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Ben Nelson

@bennelson.bsky.social
272 followers 2 following 21K posts

America is going through a civil war, but only one side is fighting it. The other side is getting killed due to pacifism, incompetence, laziness, and cowardice. One side has no problem killing their enemies. The other side has a choice: FIGHT BACK or DIE!

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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Ahmed al-Sharaa is a former al-Qaeda commander responsible for massacring civilians. But according to Donald Trump, that’s just fine. www.currentaffairs.org/news/the-uni...
currentaffairs.org
The United States Is No Longer Pretending it Doesn’t Support Terrorists
Ahmed al-Sharaa is a former al-Qaeda commander responsible for massacring civilians. But according to Donald Trump, that’s just fine.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
The ocean absorbs 90 percent of the excess heat from global warming. It doesn't all stay there. grist.org/climate/heat...
grist.org
The oceans are full of heat, and it's coming ashore
The oceans have absorbed 90 percent of the excess heat from global warming. It doesn't all stay there.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
A little-noticed section in a bipartisan housing bill could accelerate new construction after major disasters. grist.org/politics/tru...
grist.org
Congress set to overhaul disaster recovery, speeding up new home builds
A little-noticed section in a bipartisan housing bill could accelerate new construction after major disasters.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Workers are risking dangerous heat to keep the World Cup running grist.org/extreme-heat...
grist.org
Workers are risking dangerous heat to keep the World Cup running
Extreme heat continues to be a major concern throughout this year’s World Cup, and organizers of the tournament have built hydration breaks into games designed to help players stay safe. And some stad...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
In a revised energy plan, the Tennessee Valley Authority follows Trump administration directives and shies away from solar and wind. grist.org/energy/the-n...
grist.org
The nation's biggest public utility just doubled down on coal, gas, and nuclear
In a revised energy plan, the nation's largest public utility follows Trump administrative directives and shies away from solar and wind.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Building Our Future Together www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
eff.org
Building Our Future Together
In my first weeks as Executive Director of EFF, I’ve been reminded every day how consequential this moment is in determining what kind of future we will have. What each one of us steps up to do—with o...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Automated Moderation Is Here to Stay—Accountability Must Keep Pace www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
eff.org
Automated Moderation Is Here to Stay—Accountability Must Keep Pace
This post is part 2 in a series about automated content moderation. Read the first post here.When whistleblower Frances Haugen leaked a set of documents from Meta in 2020, among the revelations was a ...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Fourth U.S. Third-Country Removal Operation Raises Fresh Human Rights Concerns www.amnestyusa.org/press-releas...
amnestyusa.org
Eswatini: Fourth U.S. Third-Country Removal Operation Raises Fresh Human Rights Concerns
These removals, part and parcel of the Trump administration’s cruel and racist anti-immigrant policies, tear families apart and traumatize both individuals and communities.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
From Europe to the Gulf states, Indian migrant workers are being recruited for the most insecure, low-paid, and dangerous jobs. The story begins at home, where India’s caste system produces a labor force vulnerable to the most extreme exploitation. jacobin.com/2026/07/indi...
jacobin.com
Indian Workers Are on the Front Line of Global Exploitation
From Europe to the Gulf states, Indian migrant workers are being recruited for the most insecure, low-paid, and dangerous jobs. The story begins at home, where India’s caste system produces a labor fo...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
The scam compounds proliferating across Cambodia and Laos represent one of global capitalism’s newest industries: a convergence of financial speculation, digital technology, artificial intelligence, human trafficking, and extreme labor exploitation. jacobin.com/2026/07/sout...
jacobin.com
Scam Compounds Are a Natural Product of Global Capitalism
The scam compounds proliferating across Cambodia and Laos represent one of global capitalism’s newest industries: a convergence of financial speculation, digital technology, artificial intelligence, h...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Bosses have desired ways to cut labor costs since time immemorial. Artificial-intelligence hype provides a powerful new excuse to replace stable employment with gig work. jacobin.com/2026/07/ai-g...
