Posted on June 11th, 2012 in About AK, AK Authors!, AK Book Excerpts, Recommended Reading, Uncategorized
The latest AK Press release, and the fourth in our popular collaboration with the Institute for Anarchist Studies, is Javier Sethness-Castro’s Imperiled Life: Revolution Against Climate Catastrophe.
Check out what readers are saying:
This is an extremely well-researched and well-written book, providing both a history of our awareness of the coming global environmental collapse, and a plausible and even inspiring plan for present and future action. The more people who read it, the better humanity’s chances will be.
—Kim Stanley Robinson, author of Green Mars
Imperiled Life is an angry and urgent dissection of the omnivorous economic system that is mercilessly turning the planet into a death camp.
—Jeffrey St. Clair, coeditor of Counterpunch and author of Born Under a Bad Sky
In a climate change debate pumped full of duplicity and evasion, Javier Sethness-Castro blasts in air-clearing testament to the calamity facing humanity. Sethness-Castro argues boldly that humanity is the asteroid this time, responsible for one of the great extinctions in earth’s history. Imperiled Life is no halfhearted call to shuffle the lightbulbs on a sinking terrestrial Titanic. It demands we rethink our philosophies, reorganize our societies, and rework our economies if we are to escape a fate of being survived only by valleys of bones and mountains of garbage.
—Arun Gupta, cofounder of the Indypendent and the Occupied Wall Street Journal
Javier Sethness-Castro here importantly diagnoses the ways in which today’s dominant trends toward fascist authoritarianism, casino capitalism, and cataclysmic militarism ominously intend a planetary future predicated on widespread genocide, ecological collapse, and the enclosure of moral progress. Moreover, Imperiled Life provides hope that social movements around the world are actively struggling to find common insurgent cause together—to democratically occupy the global power structure, work for human, animal, and earth liberation, and create sustainable community alternatives. May this fundamentally change the political climate of our future such that justice, peace, and happiness on Earth are more than just utopian urges or filthy privileges of the super affluent!
—Richard Kahn, author of Critical Pedagogy, Ecoliteracy, and Planetary Crisis
Want to know more? Click here to download an excerpt from the book: CLICK TO READ!
Convinced? Be sure to buy a copy on our website – 25% off through the end of the month: CLICK TO BUY
Posted on June 1st, 2012 in AK Distribution
Just a quick note for all you wholesale customers out there—AK Distro is celebrating the season by offering a spring wholesale special, starting now! Place an order of 25+ units before Monday, June 11 and mention the spring special to get free shipping (within the US) on all in-stock items. It’s a great chance to put together that restock you’ve been putting off, as well as catching up on the latest AK Press and distributed titles you may have missed.
Bookstore buyers, if you’ll be at BEA next week and haven’t scheduled an appointment to go over our latest releases and place your order, it’s not too late, just get in touch and let us know your availability.
And for the rest of you, maybe you’re thinking of starting up an infoshop or distro? Or you’re about to go on tour with your band and want to take some books along for your merch table? Even if you don’t have a wholesale account with us yet, why not set one up, and take advantage of this free shipping special (as well as our usual wholesale discounts!) by placing your first order now. Check out this information on wholesale ordering, and send an e-mail with questions or to get set up and place your order.
Posted on May 25th, 2012 in Events
Radical activist and theorist Deric Shannon will be discussing anarchist economics and his new book, The Accumulation of Freedom.
Deric Shannon, a founding member of the North American Anarchist Studies Network, also co-edited and co-authored ‘Contemporary Anarchist Studies’ and ‘Political Sociology: Oppression, Resistance, and the State’ and published widely in journals such as ‘Theory in Action’ (of which he is the Associate Editor), ‘Sexualities’, ‘Interface’, and ‘Peace Studies’.
With special guests offering literature from:
The Louisville Anarchist Black Cross, AK Press & Thoughtcrime Inc.
*** FREE ***
However, NO BORDERS Collective will happily accept donations for our local anarchist projects!
