David Polansky
@polanskydj.bsky.social
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https://davidpolansky.substack.com/
I reviewed the new book by
@shadihamid.bsky.social
which makes the case for American power. My takeaway is that he's reverse engineering neoconservatism albeit from very different premises. Give it a read (both the book and the review):
davidpolansky.substack.com/p/review-sha...
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Review: Shadi Hamid's The Case for American Power
or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Hegemon
https://davidpolansky.substack.com/p/review-shadi-hamids-the-case-for
8 days ago
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reposted by
David Polansky
Phoebe Maltz Bovy
about 1 month ago
Free speech Canada vs US, an ongoing conundrum. A delight as always to chat with
@polanskydj.bsky.social
, for The Jewish Angle
@thecjn.bsky.social
thecjn.ca/opinion/is-f...
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Is 'free speech' suddenly freer in Canada than the U.S.?
The 2020s are entering the era of the 'woke right', where permissible language is dictated by right-wing governments.
https://thecjn.ca/opinion/is-free-speech-suddenly-freer-in-canada-than-the-u-s/
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reposted by
David Polansky
I mostly stayed offline yesterday, but I did set down some thoughts on why, as much as I do hope this latest peace proposal sticks, the larger question of Palestinian sovereignty is still unresolvedâpartly because people seem to keep seeing past it.
davidpolansky.substack.com/p/what-did-w...
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What Did We Learn?
Looking back and forward on the second anniversary of the 10/7 attacks
https://davidpolansky.substack.com/p/what-did-we-learn
about 2 months ago
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I mostly stayed offline yesterday, but I did set down some thoughts on why, as much as I do hope this latest peace proposal sticks, the larger question of Palestinian sovereignty is still unresolvedâpartly because people seem to keep seeing past it.
davidpolansky.substack.com/p/what-did-w...
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What Did We Learn?
Looking back and forward on the second anniversary of the 10/7 attacks
https://davidpolansky.substack.com/p/what-did-we-learn
about 2 months ago
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In the wake of Kirk's killing, I am seeing what has become a common tendency to attribute such attacks to a kind of abstract political contagion or historical momentum we can barely withstand. I try to explain here why I think we should resist this impulse.
davidpolansky.substack.com/p/against-th...
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Against the Passive Voice
On the mental resistance of despair as political practice
https://davidpolansky.substack.com/p/against-the-passive-voice
2 months ago
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Living outside the United States on this 4th of July, I wrote about the theme of exile, with reflections on Dante, Caetano Veloso, and Jason Stanley -- a sentence that I'm pretty sure no one has written before. Link below.
davidpolansky.substack.com/p/on-exile
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On Exile
Considerations on Dante, Caetano Veloso, Jason Stanley, and me
https://davidpolansky.substack.com/p/on-exile
5 months ago
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I wrote (what I hope is) a non-hysterical consideration of the problem of rising antisemitism in Canada. Unlike the United States, it's not significantly involved in the Middle East already, which may allow for greater clarity.
thehub.ca/2025/06/20/d...
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David Polansky: Kind, tolerant Canada is failing the antisemitism test
An increasingly multicultural Canada is increasingly hostile towards Canadaâs Jews
https://thehub.ca/2025/06/20/david-polansky-kind-tolerant-canada-is-failing-the-antisemitism-test/
5 months ago
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"I like it here in the mental asylum"
add a skeleton here at some point
6 months ago
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For your Memorial Day reading, I wrote about the mistaken belief that we're living in a time of intense ideological conflicts.
davidpolansky.substack.com/p/non-immens...
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Non-immense Wars of the Non-spirit
Over three decades ago, Francis Fukuyama published his famous End of History and the Last Man, in which he declared that history (or rather, âHistoryâ), meaning an unfolding process of clashing ideas,...
https://davidpolansky.substack.com/p/non-immense-wars-of-the-non-spirit
6 months ago
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reposted by
David Polansky
Quite a few books have been written lately on the emergence of right-wing threats to democracy. I reviewed two of themâZack Beauchampâs The Reactionary Spirit and Quinn Slobodianâs Hayekâs Bastardsâbut found their explanations wanting.
americanaffairsjournal.org/2025/05/demo...
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Democracyâs Demons - American Affairs Journal
Following her defeat in the 2016 general election, Hillary Clinton published a book titled What Happened. While that tome is not considered a classic work of political analysis, its implied titular qu...
https://americanaffairsjournal.org/2025/05/democracys-demons/
6 months ago
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Quite a few books have been written lately on the emergence of right-wing threats to democracy. I reviewed two of themâZack Beauchampâs The Reactionary Spirit and Quinn Slobodianâs Hayekâs Bastardsâbut found their explanations wanting.
americanaffairsjournal.org/2025/05/demo...
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Democracyâs Demons - American Affairs Journal
Following her defeat in the 2016 general election, Hillary Clinton published a book titled What Happened. While that tome is not considered a classic work of political analysis, its implied titular qu...
https://americanaffairsjournal.org/2025/05/democracys-demons/
6 months ago
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I wrote about the question of greatness, particularly in light of Trump and his supporters for
@wisdomofcrowds.bsky.social
-- give it a read:
wisdomofcrowds.live/p/michael-jo...
