The May Day celebrations that occurred around the world on May 1, 2012 were born more than a century ago out of a struggle by American workers for the eight-hour day. Given the recent intensification of the drive by the wealthy to enrich themselves at the expense of everyone else, it seems likely that May Day will continue to serve as a potent symbol of worker discontent.
World military spending reached $1.738 trillion in 2011 -- an increase of $138 billion over the previous year. Despite the well-known fact that war is a very counterproductive way to address global problems, nations went right ahead and spent a record-breaking amount on war and preparations for it.
Michael Klare's excellent new book provides not only a chilling description of the escalating competition for the world's last resources, but an alternative that could save the planet from that competition's disastrous consequences.
On February 8, 2012, Congressman Edward Markey introduced the Smarter Approach to Nuclear Expenditures (SANE) Act, which would cut $100 billion from the U.S. nuclear weapons budget over the next ten years. As the U.S. government currently possesses over five thousand nuclear weapons (which can destroy the world five times over) and is planning to spend over $600 billion on nuclear weapons modernization in the next decade, passage of the SANE Act makes a lot of sense.
Although I'm not a famous politician, movie star, or athlete, my autobiography -- Working for Peace and Justice: Memoirs of an Activist Intellectual -- was published recently. This book turned out to be much more than a family history, for it raised important issues about what the appropriate role was for Americans, and particularly intellectuals, in a society plagued by war and social inustice.
Conservative politicians often portray the United Nations as all-powerful. But the reality is that it is hamstrung -- as in the case of the violence in Syria -- from acting effectively in cases of maintaining international peace and security. It could do a much better job if the great powers were stripped of the veto in the UN Security Council.
Although would-be Presidential candidates talk of building an “American Century” with the United States as the preeminent world leader, polls show that most Americans favor a more cooperative world order based on international law, a stronger United Nations, and a less dominant role for the United States in world affairs.
The leftwing of the Democratic Party, caught between its disappointment with Obama and its fear of a rightwing Republican victory, will probably give tepid support to the Democratic president while campaigning vigorously for more progressive candidates.
The growing U.S. confrontation with China has enhanced the possibility of a disastrous nuclear war.
On October 7, Mitt Romney, the likely Republican candidate for president, delivered a major speech outlining his foreign policy, calling for a military buildup and an “American Century.”