Nic Babarskis
@nic.babarskis.blog
Ora et labora. I’m an MSU student. Most of the stuff here is cross-posts from https://nic.babarskis.blog/ . I think a lot about colleges and universities https://thinking-about-colleges-and-universities.ghost.io/
Pinned
Nic Babarskis
@nic.babarskis.blog
· Nov 22
Thinking About Colleges and Universities
Reflections and assertions about colleges and universities as social organisms.
thinking-about-colleges-and-universities.ghost.io
Well yeah, obviously having a 18-day-old newborn and a looming deadline to complete a dissertation proposal next semester made this the perfect time to start a new writing project. thinking-about-colleges-and-universities.ghost.io
Reposted by Nic Babarskis
If twenty-some-odd years on social media has taught me anything, it's that:
--Having an audience is addictive
--You think they're shaping them, but they're shaping you too
--Having an audience is addictive
--You think they're shaping them, but they're shaping you too
February 4, 2026 at 1:36 PM
If twenty-some-odd years on social media has taught me anything, it's that:
--Having an audience is addictive
--You think they're shaping them, but they're shaping you too
--Having an audience is addictive
--You think they're shaping them, but they're shaping you too
TIL DHS will sometimes send detained people on regular passenger flights with a gaggle of federal law enforcement officers in tow.
Seems like Delta—or at least this Delta first officer—is trying to make up for flying Liam and his dad to the ICE detention center two weeks ago.
Cc @ottergoose.net 🧐
Cc @ottergoose.net 🧐
February 1, 2026 at 9:30 PM
TIL DHS will sometimes send detained people on regular passenger flights with a gaggle of federal law enforcement officers in tow.
I’ve use an M1 iPad Air as my main casual portal to the internet, and I use it heavily for reading and annotating research literature (through Zotero). The deeper I’ve gotten into dissertation life vs. coursework life the prospect of a sub-$700 macbook with an iPhone chip starts to sound appealing.
February 1, 2026 at 3:39 AM
I’ve use an M1 iPad Air as my main casual portal to the internet, and I use it heavily for reading and annotating research literature (through Zotero). The deeper I’ve gotten into dissertation life vs. coursework life the prospect of a sub-$700 macbook with an iPhone chip starts to sound appealing.
Reposted by Nic Babarskis
meanwhile, I'm teaching my PhD econ course on the Political Economy of Corporations this semester, so re-sharing the publicly-available "Political Economy of Corporations Curriculum"
lenorepalladino.notion.site/Political-Ec...
lenorepalladino.notion.site/Political-Ec...
Zotero | Your personal research assistant
www.zotero.org
January 28, 2026 at 3:55 PM
meanwhile, I'm teaching my PhD econ course on the Political Economy of Corporations this semester, so re-sharing the publicly-available "Political Economy of Corporations Curriculum"
lenorepalladino.notion.site/Political-Ec...
lenorepalladino.notion.site/Political-Ec...
During my daily reading encountered Psalm 17:10 and it got me thinking back to several recent @johnfea1.bsky.social “Evangelical roundup” posts.
January 28, 2026 at 5:20 PM
During my daily reading encountered Psalm 17:10 and it got me thinking back to several recent @johnfea1.bsky.social “Evangelical roundup” posts.
Scenes from a journey home
January 28, 2026 at 5:09 PM
Scenes from a journey home
“The secret fear of the morally depraved is that virtue is actually common, and that they’re the ones who are alone.” - Adam Sewer
January 27, 2026 at 5:35 PM
“The secret fear of the morally depraved is that virtue is actually common, and that they’re the ones who are alone.” - Adam Sewer
Reposted by Nic Babarskis
Alex Pretti’s coworkers take a moment of silence this morning
January 26, 2026 at 8:12 PM
Alex Pretti’s coworkers take a moment of silence this morning
‘A protester had laid a rose on a makeshift memorial to Good. As Knutson watched, an ICE agent took the rose, put it in his lapel, and then mockingly gave it to a female ICE agent. They both laughed.’ Yeah sure–better training can totally fix this.
