Steve Kasner (he/him)
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steve-kasner.bsky.social
Steve Kasner (he/him)
@steve-kasner.bsky.social
140 followers 280 following 350 posts
Portland, Oregon-based radical activist, writer, and care worker into critical theory & organizing for change — preferably nonviolent change, toward a radically democratic & sustainable future. NVDA/NVCR trainer & educator.
Signal: skasner.01
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steve-kasner.bsky.social
Correction: Wendy Brown gave two lectures & one on-stage interview in her 2019 Tanner lecture appearances. Those talks were turned into her book. Here are the YouTube links in chronological order:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=nG52...

www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXm_...

www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI-M...
This is a screenshot from Yale's webpage devoted to all previous lectures, talks, and promo materials in the Tanner lecture series on human values. The Yale web page is available at: https://whc.yale.edu/past-tanner-lectures-human-values This screenshot just shows the information and links for Wendy Brown's contributions in 2019. This screenshot is just to provide contacts and specific dates, etc. I have provided the links to her three on stage talks above. But to make this alt text more useful, I have also pasted in the URL links under the link text below. The text in the screenshot reads as follows: Wendy Brown, UC Berkeley, Politics and Knowledge in Nihilistic Times: Thinking with Max Weber, 2019 Tuesday, October 22 Politics Watch the video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nG52tEGghTA&t=2s Wednesday, October 23 Knowledge Watch the video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXm_0DxoS_k Thursday, October 24 Kathryn Lofton and Paul North in conversation with Wendy Brown Watch the video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI-MCqeCILs Press release https://whc.yale.edu/sites/default/files/files/TannerLecturesFall2019Brownpress%20release.pdf Poster https://whc.yale.edu/sites/default/files/files/Fall%202019%20Tanner%20Lectures%20on%20Human%20Values.pdf
November 30, 2025 at 6:11 AM
steve-kasner.bsky.social
Wendy Brown's thinking about nihilism (drawing upon Max Weber) is relevant & helpful. For quick & easy access, see her interview in The Nation. For more, see her book Nihilistic Times or listen to her three 2019 Tanner Lectures on Human Values at Yale (on YouTube).

www.thenation.com/article/cult...
Wendy Brown: A Conversation on Our “Nihilistic” Age
The Nation spoke with the political theorist about the multifront crisis of the post-Trump era and the moral and intellectual commitments of scholars and higher education.
www.thenation.com
November 30, 2025 at 5:15 AM
steve-kasner.bsky.social
I live in inner Portland. The ICE protests today bear little resemblance to the explosive protests downtown in 2020.

Trump was misinformed by intentionally-misleading reports on Fox News. (Sadly, even as president, Trump relies on TV news to inform his decisions)

www.propublica.org/article/port...
“Riots Raging”: The Misleading Story Fox News Told About Portland Before Trump Sent Troops
After reviewing coverage from the network and hours of social media videos that preceded Trump’s decision, ProPublica found that Fox’s portrayal of “Portland rioters” routinely instigating violence wa...
www.propublica.org
November 24, 2025 at 1:17 AM
steve-kasner.bsky.social
It was also reckless to use arms race rhetoric: a race in which the US must maintain a strong lead, says Trump. Plus, he issued a nuclear threat to Putin, referring to a US nuclear-armed sub deployed near Russia. (But the liberal Putin paranoiacs ignorant of the Cold War may be fine w/ all this…🤷)
October 30, 2025 at 12:48 PM
steve-kasner.bsky.social
This is one of the most glaring examples of Trump not knowing what he's talking about. In addition to conflating missile launch tests with nuclear tests, he was unaware of recent US missile launch tests. And if he meant to call for bomb testing, then he should have contacted the DOE not the DoD.
October 30, 2025 at 12:48 PM
steve-kasner.bsky.social
Guess we'll just have to disagree on that one. Anatol Lieven of the Quincy institute is a worthwhile voice on this subject. He co-authored the piece below, which outlines a possible peace plan. Don't miss the analysis below the plan, especially on Russian incentives:
quincyinst.org/research/a-u...
A U.S. Peace Plan for Ukraine
In advancing a peace settlement to resolve the Russia–Ukraine War, Washington must prioritize a concrete and detailed settlement to end this catastrophic conflict along terms that harmonize the vital,...
quincyinst.org
September 25, 2025 at 3:48 AM
steve-kasner.bsky.social
Background on these 8 men & how they ended up in Africa at all. (NYT, 22 May 2025)

GIFT:
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/26/w...
What to Know About the Deportees the U.S. Is Trying to Send to South Sudan
www.nytimes.com
July 5, 2025 at 4:19 AM
steve-kasner.bsky.social
Screenshot above comes from the intro to this open-access article: Capelos, Tereza, and Nicolas Demertzis. 2022. “Sour Grapes: Ressentiment as the Affective Response of Grievance Politics.” Innovation: The European Journal of Social Science Research 35 (1): 107–29
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
www.tandfonline.com
June 14, 2025 at 8:02 PM