#usculture — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #usculture, aggregated by home.social.
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https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/austin-influencer-building-paseo-dog-park
So helpful for understanding not only influencers and Austin TX but also the culture of the USA as a whole.
#Paseo #Austin #Texas #RealEstate #Influencers #USCulture #Dogs
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https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/austin-influencer-building-paseo-dog-park
So helpful for understanding not only influencers and Austin TX but also the culture of the USA as a whole.
#Paseo #Austin #Texas #RealEstate #Influencers #USCulture #Dogs
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Why is this desirable or necessary? Are we fresh out of stories to tell? Are the “content creators” in Hollywood so desperate for eyeballs that they’ll vomit up any IP of the past, hoping to exploit nostalgia while delivering another boring ass retelling of a story that somehow evades everything anyone enjoyed about said story?
#creativity #tv #carrie #pathetic #usculture #latecapitalism #conservativescantmakeculture
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https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2026/06/29/the-teen-believers-in-a-christian-america
Interesting glimpse of American Christian nationalist youth culture.
This unchristian, unamerican oldie was pleased to read that Turning Point USA could be losing steam.
#USPolitics #USCulture #CharlieKirk #TurningPointUSA #ChristainNationalism #Conservatism
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https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2026/06/29/the-teen-believers-in-a-christian-america
Interesting glimpse of American Christian nationalist youth culture.
This unchristian, unamerican oldie was pleased to read that Turning Point USA could be losing steam.
#USPolitics #USCulture #CharlieKirk #TurningPointUSA #ChristainNationalism #Conservatism
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I can be fairly accused of having made jokes and laughing at other's japes about the Eurovision Song Contest.
But today, as a USian, I must keep my lips sealed in response to anything people in Europe or the rest of the world might have to say about Sunday's abomination on the White House lawn.
USians can look forward now -- I fully expect -- to Trump monetizing his presidency with live broadcasts of him posting on social media while seated on a toilet.
His followers would lap it up.
And he'd laugh all the way to the bank.
#USPolitics #USCulture #Freedom250 #Eurovision -
I can be fairly accused of having made jokes and laughing at other's japes about the Eurovision Song Contest.
But today, as a USian, I must keep my lips sealed in response to anything people in Europe or the rest of the world might have to say about Sunday's abomination on the White House lawn.
USians can look forward now -- I fully expect -- to Trump monetizing his presidency with live broadcasts of him posting on social media while seated on a toilet.
His followers would lap it up.
And he'd laugh all the way to the bank.
#USPolitics #USCulture #Freedom250 #Eurovision -
What Bari Weiss is doing to CBS in general and 60 Minutes in particular is an unforgivable attack on the freedom of US television news.
Less serious, but significant nonetheless, is the harm Weiss has wreaked on attempts by some US liberals to question groupthink in some quarters of academia, the media, and the nonprofit sector.
By her using the pose of a "radical centrist" questioning "woke orthodoxy" to strengthen right wing power in education and the media, she has made honest and productive debate about conformity and freedom of expression even more difficult than it already was.
I cannot abide her bad faith posturing!
Image: Bari Weiss, Honestly podcast, Texas Tribune Festival 2023 -- Presia Debauch -- https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/ -- Flickr
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What Bari Weiss is doing to CBS in general and 60 Minutes in particular is an unforgivable attack on the freedom of US television news.
Less serious, but significant nonetheless, is the harm Weiss has wreaked on attempts by some US liberals to question groupthink in some quarters of academia, the media, and the nonprofit sector.
By her using the pose of a "radical centrist" questioning "woke orthodoxy" to strengthen right wing power in education and the media, she has made honest and productive debate about conformity and freedom of expression even more difficult than it already was.
I cannot abide her bad faith posturing!
Image: Bari Weiss, Honestly podcast, Texas Tribune Festival 2023 -- Presia Debauch -- https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/ -- Flickr
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I have no plans to watch "Dutton Ranch", but I am going to resist the urge to be dismissive.
