October 2023 – Irregular Bullshit

Fig. 1. “Destroyed Russian military vehicles located on the main street Khreshchatyk are seen as part of the celebration of the Independence Day of Ukraine in Kyiv, August 24.” Photograph by Gleb Garanich for Reuters, August 24, 2022,^[1] fair use.

A ceasefire would leave Russia in control of a lot of Ukrainian territory.^[2]

Arpan Rai, “Putin ally Lukashenko calls for ceasefire in ‘stalemate’ Ukraine war: ‘No one can do anything,’” Independent, October 30, 2023, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/putin-lukashenko-ukraine-russia-war-peace-talks-b2438217.html

Israel

Palestine

07_09:10:47-2
Fig. 1. The ruins of a terminal at the Gaza airport. Image by Said Khatib (Agence France-Presse) on September 9, 2018, via the Times of Israel,^[3] fair use.

It appears that Israel is attacking refugee camps.^[4]

Ishaan Tharoor, “Israel’s Gaza offensive stirs a wave of global protest,” Washington Post, October 29, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com//world/2023/10/29/gaza-protest-demonstration-ceasefire-israel-hamas-offensive/

Adam Gabbatt, “‘This war is prophetically significant’: why US evangelical Christians support Israel,” Guardian, October 30, 2023, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/oct/30/us-evangelical-christians-israel-hamas-war

Joseph Stepansky and Farah Najjar, “Israel-Hamas war live: Dozens killed in Jabalia camp strike – Gaza official,” Al Jazeera, October 31, 2023, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2023/10/31/israel-hamas-war-live-israeli-air-attacks-continue-across-gaza

Neoliberalism

Academic repression

Student loans

Fig. 1. Unattributed and undated image via James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal,^[5] fair use.

Michael Stratford, “White House details draft plans for next student debt relief plan,” Politico, October 30, 2023, https://www.politico.com/news/2023/10/30/white-house-next-student-debt-relief-plan-00124351

^[1]Reuters, “Ukraine puts destroyed Russian tanks on display in Kyiv,” August 25, 2022, https://www.reuters.com/news/picture/ukraine-puts-destroyed-russian-tanks-on-idUSRTSALV9Q ↩
^[2]Arpan Rai, “Putin ally Lukashenko calls for ceasefire in ‘stalemate’ Ukraine war: ‘No one can do anything,’” Independent, October 30, 2023, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/putin-lukashenko-ukraine-russia-war-peace-talks-b2438217.html ↩
^[3]Agence France-Presse and Times of Israel, “20 years after its opening, destroyed Gaza airport embodies grounded peace hopes,” Times of Israel, September 12, 2018, https://www.timesofisrael.com/20-years-after-its-opening-destroyed-gaza-airport-embodies-grounded-peace-hopes/↩
^[4]Joseph Stepansky and Farah Najjar, “Israel-Hamas war live: Dozens killed in Jabalia camp strike – Gaza official,” Al Jazeera, October 31, 2023, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2023/10/31/israel-hamas-war-live-israeli-air-attacks-continue-across-gaza ↩
^[5]Richard K. Vedder, “Eliminate or Radically Restructure Federal Student Loans,” James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal, September 16, 2020, https://www.jamesgmartin.center/2020/09/eliminate-or-radically-restructure-federal-student-loans/↩

Point Park University wants a side gig

October 31, 2023benfell

Pennsylvania

Higher Education

Fig. 1. The Cathedral of Learning at the University of Pittsburgh (“Pitt”). Photograph by “RealNordyNed,” December 17, 2015, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Point Park University wants to expand its community, leveraging its performing arts program and offering housing to older folks, single parents, and artists.^[1] At least in the abstract, it doesn’t sound like a horrible idea.

Bill Schackner, “Point Park University wants to increase enrollment by 30%, house older adults,” Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, October 30, 2023, https://triblive.com/news/point-park-university-wants-to-increase-enrollment-by-30-house-older-adults/

Pittsburgh

Housing

Fig. 1. Once upon a time this was a Whole Foods Market. The store is part of a complex that replaced the Penn Plaza Apartments.^[2] Whole Foods has now relocated to a larger location a few blocks away. Photograph by author, August 23, 2023.

Illiberalism

Gilead

Donald Trump

Finances

Fig. 1. Trump International Hotel, Las Vegas, undated image credited to https://www.flickr.com/photos/glynlowe/ [bad link], via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.

