Alexandra Mathieu
@alexmathieu.bsky.social
Bowdoin. Columbia. Current Yale Council on East Asian Studies postdoc. East Asian security, Japanese foreign policy, int'l status, nationalism, political behavior. Lowering my expectations 1 day at a time https://www.alexandramathieu.com
Pinned
Japan Conference for Social Scientists
Fri, May 29 2026, 9am - Sat, May 30 2026, 12pm |
macmillan.yale.edu
!!!! CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT !!!!
Yale's Council on East Asian Studies will be hosting the second annual Japan Conference for Social Scientists this spring. Details at the link. Funding is available to NA-based participants for travel and lodging! Early scholars encouraged to apply!
Yale's Council on East Asian Studies will be hosting the second annual Japan Conference for Social Scientists this spring. Details at the link. Funding is available to NA-based participants for travel and lodging! Early scholars encouraged to apply!
Reposted by Alexandra Mathieu
The scale of the LDP’s victory is hard to overstate:
• 316/465 seats (68%) — biggest win in party history
• Swept 31 of 47 prefectures
• With Ishin: 352 seats (76%), swept 33 prefectures
Results: www.asahi.com/senkyo/shuin...
• 316/465 seats (68%) — biggest win in party history
• Swept 31 of 47 prefectures
• With Ishin: 352 seats (76%), swept 33 prefectures
Results: www.asahi.com/senkyo/shuin...
February 8, 2026 at 9:17 PM
The scale of the LDP’s victory is hard to overstate:
• 316/465 seats (68%) — biggest win in party history
• Swept 31 of 47 prefectures
• With Ishin: 352 seats (76%), swept 33 prefectures
Results: www.asahi.com/senkyo/shuin...
• 316/465 seats (68%) — biggest win in party history
• Swept 31 of 47 prefectures
• With Ishin: 352 seats (76%), swept 33 prefectures
Results: www.asahi.com/senkyo/shuin...
Reposted by Alexandra Mathieu
Takaichi's snap election gamble has clearly paid off.
Snap elections tend to benefit incumbents — especially when opposition parties are caught off guard and the campaign period is particularly short.
I've written about this dynamic before: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Snap elections tend to benefit incumbents — especially when opposition parties are caught off guard and the campaign period is particularly short.
I've written about this dynamic before: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
February 8, 2026 at 9:25 PM
Takaichi's snap election gamble has clearly paid off.
Snap elections tend to benefit incumbents — especially when opposition parties are caught off guard and the campaign period is particularly short.
I've written about this dynamic before: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Snap elections tend to benefit incumbents — especially when opposition parties are caught off guard and the campaign period is particularly short.
I've written about this dynamic before: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
what a gamble Takaichi and the LDP made and unequivocally won
My first attempt to make sense of a truly historic general election.
open.substack.com/pub/observin...
open.substack.com/pub/observin...
The age of Takaichi dawns
Understanding what happened on Sunday
open.substack.com
February 8, 2026 at 11:56 PM
what a gamble Takaichi and the LDP made and unequivocally won
Reposting again as the abstract submission deadline for this conference is Feburary 13th!
!!!! CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT !!!!
Yale's Council on East Asian Studies will be hosting the second annual Japan Conference for Social Scientists this spring. Details at the link. Funding is available to NA-based participants for travel and lodging! Early scholars encouraged to apply!
Yale's Council on East Asian Studies will be hosting the second annual Japan Conference for Social Scientists this spring. Details at the link. Funding is available to NA-based participants for travel and lodging! Early scholars encouraged to apply!
Japan Conference for Social Scientists
Fri, May 29 2026, 9am - Sat, May 30 2026, 12pm |
macmillan.yale.edu
February 3, 2026 at 3:52 AM
Reposting again as the abstract submission deadline for this conference is Feburary 13th!
Reposted by Alexandra Mathieu
National media should really be covering the fact thay every major school, museum, and arts institution in the Twin Cities, and hundreds of local businesses are closed tomorrow to protest federal occupation.