Part of the challenge of progressive politics in the USA lies in learning how to communicate with the culturally conservative with neither condescension nor compromise of core values.
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I have no plans to watch "Dutton Ranch", but I am going to resist the urge to be dismissive.
Part of the challenge of progressive politics in the USA lies in learning how to communicate with the culturally conservative with neither condescension nor compromise of core values.
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Biskind was right!
#USCulture #Movies #FilmHistory #NewHollywood #Jaws #StarWars
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Biskind was right!
#USCulture #Movies #FilmHistory #NewHollywood #Jaws #StarWars
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https://deadline.com/2026/05/marcia-lucas-dead-star-wars-editor-george-lucas-ex-wife-1236930815/
I'm sure Marcia Lucas was a perfectly nice woman, but I just want to take this opportunity to say how much I hate Star Wars.
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https://deadline.com/2026/05/marcia-lucas-dead-star-wars-editor-george-lucas-ex-wife-1236930815/
I'm sure Marcia Lucas was a perfectly nice woman, but I just want to take this opportunity to say how much I hate Star Wars.
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US things in need of reform: the Supreme Court, the health care system, and men's swimwear.
#USCulture #SwimmingBriefs #Speedo #Fashion #SwimWear #MensFashion
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US things in need of reform: the Supreme Court, the health care system, and men's swimwear.
#USCulture #SwimmingBriefs #Speedo #Fashion #SwimWear #MensFashion
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I loathe the Christian nationalist movement.
#USPolitics #ChristianNationalism #USCulture #Christianity #Religion #Protestantism #DonaldTrump
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I loathe the Christian nationalist movement.
#USPolitics #ChristianNationalism #USCulture #Christianity #Religion #Protestantism #DonaldTrump
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Holiday Season Shifts: Faith's Diminishing Role, Economic Debates Spark Discussions
Many Americans celebrate holidays without religion. Debates grow about the economic cost of federal holidays. What does this mean for you?
#HolidayTraditions, #SecularHolidays, #EconomicImpact, #FederalHolidays, #USCulture
https://newsletter.tf/us-holidays-less-religion-economic-talk/
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Fewer Americans are linking holidays to religion. Some leaders say federal holidays cost billions, but others say businesses still work and sales increase.
#HolidayTraditions, #SecularHolidays, #EconomicImpact, #FederalHolidays, #USCulture
https://newsletter.tf/us-holidays-less-religion-economic-talk/ -
https://bbc.com/news/articles/cr717nglye0o
Seriously, I do not think that the Washington press dinner shooting was staged by the Trump regime.
That some intelligent people think otherwise shows how deeply Trump and other right wingers have degraded public discourse in the USA.
#DonaldTrump #USPolitics #USMedia #USCulture #ColeThomasAllen #WhiteHouseCorrespondentsDinner
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https://bbc.com/news/articles/cr717nglye0o
Seriously, I do not think that the Washington press dinner shooting was staged by the Trump regime.
That some intelligent people think otherwise shows how deeply Trump and other right wingers have degraded public discourse in the USA.
#DonaldTrump #USPolitics #USMedia #USCulture #ColeThomasAllen #WhiteHouseCorrespondentsDinner
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When you read stuff like this, it’s good to keep in mind that all of this is a choice.
Why Being Middle-Aged Sucks So Much for Americans (and No One Else)
https://www.vice.com/en/article/why-being-middle-aged-sucks-so-much-for-americans-and-no-one-else/#aging #americandream #unitedstates #individualism #uspolitics #usculture
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When you read stuff like this, it’s good to keep in mind that all of this is a choice.
Why Being Middle-Aged Sucks So Much for Americans (and No One Else)
https://www.vice.com/en/article/why-being-middle-aged-sucks-so-much-for-americans-and-no-one-else/#aging #americandream #unitedstates #individualism #uspolitics #usculture
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🧵 1/2
https://thepointmag.com/examined-life/behind-the-hood/
I've been thinking about the hoodie recently.
