The Internet Doesn’t Have to Be This Bad
The internet feels like an antisocial, dystopian wasteland. Capitalism made it this way. But if we can pry the web out of the hands of the profit motive, we can build a better internet.
350 Search Result(s) for: “abundance”
Eugene V. Debs: In a Just Society, Every Day Would Be Labor Day
On Labor Day, there’s perhaps no one better to read than Eugene V. Debs. Here’s his 1903 Labor Day message, never before republished, in which he declares, “The struggle in which we are now engaged will end only when every day is Labor Day.”
Corporate France Says: Hands Off Our Private Jets
French tycoons face rising scrutiny over their use of private jets for even the shortest flights. Business lobby group MEDEF’s summit struck down all criticism of the superrich — and set out plans for an energy transition that puts their interests first.
Marxism Can Help Us Make Sense of the Medieval Crusades
The Crusades seem like a classic example of religious ideology triumphing over materialism. But a closer look shows that multiple class interests underpinned the crusading enterprise, from merchants seeking trade routes to peasants evading feudal oppression.
Bernie Is Right: Extreme Wealth Concentration Has Turned America Into an Oligarchy
A new congressional report commissioned by Bernie Sanders finds that the 1 percent now own one-third of all wealth, while the bottom half of Americans hold only 2 percent. It’s another sign of the slide into oligarchy that Sanders has warned about for years.
Automation Doesn’t Have to Mean Unemployment and Misery
Automation won’t necessarily lead to either mass unemployment or a utopian workless future. Power and politics impact how automation affects work — which means that automation can create dignified jobs through class struggle.
The Robots Won’t Save Us Until We Control the Means of Production
Automated robot landlords are here to make the wealthy even wealthier, reminding us that advances in technology always benefit the rich. But it doesn’t have to be that way — with workers at the helm, technological gains could be distributed equally.
New York’s Socialist Bench Just Got Even Bigger
Democratic Socialists of America now boasts eight representatives in New York’s state government and an ambitious legislative agenda focused on working-class issues like childcare, transit, and housing.
Economists’ Obsession With “Efficiency” Is Just an Endorsement of Greed
The global economy is “efficient” alright: it efficiently funnels wealth to the top while leaving most of humanity behind.
Party Down Is Back and Starkly Funny About Our Terrible Times
The first two seasons of Party Down were both honest and affectionate as the series satirized the lives of Hollywood aspirants working dead-end jobs. The show’s long-delayed third season retains that winning formula.
The Problem With AI Is the Problem With Capitalism
Workers’ fear of new artificial intelligence technology makes sense: that technology has the potential to eliminate their jobs. But if we didn’t live under capitalism, AI could be used to liberate us from drudgery rather than hurl us into poverty.
Plasma Donors Are Being Exploited in America
The United States is one of five countries where it’s legal to sell your plasma, and roughly 20 million people here do it every year. “Donating” plasma is low-paid labor that has become essential to an exploitative global medical industry.
Jacobin Is 13 Years Old. Get or Gift a Subscription to Support Our Work.
To celebrate our 13 years of Jacobin, we’re offering $13 subscriptions with free worldwide shipping this week. There isn’t a better time to support our work.
The Forgotten History of American Populism
Liberals often equate populism with the politics of Donald Trump. But during the Gilded Age, when massive inequality led to poverty and exploitation, populism meant working-class resistance to the power of corporations.
Rich People in the US Have Been Allowed to Get Way Too Rich
The next time you’re struggling to pay your rent or afford child care, think about this: the uberrich in the US are now paying top dollar to cut in line to get health care and hiring rotating casts of nannies so one is always at their beck and call.
Prosperity Gospel
The Bible's actual takes on wealth are not what you might think.
An Unusable Past
Nicolas Grospierre’s photographs of collective farm buildings in Israel and the Baltic states reveal these communities’ utopian dreams — and their uncomfortable colonial underpinnings.
A Good General Rule: Don’t Appease Rupert Murdoch
Why is Keir Starmer’s Labour Party reportedly agreeing not to introduce reforms to British media in exchange for the support of right-wing media baron Rupert Murdoch?
The ACLU Fired One of Its Workers for Criticizing Management
Yesterday a National Labor Relations Board judge found that the ACLU fired an employee for engaging in the protected activity of criticizing her working conditions.
In Rachel Kushner’s New Novel, a Spy Infiltrates the Left
In Rachel Kushner’s fourth novel, Creation Lake, a world-weary spy infiltrates a leftist commune. Hoping to entrap its leaders, she ends up being consumed by the strain of living a double life.