In the last week, US President, Donald Trump announced his intention to raise tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, threatening to start a dangerous trade war with the rest of the world. This could plunge the world economy into another deep slump.

Han pasado cinco años desde la muerte de Hugo Chávez. Lo conocía desde hacía casi diez años y sentía un gran respeto por su valor, honestidad y dedicación en la lucha contra la opresión y la explotación. Por esto se ganó el odio de todas las fuerzas de la vieja sociedad: los banqueros, los capitalistas y terratenientes, los imperialistas, la CIA y, por supuesto, la llamada "prensa libre" que no es más que la boquilla servil de la antigua orden.

Five years have passed since the death of Hugo Chávez. I had known him for almost ten years and had an enormous respect for his courage, honesty and dedication to the fight against oppression and exploitation. For this he earned the hatred of all the forces of the old society: the bankers, capitalists and landowners, the imperialists, the CIA and of course the so-called ‘free press’ that is merely the slavish mouthpiece of the old order.

The Montreal Marxist Winter School has become the biggest Marxist meeting in Canada, but this year's event was something special. There was record attendance at the school, with close to 230 people participating. People were present from Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, British Columbia, Mexico, France, Britain and Switzerland. Two hundred years after Karl Marx’s birth, the 2018 Marxist Winter School has shown that Marxist ideas are advancing across the board.

In this article, originally published on venezuelanalysis.com, Ricardo Vaz provides an interesting analysis of the situation in Venezuela. He argues that the Venezuelan people must take the fight to their parasitic importer bourgeoisie if the nation is to overcome the international imperialist siege.

En los primeros días de febrero la Corriente Socialista Militante, Sección Argentina de la Corriente Marxista Internacional realizó un nuevo Congreso anual partidario, sesionando en Rosario los días 3 y 4 de febrero. La caracterización de la Situación Internacional, su expresión en la región, la etapa que atravesamos de la lucha de clases, el salto cualitativo en la conciencia y en la lucha de masas contra los embates del gobierno de Macri Cambiemos, el papel de los Jefes Sindicales y otros temas fueron motivo de este valioso y rico encuentro entre los camaradas de la CSM. Las conclusiones y la construcción de un Partido de clase y nuestra construcción fueron el cierre de las jornadas

Queda claro que en las últimas semanas el imperialismo estadounidense y sus países lacayos han aumentado la agresión contra Venezuela. El objetivo es público y declarado: propiciar un golpe de estado que derroque el gobierno del presidente Maduro y permita a la oligarquía capitalista volver a tomar control. Es necesario responde con medidas revolucionarias que golpeen el poder económico de la oligarquía, los agentes del imperialismo el país.

It is clear that US imperialism and its lackey countries have increased aggression against Venezuela in recent weeks. The aim has been declared publicly: to trigger a coup d'etat against the government of President Maduro and allow the capitalist oligarchy to take control again. It is necessary to respond with revolutionary measures that strike a blow at the economic power of the oligarchy: the agents of imperialism in the country.

As with all production under capitalism, scientific production is not democratically controlled by the working class. We argue that the workers can and should be the drivers of scientific advancement.

Como hemos venido señalando, específicamente en nuestro artículo “Venezuela: crisis, saqueos y hambre ¿Cuál es la salida?”, la actual crisis que atraviesa el país ha golpeado principalmente a las masas trabajadoras. Esta, enmarcada dentro de la crisis del capitalismo mundial, afecta principalmente a los países que, como el nuestro, se insertan en la economía mundial de forma dependiente, haciéndonos el eslabón más débil de la cadena. El aumento de la oferta mundial de crudo –principalmente en EEUU–; sumado a la desaceleración de la economía de China, y como

Tom Trottier examines the rise and fall of the Labor Party, which was founded by an alliance of unionists in 1996 and won some support, but rapidly declined in the late-90s and early-2000s. Tom explains why the Labor Party failed and why Marxists must draw lessons from the past to start laying the foundations and framework for a future mass, working-class, socialist party in the United States.

The struggle of the masses, opened after the elections in Honduras, is only comparable to the strike of 1954 and the movement against the coup d'état in 2009. It is one of the greatest instances of class struggle in the history of the country. This can only be explained by the great contradictions concentrated in society, which have placed the country on the verge of revolution. In spite of all that revolutionary impulse, Juan Orlando Hernández (JOH) has just been sworn in as president, although he was met with protesters demanding his resignation. This is a highly discredited and weak government that will be subjected to the pressure of the workers, who can prevent JOH from completing

The year has barely started and we’ve already seen large popular demonstrations all over Iran. Demonstrations, that had started with economic demands, developed into a revolt against the reactionary Islamic regime. In Tunisia, the youth have taken to the streets demanding employment and an end to IMF-imposed austerity policies. These two cases bring to mind, once again, the political instability that is spreading throughout the world and revolutionary explosions that may be detonated by little sparks.

Interest in socialism has skyrocketed over the last two years. Millions of people yearn for change and want to fight back against capitalism. They are looking for ideas and an organization that can help them do just that. But there is as yet no viable point of reference, no mass socialist party, no clear and confident exit indicated out of the burning building. As a result, most people doubt whether a serious challenge to the system and its institutions can be mounted, let alone its total overturn. This explains the revival of interest in reformism.

Recent independence movements, most notably those in Scotland and Catalonia, have caused many people to draw parallels between them and Quebec. This, combined with the identitarian turn that the mainstream Québécois nationalist parties have taken recently, forces us to return to the basics and re-evaluate the Marxist approach to this question.