Search London Progressive Journal
The Grime Behind the Crime
It seems crazy, but the evidence about lead is stacking up. Behind crimes that have destroyed so many lives, is there a much greater crime asks George Monbiot.... [read more]
Protests turn to Riots as Working Classes Vent Their Anger
As the dust settles on the UK riots, Ben Maisky considers the possible causes of the recent civil unrest. ... [read more]
Climate Change, Extreme Weather, Destructive Lifestyles
Throughout the world heat waves, flooding and uncontrollable wildfires have caused widespread havoc, lives have been lost, homes destroyed, livelihoods ruined. ... [read more]
Shimomuran Economics: The No-Debt Investment Credit Creation Path to More Rapid Economic Growth
George Tait Edwards MBE makes the case for the urgent implementation of Keynesian economics to stimulate growth, based on the economic model's previous success in the US, China and Japan... [read more]
Making the Case for Equality
Matt Genner considers a recent Equality Trust report on the societal benefits of social equality.... [read more]
Unprecedented!
Michael Roberts on why the present economic crisis demonstrates the vulnerability of "free market" capitalism. ... [read more]
Alcohol: Why do we drink?
Alcohol consumption is one damaging effect among many that flow from this dominant socio-economic system... [read more]
America’s Brexit: to fight Trump, fight Capitalism!
What once seemed unthinkable — akin to an episode of the Twilight Zone — has become a surreal reality... [read more]
Menace on the Menu: Development and the Globalization of Servitude (Part 1)
In his book ‘The World Economy: A Millennial Perspective’, economist Angus Maddison noted that India was the richest country in the world and had controlled a third of global wealth until the 17th century... [read more]
Why climate ‘uncertainty’ is no excuse for doing nothing
Former environment minister Owen Paterson has called for the UK to scrap its climate change targets... [read more]
What can we do with what Thomas Piketty teaches us about capital in the twenty-first century? (Part 2 of 2)
Part 2 of Eric Toussaint's review of Thomas Piketty book Capital in the Twenty-First Century... [read more]
The Internet: A Democratising Force or Information Overload?
Matt Genner examines the impact of the dot com revolution on democratic debate and political activism.... [read more]
The Bankers’ “Power Revolution”: How the Government Got Shackled by Debt
The U.S. federal debt has more than doubled since the 2008 financial crisis, shooting up from $9.4 trillion in mid-2008 to over $22 trillion in April 2019... [read more]
Clean eating versus industry
During the eighties and nineties here in the UK we were broadly encouraged to eat lower fat spreads such as margarine, associated with a push for polyunsaturated fat consumption... [read more]
How David Cameron's Coalition Government Stole the 2015 General Election
This article is an edited extract (from section 3.9) of the book How David Cameron Fixed The 2015 General Election and Much Else ... [read more]
The ECB’s Noose Around Greece
Remember when Goldman Sachs delivered a thinly-veiled threat to the Greek Parliament, warning them to elect a pro-austerity prime minister or risk having central bank liquidity cut off to their banks?... [read more]
Banks and the New “Too Big to Jail” Doctrine
Part 1 of the series 'Banks and the new “too big to jail” doctrine' by Eric Toussaint... [read more]
Who Owns the Future?
Bryan Gould states there is no novelty in arguing, as George Osborne does, that there is no alternative to his destructive and divisive policies of austerity... [read more]
How we ended up paying farmers to flood our homes
This government let the farming lobby rip up the rulebook on soil protection – and now we are suffering the consequences, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
How we ended up paying farmers to flood our homes
This government let the farming lobby rip up the rulebook on soil protection – and now we are suffering the consequences, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
China’s All-Inclusive Economic Miracle: The Third Economic Bomb
George Tait Edwards explains China's recent economic success by examining its past history... [read more]
New beginnings
John Green asks whether we need a mass party to represent the unions and the left and to advance the interests of the entire working class (Part 1)... [read more]
Women Leaders key to post-conflict development on Bougainville
Following a recent trip to the island, coinciding with the tenth anniversary of the end of the Bougainville Civil War, Catherine Wilson reports on the role women played in bringing peace to the island.... [read more]
Muslims: The modern day Jews?
Ben Maisky reflects on the parallels between the treatment of Jews early in the 20th Century and that of Muslims today.... [read more]
Worker Self-Management Introduced in Guayana, Venezuela
Tamara Pearson on a bold Venezuelan government initative to radically democratise a number of state-owned industries.... [read more]
Chavez Calls for Systemic Change to Save Planet
Hugo Chavez has accused the world's powerful countries of lacking the political will to take serious action on climate change, as Kiraz Janicke reports.... [read more]
‘Close to One Billion’ People Going Hungry. That’s Capitalism.
Fred McDowell on a UN report which is offers a damning indictment of the failures of the capitalist world economy.... [read more]
Rising Politics of Intolerance and the Need for Unity
Over the last 20 years extreme right-wing groups have been on the rise throughout the world. They share a belief in white supremacism and conspiracy theories that allege there is a global plot to replace white Christian populations with Muslims and people of color. ... [read more]
A Global Battle of Values and Ideals
With each day that passes the conflict and animosity between the conservative reactionary forces and the global movement for progressive change becomes more acute, uglier and increasingly dangerous... [read more]
This Radical Plan to Fund the ‘Green New Deal’ Just Might Work
With what author and activist Naomi Klein calls “galloping momentum,” the “Green New Deal” promoted by Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., appears to be forging a political pathway for solving all of the ills of society and the planet in one fell swoop... [read more]
Sharing is Key to a New Economic and Democratic Order
In order to meet the colossal challenges of the time, fundamental change to the socio-economic order is needed... [read more]
Fox in the Hen House: Why Interest Rates Are Rising
The Fed is aggressively raising interest rates, although inflation is contained, private debt is already at 150% of GDP, and rising variable rates could push borrowers into insolvency. So what is driving the Fed’s push to “tighten”?... [read more]
Trump’s $1 Trillion Infrastructure Plan: Lincoln Had a Bolder Solution
Central banks have been pumping money into the global economy without a whole lot to show for it... [read more]
Fracktured Britain
By downplaying all the issues that adversely affect the environment, the politicos have been mutually assuring our own demise - and theirs!... [read more]
Bank of North Dakota Soars Despite Oil Bust: A Blueprint for California?
Despite North Dakota's collapsing oil market, its state-owned bank continues to report record profits. This article looks at what California, with fifty times North Dakota's population, could do following that state's lead... [read more]
Junior doctors’ struggle escalates as Tory desperation shows
So far this year, junior doctors – for the first time in over 40 years – have taken two days of industrial action in defence of their terms and conditions, and to defend the NHS against Tory cuts and privatisation.... [read more]
Iraq: US, UK Fabricated WMD Threat
The scorched earth onslaught of 2003 and subsequent years of bombings brought further radioactive pollution in orders of magnitude. The US is now bombing again.... [read more]
Trumping the Federal Debt Without Playing the Default Card
The government can reduce the debt by buying it – and ripping it up... [read more]
Grexit or Jubilee? How Greek Debt Can Be Annulled
The crushing Greek debt could be canceled the way it was made – by sleight of hand... [read more]
English Heritage – with the UK’s general election ever closer, whose culture are we ‘celebrating’?
I fear the outcome of the general election; I fear the deals made by politicians desperate to stay in power, deals that will further harm the disadvantaged poor... [read more]
How stable is the economic recovery?
