Donald Tomaskovic-Devey
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dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey
@dont-d.bsky.social
74 followers 210 following 43 posts

Sociologist of organizations, inequality, and hope

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Donald Tomaskovic-Devey is a professor of sociology at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Source: Wikipedia
Political science 33%
Economics 33%
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dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · Sep 25
This is a hard book. Both familiar and unusually clear. Plutocrats+disinformation+attacks on science=climate and pandemic holocausts.
rebeccasear.bsky.social Rebecca Sear @rebeccasear.bsky.social · Sep 24
“Mann and Hotez detail how bad actors continue to propagate misinformation, persecute scientists, undermine science-based decisions from policymakers and the public and threaten global health and safety”

www.nature.com/articles/d41...
How did assaults on science become the norm — and what can we do?
An insightful book explores attacks on science from a historical and a personal perspective.
www.nature.com

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · Sep 25
Great wealth engenders great influence. Democracy wilts.
rbreich.bsky.social Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · Sep 24
The richest man on earth owns X.

The second richest man on earth is about to be a major owner of TikTok.

The third richest man owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

The fourth richest man owns The Washington Post.

See the problem here?

Reposted by Timothy Snyder, Richard E. Lenski, Michael Wagner , and 30 more

rbreich.bsky.social
Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · Sep 24
The richest man on earth owns X.

The second richest man on earth is about to be a major owner of TikTok.

The third richest man owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

The fourth richest man owns The Washington Post.

See the problem here?

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

rebeccasear.bsky.social
Rebecca Sear @rebeccasear.bsky.social · Sep 24
“Mann and Hotez detail how bad actors continue to propagate misinformation, persecute scientists, undermine science-based decisions from policymakers and the public and threaten global health and safety”

www.nature.com/articles/d41...
How did assaults on science become the norm — and what can we do?
An insightful book explores attacks on science from a historical and a personal perspective.
www.nature.com

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

kate-eviva.bsky.social
Kate-Eviva @kate-eviva.bsky.social · Sep 7
Just wondering how we can build a less contested more #consensus building way to #govern here that builds a sustainable #society that can also be #fair and prosperous. The current politics is effectively destroying our planet. #auspol

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · Aug 14
www.insidehighered.com/opinion/view...
The Family Business: An Open Letter (satire/opinion)
Things have changed, Jennifer Lundquist writes (satirically).
www.insidehighered.com

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

dynarski.bsky.social
Prof Dynarski @dynarski.bsky.social · Feb 18
hechingerreport.org/proof-points...
DOGE's death blow to education studies
Researchers say students and schools will suffer without vital data
hechingerreport.org

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

victorerikray.bsky.social
Victor Ray @victorerikray.bsky.social · Feb 18
It is only a matter of time before our home-grown fascists follow this strategy and change anyone describing what they are (and what they do) with defamation.

This is why the administration is determined to repeal Times v Sullivan.

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

daventholt.bsky.social
Dustin Avent-Holt @daventholt.bsky.social · Feb 18
This is a great thread highlighting what this administration’s actions are doing to higher ed. And remember that this is what they want, to break universities in the US.
robertkelchen.com Robert Kelchen @robertkelchen.com · Feb 13
It's time to start a thread on higher ed budget cuts announced due to actual and potential cuts to federal funding. Northwestern is placing additional scrutiny on all spending and trying to cut non-personnel spending by 10% this year.

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

tiffjhuang.bsky.social
Tiffany J. Huang @tiffjhuang.bsky.social · Feb 20
"Trying to make yourself a smaller target doesn’t mean the people intent on destroying you are going to stop attacking...

"the more prestigious institutions cowering in the face of the intimidation perhaps do not see their mission in terms of providing access to all." - @biblioracle.bsky.social
Higher ed must resist authoritarian rule. It's the mission.
Trying to make your institution a smaller target isn’t going to work.
www.insidehighered.com

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

outtamylaine.bsky.social
OuttaMyLaine @outtamylaine.bsky.social · Mar 30
Hubs & I were talking at breakfast just today about the urgency for each sector of American society to stand firm as one. As the Legal community is finding out, flying solo makes it easier for a corrupt regime to pick you off, and capitulation wins you nothing. The power is in standing arm-in-arm.
mwyarbrough.bsky.social Michael Yarbrough (he/him) @mwyarbrough.bsky.social · Mar 30
This exciting resolution from Rutgers University Senate is exactly the kind of model I think higher ed needs: a mutual defense pact of, in this case, Big 10 schools. They call for member institutions to create a joint defense fund and make resources available to any member institution under attack.
Excerpt from Rutgers University Senate resolution calling for a Mutual Academic Defense Compact. The excerpt reads: "BE IT RESOLVED THAT, the Rutgers University Senate urges the President of Rutgers University to formally propose and help establish a Mutual Academic Defense Compact (MADC) among all members of the Big Ten Academic Alliance; BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT, under this compact, all participating institutions shall commit meaningful funding to a shared or distributed defense fund. This fund shall be used to provide immediate and strategic support to any member institution under direct political or legal infringement;"

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

philipncohen.com
Philip N Cohen @philipncohen.com · Jul 26
Here, I illustrated our essay with a picture of Trump trying to demolish a statue upon the shoulder of which stands a scientist.
trump swinging a golf club at The Thinker while a cartoon scientist stands on its shoulder.

