Are liberals and populists just searching for a new master?

The rise of populism, nativism and nationalism in recent years has challenged perceptions of what ordinary people want from politicians. Some see the anti-establishment trend as a rejection of centralised power. Others suggest the real hunger is for a moral authority that appears to be lacking in today’s capitalism. Among the latter group is Slavoj… Continue reading Are liberals and populists just searching for a new master?

As Trump, Bannon, Assange & Oprah make headlines: The Empire Strikes Back

As Trump, Bannon, Assange & Oprah make headlines- The Empire Strikes Back

The global elite will use any means necessary to prevent the economic radicalization of the left. So “MeToo” and smears distract while tax evasion has become legitimate. Three widely reported recent events sum up our current sad predicament: the open conflict between Donald Trump and Steve Bannon, Oprah Winfrey’s speech at the Golden Globe awards,… Continue reading As Trump, Bannon, Assange & Oprah make headlines: The Empire Strikes Back

On the rise of Trump, the fall of the Democratic party, and the future of the global left

Tavis Smiley: Good evening from Los Angeles. I’m Tavis Smiley. The role of the public intellectual in our society is arguably more important now than ever before. Believing that political issues are too important to be left only to politicians, Slavoj Žižek is considered a global rock star when it comes to philosophical debates. Whether it’s… Continue reading On the rise of Trump, the fall of the Democratic party, and the future of the global left

La La Land: A Leninist Reading

La La Land: A Leninist Reading

Among the PC reproaches to Damien Chazelle’s La La Land, the one that stands out for its sheer stupidity was that there are no gay couples in the film which takes place in LA, a city with a strong gay population… How come those PC Leftists who complain about the sub-representation of sexual and ethnic… Continue reading La La Land: A Leninist Reading

Trump Against the Machine: How Political Elites Failed

[Transcript below video.] Slavoj Žižek: I know that even in the United States when you have someone like Donald Trump, I know that there is a lot of elitist liberal reaction. Like here we see the limit of democracy but in the wrong sense, in the sense that you see stupid ordinary people are seduced… Continue reading Trump Against the Machine: How Political Elites Failed

Slavoj Žižek on Trump and the Republican Party

[This is an extract from Slavoj Žižek’s appearance at Left Forum on May 22nd 2016. The primary topic is Trump and the Republican Party, but he digresses among others to WikiLeaks, normalisation of torture and rape, and of course toilets. Transcript below the video.] …today. I’m sorry. I speak too long, I will start to, try… Continue reading Slavoj Žižek on Trump and the Republican Party

Philosopher Slavoj Žižek talks to Gary Younge (Podcast)

'Trump is really a centrist liberal'

In a new book, [amazon asin=0241278848&text=Against the Double Blackmail], in response to Europe’s refugee crisis, philosopher Slavoj Žižek argues that the left must shed its liberal taboos in favour of global, class solidarity. At a Guardian Live event, Gary Younge sat down with Žižek to discuss the immigration crisis, the response of the liberal left,… Continue reading Philosopher Slavoj Žižek talks to Gary Younge (Podcast)

The return of public vulgarity

The return of public vulgarity (img by Jonathan Ernst)

A couple months ago, Donald Trump was unflatteringly compared to a man who noisily defecates in the corner of a room in which a respectful drinking party is going on. Are other Republican candidates for the U.S. presidency substantially any better? We probably all remember the scene from Luis Buñuel’s The Phantom of Liberty in which relations between… Continue reading The return of public vulgarity

Leaving Democracy to the Experts

Leaving Democracy to the Experts

On June 19, the second anniversary of Julian Assange’s confinement to the Ecuadorian embassy in London, WikiLeaks rendered public the secret draft text for the Trade in Services Agreement (TISA) Financial Services Annex. The document was classified not only during TISA negotiations, but for five years after it enters into force. While the TISA negotiations… Continue reading Leaving Democracy to the Experts