George Conway thinks Donald Trump may have to give up Mar-a-Lago if the New York fraud case goes against him.^[3]

Lee Moran, “George Conway Has Some Blunt Advice For Donald Trump In Fraud Trial,” Huffington Post, October 31, 2023, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/george-conway-donald-trump-empire-death-blow_n_6540c68de4b0ae2dc0b50ea5

^[1]Bill Schackner, “Point Park University wants to increase enrollment by 30%, house older adults,” Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, October 30, 2023, https://triblive.com/news/point-park-university-wants-to-increase-enrollment-by-30-house-older-adults/↩
^[2]Bob Bauder, “Pittsburgh settles court battle over Penn Plaza Apartments,” Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, October 27, 2017, https://archive.triblive.com/local/pittsburgh-allegheny/pittsburgh-settles-court-battle-over-penn-plaza-apartments/↩
^[3]Lee Moran, “George Conway Has Some Blunt Advice For Donald Trump In Fraud Trial,” Huffington Post, October 31, 2023, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/george-conway-donald-trump-empire-death-blow_n_6540c68de4b0ae2dc0b50ea5 ↩

Bullying and social justice

October 30, 2023benfell

Imperialism

Israel

Palestine

07_09:10:47-2
Fig. 1. The ruins of a terminal at the Gaza airport. Image by Said Khatib (Agence France-Presse) on September 9, 2018, via the Times of Israel,^[1] fair use.

I’ve been writing quite a lot on Mastodon about Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians. The more important posts:

Illiberalism

Gilead

Evangelical Protestants

Fig. 1. “You shall have no other gods before me.”^[2] Photograph posted to Twitter by Antonia Lee Donnelly, February 16, 2020,^[3] fair use.

Donald Trump

Coup attempt

Fig. 1. Donald Trump booking photograph by Fulton County (Georgia) Sheriff’s Office, August 24, 2023, via New York, August 25, 2023,^[4] public domain.

Rachel Weiner and Spencer S. Hsu, “Judge reimposes restrictions on Trump’s speech in Jan. 6 case,” Washington Post, October 30, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/10/29/trump-gag-order-resumes-jan-6-judge/

^[1]Agence France-Presse and Times of Israel, “20 years after its opening, destroyed Gaza airport embodies grounded peace hopes,” Times of Israel, September 12, 2018, https://www.timesofisrael.com/20-years-after-its-opening-destroyed-gaza-airport-embodies-grounded-peace-hopes/↩
^[2]Exod. 20:3.↩
^[3]Antonia Lee Donnelly, “Now I've seen everything,” Twitter, February 17, 2020, https://twitter.com/DonnellyAntonia/status/1229227422836559873 ↩
^[4]Margaret Hartmann and Nia Prater, “All the Mug Shots of Donald Trump and His Alleged Co-Conspirators,” New York, August 25, 2023, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/trump-mug-shot-gallery.html ↩

Keep on scrolling. This is mostly for the record.

October 28, 2023benfell

Illiberalism

Gilead

Twitter

Fig. 1. “Elon Musk shared a video of his entrance on his Twitter account.” Photograph attributed to Elon Musk, October 26, 2022, via the New York Post,^[1] fair use.

Will Oremus et al., “A year later, Musk’s X is tilting right. And sinking,” Washington Post, October 27, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/10/27/elon-musk-twitter-x-anniversary/

Illiberalism

Gilead

Speaker of the House of Representatives, 2023

Fig. 1. Photograph credited to Office of Congressman Kevin McCarthy, date inconsistent with title but given as November 9, 2022, via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.

Clare Foran et al., “Tom Emmer drops out of speaker’s race, hours after being nominated,” CNN, October 24, 2023, https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/24/politics/house-republicans-speaker-nominee/index.html

Victor Reklaitis, “Tom Emmer nominated for speaker by House Republicans,” MarketWatch, October 24, 2023, https://www.marketwatch.com/story/tom-emmer-nominated-for-speaker-by-house-republicans-ed81287a

Victor Reklaitis, “Louisiana Rep. Mike Johnson nominated for speaker by House Republicans,” MarketWatch, October 24, 2023, https://www.marketwatch.com/story/louisiana-rep-mike-johnson-nominated-for-speaker-by-house-republicans-60cc9810

Lauren Fedor, “Donald Trump ally Mike Johnson elected US House Speaker after weeks of gridlock,” Financial Times, October 25, 2023, https://www.ft.com/content/1744b79e-f137-4f81-bdba-f3f2bd5b04f3

