Search London Progressive Journal
A journey into the vice-ridden world of banking
The primary objective of the world’s leaders is to avoid another banking and financial crash that could be worse than the one in September 2008... [read more]
The Fed Protects Gamblers at the Expense of the Economy
Although the repo market is little known to most people, it is a $1-trillion-a-day credit machine, in which not just banks but hedge funds and other “shadow banks” borrow to finance their trades... [read more]
George Bernard Shaw - A Marxist Study
'A good man fallen among Fabians' - V.I. Lenin
... [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]
Marx’s Capital
This short essay is a study of Marx’s ‘Capital’ — specifically its place in Marx’s thought and Marx’s economics... [read more]
Short Essay on the Arab Revolutions
This short essay is a study of the Arab Revolutions of 2010-2011... [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]
Exchanging Puppets: Why the International Left Should Not Support Iran's So-Called Reformist Leaders
Lila Ghobady argues that the leadership of Iran's reformist movement does not have the country's interests at heart.... [read more]
Financial Meltdown Deepens
In the wake of the collapse of Lehman Brothers, Michael Roberts examines the present financial slump. ... [read more]
For Whom the Cock Crows
Thomas Riggins discusses Marx's 1844 article on Hegel's philosophy of law... [read more]
Short Essay on the Egyptian Revolution
This short essay is a study of the Egyptian Revolution of 2011. ... [read more]
The White Helmets Controversy
Unknown to most people, the White Helmets brand was conceived and directed by a marketing company named “The Syria Campaign” based in New York. They have managed to fool millions of people... [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]
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]
Reading Lenin: Materialism and Empiro-criticism [Part 8]
Thomas Riggins leads us through chapter two: the theory of knowledge of Empirio-Criticism and of Dialectical Materialism... [read more]
Choice… or No Choice: We Say John4leader!
Steve Jones calls on the left to get behind John McDonnell's candidacy for the Labour leadership.... [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]
Replacing reality by fantasy
John Green tales a look at the recent, much-hyped German series Deutschland 83... [read more]
"Don't Talk Zionism!"
Decades ago in Israel, "Zionism” was a kind of joke among young people. "Don’t talk Zionism!" meant "Don’t talk highfaluting nonsense!"... [read more]
An economy ruled by the mob
It is not easy for any of us to get our heads around the complexities of modern economics. Many capitalists themselves and certainly most politicians no longer understand how the system really works... [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]
Book review: The Contradictions of Real Socialism
David Lane reviews The Contradictions of Real Socialism, a book by Michael A Lebowitz... [read more]
Legoviews ~ Goodbye yellow brick road!
In the first of her interviews using the novel 'Lego Serious Play' method, Patrizia Bertini speaks to one of the occupiers at the OccupyLSX camp.... [read more]
Labour Leadership: Abbott Gets on the Ballot
If Diane Abbott is serious about standing as a real alternative to the Milibands, she should espouse a leftwing platform, says Steve Jones.... [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]
An Important but Risky Victory for Venezuela and for Socialism
Gregory Wilpert assesses the implications of Hugo Chávez's referendum victory.... [read more]
A Universal Basic Income Is Essential and Will Work
A central bank-financed UBI can fill the debt gap, providing a vital safety net while preventing cyclical recessions.... [read more]
Tulsi Gabbard Comes to San Francisco
“I'm running for president to be able to bring about this sea change in our foreign policy that is so necessary for us and for the world.”... [read more]
The Fake Enemy
Netanyahu doesn't care. Peace is the last thing he has on his troubled mind. He is far more committed to the eternal conflict with both the Arabs and the Iranians. After all, what would life be like without enemies?... [read more]
Abe, Izzy & Bibi
The whole thing could have been a huge practical joke, if it had not been real. All of Israel was taken in. Left, right and center. All the newspapers and TV networks, without exception.... [read more]
The Invisible Diasporan (Part 1)
Mallards Cottage was where I wrote my first novel. I called it The Return. I used to dream most of its events – the very plot was born of a dream on Christmas Eve of 1976... [read more]
The “White Helmets” go to Hollywood
The White Helmets movie is a tactic in the ongoing campaign of distortion and deception around Syria... [read more]
The Great Rift
I believe that it is there that the solution lies. We must get rid of the occupation, by all available means, the quicker the better.... [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]
The Future belongs to the Optimists
Despair is easy. It is also comfortable, whether in Berlin or Tel Aviv. Looking around at this moment, despair is also logical. But despair corrupts. Despairing people create nothing, and never did... [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]
King Bibi
The real danger of Netanyahu's reign is his total lack of an answer to Israel's main problem... [read more]
BDS, the New Enemy
For years now, Netanyahu has built his career on fear of the Iranian Nuclear Bomb... [read more]
Bank abuses in the real estate sector and illegal foreclosures in the United States
Part 2 in the series by Eric Toussaint - The banks and the “too big to jail” doctrine'... [read more]
Banks bluff in a completely legal way
Part 8 of Eric Toussaint's series Banks Versus The People: The Underside Of A Rigged Game!... [read more]
The Banks, Fragile Giants
Part 5 of Eric Toussaint's series Banks versus the People: the Underside of a Rigged Game shows that big banks continue playing with fire, because they are persuaded that governments will save them whenever necessary... [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]
Marxism is Real Naturalism: Galen Strawson and Panpsychism
Sartre once remarked that the attempt to construct a philosophy that goes beyond Marxism simply recreates a pre-Marxist view that is no longer relevant to current understanding... [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]
International Relations and the Classroom
We in Britain are often subject to the age old criticism of being insular and self engrossed. Whereas this is not strictly speaking true, there is an element of truth in this belief... [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]
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]
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]
Yes, You Can!
Barack Obama faces a historic challenge in the Middle East, as Uri Avnery explains.... [read more]
Why the Russian Invasion of Georgia is a Blessing for Misguided US Foreign Policy
Professor William Hickey on why the Georgia crisis has highlighted the cynically self-serving basis of US foreign policy.... [read more]
The Credit Cruch - One Year On
Twelve months on from the beginning of the current economic crisis, Socialist Appeal's Michael Roberts examines the causes and effects of the so-called "Credit Crunch".... [read more]
38 Reasons to Cancel the “Kosova e Re” Power Plant
On 20 December 2017, then Minister of Economic Development Valdrin Lluka signed an agreement with ContourGlobal, an American company, to build “Kosova e Re”, a 500 MW coal-fired power plan... [read more]
Alexandra Kollontai
This short essay is a study of Alexandra Kollontai – the great Russian Socialist.... [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]
Universal Basic Income Is Easier Than It Looks
Calls for a Universal Basic Income (UBI) have been increasing, most recently as part of the “Green New Deal” introduced by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and supported in the last month by at least 40 members of Congress... [read more]
Blackstone, BlackRock or a Public Bank? Putting California’s Funds to Work
California has over $700 billion parked in private banks earning minimal interest, private equity funds that contributed to the affordable housing crisis, or shadow banks of the sort that caused the banking collapse of 2008.... [read more]
"Pour Out Your Wrath"
I was about to write an article about Pesach eve' when I remembered that I wrote exactly the same article six years ago. So I am sending the old article again – I just have nothing to add.... [read more]
Joining The Labour Party
In September 2016 I did something I never believed I would ever do. I joined the Labour Party.... [read more]
UK Government Bribes its Way to Climate Change
Despite falling apart at the seams over its Brexit ‘negotiations’ with the EU, and its internal fights and scandals, bringing shame and embarrassment to the UK, Theresa May’s government is determined to carry on with its money-oriented and earth-trashing policies... [read more]
One, Two, Three – Rejoice!
I remember the first few Independence Days, just after the foundation of the State of Israel. There was spontaneous jubilation, we were all out in the streets, the celebration was real. This year's Independence Day was not a happy affair... [read more]
Trading Places
More than ever in human history, we're caught in a tug of war that threatens to destabilise entire populations and even to redefine geo-political and cultural boundaries.... [read more]
Does Syria Have the Right to Defend Itself?
The Syrian government is truly fighting to defend itself against an armed opposition that is violent, sectarian and unpopular with the large majority of Syrians... [read more]
White Helmets Deceive ‘Right Livelihood’ and CodePink
The story of the White Helmets is principally a “feel good” hoax to manipulate public perception about the conflict in Syria and continue the drive for “regime change”... [read more]
Can Jill Carry Bernie’s Baton?
Bernie Sanders supporters are flocking to Jill Stein, the presumptive Green Party presidential candidate... [read more]
The Orange Man
So here we are. Either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton will be our next president... [read more]
Business As Unusual
We need more people to throw down their swords and raise their voices
with the healing words of true democracy... [read more]
Looming Dangers
Only by developing a set of radical and progressive alternative political solutions can Labour be able to challenge effectively this upsurge on the right... [read more]
Hang On to Your Wallet: Negative Interest, the War on Cash and the $10 Trillion Bail-In
In uncertain times, “cash is king,” but central bankers are systematically moving to eliminate that option. Is it really about stimulating the economy? Or is there some deeper, darker threat afoot?... [read more]
The Inverted World of Niall Ferguson: On the Real Obama Doctrine
Niall Ferguson has a very conservative world outlook which, when applied to the analysis of current social reality, has a tendency to so warp his perceptions that the situation he writes about becomes an imaginary inverted world... [read more]
The Ministry of Fear
"We have nothing to fear but fear itself," said President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. He was wrong... [read more]
The Real Menace
Let's put it bluntly: to try to stop IS means supporting the Assad regime. Bashar al-Assad is an abominable fellow, but he has kept Syria together, protected its many minorities and kept the Israeli border quiet... [read more]
The Treaty
What if Binyamin Netanyahu was duped to become unwittingly the main collaborator of Iranian ambitions... [read more]
Which direction for Labour?
Bryan Gould, former Labour shadow cabinet minister, says Labour's leaders must be prepared to do the hard work needed to produce a convincing alternative in line with much current and developing economic thinking... [read more]
Who Will Save Israel
The battle is over. The dust has settled. A new government – partly ridiculous, partly terrifying – has been installed
... [read more]
Now for the Rise of the Republic of The North!
It’s not only the Scots who are disillusioned with Westminster politics. The 2015 election once again doomed the north to five more years under a leadership it hasn’t voted for... [read more]
Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Bomb?
My father once taught me how to withstand blackmail: imagine that the awful threat of the blackmailer has already come about. Then you can tell him: Go to hell... [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]
Piketty for Progressives - Part 5
Thomas Riggins continues with his analysis of Piketty's book Capital in the 21st Century... [read more]
Rethinking Economics The Washington Consensus vs the Tokyo Consensus Background
On Tuesday 6 May 2014, I published a blog about ”Shimomuran Economics and the Rise of Japan”... [read more]
Italy: the missed generation
The truth is that the situation in Italy is getting desperate. Amongst those under 25, unemployment is as high as 40% with many of those in work underpaid and on short term contracts... [read more]
What is behind this fracking mania? Unbridled machismo
Promoting extractive industries is seen by politicians as a proper, manly pursuit, even if it makes no sense, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
The Public Debt of Japan and China – Funded by Investment Credit Creation or by Foreign Borrowing?
Economist George Tait Edwards puts paid to rumours of impending financial crises in Japan and China... [read more]
Reading Lenin: Materialism and Empiro-criticism
Part 2 of Thomas Riggins' analysis of Lenin's Materialism and Empiro-criticism... [read more]
ASLEF Tube Driver Strike: Look beyond the picket line to see the real story..
On Boxing Day, ASLEF members employed by London Underground Limited (LUL) staged a 24 hour strike and the press have been predictable in attempting to whip up hysteria and outrage, reports Karl Davis... [read more]
Lenin on "Reactionary" Trade Unions: Chapter Six of "Left-Wing" Communism: an Infantile Disorder
In his latest article analysing “Left-Wing” Communism: an Infantile Disorder, Thomas Riggins looks at Lenin's views on what sort of relations a Marxist party should have with the trade union movement... [read more]
The psychological damage of warfare
Since the federation of Australia in 1901, more than 100,000 young men have died, fighting to protect their country. But the real victims here were those affected psychologically, writes Finn Bowen. ... [read more]
BDS: Power of the People at Work
The recent University of Pennsylvania BDS conference, organized by student group, PennBDS, was the latest example to illustrate both the effectiveness of the global movement and also of the real worry felt by supporters of Israel in the US, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
Everybody\'s son
Uri Avnery comments on the recent Israel-Palestine prisoner swap and the release of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit... [read more]
UK Riots: Crackdown will solve nothing
As expected the state is warming to the task of cracking down hard, as they like to put it, on looters/rioters past, present and future. Cameron and May have been strutting around talking tough about what they are going to do. ... [read more]
‘Dying to Win’: Newt Gingrich’s ‘Terrorism’
Bush may be gone, but right-wingers in the US are still exploiting public fears of terrorism to pursue their foreign policy agenda, as Ramzy Baroud explains.... [read more]
The Great Depression
Michael Roberts argues that the big "bailouts" of financial institutions have exposed the fallacy behind the "free market" ideologies which have dominated British and American political and economic systems for the past thirty years.... [read more]
Interview: Michael Albert on the Communal Councils in Venezuela
Michael Albert is a prominent activist and economist and a co-founder of Z Magazine. Adam Gill spoke to him about the Venezuelan government's radical "Consejos Comunales" initiative, aimed at deepening participatory democracy.... [read more]
Unprecedented!
Michael Roberts on why the present economic crisis demonstrates the vulnerability of "free market" capitalism. ... [read more]
Back to Boom and Bust
Eric Hollies on the self-fulfilling prophecy of the global economic downturn.... [read more]
Drilling for Oil - A Global Problem on Our Doorstep
Sometimes it takes a threat to our own neighbourhood, our own county or country, before we wake up to what is happening across the world.... [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]
Short Essay on Latin America and Revolution
Latin America, like most parts of the world, has a revolutionary history, a revolutionary politics, and a revolutionary tradition... [read more]
WHO SPEAKS FOR THE WOMEN OF THE WAR?
War tends to be men’s way of settling the quarrels between tribes and territories. Homer depicts the heroic, savage or mad acts of men in the Trojan War. The women come later with Odysseus’s wanderings... [read more]
Western Media Attacks Critics of the White Helmets
The October 16 issue of NY Review of Books has an article by Janine di Giovani titled Why Assad and Russia Target the White Helmets. The article exemplifies how western media promotes the White Helmets uncritically and attacks those who challenge the myth.... [read more]
Crimes of Empire: How Historical Fake News Contributed to Imperial Genocide
Fake news is as old as empire, maybe even older... [read more]
Trump Takes on the Fed
The president has criticized Federal Reserve policy for undermining his attempts to build the economy. The best way to make the central bank serve the needs of the economy is to make it a public utility.... [read more]
The Great Day
Two days ago, the State of Israel celebrated its 70th birthday. For days we heard about nothing else. Innumerable speeches full of platitudes. A huge festival of kitsch.... [read more]
Knowing Who We Are
What is happening is real enough. Finding the causes of this undeniable reality is problematic. Yet more problematic is finding an acceptable way of articulating what I see... [read more]
The Terrible Problem
Ze'ev Begin, the son of Menachem Begin, is a very nice human being. It is impossible not to like him... [read more]
A Confession
Today is the last day of the 93rd year of my life. Ridiculous. If by a miracle I could be returned to, say, 14, and travel all this long way again, would I like that? No, I would not.... [read more]
Dangerous Times: John Pilger Discusses North Korea, China and the Threat of Nuclear War and Accident
Western media continue to distort the chronology of cause and effect, inverting reality to claim that North Korea is provoking the West. John Pilger talks to T.J. Coles about the situation.... [read more]
Ten Problems with the Anti-Russia Obsession
Western media and Democratic Party politicians have made a major campaign accusing Russia of “meddling” in the U.S. election. The following are major problems with the “anti-Russia” theme, starting with the lack of clear evidence.... [read more]
The Four-Letter Word
Nobody will start peace negotiations if they believe that peace is impossible. The belief in peace will not make peace certain. But at least it will make peace possible.... [read more]
The Israeli Macron
When I was 10 years old, my family fled from Nazi Germany. We were fearful that the Gestapo was after us. Then our train crossed the bridge that separated Germany from France, and we heaved a deep sigh of relief.... [read more]
Reactive Mismeasures: The New Yorker and the "New" Cold War Propaganda (Part 2)
This is the second part of a paragraph by paragraph commentary on a recent article posing as journalism in the March 6, 2017 issue of The New Yorker.... [read more]
The Invisible Diasporan (Part 2)
Even Churchill had, amidst the overgrown hedgerow of complex racism, a deep-rooted sense of decency and humanity when he acknowledged the injustice to Palestinians... [read more]
Quo Vadis, Venezuela?
Even if highly exaggerated in the western press, the economic and political crisis in Venezuela is real... [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]
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]
Turkey’s Attempted Coup - Cui Bono?
“The individual is handicapped by coming face to face with a conspiracy so monstrous he cannot believe it exists.” (J. Edgar Hoover, Elks Magazine, August 1956).... [read more]
My Terrorist, Your Terrorist
After World War I, when the victorious Great Powers carved up the Ottoman Empire between them, France insisted on the creation of a Christian Lebanese state under its stewardship... [read more]
Just A Ride
The Wachowski Brothers’ 1999 Film 'The Matrix' centres upon the concept that the modern world may not be all we perceive it to be... [read more]
Polls versus principles
"How sad if Labour’s courage should fail it, so that it lags behind progressive opinion, just as a new mainstream is developing." A commentary by Bryan Gould, former Labour shadow cabinet minister... [read more]
The Populist Revolution: Bernie and Beyond
The world is undergoing a populist revival. From the revolt against austerity led by Syriza to Jeremy Corbyn’s surprise victory as Labour leader... [read more]
Roy Greenslade's despair
Bryan Gould, former Labour shadow cabinet minister, provides a rebuttal to Roy Greenslade’s recent Guardian article... [read more]
The Reign of Absurdiocy
There is no such thing as "international terrorism". To declare war on "international terrorism" is nonsense. Politicians who do so are either fools or cynics, and probably both.... [read more]
Mislead: “to give false or misleading information to” (Collins Dictionary)
How wrong, devious and duplicitous can one man be? For how long can he now avoid justice?... [read more]
The Settlers' Prussia
Israeli democracy is sliding downwards. Sliding slowly, comfortably, but unmistakably... [read more]
Leader without Glory
Abu Mazen was very different from Arafat. Arafat was flamboyant, spontaneous, extrovert. Abu Mazen is rather withdrawn, introverted, cautious, meticulous... [read more]
The Litter Bug!