Posted on May 25th, 2012 in Events
Social Security, not for nothing do politicians call it the “third rail of American politics—touch it, and you die.” Yet a powerful, well-funded movement to phase out Social Security or even privatize it has been gathering strength since the election of Ronald Reagan. Each time it comes close to succeeding, it’s beaten back by a coalition of labor, grassroots organizers, and the elderly. Meanwhile, Social Security has only become more vital to retirees and their families as the federal and state governments slash other benefits and services—a trend that’s grown ever more troubling in recent years.
The People’s Pension is both groundbreaking history and an eye-opening guide for anyone concerned about one of the biggest issues of our times. With 95 percent of Americans participating in the program either as beneficiaries or through their payroll tax contributions, Social Security is quite literally the glue that binds Americans together as a community. In a provocative epilogue, Laursen argues to democratize, not disable, the program, suggesting that the only solution for Social Security may be to de-link it from government altogether.
Eric Laursen is an independent financial and political journalist, activist, and commentator. He is co-author of Understanding the Crash (2010). and his work has appeared in a wide variety of publications, including The Nation, The Village Voice, Z Magazine, The Indypendent, and the Huffington Post.
For more on the book, or to order a copy, see: http://www.akpress.org/peoplespension.html
Posted on May 25th, 2012 in Events
Social Security, not for nothing do politicians call it the “third rail of American politics—touch it, and you die.” Yet a powerful, well-funded movement to phase out Social Security or even privatize it has been gathering strength since the election of Ronald Reagan. Each time it comes close to succeeding, it’s beaten back by a coalition of labor, grassroots organizers, and the elderly. Meanwhile, Social Security has only become more vital to retirees and their families as the federal and state governments slash other benefits and services—a trend that’s grown ever more troubling in recent years.
The People’s Pension is both groundbreaking history and an eye-opening guide for anyone concerned about one of the biggest issues of our times. With 95 percent of Americans participating in the program either as beneficiaries or through their payroll tax contributions, Social Security is quite literally the glue that binds Americans together as a community. In a provocative epilogue, Laursen argues to democratize, not disable, the program, suggesting that the only solution for Social Security may be to de-link it from government altogether.
Eric Laursen is an independent financial and political journalist, activist, and commentator. He is co-author of Understanding the Crash (2010). and his work has appeared in a wide variety of publications, including The Nation, The Village Voice, Z Magazine, The Indypendent, and the Huffington Post.
For more on the book, or to order a copy, see: http://www.akpress.org/peoplespension.html
Posted on May 25th, 2012 in Events
Social Security, not for nothing do politicians call it the “third rail of American politics—touch it, and you die.” Yet a powerful, well-funded movement to phase out Social Security or even privatize it has been gathering strength since the election of Ronald Reagan. Each time it comes close to succeeding, it’s beaten back by a coalition of labor, grassroots organizers, and the elderly. Meanwhile, Social Security has only become more vital to retirees and their families as the federal and state governments slash other benefits and services—a trend that’s grown ever more troubling in recent years.
The People’s Pension is both groundbreaking history and an eye-opening guide for anyone concerned about one of the biggest issues of our times. With 95 percent of Americans participating in the program either as beneficiaries or through their payroll tax contributions, Social Security is quite literally the glue that binds Americans together as a community. In a provocative epilogue, Laursen argues to democratize, not disable, the program, suggesting that the only solution for Social Security may be to de-link it from government altogether.
Eric Laursen is an independent financial and political journalist, activist, and commentator. He is co-author of Understanding the Crash (2010). and his work has appeared in a wide variety of publications, including The Nation, The Village Voice, Z Magazine, The Indypendent, and the Huffington Post.
For more on the book, or to order a copy, see: http://www.akpress.org/peoplespension.html
Posted on May 25th, 2012 in Events
Social Security, not for nothing do politicians call it the “third rail of American politics—touch it, and you die.” Yet a powerful, well-funded movement to phase out Social Security or even privatize it has been gathering strength since the election of Ronald Reagan. Each time it comes close to succeeding, it’s beaten back by a coalition of labor, grassroots organizers, and the elderly. Meanwhile, Social Security has only become more vital to retirees and their families as the federal and state governments slash other benefits and services—a trend that’s grown ever more troubling in recent years.