January 26, 2026 at 3:36 PM
Reposted by Nic Babarskis
It is obviously a self-serving argument but I've been saying for a year that journalists who have worked abroad - especially in failing states - are better positioned to cover this administration than political journalists with all their contacts in DC
January 26, 2026 at 12:15 PM
It is obviously a self-serving argument but I've been saying for a year that journalists who have worked abroad - especially in failing states - are better positioned to cover this administration than political journalists with all their contacts in DC
Reporting from Rober F. North ‘Welcome to the American Winter:’
"Children were a moral fault line for many of the people I met in the Twin Cities—not just the children of immigrants, who are at risk of losing their parents o... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/26/reporting-from-rober-f-north.html
"Children were a moral fault line for many of the people I met in the Twin Cities—not just the children of immigrants, who are at risk of losing their parents o... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/26/reporting-from-rober-f-north.html
January 26, 2026 at 3:25 PM
Reporting from Rober F. North ‘Welcome to the American Winter:’
"Children were a moral fault line for many of the people I met in the Twin Cities—not just the children of immigrants, who are at risk of losing their parents o... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/26/reporting-from-rober-f-north.html
"Children were a moral fault line for many of the people I met in the Twin Cities—not just the children of immigrants, who are at risk of losing their parents o... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/26/reporting-from-rober-f-north.html
Reposted by Nic Babarskis
Kare 11 local news just read, in full, this statement from Michael and Susan Pretti, the parents of Alex Pretti.
"Please get the truth out about our son."
"Please get the truth out about our son."
January 25, 2026 at 12:43 AM
Kare 11 local news just read, in full, this statement from Michael and Susan Pretti, the parents of Alex Pretti.
"Please get the truth out about our son."
"Please get the truth out about our son."
I remember first following @bellingcat.com back during the ‘little green men’ drama of Russia’s illegal occupation of Crimea in 2014. What I couldn’t have imagined at the time was that a valuable source of news on foreign authoritarianism would need to turn their gaze homeward.
January 24, 2026 at 9:13 PM
I remember first following @bellingcat.com back during the ‘little green men’ drama of Russia’s illegal occupation of Crimea in 2014. What I couldn’t have imagined at the time was that a valuable source of news on foreign authoritarianism would need to turn their gaze homeward.
With @[email protected] announcing the release of Zotero 8 I would like to once again marvel at the fact that this software is completely FREE TO USE.
Announcing Zotero 8
https://www.zotero.org/blog/zot... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/22/with-zoterofosstodonorg-announcing-the-release.html
Announcing Zotero 8
https://www.zotero.org/blog/zot... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/22/with-zoterofosstodonorg-announcing-the-release.html
January 23, 2026 at 1:21 AM
With @[email protected] announcing the release of Zotero 8 I would like to once again marvel at the fact that this software is completely FREE TO USE.
Announcing Zotero 8
https://www.zotero.org/blog/zot... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/22/with-zoterofosstodonorg-announcing-the-release.html
Announcing Zotero 8
https://www.zotero.org/blog/zot... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/22/with-zoterofosstodonorg-announcing-the-release.html
The limits of certainty as an evangelism strategy: https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/22/the-limits-of-certainty-as.html
January 22, 2026 at 9:14 PM
The limits of certainty as an evangelism strategy: https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/22/the-limits-of-certainty-as.html
If I stumble across a mention of Max Weber and bureaucracy in connection to higher education organizational dynamics I’m compelled to share the quote:
"Max Weber described bureaucracy as a form of rational authority in which rules ... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/22/if-i-stumble-across-a.html
"Max Weber described bureaucracy as a form of rational authority in which rules ... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/22/if-i-stumble-across-a.html
January 22, 2026 at 2:38 PM
If I stumble across a mention of Max Weber and bureaucracy in connection to higher education organizational dynamics I’m compelled to share the quote:
"Max Weber described bureaucracy as a form of rational authority in which rules ... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/22/if-i-stumble-across-a.html
"Max Weber described bureaucracy as a form of rational authority in which rules ... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/22/if-i-stumble-across-a.html
Reposted by Nic Babarskis
Ben Luhmann, who filmed this, is one of the two high schoolers from a conservative Christian family I rode along with in Chicago when they were searching for ICE agents there.