Nothing like this at this scale has happened anywhere in America anytime in living memory.
Nothing like this at this scale has happened anywhere in America anytime in living memory.
January 22, 2026 at 8:25 PM
National media should really be covering the fact thay every major school, museum, and arts institution in the Twin Cities, and hundreds of local businesses are closed tomorrow to protest federal occupation.
Nothing like this at this scale has happened anywhere in America anytime in living memory.
Nothing like this at this scale has happened anywhere in America anytime in living memory.
International status and prestige scholars continue to be well-fed during this administration
Trump says he's pursuing Greenland after perceived Nobel Peace Prize snub
"Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize… I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace," Trump wrote in a message to the Norwegian Prime Minister.
www.npr.org
January 21, 2026 at 8:37 PM
International status and prestige scholars continue to be well-fed during this administration
US foreign policy analysts choosing to ignore or downplay when racism and white supremacy (or identity and ideology in general) are primary motivators of American int'l policy? Must be a day that ends in y
I cannot think of a bigger indictment of the foreign-policy commentariat that they either cannot recognize this or that they are too scared to say it in print.
Congratulations to @profpaulpoast.bsky.social for having the only piece I could find in a "nonpartisan" outlet correctly identifying the 2025 NSS as a white supremacist grand strategy.
January 15, 2026 at 6:47 PM
US foreign policy analysts choosing to ignore or downplay when racism and white supremacy (or identity and ideology in general) are primary motivators of American int'l policy? Must be a day that ends in y
Reposted by Alexandra Mathieu
The University of Arkansas's law school just withdrew the appointment of its new dean six days after hiring her because conservative politicians complained that she filed an amicus brief to the Supreme Court in support of transgender students
Culture warriors cancel new U of A law dean before she started - Arkansas Times
Culture warriors claim the scalp of Emily Suski, the would-be law school dean whose legal opinion on transgender athletes seems to have offended Arkansas officials.
arktimes.com
January 15, 2026 at 3:55 PM
The University of Arkansas's law school just withdrew the appointment of its new dean six days after hiring her because conservative politicians complained that she filed an amicus brief to the Supreme Court in support of transgender students
!!!! CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT !!!!
Yale's Council on East Asian Studies will be hosting the second annual Japan Conference for Social Scientists this spring. Details at the link. Funding is available to NA-based participants for travel and lodging! Early scholars encouraged to apply!
Yale's Council on East Asian Studies will be hosting the second annual Japan Conference for Social Scientists this spring. Details at the link. Funding is available to NA-based participants for travel and lodging! Early scholars encouraged to apply!
Japan Conference for Social Scientists
Fri, May 29 2026, 9am - Sat, May 30 2026, 12pm |
macmillan.yale.edu
January 15, 2026 at 5:46 PM
!!!! CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT !!!!
Yale's Council on East Asian Studies will be hosting the second annual Japan Conference for Social Scientists this spring. Details at the link. Funding is available to NA-based participants for travel and lodging! Early scholars encouraged to apply!
Yale's Council on East Asian Studies will be hosting the second annual Japan Conference for Social Scientists this spring. Details at the link. Funding is available to NA-based participants for travel and lodging! Early scholars encouraged to apply!
Reposted by Alexandra Mathieu
The destruction doesn't make for a photo-op like tearing down the East Wing of the White House or bulldozing the Rose Garden, but it's every bit as bad. Generations of American children learned to spell and count, learned the Preamble to the Constitution, from watching shows produced by the CPB.
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting has been dissolved, ending its 58 years as the primary funder for PBS, NPR and local TV and radio stations
Corporation For Public Broadcasting Is Dissolved After 58 Years Of Service
www.huffpost.com
January 5, 2026 at 8:04 PM
The destruction doesn't make for a photo-op like tearing down the East Wing of the White House or bulldozing the Rose Garden, but it's every bit as bad. Generations of American children learned to spell and count, learned the Preamble to the Constitution, from watching shows produced by the CPB.
...............
THE DONROE DOCTRINE
January 3, 2026 at 5:13 PM
...............
