D'oh! Kapital

In which, given the apparent slow implosion of the Morrison government, Ben and Jacob take a look at two very different sides of Federal Labor leader Anthony Albanese.

In which Ben and Jacob welcome back Jose Muñoz to discuss the election of Gabriel Boric as the next president of Chile. Boric defeated the Pinochetista Jose Antonio Kast to become the youngest person to be elected president at the age of 35, and has declared that Chile will become the tomb of neoliberalism. We read from Rene Rojas' article "Will Neoliberalism Finally End in Chile?" in Jacobin: htt...

In which Ben and Jacob discuss the current wave of labour unrest in the US of A, and the ways bosses there and in Australia are able to divide workers using unscrupulous practices and bad laws. We mention https://whogetsthebird.substack.com/ , a great weekly newsletter covering the US labor movement.

In which Ben and Jacob are joined by Jose Muñoz to talk about recent developments in Chile's historic constitutional convention, the state of the left, forthcoming presidential elections and the new confirmation of Australian participation in the 1973 fascist/neoliberal coup against Salvador Allende. Sorry this one's late!

In which Ben and Jacob enjoy a cracking chat with Amy Haddad, Nick Dixon-Wilmshurst and Suzanne Orr MLA about the ACT legislature's inquiry into the working week, and what a 4-day week would mean for working peoples' lives, for the structure of our society, and for the earth's climate. References: "Stop the Clock: the Environmental Benefits of a Shorter Working Week" - https://6a142ff6-85bd-4a7b-b...

In which Ben and Jacob catch up with former ACT Labor Secretary Matt Byrne to discuss the relationship between socialists inside and outside of the ALP, and their apparent mutual certainty of the political unseriousness of their counterparts. If you get something out of the show and have the means, please consider supporting D'oh! Kapital on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/dohkapital We mention t...

In which Ben and Jacob are joined once again by local sage Amy Haddad to talk about vaccine patents, Australia's pinkwashed budget and a home-grown take on the future of democracy in the Australian Labor Party. Things we mentioned: https://newrepublic.com/article/162000/bill-gates-impeded-global-access-covid-vaccines https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/news-federal-budget/2021/05/12/alison-penningt...

In which the fellas return to a favourite topic of discussion: can the ALP be a vehicle for socialism in Australia? They're lucky to be joined by Osmond Chiu, a rigorous left-wing thinker (an endangered species) who works at Per Capita and edits Challenge Mag. Follow Osmond @redrabbleroz on Twitter Osmond's piece in Challenge: https://www.challengemag.org/post/a-labor-party-that-reflects-australia...

In which Ben and Jacob are joined by absolute legends Amy Haddad and Tim Dobson to wrap up the hellacious year that was 2020, examine the ways COVID19 has altered the landscape for industrial and political organising, speculate on the future of climate action and pine sweetly for the leadership of one of our all-time Loosest Aussie Blokes, one Edward Joseph McGuire.

In which Jacob and Ben chat to Canberran socialist and Chilean expat Jose Muñoz about the long skinny country's history since the Pinochet dictatorship baked neoliberalism into its constitution; the recent triumphant referendum to hold a new constitutional convention; and the radical potential of the democratic revolution which filled the streets to demand it.

In which Ben and Jacob are joined by Amy Haddad for an ACT election spectacular. We discuss the Greens' big win, Labor's (illusory?) electoral stasis, minor party shenanigans and the Canberra Liberals' big flop. This one's a goody!

In which it's election season, baby! Ben and Jacob get warmed up for next week's big ACT election episode with some idle chit chat about the concurrent elections in New Zealand and Bolivia. Did Bolivians really just "vote out fascism" as our beloved liberal columnists like to say? Will the Warm and Compassionate Jacinda finally do something about New Zealand's housing crisis?

In which, after some discussion of the impending ACT election, Melbournians' anti-lockdown protests, and the jackbooted response by Victoria Police, Ben and Jacob pare open the recent bust-up between youtuber Jordan Shanks and members of the Australian Unemployed Workers' Union. Phillip Mendes, "From Protest to Acquiescence: Political Movements of the Unemployed" in Social Alternatives, Volume 18,...

In which Ben and Jacob are joined once again by Matt Byrne for a deep dive into the recent branch-stacking scandal in Victoria. We talk history, factions and party organising. Consequences dissected, recent history half-remembered, and crises of faith averted: this episode's got it all. Outro music: Skinny by Kilroy (2020) https://open.spotify.com/track/5mUBTlL1WXWZlAsJ17tPKA?si=1j9Hi8xFT2WOnEvrr-...

In which Ben takes Jacob on a rollicking ride through the militant history of Canberra's far left. Forget the pathos-mongering of Joe Cinque's Consolation - we're talking about the rumbles, the occupations and the victories from AIDEX '91 to the anti-globalisation movement. Good news! this is the final episode recorded on Zoom with garbage microphones - from now on each episode of D'Oh! Kapital is...

In which Ben and Jacob are joined from the land of moule-frites and lambic by former Secretary of ACT Labor, Matthew Byrne. They discuss the impact of COVID-19 on election campaigning and party democracy, before diving into the meanings and consequences of the now infamous 'Labor Leaks' scandal over in the UK. Again, sorry about the poor audio quality!

Episode 1; in which Ben and Jacob chat about party democracy, and the former Australian Greens leaders' intervention in the party's recent push for one-member-one-vote leadership elections. Sorry about the dodgy audio quality - we started recording in person with proper mics from episode 4 onwards! Closing music: Valerio by Kilroy kilroycanberra.bandcamp.com