Tag Archives: aesthetics and politics

Lou Reed and the Power of Art

Posted on October 27, 2013 by

Lou Reed died today at 71. The standard obituaries have noted his profound influence on popular music since the 1960s and 1970s. Dig a little deeper and you might find, as The New Republic did, that he affected political leaders like Vaclav … Continue reading →

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Culture Shut Down

Posted on October 2, 2013 by

It was hard not to feel a sense of schadenfreude watching Republicans yesterday as they wriggled in a box of their own design, desperately proposing to re-fund those “non-essential” elements of government they were so keen last month to de-fund … Continue reading →

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American Republic, Now Available from Amazon

Posted on July 31, 2013 by

I’m pleased to announce that my book, American Republic: Essays on the Nature of Politics, is now available in Kindle and paperback from Amazon.com. American Republic includes the original book, plus three essays that first appeared on this site: “The Plastics and … Continue reading →

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What The Washington Post gets wrong about The Daily Show in China

Posted on April 10, 2013 by

The April 9 Washington Post ran this blog post by Max Fisher about the unprecedented  number of video viewings in China of a recent Daily Show segment on North Korea. (You can watch the original clip Daily Show clip here. I’m having … Continue reading →

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The Ecstasy of Politics

Posted on March 18, 2013 by

It’s hard to imagine in the deflated reality of the federal sequester, and as the winners of 2012 (however they define themselves) watch with undisguised glee as the losers (however they are defined) tear themselves apart at the annual CPAC … Continue reading →

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Bosnian Culture is World Culture: March 4 is Global Museum Solidarity Day

Posted on March 4, 2013 by

Today more than 200 museums, galleries and libraries in nearly 40  countries on five continents symbolically closed exhibits in solidarity with seven closed and threatened cultural institutions in Bosnia-Herzegovina. More than 20 galleries and universities in North America, 50 in … Continue reading →

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What If Propaganda Were Cool?

Posted on December 10, 2012 by

A recent article in The New Republic about the motivational art by Hugh Macleod commissioned for tech start-ups demonstrates an almost-antidote to its more buttoned-down corporate counterparts that are so often and easily parodied. Macleod’s back-of-the-business-card doodles can be a bracing … Continue reading →

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