The People’s Pension is both groundbreaking history and an eye-opening guide for anyone concerned about one of the biggest issues of our times. With 95 percent of Americans participating in the program either as beneficiaries or through their payroll tax contributions, Social Security is quite literally the glue that binds Americans together as a community. In a provocative epilogue, Laursen argues to democratize, not disable, the program, suggesting that the only solution for Social Security may be to de-link it from government altogether.
Eric Laursen is an independent financial and political journalist, activist, and commentator. He is co-author of Understanding the Crash (2010). and his work has appeared in a wide variety of publications, including The Nation, The Village Voice, Z Magazine, The Indypendent, and the Huffington Post.
For more on the book, or to order a copy, see: http://www.akpress.org/peoplespension.html
Posted on May 23rd, 2012 in About AK, AK Authors!, Current Events, Recommended Reading
Vijay Prashad, author of our new Arab Spring, Libyan Winter joined the hosts of National Public Radio’s Weekend Edition last Sunday to discuss NATO, and contextualize the counter-protests in Chicago over the weekend. Speaking in response to Ivo Daalder, current US ambassador to NATO, Prashad questioned NATO’s efficacy and suggested that it’s time for the organization to be retired:
PRASHAD: For instance, you know, you have to imagine that from 1949 to 1991, NATO was largely a defensive pact. For the first 10 years after the Soviet Union had dissolved, NATO went through an internal debate so that in 1999, the council decided to allow NATO to be used for so-called offensive operations, not just as a defensive pact.
And shortly thereafter, NATO went into operation in Bosnia. But the danger here is, I think, along three axes. The first is NATO has demonstrated kind of a, you know, very peculiar strategy of encircling Russia and China. You know, they’ve begun a very interesting policy called Partners Across the Globe where from Mongolia to Iraq – in other words, the countries that rim the Asian continent. You know, the Russians and Chinese see this as a threat to their security.
And rather than produce a new kind of world order not dominated by threats and by, you know, escalation of military spending, this is a superb opportunity to reach out a hand to the Chinese, to the Russians and see if there can be a de-escalation of militarism on the world stage. And NATO is contributing, actually, to the very opposite of that.
Visit the Weekend Edition website to listen to the whole broadcast or read the transcript! http://www.npr.org/2012/05/20/153152867/examining-natos-past-present-and-future
Posted on May 22nd, 2012 in AK Authors!, Events
Michael Staudenmaier will be doing a reading for his new AK Press title, Truth and Revolution: A History of the Sojourner Truth Organization, 1969-1986.
The Commons
388 Atlantic Avenue (2nd floor)
Brooklyn, NY 11217
Founded in Chicago in 1969 from the rubble of the recently crumbled SDS, the Sojourner Truth Organization (STO) brought working-class consciousness to the forefront of New Left discourse, sending radicals back into the factories and thinking through the integration of radical politics into everyday realities. Through the influence of founding members like Noel Ignatiev and Don Hamerquist, STO took a Marxist approach to the question of race and revolution, exploring the notion of “white skin privilege,” and helping to lay the groundwork for the discipline of critical race studies.
Posted on May 22nd, 2012 in AK Authors!, Events
Javier Sethness-Castro will premier his new AK Press title “Imperiled Life: Revolution Against Climate Catastrophe” at Station 40 in San Fransisco, CA May 29th 7pm.
Station 40
3030 16th St
Suite B
San Fransisco, CA 94103
Imperiled Life theorizes an exit from the potentially terminal consequences of capital-induced climate change. It is a collection of reflections on the phenomenon of catastrophe—climatological, political, social—as well as on the possibilities of overcoming disaster.
The fourth title in our Anarchist Intervention Series, co-published with the Institute for Anarchist Studies!
Javier Sethness-Castro presents the grim news from contemporary climatologists while providing a reconstructive vision inspired by anarchist intellectual traditions and promoting critical thought as a means of changing our historical trajectory.
