we've lost the ability to do basic things – cooking, planning gatherings with our community – because our lives have been commodified. capitalism is bleeding us dry.

if CEOs face personal criminal liability for crimes their companies commit, their risk calculus could change completely. that's what makes this Lafarge verdict different – and why it matters far beyond France:

the CEO of a $50B French corporation just went to prison for his company’s crimes. this landmark ruling is a step toward a better future – one where bad actors pursuing “profit at all costs” are held accountable:

for decades, the punishment for corporate crimes has almost always been a fine. most companies have treated these fines as the "cost of doing business" – a cost they’re happy to pay in order to keep profits flowing. a landmark ruling in Paris may have just changed that calculus:

blue-collar wages have been stagnant for 40 years while the ultra-rich have seen their fortunes explode. the so-called "rising tide" of economic growth hasn’t lifted all boats — it’s created a billionaire class and an underclass. Olivier De Schutter on the Better Future Pod:

defenders of capitalism love to say that it has freed billions of people from poverty. UN Special Rapporteur Olivier De Schutter explains the absurdity of this argument and how the conditions of capitalism require poverty and inequality to exist:

oil companies have more than doubled their profits during the war in Iran, while we pay the price. we can only leave this fossil-fueled economic chaos behind for good by accelerating the adoption of cheap and abundant solar energy. the sun doesn’t need to get shipped through the Strait of Hormuz.

an economy that builds mansions and supercars, but not enough affordable housing, is a deeply efficient one. we create poverty, then spend billions trying to fix it – instead, we should prevent poverty from existing in the first place. Olivier De Schutter on the Better Future Pod:

The global economy must stop “pandering to the frivolous desires of the ultra-rich,” and instead be redesigned to serve everyday people. Those are the words of UN Special Rapporteur Olivier De Schutter, my latest guest on the Better Future pod. Watch the full episode:

every local government is told to chase economic growth – even when that growth gets extracted straight out of the community by foreign corporations and shareholders. Scotland just passed a law that keeps wealth in communities – and it's the first Western country to do it:

fascism works by painting terrifying visions of the future, and then positioning strongmen as the only ones who can protect you. if progressive movements are also leading with fear, where are people supposed to turn? this is why we need to paint a beautiful vision of a BETTER future:

centrist political parties keep trying to stop the far right by moving to the right. it doesn't work. the UK Green Party is showing us what actually does work: a bold, progressive alternative👇

if right now it seems like the end of the world is easier to imagine than the end of capitalism… maybe it’s time to fill our imaginations with stories of the post-capitalist future we could build together.

in 2020 i went on a trip to Yellowstone that changed everything for me. this June i'm going back for five days and bringing some of you with me. trip details in this video - DM me if you’re interested in joining!

20–25% of global oil flows through one narrow strait. That’s why everyone is watching the Strait of Hormuz right now. But the deeper story is about the petrodollar system that maintains US economic dominance, and what Iran is doing to challenge it: open.substack.com/pub/michaelm...

we should tax the rich – because rich people’s money gives them too much command over labor. that’s why so many of us work bullsh*t jobs that contribute to inequality and climate change. only by taxing the rich can we free up resources for the things we actually want.

“rich people create jobs, we should be grateful to them” well actually….

the UK Green Party is stopping the rise of the far right. how? instead of moving to the center, they're putting forward a bold progressive vision that gives the British people a true alternative to the far-right Reform Party. the results speak for themselves:

the stock market is not the economy. it was never designed to measure your economic wellbeing. it measures how efficiently the wealthy are extracting value from the working class. @butchware.bsky.social on the Better Future Pod:

We're witnessing the fall of US empire. What do we want to build on the ashes? @butchware.bsky.social joins me to talk about how the two-party system has failed working people, and what an economy built on care (instead of extraction) would look like:

the fascism we're seeing today isn't a permanent new reality – it's the dying breath of an empire desperately clinging to resources. the question is what we will build on the ashes. @butchware.bsky.social on the Better Future Pod:

r > g is one of the most important forces shaping our economy. it means returns on capital (r) outpace economic growth (g). when that's true, wealth concentrates upward – toward the owners of capital. and this is how our economy has functioned for the last several decades:

planting on land that isn't "yours" is an act of resistance against capitalism. guerrilla gardening (with native plants) reclaims public spaces and rebuilds biodiversity:

a top sci-fi writer imagined how climate change unfolds over the next 30 years. his conclusions: millions die, eco-revenge rises, and capitalism ends

can capitalism solve climate change? @jasonhickel.bsky.social on the Better Future Pod:

The inevitable collapse of capitalism is not a political "take," it's a matter of physics. Degrowth and post-growth economics are the most rational response to a system that's consuming itself:

What I say. Centrism (liberalism). Very dangerous ideology.

