Dica (848)

The unbearable unrealism of the present (Paul Mason) 

«What characterises the present moment in history is a pervasive sense of unrealism among elites. Official discourses are no longer used as guides to action, laws are not applied and regulations are ignored.»

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Dica (847)

The EU looks like the Soviet Union in 1991 – on the verge of collapse (George Soros) 

«Europe is sleepwalking into oblivion and its people need to wake up before it is too late. If they don’t, the European Union will go the way of the Soviet Union in 1991. Neither our leaders nor ordinary citizens seem to understand that we are experiencing a revolutionary moment, that the range of possibilities is very broad, and that the eventual outcome is thus highly uncertain.»

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Dica (846)

The World, Built by China (Derek Watkins, K. K. Rebecca Lai e Keith Bradsher) 

«China envisions a vast global network of trade, investment and infrastructure that will reshape financial and geopolitical ties — and bring the rest of the world closer to Beijing.

It is a modern-day version of the Marshall Plan, America’s reconstruction effort after World War II, which created a foundation for enduring military and diplomatic alliances. China’s strategy is bolder, more expensive and far riskier.»

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Dica (845)

A outra face da Presidência (Manuel Carvalho da Silva) 

«O presidente da República (PR), que surpreendeu grande parte dos portugueses pela forma descomplexada com que acomodou a solução governativa que havia horrorizado o seu predecessor, pelo estilo pouco convencional com que tem exercido o cargo e, ainda, pela desenvoltura com que se pronuncia diariamente sobre assuntos que são da competência de outros órgãos de soberania, volta a surpreender com pronunciamentos e decisões que parecem revelar uma outra face da Presidência, até agora pouco exposta.

Neste texto vou referir-me apenas a posições assumidas pelo PR a respeito da proposta de Lei de Bases da Saúde, e à decisão de nomear o comentador João Miguel Tavares para a presidência da Comissão das Comemorações do próximo 10 de Junho.»

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Dica (844)

A human-centred agenda for the future of work (Thorben Albrecht) 

«Much discussion of the future of work suggests it can only be a dystopian, robotic world. But the report of an ILO commission shows how humans, not algorithms, can be in charge.»

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Dica (843)

Rosa Luxemburgo: mujer, marxista, pacifista (Joaquín Oaquín Estefanía) 

«Antimilitarista, defensora de la democracia en el seno de la revolución, está considerada como la dirigente marxista más importante de la historia. Se cumple un siglo de su asesinato, pero su vasta producción teórica sigue viva.»

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Dica (842)

The Year of Populism. Europe's Right Wing Takes Aim at the EU (DER SPIEGEL Staff)  

«Right-wing populist parties in Europe have been gaining strength for years. Now, they hope to use European Parliament elections in May as a springboard for gaining greater influence in the EU. Surveys indicate they may be successful.»

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Dica (841)

Os irmãos escolhem-se (Sandra Monteiro) 

«Por vezes até surgem cidadãos com responsabilidades públicas e políticas que corporizam esta concepção de que ser democrata é habitar este espaço neutro, horizontal, contraditório e consensual, tolerante até à exaustão, que se quer mimetizado pelos cidadãos-espaço.

O presidente da República Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa é um desses casos. A sua mensagem de Ano Novo voltou a ser um exemplo de como é possível dizer tudo e o seu contrário, agradar à esquerda e à direita, dificultando qualquer crítica. (…)

E o que dizer das suas declarações sobre o encontro com o presidente brasileiro Jair Bolsonaro? Salientando o «tom fraternal» do encontro, e chamando-lhe uma «reunião entre irmãos», deu uma caução calorosa e de proximidade a um apoiante da ditadura militar e da tortura, que é racista, homofóbico e misógino, e que representa uma formação de extrema-direita enterrada em casos de corrupção. Tudo se desculpa porque podia estar a pensar na «empatia natural»com o povo brasileiro e porque há relações, desde logo comerciais, a preservar? Na democracia-espaço, sim, vale tudo. Na democracia-projecto é que estas posições se combatem. E os irmãos escolhem-se.»

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Dica (840)

A New Political Narrative For Europe (Massimiliano Santini) 

«At the May 2019 elections for renewing the European Parliament, parties dreaming of a “nationalist international” movement across Europe have a realistic chance of electing a majority of MEPs that will represent over 500 million European citizens. What form and shape could a “European story,” alternative to that promoted by the populist movements, take? Europe has a common history and a common destiny. We need more songs written about it, and more big bright blue flags flying over our homes. But we also need a new, rigorous, and pragmatic narrative that uses metaphors and myths to make people feel at home again in a globalized Europe. Reacting to the growth of populist movements, political philosopher Michael Sandal recently wondered whether “Democracy is in Peril.” However, rather than worrying about the fundamentals of the liberal order, the solution may be in elaborating and putting forward a new narrative. It’s the narrative, stupid!»

