Sorry Mayor Pete, Means-Testing Is Not Progressive
Universal programs build solidarity and are far more politically durable than means-tested programs. By going after free college, Pete Buttigieg is doing the bidding of the Right.
293 Article(s) by: Ben Burgis
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Ben Burgis is a Jacobin columnist, an adjunct philosophy professor at Rutgers University, 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.
You Deserve to Live Close to Where You Work
Beto O’Rourke is actually right about something — everyone has the right to live within a reasonable distance of where they work. But to make that right a reality, we’ll need an industrial and housing policy that values people over profit.
Public Monopolies Are a Good Thing
Private monopolies are rightly criticized for being inefficient and unaccountable. But public monopolies are a different story — we should loudly and proudly say that democratically controlled public monopolies are a positive good.
Bernie Has Called to Free Lula. Why Won’t the Rest of the Democratic Field?
Despite overwhelming evidence that former Brazilian president Lula da Silva was the victim of a right-wing campaign to keep him out of another presidential term by jailing him, Bernie Sanders is the only Democratic candidate who has called for his release. The rest of the party’s presidential candidates should demand that Lula be freed, too.
We Need Single Payer for Our Entire Energy System
We already know that we desperately need single payer for health care. But the recent failures of California’s PG&E show how we need a single-payer system for our energy grid, too — to stop the reckless, dangerous behavior of private companies getting rich off what should be a public good, and to fight climate change.
The “Strongest Argument Against Medicare for All” Is Very, Very Weak
The New York Times recently published “the strongest argument against Medicare for All.” We regret to inform you that the argument is, in fact, not strong at all.
We Need Mental Health Care for All
Elizabeth Warren wants to “hold insurers accountable for providing adequate mental health benefits.” We want to eliminate private insurers and provide mental health service as a right.
How Bernie Sanders Should Talk About Venezuela and US Intervention in Latin America
Bernie Sanders is repeatedly asked absurd questions by mainstream reporters about Venezuela. He should use such questions as an opportunity to talk about the long, bloody history of US intervention there and throughout Latin America.
Socialism and the Self-Checkout Machine
A $1,000 a month check won’t cut it, but there’s a real democratic socialist response to automation that could make us all happier and give everyone more leisure time.
A Free Press Is Too Important to Trust Capitalists With
Bernie is right: corporate ownership of news outlets is a problem, and we need to promote independent journalism. But we can go further and imagine truly independent and free socialized media.
Why Are We Even Responding to John Delaney?
John Delaney is completely insignificant. But he’s echoing common talking points about the Green New Deal. They’re all lies.
Yes, We Can Have a $20 Minimum Wage — And More
Conservatives ridiculed Rashida Tlaib for suggesting that we can have a $20 minimum wage. In fact, a $20 minimum wage is viable, as is an economy where workers control the entirety of their firms.
Brazil’s Deflategate
Lula is Tom Brady during Deflategate. Judge Moro is the NFL and the odious Roger Goodell. Please let us explain and don’t unsubscribe from this fine magazine.