How Finance Exploits Us
The new era of financial capitalism, with its explosion of household debt and its dependence on complex derivatives, has caused fundamental changes in the way capital exploits labor.
20395 Article(s) by: Yi San
Yi San is a freelance writer based in New York.
Even Nice, “Generous” Rich People Are Not Your Friends
Rich people love to give away money for charitable causes to convince you that they’re not so bad after all. Don’t be fooled: we need to dispossess the benevolent rich of their ill-gotten gains, too.
A Clash of Loyalties in the Parisian Suburbs
Beyond clichés about a “clash of civilizations,” a new book by French sociologist Fabien Truong illuminates the role of Islam in the lives of France’s poor and marginalized.
Which Way to Socialism?
Is there a democratic road to socialism? And if so, what does it mean for socialists today?
The Welfare State They Were In
Belle and Sebastian’s If You’re Feeling Sinister seems like a soundtrack of breezy lives of personal heartbreak and occasional triumph unencumbered by the larger troubles of the world. But the album is a direct product of Scotland’s welfare state.
Finding God in Solidarity
An interview with Rabbi Brant Rosen, founder of the United States’s first openly non-Zionist temple.
Space Exploration Isn’t Just for Capitalists
Socialists aren’t usually mentioned in the history of US space travel. They should be: the history of radicals who believed space exploration and science in general should be in the service of the people is one the Left should reclaim.
We Don’t Need Space Colonies, and We Definitely Don’t Need Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos says his space colonies will produce “a thousand Mozarts and a thousand Einsteins.” But we already have millions of talented people here on Earth — the problem is, they’re toiling in obscurity for people like Bezos.
Emmanuel Macron Wants to Set Space on Fire
The 1960s space race prompted international treaties insisting that space travel should only be used for peaceful purposes. Today, Emmanuel Macron’s plans to put military hardware in space point to a dangerous new arms race.
The Wrong Way to End Austerity in Alaska
The recent round of austerity measures in Alaska have been devastating. The cuts make clear that Alaskans need a new way of funding spending that impacts the wealthiest in the state, not than the poorest.
“We Work, We Sweat, Put $15 on Our Check!”
After years of Democratic prevaricating, the House has passed a $15 minimum wage bill. It’s almost certain to die in the Senate — but it shows how far the Fight for $15 movement has come.
A Musician for the Class Struggle
Italian composer Luigi Nono’s career told the story of European communism writ large: brash and revolutionary at the height of the 1960s and ‘70s, reflective and uncertain as the Italian Communist Party collapsed and the possibility of radical change receded. His life is a reminder that no artist is free from the politics of our time.
Please Don’t Embarrass Our Apartheid State
When Netanyahu’s education minister defended “gay conversion therapy” and called for the entire West Bank’s annexation, critics condemned only the homophobia. Apartheid’s defenders don’t give a damn about the oppressed — they’re just embarrassed when the far right undermines their pinkwashing of a brutal, illegal occupation.
We’re Having a Different Conversation Than Them
Bernie Sanders didn’t attend Netroots Nation last weekend. That’s because he knows who the real audience for his democratic-socialist politics is (working people, not the Daily Kos crowd).
Meet the New Boss (But It’s Literally the Same Person)
The European Union is so hostile to democracy that its new leadership is entirely made of people who have already been in power for years. It doesn’t matter if their policies ruined millions of lives — the only requirement was being on the side of the wealthy.
The Democratic Party Is a Contradiction
The Democratic Party isn’t a coalition — it’s a contradiction. And thanks to the conflict between Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and her fellow progressive House members and Nancy Pelosi, that contradiction, between a restive base demanding radical change and a hidebound leadership bent on moderation, is now visible for all to see.
The Worst Environmentalists in the World
The New York chapter of the League of Conservation Voters is a cesspool of fossil fuel greenwashing.
Brazil’s Deflategate
Lula is Tom Brady during Deflategate. Judge Moro is the NFL and the odious Roger Goodell. Please let us explain and don’t unsubscribe from this fine magazine.
The 5 Biggest Lies Joe Biden Is Telling About Medicare for All
Joe Biden keeps lying about Medicare for All and won’t stop anytime soon — he has to, to sell his own Bidencare plan. But Medicare for All will always win on the merits.
A Betrayal of New York City Carpenters
New York carpenters are facing a disastrous two-tier contract filled with cuts for new workers. Rank-and-file carpenters have to fight back against the union leaders who rammed it down their throats.