Red Flags Over Germany
One hundred years ago today, radical sailors, soldiers, and workers in Germany rose up to put an end to the carnage of World War I. And the revolutionary upheaval had only just begun.
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The Rise and Fall of the Socialist Party of America
Despite its ultimate demise, the Socialist Party shows us that the United States possesses no special immunity against socialist politics.
From Criminals to Heroes
Top intelligence officials like John Brennan have been posturing as Trump critics to obscure their own scandalous pasts. And many liberals are buying it.
Towards a Democratic Socialism
One of socialists’ primary aims must be to transform the state — wedding representative democracy to new types of popular power while battling to democratize the authoritarian aspects of the state.
Isaac Deutscher and the Fate of Polish Communism
The Polish Communists were savagely persecuted by Stalin in the 1930s, before he raised their party to power after 1945. Despite attempts at reform, their regime could never transcend its origins as a Soviet satellite state.
OPEC Was First Formed as a Challenge to Western Energy Dominance
As oil became a key energy source in the 20th century, Western companies backed by the US and UK monopolized production in the Global South. But in the age of decolonization, newly independent nations fought for a different global energy order.
J. Edgar Hoover’s American Century
As director of the FBI for several decades, J. Edgar Hoover helped build a massive, professionalized national security state and hounded leftists out of public life. In doing so, he profoundly shaped the course of US history.
Donald Trump Is Dismantling Liberal Internationalism
America’s belief that it can be militarily dominant in every major region appears to be wavering. But without challengers, the Republicans’ loss of conviction in liberal internationalism will harden into a more dangerous global authoritarianism.
The Ghost of Stalin Still Hasn’t Been Laid to Rest
Joseph Stalin died 70 years ago today, having stamped his indelible mark upon the Soviet system. Stalin’s legacy continues to haunt the post-Soviet landscape, right up to the present war with Ukraine.
The US-Saudi Split and the Yemen War
Will Saudis’ battles with Joe Biden help end Washington’s support for their brutal war in Yemen?
A Mutiny Against the West’s Order
Western hegemony is in decline, and the Left has to reckon with a new international balance of power. Peter Mertens, general secretary of the Workers’ Party of Belgium, spoke to us about what the “mutinies” in the Global South mean for socialist strategy.
Anne Applebaum’s Dystopia of Rules
Anne Applebaum made her name on the Right, but conservatives’ illiberal turn created rifts between her and her former comrades. In Autocracy, Inc., she takes the side of liberalism against authoritarianism but misidentifies the causes of global disorder.
No, We Don’t Need Conscript Armies
The head of the British Army and Germany’s defense minister have each recently called for their countries to prepare to be on a war footing. Their call for mass mobilization is deeply unpopular — and at odds with the realities of modern warfare.
The Middle East After the Fall of Assad
In a wide-ranging interview, the political economist Helen Thompson discusses how the fall of Bashar al-Assad in Syria has transformed the region. With an incoming Trump administration, the stage is now set for hawks to confront an isolated Iran.
The Vatican’s History of Vicious Anti-Communism
Modern European history is sometimes told as a story of growing secularization. But the Catholic Church played a central role in 20th-century Europe as one of the main purveyors of anti-communism and a frequent ally of far-right reaction.
Canada Is Happy to Provide Ukraine With Weapons — But Not Debt Relief
Although Ukraine is hobbled by the debt it owes its international creditors, Canada’s support for the country does not include any debt relief. It does, however, include guns and even more loans.
How Boris Johnson’s Party Shielded Russian Oligarchs’ Cash
Bankrolled by the finance sector, Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party has made the UK a safe haven for the dirtiest money in the world.
Leone Ginzburg, a Forgotten Intellectual in the Fight Against Fascism
Born to a Jewish family in the Russian Empire in 1909, the brilliant intellectual Leone Ginzburg was deeply shaped by the October Revolution and the class struggles in postwar Turin. His short life, ending in an Italian jail in 1944, was devoted to the struggle against fascism and for socialism.
Corporate Interests Are Pushing the Disastrous Idea of a No-Fly Zone
This week, 27 foreign policy experts called for a no-fly zone in Ukraine that would lead to the shooting down of Russian planes — an idea that could lead to a nuclear holocaust. Their message is being bankrolled by arms manufacturers and fossil fuel interests.
Mikhail Lobanov Was Jailed Because Putin’s Cronies Are Afraid
Moscow-based socialist Mikhail Lobanov is a leading left-wing critic of Vladimir Putin. His jailing this Thursday reflects authorities’ determination to silence critics of the war, the disastrous effects of which are playing havoc on Russian society.