Capitalism

• Democracy advocates cheered the defeat of the Law and Justice party in Poland and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s breakthrough victory over his populist adversary in Brazil.
• Read more:
  Lula and the world: what to expect from the new Brazilian foreign policy

  But populists won big victories in 2023 too — and made comebacks.

• Donald Trump, despite his numerous indictments and allegations he incited an insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, began a second run for president.

A new age of extremism

• Today, we have seemingly passed from the age of extremes into an age of extremism.
• Low-trust voters feel they’ve been misled and reject the traditional policy options offered by social democratic parties.
• With the decline in support for traditional left-wing parties in the Global North, voters are sending anti-establishment messages to the parties of the right.

Binary voting and wedge issues

• Public opinion research from the Economist Intelligence Unit, Freedom House, the Pew Research Center and Sweden’s V-Dem Institute warn that there are fewer undecided voters than ever.
• Modern politics is increasingly an exercise in what’s known as binary voting.
• Amassing on land borders and crossing perilously by sea, migrants and refugees perfectly illustrate the “us versus them” mindset.

Asylum-seekers and the anxious voter

• The answer is simple: in the skewed world view of nationalists, migrants are by definition “cheaters”.
• Far-right populists campaign on the false belief that refugee-seekers are also corrupting the traditional way of life, taking jobs and driving up the cost of living.
• Increasingly extreme populists have come to power promising to deal with the problem, but they’ve failed to provide any effective solutions.
• It’s the same situation at the American southern border — in 2023, two million people illegally crossed the border.

A problem with no solution

• Climate change, war and geopolitical rivalry drive already precarious populations to seek a place of greater safety.
• But as the numbers rise, politicians continuously recycle bad ideas: close the border, send them back, send them elsewhere.
• The main drivers of migration today are not just poverty and war in the Middle East and Ukraine, but also post-pandemic labour shortages.

Staring into the abyss?

• In more than a dozen countries, populist leaders are poised to either take power or consolidate their hold on the opposition.
• Wannabe fascists are set to play a bigger role in world affairs this year than they have at any time since the Second World War.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

• AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 09, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Vital Farms (Nasdaq: VITL) was recognized by Real Leaders®️ on its 2024 Top Impact Companies list, a global ranking of positive impact companies “applying capitalism for greater profit and greater good.” Real Leaders®️ is a media platform celebrating companies that strive to leave the world better than they found it.
• The annual list honors companies who are “bearing a new vision of capitalism that demonstrates every transaction is an opportunity for growth and a better world.”
  “We challenge ourselves every day to deliver long-term, positive results for our stakeholders – farmers, consumers, crew members, customers, animals, the environment, and the communities where we operate – guided by our purpose to improve the lives of people, animals, and the planet through food,” said Russell Diez-Canseco, President and CEO, Vital Farms.
• “We thank Real Leaders®️ for recognizing our impact work and we’re honored to be in great company with the other inspiring, purpose-driven brands on the list.”
  Vital Farms was ranked #19 on this year’s list of 300 companies including Brandless, Cotopaxi, and other respected impact brands of all sizes and across many industries.
• See the full 2024 “Top Impact Companies” list in the January issue of Real Leaders®️ Magazine: https://real-leaders.com/top-impact-companies/ .

• The series is produced in collaboration with Imposter Media and Wolf at the Door Studios and presented by Al Jazeera Podcasts .
• The podcast is hosted by "Ursula," an AI instructor from 2065.
• "We are excited about this partnership and how this podcast uses sci-fi and facts to reflect on our possible future."
• The podcast can be heard on all major podcast platforms and at aj.audio/nt1 .

• But the reverse is often the case with popular fiction, which benefits from the immersive, visceral quality of the cinema.
• Peter Benchley’s 1974 novel Jaws, which turns 50 this year, was a smash.
• Yet when we think of Jaws, images from Steven Spielberg’s 1975 film adaptation are what come to mind – along with John Williams’ iconic theme music.
• Read more:
  From Jaws to Star Wars to Harry Potter: John Williams, 90 today, is our greatest living composer

‘The shark material is brilliant’

• A career journalist, Benchley is effective in describing actions, events and scenery: shark hunting, the ocean, Quint’s boat.
• The shark material is brilliant – the few times it cuts to the shark’s point of view (recalling Spielberg’s redeployment of the creature’s point of view from Creature from the Black Lagoon), the writing becomes electric, effortless.
• Benchley is at his best when describing the movements of the shark in the water.
• But the material about people is less confident – the writing is uneven and trite in places, with moments between characters sometimes strained in order to generate the necessary action.

Characters ‘loathsome in places’

• One of the great joys of the film is the developing friendship between Hooper and Brody, culminating in their delightful final exchange.
• After the shark is dead and they are kicking their way back to shore, Brody laughs: “I used to hate the water.” Hooper replies, “I can’t imagine why”.

• The characters in the novel are thus thoroughly unappealing – even loathsome in places.
• In the novel, Brody is “jealous and injured, inadequate and outraged”, a chauvinistic beer-guzzling bully, an obsessive – and often self-loathing – jerk.
• Ellen is also much less sympathetic in the novel (though admittedly in the film she’s a cardboard cutout of virtuous motherhood and wifedom).
• Martin, the middle son, age twelve, lounged in an easy chair, his shoeless feet propped up on the coffee table.
• Martin, the middle son, age twelve, lounged in an easy chair, his shoeless feet propped up on the coffee table.

Is ‘easy to swallow’ better?

• At the same time, Benchley – despite occasional flaws in the writing – does capture something of the dismal inconsistencies and banalities of being human.
• The complex self-loathing of the characters contrasts with the brutal and unthinking power – the genius for action and killing – of the shark.
• The film redacts the frailties and faults of the characters, turning an adult (albeit imperfect) novel into family-friendly fodder.
• It comes as no surprise that the film also excises much of the novel’s pointed class critique.
• […] Their bodies were lean, their muscles toned by boxing lessons at age nine, riding lessons at twelve, and tennis lessons ever since.

Benchley’s novel lingers longer

• Benchley, horrified by the bad rap his novel gave sharks, would go on to become an ecological activist focused on shark protection.
• Benchley’s Jaws may not immediately grab one as easily as Spielberg’s, and it’s certainly not as technically accomplished.

Ari Mattes does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.