Issue 46: Misery Index
Crunching the numbers on the class war.
19456 Articles by: Opal Lee
Opal Lee is a writer.
Has Sinn Féin’s Day Come?
Sinn Féin is now the leading party across Ireland. But its real test will happen in power.
Spring Turned to Winter
The widespread popular upheaval known as the “Arab Spring” ended one decade ago this year. Tunisia, whose Jasmine Revolution inspired many other demonstrations in 2011, is the only country to participate that still has an intact democracy. But even Tunisia now slouches back toward authoritarianism.
Red the Fed
The Federal Reserve’s response to inflation is bad for workers — but it doesn’t need to be.
The Hard Times Behind Philly Soul
Beneath the strings and sequins, the Sound of Philadelphia was the backing track to the economic crisis that hit black America in the 1970s.
Tracking the Wave of Starbucks Worker Organizing
Venti cappuccino in one hand and a ballot in the other, the Starbucks organizing drive is on a roll.
Bling-Bling TV
As standards of living fall at the bottom and rise at the top, the only thing to do is watch TV about the trivial problems of the phenomenally rich.
Creeping Corporate Medicine Is Undermining Canadian Health Care
Canada’s health system is both more efficient and more equitable than its US counterpart. But its achievements have been undermined by years of government underinvestment, leading to the growth of outsourcing to private clinics.
The Tyranny of Homo Economicus
How “thinking like an economist” has thwarted progress in America.
Build Back Better Wasn’t So Great
Moderates claim that Biden’s BBB failed because it simply “went too far.” The truth is that even if it had passed, it would have excluded scores of working families.
Yanis Varoufakis, What Are You Reading?
What’s sitting on the nightstand of the legendary Greek economist?
The Crypto Bro President
El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, had a mandate for change. He used it to build a police state and buy coin.
The Fabric of Civilization
Taiwan leads the world in the production of semiconductor material, the basis of the microchips found in everything from cell phones to medical equipment. Washington and Beijing aren’t happy about it.
Taking Shelter Under the Price Ceiling
For decades, American governments that were far from socialist embraced extensive use of price controls during times of inflation.
New York Times Watch
The paper of record has had some amazing headline edits in recent years. Here’s a selection.
Expensive Taste
Foodways dependent on factory farming and global monocultural agriculture might be cheap in the short term, but we could pay heavily in the future.