Newsletter #277 — September 22, 2024
Reader Suggested Links
Highlighting links suggested by our readers. Please send us links to things that you find useful.
- Artificial Intelligence
Could Congress Leverage AI to Help Restore Faith in US Democracy? — One of those rare stories that asks how AI might actually be used to strengthen democracy and limit political dysfunction. - Freedom of Speech
Why Are Museums So Afraid of This Artist? — A profile about an artist famous for disdaining the cult of personality and challenging the art world to address society's tough issues. - Culture and Religion
The Junkification of American Life — An insightful look at the ways in which the commercial success of tech driven dopamine highs is transforming our society. - Israel / Hamas War
Israel’s Strategic Win — An insightful article exploring the strategic implications of Israel's recent attacks on Hezbollah and what these attacks portend for the future of the Middle East. - Israel / Hamas War
An explosive moment of clarification — A controversial and thought-provoking argument that "Israel is leading the fight of good against evil while the "civilised" world doesn't know what side it’s on." - Israel / Hamas War
Maybe It’s Time for Jewish Self-Segregation — For a time in which we claim to oppose hate and embrace tolerance and diversity, a look at how antisemitic hate (based on Israel's efforts to defend itself from real hate) is driving Jews into internal exile. - Superpower Conflict
America first? Or the United States as the leader of the free world? — An essay about the great debate of 1940 about America's proper role in the world -- a debate that could inform today's consideration the same issue.
Colleague Activities
Highlighting things that our conflict and peacebuilding colleagues are doing that contribute to efforts to address the hyper-polarization problem.
- Developing a Unifying Vision
ProSocial World — The purpose of ProSocial World is to consciously evolve a world that works for all. - De-Escalation Strategies
Traitors and the Advantages of Criticizing Your Side – BCB #117 — An explanation of an important de-escalation strategy -- accepting responsibility for your side's role driving hyper-polarization and undermining democracy. - Peacebuilding
PeaceCon 2024 and Beyond — A report on the Alliance for Peacebuilding's annual PeaceCon conference and, especially, efforts to focus the Alliance's expertise in the US. - Trust / Trust Earning
2024 Edelman Trust Barometer — This tool reveals a new paradox at the heart of society. Rapid innovation offers the promise of a new era of prosperity, but instead, it risks exacerbating trust issues, leading to further societal instability and political polarization. - Artificial Intelligence
Depolarizing AI and the Evolution of Political Discourse — A thought-provoking conversation exploring the complex relationships between consciousness, culture, and AI. - Constructive Communication
Exposure to Outgroup Members Criticizing Their Own Group Facilitates Intergroup Openness — Across four experiments, Israeli Jews who were exposed to a Palestinian criticizing Palestinians were more open to the Palestinians' perspective of the conflict, than those not exposed to the criticism - Violence
Many are overstating Americans' support for political violence — and it's frustrating — Are we overstating the problem of political violence in the United States? And, could this become a self-fulfilling prophecy? - US Election
Want More Votes? Try Depolarization — For a society in which hatemongering, anger-provoking strategies dominate political discourse, an argument that the opposite might be more effective. - Constructive Communication
From Essential Partners: It's Not You! Questions are Hard to Write. — An essay exploring the critically important role that questions play in framing conversations. - US Election
The Carter Center U.S. Elections Project — The Center is working to support US elections by providing objective information about the election process and advancing good practices in transparency. - US Election
Dignity: The Hidden Campaign Strategy — Conspicuous disrespect is one of the most effective strategies for intensifying political opposition. This article explains the advantages of forsaking that strategy. - US Election
Calls For Unity at the DNC — But We Need More Than Words — Are democratic calls for national unity political spin? Or, do they reflect genuine aspirations and policy priorities? - Suppressing Opponents
New Data Shows Threat and Harassment Events Doubled in July — A report on a new study that quantifies the level of threat and harassment facing public officials. - Israel / Hamas War
Peaceworks Foundation — Peaceworks is committed to persuade a critical mass of Israelis and Palestinians to reject the status quo and unlock the full potential of both peoples.
News and Opinion
From around the web, more insight into the nature of our conflict problems, limits of business-as-usual thinking, and things people are doing to try to make things better. (Formerly, Beyond Intractability in Context.)
