Van Jackson
@vanjackson.bsky.social
The class politics of geopolitics. Newsletter, http://Un-Diplomatic.com. Co-host, https://www.BangBangPod.com; https://www.undiplomaticpodcast.com. 🇺🇸🇵🇭🇳🇿. https://www.vanjackson.org
I think living in a Palantir surveillance state will necessarily mean a revival of physical media, esp radical zines and flyers. Could not be happier about that
Hey, friends in NYC! Come hang out with a buncha cool comics creators and fold zines and make posters to push back against ICE! A @handsoffnyc.bsky.social and @bkindivisible.bsky.social event at @anyonecomics.bsky.social in Brooklyn! It's gonna be a blast!
www.mobilize.us/indivisiblen...
www.mobilize.us/indivisiblen...
Hands Off NYC Zine and Poster Fun in Brooklyn with local comics creators! · Indivisible Brooklyn
Join New York comic creators to fold zines and make posters to push back against ICE in our city! Stay to fold and color a while or just swing by to pick up zines and posters to distribute in your nei...
www.mobilize.us
November 15, 2025 at 10:37 PM
I think living in a Palantir surveillance state will necessarily mean a revival of physical media, esp radical zines and flyers. Could not be happier about that
Was supposed to do the Christmas card photo today but got a black eye in training
November 15, 2025 at 10:34 PM
Was supposed to do the Christmas card photo today but got a black eye in training
Reposted by Van Jackson
It seems obvious now that Yanis Varoufakis’s conversation with Larry Summers in his memoir was really about whether Yanis could be trusted with an invite to Jeffrey Epstein’s pedo island
November 13, 2025 at 5:58 PM
It seems obvious now that Yanis Varoufakis’s conversation with Larry Summers in his memoir was really about whether Yanis could be trusted with an invite to Jeffrey Epstein’s pedo island
It seems obvious now that Yanis Varoufakis’s conversation with Larry Summers in his memoir was really about whether Yanis could be trusted with an invite to Jeffrey Epstein’s pedo island
November 13, 2025 at 5:58 PM
It seems obvious now that Yanis Varoufakis’s conversation with Larry Summers in his memoir was really about whether Yanis could be trusted with an invite to Jeffrey Epstein’s pedo island
Reposted by Van Jackson
@vanjackson.bsky.social has the single best analysis of the Epstein story I have read, precisely because he reads Epstein through the lens of the geopolitics of American empire. www.un-diplomatic.com/p/epstein-ge...
Epstein Geopolitics
Un-Diplomatic is entirely reader-supported.
www.un-diplomatic.com
November 12, 2025 at 2:13 PM
@vanjackson.bsky.social has the single best analysis of the Epstein story I have read, precisely because he reads Epstein through the lens of the geopolitics of American empire. www.un-diplomatic.com/p/epstein-ge...
What’s not so obvious is how much Jeffrey Epstein mattered as a causal force in all the geopolitical machinations he was part of. Was he a grifter arbitraging world events, profiteering off oppression? Or was he setting world events in motion? www.un-diplomatic.com/p/epstein-ge...
Epstein Geopolitics
Un-Diplomatic is entirely reader-supported.
www.un-diplomatic.com
November 11, 2025 at 6:02 PM
What’s not so obvious is how much Jeffrey Epstein mattered as a causal force in all the geopolitical machinations he was part of. Was he a grifter arbitraging world events, profiteering off oppression? Or was he setting world events in motion? www.un-diplomatic.com/p/epstein-ge...
“Jeffrey Epstein was one of the world’s preeminent geopoliticians (not a compliment)...He was about oppression-profiteering and consolidating state control of societies...American hegemony imposed a kind of imperialist peace that people like him cashed in on”
November 11, 2025 at 5:50 PM
“Jeffrey Epstein was one of the world’s preeminent geopoliticians (not a compliment)...He was about oppression-profiteering and consolidating state control of societies...American hegemony imposed a kind of imperialist peace that people like him cashed in on”
Old dog figuring out new leg-breaking tricks
November 8, 2025 at 10:37 PM
Old dog figuring out new leg-breaking tricks
--Gen Z's gambling problem is about capitalism.
--Who’s afraid of Zohran?
--An economic depression is already hiding in plain sight.
--Why Trump's war on Venezuela is expanding.
--Trump’s trip across Asia as a symptom of hegemonic decline. www.un-diplomatic.com/p/bombing-la...
--Who’s afraid of Zohran?
--An economic depression is already hiding in plain sight.
--Why Trump's war on Venezuela is expanding.
--Trump’s trip across Asia as a symptom of hegemonic decline. www.un-diplomatic.com/p/bombing-la...
Bombing Latin America | Economic Depression Hiding in Plain Sight | Who’s Afraid of Zohran | Trump Embarrasses Asia | Ep. 270
Just dropped a new episode of the pod, covering a range of national security and political issues from a critical perspective:
www.un-diplomatic.com
November 7, 2025 at 6:03 PM
--Gen Z's gambling problem is about capitalism.
