Perspectives
Final reflections on the centennial year of the October Revolution
By David North, 30 December 2017
The commemoration of the centenary of the October Revolution reflected the political interests and outlooks of different class forces.
Macron turns France’s labor decrees on auto workers
By Alex Lantier, 29 December 2017
The announcement of mass layoffs by Europe’s second-largest automaker is part of a relentless international assault on workers' jobs, working conditions and social rights.
The oligarchy versus society
By Barry Grey, 28 December 2017
It is impossible to seriously address a single major social issue without breaking the political and economic stranglehold of the financial oligarchy over society.
The US government and the Russian election
By Andre Damon, 27 December 2017
The United States, the most unequal and undemocratic developed country in the world, the leading force for war and dictatorship worldwide, is in no position to lecture others about “democracy.”
Democratic Party witch-hunters target Green Party candidate Jill Stein
By Statement of the Political Committee of the Socialist Equality Party (US), 23 December 2017
The Socialist Equality Party condemns the targeting of Jill Stein, the Green Party candidate in the 2016 election, by Democrats in the Senate Intelligence Committee.
Drug deaths drive down US life expectancy for second year
By Eric London, 22 December 2017
The fall in US life expectancy reflects the social devastation wrought on the lives of millions of people by decades of bipartisan policies aimed at enriching the wealthy.
Crisis election in Catalonia
No to dictatorship and national separatism! For the Unity of Catalan and Spanish workers!
By Alex Lantier, 21 December 2017
With today’s election, Madrid aims to provide a “democratic” veneer to the drive for police-state regimes and the rehabilitation of far-right forces across Europe.
Trump’s National Security Strategy: The return of “great power” military conflict
By Bill Van Auken, 20 December 2017
The new US National Security Strategy and Trump’s speech Monday constitute a grim warning to humanity that US imperialism is firmly embarked on a road that leads to a nuclear third world war.
Far-right party enters Austrian government
By Peter Schwarz, 19 December 2017
Politicians with close ties to the neo-Nazi scene and ultra-right circles now wield power in Austria.
The United States of Inequality
By Andre Damon, 18 December 2017
As Congress rushes to pass a tax bill that will transfer trillions of dollars to the financial oligarchy, it is becoming impossible to overlook the all-pervasive scale of social inequality in the United States.
Opposition mounts to sexual harassment witch-hunt
By Joseph Kishore, 16 December 2017
With the initial shock of the campaign beginning to wane, opposition is emerging from some of those targeted, including PBS personality Tavis Smiley.
The end of net neutrality and the fight to defend the free internet
By Andre Damon, 15 December 2017
Thursday’s move by the US government to end net neutrality seeks to usher in an age when corporations and the government decide what people can and cannot access online.
Lessons of the Alabama election
By Patrick Martin, 14 December 2017
Following the Alabama election and the defeat of Roy Moore, the Democrats are intensifying their campaign against Trump based on allegations of sexual misconduct and anti-Russia hysteria.
Washington’s secret wars
By Bill Van Auken, 13 December 2017
The refusal to reveal the level of overseas troop deployments is aimed first and foremost at concealing from the American people the ever expanding global reach of US wars and militarism.
The death toll behind corporate America’s record profits
By Jerry White, 12 December 2017
A 41-year-old electrician at Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant is the latest victim of the relentless drive for corporate profit in America.
Is the United States on the brink of nuclear war?
By Andre Damon, 11 December 2017
In the 13 days since North Korea tested an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching large portions of North America, the US has further escalated its war threats.
America’s latest “Scarlet Letter” moment
By David North, 9 December 2017
Working people should steer clear of the right-wing “Me Too” campaign.
Trump and Jerusalem: The end of the Mideast “peace” charade
By Bill Van Auken, 8 December 2017
Trump’s declaration that he would move the US embassy to Jerusalem, an act of political aggression against the Palestinians, is bound up with the drive toward war throughout the Middle East.
Conflicts within US ruling class intensify following Flynn guilty plea
By Andre Damon, 7 December 2017
While making no effort to oppose the Trump administration’s offensive on the working class, the Democrats are seeking to lay the groundwork for Trump’s removal over foreign policy differences.
The extreme right and the turn toward militarism in Germany
By Johannes Stern, 6 December 2017
Last week’s party congress of the Alternative for Germany, the anti-immigrant party of the extreme right, marked a new stage in the legitimization of fascistic politics in Germany.
The public humiliation and destruction of Metropolitan Opera conductor James Levine
By David North and David Walsh, 5 December 2017
The decision by the Metropolitan Opera in New York City to suspend James Levine, its longtime musical director (1976-2016), from any further conducting engagements is the latest victory for the New York Times and the champions of the new repression.
