pop culture
The headline rundown: Modern popular culture topics in the realm of politics, legislation and activism.
Propaganda and the Political Cartoon
A good case can be made that the political cartoon, by its very nature, is a form of propaganda. This is not necessarily a bad thing, though propaganda as generally understood has negative connotations. René Welleck in his Theory of Literature argues that
Marco den OudenPublished 2 days ago in The SwampThe Jon Gruden E-mail Scandal
I view freedom of speech as integral to my continuing personal development as a thinker and a writer. So, the resignation of former Las Vegas Raiders Head Coach Jon Gruden on Monday, October 12th, 2021, is forcing me to think deeply about the first amendment to the constitution of the US.
Y. Kerry SaraPublished 11 days ago in The Swamp
Bay of Pigs
When John F. Kennedy became President of the United States on January 20, 1961, he inherited every policy decision that Eisenhower had yet to carry out. (1) One of these was the planned invasion of Cuba to depose Fidel Castro and the 26th of July Movement. The Central Intelligence Agency had recruited and trained Cuban exiles to conduct the invasion. The operation became known as the Bay of Pigs Invasion after the point that the Cuban exiles made their landing. The planning of the invasion began with the 1959 defeat of Fulgencio Batista, the former president of Cuba. The CIA believed that the use of Cuban exiles would work because of their perceived success in the 1954 coup against President Jacobo Arbenz of Guatemala. In the 1954 coup against Arbenz, the CIA had used disgruntled Guatemalan military officers and Agency provided air support to aid in the coup. In the Bay of Pigs, there would be no such saving graces. The air and artillery support the US promised was either canceled or so delayed that Castro's forces easily repelled the invading forces. Additionally, the CIA had no understanding of the environment in which they were operating. In Guatemala, there had been differing factions to exploit within Arbenz's government. In 1961 Cuba there were no such factions left on the island. This was due to any that had opposed the 26th of July Movement fleeing the island in the wake of losing their benefactor. This meant that the invaders had no support to meet them once they arrived. This led to the spectacular failure that is now associated with the Bay of Pigs. By 1961, the CIA had grown confident enough in its abilities to conduct such an operation. However, they operated with undeserved confidence, as they had not learned how to conduct such operations in hostile nations. It is by looking at the CIA's overconfidence in their ability to pull off the Bay of Pigs Invasion that we see how Fidel Castro and the Cuban government were able to assert their sovereignty, and become a regional power despite the lopsided odds stacked against them.
Eric AndersonPublished 2 months ago in The Swamp
Away with ‘Vulgar Influencers’! No More ‘Lapsed Morals!’
Online video games? Bad! TV talent competitions? Bad! Welcome to the new China — which kind of looks like the old China, only more so.
Hamish AlexanderPublished 2 months ago in The SwampThe Pandemic
The Ted Talk video that I watched stated that we are no longer in a health crisis. Instead, they claimed we are purely in a financial crisis now. I am torn between both of these statements because I can see both sides of it. I have a compromised immune system, which puts me in a higher risk category relating to Covid-19, therefore, of course it is still a health crisis to me. However, the pandemic lockdowns have affected my finances, just as it has many other people, so I see that side of the story as well. There is another crisis that the pandemic has caused, which is not talked about much in the media, which is the mental health struggles.
Emily OBrienPublished 4 months ago in The SwampMany millennials are worse off than their parents
Millennials (born in the 1980s and mid-1990s) are followed by Generation Z (“zoomers” born in the late 1990s and early 2010s) into adulthood. These two generations are the most numerous in the world (and in the last few years, the zoomers have begun to dominate the global population). And in comparison with the previous age cohorts, they turned out to be the “losers”.
Mohamed EL DEIBPublished 5 months ago in The Swamp
Why the Oscar Ratings Keep Tanking
I chose not to watch the Oscars last night. The thought of being lectured by "woke" Hollywood elites churns my stomach, and so I watched two West Coast Baseball teams duke it out on the diamond. As a Midwesterner, that's incredibly uncommon, but desperate times call for desperate measures. In fact, had Olympic Curling been on, I'd chosen that over the virtue signaling actors at the podium last night. Many Americans must feel the same as I. Last night, less than 10 million viewers tuned in, a 58% drop from last year. Sadly, those living in Hollywood's Ivory Towers fail to comprehend why we the peasants turn up their noses on the film industry's special night. For many of us, the reasons are obvious.
Why Are Natural Ethnic Features Only Trendy On White People?
For a long time now natural ethnic features have been looked down on by society, often being described as undesirable. Bipoc have faced tremendous amounts of ridicule and discrimination towards features that they were born with. Despite this, there have been two instances that stand out to me, that show society accrediting non-people of colour for their transformation of these features as a new aesthetic and standard of beauty.
Petiri IraPublished 6 months ago in The Swamp
Why Calling a Black Person an ''Oreo'' Is Offensive
They said I was Black on the outside, white on the inside. Black but not too black, a perfectly poised token for you to blindly glorify me as. The term ''Oreo'' was assigned to me and lingered on my mind for years. Some may think it's a compliment, when in fact it showcases society's narrow and monolithic view of Black people.
Petiri IraPublished 6 months ago in The Swamp
''Blackfishing" Is The Modern Day Version Of Blackface
We are living in an age where non-black people are using a modern form of blackface that enables them to get opportunities because of this “Black Aesthetic.” However, black women struggle to get the same opportunities that people who blackfish do.
Petiri IraPublished 6 months ago in The Swamp
Justifying my Royal Interest
If you’re Irish, it forms part of your cultural identity to express disdain towards Britain. Whether it’s scoffing at Brexit, fuming at their claiming of Irish actors as ‘British’ when they start doing well for themselves, or good old-fashioned rugby rivalry, it runs through our veins. The Brits are the classic baddies we love to hate.
Aisling OwensPublished 7 months ago in The SwampSatanism in popular culture: what is the Church of Satan?
On Twitter, the Church declared in November 2018: “Veganism (a diet) is not Satanism (a religion), but there are some Satanists who are vegans and some vegans who are Satanists. One is not a subset of the other.”
AddictiveWritingsPublished 7 months ago in The Swamp
