-a...
January 17, 2026 at 9:31 AM
"So there's no way back. Nostalgia just leads to suggesting that most of the world population can't be supported."
Historian David Edgerton on the history of technology
www.break-down.org/technology-a...
Historian David Edgerton on the history of technology
www.break-down.org/technology-a...
Reposted by John Merrick
okay so fun news, I am launching a macro newsletter from Common Wealth about the supply side data and the US economy called Forces of Production
Charts for bsky forthcoming at: @forcesofproduction.com
Launch essay below:
www.forcesofproduction.com/p/atop-the-f...
Charts for bsky forthcoming at: @forcesofproduction.com
Launch essay below:
www.forcesofproduction.com/p/atop-the-f...
Atop the Forces of Production
Announcing the launch of the Forces of Production macro data newsletter
www.forcesofproduction.com
January 20, 2026 at 8:10 PM
okay so fun news, I am launching a macro newsletter from Common Wealth about the supply side data and the US economy called Forces of Production
Charts for bsky forthcoming at: @forcesofproduction.com
Launch essay below:
www.forcesofproduction.com/p/atop-the-f...
Charts for bsky forthcoming at: @forcesofproduction.com
Launch essay below:
www.forcesofproduction.com/p/atop-the-f...
Reposted by John Merrick
Good this, but I’d dispute the decline of Wool production: there are loads of wools on here.
ICYMI: here's my interview with David Edgerton, the historian of technology and of modern Britain, about the politics of technology and the climate crisis, the rise of China, AI, and much more
open.spotify.com/episode/4tGI...
open.spotify.com/episode/4tGI...
Beyond Techno-Optimism w/ David Edgerton
open.spotify.com
January 20, 2026 at 1:29 PM
Good this, but I’d dispute the decline of Wool production: there are loads of wools on here.
ICYMI: here's my interview with David Edgerton, the historian of technology and of modern Britain, about the politics of technology and the climate crisis, the rise of China, AI, and much more
open.spotify.com/episode/4tGI...
open.spotify.com/episode/4tGI...
Beyond Techno-Optimism w/ David Edgerton
open.spotify.com
January 19, 2026 at 3:02 PM
ICYMI: here's my interview with David Edgerton, the historian of technology and of modern Britain, about the politics of technology and the climate crisis, the rise of China, AI, and much more
open.spotify.com/episode/4tGI...
open.spotify.com/episode/4tGI...
Reposted by John Merrick
Enjoyed listening to @johnmerrick.bsky.social interviewing
@davidedgerton.bsky.social for @thebreakdownab.bsky.social on his histories of production and innovation and why we should be sceptical of much vaunted claims that technological innovation is the key to resolving the climate crisis.
@davidedgerton.bsky.social for @thebreakdownab.bsky.social on his histories of production and innovation and why we should be sceptical of much vaunted claims that technological innovation is the key to resolving the climate crisis.
Beyond techno-optimism w/ David Edgerton
open.spotify.com
January 18, 2026 at 6:33 PM
Enjoyed listening to @johnmerrick.bsky.social interviewing
@davidedgerton.bsky.social for @thebreakdownab.bsky.social on his histories of production and innovation and why we should be sceptical of much vaunted claims that technological innovation is the key to resolving the climate crisis.
@davidedgerton.bsky.social for @thebreakdownab.bsky.social on his histories of production and innovation and why we should be sceptical of much vaunted claims that technological innovation is the key to resolving the climate crisis.
Reposted by John Merrick
One of the paradoxes of this innovation talk is that it's often an argument for inaction rather than action."
Historian David Edgerton on what the history of technology can tell us about the climate crisis.
Listen to the full episode 👇
www.break-down.org/technology-a...
Historian David Edgerton on what the history of technology can tell us about the climate crisis.
Listen to the full episode 👇
www.break-down.org/technology-a...
January 16, 2026 at 2:58 PM
One of the paradoxes of this innovation talk is that it's often an argument for inaction rather than action."
Historian David Edgerton on what the history of technology can tell us about the climate crisis.
Listen to the full episode 👇
www.break-down.org/technology-a...
Historian David Edgerton on what the history of technology can tell us about the climate crisis.
Listen to the full episode 👇
www.break-down.org/technology-a...
Reposted by John Merrick
Loved listening to this episode. Includes some really poignant commentary on the “impoverished position” of projecting all our hopes onto AI as a viable future-making technology.
"It's a morbid symptom, Anglo-futurism, and that's where British politics is, it is stuck with the fantasies of world leadership and renewal through deregulation. I mean, it's tragic. That's where we are."
www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSxc...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSxc...
January 16, 2026 at 1:17 PM
Loved listening to this episode. Includes some really poignant commentary on the “impoverished position” of projecting all our hopes onto AI as a viable future-making technology.
Reposted by John Merrick
"The emotive force of providing water for all must find imaginative institutional expression. As Bakker’s history shows, it has before."
ESSAY: Sammy Feldblum on the work of Canadian geographer Karen Bakker and the politics of water
ESSAY: Sammy Feldblum on the work of Canadian geographer Karen Bakker and the politics of water
Nothing to Lose but Our Mains
The unraveling of Britain’s largest water utility is not just a corporate scandal but a case study in how privatized water systems strain under climate pressure, aging infrastructure and the limits…
www.break-down.org
January 15, 2026 at 3:30 PM
"The emotive force of providing water for all must find imaginative institutional expression. As Bakker’s history shows, it has before."
ESSAY: Sammy Feldblum on the work of Canadian geographer Karen Bakker and the politics of water
ESSAY: Sammy Feldblum on the work of Canadian geographer Karen Bakker and the politics of water
Reposted by John Merrick
It's probably not about minerals. Wrote about Greenland, shipping lanes and the political work that all this arctic speculation is doing over at @the-breakdown.bsky.social www.break-down.org/after-the-th...
After the Thaw
As temperatures rise and the Arctic thaws, capital is eyeing new opportunities: for extraction, for shipping and for extending a lifeline to business as usual.
www.break-down.org
January 15, 2026 at 2:28 PM
It's probably not about minerals. Wrote about Greenland, shipping lanes and the political work that all this arctic speculation is doing over at @the-breakdown.bsky.social www.break-down.org/after-the-th...