A tweet from Pope Leo XIV that reads: “When simulation becomes the norm, it weakens the human capacity for discernment. As a result, our social bonds close in upon themselves, forming self-referential circuits that no longer expose us to reality. We thus come to live within bubbles, impermeable to one another. Feeling threatened by anyone who is different, we grow unaccustomed to encounter and dialogue. In this way, polarization, conflict, fear and violence spread. What is at stake is not merely the risk of error, but a transformation in our very relationship with truth.”

Apparently the Pope has read Baudrillard.

Also a good example of Debord's notion of détournement with the use of the Lego aesthetic.

Another example of how the US, once the masters of the power of the spectacle, have lost their mastery as new digital capabilities have advanced.

MST3K - KTMA - K03 - Star Force YouTube video by Arthur Putie

dang, the final lost MST3K episode was JUST found at a garage sale, and now it's on YouTube for all to enjoy. watch and be astounded that a 38-year-old VHS recording held up so nicely: youtu.be/u_Z4hnagGLE?...

A few of us international relations scholars are going to try to solve all the problems in the world. Come check it out if you can.

If only...

You can tell things are going well in America because accounts with names like MovieTVFunZone are posting things like, "THE PIGS ARE KIDNAPPING CHILDREN AND PRIESTS. THE TREE OF LIBERTY DEMANDS TO BE WATERED"

Americans are steeped in a consumer spectacle that tells them the primary goal of their existence is to accumulate as many comforts., luxuries and pleasures as possible. That the state is now telling them they must give all that up is a bad sign for the larger MAGA project.

When the polite, cultured Dr. Pepper consumes a special draught, he turns into the brutish, monstrous Mr. Pibb.

🤣😂😆

Yet one can already see the tide of slop rising on the horizon. As this slop becomes more ubiquitous (see any ad on Youtube these days) and a new generation comes of age consuming this digital gruel, they will come to see it as normal and even preferable to the "quaintness" of the old aesthetic.

Those used to a certain level of craftsmanship when it comes to the media sedatives they rely on to distract themselves from disturbing existential questions will naturally find the use of AI slop in the production of the spectacle to be outrageous.

McDonald's Pulls Down AI-Generated Holiday Ad After Deluge of Mockery McDonald's Netherlands is catching flak for a stupefying AI-generated video, which was roundly condemned on social media.

The key vulnerability of the spectacle is its tie to capitalism. And if the current logic of capitalism is to charge more for less, this will extend to the content of the spectacle itself.
futurism.com/artificial-i...

In the society of the spectacle, professions are based on appearance rather than substance. Thus those who have made a living at appearance are qualified for all professions.

In the integrated spectacle, the star of consumption merges together with the star of decision-making.

Sometimes it's nice to remember that even Marcus Aurelius was like "you don't have to comment on everything bro"

There just isn’t a lot of political science research that’s like “what happens when the king is also on Facebook all day”

Professor Deeply Hurt by Student's Evaluation Leon Rothberg, Ph.D., a 58-year-old professor of English Literature at Ohio State University, was shocked and saddened Monday after receiving a sub-par mid-semester evaluation from freshman student Ch...

Just in time for the end of the semester:

theonion.com/professor-de...

Oh great. You know a bunch of existentialists are going to get caught up in this dragnet.

Caesarism in the 21st century: crisis and interregnum in world order How has the global rise of populist and authoritarian politics challenged international norms? To what extent can these shifts be attributed to new innovat

Recent reviews of Caesarism in the 21st Century from @uexeterpress.bsky.social:

academic.oup.com/ia/article/1...

brill.com/view/journal...

#LiberalWorldOrder #Interregnum #Caesarism #Gramsci #ElonMusk

I don't think the Soviet example is all that instructive. Very different circumstances exist in the USSR of the late 1980s than the USA of the mid 2020s.

One might also look at the rise and fall of Napoleon in early nineteenth century France for another possible analogy.

As we all know, Caesar was assassinated, and after several more years of civil war, his nephew Octavius becomes the first Emperor of Rome, thus completing the transition from Republic to Empire.

In the face of these difficulties that unleash civil war and foreign threats, Julius Caesar, with the loyalty of his army fresh from their war in Gaul and considerable support among the masses, declares himself dictator and promises to restore the glory of Rome.

The historical example that most resonates with this moment is probably the transition in ancient Rome from republic to empire. It features a complex republic that has defeated all its rivals but cannot properly manage the costs and temptations of being a "global" empire.

V Paul Musgrave ® @profmusgrave Around the department: Americanists: how bad can it be really? Comparativists: dictatorship, purges International relations: nuclear war 2017-01-12, 9:18 AM 708 Retweets 944 Likes Paul Musgrave @profmusgrave • 2017-01-12 Replying to @profmusgrave Americanists: haha but seriously IR and comparative: who is joking t189 © 194 L Jacob T. Levy @jtlevy • 2017-10-10 Replying to @profmusgrave Theorists: "We will go and view the city of tyranny, and once more take a look into the tyrant's soul." 01 Daniel W. Drezner @ @dandrezner • 2017-01-12 Political theorists: oh, so now you want to talk to us, do you? Paul Musgrave @@profmusgrave Around the department: Americanists: how bad can it be really? Comparativists: dictatorship, purges International relations: nuclear war L789 • 236

Sigh. We fucking warned you.

Essential titles might include:

"On War" Karl von Clausewitz
"The Art of War" Sun Tzu
"On Guerilla Warfare" Mao Zedong
"Strategy" B.H. Lidell Hart
"Propaganda" Edward Bernays
"The Society of the Spectacle" Guy Debord
"Understanding Media" Marshall McLuhan

One of the first steps in any effort to accomplish this is to engage strategic thought and how it applies to a media-saturated world. This means reviewing the classic texts of strategy and fusing them with those who understood the dynamics of media, politics and society.

Media can now be thought of as weapons in Clausewitzian sense in that they are assets that allow you to disarm your opponent and force their submission. This means any resistance must build-up its own media assets to wage a narrative war akin to military forces waging a traditional war.