Americana Falls Flat
Nothing in film is more exposing than the big attempt at meaning and poignance that just doesn’t come off. Sadly, Americana stands exposed.
19800 Articles by: Enver Motala
Enver Motala is an associate of the Centre for Education Rights and Transformation (CERT) at the University of Johannesburg and of the Centre for Integrated Post-School Education and Training at the Nelson Mandela University.
MAHA Is Going to Make America Sicker
Donald Trump has spent the last seven months flooding our food, water, and air with all kinds of very real, very horrible pollutants, including numerous cancer-causing chemicals — the exact opposite of “making America healthy again.”
Private Equity Is Coming for Public Utilities
While extending its tentacles elsewhere, private equity has mostly stayed away from electric utilities because they often don’t yield quick returns. A BlackRock subsidiary’s campaign to take over a regional utility in Minnesota suggests that is changing.
Alien: Earth Is a Much-Needed Defense of Humanity
Noah Hawley’s new FX series, Alien: Earth, draws on the best of the sci-fi horror franchise to suggest humanity’s future might offer more than mere survival.
The Trump–Putin Talks Blindsided European Leaders
This summer, European states hiked military spending and swallowed a poor trade deal in order to win favor with Donald Trump. Yet the US president’s negotiations with Vladimir Putin all but ignored their proposals.
Cloud is a Techno-Thriller for the Age of Online Hustle Culture
The internet has robbed the world of much of its mystery and replaced it with the jaded cynicism of online grifters. Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s film Cloud explores this bleak world dominated by people who just can’t log off.
How Rome’s Rulers Tried to Stamp Out the Right to Protest
Present-day attacks on the right to free assembly have a long history behind them. For centuries, the rulers of ancient Rome tried to stop its people from organizing to defend their interests, but protest kept resurfacing despite their best efforts.
Indonesia’s Rulers Are Whitewashing the Crimes of Suharto
In the 1960s, the Indonesian dictator Suharto was responsible for one of the twentieth century’s bloodiest political massacres. Under the rule of Prabowo, the country’s government is suppressing the memory of Suharto’s crimes while vilifying the Left.
The Many Lives of James Baldwin
James Baldwin shaped a generation of American writers, many of whom later dismissed his humanistic outlook as naive. Today he is once again celebrated, but a new biography shows that his life was more complex than his viral fame suggests.
Growing Old in a Time of Neoliberalism
In The Life, Old Age, and Death of a Working-Class Woman, French writer Didier Eribon sees his mother’s passing as symbolic of the disappearance of the mass culture and politics that once gave workers of her generation identity and social standing.
Want to End the EV Culture Wars? Make EVs Affordable.
Culture warriors and industry lobbyists have turned electric vehicles into a proxy battle for deeper anxieties about class, control, and who might be left behind in a green economy. But most people just want a car they can afford.
Brutalism Is Back
Not everyone is excited about the resurgence of brutalism. But the rise of neobrutalist projects shows how the polarizing architectural style can also be a pragmatic use of scarce resources.
When Genocide Denial Is the Norm
Genocide scholar Martin Shaw argues that ending Israel’s genocide in Gaza and isolating Israel on the international stage must become the cause of every country that claims to represent human values.
Is This the End of MAS?
Bolivians head to the polls on Sunday amid a spiraling economic crisis and the total collapse of the Movement Toward Socialism. A right-wing victory could bring neoliberal austerity back to Bolivia, unleashing a new cycle of social unrest.
Steven Rose Brought His Science and Socialism Together
Steven Rose, who died last month, was a major figure in the field of neuroscience and a brilliant scientific popularizer. Rose was also a committed socialist who challenged the misuse of science to legitimate racism, sexism, and class inequality.
Using Protected Identity to Suppress History
Legislation on protected identities is supposed to foster good intercommunal relations. When it’s used to protect Zionism, it means shielding a 19th-century nationalist ideology from criticism as if it were an innate characteristic of all Jews.
The Trump-Era Gender Wars, Brought to You By Neoliberalism
We’re seeing an alarming revival of archaic gender role ideas, from the manosphere’s remasculinization crusade to trad wives’ rejection of public life. Veteran historian of gender roles Stephanie Coontz explains the moment’s deep economic undercurrents.
Why Gen Z Loves to Invest
Raised amid wage stagnation and soaring markets, Gen Z invests more than prior generations. Yet rising inequality means that, despite their efforts, most are unlikely to close the wealth gap with their more affluent peers.
Is Cormac McCarthy “Based”?
Legendary novelist Cormac McCarthy is often hailed by the Right as one of its own. The truth is more complicated.
Colonialization Through Dehydration in Palestine
Israel’s extreme rationing of water to the Palestinian people is central to its larger project of control, domination, and ethnic cleansing.