Gav Maclean
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gavmaclean.bsky.social
Gav Maclean
@gavmaclean.bsky.social
430 followers 290 following 2.7K posts
Small time sociologist.
He/him
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gavmaclean.bsky.social
I dunno man, since we've had decades of STEM worship at the expense of social science, arts and humanities in public policy we've seen a dramatic upsurge in far right misinformation, climate denial and anti-vax sentiment all while universities go bust and loads of feedback mechanisms.
It’s time to stop worshipping the liberal arts While such institutions have intrinsic value, that doesn’t mean they are entitled to be socially favoured or economically exceptional for ever, says Jianyang Geng A particularly stubborn myth is that liberal arts education has a monopoly on cultivating critical thinking. This belief not only discounts the intellectual rigour demanded in Stem (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields but also perpetuates an outdated hierarchy of disciplines. Critical thinking is not the sole attribute of literature and philosophy departments. Instead, it is embedded in science, engineering and other hardcore technical disciplines, where logic and problem-solving are non-negotiable. Rather than worry about funding cuts or condemning their threat to academic purity, liberal arts institutions should embrace a market-oriented mindset. Some of the most adaptive models can be found in so-called “schools of professional studies” at major universities such as Columbia, which offer real-world, business-relevant programmes with flexible formats. They thrive not because they adhere to tradition but because they respond to market needs. As a result, they deliver strong outcomes in enrolment, reputation and revenue. Fears about “dumbing down” degrees or commodifying education can be addressed through market accountability and employer feedback.
November 26, 2025 at 4:05 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Welfare policy after 45 years (Grauniad's own wording)
Reeves says the welfare system has off too many as not able to work. She says face to face assessments for disability benefits are coming back. Mel Stride, the shadow chancellor, got rid of them when he was DWP secretary. She says today funding for under-25 apprenticeships will be free for SMEs. David Byrne image from Talking Heads Once in a Lifetime video - a man with glasses captioned 'Same as it ever was'
November 26, 2025 at 1:17 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Also, as any feminist researcher of "labour saving" technologies could have predicted, this:
Experienced software developers assumed AI would save them a chunk of time. But in one experiment, their tasks took 20% longer
November 26, 2025 at 7:29 AM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Should have a word with your colleague Jonathan Hinder (Alma mater University of Oxford)
A Labour MP has said he would not be disappointed if a reduction in net migration to the UK meant that some universities went bust, claiming the UK should not have “anywhere near as many universities”. The comments have been dismissed by higher education experts as “silly” and “very obviously wrong”. Jonathan Hinder, MP for Pendle and Clitheroe, told an event hosted by the think tank Civic Future on 29 April that “too many working-class people see Labour as the party of immigrants, minorities [and] those on benefits”, and was critical of the number of people from overseas that support the UK higher education system. “You’ll have people from a very powerful higher education lobby who say, well, we need foreign students to service these universities, which are popping out degrees of dubious quality, of dubious value to the economy,” Hinder said, in comments reported by the LabourList website. He added that he would be “happy to be bold and say, ‘I don’t think we should have anywhere near as many universities and university places’”, and that if universities argued they would go bust without people from abroad, he would say, ‘OK, I’m not that disappointed’”.
November 25, 2025 at 8:02 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Jonathan Hinder, Labour MP and Oxford University graduate saying "I don’t think we should have anywhere near as many universities and university places" just a few months ago.
A Labour MP has said he would not be disappointed if a reduction in net migration to the UK meant that some universities went bust, claiming the UK should not have “anywhere near as many universities”. The comments have been dismissed by higher education experts as “silly” and “very obviously wrong”. Jonathan Hinder, MP for Pendle and Clitheroe, told an event hosted by the think tank Civic Future on 29 April that “too many working-class people see Labour as the party of immigrants, minorities [and] those on benefits”, and was critical of the number of people from overseas that support the UK higher education system. “You’ll have people from a very powerful higher education lobby who say, well, we need foreign students to service these universities, which are popping out degrees of dubious quality, of dubious value to the economy,” Hinder said, in comments reported by the LabourList website. He added that he would be “happy to be bold and say, ‘I don’t think we should have anywhere near as many universities and university places’”, and that if universities argued they would go bust without people from abroad, he would say, ‘OK, I’m not that disappointed’”.
