- The Strategist - https://www.aspistrategist.org.au -
The 11th Madeleine Award: best and worst of times
Posted By Graeme Dobell on January 13, 2020 @ 06:00
‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way ...’
— Charles Dickens, A tale of two cities
If you want to understand what President Trump will do in any situation, then, it’s more helpful to ask: What would TV do? What does TV want?
It wants conflict. It wants excitement. If there is something that can blow up, it should blow up. It wants a fight. It wants more. It is always eating and never full.
Article printed from The Strategist: https://www.aspistrategist.org.au
URL to article: https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/the-11th-madeleine-award-best-and-worst-of-times/
[1] Georgian calendar pedants: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-31/when-do-the-20s-start/11831444
[2] Fascism: a warning: https://www.harpercollins.com/9780062802187/fascism-a-warning/
[3] ‘read my pins’: https://books.google.com.au/books?id=-MVKbF9OOKIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=albright+read+my+pins&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjm1LmCyPfmAhXR8XMBHSM0ChMQ6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q=albright%20read%20my%20pins&f=false
[4] Maasai warrior on a smartphone: https://www.crresearch.com/blog/information-age-cell-phones
[5] tweeting hairdo: https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/8th-madeleine-award-twittering-hairdo/
[6] Last year: https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/the-10th-madeleine-award-glare-and-stare-wonder-and-ponder/
[7] foreign-policy game theory: https://capx.co/on-foreign-policy-donald-trump-takes-his-lead-from-dungeons-and-dragons/
[8] thinks like a TV camera: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/06/opinion/sunday/trump-reality-tv.html
[9] walrus moustache: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-09-11/bolton-and-trump-were-always-an-unlikely-duo/11498802
[10] survey of 40,000: http://ftp.iza.org/dp12282.pdf
[11] OOPS! winner was Tony Abbott: https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/the-2013-madeleine-award-part-i-abbotts-oops-moment-and-more/
[12] ‘creative incompetence’: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-07-25/boris-johnson-prime-minister-first-interview-media/11341660
[13] ham of fate: https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2019/08/15/boris-johnson-ham-of-fate/
[14] global gag on free speech tightens: https://www.economist.com/international/2019/08/17/the-global-gag-on-free-speech-is-tightening
[15] milkshaking: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-21/nigel-farage-has-milkshake-thrown-at-him-in-newcastle/11132230
[16] held up a big blank sheet of paper: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/09/world/asia/kazakhstan-protests-blank-sign.html
[17] ‘be water’: https://www.ft.com/content/d1f60a3a-cd58-11e9-b018-ca4456540ea6
[18] animates the Hong Kong demonstrations: https://www.ft.com/content/c34b9582-1da2-11ea-97df-cc63de1d73f4
[19] Kerry Brown: https://www.eastasiaforum.org/2019/12/29/everything-remains-up-for-stakes-in-hong-kong/