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.
19552 Articles by: William G. Martin
William G. Martin teaches at SUNY-Binghamton and is co-author of After Prisons? Freedom, Decarceration, and Justice Disinvestment (2016) and a founding member of Justice and Unity for the Southern Tier; he covers local justice matters at www.justtalk.blog
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.
All In at the Crypto Casino
How America got high on the crypto bubble — and lost it all.
The End of History Was a Hell of a Drug
The collapse of the Soviet bloc led to a flowering of utopian thinking among our best and brightest.
Songs About Getting By in America
Misery has inspired some great art.
The Wizard of Oz’s Greenback Conspiracy
Many of the fantastical elements of The Wizard of Oz were drawn directly from the monetary debates of the 1890s.