Marc Roscoe Loustau
@attheedges.bsky.social
Official BlueSky account of Substack newsletter "At the edges, with Marc Loustau." https://marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/
"In a world on fire, hopeful storytelling about global politics, culture, and the edges of faith."
"In a world on fire, hopeful storytelling about global politics, culture, and the edges of faith."
Listening to Mahler 9, the first movement. This feels accurate: "But Mahler's movements, in their entirety, are streams on which is borne whatever is caught in them, yet without its particularity being entirely absorbed." Theodor Adorno, Mahler: A Musical Physiognomy.
November 3, 2025 at 9:11 PM
Listening to Mahler 9, the first movement. This feels accurate: "But Mahler's movements, in their entirety, are streams on which is borne whatever is caught in them, yet without its particularity being entirely absorbed." Theodor Adorno, Mahler: A Musical Physiognomy.
"Here we go again..." Ukrainian Catholics react to Pope Leo's interview with Crux: Taking the Catholic Pulse. It's for the best, they say, that Ukrainian media mostly ignored the interview. In "At the Edges, with Marc Loustau" on Substack.
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/do-you-kno...
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/do-you-kno...
November 1, 2025 at 5:38 PM
"Here we go again..." Ukrainian Catholics react to Pope Leo's interview with Crux: Taking the Catholic Pulse. It's for the best, they say, that Ukrainian media mostly ignored the interview. In "At the Edges, with Marc Loustau" on Substack.
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/do-you-kno...
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/do-you-kno...
I am a fellow at Central European University’s Institute for Advanced Study. The IAS coordinated my media appearances about the Trump-Putin Budapest summit. Now they’ve put the coverage my comments received on one site:
ias.ceu.edu/article/2025...
It’s a pleasure to be at @iasceu.bsky.social!
ias.ceu.edu/article/2025...
It’s a pleasure to be at @iasceu.bsky.social!
ias.ceu.edu
October 31, 2025 at 10:59 AM
I am a fellow at Central European University’s Institute for Advanced Study. The IAS coordinated my media appearances about the Trump-Putin Budapest summit. Now they’ve put the coverage my comments received on one site:
ias.ceu.edu/article/2025...
It’s a pleasure to be at @iasceu.bsky.social!
ias.ceu.edu/article/2025...
It’s a pleasure to be at @iasceu.bsky.social!
My friend and former Ukrainian teacher Maria Kosiychuk is organizing this exciting program. It'll be fun as well as educational. For anyone even just a little bit curious about Ukrainian, I highly recommend!
www.instagram.com/soft.sign.ua/
www.instagram.com/soft.sign.ua/
October 22, 2025 at 6:43 PM
My friend and former Ukrainian teacher Maria Kosiychuk is organizing this exciting program. It'll be fun as well as educational. For anyone even just a little bit curious about Ukrainian, I highly recommend!
www.instagram.com/soft.sign.ua/
www.instagram.com/soft.sign.ua/
My commentary about the not-so-summit in regional news: Bosnian TV and a Slovak newspaper, Denník Sme.
Trump said a meeting is a waste of time. The only waste of time is Trump, and any effort by Europe to deal with him as a reliable ally.
n1info.ba/svijet/video...
svet.sme.sk/c/23558945/v...
Trump said a meeting is a waste of time. The only waste of time is Trump, and any effort by Europe to deal with him as a reliable ally.
n1info.ba/svijet/video...
svet.sme.sk/c/23558945/v...
VIDEO Ključ za zaustavljanje Putina na Balkanu:
Marc Loustau, pridruženi saradnik za Antropologiju i Religijske studije na CEU u Budimpešti, bez ustručavanja govori o spornim geopolitičkim vezama koje se plet
n1info.ba
October 22, 2025 at 2:51 PM
My commentary about the not-so-summit in regional news: Bosnian TV and a Slovak newspaper, Denník Sme.
Trump said a meeting is a waste of time. The only waste of time is Trump, and any effort by Europe to deal with him as a reliable ally.
n1info.ba/svijet/video...
svet.sme.sk/c/23558945/v...
Trump said a meeting is a waste of time. The only waste of time is Trump, and any effort by Europe to deal with him as a reliable ally.
n1info.ba/svijet/video...
svet.sme.sk/c/23558945/v...
