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John Keane

@professorjkeane.bsky.social

39 followers 9 following 20 posts

Born in southern Australia, John Keane is Professor of Politics at the University of Sydney. For 25 years he also held a position at the Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin (WZB), which he resigned from in November 2023. .. more

Political science 55%

Sociology 19%

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John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Sep 2

just published: my unorthodox thoughts on the past, present and future of revolution, including the unfinished ‘slow motion’ democratic revolutions of our times…https://johnkeane.substack.com/p/on-revolutions

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John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · May 31

‘we repudiate the attempt…to conflate Zionism, a political ideology with Jewish and non-Jewish adherents, with Jewish identity’:
a brave and honest statement of support for Dr Nick Riemer and me in our current legal battle against local apologists of genocide….
overland.org.au/2025/05/stat...

Statement by Jewish university staff and students regarding racial vilification allegations at the University of Sydney - Overland literary journal

As Jewish university staff and students we are appalled by the attempt to use racial vilification laws and the Australian Human Rights Commission complaints process to silence Dr Nick Riemer and Profe...

overland.org.au

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · May 6

…and in Spanish…https://letraslibres.com/revista/keane-amerika-maga-china-decadencia-imperial-y-democracia/

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · May 6

…and in Arabic…https://www.dohainstitute.org/ar/PoliticalStudies/Pages/making-america-great-again-china-imperial-decline-and-democracy.aspx

استعادة عظمة أميركا: الصين، والانحدار الإمبراطوري، والديمقراطية

يقول المثل الصيني: "عندما تهبّ رياح التغيير، يُشيّد بعضهم جدرانًا في حين يبني آخرون طواحين هواء"

www.dohainstitute.org

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · May 6

my unorthodox account of MAGA and Trump’s demagoguery as symptoms of US imperial decline is now available in Dutch…

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · May 6

my thoughts on the decline of the American empire and the future of democracy open.substack.com/pub/johnkean...

Amerika

MAGA, China, Imperial Decline, Democracy

open.substack.com

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Apr 11

‘Weaponising “antisemitism” on university campuses to punish students and staff who express support for Palestinians has long been a goal of Zionist lobby groups’, writes @mckinnon_a in his report on conflicts and crackdowns @Sydney_Uni @jewishcouncilAU
everythingisfine.beehiiv.com/p/we-see-wha...

'We see what’s happening in the United States'

'Antisemitism' crackdown intensifies at Sydney University

everythingisfine.beehiiv.com

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Apr 7

why the American empire’s retreat and decline threatens democracy at home and abroad - and why the future of democracy now depends on the courage and willingness to refuse US ‘approval’ and ‘support’….my thoughts (part two)…
sc.mp/356on

Opinion | The decline of the American empire: how Trumpism threatens democracy worldwide

The United States once championed democracy. Now it is retreating behind militarism, demagoguery and despotism.

sc.mp

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Apr 7

my thoughts on why Trump’s MAGA isn’t a push to restore America’s global dominance, but rather a symptom of a shrinking empire in retreat & outflanked economically, diplomatically and geopolitically by a new Chinese global empire (part one)…
sc.mp/w207s

Opinion | The rise of China and the retreat of the US: a new global empire takes shape

With the US putting up walls of protectionism and denial, the 21st century belongs to a resilient, dynamic Chinese empire.

sc.mp

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Apr 7

penned a while ago, my short allegory on despotism seems to have a new relevance: ‘There once was a land ruled by a despot grown fat on the fineries of power….’ johnkeane.substack.com/p/the-despot

The Despot

There once was a land ruled by a despot grown fat on the fineries of power.

johnkeane.substack.com

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Apr 7

a sign of the times: this year, China will pay a record 20% of the UN’s overall budget - for the first time, more than the US pays… asia.nikkei.com/Politics/Int...

China gains U.N. clout, filling void left by Trump's 'America First'

Contributions to top 20% while Chinese officials take senior roles at world body

asia.nikkei.com

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Feb 28

my interview with Lithuanian writer Almantis Samalavičius on the gamification of war, citizen indifference towards genocide and the role of rebel journalists in exposing war’s barbarities…it’s also published this week in Lithuanian @TodaInstitute toda.org/assets/files...

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Feb 13

my latest essay, just published: ‘The Beautification of War - برحلا ليمجت: Digital Communications, Public Indifference, Rebel Journalism, and Civilian Resistance in the Age of Meta Wars’ ⁦‪ www.jstor.org/stable/48806...

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Feb 12

Rafik Abdessalem Bouchlaka, among my most brilliant PhD students in London who later became Tunisia’s foreign minister, sentenced last week in absentia to 34 years’ prison by a despot’s kangaroo court…shame!
youtu.be/cdJU5sFbs7A

Tunisia: Opposition Politicians and Journalists Sentenced to Lengthy Prison Terms, #shorts

YouTube video by Arezki on Africa & the Mid East

youtu.be

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Feb 11

Would Hannah Arendt have been surprised by the way a ‘democratic’ state born of the ashes of genocide is trying militarily to destroy ‘in whole or in part’ (Genocide Convention Article 2c) a ‘superfluous’ people known as Palestinians? Almost surely not!
shepherd.com/best-books/t...

The best books about the abuse of power and its most effective remedy: democracy

John Keane shares the 5 best books on the abuse of power and democracy. Have you read Jacques the Fatalist?

shepherd.com

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John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Feb 4

my thought for today: ‘despite their populist bluster, demagogues are saboteurs of democracy, harbingers of despotism; craving concentrated power, ignoring the niceties of public accountability, unchecked ambition is their thing…’ @bulletinatomic.bsky.social
thebulletin.org/premium/2024...

How demagogues destroy democracy: a step-by-step global guide

Today's demagogues are the harbingers of a new, 21st-century form of despotism: a corrupted, "phantom democracy" in which periodic elections are held but the rich become super-rich and omnipotent—whil...

thebulletin.org

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John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Jan 31

amidst the most serious student uprising in Europe since 1968, my interview with the distinguished journalist Stefan Slavković appeared this week in Belgrade’s Radar magazine; for curious readers there’s a rough English translation…https://johnkeane.substack.com/p/the-serbian-government-is-a-modern

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Jan 29

five of my favourite books….
shepherd.com/best-books/t...

The best books about the abuse of power and its most effective remedy: democracy

John Keane shares the 5 best books on the abuse of power and democracy. Have you read Jacques the Fatalist?

shepherd.com

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John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Jan 26

a spectre is haunting Vučić’s Serbia: a youthful, smart, courageous, digitally savvy civil society disgusted by systemic corruption & abusive power| my interview published in @RadarsRs coincided with last week’s general strike ✍️ Stefan Slavković

radar.nova.rs/politika/dzon-…

John Keane @professorjkeane.bsky.social · Jan 14

‘Might we be living in times in which many real-world things are happening to democracy that are not just unexpected or strange but far weirder than we can presently think? But what does it mean to think about democracy? Come to think about it, what exactly is thinking?’

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