If you want an end to waste, you have to show it to the people, not hide it... [read more]
Time for the Nuclear Option: Raining Money on Main Street
Predictions are that we will soon be seeing the “nuclear option” — central bank-created money injected directly into the real economy... [read more]
The Douma Market Attack: a Fabricated Pretext for Intervention?
Eric Draitser raises important questions about the recent attack on a market in the Syrian town of Douma and highlights gaps in the official narrative of events... [read more]
Syria: From the sublime to the shameful
What follows is a report from a resident of Aleppo whose identity is not revealed for reasons of security... [read more]
Jewish Terrorists
Some of my best friends demand that I write an article condemning unconditionally the "administrative detention" of Jewish terrorists. ... [read more]
Divide et Impera
Binyamin Netanyahu is not known as a classical scholar, but even so he has adopted the Roman maxim Divide et Impera, divide and rule.... [read more]
Back Corbyn for Labour leader! Fight back with socialist policies!
The veteran left wing Labour MP Jeremy Corbyn has declared that he is putting himself forward to go on the ballot paper for the Labour leadership election... [read more]
Staying in Touch with the Real World
Former MP and member of the Labour shadow cabinet, Bryan Gould, explains how economic teaching lags behind reality... [read more]
Economic Policies for an Incoming Labour Government (Part 3 of 9)
The Different Uses of Credit Creation... [read more]
Economic Policies for an Incoming Labour Government (Part 2 of 9)
Stimulating Wealth Creation... [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]
State and Revolution: Chapter 5 - Withering Away the State
Thomas Riggins continues to guide us through chapter 5 of Lenin's State and Revolution... [read more]
IMT Statement: Kobane threatened with massacre: Fight imperialism! Defend the Kurds!
The forces of ISIS are closing in on the besieged town of Kobane on the Turkish-Syrian border... [read more]
Interview with Robert Braun (Part 2 of 2)
Dr Robert Braun, veteran politician and senior member of Hungary’s opposition party, MSZP, speaks with Dr Tomasz Pierscionek about Hungary’s transition from Eastern Bloc state to neo-liberal democracy and describes the challenges currently facing the country... [read more]
Lenin on the State and Revolution: The Paris Commune (1871)
Thomas Riggins reviews Chapter IV of Lenin's State and Revolution (1917)... [read more]
Which way forward for Cuba?
Recently a young worker and member of the Leeds Marxist Society, Ben Curry, travelled to Cuba as an international delegate to the May Day celebrations. We publish below his thoughts on what is happening in Cuba... [read more]
The OECD verdict on the British housing market
Former MP and member of the Labour shadow cabinet, Bryan Gould, discusses the findings of a recent OECD report which revealed that UK housing is among the most overpriced in the world... [read more]
The making of the Grenada Revolution
John Green reviews two books that detail the lead up to and aftermath of the Grenada Revolution... [read more]
Lenin on State and Revolution: The Paris Commune (1871) - Replacing the Bourgeois State
The form of state prevalent in the developed capitalist world at the time of the Commune was a state that functioned to support the bourgeoisie in its war against the working class... [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]
Bank Created Credit
Former MP and member of the Labour shadow cabinet, Bryan Gould, explains how orthodox monetary policy is fundamentally misconceived... [read more]
Bread and Circuses in a Digital Age
Bread and circuses have always been a central aspect of ruling class hegemony and a means of keeping the masses in a soporific state... [read more]
Waiting for Mangabe or Slavoj Zizek on Mandela's Socialist Failure
This is a reply to Slavoj Zizek's article "Mandela's Socialist Failure" published online in The Stone (a New York Times maintained philosophy blog) on December 6, 2013... [read more]
The Theory of Knowledge of Dialectical Materialism and of Empirio-Criticism
Thomas Riggins continues to lead us through Chapter 3 of Lenin's book Materialism and Empiro-criticism ... [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]
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 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]
Proportional Representation in the UK
After the disaster that was Nick Clegg's attempt at electoral reform it appears that reforming the voting system may be off the agenda for at least a generation, longer if the two main parties have their way, writes Bobby Gant.... [read more]
It’s like Déjà-Vu All Over Again
The Israeli-US rhetoric towards Iran is more than just hollow threats. History shows us why Iran is next in the firing line, and why an invasion just might be inevitable. ... [read more]
Palestine’s New Status: A History Rerun or a New Palestinian Strategy
Palestine has become a “non-member state” at the United Nations as of Thursday November 29, 2012.The draft of the UN resolution beckoning what many perceive as a historic moment passed with an overwhelming majority of General Assembly members: 138 votes in favour, nine against and 41 abstentions, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [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]
The teratoid of US foreign policy
Since the United States Declaration of Independence in 1776, the US has struggled with its foreign policy and its perceived role within global politics. Finn Bowen discusses the past, present and future of US foreign policy... [read more]
IMT sympathiser shot in Swat - Barbarism must not prevail!
Earlier this week, Malala Yousafzai was brutally shot by gunmen as she was returning home from school. Masked assassins stepped onto a bus filled with terrified children, identified her, and shot her at point blank range in the head and neck.... [read more]
‘So, how do you feel then? British or Palestinian or Muslim or whatever you call yourself? Hmm?'
NOT SURE ABOUT THIS ARTICLE ER 07/10... [read more]
The Politics of Truth
Politicians are easy targets and scoring points off aunt sallies is a national sport. Stephen Gilbert discusses the chasm between the accountability of political columnists and that of MPs... [read more]
Spying an opportunity
Stephen Gilbert argues that surveillance over the whole population involves an erosion of our basic liberties. We give away our rights at our own peril.
... [read more]
The problem with ‘Workfare’
Karl Davis discusses the unfairness and flaws inherent to the Workfare scheme... [read more]
The future for Tunisia
Thomas Riggins examines the background and ideology of the Ennanah Party, now heading the governing alliance in Tunisia following the overthrow of President Ben Ali ... [read more]
Don’t Quota Me
Is there a single reputable argument in favour of positive discrimination? The fact that so many of our institutions are unrepresentative of the make-up of society is of course deplorable, but manipulating recruitment in order to create an artificial balance is no way to put this right, writes W Stephen Gilbert.... [read more]
The Politics of the Psyche
BBC 4’s Saturday night primetime slot is cornering the market in excellent European drama but we don’t need Denmark to point out how impotent we feel. However idealistic were its ancient Roman origins, the UK’s version of representative democracy has become as distorted as a burning pillar of wax, says outRageous!... [read more]
Ban the Spanish Royal family from business
David Eade looks at allegations of a business scandal involving members of the Spanish royal family... [read more]
A future apology
Mark Chivers apologises prospectively for our generation's lack of action in safeguarding the planet ... [read more]
Iranian \'assassination plot\': Cooked up to further U.S. aim of regime change?
Mazda Majidi dissects US allegations of an Iranian plot to assassinate a Saudi diplomat on American soil.... [read more]
Blog: Lies Lies Lies
outRageous! - Lies about the recent gunplay in Kabul and the stuff no one wants you to know.... [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]
The ruling class policy toward its soldiers - Use Once and Throw Away
Dr Tomasz Pierscionek describes the treatment of war veterans, from the Vietnam era to those returning from present day conflicts, and highlights the continual deceit war-mongering governments use to deceive the public. The real enemies are not foreign but domestic.... [read more]
Behind the Israeli Wall: A Lesson in Reality
Rich Whiles' timely new book takes a refreshingly honest look at the experiences of the victims of Israeli apartheid, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
Modern Football: Money, Hype and Hysteria
John Green looks at how the status of the 'beautiful game' has changed in recent years.... [read more]
The Greeks are Fighting for Us All
The Greek crisis is merely the first stage of a wider global backlash against neoliberal economics, argues Steven Colatrella.... [read more]
From Gaza to Lebanon: Beware the Iron Wall, the Coming War
Israeli military strategists are planning for a new offensive against Lebanon, as Ramzy Baroud explains.... [read more]
Berlusconi: Europe's Real Pandemic
The enormous popularity of Italy's right-wing demagogue is a reflection of the corrupt cynicism of contemporary mass culture, argues Paolo Mossetti.... [read more]
Champions of the Overdog
Local papers are vanishing. George Monbiot asks: Does it matter? ... [read more]
Thatcher - The Real Legacy
With the right-wing press this week celebrating the anniversary of Margaret Thatcher's rise to power, David Brandon reminds us that it was Thatcher's politics that paved the way for the present crisis. ... [read more]
Enter the Matrix...
Examining mainstream media coverage of recent international conflicts, Tomasz Pierscionek argues that the nearly all-encompassing false reality of the Hollywood sci-fi classic "The Matrix" is merely an example of art immitating life.... [read more]
The Tempo of the Struggle
Socialist Appeal's Terry McPartlan provides a Marxist analysis of the current financial crisis.... [read more]
Gaza: Why We Must Act Now
Addressing a Lenasia rally in solidarity with the people of Gaza on 14th January, Zwelinzima Vavi characterised the Israeli government as a racist regime comparable to Apartheid South Africa. ... [read more]
Iraq's US Security Charade
As the mainstream media complacently celebrate the security pact which purports to confer independence upon the puppet regime in Baghdad, Ramzy Baroud provides a withering assessment of what the agreement really means.... [read more]
Top Economic Strategist Warns of ‘Catastrophe and Revolution’
Rob Sewell on how the financial press is interpreting the economic crisis.... [read more]
The End of "The End of History"
David Brandon examines the discredited view that world history came to an end when the Berlin Wall came down.... [read more]
Hay Festival Raises More Questions Than Answers
Matt Genner considers Naomi Klein's comments at this year's Hay Festival.... [read more]
Paul Volcker’s Long Shadow
Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan called Paul Volcker “the most effective chairman in the history of the Federal Reserve.... [read more]
From Under The Net
A new BBC season of programmes concerns ‘the novels that shaped our world.’ The perspective is the novel as a social agent, articulating experience to give it public voice.... [read more]
Short Essay on Georg Lukács
This short essay is a study of Lukács, specifically the political ideas of Lukács and the Socialist ideas of Lukács... [read more]
William Morris, Socialism, and the World
This short essay is a study of William Morris, Socialism, and the World.... [read more]
Short Essay on Cuba and America - History and Politics
The relationship between Cuba and the United States is a relationship of history and politics.
... [read more]
The Fed's Dramatic About-Face
“Quantitative easing” was supposed to be an emergency measure, but the Federal Reserve is now taking a surprising new approach toward the policy.... [read more]
The Venezuela Myth Keeping Us From Transforming Our Economy
Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) is getting significant media attention these days, after Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said in an interview that it should “be a larger part of our conversation” when it comes to funding the “Green New Deal.... [read more]
Taking Control
The aim of populism is to remake the world as a life where nothing happens.... [read more]
The March of Folly
The Israeli argument was that the victims were shot while trying to "storm the fences". Actually, not a single such attempt was photographed, though hundreds of photographers were posted on both sides of the fence.... [read more]
The Siamese Twins
After commenting on most of the episodes on the first Israeli Prime Ministers in Raviv Drucker's TV series "The Captains", I must come back to the one whose episode I have not yet covered: Yitzhak Rabin.... [read more]
The Undeserving Pedro Sanchez
If Spain’s PSOE “socialist” party is to be remembered for any one single thing, perhaps that will be weak leadership. ... [read more]
Strong as Death
I have spent many happy hours in Gaza. I had many friends there. From the leftist Dr. Haidar Abd al-Shafi to the Islamist Mahmoud al-Zahar, who is now the foreign minister of Hamas... [read more]
Saudi-led war on Yemen in its 4th year: the blood on the UK’s hands
In less than a month, the four year anniversary of the Saudi-led war on Yemen takes place, with no real solution in sight or clear hope for a total cease-fire in one of the world’s poorest countries... [read more]
Labour Leave – Not the Way Ahead
It is true that in the EU referendum, more people (52%) voted to leave than remain (48%) with the EU. But of the total electorate, that was 37% wanting to leave, 35% wanting to remain, and 28% that did not vote. ... [read more]
From Barak to Trump
Ehud Barak has "broken the silence". He has published an article in The New York Times attacking our prime minister in the most abrasive terms... [read more]
Political commentators
Political commentators have long been puzzled by the fact that, right across the globe and for several decades, the political left has been in retreat and – more than that – has apparently been unable to mount any significant challenge to the growing neo-liberal hegemony which has dominated western democracies since the 1980s... [read more]
How to Fund a Universal Basic Income Without Increasing Taxes or Inflation
A team of researchers at the University of Oxford published the results of a survey of the world’s best artificial intelligence experts, who predicted that there was a 50 percent chance of AI outperforming humans in all tasks within 45 years... [read more]
Free Radicals
During my lifetime [3/4 of a century at current prices] UK and US socio-political goalposts have shifted so far to the right that - were we actually talking about a sports field - the centre line has been re-branded as radical.... [read more]
Wistful Eyes
From whatever angle one looks at it, the death sentence is a barbaric and stupid measure. It has been abolished by all civilized countries, except some US states (which can hardly be called civilized)... [read more]
The Myth of Trump’s Nationalism and Non-Intervention
For all their obvious flaws, one of the good things about early Trump supporters in the US was their opposition to war.... [read more]
Whoso Confesseth and Forsaketh
In the tumult of the last few days, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the "unification" of Jerusalem, one of the articles stated that "even peace-activist Uri Avnery" voted in the Knesset for the unification of the city.... [read more]
Cui Bono?
Cui bono – "who benefits" – is the first question an experienced detective asks when investigating a crime.... [read more]
Trump and the left – a case of mass hysteria?
The stark truth is that the left has long ago lost its way politically. Sadly those left fractions, whose kneejerk political solution is to organise an obligatory protest action where slogans, such as “Dump Trump”, are chanted ad nauseum, have become an obstacle to the advance of socialism... [read more]
President Kong
The real sad fact is that in every single speech since the inauguration, the main theme – indeed, almost the only theme - of President Donald Trump is I – I – I.... [read more]
Momentum's Night of the Long Knives
And so the Bonaparte of Momentum was born. At a stroke, Momentum’s democratic structures have been abolished; the tireless work of thousands of Corbyn supporters over the past year-and-a-half thrown out the window... [read more]
Being There
President Donald Trump – we must get used to these three words. The only one thing that can be said with some certainty is that nothing is certain. That this man is totally unpredictable... [read more]
US Presidential Election: who will win and who deserves to win?
It has been widely commented that the two main contenders in the US presidential race are both deeply flawed candidates, even that they are both unfit to hold high office... [read more]
Civil War
Something strange happens to retired chiefs of the Israeli internal Security Service, Shin Bet.... [read more]
Putting Labour Together Again
Former Labour shadow cabinet minister, Bryan Gould, explains how a parliamentary party ready to unite behind its leader would in turn invite and deserve a considered response from Corbyn... [read more]
Dear UK, I am European
I have grown up unable to say where I belong, due to having two passports and two nationalities which taught me to look at the world from two very different angles... [read more]
What the Hell
What the hell has happened to them? Have they gone crazy? The British, of all people?... [read more]
The Effect of David Cameron On The BREXIT Referendum
What we now appear to be witnessing is the final bitter breakup of the Conservative Party into two warring factions, neither of which have any care for the continued integrity of the United Kingdom... [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]
The Center Doesn't Hold
"The best lack all convictions, while the worst are full of passionate intensity!"... [read more]
“Print the Money”: Trump’s “Reckless” Proposal Echoes Franklin and Lincoln
The right of government to issue its own money was one of the principles for which the American Revolution was fought... [read more]
"Us" and "Them"
Some days ago, Yitzhak Herzog said something especially obnoxious. He declared that his party is failing at elections because people believe that its members are "Arab lovers".... [read more]
An Incongruous UN Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul
President Erdogan should not have the honour of hosting the first ever United Nations World Humanitarian Summit... [read more]
In the Panama Capers we Trust
The leaked Panama Papers, from the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca & Co, are spilling the beans on the details of what the rich, powerful and greedy get up to with unseemly amounts of dosh... [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 4: MIC and BPS
The recent and ongoing reaction of the political class here in the UK to the first prominent peace-promoting party leader in recent times is a yardstick for the modern politician’s disregard to anything Eisenhower said... [read more]
Bernie Sanders' message
Former Labour shadow cabinet minister Bryan Gould considers why Bernie Sanders' support amongst voters keeps growing... [read more]
The Citadel Is Breached: Congress Taps the Fed for Infrastructure Funding
In a landmark infrastructure bill passed in December, Congress finally penetrated the Fed's "independence" by tapping its reserves and bank dividends for infrastructure funding... [read more]
The big private banks run on LTRO
Part 6 of the series 'Too Big to Fail' by Eric Toussaint... [read more]
David Cameron’s Christmas Crusade - More Killing
Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron and his Cabinet Ministers are rigidly consistent in one thing - their inconsistency... [read more]
Illegal Slaughter – Cameron’s Syria Equals Blair’s Iraq?
