Portside

Redskins Name Soon to be Retired; First Native America Woman Nominated to Federal Bench; Young Intellectuals Rescue Marx; Government Shut Down Because Civil War Never Ended; Tom Clancy's World-View

Comics have the power to reach beyond political arguments and slogans, revealing true-to-life heroic stories or showing how gains have been made in the past and can be made again. Perhaps now, as organized labor threatens to fade away entirely, the struggle to reach younger audiences may press home the urgency of using comics as a medium to spread labor’s message.

Although technically a U.S. corporation, GE – with operations in 130 nations – apparently feels little loyalty to the United States. Jack Welch, a former GE CEO, once remarked: “Ideally, you’d have every plant you own on a barge to move with currencies and changes in the economy.” According to a Bloomberg analysis, to avoid paying U.S. taxes, GE keeps more of its profits overseas than any other U.S. company -- $108 billion by the end of 2012.

An up-close-and-personal report on the new Israel and its grim domestic policies when it comes to who owns the land -- Max Blumenthal, “The Desert of Israeli Democracy, A Trip Through the Negev Desert Leads to the Heart of Israel’s National Nightmare”

After decades of exclusion, home care workers are finally covered by federal minimum wage laws. Anyone who works for social change can learn from how they did it.

In the past year, the Austin Heights congregation has found itself in the thick of the intense fight over the Keystone XL pipeline, specifically the southern leg of it—running from Cushing, Oklahoma, through East Texas (within twenty miles of Nacogdoches) to Gulf Coast refineries in Port Arthur and Houston—which was fast-tracked by President Obama in March 2012 and is now nearing completion, according to TransCanada, the Canadian corporation building it.

Research with very young babies suggests that the roots of compassion, empathy and moral reasoning might be in place from birth.

There are more than 80,000 people, including thousands of juveniles 14 and 15 years old, being held in solitary confinement in this country right now. Hopefully this film will draw even more activists to the cause of ending this inhumane and harsh punishment.

A Supreme Court decision striking aggregate campaign contribution limits would allow wealthy donors to buy as many politicians as they can; those politicians could then move legislation suppressing the votes of those who might object.

The Institute for Policy Studies, an invaluable fount of progressive ideas and action, marks its fiftieth anniversary this month. The roll of its past and present scholars and associates reflects the richness of America’s independent left.