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inquiline.myatproto.social
professor tools for commensality (red scare edition)
@inquiline.myatproto.social
2.2K followers 1.1K following 2.9K posts
wrote OIL BEACH | LOW POWER TO THE PEOPLE | HACKING DIVERSITY

glooming in the (mostly SoCal) gloaming | muttering/writing re. envirotech, media, infrastructure, dross | ✊🏻 #AAUP | personal acct. typos. posts ≠ endorsements | pfp/banner: oil extraction
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inquiline.myatproto.social
professor tools for commensality (red scare edition) @inquiline.myatproto.social · Apr 10
Scum manifesto

#ToxicLA
During December, 1937, it became necessary to drain the digester at the Terminal Island Sewage Treatment Plant, in the harbor district of the City of Los Angeles, in order to repair the scum breaker arms, which had collapsed on account of heavy accumulations of scum. The plant had been put in operation in September, 1936, and had been in service about fourteen months. It treats the domestic sewage of San Pedro, Wilmington, and Terminal Island, as well as the industrial waste from two fish canneries in Wilmington. It is believed that the fish waste, high in oil and solids, caused the unusual amount of thick, tenacious scum.
Reposted by professor tools for commensality (red scare edition)
patbiosteamist.bsky.social
This is a reminder that the PAXCESS program through Pfizer for free Paxlovid for those uninsured or underinsured is ending this December 31, 2025.

If you happen to catch Covid prior to the end of December, please utilize the program before it is gone!

www.paxlovid.com/paxcess?cmp=...
PAXCESS™ | PAXLOVID™ (nirmatrelvir tablets; ritonavir tablets)
The PAXCESS™ Patient Support Program may help eligible patients lower the cost of PAXLOVID™ and access savings, with or without insurance. T&Cs apply.
www.paxlovid.com
November 29, 2025 at 4:18 AM
inquiline.myatproto.social
on the one hand, it seems bad for them to target media org's and journalists like this. on the other hand, 🤡
www.whitehouse.gov/mediabias/
Media Offenders
Uncover Media Bias & Hold Fake News Accountable. False claims debunked, serial offenders immortalized in the Hall of Fame, networks ranked on the Leaderboard of Repeat Lies. Stay informed, stay accura...
www.whitehouse.gov
November 29, 2025 at 6:01 AM
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mariabustillos.com
Doomed out? @flaminghydra.com is a doom-counteracting machine. Help us spread solidarity, egalitarianism, camaraderie, and human values.
November 29, 2025 at 5:05 AM
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tylerboschert.bsky.social
I am extremely fucking angry

