Columnists

Over the past year, left and center-left parties have taken control of two European countries and hold the balance of power in a third. Elections in Greece, Portugal and Spain saw rightwing parties take a beating and tens of millions of voters reject the economic austerity policies of the European Union (EU).

But what can these left parties accomplish? Can they really roll back regressive taxes and restore funding for education, health and social services? Can they bypass austerity programs to jump start economies weighted down by staggering jobless numbers? Or are they trapped in a game with loaded dice and marked cards?

And, for that matter, who is the left? Socialist and social democratic parties in France and Germany have not lifted a finger to support left led anti-austerity campaigns in Greece, Spain, Ireland, or Portugal, and many of them helped institute—or went along with—neoliberal policies they now say they oppose. Established socialist parties all over Europe tend to campaign from the left, but govern from the center.

Last year’s electoral earthquakes were triggered not by the traditional socialist parties—those parties did poorly in Greece, Spain and Portugal—but by activist left parties, like Syriza in Greece, Podemos in Spain, and the Left Bloc in Portugal.

With the exception of Ireland’s Sinn Fein, all of these parties were either birthed by, or became prominent during, the financial meltdown of 2008 that plunged Europe into economic crisis. Podemos came directly out of the massive plaza demonstrations by the “Indignados” [the “Indignant Ones”] in Spain’s major cities in 2011. -more-

After Bernie Sanders’ convincing win in the New Hampshire primary, many establishment Democrats are renewing the argument that Bernie cannot win in November because he is too liberal. It doesn’t hold up. -more-

As Bernie Sanders’ chances of winning the Democratic presidential nomination have increased, so have the attacks. Hillary Clinton advocates argue he has no chance of delivering the fundamental change he touts. Nonetheless, Bernie can do it. -more-

I have viewed the YouTube video of the killing of 26-year old Mario Woods on December 2, 2015, in San Francisco’s Bayview neighborhood by five San Francisco police officers. The autopsy report shows that Woods suffered at least 20 bullet wounds, many of them in the back. -more-

The Berkeley Psychic Institute (unless they have changed since the last time I was there, a number of years ago) teaches students to believe that many of the emotions and other sensations in your body and mind can be attributed to outside influences. This creates a big problem for people who tend to have psychosis. When someone with psychotic tendencies believes that what happens inside has external causes, and when this becomes a basic assumption, it can create an avalanche of delusional thoughts that, in one's mind, will be accepted and believed instantly. -more-