For the first time in a generation Britain will vote on its membership of the European Union, probably in the autumn of 2016. How to vote in that referendum is a difficult choice for anyone on the left. Since the… Continue Reading
I would like to preface this discussion with Alex Callinicos, on what attitude socialists should take to the referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union (EU),1 on a personal note. This debate has echoes of earlier controversies on the… Continue Reading
Fran Cetti’s article was written at the time of the European response to the Mediterranean tragedies during the summer and early autumn of 2015. These continue but have been overshadowed by many thousands of refugees, many from Syria, arriving in… Continue Reading
Two very important new books about the German Revolution were published last year: Working-Class Politics in the German Revolution: Richard Müller, the Revolutionary Shop Stewards and the Origins of the Council Movement by Ralf Hoffrogge and The German Left and… Continue Reading
According to the world’s media outlets and major heads of state, a new threat has been looming over “world peace” since June 2014—the threat of ISIS. ISIS was presented as an imminent danger and, far from being constrained to the… Continue Reading
The debate around orientations for revolutionaries in the unions today is the result of an uncomfortable but inescapable fact: the level of trade union struggle has remained historically low for 20 years.1 This is true whether we are considering working… Continue Reading
In International Socialism 141 Roland Boer gives a fascinating account of how Luther Blissett’s novel Q is “a stunning reclamation of the revolutionary Christian tradition for a whole generation of anti-capitalist activists”.1 The novel concerns the period of the radical… Continue Reading
The murderous attack on the Paris offices of the “satirical” magazine Charlie Hebdo on 7 January 2015—in which 12 people (nine journalists, two police officers and a caretaker) were killed—has, obviously and correctly, been condemned by every decent person on… Continue Reading
Syriza’s electoral victory on 25 January 2015 was historic. It was the first time a party with its roots in the Communist tradition had succeeded in coming to office. It was a victory for the working class movement, which had… Continue Reading
Life on earth is arguably the most extraordinary phenomenon in the perceivable universe. And, among living things, 21st century humans are uniquely possessed with the means to appreciate this remarkable occurrence. Scientifically, for example, we can consider the sheer number… Continue Reading