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Bills OL Alec Anderson joins 'GMFB' to discuss Joe Brady as HC and importance of mental health
Buffalo Bills offensive lineman Alec Anderson wakes up with "GMFB" to discuss new head coach Joe Brady and why mental health awareness is important in the NFL.
Truth and Politics in the Age of Post-Truth
Get E-International Relations delivered to your inbox, free of charge. As you sign up, consider becoming a paid subscriber, or make a donation, to support our work. Subscribe This is an excerpt from Global Politics in a Post-Truth Era. You can download the book free of charge from E-International Relations. The term post-truth is by now so ubiquitous in describing the state of politics in the Western world and even beyond that the most pressing issue of the day appears to be about making democracy work in the era of post-truth rather than questioning the normalisation of the term itself in the first place. The critical turning point appeared to have occurred in 2016 when the term was chosen by the Oxford English Dictionary as ‘The Word of the Year.’ On its website, the Dictionary notes the transformation of post-truth from ‘being a peripheral term to being a mainstay in political commentary and connects ‘the spike in frequency’ directly with the Brexit referendum in the United Kingdom and the election of Donald J. Trump in the United States – both occurring in 2016. Paired with the noun ‘politics,’ post-truth is defined as an adjective ‘relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.’ The Oxford English Dictionary traces the first use of the term to a 1992 essay in The Nation by the playwright Steve Tesich as he reflected on the 1980s Iran-Contra scandal and the 1990–91 Gulf War: We are rapidly becoming prototypes of a people that totalitarian monsters could only drool about in their dreams. All the dictators up to now have had to work hard at suppressing the truth. We, by our actions, are saying that this is no longer necessary, that we have acquired a spiritual mechanism that can denude truth of any significance. In a very fundamental way we, as a free people, have freely decided that we want to live in some post-truth world (Tesich 1992, 13; emphasis added). He then continued, The Gulf War is over but the war at home goes on. The gulf between rich and destitute widens – between those of us who live in a modern post-industrial nation and those of us who live in the Third World countries of our inner cities. The present administration’s response to this internal crisis has shifted from benign to malignant neglect. The current levels of misery and decomposition of our cities and the economic gulags of our ghettos are acceptable. Since there is only so much hope to go around, there is a freeze on hope. The have-nots have now been reclassified as never-will-haves (Tesich 1992, 13). In the context of Tesich’s essay, truth includes both facts, as in what happens, and ‘moral absolutes,’ as in the ‘self-evident truths mentioned in our Constitution’ (Tesich 1992, 14). Together, these two notions of truth entail the obligation to both act and react. The two passages cited above show that even in the early post-Cold War years, Tesich was already deeply concerned that the American people are neither prepared to act on truth nor react to truth that is disconcerting, or what he calls ‘bad news’ (Tesich 1992, 12). Accordingly, Tesich’s insight as captured by the term post-truth is not that truth is irrelevant to what we know, but rather it is irrelevant to how we act. In contrast, ‘post-truth politics,’ as defined by Oxford as a term that pitches ‘objective facts’ against ‘emotion and personal belief’ such that the latter appears to have overtaken the former in shaping ‘public opinion’ and thereby, democratic politics. When Tesich’s post-truth politics and its current usage are juxtaposed, the two are in fact not identical in terms of what truth is and how it relates to politics. Against such consideration, this chapter provides a critical survey of selected historical events and theoretical considerations for the purpose of gaining a more nuanced understanding of the relation between truth and politics. Truth and Language One notable impact of post-truth politics is that language is being overtly deployed as a political weapon not only by politicians and those in power, but among the general population. It seems that once facts are irrelevant to the validity of what is being said, language becomes the platform for an all-out political contest in which what is said is no more than an act of will expressed as an assertion of power and/or an exercise in defiance. As early as in the writings of Thucydides (460–400 BCE), the vulnerability of logos – which is the human capacity for rational discourse in tumultuous times – was already noted. Thucydides belonged to a school of Greek thought which maintained that language is conventional and that the association between name and things is a result of ‘human use and habit’ rather than ‘nature or divine dispensation’ (Connor 1984, 99). The conventional nature of language means that it is incapable of providing its users with any independent criteria for judgement. In Thucydides’ study of the Peloponnesian War (431–405 BCE), the subversion of logos as seen in the manipulation of language was introduced through his account of the civil war in Corcyra (Thucydides 1972, 236-245). The war first broke out in 427 BCE between the pro-Athenian democratic faction and the pro-Spartan oligarchic faction before it spread to the rest of the Greek world. There was a general breakdown of law and order, resulting in extreme violence and death. Language underwent changes that were reflective of the events of the time. The English philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679) translated Thucydides’ description of the situation as follows: The received value of names imposed for signification of things, was changed into arbitrary. For inconsiderate boldness, was counted true-hearted manliness: provident deliberation, a handsome fear: modesty, the cloak of cowardice: to be wise in everything, to be lazy in everything... he that had been so provident as not to need to do the one or the other, was said to be a dissolver of society, and one that stood in fear of his adversary. In brief, he that could outstrip another in the doing of an evil act, or that could persuade another thereto that never meant it, was commended (Hobbes 1839–1845, 8: 348; Thucydides 1972, 242-243). What concerned Thucydides most was that the meanings of words are no more than linguistic conventions that require logos to support them. The Corcyrean civil war was a reminder that such capacity cannot be assumed. This is why history understood as an authentic account of what happens matters. Guided by logos, the historian’s task is ‘the search after truth’, which is established through ‘the absence of the fabulous,’ including ‘the rejection of myth and unverifiable