The growth we have seen in the past year may not be conducive to a long-term stable recovery... [read more]
Economic Policies for an Incoming Labour Government (Part 9 of 9)
Further Proposals and a Conclusion... [read more]
The Impunity Enjoyed by the Banks must Stop
The final part of the series by Eric Toussaint - The Banks and the “Too Big to Jail” Doctrine... [read more]
Economic Policies for an Incoming Labour Government (Part 5 of 9)
The Two Great Traditions in Western Economic Thinking
... [read more]
EU Showdown: Greece Takes on the Vampire Squid
Greece and the troika (the International Monetary Fund, the EU, and the European Central Bank) are in a dangerous game of chicken... [read more]
Has the Swedish Left Lost Again?: The 2014 Electoral Implosion, Civilian Deindustrialization and the Swedish Dilemma
Part 3 of Jonathan Feldman's analysis of the recent Swedish general election... [read more]
Would Scottish Independence Mean Economic Sovereignty?
Scottish voters will go to the polls on September 18th to decide whether Scotland should become an independent country... [read more]
Acquiescing to Big Biotech: The Deceptions and Falsehoods of the GMO Lobby
British Environment Secretary Owen Paterson is a staunch supporter of the GMO sector despite mounting evidence pointing to the deleterious health, social, ecological and environmental impacts of GMOs... [read more]
Fast-tracking Neo-liberalism in India
Apparently, the results of the national general election in India mark a turning point. We are told that the nation has spoken and has given the new Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his BJP party a ‘landslide victory’... [read more]
Syria and Ukraine: Two Elections, Diplomatic Shenanigans, Double Standards and Insurgents
Thursday 15th May marked Nakba Day, Yawm an-Nakba, “Day of Catastrophe”: the onset of the displacement of perhaps 800,000 Palestinians... [read more]
Syria and Ukraine: Two Elections, Diplomatic Shenanigans, Double Standards and Insurgents
... [read more]
Capitalism and crisis
Nelson Wan provides an overview of Marx's explanation for why capitalism goes into crisis, discussing the inherent contradictions within the capitalism system... [read more]
Carry out the legacy of Hugo Chavez!
5th March marked one year since the death of Hugo Chávez, the great Venezuelan revolutionary, who was an inspiration to the masses in Latin America and across the world... [read more]
What can we do with what Thomas Piketty teaches us about capital in the twenty-first century?
Part 1 of Eric Toussaint's review of Thomas Piketty book Capital in the Twenty-First Century (Part 1 of 2)... [read more]
Nuclear scare stories are a gift to the truly lethal coal industry
Coal is a much nastier power source than the one we have chosen to fear in a deadly form of displacement activity, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
Schulz Fights For A Democratic Europe
I first heard Martin Schulz speak in Sofia in June at the PES Congress. He was then, as he is now, President of the European Parliament. He articulated a clear vision for reforming the EU which struck a chord... [read more]
The Bank Guarantee That Bankrupted Ireland
The Irish have a long history of being tyrannized, exploited, and oppressed—from the forced conversion to Christianity in the Dark Ages, to slave trading of the natives in the 15th and 16th centuries, to the mid-nineteenth century “potato famine” that was really a holocaust... [read more]
An Excerpt From Carl Sandburg’s Poem “Yes, The People” Re-considered As An Economic And Political Commentary
All people receive new information through a kind of perceptual grid consisting of their background, education and prejudices, which modifies their capability to absorb new information... [read more]
Banks versus the People: the Underside of a Rigged Game! (Part 3) - The greatest offensive against European social rights since the Second World War
We should not underestimate the capacity of the elites to make the most of a crisis situation writes Eric Toussaint... [read more]
The Key Relevance of the Writings of Professor Kenneth Kenkichi Kurihara
George Tait Edwards explains how the writings of economist Kenneth Kurihara serve as the gateway to understanding Shimomuran high-growth economics ... [read more]
An Economic Policy For A Post Neo-Liberal World (Part 3 of 3)
Former Labour MP and member of the Shadow Cabinet, Bryan Gould, provides a road map for reviving Britain's ailing economy... [read more]
The Alternative 2013 Spending Review, Or What Mr Osborne Could Have Said If He Understood Macro-economics
The Spending Review by George Osborne contained no surprises. But suppose Mr Osborne really understood economics and actually wanted to improve the British economy. George Tait Edwards provides a constructive speech for a competent chancellor... [read more]
The Four Keynesian Cornerstones of Shimomuran Economics (or Investment Credit Economics)
In the General Theory Keynes made four key comments that presage the practice of Shimomuran investment credit economics writes George Tait Edwards... [read more]
Nations Get what their Financial-Industrial Systems Deliver: A Comparative Analysis of Three Different Groups of Financial-Industrial Systems
George Tait Edwards compares three different financial-industrial systems and considers the merits of each model... [read more]
Australia and Asylum Seekers: Media Perspectives
The issue is not 'boat people' but imperialist expansion explains Finn Bowen
... [read more]
The Mind Thieves
The evidence linking Alzheimer’s disease to the food industry is strong and is growing, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
George Galloway’s “Bradford Spring” & the fight for the alternative
Ben Maisky explains how George Galloway’s overwhelming victory in the Bradford West by-election demonstrates a clear rejection of the three main parties and their policies.... [read more]
Cuba’s truths
A interesting editorial from Cuba's national newspaper, Granma, rebuts the latest claims of human rights abuses put forth by the US and some countries of the EU... [read more]
New beginnings
John Green asks whether we need a mass party to represent the unions and the left and to advance the interests of the entire working class (Part 2)... [read more]
The Bible of the revolution and its Quran
The 2011 revolution of the people of Egypt shocked the international community on many different levels, says Iqbal Tamimi.... [read more]
A future apology
Mark Chivers apologises prospectively for our generation's lack of action in safeguarding the planet ... [read more]
Government Intervention Fails Indigenous Communities in Australia
Catherine Wilson on the continued disparity of wealth between the indigenous Australians and the rest of society and empty attempts by the government to change this.... [read more]
Bullying and Hijacking Muslim Women’s Voices in the UK Live on Air
Iqbal Tamimi reflects on a gross incident of on-air sexist bullying on the UK Arabic TV channel, Alhiwar.... [read more]
Eight Colombians Arrested on Suspicion of Spying in Venezuela
Kiraz Janicke on the latest incident to further fuel the considerable distrust between Colombia and Venezuela.... [read more]
Violent Clashes Shake Venezuela
A new law prohibiting Venezuela's corporate media from inciting violence against the Chavez government has prompted violent demonstrations from right-wing student groups, as James Suggett explains.... [read more]
The Nightmare in Afghanistan Worsens
Following the 100th British death of 2009 in Afghanistan, Steve Jones argues that the unwinnable war in Afghanistan can never deliver social and economic progress to the Afghan people.... [read more]
Green Shoots of Economic Recovery?
Mick Brooks considers recent claims that the world economic system is on the mend.... [read more]
Plan Colombia: The New Military Strategy for Afghanistan?
