William Martindale
@wijama.bsky.social
Taiwanese-American MCEPA student at UC San Diego. Known as 馬凱威 to the other half of my family. I research conspiracy theories and politics in the Chinese-speaking world. Follow me for bad jokes, stats nerd stuff, and updates on whatever I'm reading.
Pinned
Partisanship, Security, and Global Status: Anatomy of Taiwan’s March 19 Shooting Conspiracy Theories
Previous research has shown how belief in particular conspiracy theories is subject to their salience to believers. Using the example of Taiwan’s March 19 shooting conspiracy theories, I show in this ...
scholarsarchive.byu.edu
Pleased to share that my undergraduate thesis, "Partisanship, Security, and Global Status: Anatomy of Taiwan’s March 19 Shooting Conspiracy Theories" is now available to read on BYU ScholarsArchive. In it, I examine an understudied conspiracy theory and implications on the field. Here's a summary 🧵
on hour twelve of writing two term papers in one day and man am I winding down
December 13, 2025 at 3:54 AM
on hour twelve of writing two term papers in one day and man am I winding down
Reposted by William Martindale
The Trump administration is threatening to deport a Chinese man who personally documented the Chinese government's massive detention system in Xinjiang. If forcibly returned to China, he faces the risk of state persecution for his invaluable & brave work.
open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...
open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...
Man who filmed Uyghur concentration camps now fights for his own freedom in the United States
In 2020, Guan Heng embarked on a risky mission to prove the existence of concentration camp facilities used to imprison Uyghurs. Now, he faces the threat of deportation back to China, where he would f...
open.substack.com
December 12, 2025 at 3:39 PM
The Trump administration is threatening to deport a Chinese man who personally documented the Chinese government's massive detention system in Xinjiang. If forcibly returned to China, he faces the risk of state persecution for his invaluable & brave work.
open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...
open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...
Reposted by William Martindale
Pretty notable that Republicans in a deep-red state declined to go along with a partisan power grab specifically because of the toxic, violent culture Trump encourages. www.cnn.com/2025/12/11/p...
The deeply personal reasons why many Indiana Senate Republicans said no to Trump | CNN Politics
Jean Leising spoke at a breakfast this fall at her 8th grade grandson’s school. Hours later, when she was set to give him a ride home from basketball practice, he bashfully told her that his entire te...
www.cnn.com
December 12, 2025 at 2:05 PM
Pretty notable that Republicans in a deep-red state declined to go along with a partisan power grab specifically because of the toxic, violent culture Trump encourages. www.cnn.com/2025/12/11/p...
Reposted by William Martindale
one thing that doesn’t get enough coverage or comment with regards to this administration is it how much it hates the actually existing united states
Trump Administration Scraps Plan to Mint Quarters Featuring Abolition, Suffrage
The move comes as a controversial $1 Trump coin for the nation’s 250th birthday is also being considered.
www.wsj.com
December 11, 2025 at 9:05 PM
one thing that doesn’t get enough coverage or comment with regards to this administration is it how much it hates the actually existing united states
Reposted by William Martindale
who says state media doesn't have a sense of humour
December 11, 2025 at 1:38 AM
who says state media doesn't have a sense of humour
Reposted by William Martindale
“Historically” is a forbidden word.
According to a new court filing, the Trump administration has a six-page list of banned words that Head Start locations are forbidden from using when describing their programs.
Among the censored words: "disability," "race," "women," "trauma," "Gulf of Mexico." Short thread with the full list. 🧵
Among the censored words: "disability," "race," "women," "trauma," "Gulf of Mexico." Short thread with the full list. 🧵
December 11, 2025 at 12:39 AM
“Historically” is a forbidden word.
Reposted by William Martindale
Folks might not know a lot of people are getting *very* upset that the materials they request are not available in the libraries/archives they're requesting from.
We're getting lots here at the Library of Virginia: requests of documents likely surfaced by large language models that *do not exist*.
We're getting lots here at the Library of Virginia: requests of documents likely surfaced by large language models that *do not exist*.
I wish a notice like this wasn't necessary.
www.icrc.org/en/article/i...
www.icrc.org/en/article/i...
Important notice: AI-generated archival references
www.icrc.org
December 8, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Folks might not know a lot of people are getting *very* upset that the materials they request are not available in the libraries/archives they're requesting from.
We're getting lots here at the Library of Virginia: requests of documents likely surfaced by large language models that *do not exist*.
We're getting lots here at the Library of Virginia: requests of documents likely surfaced by large language models that *do not exist*.
Reposted by William Martindale
My colleague points out here that possibly one in seven requests to our library now may be assisted by LLMs.
When those point to fictional documents, that's a huge staff time drain. There's often no quick way to check if an undigitized primary source doc exists beyond physically pulling some boxes.
When those point to fictional documents, that's a huge staff time drain. There's often no quick way to check if an undigitized primary source doc exists beyond physically pulling some boxes.
December 9, 2025 at 2:06 AM
My colleague points out here that possibly one in seven requests to our library now may be assisted by LLMs.
