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The Dig: Thawra Ep. 16 - Siege of Beirut Jul 31, 2024

Show notes

Featuring Abdel Razzaq Takriti, this is the SIXTEENTH and final episode of Thawra (Revolution), our series on Arab radicalism in the 20th century. Today’s installment traces a massive defeat for the Palestinian Revolution: Israel’s 1982 invasion of Lebanon and brutal siege of Beirut. Under severe pressure and isolated in the wake of Egypt’s normalization with Israel, the PLO evacuated its headquarters. What followed was a giant massacre of Palestinian civilians and the end of the decades-long era of Arab revolutionary politics to which this series has been dedicated. A substantial epilogue is coming soon.

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Check out the Palestinian Revolution website! learnpalestine.qeh.ox.ac.uk/teach

Take 25% off a subscription to n+1 at nplusonemag.com/thedig. Enter THEDIG for discount.

Jacobin Radio: A Democratic Turning Point? w/ Micah Sifry Jul 30, 2024

Show notes

Suzi talks to writer Micah Sifry, who covers US & Middle East politics on his Substack newsletter The Connector, about whether he thinks a Harris presidency could change the dynamic of the Israel-US relationship, what it will mean for the war on Gaza, as well as Netanyahu’s political survival. The withdrawal of Biden from the presidential race has upended what looked like a death march to a Trump/Vance victory. Netanyahu’s dreadful speech to the joint session of Congress on July 24, boycotted by half the Democratic caucus in both houses, including VP Kamala Harris, highlights the opportunity she has to win back the votes of those who threatened to stay home unless the US stop funding Israel’s wars — an opening that is particularly important in the swing state of Michigan. Micah Sifry untangles all these threads, which constitute what he sees as the black hole of foreign policy.

Jacobin Radio with Suzi Weissman features conversations with leading thinkers and activists, with a focus on labor, the economy, and protest movements.

Michael and Us: It's Joever w/ Branko Marcetic Jul 28, 2024

Show notes

It's a politics-only episode, because we've got a big subject: It's time to say goodbye to your favorite American president, Joe Biden. We welcome back Branko Marcetic to tally #46's successes and failures—and do a vibe check on the Democratic Party following the ouster of its standard-bearer. PLUS: Branko reports on the Republican National Convention.

"Joe Biden Wanted This" by Branko Marcetic - https://jacobin.com/2024/07/biden-2024-dropout-gaza-legacy

"How Joe Biden Became a Steadfast Israel Defender" by Branko Marcetic - https://jacobin.com/2024/07/joe-biden-israel-support-history

"Never Forget How Many Times the Liberal Establishment Saved Biden’s Arse" by Luke Savage - https://novaramedia.com/2024/07/23/never-forget-how-many-times-the-liberal-establishment-saved-bidens-ass/

"Why Biden finally quit" - https://www.politico.com/news/2024/07/21/why-biden-dropped-out-00170106

Michael and Us is a podcast about political cinema and our crumbling world hosted by Will Sloan and Luke Savage.

Long Reads: Israel's Triple Jeopardy w/ John Reynolds Jul 25, 2024

Show notes

Last week, the International Court of Justice issued a landmark ruling on the status of Israel’s occupation of Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. Israel is currently facing several challenges through the international legal system. The ICJ has also been hearing a South African case that accuses Israel of genocide in Gaza. And the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has requested arrest warrants for the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his defense minister Yoav Gallant.

John Reynolds, a professor of law at Maynooth University and the author of Empire, Emergency, and International Law, joins Long Reads to discuss these developments. John previously spoke to us back in January after the ICJ gave its first response to the South African genocide case.

Find John's articles for Jacobin here: https://jacobin.com/author/john-reynolds

Also see recent investigations into Israel's covert war on the ICC at +972and The Guardian.

Long Reads is a Jacobin podcast looking in-depth at political topics and thinkers, both contemporary and historical, with the magazine’s longform writers. Hosted by features editor Daniel Finn. Produced by Conor Gillies, music by Knxwledge.

Behind the News: The GOP's Pro-Labor Sham w/ Brandon Mancilla Jul 20, 2024

Show notes

Brandon Mancilla of the UAW looks behind the GOP’s pro-worker facade. Adam Hilton, author of True Blues, talks about the bizarre nature of the US political party system.

Behind the News, hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global. Find the archive online: https://www.leftbusinessobserver.com/radio.html

Michael and Us: Exit Through the Gift Shop Jul 19, 2024

Show notes

In 2005, the Clinton family's own foundation created a DVD compilation of times when Bill and Hillary brought the funny. We discuss A TIME TO LAUGH: THE CLINTONS' HUMOR (2005), and glean a little bit of insight into how the former First Family view themselves. PLUS: From an assassination attempt of the former U.S. president to a coup attempt on the current one, we've got a lot of news to catch up on.