Garry Leech considers a worrying Washington initiative aimed at applying the disastrous 'Plan Colombia' counterinsurgency strategy to the battlefields of Afghanistan.... [read more]
Economic Outlook Worsens as Unemployment Increases
With UK unemployment figures reaching a ten-year high, Christopher Vasey reviews the experts' forecasts for an even gloomier 2009.... [read more]
The Patron Saint of Charlatans
George Monbiot asks: How does Christopher Booker get away with it?... [read more]
The New Labour Brand is Now Toxic
John Cruddas MP on why the Labour Party's present crisis calls for a rejection of the ethos of selfish individualism which defined the New Labour project.... [read more]
The Contest for the Centre
Matt Genner on how the ongoing struggle for the political centre ground is undermining democracy.... [read more]
Colombia’s Double Realities: Threats Against Indigenous Communities Ignored as Calls for a Second Re-election of President Uribe Get Louder
As Colombia's President Uribe continues to target the country's indigenous communities, Mario A. Murillo examines why many Colombians are opposed to Uribe's reactionary government.... [read more]
Poor get Hit as Business Walks Free
Rob Ray on why the Treasury won't plug the holes in the UK tax system.... [read more]
Is Gender-based Violence the Greatest Barrier to Equality?
Amnesty International's Lucy Wake on the ongoing worldwide struggle against gender-based violence.... [read more]
A Policeman's Lot: The Police and Industrial Action
David Brandon on why the left must support the police in their current industrial dispute.... [read more]
Cyclone Nargis: Exposing Forgotten Truths About the Burmese junta
Illegitimate, out of touch and increasingly isolated, the Burmese junta may struggle to regain its former prominence in the aftermath of Cyclone Nagis. ... [read more]
Heathrow - It's Terminal
Eric Hollies examines the government's contradictory position on climate change.... [read more]
Up On The Roof
Leo Murray explains the thinking behind Plane Stupid's recent high profile rooftoop protest at Westminster.... [read more]
This Week in the Media: Al Fayed Loses Dignity, Entertains Nation; Poll Findings Indicate Egalitarian Leanings Among Guardian Readers
David Floyd is offended by the grotesque Mohamed Al Fayed pantomime that's still plaguing our courts.... [read more]
Pinocchio's Green Nose
If your only introduction to the character of Pinocchio was Disney's animated adventures, you were assumed not to be "man enough" to handle Carlo Collodi's original and far more brutal fairy-tale... [read more]
The American Dream Is Alive and Well—in China
Home ownership has been called “the quintessential American dream.” Yet today less than 65% of American homes are owner occupied, and more than 50% of the equity in those homes is owned by the banks.... [read more]
How Russiagate replaced Analysis of the 2016 Election
Blaming an outside power is a good way to prevent self analysis and positive change. It's gone on far too long.... [read more]
What is Learning
The following is an extract from Learning, a work synthesising forty five years in education. ... [read more]
Climate Destruction - bearing witness with Dahr Jamail
“The question is not are we going to fail. The question is how?” Stephen Jenkinson, author and storyteller.... [read more]
Multi-Headed Dragon Monster Hominids Persist on Earth
The monster is a self-absorbed multiheaded dragon who in his conniving mind incredulously believes he is magnanimous... [read more]
‘No Love on the Streets’: Knife crime in Britain
There is something fundamentally wrong with a society when children feel they have to carry deadly weapons in order to protect themselves.... [read more]
Tribal Nationalism vs Global Unity
Change, discontent and uncertainty are some of the most prominent characteristics of the times.... [read more]
Britain’s Homeless Crisis
Under the suffocating shadow of economic austerity, homelessness in Britain is increasing, poverty and inequality deepening.... [read more]
Good Tyrant, Bad Tyrant: How and Why Britain Protected Rwanda's Paul Kagame and Helped Depose Libya's Muammar Gaddafi
In their new book Union Jackboot: What Your Media and Professors Don't Tell You About British Foreign Policy, doctors T.J. Coles and Matthew Alford discuss a range of topics, including neo-colonialism and the hypocrisy it necessitates.... [read more]
Fracking Filthy Fuel
Hydraulic fracking is the process of releasing gas and oil from shale rock: huge quantities of water, proppant (usually sand ) and chemicals are injected at high-pressure into hydrocarbon-bearing rocks... [read more]
U.S. IMMIGRATION: Is It Still an (inter-)National Asset or a Heartland Liability? You be the final Judge!
Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free ... [read more]
Tribute to Robert Parry - Investigative Journalist and Patriot
Robert (Bob) Parry was born in 1949 and died suddenly from pancreatic cancer in January 2018. An enthusiastic tribute to him and his work was recently held in Berkeley California... [read more]
The Post
Spielberg’s film The Post is about events that are now history. Yet they remain so relevant.... [read more]
How Uncle Sam Launders Marijuana Money
In a blatant example of “do as I say, not as I do,” the US government is profiting handsomely by accepting marijuana cash in the payment of taxes while imposing huge penalties on banks for accepting it as deposits.... [read more]
Regulation Is Killing Community Banks – Public Banks Can Revive Them
Crushing regulations are driving small banks to sell out to the megabanks, a consolidation process that appears to be intentional. Publicly-owned banks can help avoid that trend and keep credit flowing in local economies.... [read more]
Sovereign Debt Jubilee, Japanese-Style
Japan has found a way to write off nearly half its national debt without creating inflation. We could do that too.... [read more]
What a State-Owned Bank Can Do for New Jersey
Having a cheap and ready credit line with the state’s own bank can have similar benefits for New Jersey and other states... [read more]
“Ryancare” Dead on Arrival: Can We Please Now Try Single Payer?
The new American Health Care Act has been unveiled, and critics are calling it more flawed even than the Obamacare it was meant to replace... [read more]
Thanking Obama or The best slaves are the ones who thank their masters
As President Obama takes his last lap around the governing field before turning it over to Donald Trump LLC, many liberals and some deluded "leftists" have taken to thanking him for his eight years of service to the 1%... [read more]
Quo Vadis, Venezuela?
Even if highly exaggerated in the western press, the economic and political crisis in Venezuela is real... [read more]
Power Will Be Restored
Would or could a different leader of this or that have altered the prospect of past, present or future... [read more]
Hasta siempre Comandante
While some of the mainstream media are unsuccessfully seeking to tarnish Castro’s image, thousands upon thousands of messages are pouring into Cuba from literally all over the world to pay homage to him... [read more]
A Word About Fidel
Fidel – a revolutionary hero to some, a ruthless tyrant to others. Why, we must ask, should the question be posed in terms of such polarity?... [read more]
Women Battle The Highest Rates Of Attempted Suicide In Post-Conflict Bougainville
Sexual violence, early marriage, gender inequality and poverty are some of the factors being blamed for the alarming rates of depression and attempted suicide among women in Bougainville... [read more]
The Hungarian Revolution: 60 years on
On 23rd October 1956, political revolution against Stalinist dictatorship lept from the pages of Leon Trotsky’s writings and roared into life in Hungary.... [read more]
Civil War
Something strange happens to retired chiefs of the Israeli internal Security Service, Shin Bet.... [read more]
Fidel Castro – 90 revolutionary years
The historic leader of the Cuban Revolution celebrated his 90th birthday on 13 August 2016. CSC executive member Dr Francisco Dominguez looks back at his legacy and internationalism... [read more]
Can Jill Carry Bernie’s Baton?
Bernie Sanders supporters are flocking to Jill Stein, the presumptive Green Party presidential candidate... [read more]
Service or Disservice?
The National Health versus The Health of the Nation by outRageous!... [read more]
US Immigration policy is again adrift amid the Presidential Election
US leadership and competitiveness has historically been anchored on its immigration policy... [read more]
Today Forty Nine Years Ago
Palestine and Israel can live in peace and harmony. If only we could just glimpse all that we have in common in our humanity... [read more]
Is the UK’s Iraq Inquiry Set to “Savage” Tony Blair?
