The theme of imperialism became widely debated early in the twentieth century through monumental events in Europe, and through the scholarly work of Hobson, Hlilferding, Luxemburg, Boukharine and Lenin, amongst others. In the recent period, with the restructuring of world capitalism (usually termed as “globalization”) and the launch of the “endless war” by the United States following 9/11, imperialism has come back as a research topic and a policy discussion: What is the nature of imperialism in the context of the (relative) decline of the US Empire and the rise of “emerging” countries”? How globalized capitalism extends its reach through the new channels of accumulation through finance and technology? What are the impacts of these changes on our changing world?

Leo Victor Panitch, is a Distinguished Research Professor of Political Science and Canada Research Chair in Comparative Political Economy at York University. Since 1985, he has served as co-editor of the Socialist Register, which describes itself as “an annual survey of movements and ideas from the standpoint of the independent new left.