November 25, 2025 at 8:00 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Judith Butler in 2021
As a fascist trend, the anti-gender movement supports ever strengthening forms of authoritarianism. Its tactics encourage state powers to intervene in university programs, to censor art and television programming, to forbid trans people their legal rights, to ban LGBTQI people from public spaces, to undermine reproductive freedom and the struggle against violence directed at women, children, and LGBTQI people. It threatens violence against those, including migrants, who have become cast as demonic forces and whose suppression or expulsion promises to restore a national order under duress.
November 21, 2025 at 12:26 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Something about cats keeping cosy in winter ❤️
Peggy is a white ginger and black tortoiseshell cat. She is sitting on a yellow chair curled up with her paws obscuring her face.
November 19, 2025 at 8:24 AM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Winter cat update.
Peggy, a white, ginger and black tortoiseshell cat, has only her head visible while wrapped in blankets.
November 19, 2025 at 8:23 AM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
secure our borders.... but only one way obvs
UK net migration 20% lower in 2024 than first thought, ONS says The driving factor behind the change is that more British nationals are thought to have emigrated in 2024 than initially recorded, with 100,000 fewer now thought to be living in the UK.
November 18, 2025 at 3:42 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Labour Party right now
November 18, 2025 at 8:06 AM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Didn't take long
Me blocked by this guy
November 17, 2025 at 9:35 AM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
The fine line between being able to write very fast versus the thing you're writing about already being irrelevant
Verso book on Your Party by Oliver Eagleton
November 13, 2025 at 10:23 AM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Was playing for likes in today's lecture so included this classic of Peggy
November 12, 2025 at 7:04 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
'we created this general intelligence and we asked it how to fix the world's problems and it just said "switch me off, end fossil fuels and full communism now"'
The end of the blurst at times sketch from the Simpsons. Mr Burns through a paper at a monkey chained to a typewriter while Homer looks on.
November 12, 2025 at 3:27 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
this guy has never let a prisoner out early
November 10, 2025 at 7:34 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
BBC working hard today to remove "bias" I see
'Chaos has gone' - quiet streets on Texas border after Trump crackdown
November 10, 2025 at 9:08 AM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
alas
Radiohead fans ‘incredibly excited’ for band’s first live show in seven years Crowds gather outside Movistar Arena in Madrid for first concert of European tour that sold out in minutes The war in Gaza was another topic that had come up throughout the day, given that the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel had called on people to boycott the tour, citing band member Jonny Greenwood’s 2024 performance in Tel Aviv. The topic seemingly remains sensitive for the band; after the Guardian reported on the boycott call in September, its journalists were blocked from receiving tickets to review the Madrid concert. On Tuesday, the band did not reply to a request for comment regarding the decision.
November 4, 2025 at 9:34 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
November 4, 2025 at 6:51 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
ughhhh
November 4, 2025 at 3:21 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Imagine how much easier it would be for Labour if they didn't target the people who voted for them
November 1, 2025 at 2:20 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
This paragraph didn't end anywhere near where I thought it would
Quadrangulars are rare in top chess. The most famous was St Petersburg 1895-96, where the world champion Emanuel Lasker won and his US rival Harry Pillsbury contracted syphilis.
October 31, 2025 at 1:05 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Ah yes, unpopularity, that famously liberating force
Yes, Keir Starmer is Britain’s most unpopular PM ever. That could liberate him Polly Toynbee Forget the public vitriol and use the next four years to get things done – first and foremost, whatever it takes to stop Reform
October 28, 2025 at 6:24 AM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
What happened to "other brands are available" chat about branded products on the BBC
ChatGPT's new browser has potential, if you're willing to pay
October 26, 2025 at 2:36 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
Doing my work for the Inverness and Nairn tourist board right now
October 18, 2025 at 1:24 PM
gavmaclean.bsky.social
what a photo update from Peggy's cat sitter!
Peggy is a ginger, black and white tortoiseshell cat. She is looking up proudly in this photo, standing on a grey carpet.
October 17, 2025 at 6:09 PM