It seems no radio, television news or current affairs programme is without Blair giving his opinion on the upcoming UK referendum on whether to stay in the European Union... [read more]
Kudos for civic activism and social justice: you are a born communicator!
As we stroll along the transitory journey of life, it is only natural to progressively focus first and foremost on our education, acquiring skills, career aspirations, and perhaps marriage... [read more]
Is Dumbing Down a Reality?
As the future of public service broadcasting is uncertain, it is timely now to again ask a familiar question and to broaden the debate beyond the confines of sectional interest... [read more]
The Other Gandhi
I had a visitor: General Rehavam Ze'evi, known by his nickname Gandhi, an extreme rightist, came to see me.... [read more]
What is to be Done with the Banks? Radical Proposals for Radical Changes
Immediate measures for moving towards socialisation of the banking sector... [read more]
The European Central Bank’s true priorities
Part 7 in a series of articles by Eric Toussaint - Governments submit to “Too Big to Fail” banks ... [read more]
Health and Humanity Part 3: Charity Begins At Home
Increasingly, it appears charities and NGOs are behaving in a corporate fashion, which may or may not be a good thing.... [read more]
A Crisis Worse than ISIS? Bail-Ins Begin
While the mainstream media focus on ISIS extremists, a threat that has gone virtually unreported is that your life savings could be wiped out in a massive derivatives collapse. Bank bail-ins have begun in Europe, and the infrastructure is in place in the US... [read more]
Committee room 9: “Scotland and Palestine: Building Friendship and Solidarity”
Clive Hambidge reports on a recent seminar at the Houses of Parliament: “Scotland and Palestine” Building Friendship and Solidarity... [read more]
Palestine
Just to think of Palestine is evocative. From the lush orange orchards to the laden olive groves... [read more]
Corbyn – A Very British Story
Nowhere else in the world of politics, other than in Britain, is there or could there be a Jeremy Corbyn... [read more]
United-States : the Fed Bails Out Wall Street
Part 4 of Eric Toussaint's series: Governments submit to “Too Big to Fail” banks... [read more]
What Labour can learn from the Corbyn campaign
Bryan Gould, former Labour shadow cabinet minister, shows what lessons Jeremy Corbyn can teach the Labour Party... [read more]
Bill Hunter: The Life of a Revolutionary
I was around sixteen years old when I first met Bill Hunter who throughout all his life was committed to the cause for Marxism and in whose lifetime witnessed major global events... [read more]
Cligg’s Clangers
Dorset’s wildlife campaigners are working flat out to prepare for a possible badger cull... [read more]
Syria: America’s “Inherent Resolve” to Destroy Another Sovereign Nation
The US led “coalitions” of recent years have, it seems, moved on from destroying towns, now entire sovereign nations are laid to waste... [read more]
Aleppo a city ravaged by “Islamic State” and Imperialism
This is a report from an Aleppo resident whose identity is protected for their own security... [read more]
Fast-track Hands the Money Monopoly to Private Banks — Permanently
In March 2014, the Bank of England let the cat out of the bag... [read more]
Here’s to a Pretty Pink Nation
The all-Tory government has only been in place for four weeks. The amount of daft and non-think policy statements coming out would be laughable if they weren’t so dreadful... [read more]
Governments submit to “Too Big to Fail” banks (part 2)
Governments make gifts galore to private banks... [read more]
A Gerrymandered Election and A Flawed Mandate
To the great puzzlement and consternation of pundits and pollsters, the British general election produced what seems a great democratic victory for the Conservative party... [read more]
General Election disaster for working people as Tories stay in power
Big business and the fat cats of the City of London are celebrating the victory of their friends in the Tory Party... [read more]
Cultural Zoroastrianism: The Commonality amongst the South-Central-West Asians
The people of Zoroastrian faith, ethnically Persian, can be traced back in history for over 4,000 years... [read more]
How America Became an Oligarchy
According to a new study from Princeton University, American democracy no longer exists... [read more]
The Israeli Salvation Front
The 2015 election was a giant step towards the self-destruction of Israel. An Israel Salvation Front is needed now.... [read more]
Penrose Inquiry: “Bad Blood”, biological terrorism and cover-up under a failed western democracy
The Penrose Inquiry, the public inquiry into the circumstances in which patients treated by the NHS in Scotland became infected with Hepatitis C, HIV, or both, through the use of blood or blood products published its Final Report on Wednesday, 25 March 2015... [read more]
Economic Policies for an Incoming Labour Government (Part 1 of 9)
The Coalition Government’s Failed Austerity Programme... [read more]
John Cantlie writes from within Islamic State captivity… what messages should we take from his article?
Freedom of speech and expression has become a much debated concept depending who interprets and how it is defined... [read more]
Iraq’s Children: Ever Expendable - From Madeleine Albright to “Save the Children.”
By 2010, seven years in to an unending war, over a quarter of Iraqi children suffered from Post Traumatic Stress disorder... [read more]
Labour’s immigration Policy: A Progressive Perspective
Immigration, and how the parties claim they will control it, is one of a handful of issues that will be pivotal in swaying swing voters either right or left in this year’s general election... [read more]
Some deny society exists. Let’s prove them wrong
There’s more to life than consumerism. But to find it we need new models of supporting each other, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
With this attack on community energy the big six win out over 'big society'
By changing the rules, this government has sabotaged the promise of a UK community energy revolution and secured the dominance of the big six energy companies, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
The CIA, Torture, and American “Democracy”
The Senate report on CIA torture reads like a Stephen King novel, a transcript from the Nuremberg trials, or Josef Mengele’s notes from Auschwitz... [read more]
Why leaving fossil fuels in the ground is good for everyone
As a new report is published on the need to limit fossil fuel production to stop dangerous global warming, the UK is poised to pass an act committing governments to extracting as much oil out of the ground as possible, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
What GMOs Are Really About: Profits, Power and Geopolitics
Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are not essential for feeding the world... [read more]
Menace on the Menu: Development and the Globalization of Servitude (Part 2)
Me-first acquisitiveness is now pervasive throughout the upper strata of society... [read more]
Ukrainian parliamentary elections: if you don’t have anything nice to say
The expression “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all” is the best way to describe the reaction in the Western media to the results of Sunday’s parliamentary elections in Ukraine.... [read more]
Labour's vision
Labour leaders have often been eloquent in articulating a vision of the kind of society they want; it is explaining how that vision is to be realised that seems to be the problem... [read more]
Owen Paterson Sacked: Is this the end of “badger bashing”?
All those working to protect our precious (and valuable) environment were greatly cheered to hear that finally we can wave goodbye to Owen Paterson... [read more]
The Failure of Western Neoclassical economics - Invention without innovation results in increasing poverty
Many individuals in the Western nations are still great at invention, but innovation — defined as the transfer of these inventions to the factory floor — has generally failed in the West... [read more]
Comparison of the Washington, Berlin, and Tokyo Consensus Zones -Which one really works?
