Aaron Kappeler: On the Kidnapping of a President
Anyone who knows Venezuela knows that things happen fast there. It is a function of the hectic pace of urban life in a society that is highly subject…
Tag: Donald Trump
Why propaganda, hate and political extremism thrive in the attention economy
Dogwhistles and Figleaves by Jennifer Mather Saul and Safe Havens for Hate by Tamar Mitts explore how extremist rhetoric thrives online and why content moderation doesn’t effectively tackle…
Kendrick Lamar vs. Trumps Amerika? Battle-Rap und populärkultureller Protest beim Super Bowl
Politischer Protest im popkulturellen Mainstream – der Rapper Kendrick Lamar nutzte die Halftime Show des diesjährigen Super Bowl für einen sneak diss gegen Trump.
Top secret. Eine kurze Geschichte von Geheimhaltung und Transparenz in den USA
Der aktuelle Zwist um geheime Regierungsdokumente in den Privathäusern von Trump, Biden und Pence ist nicht nur ein Lehrstück über Geheimhaltung, sondern auch über Transparenz. Und er berührt…
Two Lessons I Learned about the Transfer of Power while Living in Africa
1. The moment that any transfer of power occurs from one individual or regime to another is fraught—ritually, sociologically, emotionally. Why? This is a liminal period–“betwix…
Long Past Time for the 25th Amendment*
There will be plenty of time for Biden to use his extraordinary faith and energy and creativity to think about how this divided nation might be healed. For…
What to Call US Border Detention Centers?
The controversy over the term “concentration camps” stems from the connotations it carries, setting up analogies that risk hyperbole and overlook the complexities of historical comparison. The governm…
Speak the Names of Those Who Were Lost
Naming can dignify, disparage or even deny one’s social standing. Days after the horrific attack on the Christchurch mosque in New Zealand, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern spoke about…
Americans Can Do Two Things at the Same Time
Surely we have heard and seen enough by now that any lingering “optimism” about Trump governing as an anti-interventionist in foreign affairs has totally evaporated. What Trump promised…
When Women’s Laughter Keeps Men in Line
Among the Mbendjele gathering-hunting people who live in the Republic of Congo, “women’s laughter manages to keep men in line.” Drawing from ethnographic research by Jerome Lewis, anthropo…
Book Review: Strangers in their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right by Arlie Russell Hochschild
In Strangers in their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right, Arlie Russell Hochschild explores the ‘deep story’ behind the rise of the Tea Party and Donald Trump…
Book Review: Strangers in their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right by Arlie Russell Hochschild
In Strangers in their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right, Arlie Russell Hochschild explores the ‘deep story’ behind the rise of the Tea Party and Donald Trump…
Government Of, By, and For the Trolls
Countering Trump begins by recognizing his role as troller-in-chief. The United States and the world have now spent two years trying to figure out how to deal with…
Fighting America, One iPhone at a Time
Boycotts, illusions and the making of the new Turkey Find it absurd. Find it irrational. But while those infuriated with Nike in the United States were busy cutting…
Speaking with Silence
Silence can be a powerful communicative tool in today’s political landscape. Words take center stage in the verbal sparring of the Twitter age. Against the backdrop of Trumpian…
Reclaiming “Allahu Akbar” from Semantic Pejoration
Allāhu akbar, the Arabic phrase meaning “God is the greatest,” has gained connotations in US public discourse that differ vastly from its meaning among Muslims. Understanding this process…
The Helsinki Summit: Trying to Turn the Page on the New Cold War
Finally, on Monday, July 16, 2018, the Helsinki Summit bringing together Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump took place, despite shrill demands that it be…
Which Door Has Opened? Kim Jong-un, Donald Trump, and the Singapore Summit
Both leaders arrived in Singapore, with significant excitement greeting them. Trump, arriving from a bitter G7 meeting, after which he attacked Justin Trudeau personally, flew into Singapore on…
Better Off Without NAFTA, Part 3: Mexico—Armed Rebellion, Mass Migration, Flat GDP
Getting Past the Propaganda We are routinely told that Mexico has grown into the “one of the more robust emerging economies with exports of about $1 billion a…
Better Off Without NAFTA, Part 1: Introduction—the US, Trump, and Facts and Fictions about Winners and Losers
Canada, Mexico, and the US: we could argue that any one of these nation-states “lost” because of NAFTA while the others “won”. That is Donald Trump’s position: that…
How “Fake News” Lost Its Meaning
Collins Dictionary named “fake news” its 2017 word of the year, an easy choice given the word’s “unprecedented usage increase” of 365 percent over the previous year. Collins…
Trade War and the Nationalist Exchange: Trudeau Trails Trump
“These tariffs are totally unacceptable. For 150 years, Canada has been America’s most steadfast ally. Canadians have served alongside Americans in two world wars and in Korea. From…
North Korea: The Undaunted State Tests the Limits of Empire
North Korea is an exceptional state, but unlike an imperial power it lacks a doctrine of exceptionalism. It is exceptional in that it is willing to suffer any…
#MeToo Holds Lessons for Political Resistance
How to Stop the Normalizing of Trump. Remember when everyone feared the “normalization” of a Trump presidency? Well, it’s gotten to the point where the US president can…