--Who’s afraid of Zohran?
--An economic depression is already hiding in plain sight.
--Why Trump's war on Venezuela is expanding.
--Trump’s trip across Asia as a symptom of hegemonic decline. www.un-diplomatic.com/p/bombing-la...
--Who’s afraid of Zohran?
--An economic depression is already hiding in plain sight.
--Why Trump's war on Venezuela is expanding.
--Trump’s trip across Asia as a symptom of hegemonic decline. www.un-diplomatic.com/p/bombing-la...
Reposted by Van Jackson
"Jurors found Sean Dunn not guilty of one misdemeanor assault charge on Thursday in federal court in D.C."
I do not regret to inform you that we are going to win.
www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/d...
I do not regret to inform you that we are going to win.
www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/d...
DC ‘sandwich guy' found not guilty of assault after throwing sub at federal agent
A man charged with assault for throwing a sandwich at a federal agent calls it an act of protest. Prosecutors are trying to prove that it was a federal crime. Jurors heard attorneys’ opening statement...
www.nbcwashington.com
November 6, 2025 at 7:51 PM
"Jurors found Sean Dunn not guilty of one misdemeanor assault charge on Thursday in federal court in D.C."
I do not regret to inform you that we are going to win.
www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/d...
I do not regret to inform you that we are going to win.
www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/d...
“Everyone’s a communist now. Everyone’s an enemy of the state. Everyone’s deserving of no mercy from this Cobra-Kai regime...Their list of crimes is by now so long that they can’t afford to let go of power, even though their policies are about as popular as episiotomies.”👇
November 5, 2025 at 8:24 PM
“Everyone’s a communist now. Everyone’s an enemy of the state. Everyone’s deserving of no mercy from this Cobra-Kai regime...Their list of crimes is by now so long that they can’t afford to let go of power, even though their policies are about as popular as episiotomies.”👇
We have just passed the Sinatra test for a new, hopeful, inclusive, and class war-focused politics in America. www.un-diplomatic.com/p/concrete-j...
Concrete Jungle Where Dreams Are Made Of, There’s Nothing You Can’t Do...
Un-Diplomatic is entirely reader-supported.
www.un-diplomatic.com
November 5, 2025 at 8:12 PM
We have just passed the Sinatra test for a new, hopeful, inclusive, and class war-focused politics in America. www.un-diplomatic.com/p/concrete-j...
Reposted by Van Jackson
Jewish NYers came out in droves for Mamdani: staff, volunteers, voters. Greenblatt defends Nazis.
November 5, 2025 at 5:42 AM
Jewish NYers came out in droves for Mamdani: staff, volunteers, voters. Greenblatt defends Nazis.
Austin Dahmer (#2 policy job in the Pentagon) just got ROASTED during his confirmation hearing. Even Republican senators complaining OSD Policy is the worst-managed in the Trump admin
November 5, 2025 at 2:07 AM
Austin Dahmer (#2 policy job in the Pentagon) just got ROASTED during his confirmation hearing. Even Republican senators complaining OSD Policy is the worst-managed in the Trump admin
Ta-Nehisi Coates said: “the privilege of a great power is incuriosity about those who lack it.” The failure to see at whose expense power comes is not just a moral failing; it necessarily means we can never grasp how the world came to be the way that it is. www.un-diplomatic.com/p/the-grand-...
The Grand Strategy Book I DON’T Recommend
Un-Diplomatic is entirely reader-supported.
www.un-diplomatic.com
November 4, 2025 at 6:15 PM
Ta-Nehisi Coates said: “the privilege of a great power is incuriosity about those who lack it.” The failure to see at whose expense power comes is not just a moral failing; it necessarily means we can never grasp how the world came to be the way that it is. www.un-diplomatic.com/p/the-grand-...
“What does it even mean for the state to pursue security on behalf of a nation where millions have anything but?” My review of a grand-strategy book I DO NOT recommend www.un-diplomatic.com/p/the-grand-...
The Grand Strategy Book I DON’T Recommend
Un-Diplomatic is entirely reader-supported.
www.un-diplomatic.com
November 3, 2025 at 6:55 PM
“What does it even mean for the state to pursue security on behalf of a nation where millions have anything but?” My review of a grand-strategy book I DO NOT recommend www.un-diplomatic.com/p/the-grand-...
What happens in Sino-US diplomacy is far downstream of much larger forces. Great-power competition is inter-imperial rivalry. Its sources are structural and remain unchanged. The balance of power has shifted. And Trump accommodated reality for once. www.un-diplomatic.com/p/upsetting-...
Upsetting the China Consensus
Three new types of policy advocates are disrupting “great-power competition” in their own ways, but not getting beyond it.
www.un-diplomatic.com
November 2, 2025 at 9:29 PM
What happens in Sino-US diplomacy is far downstream of much larger forces. Great-power competition is inter-imperial rivalry. Its sources are structural and remain unchanged. The balance of power has shifted. And Trump accommodated reality for once. www.un-diplomatic.com/p/upsetting-...
