As politics has shifted to the right since the early 80's, the left has been sadly left flat-footed as neo-liberal policies have proliferated around the western, democratic world. Where the right preached a gospel of smaller government, the left attempted to capture the political imagination by defending the role of the state. It was an important position to take, but as political strategy it has largely been a losing game. How can we deconstruct the neo-liberal rise to power and how do we rebuild a social democratic vision that inspires the country?

That is the central question of today's politics.

Gideon Levy is an award-winning Israeli journalist and editor for Haaretz, a liberal Israeli newspaper. Levy's weekly column in Ha'aretz, "The Twilight Zone," deals with the politically and emotionally charged subject of the hardships of Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza, and their conflicts with the Israeli military and Jewish settlers.

Prior to working for Ha'aretz, Levy was an aide 
to Shimon Peres -- at that time leader of the Israeli Labour party, now 
Israel's President --and served in the Israeli army for four years. The 
son of two Holocaust survivors, he was born in Tel Aviv, where he 
resides.

Judith Marcuse is the founder and Co-Director of the International Centre of Art for Social Change, a partnership with Simon Fraser University. She is also founder and artistic producer for Judith Marcuse Projects.

Am Johal: The BC government restored some funding recently to the arts.  To what degree does it make up for the devastating cuts that were implemented?