All posts tagged: regressive

Putin forges a Russian society built on regressive, militarized values

Putin forges a Russian society built on regressive, militarized values

Published by skeptic

MOSCOW — As Vladimir Putin persists in his bloody campaign to conquer Ukraine, the Russian leader is directing an equally momentous transformation at home — re-engineering his country into a regressive, militarized society that views the West as its mortal enemy. Putin’s inauguration on Tuesday for a fifth term will not only mark his 25-year-long grip on power but also showcase Russia’s shift into what pro-Kremlin commentators call a “revolutionary power,” set on upending the global order, making its own rules, and demanding that totalitarian autocracy be respected as a legitimate alternative to democracy in a world redivided by big powers into spheres of influence. Press Enter to skip to end of carousel About this series “Russia, Remastered” examines how Vladimir Putin, stoking conflict with the West and risking a new world war, is harnessing his invasion of Ukraine to transform Russia and fulfill his revanchist vision of a restored superpower. End of carousel “Russians live in a wholly new reality,” Dmitri Trenin, a pro-Kremlin analyst, wrote in reply to questions about an essay in …

The problem with Taylor Swift’s “I Hate It Here” is that it’s regressive, not reflective

The problem with Taylor Swift’s “I Hate It Here” is that it’s regressive, not reflective

Published by skeptic

Lyrics are Taylor Swift’s thing. Songwriting is literally the whole point of her sprawling 11th studio album “The Tortured Poets Department.” While Swifties, critics and the general public have begun analyzing her massive 31-song dual album since its release on April 19, a few lines have stuck out and have been widely circulated, criticized and memed online. At the scene of the crime is “I Hate It Here,” one of the extra 15 tracks on the second album, “The Anthology.” Oh yeah, that’s a real lyric from a self-proclaimed tortured poet. In the song’s lyrics, Swift tells listeners she escapes into “secret gardens in my mind” because she hates it here. And because she hates it here, she mentions that she used to play a game with her friends to escape. The game entailed picking a decade they wished they could live in instead of their current reality. The musician sings, “I’d say the 1830s but without all the racists and getting married off for the highest bid.” Oh yeah, that’s a real lyric from a self-proclaimed …

BBC licence fee is ‘regressive tax’, broadcaster’s former chair says | Michael Grade

Published by Sam

The head of Britain’s media regulator and a former chair of the BBC, Michael Grade, has described the broadcaster’s licence fee a “regressive tax” that needs to be re-examined by the government. Pointing out that both he, a well-paid executive, and a single mother living on a low income, pay the same £159 licence fee, the former ITV and Channel 4 boss said one of the big questions for the next BBC charter review was whether the broadcaster should be allowed to compete for advertising revenue against commercial stations. In an interview with Financial Times, Grade said he believed that the BBC needed to be more “independent and transparent” in its approach to how complaints are handled, something he said Ofcom has “pushed quite hard” for. The government is expected to overhaul the BBC’s complaints system as part of a review into how the corporation is funded. In recent weeks its reporting has been criticised by both sides of the Middle East conflict. In 2022, the then culture secretary, Nadine Dorries, froze the BBC licence …