The Roundup Top Ten for December 23, 2020
Trump Didn’t Attempt a Coup. He Threw a Temper Tantrum that Never Had a Chanceby David GreenbergLiberals fearing the collapse of democracy can exhale. In 1974 the Watergate scandal portended a similar constitutional crisis. The panic was the same then as now, and institutions that seemed fragile then as now survived. |
New York Ban on Confederate Imagery is More than a Symbolic Gestureby Karen L. CoxConfederate symbols have been used by opponents of civil rights in New York; the governor's ban on displaying them on state property makes sense in light of this history. |
Reflections on Vietnam and Iraq: The Lessons of Two Failed Warsby Andrew BacevichAlthough the prospects for quickly turning around the ship seem dim, this has been an election year ending in zero, which has often signaled a turning point. The question is, in which direction. |
Biden Wants to Convene an International 'Summit for Democracy'. He Shouldn'tby David Adler and Stephen WertheimJoe Biden has proposed a summit of democratic nations; this would be an unfortunate exercise in dividing the world into camps of nations following the US and those opposed, without strict regard for whether those nations actually practice democracy. Instead, the authors argue, the US must lead by example: close tax shelters, put the wealthy under the rule of law, and help other nations to control their oligarchs. |
The Latest Chapter in Mississippi’s Long History of Squelching Anti-Racist Activismby William SturkeyThe silencing of journalists and academics has always been integral to the regime of white supremacy in Mississippi. Now that new challenges are emerging to that regime, attacks on academic freedom, including the firing of historian Garrett Felber, have resurfaced. |
The False Promise of Obama's 'Promised Land'by Daniel Steinmetz-JenkinsA critique of the first volume of Obama's presidential memoir argues that the 44th President was unwilling to acknowledge the limits of the centrist liberal politics of the 1990s and unable to consider more progressive alternatives. |
The Saddest Union Storyby Harold MyersonThe recent announcement of a settlement between federal prosecutors and leaders of the United Auto Workers union presents a dire contrast to the heyday of the union, when the leadership of Walter Reuther made the union the only influential social democratic institution in American history and anchored the midcentury middle class. |
Trump is Rolling back Protections for Migratory Birds. That’s a Problemby Kristoffer WhitneyRelaxing regulations protecting migratory birds has potentially serious environmental consequences and throws out decades of science-driven activism. |
The Americans Who Long for Civil War: Should We Take these Big Talkers Seriously?by L.D. BurnettThe chances that Trumpist die-hards will secede are nil. But the spirit animating this talk is still toxic and can't be ignored. |
Why Just ‘Adding Context’ to Controversial Monuments May Not Change Mindsby Erin ThompsonResearch shows that "adding context" to monuments with problematic subject matter does little to expand the understanding of history visitors take away from the scene. |