D.W. Lafferty

No they did not gamble any more than the US did — they contracted terms under a treaty, the most recent version of which they negotiated with the guy who has now sucker-punched them and us by breaking it for no credible reason with these catastrophic tariffs

Again, another day has gone by & the presidents of major research universities are deafeningly silent in the face of existential threats because of the potential end of federal funding. It's like watching the failure to stand up to Scott Walker & the Wisconsin GOP for a decade, on a national scale.

This feels ominous. I find it hard to see this as anything but a continuation of the expansion of Bishop Barron's brand and ego. All part of a grand marketing plan hatched long ago. WOF as an NRM (New Religious Movement).

3 of my top 4 most-played albums this year are 2024 releases. I consider that an accomplishment.

Try it, enjoy it, live it.

If they had lost they wouldn't be saying that.

Truly the zenith of the art of advertising. I can't stand commercials today...they are so shallow and uncreative.

I am not very brand or product loyal, but I am dreading the end of the Spiced Coke supply. Why would they do away with such a satisfying flavour? I can't deal with regular Coke flavours anymore.

I like articles like this. www.cbc.ca/arts/this-mo...

Isn't this what makes an influencer an influencer? If they had to stick to facts, nobody would listen.

There's a million reasons, but most of them have to do with memes and not reality, sadly

new wmg podcast ep out!! @aran.bsky.social and i had so much fun talking about muslim cats, dogs with jobs, and more! pls check it outttt

open.spotify.com/episode/5a52...

...going to be something other than populist conservatism in disguise, has to look at universities as they really are, and not the false reality created by pundits and influencers.

...have immense influence on government, culture, corporations, schools, the military, and more. That is what people were reacting to—not the reality—when they voted for Trump in 2016, and that's what they were reacting to once again in 2024. Any critique of academia from the inside, if it is...

...populist conservative outlets and influencers who used Twitter, Facebook, and other social media platforms to amplify the conservative critique of academia to levels that had never been seen before. They created an alternate reality within which many people thought universities really did...

The idea of pc indoctrination, etc. in academia was always greatly overstated, even if it pointed to *some* truth, and so was the influence of academia. Humanities profs dream every day of having real influence on society...but most of them don't. What DID change in 2014 was the rise of a wave of...

...and not just since 2014. When I started university in 1994, campus political correctness and "feminazis" and such were the targets of rw commentators like Rush Limbaugh and co. Some of the same conservative loudmouths we see today, like Dinesh D'Souza and Roger Kimball, were around then too.

Anyone familiar with academia knows that there is a *strong* tendency in the humanities and social sciences toward social liberalism and left-wing thought, including the use of annoying PC terminology. It can be oppressive. All of that is true. But it's been the case since at least the 1960s,...

The Politics of the Academy Have Been Defeated Americans are fed up, and not just people who voted for Trump.

"Over the last 10 years or so, a cultural revolution has been imposed on this country from the top down. Its ideas originated in the academy, and it’s been carried out of the academy by elite-educated activists and journalists and academics." Um, ok... www.chronicle.com/article/acad...

This is exactly right. Elon fooled lots of people into thinking that his acquisition of Twitter was about protecting free speech—it was always about reengineering a public square into a reactionary echo chamber. Which is why he’s flirting with running the same play again with MSNBC.

Didn't know this magazine existed! Great to have a forum for non-TT historians.

Publications by Non-Tenure-Track Historians Since we began publishing in 2019, Contingent has assembled lists of books and articles by non-tenure-track historians released in that calendar year, and we’re doing the same this year for 2024 publi...

Still collecting books/articles/chapters by non-TT historians for our 2024 lists! I assemble these the weekend after Thanksgiving, so you've still got time to get things in.

...Red Bull and candy for every meal, day after day, year after year, but they ate it! They do love owning libs, but they also love saying the same stuff over and over to each other. It's remarkable.

Rumble was an echo chamber, and then there were podcasts like Bannon's War Room that were on every single day featuring a rotating echo chamber cast. I thought that there was no way people could ingest that kind of content 24/7, but then *can.* They love it. It's like having...

Twitter was turned into a MAGA echo chamber by Musk. Like he literally rigged everything to make it happen. Truth Social kept Trump in touch with his followers for 4 years. Gab was always too explicitly Nazi (though X is as bad now), and Parler just failed, but echo chambers absolutely worked.

My daughter on classical guitar and I on lute recorded this lovely duet by Francesco da Milano and Ioannes Matelart in 2022. It's a 16th c tune. I hope to feel better so I can play the lute again and upload videos. Meanwhile, hope you enjoy this!

Wow, that's incredible. Great playing from you both.

It's remarkable how MAGA turned social media into a forum for just two things: 1) cheerleading Trump, and 2) attacking and destroying anything and everyone else. That's what it all boils down to.

Decoding the Gurus is one of my favourites decoding-the-gurus.captivate.fm

We need the MMMBop mass