stories’ (de Jonge 2017, 2). Thus, history plays an important role in facilitating the stability of language – without which distinctions and judgements cannot be rendered communicable. Just like Thucydides, Hobbes was a nominalist who subscribed to the view that there is no inherent meaning to words. Hobbes’ state of nature, where there is no common authority, is precisely one in which distinctions cannot be made. As Hobbes put it, there is ‘no Mine and Thine distinct’ nor is there distinction between ‘the notions of Right and Wrong, Justice and Injustice’ (1968, 188; emphasis in original). This is clearly an unsustainable condition for everyone. Behind Hobbes’ famous words that life in the state of nature is ‘solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short’ is his uncompromising argument for the ‘Leviathan’, which is described by the late American political theorist, Sheldon Wolin (1922–2015), as the ‘sovereign definer’ (Hobbes 1968, 186; Wolin 2004, 238–243). Accordingly, the social contract is importantly a ‘linguistic contract’ that binds all parties to ‘general names agreed upon’ (Peters 1979, 125; Hobbes 1968, 111). Through Thucydides and Hobbes, we can identify a line of thinking that sees politics as a contestation over the use of language, which is based on shared conventions and norms. Thus understood, politics is not a collective quest for the true nature of our being or an epistemological exercise in pursuit of true knowledge. Rather, politics is about humans living with one another by finding a shared language to communicate with one another on matters that affect them all. Truth is in that sense contingent on what is being said as opposed to setting the standard for it. In other words, truth is the embodiment of shareability among us. While truth as such ensures the viability of a political entity, truth by no means represents a normative standard to adjudicate among contesting actors in what they say, let alone in what they do. During Thucydides’ times, ancient China was also experiencing a tumultuous time as the ruling Zhou dynasty deteriorated into the period of the Warring States (481–221 BCE). This was when the rulers of Zhou no longer presided over the territories brought under its control through conquest. Instead of professing allegiance to the Zhou royalty, the lords of these territories became kings themselves to rule over their own land. The period was one marked by endless military campaigns as each of the seven major states aimed to conquer the rest (Lewis 1999). Yet, the period was also known for its intellectual vibrancy as different thinkers challenged the restoring of order among these warring states – including offering ideas and advice to rulers on good governance. Among these thinkers was Confucius (551–479 BCE). His thought, which came to be known as Confucianism, went on to become the state ideology of China from the Han dynasty (206 BCE–222 CE) until the end of the Qing dynasty in 1911 when China became a republic. The founding text of Confucianism was the Analects, which is a collection of dialogues between Confucius and his students as recorded by them. One key concept Confucius advanced is the ‘rectification of names’. Though the term only appears in one exchange in the Analects, it is considered a major aspect of Confucius’ thought. Generations of Confucian scholars from past and present, including Western academics, have debated over its interpretation (Makeham 2003). The passage in question reads as follows: Zi Lu said: ‘The monarch of the state of Wei wants you to govern the country, what is the first thing you plan on doing?’ Confucius said: ‘First it is necessary to rectify the names.’Zi Lu said: ‘Is that really what has to be done? You are being too pedantic, aren’t you now? How will you rectify these names?’Confucius said: ‘Zhong You, you are too unrefined. A gentleman, faced with a matter that he does not understand, takes a skeptical attitude. If names are not correct, one cannot speak smoothly and reasonably, and if one cannot speak smoothly and reasonably, affairs cannot be managed successfully. If affairs cannot be managed successfully, rites and music will not be conducted. If rites and music are not conducted, punishments will not be suitable. And if punishments are not suitable, the common people will not know what to do. So, when the gentleman uses names, it is necessary to be able to speak so that people understand. If one can say it, one can definitely do it. A gentleman should not be careless with words’ (Analects 13:3 in Cao 2016, 148). This translation is offered by the contemporary philosopher Cao Feng. As Cao notes, the passage is what started the whole debate over ‘exactly what kind of names did Confucius... wish to rectify’ (Cao 2016, 148). Of the three major groups of interpretation examined by Cao, beginning with classical Confucian scholarship, one is arguably the most influential and certainly most pertinent to the issue of language and politics. This is the interpretation that was first associated with the Neo-Confucian master, Zhu Xi (1130–1200), who argued that the ‘rectification of names is simply the rectification of politics’ (Cao 2016, 149). Within this interpretive framework, rectification has the dual functions of correction and prescription by ensuring that predetermined hierarchical roles are strictly adhered to through following ‘the system of rites and propriety’ (Cao 2016, 151). In addition, the rectification of names entails ‘using names to rectify actuality’ (Cao 2016, 151). Yet Cao rejects this whole body of interpretive works by arguing that these were ideas developed later. Instead, Cao suggests the following: The original meaning of Confucius’ rectification of names may, then, be quite simple. Confucius did not mean to establish a concrete, normative system of “names”; rather, Confucius was simply the first person in history to realize or remark upon the importance of language in politics. As a politician, he noticed and foresaw the impact that the indeterminacy, ambiguity, and arbitrariness of names would have on politics. Confucius recognized the political consequences of language’s not accurately expressing meaning or not being accurately received by people. He realized the great role that names, as a means of distinguishing right and wrong and establishing norms, could play in society and politics (Cao 2016, 168). Scholarly debates aside, Cao’s view has the advantage of identifying an interpretation of this controversial exchange in the Analects that enables its readers to extrapolate from it the observation that the meaning of words depends as much on their users as on their interpreters; neither of which can be predetermined. Accordingly, a good ruler is someone who can speak without ambiguity to his subjects and make good his words through actions. Stated differently, Cao’s view on what concerned Confucius then, who was living through times of protracted political upheaval, is that language is