‘Questions from a Worker who Reads’ by Bertolt Brecht
Who built Thebes of the seven gates?
In the books you will find the names of kings.
Did the kings haul up the lumps of rock?
And Babylon, many times demolished
Who raised it up so many times? In what houses
Of gold-glittering Lima did the builders live?
Where, the evening that the Wall of China was finished
Did the masons go? Great Rome
Is full of triumphal arches. Who erected them? Over whom
Did the Caesars triumph? Had Byzantium, much praised in song
Only palaces for its inhabitants? Even in fabled Atlantis
The night the ocean engulfed it
The drowning still bawled for their slaves.
The young Alexander conquered India.
Was he alone?
Caesar beat the Gauls.
Did he not have even a cook with him?
Philip of Spain wept when his armada
Went down. Was he the only one to weep?
Frederick the Second won the Seven Years War. Who
Else won it?
Every page a victory.
Who cooked the feast for the victors?
Every ten years a great man.
Who paid the bill?
So many reports.
So many questions.
#poetry
Who built Thebes of the seven gates?
In the books you will find the names of kings.
Did the kings haul up the lumps of rock?
And Babylon, many times demolished
Who raised it up so many times? In what houses
Of gold-glittering Lima did the builders live?
Where, the evening that the Wall of China was finished
Did the masons go? Great Rome
Is full of triumphal arches. Who erected them? Over whom
Did the Caesars triumph? Had Byzantium, much praised in song
Only palaces for its inhabitants? Even in fabled Atlantis
The night the ocean engulfed it
The drowning still bawled for their slaves.
The young Alexander conquered India.
Was he alone?
Caesar beat the Gauls.
Did he not have even a cook with him?
Philip of Spain wept when his armada
Went down. Was he the only one to weep?
Frederick the Second won the Seven Years War. Who
Else won it?
Every page a victory.
Who cooked the feast for the victors?
Every ten years a great man.
Who paid the bill?
So many reports.
So many questions.
#poetry
#books
https://marxandphilosophy.org.uk/reviews/19976_rethinking-marxist-approaches-to-transition-a-theory-of-temporal-dislocation-by-onur-acaroglu-reviewed-by-davide-gallo-lassere/
https://marxandphilosophy.org.uk/reviews/20033_how-to-blow-up-a-pipeline-learning-to-fight-in-a-world-on-fire-by-andreas-malm-reviewed-by-john-rapko/
https://marxandphilosophy.org.uk/reviews/20088_work-without-the-worker-labour-in-the-age-of-platform-capitalism-by-phil-jones-reviewed-by-katjo-buissink/
https://marxandphilosophy.org.uk/reviews/19976_rethinking-marxist-approaches-to-transition-a-theory-of-temporal-dislocation-by-onur-acaroglu-reviewed-by-davide-gallo-lassere/
https://marxandphilosophy.org.uk/reviews/20033_how-to-blow-up-a-pipeline-learning-to-fight-in-a-world-on-fire-by-andreas-malm-reviewed-by-john-rapko/
https://marxandphilosophy.org.uk/reviews/20088_work-without-the-worker-labour-in-the-age-of-platform-capitalism-by-phil-jones-reviewed-by-katjo-buissink/
marxandphilosophy.org.uk
‘Rethinking Marxist Approaches to Transition: A Theory of Temporal Dislocation’ by Onur Acaroglu reviewed by Davide Gallo Lassere
Onur Acaroglu’s rich and dense book on the issue of transition offers a close engagement with the history of Western…
Global military spending has reached its highest level since 1949
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/4/25/military-spending-reaches-record-levels-report
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/4/25/military-spending-reaches-record-levels-report
Aljazeera
World military spending hits all-time high, tops $2 trillion
The US, China, India, UK and Russia were the top five spenders, according to new data by defence think tank SIPRI.
The Global Seafood Supply Is Being Contaminated by Microplastics, but No Major News Outlet Has Paid Any Attention
https://independentmediainstitute.org/efl-tat-20220301/
https://independentmediainstitute.org/efl-tat-20220301/