Liberal is not a vibes-based designation, or an inherent insult. It's important to know what these distinctions mean because being a Liberal literally means believing individual rights should not disrupt corporate growth. I think most people reject that idea & are sick of how it affects their lives.

Carbon consumption is a zero-sum game, and super wealthy people (and countries) are consuming WAY more than their fair share of our remaining carbon budget. Since making this video 4 years ago, we've blown through over half of our remaining carbon budget (from ~300 gigatons to ~130 gigatons):

The stock market hits record highs and billionaires celebrate. Meanwhile rent is unaffordable, homelessness is rising, and climate change is worsening. We need a new economics grounded in human and planetary needs - not endless growth.

This didn’t make the US news cycle, but it should have. A parliamentary seat held by the UK’s center-left Labour Party for 100 years just flipped… not to the right, but to a bold and visionary campaign run by the UK Green Party. Progressives worldwide should be taking notes:

The tech and AI bros have appointed themselves leaders of society. Meanwhile they're siphoning wealth from the economy while we pay more for everything. They should go to Mars and stay there.

The tech and AI bros have appointed themselves leaders of society. Meanwhile they're siphoning wealth from the economy while we pay more for everything. They should go to Mars and stay there.

time and time again, liberalism gives way to fascism. why does this happen? @jasonhickel.bsky.social explains:

The people controlling US military policy don't just support the war with Iran - they believe it will lead to Armageddon and the second coming of Jesus. @gregjstoker.bsky.social on Christian Zionism:

someone please put this on a hat

instead of replacing human labor to create universal income, AI is being used to target and bomb children. new technology is never neutral. it will always reflect the system it serves. AI cannot create abundance until we shift from disaster capitalism to an economy of care.

AI targeting software - the same kind used by the IDF in Gaza - is being used with little human oversight to generate US bombing targets... including a girls' school. This is what automated warfare with no accountability looks like.

Every imperial war - including this war in Iran - is a war on the working class. @gregjstoker.bsky.social on why our leaders would rather bomb foreign countries than solve homelessness in the USA

In this clip from the Better Future Podcast, former U.S. special operations soldier @gregjstoker.bsky.social explains how narratives about “saving women” and “spreading democracy” are often used to build public support for military intervention — including in Iran.

America’s wars don’t just happen. They’re built by institutions, reinforced by ideologies, and paid for with working class lives. @gregjstoker.bsky.social joins me to unpack the war in Iran, the radical ideologies that sustain U.S. foreign policy, and more: www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDty...

In 1953, the US overthrew Iran's elected leader, Mohammad Mosaddegh, so American and British oil companies could keep profiting from Iran's oil. We replaced him with a dictator. Decades later, we're at war.

The Trump admin just repealed the "endangerment finding" - the legal basis for regulating pollution in America. Not for the planet or for us, but for Big Oil donors. History will remember.

Abolishing ICE is necessary. But congressional candidate @saikatforcongress.bsky.social argues it's only step one. For such an oppressive organization, there's no "reforming" your way back to humane. You have to start from scratch - and then remember what immigration is actually for:

Dear people who voted MAGA to end foreign interventions & endless wars: You fucked up. Sincerely, The rest of us

This week, US citizens with a conscience are being forced to accept the uncomfortable truth about our country: Our power comes not from our values, but from our ability to murder & destroy.

The CEO of Anthropic said AI could wipe out half of all entry-level white-collar jobs in the next one to five years. And we're seeing this prediction unfold in real time.

The housing crisis is an economic design problem: Our system treats homes as investment vehicles first, and places to live second. @saikatforcongress.bsky.social is proposing a different approach: Treat housing like infrastructure, build more of it, and stop letting private equity buy it.

for every Ellie Aghayeva there are 100s of others who are forcibly detained without due process — who do not have a network of influencers, politicians and administrators who can stand up for them. these violent, illegal abductions by federal spies must stop now. we cannot allow this continue!!!

My friend Ellie was abducted by the federal government from her room at Columbia University this morning. As a country, WTF are we doing??