Five Essential Texts on Democracy

We asked a leading political theorist for help understanding the meaning of democracy and the elite reaction to it.

Jacobin’s Promise: a Vote for Jacobin Is a Vote for You.

Act now, before it’s too late to save America.

The Foreman

Mark E. Smith of the Fall was one of the late 20th century’s great working-class musicians, but his music suffered from his overwhelming resentment of his middle-class audience.

Ballot Blocks

Every year, it gets harder to vote. We have our elected officials to thank for that.

On dictatorship, blood in the streets, and the deadly love of your CEO

Before They Ran the Reds Out of the Studios

The screwball comedy The Devil and Miss Jones exemplifies how pro-worker Hollywood was just on the eve of McCarthyism.

On failing at precalculus, failing at crack, and failing at capitalism

On Marxists abroad, domestic terrorists at home, and the terrible threat of an all-expenses-paid trip to Cuba

Issue 47: Misery Index

Crunching the numbers on the class war.

A Guide to Election Polling Terms

A guide to election polling terms.

Reality TV Democracy

America’s favorite television arcs toward autocracy.

Proletarian Portfolios

Union revenues and assets are on the rise — union membership is not.

A Strike for All Seasons

When and where organized labor’s been on the move.

Abe Shinzo Haunts Japan From the Casket

From the Moonies to military revanchists, Abe Shinzo was in bed with some dangerous oddballs. His funeral was a battle over their place in Japanese politics.

Queen Elizabeth II’s Ghosts

In between smiling, waving, and running up a $400 million annual bill, the late Queen Elizabeth II was the face of some pretty bad stuff during her seven-decade reign.

The Wrong Side of the Law

Legislation and case law targeting leftists is something like an American tradition.

Issue 47: The Internet Speaks

If you have anything nice to say, slide into our DMs.

Broken Records

If you can’t carry a tune, you can’t take the White House. Here are some of the more memorable campaign songs in American history.

Constitutional Calcification

The process for constitutional amendment is an uphill battle. Since 1789, almost 12,000 amendments have been proposed — but only 27 have passed. It’s been 50 years since one has made its way to the states for ratification.

Posting Cringe

Dispatches from Jeff Bezos’s Washington Post.