Essays Archive - Page 65 of 131

How the Constitution Stopped Trump’s Attempted Coup d’État

Federalism saved us

November 24, 2020 • by John Stoehr

The US government “ascertained” Joe Biden’s victory on Monday night. That means the President-Elect can get on with the business of building a new administration. The move came after Emily Murphy, the head of the General Services Administration, found the political cover she needed to authorize his transition team. Donald Trump has ...

How the Constitution Stopped Trump’s Attempted Coup d’État

Democracy

New Voters and Bells: What Toppled Trump

In one of the most pivotal elections in our history, first-time and young voters found their voices

November 24, 2020 • by Ryan Keeney

Joe Biden is the President Elect. As we wait for the Trump administration to finish its thrashing death throes in court, it’s important to remember in a time of vastly unequal wealth distribution (thank you Mr. Bezos!), in spite of overt attempts from Republicans to suppress voters in the 2020 ...

New Voters and Bells: What Toppled Trump

Democracy

A Chinese Student’s Perspective on America’s Presidential Election

Young Americans and Chinese have more in common than meets the eye

November 24, 2020 • by Liuchang "Helen" Tan

On the night of November 3rd, I, like many of the 360,000 Chinese students in the U.S., was compulsively refreshing the electoral map and rooting for the Democrats to win by a landslide. In the previous four years, Chinese students had watched in shock and horror as the Trump administration relentlessly ...

A Chinese Student’s Perspective on America’s Presidential Election

Psyche

How to be Thankful in 2020

Making the best of video conferencing, social distancing, and Star Trek

November 24, 2020 • by Linus Glenhaber

Ten years ago, I remember trying to coordinate watching a TV show with a friend who was across the country from me. He was in San Diego at the time while I was in Boston; while social distancing would not be a phrase for a decade, we were certainly physical ...

Democracy

Political Tensions Rise as COVID-19 Deaths Surpass a Quarter-Million

As support for Trump begins to crumble among Republicans, the White House doubles down on efforts to cripple the incoming Biden administration

November 19, 2020 • by Heather Cox Richardson

Yesterday marked a grim milestone. The official count of Americans dead of coronavirus has topped 250,000. A quarter of a million Americans, lost. Governors, including some Republicans previously opposed to ordering measures to stop the spread of the virus, are now issuing mandatory mask requirements. New York City has reached ...

Political Tensions Rise as COVID-19 Deaths Surpass a Quarter-Million

Democracy

Is the GOP For or Against America?

Ned Staebler is mad as hell

November 19, 2020 • by John Stoehr

My bullhorn is rather small, but I’ll do what I can to amplify Ned Staebler. He gave public input in the open meeting of the Wayne County Board of Canvassers. Two Republican members, William Hartmann and Monica Palmer, voted Tuesday against certifying the votes of Wayne County, citing irregularities in ...

Democracy

The Democrats’ Four-Year Reprieve

How did Donald Trump manage to win an even larger number of votes than in 2016, despite lies, corruption, and a bungled pandemic response?

November 19, 2020 • by Dani Rodrik

As Joe Biden eked out a victory in the U.S. presidential election after a few suspenseful days, observers of American democracy were left scratching their heads. Buoyed by polls, many expected a landslide for the Democrats, with the party capturing not only the White House but also the Senate. How ...

Democracy

The Mood Has Changed

From confrontation to subversion: the evolution of protest culture in Belarus

November 19, 2020 • by Ingo Petz

————— In a few short summer months, Belarus completely rewrote its role in world history. Became a part of it. This is about far more than who has formal sovereignty. It’s about our own style and our own place. Ihar Babkoŭ, 8.30.2020 ————— In an unprecedented and historic act of collective politicization, the Belarusian population has overcome ...

Democracy

Will the Pandemic Teach Us Democracy?

An interview with Axel Honneth

November 19, 2020 • by Axel Honneth

The more publicly governments articulate their difficulties in controlling the pandemic, the greater its democratic potential, argues Axel Honneth. But if people conclude that government measures have been unjustified, the result will be even greater distrust in democratic decision-making. Esprit: The coronavirus crisis has shown that political power and decision-making involve uncertainty, ...

Philosophy

How Should We Commemorate Mary Wollstonecraft?

Why the current controversy is curiously appropriate

November 19, 2020 • by Sandrine Bergès

On Tuesday, November 10, the British sculptor Maggi Hambling’s new monument to Mary Wollstonecraft was unveiled on Newington Green, in North London – and almost immediately, there was an uproar. On social media and in newspapers, the monument was variously decried (“What the actual fuck is this?”) and mocked as “a ...

How Should We Commemorate Mary Wollstonecraft?

Race

Can I Get a Witness?

Until recently, Black testimony about racism had to be validated by whites. That’s changing

November 19, 2020 • by Jeffrey Aaron Snyder

“I opened my phone and I started recording because I knew if I didn’t, no one would believe me.” So said Darnella Frazier, the 17-year old Minneapolis resident who took the footage of George Floyd’s killing that circulated around the world last summer. Frazier’s instinct to press record, something other witnesses ...

Democracy

Mini-Trumps in the Wilderness

Trump’s loss of the presidency in 2020 may spell disaster for his fellow populists in Eastern Europe

November 18, 2020 • by Sławomir Sierakowski

Joe Biden’s election as president of the United States has seriously weakened authoritarian and populist governments around the world. For independent global powers like Russia, Brazil, and Turkey, Donald Trump’s departure need not amount to a complete tragedy. But for the current governments of Poland, Hungary, and Serbia -- and ...

Essays

How the Constitution Stopped Trump’s Attempted Coup d’État

Federalism saved us

New Voters and Bells: What Toppled Trump

In one of the most pivotal elections in our history, first-time and young voters found their voices

A Chinese Student’s Perspective on America’s Presidential Election

Young Americans and Chinese have more in common than meets the eye

How to be Thankful in 2020

Making the best of video conferencing, social distancing, and Star Trek

Political Tensions Rise as COVID-19 Deaths Surpass a Quarter-Million

As support for Trump begins to crumble among Republicans, the White House doubles down on efforts to cripple the incoming Biden administration

Is the GOP For or Against America?

Ned Staebler is mad as hell

The Democrats’ Four-Year Reprieve

How did Donald Trump manage to win an even larger number of votes than in 2016, despite lies, corruption, and a bungled pandemic response?

The Mood Has Changed

From confrontation to subversion: the evolution of protest culture in Belarus

Will the Pandemic Teach Us Democracy?

An interview with Axel Honneth

How Should We Commemorate Mary Wollstonecraft?

Why the current controversy is curiously appropriate

Can I Get a Witness?

Until recently, Black testimony about racism had to be validated by whites. That’s changing

Mini-Trumps in the Wilderness

Trump’s loss of the presidency in 2020 may spell disaster for his fellow populists in Eastern Europe

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