@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

Zeb_Larson

@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us

Hello! I'm a former #academic who still considers himself a #historian. While I've left #academia behind, I still work as a #writer, mostly of essays and history pieces. Some of my pieces can be found in Jacobin, Teen Vogue, Smithsonian, and Belt. My PhD is in #history, and I studied the anti-apartheid movement in the United States. Today, I write about a variety of topics. When I can, I listen to #music and play #games.

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Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

Regardless of whether this is a scam or real, it can fuck off straight into the sun.

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

I don’t have the time, energy, or connections to write something, but Nicholas Kristof is going to put me in an early grave

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

Great to see my alma mater frantically reversing itself and admitting that yes, the guys on the roof did have "long-range firearms." It really feels like we're seconds from escalation into a true nightmare.

https://www.thelantern.com/2024/04/university-says-officers-had-readied-firearms-directed-toward-protesters-from-ohio-unions-roof-once-arrests-began/

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

I’m starting to think Yale knew that Henry Kissinger was hanging around campus

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

A certain kitty has to go in for a CT scan today, and we’re nervous as all hell because most of the options on the table are scary. Send good vibes, or failing that hilarious distractions?

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

April has mostly been my wife and I taking it on the chin, or occasionally the nose, and I cannot believe we’re only halfway through this goddamned month.

britt, to random
@britt@mstdn.games avatar

I have a life announcement! 📣

I’m going back to University! ( At 37! )

The program is self paced, online and all of my accessibility accommodations have been approved!

I’m excited to be able to take asynchronous courses in a supportive environment.

Day 1 is May 1st!
I’m studying Psychology & Philosophy.

I plan to attend Graduate School afterwards and become a Registered Psychologist in Alberta so I can do Autism assessments (and more), and provide a safe place for folks. 🏳️‍🌈

Zeb_Larson,
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

@britt Congrats!

exchgr, to random
@exchgr@mastodon.world avatar

procrastination sometimes feels like a superpower. the more i can cram into the last minute, the stronger that makes me. unfortunately that’s dead wrong most of the time

Zeb_Larson,
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

@exchgr The world’s most dangerous high is the adrenaline rush of making a last-second deadline

exchgr, to random
@exchgr@mastodon.world avatar

ah dang, too bad we got tricked into not having more robust public transit https://mastodon.social/@GottaLaff/112219304949895021

Zeb_Larson,
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

@exchgr @GottaLaff The business strategy of making EVs priced like a Lexus and built like a Honda Accord tolerates competition poorly, it seems

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

However dated it is in some respects…three and a half years into working as a dev, and I really think The Mythical Man-Month nailed it.

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

I personally love this. I’m flying for the first time in two years this spring, and if it were another two years or longer before my next flight, I’d be fine. https://mastodon.social/@Snoro/112206852744485395

exchgr, to random
@exchgr@mastodon.world avatar

html is short for hotmail

Zeb_Larson,
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

@exchgr this feels like an attempt to bait a troll and I’m here for it

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

“People can just learn about history in their spare time, they don’t need to go to a four-year university to learn about it”

Buddy, I’ve seen how that generally works out and it ends with a 55 year-old man yammering to me about Erwin Rommel until I chew my arm off and flee.

Zeb_Larson,
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

@RogerBW And I don’t want to be mean to people doing it in their spare time! I’m a spare-timer; I’m not a historian anymore, at least not one working in a university. And having been on both sides of the fence, I feel like I can say how different it is to try and even study something in-depth completely outside of a university.

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

The strongest argument I’ve heard for monkey wrenching data centers. https://www.ft.com/content/1f93b9b2-b264-44e2-87cc-83c04d8f1e2b

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

One of the most tired genres of academic posting is complaining about your students. A lot of it is mean-spirited (how dare these kids not treat my exact passion with the seriousness I did!), but a lot of it is also just fucking lazy. Congrats, as a trained expert in your field you managed to nitpick a freshman to death, or discovered that they (gasp) skipped a reading.

Zeb_Larson,
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

@MisuseCase @seanbala The problem is that there’s very little prestige wrapped up in the teaching track among the people who train grad students, and there’s such an oversupply of PhDs as is. It’s a sick game.

eeyam, to palestine
@eeyam@med-mastodon.com avatar

I hope people realize what this means for our future.. It’s looking bleak if they get away with this.

Israel destroyed Shifa Hospital 🤬

@palestine

Zeb_Larson,
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

@eeyam @DocCarms This is gutting to see. All the handwringing about hospitals in October of last year was just theater. The moment deaths couldn’t be blamed on Hamas, so much of civil society (let alone government) started treating things like this as a non-issue.

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

Sometimes I worry that being on Mastodon is slowly transforming me into an actual software engineer and not just a clever impostor. One day you’re a historian who needed a living salary, and then before you know it you’re reading a back-and-forth on git merge vs rebase.

inquiline, to random
@inquiline@union.place avatar

This place can be pretty special sometimes (always)

Zeb_Larson,
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

@inquiline Moreso than other corners of the internet, people try to fight with me here over really niche bullshit, or the specific wording of my posts. The latter feels like maybe a gap between different language speakers, but the former…

Zeb_Larson,
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

@inquiline somebody told me that Mastodon has no trolls but a lot of VERY earnest assholes, and it explains a lot. And I’ll be honest, while I deal with far fewer out and out trolls here, I deal with more rude people who aren’t doing it as a gimmick.

Anyway, I’m sorry that happened. It’s exhausting.

Zeb_Larson,
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

@inquiline Yes! In some ways, this place feels like stepping into a LAN party in 2005. It can be both pleasantly familiar, but also insufferable.

Zeb_Larson,
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

@inquiline The whole bit about avoiding bad hardware is hysterical.

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

We’re witnessing the conservative migration from “woke” to “DEI” as their new N-word.

Zeb_Larson, to random
@Zeb_Larson@zirk.us avatar

People demanding we respect Lieberman’s memory are certainly managing to embody his spirit of being an unlikable turd who nobody wants to hear from.

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