The US attempting regime change in Latin America...time is a circle
Trump on Venezuela: "We're going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper, and judicious transition"
January 3, 2026 at 4:55 PM
The US attempting regime change in Latin America...time is a circle
People ask what happens next with Venezuela and Maduro and the answer is, politely, we don't know
But as a Haitian-American, I gotta tell you, the vibes feel familiarly dreadful. Power vacuums do not last and what/who comes next frequently breeds instability
But as a Haitian-American, I gotta tell you, the vibes feel familiarly dreadful. Power vacuums do not last and what/who comes next frequently breeds instability
January 3, 2026 at 4:36 PM
People ask what happens next with Venezuela and Maduro and the answer is, politely, we don't know
But as a Haitian-American, I gotta tell you, the vibes feel familiarly dreadful. Power vacuums do not last and what/who comes next frequently breeds instability
But as a Haitian-American, I gotta tell you, the vibes feel familiarly dreadful. Power vacuums do not last and what/who comes next frequently breeds instability
Reposted by Alexandra Mathieu
What a time to know anything about the history of American imperialism and its consequences
January 3, 2026 at 2:33 PM
What a time to know anything about the history of American imperialism and its consequences
Universities must do better in protecting the people they employed, especially when they are from already marginalized communities. Seeking a diverse labor force only to leave them out to dry is exploitative and just ensures that those folks stop showing up.
Worth noting that the student admits that she just threw the thing together in 30 minutes without reading the paper she was supposed to be responding to.
December 23, 2025 at 8:59 PM
Universities must do better in protecting the people they employed, especially when they are from already marginalized communities. Seeking a diverse labor force only to leave them out to dry is exploitative and just ensures that those folks stop showing up.
One funny thing about being a recovering perfectionist is that you will often fall back into perfectionism on a project and stress yourself out for weeks/months about it
just to hit the "wall of clarity" and hit submit in the 11th hour, when you realize you are actually driving yourself insane
just to hit the "wall of clarity" and hit submit in the 11th hour, when you realize you are actually driving yourself insane
December 15, 2025 at 4:56 PM
One funny thing about being a recovering perfectionist is that you will often fall back into perfectionism on a project and stress yourself out for weeks/months about it
just to hit the "wall of clarity" and hit submit in the 11th hour, when you realize you are actually driving yourself insane
just to hit the "wall of clarity" and hit submit in the 11th hour, when you realize you are actually driving yourself insane
Reposted by Alexandra Mathieu
To keep the Indo-Pacific “free and open”…
You need:
Forward-deployed naval power
Coordinated deterrence with Japan, Korea, Australia, Taiwan
Shared strategic planning
Intelligence, basing access, presence
But the document says:
“The days of the 🇺🇸propping up the entire world order are over.”
You need:
Forward-deployed naval power
Coordinated deterrence with Japan, Korea, Australia, Taiwan
Shared strategic planning
Intelligence, basing access, presence
But the document says:
“The days of the 🇺🇸propping up the entire world order are over.”
December 5, 2025 at 7:12 AM
To keep the Indo-Pacific “free and open”…
You need:
Forward-deployed naval power
Coordinated deterrence with Japan, Korea, Australia, Taiwan
Shared strategic planning
Intelligence, basing access, presence
But the document says:
“The days of the 🇺🇸propping up the entire world order are over.”
You need:
Forward-deployed naval power
Coordinated deterrence with Japan, Korea, Australia, Taiwan
Shared strategic planning
Intelligence, basing access, presence
But the document says:
“The days of the 🇺🇸propping up the entire world order are over.”
Reposted by Alexandra Mathieu
• Allies must assume primary responsibility for their own regions.
• The U.S. will help only if allies first help themselves and align policies with U.S. interests.
This is not alliance management.
This is transactional outsourcing of security obligations.
• The U.S. will help only if allies first help themselves and align policies with U.S. interests.
This is not alliance management.
This is transactional outsourcing of security obligations.
December 5, 2025 at 7:07 AM
• Allies must assume primary responsibility for their own regions.