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Michael Jordan, Yes; Winston Churchill, No?
David Polansky on why democracies fear greatness -- and why they shouldn't.
https://wisdomofcrowds.live/p/michael-jordan-yes-winston-churchill
7 months ago
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reposted by
David Polansky
Phoebe Maltz Bovy
7 months ago
Was great to have
@polanskydj.bsky.social
on the podcast for mid-election-day analysis!
add a skeleton here at some point
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I am in
@thehubcanada.bsky.social
today on that rarest of things: an important Canadian election.
thehub.ca/2025/04/28/d...
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David Polansky: Canada on the brink
https://thehub.ca/2025/04/28/david-polansky-canada-on-the-brink/
7 months ago
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I have a guest post in
@shadihamid.bsky.social
's excellent new newsletter discussing the strange state of affairs in which liberals find themselves defending established norms and institutions--kinda like, um, conservatives.
www.shadihamid.net/p/on-conserv...
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On Conservatism
A guest essay from David Polansky on why everyone defends what they know best.
https://www.shadihamid.net/p/on-conservatism
8 months ago
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In light of the news of the Trump administration pulling $400 million in public funding from Columbia University and the complaints about free speech in response, I'm reposting what I wrote on this question last year, which I think still applies.
www.washingtonexaminer.com/magazine-lif...
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We argue about campus free speech because we forget what the university is for - Washington Examiner
The salient questions are whether universities are meaningfully generating or preserving human knowledge and whether their students are capable of receiving it.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/magazine-life-arts/3011274/we-forget-what-the-university-is-for/
9 months ago
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I have an essay on an underappreciated factor that contributes to the madness of contemporary politics: how broadly liberal or left-leaning establishment institutions now find themselves in the essentially conservative position of defending the status quo.
www.strangefrequencies.co/on-conservat...
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On Conservatism
The great historian/poet/all-around Renaissance man Robert Conquest famously formulated several laws of politics, of which the first ran: Everyone is conservative about what he knows best.
https://www.strangefrequencies.co/on-conservatism/
9 months ago
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reposted by
David Polansky
Shadi Hamid
9 months ago
In my new
@washingtonpost.com
column, I argue that it's okay to have mixed feelings about "the system." Personally, I'm neither pro-system nor anti-system. And that's a fine place to be, however uncomfortable it may feel. More people should join us.
wapo.st/3EUWhkv
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Opinion | Why half of America is cheering for chaos
The fight isnât between conservatives and liberals anymore. Itâs are you pro-system or anti-system?
https://wapo.st/3EUWhkv
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There's this emphasis on humor as a kind of political expression under the new regime, in contrast to the previous era of high wokeness. The trouble is, you can't really will yourself into comedy without turning it into a kind of kitsch, as I discuss here.
thecritic.co.uk/why-politics...
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Why politics kills comedy | David Polansky | The Critic Magazine
Humour is a strange thing. Back when Christopher Hitchens was both alive and still playing his assigned role of Naughty Little Provocateur, he attracted some controversy over an article titled âWhyâŠ
https://thecritic.co.uk/why-politics-kills-comedy/
9 months ago
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reposted by
David Polansky
Mario Rustan
9 months ago
Love this examination by
@polanskydj.bsky.social
. Humor is true morality. It protects us from both the moralist piety of the Left and the immoral cruelty of the Right.
thecritic.co.uk/why-politics...
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Why politics kills comedy | David Polansky | The Critic Magazine
Humour is a strange thing. Back when Christopher Hitchens was both alive and still playing his assigned role of Naughty Little Provocateur, he attracted some controversy over an article titled âWhyâŠ
https://thecritic.co.uk/why-politics-kills-comedy/
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I am in
@postopinions.bsky.social
along with several others with comments on the very brief trade war between the United States and Canada.
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/int...
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Opinion | Trumpâs tariff whiplash
Six writers react to the new administrationâs tariff diplomacy.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/interactive/2025/trump-tariffs-post-columnists-roundup/
10 months ago
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I had a nice discussion here for
@nationalpost.bsky.social
on the problems of the Canadian nation
nationalpost.com/news/canada/...
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How Canada gets its groove back: Advice from a friendly American
Political theorist David Polansky says Justin Trudeau has it wrong: Canada has a core identity. âItâs a gorgeous country. Itâs a stable country."
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/how-canada-gets-its-groove-back-advice-from-a-friendly-american
10 months ago
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I wrote about some of my favorite music anywhere ever
cafeamericainmag.com/the-rockstea...
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The Rocksteady Crew
A Genre That Was Incomprehensibly Outshone by Its Brethren Reggae and Ska
https://cafeamericainmag.com/the-rocksteady-crew/
10 months ago
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reposted by
David Polansky
The now-departing Prime Minister Trudeau declared Canada the first postnational country back when he first assumed office to much acclaim. The results of this experiment, however, have been dire, as I wrote for the excellent
@wisdomofcrowds.bsky.social
wisdomofcrowds.live/p/does-canad...
