March 2006

by Ron Jacobs

In a time when it seems that religious justifications for the excesses of both revolutionary and reactionary impulses are the standard, Haymarket Books' republication of Paul Siegel's The Meek and the Militant is a useful resource for the individual looking for a rational analysis of the relationship between religion and power. The book, which was originally published in 1986, provides a historical overview of the world's five great religions and takes a look at their relationship to power both inside and outside of government and capital. Although Siegel utilizes a . . .

November 2005

by Ron Jacobs

Oct. 7, 2005-- Recent reports from Washington and Kabul suggest that the United States and its client government are considering some legal production of opium in that tattered country. The reasons for this is two-fold. First off, the US-sponsored authority in Kabul, H. Karzai, knows that his government can not stop opium production without losing his position, his power and perhaps his life. Secondly, some of the members of the government there are engaged in opium production and refuse to give it up, especially since there are no other truly profitable endeavors they could . . .

February 2005

by Ron Jacobs

When I left high school in 1973, most of my friends were glad that the likelihood of being drafted was almost nil. Sure, the law was still on the books, but the draft itself had, for all practical purposes, been terminated earlier that year. There were a variety of reasons for this move ─ incredible discontent, even open rebellion in the armed forces, and a desire by the government to get the youth back on its side being foremost among them and the class of 1973 was all too happy to accept any of them if it meant that they wouldn't have to wear the man's uniform.

September 2003

by Ron Jacobs

One of Che Guevara's most oft-repeated quotes was "At the risk of seeming ridiculous, let me say that the true revolutionary is guided by a great feeling of love." Author Neil Gordon's new novel, The Company You Keep, could easily have used this quote as its subtitle. The story of a fictional former member of the Weather Underground who has been living under an assumed name since the early 1970s after a failed bank robbery where a bank guard was murdered, Gordon's novel is a thriller of a tale. The primary protagonist-one Jason Sinai who assumed the identity of a dead man named . . .

August 2003

by Ron Jacobs

July 13, 1973. This was the day that the US public found out about the audiotapes then President Nixon was making in the White House. Alexander Butterfield, the White House appointments secretary, revealed under questioning by the Senate Watergate Committee that Tricky Dick recorded every single conversation and telephone that occurred in his office.