inquiline

inquiline, 21 days ago to random

Serious question: when and in which contexts did calling people "individuals" emerge as a common practice, as a synonym for people? Or "an individual" for "a person"?

I ask because I'm noticing it in student writing, and I associate it with police-speak. I don't know if it's in some corners of social science or medicine too

??

inquiline, 27 days ago to Columbia

Well well well

"A handful of powerful businessmen pushed New York City Mayor Eric Adams to use police to crack down on pro-Palestinian student protesters at #Columbia University, donating to the politician and offering to pay for private investigators to help break up the demonstrations, based on leaked WhatsApp conversations"

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/5/16/pro-israel-billionaires-urged-new-york-crackdown-on-gaza-protests-report

#GazaProtests #policing

inquiline, 16 days ago to random

The deeply serious reply-guys of Mastodon: conducting an argument (that they started, natch) with "what ifs"; and their main points of reference are "small tribes" and their assumedly deep, universal, and primitive need for "police"; and Mr. Bean. Oh also refusing to read the abolitionist links people are providing.

Don't ever change, Mastodon

inquiline, 10 days ago to random

People shaming others to vote and saying we mustn't say anything bad about Biden/DNC makes more sense when they reveal that they think the problem is the voters, not the very, very rigged system we are forced to submit to

inquiline, 15 days ago to longbeach

Working on the draft in which this photo will appear and this time I'm struck by the barbed wire.

No one else can use this bridge over the #LARiver, it's just for #oil, not people or animals

#Infrastructure #LongBeach #ToxicLA

inquiline, 24 days ago to random

Now that the school year is actually over I suppose I will turn towards processing the last several weeks instead of just reacting, and get more mad

inquiline, 27 days ago to random

Everyone who is worried about being replaced by AI has it all wrong

inquiline, 16 days ago to random

I'm all for calling out antisemitism when we see it here. It's appropriate to ask people to delete or edit posts that shade into antisemitic tropes, even unwitting ones, for instance.

But, emotional reaction to harsh criticism of a state is not prima facie evidence that this criticism is antisemitic. Sometimes the text is the text.

inquiline, 28 days ago to random

#Petrocultures2024 reception was a success as far as I'm concerned

inquiline, 20 days ago to random

While I myself might not agree with everything student protesters choose to do, I find a certain genre of handwringing about their (not centralized/top-down) choices quite tiresome. If only demands could be expressed sufficiently moderately, then they'd really succeed! 🥱

inquiline, 14 days ago (edited 13 days ago) to random

Does anyone have a recommendation for an affordable, user-friendly chatter environment a la Slack where it's possible to have, say, up to 500 accounts? Asking for a campus AAUP chapter.

We're willing to spend some $ but don't want to break the bank, and don't need a lot of bells & whistles. We do need it to be easy to use.

Update: Thanks to everyone who offered ideas! We approached @zulip & they generously sponsored a noncommercial/educational free account for us. Super awesome 😊

inquiline, 8 days ago to random

It's simple really: borders are bad and wielding milkshakes is good

(block me, ye who would disagree)

inquiline, 23 days ago to random

Kolektiva, come get your person.

There's someone arguing in my mentions that the student protesters haven't succeeded in any way bc there aren't "celebratory parades" in honor of US/universities ceasing to support the Gaza war.

inquiline, 25 days ago to random

Hate it when arguments (in good fun) with a household member result in a stalemate bc we are both right. Today's edition, please enjoy these 1887 frames of an ostrich running by Eadweard Muybridge

inquiline, 15 days ago to random

I never realized that the DuPont slogan "better living through chemistry" had classical-iconography artwork to accompany!!

inquiline, 8 days ago to random

Mastodon: land of low quality replies

inquiline, 19 days ago to random

Giant mutant donkey nightlife #Asstodon

inquiline, 18 days ago to longbeach

I still try to give the neighbors space on the sidewalk when I encounter them
#CovidIsNotOver #LongBeach

inquiline, 24 days ago to random

Just typo'ed TERF as TERD and might keep this as they're not feminists anyway

What's this linguistic formation, tho. Acronymic spoonerism-ish, tho not that

(The reason I made this typo was making a note on this acct before hitting block, as they just replied to me. A spin thru posts is all RW conspiracy stuff https://mastodon.staycuriousANDkeepsmil.in/@DavidKnestrick/112469688114339131)

inquiline, 22 days ago to random

Is it grandiose to think (nearly) everyone else is simply wrong? 🤔😂

inquiline, 23 days ago to random

Just accidentally read a whole mess of replies to a couple bad posts, in agreement with/filling in the thesis of the bad posts, and hoo boy there are some bad takes on here

inquiline, 23 days ago (edited 23 days ago) to Palestine

A variety of pretty interesting thoughts in this Peter Beinart podcast (I skimmed transcript):

"among Jewish students who were involved in pro-#Palestine organizing, it is awakening a kind of much greater interest that they had in what it means to be Jewish"

"the more powerful they grow, the more the repression we will see... the US government at state & federal level will start to punish these universities even more severely"

https://peterbeinart.substack.com/p/the-campus-protesters-are-winning

#GazaProtests #HigherEd #Israel #BLM

inquiline, 16 days ago to acab

One of the reasons I will believe just about any story of cop bad behavior is that the ones I don't know firsthand tend to be cut from the same cloth as the ones I do know at close range

A very trivial example is a story from a friend who was a public defender in Philly who had a client, who was denying the charge. His alibi was that he was smoking crack with on-duty cops at the time, and he'd admit the wrongdoing if he had done it. She was like, ok but we can't use this in court.

#acab #drugs

inquiline, 13 days ago to random

Help me, the literalists have struck again.

inquiline, 25 days ago to random

I am very here for all the rhubarbposting, please keep it up, you know who you are