Following passage of Senate tax bill, US ruling class takes aim at Social Security and Medicare
By Andre Damon, 4 December 2017
The Republican tax plan marks a major escalation in the drive of the US ruling elite to destroy every social gain won by the working class.
The US Senate tax bill: The financial oligarchy on the rampage
By Patrick Martin, 2 December 2017
There is an element of desperation in the frenzy in Washington to engineer one more transfusion of financial resources from working people into the sclerotic veins of the Wall Street addicts.
Trump administration escalates threat to “utterly destroy” North Korea
By Joseph Kishore, 1 December 2017
The United States is in the advanced stage of planning some form of military operation against North Korea, which, if carried out, would imperil millions of lives.
Amid mounting fears of financial turmoil
Departing Fed chairwoman seeks to reassure markets while warning of debt crisis and social inequality
By Nick Beams, 30 November 2017
Amid surging stock markets and warnings of a new financial bubble, outgoing Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen made her final appearance before Congress.
Hurricane Harvey three months on: Tens of thousands still homeless from worst natural disaster in US history
By Joseph Kishore, 29 November 2017
The ongoing catastrophe caused by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria is an indictment of American capitalism and the financial oligarchy that runs the United States.
Burma’s Rohingya crisis and human rights imperialism
By Peter Symonds, 28 November 2017
The international response to Burma’s humanitarian crisis is saturated with hypocrisy, above all by the major imperialist powers that exploit “human rights” to further their geo-political interests.
Jeff Bezos’ $100 billion: The case for expropriation
By Eric London, 27 November 2017
The wealth of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, together with the trillions of dollars hoarded by his fellow billionaires, could be used to wipe out poverty, disease, and social misery.
Net neutrality and the drive to censor the internet
By Andre Damon, 25 November 2017
The move by the Trump administration to end net neutrality marks a milestone in the offensive by the US government and major corporations to put an end to the free and open internet.
The way forward in Zimbabwe after Mugabe
By Chris Marsden, 24 November 2017
The goal of the new Zimbabwean president, Mnangagwa, is to impose an adrenalized version of the capitalist policies that have already created so much suffering.
The Socialist Equality Party in Germany demands new elections
By Sozialistische Gleichheitspartei, 23 November 2017
Under present conditions, this is the only way in which the working class can intervene into political events, bring their interests to bear and combat the far right’s political offensive.
Google’s Eric Schmidt admits political censorship of search results
By Niles Niemuth, 22 November 2017
Remarks by the executive chairman of Google’s parent company about efforts to “de-rank” news sites critical of the US government expose the corporate-government conspiracy to block oppositional voices on the Internet.
Political crisis in Berlin as coalition talks for German government fail
By Peter Schwarz, 21 November 2017
The failure of the coalition talks has triggered a deep crisis in Berlin and marks a turning point in German and European politics.
The government attack on US college students
By Patrick Martin, 20 November 2017
The tax bill passed by the House of Representatives Thursday targets college and graduate students for savage economic attack to fund a bonanza for the super-rich.
The US tax bill: A massive handout to the financial elite
By Andre Damon, 18 November 2017
The tax bill passed by the US House of Representatives Thursday marks a new milestone in the transformation of the United States into an oligarchy.
The global processes behind the parliamentary crisis in Australia
By James Cogan, 17 November 2017
The witch-hunt against “dual citizens” in parliament is part of a calculated attempt to create a war-time political atmosphere.
US Senate hearing exposes danger of nuclear war
By Andre Damon, 16 November 2017
Tuesday’s Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the use of nuclear weapons highlighted the acute danger of the eruption of a war that could kill hundreds of millions of people.
The legacy of Obamacare: A five percent increase in heart patient deaths
By Kate Randall, 15 November 2017
Research published in JAMA Cardiology shows that an initiative introduced five years ago under Obamacare to reduce Medicare readmissions for heart patients has resulted in a significant increase in mortality rates.
How not to fight Judge Roy Moore
By Patrick Martin, 14 November 2017
The campaign to destroy the candidacy of the far-right demagogue Roy Moore through media accusations of long-past sexual misconduct is fundamentally antidemocratic and can only fuel political reaction.
Saudi crisis threatens wider war in the Middle East
By Bill Van Auken, 13 November 2017
The mass arrests in Saudi Arabia, combined with the kidnapping of Lebanon’s prime minister and the escalation of the war against Yemen, point to immense instability.
US brands RT a “foreign agent:” A chilling move against free speech
By Andre Damon, 11 November 2017
The Justice Department’s demand that RT register as a “foreign agent” is aimed at delegitimizing it as a news source, intimidating its contributors and guests, and setting a precedent for branding news outlets as treasonous.
