The Twitpocalypse or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Sagittarius A*
The Twitpocalypse or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Sagittarius A*
Twitter appears on the verge crashing, election related conspiracy theories and misinformation are thriving online, and the former President announced his candidacy for president, again.
It’s been a hell of a week.
There were several far right Republican candidates for Congress that were defeated during the midterm elections. Additionally, the America First Secretary of State Coalition, a slate of far right Republican candidates for the office that oversea each states’ election process, were also defeated.
Regardless of the results, various types of conspiracy theories and misinformation about the election results and the election systems have proliferated in far right online spaces.
Congressional Republican are already making plans to use their majority in the U.S. House to conduct various oversight investigations and far right members of the GOP caucus are reportedly “clamoring to shut down the government and impeach President Joe Biden and his top allies.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn Rakoczy delivered closing argument in the seditious conspiracy trial against five members of the far right militia the Oath Keeper, and argued that the evidence shows that on January 6, 2021 the “defendants plotted to use force to stop the transfer of presidential power to Joe Biden.”
Also, Elon Musk issue an ultimatum to the employees of Twitter that seems to have resulted in the mass exodus of employees, and speculation on whether or not the social media platform will crash in the coming hours or days.
Former President Donald Trump, who incited an insurrection and is currently the subject of multiple investigations, announced his candidacy for President, again. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced the appointment of a special prosecutor, Jack Smith, to investigate the former President’s involvement in the events leading to the insurrection and the removal of classified documents.
Attorney General Merrick Garland’s Statement:
“Based on recent developments, including the former President’s announcement that he is a candidate for President in the next election, and the sitting President’s stated intention to be a candidate as well, I have concluded that it is in the public interest to appoint a special counsel. Such an appointment underscores the Department’s commitment to both independence and accountability in particularly sensitive matters. It also allows prosecutors and agents to continue their work expeditiously, and to make decisions indisputably guided only by the facts and the law.”
Many of you reading this may have subscribed to this newsletter during the past 24 to 48-hours, as people have sought ways to stay connected to the writers, journalists, academics, activists, and others that have found audiences on Twitter. In the coming days, I’ll be explaining in detail my plans for additional types of content, and new ways for readers to engage with the research and analysis. For now, thank you for subscribing.
Finding Light in Black Holes
This week, scientists unveiled images of the black hole at the center of the Milky Way galaxy, known as Sagittarius A*. Creating the images of the black hole took three years and “required an international collaboration of hundreds of astronomers, engineers and computer scientists, and the development of sophisticated computer algorithms to piece together the image from the raw data.”
Researching and reporting on far right authoritarian and extremist movements can feel like being pulled into a black hole. However, like the hundreds of scientists that collaborated to create the first images of the black hole at the center of our galaxy, there are hundreds of journalists, researchers, and academics collaborating to reveal the threat of far right authoritarian and extremist movements. Sagittarius A* will eventually consume everything captured by its gravity, and unchecked far right authoritarian and extremist movements will eventually consume our democracy.
It’s difficult to determine the event horizon of far right authoritarian and extremist movements, and identify when democratic societies fully embrace authoritarianism and reject democracy in favor of autocracy. However, surrounding the black hole of far right authoritarian and extremist movements are the bright lights of those fighting to protect democracy — keep finding each other’s lights in the darkness.
In Solidarity,
Teddy Wilson
