Lily Mason
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lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Lily Mason
@lilymasonphd.bsky.social
18K followers 3.4K following 870 posts
Political scientist at Johns Hopkins, author of Uncivil Agreement and co-author of Radical American Partisanship
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lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Not the point of @gelliottmorris.com piece, but look at this divide among Republicans on social issues. Half of them look like normal people and the other half are way out of step with the rest of the country. There’s a bit of a mirror on the left but much smaller.
Graph showing distributions of ideal social policy ideology for Democrats, Independents, and Republicans. X-axis ranges from -10 (furthest left) to 10 (furthest right). Independents approximately normally distributed around -1 (left of center) with slightly more on the left end of the spectrum. Democrats’ mean around -3 with the highest peak at -2 and another much smaller peak around -7. Republicans are almost equally distributed in a bimodal distribution with a mean of 2.5 but one slight larger peak around -1 (liberal positions!) and another slightly smaller peak around 7. The divide between moderate and extreme wings is just much more apparent in the GOP.
November 20, 2025 at 2:02 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
I agree that those who aren't already bought in can change their minds. It's just difficult to admit to yourself that you voted for a pedophile. Con artists' victims often testify in defense of the con artist, because they don't want to believe they've been conned. This from Goffman (1952) is good:
First, an attempt must be made to draw together what has been implied about the structure of persons. From the point of view of this paper, a person is an individ-ual who becomes involved in a value of some kind ‐‐ a role, a status, a relation-ship, an ideology‐and then makes a pub-lic claim that he is to be defined and treated as someone who possesses the value or property in question. The limits to his claims, and hence the limits to his self, are primarily determined by the ob-jective facts of his social life and second-arily determined by the degree to which a sympathetic interpretation of these facts can bend them in his favor. Any event which demonstrates that someone has made a false claim, defining himself as something which he is not, tends to de-stroy him. If others realize that the per-son's conception of self has been contra-dicted and discredited, then the person tends to be destroyed in the eyes of others.
November 12, 2025 at 6:58 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
This is the kind of negotiating insurance companies do when they work well. There is no way an individual is going to be able to say "how about I pay you $6,000 less than that?" and get away with it.
An insurance statement of benefits. Total billed amount: $8,534.58. Total amount paid by plan: $2,697.44. Your Financial Responsibility: $30.88.
November 11, 2025 at 4:59 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
This is what the article says:
A federal representative delivered the news to a huddle of faith leaders and activists standing outside the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility Friday, speaking after faith leaders were denied entry to the building for the third time Friday. During the call, which took place with a Block Club reporter present, the anonymous representative told a group of faith leaders and activists that "There is no more prayer in front of building or inside the building because this is the state and it's not [of al religious background."
November 8, 2025 at 7:57 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
The President is unlawfully demolishing the White House - a contrast in coverage.
October 23, 2025 at 7:23 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Best sign at DC #nokings
October 18, 2025 at 7:01 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Signatories commit themselves to revising governance structures as necessary to create such an environment, including but not limited to transforming or abolishing institutional units that purposefully punish, belittle, and even spark violence against conservative ideas. Given the importance of academic freedom to the marketplace of ideas, signatories shall adopt a policy protecting academic freedom in classrooms, teaching, research, and scholarship.
October 15, 2025 at 8:51 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Unfortunately, reality is only apparent *after* elections.
October 15, 2025 at 12:22 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
There are a few links in our CES data!
October 3, 2025 at 2:59 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
It was one of the greatest fears of Washington (see his Farewell Address)
I have already intimated to you the danger of parties in the state, with particular reference to the founding of them on geographical discriminations. Let me now take a more comprehensive view and warn you in the most solemn manner against the baneful effects of the spirit of party, generally. This spirit, unfortunately, is inseparable from our nature, having its root in the strongest passions of the human mind. It exists under different shapes in all governments, more or less stifled, controlled, or repressed; but, in those of the popular form, it is seen in its greatest rankness and is truly their worst enemy. The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge natural to party dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. But this leads at length to a more formal and permanent despotism. The disorders and miseries which result gradually incline the minds of men to seek security and repose in the absolute power of an individual; and sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than his competitors, turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation on the ruins of public liberty. Without looking forward to an extremity of this kind (which nevertheless ought not to be entirely out of sight) the common and continual mischiefs of the spirit of party are sufficient to make it the interest and the duty of a wise people to discourage and restrain it. It serves always to distract the public councils and enfeeble the public administration. It agitates the community with ill founded jealousies and false alarms, kindles the animosity of one part against another, foments occasionally riot and insurrection. It opens the door to foreign influence and corruption, which find a facilitated access to the government itself through the channels of party passions. Thus the policy and the will of one country are subjected to the policy and will of another. It is important, likewise, that the habits of thinking in a free country should inspire caution in those entrusted with its administration, to confine themselves within their respective constitutional spheres, avoiding in the exercise of the powers of one department to encroach upon another. The spirit of encroachment tends to consolidate the powers of all the departments in one and thus to create, whatever the form of government, a real despotism. A just estimate of that love of power and proneness to abuse it which predominates in the human heart is sufficient to satisfy us of the truth of this position. The necessity of reciprocal checks in the exercise of political power, by dividing and distributing it into different depositories and constituting each the guardian of the public weal against invasions by the others, has been evinced by experiments ancient and modern, some of them in our country and under our own eyes. To preserve them must be as necessary as to institute them. If in the opinion of the people the distribution
September 30, 2025 at 4:42 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Fact check (numbers updated into 2025):

