Latest Content for Old Mole Variety Hour

Desiree Hellegers reads an excerpt from her commentary, “An Anti-fascist Christmas Carol and Tale of Two Cities: Portland, Oregon at the Crossroads,” which appears in today’s edition of Counterpunch. She reflects on the role that the persistent demonization of houseless peo... Read more

Bill Resnick interviews David Riemer about his latest book, Putting Government in its Place, the Case for a new Deal 3.0. But don’t be fooled. He sees state policy as crucial for controlling capitalism, and he attributes our current crises of inequality, homelessness, and g... Read more

Denise Morris hosts this epsiode of the Old Mole about the meaning and de-meaning of routine work. In a re-broadcast from Against the Grain, Sasha Lilley interviews author Barbara Garson in a show that originally aired on April 27, 2022. We spend much of our lives at work ... Read more

  Jon Nelson hosts this episode of the Old Mole, which includes the following segments: Grad Students on Strike: Grad student teachers, researchers, teaching assistants, and more, 48,000 of them, are now on strike across the University of California system. It’s the large... Read more

Grad student teachers, researchers, teaching assistants, and more, 48,000 of them, are now on strike across the University of California system. It’s the largest strike in the History of American higher ed, and what happens at the University of California will set the stand... Read more

Frann Michel recommends the novel Confessions of the Fox (2018) by Jordy Rosenberg, a genre-bending work of radical speculative history from below, telling the story of the real 18th-century thief,  jailbreaker, and folk hero Jack Sheppard, reimagined here as a trans man al... Read more

In the second half of the “Life and Legacy of Yvonne Simmons,” we hear more about the remarkable life of this London street kid, who became a folk singer, international peace activist, and a founding member of Portland Peace and Justice Works. Featuring reflections from Mar... Read more

Jan Haaken interviews Jacob Reisberg, ACLU attorney, on safety and health conditions in US jails. Reisberg spearheaded a federal lawsuit last year against the Orange County sheriff to force him and the county to reduce the jail's population to better implement social distan... Read more

Book Mole Larry Bowlden reviews Horse, a 2022 novel by Geraldine Brooks about a great American racehorse and, more importantly, the turning tide of legalized slavery in 1850s America. Journalist turned novelist Brooks brings all of her prodigious talents to this superb hist... Read more

On November 17 of this year, left author, activist, labor lawyer and historian Staughton Lynd died at the age of 92. In this tribute, his friend and fellow activist, Andy Piascik summarizes Lynd’s legacy. The article, entitled “Forever Young: Staughton Lynd”, was published ... Read more