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Created
Tue, 07/11/2023 - 06:30
Imagine what would happen if Trump testified in a criminal case. pic.twitter.com/nDhZM6O98N — Bill Grueskin (@BGrueskin) November 6, 2023 Cue the reporting about how Trump, a 77 year old conspiracist who is delusional about basic aspects of reality, is too cognitively impaired to be president. Right? Right? pic.twitter.com/3Gdp2tgOBc — Brian Klaas (@brianklaas) November 6, 2023 Here’s a minute by minute of the morning session. Jesus H. Christ.  Tens of millions of people want to put this psycho back in the White House: “All rise.” Court is now in session. Justice Engoron alludes to the photographers, who are about to come in to photograph Trump and counsel at the defense table.  Note: This will be the second time that Trump takes the stand in this trial. The first time, Justice Engoron found him “not credible” — and in violation of his gag order. Engoron remarked that they’re often referred to as a “gaggle” of photojournalist, a word usually used to describe “geese,” he notes.  NYAG’s counsel Kevin Wallace: “The People call Donald J.
Created
Tue, 07/11/2023 - 06:00

In my recent article in Contemporary Political Theory, I demonstrate that the convergence of fascistic and neoliberal politics is not a novel contemporary phenomenon as is widely presumed, but rather has historical roots in the political context of the 1930s and 1940s. I examine a group of political actors and thinkers who were active in both neoliberal and fascist movements, and unpack the logics that led these figures to believe the fascist politics of the 1930s were compatible with the nascent neoliberal movement in which they all also participated.

The post Neoliberal Fascism? Historical precedents and contemporary convergences appeared first on Progress in Political Economy (PPE).

Created
Tue, 07/11/2023 - 05:30
Trump’s minions are busily drawing up plans to prosecute enemies and deploy the military into the streets of America Over the weekend, Democrats celebrated their biennial tradition of hand-wringing and panic about the election a year hence. Every cycle about this time, polls showing that their voters are unhappy with their candidates and wish they had someone better are floated by all the major polling outfits and everyone starts hyperventilating. It seems like only yesterday that the polling showed Democrats being swept away by a “red tsunami” in the midterms and it was inevitable that they would lose both chambers of Congress for the foreseeable future. Oops! One of the more extreme examples of this came back in 2011 when President Barack Obama was running for re-election. With a 61% disapproval rating on the economy and 73% saying the country was heading in the wrong direction in some polls, there was growing talk of running a primary opponent or replacing Joe Biden as vice president on the ticket.
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Tue, 07/11/2023 - 05:00

The Amelia Uncertainty Principle. As confidence in your toddler’s current shoe size increases, consistency in sizing across shoe manufacturers decreases.

Alder’s Observation. A toddler in motion remains in motion. A toddler at rest will pee on itself.

The Third Law of Theo Dynamics. If an object exceeds the temperature of 100 degrees Fahrenheit, the atoms of a toddler will begin moving toward that object.

The Jordynn Theorem. The emotional strain of installing a car seat in an airport rental lot produces enough heat and light to be visible from other galaxies.

Graham’s Principle of Least Restraint. The kinetic energy of a thrown Hot Wheels car must always exceed the shatter resistance of a newly replaced bedroom window.

Hanako’s Axiom. It is true that all right angles are equal to one another, and that your toddler will run full-tilt into every right angle in your home an equal number of times.

Created
Tue, 07/11/2023 - 04:57
The global warming problem seems increasingly insoluble. The past record shows growing gaps between ambition and achievement, decreasing time in which to act, and governments, including Australia’s, stubbornly sticking to policies that have failed to stop emissions growth. Clues to the reasons behind this can be found in the Treasurer’s address to the Economic and Continue reading »
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Tue, 07/11/2023 - 04:56
Former Australian Trade Minister Andrew Robb, in an exclusive interview with People’s Daily Online, said he viewed the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to China as another step toward normalising political relations. Albanese is scheduled to visit China from November 4 to 7, 2023, during which he will participate in the sixth China Continue reading »
Created
Tue, 07/11/2023 - 04:55
Israel’s strategic choices, as Israelis see it, are rather like those sometimes argued for Australia. It wants powerful friends but cannot take them for granted. Ultimately it must depend on itself, if needs be alone. Surrounded by deadly enemies, it must make the cost of conquest so high, and so uncertain, that invaders are deterred. Continue reading »
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Tue, 07/11/2023 - 04:54
Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose. The Medical Benefits Schedule (MBS) Review Advisory Committee (MRAC) has been tasked with supporting “a continuous review framework that ensures the MBS is contemporary, sustainable, evidence- based, and supports universal access to high value care for all Australians. Good about time. Action to address the inequity relating Continue reading »
Created
Tue, 07/11/2023 - 04:51
The system of fixed term contracts for department heads is not in itself the cause of the recent debacles of Robodebt and Home Affairs. Restoring permanent appointments for departmental heads is unthinkable, not least because the former system rested upon powerful public service boards, now abolished everywhere. We could not restore such bodies even if Continue reading »
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Tue, 07/11/2023 - 04:50
An older man, grey-haired but quite firm in his manner as he spoke to the ABC TV reporter on Palestine’s West Bank. He was an Israeli, he said, and he was claiming the building site because, ‘God gave us this land.’ He fingered what seemed to be a real estate contract tucked under his left Continue reading »
Created
Tue, 07/11/2023 - 04:00
He and his teenage son check each other’s porn habits Not a joke: SPEAKER OF THE House Mike Johnson admitted that he and his son monitored each other’s porn intake in a resurfaced clip from 2022. During a conversation on the “War on Technology” at Benton, Louisiana’s Cypress Baptist Church — unearthed by X user Receipt Maven last week — the Louisiana representative talked about how he installed “accountability software” called Covenant Eyes on his devices in order to abstain from internet porn and other unsavory websites. “It scans all the activity on your phone, or your devices, your laptop, what have you; we do all of it,” Johnson told the panel about the app. “It sends a report to your accountability partner. My accountability partner right now is Jack, my son. He’s 17. So he and I get a report about all the things that are on our phones, all of our devices, once a week. If anything objectionable comes up, your accountability partner gets an immediate notice.