Archive | Commentary

  Mohssen Massarrat, born in Tehran in 1942, is Professor of Political Economy and International Relations at Universität Osnabrück.  Deutsche Militärzeitung: Professor Massarrat, William Fallon, US Commander responsible for the Middle East, unexpectedly resigned after just one year.  A cause for his resignation is obviously the US policy toward Iran.  Admiral Fallon criticized the US […]

Today the results were announced of the Irish referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, a revised version of the prior “free market” EU Constitution decisively defeated by the voters of France and the Netherlands in 2005.  The masters of the European Union were careful this time not to permit the peoples of Europe a chance to […]

One of the most important developments in Cuban Marxism in recent years has been increased attention to the writings of Ernesto Che Guevara on the economics and politics of the transition to socialism. A milestone in this process was the publication in 2006 by Ocean Press and Cuba’s Centro de Estudios Che Guevara of Apuntes […]

Washington’s foreign policy establishment — and much of the U.S. media — was taken by surprise this week when President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela, stated that the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) should lay down their arms and unconditionally release all of their hostages.  The FARC is a guerrilla group that has been fighting […]

  Buffalo, NY — Dr. Steven Kurtz, a Professor of Visual Studies at SUNY at Buffalo and cofounder of the award-winning art and theater group Critical Art Ensemble, has been cleared of all charges of mail and wire fraud.  On April 21, Federal Judge Richard J. Arcara dismissed the government’s entire indictment against Dr. Kurtz […]

Coming out of the December 2 referendum defeat — the first for the Bolivarian movement since the election of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in 1998 — and facing discontent amongst popular sectors at the lack of advance in the Bolivarian process, the pro-revolution forces face a big challenge in securing an overwhelming victory in the […]

  The road from the airport to the hotel shows the story: modern buildings partly conceal dilapidated, crowded structures that seem on the verge of collapse.  Ancient jalopies chug along as if by inertia, while the latest luxury models zip past them.  Huge billboards advertise multinational corporations.  All this goes side by side with centuries-old […]

Prophecies of Downfall The fact that Marx finally began with the composition of his long-planned economic work in the winter of 1857/1858 was directly occasioned by the economic crisis that broke out in the autumn of 1857 and the concomitant expectations of a deep trauma from which capitalism would no longer recover.  “I am working […]

Lecture to Royal African Society, 21 May 2008 The modern history of Sudan is riddled with bloodshed, destruction and squandered chances for peace and democracy.  Consistently, the worst case scenario comes to pass and, just when it seems as though things could get no worse, they do precisely that.  But occasionally, the Sudanese succeed in […]

From the New Orleans Workers’ Center for Racial Justice.  Many of you know about this courageous group of workers, who have won incredible victories already for guestworkers and gained the support of labor, immigrant rights, and civil rights communities as well of a number of elected officials.  Your contribution would go a long way in […]

I’ve come to the startling realization that few people outside of Detroit and Canada know or care about hockey.2 So I would understand if you didn’t know about Detroit’s recent return to glory as the National Hockey League champion.  So let me fill you in for a moment on what it was like after we won. […]

Q1: Why are nearly all of your material possessions (clothes, kitchen appliances, computers, sneakers, electronics, etc.) made in developing countries?  Obviously, it’s cheaper.  And for many commodities, China is cheapest.  But is 57 cents an hour a decent wage in China? No, according to Judith Banister (November, 2005) at the U.S. Department of Labor, on the […]

In March 2008, the President of the African National Congress of South Africa, Jacob Zuma, led a high-level delegation of South African parliamentarians to the site of the victory of the forces of liberation at Cuito Cuanavale in Angola.  This visit was linked to the numerous ceremonies in Angola to commemorate the victory of Angola, […]

Introduction In August and September of 1974, people across the length and breadth of South Africa celebrated the coming independence of Angola, Guinea-Bissau, and Mozambique.  People like Mamphela Rampele led massive rallies honoring the success of the liberation movements in these countries.  There was even spontaneous dancing in the streets, and the air was filled […]

The Murphy Institute, The Brooklyn College Graduate Center for Worker Education, and the Metro NY Labor Communications Council invite you to a Labor Breakfast Forum Solidarity Divided: The Crisis in Organized Labor and A New Path toward Social Justice Featuring authorBill Fletcher, Jr. co-founder of the Center for Labor Renewal past President of TransAfrica Forum […]

Monthly Review received the news of the death of Harriet McBryde Johnson from the National Lawyers Guild: The National Lawyers Guild sadly announces the loss of the co-founder and Treasurer of the Disability Rights Committee of the NLG, a leader of the Disability Liberation Movement, and so much more, our own Harriet McBryde Johnson.  She […]

  The UN Food and Agriculture Organization is currently holding an emergency summit in Rome that will be focusing on the ongoing global food crisis, but rejuvenating and protecting agriculturalists does not seem to be on the agenda. In the past couple of months, the attention of the world has been directed at the issue […]

In Martin Scorsese’s now classic film Goodfellas, there is a scene where wiseguys Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) and Tommy DeVito (Joe Peschi) burn down the Bamboo Lounge, a nightclub the gangsters had been using as a way station to house cases of liquor, food, and expensive clothes that they then “flipped” (to turn a huge […]

  We, the undersigned, call for the immediate resignation of Antioch University Chancellor Toni Murdock and Board of Trustees Chair Art Zucker. For the past year, we have watched the negotiations between Antioch University and alumni groups who are dedicated to the future of Antioch College.  It is now apparent that Antioch University never had […]

Across the Middle East, the Bush-Neocon post-9/11 project faces failure. In the last month alone, Washington has had to endure one humiliation after another: In Lebanon, the pro-U.S. government (prodded by Israel and/or Washington) announced a set of steps aimed at Hezbollah.  Hezbollah and the broader Lebanese opposition movement — which together represent the majority […]