Politics Theory Other

Communiqué #1

Dear PTO supporters,

First off, a huge thank you to all of you for your support - the show simply couldn't happen without you. When it was launched a little over a year ago the show wasn't remotely sustainable and was started with the hope t...

#51 Ralph Miliband and The State in Capitalist Society w/ Leo Panitch

Leo Panitch joins me to discuss his recent article in Tribune Magazine on Ralph Miliband's classic work, The State in Capitalist Society. We discuss Miliband's theory of the state, his criticism of liberal pluralist accounts of t...

#50 The Thatcherite Offensive w/ Alexander Gallas

Alexander Gallas, author of The Thatcherite Offensive: A Neo-Poulantzasian Analysis joins me to discussed the degree of popular support for the political and economic project of the Thatcher government, the debates between Stuart Hall and...

#49 Roger Hallam on Extinction Rebellion

Extinction Rebellion co-founder Roger Hallam joins me to discuss the organisational model of XR and how it's succeeded in mobilising so many people to take part in direct action. We also chatted about the booklet Roger has written on the strategy ...

#48 Christine Berry on preparing for a Corbyn government

Christine Berry discusses 'People Get Ready: Preparing for a Corbyn Government' a new book authored by Christine together with Joe Guinan. We spoke about the likely backlash a Corbyn government would face from the business class and transnational ...

#47 Adom Getachew on 'Worldmaking after Empire: The Rise and Fall of Self-Determination'

Adom Getachew joins me to discuss the liberation struggles of anti-colonial movements in Africa and the Caribbean in the twentieth century and the way in which they sought to construct a new global order that might secure real independence in the ...

#46 Owen Hatherley on Scott Walker's strange musical journey [PATRONS ONLY]

Owen Hatherley joins me to discuss the music and life of the late Scott Walker. We spoke about his journey from teen heartthrob with the Walker Brothers, to the creator of some of the most challenging music in the history of pop. We discuss the bi...

#45 Love thy Neighbour? Dawn Foster on religion and the left

In the first episode in partnership with Tribune magazine, Dawn Foster discusses her Tribune article on religion and socialism. We spoke about the relationship between Marxism and religion, how secular and religious leftists can work together in t...

#44 Hilary Aked on Islamophobia and the ‘counter-jihad’ movement [PATRONS ONLY]

Hilary Aked joins me to discuss Islamophobia and the European counter-jihad movement, its entwinement with state run counter extremism programmes, and its relationship with the traditional far right. Hilary is the co-author of a recent report on t...

#43 Ash Sarkar on understanding Brexit [PATRONS ONLY]

Ash Sarkar joins me to discuss the causes of the Brexit vote, the case for Lexit, the strategy of the People's Vote campaign and the prospects for Change UK.

#42 Corey Robin on understanding conservatism - from Edmund Burke to Donald Trump [PATRONS ONLY]

Corey Robin joins me to discuss the history of conservative thought, the significance of Donald Trump's presidency, and Ayn Rand's contribution to conservatism and the reasons for her immense popularity in the United States.

#41 Bridget Anderson on the case against borders [PATRONS ONLY]

Bridget Anderson joins me to talk about how the idea of the migrant is mediated through race and class, the case for No Borders, and the way in which the mobility of populations within nation states was viewed as a threat in the pre-capitalist era...

#40 David Edgerton on Britain and the declinist narrative [PATRONS ONLY]

David Edgerton joins me to discuss his new book, 'The Rise and Fall of the British Nation: A Twentieth-Century History'. We spoke about British declinism, the way declinist narratives structure understandings of modern British history and the poli...

#39 Kojo Koram on the politics of the Tory Brexiteers

Kojo Koram joins me to discuss the politics of the Tory Brexiteers. We spoke about why it is that the prospect of trading on WTO terms is so attractive to the European Research Group, and the strange parallels between Tory Brexiteers and bourgeois...

#38 Phil Burton-Cartledge on the Independent Group [PATRONS ONLY]

Phil Burton-Cartledge joins me to discuss the newly formed Independent Group, the politics of the MPs that make up the new organisation, the role of anti-semitism in the resignation of the ex-Labour contingent, and how the Labour leadership ought ...

#RedHacks - Jess Hurd on photojournalism, police harassment and witnessing revolutions

In the second episode of #RedHacks, Joana Ramiro talks to campaigning photojournalist Jess Hurd.