- Israel / Hamas War
Hezbollah device attacks: Is this a prelude to war, or an alternative? — Thoughtful reflections on a critically important question -- whether or not the recent use of force against Hezbollah is increasing or decreasing the risk of a wider war. - Israel / Hamas War
I fought in Iraq — I know Israel’s doing all it can to save civilians — A former NATO commander (and self-described skeptic of Israeli actions) reports on his fact-finding mission to Israel and Gaza. - Interstate War
U.S. Shrugs as World War III Approaches — A quick summary of the report of the Commission on the National Defense Strategy -- a politically neglected, but critically important, warning about the West's declining ability to deter war and defend itself. - Terror
The Distance between September and October is Far More than a Month — Important reflections on the differing ways in which the world has responded to the terrorist attacks of September 11 and October 7 - Social Complexity
Economic Theory for the Real World — An overview of an important new book that offers a major upgrade to economic thinking -- an upgrade that promises to improve our ability to deal with the astonishing complexities of today's economy. - Hate Mongering
Weaponizing Anger is a Useful Political Strategy — A provocative essay exploring the ways in which anger has been cultivated and exploited for political gain. - Israel / Hamas War
‘You dared to strike at Israel, now they’ve sent you back 1,000 years’ – Arab commentator mocks Hezbollah — From an Arab commentator, a surprising critique of Hezbollah's military strategy. - Superpower Conflict
Unprepared for the rising, nightmarish risk of biological warfare — A wake up call highlighting the largely unrecognized threat posed by another rapidly advancing military technology -- biowarfare. - Superpower Conflict
America Isn’t Ready for the Wars of the Future: And They’re Already Here — Pax Americana relied heavily upon expensive US weapon systems -- systems that are rapidly becoming obsolete and ineffective (and are not being replaced). - Countering Misinformation
When Fact-Checks Backfire — In theory, fact checking provides one of our most important tools for combating misinformation. This article takes a critical look at the factors undermining the effectiveness of these tools. - Nihilists
The People Who Rage Against the Machine — A profile of a surprising new political coalition, the Doomer Optimists -- a group united in opposition to modernity's supposed progress. - Problem Assessment
The Medical Establishment Closes Ranks, and Patients Feel the Effects — An exploration of one area in which elites have lost the public's trust, and a call for those in the medical profession to do better. - Freedom of Speech
Art Under Quiet Siege — More reason to think that, in the name of diversity, we are robbing ourselves of the diverse voices that we all need to learn, evolve, and enjoy one another's creative insights. - Authoritarianism
These Four Things Are Behind The Totalitarianism We Are Witnessing — For those on the left worried about totalitarianism from the right, and interview explaining why many of those on the right fear that the left is a totalitarian force. - Climate / Environment
Japan Offers a Glimpse into the Future — A story about how Japan is struggling with an energy trilemma in which it seeks to simultaneously balance economic growth, energy security, and meeting international emissions reductions commitments. - Israel / Hamas War
Eight months later, how have things changed? How are we different? Or not? — After two thirds of the year, reflections on the increase in the long shadow being cast by the October 7 attack. - Countering Misinformation
In Colorado, a Murder and a Viral Video Stoke Fears of Migrant Crime — An example of the kind of in-depth reporting that gives us all a chance to separate fact from politically convenient fiction. - Crime / Policing / Guns
The Most Surprising New Gun Owners Are U.S. Liberals — A story about a surprising and worrying development -- a significant uptick of the number of people on the political left who are buying guns. - Authoritarianism
America’s First True Dictator — From Anne Applebaum, a profile of Louisiana Governor Huey Long -- a man that she argues figured out how to bring dictatorship to a US democracy. - US Election
Federal Debt Is Soaring. Here’s Why Trump and Harris Aren’t Talking About It. — An examination of the ways in which we are resolving distributional conflicts by pretending that we have more resources than we do. - Race / Anti-Racism
Matt Walsh’s Hilarious New Film Asks: ‘Am I Racist?’ — A guide to the many reasons why so many strongly oppose DEI programs (criticisms that the many defenders of those programs really need to address).
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About the MBI Newsletters
Two or three times a week, Guy and Heidi Burgess, the BI Directors, share some of our thoughts on political hyper-polarization and related topics. We also share essays from our colleagues and other contributors, and every week or so, we devote one newsletter to annotated links to outside readings that we found particularly useful relating to U.S. hyper-polarization, threats to peace (and actual violence) in other countries, and related topics of interest. Each Newsletter is posted on BI, and sent out by email through Substack to subscribers. You can sign up to receive your copy here and find the latest newsletter here or on our BI Newsletter page, which also provides access to all the past newsletters, going back to 2017.
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