Islands of Totalitarianism and Democracy continued Media are not the only cause of the mess we are in, nor do they present the only way out. I fear that I may have been implied this in my last Gray Friday post, as I reflected on my discussions with Daniel Dayan last month: “Daniel and I share a sense that we are in the midst of a fundamentally disordered global situation. …
Notes on my conversation with Daniel Dayan about the disturbing events in France and the United States, and beyond It’s different now. While, in the past, I focused on how “islands of democracy” form and develop in totalitarian contexts, these days, I am examining how “islands of totalitarianism” are forming and developing in democratic contexts. This, Daniel Dayan, my dear friend and colleague, insightfully observed last week in …
Trump, Journalism, and Objectivity Amehub via Wikimedia Commons Public Seminar is pleased to announce that Ian Olosov’s essay, originally printed at Public Seminar on March 13 2017, was one of four essays to win of the American Philosophical Association 2018 Public Philosophy Op-Ed contest. Congratulations Ian! It is neither fake news, nor really even new news, that the press is struggling to deal with the steady stream of bogus claims …
As the country falls under populist rule is it a change — or an old story? This essay was originally posted on November 20 2018. A New York Times article by Andrew Higgins paints a troubling picture of Latvia falling under populist rule. Higgins’ concern is based on the results of the recent elections that makes possible a coalition between what he calls a “pro-Russian” and anti-establishment parties. Although his …
By mobilizing at the grassroots, Democrats successfully outflanked the GOP by crafting resistance into a coherent agenda Soon after the election of Donald Trump, a wave of protest bubbled up against the new president and his policies. Beginning with the “Women’s March” on January 21st, 2017, followed by protests on behalf of gun control and against the threat of climate change, and led by new groups like Indivisible …
Why we need consensus on the democratic left to defend liberal institutions This symposium contains essays by Michael Walzer, Sheri Berman, Leo Casey, and Jeffrey C. Isaac that reflect on the principles and possibilities of social democracy and liberal democracy in our current political times. The pieces constitute extensions of the authors’ presentations in the “Crisis of Democracy” panel that took place at the American Political Science Association …
We have lost the sense of the possible that social democracy injected into postwar liberal democracy This symposium contains essays by Michael Walzer, Sheri Berman, Leo Casey, and Jeffrey C. Isaac that reflect on the principles and possibilities of social democracy and liberal democracy in our current political times. The pieces constitute extensions of the authors’ presentations in the “Crisis of Democracy” panel that took place at the …
We need to both defend liberal democratic norms and institutions and address their fault lines This symposium contains essays by Michael Walzer, Sheri Berman, Leo Casey, and Jeffrey C. Isaac that reflect on the principles and possibilities of social democracy and liberal democracy in our current political times. The pieces constitute extensions of the authors’ presentations in the “Crisis of Democracy” panel that took place at the American …
A capitalism transformed by a strong version of social democracy should be our political goal This symposium contains essays by Michael Walzer, Sheri Berman, Leo Casey, and Jeffrey C. Isaac that reflect on the principles and possibilities of social democracy and liberal democracy in our current political times. The pieces constitute extensions of the authors’ presentations in the “Crisis of Democracy” panel that took place at the American …
Attacks on Gender Studies and the conquest of democracy Today is the anniversary of a special revolution in Germany: 100 years of women’s suffrage. On November 12, 1918, the German Council of People’s Representatives publicly announced that it would henceforth carry out all “elections under the same, secret, direct, universal suffrage on the basis of the proportional electoral system for all males and females who are at least …
