Author: TheConversation

By Kristin Kanthak, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Pittsburgh Author Edgar Allan Poe, the 19th-century master of American macabre, may have died of dirty politics. According to legend, a gang of party “poll hustlers” kidnapped and drugged him. They forced him to vote, then abandoned him near death. Details are murky, but we do know Poe died in Baltimore days after an election. The story, though likely untrue, is certainly possible. Election Day in 19th-century America was a loud, raucous, often dangerous event. Political parties would offer food, drink and inducements ranging from offers of bribes to...

By Austin Sarat, Associate Provost and Associate Dean of the Faculty and Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science, Amherst College The Republican Party made it clear in its national convention that it intends to make restoring “law and order” central to this fall’s presidential campaign. As he did when he first ran in 2016, President Donald Trump highlighted law and order in his 2020 acceptance speech. “Your vote,” Trump said, “will decide whether we protect law-abiding Americans and whether … we will defend the American way of life or allow a radical movement to completely dismantle and destroy...

By Wendong Zhang, Assistant Professor of Economics, Iowa State University; and Minghao Li, Assistant Professor of Economics, New Mexico State University American farmers have suffered a lot in the past few years: The trade war with China, natural disasters, and the COVID-19 pandemic have all resulted in substantial losses for many producers. Farmers overwhelmingly supported Donald Trump in 2016 and remain critical to his reelection in many swing states such as Iowa and Minnesota. But given the impact of all that’s happened, will they stick with the president in the November elections? We have conducted extensive research on American...

By Michael S. Jaffee, Vice Chair, Department of Neurology, University of Florida For most of the United States, the clock goes back one hour on Sunday morning, November 1, the “fall back” for daylight saving time. Many of us appreciate the extra hour of sleep. But for millions, that gain will not counter the inadequate sleep they get the rest of the year. About 40% of adults – 50 to 70 million Americans – get less than the recommended minimum seven hours per night. Some researchers are concerned about how the twice-a-year switch impacts our body’s physiology. The American...

By Nigel Gibson, Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies, Emerson College Psychiatric hospitals tend to create institutionalized patients, thus further alienating them from their communities. But what also became clear to philosopher Frantz Fanon, while working as a psychiatrist at Blida-Joinville Hospital in Algeria between 1953 and 1956, was that patient integration was impossible in colonial societies. By definition, colonies produce fragmented societies that are haunted by fear and suspicion. As such they remain divided and their culture, increasingly rigid. Fanon’s short article “Confession in North Africa” was first delivered at the 1955 Congrès de Psychiatrie et de Neurologie de...

By Bethany Albertson, Associate Professor, University of Texas at Austin President Donald Trump’s rhetoric is often referred to as “dog whistle politics.” In politician speak, a dog whistle is language that conveys a particular meaning to a group of potential supporters. The targeted group hears the “whistle” because of its shared cultural reference, but others cannot. In 2018, The Washington Post wrote that “perhaps no one has sent more dog whistles than President Trump.” When Trump this year planned a rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma – the site of one of the worst acts of racial terror in U.S. history...