jacobin.com
AI Is Contributing to the Gigification of Work
Bosses have desired ways to cut labor costs since time immemorial. Artificial-intelligence hype provides a powerful new excuse to replace stable employment with gig work.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Since the war on terror, the US Army has been increasingly lax in allowing neo-Nazis and white supremacists to join. It’s allowing them to gain combat experience and lay the basis for a militarized far right. jacobin.com/2026/07/us-m...
jacobin.com
Neo-Nazis Have Never Found It Easier to Join the US Army
Since the war on terror, the US Army has been increasingly lax in allowing neo-Nazis and white supremacists to join. It’s allowing them to gain combat experience and lay the basis for a militarized fa...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Rahm Emanuel’s speech on Israel reflects an understanding that major changes in the optics of US policy toward Israel are needed if the status quo is to be maintained. This is an opportunity that Israel’s critics should not let go to waste. jacobin.com/2026/07/isra...
jacobin.com
We Have the Chance to Reel In Israel Right Now
Rahm Emanuel’s speech on Israel reflects an understanding that major changes in the optics of US policy toward Israel are needed if the status quo is to be maintained. This is an opportunity that Isra...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
The Trump administration claims that Europe is being invaded by migrants. In reality, the real flow of invaders comes from across the Atlantic as the US far right tries to spread its poisonous agenda with boatloads of cash. jacobin.com/2026/07/far-...
jacobin.com
The US Far Right Is Mounting an Invasion of Europe
The Trump administration claims that Europe is being invaded by migrants. In reality, the real flow of invaders comes from across the Atlantic as the US far right tries to spread its poisonous agenda ...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
For nearly two decades, I have been arrested, ignored, and dismissed for protesting nuclear weapons—but as the Doomsday Clock inches toward midnight, giving up is not an option. www.currentaffairs.org/news/how-fea...
currentaffairs.org
How Fear of Nuclear Armageddon Leads Me to Protest
For nearly two decades, I have been arrested, ignored, and dismissed for protesting nuclear weapons—but as the Doomsday Clock inches toward midnight, giving up is not an option.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Understand the risks associated with extreme heat and what to do when you’re facing down a heat wave with this guide based on years of climate study. grist.org/extreme-weat...
grist.org
Why heat is so deadly and how to stay safe
Understand the risks associated with extreme heat and what to do when you’re facing down a heat wave with this guide based on years of Grist reporting.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
How to build a highway in the age of climate change grist.org/transportati...
grist.org
How to build a highway in the age of climate change
A San Francisco Bay Area highway project is raising questions about what it will take to fortify roads against rising sea levels.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
The cell that wasn't there grist.org/science/nitr...
grist.org
The tiny cell that broke a big rule of biology
It took two scientists decades to find a new nitrogen-fixing organelle. It could change the future of sustainable agriculture.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Several countries experienced all-time highs in June as Europeans endured unprecedented heat and dangerously elevated overnight temperatures. grist.org/extreme-weat...
grist.org
Western Europe just set the record for its hottest June ever
Several countries experienced all-time highs in June as Europeans endured unprecedented heat and dangerously elevated overnight temperatures.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
"We Want Texans to Know Their Rights": Q&A with Mayday Health on the Impact of Surveillance on Abortion Care www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
eff.org
"We Want Texans to Know Their Rights": Q&A with Mayday Health on the Impact of Surveillance on Abortion Care
Last May, EFF reported that a sheriff’s office in Texas searched data from more than 83,000 automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras to track down a woman suspected of self-managing an abortion. ...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
The House Passed The KIDS Act—The Senate Should Reject It www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
eff.org
The House Passed The KIDS Act—The Senate Should Reject It
Last week, the House voted on the KIDS Act, a disjointed package of legislation that seeks to control Americans’ web browsing and private messaging. The package combines a revised version of the Kids ...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
European Commission Chooses to Keep EU Users Locked Up Behind Big Tech’s Gates www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
eff.org
European Commission Chooses to Keep EU Users Locked Up Behind Big Tech’s Gates
Users are always seeking more control over their social networking experience to make it better, whether to improve privacy or enhance flexibility. Interoperability between social networking platforms...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Google's New Remote Attestation Scheme is As Bad As Its Old One www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
eff.org
Google's New Remote Attestation Scheme is As Bad As Its Old One
Google owes its existence to the open web, but today, its technological “innovations” have much to do with locking users into a “walled garden.” The latest of these is “reCAPTCHA Mobile Verification,”...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Deaths of Transferred Negombo Prisoners Following Clashes Must Be Urgently Investigated www.amnestyusa.org/press-releas...