• The U.S. will help only if allies first help themselves and align policies with U.S. interests.
This is not alliance management.
This is transactional outsourcing of security obligations.
• The U.S. will help only if allies first help themselves and align policies with U.S. interests.
This is not alliance management.
This is transactional outsourcing of security obligations.
Reposted by Alexandra Mathieu
Northwestern’s leaders will likely try to justify their choice to appease fascist extortion with some BS about needing to help researchers get federal funds that were illegally withheld, so it’s important to note that virtually all of the researchers said not to.
So apparently the administrators at Northwestern have caved to the extortionist demands of the Feds. Faculty voted 595-4 AGAINST this measure.
November 29, 2025 at 1:18 PM
Northwestern’s leaders will likely try to justify their choice to appease fascist extortion with some BS about needing to help researchers get federal funds that were illegally withheld, so it’s important to note that virtually all of the researchers said not to.
Reposted by Alexandra Mathieu
So apparently the administrators at Northwestern have caved to the extortionist demands of the Feds. Faculty voted 595-4 AGAINST this measure.
November 29, 2025 at 3:30 AM
So apparently the administrators at Northwestern have caved to the extortionist demands of the Feds. Faculty voted 595-4 AGAINST this measure.
Reposted by Alexandra Mathieu
Look, every single “deal” reached by a university with the Trump administration is a moral stain that will be seen with deep embarrassment once we’re through this. But for Northwestern to do this now, when the administration is visibly weakened, is even more shameful and inexcusable.
November 29, 2025 at 3:31 PM
Look, every single “deal” reached by a university with the Trump administration is a moral stain that will be seen with deep embarrassment once we’re through this. But for Northwestern to do this now, when the administration is visibly weakened, is even more shameful and inexcusable.
I hope people understand that as gross as this is, it's not unique. Not by a long shot. Senior male academics abusing their position and power to pursue younger female students has been and continues to be a PROBLEM
As Summers Sought Clandestine Relationship With Woman He Called a Mentee, Epstein Was His ‘Wing Man’ | News | The Harvard Crimson
When former Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers was pursuing a romantic relationship with a woman he described as a mentee, he turned to a longtime associate for guidance: convicted sex offender Jef...
www.thecrimson.com
November 17, 2025 at 4:14 PM
I hope people understand that as gross as this is, it's not unique. Not by a long shot. Senior male academics abusing their position and power to pursue younger female students has been and continues to be a PROBLEM
Reposted by Alexandra Mathieu
gotta say this whole business about ‘electing a muslim mayor is basically pissing on the graves of 9/11 victims’ is just…just shockingly racist stuff i mean what else is there to say about it
November 5, 2025 at 6:15 PM
gotta say this whole business about ‘electing a muslim mayor is basically pissing on the graves of 9/11 victims’ is just…just shockingly racist stuff i mean what else is there to say about it
I remember when this article came out and how huge swaths of the internet dismissed it on its face. Eight years later and "digital blackface" has proven itself to be such an important concept. www.teenvogue.com/story/digita...
November 2, 2025 at 5:14 PM
I remember when this article came out and how huge swaths of the internet dismissed it on its face. Eight years later and "digital blackface" has proven itself to be such an important concept. www.teenvogue.com/story/digita...
The intellectual critique in this thread is great but on a bit more of a personal note, as an alum, it is LAUGHABLE to paint Bowdoin as a hotbed of leftist ideology. I don't have the numbers, but consulting and finance were some of the top job placements for grads in my year (2015)
A few thoughts about this deeply-flawed Jeremy W. Peters article.(Gift link.) www.nytimes.com/2025/10/28/u...
How a Small Elite College in Maine Influenced Mamdani’s World View
www.nytimes.com
October 29, 2025 at 8:58 PM
The intellectual critique in this thread is great but on a bit more of a personal note, as an alum, it is LAUGHABLE to paint Bowdoin as a hotbed of leftist ideology. I don't have the numbers, but consulting and finance were some of the top job placements for grads in my year (2015)