This week saw the grotescque spectacle of Zelensky doing a Star Wars cosplaying session in the Brtish parliament and being given an IOU for fighter jets in return. We look at that before turning to the perennial question of brext and a recent immigration related riot that took place in Britain and the usage of migration by imperialism.
Be sure to read out latest article on the 2023-02-11 21:53:41 +0000 UTC View Post
As the Russian forces continue to encircle Artymovsk/Bakhmut and the Zelensky regime starts dragooning the blind and disabled into the Ukrainian army we look at what the Nato gang might be trying to achieve.
We then turn to the most recent revelations from former Israeli PM Naftali Bennett regarding who made sure that the peace talks in March of last year did not succeed.
Be sure to check out the latest on the 2023-02-05 20:19:29 +0000 UTC View Post
This is an early release for patrons of an interview with Joti Brar of the Vice Chair Communist Party of Great Britain - Marxist Leninist. In this interview we speak about the World Anti Imperialist Platform and the US imperialists plans for war with China, the war against Russia and the failure of anti war movements in the west. This will go out for public release on Friday.
Be sure to check out the 2023-01-31 15:29:10 +0000 UTC View Post
In this patrons episode I look at the latest controversies regarding police violence in the USA. As part of this I examine why policing emerges as a unique function under capitalism, why the bourgeoisie require the "bodies of armed men", as Lenin called them and why "defunding" or abolishing the police under capitalism is utterly utopian. The final part of the episode looks at how policing would be replaced by new methods under the dictatorship of the proletariat.
Episode ...
I'll be doing a Q&A at the end of February so if you have specific questions post them below. I'll also be going through all the comments left on the programmes since the last one of these and answering any points from there as well.
2023-01-30 11:02:26 +0000 UTC View Post
In a break to our regularly schedule programmes on the Ukraine war I take a look at why the Labour Party does not deserve one single vote at the next British elections. I also argue why Starmer is absolutely within the tradition of labour party leaders and why parliamentarism is absolutley fatal to Communist Parties.
Be sure to visit the Marx-Engels Institute website
Outro Music is "The Molly Maguires"...
2023-01-28 21:32:08 +0000 UTC View Post
As the Russian armed forces cointinue their advances across Donetsk and Zaporozhye we ask if the promises of new tanks from Germany, Britain and the US will actually make all that much difference in the war. We also examine a speech given by prominent expenses fiddler David Lammy, the next British foreign minister no less, and argue that he's fully in line with the imperialist traditions of the Labour Party.
Be sure to check out the latest artic...
2023-01-26 12:45:37 +0000 UTC View Post
In this episode of the bulletin we look at the latest from the frontlines in Ukraine. This includes the fall of Soledar and the encirclement of Artymovsk, the role of the Wagner group and the new Russian offensive in the Zaporozyhe region. From there we look at the latest Ukrainian conscription drive and the likelihood of a Ukrainian offensive. We also consider the resignation of Zelenskys chief spin doctor Arestovich and what his re...
2023-01-22 21:17:28 +0000 UTC View Post
I start off this episode by talking about the launch of the Marx Engels Institute which is now the home of this podcast. As I say on the episode there will be an essay accompanying this epiosde published on the site in the next few days.
For the bulk of the episode I examine how did the concept of anti facsism change from being a socialist force driven by the working class to being a laundry service...
The question what is and what isn't a revolution is one that recurs every year when it comes to examining the bourgeois revolutions of the 17th and 18th centuries. This is particularly the case when it comes to considering the American Revolution of 1765 to 1791 and the founding of the United States. Authors such as Gerald Horne, Howard Zinn and Domenico Losurdo have all made claims as to the wholly reactionary nature of the USA to the point where they seek to downplay the revolut...
