Marxist historian Michael Parenti passed away on Jan. 24 at the age of 92. Parenti had the support of his students and fellow faculty members, but the UVM bosses prevailed in their anti-communist crusade. As a Marxist scholar, Parenti was a staunch defender of socialist countries and the former Soviet Union. Parenti explained not only “how” but “why” the capitalist class waged war against Yugoslavia, following the destruction of the USSR and Eastern bloc socialist systems. In an essay titled, “The Rational Destruction of Yugoslavia,” Parenti stressed: “The dismemberment and mutilation of Yugoslavia was part of a concerted policy initiated by the United States and the other Western powers in 1989.