The GOP Is Afraid to Cut Social Security. Good.
Republicans hate Social Security and Medicare, but the programs’ universal structure makes them too risky to take on. We need more programs like that.
Blog
Why Joan Robinson Blamed Unions for Inflation While Milton Friedman Did Not
During the ’50s-to-’70s debate on inflation, left Keynesians like Joan Robinson, who strongly supported trade unionism, saw it as a key cause of high inflation, while Milton Friedman and the monetarists, who hated unions, insisted they weren’t to blame for it.
Germany Had Its Debts Written Off. Today, We Should Do the Same for the Global South.
Seventy years ago today, Germany’s debts from World War II were written off. Today climate activists around the world are protesting in front of German embassies to demand the cancellation of the debt of the Global South.
How the Nazis Exploited the Reichstag Fire to Launch a Reign of Terror
Ninety years ago today, a fire engulfed the Reichstag in Berlin. The arsonist, Marinus van der Lubbe, was hoping to inspire resistance to fascism, but the Nazis used the fire as a pretext to impose a regime of violent terror against the German left.
In Bosnia, the End of War Has Not Brought Peace
The Dayton Agreement ended the bloody Bosnian War of the 1990s, but it hasn’t resolved the conflicts plaguing the country. It’s a cautionary tale for finding an effective peace agreement in Ukraine.
G. M. Tamás Wasn’t “Hungary’s Last Marxist”
Upon G. M. Tamás’s death last month, even many laudatory obituaries claimed that he marked the endpoint of Hungary’s Marxist traditions. But Marxism isn't dead in Hungary.
A Rare Book Scandal Provides a Warning About Private Equity
In the early 2000s, a French company sold joint ownership shares of manuscripts for cheap, promising high returns for working people who bought in. The returns never came. The same could happen to public workers’ savings invested in private equity.
The Best Political Movie Since Z Is Up for an Oscar
We spoke to director Santiago Mitre about his Oscar-nominated film Argentina, 1985, which depicts the struggle to bring the leaders of Argentina’s murderous military junta to justice.
Capitalism Makes Everyone Bend to Its Will, Rich and Poor Alike
In his new book Mute Compulsion, Søren Mau argues that to understand and end capitalism, we need to analyze how it not only subordinates the poor to the rich but in fact exerts economic power over everyone — including capitalists themselves.
Britain’s Economic Model Is Crumbling, but Its Politicians Don’t Want to Face Reality
Thatcherism and austerity have had a devastating impact on British society, with stagnant wages and declining life expectancy. There’s a crying need for radical change, but no mainstream political force is offering to deliver it.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine is Refusing to Call the Derailment in East Palestine a Disaster
Ohio governor Mike DeWine is bungling the cleanup after the recent train derailment in East Palestine, which released harmful pollutants. His refusal to announce a disaster declaration is grounds for scrutiny of his connections to the railroad industry.
The State of Ukrainian Democracy Is Not Strong
One year after Russia’s invasion, Ukraine is backsliding away from democratic freedoms and liberal pluralism.