The Big Idea
This is the last week of More Stable Union’s very stable vacation, so it’s been a hard week to focus as we all just tried to enjoy the last of the summer. The big things in the country this week: the President endorsed QAnon, and the Democratic National Convention went surprisingly well for an unprecedentedly-challenging event. Honestly, this is probably how conventions should go henceforth.
My mind has been focused on what happens when my family returns to DC: how we’ll manage school (one kid’s is virtual, the other still plans to open), and what will happen as we enter the election’s final stretch, where we’ll be at Ground Zero. And that brings me to My Old Hat. It’s the one on the right:
In summer 2003, I was back in D.C. for a training course mid-way through a two-year tour in Kosovo when I got a call from my parents in Boston. They’d been invited to be guests aboard the USS Constitution for its annual 4th of July celebration, where the ship is moved by tugboat around Boston Harbor and fires a gun salute. It’s a big part of the city’s celebration, and most tickets for guests are awarded by lottery. My parents called me and told me to get my butt up to Boston ASAP. I’m a giant history nerd and a particular fan of Patrick O’Brian’s legendary Aubrey-Maturin series of Nelson-era naval novels—they read like Jane Austen went to war. For a shorter version, you can just watch Peter Weir’s epic “Master and Commander.” Mom and Dad managed to beg a third ticket for me.
The Constitution is always an awesome attraction, but being on it when it’s actually moving on the 4th of July is an unique experience. On top of everything else, the Captain had declared the theme to be: “Foreign Service Appreciation Day!” Turns out he’d just graduated the Naval War College, and one of his best friends there was a Foreign Service Officer heading out to serve as Deputy Chief of Mission in Liberia. He wanted to show his buddy a good time. They were both very friendly with me, an unexpected FSO who showed up for the ride. The hat was the perfect souvenir. They’re still for sale on the Constitution, and the money goes to the sailors’ fund, which I hope pays for happy hours and going-away mementos.
The hat came back with me to Kosovo, where it was a go-to piece of my casual wear. At the end of that year, it followed me to my next job at the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Ghazni, Afghanistan. There, I wore it near-daily. Soldiers wear hats whenever they’re outdoors, and when you’re surrounded by them you start to feel weird bareheaded yourself, not to mention you also come to value the shade. That’s where it picked up its notably-beige hue compared to its newer sibling on the left; Afghanistan is as dusty as you’ve heard, and it doesn’t come out. The brim also started fraying, probably from being stuffed in my pocket too much when indoors or wearing a helmet—I hated my civilian helmet, which I suspect was worthless and made me look stupid(er). I only ever wore the helmet inside a vehicle. My Constitution cap was for everywhere else.
The hat came back with me for some more Afghan dust a few years later, and while I’ve been mostly DC-centric since 2008, the hat has still gotten around the U.S. and to Australia, Pakistan, and Turkey for work. I wouldn’t wear it on the streets in Pakistan or Turkey, but by then it was a good luck charm I’d keep in my room, despite the paint I got on it painting a bookshelf at my kids’ preschool.
After the paint incident, my More Stable Spouse suggested that, if I someday wanted to show hypothetical grandkids my hat to accompany some ridiculous tall tale, I should take better care of it. So I brought it up to Cape Cod and put it in a box in the basement with my grandfather’s uniform trinkets from World War Two. We have three other Constitution hats now, for me and the boys.
I’m bringing the old hat back to DC with me. I hope for the best this fall, but I think my cap has one more campaign left in it, at least. I’ll feel better wearing it in the streets, and we all need our good luck charms. This would be a good time to gather yours.
I don’t know what I’ll focus on next week, between the drive home and schools re-starting, but my priorities soon enough will be violence, non-violence, and matters of personal safety.
Vox has a great interview with Nils Gilman of the Transition Integrity Project on how its simulations went. The really scary thing he flags is the power the Murdochs and Zuckerberg will have over whether or not an electoral outcome is accepted.
When something’s in Foreign Affairs, you know it’s now conventional wisdom. But this piece is quite good, laying out four factors that have caused historic instability in the U.S.: polarization, disagreement over who counts as a citizen, income inequality, and excessive executive power. They believe today is the first time we’ve faced all four at once.
Why, Facebook is concerned about election security? Do tell!
ACLED has ten violence hot spots it worries about: Sahel, Mexico, Yemen, India, Somalia, Afghanistan, Iran, Ethiopia, Lebanon… and the United States.
CNN’s Paul Callan has what I’d call an optimistic realist’s (realistic optimist’s?) take on what Trump might do to keep power, and how it’s hard to beat the Constitution—the document, not just the frigate.
Security Sector Reform
If you’re concerned about extremist violence in the U.S., you need to get to know QAnon. It reflects much of the GOP’s future. Don’t let crazy shit about adrenochrome lead you to just laugh these guys off. Don’t be taken in by calls to “save the children,” and keep room in your thoughts for the actual www.savethechildren.org, which does wonderful work.
Good Reads
Ruy Teixeira and Peter Juul call for a “New Liberal Nationalism” that rejects “democratic socialism” and the “multicultural left” in favor of a politics they feel evokes FDR or JFK. I see their point, but their commentary is more about style than substance, and I don’t see it appealing to many beyond the already-converted.
Lawfare has a great summary of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence’s report on Trump and Russia, as well as a review of how the Republican committee members undermine their own report.
It’s easy to forget in the day-to-day madness, but climate change is a destabilizing threat too. Fossil energy money penetrates deep. California is on fire, and two hurricanes are heading for the Gulf Coast at the same time.
Bloomberg flags that monopoly power is driving many of our worst economic trends.
The collapse of the GOP among young people means that those youngsters who do back it will be much more extreme. The New Republic has a quick look at North Carolina congressional candidate Madison Cawthorn, a Tom Cotton or Josh Hawley in waiting.
Other ideas or contributions for MSU? Send them to monganjh1@gmail.com, and follow MSU on Twitter @MoreStableUnion. Share with all your friends so they can subscribe at morestableunion.substack.com. Please stay safe, healthy, masked, and distanced!
