{"id":11182,"date":"2020-11-02T10:01:03","date_gmt":"2020-11-02T15:01:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/?p=11182"},"modified":"2020-11-02T13:07:00","modified_gmt":"2020-11-02T18:07:00","slug":"well-here-we-go","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/2020\/11\/02\/well-here-we-go\/","title":{"rendered":"Well, here we go…"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Cross-posted from e2mc<\/a>. Note that this post takes the Stoic strategy<\/a> of preparing<\/a> for the worst, so as to be pleasantly surprised when the worst fails to come to pass.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Deep breath, Americanos. Let\u2019s brace ourselves for what may be the messiest, most litigious and disruptive Interregnum<\/a> in U.S. history. (\u201cInterregnum\u201d = the 79 day interval between Election Day and the swearing-in of the next president.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

What could possibly go wrong \u2014 besides strategic disruptions of in-person voting, blocking and disputing of the vote count (especially of mail-in ballots, which strongly lean Democrat), a victory proclamation based on early results before the mail-in count can result in the anticipated \u201cblue shift<\/a>,\u201d proclamations of massive voter fraud (which the last few months of \u201cmail-in voter fraud<\/a>\u201d claims have been preparing<\/a> us for), emergency recount motions in multiple states (with postmarks becoming this year\u2019s \u201changing chads<\/a>\u201c), caravans of Trump-supporting (and sometimes armed) \u201cballot guardians\u201d and \u201ccoup protestors,\u201d appeals to state and federal supreme courts (for a replay of Bush-v.-Gore, this time with a clear conservative majority), and a state of emergency, to be quelled by riot police and military units when fights erupt in the streets, all in an attempt to bypass election results and re-impose \u201claw and order\u201d?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At least if we are ready for these measures<\/a>, we won\u2019t be too surprised. If we get through it all unscathed, it will be a little short of miraculous. (It can\u2019t hurt to hope.) And no matter what happens<\/a>, it will be studied for years to come. (That is, unless the condition becomes terminal.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The question for media studies geeks will be: what have the media learned since 2016? What should we be learning, going forward? Gauging the answers given so far, we\/they have either learned\u00a0nothing<\/a>, a\u00a0few things<\/a>,\u00a0not enough<\/a>, or\u00a0we\u2019re not sure<\/a>. Perhaps we will\u00a0find out<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cross-posted from e2mc. Note that this post takes the Stoic strategy of preparing for the worst, so as to be pleasantly surprised when the worst fails to come to pass. Deep breath, Americanos. Let\u2019s brace ourselves for what may be the messiest, most litigious and disruptive Interregnum in U.S. history. (\u201cInterregnum\u201d = the 79 day interval between […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":99,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[691215],"tags":[628653,58955,628671,628643,628670,4478,628667,628669,628668,628592],"class_list":["post-11182","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics_postpolitics","tag-2020-u-s-presidential-election","tag-donald-trump","tag-electoral","tag-joe-biden","tag-media-coverage-of-u-s-politics","tag-media-ecology","tag-negative-visualization","tag-political-conflict","tag-premortem","tag-stoicism"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4IC4a-2Um","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":11202,"url":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/2020\/11\/06\/america-is-waiting-meme-magic-the-spiritual-practices-of-the-interregnum\/","url_meta":{"origin":11182,"position":0},"title":"America is waiting: Meme magic & the spiritual practices of the Interregnum","author":"Adrian J Ivakhiv","date":"November 6, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"One of the things I study is spiritual practices - which I'll define (for simplicity's sake) as the things people do to enhance their capacity to live in accordance with chosen ideals. Those ideals can be defined in religious terms (for instance, as salvation, enlightenment, or unity with God) or\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Cultural politics"","block_context":{"text":"Cultural politics","link":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/category\/cultural_politics\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/AUmMUmLYT1Y\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":13955,"url":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/2025\/03\/06\/end-of-the-interregnum-or-just-the-beginning-of-its-end\/","url_meta":{"origin":11182,"position":1},"title":"End of the Interregnum, or just the beginning of its end?","author":"Adrian J Ivakhiv","date":"March 6, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"It\u2019s looking increasingly likely that the last 35 years or so will come to be seen as an Interregnum between two world orders: the Cold War order, which emerged from the ashes of World War Two, and whatever it is that is beginning to envelop us now. The question is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Manifestos & auguries"","block_context":{"text":"Manifestos & auguries","link":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/category\/manifestos-and-auguries\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2025\/03\/image-2.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2025\/03\/image-2.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2025\/03\/image-2.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2025\/03\/image-2.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2025\/03\/image-2.png?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2025\/03\/image-2.png?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":11222,"url":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/2020\/11\/09\/truth-media-trust-and-the-election\/","url_meta":{"origin":11182,"position":2},"title":"Truth, media trust, and the election","author":"Adrian J Ivakhiv","date":"November 9, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"This article is cross-posted from the media ecologies blog e2mc. While last week\u2019s election has resulted in the announcement of a new president and vice-president, with leaders of many countries around the world recognizing those results (and with global markets rallying their apparent support), the current Trump administration has not\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Media ecology"","block_context":{"text":"Media ecology","link":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/category\/media_ecology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2020\/11\/Screen-Shot-2020-11-09-at-12.33.49-PM.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2020\/11\/Screen-Shot-2020-11-09-at-12.33.49-PM.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2020\/11\/Screen-Shot-2020-11-09-at-12.33.49-PM.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2020\/11\/Screen-Shot-2020-11-09-at-12.33.49-PM.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2020\/11\/Screen-Shot-2020-11-09-at-12.33.49-PM.png?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2020\/11\/Screen-Shot-2020-11-09-at-12.33.49-PM.png?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13767,"url":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/2024\/10\/15\/the-hurricane-conspiracy-complex\/","url_meta":{"origin":11182,"position":3},"title":"The hurricane conspiracy complex","author":"Adrian J Ivakhiv","date":"October 15, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"The big question around these back-to-back hurricanes in the southeast U.S. is not why they are happening (that\u2019s easy enough to answer), but why so many people find it easier to believe they were artificially generated by the U.S. government, the \u201cdeep state,\u201d FEMA, industry, or some euphemistic \u201cthey\u201d (and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Climate change"","block_context":{"text":"Climate change","link":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/category\/climate-politics\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2024\/10\/image.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11048,"url":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/2020\/09\/04\/network-propaganda-american-style\/","url_meta":{"origin":11182,"position":4},"title":"Network propaganda, American style","author":"Adrian J Ivakhiv","date":"September 4, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"I've just begun teaching a media course, entitled Media Ecologies and Cultural Politics, which I designed several years ago but have revised this year to focus on the issues of our current moment: the upcoming election, the Covid-19 pandemic, the crisis of racial justice, and what some have called the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Cultural politics"","block_context":{"text":"Cultural politics","link":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/category\/cultural_politics\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/files\/2020\/09\/51UFBniMhL._SX351_BO1204203200_.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1361,"url":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/2010\/10\/27\/vote\/","url_meta":{"origin":11182,"position":5},"title":"vote","author":"Adrian J Ivakhiv","date":"October 27, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Jodi Dean, whose work I respect a lot, won't vote in the upcoming U.S. elections. The election, she argues, \"won't do anything but secure a false sense of connectedness from those who do vote to the oligarchy that continues to exploit us.\" Mark Lance is agreeing with her that voting\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Politics"","block_context":{"text":"Politics","link":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/category\/politics_postpolitics\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11182","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/99"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11182"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11182\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11189,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11182\/revisions\/11189"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11182"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11182"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/aivakhiv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11182"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}