an indispensable political tool for those in power and can be deployed by both good and bad rulers alike. To sum up, this historical survey shows that politics as a war of words is by no means a distinctive marker of contemporary politics nor the Western world. Be it ancient or current, east or west, language is subject to manipulation to serve political purposes and when there is an outright war of words that defies existing norms, it is indicative of a political situation in which people no longer share a language and truth becomes irrelevant. Accordingly, political order entails stability in language use. Truth and Politics As previously noted, current use of the term post-truth as an adjective to the term ‘politics’ suggests that once there was a time when politics aligned with truth. Indeed, if we start with Plato’s Republic as the key founding text of Western political thought, we see that the ideal polis (city-state of ancient Greece) is where truth and politics converge, and justice is achieved. Written around 380 BCE when Athens was still coping with its defeat by the Spartans in the Peloponnesian War, the Republic is a defence of the rule of the ‘philosopher king’, defined as someone who is ‘guided by the truth’ and is ‘always and in every way’ in pursuit of the truth (Plato 1974, 490a). For Plato, truth converges with virtues and hence, letting the philosopher take charge of politics is to let the wisest and the most virtuous lead the less wise and the less virtuous even if it requires compulsion (Plato 1974, 499b). In Plato’s words, ‘…until the philosophers attain power in a city there will be no respite from evil for either city or citizens…’ (Plato 1974, 501e). The uncompromising rule of philosopher-kings is made palatable by the claim that we are all ‘earth- born brothers’ with random mixtures of gold, silver, bronze and iron, but only the gold can rule (Plato 1974, 414–415). Understandably, academic debates over the interpretation of Plato’s Republic revolve around the question of whether truth as attained in philosophy can be realised in politics as action and whether such a connection is even desirable. Without getting into the details of these scholarly exchanges, I suggest that they all share the concern that truth acquired through the rigorous process of philosophical reasoning is not without problem when applied to the real world of living humans. This is because not all humans are philosophers – and indeed, in Plato’s view, not everyone is capable of becoming a philosopher given the protracted and arduous training that one needs to endure to become one. Hannah Arendt (1906–1975), a highly influential political philosopher of the twentieth century, notes that ‘Plato was the first to introduce the division between those who know and do not act and those who act and do not know’ and that such a separation has remained ‘at the root of all theories of domination’ (Arendt 1958, 223, 225). What Arendt points out in this remark is not the gap between theory and practice, but rather that Plato provides the normative ground for those who know the truth to tell those who do not know what to do. Arendt herself took on the challenge of understanding the relationship between truth and politics through her analysis of Nazism and Stalinism. Arendt’s insight, which was controversial when The Origins of Totalitarianism was published in 1951, was to identify Nazism and Stalinism as representative of a new form of political rule – totalitarianism – making it distinct from ‘other forms of political oppression... such as despotism, tyranny and dictatorship’ (Arendt 1973, 460). Arendt defines totalitarianism as a self- contained system of ideas driven by their ‘logic’ and marked by a mode of reasoning called ‘ideological thinking.’ Ideological thinking as such is a distinctive form of political reasoning defined by three characteristics. First, ideological thinking claims to provide a ‘total explanation’ of all historical happenings, encompassing the past, the present, and the future. Second, while ideological thinking is an attempt to account for ‘factual reality’ in its totality, this mode of thinking is paradoxically divorced from reality and experience. This is because experience, being rooted in specificity, is clearly limited in its claim to totality. It follows that as its third characteristic, ideological thinking aims to emancipate thought from the limitation imposed by experience through a ‘specific method of demonstration.’ The method involves arranging facts into an ‘absolutely logical procedure’ that starts from an ‘axiomatically accepted premise’. It is, in short, a ‘process of deduction from a premise’ – which is the only possible movement in the realm of logic that leads to one definitive conclusion. This is how the ‘logicality of ideological thinking’ provides the basis for total explanation and the ‘principle of action’ for totalitarian movement (Arendt 1973, 468–474). Stated differently, totalitarianism is a form of uncompromising idealism that exists in one’s head irrespective of shared reality as experienced. It is the perverse form of what Arendt later refers to as ‘rational truth’, which is the product of the ‘speculative mind’ that belongs to philosophy, mathematics and the sciences. The ‘speculative mind’ is the mind working on its way to generate axioms and theories by relying on the cognitive capacity of the human brain (Arendt 1977, 231). The presence of others has no bearing whatsoever on rational truth. In contrast, ‘factual truth’ is what happens when humans are ‘living and acting together’ (Arendt 1977, 231). Factual truth is therefore particular and temporal by definition. But more importantly, factual truth is ‘political by nature’ because it can only be validated in the context of the human community (Arendt 1977, 238). In other words, factual truth is about humans in their plurality rather than in their singularity. For factual truth to be sustainable, we need what Arendt calls ‘common sense’ – understood as ‘community sense’ (Arendt 1982, 72). There is also another distinction about truth that Arendt makes which is pertinent to understanding how totalitarianism works. The issue is whether the so-called totalitarian ideology is simply an unnecessarily cumbersome way of saying that it is an all-round and polished lie. Here, Arendt calls totalitarian ideology the ‘modern lie’ – in contrast to the ‘traditional lie’. The latter is restricted by two conditions: that it is a lie about the ‘particulars’ and that it deceives only the ‘enemy’ – which means that the liar is not engaged in self- deception. The modern lie, however, involves a ‘complete rearrangement of the whole factual texture’. It also intends to deceive everyone alike, to the extent that those who initiate the lie eventually ‘fall victims to their own falsehood’ (Arendt 1977, 249–254). This distinction between the traditional and modern lie is important. It indicates that not only is totalitarianism a lie, but the