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Dica (839)

Migration And Forgetting In Central Europe (Peter Verovšek) 

«In the 1930s, the plight of migrants and stateless peoples coming from East-Central Europe served as a harbinger of greater atrocities to come. These same dangers haunt European politics today. Although popular sovereignty and the will of the people expressed through democratic elections is important, it is only one side of the democratic coin. The other is the protection of the individual and group rights that give the vote its legitimacy.

Europe has already experienced the dangers of unconstrained democracy once. We must remember those lessons today if we wish to avoid similar outcomes in the future.»

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Dica (838)

The World Nationalism Made (Liah Greenfeld) 

«China, is different from most other participants in this competition: it belongs to another civilization. Unlike Russia, unlike Arab countries, it has never seen the West as a model. It does not envy the West, and so, ultimately, could never consider itself inferior to it. Its identity is self-sufficient, and its internal dignity does not depend on the respect accorded by the West. For this reason, it can borrow from the West piecemeal, customizing its imports in the process. Neither freedom, nor—more importantly—equality, are of great value in China, where fraternity is possible in their absence, and dignity in its nationalism does not depend on the presumption that “all men are created equal.” The rise of nationalism in China is the central event of our time. With it we truly open a new page in history.»

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Dica (837)

Quem ganhou no porto de Setúbal? (José Soeiro) 

«Audácia, coragem, abertura, unidade, solidariedade, persistência: a vitória em Setúbal tem um alcance que vai para além das famílias que, com este acordo, poderão ter finalmente uma vida melhor. Mostra-nos a todos e a todas que é possível lutar, mesmo nas condições de maior fragilidade. Mostra-nos que, lutando, é possível vencer. Que nos sirva de exemplo.»

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Dica (836)

China’s Boldest Experiment (Dani Rodrik) 

«The conventional wisdom among social scientists is that the demands of advanced economies and growing middle classes can be met only through greater political freedoms and competition. By doubling down on authoritarian single-party rule, China is now testing that proposition.»

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Dica (835)

The Liberal Delusion (Marc Saxer) 

«There’s this prevalent idea that we have to take a firm stand against right-wing populism. Yet all the anti-populist hashtags, public un-invites, and goodwill gigs of recent years have done nothing to halt its rise. Clearly, we need a more effective strategy, and the path to finding it begins by asking a simple question: whose values are actually being defended here?»

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Dica (834)

Portugal não é uma ilha (Manuel Carvalho Da Silva) 

«É tempo de reflexão séria sobre a situação económica e social do país, de se analisar as causas das debilidades estruturais da nossa economia e os significados dos protestos de amplos setores profissionais. A solução política e de governo adotada para esta legislatura deu bons resultados para a esmagadora maioria dos portugueses, ajudou a abrir horizontes para o nosso desenvolvimento e prestigia o país. Contudo, os obstáculos a ultrapassar são muito elevados e um mau final de legislatura aniquilará o rumo iniciado.»

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Dica (833)

”Chaque personne qui insultait un gilet jaune insultait mon père” (Edouard Louis)

«Ce mouvement doit continuer, parce qu'il incarne quelque chose de juste, d’urgent, de profondément radical, parce que des visages et des voix qui sont d'habitude astreints à l'invisibilité sont enfin visibles et audibles. Le combat ne sera pas facile : on le voit, les gilets jaunes représentent une sorte de test de Rorschach sur une grande partie de la bourgeoisie ; ils les obligent à exprimer leur mépris de classe et leur violence que d’habitude ils n’expriment que de manière détournée, ce mépris qui a détruit tellement de vies autour de moi, qui continue d’en détruire, et de plus en plus, ce mépris qui réduit au silence et qui me paralyse au point de ne pas réussir à écrire le texte que je voudrais écrire, à exprimer ce que je voudrais exprimer.

Mais nous devons gagner : nous sommes nombreuses et nombreux à se dire qu’on ne pourrait pas supporter une défaite de plus pour la gauche, et donc pour celles et ceux qui souffrent.»

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Dica (832)

Liberals must learn the politics of emotion to beat rightwing populists (Paul Mason) 

«In Europe, the United States and Brazil, authoritarian nationalism is sweeping to power through a mixture of negative emotion and elite connivance. But this is no mere re-run of the 1930s. In the first place, unlike in Germany, Italy and Spain at the incipient moments of their dictatorships, the existing elites neither want nor need fascism. Their problem is that they don’t know how to fight it.»

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Dica (831)

Scientists Warn the UN of Capitalism's Imminent Demise (Nafeez Ahmed) 

«A climate change-fueled switch away from fossil fuels means the worldwide economy will fundamentally need to change.»

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Dica (830)

Why is populism suddenly all the rage?( Matthijs Rooduijn) 

«Populism is sexy. Particularly since 2016 – the year of the Brexit referendum and the election of Donald Trump – it seems as if journalists just cannot get enough of it. (…)

The increasing popularity of the term is no coincidence. Populist parties have tripled their vote in Europe over the past 20 years. They are in government in 11 European countries. More than a quarter of Europeans voted populist in their last elections.»

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Dica (829)

PART 1 - The Land That Failed to Fail. (Philip P. Pan) 

«The West was sure the Chinese approach would not work. It just had to wait. It’s still waiting.»
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