Author Archives: verdecente

The Chilean song that emerged before Pinochet’s 1973 coup and spread from the Seattle Battle to the Arab Spring In June 1973, in Chile, the political situation was unsustainable. Marches, pot-banging protests, and strikes foreshadowed a dramatic outcome. In this context, composer Sergio Ortega gathered with the band Quilapayún to fulfill a commission from the Central Committee of the Communist Party: to create songs that supported Salvador Allende’s Popular Unity government. Between a curanto in the garden and Brahms’ chords, … Read more

  Between 19 and 22 July 2001, the Italian city of Genoa became the epicentre of the anti-globalization struggle. The meeting of G8 (Group of Eight) leaders triggered an unprecedented civic response, convened by the Genoa Social Forum, a platform that brought together around 800 organizations of different kinds. Estimates speak of between 200,000 and 300,000 people arriving from across Europe to take part in the counter-summit, at a time when the movement was at the height of its momentum. … Read more

The Corporation (2003) is a Canadian documentary directed by Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott, with a screenplay by Joel Bakan, which examines the legal and ethical nature of large corporations. The film is structured around a provocative hypothesis: if corporations are considered legal persons, what kind of personality do they exhibit? Drawing on the criteria of the DSM-IV and the contributions of specialist Robert D. Hare, it argues that the structural behavior of the modern corporation aligns with traits characteristic … Read more

Understanding the differences between these four concepts allows a more rigorous analysis of social and political processes. In political and media discourse, terms such as revolution, rebellion, reform, and coup d’état are often used imprecisely or interchangeably. Knowing their precise meaning allows people to form an informed opinion and interpret historical and contemporary events beyond ideological labels. Revolution is a profound and radical change in the political, social, and economic structures of a community, usually involving broad popular participation and … Read more

 Personal or institutional dependence on technological tools from corporations like Google and Microsoft constitutes a structural threat that goes beyond individual privacy. These companies operate through extractive models that commodify personal data, restrict interoperability, and create dependency through proprietary confinement or “vendor lock-in,” making it practically impossible to switch to another service provider. When using proprietary software, control over sensitive information is surrendered. Imposed updates modify functionalities without consent, algorithms manipulate behavior, and security breaches expose data to third parties. … Read more