Mike Leigh’s Hard Truths Is Powerful and Tormenting
Mike Leigh’s Hard Truths is another triumph by that legendary dramatist of working-class British life. But films like Leigh’s are a rare breed these days.
19683 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
The Return of Genocide Denial
One of the most shocking features of Israel’s 15-month campaign of violence against Gaza’s population was the US political class’s refusal, even in the face of mounting evidence, to call what was happening a genocide.
The Crypto President Has Arrived, and the Grift Is Booming
With Donald Trump back in the White House, the floodgates for cryptocurrency scams have been flung wide open.
Israel Is Still the Obstacle to a Permanent Gaza Cease-Fire
The Israeli government spent months obstructing a cease-fire deal in Gaza while the US refused to apply pressure. Israel’s leaders are keen to resume the onslaught while ramping up violence in the West Bank if Washington allows it.
Big Tech Stands to Profit From a US Takeover of Greenland
Donald Trump is doubling down on his plan to buy Greenland. A US takeover could weaken the country’s mining laws and ban on private property, aiding Trump tech donors’ plans to profit from the island’s mineral deposits and build a libertarian techno-city.
Russell Vought, the Man Behind Trump’s Budget Freeze
Russell Vought, Trump’s nominee for budget chief, has a plan: cut taxes for the wealthy, eliminate regulations on corporate power, and slash spending on government programs the rest of the country depends on.
Kyrsten Sinema Pivots to Crypto
Kyrsten Sinema accepted tens of thousands of dollars from crypto companies while in Congress. Now she’s leveraging those ties as a new adviser to Coinbase, the $73 billion crypto exchange platform.
Trump’s Weakness Is the Left’s Opportunity
Many assumed Donald Trump would be governing in a second term with no guardrails. But guardrails are in fact still there. Understanding these constraints is key to defeating him.
Before the DC Plane Crash, Lawmakers Expanded Flight Traffic
Months before last night’s fatal aircraft collision, lawmakers dismissed safety warnings and approved an airline-backed measure that increased flight traffic at Washington, DC’s already overstressed airport — the site of the disaster.
Donald Trump’s Anti-Union Offensive and How We Stop It
Donald Trump is rolling out a blitz of attacks on workers in hopes of paralyzing organized labor’s energy to fight back. But unions can only survive this onslaught by fighting, not by burying their heads in the sand.
Trump Is Drawing on Cold War–Era Repressive Tactics
Donald Trump’s executive orders draw from a previous, dark period of American history pairing ethnic exclusion through mass deportations and ideological exclusion through political repression.
US Foreign Aid Was Always About Furthering US Interests
Donald Trump’s freezing of US foreign aid has set off alarms across the foreign policy establishment — largely because aid has been such an effective means of furthering US and European geopolitical interests, especially in Latin America.
In Elon Musk, Libertarianism and Authoritarianism Combine
Elon Musk’s appearances at the Trump inauguration and a rally for Germany’s Alternative für Deutschland don’t just hark back to the past. They fuse authoritarian nationalism with a distinctive postmodern, libertarian streak.
Will Chief Justice Roberts Stop Trump’s Funding Freeze?
As Donald Trump’s federal funding freeze creates a constitutional crisis that seems headed to the Supreme Court, a 1985 memo shows current chief justice John Roberts declaring that a president has no authority to block required spending.
Amazon’s Retribution in Quebec Should Be a Wake-Up Call
In response to a successful unionization effort at a warehouse in Quebec, Amazon is shuttering its operations in the entire province. Its punitive behavior demonstrates that traditional organizing methods won’t work on the corporate behemoth.
Will Bidenomics Survive Donald Trump?
Last week, Trump signed executive orders targeting Biden-era green infrastructure spending. Republican politicians, whose states have benefitted from these policies, will now have to decide whether they care more about austerity or a manufacturing renewal.
Trump’s Education Agenda Is a Big Vulnerability
Donald Trump is pushing an elite-driven school privatization project that is deeply unpopular with his base. It offers a golden political opportunity for Democrats, if only they would seize it.
Economic Democracy Is the Only Practical Cure for Our Crises
The capitalist financial system blocks democratic control over investment by its very nature. We need a new model of democratic finance that can address our urgent social and environmental needs.
The South Is Unorganized, Not Backward
Organized labor and progressive politics do not fail in the South because of some ingrained cultural pathology. They fail because its interracial labor movement was, and continues to be, systematically suppressed.
Tariffs Are a Costly Nonsolution to the US’s Social Crisis
Donald Trump has touted his planned tariffs as a way of protecting American workers. They’ll do little to reverse industrial decline but will drive up costs for the average American.