A recent ITV poll showed 89.32% of British people are against bombing Syria... [read more]
Questions of Power and Slavery
All governments encroach, creep into our lives, and smother our minds with ever more legislation that infringes our human rights and civil liberties... [read more]
We’ve Got to Talk about Water and the Middle East
This is the text of a lecture given in Dorchester on Wednesday 28 October 2015... [read more]
US Wars: Russia’s Fantasy “Stray Missiles” - America’s Real Ones
"Any time bombs are used to target innocent civilians it is an act of terrorism." (Barack Obama 15th February 2013)... [read more]
An Anti-Austerity 2015 UK Budget
George Tait Edwards explains how Shimomuran-Wernerian macroeconomics is the best available path to prosperity once the politicians of the West understand the effectiveness of that option... [read more]
Nasser and I
Forty five years ago Gamal Abd-al-Nasser died at the early age of 52. It continues to have a huge influence on the present, and probably will on the future... [read more]
Quantitative Easing for People: The UK Labour Frontrunner's Controversial Proposal
British MP Jeremy Corbyn has proposed a “People’s QE” that has critics crying hyperinflation and supporters saying it’s about time... [read more]
Labour’s Lost Soul: the UK and the Labour Party leadership election
I’ve done it, pushed out my boat on to uncharted seas and voted for Jeremy Corbyn to be leader of Britain’s Labour Party... [read more]
Sheldon's Stooges
In Japan in the good old days, Binyamin Netanyahu would by now have committed hara-kiri... [read more]
“Guerrilla Warfare” Against the EU-ECB-IMF Economic Hegemony: The Challenge and Promise of Greece. The Nationalization of the Banking System
Greece could restore the liquidity desperately needed by its banks and economy by nationalizing the banks and issuing digital loans backed by government guarantees... [read more]
A Revolutionary Pope Calls for Rethinking the Outdated Criteria That Rule the World
Pope Francis’ revolutionary encyclical addresses not just climate change but the banking crisis... [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]
The Real Naqba
Three weeks ago was Naqba Day – the day on which Palestinians inside and outside Israel commemorate their "catastrophe... [read more]
The Map on the Wall
History shows us that there are (at least) two kinds of peace agreements. One kind, the stupid one, is based on power. The other, the intelligent, is based on common interest... [read more]
Is Britain now Too Gerrymandered To Be A Genuine Democracy?
During the last 27 years, Conservative and Coalition Governments have passed legislation aimed at reducing the voting rights of people not likely to be supportive of the Conservative Party... [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]
Over Bottled
Everybody knows what the Israeli elections are about. The choice is stark: on the one side, the dream of a Greater Israel "from the sea to the river"; on the other side, an end to the occupation and peace... [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]
U.S. cops kill at 100 times rate of other capitalist countries
How many people are killed every year by the police in the U.S?... [read more]
Niall Ferguson on Henry Kissinger's "World Order"
A good book review gives both the gist of the book and allows you to decide if it is worth reading... [read more]
Can the Duke become King?
On Monday, the 19th Knesset voted to dissolve itself, less than two years after its election... [read more]
No wonder landowners are scared. We are starting to learn who owns Britain
Scotland is breaking the cover-up that stifles our political thought. Bring the Highland Spring south, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
The revolutionary reawakening of Burkina Faso
The West African country of Burkina Faso exploded into a full blown revolutionary situation on Thursday 30th October... [read more]
Taxi story
Reams have been written about how awful and oppressive East Germany was - a virtual slave state with Stasi surveillance informers everywhere. That image was rudely demolished in a curious way the other day... [read more]
Decent Respect
Sweden, like Britain, was always considered a "pro-Israeli" country, loyally voting against "anti-Israel" resolutions in the UN. If such important Western nations are reconsidering their attitudes towards the policy of Israel, what does it mean?... [read more]
Lenin: State and Revolution: Chapter 5 (Part 2)
The second part of Thomas Riggins' analysis of Chapter 5 of Lenin's State and Revolution... [read more]
Piketty for Progressives
Part 3 of Thomas Riggins's analysis of Thomas Piketty's book - Capital in the Twenty-First Century... [read more]
Lenin: State and Revolution: Withering Away the State
Thomas Riggins reviews the first part of Chapter V of Lenin's State and Revolution (1917)... [read more]
Eyeless in Gaza
The trouble with war is that it has two sides. Everything would be so much easier if war had only one side... [read more]
The Dilemma of the Israeli Government in Gaza
The 72 hour cease-fire between Israel and Hamas did not last more than a few hours... [read more]
Reading Lenin: Materialism and Empirio-Criticism Thomas Riggins
Thomas Riggins talks us though the rest of Chapter 4 of Lenin's book Materialism and Empirio-Criticism ... [read more]
Who is Winning?
Uri Avnery asks what history would look like if it were written in the style of the "Solid Cliff (a.k.a. Protective Edge) operation?... [read more]
Monsanto, Syngenta, Pioner et al: With Friends in High Places, the GMO Biotech Sector is Kicking Open the Door to Europe
The proposal to hand back some decision powers to member states of the European Union regarding GMO approvals is currently being discussed, writes Colin Todhunter... [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]
Review: VJ McGill on Russell's Critique of Marxism
In the "The Philosophy of Bertrand Russell" volume in the Library of Living Philosophers (1944) VJ McGill (1897-1977) published a detailed critique of Russell's political and economic philosophy... [read more]
India: a vote of despair
Dr Lal Khan provides analysis on the Indian elections and the landslide victory of the BJP... [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]
Farage's demagoguery obscures UKIP's reactionary nature
Dr Tomasz Pierscionek discusses how UKIP seek to plug an electoral void that ought to be filled by a Labour Party offering a socialist programme... [read more]
Twelve Years a Slave, Sixty Six Years a Living Dead
Dr Faysal Mikdadi dreams of his lost love - Palestine... [read more]
In One Word: Poof!
Poor John Kerry. This week he emitted a sound that was more expressive than pages of diplomatic babble.... [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]
Lenin on the Paris Commune (1871): An Heroic Uprising
Thomas Riggins discusses Lenin's take on the Paris Commune... [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]
An Extended Review of "Princes of the Yen" by Professor Richard Werner
George Tait Edwards reviews “Princes of the Yen”, the latest book written by Professor Richard Werner... [read more]
Bowe Bergdahl, US soldier captured by Taliban: A reflection on his words and time for prisoner exchange
Carol Grayson reports on the status of Bowe Bergdahl, an American held prisoner by the Taliban since 2009, and provides a transcript of the unedited version of a video of Bowe which the Taliban recently released... [read more]
The Imperator
In the middle of the 70s, Ariel Sharon asked me to arrange something for him - a meeting with Yasser Arafat... [read more]
Peace Comes through Forgiveness
I am a Palestinian. My family moved to Beirut after Israel was created because we were the "myth" that was Palestine... [read more]
Banks versus the People: the Underside of a Rigged Game (Part 6) - Even the IMF agrees…
In October 2012, the IMF provided a key explanation of why the crisis was getting worse in Europe... [read more]
Another Keynes was Born and Lived and Died in Japan and The West Didn’t Notice
Another Keynes was born in the Saga Prefecture in the north west part of the island of Kyushu, Japan, in 1910
... [read more]
From Obamacare to trade, superversion not subversion is the new and very real threat to the state
Rightwing politicians and their press use talk of patriotism to disguise where their true loyalty lies: the wealthy elite, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
Shooting down Helicopters
Money is the lubricant that permits the economic system to work. Goods and wealth that are produced, distributed, circulated, used and owned do so because of money... [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]
Book review: The Socialist Way
Former shadow cabinet member and Labour MP Bryan Gould reviews a stimulating and thoughtful collection of essays... [read more]
The Failure of Innovation in the Anglo-Saxon Economies
George Tait Edwards examines the role of innovation in economic development... [read more]
It’s Franco’s heart that beats in Madrid
No Gibraltarian, and come to that anybody living in the real world, will believe the confrontations at sea last week over the reef laying and the six hour car queues to leave Gibraltar at the weekend were anything but linked, writes David Eade.... [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]
A Critique of the analysis of Karl Marx within the BBC’s ‘Masters of Money’ Series
David Benbow critiques the BBC's ‘Masters of Money’ episode, aired last year, that focused on the economic theories of Karl Marx... [read more]
An Economic Policy For A Post Neo-Liberal World (Part 1 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 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]
Not The Wharton Bill
When James Wharton stages his Canute-like attempt to prevent Labour from taking back Stockton South, then that party ought to put down an amendment declining to give the 'Daft Bill' a Second Reading in view of its entire failure to address some issues, writes David Lindsay.... [read more]
Slavko Martinov: The antidote to Propaganda? Question everything!
Patrizia Bertini conducts an exclusive interview with film producer Slavko Martinov... [read more]
On summer solstice, my £100 bet against solar power ends - who won?
Solar may be popular but environmentalists must be hard-headed about how to reduce CO2 in the cheapest way, writes George Moniot.... [read more]
There is a war on ordinary people and feminists are needed at the front
The problem with media-run "conversations" on gender is not merely the almost total absence of male participants, but the suppression of class, writes John Pilger.... [read more]
“Palestine’s existence depends on respect and on our children” - Dr Rauf Azar (Director of the Beit Sahour medical centre)
Patrizia Bertini interviews Rauf Azar, a Palestinian doctor, using the pioneering Lego Serious Play technique... [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]
Margaret Thatcher's Contribution to Neoliberalism
Former Labour MP and Shadow Cabinet member, Bryan Gould, reflects on the tendency to lionise and exaggerate the importance of Margaret Thatcher's contribution towards promoting free market economics... [read more]
Reading Lenin: Materialism and Empirio-criticism [ Part 3 ]
Thomas Riggins guides us through Section I, Chapter I of Lenin's Materialism and Empirio-criticism... [read more]
“Ich bin ein Bil’iner!”
This does not happen every day: a Minister of Culture publicly rejoices because a film from her country has NOT been awarded an Oscar. And not just one film, but two.
... [read more]
If markets weren't masters and economics worked for people
The choice on the one hand is for people to be a resource for a rich economy. The choice on the other is for a rich economy to be a resource for society. Alfie Stirling explains... [read more]
Lessons and Conclusions from Lenin's Left-Wing Communism: an Infantile Disorder
Thomas Riggins concludes his analysis of Lenin's 'Left-Wing' Communism: an Infantile Disorder and looks at what conclusions can be drawn from the book's previous nine chapters... [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]
Emily Wilding Davison Memorial Campaign Launched
A new campaign to honour the memory of the militant Suffragette Emily Wilding Davison on the 100th anniversary of her tragic death was launched on 29 November at the Firebox Café in King’s Cross. David Morgan reports
... [read more]
Lenin on Marxism and Bourgeois Democracy
In chapter seven of "'Left-Wing' Communism: an Infantile Disorder" Lenin addresses himself to the ultra-left claim that socialists should no longer work with or be members of bourgeois parliaments. Thomas Riggins explains.... [read more]
Palestine and Israel: A Modest Suggestion for Peace (Part 1)
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 1)... [read more]
Rhetorically Speaking: US Elections and the Middle East
US elections are manifestly linked to the Middle East, at least rhetorically. In practical terms, however, US foreign policies in the region are compelled by the Middle East’s own dynamics and the US’ own political climate, economic woes, or ambitions, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
The Spectre of Communism
The eulogies in the media for the late Marxist historian, Eric Hobsbawm, praise his historical insight yet express bemusement at his adherence to the Communist cause. Why is there a lack of understanding as to why so many of his generation remained loyal to the cause of their youth? John Green explains.... [read more]
US War Agenda: Coke or Goldman Sachs, What's Your Poison?
Colin Todhunter asks who in their right mind would be prepared to fight and die for Shell, Chevron or Coca Cola?... [read more]
Charity Economics, Subservient Politics: Why Oslo Must Go
Recent demonstrations in protest of the rising cost of living have swept across the West Bank. While they are not indicative of a Palestinian version of the ‘Arab Spring’, they are still an important first step, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
Mass media directing the masses
Luke Innes looks at the effect of mass media on the working class in Britain... [read more]
Our officers kill more U.S. troops than the Taliban
No solution will come from our chain-of-command—the solution is fighting our chain-of-command. Michael Prysner, former US army corporal and Iraq war veteran, discusses record suicides amongst active-duty soldiers and reminds troops that they do not have to fight wars of imperialism... [read more]
Decoding Assange
John Green reports that Julian Assange is the new bête noir, the man to be vilified, smeared and slandered. In all the media hysteria about the rape allegations made in Sweden against Assange by two women he slept with, the real issue is being conveniently buried.... [read more]
Nothing ‘Accidental’ in Mali – More Misery Awaits
Northern Mali promises to be the graveyard of scores of innocent people if African countries don’t collectively challenge Western influence in the region, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
Spain’s May 15 protest movement celebrates its anniversary
As the Spanish 15-M protest movement celebrates its first anniversary, LPJ Iberian correspondent, David Eade, reveals that the movement is spreading from main street to mainstream... [read more]
A Putsch Against War
Uri Avnery reveals that in Israel senior military officers and intelligence chiefs are speaking out against President Binyamin Netanyahu's calls for war with Iran. However, Netanyahu ignores their warnings and carries on regardless... [read more]
The French Presidential Campaign: As Viewed from the Rue de Solférino
David Eade talks to Pierre Kanuty about Francois Hollande's real chance of victory in the upcoming French election.... [read more]
The Rest is Hasbara: Jenny Tonge’s Victory over the Lobby
Baroness Tonge, spoke at the House of Lords in January 2009 of the "impotence of the international community, not just in Gaza, but…over 40 years of occupation of Palestine by Israel," Ramzy Baroud explains further.... [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]
What's behind Kony 2012?
Eugene Puryear describes some of the hidden motivations to bringing Joseph Kony, leader of the Lord's Resistance Army, to justice... [read more]
Can Capitalism Survive?
In the first of a series of articles, by internationaly renowned Greek economist Professor Lefteris Tsoulfidis, focusing on the origins and state of the European economic crisis, Professor Tsoulfidis discusses whether Capitalism has a future... [read more]
Liberal Constipation
Conservatism is linked to low intelligence; but the real idiots are the progressives letting it win, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
Lies, Damned Lies and Opinion Polls
Stephen Gilbert challenges the so called 'accuracy' of ICM opinion polls and shows how Labour continues to miss classic opportunities to rebut Conservative policy. ... [read more]
Militarism mixed with empty liberal rhetoric
Richard Becker dissects Obama's 2012 State of the Union address and shows that the 'CEO of the imperialist ruling class is carrying on with business as usual... [read more]
Is Ed making a balls of it?
David Eade reflects on Ed Balls' recent speech at a Fabian Society conference and asks whether the Shadow Chancellor is more of a hinderence than a help to his own party... [read more]
An outRageous! essay on The Arts, Education and The People.
This rant is aimed at your crassness, Cameron. It goes to the heart of what is art, and why it's so important in preparing people for democracy, says outRageous!... [read more]
Indiana: labor's next big battle
Jeff Bigelow discusses how the state of Indiana has become the latest battleground in the fight to prevent 'right to work' legislation coming into force
... [read more]
A Ghost Story Retailed
W Stephen Gilbert delivers an up-to-date, state and fate of the retail trade in Britain, it is partly warmingly, personal and anecdotal, and partly a critical overview: part one... [read more]
False Evidence Appearing Real
There is profit to be made in keeping the public fearful, Bryan G Taylor explains... [read more]
Obit: Never a Soft or quiet Russell
W Stephen Gilbert pays tribute to Ken Russell, the enigmatic, eccentric film director who died on Sunday. ... [read more]
The War on Libya: Behind Appearances - Part 3
An in-depth critique and analysis of the beginnings of the civil war in Libya and what was at stake for all parties involved in the final conflict, split into three parts. (Part 3)... [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]
Taking a look at L.H.O.O.Q
outRageous! gives a critique of the first edition of L.H.O.O.Q- a new online culture magazine... [read more]
Conservative Conference: Economy and House Building
Mirela Ivanova scrutinises David Cameron’s address to the Conservative Party conference... [read more]
'Justice' American style
Jean Claude van Itallie tells how the state of Georgia callously executed an innocent man, Troy Davis.... [read more]
'Social justice' requires ending Israeli apartheid
Sarah Carlson looks at the growing social protest movement in Israel and discusses the need for the Israeli working class to combat not only the economic policies of their government but also its colonialist policies.... [read more]
The Truth About the Situation in Libya
As Colonel Gaddafi’s regime enters its final days, Brian Becker looks at NATOs involvement in bolstering the rebel movement and the truth behind the so called campaign of ‘humanitarian intervention’ ... [read more]
The New Anti-Semitism
Uri Avnery, Israeli writer and founder of the Gush Shalom peace movement, offers a warning from history as he examines a modern form of racism taking root across Europe.... [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]
Whitewashing Defeat
For all his poise and rhetoric, Obama’s indecisiveness is the defining feature of his presidency, says Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
Miliband: The Knives are Already Being Sharpened
Now that the dust has settled on Ed Miliband's surprise victory in the Labour leadership election, Michael Prior considers the challenges facing the new leader as he seeks to move the party away from Blairism.... [read more]
Thatcher and the Last Tory cuts
Eric Hollies puts today's coalition government in historical perspective by looking back on the brutal public spending cuts imposed by the Thatcher government.... [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]
Thatcherism Phase Two
The UK's 'progressive coalition' is implementing a neo-Thatcherite revolution, a war against the poor, writes Richie Nimmo.... [read more]
The Real Cost of the Banking Crisis
Mick Brooks reviews the Bank of England's assessment of the banking crisis.... [read more]
Karzai’s Washington Visit: The War Awaiting Kandahar
Ramzy Baroud on who's really behind the puppet regime in Afghanistan.... [read more]
Italian Elections: More of the Same
Samuele Mazzolini reflects on an election that has consolidated the dominance of Silvo Berlusconi's centre-right bloc, and the continuing malaise of the Italian left.... [read more]
Ninety Years On: Remembering the Kapp Putsch
On the 90th anniversary of the Kapp Putsch, Socialist Appeal Mick Brooks looks back on how Germany's working class united as one to resist a reactionary coup d'état.... [read more]
The Kangaroo
A year into his presidency, Barack Obama has achieved relatively little in the foreign policy sphere. Uri Avnery urges him to keep trying.... [read more]
Khaled Taja: The Anthony Quinn of Arab Drama
Khaled Taja, 70 years old and the iconic figure of Arabic drama, is planning to play the leading role in a movie about the tunnels of Gaza, writes Iqbal Tamimi.... [read more]
War, Negation and Muslim Identity Revisited
Ramzy Baroud on the reductionist caricatures which underpin the supposed 'clash of civilizations' between the West and Islam.... [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]
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]
Circles of Crisis
Michael Prior examines the political crisis at the heart of the UK slowdown.... [read more]
Pure Evil, or the Logic of Privatisation?
