Evening Roundup, March 21
Featuring Ben Wikler & Jen Rubin; Austin Sarat; Joshua Kolb and The Democracy Index; Brian O'Neill; Ezra Levin & Jen Rubin; Meredith Blake; Marissa Rothkopf; Ruben Bolling; and our Pet of the Week!
Ben Wikler & Jen Rubin in Conversation
Early voting has begun for the mammoth April 1 State Supreme Court Case. Nobody better to give us an update than our friend Ben Wikler. Wikler was elected chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin in June of 2019. Since then, he has led the party through a string of historic victories, including Wisconsin’s defeat of Trump in 2020, Governor Evers’ reelection in 2022, and two landmark state Supreme Court wins…
Columbia’s White Flag is a Disaster for Democracy
Today, Columbia University gave in to outrageous demands from the Trump Administration. The university announced it would do what the administration demanded in a letter sent on March 13.
The Democracy Index
Are we witnessing the dismantling of America? Each week, so far, in The Democracy Index, we have cataloged the various degradations our institutions and constitutional order have suffered under Donald Trump. We view our role as soberly taking stock of the state of affairs (and affairs of state), then synthesizing what is happening.
The JFK Files: Wasted Money, Real Harm, and No Truth!
Indiana Jones has breached the firewall, Tom Cruise has been lowered into the dark abyss beneath Langley, and Nicolas Cage has emerged from the secret tunnel that ends at a hidden door beneath the Resolute Desk—clutching the final truth of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, which is . . .
By Brian O’Neill
Ezra Levin of Indivisible talks to Jen Rubin
Ezra Levin is the co-founder and co-executive director of Indivisible, a grassroots organization made up of thousands of group leaders and more than a million members taking regular, iterative, and increasingly complex actions to resist the GOPs agenda, elect local champions, and fight for progressive policies.
Contrarian Culture Club Recommendations
Are you looking for something to amuse, inspire, enlighten, or maybe just distract you from… well, everything? Each week, The Contrarian will share our culture picks—the best things to watch, read, listen to, follow, or go see right now.
Lemon drizzle cake
I explained to my 19-year-old son recently why I obsess so much over my garden. The kid was kind enough to appear to listen. Briefly, it means there isn’t a season I dislike. Summer is the easiest and most obvious to love with its wonderfully obscene riot of blooms…
Friday comic: Tom the Dancing Bug
Follow Ruben Bolling on Substack here; Join Tom the Dancing Bug’s Inner Hive here; and here is the Tom the Dancing Bug website, with information about the new book, “It’s the Great Storm, Tom the Dancing Bug!"
Have a restful weekend, Contrarians! Thanks for being with us.
Thank you so much for these roundups!!
Great writing from all the Contrarians! Great Interviews! Coffee with The Contrarians is a great feature. Lots of stuff here to like!