The Socialist Program with Brian Becker

Brian conducts an end of the year review of the biggest stories  including the U.S. proxy war with Russia in Ukraine, the growing  confrontation with China and North Korea and the intensifying assault  against democratic rights inside the United States. He also talks about  the development of a new antiwar movement inside the United States. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram. We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.

As the U.S. government plans to send its most advanced surface-to-air missile system to Ukraine. Meanwhile, the masses of people in Ukraine and the rest of Europe are falling further into poverty as conditions worsen and prices rise. Rather than promoting peace and advocating for negotiations, the United States, European Union, and NATO are publicly discussing escalating the war, while the IMF, World Bank, and corporate interests speculate on how much profit they can make in the future rebuilding of Ukraine, having moved the country decisively away from Russia and into the Western fold. Brian is joined by Ben Norton, an investigative journalist based in Latin America, and editor of the independent news website Multipolarista, at multipolarista.com Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram. We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.

In this patrons-only seminar, Brian discusses the attempted  power grab by the extreme right in the United States through the Moore  v. Harper case, for which oral arguments were heard at the Supreme Court  on December 9. He also answers questions on the anti-democratic  Congressional ruling against letting railway workers strike, using  lawfare for quiet coups, how to form a united front, and more. Check out the preview now and subscribe at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram to hear the rest of this seminar, support the show, and access the highly valuable archive of years of socialist analysis.

The major media disinformation campaign about the Iran protests is making it nearly impossible for people in the United States to understand what's going on in Iran. What's true? What's half true? What's completely and totally false? Brian is joined by Mazda Majidi, an author, journalist and educator who just got back from Iran. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram. We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.

The US mainstream media is twisting and distorting news about the recent Covid-related protests in China. This important interview with Tings Chak, a Beijing-based researcher at the Tricontinental Institute for Social Research, a member of Dongsheng News collective, and the author of the pamphlet Serve the People – The Eradication of Extreme Poverty in China, explains the realities of the protests, the US media, and what’s really going on with Covid in China. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram. We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.

In this patrons-only seminar, Brian discusses the importance of five  major international papers coming out against the ongoing prosecution of  Julian Assange, where the U.S. proxy war in Ukraine is headed, how we  can talk about these tough issues with friends and strangers, and more. Check out the preview now and subscribe at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram to hear the rest of this seminar, support the show, and access the highly valuable archive of years of socialist analysis.

Professor Richard Wolff joins Brian Becker to discuss the collapse of FTX, a major cryptocurrency exchange, and the cyclical nature of capitalism. They explore the bankruptcy filing, cryptocurrency scams, the potential collapse of the system, and the impact of speculation in the economy.

This weekend, Brian spoke at the "The Real Path to Peace in Ukraine" event in NYC, which inaugurated   a new, multi-national, grassroots movement    to advocate for the end to the current war in Ukraine. He spoke about the need for negotiations in Ukraine over escalation. To  see the whole program, including  Former Green Party Presidential Nominee  Jill Stein,  Tricontinental Institute for Social Research  Director Vijay Prashad, BreakThrough News Host Eugene Puryear, The  People's Forum Co-Director Claudia de la Cruz, and CODEPINK Founder  Medea Benjamin, watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asndac1ETFk. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram.  We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you  consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more  are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.

Eugene Puryear, author and activist, joins Brian to debunk Trump's claim of being a champion of the working class. They discuss his anti-worker policies, the manipulation of the tax code, and the misconception of the Democratic Party. They also explore the corporate agenda, Trump's response to protests, and the need for an independent political movement.

On today's episode Brian and Prof. Richard  Wolff discuss the mass layoffs that billionaire CEOs at Meta (formerly  Facebook), Twitter, Amazon, and others have begun. More than one hundred  thousand workers are projected to lose their jobs this year just in the  tech industry. Professor Richard Wolff is an author & co-founder  of the organization Democracy at Work. You can find his work at  rdwolff.com. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram.  We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you  consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more  are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.