A curious US case has highlighted the perverse logic of privatisation, as Mick Brooks explains.... [read more]
Government Watchdog Report Highlights Need for Asylum Reform
With a woefully inefficient asylum system letting down applicants and taxpayers alike, Sara Hall makes the case for much-needed reform.... [read more]
Book Review: "Israel and the Clash of Civilisations"
Gavin O'Toole reviews Jonathan Cook's insightful book about the thinking behind US Middle East policy.... [read more]
Crisis: The Worst Since the 1930s
Michael Roberts argues the present economic slump is merely the first stage of a long-term deflationary depression.... [read more]
£50bn Bail-out Will Not Stop the Rot
Socialist Appeal's Mick Brooks on the UK government's financial bail-out package.... [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]
The Working Class Must Not be Left to Pay for Wall Street Mess
Socialist Appeal's Walter Leon on the far-reaching implications of the financial crisis. ... [read more]
The Patron Saint of Charlatans
George Monbiot asks: How does Christopher Booker get away with it?... [read more]
The Magic Pudding
George Monbiot on why the US government still pouring billions into missile defence.... [read more]
Hedge Funds, Speculation and Capitalism
With market speculation very much in the news at the moment, Mick Brooks examines the phenomenon of the hedge fund, and its role in the current economic malaise.... [read more]
Israel and Western Hypocrisy: Mordechai Vanunu Talks to London Progressive Journal
Joanna Allan talks to anti-nuclear campaigner Mordechai Vanunu about his experience at the hands of the Israeli government.... [read more]
It’s Time to say Thank You to our Immigrant Communities
Parmjit Dhanda MP on the continued success of immigration in Britain.... [read more]
Can the US Democrats Harness the Growing sense of Injustice?
The Democrats must move away from pro-business policies to secure electoral victory.... [read more]
Another Defeat for the Italian Left
Samuele Mazzolini on what the Italian Left can learn from its recent election defeat.... [read more]
Will Colombia's Democratic Left Seize the Initiative from Uribe and the FARC?
Samuele Mazzolini calls on both sides in the FARC-Uribe stand-off to make concessions in the name of democracy.... [read more]
Anti-FARC March Only Tells Part Of the Story
As millions march against the FARC in Colombia, Samuele Mazzolini considers the wider context of Colombia's internal security problems.... [read more]
The Desire to Return to the Routine After the Pandemic? A Case Against
May 11 marked two months since WHO declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic. Many of us long for a return to the routine. Here we argue against this longing. ... [read more]
Crushing the States, Saving the Banks: The Fed’s Generous New Rules
The new terms could be harnessed for local governments to own and operate their own banks.... [read more]
The Power of Sex
Looking back over the decades as I approach my 78th birthday, I marvel at the recurring and evolving attempts to address the issues that affect us all... [read more]
Who are we, now that Brexit has severed our links?
I belong to England, but that England is not the self-important, arrogant and ill-informed England of Boris Johnson, Nigel Farage, the European Research Group or Tommy Robinson and the English Defence League... [read more]
Beth is Baffled!
As I inch toward my 78th birthday it’s not just frustrating, but inexplicable why the number of my age should provoke dismissal, even disdain... [read more]
The Key to Solving the Climate Crisis Is Beneath Our Feet
The Green New Deal resolution that was introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives in February hit a wall in the Senate, where it was called unrealistic and unaffordable... [read more]
Is the Run on the Dollar Due to Panic or Greed?
What’s going on in the repo market? Rates on repurchase (“repo”) agreements should be about 2%, in line with the Federal Reserve funds rate... [read more]
The Disaster of Negative Interest Rates
The dollar strengthened against the euro in August, merely in anticipation of the European Central Bank slashing its key interest rate further into negative territory.... [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]
How to Pay for It All: An Option the Candidates Missed
The Democratic Party has clearly swung to the progressive left, with candidates in the first round of presidential debates coming up with one program after another to help the poor, the disadvantaged and the struggling middle class... [read more]
Facebook May Pose a Greater Danger Than Wall Street
Payments can happen cheaply and easily without banks or credit card companies, as has already been demonstrated—not in the United States but in China.... [read more]
Short Essay on the Greek Crisis
This short essay is a study of the history and politics of the Greek Crisis... [read more]
The Goldilocks Zone
Let’s face it, this very world is at stake and we’re a long way off getting another.... [read more]
Capitalism Made You A Whore
This somewhat ranty piece won't win me any friends among the so-called
sisterhood... [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]
Referendums of Politics - Part I
Great Britain, since 2016, has gone through a difficult period. This difficult period has been caused by the politics of Crisis, the politics of Brexit, and the politics of the Referendum of 2016... [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]
Why Is the Fed Paying So Much Interest to Banks?
When “Mary Poppins” was made into a movie in 1964, Mr. Banks’ advice to his son was sound. The banks were then paying more than 5% interest on deposits, enough to double young Michael’s investment every 14 years.... [read more]
The Secret to Funding a Green New Deal
As alarm bells sound over the advancing destruction of the environment, a variety of Green New Deal proposals have appeared in the U.S. and Europe... [read more]
A SENSE OF CHARACTER
In a culture of bland conformity it is stimulating to find a challenge. It surely demands a response. To dismiss it out of hand would be to show no respect.... [read more]
The Financial Secret Behind Germany’s Green Energy Revolution
Funding through the Federal Reserve may be controversial, but establishing a national public infrastructure and development bank should be a no-brainer.... [read more]
ABC
Regular readers of outRageous! know at this time of the year, as well as keeping up with T.V. holiday viewing, I hide and hibernate to fulfil my duty as one of several thousands of official voters for the annual BAFTA awards... [read more]
Dear Mister Corbyn
This is not a letter I thought I would ever have to write when I joined the Labour Party, but it has to be written.... [read more]
National Interest or Personal Interest: Theresa May’s Spat with Tony Blair
The war of words between Tony Blair and Theresa May over the last few days is quite revealing – not of Blair’s known position regarding the Brexit mess, but because the Prime Minister’s rant showed her weakness.... [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]
Why is Canada Punishing this Brave Woman?
Christianne Boudreau has worked with other parents internationally to create and promote educational programs to counter extremism.... [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]
A Citizen Of Everywhere
At the geographic centre of Europe, Berlin is a microcosm of European history.... [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]
Obituary: Felicia Langer
The life of Felicia Langer, who died this year, is a shining example of a Jewish Israeli who championed the cause of the Palestinian people... [read more]
No Problem
The problem extends well beyond one particular question. For a long time now the world has been run on the presumption that all problems are easily soluble.... [read more]
Shujaat Bukhari: A Voice for the Victims of History
The sad and unexpected demise of one of Jammu Kashmir’s great sons of the soil, has raised a big question mark on the effectiveness of the so-called cease fire between the Indian Army and terrorists. ... [read more]
The Post
Spielberg’s film The Post is about events that are now history. Yet they remain so relevant.... [read more]
Who is the vassal?
"If you want to understand the policy of a nation, look at the map!" Napoleon is supposed to have said.... [read more]
Civilisations, a current television project, stimulates responses
Civilisation is the culture of cities, of permanent settlements. These demand social organisation to administer to the needs of citizens... [read more]
Taking the World to the Brink of Annihilation
Western neoconservatives and hawks are driving the international situation to increasing tension and danger... [read more]
Salisbury continues to suffer while Theresa May plays Novichok game
On Easter Saturday I revisited Salisbury to see for myself. This was, after all, a holiday weekend, and Salisbury should be packed with people. Yes, car parks were full but…... [read more]
Advertising Ghosts in the Political Machine by OutRageous!
Are You The Ghost or The Machine?... [read more]
Salisbury, Skripal and Novichok – a local view
From the moment the news came out that on Sunday March 4th in Salisbury, one of England’s revered cathedral cities, a Russian spy and his daughter had been poisoned by some form of ‘nerve agent’ my reaction was ‘Oh dear’. ... [read more]
The War on the Post Office
The US Postal Service, under attack from a manufactured crisis designed to force its privatization, needs a new source of funding to survive. Postal banking could fill that need.... [read more]
A Writer's Place
It was a masterpiece of evasion. He was asked, as other writers were, to comment on the needs of publishers to seek out work of merit that might not be commercially viable... [read more]
Leaders of the world
In years gone by it never bothered me too much who was leading what country or international organisations because there were so many good leaders about who knew how the world worked... [read more]
When Is there Going to be Accountability for US Wars and Aggression?
US makes new claims of WMD in Syria... [read more]
Student Debt Slavery II: Time to Level the Playing Field
The lending business is heavily stacked against student borrowers. Bigger players can borrow for almost nothing, and if their investments don’t work out, they can put their corporate shells through bankruptcy and walk away.... [read more]
Why the Honduras Crisis Matters to Me
For seven months in 1969 I hitch-hiked around the US, Mexico and Central America with my best friend from high school... [read more]
Jerusalem
On the 26th May 1967, using money borrowed from my stepmother after swearing her to secrecy because I lived in unjustified terror of a very kind Dad, I boarded a flight to Jerusalem... [read more]
Election Theft in Honduras
Honduras is in crisis. The national election took place on Sunday 26 November. Results posted that night showed the challenger Salvador Nasralla with a 5% lead with 57% of the votes tallied... [read more]
King and Emperor
Zionism is an anti-Semitic creed. It was so right from the beginning.... [read more]
A Terrible Thought
Suddenly, A terrible thought struck me. What if Avi Gabbay really believes what he is saying?... [read more]
Scottish Left On The Eve of the Centenary of Bolshevik Revolution
Scottish coordinator for ICOR, Amjad Ayub Mirza looks at the effects of revisionism and reformism on Scottish left politics... [read more]
WMD in Syria just like Iraq in 2003? Contradictions in the UN/OPCW Report on Khan Shaykhun
In early 2003 it was claimed that Iraq was a threat to other countries. Today we have something similarly ridiculous and dangerous. Supposedly the Syrian government decided to use a banned chemical weapon which they gave up in 2013-2014... [read more]
Two Meetings
During the last few days, I met with two old friends: Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin... [read more]
North Korea: A Threat Or A Victim? Some Facts
If anyone is still wondering why North Korea was being “provocative” in missile tests and repeatedly declaring what would seem to be a daunting arsenal (although there is still no irrefutable, concrete proof of deliverable, long range nuclear weapons capability) here is just a small taste of what it’s southern neighbor, in cahoots with Godfather America, has planned... [read more]
Separation is Beautiful
It says the Likud is the most cunning instrument for keeping the Mizrahim down. That the endless rule of Binyamin Netanyahu, the very personification of the Ashkenazi elite... [read more]
A Tale of Two Stories
This Tuesday morning he arrived at the gate as usual. But something aroused suspicion among the guards. He was wearing a jacket, though the weather was quite hot on this early autumn day. The guards asked him to remove his jacket.... [read more]
Crusaders and Zionists
Caesarea was built by King Herod some 2000 years ago and named after his Roman master, Augustus Caesar. It once again became an important town under the Crusaders, who fortified it.... [read more]
North Korea an Aggressor? A Reality Check
The mention of one tiny country appears to strike at the rationality and sanity of those who should know far better... [read more]
Lament in an Insane World - Saudi Arabia: The Tragedy of the “Ships of the Desert.” Stateless, Expelled Camels.
The last straw will break the camel’s back.... [read more]
The March of Folly
There are two ways to look at historic disasters. The one sees them as plots of evil persons, the other as acts of folly.... [read more]
How Much Is A Job Worth?
There was a time when organized labour was widely and regularly accused of greed and social irresponsibility when campaigning for more equitable wages. Today we see fortunes bestowed on the managers of capital without anything like the same measure of censure. ... [read more]
Is Brexit Ready to Exit: Mayhem and changing opinions in the UK
A year ago the UK voted to leave the EU after a stupid, unnecessary referendum. Not only that, but it has emerged that the Brexit campaign was funded by some secretive and dodgy deals.... [read more]
The Bizarre Case of Bashar
When I first heard that, on April 4, Bashar al-Assad had bombed Khan Sheikhoun with nerve gas my inner voice whispered: wait. Something wrong. Something smells fishy. First of all, it was too quick. Just a few hours after the event, everybody knew it was Bashar who did it.... [read more]
The New Wave
When I was young, there was a joke: "There is no one like you – and that's a good thing!"... [read more]
Parliamentary Riffraff
When Adlai Stevenson ran for the presidency, he was told "Don't worry, every thinking person will vote for you." "But I need a majority," Stevenson famously replied.... [read more]
Branded
Perhaps the most sadly significant sign among the daily deceits currently stinking up the White House, is the redefinition of "presidential."... [read more]
A Curious National Home
The present Israeli government coalition consists of 67 (out of 120) members of the Knesset. Each member wants to be elected again (and again and again). In order to be reelected, he or she must attract the attention of the public. The simplest way is to propose a new law. A bill so outrageous, that the media cannot possibly ignore it.... [read more]
My Palestinian Exile Is Not Theatre, Mr Fleisher. It Is Real Life
I am a Palestinian. Do not relegate me to some imperial design suiting Israel's ends and tell me to pack off to Jordan or anywhere other than where I was born and where my forefathers have lived for well over a thousand year... [read more]
Reactive Mismeasures: The New Yorker and the "New" Cold War Propaganda (Part 3)
This is the third part of a paragraph by paragraph commentary on a recent article posing as journalism in the March 6, 2017 issue of The New Yorker... [read more]
Eminent Psychiatrists Express Deep Concern at President’s “dangerousness”, “instability”, and “unpredictability.”
The insane threats also come from a man who achieved five draft deferments during the Vietnam war, thus has no knowledge even of what one bullet can do, let alone the vapourising monstrosities he seems to think he has divine power to unleash on a whim.... [read more]
On the Road of Damascus, I Met Jeremy Corbyn
I come from a fairly long line of mercantile family forebears with strong business skills and profit inspired attitudes. Although I chose not to go into business as my brothers did and I became a teacher of English, every emotional nerve in my body believed in wealth creation as being the only way forward for all.... [read more]
Reactive Mismeasures: The New Yorker and the "New" Cold War Propaganda (Part 1)
This is the first of a five part paragraph by paragraph commentary on a recent article posing as journalism in the March 6, 2017 issue of The New Yorker... [read more]
The Escalating War on Syria and Need for International Law
As I will show below, it is likely the deaths in Khan Sheikhoun were caused by an armed opposition faction, not the Syrian government. The goal was precisely what has happened: a media firestorm leading to direct U.S. aggression against Syria.... [read more]
The Tunic of Nessus
In a few weeks, Israel will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Six-Day War. Millions of words, most of them hollow, will be poured out. As usual.... [read more]
The pro-Europeans make their voice heard – London’s anti-Brexit march
March 25th was the EU’s birthday. It was celebrated in London and elsewhere by anti-Brexit demonstrations... [read more]
The pro-Europeans make their voice heard – London’s anti-Brexit march
March 25th was the EU’s birthday. It was celebrated in London and elsewhere by anti-Brexit demonstrations. Initially organised by Unite for Europe, supported by the European Movement and the 3 Million group of EU citizens living in the UK... [read more]
The National Riddle
Binyamin Netanyahu wants to have them under his control. Completely. Totally. Radio. Television. The social media. The lot.... [read more]
Perhaps the Messiah will Come
If someone had told me 50 years ago that the rulers of Israel, Jordan and Egypt had met in secret to make peace, I would have thought that I was dreaming.... [read more]
Trump, Fake News, and the Press
Donald Trump is absolutely correct when he says the mainstream news media lies, purveys fake news, and is the enemy of the American people... [read more]
How did it Start?
The past cannot be changed. But perhaps, perhaps, we can learn from it and draw some conclusions... [read more]
Trumpism and the Working Class
Trumpism is not a uniquely American phenomena. It is the local variant of an ultra-right anti-establishment ideology that has a worldwide manifestation... [read more]
Lebanon Has a Few Stragglers Living There
As ever in life, there were compensations that made life tolerable despite many difficulties.... [read more]
America Polarized in Turmoil
United, we must take back our country from the ultra-supremacists in the White House... [read more]
Getting out of mass society in order to foster social change
Social change needs good politics. Good politics needs communities. And communities need individuality... [read more]
Confessions of a Megalomaniac
I was invited by Mahmood Abbas, the President of the Palestinian National Authority, to take part in joint Palestinian-Israeli consultations in advance of the international conference in Paris.... [read more]
Yes, We Can
Lately, more and more people in Israel and around the world have been saying that the "Two-State Solution" is dead.... [read more]
The Italian Banking Crisis: No Free Lunch—or Is There?
It has been called “a bigger risk than Brexit”– the Italian banking crisis that could take down the eurozone... [read more]
Autonomy and progressive policies
How much should individuality be important for progressive forces? And is it possible to reconcile economic utility and individual autonomy?... [read more]
Why Donald Trump Is Right To Look East
The investment potential of the Russian economy offers good reasons why it is time for the West to take a more positive attitude towards the country. The President-elect might be doing everyone a favour in the long run, David Morgan argues.... [read more]
Happy Holiday Season…
Most Iranians are believers and practitioners of the single golden rule of treating others as you would expect to be treated... [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]
“We’ll Look at Everything:” More Thoughts on Trump’s $1 Trillion Infrastructure Plan
The Trump agenda, it seems, is not set in stone. The president-elect has a range of advisors with as many ideas... [read more]
The Arabs Did It
For eight months there was hardly a drop of rain. A strong, hot, east wind blew in from the desert. The land dried up. Any little spark could have started a major fire.... [read more]
The President Elect
We are entering an era of complete uncertainty. We Israelis and the entire world. From shoe-shine boy to head of state.... [read more]
Oh My God, Trump!