lie is in fact too big to fit into the standard meaning of the word. To tell a lie from truth, we need a common standard. In the case of a traditional lie, the common standard is precisely ‘the fabric of factuality’. As such, a lie always appears as a ‘tear’ to that fabric. Yet, modern lies require making a surrogate reality with a completely different context for facts to fit ‘without seam, crack, or fissure, exactly as the facts fitted into their original context’. Arendt notes that as long as those who concoct the surrogate reality are prepared to engage in self- deception to ‘create a semblance of truthfulness’, there is nothing to prevent ‘these new stories, images, and non-facts from becoming an adequate substitute for reality and factuality’ (Arendt 1977, 253–254). Totalitarianism therefore requires a person to stand outside of the system itself in order to make sense of it. Arendt points out that it is futile for us to argue with (for example) a Nazi or a Stalinist on race or class. To confront totalitarianism requires more than just a confrontation with specific facts. It is a more fundamental confrontation between reality as experienced and its total rejection. This means that Nazism and Stalinism are more than radical ways of conducting racial conflict or class struggle. Rather: Totalitarian politics – far from being simply antisemitic or racist or imperialist or communist – use and abuse their own ideological and political elements until the basis of factual reality, from which the ideologies originally derived their propaganda value– the value of struggle, for instance, or the interest conflicts between Jews and their neighbours – have all but disappeared (Arendt 1973, xv). Accordingly: The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the convinced Communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction (that is, the reality of experience) and the distinction between true and false (that is, the standards of thought) no longer exist (Arendt 1973, 474). Who then is the ‘ideal subject’ of totalitarianism? Although there is a revival of interest in Arendt’s observation on truth and politics since the onset of post- truth politics, not enough has been said about her reply to the question (Hyvönen 2018; Klinkler 2018; Lee 2019; Zerilli 2020). Yet if we take a look at Arendt’s portrait of this ideal subject, her view is even more pertinent to our current challenge. As a self-contained system of ideas that is detached from experience, totalitarian thinking offers consistency in ways that reality cannot. Arendt notes that this kind of consistency is especially appealing to those who have lost a sense of bearing in the world (Arendt 1973, 353). They constitute what she calls the ‘masses’. The ‘mass man’ is thus a highly isolated and atomised individual, who is ‘obsessed by a desire to escape from reality’ (Arendt 1973, 318, 352). In his ‘essential homelessness’ the mass man can ‘no longer bear its accidental, incomprehensible aspects’ (Arendt 1973, 352). This longing for escape from reality is a ‘verdict against the world’ in which one is ‘forced to live’ but ‘cannot exist’ (Arendt 1973, 352). Such a situation is ripe for the ‘revolt of the masses’ against ‘common sense,’ which is ‘the result of their atomisation, of their loss of social status’ and with it, the ‘whole sector of communal relationships in whose framework common sense makes sense’ (Arendt 1973, 352). In short, the masses are people who are considered to be ‘superfluous or can be spared … [who] cannot be integrated into any organisation based on common interest’ (Arendt 1973, 311). Whether one agrees with Arendt’s analysis of the social conditions in the interwar years that led to the formation of the ‘masses’, her portrait of the ‘mass man’ is a powerful account of what can happen to an individual who has become disposable to the society that they used to belong to. Hand in hand with this phenomenon is indeed the collapse of ‘common sense’ that leaves the dislodged individual scrambling for reconnection. By offering the masses a substitute reality validated by the ‘logic of an idea’ rather than by experience, totalitarianism makes it possible for them to live in a world where there is no condition of plurality. Between ‘facing the anarchic growth and total arbitrariness of decay’ and ‘bowing down before the most rigid, fantastically fictitious consistency of an ideology’, the masses will likely ‘choose the latter’ (Arendt 1973, 352). A world created by ideology, then, is more attractive to the masses not because ‘they are stupid and wicked, but because in the general disaster this escape grants them a minimum of self- respect’ by conjuring up ‘a lying world of consistency which is more adequate to the needs of the human mind than reality itself’ (Arendt 1973, 353). Moreover, it is precisely this ability to guarantee consistency that makes it possible for the leaders of totalitarian movements to demand ‘total, unrestricted, unconditional and unalterable loyalty of the individual member’ (Arendt 1973, 323). While this chapter is not a study of the social factors that led to specific contemporary developments such as the result of the Brexit referendum or the election of Donald Trump in 2016, Arendt’s ‘mass man’ seem to have found their counterparts among the supporters of Brexit and Trumpism. Studies of voters’ profiles in both events point to a disproportionate share of supporters from white male lower income backgrounds without university educations. These are individuals who have either already lost their jobs to globalisation or who are at high risk of losing their job with very little capacity to be retrained for the twenty-first century market economy of advanced industrialised states (BBC 2016; Pew Research Center 2018). In short, these displaced workers are part of the tapestry forming the modern equivalent of Arendt’s ‘mass man’ – ready to be the recruits of totalitarianism. Conclusion If we step back to take a more comprehensive approach to the relationship between truth and politics, both historically and theoretically, it is not so obvious that 2016 is a defining moment. From ancient China and ancient Greece to our so-called post-truth age, the indeterminacy of language appears to be a persistent political challenge. Language is always open to manipulation by its users to serve power. Nonetheless, the tendency these days is to single out the ubiquity of social media and the proliferation of Internet platforms as the incubator for the countless cyberwars of words that in turn fuel the real world of politics. In this context, language is no longer the conveyor of objective facts and accurate information, but rather the medium for expressing subjective opinions and feelings, as captured by the Oxford Dictionary’s definition of the term ‘post-truth politics’. In contrast, the historical approach used in this chapter shows that it is in fact too easy to point the figure at the Internet and digital communication for the