Stranded a thousand miles out at sea, conditions in Puerto Rico have only deteriorated since Hurricane Maria devastated the island last September. Those who could afford to leave have. The rest are becoming desperate with hurricane season on its way again. The Puerto Rican government has been rendered impotent by the $74 billion debt crisis. Its proven simply too much for the island to handle. Not only does the central government owe money, the publicly owned corporates and utilities do. As an "unincorporated territory" (that's the politically correct way of saying colony), they are unable to declare bankruptcy the way a state government or state institution can. Congress has little motivation to change this as creditors have lobbied against allowing Puerto Rico to declare bankruptcy. Despite the island's chronic economic sluggishness and declining population, Puerto Rican bonds have seen tremendous sales. This is due to the fact that they are not taxable at the federal, state, or

Mediji su preneli tvrdnje zrenjaninskih privrednika, koji tvrde da im nemačka firma "Drekslmajer" otima radnike svojim visokim platama i dobrim uslovima rada. Kako tvrde "napuštaju nas čitave smene". Naši neoliberalni profesori ekonomije bi vam rekli da će domaći kapitalisti ovaj problem rešiti tako što će u skladu sa "tržišnom logikom", dati bolje plate i uslove rada svojim radnicima. Međutim, kapitalizam u praksi funkcioniše malo drugačije. Tako je direktor nemačke kompanije Mihael Vagner saopštio da je "dobio nekoliko poziva od zrenjaninskih privrednika", odnosno da da su domaći kapitalisti vršili pritisak na njega da smanji plate domaćim radnicima u kompaniji, kako domaći kapitalisti ne bi morali da povećavaju plate u svojim firmama. Nakon toga domaći kapitalisti su se obratili medijima, tvrdeći da "Drekslmajer" svoje plate može da omogući zbog državnih subvencija, koje ne dobijaju domaći kapitalisti. Međutim "Drekslmajer" tvrdi da je subvencije dobio zadnji put pre 6 godina, i

In the pursuit of profit capitalism damages not only human lives, but the soil, air and water. The problem of air, water, soil pollution in the world has always been important. Recent events in Russia only made this clearer. Moscow – the famous capital of Russia – has a very large population of over 10 million people. And, of course, the population of the city produces a lot of trash. It could be recycled or at least buried without harm to nature or people. But Russian businessmen don't care about «second-rate people» - us, workers. Profit, profit and more profit – this is what they want. «Why do you worry about these people? Well, thirty million can die out. They did not fit into the market. » - said «famous» Russian capitalist Anatoly Chubais in 90's. Modern businessmen seem to follow this «advice». Instead of recycling rubbish, they just transport it to quickly growing rubbish dumps in the Moscow region. Therefore, people take to the streets to prevent an environmental disaster in

It was reported by local newspaper The Willamette Week that undocumented immigrants detained in Oregon by Immigration and Customs Enforcement are being held in a county-run jail in the state instead of the proper detention centers in Washington. The jail consists of small windowless cells surrounded by barbed wire in an industrial district in the town. The Northern Oregon Regional Correctional Facility (NORCOR) was not intended to be a detention center for deportees, but it has become just that, and is only expected to grow in significance as ICE's contribution to the budget is expected to double over the next fiscal year, from $579,000 to $1 million. What's more, immigrant activists protesting Trump's crackdown on the immigrant community have been sent to the jail as punishment before being deported. "We suspect at least one was transferred down because of his role as an organizer in the strike," ACLU Oregon representative Matt dos Santos stated. Donald Trump, campaigning on code

Should employers be allowed to force employees into behind doors, one-on-one arbitration, or should workers be able to bring their claims into court in class or collective actions? This was the question being asked in one of the most important workers rights cases of the term. There were three cases brought before the Supreme Court by employees of the corporations Ernst & Young LLP, Epic Systems Corporation, and Murphy Oil USA, Inc. Workers claim that they were being illegally forced to challenge violations of federal labor law behind closed doors, in private one-on-one meetings, due to the mandatory individual arbitration procedures under the 1925 Federal Arbitration Act. They contend that a later bill, the 1935 National Labor Relations Act, makes these clauses and provisions illegal, as this bill was passed to protect the right of workers to join together in a class or collective action suit. On May 21, the US Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of employers. In a decision that will

A study conducted by the Center for Disease Control has confirmed what most workers already know, namely that increased stress leads to poor mental and physical health. It found that problems at work are even more likely to cause health-related complaints than financial or familial problems. Extended shifts, increased workloads, and poor and abusive management all contribute towards the degree of stress endured by the working class. These tactics allow for the increased exploitation of the working class and the increased profits for the capitalist class. While longer hours and increased intensity of labor are beneficial to the capitalist, they are harmful and dangerous for workers. When the body experiences stress for extended periods of time it loses the ability to repair and defend against illness over time. As a result, workers have to spend more time and money recuperating from workplace-related injury and sickness. The absurdity of the capitalist system becomes readily apparent

Согласно очередному исследованию «Левада-центра», подавляющее большинство россиян (79%) считают, что качественное образование они смогут получить только в столице или других мегаполисах страны. Только 13% граждан готовы остаться и продолжать работать в родном городе. Экономическая обстановка в стране не дает молодым специалистам уверенности в завтрашнем дне, 47% респондентов считают, что достойное будущее и хорошую работу им обеспечит только близость к мегаполису. Ситуацию пояснила социолог «Левада-центра» Татьяна Лысова: «Представление о низком качестве образования в небольших городах и селах закреплено в сознании россиян. Они считают, что у молодежи больше перспектив в мегаполисах. В большей степени с этим согласны жители сел. Реже такой ответ давали москвичи, потому что они понимают, что в Москве трудно закрепиться только за счет обучения в вузе». Социальная политика буржуазной власти России последних 27 лет ее контрреволюционного настоящего направлена на оптимизацию и сокращение

Сегодня стало известно, что 22 мая жительница Апатитов, страдавшая от ракового заболевания, Дарья Старикова, умерла. В 2017 на "прямой линии" Даша, получив шанс задать вопрос президенту Владимиру Путину, набралась мужества и сообщила о своей болезни на всю страну. Во время прямого эфира Дарья со слезами на глазах просила о помощи региону в обеспечении нормального медицинского обслуживания. В её родном городе закрыли больницу, людям приходится ездить получать помощь в другие города, которые находятся далеко от места жительства. Скорая просто не успевает доехать до больных. Она рассказала, что из-за отсутствия качественных медицинских услуг, её болезнь вовремя не удалось диагностировать, врачи поставили не тот диагноз, и теперь её практически нельзя спасти. Девушке на тот момент было 24 года, у неё был маленький ребёнок. "Прошу не для себя, для жителей, помогите, нам необходимо, чтобы в нашем городе все возобновили", - обратилась Дарья. Президент, конечно же, посочувствовал девушке,

A study was recently released by the United Way's ALICE project which shows 43% of American households cannot afford housing, food, child care, health care, and transportation costs. ALICE is an acronym for Asset-Limited Income Constrained but Employed and is supposed to refer to people who are working but are still unable to financially afford life's necessities. In reality, the workers are "asset limited" and "income constrained" because they are only able to survive by working and receiving a wage or salary. By definition the working class is "asset limited", because the majority of assets are owned by the capitalist and landlord class, which represents an oligarchy. The stocks, bonds, mutual funds, private corporations and real estate are overwhelmingly owned by the parasitical caste of oligarchs, while the working class struggles to obtain the bare necessities of life. It is entirely possible for the American working class to have adequate health care, stable employment, and to