newamerica.org/future-secur...
September 25, 2025 at 10:25 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Wild set of posts here:
Screenshot of Ziblatt's Foreign Affairs article on Weimar Germany: "Democracy rarely dies in a single moment. It is chipped away via abdication: rationalizations and compromises as those with power and influence tell themselves that yielding just a little ground will keep them safe or that finding common ground with a disrupter is more practical than standing against him. This is the enduring lesson of Weimar: extremism never triumphs on its own. It succeeds because others enable it—because of their ambition, because of their fear, or because they misjudge the dangers of small concessions. In the end, however, those who empower an autocrat often surrender not only their democracy but also the very influence they once hoped to preserve." Matt Yglesias tweet: "If democrats end up in deal making mode with Trump, giving him what he wants on vote by mail might be smart."
August 28, 2025 at 4:42 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
This is a very good piece, and wisely quotes Lindsey Cormack's analysis and observation that "the Third Way memo reads less like an audit of Democrats’ language and more like a list of terms Republicans tell us Democrats are saying."
A dozen of the terms identified by Third Way, from “heteronormative” to “body shaming” and “postmodernism,” have never once appeared in a congressional e-newsletter; Several terms, like “othering” and “cisgender,” appear just a tiny handful of times, and are used evenly by Republicans and Democrats; Several other terms, like “birthing person” and “critical theory,” are used exclusively by Republicans who are mocking the use of the terms; A small number of terms, like “pregnant people,” “food insecurity,” and “unhoused,” are in fact used both (1) predominantly by Democrats and (2) a significant amount.
August 26, 2025 at 6:20 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
I usually add that AI is often incorrect about things. So they can use it as a research assistant, but then they'll have to go double check all the references, and then they're just doing the work anyway. Literally none of these are articles I've published (the only real one is a book)
Lilliana Mason has published several articles in academic journals that focus on political behavior, identity, and polarization. Some of her notable articles include: "The Ties That Bind: Social Identity and Political Behavior" - This paper explores how social identity influences political attitudes and behaviors. "Partisan Identity: How the Political Became Personal" - In this work, Mason discusses how partisanship has become an integral part of personal identity. "Uncivil Agreement: How Politics Became Our Identity" - Although this is a book, it synthesizes many of the themes present in her articles and research, examining the intersection of identity and partisanship. "The Role of Social Identity in Political Polarization" - This article analyzes the mechanisms through which social identity contributes to political divisions. "The End of the National 'We': Ethnic Diversity and Partisan Polarization" - This research highlights how increasing diversity can lead to greater political polarization among different identity groups. These articles are part of a broader body of work that examines how identities shape political interactions and the implications of polarization for democracy. For a complete list of her publications, it is recommended to check academic databases or her faculty page, as she may have published additional articles and research since my last update.
August 5, 2025 at 7:39 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Can’t find the dog - he is invisible
Beige dog on beige sheets
August 5, 2025 at 7:26 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
The prescription is simple. Cut ties with firms and any vendors that they do business with that treat donors as marks. Establish and enforce efficiency standards. Demand that fundraising operations deliver actual value to campaigns, not just commissions to consultants. Most crucially: Recognize that Democratic donors deserve the same honesty the party demands from everyone else.
August 3, 2025 at 4:47 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/23/o...
The myth persists because there’s always a market for anti-feminist backlash, and now that we’re in the middle of an anti-education backlash as well, a mostly female teaching force is sadly an easy target. The “crisis” doesn’t seem to be that boys are doing particularly poorly of late. It seems to be that girls are finally being rewarded in the form of college attainment and more equal pay for their efforts.
July 24, 2025 at 3:21 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Imagine saying this about Democrats while the GOP is out here behaving the way it is

