From political assassinations to coups to the systematic cover-up of big business malfeasance and all manner of deep state criminality, American history is full of bizarre stories about the hidden forces of power in society. But how much do conspiracy theories really explain about the brute facts of political and economic power that structure our everyday lives? Are they useful for political action, or are they a symptom of depoliticization?

While we live in an age of globalization, the nation-state remains the locus of the conflicts that structure most aspects of everyday life. In this issue, we review how nationalism, an ideology meant to generate identification with the goals of national ruling classes, has reemerged in response to the crisis of neoliberal globalization — and how the Left can fight for an alternative.

In this issue, we analyze the contours and causes of our hollowed-out political landscape: collapsed union density, the disintegration of associational and civic groups, and the weakening of an already anti-majoritarian representative system. The major parties are insulated from popular demands and function more like cartels than representative bodies. The result is mass disillusionment with politics and a decline in class-based voting across the developed world, otherwise known as dealignment.

Inside, we show how inflation management is fundamentally about political choices and class priorities. We look at what causes inflation and ways to combat it that do not put the needs of capital before everyone else. But we also trace a broader history of how plans for an economy that works for everyone have been shelved by privatization and the commodification of public goods.

How did we go from Build Back Better to Build Back Never? Featuring a new look and almost 200 pages of content from Jeremy Corbyn, Azmat Khan, Anand Gopal, Owen Hatherley, Christian Lorentzen, Hadas Thier, Alex Press and many others.

What does it mean when socialists are big enough to be a political presence, but too small to carry out their program? We discuss our impasse and the path out in a way that points to real action, not dejection.

What should we have to say about crime, then, a topic that looks like it will be an important part of politics for years to come in the United States and beyond?

Our summer edition takes on the challenge of thinking about the big questions of agency in the 21st century.

It's on the "Ruling Class" and features excellent writing from Doug Henwood, Nicole Aschoff, Benjamin C. Waterhouse, and a host of other contributors.

We look back at the chaotic last four years of American politics, the important implications of the November elections, and what it will take to build a left-wing oppositional movement for justice and peace in the Biden era.