amnestyusa.org
Sri Lanka: Deaths of Transferred Negombo Prisoners Following Clashes Must Be Urgently Investigated
The Sri Lankan authorities have a responsibility to ensure the safety and well-being of prisoners transferred from Negombo.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Two Years After the Enforced Disappearance of FNDC Activists, Abductions and Disappearances Continue With Impunity www.amnestyusa.org/press-releas...
amnestyusa.org
Guinea: Two Years After the Enforced Disappearance of FNDC Activists, Abductions and Disappearances Continue With Impunity
We call on the Guinean authorities to conduct prompt, independent and transparent investigations into these cases.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Being disastrously wrong about virtually every aspect of the Iran war has not stopped an army of hawkish pundits from continuing to try to shape US policy on the matter. From Ben Shapiro to Mark Dubowitz, here are eight of the worst offenders. jacobin.com/2026/07/iran...
jacobin.com
The Iran War’s Most Embarrassingly Wrong Pundits
Being disastrously wrong about virtually every aspect of the Iran war has not stopped an army of hawkish pundits from continuing to try to shape US policy on the matter. From Ben Shapiro to Mark Dubow...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
The list of civilians deliberately killed by Israel in Lebanon includes journalists trying to report on the invasion. The Union of Journalists in Lebanon is campaigning for justice while the US works to shield Israel from accountability. jacobin.com/2026/07/leba...
jacobin.com
Israel Is Deliberately Targeting Lebanon’s Journalists
The list of civilians deliberately killed by Israel in Lebanon includes journalists trying to report on the invasion. The Union of Journalists in Lebanon is campaigning for justice while the US works ...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Artificial intelligence has been built by robbing the collective work of humanity. The public built AI — we should own it, not a handful of billionaires. jacobin.com/2026/07/ai-p...
jacobin.com
The Case for Nationalizing Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence has been built by robbing the collective work of humanity. The public built AI — we should own it, not a handful of billionaires.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
A hostile caricature depicts Friedrich Engels as an arch-determinist who presented human beings as the puppets of economic forces. In fact, his historical writings were subtle and sophisticated, showing how human agency can change the course of history. jacobin.com/2026/07/enge...
jacobin.com
Friedrich Engels Showed Us How We Can Make History
A hostile caricature depicts Friedrich Engels as an arch-determinist who presented human beings as the puppets of economic forces. In fact, his historical writings were subtle and sophisticated, showi...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
European and US companies continued to sell pesticides abroad years after they were banned at home. Our reporter traveled to Kenya to learn how farmers are paying the price for these chemical products with their health — and how they’re fighting back. jacobin.com/2026/07/keny...
jacobin.com
Multinationals Sold Kenyan Farmers a Lethal Harvest
European and US companies continued to sell pesticides abroad years after they were banned at home. Our reporter traveled to Kenya to learn how farmers are paying the price for these chemical products...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
The idea of public-service broadcasting is still worth defending in a media culture increasingly dominated by the superwealthy. Unfortunately, the BBC has failed to defend that idea while bending over backward to appease those who want to destroy it. jacobin.com/2026/07/bbc-...
