Author: TheConversation

Disney’s Magic: When people come close to crossing the boundaries between consumerism and religion

Disney’s Magic: When people come close to crossing the boundaries between consumerism and religion

Posted by | Jan 29, 2023

By Hannah McKillop, Doctoral Student in Religious Studies, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa Disney has been making the headlines lately, but it has not been about blockbusters. Recently, people have been up in arms over a ruined Disney park proposal and a couple who opted to have Minnie and Mickey at their wedding instead of food. Many news articles and social media users were quick to say that for some folks, Disney is a religion — citing mythologies, symbols, rituals, community and regular expensive pilgrimages to the park as central reasons. But just because many people treat Disney as sacred,...

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Simmering Tensions: Why talking across the political aisle helps reduce hostility

Simmering Tensions: Why talking across the political aisle helps reduce hostility

Posted by | Jan 28, 2023

By Dominik Stecuła, Assistant professor of political science, Colorado State University; and Matthew Levendusky, Professor of political science, University of Pennsylvania Simmering tension in American politics came to a head two years ago, when a mob of Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol to try to overthrow the results of the 2020 presidential election. The failed insurrection on January 6, 2021, resulted in several deaths and injuries to almost 150 police officers. But on the cusp of the November 2022 midterm elections, the majority of Republicans said they still believed the false claim asserted by the Capitol rioters –...

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Race, Ethnicity, and Age: Why employers are forced to be more flexible as workplace diversity grows

Race, Ethnicity, and Age: Why employers are forced to be more flexible as workplace diversity grows

Posted by | Jan 27, 2023

By Adia Harvey Wingfield, Professor of Sociology, Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis Increased immigration, longer life expectancy and a decline in birth rates are transforming the U.S. workforce in two important ways. The people powering this nation’s economy include far more people of color and workers over 55 than was the case four decades ago. And this diversity will keep growing in the years ahead, economists predict. The share of U.S. workers who are nonwhite, Latino or both nearly doubled to about 40% in 2019 from roughly 23% in 1979, according to the Bureau of...

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Winter of Discontent: Poor performance and low morale of Russian soldiers expected to worsen

Winter of Discontent: Poor performance and low morale of Russian soldiers expected to worsen

Posted by | Jan 25, 2023

By Liam Collins, Founding Director, Modern War Institute, United States Military Academy West Point With Russian troops digging trenches to prepare for an expected winter standoff, it would be easy to conclude that fighting will slow in Ukraine until after the ground thaws in the spring. But evidence from the Ukrainian battlefields point to a different trajectory. As a career U.S. special forces officer who conducted field research on the 2008 and 2014 wars in Georgia and Ukraine, it is my view that this war has demonstrated that only one side, the Ukrainians, can execute effective combat maneuvers. I...

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Weaponized Education: Ukraine schools remain a key battleground in the fight for the nation’s future

Weaponized Education: Ukraine schools remain a key battleground in the fight for the nation’s future

Posted by | Jan 24, 2023

By Katja Kolcio, Associate Professor of Dance, Environmental Studies and Education Studies, Wesleyan University When Russian missiles struck Ukraine’s capital city of Kyiv on New Year’s Eve, the damaged buildings included a university and at least two schools. As a researcher who is studying the role of culture and education in this war – and as co-author of a book based on my research on Ukrainians’ resilience; that is, their ability to carry on despite adversity – I see these attacks as part of a broader and long-standing effort to dismantle Ukraine’s schools and ultimately remake them as subservient...

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The Winter Campaign: Putin has been weaponizing energy for years and has no incentive to stop now

The Winter Campaign: Putin has been weaponizing energy for years and has no incentive to stop now

Posted by | Jan 23, 2023

By Thomas Froehlich, Research Fellow, King’s College London Not since the 1970s oil crisis has the west seen such a focus on energy security. Suddenly in 2022 it became a critical part of the battle for Ukraine. Russian attacks on energy facilities have left millions of Ukrainians without power during a freezing winter. Since it could not force a quick, decisive win onto Ukraine, Russia shifted its strategy to attrition, specifically targeting energy infrastructure. Nighttime photographs of Ukraine now show a dark territory akin to images of North Korea. The theory is simple: freezing populations stop supporting the defending...

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