Lucy Parsons: Goddess of Anarchy

Several years ago ,* I wrote my first book for adults: The Everything Guide to Understanding Socialism. It is a history of socialism, from its roots in Utopian idealism through Tea Party accusations that Barack Obama is a socialist.** I spent considerable time reading and writing about socialism and anarchism in America prior to World…

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The Russian Revolution, Part 2

Save Save When we last left Russia, Tsar Nicholas had been forced into accepted a limited monarchy in 1905 and was not playing nicely with the new parliament. Never a good idea if you want to stave off civil unrest.* In the years between 1905 and 1917, things went from bad to worse for Russia.…

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The Russian Revolution, Part 1

The hundredth anniversary of the Russian Revolution isn’t causing a stir yet in the places where history buffs hang out on line. Or at least not that I’ve seen.* It doesn’t have the cachet/glamour/melancholy/nostalgia accorded to the beginning of the First World War or the sinking of the Titanic. Unlike the Battle of Waterloo, there…

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