Newsletter 2.27.18

Hi all! 

Hope you enjoy this week's newsletter. 

–– Nima, Florence, and Adam

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The Right is Trying to Take Down Public Sector Unions. It May Bring Much More Down with it. - Rachel M. Cohen, The Intercept (2/25/18)

The Janus case facing the Supreme Court could wreak unknown havoc on the American left––going beyond devastation of labor. 

A Case for Dismantling the U.S. Border Patrol - Geoffrey Alan Boyce, NACLA (2/22/18)

The U.S. Border Patrol has a history of violence, racism, and enacting policies designed to exact cruelty upon those caught in its snare. Unsurprisingly, all of these terrible traits have been exacerbated under Donald Trump’s presidency.

Leak: How NYT Editor James Bennet Justifies The Op-Ed Page To His Own Paper - Ashley Feinberg - Ashley Feinberg, Huffington Post (2/27/18)

The intrepid Ashley Feinberg got her hands on a transcript of a closed-door meeting between New York Times editorial page editor James Bennet and Times staff workers where he admits the Times is expressly “pro-capitalism.” 

A History of Sex and Abuse in the Trump Administration - Tim Dickinson, Rolling Stone (2/23/18)

Dickinson writes: “In Trump’s world, domestic abuse accusations are not disqualifying; alleged abusers are praised as ‘good’ men; and scandals involving sex, abuse or infidelity are routinely hushed up with gag orders or cash payouts.” This nauseating timeline lays out the “sex, lies, and abuse allegations surrounding Trump and his White House.”

Tomgram: Rajan Menon, Normalizing Nukes, Pentagon-Style - Rajan Menon, TomDispatch (2/25/18)

TomDispatch contributor Rajan Menon analyzes the Trump administration’s first Nuclear Posture Review (NPR). The conclusions are, well, not good. Beyond absurdly painting the United States as a vulnerable, ill-prepared and even worse equipped victim-in-waiting, the NPR foretells a vision of a terrifying future, enabled by the worst of intentions.

How the Anti-Democracy Movement Used Media to Command the Narrative - Frances Moore Lappé and Adam Eichen, FAIR (2/26/18)

Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting published an excerpt from Daring Democracy: Igniting Power, Meaning and Connection for the America We Want.

Winter Olympic Roundup: New Athletic Heroes Alongside the Same Old Grifts - Dave Zirin and Jules Boykoff, The Nation (2/26/18)

Now that the games are over, let’s not forget that “beneath the mountains of powdery snow and fluffy television coverage, we still have the realities of militarization and debt that will plague South Korea long after the media have packed up their cameras.”

NYC Transgender Activist Says She Was Criminalized For Defending Herself Against Abuser - Emma Whitford, In Justice Today (2/26/18) 

A New York woman fights back at her abuser––then faces charges of assault, harassment and weapon possession.

The Democratic party is now publicly attacking progressive candidates - Lawrence Douglas, The Guardian (2/26/28)

In not-breaking news, the Democratic Party establishment continues to be awful. This article tells the tale of how the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has launched an appalling smear campaign against Texas congressional hopeful Laura Moser. Here’s the twist: Moser is a Democrat herself.

The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem and the Nakba - Denijal Jegić, Muftah (2/27/18)

The recently announced timing of the U.S government’s new embassy in Jerusalem is not only a violation of human rights and international law, it is also a deliberate affront to Palestinian history and dignity.