The Budapest summit is off. Trump's reaction: He says a meeting is a "waste of time."
The only waste of time is Trump himself, and Europe's attempt to deal with him as a conventional, reliable ally.
My commentary in The Conversation UK. theconversation.com/trump-putin-...
The only waste of time is Trump himself, and Europe's attempt to deal with him as a conventional, reliable ally.
My commentary in The Conversation UK. theconversation.com/trump-putin-...
Trump-Putin Budapest summit would have posed threat to international rule of law and Ukraine’s relations with Hungary
The now-cancelled Budapest summit would have been, above all, a boon for Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán.
theconversation.com
October 22, 2025 at 4:41 AM
The Budapest summit is off. Trump's reaction: He says a meeting is a "waste of time."
The only waste of time is Trump himself, and Europe's attempt to deal with him as a conventional, reliable ally.
My commentary in The Conversation UK. theconversation.com/trump-putin-...
The only waste of time is Trump himself, and Europe's attempt to deal with him as a conventional, reliable ally.
My commentary in The Conversation UK. theconversation.com/trump-putin-...
I was on TV last night commenting about the Trump-Putin Budapest Summit and why the EU needs to show some backbone in response.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fzz...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fzz...
October 21, 2025 at 8:54 AM
I was on TV last night commenting about the Trump-Putin Budapest Summit and why the EU needs to show some backbone in response.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fzz...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fzz...
The Trump-Putin summit in Budapest is a threat to European unity. It could also seriously damage Hungary-Ukraine relations.
But Viktor Orbán's real challenge will be finding a place for these strongmen to have a good time.
“At the Edges, with Marc Loustau.”
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
But Viktor Orbán's real challenge will be finding a place for these strongmen to have a good time.
“At the Edges, with Marc Loustau.”
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
I predicted the Trump-Putin Budapest summit
But it's what I can't predict that scares me
open.substack.com
October 20, 2025 at 6:32 PM
The Trump-Putin summit in Budapest is a threat to European unity. It could also seriously damage Hungary-Ukraine relations.
But Viktor Orbán's real challenge will be finding a place for these strongmen to have a good time.
“At the Edges, with Marc Loustau.”
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
But Viktor Orbán's real challenge will be finding a place for these strongmen to have a good time.
“At the Edges, with Marc Loustau.”
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
New York Times says President Trump will meet with Putin in **Budapest** to discuss Ukraine.
It's really strange to make a prediction and actually be right, but here we are. "Hungary’s ICC Exit Could Make Budapest a More Welcoming Place for Russians." By Marc Loustau, Balkan Insight, 4/30/2025.
It's really strange to make a prediction and actually be right, but here we are. "Hungary’s ICC Exit Could Make Budapest a More Welcoming Place for Russians." By Marc Loustau, Balkan Insight, 4/30/2025.
Hungary’s ICC Exit Could Make Budapest a More Welcoming Place for Russians
After Hungary’s exit from the ICC, Europe’s political leaders should ensure that Russia does not take advantage of this move to destabilise the rules-based international order.
balkaninsight.com
October 16, 2025 at 7:17 PM
New York Times says President Trump will meet with Putin in **Budapest** to discuss Ukraine.
It's really strange to make a prediction and actually be right, but here we are. "Hungary’s ICC Exit Could Make Budapest a More Welcoming Place for Russians." By Marc Loustau, Balkan Insight, 4/30/2025.
It's really strange to make a prediction and actually be right, but here we are. "Hungary’s ICC Exit Could Make Budapest a More Welcoming Place for Russians." By Marc Loustau, Balkan Insight, 4/30/2025.
For more than a year, a memorial to Russian dissident Alexei Navalny sat across the street from the Russian embassy in Budapest. Last week, vandals tore it down. Who did it? More importantly, who came together to put it back again?
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
Alexandr Navalny v. Hungary's Russian Embassy
Someone destroyed Budapest's memorial to the slain dissident
open.substack.com
September 26, 2025 at 5:24 AM
For more than a year, a memorial to Russian dissident Alexei Navalny sat across the street from the Russian embassy in Budapest. Last week, vandals tore it down. Who did it? More importantly, who came together to put it back again?