Michael and Us is a podcast about political cinema and our crumbling world hosted by Will Sloan and Luke Savage.

Jacobin Radio: The Elections in France & Iran Jul 18, 2024

Show notes

The second round of elections in France and in Iran both yielded surprise results that we could characterize as historic, especially in France, and to be seen in Iran. Sebastian Budgen returns to discuss the French results, which upset Le Pen's far right RA and Macron's Center, putting the left New Popular Front in the strongest position in Parliament. How were the various organizations of the left able to come together so quickly in their new alliance? How did they achieve agreement with the center to get candidates in constituencies with 3 or 4 candidates to withdraw so that only the strongest candidate could face down the RA rightist candidate? What comes next? With the left now the majority force in France’s parliament, we get Sebastian’s take on the challenges it faces in implementing the popular proposals in their platform — and whether they can continue the alliance with the center to thwart the right.

Suzi also talks to Yassamine Mather to get her views on the surprise result in Iran’s second round. At a moment when the hardliners seemed fully in control, the Iranian people elected Masoud Pezeshkian, a moderate reformer, as President. He won with 3 million votes over the regime insider and hardliner Ali Jalili, who mouthed all the regime’s hardline positions on internal security and foreign policy. It is a dramatic turn of events signaling the population’s desire for change. Pezeshkian focused on social reforms, economic improvement and renewed nuclear negotiations — and won, but his success depends on the Supreme Leader’s approval. We get Yassamine’s understanding of this result and ask if it sets the stage for potential change in Iran where the nation is grappling with deep-seated discontent, geopolitical turmoil, a crippled economy, rampant corruption, and a repressive regime.

Jacobin Radio with Suzi Weissman features conversations with leading thinkers and activists, with a focus on labor, the economy, and protest movements.

The Dig: Thawra Ep. 15 - Black September Jul 17, 2024

Show notes

Featuring Abdel Razzaq Takriti, this is the FIFTEENTH episode of Thawra (Revolution), our series on Arab radicalism in the 20th century. Today’s installment addresses the Palestinian Revolution’s project in Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan—leading up to the 1970 conflict with the Jordanian state and the violent expulsion of PLO guerrillas during Black September. Then, Egypt and Syria checked Israel’s power in the October War of 1973—only for Anwar Sadat to lead Egypt into Kissinger’s plan to pacify Arab revolution.

Support The Dig at Patreon.com/TheDig

Check out our newsletter and vast archives at thedigradio.com

Spread the word about Thawra thedigradio.com/Thawra

The Palestinian Revolution website is live! learnpalestine.qeh.ox.ac.uk/teach

Buy tickets for live Dig with Corbyn in London https://unionchapel.org.uk/venue/whats-on/versothe-dig-live-podcast-with-jeremy-corbyn-laleh-khalili

The Socialism Conference will be held in Chicago from Aug 30 - Sept 2. Learn more and register at socialismconference.org

Subscribe to a year of Jacobin for only $15— a special offer for Dig listeners! bit.ly/digjacobin

Behind the News: Labour's Non-Mandate w/ Richard Seymour Jul 15, 2024

Show notes

Richard Seymour, author of a recent rundown for New Left Review's Sidecar blog, discusses the British election. Trita Parsi talks about the Iranian election. Finally, we remember Jane McAlevey with a 2017 Behind the News interview. See a catalog of further interviews here: https://lbo-news.com/2024/07/11/jane-mcalevey-the-behind-the-news-interviews/

Long Reads: Britain's Tory Wipeout w/ Phil Burton-Cartledge Jul 11, 2024

Show notes

On July 4, voters in Britain went to the polls to elect a new government. Labour ended up with 411 seats in the House of Commons, while the Conservative Party had just 121.

At first glance, the result seems like a massive popular mandate for Keir Starmer and the Labour Party. But we have to reckon with the British electoral system, which can give parties a large majority of seats without even a small majority of votes. Labour will form a government with less than 34 percent of the overall vote. That’s barely 2 percent more than the party achieved with Jeremy Corbyn as leader in 2019, on a much lower turnout.

The real story of the election was a Tory collapse. The Conservative vote share dropped by 20 percent. The right-wing Reform Party of Nigel Farage divided the right-wing bloc with its anti-immigrant platform. Reform received 14 percent of the vote, but only ended up with 5 seats.

For a conversation about the election and the future of British politics, Long Reads is joined by Phil Burton-Cartledge. Phil is a lecturer in sociology at the University of Derby, and he’s the author of a book about the Conservative Party called The Party’s Over.

Support for this podcast comes from Haymarket Books, offering free shipping on orders over $25 (or £20). One title you might enjoy is Against Erasure: A Photographic Memory of Palestine Before the Nakba.

Support also comes from A Sense of Rebellion, a new podcast from tech critic Evgeny Morozov that explores counterculture at the dawn of the digital revolution.

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