Well, the nightmare we knew was coming is finally here. Donald Trump is in charge of America. In a matter of hours he proved just how belligerent his administration will be towards workers, women, scientists, and immigrants alike. Yes this nightmare is now reality, and no amount of drinking will change that. I know, I… Continue reading Is America Ready for Its Own Arab Spring?
Category: Global Resistance
Performance Art, the Commons, and a Monster Named Netanyahu
This week Israeli artist Itay Zalait did something truly amazing in Tel Aviv’s famed Rabin Square. Zalait erected a golden statue of right-wing extremist and mass murderer Benjamin Netanyahu, who also currently serves as Israel’s prime minister. This depiction was revolutionary for several key reasons. Statues of living figures are forbidden in Israel, as are other forms… Continue reading Performance Art, the Commons, and a Monster Named Netanyahu
Fighting for Life Against the Death Cult of Capitalism
In a week this total fraud of an election will be over, and among the great number of things they have in common, one of the two disaster candidates elected will be in full support of the Dakota Access Pipeline. We could have had Bernie Sanders. We could have had Jill Stein. But nope. The… Continue reading Fighting for Life Against the Death Cult of Capitalism
The Betrayal of Bernie Sanders
Bernie and Hillary may be at opposite ends of the political spectrum, but they do have one thing in common: they both want you to take Donald Trump very seriously. As do a lot of voters claiming they’re terrified of Mr. Solid Gold Dumpster Fire. Hillary’s only chance requires distracting us from her record by reinforcing just… Continue reading The Betrayal of Bernie Sanders
Tokyo’s Olympic War On the Homeless
Last week the perpetually capital-minded CityLab jumped on the corporate sponsored greenwashing train to gush over the forthcoming Olympics in Tokyo. Such a damaged brand are the Olympics – with it’s massive wastes of subsidized funding, razing poor neighborhoods for athletic mega-infrastructure, and general disruption to normal street life – that it’s now necessary to hire numerous firms… Continue reading Tokyo’s Olympic War On the Homeless
The Muskegon Streetcar Riot of 1919
Americans like to riot, for better or worse. Better when there’s a just cause, worse when it’s over sports, or pumpkins. With mass media though, a single burning gas station can be looped for hours, giving the impression of mass chaos, as was the case in Baltimore, when in fact that uprising was timid in… Continue reading The Muskegon Streetcar Riot of 1919
The New Gentrifier Tactic: Copy Climate Change Deniers
It seems for every critique of today’s monied urban revival there’s another paid life-style columnist arguing why gentrification should be cherished, if they even admit gentrification exists at all. “Gentrification isn’t happening, but if it was happening, it would be a good thing.“ That was the crux of a Slate article last year that prompted many… Continue reading The New Gentrifier Tactic: Copy Climate Change Deniers
Where Would George Hayduke Bike?
Earlier this month the LA Times reported dozens of luxury cars were torched in Berlin by a group calling itself the Social Democratic People’s Bicycle Commando. Clearly this sort of over-the-top name was meant to be cheeky, but their tactics were quite serious. The Bike Commandos claimed they “wanted to remove the windows from the luxury cars and scrap them… Continue reading Where Would George Hayduke Bike?
How Corrupted Is the Oregon League of Conservation Voters?
[Editors note: Former Oregon state rep Jules Bailey (D) is currently running for mayor of Portland, Oregon and has routinely congratulated his own legislative record on environmental issues. I thought it would be prudent to take a look back on Bailey’s actual voting record, and the monied environmental groups who award Democrats for portions of their… Continue reading How Corrupted Is the Oregon League of Conservation Voters?
Gov. Snyder Delivers State of the State Surrounded by Thousands Demanding His Arrest
When urban geographer David Harvey published Rebel Cities in 2012 he proposed, “The right to the city is far more than the individual liberty to access urban resources: it is a right to change ourselves by changing the city, [to] exercise collective power to reshape the processes of urbanization.” Today, groups like the Right to the City Coalition focus mainly on housing justice… Continue reading Gov. Snyder Delivers State of the State Surrounded by Thousands Demanding His Arrest