I decided to let Henry Bienen know why and I hope you will, too
An email from me to interim Northwestern University president Henry Bienen, with the subject line "Why did you do this? How could you think it was acceptable?": "Dear Interim President Bienen: I have never been so ashamed to be a Northwestern alumnus. I find it difficult to express the disgust and fury with which I read the message to NU alumni your office sent out this evening. Against the nearly unanimous wishes of its own faculty, Northwestern University has disgraced itself. It has joined the list of actors that have capitulated to an authoritarian administration hell-bent on forcing every aspect of civil society to either accede to its whims or be destroyed. That administration does not have the power to achieve that goal, unless and until powerful private entities--like elite universities--choose to give it that power." "Your office's message tries to emphasize what the federal government has "agreed" to do in the way of ending its institutional harassment of NU. It was while reading this part of the message that I had to stifle bitter laughter. I would not have taken you or the university's trustees for fools or rubes, which is why I literally cannot, and do not, believe that you actually think an administration led by Donald Trump, which during its ten months in power has not dealt in good faith with anyone, anywhere, will hold up its end of the bargain. Whatever assurances the federal government has given you are not so much ephemeral as imaginary. They can be, and will be, capriciously rescinded the next time Northwestern, or any of its students or faculty, expresses an opinion that does not fit within the insane reactionary worldview of the fascist freaks who run this country's government--and then those freaks will try to extort still more concessions from you. But even if the federal government does, or refrains from doing, all it has promised--which it will not, and has no intention of--it will still be unconscionable for you to have agreed to its deal. You have signaled that Northwestern can be successfully bullied. You have emboldened some of the worst people on Earth to go after other, less powerful institutions that cannot defend themselves in the way Northwestern might have. You have explicitly made Northwestern's campus and culture less safe and less welcoming for, among many others, trans women. And you have done severe and probably permanent damage to the trust, pride, and indeed love that I and many other alumni feel for the place that means so much to all of us." "Perhaps the cruelest irony is that this was all so unnecessary. The administration is deeply unpopular. It is floundering and failing. The people at its head know it is doomed, headed for electoral annihilation and a place in history as one of America's great villains (and if they do not know that, they are in denial). Against this backdrop, Northwestern could have been an inspiring beacon of resistance, refusing to bend to this band of thuggish criminals and traitors, motivating others to do the same. I do not have so little confidence in my alma mater's resilience as to believe that it could not have withstood the administration's assault against it. That resistance could have been your legacy. Instead, you and the trustees have betrayed many of Northwestern's core values--or, at least, what I thought Northwestern's core values were. You have chosen the path of cowards and quislings." "I refuse to support an institution that will marginalize and abandon its trans students, its Palestinian students (or even those that simply express pro-Palestinian sympathies), and its own faculty. I refuse to allow any of my money to go to what is in every relevant respect a protection racket. I will encourage other alumni to withhold their money and support as well. And while it breaks my heart, I will not--because I cannot, in good conscience--encourage bright young people to attend Northwestern, which was one of the greatest joys and honors of my life. Shame on you. With profound regret, Tyler J. Boschert McCormick class of 2011"
November 29, 2025 at 3:20 AM
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mguariglia.bsky.social
It's Black Friday. You might as well pre-order the first mainstream published version of the Church Committee Report. Abridged to its most essential findings, this 1975 report reads like the very best investigative journalism mixed with a spy novel covering assassinations, surveillance, sabotage.
The Church Committee Report: Revelations from the Bombshell 1970s Investigation Into the National Security State
Revelations from the Bombshell 1970s Investigation Into the National Security State
bookshop.org
November 29, 2025 at 3:40 AM
inquiline.myatproto.social
This is SOOOO important... a slightly confusing distinction, but in handful of uni's where people who work there have sued (fac/staff/students, with AAUP and other partners), they've won binding settlements (regardless of what appeasements the administrators get up to)
alexwenzel.bsky.social Alex Wenzel @alexwenzel.bsky.social · 7h
I don't mean this in a self-congratulatory way because I had nothing to do with it, but other universities and the press are deliberately ignoring the fact that our union already won a permanent injunction against terminating funds this way. "Critics" here includes federal judicial precedent.
November 29, 2025 at 3:25 AM
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alexwenzel.bsky.social
I don't mean this in a self-congratulatory way because I had nothing to do with it, but other universities and the press are deliberately ignoring the fact that our union already won a permanent injunction against terminating funds this way. "Critics" here includes federal judicial precedent.
November 29, 2025 at 1:20 AM
Reposted by professor tools for commensality (red scare edition)
madycast.com
Northwestern joins the growing list of US universities which are caving to Trump by agreeing to illegally ban trans people from facilities.

Banning trans people from bathrooms is illegal in Illinois, as affirmed by law and a court ruling.

www.illinoislegalaid.org/legal-inform...
November 29, 2025 at 12:52 AM
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ebrandom.bsky.social
Still curious about especially other contemporary writers who might fit here
ebrandom.bsky.social Eric Brandom @ebrandom.bsky.social · 1d
What might a 12yo who really liked Andy Weir's *Hail Mary* read next? Other than, you know, Weir's other books.
November 28, 2025 at 10:57 PM
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miriamposner.com
Featuring @ndlon.bsky.social!
Opinion | Give to Groups Defending Immigrants From ICE
www.nytimes.com
November 28, 2025 at 10:45 PM
inquiline.myatproto.social
as a person who has... a bit of a problem... with collecting vintage postcards featuring Southern California, i must say: cool book cover!

