Portside

50 years ago today, King blasted militarism, racism and poverty in his “Beyond Vietnam” speech. The new Beyond the Moment campaign carries forward his radical vision.

After compiling a five-year, 50-state, 30-issue database of corporate-backed legislation, political scientist Gordon Lafer has come to believe that business groups are waging a coordinated campaign in state legislatures to impose a deeply unpopular agenda on America.

Socialists are torn between seemingly incompatible goals—to build genuinely democratic international governance; to preserve space for regulation of economic life; to advance the interests of the particular national constituency we are accountable to; and to address pressing global needs like climate change and inequality.

It’s easy to dismiss Kim Jong-un as a madman. But there’s a long history of US aggression against the North, which we forget at our peril.

"When machines and computers, profit motives and property rights are considered more important than people, the giant triplets of racism, extreme materialism, and militarism are incapable of being conquered.” MLK, Jr. from "Beyond Vietnam"

‘Get Out’ breaks a barrier; Globe bloviates; Climate claptrap; Lefties have more fun; Public radio in the hood

You have a right to know how much your coworkers are paid — and if you want to close the wage gap, you should.

A $1 trillion investment would help make good on Trump’s repeated assertions that he will be “the greatest jobs producer that God ever created.” But here’s where Trump’s populist pose (not to mention the habit of raiding public coffers he developed as a real-estate mogul) meets the constant Republican desire to shaft the poor. Trump’s trillion dollar infrastructure plan could be his biggest con yet.

What we are calling for is an active alliance between progressives and organized labor. For progressives organized labor has much to offer: a rich history, seasoned leaders and, most significantly, an immediate connection to workers. For organized labor, the potential of such an alliance is equally significant. It can renew the commitment to social and political change, reminding workers and their leaders that unions are far more than just vehicles for economic gain.

A conversation with the Cuban minister of culture reminds us, "The battle of consciousness and ideas must be won."