2023-01-17 14:24:36 +0000 UTC View Post
In this episode I speak with Dr Bob Gill. He is a medical doctor working within the British National Health Service and long time campaigner against health service privatisation. In the hour he talks about media decepitons over health policy, the treacherous role of the health union leaders and the identical nature of the NHS policies promoted by both labour and conservative parties. Be sure to follow Dr Gill on twitter @drbobgill
2023-01-17 14:11:48 +0000 UTC View Post
Will the classified documents stashed in his corvette's glove box spell the end for Joe Biden? Have the Russians sacked their commander? Is British capitalism actually capable of waging a real war? All these questions and more will be answered in tonights Red Star Radio bulletin!
Episode Outro is The Pogues version of 'And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda' lyrics by Eric Bogle
Episode Artwork is 'The First Red Army Soldiers in 1918' by the Sovi...
2023-01-13 00:56:32 +0000 UTC View Post
In this episode I look at two articles that take a critical view of the typical modern leftist view on abortion. These are:
'The Marxist Case Against Abortion' by Jonathan Culbreath
'The Feminist Case Against Abortion' by Mary Harrington
Thansk to Ash for recommending bo...
2023-01-11 14:16:20 +0000 UTC View Post
What are the reasons behind the recent riot of Bolsonaro supporters in Brazil? What does this tell us about the nature of capitalist democracy in Brazil? Are there any comparisons to be made to the January 6th events in the USA? Or is such a comparison facile nonsense peddled by instagram influencers?
Outro music is the anthem of the landless workers movement of Brazil
2023-01-09 22:25:23 +0000 UTC View Post
In this special episode I look at the two speeches given by the British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labour Party leader Keir Starmer. By reading through we can tell much about British capitalism and how the priorities of the ruling class are expressed by the politicians within the bourgeois state.
Episode Outro is 'High Germany' by Martin Carthy
2023-01-08 22:48:34 +0000 UTC View Post
In this episode I look at the real meaning of Zelenskys Christmas in Washington, the sheer brute cynicism of the likes of Lindsay Graham and the return of Oliver North. I then turn to domestic British politics and Rishi Sunaks proposed attacks on the right to strike. I conclude by looking at the long term rates of poverty in Britain and why they never actually reduce over the last 30 years.
Outro Music is 'Washington Bullets' by The Clash from the album 'Sandinista' (1980) 2023-01-07 00:22:18 +0000 UTC View Post
As 2023 rolls in I spend the bulk of this new years show looking at the dismal fate of the anti war movement in the Anglo-sphere nations. I then do something far more traditional and look at some potential developments going into 2023.
Happy New Year everyone!
Outro music is REM 'It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
Episode artwork is 'In The Kremlin 1945' by the Soviet Armenian Artist Daniel Nalbandian
2023-01-02 14:24:57 +0000 UTC View Post
For the Christmas special this year I look back at the American invasion of Iraq and the anti war movement. Why was the American invasion a much more shaky prospect than it seemed? How close did the anti war movement come to stopping British involvement? What were the flaws in the movement that stopped it having a greater impact? All of this and more will be under discussion in this special episode of Red Star Radio.
Outro music is The Red Army Choir performing 'Jingle Bells...
2022-12-24 15:22:33 +0000 UTC View Post
I star the bulletin tonight by looking at the latest from the war in Ukraine, including Putin visiting Minsk and the possible implcations of it.
The bulk of the episode thought is taken up with an examination of the strikes going on in Britain and why the labour party offers no way out for the working class.
Outro is 'The Red Flag'
2022-12-20 22:49:33 +0000 UTC View Post
In this special episode I look at the life of the African revolutionary Thomas Sankara. This programme takes in everything from the formation of the old Upper Volta state by French imperialism to Sankaras radicalisation, rise to power and ultimately his downfall. It is a heroic but flawed example of a sincere man giving his life for his nation but can teach us much the revolution he led and the wider implications of the radical officer movements of the post war world.
