MHI Editorial

Political Turmoil and Economic Crisis

François Hollande, elected to the presidency of France on May 6, was the first candidate of the Socialist Party to win that post in 24 years. And the Greek electorate dealt a crushing blow to the conservative New Democracy Party as well as the social democratic PASOK. A party to its left, SYRIZA, which opposes the agreement to restructure Greece’s sovereign debt and the associated austerity measures, came in second to New Democracy in the election, and is now trying to put together a coalition government after New Democracy was unable to do so.

These developments may seem to be indicative of a shift to the left, but they are not. We need to be oppressively aware of the upsurge in popularity that the racist right-wing and even fascists are enjoying. Read More

4 Years After Crisis Began, New Ideas and New Revolts

Book exposes falling rate of profit while protests threaten economic-political system

This month marks the fourth anniversary of the start of an economic crisis that almost brought down the world financial system, and with that, the whole capitalist system. People in the U.S. and most other countries are still suffering in the aftermath. In spite of, or because of, this hardship, new challenges to capitalism have broken out around the world in the form of mass protests and revolts.

What can we understand about the current state of the economy? Can that knowledge help those who are challenging the system?

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Beware of Left Anti-Semitism

Jew-Hatred Appears in Conspiracy Theories, Anti-Americanism,

Lesser-Evilism, and Single-Issue Thinking

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We are compelled to denounce the ancient practice of blaming Jewish people for the world’s ills, because anti-Semitism (as prejudice and discrimination against Jews is commonly called) has been rearing its ugly head—within the U.S. Left. The incident we just experienced began August 29, when the administrator of a feminist email list sent around a virulently anti-Semitic video which, in the process of supporting ousted Libyan dictator Muammar el-Qaddafi, blamed global poverty and injustice on the Rothschild banking family. Only a few of the 100 people on the email list responded, even after we immediately pointed out and denounced the content of the video. Then we were shocked again by the tepid nature of some of the responses.

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