George Tait Edwards compares three separate economic systems presently operating around the world... [read more]
Update On Shimomuran Economics: The Day May Come
Western governments and their advisors can no longer continue to ignore the work of the master economist Dr Osamu Shimomura (1910-1989) who provided the insights which have produced the high growth of the China Sea economic zone... [read more]
The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, A Thatcherite Revolution: “Free Trade”, Corporate Plunder and the War on Working People
Prior to the recent national elections in India, there were calls for a Thatcherite revolution to fast-track the country towards privatisation and neo-liberalism... [read more]
A strategy for improving economic performance
Former MP and member of the Labour shadow cabinet, Bryan Gould, discusses a strategy for improving economic performance and addressing inequality... [read more]
FREE: Bowe Bergdahl exchanged for 5 Taliban captives
Carol Grayson reports on the release of Bowe Bergdahl, a US soldier held prisoner by the Taliban for five years... [read more]
Capitulating To Monsanto And Wall Street: What Future India?
The Indian Oil and Environment minister has added fuel to the debate about genetically modified organisms (GMOs) by approving field trials of 200 GM food crops on behalf of companies like Monsanto... [read more]
Chemical War: The Ties That Bind
Few countries in the Middle East have experienced the same level of chemical attacks as the Iraqi people writes Hussein Al-alak... [read more]
The Death Of Blair Peach: Remembering A Day Of Infamy
Blair Peach was killed 35 years ago today. Lindsey German, who knew him as a radical young teacher, looks back at the day in Southall when anti-fascists bore the brunt of police brutality... [read more]
The myths about Marxism
The past two decades have witnessed a barrage of propaganda against Marxism and its revolutionary heritage from the mainstream media... [read more]
Why Not Create A Scottish Pound and Adopt Investment Credit Economics to Scotland’s Benefit?
On 21 February I sent an email to the Government of Scotland, suggesting it would be an immense advantage to the “Yes” campaign for Scottish independence if the Scots adopted a policy of having their own currency when independent... [read more]
The People's Assembly- Building an Alternative
The People’s Assembly has the potential to become the successor to the popular fronts of the 1930s in uniting the broad left writes Dr Thabo Miller... [read more]
The Benefits Claimants the Government Loves
Uncapped, almost unconditional, the vast sums of public money we give to farmers buy only destruction, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
The Benefits Claimants the Government Loves
Uncapped, almost unconditional, the vast sums of public money we give to farmers buy only destruction, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
Free Rolf Kaestel: The prisoner who blew the whistle on a prison blood scandal linked to Bill Clinton
Most of us have read how difficult it has been for whistleblowers Julian Assange and Edward Snowdon since exposing state secrets, now imagine blowing the whistle from behind bars of one of America’s most notorious penitentiaries... [read more]
The Mockery of Banking Discipline
Part 7 of Eric Toussaint series, Banks versus the People: the Underside of a Rigged Game... [read more]
Doctors and Drones 2014: Interview with Tomasz Pierscionek on the updated Medact Report
Journalist and researcher, Carol Anne Grayson, talks to Dr Tomasz Pierscionek about his involvement in campaigning against the use of armed drones ... [read more]
Artists and the Law: Exploring A Jurisprudence Of New Capabilities
When I first heard the suggestion that the judiciary and greater Parliamentary oversight could redress the reckless use of new capabilities by Britain's security service GCHQ, an image flashed into my mind of a 1903 painting by Australian impressionist Tom Roberts - known locally as The Big Picture... [read more]
Women, Fertility and the Rise of Modern Capitalism: Review
Thomas Riggins reviews an article by Alberto Alesina from the Harvard Economics Department - Women, Fertility and the Rise of Modern Capitalism... [read more]
Forget Conspiracy Theories, The Truth Is Often More Shocking
Dr Tomasz Pierscionek shows how truth can be stranger and more shocking than fiction... [read more]
Russell Brand and the Nixon inequality shock
Russell Brand's call for revolution reverberated with many beyond the underclass he referenced... [read more]
We can still celebrate bonfire night without burning toxic waste
Dioxins released when we set fire to our junk on Guy Fawkes night are entering the food chain, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
The Major Policy of the Current Coalition Government is NOT Fiscal Balance But an Increased Rate of Income Shifting From Wage Earners to the Pockets of the Already Rich
The policy of the Coalition Government is not the much-trumpeted and unachievable aim of a balanced budget but the deliberate lowering of median British living standards and the production of more poverty... [read more]
The Schumacher Institute: An Interview with Ian Roderick, Director
Born in 1911, Ernst Fritz Schumacher was and continues to be one of the most inspiring environmental writers that the UK has ever had... [read more]
The Different Sources of Unemployment, and the Economic Remedy for Each of These
Unemployment is a complex phenomenon. The ultimate roots of all large-scale unemployment is the lack of an adequate economic understanding by a country’s professional economic advisors and its politicians... [read more]
Climate Change and Marxism
Using Karl Marx's early works, Elijah Pryor asks if there is an alternative to the Capitalism vs Communism debate?... [read more]
Aiming At The Wrong Target
Former Labour cabinet member, Bryan Gould, takes to task recent comments made by Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Rachel Reeves on the subject of the unemployed... [read more]
A Brief Guide To Early Chinese History: The Mongol Conquest Of China And Its Consequences
George Tait Edwards introduces the next in a series of articles about early Chinese civilisation to help put into context the country's recent economic rise... [read more]
Making the World Safe for Banksters: Syria in the Cross-hairs
In an August 2013, journalist Greg Palast posted evidence of a secret late-1990s plan devised by Wall Street ans US Treasury officials to open banking to the lucrative derivatives business... [read more]
Flourishing in a Not-For-Profit World by 2050
Imagine waking up in a world where you feel good about going to work, no matter the nature of your job... [read more]
Currently Mistaken Ideas in Western Economics and Their Suggested Corrections (preferably soon) Part 2
Economist George Tait Edwards straightens out some of the economic myths taught at Western universities (Part 2 of 2)... [read more]
Elections in Norway
Patrizia Bertini speaks with Norwegian Labour Party politician Rudolph Brynn about the general election next week... [read more]
Currently Mistaken Ideas in Western Economics and Their Suggested Corrections (preferably soon) Part 1
Economist George Tait Edwards straightens out some of the economic myths taught at Western universities (Part 1 of 2)
... [read more]
NHS In Crisis: The Story of Torrington Community Hospital
Elijah Pryor discusses the significance of Torrington Community Hospital for the North Devon community and the campaign to challenge cutbacks to the hospital's services... [read more]
A Tale of Two Prime Ministers
George Tait Edwards comments on the comparisons and contrasts between the policies and personalities of Shinzo Abe, the Prime Minster of Japan, and David Cameron, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom... [read more]
Who is killing the people of Iraq?
The United Nations recently warned that the ongoing turmoil inside Syria and Iraq has formed a situation where "the battlefields are merging” into one, writes Hussein Al-Alak... [read more]
Why Will Labour Not Readmit Me?
On 12th May, I re-joined the Fabian Society and the Christian Socialist Movement, writes David Lindsay... [read more]
Banks versus the People: The Underside of a Rigged Game! (Part 1)
Eric Toussaint looks at 2007-2012: Six years that shook the banking world... [read more]
The Crime of Alleviating Poverty: A Local Community Currency Battles the Central Bank of Kenya
Ellen Brown reports on how former Peace Corps volunteer Will Ruddick and several residents of Bangladesh, Kenya, face a potential seven years in prison after developing a cost-effective way to alleviate poverty in Africa’s poorest slums... [read more]
It was the CIA that helped jail Nelson Mandela
Crocodile tears to mask US imperialism's role as the enemy of African liberation... [read more]
Spaniards believe their political parties are corrupt
The article based on the findings from Transparency International on its Global corruption Barometer was squeezed in at the bottom of the Spanish newspaper. This isn’t because the editor thought it unimportant it is just that the reports on the various corruption cases engulfing the centre right Partido Popular left little space, writes David Eade.... [read more]
The Landed Mafia
Those of us who defend the planet are increasingly subject to abuse. It is the price we pay for confronting the power of money, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
An Economic Policy For A Post Neo-Liberal World (Part 2 of 3)
Former Labour MP and member of the Shadow Cabinet, Bryan Gould, provides a road map for reviving Britain's ailing economy... [read more]
The Italian crisis and the wait for Godot
A crisis is a crucial point, a turning point, a situation that demands change or reaction in order to resolve the situation... [read more]
From Ragged Trousered Philanthropists to Label Wearing Ostriches?
