Azim Essaji (he/him)
@aessaji.bsky.social
Associate Professor, Economics
Wilfrid Laurier University
Views expressed are not of my employer; sometimes, they're not even my own
Wilfrid Laurier University
Views expressed are not of my employer; sometimes, they're not even my own
Chrystia Freeland went on Bill Maher? Gross. Just gross.
February 13, 2026 at 4:30 PM
Chrystia Freeland went on Bill Maher? Gross. Just gross.
Reposted by Azim Essaji (he/him)
Great to see @trevortombe.bsky.social today at @lcerpa.bsky.social Economic Outlook 2026: The Era of Uncertainty.
Mentioned it's worth checking out www.policyuncertainty.com
Mentioned it's worth checking out www.policyuncertainty.com
February 11, 2026 at 7:51 PM
Great to see @trevortombe.bsky.social today at @lcerpa.bsky.social Economic Outlook 2026: The Era of Uncertainty.
Mentioned it's worth checking out www.policyuncertainty.com
Mentioned it's worth checking out www.policyuncertainty.com
According to my latest course evaluations, my lectures be like this.... youtube.com/shorts/crHuS...
😂 Timothee rapping on SNL #timotheechalamet #hollywoodactor #edit #snl #soundcloudrapper
YouTube video by Chalamet Daily
youtube.com
February 9, 2026 at 5:41 PM
According to my latest course evaluations, my lectures be like this.... youtube.com/shorts/crHuS...
Wordle 1,694 2/6
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February 7, 2026 at 8:57 PM
Wordle 1,694 2/6
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Very, very nice....
sabrina carpenter singing islands in the stream w the muppets has healed me in ways i did not know i needed
February 7, 2026 at 6:36 PM
Very, very nice....
Today, I heard Jim Balsillie, former CEO of Blackberry, say on the radio that politicians of Canada's two major parties don't want to do regulate tech companies use of personal info. because they are beholden to corporate interests. I almost drove my car off the road in shock. #canadasky
February 5, 2026 at 5:03 PM
Today, I heard Jim Balsillie, former CEO of Blackberry, say on the radio that politicians of Canada's two major parties don't want to do regulate tech companies use of personal info. because they are beholden to corporate interests. I almost drove my car off the road in shock. #canadasky
Seven officers! What a disgrace.... www.thestar.com/news/gta/cop...
Toronto police officers arrested: Press conference reveals ‘shocking’ details, historic level of police corruption for Toronto
York Regional Police are expected to release results of their investigation, dubbed Project South, at 10 a.m. The chiefs from York and Toronto police will “provide comment” on the probe.
www.thestar.com
February 5, 2026 at 4:29 PM
Seven officers! What a disgrace.... www.thestar.com/news/gta/cop...
Reposted by Azim Essaji (he/him)
Canada did a consultation on a new national AI strategy, formed an expert task force to write 32 reports, then used AI to analyze the responses & reports. The result is a summary that strings together 100s of vague action items & flattens nuance and policy trade-offs into false consensus
February 4, 2026 at 7:37 PM
Canada did a consultation on a new national AI strategy, formed an expert task force to write 32 reports, then used AI to analyze the responses & reports. The result is a summary that strings together 100s of vague action items & flattens nuance and policy trade-offs into false consensus
I had my Shingles vaccine yesterday, and I feel like poop warmed over. You know what was worse: the actual shingles, about three years ago, where I not only had Bell's Palsy, but lost my hearing for about a week.
February 3, 2026 at 8:05 PM
I had my Shingles vaccine yesterday, and I feel like poop warmed over. You know what was worse: the actual shingles, about three years ago, where I not only had Bell's Palsy, but lost my hearing for about a week.
Study by AI company finds debatable productivity benefits of using AI in coding. www.anthropic.com/research/AI-...
