Thinking about...

Nov 04 2024 36 ep. 15 mins 158

Thinking about... Podcast artwork

The words we need for the politics of today.

snyder.substack.com

History Society & Culture

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Changing the Climate (video)

Nov 04 2024 3 mins

I brought a coat for the trip through Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, Oklahoma, and Texas, but never wore it once. The drought in Ohio was painfully visible in the cornfields. A relative was able to come a talk in Ohio because she had fled a hurricane in North Carolina. In Ohio the days started out in the high 30s but then cleared 70. I ran a 5k in Ohio with people who were struggling in

The Loser Triad (video and text)

Nov 03 2024 4 mins

(Trying to fulfill my promise of translating all of my text posts into audio or video. This seemed like an important one to do before the election. Please think about it and share it. And vote!)We have seen this show before. We know what Trump losing looks like.Three Trumpian actions are predictable. We know them from the last election. Last time around, when Trump lost, when Trump

The Strongman Fantasy (text and audio)

Nov 01 2024 10 mins

I wrote this in March, with the text as below, and am posting this recording now, in the hopes that it can be useful. Please share it. TS 1/11/2024Quite a few Americans like the idea of strongman rule. Why not a dictator who will get things done? I lived in eastern Europe when memories of communism were fresh. I have visited regions in Ukraine where Russia imposed its occupation re

Trump's Lawless Crash (video)

Oct 31 2024 5 mins

Some people talk about Trump’s economic plans; others about his intention to undo the rule of law. In this five-minute video, I try to explain how the two relate: how lawlessness will wreck the economy. Please consider and please share. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit snyder.substack.com/subsc

On Tyranny right now (audio)

Oct 30 2024 33 mins

Given where we are just now, there have been quite a few questions about my book On Tyranny, and in particular about the first lesson, which is “Do Not Obey in Advance.” The violations of that lesson of the twentieth century have been so flagrant that they are, at least, serving as an education in how not to behave. In this setting I thought I would review some of the lessons i

Obeying in advance

Oct 26 2024 3 mins

Greetings from Oklahoma. Here are a few thoughts from here on video about the decisions of the owners of the Washington Post and the LA Times to suppress their editorial boards’ decisions to endorse Kamala Harris. A problem with the very wealthy is that, alas, the least vulnerable have a tendency to think of themselves as the most vulnerable. And from that position they harm ever

Trump and Ukraine: A voter's guide

Oct 23 2024 6 mins

A few thoughts for Americans for whom the survival of Ukraine is an electoral issue. Please watch and share. If you’re in Michigan and it’s 23 October, you can catch me live in Detroit at noon and in Kalamazoo at 7:00pm. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit snyder.substack.com/subscribe

Fascism on television

Oct 22 2024 4 mins

You have to be in a place to appreciate the television. And I think the history of fascism helps us to see what is happening in the ads.In public, the Trump presence in Ohio is weaker than in previous elections. There are fewer signs, and the big ones are in front of the small houses. There are fewer aggressive slogans in public, and the ones personally targeted Vice-President Harr

Can fascism be American?

Oct 18 2024 5 mins

Continuing yesterday’s theme on fascism, responding to questions about the possibility of American fascism. There have been American fascist movements in the past, and perhaps more importantly a tradition of us-and-them politics, sometimes under the surface. There are fascists in the present who continue American fascist traditions. And we invite fascism in the future by telling

Why is fascism bad, Professor?

Oct 17 2024 9 mins

People are talking about fascism. After a New York Times article was published today, I heard both from people who are baffled that we did not been speaking of fascism more and earlier, and from people who want to know what it means — and from people who want me to explain why fascism is bad. I am on the road, so I took ten minutes to make a little video about all of this. I hope