(my avi pic here is a vintage postcard of "oil drilling at night" in California, and the postcard itself is on my mantel)
lawrencecphd.bsky.social Lawrence Culver @lawrencecphd.bsky.social · 10h
Smoke Tree and Thunderbird shaped American suburbia and the spread of Ranch House-style homes, just as Palm Springs and Southern California shaped American leisure and postwar culture. However problematically, they, like Disney, shaped US life in the American century.

global.oup.com/academic/pro...
November 28, 2025 at 10:37 PM
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lawrencecphd.bsky.social
Short thread:
Walt Disney loved Palm Springs and the elite enclave Smoke Tree Ranch. He owned a home there he sold to help finance Disneyland. Close by was Thunderbird, one of the first US suburban golf course residential developments. It inspired many copies, as well as Ford’s iconic automobile.
View of one of the early homes built at Smoke Tree Ranch, begun in the 1930s. Image is from the resort and residential community’s website: https://smoketreeranch.com/history
November 28, 2025 at 10:31 PM
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inquiline.myatproto.social
I was very glad when the Big 10 Academic Alliance put this ad out; but it misses the opportunity to bring it home and say "AND THIS IS ALL UNDER THREAT", which ... sucks
www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWmc...
We Are Here | Driving Health, Opportunity & Stronger Communities
YouTube video by Big Ten Conference
www.youtube.com
November 27, 2025 at 8:45 PM
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wesleydean.bsky.social
Falafel please! Hanging out with my plump pigeon friend at X Falafel in Rosengård, Malmö. 🪶
A pigeon looks straight at the camera with the blue sky in the background. This pigeon is just as plump as you would suspect of a regular at one of the best falafel stands in town.
November 28, 2025 at 6:08 PM
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inquiline.myatproto.social
"Academic freedom is being eroded internally by university administrators as well as externally by politicians." -USC @aaup.org president Laura Isabel Serna in the LA Times

www.latimes.com/opinion/stor...

archive link: archive.ph/TxBWo
Contributor: Fearing Trump, universities themselves restrict academic freedom
Some institutions may have avoided the ire of the federal government by preemptively undermining research and teaching.
www.latimes.com
November 28, 2025 at 9:50 PM
Reposted by professor tools for commensality (red scare edition)
harikunzru.bsky.social
‘Remigration’ is a term that comes out of the European far right. Its use by the DHS account is a sign of democratic and epistemic collapse
DEPARTMENT Homeland Security @DHSgov The stakes have never been higher, and the goal has never been more clear: Remigration now.
November 28, 2025 at 8:59 PM
Reposted by professor tools for commensality (red scare edition)
jandutkiewicz.bsky.social
Online attacks against EAT-Lancet were a coordinated campaign.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
PR campaign may have fuelled food study backlash, leaked document shows
Eat-Lancet report recommended shift to more plant-based, climate-friendly diet but was extensively attacked online
www.theguardian.com
November 28, 2025 at 9:53 PM
inquiline.myatproto.social
Interesting 🧵

Meanwhile, keep an eye out for uni leaderships who've "rejected" the compact to be still stealthily trying to implement some of its terms. My AAUP pres wrote an op ed about this (next post)
bakerdphd.bsky.social Dominique Baker @bakerdphd.bsky.social · 13h
Talked about this article somewhere else and someone wanted me to talk a bit more about it so here ya go! First, gift link. Second, my overwhelming takeaway is that, in a world where we rebuild in the coming decades, a good chunk of universities need new leadership.

www.wsj.com/us-news/educ...
Arizona State’s President Is Pulling Out All the Stops to Get on Trump’s Good Side
ASU is positioning itself as the anti-Harvard in Trump’s campaign to remake higher education.
www.wsj.com
November 28, 2025 at 9:47 PM
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lportwoodstacer.bsky.social
I’m holding a new book proposal workshop on January 9th!