When I asked him how his faith informed his efforts to document ICE/DHS, he told me this. religionnews.com/2025/11/25/h...
When I asked him how his faith informed his efforts to document ICE/DHS, he told me this. religionnews.com/2025/11/25/h...
January 22, 2026 at 2:14 AM
Ben Luhmann, who filmed this, is one of the two high schoolers from a conservative Christian family I rode along with in Chicago when they were searching for ICE agents there.
When I asked him how his faith informed his efforts to document ICE/DHS, he told me this. religionnews.com/2025/11/25/h...
When I asked him how his faith informed his efforts to document ICE/DHS, he told me this. religionnews.com/2025/11/25/h...
Anyone able to blend Postman and Huxley is worth sharing IMHO:
"This is why, to me, these last weeks have been particularly unmooring, even after the endless chemical train wreck of 2025. The media and technology critic Neil... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/21/anyone-able-to-blend-postman.html
"This is why, to me, these last weeks have been particularly unmooring, even after the endless chemical train wreck of 2025. The media and technology critic Neil... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/21/anyone-able-to-blend-postman.html
January 22, 2026 at 2:20 AM
Anyone able to blend Postman and Huxley is worth sharing IMHO:
"This is why, to me, these last weeks have been particularly unmooring, even after the endless chemical train wreck of 2025. The media and technology critic Neil... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/21/anyone-able-to-blend-postman.html
"This is why, to me, these last weeks have been particularly unmooring, even after the endless chemical train wreck of 2025. The media and technology critic Neil... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/21/anyone-able-to-blend-postman.html
Matt Glassman on Greenland:
"The Trump administration has never been fond of NATO, and there are problems with it. But many of those problems are creatures of its success. NATO is like a vaccine; it has worked so well at ... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/21/matt-glassman-on-greenland-the.html
"The Trump administration has never been fond of NATO, and there are problems with it. But many of those problems are creatures of its success. NATO is like a vaccine; it has worked so well at ... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/21/matt-glassman-on-greenland-the.html
January 21, 2026 at 4:24 PM
Matt Glassman on Greenland:
"The Trump administration has never been fond of NATO, and there are problems with it. But many of those problems are creatures of its success. NATO is like a vaccine; it has worked so well at ... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/21/matt-glassman-on-greenland-the.html
"The Trump administration has never been fond of NATO, and there are problems with it. But many of those problems are creatures of its success. NATO is like a vaccine; it has worked so well at ... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/21/matt-glassman-on-greenland-the.html
Paul Reitter and Chad Wellmon arguing for what they think the modern humanities are addressing:
"The modern humanities address not disordered desires, unruly passions, or the presence of evil but historical changes: industr... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/20/paul-reitter-and-chad-wellmon.html
"The modern humanities address not disordered desires, unruly passions, or the presence of evil but historical changes: industr... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/20/paul-reitter-and-chad-wellmon.html
January 20, 2026 at 9:32 PM
Paul Reitter and Chad Wellmon arguing for what they think the modern humanities are addressing:
"The modern humanities address not disordered desires, unruly passions, or the presence of evil but historical changes: industr... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/20/paul-reitter-and-chad-wellmon.html
"The modern humanities address not disordered desires, unruly passions, or the presence of evil but historical changes: industr... https://nic.babarskis.blog/2026/01/20/paul-reitter-and-chad-wellmon.html