We do not really know who Trump is, and what he will do during the next four years. We know only the Trump of the elections: a nasty person, a megalomaniac, a liar, an ignoramus.... [read more]
Syria, the UK and Funding the “Moderate armed opposition”
The British government has spent “over £100 million” since 2012, “working closely with a range of actors” to “find a political solution to the conflict and prepare to rebuild the country in the post Assad era.” ... [read more]
The Crowning Achievement of Bob Dylan
The mid-Seventies album Desire is for me Bob Dylan’s crowning achievement... [read more]
Libya, David Cameron’s “Iraq”? Damning Report Shreds Another War Monger
Former UK Prime Minister David Cameron is consistent in just one thing - jumping ship when the going gets tough... [read more]
It Can Happen Here
Political ideas and structures don't die easily. The human mind is lazy and apprehensive, and clings to familiar ideas, long after they have become obsolete... [read more]
Lucky Bibi
Luck can be a great benefactor. It can also be the cause of catastrophes. I seem to remember that one of those evil Greek gods or goddesses destroyed their human victims by making them lucky.... [read more]
“Saint” Teresa of Calcutta: fanatical stooge of the ruling class
Mother Teresa has been beatified by Pope Francis I, after a series of "miracles" (where the role of modern medicine was conveniently swept under the rug) were fished out from her lifelong record running clinics for the poor in India.... [read more]
Clintonites Prepare for War on Syria
Neoconservatives including Clintonites are pushing hard for a direct US attack on Syria to prevent the collapse of their regime change project... [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]
If Only...
Discontent among the uninformed tends toward unreasoned emotion. The educated dissentient is able and willing to identify the nature of a problem and articulate an indictment of the problem’s source.... [read more]
The Left Will Only Win the Argument When It Takes Back Control of the Conversation
Let the Left fracture into smaller pieces, and then let it unite in a coalition determined to change the minds of the voters... [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]
Turkey, Coup Plots and Tinpot Tyrants
Reports of Erdogan supporters beheading soldiers in public, and film of screaming crowds stamping on the bodies of soldiers who were trying to surrender, expose the atavistic sentiments for revenge that the coup seems to have unleashed as a backlas... [read more]
Welcome! Bienvenue!
"Anti-Semitism in France" is now all the rage in Israel. A huge propaganda effort is invested in this campaign. The aim is to induce French Jews to come to Israel... [read more]
The British Chicken Coup: 172 Labour MPs against a pro-Corbyn party
As soon as the result of the EU referendum was announced, the attempted coup – or Chicken Coup, as some named it – was in full swing.... [read more]
Brexit: The UK’s referendum on EU membership delivers a self-inflicted wound
This constantly troublesome and disloyal bunch of Labour MPs don’t care about the country or their Party. They cannot see that it is they, not Corbyn, who are making the Party unelectable... [read more]
The Second Coming?
Suddenly, a familiar face, almost forgotten, appeared on the TV screen... [read more]
Two Natanz-es? The One I Eternally Adore Is . . . Real!
Natanz is the name of the ancient and tranquil township whose otherwise noble name has been excessively abused by the Western and US media circus in the past decade... [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]
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]
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]
Iraq - US Apocalypse in Mosul in the Guise of Bombing ISIS
“The welfare of the people in particular has always been the alibi of tyrants.” (Albert Camus 1913-1960).... [read more]
The Case of Soldier A
A group of soldiers, supported by a major part of the political scene, has mutinied against their commanders. This is a major menace to the structure of the state, a challenge to what remains of our democracy.... [read more]
European Union Throws Greece and Refugees to the Sharks
"Hypocrisy, the most protected of vices." Moliere (Jean Baptiste Poquelin, 1622-1673)... [read more]
Iraq Invasion - Anniversary of The Biggest Terrorist Attack in Modern History?
Since terrorism is again in the news, it is timely to revisit one of the biggest acts of terrorism in modern history - the illegal invasion and destruction - ongoing - of Iraq... [read more]
Remain or Brexit: the UK’s referendum on the European Union
The only reason the UK is having a referendum on whether the UK should stay in (Remain) or leave (Brexit) the EU, is because of the difference of opinion within the Conservative Party.... [read more]
The Great BDS Debate
But what does peace mean? Peace is made between two enemies. It presupposes the existence of both. When one side destroys the other, as Rome destroyed Carthage, it puts an end to the war. But it is not peace... [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]
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]
Extreme, Extremer, Extremest
By 1967, the situation was quite different. The causes of the new war were disputed, David had turned into Goliath, a world-wide Cold War was on... [read more]
Iran - A Travelogue to Home Away from Home
David Rhani describes his latest trip to Iran... [read more]
Britain and Saudi Arabia - Collusion in Barbarism
Last September, Saudi was elected Chair of the UN Human Rights Council with Britain’s collusion... [read more]
Fear of Assimilation
The Israeli Ministry of Education has struck a book from students' reading list. The cardinal sin was the plot: a love story between a Jewish girl and an Arab boy... [read more]
Lucky Bastards of The 20th Century: The Story of The Economic Bomb
During 1980 a small group was formed to act under the aegis of Michael Grylls, MP, who was then the Chairman of the back bench Industry Committee in the House of Commons... [read more]
Imagined Nations
Each of us has a few books that formed and changed his or her world view... [read more]
Reinventing Banking: From Russia to Iceland to Ecuador
Global developments in finance and geopolitics are prompting a rethinking of the structure of banking and of the nature of money itself... [read more]
Seashore Thoughts
Looking out at the sea, I thought about the three great dangers I perceive... [read more]
Adolf, Amin and Bibi
It is not very pleasant when serious people around the world – historians, psychiatrists, diplomats – ask themselves if my prime minister is completely sane... [read more]
Mission Civilisatrice: Piketty et Houellebecq
We have so much to learn from the French. If only we could understand what they are saying half the time... [read more]
Afghan Hospital Bombing: Its Meaning
Airstrike Hits Doctors Without Borders Hospital in Afghanistan... [read more]
The left wing case for quitting the EU
Much of the left would agree that the European Union does not always function in the best interests of either the European or International working class... [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]
The Molten Three
In 2009, the three leading ministers – Netanyahu, Barak and Lieberman – decided that the time had come to attack Iran... [read more]
The Self Hating Arab
It felt odd to speak on Skype to a friend in war torn Syria. We had not seen each other since our school days in the 1960s... [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]
Over Forty Percent of US Children are Living in Poverty
A report from Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health reveals that forty four percent of US children are living in poverty... [read more]
A Corbyn leadership
Bryan Gould, former Labour shadow cabinet minister, asks how left-wing is Jeremy Corbyn... [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]
Labour and benefit cuts
Bryan Gould, former Labour shadow cabinet minister, asks how voters are likely to view a party that so manifestly lacks the courage of its convictions... [read more]
Part 3 of the series Governments submit to “Too Big to Fail” banks
Private banks shamefully enjoy a monopoly of lending to the public sector... [read more]
Greece: Alternatives to the Capitulation
On 5 July 2015 the Greek people overwhelmingly rejected the austerity measures imposed by the institutions that were known as the Troika... [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]
Ideological reforms vs Greek democracy
Bryan Gould, former Labour shadow cabinet minister, explains how Europe is witnessing a triumph of ideology over common sense ... [read more]
The Fourth of July and the right of revolution
Every schoolchild in the United States is exposed at one point or another to this famous passage from the Declaration of Independence... [read more]
Re-Packaging Masculinity in Tony Abbott’s Body Politic - A Painting
In 2015 the industry of terrorism has moved into a new phase and the scenarios I painted – such as the militarisation of civil society - have gone mainstream... [read more]
War Crimes? Us???
The concept of "war crimes" is dubious. The biggest crime is starting the war in the first place... [read more]
The Shameful Tragedy of Tariq Aziz. A Metaphor for the “New Iraq.”
As with everything to do with “The New Iraq”, the death of the country’s former Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Tariq Aziz, 79, was announced with a lie... [read more]
Isratin or Palestrael?
The inventors of the "One-State Solution" remind me of this genius. They have a wonderful idea. But there are a few questions left open... [read more]
The Labour leadership election
Bryan Gould, former member of the Labour shadow cabinet, describes what is missing from the leadership contest... [read more]
Nuclear Weapons and the Language of ‘Power’
Nuclear Weapons and the Language of ‘Power’. Or should that be the language of ‘assumed’ power?... [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]
GMOs: dogma instead of science
There are clear signs that the producers of GMOs and the regulators are suffering from a siege mentality... [read more]
The War of Fools
A few days ago, Israeli TV Channel 10 broadcast an investigative story about the 2006 Israeli attack on Lebanon, known as "Lebanon War II"... [read more]
New Labour is the Problem, Not the Solution
After Labour’s dismal performance in Thursday’s election there have been a lot of theories on why it turned out to be such a terrible night for the 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]
A Boy Called Bibi
There are two different opinions about Binyamin Netanyahu. It is difficult to believe that they concern the same person... [read more]
Governments submit to “Too Big to Fail” banks (part 1)
Since 2007, the major Central Banks of the most industrialised countries have lent massively to private banks at very low interest rates in order to avoid their failure... [read more]
Cats in a Sack
A fight is going on. A fight of all against all. A fight without rules or limits... [read more]
"There Are Still Judges…"
This week I won a dubious distinction: a groundbreaking Supreme Court judgment has been named after me. It is an honor I would have gladly dispensed with.... [read more]
National Unity
My first reaction after the election was: “Oh, no! Not a National Unity Government, please!... [read more]
Preaching rebirth and home; practicing death abroad
England’s Easter was the culmination of recent events which have brought the would-be great and good to their knees - and knee deep in hypocrisy... [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 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]
The Messiah Hasn't Come
As the American saying goes: "Today is the first day of the rest of your life."... [read more]
The Left, Anti-Zionism & Anti-Semitism
For those of us who study Israel and Zionism from the vantage point of Britain, there are some things we are able to predict with unerring accuracy... [read more]
Iraq: The Destruction of Nineveh’s History – Murdering Mesopotamia
March 19th commemorates the twelfth anniversary of the beginning of the destruction of Iraq... [read more]
Economic Policies for an Incoming Labour Government (Part 9 of 9)
Further Proposals and a Conclusion... [read more]
So you want to help Africa Owen Paterson? Then stop promoting ideology and falsehoods to push GMOs
Former UK Environment Minister Owen Paterson this week accused the European Union and Greenpeace of condemning people in the developing world to death by refusing to accept genetically modified crops... [read more]
Israeli Prime Minister to appear before the US Congress
The much hyped up appearance of Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before the US Congress... [read more]
Economic Policies for an Incoming Labour Government (Part 5 of 9)
The Two Great Traditions in Western Economic Thinking
... [read more]
Is Russia a Kleptocracy?
Many anti-Russian commentators today have no problem with classifying Vladimir Putin's government as kleptocratic... [read more]
Education, Education, Deprivation
If you were a university student at any time from 1962 to 1989, you received a maintenance grant; it started off at a little under £400 p.a. and reached £1,430 in 1980... [read more]
Extremism is prevailing in Eurozone Negotiations
The negotiations between the newly elected Greek Government and the other Eurozone states have been a battle between pragmatism and extremism... [read more]
Has Democracy Gone Missing? Or was it ever here?
People are suffering from a deficiency which is as unbalancing as a hormone or vitamin deficiency. What we are severely lacking in is democracy... [read more]
The Casino Republic
Money plays an ever-increasing role in politics. Election propaganda is made on television, which is very expensive... [read more]
State and Revolution (conclusion)
Thomas Riggins concludes his analysis of Lenin's work - State and Revolution... [read more]
Zionists All
The term Zionism can mean many different things. Like the term socialism, for example. Francois Hollande is a socialist. So was Joe Stalin. Any resemblance?... [read more]
Winston Churchill the Novelist
The fiftieth anniversary of Churchill's state funeral brings out the usual accolades as well as the customary recriminations... [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]
To pay or not to pay?
Joseph Stiglitz shows that a suspension of debt repayments can be beneficial for a country and its people... [read more]
The War on Terror and the Terror of War
The vicious cycle of state and individual terror continues unabated. Marxists have long explained that imperialism and Islamic fundamentalism are two aspects of the same reactionary phenomenon—the decay and decline of capitalism—which threatens to take the whole of humanity down with it.... [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]
The Big Banks Organise Massive Tax Evasion on an International Scale
Part 7 of Eric Toussaint's series 'The banks and the “Too Big to Jail” doctrine'... [read more]
Half of Shas
The Shas party has split into two. Opinion polls show that both parts are hovering around the 3.12% threshold which is now necessary for entering the Knesset, after the minimum was raised by the last Knesset... [read more]
Niall Ferguson on Kissinger's 'World Order' [Part Two]
"Vice is a monster of so frightful mien, As, to be hated, needs but to be seen; Yet, seen too oft, familiar with her face, We first endure, then pity, then embrace." (Alexander Pope, Essay on Man)... [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]
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]
The Son of my Eyes
Ruvi Rivlin, who was recently elected to the high but largely ceremonial post, is far from being a leftist... [read more]
Lenin: State and Revolution, Chapter 6: Vulgarisation of Marx by the Opportunists
Thomas Riggins continues to guide us through Lenin's work - State and Revolution... [read more]
The Pen Trumps the Sword Anytime (Part 4)
The fourth part of an 'Introduction' to an illustrated book of poetry by Faysal Mikdadi. The collection, Painted into a Corner, appeared in the summer of 2014... [read more]
Pakistan: Another day another death in detention, prisoner Khanwada dumped with bullet wound to the head
... [read more]
Interstellar: magnificent film, insane fantasy
Movies about abandoning Earth reflect the political defeatism of our age: that adapting to climate breakdown is preferable to stopping it, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
Is ISIS Coming?
If ISIS had approached the borders of Israel this week, nobody in the country would have noticed. Israel was riveted to a court-room drama... [read more]
Piketty for Progressives: Part 4
Thomas Riggins continues to guide us through Piketty's Capital in the Twenty-First Century... [read more]
Two Speeches
If I could choose between the two rhetorical gladiators, I would rather have Mahmoud Abbas representing Israel and Netanyahu representing the other side... [read more]
Conservatism in a nutshell
It’s not enough to defeat Tory ideology. We also have to defeat the Tory propaganda machine that brainwashes people with their slogans and catch-phrases... [read more]
Ah, If I Were 25
Recently, Haaretz columnist Ari Shavit has written an article in which he equally condemns “extreme rightists” and “extreme leftists”, those who advocate war and those who advocate peace... [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]
Lots of soldiers could die in Iraq — and not fighting ISIS
U.S. troops today should take that lesson to heart. It is not worth being the cannon fodder in another arrogance-driven military adventure in the Middle East... [read more]
Compassion Should Extend Beyond The Home
Former MP and member of the Labour shadow cabinet, Bryan Gould, provides a riposte to Roger Scruton’s piece in The Guardian... [read more]
Ukraine: NATO hypocrisy over “Russian invasion” as Kiev suffers defeat
As politicans from across the world met at the NATO summit in Wales, the crisis in Ukraine saw an escalation in rhetoric... [read more]
The history and modern role of political Islam
After the collapse of the Soviet Union and the capitalist counter-revolution in China, an immense political vacuum opened up in ideology and politics on a world scale. Article by Dr Lal Khan... [read more]
Genocide in Gaza – The Silence of the Jewellery Industry is Deafening and Telling
The horrific carnage we have seen unleashed in Gaza in recent weeks - a humanitarian catastrophe - would not have been politically or economically affordable without the tacit acquiescence of the global jewellery industry... [read more]
Washington's madness in Ukraine
What is happening right now in Ukraine may not just be another conflict that will rumble on for a few years and then slowly end in a messy compromise... [read more]
Son of Death
The war was over. Families returned to their kibbutzim near Gaza. Kindergartens opened up again. A ceasefire was in force and extended again and again. Obviously, both sides were exhausted.... [read more]
Bury my Heart at Gaza City
The similarities between the building of Israel and the US are astonishing. The native people are portrayed as savage, inherently violent, unable to understand peace... [read more]
Metro Gaza
Israeli journalist and former member of the Knesset, Uri Avnery, suggests a solution to the ongoing conflict in Gaza... [read more]
Happy Independence Day? India, Monsanto, GMOs and the Bigger Picture
On 15 August, India will mark its 67th anniversary of independence from Britain. It may seem strange to some that a nation would publicly celebrate its independence while at the same time it less publicly cedes it to outsiders... [read more]
Challenges to the rights of sexual minorities in Africa
A Ugandan Catholic priest analyses the reasons for the existence of homophobia in Africa... [read more]
Stop the War in East Ukraine
Sweeping sanctions have been imposed by the European Union and the United States on Russia for its alleged involvement in East Ukraine.... [read more]
Meeting in a Tunnel
The Israeli media are now totally subservient. There is no independent reporting. "Military correspondents" are not allowed into Gaza to see for themselves, they are willingly reduced to parroting army communiqués, presenting them as their personal observations... [read more]
Is a Tea Party movement about to kick off in Britain?
A fallen government minister who fought the ‘green blob’ seems to be contemplating a US-style insurgency, writes George Monbiot.... [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]
The Watch on the Jordan
The Arab world is in turmoil. Syria and Iraq are breaking apart, the thousand-year old conflict between Muslim Sunnis and Muslim Shiites is reaching a new climax... [read more]
The real enemies of press freedom are in the newsroom
The principal threat to expression comes not from state regulation but from censorship by editors and proprietors, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
From hope to despair- why the Soviet Union collapsed
John Green reviews a book written by Hans Modrow, the last prime minister of the German Democratic Republic... [read more]
Has the US-UK War for Oil Detonated the “New Iraq”?
Flames are rising from Iraq's largest oil refinery at Baiji, the result of mortar attacks by the varying forces sweeping towards the capital city. Felicity Arbuthnot describes the latest tragedy to befall Iraq... [read more]
Saving the world should be based on promise, not fear
For 30 years I banged on about threats. But research shows we must to be true to ourselves – and to the wonder in nature, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
A Coup? Nonsense!
