Political Theatre category archive
Who Is the “Far Left”? 0
Thom discusses the “far left” in America and points out what I’ve said for a long time. There isn’t one.
Hell, Dwight Eisenhower would be considered “far left” by today’s Republican Party.
A Poisonous Environment 0
Warning: Language; short promo at the end.
Ryan’s Derp 0
It’s Last Week several nights ago, but John Oliver’s take on it is priceless (Warning: Language).
“So Much Winning” 0
Shaun Mullen counts the days to one hundred. Here’s how he starts out:
No, it is this: For Trump, the presidency is all about him.
Image via Job’s Anger.
The Peace Train 0
Francis J. Gavin, writing in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, considers Americans self-image as a peace-loving people and finds it somewhere between wishful-thinking and delusion.
I don’t agree with everything he says, but I think the article is worth the few minutes it will take you to read it. Here’s a bit:
It is easy to understand why Americans embrace these views. If the U.S. and its citizens and values are associated with peace and stability, then actions that might typically be understood through the narrow lens of self-interest can instead be translated into selfless policies that benefit mankind.
(snip)
Or so the story goes. But an honest portrayal of our own history, and that of world politics over the past few centuries, casts doubt on all three assumptions.
The Producers, Live Action Version 0
Tony Norman marvels at life’s imitating art.
Hope in the Trumpled Times 0
In my local rag, political science professor Matthew Hall lists four reasons to be cautiously optimistic, despite the triumph of Trumpery at the polls in the Electoral College. Here’s one (emphasis in the print version, though not in the web version):
Follow the link for the other three.
Down in the Dumbs 0
Josh Marshall finds himself concerned about what he dubs the “militant ignorance” of Donald Trump. A snippet:
(snip)
Remaining ignorant is probably a good adaptive strategy for him because it allows him to pretend that everything is obvious, that he can solve any problem and generally act like he can do anything – in a way, this allowed him to become President.
War and Mongers of War 0
Speaking of five-year old boys playing “Bang! Bang! You’re Dead!” . . . .
“But the Emails . . . “ 0
Will Bunch, who is a fairly reasonable sort, has had enough. Here’s a bit of today’s column:
This is what’s so alarming — that Trump might blow Kim Jung-un and a few million North Koreans to smithereens just to boost his hotel occupancy rates in Vegas. Apparently, the push to save the Trump Organization for democracy is behind the recent changes at the White House; Steve Bannon and his comic-book white supremacists and pretend Nazis are on the outs, and the retired generals and the boys (and girls) from Goldman Sachs are taking charge. In other words, the “serious people” who gave us the Iraq War and the 2008 fiscal collapse. That’s the upgrade. Heaven help us.
Image via Juanita Jean.
Afterthought:
I can’t shake the thought that Donald Trump reminds of nothing so much as a five-year old boy playing “Bang! Bang! You’re Dead!”