I’m donating 50% of all registration fees today to @trevorproject.bsky.social

There’s also a 25% discount for unfunded scholars

Save your spot today & write an outstanding book proposal in 2026!

courses.manuscriptworks.com/courses/outs...
Workshop: Write an Outstanding Book Proposal
Join Laura Portwood-Stacer of Manuscript Works to learn her time-tested method for writing a book proposal that will grab the interest of scholarly publishers. Show up with a book project, leave with ...
courses.manuscriptworks.com
November 28, 2025 at 6:33 PM
inquiline.myatproto.social
a lot of university leaders are not helping here; they need to get loud about explaining what we do that has social value/contributes to the public good, but instead they're having timid backroom meetings & crossing fingers behind their backs
sameyler.bsky.social Sam Eyler-Driscoll 🍉🌻🍁 @sameyler.bsky.social · 1d
My impression after two days of conferencing abroad is that the extent to which things are Really Bad in US academia and public research is not fully registering. Folks are not realizing that this admin is salting the earth and the geopolitical era of US scientific leadership might be over for good.
November 27, 2025 at 8:42 PM
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mollydb.bsky.social
this reminds me of that Frida Khalo painting "Self-Portrait on the Borderline Between Mexico and the United States"
A painting, by Frida Khalo, of Frida Khalo looking austere in a pink dress and gloves, holding a Mexican Flag, surrounded by Industrial devastation and a U.S. flag
November 27, 2025 at 8:08 PM
inquiline.myatproto.social
my first and second books wouldn't exist without NSF funding social science research. which is, ofc, the point
killgrove.bsky.social Kristina Killgrove @killgrove.bsky.social · 2d
NEW from me - NSF cancels grant scheme for social science research.

Seems the NSF quietly archived ALL calls for DDRIG grants in the SBE directorate. This is a massive blow for PhD students wanting to do cutting-edge social science research. 🏺🧪
Today's biggest science news: Doomed comet explodes | Comet 3I/ATLAS course alteration | Dark matter detected?
Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025: Your daily feed of the biggest discoveries and breakthroughs making headlines.
www.livescience.com
November 27, 2025 at 8:15 PM
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reichlinmelnick.bsky.social
There is talk going around that DHS is now arresting people who fly *domestically* if they have final orders of removal.

Undocumented youth should consider consulting a lawyer to find out what their record is -- especially those whose parents had prior interactions with immigration.
November 27, 2025 at 4:55 PM
inquiline.myatproto.social
uhh happy thanksgiving
inquiline.myatproto.social professor tools for commensality (red scare edition) @inquiline.myatproto.social · Jul 24
Btw I teach that John Gast painting in history/social studies of technology context. I also include this rejoinder close of that lesson, Reversing Manifest Destiny by Charles Hilliard
The maiden of progress is a Native woman crossing from west to east, settler areas are covered in black plumes of smoke and the land behind her is bright and repopulated with wildlife and Native people
November 27, 2025 at 6:02 PM
inquiline.myatproto.social
thankful, today, for people doing this kind of thing
interruptcrim.bsky.social Interrupting Criminalization @interruptcrim.bsky.social · 7d
New resource⚡️ Block it! Don’t Build It. Don’t Fill It. Don’t Fuel It.

A mini-toolkit to take action to slow down and disrupt the government’s kidnapping, detention, and deportation machine.

Info on strategies/tactics, ways to take action, and more:
www.interruptingcriminalization.com/block-it
Artwork by Monica Trinidad, featuring illustrated tan-colored text on a purple background: “Block It! Don't Build It. Don't Fill It. Don't Fuel It. How are YOU disrupting the ICE kidnapping, detention, & deportation machine?" In the middle are three rows of drawings in orange, tan, and black, depicting: a protest in front of a construction vehicle, transport vans and three Avelo Airlines planes, and hands holding and ripping apart money and a paper with "Palantir" on it.
November 27, 2025 at 5:36 PM