Bess Levin, “Mike Johnson Said Same-Sex Marriage Would Lead to People Marrying Their Pets, Wanted to Sentence Abortion Doctors to ‘Hard Labor,’” Vanity Fair, October 25, 2023, https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2023/10/mike-johnson-said-same-sex-marriage-would-lead-to-people-marrying-their-pets

Bess Levin, “Election Denial, ‘Sexual Anarchy,’ Noah’s Ark: All the Mike Johnson Details We Regret to Inform You Of,” Vanity Fair, October 26, 2023, https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2023/10/everything-to-know-about-mike-johnson

Donald Trump

Fig. 1. Donald Trump, depicted in an orange jumpsuit, reportedly by the Drudge, via Mediaite,^[2] fair use. Apparently, no mugshot was taken when he was actually arrested over hush money paid to Stormy Daniels.^[3]

There’s no specific story here. As my faithful readers know, my assessment of the 2024 has been—very tentatively—that Donald Trump and the Republicans are in for a rude awakening the morning after election day. The divide between white Christian nationalists and the rest of the country on abortion rights and the 2020 election results is sharp. Election results have shown it doesn’t work in Republicans’ favor.

Such forecasts—and not just from me—particularly so early on should always be qualified with recognitions that 1) it’s early, 2) there’s a lot that can happen, and 3) there’s a lot of time for it to happen in.

You can certainly argue with my first paragraph here. But there’s no arguing with the second. With ongoing worries about the economy and wars in Ukraine and Gaza, we’re seeing that. We’re also seeing extraordinary Republican dysfunction that at the very least raises serious questions about the Party’s readiness to govern.

I’m moving to a more cautious stance. I still have an impossibly hard time imagining Trump coming out of all this victorious. But I do think there’s cause for concern.

^[1]Thomas Barrabi, “Elon Musk barges into Twitter HQ as deal nears: ‘Let that sink in,’” New York Post, October 26, 2022, https://nypost.com/2022/10/26/elon-musk-barges-into-twitter-headquarters-as-deal-nears/↩
^[2]Alex Griffing, “Drudge Puts Trump in an Orange Jumpsuit as Site Monitors His Potential Indictment,” Mediaite, August 29, 2022, https://www.mediaite.com/news/drudge-puts-trump-in-an-orange-jumpsuit-as-site-monitors-his-potential-indictment/↩
^[3]Sarah D. Wire and Alexandra E. Petri, “Trump charged with 34 felony counts in alleged hush money cover-up case,” Los Angeles Times, April 4, 2023, https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2023-04-04/donald-trump-alleged-hush-money-investigation-indictment-arraignment ↩

Judith Butler on Israel’s genocide of Palestinians

October 27, 2023benfell

Imperialism

Israel

Palestine

07_09:10:47-2
Fig. 1. The ruins of a terminal at the Gaza airport. Image by Said Khatib (Agence France-Presse) on September 9, 2018, via the Times of Israel,^[1] fair use.

Democracy Now! has an interview in two parts (one and two) with one of the greats in critical theory, Judith Butler.^[2] It’s a must read.

Mehul Srivastava, “UN chief denounces ‘clear violations’ of international law in Gaza,” Financial Times, October 24, 2023, https://www.ft.com/content/61c23c82-4eaf-499b-8989-ecdebb86c839

John Reed, Mehul Srivastava, and Neri Zilber, “UN agency in Gaza says it will run out of fuel within hours,” Financial Times, October 25, 2023, https://www.ft.com/content/ce60f3b5-591b-4b85-adcd-124e5a1b9001

Ishaan Tharoor, “Israel says Hamas ‘is ISIS.’ But it’s not,” Washington Post, October 25, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/10/25/hamas-isis-islamic-state-israel-terrorism-analogy/

Democracy Now! “Judith Butler on Hamas, Israel’s Collective Punishment of Gaza & Why Biden Must Push for Ceasefire,” October 26, 2023, https://www.democracynow.org/2023/10/26/judith_butler_on_hamas_israels_collective

Democracy Now! “Palestinian Lives Matter Too: Jewish Scholar Judith Butler Condemns Israel’s ‘Genocide’ in Gaza,” October 26, 2023, https://www.democracynow.org/2023/10/26/judith_butler_ceasefire_gaza_israel