jacobin.com
The BBC Has Appeased Its Enemies and Alienated Its Friends
The idea of public-service broadcasting is still worth defending in a media culture increasingly dominated by the superwealthy. Unfortunately, the BBC has failed to defend that idea while bending over...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
From India to Peru to California, the powerful weather phenomenon is creating winners and losers across the fishing industry. grist.org/economics/el...
grist.org
El Niño is here, and it’s already scrambling fisheries throughout the Pacific
From India to Peru to California, the powerful weather phenomenon is creating winners and losers across the fishing industry.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Thousands still lacked power from April's storm when Super Typhoon Bavi slammed into the Marianas this week. grist.org/extreme-weat...
grist.org
Another super typhoon just pummeled the Pacific
Thousands still lacked power from April's storm when Super Typhoon Bavi slammed into the Marianas this week.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
The coalition of voters who helped elect Trump to clean up America's food system is growing more disenchanted with the president. grist.org/food-and-agr...
grist.org
Trump tried to appease MAHA’s fury over Roundup. It backfired.
The coalition of voters who helped elect Trump to clean up America's food system is growing more disenchanted with the president.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Filipino Domestic Workers Exploited and Subjected to Sexual Abuse in Saudi Arabia www.amnestyusa.org/press-releas...
amnestyusa.org
Global: Filipino Domestic Workers Exploited and Subjected to Sexual Abuse in Saudi Arabia
The harrowing testimonies of Filipino domestic workers paint a worrying picture of ongoing state-enabled exploitation in Saudi Arabia.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Israeli Attacks Killing Children, Wiping Out Families Must Be Investigated as War Crimes www.amnestyusa.org/press-releas...
amnestyusa.org
Lebanon: Israeli Attacks Killing Children, Wiping Out Families Must Be Investigated as War Crimes
In each of these air strikes, Amnesty International has reasonable basis to conclude that Israeli forces violated international humanitarian law.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
U.S. Government Must Take Action to Secure Immediate and Unconditional Release of Palestinian Pediatrician Hussam Abu Safiya www.amnestyusa.org/press-releas...
amnestyusa.org
U.S. Government Must Take Action to Secure Immediate and Unconditional Release of  Palestinian Pediatrician Hussam Abu Safiya
Prominent Palestinian pediatrician facing imminent threat to his life while in Israeli detention.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Dating apps and sex-segregated online communities are intensifying resentment between the genders, while left-wing theorists increasingly adopt family abolition as a rallying cry. Is there a way out of our heteropessimistic moment? jacobin.com/2026/07/love...
jacobin.com
Romantic Love and Family Are Not the Enemy
Dating apps and sex-segregated online communities are intensifying resentment between the genders, while left-wing theorists increasingly adopt family abolition as a rallying cry. Is there a way out o...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Mainstream economics cannot accept the concept of contradiction that is foundational for Karl Marx’s analysis of capitalism. David Harvey explains why we need the Marxist perspective if we want to make sense of capital’s latest mutations in the age of AI. jacobin.com/2026/07/marx...
jacobin.com
What Everyone Should Know About How Capital Works
Mainstream economics cannot accept the concept of contradiction that is foundational for Karl Marx’s analysis of capitalism. David Harvey explains why we need the Marxist perspective if we want to mak...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
An acid attack on the Indonesian human rights activist Andrie Yunus fits into a wider pattern of creeping authoritarianism under President Prabowo Subianto. Democratic gains since the fall of the Suharto dictatorship are being systematically eroded. jacobin.com/2026/07/prab...
jacobin.com
Indonesia’s Army Is on the March Against Democratic Rights
An acid attack on the Indonesian human rights activist Andrie Yunus fits into a wider pattern of creeping authoritarianism under President Prabowo Subianto. Democratic gains since the fall of the Suha...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Francesca Hong, the democratic socialist candidate for governor in Wisconsin, discusses organizing beyond Madison and Milwaukee, confronting the Democratic establishment, and rebuilding working-class power. jacobin.com/2026/07/hong...
