Papist Plots
Conspiracy theories about the Vatican are as old as the Catholic Church itself. Here are some recent ones.
20389 Article(s) by: Jonathan Sas
Jonathan Sas has worked in senior policy and political roles in government, think tanks, and the labor movement. He is an honorary witness to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. His writing has appeared in the Toronto Star, National Post, the Tyee, and Maisonneuve.
Speak of the Devil
In the 1980s, Christian groups alleged that countless popular songs contained Satanic messages that could only be heard when played backward. The truth is more mundane.
TV Writers Say They’re Striking to Stop the Destruction of Their Profession
Television shows across the country are going dark because their writers have walked off the job. The strikers say they had no choice but to walk, as new technology and the squeeze from executives have put their very livelihood in serious danger.
New York’s Left Eked Out a Few Victories in an Otherwise Dismal Austerity Budget
Socialists and progressives won a few key demands in the New York state budget battles. But overall, Gov. Kathy Hochul rammed through an awful budget that will make life much worse for the state of New York’s working class.
How Pete Seeger Turned Green
Socialist Pete Seeger, born on this day in 1919, is widely acknowledged to be one of America’s greatest folk singers. Less appreciated is his environmentalism, which he always saw as inextricable from his left-wing politics.
The Dark Money–Backed Supreme Court Is a Threat to Student Debt Relief
A Supreme Court case brought by six Republican attorneys general to kill Joe Biden’s student debt cancellation plan is neglecting key evidence. The dark money–backed court appears willing to disregard its judicial principles and strike the measure down anyway.
Joe Biden’s Reelection Campaign Is Off to an Uninspiring, Oligarch-Driven Start
After talking with grassroots organizers for six minutes last Thursday, Biden spent the weekend hobnobbing with his real constituents: the hedge fund managers and executives he’s going to spend the next eighteen months begging for money.
Tax Private Jets Into Oblivion
Private jet ownership and usage has actually grown in recent years. There’s no justification for this. It’s time to raise taxes on private jets.
Turkey’s Election Is About Democracy Itself
Even before February’s earthquake claimed 50,000 lives, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had presided over many disasters in Turkey. Defeating him in this month’s election is essential if the country is going to turn away from permanent authoritarian rule.
We Don’t Just Need Medicare for All — We Need a National Health System
The founders of Physicians for a National Health Program put single-payer health care on the map. Now, discussing the next phase of the movement, they say even single-payer won’t be enough to fix the problems caused by continued privatization.
Tonia Lechtman’s Life Embodied the Struggle for Human Dignity
Tonia Lechtman was a Polish Jewish communist who was deprived of her freedom by five different dictatorships. Her resilience in the face of oppression was built on a determination to build a world fit for human beings.
Asset Managers Like BlackRock Are Controlling More and More of Our Lives
Giant asset managers like BlackRock and Vanguard are increasingly but imperceptibly becoming owners of more and more aspects of our lives, from housing to roads to energy infrastructure.
US Imperialism Alone Can’t Explain the Triumph of the Right in Latin America
The United States has repeatedly intervened in Latin America to overthrow democratically elected governments and install right-wing dictatorships. But homegrown far-right forces in Latin America itself have often proved just as important as US meddling.
Rich Investors Are Now Betting on Legal Cases. What Could Go Wrong?
A strategy called litigation finance, where firms foot the bill for legal cases and take a huge cut if plaintiffs win, is on the rise. As a recent case against Argentina shows, the trend leaves developing countries vulnerable to lawsuits backed by big money.
Peter Pan & Wendy Is Another Lifeless Disney Remake
Even a respected auteur like director David Lowery can’t save Peter Pan & Wendy, yet another bland live-action adaptation of a Disney classic — this time with a dash of 2020s pop feminism.
Bill Maher’s Slobbering Elon Musk Interview Was an Insult to Our Intelligence
Nothing could have been more conventional, more boring, and more embarrassing than the way Bill Maher repeatedly and ceaselessly kissed Elon Musk’s ass on his show Real Time.
Joe Biden’s New Communications Director Made Millions in Corporate Consulting
Before being tapped to become Joe Biden’s new communications director, political advisor Ben LaBolt made a pretty penny in corporate consulting — and many of his former clients have obvious interests in White House policy decisions today.
Beau Is Afraid Is a Referendum on Director Ari Aster, Cinema’s Latest Wunderkind
Critics adore artsy auteur filmmaker Ari Aster, director of hits like Midsommar and Hereditary — they’re even willing to pretend his new surrealist comedy Beau Is Afraid is hilarious. It’s not.
For Workers in the New Movie Unrest, the Clock Is the Villain
Unrest gives viewers plenty that they won’t find in films elsewhere: a quietly gorgeous portrayal of the labor process, a lead role for the anarchist geographer Pyotr Kropotkin, and an exploration of how bosses wrestle with workers over control of their work.
Chicago Never Forgot the Haymarket Martyrs
International Workers’ Day traces its roots to the 1886 Haymarket affair, when labor radicals in Chicago were unjustly executed. Ever since, reactionaries have tried to tarnish their legacy — and leftists have honored them as working-class martyrs.