GARLAND NIXON—In a superb chat, Garland peels away the numerous layers of self-serving myths the Empire and its legions of apologists use to justify their criminal actions across the globe and even on the home turf, America itself. Exceptionalism, of course, comes up high, as America was born thinking itself unique and morally superior to all other nations, something probably inherited from the British, who, quietly but effectively culturally racist, have long regarded even their fellow Europeans —”the Continent”—as inferior humans. The latest symbol of moral superiority to be brandished like a bludgeon is the WOKE conceit, whereby the US struts around the world proclaiming its primacy in human rights on account of its ostensibly privileged treatment of LGBTQ people, blacks, and other minorities.
CULTURE & HISTORY
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Viewed by many as an “eco-terrorist”, and certainly as an “annoying obstacle to human progress”, Tompkins, a onetime dedicated capitalist, eventually embraced the rights of all species, and the right of nature not to be exploited to death, with total equanimity. His transformation had profound consequences. Now Tompkins’ legacy—attained with his wife Kristine’s collaboration and support—will be the single biggest philanthropic gift in history, with an ecological footprint twice as large as Yellowstone Park in the US.
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American Pravda: The Limits of Media Corruption
42 minutes readRON UNZ—Renowned international journalist Glenn Greenwald was hardly a Trump partisan, but he became outraged that the editors of the Intercept, the $100 million publication he himself had co-founded, refused to allow him to cover that massive media scandal, and he angrily resigned in protest. In effect, America’s media and tech giants formed a united front to steal the election and somehow drag the crippled Biden/Harris ticket across the finish line.
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EDGAR MORIN AND THE MAGICAL ORIGINS OF STARDOM: PARTICIPATION MYSTIQUE AND PROJECTIVE IDENTIFICATION
41 minutes readBRUCE LERRO—At worst, fans have allowed the stars to guide their manners, gestures, poses, attitudes, ecstasies and sighs. A star is capable of undermining existing fads and creating new ones without even trying. The imaginary identification with stars can become so satisfying that real life itself is held in contempt. For example, Morin quotes the regret of a female fan: “Tony, my poor boyfriend, had patiently waited until my aberration to be over”. Star worshippers constitute the idolatry mass of the fans.
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Anti-Stalin Falsehoods from a “Socialist” Writer
191 minutes readGROVER FURR—n the January – February 2023 issue of Current Affairs there appears an article titled “Stalin Will Never Be Redeemable/” Its subtitle reads: Stalin was socialism’s worst enemy. History is easily forgotten, so nostalgia for the “Man of Steel” needs to be guarded against. A person who knows of my long interest in Joseph Stalin and the “Stalin years” of Soviet history alerted me to this article when it appeared online. He wondered what my response to Skopic’s accusations against Stalin might be.
I have been studying the Stalin period of Soviet history for many years now I decided to write a response to Skopic’s article because it is a brief compendium of many of the allegations made against Stalin not only by overtly pro-capitalist and anticommunist writers, but by persons who are, or wish to be, or think that they are, on the anti-capitalist Left.