Journalist and former member of the Israeli parliament, Uri Avnery, describes how the Israeli Defence Force is held on a pedestal... [read more]
Tiananmen: the massacre that wasn't
What really happened 25 years ago in Tiananmen Square?... [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]
Good for the Jews?
The claim by Binyamin Netanyahu that he has a right to pick and choose the Palestinian government is rather astonishing, writes Uri Avnery
... [read more]
In Their Own Juice
According to press reports, President Barack Obama has decided to let Binyamin Netanyahu and Mahmoud Abbas “stew in their own juice.”... [read more]
Highland Spring?
The scoured, scorched Highlands could be brought to life – maybe an independent nation will have the courage to act, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
Highland Spring?
The scoured, scorched Highlands could be brought to life – maybe an independent nation will have the courage to act, writes George Monbiot.... [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]
The GM Biotech Sector's Complete Contempt For Democracy: Don't Be Fooled By The Propaganda
Strategically placed politicians and scientists are conveying the message that GM food is both safe and necessary... [read more]
Welcome to Britain, the new land of impunity
No matter the criticisms made or damage done, fat cats and politicians seem able to cling on. Often their efforts are rewarded, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
This cash for grouse scandal shows how Britain has become a plutocrats' paradise
We subsidise the landed gentry and their shotguns. While the poor are plunged into brutal insecurity, the rich are untroubled, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
An Oslo Criminal
The death of Ron Pundak, one of the original Israeli architects of the 1993 Oslo agreement, brought that historic event back into the public eye.... [read more]
Banks: Fudged health report
The final part of the series by Eric Toussaint - Banks versus the People: the Underside of a Rigged Game!... [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]
So, after the IPCC report, which bit of the world are you prepared to lose?
George Monbiot asks: When people say we should adjust to climate change, do they understand what that actually means?... [read more]
Central government
Former MP and member of the Labour shadow cabinet, Bryan Gould, discusses the flaws in Labour's proposal to devolve power to local regions... [read more]
Changing The Flag
New Zealand has decided to change its flag. This was only briefly mentioned in the media here. But it is a significant example for us... [read more]
To Smash or be Smashed? Lenin's Theory of the State
In Chapter Two of State and Revolution, Lenin discusses the lessons of the European revolutionary movement of 1848-51... [read more]
God Bless Putin
Binyamin Netanyahu is very good at making speeches, especially to Jews, neocons and such, who jump up and applaud wildly at everything he says, including that tomorrow the sun will rise in the west... [read more]
The Flat World and the Good Society
The other evening, within a matter of five minutes, I sent messages to socialist colleagues in France, Spain, Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania via Facebook and received answers back. The content was more social than socialist but I could have easily been organizing a Europe-wide campaign or demonstration, writes David Eade.... [read more]
Pakistani accountant raises concerns for human rights of foreign workers in Saudi, claims Labour Law “not working”
Amendments have been made to Labour Law in Saudi Arabia to protect the rights of both foreign and Saudi workers, at least that is the theory but is it working in practice?... [read more]
Ukraine: a very Western coup
Dr Tomasz Pierscionek provides an analysis of the situation in Ukraine... [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]
Captain Boycott Rides Again
It has always been a secret ambition of mine to have a Bagatz ruling bearing my name... [read more]
Islamic Terrorist or Innocent Man?
Spaniards and Gibraltarians will remember well the case of Cengiz Yalcin. However as the British, French and USA secret services were claimed to be involved in his arrest, the case probably reverberated around the world... [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]
In Defence of Lenin
Following the 90th anniversary of Lenin's death, Rob Sewell reviews his legacy... [read more]
Pakistan, terrorism and torture: How I was radicalised by the state
Mohammad Yahiya shares his personal experience of state terrorism and torture in this article... [read more]
PTSD: From pain to purpose, US veterans Hart and Ethan speak out
I don’t claim to be any expert on rap music but seeing a photo of Snoop Dog in a smart jacket at the White House in the company of Obama was a bit of a let down... [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]
State and Revolution: Chapter One: Class Society and the State
Thomas Riggins explains how, according to Lenin, the State is a product of the irreconcilability of class antagonisms
... [read more]
Not Michael Gove's Misbegotten Shambles
Michael Gove is a neoconservative member of Denis MacShane’s Henry Jackson Society, and thus also an admirer of Tony Blair and of George W Bush, neither of whom would have got any of the jokes in Blackadder... [read more]
The Disenchantment Of British Voters With Democracy
Former MP and member of the Labour shadow cabinet, Bryan Gould, explains the need for politicians to restore public faith in the value of government and democracy in order to cure voter disaffection ... [read more]
A tale of gold, guns, greed and rat poison in the Brazilian jungle
The miners of northern Brazil live by the laws of power, honour, money and lust. But sometimes, karma asserts itself too, writes George Monbiot.... [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]
Lenin on Freedom and Necessity
Thomas Riggins Analyses The Next Two Parts Of Lenin's Materialism and Empirio-criticism... [read more]
Who Are The Mother Agnes Critics?
It would be hilarious, if it wasn’t for the severity of the Syrian crisis, to read some of the allegations being directed against the Syrian based nun, Mother Agnes Mariam... [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]
Victory at Cuito Cuanavale
In the run-up to December 7's Latin America conference Victoria Brittain remembers Cuba's contribution to the fight for freedom in Angola and against apartheid 25 years ago... [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]
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 Assassination
From the first moment, I did not have the slightest doubt that Yasser Arafat was assassinated... [read more]
Bankocracy: from the Venetian Republic to Mario Draghi and Goldman Sachs
From the 12th century to the beginning of the 14th, the Knights Templar, present in much of Europe, had become the bankers for the powerful and had taken part in the financing of several crusades... [read more]
The Judaization of Israel
On my 16th birthday, in 1939, I rushed to the district registration office of the Government of Palestine to change my name officially... [read more]
A Lifetime of Disillusion
I recently turned sixty five. This is the same age as the State of Israel. From our side of the fence (or should I say 'of the Separation Wall'), it the same date as the birthday of our dispossession as a Palestinian people... [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]
Why bad movies keep coming out and what to do about it
Unlike the babbling brook of Hollywood – with its suppression of truth, fake heroes and warmongering – a masterpiece, or just a good movie, is unforgettable, writes John Pilger.... [read more]
The middle classes: stripped of their halo by capitalism
The undermining of the middle classes, who are continually being pushed down into the working class, represents, at the same time, a weakening of the ruling class, who are finding it increasingly difficult to find a social basis for their programme - an international programme of austerity... [read more]
The Russian revolution – triumph or tragedy?
On Thursday 10th October the Marxist Student Federation hosted a fiery debate between Alan Woods, editor of In Defence of Marxism, and Orlando Figes, Professor of History at Birkbeck, University of London, on the topic of "The Russian Revolution: Triumph or Tragedy?"... [read more]
New York City Mayor's Race: Living Wage or Wage Slavery: de Blasio vs. Lhota on the Dignity of Labour
The election for mayor of New York City is less that a month away and Bill de Blasio's lead in the polls appears insurmountable... [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]
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]
Causality and Necessity in Nature
Thomas Riggins explores Lenin's take on the theory of knowledge of dialectical materialism and of empirio-criticism... [read more]
Killjoy Was Here
Journalist and former Knesset member, Uri Avnery, reviews Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's speech at the United Nations... [read more]
Greek Capitalism at a Critical Point
Greek capitalism continues to be the weak link of the Eurozone as it is still under the “intensive care” of the EU support mechanisms for the fourth consecutive year and is in recession for the sixth consecutive year... [read more]
De Blasio and the Sandinistas
According to a recent article in the New York Times two of the candidates running for mayor of New York have become alarmed about the worldview of Bill de Blasio, the front running candidate of the Democratic Party... [read more]
John Gray, David Hawkes and the Myth of Progress
Meliorism "is the view that the world is neither completely good nor completely bad, and that incremental progress or regress depend on human actions." This view holds that "By creative intelligence and education we can improve the environment and social conditions."... [read more]
Socialism: an unarticulated reality
Cumbria Unison convenor Paul Lloyd argues that whereas Socialism may have lost its voice in the political arena, it is still present in our daily life... [read more]
The formula for revolution
Three years ago few predicted that a revolution, a coup and an emergent civil war would soon explode in a country considered a prime tourist hot spot and ruled by the same autocrat for nearly 30 years
... [read more]
Permacation: how a mixed environment can bring about a better delivery of education
There is no secret in saying that the National Curriculum was not introduced to promote co-operation or individual ingenuity. Elijah Pryor advocates a different model for learning... [read more]
Banks versus the People: The Underside of a Rigged Game! (Part 2)
The European Central Bank and the Federal Reserve are at the service of the major private banks... [read more]
EU Urgently Needs To Put Its Democracy In Order
David Eade argues that democracy is under threat across the entire European Union... [read more]
Marxism, the Taliban and Plato
Recently Simon Blackburn, the well known British philosopher, reviewed "Knowing Right from Wrong," the new book by Kieran Setiya, in the TLS... [read more]
The Theory of Knowledge of Dialectical Materialism and of Empirio-Criticism
Thomas Riggins analyses Chapter 3 of Lenin's Materialism and Empiro-criticism... [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]
Red Love – the story of an East German Family
John Green reviews Maxim Leo’s Red Love – the story of an East German Family... [read more]
Gibraltar: A Rock of Democratic Stability As Some Nations Become Ungovernable
David Eade discusses the recent GSLP by-election victory in Gibraltar and examines the fragility of democracy across Europe... [read more]
The Palestinian Right to Education
Dr Faysal Mikdadi explains how education is the key to Palestinian liberation and democracy... [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]
Who Turned the Lights Off?
Thomas Riggins reviews Jonathan Israel's analysis of Anthony Pagden's new book - The Enlightenment and why it still matters... [read more]
Everything is information, you have to choose. An interview with Jean-Philippe Tremblay
Patrizia Bertini interviews Canadian film director Jean-Philippe Tremblay using the Lego Serious Play (LSP) method... [read more]
Reading Lenin: Materialism and Empiro-criticism Part 10
Thomas Riggins analyses Chapter Two; Sections Five and Six of Lenin's Materialism and Empiro-criticism... [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]
Trident: A deterrent or a massive waste of money?
The true social democratic heirs of Hugh Gaitstkell would be, and are, opposed to the EU. Less well-known, but no less important, is that they ought to be opposed to nuclear weapons... [read more]
Socialism and Christianity
David Benbow compares the tenets of Christianity with Socialist theory... [read more]
The Master Economist Dr Osamu Shimomura - Probably the Greatest Economist of the 20th Century After John Maynard Keynes
George Tait Edwards discusses the immense contribution that Dr Osamu Shimomura (1910-1989) made to the field of economics... [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]
FDR’s American Economic Miracle 1938-44, or the First Economic Bomb - The USA from 1938 to 1944 (Part 1)
George Tait Edwards reveals the secret of America's economic boom during the the FDR years
... [read more]
Becoming free, the need for a child to read!
Growing up, I was fortunate enough to come from a family where reading books was encouraged and seen as vital for the development of spelling. Visits to the library were a past time and among the furniture of the home, heaped book cases were normal... [read more]
Chapter One Sections Five and Six: Does Man Think With The Help Of The Brain?
Thomas Riggins continues his analysis of Lenin's Materialism and Empiro-criticism... [read more]
Bulgaria elections: Widespread abuse but hope
I set off to Bulgaria after being selected by the Party of European Socialists to be part of the 100 plus team from all across the European Union to monitor the General Election. David Eade reports.... [read more]
Hold the front page! We need free media, not an Order of Mates
The other day, I stood outside the strangely silent building where I began life as a journalist. It is no longer the human warren that was Consolidated Press in Sydney. It seems in Australia, hard-won rights are being buried beneath corporate might, writes John Pilger.... [read more]
Spaniards Fall Out Of Love With Their Royals
David Eade explains that since the financial crisis started there has been a fall in support for the Royal Household ... [read more]
Assata Shakur: Understanding the politics behind the FBI's new attack
On May 2, the FBI suddenly announced that they had placed Assata Shakur on its “Most Wanted Terrorists” list. The FBI's accusations target Shakur as an individual, but the labeling of her as a terrorist is an attack on all revolutionaries says Eugene Puryear... [read more]
Materialism and Empiro-criticism [Part 6- Did Nature Exist Prior to Man?]
Thomas Riggins guides us through the next part of Lenin's Materialism and Empiro-criticism... [read more]
The End of Money
It’s Time to End Our Slavery to the Money-System declares Oliver Thompson
... [read more]
Dance on Thatcher's grave, but remember there has been a coup in Britain
In the wake of Thatcher's departure, John Pilger remembers her victims both at home and abroad, from miners to Vietnamese children.... [read more]
A review of Anita's revolution
Linda Rogers reviews a novel by Shirley Langer, friend of Cuba and witness to the early years of the revolution... [read more]
Venezuelan elections
John Green provides an analysis of and background to today's election in Venezuela... [read more]
Reading Lenin: Materialism and Empiro-criticism [Part 5]
Thomas Riggins continues to guide us through Lenin's Materialism and Empiro-criticism... [read more]
Russian Homeland Threatened by Feminism
Vladimir Putin's government's crack down on Pussy Riot may have helped save the Russian Federation from the 'peril' of creeping feminism, writes Thomas Riggins... [read more]
It Can Happen Here: The Bank Confiscation Scheme for US and UK Depositors
Confiscating the customer deposits in Cyprus banks, it seems, was not a one-off, desperate idea of a few Eurozone “troika” officials scrambling to salvage their balance sheets reveals Ellen Brown... [read more]
Materialism and Empirio-criticism [Part 4 ]
Thomas Riggins guides us through Chapter I, Section II of Lenin's Materialism and Empirio-criticism... [read more]
Press regulation and parliamentary sovereignty
Patriotism is meaningless unless it extends to active participation in the fight against each and all of the threats to our sovereignty, to our liberty, and to our parliamentary and municipal democracy, writes David Lindsay.... [read more]
The Argo Deception: How Hollywood masks the ugly truth of Iran-US relations
Exiled Iranian journalist and documentary filmmaker, Lila Ghobady, talks about the fabrication of history through film... [read more]
The choice to be British
Congratulations to the British Falkland Islanders, including the large Saint Helenian community there, some of whom are my relatives on my mother's side, writes David Lindsay after a referendum that was controversial in some parts of the world.... [read more]
Money for the People: Grillo's Populist Plan for Italy
Comedian Beppe Grillo was surprised himself when his Five Star Movement got 8.7 million votes in the Italian general election of February 24-25th... [read more]
Spain is the Most Corrupt Nation in the EU
LPJ Iberian correspondent, David Eade, shows how the Spanish people have lost faith in their politicians and national institutions... [read more]
Federal IDs for All US Workers: A Trial Balloon?
According to an article in last Thursday's Wall Street Journal, the Senate is considering a bipartisan plan to require all working people in the US to carry a biometric ID card. Thomas Riggins reports... [read more]
Shallow Depths
In front of me is a copy of today's Khaleej Times; its front page story is about a speech by His Highness Shaikh Mohammed who is the Ruler of Dubai and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, writes Elizabeth Ellis... [read more]
Assimilation or Separatism?
Susan Walpole argues that the problems facing Christians, Muslims, Jews and other religions today appear to be firmly rooted in their ideologies of identity... [read more]
The real invasion of Africa is not news and a licence to lie is Hollywood's gift
It is as if Africa’s proud history of liberation has been consigned to oblivion by a new master’s black colonial elite, writes John Pilger.... [read more]
A Telling Silence
They parasitise us from above. But landowners and the Tory party's idle rich are spared the fairest and simplest of taxes, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
Who to vote for?
The Israeli elections will take place in three days, and they are boring, boring, boring writes Uri Avnery... [read more]
The Shame and Duty of a Paranoid State
The rise of neo-Zionism in Israel goes against everything Jews have struggled against for centuries, explains Oliver Thompson ... [read more]
If you think we're done with neoliberalism, think again
The global application of a fraudulent economic theory brought the west to its knees. Yet for those in power, it offers riches, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
"Leave. Go to Brixton- you'll make it there"
I am a Palestinian British Muslim. I take great pride in my dual heritage. There shouldn't be a price to pay for this duality, but there is. I have paid it always reluctantly, occasionally resentfully and once or twice bitterly, writes Faisal Mikdadi... [read more]
Northern Ireland Unionism's Dangerously Fascistic Tendency
After a lull over the Christmas period there have once again been violent protests on the streets of Belfast reports Conor... [read more]
In the US, mass child killings are tragedies. In Pakistan, mere bug splats
George Monbiot: Barack Obama's tears for the children of Newtown are in stark contrast to his silence over the children murdered by his drones... [read more]
Urgent Action Needed to Combat European Climate Change
What we need is binding international agreements that reduce and eliminate the use of all chemicals that endanger the lives, health and well being of human beings and other life forms making up the biosphere, writes Thomas Riggins.... [read more]
The Kurds and Human Rights
David Morgan asks what the Kurdish people have to celebrate as International Human Rights’ Day 2012 approaches... [read more]
As Gaza is savaged again, understanding the BBC's historical role is vital
We must understand the BBC as a pre-eminent state propagandist and censor by omission, says John Pilger.... [read more]
Social Constructionism Applied to Working Class Educational Attainment
Elijah Pryor looks into the origins, definitions and theory of Social Constructionism and explains inequalities faced by working class children in education... [read more]
“It was so bad you just wanted to laugh”
LPJ French political affairs correspondent, David Eade, comments on the recent leadership election within France’s Conservative opposition party, the UMP... [read more]
Lip Service to Peace: EU as an Enabler of Netanyahu’s Colonial Policies
Europe is different, as we are often reminded. The general wisdom is unlike the US’ unconditional support for Israel. European countries tend to be more balanced in their approach to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
Lenin on the Role of a Marxist Party in Relation to the People: Chapter Five of 'Left Wing' Communism an Infantile Disorder
In 1920, Lenin produced an analysis of the political conditions in Germany after the failure of the Communist uprising in 1918. The Communists had split into two rival factions. The issues facing the German Marxists were somewhat analogous to those facing Marxist movements today, writes Thomas Riggins.... [read more]
The internet- Plutocracy's Achilles' Heel?