>>... no other garment is so charged, or so fraught, in this country as the hoodie. <<
My own dislike for the garment makes me uncomfortable. How much of my distaste springs from ugly prejudices about race, class, and age buried within me?
Then I start to wonder how much of my agonized reflection is not only an ultimately futile attempt to suppress my own aesthetic responses but also an unproductive focus on the individual psyche rather than on the structures of society.
Working with lots of young men in hoodies prompted these thoughts, as did...
#USCulture #Hoodie #Fashion #HistoryOfDress #Race #Class #Age
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🧵 1/2
https://thepointmag.com/examined-life/behind-the-hood/
I've been thinking about the hoodie recently.
>>... no other garment is so charged, or so fraught, in this country as the hoodie. <<
My own dislike for the garment makes me uncomfortable. How much of my distaste springs from ugly prejudices about race, class, and age buried within me?
Then I start to wonder how much of my agonized reflection is not only an ultimately futile attempt to suppress my own aesthetic responses but also an unproductive focus on the individual psyche rather than on the structures of society.
Working with lots of young men in hoodies prompted these thoughts, as did...
#USCulture #Hoodie #Fashion #HistoryOfDress #Race #Class #Age
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Good overview by Julia Carrie Wong of the strain of Christianity animating Pete Hegseth.
Wong mentions that the "contemporary Christian nationalist movement in the US unites Christians from disparate denominations. Hegseth represents the Reformed/Calvinist wing, which is distinct from the charismatic evangelicalism practiced by figures such as the White House “faith office” adviser, Paula White-Cain. A third camp are Catholic Integralists, who want to integrate church and state; adherents include Steve Bannon and the Project 2025 architect Kevin Roberts."
I can't decide which of these three groups is the most dangerous. I do find all of them loathsome.
To obviate misunderstanding, I am aware that a large number of Christians from diverse traditions and denominations consider Christian nationalism to be a perversion of their religion.
Image: James Kerr/ Scorpion Dagger
#Christianity #PeteHegseth #ChristianNationalism #USPolitics #USCulture
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Good overview by Julia Carrie Wong of the strain of Christianity animating Pete Hegseth.
Wong mentions that the "contemporary Christian nationalist movement in the US unites Christians from disparate denominations. Hegseth represents the Reformed/Calvinist wing, which is distinct from the charismatic evangelicalism practiced by figures such as the White House “faith office” adviser, Paula White-Cain. A third camp are Catholic Integralists, who want to integrate church and state; adherents include Steve Bannon and the Project 2025 architect Kevin Roberts."
I can't decide which of these three groups is the most dangerous. I do find all of them loathsome.
To obviate misunderstanding, I am aware that a large number of Christians from diverse traditions and denominations consider Christian nationalism to be a perversion of their religion.
Image: James Kerr/ Scorpion Dagger
#Christianity #PeteHegseth #ChristianNationalism #USPolitics #USCulture
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https://www.ncronline.org/opinion/distinctly-catholic/mark-silk-history-term-judeo-christian
Excellent article telling how the term "Judeo-Christian" migrated from liberal inclusiveness to right wing bigotry.
Image: Social Welfare History Archives, University of Minnesota Libraries
#JudeoChristian #Religion #USHistory #USCulture #Christianity #Judaism #Islam #USPolitics #Politics #RightWing #NCCJ #NationalConferenceOfChristainsAndJews
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https://www.ncronline.org/opinion/distinctly-catholic/mark-silk-history-term-judeo-christian
Excellent article telling how the term "Judeo-Christian" migrated from liberal inclusiveness to right wing bigotry.