political challenge that we face today. What is being suggested here is that with or without the Internet, language, be it used to convey facts or emotions, is simply a tool for communication that humans have invented. While language per se cannot adjudicate what is true or not true, what is right or wrong, it embodies such capacity when language is a shared norm. That shared norm cannot be sustained without some semblance of cohesion in any given community. Any war of words, irrespective of its platform, is indicative of the breakdown of such cohesiveness. Returning to the original context in which the term post-truth politics was first used by Steve Tesich helps to identify the important distinction between truth as the standard for knowledge and truth as the standard for action. The two do not necessarily coincide. Placed in the context of the history of political thought, this distinction is in fact at the heart of Plato’s Republic. Yet when the philosopher as the quintessential bearer of truth becomes king, the polis that he rules over is far from the ideal of a just state that it purports to be. Instead, it is one that is held together by lies and coercion. What Arendt reveals through her study of Nazism and Stalinism is that it is dangerous for the kind of truth that philosophy generates – ‘rational truth’ – to become the guide to politics. Politics guided by rational truth can only be uncompromising and follows a logic of its own that cannot afford the ambiguity and indeterminacy of reality as lived experiences of humans. A world of post-truth politics can be an opportunity for a new kind of politics if it is indeed about dismantling the idea that truth is the ideal that politics should strive for. But as it stands, the post-truth politics of today is more about invoking a past that never exists to judge the presence as a crisis in naming when the real crisis is about rebuilding a shared space that has room for all – be they of the left, right or centre; cosmopolitan or parochial; civic-minded or self-centred; liberal-minded or bigoted. Politics is and always will be about striving for that space, without which no human can thrive. References Arendt, Hannah. 1958. The Human Condition. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. Arendt, Hannah. 1973. The Origins of Totalitarianism. Rev. ed. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. Arendt, Hannah. 1977. “Truth and Politics.” In Between Past and Future, 227–264. New York: Penguin Books. Arendt, Hannah. 1982. Lectures on Kant’s Political Philosophy, edited by Ronald Beiner. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. British Broadcasting Corporation. 2016. “Brexit vote: The breakdown.” BBC News, December 7, 2016. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-38227674 Cao, Feng. 2016. “A New Examination of Confucius’ Rectification of Names.” Journal of Chinese Humanities 2: 147–171. https://doi-org.subzero.lib. uoguelph.ca/ doi/ 10.1163/23521341-12340032. Connor, W. Robert. 1984. Thucydides. Princeton: Princeton University Press. de Jonge, Casper C. 2017. “Dionysius of Halicarnassus on Thucydides.” in The Oxford Handbook of Thucydides, edited by Sara Forsdyke, Edith Foster, and Ryan Balot. Oxford University Press. DOI: 10.1093/ oxfordhb/9780199340385.013.17 https://www-oxfordhandbooks-com.subzero. lib.uoguelph.ca/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199340385.001.0001/oxfordhb-9780199340385 Hyvönen, Ari-Elmeri. 2018. “Careless Speech: Conceptualizing Post-Truth Politics.” New Perspectives 26 (3): 31–55. https://www.proquest.com/ scholarly-journals/careless-speech-conceptualizing-post-truth/ docview/2204515132/se-2?accountid=11233. Hobbes, Thomas. 1839–1845. The English Works of Thomas Hobbes, edited by Sir William Molesworth. London: John Bohn. Vol. 8. Klinkner, Melanie. 2018. “Reasonable Truth.” International Journal of Media & Cultural Politics 14 (3): 393–99. doi:10.1386/macp.14.3.393_7. Lee, Haiyan. 2019. “When Nothing Is True, Everything Is Possible: On Truth and Power by Way of Socialist Realism.” PMLA/Publications of the Modern Language Association of America 134 (5). Cambridge University Press: 1157–64. https://doi.org/10.1632/pmla.2019.134.5.1157 Lewis, Mark E. 1999. “Warring States Political History.” In The Cambridge History of Ancient China: From the Origins of Civilization to 221 BC, edited by Michael Loewe and Edward Shaughnessy, 587–650. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Makeham, John. 2003. “Zheng ming (Rectification of names).” In RoutledgeCurzon Encyclopedia of Confucianism, edited by Xinzhong Yao. Vol. 2: 813-814. New York: Routledge. Oxford Languages, n. d. “Word of the Year 2016.” Accessed 19 August 2017. https://languages.oup.com/word-of-the-year/2016/ Peters, Richard. 1979. Hobbes. Westport: Greenwood Press. Pew Research Center. 2018. “An examination of the 2016 electorate, based on validated voters.” Report, August 9, 2018. https://www.pewresearch.org/ politics/2018/08/09/an-examination-of-the-2016-electorate-based-on- validated-voters/ Plato. 1974. Republic. Translated by G. M. A. Grube. Indianapolis: Hackett. Tesich, Steve. 1992. “Watergate Syndrome: A Government of Lies.” The Nation: 12-14. January 6/13, 1992. Thucydides. 1972. The Peloponnesian War. Translated by Rex Warner. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin Books. Wolin, Sheldon. 2004. Politics and Vision: Continuity and Innovation in Westen Political Thought. Expanded Edition. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Zerilli, Linda M. G. 2020. ‘Fact-Checking and Truth-Telling in an Age of Alternative Facts.’ Le foucaldien 6, no. 1: 2, 1–22. Theresa Man Ling Lee is an Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Guelph (Canada). Lee is a political theorist who specializes in contemporary political thought. Her research and teaching areas include continental philosophy, Marxism and critical theory, feminism, postmodernism, philosophy of social science, psychoanalysis, multiculturalism, human rights, disability studies, modern Chinese political thought and comparative political theory. Lee has published on a wide range of subjects in these areas, including intercultural pedagogy and the challenges of teaching as a person with multiple minority designations in a Canadian university classroom.
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Alec Pierce is back at practice, giving the Colts a needed boost before their Week 1 opener.
Aarhus Business College Students Bring Global Learning to Brookdale
Brookdale Community College is welcoming students and faculty from Aarhus Business College in Denmark to campus for its Second Annual Study Tour. This immersive international experience combines academics, business, culture, and community. The Danish delegation
Microsoft’s supply chain AI agents now factor carbon into routing
SupplyChainBrain reports Microsoft is deploying AI agents for supply chain planning, weighing cost, speed and carbon in routing recommendations.