Ironically Capitialism's well founded fear of unfettered public access to matters of vital importance stems from the advent of the internet, writes Jim Handley... [read more]
Troubled Children Adopted by Homo/Heterosexual Parents Flourish Equally Well
Anyone concerned about the anti-gay agenda of the radical right in the US will find scores of websites dedicated to the proposition that gay couples should not be allowed to adopt children, writes Thomas Riggins.... [read more]
Review: The Master
OK, I saw "The Master." Now I know what the fuss is about. I don't pretend to know the film's "message" but I walked out afterward seeing/feeling the world from its point of view, writes Jean Claude van Italie.... [read more]
Lenin on Anarchism and Opportunism: Chapter Four of 'Left Wing' Communism: An Infantile Disorder
Thomas Riggins gives an analysis of Chapter Four of Lenin's 'Left Wing' Communism: an Infantile Disorder and describes the Bolsheviks' struggle against both 'opportunism' and 'petty-bourgeois revolulutionism'... [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]
Growing Isolation: Boycott of Israel Crosses to Governments’ Realm
Should Israel be worried? Very much so, for the age of total impunity is coming to an end. Critical voices of the Israeli occupation and mistreatment of Palestinians are rising - not only within civil society circles, but among world governments as well, argues Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
Palestinian Refugees from Syria Lost and ‘Betrayed’
The official position of Arab nations is unambiguous: solidarity with Palestine is paramount. But facts on the ground point to a disturbingly different reality, one in which Palestinians are mistreated beyond any rational justification in various Arab countries, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
A boost for peaceful direct action in Spain
Jim Handley reports on recent Anarchist action against austerity... [read more]
Arrigoni’s Murder Trial in Gaza: Answers Not Just a Verdict
Justice for Vittorio Utopia Arrigoni has been paramount, but we also expect the Gaza government to hand down more than a verdict, also answers to those trying to kill Vittorio’s dream – along with our humanity, writes Ramzy Baroud.
... [read more]
Genetic Memories
Doreen Carvajal writes in the New York Times about the possibility that our genes carry some memories of our ancestors' experiences and 'unfinished business'. Dr Faysal Mikdadi wonders whether this is beneficial, now and for a future generation. ... [read more]
An animation calling for economic democracy
To answer the question of what the world will look like after capitalism, we first have to decide what we mean by capitalism. If it means a system that arises from lending money at interest, then there will be no “after capitalism” writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
Genetic Memories
Needs editing pre publication... [read more]
The Great Impostors
Under the guise of saving the natural world, governments are privatising it and rarely will the money to be made by protecting nature match the money to be made by destroying it, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
Beer, Vomit And Lipstick: Revolting Acts In An Age Of Crisis
'Freedom' within the confines of what increasingly resembles an open prison isn't much to celebrate. The actual reality in Britain is economic meltdown and social crisis, writes Colin Todhunter ... [read more]
Tribunals, tigers and dogs
Felix McHugh, author of the book Damned Scroungers, is back with more stories about his daily struggle to ensure disability claimants receive the money to which they are rightly entitled... [read more]
Lurking Danger: Palestinian Refugees in Syria
Palestinian refugees in Syria cannot expect to exist outside a paradigm of danger and unpredictability. Their brethren in Lebanon learned the same lesson years ago, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
From Nehru to Mao: India's Tryst with Destiny
In 1947, Nehru spoke about a tryst with destiny. Free from the shackles of British colonialism, India was on course for a bright new future. Fast forward and witness the not so glittering outcome that Nehru didn’t have in mind, writes Colin Todhunter.... [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]
Girl Model
David Morgan brings to light a deeply worrying trend that exists within the Japanese modelling agency ... [read more]
The Predicament of Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon
Palestinian refugees in Lebanon exist on the margins of a larger political question concerning the country’s irreconcilable sectarian, factional and familial divides, Ramzy Baroud reports... [read more]
Bad Sight of the Week
At the weekend, I sent a letter to The Observer via email. So sure am I that the paper will not run it this coming Sunday that I breathe life into it by reproducing it here below... [read more]
Passage to Ecuador: Chomsky, Assange, sham justice, sham democracies
The mainstream corporate media has been fooling the public for decades. It fails to shine a light on important decisions that are made behind closed doors by unaccountable corporate players, senior politicians and unelected bureaucrats, writes Colin Todhunter.... [read more]
Anniversary of Gaza Blockade: A State of Siege, and Normalcy
Condemning Israeli rights violations in Palestine by leading human rights and humanitarian organizations is nothing new. Unfortunately, such calls are rarely followed by any organized political campaigns, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
Historic Victory and a Spicy Tale
In the last of a series of articles on the French elections, David Eade looks at the breakdown of the National Assembly elections and the way forward for Francois Hollande and the Parti Socialiste ... [read more]
The Global Economic Crisis and ‘Possible Futures’
David Lane reviews a collection of three volumes compiled by Craig Calhoun and Georgi Derluguian chronicling the origins and aftermath of the global financial crisis... [read more]
Storm Warning
I suppose I should have seen this coming. In January, I discovered that the forecasters employed by a company called Positive Weather Solutions, whose inaccurate predictions were widely used by the newspapers, don’t exist, says George Monbiot.... [read more]
Manhunt
Uri Avnery, Israeli journalist and former Knesset member, writes about the abuse of African migrants in his country... [read more]
The true 'creatives' - let them eat cake? Or, in India, poor quality rice
The LPJ's India correspondent, Colin Todhunter, describes how India's true wealth creators are increasingly sidelined as temples to global capitalism spring up across the country... [read more]
Monarchy not the main obstacle to a better tomorrow
Karl Davis argues that those protesting against the monarchy are aiming their ire at the wrong target... [read more]
Starving and Broke: Yemen’s Renewed ‘War on Terror’
Yemeni forces continue to push against fighters affiliated with al-Qaeda. Their major victories come on the heels of the inauguration of Abd Rabbuh Mansur al-Hadi, who is now entrusted with the task of leading the country through a peaceful transition writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
The soft colonialism's obsession: an interview with Adam Levick
Adam Levick has been the managing director of CIF Watch since July 2010. He was born in Philadelphia and moved to Israel in 2009, Patrizia Bertini speaks to him through a 'Lego interview'.... [read more]
The Cuban Institute for Friendship with the Peoples
Tomasz Pierscionek writes about Cuba's internationalist outlook following discussions with a representative of the Cuban Institute for Friendship with the Peoples and his own observations in Havana... [read more]
Never forget that Bradley Manning, not gay marriage, is the issue
John Pilger shows that Barack Obama’s sudden “conversion” to the cause of same-sex marriage barely disguises the prime motives of a president as reactionary and violent as George W Bush.... [read more]
What is NATO, anyway? The reality of the "defensive alliance"
The following is a statement by March Forward! which took part in the protests against NATO in Chicago on Saturday 19th May.... [read more]
Destroying the Social Fabric of India: The Indian Premier League: Sex, Lies and Capitalism
Colin Todhunter, London Progressive Journal's India correspondent, reports on the worrying fusion of news and entertainment that is part of modern India... [read more]
I am the President of the youth of France
David Eade reports from Paris on the outcome of the French Presidential elections... [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]
Empire of Capital
A one-sided justice sees weaker states punished as rich nations and giant corporations project their power across the world, says George Monbiot.... [read more]
DEREK, or LITTLE by LITTLE
By common consent (at least among those like me who lived through it), the ‘golden age’ of broadcasting – at the BBC especially – was that which spanned the 1960s, writes W Stephen Gilbert.... [read more]
Alternative music
Pop dinosaurs head up Britain’s Eurovision challenge and the Olympic jamboree. New seasons of X Factor and Pop Idol are being spawned in some modern marketing womb of entertainment hell. They are destroying Britain’s reputation as an alternative music powerhouse, writes Miles Caston.... [read more]
Advantage Hollande
David Eade on the increase in French left-wing voters and the possibility this might mean victory for Francois Hollande.... [read more]
Rejection of the wi-fi world
Miles Caston makes the case that life is better lived off-line
... [read more]
Book review- The Strongman: Vladimir Putin and the Struggle for Russia
David Lane reviews ‘The Strongman: Vladimir Putin and the Struggle for Russia’ by Angus Roxburgh... [read more]
Looking in the mirror, living in denial: The Arundhati effect
Colin Todhunter reveals the motives behind those launching personal attacks on Booker prize winning novelist, activist and social commentator, Arundhati Roy ... [read more]
Easter Rising 1916
John Wight provides the historical background to the Easter Rising of 1916 that paved the way for Irish independence... [read more]
The Acceptable Face of Violence
The recent claims about India’s poverty having fallen by around seven per cent provided a stark reminder of the violent times we live in, writes Colin Todhunter.... [read more]
UKs French set to oust Sarkosy
In his latest article on the upcoming French Presidential elections, David Eade looks at the crucial role French voters living in Britain will play in determining the winner... [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]
Straight to the heart
Gay marriage: 'oh dear, oh lor’, how did this become the issue of the hour? The world appears to have divided itself into two camps and I find myself in neither'- journalist and writer W Steven Gilbert shares his thoughts... [read more]
Spain's last election
David Eade contemplates the chances of the Left parties winning the Andalucían Parliamentary Elections on 25th March... [read more]
Expectation, Myth & Disappointment
In her latest article, outRageous! explains how the world-wide political agenda is peeing its pants in anticipation of agents of change.... [read more]
Alfred Russel Wallace: Socialist and co-founder of evolutionary theory
Next year will see the centenary of the death of Alfred Russel Wallace. Simultaneously with Darwin the discoverer of evolution due to natural selection, but history has largely eclipsed his name under Darwin’s immense shadow, writes John Green.... [read more]
Sixty years of philatelic pleasure, and now?
For the five or six generations of solitary, sedentary boys in the middle of which fell my vintage (the baby boomers), the hobby par excellence was collecting stamps, recalls W Stephen Gilbert.... [read more]
Cold War in Warm Waters: US-China’s Dangerous Contest for Asia-Pacific
A conflict is brewing, and China, emboldened by astonishing economic growth as well as military advancement, seems to be gearing up to challenge the US’s uncontested military dominance in the region, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
NONE SO BLIND - An outRageous! challenge
outRageous! lays down the gauntlet to all readers of the London Progressive Journal... [read more]
Paga Hill – a model for the future of the Pacific Islands?
Catherine Wilson reports how a housing crisis in Papua New Guinea’s capital is socially empowering squatter communities... [read more]
No shortage of jobs?
Felix McHugh looks at the extraordinary and insulting comments made by the Minister for Disabled People... [read more]
Hurrah for Egypt!
Uri Avnery has warm words for the new democratically elected Egyptian parliament... [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]
How Can We Save the British Economy from Third Rate Status?
Following the decline of the manufacturing sector, in recent years, Dr Jonathan Feldmann discusses ways in which Britain could go about redeveloping its industrial base... [read more]
The Blockbusters
Uri Avnery shows how the differences that exist between the different cultural blocs in Israeli society are a barrier to peace ... [read more]
Waiting for False Prophets: The Puzzling Matter of the Israeli Liberals
Regardless of who may rule Israel, little change ever occurs in the country’s foreign policy, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
The Lady Doth Screech too Much
Rhys Harrison reviews 'Iron Lady', a recent film about the life of Margaret Thatcher ... [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]
A Ghost Story Retailed (part two)
W Stephen Gilbert delivers an up-to-date, state and fate of the retail trade in Britain, it is partly warmingly, personal and anecdotal, and partly a critical overview: part two...... [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]
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]
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]
The call for a UK amendment on the EU
There is a rising tide of Euroscepticism within mainstream political parties and on the floors of national Parliaments throughout the European Union, says David Lindsay.... [read more]
No2VAG's request falls on deaf ears
No2VAG has a legitimate right to be heard by the NLWA, as Ellen Graubart explains. The campaign group has requested a hearing at the Authority's meetings, and three times the group has been refused.... [read more]
The Struggle Continues
Despite David Cameron's attempt to brush the November 30th strike under the carpet and continue with his attacks on the poorest, John Wight predicts that strong resistance to the cuts will continue.... [read more]
Transcendental argument
Through a mist of tears, I caught up with the conclusion of 'My Transsexual Summer', Channel 4’s four-part fly-on-the-wall series, says W Stephen Gilbert.... [read more]
Weimar Revisited
Uri Avnery explains how the three main pillars of Israeli democracy - the courts, the media and the human rights organisations - are under threat from the political right. ... [read more]
The War on Libya: Behind Appearances - Part 2
An in-depth critique and analysis of the beginnings of the civil war in Libya and what was at stake for all parties involved in the final conflict, split into three parts. (Part 2)... [read more]
The War on Libya: Behind Appearances - Part 1
An in-depth critique and analysis of the beginnings of the civil war in Libya and what was at stake for all parties involved in the final conflict, split into three parts.... [read more]
Even devils will fall...
The London Progressive Journal gives its take on current events in the latest fortnightly editorial... [read more]
''You are fed up with him?''
Uri Avnery gives his opinion on a recent leaked conversation between Presidents Obama and Sarkozy... [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]
Slavery for Dummies- Part three
The third and final part of an analysis by OutRageous! looking at the slavery endemic in our modern society.
... [read more]
Wealth Destroyers
The Corporation of the City of London has harmed you more than you know, says George Monbiot.
... [read more]
Angry, broke and Homeless
As the Spanish general election approaches, David Eade shows how a protest movement, led by the homeless, will be campaigning out on the streets.... [read more]
Russian and Chinese Opposition to Intervention in Syria a Welcome Development
John Wight considers the decision by China and Russia to veto a recent UN Security Council Resolution condemning Syria... [read more]
What might make Christopher Hitchens change his mind about 1492?
On the anniversary of ‘Columbus day’ David Hill questions journalist Christopher Hitchens\' admiration of the year 1492... [read more]
\'Illegal settlements\' to be destroyed - just the wrong ones
Matthew Hill takes a look at the plight of the Bedouin living in the Negev desert-a minority within Israel\'s Arab minority.... [read more]
The tilted scales of justice
Dr Tomasz Pierscionek looks at how the state reacts when it feels its authority being usurped.... [read more]
The real genius of the Big Society? It can only get Bigger
Tom Rollins shows how Cameron is using his concept of the ‘Big Society’ to launch a fresh class war... [read more]
Out of the Ashes
Now is the time to start planning for a new economy, not dependent on growth. ... [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]
African history: the need for its teaching in UK schools
Madeleine Louise Fry reflects on the Anglo-centric nature of history teaching in the UK's schools.... [read more]
From Tiananmen Square to Tahrir Square
Steven Colatrella on the nature of uprisings against the state in the wake of revolution in Tunisia and Egypt.... [read more]
The Hunt for FARC Commander Alfonso Cano
The Colombian military has had numerous successes targeting high-ranking leaders of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in recent years. Its two greatest successes were the killing of secretariat members Raúl Reyes in 2008 and Jorge Briceño, alias “Mono Jojoy,” last year. By Garry Leech... [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]
Bush Didn't Write No Damn Book
The former US president's autobiography is little more than a revisionist hoax, writes Ahmed Amr.... [read more]
Tamil Asylum Seekers Face Arrest and Torture in Sri Lanka
Catherine Wilson reports on the plight of asylum seekers detained in a Sydney immigration centre.... [read more]
Cut to Shreds: Injustice for All
The coalition government's vicious attack on the public sector amounts to nothing less than a political coup d'état, says Richie Nimmo.... [read more]
French Workers are on the Move
Socialist Appeal's Alan Woods considers the significance of the recent industrial unrest in France.... [read more]
French Workers are on the Move
Socialist Appeal's Alan Woods assesses the significance of the recent industrial unrest in France.... [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]
Book Review: Cuba's Education Revolution
Tomasz Pierscionek reviews Theodore MacDonald's new book, a comprehensive survey of Cuba's education system since 1959.... [read more]
Rebranding Iraq: Playing with Numbers and Human Lives
As the US troop withdrawal begins in earnest, Ramzy Baroud asks: who won? And is the war really over?... [read more]
Towering Lunacy
Green enthusiasm for vertical farms shows that no one is untouched by magical thinking, writes George Monbiot.... [read more]
The Cordoba House: House of Terrorism or Peace?
Omar Zaki on the so-called 'Ground Zero Mosque' and why it should be allowed to go ahead.... [read more]
A Clash of Fundamentalisms
In the third article in his series, 'Contextualising the Threat of Islam', Richard Greeman compares Islamic Fundamentalism with the U.S. regime's own brand on fundamentalist politics.... [read more]
Canadian and US Unions Offer Solidarity to Threatened Mexican Workers
Daina Z. Green reports on the terrorism of Mexican unions by their own Government in support of business interests over that of their own workers. ... [read more]
Italy: Vendola Provides Hope for the Left
The Italian left has been in a state of stagnation for a number of years, but the emergence on the national stage of Nichi Vendola may precipitate a change in fortunes, as Samuele Mazzolini explains.... [read more]
The Palestinian Authority: Redundant but Dangerous Language
Ramzy Baroud takes a critical look at the language used by Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian Authority in their pronouncements on possible talks with Israel.... [read more]
Venezuela Breaks Relations with Colombia
The long-running tensions between Colombia and Venezuela have escalated this week after further provocation by the Colombian government, writes Eva Golinger.... [read more]
Beyond Violence and Non-Violence: Resistance as a Culture
Political resistance is not simply gratuitous violence - is a collective response to oppression, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [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]
Anti-Palestinism Is Hate Speech
Ahmed Amr examines the acceptable bigotry that pervades the mainstream debate on Israel-Palestine.... [read more]
Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon: Righting a Perpetual Wrong
Like Palestinian refugees elsewhere, Lebanon's Palestinian exiles are treated as second class citizens, writes Ramzy Baroud. ... [read more]
The Case for an Impartial Turkish Inquiry
As Israel gets on with its whitewash inquiry into the flotilla attack, Ahmed Amr calls for a genuine and impartial investigation.... [read more]
Universal Cure
George Monbit proposes a simple means of transforming the UK’s universities, schools and society.
