A few days ago I stumbled on a startling truth I want to share with you. Do you know the concept of “mirror worlds?” It has a few meanings. The one I’m using describes a parallel dimension that mirrors the world as we know it, but everything important has been flipped, monsters instead of mates, …
NOTE: This post is to introduce you to the 53rd episode of François Matarasso’s and my monthly podcast, “A Culture of Possibility.” It will be available starting 20 June 2025. You can find it and all episodes at Stitcher, iTunes, and wherever you get your podcasts, along with miaaw.net‘s other podcasts by Owen Kelly, Sophie …
Back in February, when I wrote about the first few deranged actions the MAGA regime took against cultural agencies—”Il Duce Redux: Art Under Trump“—I focused specifically on art, as my title said. One of the things that tends to convince artists of the significance of our work is autocrats’ reliable tendency to go after it …
In 2018, the egregious Trump strategist Steve Bannon—erstwhile investment banker, Hollywood executive producer, and cofounder of Breitbart News—was interviewed by the writer Michael Lewis, who inquired about the Trumpists’ strategy to vanquish the Democrats. “The Democrats don’t matter,” Bannon said. “The real opposition is the media. And the way to deal with them is to …
You know which political insult I hate the most? It’s when people talk about “pearl-clutching.” This is a left phenomenon, usually arising relation to someone being shocked by something the speaker finds unshocking. (“Snowflake” has a similar connotation: too sensitive and delicate for the real world; a weakling.) The image it evokes is so strong …