jacobin.com
Socialist Francesca Hong on Her Wisconsin Insurgency
Francesca Hong, the democratic socialist candidate for governor in Wisconsin, discusses organizing beyond Madison and Milwaukee, confronting the Democratic establishment, and rebuilding working-class ...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
While most unions played it safe in New York’s recent elections, UAW Region 9A and its director, Brandon Mancilla, took big swings in supporting progressive and socialist insurgent candidates like Claire Valdez and Darializa Avila Chevalier — and won. jacobin.com/2026/07/manc...
jacobin.com
UAW Region 9A’s Big Risks in NYC’s Elections Paid Off
While most unions played it safe in New York’s recent elections, UAW Region 9A and its director, Brandon Mancilla, took big swings in supporting progressive and socialist insurgent candidates like Cla...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
In response to the Democratic Socialists of America’s big electoral wins, some are eager to write it off as a movement of elite professionals. These criticisms miss a lot about both DSA and the changing working class. jacobin.com/2026/07/clas...
jacobin.com
DSA’s Critics Are Missing the Point About the Working Class
In response to the Democratic Socialists of America’s big electoral wins, some are eager to write it off as a movement of elite professionals. These criticisms miss a lot about both DSA and the changi...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
The Democratic nominee for Senate talks Medicare for All, ending Trump’s wars, and why he thinks Kentucky is winnable for a progressive in 2026. www.currentaffairs.org/news/charles...
currentaffairs.org
Charles Booker Has a Plan to Replace Mitch McConnell
The Democratic nominee for Senate talks Medicare for All, ending Trump’s wars, and why he thinks Kentucky is winnable for a progressive in 2026.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
As climate information disappears from federal websites, scientists are rebuilding it elsewhere. grist.org/solutions/sc...
grist.org
The plan to make climate science harder to erase
As climate information disappears from federal websites, scientists are rebuilding it elsewhere.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
Automated Moderation Is Here to Stay www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
eff.org
Automated Moderation Is Here to Stay
This blog post is part 1 of a 2-part series. The second part will set out recommendations for companies and policymakers.Six years ago—one month into a global pandemic—we argued that the automated mod...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
Lack of International Justice Six Months After January Protest Massacres Risks Further Atrocity Crimes www.amnestyusa.org/press-releas...
amnestyusa.org
Iran: Lack of International Justice Six Months After January Protest Massacres Risks Further Atrocity Crimes
The Iranian authorities have faced no consequences for unlawfully using intentional lethal force on a mass scale to crush and punish dissent.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
The Firestone rubber plantation in Liberia is the largest contiguous rubber plantation in the world. In a model for labor struggles around the globe, thousands of workers there have overcome Firestone’s efforts at union busting via subcontracting. jacobin.com/2026/07/libe...
jacobin.com
Liberian Rubber Workers Triumphed Against Union Busting
The Firestone rubber plantation in Liberia is the largest contiguous rubber plantation in the world. In a model for labor struggles around the globe, thousands of workers there have overcome Firestone...
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
Millions of workers in the United States are Spanish speakers. Socialists who can’t talk to them can’t organize them. jacobin.com/2026/07/span...
jacobin.com
Want to Organize the Working Class? Learn Spanish.
Millions of workers in the United States are Spanish speakers. Socialists who can’t talk to them can’t organize them.
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Ben Nelson @bennelson.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
Neoliberalism’s defining feature was always the insulation of capital from democratic control. Trumpism’s break with free trade has changed the rhetoric. But the underlying economic order remains intact. jacobin.com/2026/07/neol...
jacobin.com
Right-Wing Populism Did Not Kill Neoliberalism
Neoliberalism’s defining feature was always the insulation of capital from democratic control. Trumpism’s break with free trade has changed the rhetoric. But the underlying economic order remains inta...
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