MANAGER
Pragmatism and repressive politics
TURKEY: Last autumn, MODERN TIMES met two intellectuals in Istanbul regarding today's Turkey – and attended a major conference there on political economy. We look here at the use of force, at freedom of expression, the media, militarization and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's political pragmatism.
"Justice is something worth living for."
PALESTINE/ISRAEL:What is it like to be the UN's special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories? After the launch of the Italian book J'accuse, we spoke to Francesca Albanese – about Israel's war against Gaza, genocide, anti-Semitism and impunity, based on her specialization in international law. She talks about political, legal, psychological and epistemic violence resulting from how Israel, with the consent of the West, has oppressed the Palestinians for decades. (And what about the Oslo agreement, see the sub-section.)
The new barbarians
MIGRATION: What experiences can be connected with the theory of 'the Other' when visiting a migrant island like Lampedusa? Perhaps some philosophers can show the way. Unless the migrants are the best guides.
Death – more or less real
THE REALITY: We perceive reality very differently. Let me therefore suggest three areas where reality is real, strong and direct for all of us. But also what a new translated book by Pier Paolo Pasolini says about the film's contact with reality.
When violence becomes the only thing
POWER: According to Hannah Arendt, the use of violence, weapons and bombs renders us politically speechless. Can her particular analyzes of power teach us anything about the violence that is being carried out from and in Gaza today?
Cities in crisis
RECONSTRUCTION: This appendix gives the war's destruction of cities and towns in Ukraine and the need for reconstruction the most attention.
Utopias about community
FUTURE: Are we moving towards an international society that takes care of those who fall outside the established working life – and wisely converts today's military industry towards civilian tasks? It is possible that the new BRICS may point the way away from current Western ideology.
Totalitarianism then and now
iDEOLOGY: By agreeing on a suitable 'enemy', a disintegrated society finds coherence, energy and meaning. A totalitarian propaganda has led to the conclusion that Ukraine will now be allowed to use F-16 jets against the nuclear power Russia – with the major consequences this may entail.
Book reviews
There is no such thing as 'healthy', 'normal' or 'sick'
HEALTH: From patient associations and wheelchair train blockades to queer protests and artistic projects, this book shows how people in Britain have resisted the power of diagnosis.
Somewhere between popular belief and the consensus of the wise
PSYCHOLOGY If we sapiens are so wise, why are we so self-destructive? The problem of the human species is, according to Harari, a network problem. For him, populism ultimately appears much more dangerous than a global liberal elite.
Information, knowledge and wisdom
KI: Some books take up familiar themes, but manage to put them into a context that makes the pieces fall more into place. Yuval Noah Harari's Nexus is one such book. For him, human political development rests on our ability to form and maintain networks.
Afghan media history
MEDIA: Saad Mohseni's book is an important and well-written account of what an active entrepreneur achieved together with and thanks to a diverse and courageous group of journalists.
"You were never fat and full, you went to the bottom."
POEM: Politically, Olav Nygard seems to have been in line with his friends, the cultural leaders Arne and Hulda Garborg, who complained about materialism and capitalism.