Image: Social Welfare History Archives, University of Minnesota Libraries
#JudeoChristian #Religion #USHistory #USCulture #Christianity #Judaism #Islam #USPolitics #Politics #RightWing #NCCJ #NationalConferenceOfChristainsAndJews
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Things France Does Better Than The US
Things France Does Better Than Th…
#dining #cooking #diet #food #Frenchmeals #bfdc-freelance #foodfb #francais #france #francethings #franceversusUS #freelance-bfdc #freelance-lifestyle #French #FrenchCulture #frenchfood #frenchmeals #frenchthings #frenchwine #livinginfrance #meals #paris #paristhings #sponcon-calling-all-travel-lovers #travel #travelinspiration #usculture #Wine
https://www.diningandcooking.com/2452212/things-france-does-better-than-the-us/ -
Things France Does Better Than The US
Things France Does Better Than Th…
#dining #cooking #diet #food #Frenchmeals #bfdc-freelance #foodfb #francais #france #francethings #franceversusUS #freelance-bfdc #freelance-lifestyle #French #FrenchCulture #frenchfood #frenchmeals #frenchthings #frenchwine #livinginfrance #meals #paris #paristhings #sponcon-calling-all-travel-lovers #travel #travelinspiration #usculture #Wine
https://www.diningandcooking.com/2452212/things-france-does-better-than-the-us/ -
Things France Does Better Than The US https://www.diningandcooking.com/2452212/things-france-does-better-than-the-us/ #BfdcFreelance #food #foodfb #francais #france #FranceThings #FranceVersusUS #FreelanceBfdc #FreelanceLifestyle #French #FrenchCulture #FrenchFood #FrenchMeals #FrenchThings #FrenchWine #LivingInFrance #meals #paris #ParisThings #SponconCallingAllTravelLovers #travel #TravelInspiration #UsCulture #Wine
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Things France Does Better Than The US https://www.diningandcooking.com/2452212/things-france-does-better-than-the-us/ #BfdcFreelance #food #foodfb #francais #france #FranceThings #FranceVersusUS #FreelanceBfdc #FreelanceLifestyle #French #FrenchCulture #FrenchFood #FrenchMeals #FrenchThings #FrenchWine #LivingInFrance #meals #paris #ParisThings #SponconCallingAllTravelLovers #travel #TravelInspiration #UsCulture #Wine
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https://www.huffpost.com/entry/weapon-baby-names-trend_l_66fc3db0e4b0d70dca9f58f9
Yuk! Easy to guess how these people vote, what sort of vehicle they drive or aspire to drive, and so on...
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https://www.huffpost.com/entry/weapon-baby-names-trend_l_66fc3db0e4b0d70dca9f58f9
Yuk! Easy to guess how these people vote, what sort of vehicle they drive or aspire to drive, and so on...
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Losing a loved one in the United States
It's commonly known that every aspect of the funeral industry in the US is highly expensive. A couple of positives I've learned:1. All veterans are entitled to many free benefits if buried at a "national cemetery" (they are scattered all over).
2. Hospice is one of the best things in the US. Everything is free, including a year of bereavement counseling. I just received the kindest phone message informing me of that.
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I really appreciated this #KnittingCultLady video about Millennials who grew up religious and what we're doing now.
https://youtu.be/RMqs-hNnB44?si=f5-7Ujtd0nRQzJwG
My own experience is similar. James Dobson was on the radio in my childhood home. Most of the people I was friends with through college did not deprogram as of when we lost touch. Lots of people stay in that world and don't question it.
#religion #evangelicals #USculture #rightwing #deprogramming
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In September, Masha Hamilton and her son, Cheney Orr, took a nearly-2,000-mile road trip along Interstate 95 — to connect with each other, and America. The pair chronicled their experiences for this Atavist longread. "The America I’ve met on the road is also far more recognizable, resilient, and generous than the noise of now would have us think," she concludes. "Online, we’re a nation of factions. In parking lots and at picnic tables, we’re a nation of encounters," writes Hamilton.
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In September, Masha Hamilton and her son, Cheney Orr, took a nearly-2,000-mile road trip along Interstate 95 — to connect with each other, and America. The pair chronicled their experiences for this Atavist longread. "The America I’ve met on the road is also far more recognizable, resilient, and generous than the noise of now would have us think," she concludes. "Online, we’re a nation of factions. In parking lots and at picnic tables, we’re a nation of encounters," writes Hamilton.
