J. D. Vance Is Wrong. Donald Trump Was No Antiwar President.
J. D. Vance, the faux-populist senator from Ohio, says that Donald Trump “kept the peace” as president. He has a short memory.
138 Articles by: Ben Burgis
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Ben Burgis is a Jacobin columnist, an adjunct philosophy professor at Morehouse College, and the host of the YouTube show and podcast Give Them An Argument. He’s the author of several books, most recently Christopher Hitchens: What He Got Right, How He Went Wrong, and Why He Still Matters.
Right-Wingers Like Steven Crowder Need Billionaire Funders Because Their Ideas Are So Bad
Right-wing demagogue Steven Crowder recently turned down a $50 million offer from Ben Shapiro’s billionaire-funded media organization, calling it a “slave contract.” If only these guys showed as much concern for the conditions of ordinary workers.
Ben Shapiro’s “Formula” for Political Legitimacy Is a Head-Scratching Mess
Conservative pundit Ben Shapiro thinks he’s distilled political legitimacy into a mathematical equation. He’s only succeeded in proving that he’s very confused.
Deport Bolsonaro
Jair Bolsonaro is currently in Florida after fleeing Brazil to escape justice for his many crimes. There’s no reason to offer him safe haven — the US should kick him out immediately.
Lula Was Just Inaugurated as Brazil’s President. His Return Is a Win for the Global Left.
Leftist leader Lula da Silva was inaugurated on Sunday as Brazil’s president. It’s a huge win for the global left — I only wish the late Michael Brooks, who tirelessly agitated for Lula’s release from prison, would have lived to see his return to power.
Right-Wing Blogger Curtis Yarvin Is Wrong. Democracy Is Good.
Reactionary pundit Curtis Yarvin (“Mencius Moldbug”) has attracted the support of Peter Thiel and other right-wing figures for his supposedly brilliant critique of democracy. But his arguments are paper-thin — everyone should have a say in shaping our society.
Effective Altruism Is No Substitute for a Better Society
The philosophy of effective altruism is catnip to well-meaning and intellectually inclined donors. But as a strategy for tackling what’s wrong with the world, it misses the mark.
Ben Shapiro Is Talking Nonsense About the Left Undermining Families
Ben Shapiro absurdly says that the Left supports gay marriage to undermine families and turn us into “atomized individuals.” The reality: leftists oppose social atomization, and we want all families to have the economic support they need.
I’m a Socialist. Joe Biden Is Not.
During a speech on Saturday, Joe Biden referred to right-wing protesters calling him a socialist as “idiots.” He’s right. Socialists are committed to ending inequality, and the president has always been on the other side of the barricades.
Free Speech Is Too Important To Be Entrusted to Elon Musk
Liberals who minimize the importance of free speech on Twitter are dead wrong. But we shouldn’t have to hope that a billionaire with a track record of suppressing his critics will live up to his free speech rhetoric.
Bill Clinton’s Welfare Reform Gave Us Brett Favre’s Welfare Fraud
Millions of dollars of Mississippi welfare funds went to retired Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre. That could never have been possible without the grotesque “welfare reform” championed by Bill Clinton.
Joe Biden’s Marijuana Moves Are Good but Fall Short of His Campaign Promise
President Joe Biden will pardon thousands who’ve served federal time for marijuana possession. That’s a step in the right direction, but there are still plenty of people serving federal time for weed offenses. Biden should pardon them too, like he promised.
Cuba’s Gay Rights Vote Is a Victory for Socialist Values
A referendum to end discrimination against gay couples in marriage and adoption just won big in Cuba. That’s a victory for the core values underlying the socialist project.
Rashida Tlaib Is Absolutely Right About Progressives and Israel
Democratic socialist congresswoman Rashida Tlaib is under fire from the Democratic establishment for saying that support for Israel’s apartheid government is incompatible with progressive values. They’re livid that Tlaib is telling the truth.
Alex Jones Is a Symptom of a Much Larger Problem in America
After harassing and defaming grieving Sandy Hook parents, conspiracy theorist Alex Jones may finally get what’s coming to him. But as long as the nation’s most powerful institutions fail to earn the public’s trust, hucksters like Jones will always find an audience.
“Dark Brandon” Is a Symptom of Powerlessness
“Dark Brandon” memes are jokes, but they express a deeply felt wish that Joe Biden would turn out to be a firebrand progressive at heart. But Biden is Biden — at his core, he’ll always be a corporate-friendly centrist.
An Oklahoma Teacher Fought the Book-Banning Right and Lost Her Job
An Oklahoma English teacher helped students apply for library cards so they could read banned books. Now she’s out of a job, receiving a barrage of threats from the Right, and the Republican state secretary of public education wants to take away her license.
John Fetterman Is Right About Many Things — but He’s Dead Wrong on Palestine
There are many things to like about Pennsylvania’s John Fetterman. But his dismal position on Palestine is a reminder of how foreign policy is so often the weak spot of progressive politicians.
Gorbachev Couldn’t Reform the Soviet System — but a Better Socialism Is Possible
Soviet premier Mikhail Gorbachev, who died last week, was a tragic figure. He tried to build a humane socialism on the rotten foundations of authoritarianism. Today, without the albatross of Stalinism, we can fight for an entirely different kind of socialism.
Ron DeSantis’s Voting Crackdown Is Grotesque
Florida governor Ron DeSantis’s new election cops are locking up the state’s citizens for trying to exercise their most basic political right, the right to vote — all to impress the Extremely Online right.