5 things to know in life sciences: Week of Sept. 14, 2026
FDA launches pilot to accelerate early-stage drug development. This and more in this week’s life sciences update.
Gimme Him: Alec Anderson would immediately help Patriots' OL depth
The Patriots could benefit from the depth that Alec Anderson could offer to their banged-up offensive line.
Cosm’s 700-seat domes make NFL rights run like venue operations
Cosm’s NFL deal brings Thursday, Sunday, and Monday games into 700-seat 12K domes, changing staffing, AV ops, and ticketing playbooks.
West Hartford native says his golf business has doubled
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — On This Week in Connecticut, Dennis House talks to Alec Lorenzo, who appeared on the show in 2022, when he first became an entrepreneur. Watch the interview in the v…
Alec Pierce ruled out for remainder of SNF
Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Alec Pierce left the Week 2 game against the Kansas City Chiefs in the first half due to a left heel injury
Fastbreak AI is quietly becoming the scheduling engine for 50-plus pro leagues
Fastbreak AI says it schedules 50+ pro leagues. The ops implication: scheduling is now a multi-constraint optimization problem tied to travel, venues, and media
Colts’ WR Depth Chart Changes After Alec Pierce Injury
The Indianapolis Colts are going to have to dig deeper into their WR depth chart on Sunday. They lost Alec Pierce to a first-half injury, and they already were missing one wideout for Sunday Night Football against the Kansas City Chiefs. Pierce had one catch before exiting. He actually got hurt on a play in […] The post Colts’ WR Depth Chart Changes After Alec Pierce Injury appeared first on HEAVY.
Alec Baldwin’s daughter Ireland reacts to Perez Hilton’s hospitalization after his ‘unforgivable’ treatment of her
“I hope he gets the help he needs and heals,” wrote Ireland, who also dubbed the celebrity blogger “a despicable human being.”
You can help scientists study walruses
A global science project is asking volunteers to search Arctic satellite images for the animals, which are threatened by climate change.
Gartner says 58% of finance teams now use AI
A Gartner survey cited by CFO Dive reports 58% of finance teams use AI in 2024. For CFO ops, the next work is ROI, cost controls and governance.
Bakewell aims to settle some unfinished business at the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Championship
The Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Championship at the Kissimmee Chain features a sterling field, and while everyone in the field has the talent to win, there are a handful of favorites. But most of those high on the list aren’t from Florida – this year’s Toyota Series event on Kissimmee was won by Northeasterner Alec Morrison, and […]
The Early Scale: Dreamforce Focuses on AI, But Lacks Concrete ROI Data
Dreamforce emphasizes AI but lacks ROI data. SHRM pushes continuous benefits management, EU delays medtech MDR to 2028.
Colts’ deep threat returns at perfect time ahead of Ravens clash
The Colts are getting a major weapon back at the perfect time, as Alec Pierce appears ready to return for Week 1 after months of recovery from ankle surgery.
Alec Pierce good to go in Week 2
Alec Pierce set to play in Week 2 against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Brookdale Community College Launches New Sports Management Degree Program
From professional sports franchises and collegiate athletics to recreation, event management, and sports marketing, the business of sports continues to grow, and so do the career opportunities. To help students prepare for this exciting and
JMI Sports keeps Penn's multimedia rights five more years under a new revenue share
JMI Sports adds five years to its University of Pennsylvania multimedia rights deal, with a new revenue-share model and Penn Relays rights included.
Health systems are partnering up without changing who owns the hospital
St. Christopher's, Nemours, Jefferson and Temple signed an alliance letter; Palomar UC San Diego Health went live. Why ownership is not changing hands.
Sauce Gardner Injury Update Isn’t Best News For Colts
The Indianapolis Colts had already lost Alec Pierce to a heel injury on Sunday Night Football. They really didn’t need to see anyone else go down. That’s when Sauce Gardner got hurt, though — with the NBC broadcast quickly going to commercial as Mike Tirico informed viewers that Gardner had an injury. It quickly created […] The post Sauce Gardner Injury Update Isn’t Best News For Colts appeared first on HEAVY.
Answer Man: Helene Business Recovery Fund borrowers facing skyrocketing rates? Messy I-26 median?
Today’s round of questions, my smart-aleck replies and the real answers: Question: You should look into the disaster bridge loans a lot of people took out through Mountain BizWorks and the Golden Leaf Foundation after Helene. These were loans with a 1 percent interest rate for 12 months, which was later extended to 24 months. […]
Student baking business exists for more than sugar
Caption: Baker Robert Smith, Badalamenti, and volunteer Samara Williams. The Collegian | Matthew Tolbert For senior Abriana Badalamenti, a lifelong care for people with special needs has blossomed into a baking business. Special Creations, a business in Career Services’ Kehoe entrepreneurship fellowship, provides baked goods for Penny’s coffee shop in Kirn Residence. Badalamenti bakes in...
For many Pittsburgh residents, wet basements pose health risks » Yale Climate Connections
Chronic moisture can create ideal conditions for mold that can trigger asthma attacks, allergies, and rashes.
Alec Pierce Injury Update Isn’t Good News For Colts
The Indianapolis Colts need all their weapons to keep up with the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday Night Football. They certainly need big-play WR Alec Pierce, who led the NFL in yards per catch a season ago. Pierce is coming off a four-catch, 61-yard Week 1, and he was back out there hoping to make […] The post Alec Pierce Injury Update Isn’t Good News For Colts appeared first on HEAVY.