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Overheard in Texas:
At a bus stop: "Hispanic? That's amazing, you don't look at all Hispanic!"
In a library: "So I told them, we're not like that, we're not white, we're Mexican."
I've lived in Texas for years, but I still find ethnicity here hard to understand.
#USCulture #Texas #Ethnicity #Hispanics #LatinAmerican #MexicanAmerican #Mexican #Latino #Tejano
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Overheard in Texas:
At a bus stop: "Hispanic? That's amazing, you don't look at all Hispanic!"
In a library: "So I told them, we're not like that, we're not white, we're Mexican."
I've lived in Texas for years, but I still find ethnicity here hard to understand.
#USCulture #Texas #Ethnicity #Hispanics #LatinAmerican #MexicanAmerican #Mexican #Latino #Tejano
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I recently read a couple of Elmore Leonard crime novels -- "Riding the Rap" and "Out of Sight".
I don't read that much contemporary fiction, nor do I have a deep background in crime fiction as a genre, so you'll have to make do with the remarks of a relatively ill informed reader.
I can see why Leonard is a both popular and respected writer. He knows how to structure a gripping narrative, and his dialogue rings true.
On a more critical note, I can imagine these two novels providing future students of US culture with material for a study of the anxieties and aspirations of middle class white men in an America seemingly riven with disorder.
In "Riding the Rap", Leonard's background as a writer of westerns comes across; the US marshal protagonist brings order to a lawless frontier by acting on his own initiative rather than a mere agent of a federal bureaucracy. Here though, the frontier is no longer in the west, but in Florida, and the threatening nonwhite others are no longer American Indians but a Puerto Rican hitman and a Black Bahamian immigrant who, as part of his assimilation to Black America, adopted an Islamic name.
Leonard's depiction of racial attitudes intersects with his representation of socioeconomic class distinctions. The two nonwhite criminals act for a while as henchmen to a drink and drug addled wealthy white playboy, whose kidnapping plan drives the plot forward. His exploitation of his senile mother's wealth and the revelation of her ugly racist attitudes point to the class and status tensions that exist between a decadent white upper class and the Appalachian coalmining heritage of the US marshal protagonist.
These racial and white populist themes recur in "Out of Sight", where middle aged, middle class, white bank robbers are contrasted with African American home invaders, the latter being characterized by their cruelty, treachery, idleness, lust, and greed.
In both novels the middle aged male protagonist beds a much younger female character; some readers might find these glimpses of the fantasy life of ageing men unintentionally ludicrous.
I think I'll reserve final judgment on Leonard until I've read another of his books. "Swag" is supposed to be good, but neither my local second bookstore nor my libraries have it available at the moment, and I don't want to pay full price for it.
#Books #ElmoreLeonard #USLiterature #CrimeFiction #RidingTheRap #OutOfSight #Race #Racism #Populism #USCulture
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I recently read a couple of Elmore Leonard crime novels -- "Riding the Rap" and "Out of Sight".
I don't read that much contemporary fiction, nor do I have a deep background in crime fiction as a genre, so you'll have to make do with the remarks of a relatively ill informed reader.
I can see why Leonard is a both popular and respected writer. He knows how to structure a gripping narrative, and his dialogue rings true.
On a more critical note, I can imagine these two novels providing future students of US culture with material for a study of the anxieties and aspirations of middle class white men in an America seemingly riven with disorder.
In "Riding the Rap", Leonard's background as a writer of westerns comes across; the US marshal protagonist brings order to a lawless frontier by acting on his own initiative rather than a mere agent of a federal bureaucracy. Here though, the frontier is no longer in the west, but in Florida, and the threatening nonwhite others are no longer American Indians but a Puerto Rican hitman and a Black Bahamian immigrant who, as part of his assimilation to Black America, adopted an Islamic name.
Leonard's depiction of racial attitudes intersects with his representation of socioeconomic class distinctions. The two nonwhite criminals act for a while as henchmen to a drink and drug addled wealthy white playboy, whose kidnapping plan drives the plot forward. His exploitation of his senile mother's wealth and the revelation of her ugly racist attitudes point to the class and status tensions that exist between a decadent white upper class and the Appalachian coalmining heritage of the US marshal protagonist.
