Brandon Marcus
@brandonjmarc
Brandon Marcus
The United States is a nation founded on a revolu-tionary, generous, and deeply moral commitment to human equality and dignity. In the very struggles that constitute this nation's history, in the very struggles that lie ahead, the United States holds to these truths: all of us are equal, we are equal as citizens, and we are equal under the law. For
... See moreFarewell to Podemos • EQUATOR
equator.org
Since about the middle of the twentieth century, people who've wanted to wrest the word "national-ism" away from the bloody hands of tyrants have tried to distinguish between "good nationalism" and “bad nationalism." By good nationalism, they usually mean liberal or civic nationalism, an attachment to a set of civic ideals. By bad nationalism, they
... See moreLiberal nationalism, as an idea, is fundamentally historical. The case for the nation, in the nineteenth century, was less that the nation was a natural category than that the nation was a historical development. Liberal nationalism rested on an analogy between the individual and the collective. Just as liberals had faith in individuals, so they
... See moreHistories of nation states are stories that hide the seams that stitch the nation to the state (Lepore)
Nations, to make sense of themselves, need some kind of agreed upon past. They can get it from scholars or they can get it from demagogues, but get it they will (Lepore)
When political power systematically turns to creators who do not claim a critical role — and are not held to one — the balance of power between government and the public shifts.
Peter Vandermeersch • When influencers replace journalists
Direct distribution through digital creators is faster, more effective, and more controllable. Journalists are increasingly viewed as an intermediary layer that can be bypassed.
Peter Vandermeersch • When influencers replace journalists
Crucially, Mamdani’s campaign did not present politics through slogans or traditional advertisements, but as culture: through humor, pop references, personal stories, and existing digital formats. Policy was explained in videos that looked like ordinary content rather than campaign messaging.