In 1865, the 13th amendment abolished slavery, but there was a loophole. Prisoners were exempt. Since the passage of the amendment, prisons and
Tag: Corporations
The case for closing our overseas military bases
The most popular post, over the years, on Occasional Planet is: “Military Mystery: how many bases does the US have, anyway?” American University anthropology
Noam Chomsky: On capitalism and why electing Bernie isn’t enough
In a recent interview in Jacobin, linguist, philosopher, and political activist Noam Chomsky gave an interesting answer to a question about the American capitalist system. He basically said
How corporate greed got my daughter fired
My 49-year-old daughter has limited abilities, but has worked since finishing high school and has lived independently all these years. In fact, she just
Elizabeth Warren: Change will happen when enough people say “I’m mad as hell”
At a recent conference of media and tech influencers, a member of the audience asked Elizabeth Warren a simple question. Her spontaneous and passionate
Joe Stiglitz wants to rewrite the rules of the American economy
The time is ripe for genuine progressive ideas to take hold because, for once, they have a chance to resonate with people across the political spectrum. Bernie Sanders and Joe Stiglitz, together, offer real solutions to an economy, and a country, gone off the rails.
TPP: What Obama’s secret trade deal means for you
Since 2009, the Obama administration has been negotiating the Trans-Pacific Parnership (TPP) trade agreement in secret. Only lawyers and advisors representing banks and corporations,
Obama’s indifference to labor allowed the rise of Scott Walker
My Obamaphile friends may object, but it’s time to consider an uncomfortable fact about Obama: His indifference to the plight of labor unions in Wisconsin led to the
Ukrainians refusing to fight in U.S. proxy war with Russia
In case you haven’t noticed, U.S. mainstream media has been spewing out anti-Russian, anti-Putin propaganda since the U.S. backed coup in Kiev last year.
Keystone pipeline vote: corporate money trumps public good
The fossil-fuel industry is reaping the rewards of its three-quarters of a billion dollar investment to secure a Republican controlled congress. But they weren’t just buying