A conversation with Issue 58 cover artist Ellen Weinstein.
The post The Rituals of Art, Science, and Superstition appeared first on Nautilus.
Reading
Cokie’s Law über alles Longtime readers recall Cokie’s Law. Digby coined the term in 2008 for how skillfully the right wing tosses smears into the air to be carried by the media like the wind. Smears, lies, and disinformation become a “legitimate” subject of mainstream reporting not because they are true or meaningful but because they are “out there.” The law is named for the late NPR/ABC reporter Cokie Roberts: “At this point,” said Roberts, “it doesn’t much matter whether she said it or not because it’s become part of the culture. I was at the beauty parlor yesterday and this was all anyone was talking about.” Thus right-wing smears, lies, and disinformation become, in campaign parlance, “earned media.” James Fallows on Saturday did not reference Digby’s law, but essentially conceded that “the death-cloud of misinformation, ignorance, lies, myths, fears, stereotypes” has come to represent, like the shadows in Plato’s cave, an “artificial reality playing out in the minds of citizens.” Fallows: —It’s not a new problem in American democracy.
The right is strongly pro-natal. Some of it is for religious reasons, some of it is because they want to control (no, don’t even, the constant talk of male leadership leaves this unquestionable), but a lot of it is that they figure if they out-breed their opponents they’ll win.
Now if you’re talking ethnicity or “race” this is indisputable. Want more whites, or latinos, or whatever, if you breed less than others, that’s going to tell.
But when you’re talking ideology and culture, it isn’t.
The anti-abortion right thinks that out-breeding will work for them, but out-breeding only works if the kids you’re popping up keep your beliefs.
Look, this place needs to be administrated, and I’m the guy to do it. I know you’ve been doing your best, but you’ve been held back. You haven’t been given what you need to be successful. And I’m not talking about money. I’m not talking about resources and opportunities for growth. You’ve had plenty of that. Your problem is that no one gave you the administration you need to be successful. And that’s why I’m gonna administrate the absolute shit out of this place.
This place is primed to make boatloads of money—and I mean boatloads. Are we gonna help some students along the way? Yeah… probably. But you don’t need to worry about that. All you need to worry about is helping me get butts in seats so we can bring home that sweet, sweet bank.
I’m not just all about the money. I’ve got other priorities—strategic ones, if you know what I mean. And I won’t rest until you are literally dreaming about those strategic priorities. Do I care if those dreams are nightmares? Nope. All I care about is your being fully committed to aligning our existing resources with key growth areas in a way that ensures sustainable development and long-term impact.
As tensions mount over long range missile attacks on Russia, Chris York explains the daily routine for Ukrainians living in the capital Kyiv
A radical magic contest reveals the secrets of manipulation in a post-truth world.
- by Aeon Video
- by Vladyslav Vyazovskiy
- by Teddy Fassberg
When Rachel Reeves was heckled by a pro-Palestine protester during her party conference speech in September, she took the opportunity to make a statement — not about the tens of thousands of Gazans killed in the preceding year or the importance of strengthening the institutions of international law, but about the Labour Party. ‘This is […]
Democrats are in disarray. It’s time to name our enemies and assert our demands to build a party that can win.
The post Take Out the Trash: A Proposal to Clean Up the Democratic Party appeared first on The Intercept.
The global consensus on tackling climate change is fragmenting at the very moment action is most needed
The UK Government is dominated by figures from a discredited past at a time of radical global change, argues Neal Lawson
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"We have to [only] choose the ‘good’ ones that have the best pictures or the highest fatalities", says Laura Tobin
I mentioned last week in this blog post – The dislocation between the PMC and the rest of the working class – Part 1 (November 11, 2024) – that I had been reading the 2021 book – Virtue Hoarders: The Case Against the Professional Managerial Class (published by Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press) – written…
After the shock of the 2016 election, as I felt I was emotionally drowning, I recall writing more than once that the only thing I could do going forward was try to see things as clearly as possible and convey that to the best of my ability. It’s not easy at times like this, and it’s especially difficult when your own friends and allies are often siezing on the opportunity to validate their priors and ride their hobby horses without a whole lot of evidence. It’s human to do that but I’m rarely persuaded by those arguments at times like these and I suspect most of you aren’t either. It’s just too soon and there are too many variables to be sure of any particular analysis. I have missed reading Michael Bérubé in recent years. As a founding member of the old liberal blogosphere his wit and wisdom were hugely influential of me so I was glad to see that he’s written one of the best critique of the critiques I’ve yet seen. You’ll see what I’m talking about: By now, everyone knows why Kamala Harris lost to Donald Trump: because she didn’t do the thing I wanted her to do.
Here’s Donald Trump accusing a pollster who got it wrong of causing great distrust in the electoral system and he wants her investigated. You CANNOT make this shit up!
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