How AI assistance impacts the formation of coding skills
Anthropic is an AI safety and research company that's working to build reliable, interpretable, and steerable AI systems.
www.anthropic.com
February 2, 2026 at 2:56 PM
Study by AI company finds debatable productivity benefits of using AI in coding. www.anthropic.com/research/AI-...
Just when you think that certain people can't get more gross than they already are, you discover more about the likes of Larry Summers or Dan Ariely.
Here’s Duke behavioral economist Dan Ariely asking Jeffrey Epstein for “the name and email of the redhead that was here with you.” This is four years after Epstein’s 2008 conviction for procuring a child for prostitution.
Doo do doo
January 31, 2026 at 5:01 AM
Just when you think that certain people can't get more gross than they already are, you discover more about the likes of Larry Summers or Dan Ariely.
When one of the most right-wing Liberals in recent memory says this, you know Canadians are pissed off. #canadasky
John Manley on Canada moving on from CUSMA: "I think we did perfectly well before we had the Canada-US free trade agreement. It came into effect in 1989. We were a very successful country at that point ... We'd like to have it. We don't need it. We can move on without it."
January 29, 2026 at 6:41 PM
When one of the most right-wing Liberals in recent memory says this, you know Canadians are pissed off. #canadasky
This is heartbreaking news. Kirsty Duncan was a person who was too good for government, and certainly for the likes of the Trudeau government. She never received her due, and Canada is the poorer for it: www.cbc.ca/news/canada/... #cdnpoli #canadasky
Former Liberal cabinet minister Kirsty Duncan dies at 59 | CBC News
Former Liberal cabinet minister Kirsty Duncan has died at the age of 59 following a years-long battle with cancer.
www.cbc.ca
January 26, 2026 at 10:35 PM
This is heartbreaking news. Kirsty Duncan was a person who was too good for government, and certainly for the likes of the Trudeau government. She never received her due, and Canada is the poorer for it: www.cbc.ca/news/canada/... #cdnpoli #canadasky
Academics are meant to help people discern truth from lies, create knowledge not unfounded fictions. With AI, we are increasingly failing at this fundamental role.
gptzero.me/news/neurips/
gptzero.me/news/neurips/
GPTZero finds 100 new hallucinations in NeurIPS 2025 accepted papers
GPTZero's analysis 4841 papers accepted by NeurIPS 2025 show there are at least 100 with confirmed hallucinations
gptzero.me
January 26, 2026 at 10:31 PM
Academics are meant to help people discern truth from lies, create knowledge not unfounded fictions. With AI, we are increasingly failing at this fundamental role.
gptzero.me/news/neurips/
gptzero.me/news/neurips/
This is fantastic. #jessewelles
Four-time Grammy Award nominee Jesse Welles performs his song "Join Ice."
Bob Dylan once said a single folk singer could defeat an entire army. Ladies and gentlemen, I think we have our man.
Bob Dylan once said a single folk singer could defeat an entire army. Ladies and gentlemen, I think we have our man.
January 24, 2026 at 5:13 PM
This is fantastic. #jessewelles
Reposted by Azim Essaji (he/him)
You can't predict what he will say, what he says doesn't predict what he will do, what we do is largely irrelevant (except for predictable rants at unpredictable intervals) and the US government has no influence.
Just get on with doing what fits with our interests and values.
Just get on with doing what fits with our interests and values.
Trump one week ago: "It's a good thing for him [Carney] to sign a trade deal. If he can get a deal with China, he should do that."
Trump today: "If Canada makes a deal with China, it will immediately be hit with a 100% Tariff against all Canadian goods and products coming into the U.S.A."
Trump today: "If Canada makes a deal with China, it will immediately be hit with a 100% Tariff against all Canadian goods and products coming into the U.S.A."
January 24, 2026 at 4:15 PM
You can't predict what he will say, what he says doesn't predict what he will do, what we do is largely irrelevant (except for predictable rants at unpredictable intervals) and the US government has no influence.
