The Socialist Program with Brian Becker

On today's episode Walter Smolarek and Prof. Richard Wolff discuss the newly-released inflation report that found that prices rose at a breathtaking pace – 8.6 percent, the highest in over 40  years. Anger is spreading across the country as working people struggle to afford the basic necessities in life as fuel, food and other essential commodities become increasingly unaffordable. What can be done to solve the crisis? 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.

On today's episode, Brian Becker interviews Roberto Lovato. Since the  Monroe Doctrine, Latin America has resisted U.S. attempts to dominate  the region. Last week, another instance of resistance took place around  the Summit of the Americas, which many heads  of state boycotted over the Biden administration's decision to exclude  Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua. Brian and Roberto Lovato discuss this,  the urgent need to end the blockade of Cuba, and the hypocrisy of U.S.  immigration policy as Ukrainians are welcomed  but immigrants from Latin America and the Caribbean are caged. Roberto Lovato is the author of the critically-acclaimed memoir Unforgetting. Lovato is a journalist and visiting professor of English  at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. Lovato has reported on numerous  issues—violence, terrorism, the drug war and the refugee  crisis—from Mexico, Venezuela, El Salvador, Dominican Republic, Haiti,  France and the United States, among other countries. Photo credit: Midia Ninja 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 May 2022 patrons-only seminar, Brian focuses on answering questions from patrons, including multiple about the ongoing war in Ukraine, the connection to China and North Korea, how political organizing in the U.S. has changed over the decades, organizing in rural areas, and more. Check out the preview now and subscribe at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram to hear the rest!

Biden excluded Cuba from the Summit of the Americas, and then the U.S. government blocked visas for Cuban special guests to the People's Summit of Democracy as well. To discuss the U.S. policy of exclusion and the double standards in U.S. definitions of “democracy,” Brian is joined at the People's Summit for Democracy by Gail Walker, executive director of the Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization and Pastors for Peace. 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.

On today's episode Brian Becker and Prof. Richard  Wolff discuss the possibility of a recession, now that the majority of  CEOs foresee one. They're calling it mild, but is that what the economic  signals are showing? 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.

Brian Becker, an expert on imperialism and strategies pursued by major powers throughout history, discusses the main epochs of imperialism and the lessons it holds for the contemporary movement for justice and self-determination. Topics include the clash between imperialism and grassroots movements, the new era of global politics since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the collapse of the socialist camp and the end of the Cold War, the historical progression of global politics, and the era of global colonization and major power conflicts.

Three decades after the end of the so-called Cold War the threat of all-out nuclear conflict – and therefore the annihilation of life on Earth as we know it – is a real and growing danger. But this time, the threat to human civilization is compounded by the crisis of climate change. We need a new system if humanity is to step back from the brink. Brian is joined by John Bellamy Foster, the editor of Monthly Review and a professor of sociology at the University of Oregon. He’s the author of several books, including Naked Imperialism: The U.S. Pursuit of Global Dominance, and The Return of Nature: Socialism and Ecology. Look at for his new book being published August 23 called “Capitalism in the Anthropocene: Ecological Ruin or Ecological Revolution.” 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.

On today's episode Walter Smolarek and Prof. Richard  Wolff discuss how outrage is spreading across the country in the wake  of the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School. The complete failure and  cowardice on the part of the police allowed  the killer to carry out the massacre. And the gun manufacturers who  profit while mass shootings devastate the country are given special  legal protections. How are the arms industry capitalists shielded from  accountability? 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.

As the U.S./NATO proxy war in Ukraine against Russia rages, the imperialist establishment is increasingly united behind a strategy of escalation. Brian and Eugene Puryear trace the development of this increasingly hostile approach over the years and decades; and review the most important recent military, economic and political developments in the conflict. Eugene Puryear is the host of the BreakThrough News podcast The Punch Out, and co-host of the BT live video show The Freedom Side. 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.

On today's episode Brian Becker and Prof. Richard  Wolff discuss the report from the Tax Justice Network, a well-known  international organization, finding that the United States is now the  country with the greatest degree of financial secrecy in the entire  world.  Banks and corporations move in the shadows, concealing their operations  and vast wealth. What are the ultra rich up to behind the scenes? 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.