Rivalry between China and the US persists, and talk of a “G2” is premature, but here are three ways to address the root sources of great-power competition 👇 www.un-diplomatic.com/p/did-trump-...
Did Trump End Great-Power Rivalry with China? Tactical Economic Detente Explained
Un-Diplomatic is entirely reader-supported.
www.un-diplomatic.com
November 1, 2025 at 5:57 PM
Rivalry between China and the US persists, and talk of a “G2” is premature, but here are three ways to address the root sources of great-power competition 👇 www.un-diplomatic.com/p/did-trump-...
"As much as defensive realists value prudence in statecraft, they really have no framework to ensure prudence beyond accepting mutual vulnerability and rational deterrence, which is just not good enough in the age of MAGA and crisis capitalism.” www.un-diplomatic.com/p/upsetting-...
Upsetting the China Consensus
Three new types of policy advocates are disrupting “great-power competition” in their own ways, but not getting beyond it.
www.un-diplomatic.com
October 31, 2025 at 8:11 PM
"As much as defensive realists value prudence in statecraft, they really have no framework to ensure prudence beyond accepting mutual vulnerability and rational deterrence, which is just not good enough in the age of MAGA and crisis capitalism.” www.un-diplomatic.com/p/upsetting-...
Reposted by Van Jackson
“Put aside the precariousness of nuclear ‘stability’...Bracket off too the truism that one man’s deterrence is another man’s escalation. The indictment goes deeper, for nuclear testing is not harmless; it is a sacrificial form of nuclear use.” www.un-diplomatic.com/p/fresh-hell...
Fresh Hell: Unjust Nuclear Deterrence and Nuclear Testing
Un-Diplomatic is entirely reader-supported.
www.un-diplomatic.com
October 30, 2025 at 11:39 PM
“Put aside the precariousness of nuclear ‘stability’...Bracket off too the truism that one man’s deterrence is another man’s escalation. The indictment goes deeper, for nuclear testing is not harmless; it is a sacrificial form of nuclear use.” www.un-diplomatic.com/p/fresh-hell...
This would be a much better piece if its examples didn’t low-key pretend that there was nothing to the left of liberal internationalism. Making us choose between Bridge Colby, Mira Rapp-Hooper, and Anne Applebaum is a sick joke
October 31, 2025 at 8:10 AM
This would be a much better piece if its examples didn’t low-key pretend that there was nothing to the left of liberal internationalism. Making us choose between Bridge Colby, Mira Rapp-Hooper, and Anne Applebaum is a sick joke
New Zealand Halloween!
October 31, 2025 at 6:07 AM
New Zealand Halloween!
Reposted by Van Jackson
“We should be unsettled by the idea that a multi-trillion-dollar complex of mass extinction exists at all. We should be even more troubled by the fact that this nuclear enterprise is to be guided by something other than logic and evidence.” www.un-diplomatic.com/p/fresh-hell...
Fresh Hell: Unjust Nuclear Deterrence and Nuclear Testing
Un-Diplomatic is entirely reader-supported.
www.un-diplomatic.com
October 30, 2025 at 11:31 PM
“We should be unsettled by the idea that a multi-trillion-dollar complex of mass extinction exists at all. We should be even more troubled by the fact that this nuclear enterprise is to be guided by something other than logic and evidence.” www.un-diplomatic.com/p/fresh-hell...
Reposted by Van Jackson
Beyond the headlines, why did manufacturing move to East Asia, who are the workers, and what are the social costs? I'm so honored to have Anru Lee and Ya-Wen Lei on Ep.5 of 开门见山 | Gateway to Global China @madeinchinajournal.com to discuss gender, labor, and (de)industrialization in China and Taiwan:
Episode 5 | Labour and (De)Industrialisation in East Asia | Made in China Journal
Over the past few years, industrial policy and manufacturing capacity, especially in the high-tech sector, have been at the centre of great power rivalry between the United States and China. The White...
madeinchinajournal.com
October 30, 2025 at 10:16 PM
Beyond the headlines, why did manufacturing move to East Asia, who are the workers, and what are the social costs? I'm so honored to have Anru Lee and Ya-Wen Lei on Ep.5 of 开门见山 | Gateway to Global China @madeinchinajournal.com to discuss gender, labor, and (de)industrialization in China and Taiwan:
“Put aside the precariousness of nuclear ‘stability’...Bracket off too the truism that one man’s deterrence is another man’s escalation. The indictment goes deeper, for nuclear testing is not harmless; it is a sacrificial form of nuclear use.” www.un-diplomatic.com/p/fresh-hell...
Fresh Hell: Unjust Nuclear Deterrence and Nuclear Testing
Un-Diplomatic is entirely reader-supported.
www.un-diplomatic.com
October 30, 2025 at 11:39 PM
“Put aside the precariousness of nuclear ‘stability’...Bracket off too the truism that one man’s deterrence is another man’s escalation. The indictment goes deeper, for nuclear testing is not harmless; it is a sacrificial form of nuclear use.” www.un-diplomatic.com/p/fresh-hell...