Frank Owen, the lead character in Robert Tressell’s novel The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, expressed his frustration at the dismissive response of his fellow workers to his arguments for a better society... [read more]
Why Radical Islam is Growing and How to Deal with It
After the 9/11 tragedy there has been a surge in the radical Islamist movement writes Ola Onikoyi... [read more]
Repealing the Health and Social Care Act
The last ditch attempt by the House of Lords to stop wholesale privatisation of the NHS has failed... [read more]
Urgent calls for a General Election in Bulgaria
On Sunday 12 May Bulgaria will hold its general election. The outcome will not only be closely awaited by the people of that country but by fellow European Union States and organisations such as Transparency International, which has been monitoring corruption in Bulgaria for over a decade, writes David Eade.... [read more]
The Counter-Enlightenment
What happens to people when they become government science advisers? Are their children taken hostage? Is a dossier of compromising photographs kept, ready to send to the Sun if they step out of line? George Monbiot writes.... [read more]
Venezuelan elections
John Green provides an analysis of and background to today's election in Venezuela... [read more]
The Great Unmentionable
We have offshored the problem of escalating consumption, and our perceptions of it, by considering only territorial emissions, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
Frozen Assets
Why are we exploiting unconventional gas when we can’t afford to burn existing supplies? George Monbiot asks the crucial question.... [read more]
A long and dishonourable tradition
George Osborne may be just about the last person in Britain to believe that austerity offers a real path to recovery from recession and the resumption of growth - and it may be doubted that even he remains a true believer, writes Bryan Gould... [read more]
Good News for the Left in Andalucía; Bad News for Democracy in Spain
The southern most region of Spain, Andalucía, has always been a socialist fiefdom but the centre right Partido Popular (PP) came very close to toppling the socialist PSOE party from power in the 2012 regional elections, writes David Eade... [read more]
Greece's Big Smog: Neoliberal austerity, public health, and the environment*
Neoliberal austerity in crisis-torn Greece has a significant implication for public health and the environment. The disturbing reality is that the unbearable cost of heating oil for a large portion of the country's population has led to an increased use of solid fuel heating, writes Ilia Xypolia.... [read more]
Lenin on "Left-Wing" Communism in Great Britain
As part of our series analysing Lenin's book "Left-Wing" Communism: an Infantile Disorder, Thomas Riggins looks at what Lenin had to say about the problems of ultra-leftism in Britain in 1920... [read more]
Lenin on the Need for Political Compromise
As part of his series of articles analysing Lenin's classic work "Left-Wing" Communism: an Infantile Disorder, Thomas Riggins looks at what Lenin had to say about compromise and cooperation with political rivals... [read more]
Book review: The Contradictions of Real Socialism
David Lane reviews The Contradictions of Real Socialism, a book by Michael A Lebowitz... [read more]
Ensuring Scottish sovereignty
Ellen Brown discusses options for economic development in a future independent Scotland... [read more]
Obituary: Colonial officer, overseas aid administrator and champion of the oppressed who advanced the cause of gay people in the Civil Service'
Richard Kirker remembers Ian Buist: the quintessential Civil Service mandarin, but also a doughty proponent of social progress. He had a fearless determination to champion the rights of the victims of injustice, minorities and the marginalised.... [read more]
Obituary: Colonial officer, overseas aid administrator and champion of the oppressed who advanced the cause of gay people in the Civil Service'
Ian Buist: Ian Buist, CB, colonial officer, overseas aid administrator and champion of human and gay rights, was born on May 30, 1930. He died on October 19, 2012, aged 82, remembered by Richard Kirker.... [read more]
Palestine and Israel: A Modest Suggestion for Peace (Part 2)
Faisal Mikdadi discusses the origins of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and presents a road map for achieving peace between all peoples and factions that reside in these lands (Part 2)... [read more]
Now they do not need evidence, they create secret witnesses
Öcalan’s isolation may be over as the hunger strike ends in Turkish prisons, but the unjust trials of the opponents of the Government continue. Tim Baster and Isabelle Merminod report ... [read more]
Struck Dumb
Despite hurricane Sandy, neither Barack Obama nor Mitt Romney will speak about global warming. The danger this poses is huge, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
Ash Cloud
There was a time when conservatism meant what the word suggests. It was an attempt to keep things as they are: to arrest economic and social change, to defend the position of the dominant class. Today conservatism has become a nihilistic festival of destruction, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
The Spanish State Faces Disintegration
The Spain of today is in a deep financial crisis. Rather than the country pulling together it is pulling apart. LPJ Iberian correspondent, David Eade, discusses the possibility of the Spainish state breaking up into autonomous regions... [read more]
Iran and the imminent prospect of another unilateral war waged by Israel in the Middle East
Israel, presumably due to its longstanding failure to reach amicable peace with Palestine and the Arab neighbors since 1967, is imminently determined to wage a unilateral war on Iran while struggling to divert internal dissent from its lingering economic and socio–political challenges and international isolations, writes Freeman Ure. ... [read more]
Nuclear power, the energy of protest: The future could be renewable
With proper commitment and investment in renewable energy and a push towards an alternative model of development, the future need not resemble the past or indeed the increasingly catastrophic present, writes Colin Todhunter. ... [read more]
Spot the Difference: Public Relations and Journalism
Finn Bowen asks that in light of the possible convergence of Public Relations and Journalism - once completely separate professions - can we ‘trust the truth’ the media portray? ... [read more]
Melinda Taylor: The Spy That Got Away?
On the 7th of June 2012, Melinda Taylor and three other ICC delegates were arrested in the city of Zintan in Libya by Zintani militia. How should the Australian media handle the story? Finn Bowen takes a look.... [read more]
The Children Are Still Dying: Violence is Not News
Somewhere in my home I have a set of photo albums I rarely go near. I fear the flood of cruel memories that might be evoked from looking at the countless photos I took during a trip to Iraq, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
Racism By Any Other Name Smells
Thomas Riggins reveals the results of a poll conducted by ScienceDaily examining attitudes to the new voter identification laws in the US... [read more]
Isle of Wight Festival – an alternative perspective – June 2012
Miles Caston describes the highlights of this year’s Isle of Wight festival and suggests a ‘greener’ way to enjoy music festivals... [read more]
Coming to Grips with Zizek
Two new books by Slavoj Zizek have recently been reviewed by John Gray in the The New York Review of Books, here Thomas Riggins reviews Gray's article.