When those point to fictional documents, that's a huge staff time drain. There's often no quick way to check if an undigitized primary source doc exists beyond physically pulling some boxes.
When those point to fictional documents, that's a huge staff time drain. There's often no quick way to check if an undigitized primary source doc exists beyond physically pulling some boxes.
Reposted by William Martindale
Can anyone tell me what this visualization means? "Message to the bookbinder. The plates must be placed in the work next to the pages as indicated below, and in such a way that they can be unfolded entirely to the right-hand side" #bookhistory
December 6, 2025 at 9:40 AM
Can anyone tell me what this visualization means? "Message to the bookbinder. The plates must be placed in the work next to the pages as indicated below, and in such a way that they can be unfolded entirely to the right-hand side" #bookhistory
Reposted by William Martindale
Looks like there's talk of Ko Wen-je coming back and pushing out Huang Kuo-chang of the TPP now
news.ltn.com.tw/news/politic...
news.ltn.com.tw/news/politic...
分析柯文哲、黃國昌直播 詹凌瑀：柯準備清理門戶預告片 - 政治 - 自由時報電子報
前民眾黨主席柯文哲昨日久違直播，並與現任民眾黨主席黃國昌對談。對此，媒體人詹凌瑀分析，昨晚那場號稱「兩個太陽」的直播，根本不是取暖大會，而是柯文哲準備清理門戶的預告片。詹凌瑀在臉書PO文表示，昨晚那場號稱「兩個太陽」的直播，根本不是取暖大會，而是柯文哲準備清理門戶的預告片，黃國昌整晚焦慮全寫在臉上，拚命細數自己這一年跟國民黨聯手過了多少法案。嘴上說是為了黨，明眼人都看得出來他是在向柯文哲「面試求生...
news.ltn.com.tw
December 6, 2025 at 4:01 AM
Looks like there's talk of Ko Wen-je coming back and pushing out Huang Kuo-chang of the TPP now
news.ltn.com.tw/news/politic...
news.ltn.com.tw/news/politic...
Reposted by William Martindale
Again, if this is a legitimate reason to kill someone (it isn’t), then there was nothing the survivors could have done to avoid being killed. And we know that can’t be right, because the USMCJ cites the killing of shipwrecked people **as its prototypical example** of an unlawful order.
4/ Even worse on these officials account, it seems if the third view is correct, that was a reason to kill the survivors.
You read that right, and I am not exaggerating.⤵️
A shipwrecked person beckoning others to come rescue them is a basis for killing them.
You read that right, and I am not exaggerating.⤵️
A shipwrecked person beckoning others to come rescue them is a basis for killing them.
December 5, 2025 at 11:12 PM
Again, if this is a legitimate reason to kill someone (it isn’t), then there was nothing the survivors could have done to avoid being killed. And we know that can’t be right, because the USMCJ cites the killing of shipwrecked people **as its prototypical example** of an unlawful order.
Reposted by William Martindale
had a very nice time guest teaching on Chinese organizational culture and how it affects foreign policy tonight. a couple more slides since people enjoyed the last one.
December 5, 2025 at 3:37 AM
had a very nice time guest teaching on Chinese organizational culture and how it affects foreign policy tonight. a couple more slides since people enjoyed the last one.
Reposted by William Martindale
This is what government censorship actually looks like: defunding entire fields, deporting researchers, and quite effectively chilling speech that helps people understand how our information systems are being exploited and calls out powerful people and platforms for their bullshit.
For the last decade, the pervasive spread of bullshit & manipulation of online platforms have been widely recognized societal concerns. Now non US citizens studying those subjects can be labeled “censors” & denied visas or deported from the US. Censorship, indeed. www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
Exclusive: Trump administration orders enhanced vetting for applicants of H-1B visa
An internal State Department memo said that anyone involved in "censorship" of free speech should be considered for rejection.
www.reuters.com
December 4, 2025 at 5:27 PM
This is what government censorship actually looks like: defunding entire fields, deporting researchers, and quite effectively chilling speech that helps people understand how our information systems are being exploited and calls out powerful people and platforms for their bullshit.
Reposted by William Martindale
Holy shit.
Reuters reporting that new admin instructions on visas are if you worked at a platform in trust & safety or content moderation or on fact checking or online safety at an platform you *and your loved ones* are ineligible for H-1B visa.
www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
Reuters reporting that new admin instructions on visas are if you worked at a platform in trust & safety or content moderation or on fact checking or online safety at an platform you *and your loved ones* are ineligible for H-1B visa.
www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
December 4, 2025 at 5:41 PM
Holy shit.
