Drumbeats category archive
The Lies of the Land 0
Behavioral economist Lionel Page explores how propaganda works. A tiny little snippet from a very long article:
In a related vein, Badtux argues that, strictly defined, propaganda may be slanted and manipulative, yes, but it may not necessarily be false.
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*Hence the success of Fox News.
Stray Thought, War and Mongers of War Dept. 0
A bayonet is not a scalpel.
On the battlefield, there is no such thing as a “surgical strike,” despite what the mongers of war would have you believe.
All that Was Old Is New Again 0
In the Portland Press-Herald, Bill Nemitz reminds us that history doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.*
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*As Mark Twain said.
A Notion of Immigrants 0
A caller calls out America’s color-coded double standard on granting refuge to refugees.
War and Mongers of War 0
At the Bangor Daily News, Gordon Weil decodes de code, in this case, Vladimir Putin’s self-styled “justifications” for invading Ukraine. Here’s one little bit; follow the link for the rest.
Useful Idiots 0
At The Seattle Times, Mike Vaska argues that four columns are enough. A snippet:
Follow the link to read how he marshals his evidence.
The Fifth Column Flip-Flop 0
Aside:
My old Philly DL friend Noz thinks that Vladimir Putin has maneuvered himself in a corner. Noz is less than optimistic about the implications thereof.
Me, I don’t do predictions as a matter of policy. Hell, understanding the past is hard enough. I must say, though, that Noz is much more familiar with that part of the world than I.
The Cost of War 0
Citing an article from The Atlantic, Michael in Norfolk suggests that it may be a lot higher than Vladimir Putin anticipated.
The Disinformation Superhighway Goes to War, Reprise 0
Rebecca Watson discusses the role of the disinformation superhighway in spreading misinformation in a time of crisis and suggests precautions persons can take to avoid “sharing” mis- and disinformation.
Read the transcript.
Roots 0
At The American Scholar, an American descendant of Ukrainian immigrants who is still in touch with her family in Ukraine looks eastward. A bit of what she has to say:
In that time, I have seen the country change in ways big and small. In the past five years in particular, Ukraine seems to have blossomed—while the Russian occupation of the Donbas ground on in the east, it did so relatively quietly, and Kyiv thrummed with youth, style, and energy. The country’s filmmakers have won major prizes at Sundance; Ukrainian literature is increasingly translated into other languages. I have watched my cousins’ children grow up in a Ukraine that is resolutely independent and cosmopolitan; in a departure from previous post-Soviet cohorts, their opportunities seemed to be growing, not shrinking.