Diane Raver Named One of NJBIZ's 2026 Leading Women in Business
As New Jersey's film and television industry experiences unprecedented growth, one of the leaders helping shape its future has earned statewide recognition. Diane Raver, executive director of the New Jersey Film Academy at Brookdale Community
Alec Pierce set to play in opener
Colts WR Alec Pierce expected to be available to play in regular season opener
Phillies' Alec Bohm: Resting up Saturday
Phillies' Alec Bohm: Resting up Saturday
Brookdale, Sierra Club Present Free Science Monday Lectures on Stormwater and Endangered Species
Brookdale Community College, in collaboration with the Sierra Club of the Jersey Shore, will present two free Science Monday programs this fall examining environmental issues affecting New Jersey, including stormwater management and the conservation of
Sports venues are now being specced like IT projects
Athletic facilities are adding livestreaming, access apps, drones, and LED controls. A proposed $70M complex shows how ops and IT now share the spec.
What’s going on with Alec Pierce?
Alec Pierce’s ankle timeline keeps getting murkier, and the Colts’ vague injury messaging is not helping.
Which Bills Starter Could Lose His Job In 2026?
As Joe Brady takes the reins, guard Alec Anderson faces a pivotal season. Discover why this returning veteran sits on the hot seat amidst Buffalo’s roster overhaul.
12 climate books for back-to-school season » Yale Climate Connections
These titles showcase how disciplines across the curriculum can inform our response to climate change.
The Early Scale: EU's MDR delay shifts medtech timelines to 2028
EU extends MDR deadline to 2028. Medtech must prioritize digital commissioning. AI adoption universal but ROI low; CMOs face surprise AI bills.
Where does Alec Anderson ultimately play with Bills in 2026?
Is Anderson the starter at left guard, or is he set to reprise his role as Jack-of-All-Trades off the bench?
Bills' Anderson has new 'obsession' with football, mental health awareness
Alec Anderson is in his fifth NFL season, but this one feels different as he takes on new challenges.
5 things to know in life sciences: Week of Oct. 5, 2026
Each week we highlight five things affecting the life sciences industry. Here’s the latest.
Colts' Alec Pierce Officially Lands On IR, Replaced On Roster
The Indianapolis Colts placed wide receiver Alec Pierce on injured reserve on Saturday, replacing his roster spot with another receiver from the practice squad.
Answer Man: Misleading political ads? What’s up with water alerts?
Today’s round of questions, my smart-aleck replies and the real answers: Question: The ads against Jamie Ager that are airing on TV now are false. They say that Ager voted against this or that and supported this or that. He is not an elected official and could not support or oppose any legislation. These are the ads paid for by No Going Back PAC. What am I missing? My answer: Well, I’d like to say, “The good old days of American politics where opponents politely disagreed with one another in their advertising.” But honestly, these campaigns have always been uglier than a closeup of my belly button.
Versant's US$530m Full Swing buy in a busy summer of sports tech deals
Versant's US$530m Full Swing purchase, SI's Magnifi acquisition and TSC's EventAIQ launch: what SportsPro's summer technology coverage means for sports.
Ashford embracing return to central Cardiff role
Cardiff City forward Cian Ashford is enjoying playing in a more central role following his eye-catching performance in the Bluebirds' Carabao Cup win over Swindon. The 21-year-old assisted Yousef Salech for the second goal in the 3-2 win and was also denied by the crossbar. Ashford spent many years playing in a central role with Cardiff's academy but his minutes for the first team have almost exclusively come on the wing.
Phillies news: trade market, Alec Bohm, Kevin Gausman
If you had to pick one: SP, RP or OF?
SBJ's Tech Awards: Winners Span Data, Performance, Fan Access
SBJ's fourth annual SBA: Tech awards named winners in AI, performance, fan experience and venue tech.
Apollo’s €3bn Bayer deal shows ‘non-control’ financing is spreading to operators
Apollo’s €3bn Bayer LARC investment and a $35bn Broadcom financing highlight how private credit is funding AI and industrial capex without operators giving up c
2-Minute Drill: Colts healthy, secondary set for debut against Ravens
Matt Taylor looks ahead to Sunday's season opener against the Baltimore Ravens, with the Colts entering the season with a clean bill of health, including wide receiver Alec Pierce. Sunday will also be our first look at ent Colts' fully formed secondary, w
Pollstar names winners of 2026 Excellence in Concessions Awards
Pollstar published its 2026 Excellence in Concessions Awards on Sept. 2, recognizing venue food, beverage and hospitality programs across the U.S.
A pro soccer star's struggle highlights youth sports risks » Yale Climate Connections
Young people often lack the medical resources available to professional athletes when heat and smoke create hazardous conditions.
Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Launches 19th home run
Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Launches 19th home run
Open Thread For Tuesday’s Wild Card Games
We have four games today: Phillies @ Braves 2:00 Eastern We have lineups for this one: Today’s Lineups PHILLIES BRAVES Trea Turner – SS Drake Baldwin – C Kyle Schwarber – DH Ronald Acuna – RF Bryce Harper – RF Matt Olson – 1B Alec Bohm – 1B Mauricio Dubon – LF Derek Hill – […]
Q&A: Special Forces vet talks politics and family
Courtesy | Nick Freitas Nick Freitas is an author, political commentator, and social media influencer with more than 2 million Instagram followers. He served in the Virginia House of Delegates as a Republican from 2016–2026 and, before then, was a sergeant and Green Beret in the U.S. Army Special Forces. Freitas gave a lecture on...
The Casual Observer: Georgia's musical talent
Georgia has a rich history of popular musical talent.
Pre-World Cup Forecast Projected $135M in Lost Naming-Rights Value
A June 2026 Navigate analysis projected up to $135M in lost naming-rights media value at U.S. World Cup stadiums, ahead of the tournament.
