By BLACKIE D. The researchers in various disciplines have this really neat mode of investigation into the order of reality. They issue a theoretical concept (often pages of mathematical formulas and a volume of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew characters). Then they predict: if this is correct, they say, so and so and thus and … Continue reading Picket Line & Barricades: The World in a Straight Jacket
Month: December 2001
Youth in Action
Students Attend Regional Antiwar Conferences By DAVID BERNT CHICAGO-On Nov. 10 and 11, student antiwar activists gathered in the Midwest and the West and East Coasts to participate in three regional student antiwar conferences. The three conferences-in Chicago, Berkeley, and Boston-were attended by a combined total of over 1000 activists. Each conference included educational workshops … Continue reading Youth in Action
British Trotskyist Charlie van Gelderen dies; Covered S. Africa news for Socialist Action
By TERRY CONWAY Charlie van Gelderen, who for almost two decades wrote many articles for Socialist Action (mainly on political developments in South Africa), was the last survivor of those who attended the 1938 founding conference of the Fourth International in Paris. Following is a shortened version of an article in the November 2001 … Continue reading British Trotskyist Charlie van Gelderen dies; Covered S. Africa news for Socialist Action
Victory for Charleston Five!
By DAVID BERNT The international campaign to free five victimized dockworkers ended with a victory just before the beginning of their Nov. 13 trial. The dockworkers, known as the Charleston Five, had been charged with "inciting a riot" in connection with a Jan. 21, 1999, incident. The Charleston Five are members of International Longshoreman's … Continue reading Victory for Charleston Five!
LABOR BRIEFING: Okla. votes for ‘right to work’ law
Okla. votes for 'right to work' law All workers lost out when the Oklahoma electorate on Sept. 25 joined 21 other states and passed an anti-worker "right-to-work law." The vote wasn't even close, 54 percent to 46 percent. Business crows that now the state will be better able to compete with Arkansas, Kansas, and Texas … Continue reading LABOR BRIEFING: Okla. votes for ‘right to work’ law
Supreme Court Snubs Steelworkers’ Union
By CHARLES WALKER If you're not a steelworker, you may have overlooked the few press reports that the steelworkers union in November failed to get a hearing from the U.S. Supreme Court on the union's constitutional challenge to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The United Steelworkers of America (USWA) intended to argue … Continue reading Supreme Court Snubs Steelworkers’ Union
No Surprises at AFL-CIO Convention
By CHARLES WALKER Read the scores of resolutions and speeches that emanated from the AFL-CIO's 24th Biennial Convention held in Las Vegas during Dec. 2-6, and tell us if you find any mention of the principal strategic outlook that drives 21st century bureaucratic trade unionism in the U.S. As anyone knows who follows contract … Continue reading No Surprises at AFL-CIO Convention
Left Makes Gains in Argentine Elections
October's mid-term elections in Argentina marked a significant turn in one of the deepest crises the country has ever faced. After more than three years of recession, savage cuts in wages and public services, a growing wave of increasingly militant social struggles, and with the prospect of total financial meltdown lurking just around the corner, … Continue reading Left Makes Gains in Argentine Elections
THEATER REVIEW: ‘NO’ for an Answer
By GAETANA CALDWELL-SMITH The music and lyrics for "No for an Answer" were written by Marc Blitzstein in 1937, whose earlier musical play, "Cradle Will Rock," became a popular rallying cry for theater artists during the depression after federal agents closed the theatre in which it was to open. Led by the director and … Continue reading THEATER REVIEW: ‘NO’ for an Answer
What are US War Goals?
By MICHAEL SCHREIBER The following article is based on a Nov. 27 talk the author gave, sponsored by the New York City branch of Socialist Action. The U.S. government's efforts to overthrow the Taliban-as well as to capture or assassinate Osama bin Laden-did not begin following the Sept. 11 attack, or even with George … Continue reading What are US War Goals?
New Rosenberg Book Repeats old Lies
By JEFF MACKLER Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were electrocuted 49 years ago on the false charge of "conspiracy to commit espionage." The real charge against them, unproven and whipped up to fever pitch during the Joseph McCarthy/Cold War era, was that they gave the Russians the secret to the atomic bomb. Because the formal … Continue reading New Rosenberg Book Repeats old Lies
Civil Liberties Trampled as Government uses Pretext of ‘War on Terrorism’
By DAVID BERNT Attorney General John Ashcroft waved a copy of an al Qaida training manual before members of the Senate Judicial Committee on Dec. 6. Ashcroft used the book to thunder home his defense of the Bush administration's recent attacks on civil liberties. "To those who scare peace-loving people with phantoms of lost … Continue reading Civil Liberties Trampled as Government uses Pretext of ‘War on Terrorism’
Israel Tightens Noose on Arafat
By GERRY FOLEY As Yasir Arafat has been risking his regime and perhaps even his life to meet the demands of Israel and the United States, going to the brink of opening up a civil war among the Palestinian people, the Israeli army has been continuing to shoot at his police and the offices … Continue reading Israel Tightens Noose on Arafat
Free Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin!
The struggle for the freedom and liberty of Atlanta Muslim leader Imam Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin must take place now, before the cold fingers of the state can close around his neck. Imam Jamil [formerly known as H. Rap Brown] has already received what can only be called a biased and prejudicial press, which has sought … Continue reading Free Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin!
Commentary by Mumia Abu-Jamal: Voices from the Other America
People in the United States, drunk on imperial pride, think of themselves as quintessential Americans, and think of the rest of the people of the world as something else; something lesser: the Other. It would surprise such people to learn that there are indeed millions of people, in other countries, who see themselves as Americans, … Continue reading Commentary by Mumia Abu-Jamal: Voices from the Other America
Federal Court Ruling Opens New Doors for Mumia
By JEFF MACKLER A critical ruling by Judge J. Curtis Joyner, issued in federal court on Nov. 6, may force the Pennsylvania state court to grant Mumia Abu-Jamal a hearing where evidence proving his innocence can be presented. Mumia Abu-Jamal, an award-winning African American journalist, was charged with murdering Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner … Continue reading Federal Court Ruling Opens New Doors for Mumia
US Victory in Afghanistan… What Does it Mean?
By GERRY FOLEY The collapse of the Taliban regime, now completed with the fall of Kandahar on Dec. 7, came as a surprise to the Western governments and media, despite the preceding claims by U.S. officials of the effectiveness of their military campaign. The New York Times felt compelled to run a special article … Continue reading US Victory in Afghanistan… What Does it Mean?