... [read more]
Women Candidates Campaign for Equitable Development in Papua New Guinea Elections
In a male dominated society, women have been largely excluded from politics in Papua New Guinea. Catherine Wilson reports on female participation in the elections currently underway... [read more]
The Resurgent Aristocracy
Rural policy is once again the preserve of the elite, and wildlife and people suffer as a result, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
The Radical Alternative to Austerity
A message to all readers from Labour MP John McDonnell...... [read more]
Sorry, folks..the wake is over
The change in the Greek political scene is an opportunity for Europe, not a threat, argues Ilia Xypolia.... [read more]
CIA and MI5 linked to assassinations in the Congo in sixties
Shortly after progressive Congolese leader Patrice Lumumba was overthrown by a Western backed coup in 1960, the former UN secretary general, Dag Hammarskjöld, died in mysterious circumstances. John Green asks if the two events were in any way connected.... [read more]
Obama’s Afghan Pledge is Grossly Misleading
As the US President hints at a withdrawal from Afghanistan, R.M. Harrison wonders whether he has taken heed of the old saying “those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it”. ... [read more]
Ed Miliband's party funding proposals
Karl Davis makes the case for the Labour Party to embrace its Trade Union roots as part of its challenge to show there is an alternative to the unpopular austerity programme implemented by the Tory dominated Coalition... [read more]
A manager's dog
‘I am his Highness’ dog at Kew;
Pray, tell me sir, whose dog are you?'
( Alexander Pope, Epigram Engraved on the Collar
of a Dog which I gave to his Royal Highness)... [read more]
Saltley Gate 1972
Terry McPartlan recalls how forty years ago coordinated and determined action by unions halted the Conservative government's plans to drive down living standards... [read more]
Youth unemployment figures reveal Britain beating its 'personal best'
The London Progressive Journal gives its take on current events in the latest fortnightly editorial... [read more]
The Great Pay Robbery
Here’s why the government’s proposals on executive pay won’t work – and why we need a maximum wage, says George Monbiot.... [read more]
Why Miliband and Balls have got it wrong
The capitulation by Labour to the austerity and cuts agenda of the Tories and the right-wing press has been confirmed by shadow chancellor Ed Balls' statement that Labour would not be able to reverse the Tory cuts and would maintain the pay freeze within the public sector if they come to power at the next election, says John Wight.... [read more]
Why Libertarians Must Deny Climate Change
As soon as it encounters environmental issues, the ideology of the new right becomes ensnared in its own contradictions, says George Monbiot.... [read more]
A future of Labour
Karl Davis suggests how Ed Miliband could give a big boost to Labour’s chances of winning the next General Election... [read more]
Bankers’ Oligarchy spells the end of democracy
A qualitative change is taking place within the European Union where it is crystal clear that national independence and democracy are being dumped without formal procedure or public announcement, says John Boyd.... [read more]
Embellishing the Iraq War: Moral Victory, and Selective Body Counts
Someone ought to let mainstream news producers know that the nearly 4,500 US soldiers killed in the Iraq war were not the only victims. Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have also been killed as a result of the US invasion, says Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
Unmasking the Press
The corporate newspapers are the elite’s enforcers, misrepresenting the sources of oppression, says George Monbiot.... [read more]
Though cowards flinch and traitors sneer
The London Progressive Journal gives its take on current events in the latest fortnightly editorial... [read more]
Boom at the top
At a time when the poorest are being hit hardest, W Stephen Gilbert comments on the obsence bonuses enjoyed by those at the top echelons of the financial sector and puts paid to the reasons most commonly used to justify such unfair practice.... [read more]
Telling the Players with a Scorecard
How politics is manifested as economics and economics as politics should concern us right now, argues Steven Colatrella.... [read more]
A violent double standard
Phil Bates cast an eye on David Cameron's hypocrisy and the recent threat of rubber bullets being used by police... [read more]
Wearing Your Heart on Your Lapel
W Stephen Gilbert reflects on the politics of poppy wearing, its dissociation in popular society from what it actually represents and its hijacking by politicians. ... [read more]
Occupy Italy: the missing country and the missed opportunity
Patrizia Bertini comments on the slow beginnings of the Occupy Italy movement but notes that in recent days events have been picking up pace... [read more]
Wealth Destroyers
The Corporation of the City of London has harmed you more than you know, says George Monbiot.
... [read more]
The Roma of Iraq- a forgotten community
Iqbal Tamimi considers the fate of the Roma women of Iraq: from dancing and prostitution before the US invasion of Iraq to harassment and begging on the streets afterwards.... [read more]
The lasting legacy of 9/11
Since the September 11 2001 attacks the world has witnessed the best and worst of humanity, writes John Wight.... [read more]
Out of the Ashes
Now is the time to start planning for a new economy, not dependent on growth. ... [read more]
The Return of the Generals
Uri Avnery discusses how a recent resurgence of hostilities between Islamic militants and the Israeli army could undermine a growing social protest movement within Israel, playing right into Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s hands.... [read more]
UK riots: Missing the bigger picture
Tomasz Pierscionek examines a variety of proposals to deal with the rioting that swept London and reveals gaps in the logic of those calling for the usual knee jerk reaction.... [read more]
Gaddafi, the War on Libya and the Left
Ben Maisky scrutinises Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s Socialist and anti-imperialist credentials and questions whether certain sections of the left are mistaken in their support for Gaddafi.... [read more]
The Banker who knows his Kapital
John Green translates and reflects on an interview with Edgar Most formerly of Deustche Bank and of the GDR State Bank, where he considers capitalism vs. socialism.... [read more]
Tunisia: How We Got Here and the Task Ahead
Ramzy Baroud reflects on the causes of the popular uprising and where we go from here.... [read more]
Professor Nutt Urges New Thinking on Drugs
As the controversial medical expert David Nutt finds himself back on the news agenda, Tom Bangay considers the vexed question of drug law reform.... [read more]
Misunderstanding the FARC
Garry Leech on why the media's so-called 'experts' on the Colombian guerrilla group keep getting it wrong.... [read more]
Regarding US Muslims: A Misguided Debate
Ramzy Baroud on why there is a blinkered and one-sided view of what causes Islamaphobia in America and how best to tackle it.... [read more]
One Crazy Pastor Threatens to Ignite More Than The Quran
Assed Baig on why one man's Islamaphobic beliefs will have big implications around the world.... [read more]
Lansley can Shove his White Paper
The Tory-Lib Dem coalition is intent on a wholesale privatisation of the National Health Service, writes John Lister.... [read more]
Reformed Venezuelan Bank Law Separates Banks and Media
Tamara Pearson reports on an important Venezuelan initiative to prevent the corporate media from getting directly involved in the banking and finance industries.... [read more]
Defending the NHS Against Privatisation: John Lister talks to London Progressive Journal (Part Two)
The second part of Tomasz Pierscionek's discussion with prominent anti-privatisation campaigner John Lister.... [read more]
Defending the NHS Against Privatisation: John Lister talks to London Progressive Journal (Part One)
Tomasz Pierscionek talked to veteran health campaigner and London Health Emergency information director Dr John Lister.... [read more]
Millennium Goals Revisited: Noble Ideas, and Feel-Good Moments
The UN's much-vaunted Millenium Development goals have turned out to be little more than wishful thinking, writes Ramzy Baroud. ... [read more]
Britain's Coalition Government: Unleashing the Forces of Hell
It's now several weeks since the Tories swept into office, propped up by the Liberal Democrats. Chris Mason-Felsing looks at the story so far.... [read more]
An Eruption of Reality
George Monbiot asks: has our society become too complex to sustain?... [read more]
The Naming of Things
George Monbiot suggests one small way in which the collapse of biodiversity could be slowed.... [read more]
The Biggest Lie in the World and a Few Truths
Steven Colatrella picks apart the myth that free market capitalism is the most rational way of allocating resources.... [read more]
Chimes At Midnight: Football in Crisis
Ordinary fans are being ripped off by the unfettered greed of modern footbal, writes Steve Jones.... [read more]
Our Hollowed Out Democracy
Thus far, the Tory and Labour election campaigns have been a showcase of the hypocrisy at the heart of British politics, writes Richie Nimmo.... [read more]
Requiem for a Crowded Planet
George Monbiot's analysis of the failure of the climate talks.... [read more]
A Paradigm Shift in Singapore: Yet Apec Offers No Clear Answers
Ramzy Baroud on the high-profile international summit held in Singapore this week.... [read more]
If Nothing Else, Save Farming
It’s probably too late to prepare for peak oil, but we can at least try to salvage food production, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
Welcome to Austerity Britain
Whoever wins the next election, 'austerity' - i.e. cutting back services for those who need them most - will be the watchword of British politics for the next few years, as Rob Sewell explains.... [read more]
Economic Crisis and Political Alienation
Lack of popular participation in the political process is both a cause and an effect of the present crisis, as Rick Wolff explains.... [read more]
Obama: Progress Towards Fulfilling Manifesto Commitments
Chris Vasey reckons it's been a promising first few months in the White House for Barack Obama. ... [read more]
Justice This Time Around: Will Goldstone's Report Deliver?