Reuters reporting that new admin instructions on visas are if you worked at a platform in trust & safety or content moderation or on fact checking or online safety at an platform you *and your loved ones* are ineligible for H-1B visa.
www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
Reuters reporting that new admin instructions on visas are if you worked at a platform in trust & safety or content moderation or on fact checking or online safety at an platform you *and your loved ones* are ineligible for H-1B visa.
www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
Reposted by William Martindale
a fun thing from a class I'm guest teaching tomorrow: which of these will turn out OK for you, and which will be a disaster? (they're all from a single Chinese city between 2010 and 2022)
December 3, 2025 at 8:11 PM
a fun thing from a class I'm guest teaching tomorrow: which of these will turn out OK for you, and which will be a disaster? (they're all from a single Chinese city between 2010 and 2022)
apparently I'm the #9 listener of Mucca Pazza and I don't know how to feel about being called out like this
December 3, 2025 at 7:00 PM
apparently I'm the #9 listener of Mucca Pazza and I don't know how to feel about being called out like this
yeah if these are the kinds of political swings we're getting in Trump country the Republicans are beyond screwed for the midterms
December 3, 2025 at 2:12 AM
yeah if these are the kinds of political swings we're getting in Trump country the Republicans are beyond screwed for the midterms
Reposted by William Martindale
If you are a solider that gets an order you expect might be illegal this creates even more incentive for them to disobey the order because if it comes out the order WAS illegal it's clear the regime will throw you on the bus rather than back you up.
December 1, 2025 at 4:25 PM
If you are a solider that gets an order you expect might be illegal this creates even more incentive for them to disobey the order because if it comes out the order WAS illegal it's clear the regime will throw you on the bus rather than back you up.
Reposted by William Martindale
Our Congress has explicitly, specifically blocked the President from banning or even limiting immigration by entire nationalities.
www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/...
The law was very deliberately crafted to prevent a return to racist exclusion in immigration policy.
www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/...
The law was very deliberately crafted to prevent a return to racist exclusion in immigration policy.
November 30, 2025 at 4:33 PM
Our Congress has explicitly, specifically blocked the President from banning or even limiting immigration by entire nationalities.
www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/...
The law was very deliberately crafted to prevent a return to racist exclusion in immigration policy.
www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/...
The law was very deliberately crafted to prevent a return to racist exclusion in immigration policy.
Reposted by William Martindale
in the midst of our supposed campaign against Venezuelan drug traffickers the President of the United States has chosen to pardon the Former President of Honduras, freeing him from his long prison sentence earned for trafficking more than 400 tons of cocaine into the United States
November 28, 2025 at 10:12 PM
in the midst of our supposed campaign against Venezuelan drug traffickers the President of the United States has chosen to pardon the Former President of Honduras, freeing him from his long prison sentence earned for trafficking more than 400 tons of cocaine into the United States
Reposted by William Martindale
No idea why an Afghan refugee shot National Guard soldiers within walking distance of the White House, but this new USCIS directive was revealed on Monday. Worth noting.
The folks at @afghanevac.bsky.social have in hand a new USCIS directive which largely targets Afghan refugees who fled the Taliban in the wake of the U.S. withdrawal in 2021.
In case you needed a reminder that the most loathsome people in the world work for DHS.
In case you needed a reminder that the most loathsome people in the world work for DHS.
November 27, 2025 at 5:19 AM
No idea why an Afghan refugee shot National Guard soldiers within walking distance of the White House, but this new USCIS directive was revealed on Monday. Worth noting.
Reposted by William Martindale
Perfect algorithmic timeline
November 27, 2025 at 7:09 AM
Perfect algorithmic timeline
learning about coordinate systems in China and seriously what the frick
![Screenshot of Wikipedia article on Chinese coordinate system GCJ-02. It reads:
GCJ-02 (Chinese: 地形图非线性保密处理算法; pinyin: Dìxíng tú fēixiànxìng bǎomì chǔlǐ suànfǎ; lit. 'Topographic map non-linear confidentiality algorithm')[21] is a geodetic datum used by the Chinese State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping, and based on WGS-84.[22] It uses an obfuscation algorithm[23] which adds apparently random offsets to both the latitude and longitude, with the alleged goal of improving national security.[20][24] There is a license fee associated with using this mandatory algorithm in China.[21]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:qy6jyj4tpbqb33a44wx4gsl5/bafkreibvo5larkw5el52dsv2vk4m7addomryhdoejlbb4s5tte55fj52cy@jpeg)
November 26, 2025 at 6:57 AM
learning about coordinate systems in China and seriously what the frick
Reposted by William Martindale
A new Chinese law regulating influencer speech has gotten applause from social media users and commentators who want similar policies in their own countries. But the truth is far from what's in the news and it's a sad reflection of our internet and media space.
wenhao.substack.com/p/anatomy-of...
wenhao.substack.com/p/anatomy-of...
Anatomy of a Fake Story
A new Chinese law aimed at reducing misinformation set off global discussion. But nobody got it right.
wenhao.substack.com
November 25, 2025 at 4:39 PM
A new Chinese law regulating influencer speech has gotten applause from social media users and commentators who want similar policies in their own countries. But the truth is far from what's in the news and it's a sad reflection of our internet and media space.
wenhao.substack.com/p/anatomy-of...
wenhao.substack.com/p/anatomy-of...
Reposted by William Martindale
i still find it funny that the main self-coup plotters with Yoon were his high school alumni
October 16, 2025 at 1:23 AM
i still find it funny that the main self-coup plotters with Yoon were his high school alumni