Aaron Bushnell Refused to Be Silent on the Horrors in Gaza
The horrific death of Aaron Bushnell by self-immolation was a stand against the grinding misery in Gaza inflicted by Israel and backed by Bushnell’s own government.
20421 Article(s) by: Yi San
Yi San is a freelance writer based in New York.
In Russia, Too, Capital Is Painting Itself Green
Given its powerful oil oligarchs, it’s easy to assume Russia is the quintessential climate denier. Yet the rise of corporate ESG policies in the country suggests Russian capital wants to greenwash just as much as its Western peers.
Tax Ivy League Endowments, and Fund Public Higher Ed
Ultrarich private universities are fighting hard against government efforts to tax their multibillion-dollar endowments. That revenue could be used to help provide low-cost public higher education for all.
The Post-Gazette Has Stonewalled a Strike for 16 Months
When Pittsburgh Post-Gazette staff walked off the job over a year ago, they had been working without a contract since 2017 and hadn’t gotten an across-the-board raise in 16 years. Sixteen months later, they’re still on strike.
Labor’s Tide Is Rising
North American workers are gearing up for pivotal labor actions. With a tight labor market and the tailwind of significant union wins, the coming months promise a royal rumble between labor and capital.
No Union Democracy, No Union Revitalization
Union democracy shouldn’t be seen as an abstract good separate from more important strategic considerations about rebuilding labor. Without democratizing labor, we can’t rebuild labor.
How Italy’s Post-Fascists Fell in Love With J. R. R. Tolkien
A lifelong fan of J. R. R. Tolkien, Italy’s far-right prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, was first in line for last year’s exhibition on him in Rome. Like others before her, Meloni has appropriated Tolkien’s fantasies to refashion fascism for the 21st century.
Long Waves Are Key to the Development of Capitalism
Belgian Marxist Ernest Mandel explained long waves as a key factor in capitalism’s development. Mandel’s theory is one of the most sophisticated attempts to show why capitalism goes through extended periods of expansion and stagnation.
Big Money Is Taking Over MDMA-Assisted Therapy
Nonprofit MAPS promised to bring therapeutic MDMA to market on the back of philanthropic donations. But then it morphed into a for-profit concern — and with FDA approval looming, Big Pharma is trying to get in on the act.
Daniel Bensaïd Was One of Marxism’s Great Renovators
Daniel Bensaïd rejected the idea of historical inevitability, seeing history as a series of crossroads, not a single path. For Bensaïd, class struggle will remain central as long as capitalism exists, but the outcome is always unpredictable.
It’s Time to Dismantle the US Sanctions-Industrial Complex
The US has built up an elaborate machinery for waging economic warfare on its rivals with little or no public debate. This sanctions-industrial complex is a disguised form of imperialism and a dangerous source of global instability.
US Elected Officials Keep Explicitly Supporting Genocide
Rep. Andy Ogles’s comment that “we should kill them all” in Gaza has drawn little outrage, to say nothing of public censure like what Rep. Rashida Tlaib has faced. That’s because openly calling for genocide of Palestinians has become normalized in America.
Four Problems for the Degrowth Movement
Though increasingly influential in activist circles and policy discussions, the degrowth perspective on addressing climate change suffers from serious analytical and political flaws. We need a program of green growth to decarbonize the planet.
If Michigan Primary Voters Snub Joe Biden, Blame Joe Biden
Rashida Tlaib is getting blowback for urging Michigan Democratic primary voters to cast their ballots as “uncommitted” rather than for Joe Biden. But if voters take issue with Biden’s support for Israel’s assault on Gaza, that’s no one’s fault but his own.
Effective Altruists Are Stoking Tensions With China
The Biden administration has had an open-door policy for effective altruist think tanks in the White House — who have in turn used their influence to push a hawkish anti-China agenda by casting the development of AI as the new arms race.
Big Pharma Is Cheating Americans Out of Publicly Funded Drugs
A new report reveals that Americans funded the development of all ten drugs up for price negotiations with Medicare, but Big Pharma still wants to keep prices for those publicly funded drugs sky high.
Get These Rich People Off the Moon
Texas start-up Intuitive Machines has achieved the first moon landing by a private firm. It’s dumping rich people’s detritus on the lunar surface — a grim sign of how the superrich plan to plant their flag beyond our own planet.
Historian José Gotovitch Chronicled Belgian Communism
José Gotovitch, who died last week, was one of Belgium’s leading historians. In a recent interview, he discussed his final book on the interwar Belgian Communists, and the youth who filled the ranks of the Resistance against Nazism.
Colombia’s Left Government Is Pursuing Ambitious Labor Reform
Colombia’s left-wing president, Gustavo Petro, is fighting for a comprehensive labor reform package that will protect workers and restore unions after decades of violence and suppression. Conservative forces are intent on stopping the reform in its tracks.
Indonesia’s New President Is Dangerously Authoritarian
Indonesia’s new president, Prabowo, has a gruesome track record of human rights violations and hostility to democracy. But a slick campaign successfully presented him as a cuddly grandpa figure, with crucial assistance from outgoing president Jokowi.