The S Word: A Short History of an American Tradition...Socialism

A short, sharp, irreverent rejoinder to right-wing red-baiting

During the Cold War it became a dirty word in the United States, but "socialism" runs like a red thread through the nation's history, an integral part of its political consciousness since the founding of the republic. In this unapologetic corrective to today's collective amnesia, John Nichols calls for the proud return of socialism in American life. He recalls the reforms lauded by Founding Father Tom Paine; the presence of Karl Marx's journalism in American letters; the left leanings of founders of the Republican Party; the socialist politics of Helen Keller; the progressive legacy of figures like Chaplin and Einstein. Now in an updated edition, The "S" Word makes a case for socialist ideas as an indispensable part of American heritage. A new final chapter considers the recent signs of a leftward sea change in American politics in the face of increasing and historic levels of inequality.

Today, corporations--like other rich "individuals"--pay fewer taxes than they did in the 1950s, while our infrastructure crumbles and the seas rise. The "S" Word addresses a nation that can no longer afford to put capital before people.

Author: John Nichols
Publisher: Verso
Published: 11/03/2015
Pages: 352
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.90lbs
Size: 8.20h x 5.50w x 1.00d
ISBN13: 9781784783402
ISBN10: 1784783404
BISAC Categories:
- Political Science | Political Ideologies | Communism, Post-Communism & Socialism
- Political Science | Political Ideologies | Radicalism
- History | United States | General

About the Author
John Nichols is the Washington correspondent for The Nation magazine, a contributing writer for the Progressive and In These Times, and the associate editor of Madison, Wisconsin's Capital Times. He is the author of several books, including The Death and Life of American Journalism and The Genius of Impeachment.