North Korea fires tactical short range missiles in a recent missile test and the American media has proclaimed this to be a major provocation testing the Biden administration. Donald Trump met twice with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in two summits, one in Singapore and the other in Hanoi, but those summits resulted in failure. What’s next in US policy towards North Korea? Brian will follow up on this discussion with a second part of the episode coming soon!

The Real Story: What North Korea Wants and What the American People Don't Know About the Korean War

Today's episode is the first in a multi-part series take an in-depth look at the history of China's foreign policy. As the U.S. war machine ramps up aggression towards China, understanding the history of the country's engagement with the world is more crucial than ever. In this section, we discuss the early phase of foreign policy pursued by the People's Republic of China, characterized by fervent anti-colonialism and a complex alliance with the Soviet Union. 

Brian is joined by Kenneth Hammond, a Professor of East Asian and Global History at New Mexico State University and an activist with the organization Pivot to Peace.

The Real Story: Understanding China's Foreign Policy -- 1949-1959

Brian and Prof. Wolff begin a series of discussions about the basics of Marxism — a method for understanding and changing the world used by many of the great revolutionaries of modern history. Today, they discuss what a monopoly is, and how there is a natural tendency to monopoly under capitalism.

Richard Wolff is the co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work and the author of many books, the latest being “The Sickness is the System: When Capitalism Fails to Save Us from Pandemics or Itself”. You can check out his work at rdwolff.com

Capitalism in Crisis: Marx & Lenin on Monopoly Capitalism

Brian and Prof. Wolff continue a series of discussions about the basics of Marxism — a method for understanding and changing the world used by many of the great revolutionaries of modern history. Today, they discuss the role of finance and the big banks. Why does Wall Street reign supreme in the capitalist system?

Richard Wolff is the co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work and the author of many books, the latest being “The Sickness is the System: When Capitalism Fails to Save Us from Pandemics or Itself”. You can check out his work at rdwolff.com

Capitalism in Crisis: The Dictatorship of the Banks

Journalist Abby Martin, the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund (PCJF), and CAIR won a major victory for free speech and the right to protest in solidarity with Palestine in a May 24 federal court ruling. A judge ruled that Georgia’s law against the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movements was a violation of constitutionally guaranteed free speech rights. PCJF Executive Director Mara Verheyden-Hilliard and host of The Empire Files Abby Martin join the show to discuss what this means for the BDS movement and the state of civil liberties in the US.

The Real Story: BDS And The Battle For Free Speech

Historian Gerald Horne on his book "The Dawning of the Apocalypse: The Roots of Slavery, White Supremacy, Settler Colonialism, and Capitalism in the Long Sixteenth Century" from Monthly Review.

https://monthlyreview.org/product/the-dawning-of-the-apocalypse/

1205: Slavery, race and capital in the sixteenth century / Gerald Horne

We discuss Canada's own, David Cronenberg, and tackle his body horror filmography (mostly) by diving into SHIVERS, THE BROOD and EASTERN PROMISES.

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to drop us a line at importantcinemaclubpodcast@gmail.com

Listen to exclusive episodes at www.patreon.com/theimportantcinemaclub

Check out Justin's other podcast THE BAY STREET VIDEO PODCAST (https://soundcloud.com/thebaystreetvideopodcast) and NO SUCH THING AS A BAD MOVIE (https://soundcloud.com/nosuchthingasabadmovie)

As well as Will's other podcast MICHAEL AND US (https://soundcloud.com/michael-and-us)

#229 - David Cronenberg's Vanilla Sex Life

Ward Anseeuw on the International Land Coalition report "Uneven Ground: Land inequalities at the heart of unequal societies.

"https://www.landcoalition.org/en/uneven-ground/report-and-papers/

1269: Land inequality, social inequality / Ward Anseeuw

Writer Rebecca McCarthy on her Baffler article "Deep Sea Rush," and in a Moment of Truth, Jeff Dorchen swats the zeitgeist zombies.

https://thebaffler.com/salvos/deep-sea-rush-mccarthy

1270: The future  of seafloor extraction / Rebecca McCarthy

I am utterly gutted by the recent passing of Leo Panitch, who was the editor of The Socialist Register and a mentor to so many people like me, so I did what odd-ball podcast hosts do and I turned to the mic to get out my feelings about his legacy and what he meant to me. After a 25-minute eulogy, I replay a B-Side chat that I did with Leo back in 2017. I tricked him into talking about his life by asking him questions about people who were near and dear to him, like Ralph Miliband, Tony Benn, Jeremy Corbyn, and so on. 

Rest well, Leo. And may the rest of us re-engage with his work and legacy.

*** Support this socialist media project by becoming a patron today: HTTP://www.patreon.com/deadpundits ***

Remembering Leo Panitch: 50 Years on the Socialist Left

It’s been a long time since the sun set on the British Empire and many institutions in British society have changed a great deal. In some ways, the British Army is the exception - a living linkage between imperial great power status and the current post-colonial European nation. In other ways, like the US military, the British Army has been comprehensively transformed by the long campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan since 9/11.&nbsp; The way the British Army has altered - and also failed to react - over the last two decades is the subject of the new book The Changing of the Guard: The British Army Since 9/11. Here to talk about it is the book’s author Simon Akam. Akam is a journalist whose work has appeared basically everywhere, including Reuters, the Economist, The Washington Post, The New York Times, Outside, Bloomberg Businessweek and GQ. &#10;&nbsp; <hr>See <a style='color: grey; ' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for privacy and opt-out information.

How 9/11 Changed the British Military

News and views about the world for those who want to change it, with Brian Becker

The Real Story: Understanding China's Foreign Policy -- 1949-1959

The Socialist Program with Brian Becker