The Socialist Program

On today's episode Brian and Prof. Richard Wolff discuss the real possibility of a massive strike as the contract for nearly 150,000 members of the United Auto Workers runs out on Thursday. Union members are demanding fair pay and protection from mass layoffs, but the Big Three auto companies — Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis — haven't yet agreed.

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 Nicole Roussell interviews Brian Becker about U.S. media coverage of the "huge threat" of Medicare costs to the U.S. budget, the Ukraine war, the U.S. pivot toward war with China, Putin and Kim Jong Un meeting this week, and the rising cost of car insurance.

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 mark Labor Day with a discussion on how workers are fighting back with intensity not seen in many years. From UPS to academic workers to writers and actors, major labor struggles have been erupting nationwide in a revolt against mounting inequality and corporate greed. And the next major fight on the horizon is a potential strike at the Big Three automakers.

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 much-hyped Ukrainian counter-offensive fails to produce major military breakthroughs, officials in the West are becoming concerned that their proxy war against Russia is not going according to plan. But instead of negotiating a lasting peace, the instinct of the war makers is the opposite – double down on massive arms shipments, and insist that Ukrainians die in even larger numbers.

Brian Becker is joined by Walter Smolarek, the editor of Liberation News.

Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at https://www.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 BRICS summit in Johannesburg, which resulted in the historic expansion of the bloc. With six new members, will the BRICS be able to mount a more formidable challenge to the dominance of Washington and Wall Street over international finance and diplomacy? What does this mean for the working people of the world.

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 world leaders from the Global South convene in South Africa for the BRICS Summit this week, the West is watching closely. 23 countries have applied to join Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa in the grouping, which is focused on trade and development in their regions — typically dominated by colonizing powers in Europe and the United States. Where is BRICS headed and what unifies the grouping?

Brian Becker is joined by Mikaela Nhondo Erskog, member of secretariat of Pan Africanism Today, researcher at Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, member of No Cold War, and host of the podcast The Crane: An Africa-China podcast coming from the DongSheng News collective.

Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at https://www.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 alarming pace of rising defaults on auto loans as hundreds of thousands of consumers face mounting bills amid surging new car prices.

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.

Seventy-five years ago, a witch hunt was launched in the United States against peace activists and leftists who opposed the growing danger of war with the Soviet Union. Today, as the United States has adopted major power conflict with China as its main military priority, and the danger of military confrontation with China grows, there is a new witch hunt against peace activists. But people are fighting back all around the globe.

Brian Becker is joined by Manolo De Los Santos, the co-executive director of The People’s Forum in New York, and Vijay Prashad, the Executive Director of the Tricontinental Institute for Social Research, Chief Editor of LeftWord Books, and a prolific author, most recently publishing a new book with Noam Chomsky called “The Withdrawal: Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan, and the Fragility of U.S. Power.”

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 Q&A seminar, Brian analyzes the newest indictment against Trump and the ensuing trial, artificial intelligence in the workplace, the new McCarthyism against people and organizations opposing U.S. foreign policy and war, who we should work with in the defense of Julian Assange, and more.

This episode is a preview of a longer seminar for Patrons in the TSP community. Subscribe at patreon.com/thesocialistprogram to hear the rest of this seminar, support the show, register for next time, and access the highly valuable archive of years of socialist analysis.

On today's episode Brian Becker and Prof. Richard Wolff discuss the housing crisis in the United States, where some Gen Zers are spending the majority of their income on housing, and homelessness is increasing — at a record rate.
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.