Nobody Asked for AI
We tend to think that markets reflect consumer choice. But the artificial-intelligence boom has been powered by the investment decisions of concentrated capital rather than by consumer demand.
Blog
No, Americans Aren’t Better Off Than Western Europeans
You were born on the wrong continent. Yes, the United States has a greater GDP per capita than Western Europe. But that GDP has not translated into broader prosperity in time and well-being for ordinary workers.
The Marxist Case for the Technofeudal Hypothesis
Yanis Varoufakis has called Big Tech’s overweening power to shape the modern economy “technofeudalism.” Writing for Jacobin, he argues that this isn’t a moral critique but one based in the dynamic of capital accumulation today.
New York’s Socialist Victories Can't Be So Easily Dismissed
Centrist Democrats are writing off New York City socialist wins as a fluke reducible to gentrification and low turnout. But it was the Democratic Party machine itself that spent decades cultivating a depoliticized electorate.
Mexican Sovereignty in the Era of the Donroe Doctrine
US governments have long relied on Mexico as a southern gendarme, even as it proudly declares its sovereignty. Faced with Trumpian imperialism, the challenge for Claudia Sheinbaum’s government is to make that independence more real.
The Class Divide Haunting Climate Politics
New research confirms that policy messages on climate favored by college-educated liberals often fall flat with working-class Americans. The good news? Workers are favorable to pro-climate policies that speak directly to their everyday material concerns.
Socialists Are Out-Organizing the Democratic Establishment
The Democratic establishment’s hysteria over the Democratic Socialists of America’s organizing methods has it exactly backward: the Democratic Party has almost no ability to democratically organize voters, while DSA is reviving grassroots campaigning.
Centrist Democrats Keep Making Awful Health Reform Proposals
The centrist Searchlight Institute has released a health care policy proposal with the hope that Democratic candidates will adopt it. The grab bag of policies is internally contradictory and cruel in places — and fails to insure everyone.
The Border in Ceuta, Spain, Is Anything but Permissive
When 50,000 people briefly crossed into Ceuta in North Africa, many pundits damned the lax Spanish line on migration. In truth, the hardening of the border around Ceuta since the 1990s has made such desperate attempts to storm the barrier more common.
The Blue Collar Brigade Has the Right Messengers
A slate of union-backed working-class Democratic candidates is running on an economic-populist platform in swing districts. If the Blue Collar Brigade proves successful, their strategy could set a precedent for winning working-class votes.
Mahmoud Khalil Is Suing the Trump Administration
Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil was detained and threatened with deportation by the Trump administration for protesting Israel’s genocide. He spoke to Jacobin about why he is now suing the administration.
The New Spider-Man Is Pure Fun
The record-breaking Spider-Man: Brand New Day is gleeful, undemanding fun that doesn’t pretend to be anything more. In a superhero monoculture that keeps draining Hollywood of money, talent, and ambition, that’s about the best you can hope for.