^[1]Agence France-Presse and Times of Israel, “20 years after its opening, destroyed Gaza airport embodies grounded peace hopes,” Times of Israel, September 12, 2018, https://www.timesofisrael.com/20-years-after-its-opening-destroyed-gaza-airport-embodies-grounded-peace-hopes/↩
^[2]Democracy Now! “Palestinian Lives Matter Too: Jewish Scholar Judith Butler Condemns Israel’s ‘Genocide’ in Gaza,” October 26, 2023, https://www.democracynow.org/2023/10/26/judith_butler_ceasefire_gaza_israel; Democracy Now! “Judith Butler on Hamas, Israel’s Collective Punishment of Gaza & Why Biden Must Push for Ceasefire,” October 26, 2023, https://www.democracynow.org/2023/10/26/judith_butler_on_hamas_israels_collective ↩

The good news is we have a Speaker of the House. The bad news is he’s Donald Trump’s man

October 26, 2023benfell

I have mostly—only mostly—dug my way out of the latest round of technology issues. My new iPhone remains out of action—I had it checked at the Apple Store and confirmed that the problem is with my new carrier, who likely thought, but won’t admit to thinking I was running a server over their mobile data connection. I’ve got that misunderstanding straightened out, I think, but I still don’t have mobile data restored to the phone, rendering it mostly useless.

But along the way, my notebook started misbehaving. This required a wipe and reinstall. Fortunately, no data appears to have been lost.

On top of it all, the curtain rod I put in for blackout curtains started falling out of the wall. I seem not to have succeeded in finding a stud for the screws that hold it in the wall. Hopefully, the repair will last until I move out, probably next April.

Oh, and I had to arrange to have the window air conditioner taken down to my landlord’s garage for the winter.

Meanwhile, all this has distracted from working. The technology issues have been ludicrously time consuming, probably erasing any advantage that would be won with the new phone, at least in the short term, as the winter slowdown in business takes hold.

I did make a touch more money on the one day I was able to work with the new phone, so I do think there is an advantage, but one is a crappy sample size, so this remains to be seen. Whatever it is, I’ll be calling Boost tomorrow.

Illiberalism

Gilead

Speaker of the House of Representatives, 2023

Fig. 1. Photograph credited to Office of Congressman Kevin McCarthy, date inconsistent with title but given as November 9, 2022, via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.

Competitive authoritarian regime project

Fig. 1. President Lyndon B. Johnson, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Clarence Mitchell during signing ceremony of the voting rights act. Yoichi Okamoto, August 6, 1965, via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.

Jill Nolin, “Federal judge strikes down Georgia’s political maps, sending lawmakers back to the drawing board,” Georgia Recorder, October 26, 2023, https://georgiarecorder.com/2023/10/26/federal-judge-strikes-down-georgias-political-maps-sending-lawmakers-back-to-the-drawing-board/

Neoliberalism

Work

Fig. 1. The spectre of Death, in the form of a large skeleton, rises with the smoke and flames of the burning Asch Building during the Triangle fire, as people jump and fall to their death. Artist unknown, from International Ladies Garment Workers Union Photographs (1885-1985) at The Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.

Annie Palmer, “Amazon’s focus on speed, surveillance drives higher warehouse worker injuries, study finds,” CNBC, October 25, 2023, https://www.cnbc.com/2023/10/25/study-amazons-focus-on-speed-surveillance-drives-worker-injuries.html

Israel violates international law in Gaza. What else is new?

October 25, 2023October 25, 2023benfell

Imperialism

Israel

Palestine

07_09:10:47-2
Fig. 1. The ruins of a terminal at the Gaza airport. Image by Said Khatib (Agence France-Presse) on September 9, 2018, via the Times of Israel,^[1] fair use.

Mehul Srivastava, “UN chief denounces ‘clear violations’ of international law in Gaza,” Financial Times, October 24, 2023, https://www.ft.com/content/61c23c82-4eaf-499b-8989-ecdebb86c839

Illiberalism

Gilead

Speaker of the House of Representatives, 2023

Fig. 1. Photograph credited to Office of Congressman Kevin McCarthy, date inconsistent with title but given as November 9, 2022, via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.

Donald Trump

Finances

Fig. 1. Trump International Hotel, Las Vegas, undated image credited to https://www.flickr.com/photos/glynlowe/ [bad link], via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.

Shayna Jacobs and Devlin Barrett, “Judge fines Trump $10,000 for second violation of New York gag order,” Washington Post, October 25, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/10/25/trump-fined-gag-order/

^[1]Agence France-Presse and Times of Israel, “20 years after its opening, destroyed Gaza airport embodies grounded peace hopes,” Times of Israel, September 12, 2018, https://www.timesofisrael.com/20-years-after-its-opening-destroyed-gaza-airport-embodies-grounded-peace-hopes/↩

California Department of Motor Vehicles rescinds Cruise self-driving car permits

October 24, 2023benfell

Y’all know I terminated my home internet service because I was fed up with technology problems.

