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Sam Greene

@samagreene

9 Jan

It is possible to believe that Twitter and Facebook did the right thing to block Trump, and that, having done so, it lays bear a real problem for American democracy. The Biden Administration and the incoming Congress need urgently to address the power of online social media.

/1

First, Twitter’s cancellation of Trump is NOT a First Amendment violation. Twitter has a right to moderate the speech distributed on its network, and a responsibility to take the public interest into account.

/2

Moreover, Trump has not been deprived of the ability to speak. He has merely been deprived of the ability to speak on Twitter and Facebook. I am not overly troubled by the ability of private corporations to decide how consumers use those corporations’ resources.

/3

Read 13 tweets

Sam Greene

@samagreene

6 Jan

@LisaDNews

I'm struck by something @LisaDNews just reported on @NewsHour from inside the Capitol: Once inside, many -- though maybe not all -- of the protesters seemed to become more relaxed, surprised that they had made it inside, but perhaps also in awe of where they were.

/1

Obviously this is purely anecdotal, but it's a reminder to take seriously the power of institutions, of tradition and of ritual.

/2

There is a reason that our great buildings of state are so impressive. Yes, they project power, but they also -- sometimes -- remind occupants that they are part of something bigger than they are.

Turns out, it may work on occupiers, too.

/3

Read 8 tweets

Sam Greene

@samagreene

3 Jan

I spend most of my time studying how people fight back against autocratic regimes in places like Russia. But as my fellow Americans worry about the potential of an authoritarian coup in Washington, I’m seeing a different set of parallels – and it worries me.

/1

If you believe you live in a democracy, elections are a wonderful thing. Sure, the campaign can be nerve-wracking, but at the end of the day the votes are cast, someone wins, someone else loses, and attention gradually shifts to the next opportunity to do it all over again.

/2

If you live in an autocracy, however, elections are nothing more than another opportunity for the regime to retrench its power and your powerlessness.

/3

Read 28 tweets

Sam Greene

@samagreene

12 Dec 20

We need to recognize how remarkable this is.

/1
nytimes.com/2020/12/11/us/…

Part of me, of course, wants to see this as mundane -- as the Supreme Court doing exactly what it _should_ have done, exactly what every non-quack legal expert said it would do. But it would be wrong to dismiss the fears of those who worried it would do the opposite.

/2

As someone who studies authoritarian politics for a living, I would encourage all of us who have the privilege of living in democracies to retain a healthy appreciation of institutions working the way they _should_.

/3

Read 17 tweets

Sam Greene

@samagreene

11 Dec 20

What an exhausting semester this has been.

It's not the technology that doesn't work. It's not the endless meetings to plan for eventualities that will never happen. It's not the daily contingencies and disruptions. Though there is all of that and more.

/1

It's learning anew to find the flickers of recognition that mean progress in half-masked faces. Or else it's the despair of teaching to a screens, to turned-off webcams and muted mics, and of not knowing whether anyone's even there.

/2

It's watching students for fleeting seconds and minutes and hours as they struggle to connect with the material, with the university, with one another, and with themselves. It's knowing that no outstretched hand will touch them where they are.

/3

Read 8 tweets

Sam Greene

@samagreene

14 Jun 20

As #Putin launched the public campaign for his constitutional reform, he took the opportunity to tell #Russia a bit about the United States, and about democracy in general.

"What is democracy?" Putin asked. "It's the power of the people, that's right."

/1

"But if the people elect their higher authorities, then those higher authorities have the right to organize the work of the organs of executive power in such a way as to guarantee the interests of the overwhelming majority of the population of the country," Putin continued.

/2

"And what's happening there [in America]?" Putin went on. "The president says, 'We need to do X', and the governors say 'Go to hell.'"

ria.ru/20200614/15729…

/3

Read 25 tweets

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