India courting a ‘coalition of the unwilling’. Political unrest, wherever, is nearly always fuelled by economic anxieties. ’Stuckopia’ can be the pre-cursor of ‘dystopia’ – but it doesn’t have to be. A portrait of a president. A check list to rumble bad arguments.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“India has the opportunity to work with like-minded nations, to create a ‘coalition of the unwilling’ – unwilling to compromise on their sovereignty, unwilling to enter entangling alliances, and unwilling to have their journey towards development derailed by a new global conflict.” (Jay Vinayak Ojha in the article of the week)
ARTICLE OF THE WEEK
Jay Vinayak Ojha, A new ‘coalition of the unwilling’
(National University of Singapore, 7 July 2024)
In two decades from now, many analysts posit that we will live in a tripolar world dominated by China, India and the US. In this short essay, an Indian researcher argues that an independent Indian foreign policy will give rise to a new “Coalition of the unwilling”: likeminded countries that value an independent foreign policy and refuse to choose sides in the new US-China great power competition. Such policy will rest upon three pillars: (1) a “fierce and passionate nationalism” (particularly when it comes to defense); (2) anti-colonialism, including vis-a-vis ‘neo-colonial structures’; and a (3) civilizational aspiration to play a role in the world (free access, reads in 5-7 min).
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Patricia Cohen and Jack Nicas, Political Unrest Worldwide Is Fueled by High Prices and Huge Debts
(The New York Times, 5 July 2024)
How economic and political malaise feed off each other. In poor and rich countries alike, deep economic anxieties are leaving a trail of political turmoil and violence. The causes, context and conditions underlying these disruptions vary widely, but three common denominators exist: (1) rising inequality, (2) diminished purchasing power and (3) growing anxiety that the next generation will be worse off than this one. As a result, citizens who face a grim economic outlook have lost faith in the ability of their governments to cope, and they are now striking back. Slower global growth makes it hard to find solutions (gifted article, reads in 6-8 min).
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Hillary Kelly, Welcome to Stucktopia
(The New York Times, 6 July 2024)
We had utopia and dystopia, and now a literary critic suggests “stucktopia” – a new theme that has emerged in popular science fiction. In a “stuckopian” world, people are trapped inside a labyrinthine environment, sheltering from some outside threat they are too cowed to face. They are, well…, stuck, with no obvious way out. Stucktopia can be seen as a preamble to the dystopia to come: the sense that we’re all spinning our wheels in anticipation of the ominous fate that awaits. But don’t give up: the op-ed offers some hopeful clues on how we might dismount this endless hamster wheel (gifted article, reads in 8-10 min).
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Jamil Anderlini, The magnificent mind of Emmanuel Macron
(Politico, 8 July 2024)
There are many reasons behind the stunning defeat of Emmanuel Macron’s project of redefining politics through a new centrist coalition. Hubris played a key role. Macron had it all, which may be the reason that made him so deeply unpopular. In the eyes of the journalist who accompanied him on an official visit to China, “the president is a lonely, tragic figure whose strange personality has inflicted chaos and carnage on French politics.” Two characteristics that led to Macron’s downfall: “he doesn’t listen to anyone” and wants to be loved by everyone (metered paywall, reads in 7-9 min).
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Amanda Ruggeri, Logical fallacies: Seven ways to spot a bad argument
(BBC Futures, 10 July 2024)
A practical, simple and useful guide to defeat bad arguments so often used to misinform and disinform. There are seven major logical fallacies (or flaws in reasoning): (1) appeal to ignorance, (2) ad hominem attacks, (3) slippery slope analogy, (4) straw man, (5) appeal to authority, (6) false dichotomy, and (7) ‘whataboutism’. By understanding each of them a bit better, we can all become more discerning critical thinkers (free access, reads in 4-6 min).
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