I may have been done with technology problems, but apparently, technology problems are not done with me. I’m still working through some shit.

Neoliberalism

Self-driving cars

Fig. 1. Photograph by Mark Doliner, August 1, 2012, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.

The [California Department of Motor Vehicles] said that Cruise’s vehicles aren’t safe for public operation and the company has misrepresented information related to the safety of the technology of the vehicles. Cruise is majority-controlled by General Motors, which has invested deeply in the division and is looking to introduce a fully autonomous shuttle, called the Origin, that doesn’t have a steering wheel or manual controls.^[1]

Ryan Felton and Meghan Bobrowsky, “Cruise’s Driverless-Car Permits Suspended in California by DMV,” Wall Street Journal, October 24, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/cruise-driverless-car-permits-suspended-in-california-by-dmv-db0f2c8e

Banking

Commercial real estate

Fig. 1. The confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers, with the “Golden Triangle” and downtown Pittsburgh. Photograph by author, October 15, 2023.

Konrad Putzier, “America’s Downtowns Are Empty. Fixing Them Will Be Expensive,” Wall Street Journal, October 21, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/real-estate/commercial/wrecking-ball-targets-empty-downtown-offices-d0e3391

Illiberalism

Gilead

Speaker of the House of Representatives, 2023

Fig. 1. Photograph credited to Office of Congressman Kevin McCarthy, date inconsistent with title but given as November 9, 2022, via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.

Donald Trump

Coup attempt

Fig. 1. Donald Trump booking photograph by Fulton County (Georgia) Sheriff’s Office, August 24, 2023, via New York, August 25, 2023,^[2] public domain.

Holly Bailey and Amy Gardner, “Trump co-defendant Jenna Ellis pleads guilty in Georgia election case,” Washington Post, October 24, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/10/24/jenna-ellis-plea-deal-georgia/

^[1]Ryan Felton and Meghan Bobrowsky, “Cruise’s Driverless-Car Permits Suspended in California by DMV,” Wall Street Journal, October 24, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/cruise-driverless-car-permits-suspended-in-california-by-dmv-db0f2c8e ↩
^[2]Margaret Hartmann and Nia Prater, “All the Mug Shots of Donald Trump and His Alleged Co-Conspirators,” New York, August 25, 2023, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/trump-mug-shot-gallery.html ↩

Losers!

October 21, 2023benfell

Illiberalism

Gilead

Speaker of the House of Representatives, 2023

Fig. 1. Photograph credited to Office of Congressman Kevin McCarthy, date inconsistent with title but given as November 9, 2022, via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.

The margin against Jim Jordan keeps getting larger.^[1]

Aaron Blake, “The effort to install Jim Jordan is getting ugly. But will it work?” Washington Post, October 16, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/10/16/jim-jordan-speaker-hardball-tactics/

Gabriella Ferrigine, “‘Approximately’ 20 Republicans plot to block Jim Jordan amid the ‘dumbest’ pressure campaign,” Salon, October 16, 2023, https://www.salon.com/2023/10/16/approximately-20-plot-to-block-jim-jordan-amid-the-dumbest-pressure-campaign/

Lauren Fedor, “Donald Trump ally Jim Jordan loses vote for US House Speaker,” Financial Times, October 17, 2023, https://www.ft.com/content/0c94c4e7-21b2-419e-8f87-97026914b4b1

Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling, “House Chamber Gasps as GOP Rep. Makes Very Unexpected Dip Into Jordan’s Résumé,” New Republic, October 17, 2023, https://newrepublic.com/post/176300/house-chamber-gasps-elise-stefanik-jim-jordan-wrestling-past

Lauren Fedor, “Jim Jordan loses second vote for US House Speaker,” Financiall Times, October 18, 2023, https://www.ft.com/content/03cd7560-f918-449a-beb8-209c24b2a71c

Ben Jacobs, “Jim Jordan Didn’t Just Lose. The Hard Right Did Too,” New York, October 18, 2023, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2023/10/jim-jordan-didnt-just-lose-the-hard-right-did-too.html

Lauren Fedor and Alex Rogers, “Jim Jordan pauses US House Speaker bid and backs interim candidate,” Financial Times, October 19, 2023, https://www.ft.com/content/6b3cf1ee-25b1-499b-86f0-cc9a33304258

