Michael Parenti, born on this day in 1933, is a Marxist American political scientist and cultural critic. He has taught at American and international universities and has been a guest lecturer before campus and community audiences.

Among Parenti's works are "Blackshirts & Reds: Rational Fascism and the Overthrow of Communism", which details political and living conditions in the Soviet Bloc, as well as "To Kill a Nation: The Attack on Yugoslavia", which vehemently condemned the NATO bombing of that country.

"No surprise then that the 'pure' socialists support every revolution except for the ones that succeed."

- Michael Parenti