These racial and white populist themes recur in "Out of Sight", where middle aged, middle class, white bank robbers are contrasted with African American home invaders, the latter being characterized by their cruelty, treachery, idleness, lust, and greed.
In both novels the middle aged male protagonist beds a much younger female character; some readers might find these glimpses of the fantasy life of ageing men unintentionally ludicrous.
I think I'll reserve final judgment on Leonard until I've read another of his books. "Swag" is supposed to be good, but neither my local second bookstore nor my libraries have it available at the moment, and I don't want to pay full price for it.
#Books #ElmoreLeonard #USLiterature #CrimeFiction #RidingTheRap #OutOfSight #Race #Racism #Populism #USCulture
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When U.S. President Trump visited the the U.K., he wanted to give King Charles a sword from the Dwight D Eisenhower Presidential Library. The director, Todd Arrington, refused because the artifact had been accepted as a donation and therefore belongs to the American people. Now he's been forced to resign — and doesn't quite understand why. Here's more from @CBSNews.
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When U.S. President Trump visited the the U.K., he wanted to give King Charles a sword from the Dwight D Eisenhower Presidential Library. The director, Todd Arrington, refused because the artifact had been accepted as a donation and therefore belongs to the American people. Now he's been forced to resign — and doesn't quite understand why. Here's more from @CBSNews.
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https://www.honest-broker.com/p/is-mid-20th-century-american-culture
Of all the authors mentioned here, the only one I would like to revisit is John Updike; I want to read the whole Rabbit series from end to end for social history purposes.
I'd rather be constipated for a week than have to read any more by the favourite novelist of the neoconservatives, Saul Bellow.
The remarks about the absence of mid-century American opera from the current repertory interested me; is this in part a consequence of new /contemporary music being programmed in the USA as "American music" in the hope of not antagonizing older, antimodernist concert season subscribers ?
As for the absence of "Citizen Kane" from Netflix, what did the author expect? Netflix is awful , being difficult to search, unstable in its offerings , and a commercial enterprise with little respect for film as art and none whatsoever for film history.
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https://www.honest-broker.com/p/is-mid-20th-century-american-culture
Of all the authors mentioned here, the only one I would like to revisit is John Updike; I want to read the whole Rabbit series from end to end for social history purposes.
I'd rather be constipated for a week than have to read any more by the favourite novelist of the neoconservatives, Saul Bellow.
The remarks about the absence of mid-century American opera from the current repertory interested me; is this in part a consequence of new /contemporary music being programmed in the USA as "American music" in the hope of not antagonizing older, antimodernist concert season subscribers ?
As for the absence of "Citizen Kane" from Netflix, what did the author expect? Netflix is awful , being difficult to search, unstable in its offerings , and a commercial enterprise with little respect for film as art and none whatsoever for film history.
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https://www.npr.org/2025/09/19/nx-s1-5546764/fcc-brendan-carr-kimmel-trump-free-speech
>>"We can do this the easy way or the hard way," Carr told the right-wing podcaster Benny Johnson. "These companies can find ways to change conduct to take action on Kimmel or, you know, there's going to be additional work for the FCC ahead." <<
Carr's adoption of Hollywood gangster cliche would be laughable were his actions not so dangerous. As with Trump, Miller, and Hegseth, the rhetoric suggests not just resentment towards "the libs", but an impoverished imagination trying to master surging anxieties about masculinity.
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https://www.npr.org/2025/09/19/nx-s1-5546764/fcc-brendan-carr-kimmel-trump-free-speech
>>"We can do this the easy way or the hard way," Carr told the right-wing podcaster Benny Johnson. "These companies can find ways to change conduct to take action on Kimmel or, you know, there's going to be additional work for the FCC ahead." <<
Carr's adoption of Hollywood gangster cliche would be laughable were his actions not so dangerous. As with Trump, Miller, and Hegseth, the rhetoric suggests not just resentment towards "the libs", but an impoverished imagination trying to master surging anxieties about masculinity.
