Political Theatre category archive

Now that many artists are eschewing the Kennedy Center since Donald Trump insisted on putting his taint on it, the Tampa Bay Time’s Daniel Ruth has some suggestions for possible premiers to publicize on its playbill.

At the Idaho State Journal, Mike Murphy looks at the record of four despotic leaders and wonders

. . . which one presents the most imminent danger for you—and the world.

Go read his article and choose your nominee.

Mr. Newberger parses the playbook.

Warning: Mild language.

Gene Nichol thinks we may already be over the edge of the cliff.

(And, yes, I know that lemmings don’t really jump off cliffs. But it appears that people sometimes do.)

Steve M. opines that, when many news reports refer to “conservative” Republicans, they are, in fact, misspelling the word “radical.” Here’s one example from his article (emphasis added):

Unsurprisingly, a GOP member of Congress has decided to suck up to Trump by backing his imperialist quest for Greenland:

A Republican congressman from Florida introduced a bill Monday to annex Greenland and make it the 51st U.S. state as President Trump threatens to seize the autonomous Danish territory….

Rep. Randy Fine said his new legislation would authorize Mr. Trump “to take whatever steps necessary to annex or acquire Greenland.” …

“Greenland is not a distant outpost we can afford to ignore — it is a vital national security asset,” Fine said in a statement.

That’s from CBS News. Axios also reported on this, referring to Fine as “a staunch Trump loyalist from Florida.”

This is how the most radical Republicans stay under the radar. They’re described this way even if they’re extreme — and Fine is very extreme. Meanwhile, the media continues to portray the mostly very moderate Democratic Party as in thrall to dangerous radicals, and a large percentage of the public believes that.

At Psychology Today Blogs, Peter T. Coleman writes of a 1939 experiment that he finds quite telling in these Trumpled times.

No summary or excerpt will do his article justice. Follow the link and read his piece.

From the Youtube page:

The “Battle Hymn of the Republic” is an iconic American song, drawing on lots of roots and precursors, but pulled into its most famous shape by abolitionist Julia Ward Howe. During the American Civil War it became a signature marching song for the Union Army, linked to patriotism and faith, and has since become part of the canon of American national music. We do not attempt or treat it lightly, but our version reflects on how the first week of 2026 has already seen Trump’s troops advancing his domestic and foreign policy agendas. Every marching step is another step away from the principles and traditions embedded in the song: we have seen the transgression of international law in Venezuela, the murder of unarmed Americans in Minneapolis (and its defence by the administration), the US’s withdrawal from multiple international organisations, and explicit threats issued to other sovereign powers and polities, including Greenland.