Latest articles
Zohran, Janeese, and the Executive Trap
Jeff Hodgkiss, July 1, 2026
Analyzing Zohran Mamdani and Janeese Lewis George’s campaigns, Jeff Hodgkiss warns against the "executive trap," in which socialists in governance are ensnared in the machinations of the capitalist state at the expense of oppositional politics.
The Rise and Fall of Participatory Management in the People's Republic of China Part 2: Mass Movements, Workers, and the Party-State
Mark Reid, June 29, 2026
In part two of a three-part serialized series examining the systemic limitations and historical potentials of democratic workplace management in the People's Republic of China, Mark Reid examines the rise of mass worker movements during the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, such as the Shanghai People's Commune and Shengwulian, and the divergent responses to these movements from the party-state. Read Part 1.
Portfolio Proletariat: Asset Ownership and Political Consciousness Among the American Working Class from Fordism to Financialization
John Haywood, June 26, 2026
Why have the repeated crises of the modern era further entrenched market dependence rather than encouraged collective action among the American working class? John Haywood looks to the rise of a "portfolio proletariat", the product of an encompassing financialization of social reproduction in the post-Fordist era, for answers. Read Article.
What is at Stake in the Western Marxism Debate?
Donald Parkinson, June 22, 2026
Reviewing the fallout over Gabriel Rockhill's critiques of Western Marxism, Donald Parkinson argues the controversy is ultimately a battle over what kind of intellectual culture the left needs. Read Article.
The State Is Declared: The Story of the Iraqi Insurgency (October-December 2006)
Rob Ashlar, June 18, 2026
Continuing a serialized account of the Iraqi insurgency, Rob Ashlar gives an in-depth analysis of the rise of the Islamic State in Iraq, fractures in the Sahawat movement, and the choices faced by Sunni Iraqis trapped between sectarian depravity and the Coaltion collaboration. Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, and Part 5. Read Article.
On the Modern Problems of The Great Transformation: Rescuing Polanyi from the Academic Ivory Tower
Benjamin Marshall, June 16, 2026
Bringing Karl Polanyi's The Great Transformation into the age of information technology, Benjamin Marshall argues that platform capitalism has disembedded data into a "fourth fictitious commodity", atomizing the proletariat and fragmenting class struggle. Read Article.
The Rise and Fall of Participatory Management in the People's Republic of China, Part 1: The Consolidation of the Party-State
Mark Reid, June 12, 2026
In part one of a three-part serialized series examining the systemic limitations and historic potentials of democratic workplace management in the People's Republic of China, Mark Reid details the rise of Staff-and-Workers’ Congresses, the transition from a mixed to planned economy, and the experimentation of the Great Leap Forward era. Read Article.
The Poverty of Terminology
Vilen Isteni, June 10, 2026
Vilen Isteni provides a critical examination of the conceptual instability inherent in applying Western economic labels, such as “state capitalism,” to non-Western systems. Read Article.
¡Cuba Sí!: Why All Socialists Should Care About Cuba
Albert Gil, June 8, 2026
Against the grain of various sectarian narratives, Albert Gil argues that the Cuban Revolution stands as a bold experiment in socialism with contributions worthy of appreciation for all socialists today. Read Article.
Misplaced Necessities: A Reply to Slavoj Žižek
Raphael F. Alvarenga, June 2, 2026
Tracing how Žižek’s own crisis diagnostics increasingly lead toward a politics of institutional preservation and securitarian mediation, Raphael F. Alvarenga argues instead that universality emerges through political struggle, institutional transformation, and class recomposition across difference. Read Article.