Good morning! The US election is just five weeks away, and it’s been an…interesting…weekend. Let’s take a look at the news of note, shall we? And while we’re at it, please do share what you’re reading in the comments!
‘Trump Is No Moral Exemplar—He’s a Champion‘ (The Atlantic)
How does Donald Trump, with behaviour and values that seem rather far apart from Christianity, become such a hit with evangelical Christians? This is a fascinating glimpse into how voters assign value to candidates.
And there’s no question that Trump voters feel themselves besieged. A PRRI/Brookings survey from June makes it possible to quantify. It found that 81 percent of Trump supporters believe that discrimination against whites is as big a problem as discrimination against blacks and other minorities; 77 percent believe that discrimination against Christians in the United States today is a major problem.
‘ A Growing Grassroots Movement in Mexico Is Resisting the US-Backed Drug War‘ (The Nation)
The US drug war has hit Mexico hard. A nation frustrated with decades of suffering has decided to hit back.
Los Otros Desaparecidos de Iguala came together after the infamous disappearance of 43 students by local police in concert with local paramilitaries two years ago, on September 26, 2014. But it wasn’t until the discovery of 38 bodies in the weeks following the disappearances that the media storm began. As grave after grave was turned up outside of Iguala, Argentine forensic experts identified the remains of Alexander Mora Venancio, one of the 43 students. The other 42 young men are still disappeared.
‘A Free-Speech Fatality‘ (New York Times)
An assassination in Jordan is revealing the need for a deeper conversation about what is happening in a nation with numerous restrictions on free speech. The difference between free speech and hate speech is something officials appear to be having trouble distinguishing, to the peril of citizens.
The incongruity between the king and queen’s support for the Charlie Hebdo cartoonists and the government’s willingness to help incite against dissidents here is symptomatic. The Jordanian government has always handled anything related to religion this way: On one hand, officials claim to fight radicalization and violent extremism; on the other, they appease fundamentalist Islamists by banning books or censoring films and by claiming to be defenders of Islam.
‘Trump boosters laud his tax ‘genius’‘ (Politico)
This weekend, leaked documents put Donald Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns in particularly harsh light: It turns out that America doesn’t think it’s very ‘smart’ for a candidate to incur nearly a billion dollars in losses from his businesses, and subsequently absolve himself of tax liability for nearly twenty years.
For now, it’s Trump’s closest allies dealing with the fallout of a bombshell. And they remain isolated in arguing that the tax revelations vindicate the billionaire businessman, with party leaders conspicuously silent so far on a story that threatens to create a second consecutive week of negative coverage of Trump’s flailing campaign.
‘Incitement, Negligence, and Complicity: How We Arrived at Hattar’s Assassination’ (7iber)
What happens when a writer is condemned for sharing a cartoon and the government does nothing to stop the fallout? This exploration of the Hattar assassination delves into personal and social accountability for the climate that contributed to his death.
Hate speech did not suddenly emerge in our society, but has been present since the legal case was initiated against Hattar and even before it. Incitement against the murdered writer started on social media and other platforms, with threats to kill him published and delivered directly to him. These threats did not warrant “an order to investigate” nor did they initiate any legal case against the instigators. Though the assassin is one person, those who have applauded the murder are many. Many have paraded their public opinions in front of the state, which in turn chose to ingratiate the commentators to preserve its false popularity at the expense of a citizen’s safety.
Please consider supporting us with one time or recurring donation. We really do rely on reader support to function, and we value your contributions. To make sure you don’t miss our latest, you can subscribe to our newsletter below — and if you’re interested in writing for us, check out our contributor guidelines.
Photo: Chris Gladis/Creative Commons