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Does Canada Exist?
Righteous idealism about immigration has wrecked the liberal project across the world.
https://wisdomofcrowds.live/p/does-canada-exist
11 months ago
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I wrote an uncharacteristically impassioned piece on Canada's troubles for
@thehubcanada.bsky.social
. Though I don't normally encourage anger in political life, there are times when it's warranted. Like now.
t.co/R7StSVLIpP
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https://thehub.ca/2025/01/10/david-polansky-you-need-to-be-angrier-canada/
https://t.co/R7StSVLIpP
11 months ago
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The now-departing Prime Minister Trudeau declared Canada the first postnational country back when he first assumed office to much acclaim. The results of this experiment, however, have been dire, as I wrote for the excellent
@wisdomofcrowds.bsky.social
wisdomofcrowds.live/p/does-canad...
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Does Canada Exist?
Righteous idealism about immigration has wrecked the liberal project across the world.
https://wisdomofcrowds.live/p/does-canada-exist
11 months ago
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I admit that I'm a bit surprised that people are still making rock biopics after Walk Hard, but since they are, I went and reviewed the new Bob Dylan movie.
t.co/5Lj8FpbxTW
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https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/magazine-life-arts/3272973/another-side-of-bob-dylan-who-is-a-circle/
https://t.co/5Lj8FpbxTW
11 months ago
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Having spent at least 10,000 hours listening to the man, I feel qualified to review the new Bob Dylan movie, which is what I did.
www.washingtonexaminer.com/magazine-lif...
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Another side of Bob Dylan, who is a circle - Washington Examiner
One could say youâre better off looking for Bob Dylan in his music. But, of course, you wonât really find him there either.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/magazine-life-arts/3272973/another-side-of-bob-dylan-who-is-a-circle/
11 months ago
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reposted by
David Polansky
With Eyes Wide Shut apparently everyone's new favorite Christmas movie, I gave it a rewatch, and found myself wondering whether it's a successful unerotic film or an unsuccessful erotic one. Or neither. So I wrote about it.
t.co/V85izgfHzF
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https://www.strangefrequencies.co/worst-christmas-ever/
https://t.co/V85izgfHzF
11 months ago
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With Eyes Wide Shut apparently everyone's new favorite Christmas movie, I gave it a rewatch, and found myself wondering whether it's a successful unerotic film or an unsuccessful erotic one. Or neither. So I wrote about it.
t.co/V85izgfHzF
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https://www.strangefrequencies.co/worst-christmas-ever/
https://t.co/V85izgfHzF
11 months ago
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Remember: language games and status competition are something the other guy does
add a skeleton here at some point
11 months ago
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reposted by
David Polansky
I am in
@torontostar.bsky.social
with an op-ed comparing today's Canada to the Canada of the 1980s -- an era with a number of similarities to our own.
www.thestar.com/opinion/cont...
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The â80s in Canada were no golden age. But politics back then had one thing sorely missing today
Canada made it through the tumultuous 1980s by doing what it does best.
https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/the-80s-in-canada-were-no-golden-age-but-politics-back-then-had-one-thing/article_d9ea68a0-a75d-11ef-bd04-93f9faa28ade.html
about 1 year ago
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reposted by
David Polansky
I wrote about that rarest of things -- a married couple who made truly great music together. Give it a read and then go listen to everything Richard and Linda Thompson recorded.
t.co/qi7clBtaDw
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https://cafeamericainmag.com/the-magic-of-richard-and-linda-thompson/
https://t.co/qi7clBtaDw
about 1 year ago
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reposted by
David Polansky
Trump's reelection has reignited discussions of fascism. And while I'm not particularly interested in this debate by now, I am interested in why it continues to get traction, so I wrote about it here.
t.co/5Pp0jl2LwN
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https://www.strangefrequencies.co/fascism-always-fascism/
https://t.co/5Pp0jl2LwN
about 1 year ago
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I am in
@torontostar.bsky.social
with an op-ed comparing today's Canada to the Canada of the 1980s -- an era with a number of similarities to our own.
www.thestar.com/opinion/cont...
loading . . .
The â80s in Canada were no golden age. But politics back then had one thing sorely missing today
Canada made it through the tumultuous 1980s by doing what it does best.
https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/the-80s-in-canada-were-no-golden-age-but-politics-back-then-had-one-thing/article_d9ea68a0-a75d-11ef-bd04-93f9faa28ade.html
about 1 year ago
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I wrote about that rarest of things -- a married couple who made truly great music together. Give it a read and then go listen to everything Richard and Linda Thompson recorded.
t.co/qi7clBtaDw
loading . . .
https://cafeamericainmag.com/the-magic-of-richard-and-linda-thompson/
https://t.co/qi7clBtaDw
about 1 year ago
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Trump's reelection has reignited discussions of fascism. And while I'm not particularly interested in this debate by now, I am interested in why it continues to get traction, so I wrote about it here.
t.co/5Pp0jl2LwN
loading . . .
https://www.strangefrequencies.co/fascism-always-fascism/
https://t.co/5Pp0jl2LwN
about 1 year ago
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