Authoritarianism

By Steve Fraser | – ( Tomdispatch.com) – News is “faked”; elections are “rigged”; a “deep state” plots a “coup”; Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died suspiciously in bed with a pillow over his face; aides of ex-president Barack Obama conspire to undermine foreign policy from a “war room”; Obama himself was a Muslim mole; […]

Authoritarianism

Patriotism, American Style: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Bahman Fozouni

Sacramento, Ca. (Special to Informed Comment) – What is Patriotism? Let’s begin with the difficult part: defining and understanding patriotism. Patriotism refers to the feelings and behaviors of individuals and groups who see themselves belonging to a large community called a nation, and who identify intensely with it. When the chips are down, those who […]

Authoritarianism

Trump and Kim Jong Un both Defy Coronavirus with Monumentally Stupid Monumental Gatherings

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – On Saturday, Kim Jong Un insists on having a huge parade in honor of the 75th anniversary of the ruling Workers’ Party, and Trump insists on having a crowd on the grounds of the White House. Then on Monday, Trump will hold a rally north of Orlando, Florida. Trump’s rallies […]

Authoritarianism

Surviving the long Trump Pandemic+ or, 210,000 didn’t Have to Die

Frida Berrigan

(Tomdispatch.com ) – After all these months and 210,000 deaths, you’d think I’d be used to it all, but I’m not. It doesn’t seem even a little normal yet. I’m still full of absences, missing so much I used to take for granted: hugs and handshakes, rooms crowded for funerals and weddings, potluck dinners and […]

Authoritarianism

Arab World, Alarmed at US Debate Debacle, Worries about Military Coup and ‘Banana Republic’ on Potomac

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Arabic press watched the Trump-Biden fiasco of a debate with alarm. The US is so involved in the Arab world that our elections are consequential for their lives. When we hear that Arabs are looking at America and thinking “this looks like a military coup waiting to happen,” we […]

Authoritarianism

The Mobster-in-Chief: Will the November Election Be Decided in the Streets?

John Feffer

( Tomdispatch.com ) – The white mobs didn’t care whom they killed as long as the victims were Black. They murdered people in public with guns and rocks. They set fire to houses and slaughtered families trying to escape the flames. In East St. Louis in July 1917, white vigilantes lynched Blacks with impunity. It […]

Authoritarianism

10 things you need to know to stop a coup

Waging Nonviolence

(Waging Nonviolence) – We have a president who has openly said he might not respect the outcome of our election. We have to be ready if he claims victory before votes are counted, tries to stop counting, or refuses to accept a loss. Some days I feel confident it will happen. A poll showed over […]

Authoritarianism

Covid Lies: Why Your life Hangs on the Deranged Whims of One Man

Martin Powers

A Declaration of Independence from Donald Trump

Authoritarianism

The Strange Case of Donald J. Trump: A Psychological Reckoning

Richard Penaskovic

Auburn, Al. (Special to Informed Comment) – In this article I review the The Strange Case of Donald J. Trump by Dan P. McAdams [click], published by Oxford University Press in 2020. McAdams is a pre-eminent expert in personality theory and the Henry Wade Rogers Professor of Psychology at Northwestern University who does research on […]