History, “The past” as Faulkner wrote, “is never dead. It's not even past." Trauma, a Greek word for wound, takes on myriad shapes and forms. It often remains and reverberates through generations. There is individual trauma and collective trauma. However, just because you suffered does not give you permission to inflict suffering on others. Angela Davis said, “Victimization cannot be permitted to function as a halo of innocence.” Empathy is the ability to take on another person's perspective, to understand, feel, and possibly share and respond to their experience. Victims need our empathy, our compassion but not according to the world’s richest man. Elon Musk has said, “The fundamental weakness of Western civilization is empathy.”

The so-called Department of Government Efficiency, DOGE, is led by Elon Musk, the richest man in the world. It operates in virtual secrecy. Its slash and burn tactics have resulted in thousands of government workers losing their jobs, sometimes with little or no notice. Budgets are being hollowed out to pay for massive tax breaks for the oligarchs. Activist, organizer, politician Kshama Sawant warns, “We cannot understate the damage being done by Trump, Musk and company. It is austerity on steroids, deregulation on steroids, imperialism on steroids” and along with that she says it’s “the most dramatic concentration of executive power” in memory. There’s only one thing that will stop the Trump-Musk juggernaut. Collective citizen action. Workers! Fight Back! Recorded at the Langston Hughes Center for the Performing Arts.

When faced with adversity one can look away and do nothing. But for our own dignity and self-respect we must fight back and resist the depredations of the state and corporate sector. Historically speaking this is one of those critical inflection points. A lot of people are deeply concerned about the Trump regime and Elon Musk. The social safety net is being shredded while the gazillionaires make out like bandits. Tariq Ali says, “What the United States needs today is an opposition, which fights back politically, intellectually, and culturally with arguments, and, when necessary, comes out on the streets to defend democracy, a grassroots uprising. We need activists more than ever before.” Recorded at St. Thomas University.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said "Conditions for Palestinians in Gaza are appalling and apocalyptic. What we are seeing may well amount to the gravest international crimes." Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, said, "We are fighting human animals and we are acting accordingly." Prominent Israeli scholars such as Omer Bartov, Raz Segal, Ilan Pappe, Lee Mordechai and Amos Goldberg, have all said Israel's actions in Gaza amount to genocide. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Jewish Voice for Peace, and other organizations have also reached the same conclusion. Apart from the U.S., Canada, and a few European countries Israel is largely isolated internationally. Arrest warrants for Prime Minister Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant have been issued by the International Criminal Court. Israel's goal in Gaza has been made explicitly clear by Netanyahu on down: eliminate the Palestinians. Recorded at the University of Wisconsin.

2 CDs “You wanna read a real history book?” Matt Damon asks Robin Williams in the movie Good Will Hunting. “Read Howard Zinn’s People’s History of the United States. That book’ll knock you on your ass.” It’ll do that and more. Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States has sold more than four million copies. And it keeps on selling. Zinn’s close friend Noam Chomsky said the book “changed the consciousness of a generation.” Zinn’s history from below approach was to foreground as he said, “the countless small actions of unknown people.” It was a sharp departure from the traditional great men framing of history: presidents, generals, leaders, etc. His unorthodox bottom-up approach presented the past stripped of its myths and propaganda. Recorded at Reed College.

Paul Robeson, an enduring and multitalented figure, broke color barriers in sports, music, film and theater. He was an internationally famous singer and actor yet in the U.S. he was persecuted and blacklisted for his political beliefs. He died impoverished and in obscurity. His singular life is a model of courage and steadfastness in the face of racial and political prejudice. He said, “The artist must fight for freedom or for slavery. I have made my choice. I had no alternative.” This program includes Paul Robeson singing in his magnificent bass-baritone voice "Joe Hill" and "Ol' Man River." Recorded at Columbia Law School.

The ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinians is in its first phase. Some captives have been released with more to follow. Aid trucks are delivering desperately needed food, water and medicine to the besieged Palestinians. What the future will bring is uncertain. The situation is fragile. What is certain is the Palestinians have endured disproportionate death and destruction. Israel has a powerful military and the backing of the U.S. The BBC says, “After 15 months of war in Gaza, the conflict is as bitter and intractable as ever. The consequences of so much destruction and death will be felt for a generation, at least. The long-overdue ceasefire may stop the killing but won't end the conflict.”

There’s power in a union is not just an empty slogan or the title of a song it’s a shared reality for many working people. When labor organizes itself into a union it can exert power over bosses. It can demand higher wages and better working conditions and benefits. The CEO class offers workers crumbs while pocketing the big bucks in salaries, bonuses and stock options for themselves. The propaganda system is largely under the control of ruling elites and big business. Thus, unions are painted negatively. However, a Gallup poll shows that union support among workers has increased significantly in recent years. From Amazon to Starbucks to Kaiser to postal workers in Canada there has been an upsurge in workers going on strike and unionization. Solidarity makes a difference.

Traditional totalitarianism conjures images of jack-booted stormtroopers, death camps and gulags. In recent years a new variety of totalitarianism has emerged. Noted political theorist Sheldon Wolin calls it “the inversion of totalitarianism” and that it “represents the coming of age of corporate power and political demobilization of the citizenry. Unlike classical totalitarian systems which openly boasted of their intentions to force their societies in a preconceived totality, inverted totalitarianism is not expressly conceptualized as an ideology, nor is it objectified in public policy.” Corporations have de facto power and have carried out a slow-motion coup d’état. How to resist? Wolin says it starts at the local level.

The murder of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO on a Midtown Manhattan street “unleashed,” the New York Times reported, “a torrent of morbid glee from patients and others who say they have had negative experiences with health insurance companies at some of the hardest times of their lives.” Some comments were, “Thoughts and deductibles to the family.” Another one said, “Unfortunately, my condolences are out of network.” The dark commentary highlighted deep anger over the state of health insurance. Millions can’t afford it and go without it. And many who are on some plan have inadequate coverage with high deductibles. The answer, Ralph Nader says, is single-payer: “Everybody in, nobody out.” That would bring down prices. But the handful of corporations monopolizing the health insurance industry don’t want that. Why? That would cut into their profits. So, the insanity continues.