David Lay Williams
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laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams
@laywilliams.bsky.social
7.6K followers 860 following 1.5K posts

Political theorist at DePaul and author of The Greatest of All Plagues: How Economic Inequality Shaped Political Thought from Plato to Marx (Princeton, 2024). Essays in NY Times, Washington Post, Time, Bloomberg, etc. Jazz Guitar, New York Mets. .. more

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Philosophy 36%
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laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · Sep 3
After a decade's labor, it is finally book-release day for "The Greatest of All Plagues: How Economic Inequality Shaped Political Thought from Plato to Marx." I'm both relieved and excited to see this day arrive. press.princeton.edu/books/hardco...
The Greatest of All Plagues
How the great political thinkers have persistently warned against the dangers of economic inequality
press.princeton.edu

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 5h
As for the recent cases, listen to any interview with these folks. They keep complaining that, despite their enormous wealth and power, others don't love and admire them as much as they deserve. So impossibly needy.

Reposted by Anna O. Law

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 5h
Big "yes" to this, which I sketched in my last book. Pleonexia (insatiable greed) is relentless for its victims. The Book of Ecclesiastes offer a lovely metaphor for this -- "chasing the wind" (trying to grasp something that can never be attained).
kjephd.bsky.social Kevin Elliott @kjephd.bsky.social · 6h
Plato argued in the Republic that the 'tyrant,' or someone with unlimited wealth and power, would live the worst possible life because his soul would be devoured by lawless, unlimited desires that could never be sated. I think we've gotten confirmation of this from more cases than Trump lately
normative.bsky.social Julian Sanchez @normative.bsky.social · 6h
I always thought Plato was pretty pollyannaish on this point, but this is decent evidence for the view that a man of bad character will therefore be unhappy even with every external trapping of success and good fortune.

Reposted by David Lay Williams

kjephd.bsky.social
Kevin Elliott @kjephd.bsky.social · 6h
Plato argued in the Republic that the 'tyrant,' or someone with unlimited wealth and power, would live the worst possible life because his soul would be devoured by lawless, unlimited desires that could never be sated. I think we've gotten confirmation of this from more cases than Trump lately
normative.bsky.social Julian Sanchez @normative.bsky.social · 6h
I always thought Plato was pretty pollyannaish on this point, but this is decent evidence for the view that a man of bad character will therefore be unhappy even with every external trapping of success and good fortune.
thedailybeast.bsky.social The Daily Beast @thedailybeast.bsky.social · 20h
President Donald Trump gifted the world with nearly 200 Truth Social posts (and counting) on Christmas Day, where he amplified conspiracy theories about the 2020 election and called for a member of Congress to be deported.

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 1d
Or trans-hating Jesus.

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 1d
"Heads I win; tails you lose."

Reposted by Frank C. Thames

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 1d
Whereas this student is being empowered for making vague and unsubstantiated references to Biblical authority, I was once placed on TPUSA's Professor Watchlist for specifically citing Biblical authority in a paper outlining the Bible's concerns about concentrated wealth. You can't win.
Oklahoma instructor removed from teaching for failing a Bible-based gender essay | CNN
The University of Oklahoma has removed an instructor who was accused by a student of religious discrimination over a failing grade on a psychology paper in which she cited the Bible and argued that pr...
www.cnn.com

Reposted by Anna O. Law, Steve Peers, Mark Rice , and 2 more

sonjadrimmer.bsky.social
Sonja Drimmer @sonjadrimmer.bsky.social · 2d
It is EXHAUSTING not only being made responsible for coming up with new kinds of assignments for our students; it's also tedious reading op-eds that suggest the core problem is a crisis in teaching. But, as Chris and I lay out here, this isn't a crisis in teaching; it's an attack on learning.
sonjadrimmer.bsky.social Sonja Drimmer @sonjadrimmer.bsky.social · 10d
"We envision a resistance that is...a repudiation of the efficiencies that automated algorithmic education falsely promises: a resistance comprising the collective force of small acts of friction."

"How to Resist AI in Education" by me & @cnygren.bsky.social
www.publicbooks.org/four-frictio...
Four Frictions: or, How to Resist AI in Education - Public Books
We are calling for resistance to the AI industry’s ongoing capture of higher education.
www.publicbooks.org

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 2d
Came across this tribute to my beloved dissertation supervisor online this week. It captures many of his attributes that made him a brilliant teacher.
A Thought for the Late T.K. Seung / Ali Homafar
Remembering Professor T.K. Seung
alihomafar.com

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 2d
Of all the issues raised about the concentration of wealth in my last book, I confess, this one had not occurred to me.
A Russian Billionaire Fights Global Infertility—With 100 of His Own Children
Telegram founder Pavel Durov will cover IVF costs for women who want to use his donated sperm, and has promised his offspring a share of his fortune.
www.wsj.com

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 3d
“We are hastening the transition to an economy where all the good jobs have been eliminated and you’ll need to fight others to get a job in a poultry factory, that is, if you want to eat!” Good campaign slogan, no?
atrupar.com Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 3d
Peter Navarro: "In an age of AI when all the white collar jobs are going away pretty damn quick, I think maybe it's a good time for people to think about having good blue collar jobs ... give tariffs a chance, because they're working"

Reposted by David Lay Williams

princetonupress.bsky.social
Princeton University Press @princetonupress.bsky.social · 3d
In Elites and Democracy, @hdrochon.bsky.social explains why elites always rule democracies—and why recognizing that reality can help us respond to the crisis of democracy today.