Israel has arrogantly dismissed the findings of a new, detailed UN report into Israeli war crimes in Gaza, as Ramzy Baroud explains.... [read more]
Should We Seek to Save Industrial Civilisation? A Debate with Paul Kingsnorth
Guardian journalist George Monbiot discusses climate change with the Oxford-based environmentalist Paul Kingsnorth.... [read more]
No Matter Who Runs the Islamic Republic of Iran, They Would Stone Me to Death
Lila Ghobady outlines why Iran's 'reformist' candidate does not represent a real alternative to the repressiveness of the incumbent regime.... [read more]
Venezuela Condemns US Hypocrisy on Drugs
The Venezuelan government has challenged the objectivity of a US report on drug trafficking, writes Tamara Pearson.... [read more]
You'd Have to be Stupid
Derek Wall argues that only a fundamental change in the world economic system can meet the environmental challenges of the 21st Century.... [read more]
Book review: 'The New Latin American Left'
Nathaniel Mehr reviews an insightful edited collection on the new left in Latin America.... [read more]
Iran and The Green Revolution: Is a Revolution Possible?
Chris Vasey looks to make sense of the complex situation currently unfolding in Iran.... [read more]
Political Crisis Deepens in Britain
Rob Sewell picks apart the media furore over the MPs' expenses scandal which has rocked British politics over the past fortnight.... [read more]
The Economic Crisis and Poor Countries
Mick Brooks compares the 'boom and bust' economics of the past twenty years with similar patterns in the 1920s and 1930s: once again it is the poorer nations that stand to lose the most.... [read more]
War Without Context: Fatah, Hamas and Flawed Language
Ramzy Baroud on the sinister manipulation of language which characterises the mainstream discourse on the Israel-Palestine issue.... [read more]
Is the New Statesman Committing Suicide?
Examining a particularly unfortunate case of appalling journalism, Nathaniel Mehr wonders whether mainstream publications are complacent or just grossly out of touch.... [read more]
Circles of Crisis
Michael Prior examines the political crisis at the heart of the UK slowdown.... [read more]
In the Name of Iraq? Luton Protesters Are Out of Touch
Hussein Al-Alak reflects on the recent tabloid furore over an ill-conceived miniature anti-war protest led by Muslim extremists in the UK.... [read more]
Twenty-Five Years On
John Haylett looks back on the struggle which defined the politics of a decade and paved the way for the rise of New Labour.... [read more]
Wife of Trade Union President Shot Dead
A Justice For Colombia report on the latest in a series of state-sponsored killings aimed at terrorising Colombia's labour movement.... [read more]
Chavez Hopes Obama Will Stop US Aggression Against Venezuela
S.E. on the Venezuelan President's hopes for a constructive relationship with the incoming Obama administration.... [read more]
Interview: Carlos Bula Camacho talks to London Progressive Journal
Samuele Mazzolini spoke to Carlos Bula Camacho, Secretary General of Polo Democrático Alternativo, the Colombian opposition party.... [read more]
Benefit Claimants in Government's Firing Line
Fred McDowell on New Labour's latest populist diversion.... [read more]
The Recession is the Government's Opportunity to Act on its Green Promises
Luke Aldred argues the current economic crisis represents a perfect opportunity for the British government to implement far-reaching changes to make Britain greener and more sustainable.... [read more]
Venezuela On Track to Achieve Millennium Development Goals in Education
James Suggett on the slow but steady progress being made under the Chávez government's education reforms.... [read more]
Millions Spent on Hirst's Vacuous Artworks Reflect The Decadence of 21st Century Capitalism
Laura Hayhurst-France on the artistic and moral decline implicit in the immense commercial success of the artist/businessman Damian Hirst.... [read more]
Labour Must Endorse Living Wage Campaign to Win Back Popular Support
Matt Genner argues that committing itself to a national living wage would help restore Labour's credentials as the mainstream party most committed to social justice. ... [read more]
Total Recall in Bolivia: Divided Nation Faces Historic Vote
With Bolivian voters set to go to the polls and the Morales presidency in the balance, Ben Dangl examines the issues at stake in the forthcoming recall vote. ... [read more]
Losing the Will to Serve
With below-inflation pay rises and increased targets, no wonder Labour has lost the votes of the public sector workers who keep this country going.... [read more]
Keep Tyne and Wear Metro Public, says RMT
Rick Grogan of the Rail Maritime and Transport union on the battle to keep the Tyne and Wear Metro in public hands. ... [read more]
Hay Festival Raises More Questions Than Answers
Matt Genner considers Naomi Klein's comments at this year's Hay Festival.... [read more]
The Failure of New Labour was to Ignore Society
Compass's Jonathan Rutherford believes New Labour has lost touch with society.... [read more]
RMT Ballot 17,000 Network Rail Workers
With strike action apparently looming, Rick Grogan outlines the basic demands underpinning the present rail dispute.... [read more]
Who Cares for the Carers?
How privatisation is costing social care workers.
... [read more]
How to Build a Human Bomb
George Monbiot argues that the Guantanamo Bay concetration camp is an affront to the very idea of justice.... [read more]
A "Partisan and Right-Skewed Press"
Matt Genner examines the reasons behind the right-wing bias in the mainstream media.... [read more]
How Iraq’s Once Effective Healthcare System Was Sold Down the Nation’s Two Rivers
On top of one million dead, war has shattered an Iraqi healthcare system already decimated by sanctions.... [read more]
Resist the Ration Cuts!
Ending the food ration system in Iraq will cause a humanitarian disaster.... [read more]
Proposed Child DNA Database Will Increase Crime and Social Division
Matt Genner on the latest bright idea for crime-fighting.... [read more]
"Unfashionable" Balkan Nationalism?
Victor Petroff on the rise of right-wing populism in Bulgaria.... [read more]
Pro-Death
George Monbiot considers the implications of attempts to reverse progress on abortion.... [read more]
Nigeria: Corruption Pays
Ian Broughton compares the situation in Kenya with recent history in Nigeria.... [read more]