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Painful reading.
My first thought before reading the article was to wonder why on earth this couple had agreed to have their couples therapy televised.
Then I read that the couple made very little money, so the offer of a free sessions with a therapist who regularly charges $700 an hour must have been difficult to resist. As the husband/author writes, "I wanted to save my marriage. I was desperate for help."
I won't dissect the whole article but will instead note a couple of more general thoughts.
Much of the unhappiness in this marriage can be traced to the continual changes in residence, prompted in turn by scarce job prospects and insecurity in employment. One of the most ugly consequences of the neoliberal political economy pushed by "family values" conservatives is not just the wreckage of marriages by economic insecurity, but the insidious pressure on couples turn inwards and blame each other for problems generated by social forces.
Contra Margaret Thatcher, there IS such a thing as society, and a deeply inequitable society can warp intimate relationships and destroy families.
Fitting in horribly with this antisocial individualism is the deference accorded to "therapy" by so many Americans . All too often a mishmash of self help nostrums, poorly grounded popular psychology, and moralistic bullying is offered as a panacea to both individual and social problems.
Of course, psychotherapists have a legitimate function in modern society, but, in the US in particular, "therapy" has become something like a religion to a significant portion of the population. Consequently I often - as I do now - feel the stirrings of the functional equivalent of anticlericalism within my breast.
I am not recommending a turn to the "traditional" way of life advocated by conservatives. I would just plead for a turn to the social rather than the constant reduction of all problems to those of individual psychology.
Here, the combination of therapy with voyeuristic TV, itself a product of a ratings chase shaped by neoliberal values, turns out to be disastrous.
#CouplesTherapy #Therapy #Relationships #USCulture #Neoliberalism
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Painful reading.
My first thought before reading the article was to wonder why on earth this couple had agreed to have their couples therapy televised.
Then I read that the couple made very little money, so the offer of a free sessions with a therapist who regularly charges $700 an hour must have been difficult to resist. As the husband/author writes, "I wanted to save my marriage. I was desperate for help."
I won't dissect the whole article but will instead note a couple of more general thoughts.
Much of the unhappiness in this marriage can be traced to the continual changes in residence, prompted in turn by scarce job prospects and insecurity in employment. One of the most ugly consequences of the neoliberal political economy pushed by "family values" conservatives is not just the wreckage of marriages by economic insecurity, but the insidious pressure on couples turn inwards and blame each other for problems generated by social forces.
Contra Margaret Thatcher, there IS such a thing as society, and a deeply inequitable society can warp intimate relationships and destroy families.
Fitting in horribly with this antisocial individualism is the deference accorded to "therapy" by so many Americans . All too often a mishmash of self help nostrums, poorly grounded popular psychology, and moralistic bullying is offered as a panacea to both individual and social problems.
Of course, psychotherapists have a legitimate function in modern society, but, in the US in particular, "therapy" has become something like a religion to a significant portion of the population. Consequently I often - as I do now - feel the stirrings of the functional equivalent of anticlericalism within my breast.
I am not recommending a turn to the "traditional" way of life advocated by conservatives. I would just plead for a turn to the social rather than the constant reduction of all problems to those of individual psychology.
Here, the combination of therapy with voyeuristic TV, itself a product of a ratings chase shaped by neoliberal values, turns out to be disastrous.
#CouplesTherapy #Therapy #Relationships #USCulture #Neoliberalism
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Journalists, publicists and college faculty have been fired after calling Charlie Kirk a divisive figure or making light of his assassination. A website called "Charlie's Murderers" circulates personal information including employment details about people allegedly endorsing the assassination — several of those on the list have received death threats. @RollingStone takes a look at the irony of all this when juxtaposed with Kirk's ostensible philosophy of debate, open discussion, and free speech.
#CharlieKirk #FreeSpeech #USPolitics #USCulture #Politics #Conservatism