Available January 6 (3 March UK pub). Preorder your copy today: press.princeton.edu/books/hardco...

#PoliticalScience
Elites and Democracy
Why elites always rule democracies—and why recognizing that reality can help us respond to the crisis of democracy today
press.princeton.edu

Reposted by Rosemary A. Joyce, Iikka Korhonen, Karen Benjamin Guzzo , and 4 more

atrupar.com
Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 3d
Peter Navarro: "In an age of AI when all the white collar jobs are going away pretty damn quick, I think maybe it's a good time for people to think about having good blue collar jobs ... give tariffs a chance, because they're working"

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 4d
I should say in response that I feel precisely the same about his Visions of Inequality, which I also read in 2025. It covers some of the same ground as my book, but with an economist's lens rather than a philosopher's. Highly recommended to anyone working at the intersection of HPT and inequality.
Visions of Inequality — Harvard University Press
A Financial Times Best Book of the Year.A sweeping and original history of how economists across two centuries have thought about inequality, told through portraits of six key figures.“How do you see ...
www.hup.harvard.edu

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 4d
Honored that the distinguished economist @brankomilan.bsky.social has included my book among his favorite reads in 2025!

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 5d
We can have an infinitely better education environment (and a much cheaper one) if only we have the courage to expel this technology.
Opinion | What Happened When My Yale Students Gave Up Their Phones for Four Weeks
www.nytimes.com

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 5d
For those keeping score this holiday season.
Just 0.001% hold three times the wealth of poorest half of humanity, report finds
Data from World Inequality Report also showed top 10% of income-earners earn more than the other 90%
www.theguardian.com

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 5d
As Tocqueville suggests in the Ancien Régime, the greater the perception of inequality, the more it stirs active resistance.
Inequality alone doesn’t cause civil unrest – but internet access adds the crucial spark
Some regimes may be tempted to shut down the internet to maintain stability. But new research shows why reducing the wealth gap has become crucial for maintaining security.
theconversation.com

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 7d
On the shelves at Vroman's in Pasadena!

Reposted by David Lay Williams

brankomilan.bsky.social
Branko Milanovic @brankomilan.bsky.social · 7d
David Lay Williams, “The Greatest of All Plagues”
Poison for the soul
branko2f7.substack.com/p/poison-for...
Poison for the soul
Review of David Lay Williams’s “The Greatest of All Plagues”
branko2f7.substack.com

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 9d
I thought we needed more plumbers, not more VPs?

Reposted by Anna O. Law

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 10d
@unlawfulentries.bsky.social doing important and highly relevant research on migration law.

Reposted by Kathleen Kennedy, David Lay Williams

librarycolleen.bsky.social
Colleen T @librarycolleen.bsky.social · 10d
"...the eventual plan is to close the library" #depaul #Chicao (Illinois) 📚📜
depauliaonline.com/80758/news/d...
DePaul lays off over 100 staff members amid budget cuts
Joining universities nationwide, DePaul makes sweeping budget cuts amid enrollment decline and federal uncertainty.
depauliaonline.com

Reposted by David Lay Williams

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 10d
Honored to be on @durlauf.bsky.social's list of "major inequality books" over the past three years, alongside works by @ingridrobeyns.bsky.social, Darrin McMahon, Daniel Markovits, and other luminaries.
Picture of cover image of "The Greatest of of All Plagues."

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 11d
I taught the Republic in both of my fall classes. It was not the wrong choice.
jacobtlevy.bsky.social Jacob T. Levy @jacobtlevy.bsky.social · 11d
The Republic Book IX remains the most essential political reading of the current era.

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 11d
Absolutely correct. I'll only add that in inventing AI, they have found a way to share this awful mindset with others -- to create mindless flatterers and sycophants for the people in the form of LLMs. So now the people can enjoy inflated self-affirmation from robots, as the rich do from others.

Reposted by Stuart White, David Lay Williams

jacobtlevy.bsky.social
Jacob T. Levy @jacobtlevy.bsky.social · 11d
The Republic Book IX remains the most essential political reading of the current era.

laywilliams.bsky.social
David Lay Williams @laywilliams.bsky.social · 15d
I would think restoring massive budget cuts to the library would do much more to achieve R1 status (declared justification of this cash grab) at my Alma mater than cozying up with our data overlords. But what do I know about research???
New AI Initiative to be an ‘Immediate Boost’ to TCU
Backed by Dell Technologies, TCU’s new AI² will have a major impact on campus innovation and exploration, explains Reuben Burch, vice provost for research.
www.tcu.edu

Reposted by David Lay Williams

brankomilan.bsky.social
Branko Milanovic @brankomilan.bsky.social · 16d
My paper with Shlomo Yitzhaki whose work and life we shall celebrate on May 20, 2026 at Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Decomposing World Income Distribution: Does the World Have a Middle Class? Review of Income & Wealth, 2002.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Decomposing World Income Distribution: Does The World Have A Middle Class?
Using the national income/expenditure distribution data from 111 countries, we decompose total inequality between the individuals in the world, by continents and regions. We use Yitzhaki’s Gini decom...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com