Nation Conversations: Mark Sorkin and William Greider on Reimagining Capitalism

Nation Conversations: Mark Sorkin and William Greider on Reimagining Capitalism

Nation Conversations: Mark Sorkin and William Greider on Reimagining Capitalism

The political and economic system is broken. It’s time we step back and rethink how we can make capitalism work for us.

Facebook
Twitter
Email
Flipboard
Pocket

From the streets to the boardrooms of America, the dysfunctions of our political and economic system are on full display: from the ongoing Great Recession to a Congress in the pocket of corporations to a banking sector that serves themselves instead of the public good. Against this disheartening backdrop, what we really need to do is step back and reimagine capitalism itself.

In this week’s special issue of The Nation, guest editor William Greider brings together 16 short proposals for how we can begin to craft a system that works for everyone—not just for the wealthiest Americans. In this Nation Conversation, Greider joins associate editor Mark Sorkin to explain that pushing these proposals could offer a chance for the progressive community to go on the offense in working towards changing a broken system.

—Sara Jerving

We cannot back down

We now confront a second Trump presidency.

There’s not a moment to lose. We must harness our fears, our grief, and yes, our anger, to resist the dangerous policies Donald Trump will unleash on our country. We rededicate ourselves to our role as journalists and writers of principle and conscience.

Today, we also steel ourselves for the fight ahead. It will demand a fearless spirit, an informed mind, wise analysis, and humane resistance. We face the enactment of Project 2025, a far-right supreme court, political authoritarianism, increasing inequality and record homelessness, a looming climate crisis, and conflicts abroad. The Nation will expose and propose, nurture investigative reporting, and stand together as a community to keep hope and possibility alive. The Nation’s work will continue—as it has in good and not-so-good times—to develop alternative ideas and visions, to deepen our mission of truth-telling and deep reporting, and to further solidarity in a nation divided.

Armed with a remarkable 160 years of bold, independent journalism, our mandate today remains the same as when abolitionists first founded The Nation—to uphold the principles of democracy and freedom, serve as a beacon through the darkest days of resistance, and to envision and struggle for a brighter future.

The day is dark, the forces arrayed are tenacious, but as the late Nation editorial board member Toni Morrison wrote “No! This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.”

I urge you to stand with The Nation and donate today.

Onwards,

Katrina vanden Heuvel
Editorial Director and Publisher, The Nation

Ad Policy
x