Against the Grain – June 26, 2012
Peter Hudis talks about the ideas and legacy of the pioneering Marxist theoretician and leader Rosa Luxemburg.
Against the Grain
12:00 PM Pacific Time: Mondays - Wednesdays
Acclaimed program of ideas, in-depth analysis, and commentary on a variety of matters—political, economic, social, and cultural—important to progressive and radical thinking and activism. Against the Grain is co-produced and co-hosted by Sasha Lilley and C. S. Soong.
Against the Grain – June 25, 2012
The early writings of Walter Benjamin, the brilliant German philosopher-critic known for his insights into technology, art, and modern existence, are the focus of a volume edited by MIT scholar Howard Eiland.
Against the Grain – June 20, 2012
Christina Kiaer is the author of “Imagine No Possessions: The Socialist Objects of Russian Constructivism,” which examines the attempt by the avant-garde in the USSR’s early years to rethink the objects of daily life in a post-capitalist society.
Against the Grain – June 19, 2012
Christian Parenti, author of “Tropic of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of Violence,” talks about global warming, neoliberalism, and counterinsurgency. He also explains how elites plan to respond to climate change-related civil unrest and migration in the Global South by further sealing and militarizing the borders of the rich countries.
Against the Grain – June 18, 2012
The radical historian and sociologist Robin Blackburn discusses his book “An Unfinished Revolution: Karl Marx and Abraham Lincoln.”
Against the Grain – June 13, 2012
In Part Two of the interview begun on June 11, the political economist Jonathan Nitzan argues that profit maximization is not in fact the primary goal of capitalists, and he points to the harm done by those who bring up “the economy” as an objective concept. Also, veteran performer Charlie Varon discusses his new show … Continued
Against the Grain – June 11, 2012
The Canadian political economist Jonathan Nitzan makes the provocative claim that capital, the accumulation of which is capitalism’s central process, is not about economic production or consumption or in fact anything economic. Rather, he argues, it’s a mode of organized power. (First part of a two-part interview.)
Against the Grain with Sasha Lilley – June 6, 2012
Baker and radical scholar Aaron Bobrow-Strain traces the history of white bread — symbol of science, progress, empire, and now bad taste — along with the alternative food backlash that it provoked. While food activists today may believe they’re transforming the world through wholesome food and toothsome bread, he suggests that such politics often reinforce … Continued
Against the Grain – June 5, 2012
Left-wing historian James Livingston suggests — taking on the nineteenth-century Populists, the Frankfurt School, and current economic orthodoxy along the way — that consumption is good for social justice and the environment.