With the German parliament recently passing a resolution proclaiming that the Soviet leadership in the ealry 1930's engaged in a deliberate policy of starvation in Ukraine it was clearly time to look at the mythology this resolution is based on. Comrade Slava from the Chicago Workers School joins me for this episode where we examine why the 'holodomr' is a myth created by a combination of the Nazi regime, Ukrainian fascists, the Hearst press and...
2022-12-16 17:01:57 +0000 UTC View Post
In this episode of the bulletin I look at the role of the press in maintaining the rule of the capitalist class. This is after a brief overview of the latest from the frontlines in Ukraine and the always revolting role being played by a certain Boris Johnson.
Outro music is 'The Revolution Will Not Be Televised' by Gil Scott Heron
Intro is Malcolm X speaking on the power of the press
Episode image is from 'Citizen Kane' by Orson Welles
... 2022-12-14 20:23:50 +0000 UTC View Post
As the Kiev regime prepares another doomed offensive in Zaporozhye I ask what, what the hell are they doing? The Saudis realign but remain the same collection of ultra reactionaries they always have been. The Serbian ruling class wait and watch whilst trying to avoid a shooting war with NATO over Kosovo but the wars fuelled by US imperialism in the former Yugoslavia cannot remain frozen for too much longer as the American empire visibly falls ap...
2022-12-12 23:26:06 +0000 UTC View Post
In this episode of the bulletin I consider the latest discussion around the potential end point for the Russia-NATO war in Ukraine that have emerged recently. I then look at the farcical "coup" that was reported to have been foiled in Germany this week, how there's always a pro-fascist section of the bourgeoisie and how the secret services of captialist states always play a role in the running of reactionary organisations. I conclude by looking ...
2022-12-10 18:03:14 +0000 UTC View Post
In this latest episode of our ongoing series 'A Marxist History of World War 2' I examine the Nazi-Soviet non-aggression pact of 1939. The bourgeois historians routinely portray this as the "twin evils" of the 20th century coming together to divide Europe up between them. The reality is a tale that is more about repeated Soviet attempts to secure an alliance against the Nazis only to run into the reality of the British imperialists wanting to see a Nazi attack on the USSR. <...
2022-12-08 17:05:41 +0000 UTC View Post
In this episode of the bulletin I look at the likely effects of the G7 oil "price cap" and how it isn't likely to lead to the results it's originators desire. I also look at the drone attack on airfields inside Russia and how this is being played out as a propaganda operation in the British bourgeois press.
In the final part of the programme I look at how the government and security services have been using the clowns from Extinction Rebelliona ...
2022-12-05 22:00:25 +0000 UTC View Post
In this weeks article review I examine a recent offering from New Left Review by the Swedish "marxian" sociologist Goran Therborn. It is typical of the recent output of NLR and thus a useful piece to work through in terms of exploring the perspectives that still dominate Anglo-American leftism.
Be sure to read the original article beacause it really ...
2022-12-04 23:00:43 +0000 UTC View Post
In this episode I examine the latest from the Russia-NATO war and other related stories. As the Russian armed forces reach almost full strength the NATO "allies" plot to dismember Ukraine and Moldova. Meanwhile both Angela Merkel and Oscar Lafontaine have given interviews recently which both demonstrate the stagnation and decay of German capitalism.
Outro Music is 'A Man Out Of Time' by Elvis Costello & The Attractions
Episode Artwork is 'The St...
This week's article review will be focussed on this recent piece by Goran Therborn on the various "new" Lefts of recent decades.
2022-12-01 13:45:18 +0000 UTC View Post
In this episode I look at the latest news from the ongoing battles around Artemovsk/Balhmut and the rumours of it's imminent fall to the Russian forces. I then look at the latest comments from a western official who's been revealed to be a fool, this time it's the Pope revealing himself to be in the Josep Borrel school of thought. I then turn to look at the various displays of idiocy over the protests in China and how the schemes of imperialism ...
2022-11-30 00:25:36 +0000 UTC View Post