That Hopey, Changey Stuff
Obama’s presidency promised a new era in America, but the failure of his landmark legislation, the Affordable Care Act, set the stage for today’s disillusionment.
19068 Articles by: Ryan Switzer
Ryan Switzer is a PhD candidate in sociology at Stockholm University. He researches right-wing politics in welfare states.
John Milton’s Paradise Lost Mourned a Revolution Betrayed
Blind, alone, and reeling from the failures of the English Revolution, Milton wrote an epic reflection on political defeat and the possibility of hope.
Eugenics and the Welfare State
Swedish social democracy’s relationship to eugenics is a reminder that socialist planning requires a bedrock commitment to human dignity.
Turn On, Tune In, Cash Out
In the 1960s, psychedelics seemed to promise social progress. Today their proponents are all about self-optimization under capitalism.
Donald Trump’s Reactionary Futurism
Like its twentieth-century predecessors, today’s far right longs for the purported glories of the ancient world, all while fetishizing modern technology.
Make Europe Productive Again
The EU has been trailing the US economically for decades, and the COVID-19 pandemic only made its situation worse. Does Mario Draghi hold the secret to restoring Europe’s productivity?
Guyana’s Blessing and Curse
The tiny nation has discovered the world’s largest per capita oil reserves. What does the bonanza mean for its future?
Syria’s Revolution
Bashar al-Assad has left the building. It took fourteen years of bloody conflict.
Aliens Are Probably Communists
Hear us out …
The Politics of Life and Death
Rising life expectancy has long been seen as proof of capitalism’s success. But it was socialists who insisted on investment in health and well-being.
A City Built for Sunshine
In a moment of climate fatalism, ecomodernists are imagining a green urbanism that doesn’t come at the cost of abundance or beauty.
Bernie Sanders and AOC’s Rallies Can Become a Mass Movement
The “Fighting Oligarchy Tour” rallies headlined by Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez can become something much bigger — if Bernie and AOC direct their rally attendees into sustained organizing efforts against Donald Trump and Elon Musk.
Can We Engineer a Livable Future?
Some scientists think we should slow climate change through carbon capture and solar geoengineering. Is that a gamble worth taking?
What Comes After Globalization?
The world as we know it is a product of globalization — and this era of globalization might be coming to a close.
The Age of Regression
Born in the seventeenth century, our faith in progress is now at death’s door. Sociologist Göran Therborn traces the idea’s history — and argues that it must be revived.
A Strange Sort of Populism
Donald Trump’s billionaire appointees make his second administration the richest in US history.
How Much is $TRUMP Worth?
The president’s cryptocurrency isn’t doing so hot.