Trump, Populism, Fascism, and the Road Ahead

This review essay offers a discussion of some recent studies that help to explain the election of Donald Trump as president of the USA. The studies examine Trump as “media spectacle,” analyze his support among Tea Partiers, and discuss his backing by the white working class left behind by neoliberalism and global capitalism. Special attention is given to two questions: Is Trump a rightwing populist or closer to a fascist? Relatedly, is Trump a threat to liberal democracy? The essay concludes with some suggestions of how to move beyond Trump

Ognina - a puzzling prehistoric site in Sicily

In 1965, Prof. Bernabo Brea of Syracuse excavated a site on the small island of Ognina, off the east coast of Sicily 12 km south of Syracuse. He found two levels of prehistoric occupation, a lower one of the Early Neolithic Stentinello Culture, and an upper one dating to the Early Bronze Age. At these periods, however, it may not have been an island but rather a small promontory beside a sheltered inlet, making an ideal small port. The Bronze Age material contained none of the Castelluccio Culture, widespread in South-east Sicily at the time, but pottery which Brea recognised as being closely similar to some which John Evans had found in Tarxien Cemetery contexts in Malta. He therefore suggested that the site had been refounded at this period, after standing empty since the Early Neolithic, by emigrants from Malta, who had probably established it as a trading post for their commercial interchanges with the Sicilians. This was adopted as the orthodox view by Italian prehistorians down to the present day. However, some uneasiness was felt among those studying Maltese prehistory, on the grounds that there was very little evidence for a sea-faring tradition in that early period, and though there were undoubtedly some raw materials imported into the islands, this was on a comparatively small scalepeer-reviewe

Non-inversion tillage in organic arable cropping

The opportunities for using an non-inversion tillage (NI) approach in organic systems has not been well investigated by research and what research has been done has not perhaps been sufficiently long-term. The benefits of the system in terms of the economics of establishment and the improvement in soil quality make the system attractive, but it is a system that will take some time to get established and is one that will require the farmer to “hold his nerve” as grass weed, perennial weed burdens and slug predation may increase in the early years of implementation. In conventional systems and the POB work yields have reported to drop when implementing an NI system. This is before some of the benefits of a better quality soil are seen, but in the work done by Dr Michael Brandt in an organic system no yield drop was experienced. This was also the case for Danish work done by Per Schonning. Phosphate (P) and Nitrate (N) losses can be reduced as soil structure improves and becomes more stable. Better water ingress into the soil will reduce run-off and sediment and P loss and better water retention in the soil structure will reduce leaching potential. This is perhaps particularly the case at the time that the ley phase of a rotation is broken when greatest risks of N leaching occurs particularly if this coincides with significant rainfall

Commentary: Justice Who Follows Scalia\u27s Path Would Hurt the Working Class

During the campaign, Donald Trump released a list of 21 conservatives from which he promised to pick Supreme Court justices, should he win the election. With President-elect Trump apparently nearing a decision on a nominee to replace the late Justice Scalia, Senate Republicans are no doubt eagerly awaiting the chance to confirm Trump\u27s pick and restore a conservative majority on the court. [excerpt

Disapproval of Trump\u27s Presidency High in New Hampshire 10/17/17

New Hampshire residents increasingly disapprove of the job Donald Trump is doing as President and also have an unfavorable opinion of him. A plurality disapprove of Trump\u27s handling of the economy and nearly two-thirds disapprove of his handling of foreign affairs. Nearly all New Hampshire residents perceive North Korea to be a serious threat, but Independents and Democrats in particular are not confident in President Trump\u27s ability to deal with it

Xewkija and elsewhere : new thoughts on old sites

In this article the author speculates and discusses possible new interpretations of lost megalithic sites throughout Malta and Gozo. His interpretations are based both on the old excavation notes by former archaeologists and new knowledge about the prehistory of Malta.peer-reviewe

NH Republicans Increasingly Enthusiastic on Trump, Outlook of Country 2/14/18

Approval of Donald Trump\u27s performance as president among New Hampshire residents remains low. Trump\u27s personal favorability and approval of his handling of the economy and foreign affairs are largely unchanged. New Hampshire Republicans are more likely to approve of the job Trump is doing and more likely to view him favorably than they were last October and Republicans are more optimistic about the outlook of the country than they have been at any point since 2005

Trump Deadlocked With Buttigieg, Sanders & Biden in NH Election Matchups 2/27/2020

Former South Bend (IN) Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, and Former Vice President Joe Biden are all statistically tied with President Donald Trump in early matchups for the November election, while former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg struggles in a matchup with Trump. President Trump enjoys the highest approval of any point of his presidency on his handling of the economy but his overall approval is largely unchanged since the same point last year

Approval of Trump Stable, Increases Among Core Constituencies 4/19/2019

Four in ten New Hampshire residents approve of Donald Trump\u27s performance as President, largely unchanged over the past year. Approval of Trump has increased over the past year among core groups of supporters such as conservative radio listeners and self-described conservatives. Granite Staters continue to give Trump higher marks for his handling of the economy than his handling of foreign affairs, approval of which is at its lowest point since February 2018