Author Archives: stephenkmacksd

_______________________________________________________________________________ It’s hard to be patient with Timothy Garton-Ash. Old Socialist makes his way through his ‘The future of liberalism’ stephenkmacksd.com/ Dec 17, 2020 The first two paragraphs on Mr. Garton-Ash’s essay are … Writers have interpreted the failings of … Continue reading →

Almost Marx … The Reader isn’t quite prepared, for Adam Tooze, in his Financial Times streamlined iteration. Those New Statesman essays, have been miniaturized for those busy Capitalist Technos? Those majestic paragraphs are … Call it a collection of ideas, … Continue reading →

Philosophical Apprentice comments. Mr. Stephens is like his fellow Neo-Cons: David Frum, Bill Kristol and David Brooks. They have an appetite for War, yet have no actual experience, of what being a soldier is like, not to speak of a … Continue reading →

Old Socialist comments. The title of this polemic should be: ‘The Economist Shames Goldman Sachs , yet : Leaders | Goldman sags Headline: The humbling of Goldman Sachs Sub-headline: The struggle to reinvent a firm trapped by its own mythology https://www.economist.com/leaders/2023/01/26/the-humbling-of-goldman-sachs Compare this … Continue reading →

Almost Marx surveys this broad historical landscape, and its cast of characters. It is unusual for this news magazine to grant credit to one of its ‘writers’. The Reader might begin her exploration of the career of the Economist’s writer Arkady Ostrovsky: … Continue reading →

Philosophical Apprentice comments. In his history of ‘Hegel’s Century’ Prof. Jon Stewart explores the role of Heine: Chapter 3 – Heine, Alienation, and Political Revolution: from Part II – The First Generation. A summery provided by Cambridge: Summary Chapter 3 is dedicated to Hegel’s student, … Continue reading →

Political Observer offer an unapologetic reductivist strategy, to ‘parse’ this essay? I will quote the the first sentences of each paragraph, as examples of the ‘Shavit Methodology’ The Reader can read these paragraphs in full: The Prologue: Benjamin Netanyahu is … Continue reading →

Old Socialist ＆ Almost Marx comment. Read first these paragraphs of Ari Shavit essay/book review ＠TLS : these paragraphs, are immediately bathed in hyperbole : Now this singular actor in a Shakespearean tragedy of his own making … This essay/book review is … Continue reading →

Political Cynic contemplates Oxbridger posturing. Note the headline, sub-headline and the first paragraph of this self-congratulatory polemic, masquerading as political commentary, its tone, almost catty！ Headline: The great mystery of American politics Sub-headline: Why is the country divided so evenly? … Continue reading →

Political Observer & Almost Marx This is a Times publication, steeped in a tradition of Anti-Left hysteria, so the notion of a radical programme is unsurprising, given the smears printed in the Times Newspaper, against Jeremy Corbyn, the dependable Times … Continue reading →