The Other Hand Looking backwards, looking forwards.
Dec 29, 2025
A brisk review of global political risks from Russia, China and looming elections. Discussion of data centers and AI driving surging electricity demand. Reflections on market quirks: tariffs, bond vulnerabilities and why non-US markets sometimes outperform. A look at widening US inequality, UK political shifts, and Ireland’s economic pressures.
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Monitor Key 2026 Elections
- Watch 2026 elections in Hungary, Colombia, Brazil, Sweden, UK local elections, and US midterms for populist trends.
- Use these results to gauge the strength of right-wing and populist movements globally.
Data Centers Become Major Power Users
- Data centers and electric vehicles will climb global electricity consumption ranks, becoming top consumers by 2030.
- This surge forces major grid upgrades and reshapes where data centers locate based on cheap, cool power.
Carnsore Point Protest Memory
- Jim Power recalls 1970s Irish anti-nuclear protests led by Christy Moore at Carnsore Point.
- The memory illustrates long-standing public resistance to nuclear power in Ireland.