We’re All Stagnationists Now
More and more economists agree with Robert Brenner that mature capitalist economies have begun to stagnate. We should not deny this reality but rather think clearly about how it affects our political outlook.
19409 Articles by: Karl Leffme
Karl Leffme is a socialist in New York CIty.
Vivek Ramaswamy’s Crusade Against “Woke Capital” May Be Lucrative, but It’s Doomed
Taking issue only with the “woke” part of “woke capital,” GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy’s asset management firm Strive promises to invest in the most damaging industries on the planet. It will likely fail — but he’s making a lot of money along the way.
The GOP Says It’s a Working-Class Party. Last Night’s Debate Exposed That Charade.
Last night’s Republican presidential debate made a mockery of the idea that the GOP is anything other than the party of the boss.
Azerbaijan’s Ethnic Cleansing of Nagorno-Karabakh Is Fueled by Regional Power Struggles
The Soviet Union’s collapse created opportunities for nationalist elites. Azerbaijan’s current campaign of ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh has been enabled by both this instability and regional jostling for influence by Russia, Turkey, and others.
The UAW Strike Could Spark a Broader Revival of Working-Class Militancy
With its ongoing strike against the Big Three, the UAW is attempting to recapture the fighting spirit of its heroic early days. The union’s militant approach marks a sharp break with the recent past — and could spark more insurgency across the labor movement.
Last Night’s GOP Presidential Debate Was Completely Nuts
The Republican presidential debate last night was full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. If anything, the candidates lost just by being there, much as the audience lost two hours of their lives by watching.
Dumb Money, the New Movie About the 2021 GameStop Short Squeeze, Is Very Funny
Director Craig Gillespie’s new film Dumb Money transforms the 2021 GameStop short squeeze into a rousing comedy about everyday Americans turning the tables against the financial elite. It’s the best “COVID movie” so far.
UAW President Shawn Fain Is Showing How to Build Working-Class Struggle
Shawn Fain, the firebrand president of the UAW, is modeling exactly the kind of labor leader we need right now: one who boldly names the billionaire class as the enemy — and galvanizes workers themselves to fight back.
Flooding in Libya Has Killed Thousands. NATO Is Directly Culpable.
The cataclysmic floods in Libya are a direct result of NATO’s disastrous 2011 intervention, which was cheerled by the Obama administration. Just don’t expect the mainstream media to tell you that.
Automakers Are Investing in Stock Buybacks Instead of Workers and Electric Vehicles
Big Three executives are claiming that UAW demands, including a just green transition, are too expensive. This is an obvious misdirection: the real sap on company finances is the billions of dollars in stock buybacks and executive compensation.
The Economist Magazine’s Role in the Chilean Coup
The Economist marked 50 years since the Chilean coup by calling for the country to move on from the past. What the magazine didn’t do was confront its own key role in demonizing Salvador Allende and building Augusto Pinochet’s international legitimacy.
Trump Is Speaking Tonight in Michigan at a Nonunion Auto Shop, as a Guest of Its Boss
For days, the mainstream media has said Donald Trump is going to Michigan to speak to union autoworkers. That’s completely false: he is traveling there today to speak at a nonunion auto-parts shop, at the invitation of its boss.
Bob Menendez Isn’t Merely Corrupt. He Carried Water for a Brutal Dictator.
Bob Menendez’s cartoonish bribery case — complete with gold bars and a Mercedes-Benz — isn’t just exhibit A in Washington corruption. It’s a reminder that US allies like Egypt’s dictatorship, not Russia or China, are often the ones meddling in US politics.
Jeremy Corbyn: Trade Unions Are Starting to Turn the Tide
From autoworkers in the US to railworkers in the UK, organized labor is enjoying a new lease on life. In an interview, former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn explains why he thinks militant organizing represents the trade unions’ future.
Joe Biden’s Trip to Michigan Shows Why You Push Democrats, Not Capitulate to Them
Joe Biden’s historic visit to the picket line yesterday would never have happened if the UAW simply cozied up to Biden. As the union showed, you don’t win by showing deference to Democratic elites — you use the leverage you have to extract concessions.
The Militancy of the UAW Strike Forced Joe Biden to Take a Side and Walk the Picket Line
Today Joe Biden became the first sitting US president to walk a picket line when he joined striking autoworkers. It says less about him than it does the electrifying effects of the strike — forcing politicians, and everyone else, to side with either workers or CEOs.
The Robotruck Industry Is Lobbying Against Road Safety
On Friday, California governor Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill that would have banned self-driving trucks from being on the road without a safety operator aboard. This move followed a six-figure lobbying effort from the autonomous vehicle industry.
Vladimir Putin’s Russia Claims to Be Fighting Nazism, but It’s Persecuting Anti-Fascists
On September 4, Russian anti-fascist Azat Miftakhov was released from jail, only to be instantly rearrested. Vladimir Putin claims to be fighting Ukrainian Nazis — but he persecutes anti-fascists in Russia itself.
General Motors Is Sending Scabs to Parts Distribution Centers
With the UAW strike spreading, GM is dispatching nonunion workers and managers to try to keep their parts distribution centers running. “I wish them luck,” one striking worker said. “They’re gonna be so goddamn lost.”
Is It Just Us, or Is Girl-Boss Feminism Waning?
“Lean In” feminism doesn’t seem to have the purchase it did a few years ago. Maybe that’s because it is so obviously irrelevant to the lives of the vast majority of women, who need a union and decent pay, not a female boss.