Three billionaires are wealthier than half the US population
By Eric London, 10 November 2017
According to a new report by the Institute for Policy Studies, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett now own more wealth than the poorest half of the US population, some 160 million people.
The colossal cost of Washington’s unending wars
By Bill Van Auken, 9 November 2017
According to Brown University’s latest “Costs of War” report, the Pentagon has squandered nearly $6 trillion over the past 16 years of US invasions, occupations and military interventions.
One year since the election of Donald Trump
By Patrick Martin, 8 November 2017
Trump is not an aberration, but the malignant product of the long-term decay of American capitalism and its two-party system.
On the Centenary of the October Revolution
By David North, 7 November 2017
The October Revolution ranks among the greatest and most progressive events in world history.
Trump in Asia: On the eve of war
By James Cogan, 6 November 2017
Trump personifies the decay of American imperialism and the calculation of its strategists that it can arrest its decline by military means.
UAW-corporate corruption scandal spreads to Ford and GM
By Eric London, 4 November 2017
Workers need workplace and neighborhood committees to advance their interests against the massive corporations that dictate the policies of the government and control the unions.
The Democrats’ McCarthyite witch hunt
By Andre Damon, 3 November 2017
This week’s congressional hearings on “extremist content” mark a new stage in the campaign by congressional Democrats, working with the intelligence agencies and leading media outlets, to legitimize censorship and criminalize dissent.
General lets slip US escalation in Syria
By Bill Van Auken, 2 November 2017
The general’s “slip of the tongue” served only to further expose the military escalation being carried out behind the backs of the American people.
The Trump campaign indictments and the political crisis in America
By Barry Grey, 1 November 2017
The claim of Russian meddling has taken on the character of a neo-McCarthyite witch hunt, in which social and political opposition to the policies of the ruling class is attributed to the malign intervention of the Kremlin.
US congressional hearings on “extremist content” prepare assault on free speech
By Andre Damon, 31 October 2017
This week, US tech companies will report to Congress on their moves to limit “extremist content” on the Internet as part of the anti-Russian witch hunt, which is increasingly targeting the First Amendment.
US masses ships and aircraft outside North Korea
By Peter Symonds, 30 October 2017
The Trump administration is threatening a war not just with conventional weapons, but with nuclear bombs—directed against North Korea and any other power that joins the conflict.
America’s oligarchy: No money for opioid crisis, endless funds for corporate tax cuts
By Andre Damon, 28 October 2017
On the same day that Congress moved forward on nearly $6 trillion in tax cuts to the super-rich, the Trump administration declined to allocate any funds to address the opioid crisis.
Washington exploiting Green Beret deaths to escalate Africa intervention
By Bill Van Auken, 27 October 2017
American imperialism is preparing to inflict upon the African continent the levels of carnage that it has already wrought upon the Middle East, where entire societies have been shattered.
The crisis in the Republican Party and the fracturing of the American two-party system
By Joseph Kishore, 26 October 2017
The political conflicts within the United States mirror global processes. In country after country, far-right movements have exploited the political vacuum created by the rightward lurch of the social democratic and labor parties.
The American oligarchy prepares a new tax windfall for the rich
By Barry Grey, 25 October 2017
Trump’s tax plan raises to a new level the plundering of society’s resources by the ruling class that has been underway for nearly four decades.
New reports document declining life expectancy and worsening health of US workers
By Jerry White, 24 October 2017
Middle-age workers are being forced to retire later, even as they confront poorer health and a lower life expectancy than their older peers.
The US lurches toward military dictatorship
By Andre Damon, 23 October 2017
Gen. John Kelly’s militarist diatribe at a White House press briefing laid bare an open secret of American politics: behind the façade of democratic rule, the United States increasingly resembles a military dictatorship.
Chinese leader calls for “strong nation” and “strong military”
By Peter Symonds, 21 October 2017
Confrontation is inevitable as US imperialism regards China as the chief challenge to its global hegemony, and Chinese capitalism strains against the restrictions of the current world order.
Spanish government vows to impose military-backed regime in Catalonia
By Alex Lantier, 20 October 2017
Spanish ministers will meet tomorrow to prepare to invoke Article 155 and suspend Catalan regional self-rule after the region's October 1 independence referendum.
Greek Prime Minister Tsipras embraces Trump
By Alex Lantier, 19 October 2017
The statement of Tsipras that he shares “common values” with Trump exposes not only Syriza, but all of the middle-class “left” parties internationally that promoted it.