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
Ukrainian pastors, who fled cities now occupied by Russia, still keep in touch with church members who stayed behind. But why, when Russian police have threatened to arrest worshippers? From “At the Edges”: “Where Mother Mary is on the terror list.”
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/where-moth...
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/where-moth...
September 23, 2025 at 6:23 PM
Ukrainian pastors, who fled cities now occupied by Russia, still keep in touch with church members who stayed behind. But why, when Russian police have threatened to arrest worshippers? From “At the Edges”: “Where Mother Mary is on the terror list.”
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/where-moth...
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/where-moth...
When does public Christianity become controversial? The latest addition to #Budapest's skyline is a test case.
My article in Balkan Insight: balkaninsight.com/2025/09/17/h...
My article in Balkan Insight: balkaninsight.com/2025/09/17/h...
Hungarians the Latest in Region to Have a New Cross to Bear
The new cross installed on Budapest’s Liberty Statue is just the latest of several such instances of governments or organisations in the region erecting Christian symbols in prominent and sometimes se...
balkaninsight.com
September 17, 2025 at 7:53 AM
When does public Christianity become controversial? The latest addition to #Budapest's skyline is a test case.
My article in Balkan Insight: balkaninsight.com/2025/09/17/h...
My article in Balkan Insight: balkaninsight.com/2025/09/17/h...
This New York Times article about Charlie Kirk is bad. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/13/u...
“At the Edges” newsletter today: "Political violence isn't uniquely American." Let's look outside our borders to understand what’s at stake in political violence.
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/political-...
“At the Edges” newsletter today: "Political violence isn't uniquely American." Let's look outside our borders to understand what’s at stake in political violence.
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/political-...
September 14, 2025 at 7:52 AM
This New York Times article about Charlie Kirk is bad. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/13/u...
“At the Edges” newsletter today: "Political violence isn't uniquely American." Let's look outside our borders to understand what’s at stake in political violence.
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/political-...
“At the Edges” newsletter today: "Political violence isn't uniquely American." Let's look outside our borders to understand what’s at stake in political violence.
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/political-...
"But to look at it from another angle - one can’t forget everything, however great one’s wish to do so; the plague was bound to leave traces, anyhow, in people’s hearts."
A. Camus, The Plague, p. 227
A. Camus, The Plague, p. 227
September 9, 2025 at 3:52 PM
"But to look at it from another angle - one can’t forget everything, however great one’s wish to do so; the plague was bound to leave traces, anyhow, in people’s hearts."
A. Camus, The Plague, p. 227
A. Camus, The Plague, p. 227
Why does a self-reflexive, anti-imperial leftist sign up for a foreign war that, if we’re completely honest, he doesn’t really understand? The author George Orwell (Animal Farm, 1984) posed this question to himself in 1938. I ask myself the same question today.
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
September 5, 2025 at 4:54 PM
Why does a self-reflexive, anti-imperial leftist sign up for a foreign war that, if we’re completely honest, he doesn’t really understand? The author George Orwell (Animal Farm, 1984) posed this question to himself in 1938. I ask myself the same question today.
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
I am grateful for all the paying subscribers to “At the Edges, with Marc Loustau.”
August 20, 2025 at 12:39 PM
I am grateful for all the paying subscribers to “At the Edges, with Marc Loustau.”
What might a humane peace look like in Ukraine? My article today in America Magazine: "In talks with Putin, Trump can’t ignore nuclear safety and plight of displaced Ukrainians."
www.americamagazine.org/short-take/2...
www.americamagazine.org/short-take/2...
In talks with Putin, Trump can’t ignore nuclear safety and plight of displaced Ukrainians
Freedom of movement for displaced Ukrainians should be part of any negotiations to secure a peace that is at least proximally just and humane.
www.americamagazine.org
August 15, 2025 at 12:33 AM
What might a humane peace look like in Ukraine? My article today in America Magazine: "In talks with Putin, Trump can’t ignore nuclear safety and plight of displaced Ukrainians."
www.americamagazine.org/short-take/2...
www.americamagazine.org/short-take/2...
"I am on the side of life." Hungarian Jewish sociologist Ráchel Surányi speaks out against the famine in Gaza. Our interview is on "At the Edges, with Marc Loustau" on Substack.