... [read more]
‘The Internet is a Game Changer’
With news coverage gradually moving towards a 'paperless world' in the internet age, Ramzy Baroud considers the implications for political journalism.... [read more]
Election 2010: Media Gets it Wrong ... Again
Nathaniel Mehr considers the UK media's skewed coverage of the post-election political landscape. ... [read more]
Greece: Workers Take a Stand
Daniel Serge dispels a few myths about the recent unrest in Greece. ... [read more]
ALBA Summit in Venezuela vows to fight Climate Change with System Change
Kiraz Janicke reports on a Latin American summit which has articulated a regional commitment to radical social change.... [read more]
Fighting Corruption or Persecuting Political Opponents in Venezuela? A Response to the New York Times
James Suggett picks apart the New York Times' claims about alleged political persecution in Chavez's Venezuela.... [read more]
Book Publishers Should Embrace the Digital Age
Publishing can - and should - adapt to the changing technological landscape, writes John Oakes. ... [read more]
Deport the Palestinians to Where They Came From - Israel
Ahmed Amr calls on Barack Obama to show courage and stand up to the racism of the Israeli state.... [read more]
“Hold Me Back!”
The idea that Iran would risk certain annihilation by attacking Israel is ludicrous, writes Uri Avnery.... [read more]
Election 2010: Don't Let the Tories In
Socialist Appeal's Mick Brooks says the radical left must rally behind Labour on May 6th.... [read more]
Bosses' Pay - the Worse They do, the More They Want!
Enormous compensation packages are keeping bosses happy amid the misery of economic stagnation, writes Dan Morley.... [read more]
The Naming of Things
George Monbiot suggests one small way in which the collapse of biodiversity could be slowed.... [read more]
Activism is Change, Not academic Squabbles and Bickering
Ramzy Baroud calls for a greater sense of community among Western-based supporters of the Palestinian cause.... [read more]
An Alternative Reading of the Al-Mabhouh Murder
The assassination of Palestinian activist Mahmoud al-Mabhouh was a well-planned, violent and sadistic act of international terrorism, writes Ramzy Baroud. ... [read more]
Fighting Racism in Italy: Immigrant Workers Lead the Way
Hugh Edwards considers the significance of last week's historic demonstration by Italy's immigrant community.... [read more]
Book of the Month: Fenner Brockway's 'Inside the Left'
John Green reviews Fenner Brockway's autobiographical account of a long and dedicated political career.... [read more]
Election 2010: Whoever Wins, We Are in for Cuts
Decades of compromise have left the Labour party unfit to meet the challenges of the present crisis, writes John Green.... [read more]
Book of the Month: 'The Lacuna' by Barbara Kingsolver
John Green recommends this witty and evocative political novel set in 1930s Mexico.... [read more]
Gay Footballers and Fans to get FA from the FA?
Peter Tatchell urges the Football Association to push ahead with a planned anti-homophobia campaign which has mysteriously stalled this week. ... [read more]
Who Cares About Carers?
Will Stone on the desperate need for radical reform of the UK's woefully under-funded social care system.... [read more]
Book of the Month: 'Common Wealth' by Martin Large
John Green reviews this month's recommended read, which takes a critical look at the increasing dominance of corporate interests over civil society.... [read more]
An Odyssey for Justice
Ramzy Baroud celebrates the spirit of international solidarity that has provided crucial practical and moral support for the Palestinian struggle in recent years.... [read more]
Return to Family Values is Way Out of Crisis say the Tories
The Conservative Party started their election campaign on familiar ground, as John Green explains.... [read more]
London's New Fare System is Messy and Inadequate
London's commuters have a new fare system to grapple with. As Demetrius Notice explains, it's all rather complicated.... [read more]
Workers' Participation is Necessary for Final Push in Iran
If the unrest in Iran is to culminate in a radical upheaval, Iran's workers will have to take centre-stage, argues Maziar Razi.... [read more]
The 'Copenhagen Accord' - All Hot Air
National self-interest and capitalist pragmatism condemned the Copenhagen talks to failure, says Adam Booth.... [read more]
Muslims Must Not Pay Price for Europe’s Identity Crisis
Ramzy Baroud condemns the scapegoating of Muslims by European politicians who are unwilling to address their countries' most pressing social problems.... [read more]
The Real Climate Scandal
A scandal over faked evidence has been a boon to climate change deniers. George Monbiot looks to redress the balance.... [read more]
“…And A Little Child Shall Lead Them”
Barack Obama has weakly capitulated to Binyamin Netanyahu over Israeli settlement-building in the heart of the Arab community in East Jerusalem, says Uri Avnery.... [read more]
Book of the Month: Slavoj Žižek's 'First As Tragedy, Then As Farce'
This month's recommendation is a thoughtful critique of the complacency of contemporary political culture, reviewed by Nathaniel Mehr.... [read more]
In Mourning for the Victims of War
Remembrance Day events should be a commemoration of the dead on both sides, not just our own, writes Symon Hill.... [read more]
Scoundrel with Permission
Uri Avnery on how a spate of brutal murders by recent Jewish immigrants to Israel has focused attention on the country's controversial Law of Return.... [read more]
Globalization Unchecked: How Alien Media is Suffocating Culture
Ramzy Baroud considers the cultural impact of global economic integration in 'third world' societies. ... [read more]
The Looming Threat of Terror that Comes From the Far Right
The threat comes not only from jihadis but 'neo-Nazis' out to kill black people, Jews and gays, says Johann Hari.... [read more]
Popular Pressure is the Only Way Now
Jeremy Corbyn MP urges Londoners to take to the streets on Saturday in protest at the disastrous Afghan war.... [read more]
Surrogates: Who's Behind the Attacks in Iran? (part one)
In the first of a two-part essay examining the background to the recent terrorist attack in Iran, Daniel Pye looks at the US government's employment of proxy armies or 'surrogates' in its bid for strategic control of the Middle East. ... [read more]
Youth Unemployment - Nearly at the Million Mark
Steve Jones on the deteriorating state of the British economy under New Labour's so-called 'third way'.... [read more]
Iran's Nuclear Theatre Meant to Distract Attention
Ramzy Baroud dissects the media storm over Iran's arms programme.... [read more]
The Population Myth
George Monbiot says people who claim that population growth is the big environmental issue are shifting the blame from the rich to the poor.... [read more]
Wobbly Stools
Uri Avnery considers the respective struggles facing three embattled leaders - Obama, Netanyahu and Abbas.... [read more]
The Great Cop-Out
Impeded by Gordon Brown, the G20 has decided that bankers won’t be properly regulated, as George Monbiot explains.... [read more]
Is There a Connection Between the Release of the Lockerbie Suspect and Libyan Oil?
Chris Vasey considers claims that a lucrative Libyan oil deal may have been at the root of the controversial release of Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi.... [read more]
Not Even Wrong
Guardian journalist George Monbiot on a radical approach to cutting greenhouse gases.... [read more]
Tories and Cuts: The Dangers Ahead
Whatever David Cameron may be saying publicly, massive public sector cuts will be a certainty if the Tories win the next election, as Steve Jones explains.... [read more]
Ezra Nawi Spared Jail, For Now
Peter Tatchell urges readers to show their support for Israeli human rights campaigner Ezra Nawi.... [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]
Lover of the Country
Uri Avnery remembers a writer and activist who devoted his life to challenging the militarism of the Israeli state.... [read more]
The Israeli Conundrum: ‘How to Deal with Iran’
US backtracking on military action against Iran has left Israel in the lurch, as Ramzy Baroud explains.... [read more]
Who Killed Yasser Arafat and Why?
Ramzy Baroud considers the implications of the conspiracy theories surrounding Yasser Arafat's death five years ago.... [read more]
Afghanistan: Bloodshed Without End
In the week that the war in Aghanistan has returned to the front pages of British newspapers, Ewan Gibbs reminds us why Britain and the US are fighting.... [read more]
Open Letter to Mir-Hossein Mousavi
Maziar Razi throws down the gauntlet to Mr Mousavi, the 'reformist' candidate in the recent Iranian elections.... [read more]
Book of the Month: 'The Frock-Coated Communist' by Tristram Hunt
Nathaniel Mehr recommends Tristram Hunt's engaging - if somewhat frustrating - biography of Freidrich Engels.... [read more]
Marxists Must Stand Firm Against Ahmadinejad
An Iranian Marxist makes a plea to Venezuelans to reject their government's support for Iran's reactionary president Ahmadinejad.... [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]
Beyond Politics: People for Sale in a Hungry World
Ramzy Baroud reviews the findings of a US State Department report on human trafficking.... [read more]
Ahmadinejad Re-elected: Israel and Obama’s Iran Puzzle
The crisis in Iran presents a singular challenge to Barack Obama's foreign policy credentials, writes Ramzy Baroud.... [read more]
Venezuela Investigates Private TV Station Globovision for Inciting Assassination
James Suggett on the Venezuelan government's response to the ongoing anti-Chavez campaign being pursued by the country's corporate mass media.... [read more]
The Tone and the Music
While Obama proclaims the 21st century, the government of Israel is returning to the 19th, writes Uri Avnery.... [read more]
Green Shoots of Economic Recovery?
Mick Brooks considers recent claims that the world economic system is on the mend.... [read more]
Should There Be a European Criminal Record?
Alexa Van Sickle examines the implications of a controversial new European Union initiative.... [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]
Captive Knowledge
The funding for academic research has been taken over by business, says George Monbiot.... [read more]
Budget: Where’s Our Bail-out?
As New Labour announces its new budget, Socialist Appeal's Mick Brooks provides his assessment of the British economic malaise.... [read more]
Who's the Boss?
After a tumultuous few weeks in Israeli politics, Uri Avnery examines the worrying rhetoric emanating from the new administration.... [read more]
Civil Servants or Arms Dealers?
Selina Larsen on the cosy relationship between the UK government and the international arms trade.... [read more]
Monarchy: Wrong in Principle
Graham Smith, from the British campaign group Republic,on why republicanism matters.... [read more]
UK Blacklist Finally Exposed
Steve Kelly of the Unite union on the recent revelations about employers' trade union blacklists in the construction industry.... [read more]
The Proceeds of Crime
The US and British governments have created a private prison industry which preys on human lives, says George Monbiot.... [read more]
Convention of the Left: Challenging the Two-Party System
With mainstream politicians apparently unable to find a way out of the present financial mess, Michael Prior believes now is a critical time for the left to mobilise.... [read more]
Gutter Press Campaign Aims to Distort Union Demands
Rob Sewell on the mainstream press's campaign to discredit the unions in the wake of recent strike action.... [read more]
Book of the Month: "Beyond Bogota" by Garry Leech
This month's recommendation is a work of great courage, insight and journalistic integrity, as Matt Genner explains.... [read more]
Big Brother is Watching You Masturbate
In the week that a controversial new law on pornography came into force, Symon Hill outlines his concerns about the implications for sexual freedom, and civil liberties more broadly.... [read more]
US Policy Towards Venezuela and Colombia Will Change Little Under Obama
Garry Leech on why US policy towards its Latin American neighbours is unlikely to change significantly under President Obama.... [read more]
Banks in Crisis? Take them Over
With politicians and financial experts grasping at straws in their efforts to resolve the worst economic crisis in decades, Mick Brooks outlines the case for the nationalisation of the banking system.... [read more]
The Inexorable Weight of Expectation
In the week of Barack Obama's historic inauguration, Safreena Rajan examines the key issues which Obama will have to address in order to deliver on his promise of "change".... [read more]
Flying Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Guardian journalist George Monbiot poors scorn on the notion that climate change issues are the preserve of a misanthropic middle-class snobbery.... [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]
Interview: Manuel Yepe talks to London Progressive Journal
On the Fiftieth anniversary of the Cuban Revolution, Alexa Van Sickle talks to Manuel Yepe, the former Cuban Ambassador to Romania and close friend of Che Guevara, about what the future may hold for the Caribbean island. ... [read more]
Interview: Antonio Navarro Wolff talks to London Progressive Journal
Samuele Mazzolini met prominent Colombian politician Antonio Navarro Wolff, the governor of the southern department of Nariño, to discuss the many social and political problems affecting Colombia.... [read more]
Book Review: Frank Ackerman, "Can We Afford the Future?"
Matt Genner on a new book which debunks the economic myths around global warming.... [read more]
Benefit Claimants in Government's Firing Line
Fred McDowell on New Labour's latest populist diversion.... [read more]
Interview: Rob Miller of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign
Rob Miller answers Tomasz Pierscionek's questions about the Cuba Solidarity Campaign.... [read more]
Roses Are Red, Violets are Violet: The British Red Rose Revolution
A campaign advertisement form the British Red Rose movement.... [read more]
Working Time – Britain’s Opt-out to End?
Fred McDowell on an EU-led initiative to end British workers' "right" to opt out of the 48-hour maximum limit on the working week.... [read more]
The Rights of Women as Casualties of War
With two tragic Palestinian deaths receiving international publicity, Ramzy Baroud considers the everyday suffering inflicted upon women in times of war and occupation.... [read more]
Bush's Last Bullet: Why the US Attacked Syria
In the aftermath of the appalling US raid on Syria, Ramzy Baroud examines the familiar double-standard in the mainstream discourse on what constitutes unacceptable policy and aggression.... [read more]
A Third Palestinian Intifada in the Making
Prominent journalist and author Ramzy Baroud considers the many uncertainties ahead for the Palestinian struggle. ... [read more]
Gordon Brown and "Light Touch" Regulation
Mick Brooks on how Gordon’s policies left the UK unprepared for the present financial crisis.... [read more]
Difficult Times Ahead For Ecuador's Progressive New Constitution
Samuele Mazzolini on why Ecuador's new constitution is threatened by the vested economic and political interests of neoliberalism which have dominated Latin America for the past twenty years.... [read more]
US Democrats Yet to Convince Working Class America
Richard Scorer on how the current economic crisis presents a challenge to the Democrats' cosy relationship with big business and finance.... [read more]
Czechoslovakia
Forty years ago, on the night of August 20th-21st Russian and other Warsaw Pact forces invaded Czechoslovakia, thus putting an end to the ‘Prague Spring.’... [read more]
Iraqi Trade Unionists In Danger
Fred McDowell on how Iraq's puppet government is targeting Trade Unionists using anti-union laws passed under Saddam Hussein.... [read more]
US Campaign Group Calls For General Strike
Robert Yourell of the American campaign group VoteStrike.com believes a general strike in September would send a strong message to Washingotn elites.... [read more]
Push-Polling (Continued): The Appearance of Ethics, And the Same Old Same Old
Following on from last week's article, Sven Eric Balabanoff continues his look at the role of "Push-polling" in this year's US elections. ... [read more]
New EU Immigration Policy is a Disgrace to Europe
Samuele Mazzolini on the outrageous new direction taken by the EU on immigration.... [read more]
Asylum Seeker Wins Judicial Review Against Deportation
Sara Hall on some good news in the case of Cameroonian asylum seeker Guy Njike.... [read more]
BBC Faces Challenge Over Ecuador Distortions
Samuele Mazzolini examines the misleading BBC documentary that has caused outrage among some of London's Ecuadorean community.... [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]
Obama Moves Quickly to Court Israel Lobby
Barack Obama's recent comments on his Israel-Palestine policy suggest real "change" is definitely not on his Middle East agenda.... [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]
Nothing Left to Fight For
The most rightwing government Britain has had since the Second World War does not deserve to be re-elected.... [read more]
Cultural Values and the “Amstetten case”: what the International and Austrian Media are Saying About Josef Fritzl
Alexa Van Sickle dissects the response of national and international media to the Josef Fritzl scandal.... [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]
Election Analysis from the Left List
Left-wing coalition group Left List offer their verdict on the local elections.... [read more]
There Can Be Only One: Fuel Versus Food
Victor Petroff believes a drastic change in energy policy is required to combat both climate change and the world food crisis. ... [read more]
Shadow Networks: Violence, War and Plunder in the Great Lakes Region of Africa
Colonial rivalry and capitalist exploitation are at the heart of the violence in the Congo.... [read more]
Paraguay's "Red Bishop" Takes Over
Nathan Morrison on the rise of Fernando Lugo in Paraguay.... [read more]
The Death of Dith Pran
Chris Bath on the journalist who told the world about the killing fields of Cambodia.... [read more]
Veiled Sentiments: Does The Burka Stand Up In Court?
A courtroom ban on burkas is not racist - just practical.... [read more]
Andean Crisis: Ecuador Rallies Latin American Support Against Colombian Incursion
Samuele Mazzolini with the latest on the diplomatic crisis between Ecuador and Colombia.... [read more]
"Unfashionable" Balkan Nationalism?
Victor Petroff on the rise of right-wing populism in Bulgaria.... [read more]
Uribe's Reckless Aggression Sparks Latin American Crisis
Much of Colombia has rejoiced at the assassination of leading FARC member Raul Reyes. Samuele Mazzolini considers the wider implications of Colombia's reckless approach to counter-terrorism.... [read more]
Israeli General Escapes Arrest At Heathrow As UK Adopts Soft Stance on Alleged War Criminals
Chris Bath believes the UK is becoming a soft touch for alleged war criminals wishing to evade prosecution. ... [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]
This Week in the Media: Government Private Sector Bailouts, and the Furore Over Sharia
David Floyd believes the government's bailout of multibillon-pound private-sector companies is a big waste of everyone's time and money.... [read more]
Brown's Reactionary Britishness
The PM wants to celebrate Britishness...what does he mean?... [read more]
Interview: George Monbiot Talks to London Progressive Journal
London Progressive Journal's Haseeb Khokhar spoke to prominent climate change campaigner George Monbiot.... [read more]
In Like Flint...
Anthony Healy considers proposed changes to the council housing system.... [read more]
Florida Cubans and Republican Foreign Policy
Alexa Van Sickle on the influence of Florida's Cuban exile community.... [read more]