The conspiracy to censor the Internet
By Andre Damon and Joseph Kishore, 18 October 2017
US intelligence agencies, media outlets and Democratic Party operatives are turning the witch-hunt against Russia into the justification for a far-reaching attack on free speech.
In latest victory for the far right, neo-fascists gain in Austrian election
By Peter Schwarz, 17 October 2017
The ability of far-right parties to obtain a broader hearing for anti-immigrant and racist policies is the result of the absence of any progressive outlet for social discontent within the political establishment.
Trump, Iran and the US drive for world hegemony
By Keith Jones, 16 October 2017
Trump’s new “Iran strategy” has been denounced by European leaders, who accuse Washington of acting as a law unto itself, inciting a global nuclear arms race and heightening the danger of war in the Middle East and on the Korean Peninsula.
A new stage in the bipartisan health care counterrevolution
Following Trump executive orders, Democrats offer Obamacare “fix”
By Kate Randall, 14 October 2017
Any “compromise” on health care reform is a conspiracy against the working class, premised on the subordination of the need for health care to the profits of the corporations and the capitalist market.
Washington seethes with rumors of an anti-Trump “palace coup”
By Joseph Kishore, 13 October 2017
There is growing speculation of secret discussions among cabinet members and high-level staff about forcing Trump out of office.
The US on the brink of war with North Korea
By Peter Symonds, 12 October 2017
As Trump faces a mounting political crisis at home, the US president may see a war with North Korea as a means of shoring up his administration and crushing domestic political opposition.
The New York Times and the criminalization of dissent
By Joseph Kishore, 11 October 2017
The unsubstantiated charges of Russian interference in the US elections have developed into an increasingly frenzied campaign to ascribe all opposition within the United States to the actions of a “foreign enemy.”
Trump White House declares war on immigrants
By Patrick Martin, 10 October 2017
The Trump immigration document exposes the role of the Democratic Party in providing political cover for the White House.
Trump’s threats against North Korea signify real danger of war
By Joseph Kishore, 9 October 2017
Trump’s reference to the “calm before the storm” must be taken to mean that war is imminent.
Inequality and the American oligarchy
Identity politics and the growth of inequality within racial minorities
By Eric London, 7 October 2017
New data from the Federal Reserve reveal the extraordinary growth of social inequality within minority populations, which forms the basis of the identity politics of the upper-middle class.
Inequality and the American oligarchy
The social and economic roots of the attack on democratic rights
By Eric London, 6 October 2017
New figures on social inequality reveal the material basis for the campaign in ruling circles to block access to the WSWS and other left-wing sites.
After Madrid’s violent crackdown:
An independent class strategy for the Spanish and Catalan working class!
By Keith Jones, 5 October 2017
A struggle to rally workers and youth to an internationalist orientation can only be waged in uncompromising opposition to the violence unleashed by the Madrid government.
Defenders of imperialist “human rights” hail Spanish government’s crackdown in Catalonia
By Chris Marsden, 4 October 2017
The United States and the EU leapt to the defence of the Spanish government as it sent police to savagely beat and arrest anyone who dared to exercise their fundamental right to vote.
The social pathology of the Las Vegas Massacre
By Patrick Martin, 3 October 2017
The worst mass shooting in American history has left 59 people dead and at least 527 wounded.
Trump’s tax plan: The wish list of the American oligarchy
By Eric London, 2 October 2017
While the ruling class makes trillions available for war, bank bailouts, quantitative easing and tax cuts for the rich, it ignores basic social needs with criminal indifference.
Trump to Puerto Rico: Your lives don’t matter
By Eric London, 30 September 2017
The Trump administration’s callous and incompetent response to the social disaster in Puerto Rico expresses the worldview of a financial oligarchy that sees the lives of working people as expendable.
The new McCarthyism and the suppression of political dissent
By Andre Damon, 29 September 2017
The increasingly hysterical anti-Russia campaign, spearheaded by the Democratic Party, is laying the political and legal basis for the criminalization of dissent in the United States.
Why is the far-right benefiting from the crisis of capitalism?
By Barry Grey, 28 September 2017
Far from an exception, the electoral triumph of the neo-fascist party in Germany is part of a pattern repeated throughout Europe and internationally.
Trump to devastated Puerto Rico: Wall Street must be paid!
By Bill Van Auken, 27 September 2017
The brutal and ignorant tweet from the US president expresses the real attitude of America’s ruling oligarchy toward a population of 3.5 million confronting a humanitarian catastrophe.
Behind Trump’s attack on the NFL football players
By Patrick Martin, 26 September 2017
Trump’s attacks on NFL players for “disrespecting” the national anthem are a calculated effort to whip up racism and militarism.
