By Vicky Cookies, Marxist author from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. For the past year, Vicky has worked with pacifists, students, Muslims, Quakers, and Marxist-Leninists to raise awareness and pressure public figures about the genocide in Gaza. Vicky’s last completed school year was 8th grade.
The recent excitement over Kamala Harris, however natural, illustrates just how desperate the desire is for something to believe in in a world and political climate that is packed to the brim with crises, multiple crises, and generally bad news.
We have good news: Naked Capitalism is one of the few good ones whose obvious value has stood up to our very reasonable and considerable cynicism as critics, and the effort to fund the site is a cause we’re happy to be a part of. The atmosphere isn’t always fun, but the content, the policies, the meat are all there. Please visit our donation page and support this worthy effort..
A few months ago, Naked Capitalism survived a clumsy, automated monetization attempt by the censorious Google Adsense algorithm. Fortunately, the same dogged dedication to fact-checking and scrutiny that makes the site’s content so valuable helped it fight off the attack. This is worth celebrating.
But it’s dangerous to think that NC is invincible. The dedicated authors and moderators of this site rely on you and me to continue our vigilant work. Tip Jar, Over there on the rightthe phone rings.
A World Without Naked Capitalism
To highlight the disorienting contrast between naked capitalism and this field, a quick survey of the media landscape is certainly dystopian. The major media are characterized by centralization, partisanship, disloyalty to facts, and the semi-hierarchical nature of PMCs. Entertainment, diversion, and advertising revenue generation are their primary functions outside of election years. In sad election years, rallying hatred and in-group solidarity give the media purpose.
Before I discovered naked capitalism like Columbus, my main sources of news were these and a few left-wing sites inherited from my ex-Communist father. Those were dark and bleak days. The reader is invited to reminisce about those dark and bleak times. Where in the desert were we wandering? Sometimes I look back at the Independent, Nostalgia de la BowIt’s a bit like using papyrus scrolls or other ancient technologies: we’re quick to appreciate time-saving advancements, and it’s this attitude that should move us to give generously. The tip jar is over there again..
What we have
Together, our regular reporters and commentators build a journalistic and intellectual atmosphere every day that is both a raw and serious report on the institutional entropy that characterizes our times, and a contribution to the historically accumulated evidence of Homo sapiens as a species that produces reality TV, mines the earth, wages perpetual war, and yet sincerely seeks to understand the world together. NC features the considered opinions of people whose opinions should be considered.
The author builds on the meticulous analysis of Eve Smith, Conor Gallagher and Lambert Strether, enriched by the wild recollections and lowercase genius of hippie Amfortas, Colonel Smithers’ comments on the British ruling class, and Ukuchimi’s lyricism and wit. Cast members including Polar Socialist, Terry Flynn, DJG, Reality Czar (place of residence undisclosed), the esteemed Lev Kebb, Aurélien, IMDoc, Rob Urie, Michael Hudson and others provide a breathtaking breadth and almost panoramic depth of context and detail.
A few dollars doesn’t mean a lot to a community like this, does it? Let’s think again about tip jars and what their names mean.Remember the saying, if you can’t afford to tip, you can’t afford to eat out.
We should be grateful to Lambert for exploring the dark abysses of COVID-19 drainage data and mainstream election coverage and for the pro-health perspective that has emerged over time. We should also open our hearts and wallets to Eve for posting an engaging, thought-provoking and hopeful article as an exercise in close reading and critical thinking.
I’m sorry I was so emotional.
Not just good commentary – fearless commentary
NC has been an unambiguous, timely and clear voice on the Israeli genocide of Palestinians. The writers have been brave in speaking about the possible future of this ironically God-forsaken land. I personally am very grateful for this. Over the past 10 months (and still going), I have spent time with my Palestinian friends on the streets, in city halls and on university lawns. Anyone can check the archives from last October to find the clear voice of the moderators on this subject. Although it is easier than living in Gaza, it is not easy to share these views. Many have lost their jobs, been beaten and arrested. Having had many confrontations with the police since then, I respect this unashamed writing.
From the perspective of those of us who have been involved in organizing events and raising awareness to express solidarity with the Palestinians, Naked Capitalism is pro-Palestine in the same sense that Che Guevara said “Reality is Marxism.” Its commitment to analysis, which requires intellectual honesty and a fortified and resilient constitution, provides raw information and interpretations that help build a well-founded and dispassionate plan. Bad analysis leads to bad strategy. That’s why I’ve relied so heavily on Naked Capitalism.
Although it is certainly a parochial experience, Naked Capitalism is perhaps the leading network of writers and intellectuals whose ideas indirectly help inform such movements. Most participants, i.e., occasional rally-goers, have neither the time nor the inclination to seek out and use the tools provided by Eve, Lambert, Connor, and the critics. Many get their news and opinions from TikTok. Those of us in such a position can have a significant impact by presenting the facts and perspectives offered here. It seems worthwhile to investigate the ultimate sources of information and perspectives that follow the winding path that becomes the “content” that constitutes the media environment of many organizers and protesters, and it will be a topic to explore in one of the writing projects I am working on. Having experienced both roles, I can say that in my case, Naked Capitalism and the network it is a part of (check out the many links in the posts in the blog roll and comment section) are the best sources. I suspect I am not the only one in this situation, in the US and elsewhere.
Of course, this is not to say that without Naked Capitalism the movement would not have existed, simply that Naked Capitalism is the best example that a community of writers could offer to an ordinary people’s movement.
So I’m giving some money to people here. Please join us in our tip jar.
I look forward to continuing to learn with you all in the future.
