The oppressed are allowed once every few years to decide which particular representatives of the oppressing class are to represent and repress them – Karl Marx It did not come as much of a surprise that Russell Brand came out and urged people to vote for the Labour Party in Thursday’s UK elections. As I…
A close working relationship with our European partners does not preclude us from drawing on certain examples or experiences from Latin America. As we form our political and social strategies, it’s important to monitor how developments are unfolding in Latin America. – Alexis Tsipras Syriza’s stunning victory in Greece’s election has been a win for…
In 2005, former Argentine president Nestor Kirchner, after paying off his country’s debt to the International Monetary Fund said, the IMF has “acted towards our country as a promoter and a vehicle of policies that caused poverty and pain.” He was right. The history of IMF involvement in Latin America can be traced back the…
Originally published on Upsidedown World Since the advances made by various social movements across the Latin American continent, from the Brazilian landless workers movement to indigenous movements in the Andean nations, there has been added focus on their role in ushering in Latin America’s “pink tide” governments. As more and more leftist governments were voted…
The empire cannot die! I know that the soul does not die. From one end to another, the empire Lives, truncated by a third. – Russian national anthem 1833-1917 As the situation in Crimea continues, there have been countless explanations for Putin´s ´irrational´ behavior. The typical Western line is that Putin is an opportunistic,…
Here is an interview I did with Sick of it All in Quito, 9 December.
The world quietly celebrated Human Rights Day (December 10) earlier this month. That week, two big, interrelated human rights events occurred. The first was the well-publicised revelations that America’s CIA ran and participated in a global torture program which, more than anything, produced vast ambivalence – especially from the top. The US Senate report recounted,…
Originally published on teleSUR WHO director Margaret Chan stated that, “The (Ebola) outbreak spotlights the dangers of the world’s growing social and economic inequalities.” Ebola has been one of this years biggest news stories, and now that it has hit U.S. soil, fever pitch has reached new levels. The “land of the free” and other…
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE CONVERSATION Brazil is famous for many things: samba, football and beaches, but also its favelas, the poor neighbourhoods that encircle its cities. These areas are often on invaded lands in middle and upper-class neighbourhoods. The biggest, such as Nordeste de Amaralina in Salvador and Rocinha in Rio de Janeiro, have over…
DRAFT ONLY – DO NOT CITE ‘A map of the world that does not include Utopia is not worth even glancing at’ – Oscar Wilde The famous image of Sir Thomas More hangs in my grandparents house, and for as long as I can remember, the stare of that painting said something…
In the post-Occupy world, with protests that heated up Egypt, and now Ukraine, Bosnia and Venezuela it may appear that the people are awakening, and progressives around the world have something to be excited about. Think again. For us privileged folks in the west, most who have never come close to a tear…
Originally published in The Conversation. Economist Adam Smith wrote famously in 1776 that: A merchant, it has been said very properly, is not necessarily a citizen of any particular country. Over 200 years later, the head of Gillette, Al Zeien, espoused a similar view. A global company views the world as a single country. We…
Originally published in Overland Journal 29 January 2014 An anonymous video that has recently surfaced accusing the hypercool Melbourne label Perks and Mini (PAM) of blatant cultural appropriation has sent shockwaves through the hipster community. The voiceover in the video states: For a group of people who freely use African textile patterns and traditional ornaments, put…
The Abbott government has announced potential cuts to welfare, and that it is targeting the welfare for the poorest and most vulnerable – Newstart and disability allowance. While not going near the welfare that also targets the middle and even upper classes of parenting payments and maternity leave. As Van Badham has noted, the…
As the liberal government kicks off another distraction in the culture wars over the school curriculum, it might be worth reflecting on what is history. Minister Christopher Pyne has said that the curriculum needs to focus more on ‘Western Civilization’, which it undoubtedly already does. What Pyne really means by this, is that he wants…
The Open Street 