Israel Is Militarizing and Monetizing the COVID-19 Pandemic
Coronavirus is ravaging the globe right now. It’s a perfect time for the Israeli state to figure out how to expand its already vast surveillance powers.
19121 Articles by: T Rivers
T Rivers is a pseudonymous journalist who covers East and Central Africa.
“It’s Time to Engage in as Much Class Struggle as We Can”
The United Electrical workers’ union and the Democratic Socialists of America are teaming up to help nonunion workers organize during the coronavirus crisis. The goal: find workers who are already spoiling for a fight and help them win it.
The NYPD Is Making Things Worse
One in six New York City police officers is out sick. Those who are still working have refused to perform emergency duties, like assisting overstressed mortuary workers, while continuing to make unnecessary arrests. It’s time to send New York cops home.
“Prisons Are Microcosms of the Broader Society”
As COVID-19 rips through American prisons, incarcerated people have braved violent repression to demand a humane response to their suffering. In an interview with Jacobin, Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Heather Ann Thompson explains the current wave of prisoner protest — and what it could signal about the future of American politics.
David Sirota: The Tyranny of Decorum Hurt Bernie Sanders’s 2020 Prospects
David Sirota, a senior adviser to Bernie Sanders’s 2020 campaign, argues that a key mistake of the campaign was Sanders’s refusal to more forcefully articulate the contrasts between his record and Joe Biden’s.
Meet Giorgia Meloni, A Dangerous New Leader for Italy’s Far Right
For three decades, economic woes and the crumbling of old party ties have fueled the rise of Italy’s populist right. Faced with the coronavirus, Giorgia Meloni is becoming an increasingly prominent voice — leader of a Fratelli d’Italia party directly linked to the fascist past.
Incubators of Austerity
Having never recovered from the last recession, America’s states are now being dealt another dose of austerity from the federal government, forcing more budget cuts across welfare, education, and even health care. It’s the opposite approach of what’s needed. Unless we can fund these services, the crises will only deepen.
Build Socialism Through the Post Office
We not only need to defend the United States Postal Service from privatization — we need to deepen its role in our economy.
The Liberal Center Must Be Beaten
The bitter defeats of Corbyn and Sanders have changed nothing about the task before us: supplanting the neoliberal center and offering ordinary people a real alternative to the neo-nationalist right.
COVID-19 Should Be a Wake-Up Call for Feminists
The suffering of women during the coronavirus pandemic illuminates where feminists need to push harder. Medicare for All, free higher education and a living wage, and a housing and job guarantee would go far in giving women the autonomy necessary to protect themselves and their children.
Why You Should Be a Socialist — and a Marxist
Socialism is back on the agenda in the United States, thank God. And today’s newly minted socialists shouldn’t be afraid to embrace Marxism.
The Outrageous Optimism of Jean-Paul Sartre
The French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre died forty years ago today. Sartre’s philosophy and political values can still inspire struggles for freedom today.
Noam Chomsky: In Response to Coronavirus, “You Can Do Something”
In a new interview, Noam Chomsky gives his thoughts on the coronavirus pandemic, the depravities of capitalism, and the urgent need for a new era of solidarity and labor struggle.
Does Israel Have the Right to Cage Two Million People in a Coronavirus-Ravaged Prison Camp?
For thirteen years, Israel has kept two million Palestinians in Gaza chained inside the world’s largest open-air prison camp. Now the global COVID-19 pandemic is bearing down on the occupied enclave. What will happen if thousands of desperate civilians try to escape?
The Media Had a Formula for Reporting Sexual Misconduct. Then Joe Biden Was Accused.
For nearly three weeks after it surfaced, Tara Reade’s sexual assault allegation against Joe Biden was ignored or downplayed in the media. A Jacobin analysis shows that she’s been covered unlike any other accuser in the post–Me Too era.
“I Knew I Wouldn’t Be Able to Afford It”
In the latest installment of our “Modern Health” column, we hear from a dancer who was badly injured on the job. Despite having insurance, he didn’t seek full treatment — because he knew he couldn’t afford it.
We Should Have a Democratic Debate About Trade-Offs Between Public Safety and Privacy
Locked down, smartphones are giving many of us some comfort and connection now. But the hardware and software that make our phones so indispensable are also tracking us twenty-four hours a day. This crisis will only open the door to more privacy intrusions in the name of public health.
Your Boss Is Spying on You
With millions of people now working from their homes, frantic bosses are buying high-tech surveillance software to track their employees’ every keystroke. It’s the latest example of how capitalism is built on employer despotism.
We’ve Got Another Seven Videos and a Podcast Out This Week
From the case against Joe Biden to the economics of a feasible socialism and a new EP Thompson podcast, we have a busy week of audio and video content for you.
I Literally Wrote the Case Against Joe Biden. But I’ve Got Some Free Advice for Him
Pundits are panicking about whether the Left will help Joe Biden defeat Trump. The former vice president probably doesn’t want it, but here’s some advice for him from the author of Yesterday’s Man: The Case Against Joe Biden.