One of the Worst Things We Never Discuss: Time as a Torture Device in the American Prison System

by Matt B. on January 27, 2012

I try not to use this blog as an outlet for re-posts, but this article screams to be shared. In it, The New Yorker‘s Adam Gopnik describes the torture that is life in the modern American prison system and the historical, ideological, and commercial forces that sustain it. For me, though, perhaps the most interesting [...]

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Podcast Episode 1: An Interview with Jack Abramoff

January 17, 2012

Check out the brand-new Wheat and Chaff Podcast. First episode? An interview with convicted super-lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Click above to play. And of course, let us know what you think. You can also download the podcast here.

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Tens of Thousands of Responses to My Arrest at a Romney Event in New Hampshire

January 16, 2012

Over the past several days, I’ve been astonished at the response to my arrest at a Mitt Romney event in New Hampshire. Folks from around the country have written with offers of legal assistance, and the incident has sparked intense discussions around civil liberties and campaign tactics across the internet. It’s been tweeted thousands of [...]

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What I Just Wrote to the Romney Campaign About My Arrest on Monday

January 11, 2012

I just sent the following email to press@mittromney.com and info@mittromney.com about my arrest on Monday. I’ll update with any responses I receive. Dear Romney staff, My name is Matt Bieber, and I’m a divinity school student with a keen interest in politics. On Monday, I was removed from Gov. Romney’s event at the Gilchrist Metal [...]

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Some Additional Reflections on My Arrest at a Romney Event in Hudson, NH

January 10, 2012

[For those who've read the previous post, please know that about half of this material is repeated.] On Friday, January 6, I took a bus from my home in Boston to Manchester, NH. I was planning to attend a few Republican primary events, write a few posts for this blog, maybe cross-post them on HuffPo, [...]

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I Was Kicked Out of a Mitt Romney Event and Arrested on January 9. I’m Still Trying to Figure Out Why.

January 10, 2012

[Update: coverage roundup.] [Update: my letter to the Romney campaign.] [Update: more reflections.] I’d been in New Hampshire for the past several days to follow the campaign and see some of the candidates in-person. Yesterday morning, I was chatting up a Romney campaign staffer before an event at the Gilchrist Manufacturing Company in Hudson, NH, [...]

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On Newt Gingrich’s Warm-Up Music at His “Hispanic Town Hall Meeting” at Don Quijote’s Restaurant, Manchester, NH, January 8

January 10, 2012

The first time that the Gingrich campaign played Joe Esposito’s “You’re the Best,” (viz. Karate Kid) I thought, This is going to be all right. After all, that song is boss. This isn’t true of most of the songs you hear at campaign rallies. And there’s a reason for this: songs at campaign events tend [...]

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I’m Pretty Sure Rick Santorum Lied to My Face on Friday

January 8, 2012

I was in Manchester, NH for one of Santorum’s “Faith, Family, and Freedom” town hall meetings. As the event was getting underway, I asked Bill Boyd, one of Santorum’s spokesmen, about an event earlier in the day in which college students in Concord had confronted the senator about his views on sexuality. With the country [...]

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Fixing Congress and Finding Peace: An Interview with Jack Abramoff

December 30, 2011

[Update: a podcast version of this interview is available here.] Jack Abramoff helped break Congress, and now he’s trying to fix it. In the mid-2000’s, Abramoff was earning $20 million a year selling his clients access to the Republican House leadership. He owned restaurants, flew on private jets, and set up golf outings for congressmen [...]

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“You Don’t Want the Thing to Turn into a Pissing Contest”: Michael Dukakis on Campaign Jujitsu, Improving Obama’s Communications Strategy, and Where Occupy Should Go Next

December 23, 2011

Michael Dukakis was the 1988 Democratic nominee for president. He also served as governor of Massachusetts from 1975-1979 and 1983-1991. On December 6th, I spoke with him about the lessons of ’88, Obama’s communications strategy, and the Occupy movement. MATT BIEBER: In an interview you did a few years ago with Katie Couric, you described [...]

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