History
The Vietnam War and the decline of American imperialism
In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam, Robert S. McNamara (1995, Times Books)
By Patrick Martin, July 8, 2009
The following review of Robert McNamara's 1995 memoir originally appeared in the June 19, 1995, edition of the International Workers Bulletin, the forerunner of the World Socialist Web Site.
Historian says US backed “efficacious terror” in 1965 Indonesian massacre
By John Braddock, July 7, 2009
The US and British governments, supported by Australia, were complicit in the murder of more than half a million alleged communist sympathisers in the wake of the 1965 Indonesian coup.
Citizen of the world: a brief survey of the life and times of Thomas Paine (1737-1809)
By Ann Talbot, June 8, 2009
June 8 marks the 200th anniversary of the death of 18th century revolutionary Thomas Paine.
Origins and consequences of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre
Part 3
By John Chan, June 6, 2009
This article is the conclusion of a three-part series examining the origins, consequences and political lessons of the Tiananmen Square massacre twenty years ago.
Origins and consequences of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre
Part 2
By John Chan, June 5, 2009
This article is the second of a three-part series examining the origins, consequences and political lessons of the Tiananmen Square massacre twenty years ago. Part 1 was posted on June 4.
Origins and consequences of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre
Part 1
By John Chan, June 4, 2009
This article is the first of a three-part series examining the origins, consequences and political lessons of the Tiananmen Square massacre twenty years ago.
New from Mehring Books
Stalin’s Terror of 1937-1938: Political Genocide in the USSR
Advance orders now being taken
June 1, 2009
Mehring Books is now taking advance orders for the first English translation of Stalin’s Terror of 1937- 1938: Political Genocide in the USSR, by the late Russian Marxist historian Vadim Rogovin. Th...
The Grundgesetz: 60 years of Germany’s post-war constitution
By Justus Leicht, May 28, 2009
Sixty years ago, May 23, 1949, saw the enactment of the Grundgesetz (literally, basic law, or constitution).
75th anniversary of the Toledo Auto-Lite strike
Historic 1934 struggle
By Charles Bogle, May 27, 2009
In 1934 workers in Toledo, Ohio, carried to victory one of the most important strikes in US history. Led by socialists, the Auto-Lite strike won broad support from the unemployed.
Book review: Death in the Haymarket
The eight-hour-day movement and the birth of American labor
By James Brewer, May 19, 2009
Death in the Haymarket by James Green is an important contribution to the early history of the American labor movement.
Lessons of the 1965 Indonesian Coup
Chapter Four: Pabloite accomplices of counter-revolution
By Terri Cavanagh, May 16, 2009
In the months following the bloody CIA-organised military coup of October 1-2, 1965, every known member and supporter of the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) and all working class parties, and hundred...
Lessons of the 1965 Indonesian Coup
Chapter Three: 1965—Stalinism’s bloody legacy
By Terri Cavanagh, May 16, 2009
The Indonesian military coup of October 1-2, 1965 was the outcome of a carefully-orchestrated and long-planned operation by the CIA and the US-trained and backed commanders of the Indonesian armed for...