Victor Reklaitis, “House speaker election: Jordan says he’s aiming for third vote, as measure backing McHenry stalls,” MarketWatch, October 19, 2023, https://www.marketwatch.com/story/jordan-wont-seek-third-vote-today-for-house-speaker-and-will-back-mchenry-reports-c10bf055

Maegan Vazquez, Mariana Alfaro, and Jacqueline Alemany, “Jordan denounces threats against Republicans who oppose his speaker bid,” Washington Post, October 19, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/10/18/jordan-republican-threats/

Seth Klamann, “Ken Buck says he’s received 4 death threats, eviction notice over his House speaker votes,” Denver Post, October 20, 2023, https://www.denverpost.com/2023/10/20/ken-buck-threats-house-speaker-vote/

James Politi, “Republican disarray deepens as House members axe Jordan’s Speaker bid,” Financial Times, October 20, 2023, https://www.ft.com/content/cf1c242c-94be-45ed-a334-c81685274427

Donald Trump

Coup attempt

Fig. 1. Donald Trump booking photograph by Fulton County (Georgia) Sheriff’s Office, August 24, 2023, via New York, August 25, 2023,^[2] public domain.

Mariah Timms and Cameron McWhirter, “Sidney Powell Accepts Plea Deal in Trump’s Georgia Case,” October 19, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/us-news/law/sidney-powell-pleads-guilty-georgia-trial-85e6543f

Noam Cohen, “The Queens Man Ruled Ineligible to Be President,” Atlantic, October 19, 2023, https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/10/trump-eligible-president-abdul-hassan/675669/

Holly Bailey and Amy Gardner, “Trump co-defendant Kenneth Chesebro pleads guilty in Georgia election case,” Washington Post, October 20, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/10/20/chesebro-guilty-plea-trump-georgia/

Illiberalism

Gilead

Donald Trump

Finances

Fig. 1. Trump International Hotel, Las Vegas, undated image credited to https://www.flickr.com/photos/glynlowe/ [bad link], via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.

Kara Scannell and Sabrina Souza, “Donald Trump fined $5,000 for violating gag order in New York fraud trial and warned twice about imprisonment,” CNN, October 20, 2023, https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/20/politics/trump-social-media-fraud-trial-warning/index.html

Neoliberalism

Ideology as ‘science:’ economics

Rogé Karma, “The 1970s Economic Theory That Needs to Die,” Atlantic, October 20, 2023, https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/10/america-recession-disinflation-fed/675700/

^[1]Lauren Fedor, “Jim Jordan loses second vote for US House Speaker,” Financiall Times, October 18, 2023, https://www.ft.com/content/03cd7560-f918-449a-beb8-209c24b2a71c; Ben Jacobs, “Jim Jordan Didn’t Just Lose. The Hard Right Did Too,” New York, October 18, 2023, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2023/10/jim-jordan-didnt-just-lose-the-hard-right-did-too.html; James Politi, “Republican disarray deepens as House members axe Jordan’s Speaker bid,” Financial Times, October 20, 2023, https://www.ft.com/content/cf1c242c-94be-45ed-a334-c81685274427 ↩
^[2]Margaret Hartmann and Nia Prater, “All the Mug Shots of Donald Trump and His Alleged Co-Conspirators,” New York, August 25, 2023, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/trump-mug-shot-gallery.html ↩

Lauren Fedor, “Jim Jordan loses second vote for US House Speaker,” Financiall Times, October 18, 2023, https://www.ft.com/content/03cd7560-f918-449a-beb8-209c24b2a71c

Ben Jacobs, “Jim Jordan Didn’t Just Lose. The Hard Right Did Too,” New York, October 18, 2023, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2023/10/jim-jordan-didnt-just-lose-the-hard-right-did-too.html

Donald Trump

Coup attempt

Fig. 1. Donald Trump booking photograph by Fulton County (Georgia) Sheriff’s Office, August 24, 2023, via New York, August 25, 2023,^[1] public domain.

Noam Cohen, “The Queens Man Ruled Ineligible to Be President,” Atlantic, October 19, 2023, https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/10/trump-eligible-president-abdul-hassan/675669/

^[1]Margaret Hartmann and Nia Prater, “All the Mug Shots of Donald Trump and His Alleged Co-Conspirators,” New York, August 25, 2023, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/trump-mug-shot-gallery.html ↩