Just get on with doing what fits with our interests and values.
Just get on with doing what fits with our interests and values.
Good stuff from @jm-mcgrath.bsky.social : www.tvo.org/article/anal... #ontariosky #canadasky #canadapolitics
ANALYSIS: The big challenge for Doug Ford with Chinese EVs? Ontarians might like them | TVO Today
The premier worries that, once we let them in, they’ll be hard to get rid of. But that’ll only happen if drivers demand them.
www.tvo.org
January 22, 2026 at 4:50 PM
Good stuff from @jm-mcgrath.bsky.social : www.tvo.org/article/anal... #ontariosky #canadasky #canadapolitics
Reposted by Azim Essaji (he/him)
Calling all the PhDs I know to make monumental annoyances of themselves (and honestly, who better)
January 21, 2026 at 9:16 PM
Calling all the PhDs I know to make monumental annoyances of themselves (and honestly, who better)
This sounds very interesting.... #econsky
Immigration policy is complex, full of trade-offs—but we can do better.
Join Alan Manning, former chair of the UK Migration Advisory Committee, for 3 free lectures using evidence to rethink how immigration affects jobs, services and communities.
https://ow.ly/Vpeg50Y0IlI
Join Alan Manning, former chair of the UK Migration Advisory Committee, for 3 free lectures using evidence to rethink how immigration affects jobs, services and communities.
https://ow.ly/Vpeg50Y0IlI
January 21, 2026 at 4:05 PM
This sounds very interesting.... #econsky
When I heard Carney yesterday, I thought that this is a man who knows that CUSMA is dead, and that NATO probably is, too. Dangerous days ahead, to be sure.
Trump on Canada: They should be grateful also, but they’re not. I watched your prime minister yesterday. He wasn’t so grateful. But they should be grateful to us. Canada lives because of the U.S. Remember that, Mark, the next time you make your statements.
January 21, 2026 at 4:02 PM
When I heard Carney yesterday, I thought that this is a man who knows that CUSMA is dead, and that NATO probably is, too. Dangerous days ahead, to be sure.
As much as I have loved doing research (and I really loved it when I started my PhD), it hasn't always been great for my mental health, so much so that I walked away from it for some years. Today has been the kind of day that makes me question my decision to return.
January 20, 2026 at 9:52 PM
As much as I have loved doing research (and I really loved it when I started my PhD), it hasn't always been great for my mental health, so much so that I walked away from it for some years. Today has been the kind of day that makes me question my decision to return.
Reposted by Azim Essaji (he/him)
The very first "AI in the workplace" presentation I saw had presenters gushing how they used AI workslop to exchange messages with each other. I.e. AI composed e-mails and messages, and AI composed the replies.
futurism.com/artificial-i...
futurism.com/artificial-i...
AI Completely Failing to Boost Productivity, Says Top Analyst
AI may or may not excel at a lot of things, but from an economic standpoint, it's definitely not making us more productive.
futurism.com
January 20, 2026 at 2:53 PM
The very first "AI in the workplace" presentation I saw had presenters gushing how they used AI workslop to exchange messages with each other. I.e. AI composed e-mails and messages, and AI composed the replies.
futurism.com/artificial-i...
futurism.com/artificial-i...
How Should We Think About the Economics of AI?
open.substack.com/pub/paulkrug...
open.substack.com/pub/paulkrug...
How Should We Think About the Economics of AI?
A conversation with Erik Brynjolfsson
open.substack.com
January 19, 2026 at 8:00 PM
How Should We Think About the Economics of AI?
open.substack.com/pub/paulkrug...
open.substack.com/pub/paulkrug...
Reposted by Azim Essaji (he/him)
Córy Doctorow with another verbal bullseye: pluralistic.net/2026/01/13/n...
January 18, 2026 at 5:29 PM
Córy Doctorow with another verbal bullseye: pluralistic.net/2026/01/13/n...