Listen to other episodes in the series here: 2019-02-14 13:12:55 +0000 UTC View Post

#37 Bruce Fink on Lacanian psychoanalysis [PATRONS ONLY]

Bruce Fink, the world's leading authority on Lacanian psychoanalysis joins me to discuss the work of Jacques Lacan, the nature of the Lacanian project and the 'return to Freud', and his perspective on the medicalisation of mental distress.  2019-02-10 10:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post

#36 David Wearing on 'Anglo Arabia: Why Gulf Wealth Matters to Britain' [PATRONS ONLY]

David Wearing joins me to discuss the strategic and economic relationship between the UK and the states of the Arabian Gulf, the role of Britain in Saudi Arabia's war in Yemen, and the role of the west in the emergence of monarchical authoritarian...

#35 Sophie Lewis on 'Full Surrogacy Now: Feminism Against Family' [PATRONS ONLY]

Sophie Lewis joins me to discuss her new book, 'Full Surrogacy Now: Feminism Against Family' and her recent article in New Socialist, ‘Labour Does You’: Might thinking through pregnancy as work help us radicalise the politics of care?

We...

#RedHacks - Paul Mason on ideology, fake news, and making it as a left-wing journalist

In the first episode of #RedHacks, a series of conversations about journalism in the neoliberal world, Joana Ramiro chats with renowned broadcaster and author Paul Mason....

#34 Dan Hind on 'The Constitutional Turn: Liberty and the Cooperative State' [PATRONS ONLY]

Dan Hind joins me to discuss his essay, 'The Constitutional Turn: Liberty and the Cooperative State'. We spoke about the need to reform Britain's unwritten constitution, what a project to democratise British society might look like, and even wheth...

#33 Joni Alizah Cohen on anti-semitism, transmisogyny, and the value form [PATRONS ONLY]

Joni Alizah Cohen joins me to discuss the relationship between transmisogyny and anti-semitism in Nazi ideology and the theoretical work of the Marxist historian Moishe Postone.

Our conversation was prompted by Joni's article, 'The Eradicat...

#32 James Butler on the EU and the Brexit endgame

James Butler of Novara media joins me to discuss Brexit, the likelihood of a no deal, what a second referendum might look like, and how the left should theorise the European Union. 

If you would like to hear the extended version of thi...

#32 James Butler on the EU and the Brexit endgame [PATRONS ONLY]

James Butler of Novara media joins me to discuss Brexit, the likelihood of a no deal, what a second referendum might look like, and how the left should theorise the European Union. 

#31 Thea Riofrancos on populism, left and right

Thea Riofrancos joins me to discuss her review in n+1 of Chantal Mouffe's new book, 'For a Left Populism'. As well as discussing Mouffe's work we talked more generally about populism in the United States and Europe, the nature of the Trump project, a...

#31 Thea Riofrancos on populism, left and right [PATRONS ONLY]

Thea Riofrancos joins me to discuss her review in n+1 of Chantal Mouffe's new book, 'For a Left Populism'. As well as discussing Mouffe's work we talked more generally about populism in the United States and Europe, the nature of the Trump project, a...

#30 "A bonsai de Gaulle" - Sebastian Budgen on Macron and the Yellow Vests movement

Sebastian Budgen joins me to discuss the Yellow Vests protests in France. We talked about the social composition of the movement, its relationship to established political forces, the heavy handed response of the government, and the absent strategy o...

#30 "A bonsai de Gaulle" - Sebastian Budgen on Emmanuel Macron and the Yellow Vests movement [PATRONS ONLY]

Sebastian Budgen joins me to discuss the Yellow Vests protests in France. We talked about the social composition of the movement, its relationship to established political forces, the heavy handed response of the government, and the absent strategy o...

#29 Aeron Davis on 'Reckless Opportunists: Elites at the End of the Establishment'

Aeron Davis joins me to discuss his new book, 'Reckless Opportunists: Elites at the End of the Establishment'. We discussed the changing face of British elites, the self-destructive character of neoliberalism, and the risk averse nature of the UK bus...

#29 Aeron Davis on 'Reckless Opportunists: Elites at the End of the Establishment' [PATRONS ONLY]

Aeron Davis joins me to discuss his new book, 'Reckless Opportunists: Elites at the End of the Establishment'. We discussed the changing face of British elites, the self-destructive character of neoliberalism, and the risk averse nature of the UK bus...