"While I am hardly the first to talk about a police state, I mean in this book considerably more than what we typically associate with a police state — police and military repression, authoritarian government, the suppression of civil liberties and human rights. Certainly, we see this, and more, around the world. In this study, however, I want to develop the concept of global police state to identify more broadly the emerging character of the global economy and society as a repressive totality whose logic is as much economic and cultural as it is political. By global police state I refer to three interrelated developments."

#books

https://truthout.org/articles/a-global-police-state-is-emerging-as-world-capitalism-descends-into-crisis/

Merry Christmas everyone :)

"Human rights, freedom, and the rule of law have long been viewed in purely political terms. Thus, when those in power assert that the so-called “deeply embedded conflicts” are in fact economically based, those who support the movement are often quick to rebuke or denounce such a claim. However, even though the protests themselves might have been precipitated by formally political concerns, it does not mean that there were no other causes either. On 5 August 2019, the day of the general strike, our team of researchers conducted a questionnaire survey at three strike assembly locations. Based on survey data, we observed that participants were in fact deeply outraged by issues related to the economy and crises of livelihood (see Figure 1). 89.28% agreed or strongly agreed that working hours in Hong Kong are too long. 94.3% agreed or strongly agreed that the wealth disparity in Hong Kong is absurd, and 96.69% thought that the SAR government is too lenient towards large corporations and financiers.

In other words, strike participants actually held a consensus on the hallmark features of Hong Kong capitalism: long working hours, extreme wealth disparity, and overwhelming influence by large corporations. What warrants attention here is that, comparatively speaking, “only” 91.73% stated that they agreed or strongly agreed that Beijing was overly involved in Hong Kong affairs, which turned out to be slightly lower than the number of participants who attested to untenable working hours and unfettered corporate power."

https://lausan.hk/2020/dilemma-of-the-new-union-movement/

Hi everyone! I recently saw an article by Polygon on their list of the best video essays of the year, so I decided to steal their idea and do my own list. I still suggest you to look at theirs too, since their choices seem interesting. Mine is just a little silly compilation because I love these videos so much. They're in no particular order and I only list one main video per channel, and then other ones in the paragraph/section. Let me stress that all the channels are worth taking a look at.

- In Search Of A Flat Earth

Folding Ideas makes a wonderful video essay on the Flat Earth movement and [SPOILER??? IDK GO WATCH IT OK] QAnon, and boy is it good. Well shot, well written, well researched. Nothing to say, it's just perfect.

- Hayao Miyazaki - How Animation Comes To Life

A video on "how Studio Ghibli makes animated cinema feel alive". The channel is quite inactive (this is the last one they published and is from 2019), but the animation in on a whole other level. I'd also like to suggest the other video on Alien and the one on Disney's Animation.

- Marx was not a "statist"

A great video that talks about how the conception of Marx being a statist came to be, and proves the talking point wrong once and for all. The whole channel is great, and if you're interested in it I'd like to suggest watching the video on societies of control, the culture industry and hauntology

- "Woke" Disney

Lindsay Ellis shows how Disney uses meta-commentary in their new movies to justify their existence, not to examine the company's past, and how such meta-commentary has adopted a wokeness ethos that is merely performative, doesn't promote any major change (Sexism can be solved with a bunch of #girlbosses) and reconfigures any systemic oppression as the product of only a few bad apples. Another great video is Manufacturing Authenticity (For Fun and Profit!)

- Fallout: New Vegas Is Genius, And Here's Why

If you like this video you might also love is Bloodborne Is Genius, And Here's Why. And if you liked Ellis' video on Disney, you might like Hbomberguy's take on Woke Brands, in which he shows how many of them exploit conservatives' hysteria to just make profits

- Charles Darwin vs Karl Marx

Starting with a video on Darwin and Marx, it then dives into Malthusianism, Spencer, social Darwinism and Eugenics. It's not exactly light-hearted, but very well made. I wanted to suggest some more videos from the channel but I suspect you know it already

- Empires of Modernity

It talks about modernity, early capitalism, colonialism and the East India Company and its horrors in the colonies, specifically in Bengal. A summary on the horrors of British imperialism. Other great videos from the channel are The Fist of Modernity and Proudhon: What is Property?

- No More Presidents

A history of the development of the institution of the US presidency and its continuous expanse of power. It's an undemocratic institution and the product of a broken system, and it should be abolished. Another great video is MAGA and Fascism.

- Lisa Hanawalt: Being Human by Being Animal

A video on Lasa Hanawalt's characters (the creator of Bojack Horseman and Tuca&Bertie). Also, another great video from the channel and a personal favorite, Night In The Woods: Do You Always Have A Choice? (contains major spoilers)

- Life in the Shadow of Midgar

Jacob Geller makes awesome videos, so much so that it was actually difficult to choose which one to put to represent the channel. This one starts with the design of the city of Midgar, in FF7, as a representation of structural inequity, and then talks about real-life developments of hellish environments for the poor and the minorities. Another 'honorable' mention is Artificial Loneliness (btw, the photos by Aristotle Roufanis he mentions are simply gorgeous) and Capitalist Present, Collective Future, even tho I have yet to watch it (because it gives major spoilers for Tacoma, which I have yet to play) but I'm sure it's crazy good.

A criticism of the modern conception of mutual aid

https://regenerationmag.org/mutual-aid-a-factor-of-liberalism/