Twenty years ago, some the largest unions in the United States broke away from the AFL-CIO claiming that it was not doing enough to organise workers. Everyone understood that the labour movement was rapidly shrinking,…Read more…
Who rules Georgia?
The pro-Moscow ruling party in Georgia, billionaire Bdzina Ivanishvili’s “Georgian Dream,” is growing increasingly desperate in its attempts to hold on to power following the 26 October elections. First, they bungled the attempt to steal…Read more…
The Georgian Uprising – August 1924: European Social Democracy at the Crossroads
The following is the text of a speech I gave today in Newcastle at the 50th annual conference of the Study Group on the Russian Revolution. It is an abridged version of a paper I…Read more…
Review: Dead Head, by C.J. Skuse
If you’re looking for a book about Grateful Dead fans, this is not it. But if you want to continue following the increasingly strange adventures of the female serial killer Rhiannon Lewis, this is book…Read more…
Review: In Bloom, by C.J. Skuse
A pregnant woman, her boyfriend in prison accused of murder, and on the run from police and nosy journalists — well, that’s one way to describe this delightful book. The other way is — a…Read more…
The Georgian crisis deepens
Georgia’s increasingly authoritarian and pro-Russian government has made a major miscalculation. Protests against the fraudulent elections on 26 October were showing signs of dying down. When the Georgian Parliament met — with all the opposition…Read more…
World leaders unite in support of workers rights. Not really.
At the recent G20 Leaders’ Summit in Rio de Janeiro, the Director General of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Gilbert F. Houngbo, praised the leaders for recognising the need for social justice and decent work….Read more…
Review: Sweetpea, by C.J. Skuse
I’m almost embarrassed to say how much I enjoyed this book. The best way to describe it is that it’s an updated version of American Psycho set in England of today, with a young female…Read more…
Review: Prequel, by Rachel Maddow
I used to think that the only really good books about the right-wing, antisemitic, isolationist and racist mass movements in the United States during the 1930s and early 1940s were John Roy Carlson’s “Under Cover”…Read more…
Georgia’s democratic future depends on us
More than three weeks have passed since the elections in Georgia and the dust has not yet settled. Though the election results, which showed a clear majority for the pro-Russian ruling party, have now been…Read more…
Review: The Wehrwolf, by Alma Katsu
Alma Katsu writes horror as well as espionage thrillers, and this one started with a really good premise: imagine if the Nazis with their “Werwolf” resistance movement at the end of the Second World War…Read more…
Review: Shaken, Not Stirred, by Alma Katsu
The final volume of the novella that began with The Spy Who Vanished, this is the weakest of the three. It’s much more of a shoot-em-up, with an unsatisfying ending, in my view.
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Review: On Enemy Ground, by Alma Katsu
This novella (or short story) is the sequel to The Spy Who Vanished about a “Russian James Bond”. Not as good as the first, but still well-written and engaging.
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The first “MAGA movement”
On the eve of the Second World War, the American journalist John Roy Carlson infiltrated a large number of pro-fascist organisations across the country. The book he wrote, Under Cover, was a best-seller. The inside…Read more…
Review: The Vanishing Man, by Alma Katsu
This very short novella is available on Amazon Kindle for free — apparently one doesn’t buy the book, but “borrow” it. What a great idea. It’s the first part of a trilogy of short fiction…Read more…
Review: How Finland Survived Stalin – From Winter War to Cold War, by Kimmo Rentola
I once asked a young Finnish historian which side Finland was on during the Second World War. His answer consisted of two words: “It’s complicated.” It is indeed. This book tries to make sense of…Read more…
Georgia: For democracy and a European future
One week after the Georgian elections, the situation has become somewhat clearer. The evidence that the election was not “free and fair” has been mounting. There has been widespread condemnation and concern from the international…Read more…
Putin’s victory – Georgia’s Nightmare
Even if you know nothing about the republic of Georgia and were completely unaware of its elections last week, the fact that Vladimir Putin is celebrating should be cause for concern. Make no mistake about…Read more…
Evolution Gaming: This strike matters
In mid-July, hundreds of workers at Evolution Gaming in Tbilisi, Georgia walked off their jobs. Evolution, a Swedish-owned company, had refused to negotiate with the workers over their wages and working conditions. Since then, the…Read more…
Review: Murder on the Orient Express, by Agatha Christie
Many, many years ago I read dozens of Agatha Christie’s novels. Here’s what put a stop to that: I began marking the page where I felt for sure that I knew who the murderer was….Read more…