Economy & Work

FDR’s Wartime Strategies Can Power a Just Transition Now – Martin Hart-Landsberg Pt. 2/2

FDR’s Wartime Strategies Can Power a Just Transition Now – Martin Hart-Landsberg Pt. 2/2

ByTalia Baroncelli

In part two, economist Martin Hart-Landsberg underscores the importance of planning for a just transition and transformation of socio-economic relations. Hart-Landsberg examines FDR’s Defense Production Corporation and War Production Board which were established to coordinate the U.S. economy’s rapid conversion from civilian to military production. The entrepreneurial class largely opposed these changes, fearing cuts to their bottom line. Yet FDR’s government, through experimentation with different strategies, was able to successfully allocate resources towards wartime production and negotiate enough procurement contracts to drive the conversion. Hart-Landsberg’s historical analysis of the successes and challenges of FDR’s WWII production model lends important insights for solidaristic organizing and eco-socialist activism. 

Debunking the IMF Myth: South Korea A ‘Free Market Miracle’? – Martin Hart-Landsberg Pt. 1/2
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Debunking the IMF Myth: South Korea A ‘Free Market Miracle’? – Martin Hart-Landsberg Pt. 1/2

ByTalia Baroncelli

Despite being (mis)characterized by the IMF as a free-market “success story,” South Korea’s development model involved state planning and import controls for decades prior to the 1997 East Asia debt crisis. Economist Martin Hart-Landsberg, Professor Emeritus at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, explains how capitalist globalization materialized and morphed in East Asia, often to the detriment of its worker population. With Trump’s inauguration nearing, Hart-Landsberg sheds light on why contemporary U.S.-China hawks view China as a threat rather than a technological competitor. 

How the Left Won Sri Lanka – Devaka Gunawardena Pt. 2/2
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How the Left Won Sri Lanka – Devaka Gunawardena Pt. 2/2

ByTalia Baroncelli

In part two, political economist Dr. Devaka Gunawardena outlines the political dynasties in Sri Lanka that governed the country until the National People Power’s (NPP) recent electoral victory. Gunawardena discusses how NPP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake has garnered widespread support across different ethnic and class lines despite being a political outsider. 

Historic Victory for Sri Lankan Left – Can They Deliver? – Devaka Gunawardena Pt. 1/2
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Historic Victory for Sri Lankan Left – Can They Deliver? – Devaka Gunawardena Pt. 1/2

ByTalia Baroncelli

In November 2024, Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s National People’s Power (NPP) coalition won a two-thirds majority in Sri Lanka’s general elections, marking a historic win for the Sri Lankan left. NPP’s victory came at a time of prolonged economic crisis exacerbated by the crushing terms of Sri Lanka’s IMF agreement. Political economist Dr. Devaka Gunawardena traces the factors leading to Sri Lanka’s economic woes and how international sovereign bonds (ISBs) held by private equity firms such as BlackRock constitute a large segment of Sri Lanka’s debt. Given the government’s recent private creditor debt restructuring agreement, can the NPP still deliver on its campaign promises of wealth redistribution and reversing austerity? 

Who Owns America’s Debt? – Bob Pollin Pt. 2/2

Who Owns America’s Debt? – Bob Pollin Pt. 2/2

ByTalia Baroncelli

In part 2, Bob Pollin, economist and Co-Director of the Political Economy Research Institute (PERI), lays out policies to increase workers’ wages and bargaining power and bring down the price of food items such as eggs. He tackles the issue of U.S. government debt, as well as fiscal conservative and MAGA Republican claims that China owns most of this debt. These falsehoods deflect from Trump’s massive tax cuts for the rich and his high military expenditure, which ran up U.S. debt far more than under the Biden administration. Pollin asserts the best way to reduce high-interest payments on U.S. debt and support social services is to increase government revenue via capital gains and income taxes.

Inflation Control and Curbing Workers’ Power in the Neoliberal Era – Bob Pollin Pt. 1/2

Inflation Control and Curbing Workers’ Power in the Neoliberal Era – Bob Pollin Pt. 1/2

ByTalia Baroncelli

Following the inflationary period of the Covid-19 pandemic, inflation is largely down and currently at 2.1% in the U.S. Bob Pollin, economist, and Co-Director at the Political Economy Research Institute (PERI), explains the causes of inflation, including demand-side and supply-side factors. He illustrates how the economic models used to tackle inflation are essentially tools to chip away at workers’ bargaining power. Pollin recounts the history of policies of inflation control, tracing their development to the era of globalization and neoliberalism championed by former U.S. President Bill Clinton and former chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve Alan Greenspan.

Price Gouging, Greedflation, and Monopolization – Bob Pollin part 2/2
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Price Gouging, Greedflation, and Monopolization – Bob Pollin part 2/2

ByTalia Baroncelli

Given voters’ concerns over rising food and housing costs, Kamala Harris has pledged to combat price gouging if elected president, though she has yet to clearly lay out the hallmarks of the rest of her economic policy. In part 2, Bob Pollin, economist and advisor to U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Pramila Jayapal on Medicare For All, explains the meaning of price gouging and delves into the causes of inflation during the COVID pandemic. 

Jane McAlevey Working Class Hero

Jane McAlevey Working Class Hero

ByPaul Jay

Brilliant activist and union organizer Jane McAlevey died on July 7, 2024. To celebrate her work and life, we republish our series of interviews with Jane. One of the world’s leading “organizers’ organizer” Jane McAlevey, has trained thousands of activists in building more militant unions and winning electoral organizing; she sees the fight for effective unions as critical to winning transformative climate policy. Jane tells her story to Paul Jay on Reality Asserts Itself.

Workers’ Movements in Revolutionary Iran and Europe – Saeed Rahnema part 2/2
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Workers’ Movements in Revolutionary Iran and Europe – Saeed Rahnema part 2/2

ByTalia Baroncelli

In part 2, political scientist Dr. Saeed Rahnema discusses his experience in the workers’ council movement leading up to and during the Iranian Revolution of 1979-1980 and addresses the Islamic Republic’s opposition to unions.  He also contends that modern-day working classes in the West are ideologically and culturally segmented and that the left has failed to mobilize at numerous historical junctures.

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