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · Jul 23
www.forbes.com/sites/adiaha...
What Fissured Workplaces Really Mean for Workers
As companies outsource more roles, fissured workplaces are rising. Here's how they’re affecting job quality, wages, and worker safety across industries.
www.forbes.com

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · Jul 11
theconversation.com/inequality-h...
Inequality has risen from 1970 to Trump − that has 3 hidden costs that undermine democracy
The Republican tax bill is set to worsen inequality, government data shows. It’s part of a 50-year trend that’s affecting the social fabric as well as the economy.
theconversation.com

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

wipsociology.bsky.social
Work In Progress @wipsociology.bsky.social · Jul 4
A post by ‪Donald Tomaskovic-Devey‬ (@dont-d.bsky.social‬) on the newest edition of Recapitalizing America is now available on the Work In Progress blog:
Recapitalizing America Redux – Work in Progress
www.wipsociology.org

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · Jun 25
This

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · Jun 25
Of course, "While once surprising, scholars have come to recognize...."

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · Jun 3
www.insidehighered.com/opinion/view...
This Is a Summer to Organize (opinion)
Faculty may want a break, but the architects of the assault on higher ed won’t be breaking and neither should we, Jennifer Lundquist and Kathy Roberts Forde write.
www.insidehighered.com

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · May 28
Resist
adambonica.bsky.social Adam Bonica @adambonica.bsky.social · May 26
The authoritarian script:
1) Court rules against leader
2) Attack judges as biased/dangerous
3) Delegitimize judicial system
4) Create permission for threats
5) IF NO MASS RESISTANCE → Purge the courts
6) IF MASS RESISTANCE → Forced to retreat

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

adambonica.bsky.social
Adam Bonica @adambonica.bsky.social · May 26
The authoritarian script:
1) Court rules against leader
2) Attack judges as biased/dangerous
3) Delegitimize judicial system
4) Create permission for threats
5) IF NO MASS RESISTANCE → Purge the courts
6) IF MASS RESISTANCE → Forced to retreat

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · May 26
I can't agree more.

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · May 25
Sunday thought
open.substack.com/pub/robertre...
Sunday thought
A new phase of Trump neofascism
open.substack.com

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

daventholt.bsky.social
Dustin Avent-Holt @daventholt.bsky.social · May 24
Funding awards are down in nearly every division, and total new awards approximate levels of new awards in the early 1990s. 🧪

www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Trump Has Cut Science Funding to Its Lowest Level in Decades
The lag in funding extends far beyond D.E.I. initiatives, affecting almost every area of science: chemistry, computing, engineering, materials and more.
www.nytimes.com

Reposted by Laurence H. Tribe, Brian Leiter, Erica Chenoweth , and 5 more

adambonica.bsky.social
Adam Bonica @adambonica.bsky.social · May 24
Stunning. May was brutal for Trump in federal court: 96% loss rate ⚖️. Even GOP-appointed judges have ruled against the admin 72% of the time. District courts are doing their job defending the Constitution. Soon the Supreme Court may be the only court unwilling to defend the rule of law.
Infographic titled “Judges reject Trump at an accelerating pace” with subtitle “Federal district court rulings against the administration.” The first bar chart, labeled “By month, %”, shows the percentage of federal district court rulings against the Trump administration: • February: 53.8% (7 out of 13) • March: 74.3% (26 out of 35) • April: 76.1% (51 out of 67) • May: 96.3% (26 out of 27) The second bar chart, labeled “By appointing party, %”, shows rulings against the Trump administration by the party of the judge’s appointing president: • Republican-appointed judges: 72.2% (26 out of 36) • Democratic-appointed judges: 80.4% (74 out of 92) Source: Bonica, Adam; Sen, Maya, 2025, “Common-space Measures of Judicial Ideology for Federal Judges (2024 update),” https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/CK3EEL Note: Coding scheme details available at data4democracy.substack.com/p/when-judges-become-targets-judicial

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · May 2
Alternative hypothesis -- zoom moves long distance collaboration towards zero, more co-authors from outside the US, for senior scholars at least.

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · Apr 22
A giant, who wrote that the poor pay more.

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

willbunch.bsky.social
Will Bunch @willbunch.bsky.social · Apr 21
Pete Hegseth is a pretty despicable human being, on top of the other, many deficits he brought to the Pentagon

But you should be even madder at the 50 senators who knew Hegseth was an alcoholic, a serial abuser of women, and a poser massively unqualified for the post and yet voted for him anyway

Reposted by Donald Tomaskovic‐Devey

claesdevreese.bsky.social
Claes de Vreese @claesdevreese.bsky.social · Apr 21
“Big Tech companies including X, Meta, Apple and TikTok should be aware the bloc is ready to enforce its full digital rulebook no matter who is in charge of these firms or where they're located”

European Commission Prez
@vonderleyen.ec.europa.eu on DSA enforcement

www.politico.eu/article/euro...
Von der Leyen warns X, Meta, TikTok to play by the rules in Europe — no matter who’s CEO
The European Commission will enforce its digital rulebook without fear, said Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
www.politico.eu

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · Apr 20
Sunday thought
open.substack.com/pub/robertre...
Sunday thought
The contagion of courage
open.substack.com

dont-d.bsky.social
Donald Tomaskovic-Devey @dont-d.bsky.social · Apr 18
My dad, a feral demographer from Queens, used to say there were only a few hundred people in the world, rushing around on busses so you could meet someone you already knew.