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Terry Bouton

@terrybouton

Historian of the American Revolution and Creation of the US Constitution. Author of Taming Democracy. Forthcoming Book: Madison's Mistake: The Rise and Fall of American Monarchism. Democracy Dies in Doomerism. Don't be a Doomer.

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Latest posts by Terry Bouton @terrybouton

A frightening thing about the right's expansion is the spread of openly fascist messaging across an incredibly diverse online landscape. This can be seen by tracking the # “Revolt Against the Modern World,” a book written by Julius Evola in 1934. (More relevant now than when I wrote it 3/4/23.) 🧵

05.03.2026 23:11 👍 137 🔁 55 💬 6 📌 6

I wrestled with this article all day - an honest effort to assess the arguments in favour of the war, which I don’t entirely dismiss, and whether they outweigh the arguments against - on which my conclusion is no - largely because I don’t trust this admin’s motives, staying power or competence.

05.03.2026 14:36 👍 94 🔁 23 💬 7 📌 0
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You Just Have to Read This: Books by Alumni, Spring 2026

Nice shout out from Wesleyan about my new book, Empathy Machines.
www.wesleyan.edu/about/news/2...

26.02.2026 23:08 👍 10 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 1

Check out Jason Loviglio's new book "Empathy Machines," which looks at the history of NPR, sound, voice, and public media's complex relationship with national ideology.

04.03.2026 21:22 👍 17 🔁 7 💬 0 📌 0

Hey unitary executive enthusiasts, if the commander-in-chief/dear leader calls it a war, does that mean it is a war?

04.03.2026 21:24 👍 8 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0

"Why is he coming?"
"He's coming to get us."
On a snow white cloud....or a B2 Stealth Bomber

04.03.2026 20:31 👍 4 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

This is my district. Worth pointing out Rodney Sadler isn't just a rhetorical activist; he's actually been arrested at protests. Contrast with Cunningham, whose vote was "decisive" because it gave the GOP the final vote they needed to *override the governor's veto* of the ICE compliance bill.

04.03.2026 10:19 👍 157 🔁 38 💬 6 📌 0
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Political scientist Jeanne Zaino calls it democracy's "day two problem": revolutions are exciting. Building and sustaining self-governance is the hard part.

250 years after Common Sense, we're still working on day two

🎧 benfranklinsworld.com/435

#Revolution250 #America250 #History #Democracy

04.03.2026 11:41 👍 23 🔁 7 💬 0 📌 2

A great and timely episode!

04.03.2026 13:03 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

If you want to understand how all this has been building, @matthewdtaylor.bsky.social's audio series, Charismatic Revival Fury, is essential listening.
icjs.org/charismatic-...

04.03.2026 05:34 👍 9 🔁 5 💬 0 📌 1
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U.S. Troops Were Told Iran War Is for “Armageddon,” Return of Jesus Advocacy group reports commanders giving similar messages at more than 30 installations in every branch of the military

EXCLUSIVE: At more than 30 installations, U.S. commanders told troops the war on Iran is a Christian war.

The Military Religious Freedom Foundation has been “inundated” with more than 110 complaints.

One NCO said they were told the U.S. war is to bring about Armageddon and the return of Jesus…

03.03.2026 01:54 👍 12807 🔁 6376 💬 1310 📌 4134
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Starseeds, government plots and an alien mantis: Inside New Age spirituality's new age Thousands converged in Los Angeles for the Conscious Life Expo, where influencers and cultural shifts are fueling cosmic belief systems often featuring extraterrestrials.

I talked with Kathryn for this story on how conspiracy communities often act like faith systems, stepping into the role that traditional religion once filled for many people. Worth a read.
religionnews.com/2026/03/02/s...

03.03.2026 01:49 👍 14 🔁 5 💬 1 📌 0
Review of The Conspiracists The Conspiracists: Noelle Cook’s "The Conspiracists" is an in-depth, empathetic study of conspiracism, filtered through the outlook of two women involved in storming the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Co...

Grateful to Foreword Reviews for this thoughtful review of The Conspiracists.
www.forewordreviews.com/reviews/the-...

02.03.2026 22:08 👍 4 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0

I get it now.
AI means “artificial information.”

02.03.2026 12:50 👍 91 🔁 32 💬 2 📌 1

This is a really weird fantasia of Edinburgh (and its geography) as it never was and is *full* to the brim of the sorts of simple yet glaring errors and anachronisms you would never have gotten if you hadn't left it to a computer to just barf out an averagised slop answer.

02.03.2026 11:32 👍 331 🔁 70 💬 18 📌 2

“Bomb Iran” was the Boomer / Gen X version of doing it for the lulz.

02.03.2026 00:56 👍 6 🔁 3 💬 3 📌 0

Turns out threats against law enforcement aren’t content. They’re crimes.
open.substack.com/pub/noelleco...

01.03.2026 06:13 👍 18 🔁 6 💬 0 📌 0
Killing Joke - Eighties
Killing Joke - Eighties YouTube video by KillingJokeVEVO

Déjà vu
1/4
youtu.be/x1U1Ue_5kq8?...

01.03.2026 07:36 👍 32 🔁 15 💬 2 📌 0
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As a professional military strategist, I just wanted to make sure everyone has a full understanding of the American strategy in Iran, thank you for your attention to this matter

28.02.2026 08:27 👍 6164 🔁 1821 💬 157 📌 96

It’s not surprising at all. We always find a way to make women answer for men.

28.02.2026 03:45 👍 39 🔁 7 💬 2 📌 0

The jet is really hard to fly until you get the hang of it.

27.02.2026 22:56 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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trump administration released a video game about the files

27.02.2026 22:55 👍 186 🔁 20 💬 5 📌 1

Sebastian Gorka at the 2019 CPAC convention: “they want to take away your hamburgers. This is what Stalin dreamt about but never achieved.”

27.02.2026 19:35 👍 2105 🔁 636 💬 67 📌 30
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Radiohead is demanding that the Trump administration take down a pro-ICE promotional video featuring a version of its song “Let Down” without permission.

Full statement from the band:

27.02.2026 19:23 👍 6288 🔁 1564 💬 72 📌 139

Such a broken business model.

27.02.2026 19:30 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Endorsement paid for with a duffel bag of unmarked bills.

27.02.2026 16:07 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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A Profession, If You Can Keep It Imagined meritocracies mean little to extractive institutions.

Best things to read about the collapse of the profession, besides this one I love? contingentmagazine.org/2023/01/07/a...

26.02.2026 12:11 👍 15 🔁 4 💬 2 📌 0

There are real issues higher ed needs to address, but the outrage porn that you see on social media, Fox, etc. is just not at all typical

24.02.2026 23:17 👍 136 🔁 54 💬 5 📌 2