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/on-the-sid...
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/on-the-sid...
On the side of life
Hungarian sociologist Dr. Ráchel Surányi publishes her protest against the suffering in Gaza
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com
August 8, 2025 at 2:13 PM
"I am on the side of life." Hungarian Jewish sociologist Ráchel Surányi speaks out against the famine in Gaza. Our interview is on "At the Edges, with Marc Loustau" on Substack.
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/on-the-sid...
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/on-the-sid...
Orbán’s annual summer speech, usually full of controversial content, was surprisingly boring. Every listless appearance makes Hungary’s opposition stronger in next year’s elections. But I actually harbor a worry about what may happen if the opposition wins.
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com
July 29, 2025 at 5:10 PM
Orbán’s annual summer speech, usually full of controversial content, was surprisingly boring. Every listless appearance makes Hungary’s opposition stronger in next year’s elections. But I actually harbor a worry about what may happen if the opposition wins.
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com
There are curious ambiguities in Applebaum’s account of her role in an influential slice of the conservative intellectual elite, many of whom are now shilling for the world's autocrats. We should value our morally tainted narrators.
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
July 24, 2025 at 7:56 PM
There are curious ambiguities in Applebaum’s account of her role in an influential slice of the conservative intellectual elite, many of whom are now shilling for the world's autocrats. We should value our morally tainted narrators.
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
The tragic case of religious freedom in Hungary, an allegory for how churches cooperate with authoritarian regimes. The Rev. Dr. Colin Bossen interviews me for his Minister’s Forum podcast.
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
July 15, 2025 at 7:09 AM
The tragic case of religious freedom in Hungary, an allegory for how churches cooperate with authoritarian regimes. The Rev. Dr. Colin Bossen interviews me for his Minister’s Forum podcast.
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
open.substack.com/pub/marcrosc...
Viktor Orban's adult daughter has announced she's going to the US for graduate school. Where is she attending? Does anyone know?
Orbán Viktor felnőtt lánygyereke kimondta, hogy majd Amerikában mesterizik. Valaki tudja, mi is az egyetem, amely felvették? hvg.hu/elet/2025070...
Orbán Viktor felnőtt lánygyereke kimondta, hogy majd Amerikában mesterizik. Valaki tudja, mi is az egyetem, amely felvették? hvg.hu/elet/2025070...
Orbán Ráhelék a választás előtt ismét külföldre költözhetnek, az USA a cél
Amerikában szeretne ismét tanulni a miniszterelnök lánya, emellett szerinte a gyerekei is sokat tanulhatnának, a többi között önállóságot és nyitottságot is.
hvg.hu
July 9, 2025 at 10:25 AM
Viktor Orban's adult daughter has announced she's going to the US for graduate school. Where is she attending? Does anyone know?
Orbán Viktor felnőtt lánygyereke kimondta, hogy majd Amerikában mesterizik. Valaki tudja, mi is az egyetem, amely felvették? hvg.hu/elet/2025070...
Orbán Viktor felnőtt lánygyereke kimondta, hogy majd Amerikában mesterizik. Valaki tudja, mi is az egyetem, amely felvették? hvg.hu/elet/2025070...
What do rubber bones have to do with #authoritarianism and #hungary? A whole lot, it turns out. Read about it in my latest Balkan Insight article: balkaninsight.com/2025/07/09/r...
July 9, 2025 at 9:32 AM
What do rubber bones have to do with #authoritarianism and #hungary? A whole lot, it turns out. Read about it in my latest Balkan Insight article: balkaninsight.com/2025/07/09/r...
On a train from Kyiv, I met Nastya, whose mother grew up in Chernobyl and escaped the nuclear catastrophe. This is what Nastya taught me about dark tourism, the strange industry that tours visitors around disaster sites. My latest on Substack:
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/the-part-c...
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/the-part-c...
July 2, 2025 at 7:41 AM
On a train from Kyiv, I met Nastya, whose mother grew up in Chernobyl and escaped the nuclear catastrophe. This is what Nastya taught me about dark tourism, the strange industry that tours visitors around disaster sites. My latest on Substack:
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/the-part-c...
marcroscoeloustau.substack.com/p/the-part-c...