www.nytimes.com/2025/07/22/o...
July 23, 2025 at 3:31 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Just for reference, @newamerica.org has a report characterizing the ideological backgrounds of individuals that have conducted deadly attacks in the US since 9/11. Far right attacks are not only the most prevalent, they're the only group to surpass Jihadists. www.newamerica.org/future-secur...
Bar graph showing the number of people killed in deadly attacks in the Post-9/11 era, by ideology. From most to least, Far Right Wing (137), Jihadist (121), Incel (17), Black Nationalist (13), and Far Left Wing (1) A graph showing the numbers of cumulative victims killed by each group from 2002 to 2025. Right wing groups are highest, with Jihadists next, both in the hundreds. The other groups are all under 20.
June 16, 2025 at 8:16 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
It’s important to remember that elected officials are regularly terrorized by right wing extremists.

www.startribune.com/brooklyn-par...
12:15 p.m. - Minnesota Second District Rep. Angie Craig declined to say if she was included in a list of other elected officials the gunman sought to target, adding that she would let law enforcement reveal those details. But, she added: “I have armed folks in my driveway right now.” Craig said she is sheltered in place with armed security protecting her and was forced to cancel her planned appearance at a No Kings rally in Rochester. She said the shooter had literature that showed he may have been aware of the multiple rallies taking place across the state. But even before the shooting, Craig said she’s already had to increase security measures on her own. “Unfortunately, we’ve seen a rise in political threats of violence for some time now,” she said. “I don’t do public events anymore without private security or police presence in my own district. Last night at the Humphrey Mondale dinner, I had private security there with me. It’s just become part of what we do.”
June 14, 2025 at 5:44 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Miller Trump Musk Vance
Image of the characters from the Movie Mountainhead
June 5, 2025 at 8:08 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Professor Pickles F Mason, Esq. Reporting for duty.
May 25, 2025 at 12:52 AM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Federal funding, university scientists, decades of research before discovery - all things this admin is committed to eradicating.
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/15/h...
The implications of the treatment go far beyond treating KJ, said Dr. Peter Marks, who was the Food and Drug Administration official overseeing gene-therapy regulation until he recently resigned over disagreements with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the secretary of health and human services. More than 30 million people in the United States have one of more than 7,000 rare genetic diseases. Most are so rare that no company is willing to spend years developing a gene therapy that so few people would need. But KJ’s treatment — which built on decades of federally funded research — offers a new path for companies to develop personalized treatments without going through years of expensive development and testing. The work, they said, began decades ago with federal funding for basic research on bacterial immune systems. That led eventually, with more federal support, to the discovery of CRISPR. Federal investment in sequencing the human genome made it possible to identify KJ’s mutation. U.S. funding supported Dr. Liu’s lab and its editing discovery. A federal program to study gene editing supported Dr. Musunuru’s research. Going along in parallel was federally funded work that led to an understanding of KJ’s disease. “I don’t think this could have happened in any country other than the U.S.,” Dr. Urnov said. Photo of Dr. Kiran Musunuru, a gene-editing researcher at the University of Pennsylvania, left, and Dr. Rebecca Ahrens-Nicklas at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Neither one is a white man.
May 15, 2025 at 6:46 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
This is literally what he thinks

time.com/7280114/dona...
If people want to–well, we all want to make deals. But I am this giant store. It's a giant, beautiful store, and everybody wants to go shopping there. And on behalf of the American people, I own the store, and I set prices, and I'll say, if you want to shop here, this is what you have to pay.
April 25, 2025 at 1:07 PM
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
Fantastic and necessary piece from @hakeemjefferson.bsky.social (deleted earlier post because typo)

stanforddaily.com/2025/04/22/w...
Here’s the truth: White Americans — white men especially — who didn’t need to compete against a broad-based pool because of gender and racial discrimination; who have long enjoyed access to neighborhoods and networks, jobs, clubs, and government programs that systematically excluded others; and who continue to enjoy the presumption of expertise even when they are far outside their depth — have long been the original beneficiaries of race and gender-based affirmative action in this country.
April 23, 2025 at 12:05 PM