ADHA shifts My Health Record to multi-supplier ops as Accenture signs new 3-year contract
ADHA moves My Health Record to a multi-supplier model as Accenture renews for three years. GPT‑6 Astra and HIMSS cyber warnings raise new governance work for CI
Alec Zumwalt out as hitting coach
He will remain as senior director of hitting performance
West Hartford native says his golf business has doubled
On This Week in Connecticut, Dennis House talks to Alec Lorenzo, who appeared on the show in 2022, when he first became an entrepreneur.
Could we be about to see the end of northern English dialects? My experience – and the science
When I moved to York I thought everyone sounded like a cross between Sean Bean and Mel B. But now the north’s linguistic richness really is being flattened, says author Zahaan Bharmal
Worth the Squeeze
Alecia Septer is pinching the cheeks of sharks and rays to uncover new compounds that could help fight infections.
Hollywood veteran bets on Cleveland with new talent firm HeartRock Partners
Cleveland native Alec Shankman founded HeartRock Partners to link Hollywood talent with Northeast Ohio brands and manufacturers — nine months in, it's growing fast.
5 things to know in life sciences: Week of Sept. 7, 2026
Each week we highlight five things affecting the life sciences industry. Here’s the latest.
Jared Padalecki apologizes for supporting Perez Hilton amid mental health crisis
Jared Padalecki insists he had ‘absolutely no idea’ about Perez Hilton’s history when he offered support amid the controversial blogger’s mental health crisis.
Phillies Urged To Cut Alec Bohm After Luis Arraez Move
The Philadelphia Phillies should consider moving the former All-Star “to the bench or beyond” to make way for their new infielder.
Cardinals Jordan Walker Reaches Milestone During Breakout Year
St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Jordan Walker has broken out this season and has hit the century mark for RBIs. In the Cardinals’ Friday contest with the Colorado Rockies, Walker hit a sacrifice fly to reach 100 RBIs for the season. Walker joins teammate Alec Burleson with 100 RBIs this season. The duo is the first […] The post Cardinals Jordan Walker Reaches Milestone During Breakout Year appeared first on HEAVY.
Colts share good news on WR Alec Pierce’s ankle injury
The Colts provided the latest update on receiver Alec Pierce recovery from offseason ankle surgery and it’s good news
The government killed this nature study. Scientists finished it anyway. » Yale Climate Connections
When the National Nature Assessment was shut down, the scientists who worked on it kept going. In this Q&A, one author shares what the research reveals about nature’s powerful, underused role in supporting health.
Presidio’s Resonate uses agentic AI to turn sports archives into searchable inventory
Presidio is pairing Captivate and Resonate to automate tagging, retrieval, and clip creation on AWS Media Lake, aiming to speed monetization and production work
Alec Pierce to receive second opinion
Colts WR Alec Pierce aggravated injury in Week 2 and is considered week-to-week
HEALTH SCORES: Aug. 31 to Sept. 4
Newton and Rockdale restaurant inspection scores from Aug. 31 to Sept. 4.
Phillies' Alec Bohm's free agency gets a bleak outlook from an MLB executive
Alec Bohm's time with the Phillies is likely up, and his free agency is looking bleak.
Colts Signing New Receiver After Alec Pierce Update
The Indianapolis Colts are signing one of Daniel Jones' former top receivers.
Scientists link fossil fuel producers to the West’s worsening water shortages » Yale Climate Connections
A new study blames 122 companies for contributing to severe drought in the region.
Hollywood veteran bets on Cleveland with new talent firm HeartRock Partners
Cleveland native Alec Shankman founded HeartRock Partners to link Hollywood talent with Northeast Ohio brands and manufacturers — nine months in, it's growing fast.
Colts Sign 6-Foot-3 Local WR
The Indianapolis Colts have had a lot of wide receiver movement in recent days. It started when Alec Pierce got injured during Sunday Night Football, and he’s going to have to miss some time. It continued when the Colts signed the veteran wideout Darius Slayton, who had up to this point spent his entire NFL […] The post Colts Sign 6-Foot-3 Local WR appeared first on HEAVY.
The story of how big business began shaping our understanding of reality » Yale Climate Connections
An interview with Amy Westervelt, climate reporter and author of ‘Brought to You By: How Corporations Warped the Truth, Public, and Broke Democracy'
Dorian TV Awards 2026 Winners Include ‘Heated Rivalry’, ‘Hacks’ Final Season & More
The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association (GALECA) has voted on another year of the best in LGBTQ television. On Saturday, GALECA announced the winners of the LGBTQ journalist organization...
Salazar Accused By City Of Manufactured Dispute To Tank Entertainment District
by Glen Richardson Cities in Colorado are finding that entering into a seemingly binding contract with a developer to construct a critical downtown project does not mean it will ever, in fact, be done. The City and County of Broomfield entered into a $300 million agreement in 2019 with developers to construct a Broomfield Town […]
A Jersey Blues Testimonial: Ryan Bailey’s Journey From Record Breaker To Business Owner
A Jersey Blues Testimonial: Ryan Bailey’s Journey From Record Breaker To Business Owner by Trish Taylor Ryan Bailey made the most of his lone season on the field for Brookdale Community College men's soccer in
Colts' Shane Steichen Gives Alec Pierce Update for Week 1
Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Alec Pierce recently returned to practice following ankle surgery, but will he be ready for this Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens?
MLS is shopping an eight-figure presenting sponsorship ahead of 'MLS 3.0'
Sportico reports MLS retained Altius8 to explore a presenting sponsorship worth eight figures, timed to next summer's new calendar, playoffs and commissioner.
Alec Pierce injury update as Colts WR exits against Chiefs
The Colts lost top wide receiver Alec Pierce to a heel injury against the Chiefs. Here are the latest updates.
Colts' Alec Pierce: Practices fully Thursday
Colts' Alec Pierce: Practices fully Thursday
5 things to know in life sciences: Week of Oct. 12, 2026
Each week we highlight five things affecting the life sciences industry. Here’s the latest.