The rise of the AfD and the rightward lurch of official politics in Germany
By Peter Schwarz, 25 September 2017
For the first time since the fall of the Nazis, a right-wing extremist party is entering Germany’s national parliament.
The St. Louis police riot
By Niles Niemuth, 23 September 2017
The violent and provocative actions of the police, including the “kettling” and mass arrest of protesters and the fascistic spectacle of cops chanting “Whose streets? Our streets!” reveals the real state of class relations in America
Trump’s UN tirade and the logic of imperialism
By Bill Van Auken, 22 September 2017
The absence of any serious evaluation of the implications of war reflects the aggressive militarism and recklessness that prevails within the political establishment.
Obama adviser Samantha Power calls for crackdown on social media
Internet censorship and government war plans
By Andre Damon, 21 September 2017
Samantha Power, US ambassador to the United Nations under Barack Obama, has penned a column in the New York Times advocating the use of “professional gatekeepers” to police public discourse on the Internet.
Trump’s “Mein Kampf” tirade at the United Nations
By Bill Van Auken, 20 September 2017
The American president publicly threatened to unleash a genocidal war, declaring that he was “ready, willing and able” to “totally destroy” North Korea and its 25 million people.
UN General Assembly convenes under shadow of war
By Bill Van Auken, 19 September 2017
On the eve of the opening session of the UN General Assembly, top US officials have reiterated threats of a “military option” on the Korean peninsula that could lead to nuclear war.
The 150th anniversary of the publication of Capital
By Nick Beams, 18 September 2017
September 14 was the 150th anniversary of the publication of the first volume of Capital by Karl Marx. It marked a turning point in mankind’s intellectual and historical development.
CIA vetoes Chelsea Manning’s Harvard fellowship
By Eric London, 16 September 2017
After a quarter century of war, there is hardly a decision made in any of the official institutions of bourgeois power where the military and intelligence agencies do not have the final say.
Democrats seek to prop up Trump’s crisis-ridden government
By Joseph Kishore, 15 September 2017
The moves by the Democrats to stabilize the Trump administration are aimed at creating better conditions for intensifying the assault on the working class and preparing for a major war.
Burma’s Aung San Suu Kyi and the fraud of human rights imperialism
By Peter Symonds, 14 September 2017
The desperate plight of Rohingya Muslims demonstrates that the US never had the slightest interest in promoting democratic rights in Burma, but cynically exploited the issue to advance its own economic and strategic aims.
From hurricanes to tax cuts: The ruling class gets down to business
By Joseph Kishore, 13 September 2017
Even as the destruction caused by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma is still being tallied, the US political establishment is moving rapidly to push through a massive handout for the corporate and financial elite.
Sixteen years after 9/11: lies, hypocrisy and militarism
By Bill Van Auken, 12 September 2017
The media has largely blacked out new revelations of the direct role of Saudi Arabia, one of Washington’s closest Mideast allies, in preparing the attacks.
Why was American capitalism unable to prepare for Hurricane Irma?
By Niles Niemuth, 11 September 2017
As Hurricane Irma wreaks havoc on Florida, the failure to adequately prepare for the storm and protect those in its path has exposed the irrationality of American capitalism.
Hurricanes Irma and Harvey: Natural disaster and political breakdown
By Patrick Martin, 9 September 2017
In its response to Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma and other natural disasters, American capitalism has demonstrated its bankruptcy as a social system.
UN chief warns against the march to world war
By Bill Van Auken, 8 September 2017
The comparison of the reckless ratcheting up of tensions on the Korean peninsula to the events that sparked the First World War has gone virtually unreported in the US media.
Unite all workers against the attack on immigrants! For a socialist policy of open borders!
By Socialist Equality Party (US), 7 September 2017
The decision of the Trump administration to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program marks a new stage in the attack on immigrant workers in the United States and internationally.
The logic of imperialist aggression:
Will US threats against North Korea yield a global catastrophe?
By Bill Van Auken, 6 September 2017
With each ratcheting up of threats to unleash a nuclear conflagration on North Korea, the question is posed with increasing force: Will Washington go to war to make good on its war rhetoric?
Macron’s labor decrees in France: A new stage in the international social counter-revolution
By Alex Lantier, 5 September 2017
By unilaterally rewriting the French Labor Code, Macron is setting into motion a confrontation with the working class with international and revolutionary implications.
Trump, North Korea and the danger of world war
By Peter Symonds, 4 September 2017
While North Korea’s nuclear test certainly compounds the risk of conflict, the prime responsibility for pushing the world to the brink of nuclear war rests with US imperialism.
Follow the WSWS