Damian Masterson
@dtmasterson.bsky.social
Philosophy PhD Student - SUNY Albany
with a focus on Adam Smith’s Moral Theory, Loneliness, and the Indispensability of Empathy for Moral Judgment
with a focus on Adam Smith’s Moral Theory, Loneliness, and the Indispensability of Empathy for Moral Judgment
Pinned
Damian Masterson
@dtmasterson.bsky.social
· Jan 17
Deadly Male Fragility
David Lynch’s "Lost Highway" turns 25 this year.
www.storyscreenpresents.com
Here’s a short thread of some of the pieces i’ve written on Lynch over the years.
This one’s from 3 years ago on my favortite of his films, Lost Highway, and the lengths that abusive men will go to see themselves as the hero of their own story. www.storyscreenpresents.com/post/deadly-...
This one’s from 3 years ago on my favortite of his films, Lost Highway, and the lengths that abusive men will go to see themselves as the hero of their own story. www.storyscreenpresents.com/post/deadly-...
White House defense is going to end up being that Gianmarco Soresi joke about R Kelly
CBS News' Weijia Jiang: "Did the president ever spend hours at Jeffrey Epstein’s house with a victim?"
Karoline Leavitt: "These emails prove nothing other than the fact that President Trump did nothing wrong."
Karoline Leavitt: "These emails prove nothing other than the fact that President Trump did nothing wrong."
November 12, 2025 at 7:26 PM
White House defense is going to end up being that Gianmarco Soresi joke about R Kelly
Seems harsh but we can’t have people losing faith in a critical American institution like gambling.
“Clase and Ortiz face up to 65 years in prison if convicted on all charges.” www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/...
Guardians' Clase, Ortiz indicted for pitch rigging
Cleveland Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz have been indicted on a host of charges related to a scheme to rig bets on pitches thrown in MLB games. Ortiz is currently in custody.
www.espn.com
November 9, 2025 at 7:21 PM
Seems harsh but we can’t have people losing faith in a critical American institution like gambling.
Among other things, this is a pretty great paper on the idea that Smith’s Wealth of Nations is the worlds longest footnote to The Theory of Moral Sentiments.
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Are there normative social epistemologies? Vernon Smith, Adam Smith, and the challenge of systems - Public Choice
Vernon Smith has been a pioneer in demonstrating that many of “paradoxes” of behavioral economics actually can be explained by the larger logic of cooperation, propriety, and sympathy outlined by Adam...
link.springer.com
November 8, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Among other things, this is a pretty great paper on the idea that Smith’s Wealth of Nations is the worlds longest footnote to The Theory of Moral Sentiments.
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
I love The Hip Pocket’s format. Since the guest curates the three deep cuts to talk about, it’s fundamentally geared towards impassioned recommendations. But, as these are deep cuts, you’re often also getting fresh first watch reactions from the hosts. A perfect mix for discovering new favorites
If you love cinema, then definitely check out @itsthehippocket.bsky.social It’s like you’ve gone around to your mates, ordered pizza, and spent all night talking film. Hosted by @drewmcweeny.com @craigceravolo.bsky.social
& @aundriaparker.bsky.social
& @aundriaparker.bsky.social
The Hip Pocket
Film History Podcast · The Hip Pocket is a relaxed and inviting conversation about movies that we carry with us for whatever reasons, hosted by Drew McWeeny & Aundria Parker. Our bandleader, Craig Cer...
podcasts.apple.com
November 6, 2025 at 6:58 PM
I love The Hip Pocket’s format. Since the guest curates the three deep cuts to talk about, it’s fundamentally geared towards impassioned recommendations. But, as these are deep cuts, you’re often also getting fresh first watch reactions from the hosts. A perfect mix for discovering new favorites
Reposted by Damian Masterson
November 5, 2025 at 5:55 AM
All else aside, I feel like I’ve gotten a brief respite to set down a heavy weight that I had gotten used to carrying since last year’s election.
November 5, 2025 at 1:18 PM
All else aside, I feel like I’ve gotten a brief respite to set down a heavy weight that I had gotten used to carrying since last year’s election.
Reposted by Damian Masterson
BREAKING: Democrats just broke the GOP supermajority in the Mississippi Senate!
In a stunning victory, Democrats gained seats in court-ordered special elections and will now head to Jackson to represent and fight on behalf of their constituents.
In a stunning victory, Democrats gained seats in court-ordered special elections and will now head to Jackson to represent and fight on behalf of their constituents.
November 5, 2025 at 4:39 AM
BREAKING: Democrats just broke the GOP supermajority in the Mississippi Senate!
In a stunning victory, Democrats gained seats in court-ordered special elections and will now head to Jackson to represent and fight on behalf of their constituents.
In a stunning victory, Democrats gained seats in court-ordered special elections and will now head to Jackson to represent and fight on behalf of their constituents.
Waited 5 minutes to call it just to be sure
November 5, 2025 at 2:13 AM
Waited 5 minutes to call it just to be sure
Waited 5 minutes to call it just to be sure
November 5, 2025 at 2:12 AM
Waited 5 minutes to call it just to be sure
Reposted by Damian Masterson
A moment of silence, please, for the "young men are all MAGA now" narrative.
(Source: www.nbcnews.com/politics/202...)
(Source: www.nbcnews.com/politics/202...)
November 5, 2025 at 1:18 AM
A moment of silence, please, for the "young men are all MAGA now" narrative.
(Source: www.nbcnews.com/politics/202...)
(Source: www.nbcnews.com/politics/202...)
Reposted by Damian Masterson
Woke up today to the news
November 4, 2025 at 1:53 PM
Woke up today to the news
This is such a lovely chat.
It reminded me of one of my favorite things I wrote back in 2020 about how, if you think about it, Rocky Horror and Sunset Boulevard are weirdly kind of the same movie.
www.storyscreenpresents.com/post/rocky-b...
It reminded me of one of my favorite things I wrote back in 2020 about how, if you think about it, Rocky Horror and Sunset Boulevard are weirdly kind of the same movie.
www.storyscreenpresents.com/post/rocky-b...
October 31, 2025 at 1:52 AM
This is such a lovely chat.
It reminded me of one of my favorite things I wrote back in 2020 about how, if you think about it, Rocky Horror and Sunset Boulevard are weirdly kind of the same movie.
www.storyscreenpresents.com/post/rocky-b...
It reminded me of one of my favorite things I wrote back in 2020 about how, if you think about it, Rocky Horror and Sunset Boulevard are weirdly kind of the same movie.
www.storyscreenpresents.com/post/rocky-b...
Fine that folks do this, but I’ve always found that I profoundly reject this distinction. I’ll accept that consensus on what the best is may differ from what I prefer, but that’s an other people thing. If I have a clear favorite, it’s always going to be the one I would also vote for as the best one.
regular reminder that when i say something is my *favorite* that is distinct from saying it is *the best*.
October 29, 2025 at 1:38 AM
Fine that folks do this, but I’ve always found that I profoundly reject this distinction. I’ll accept that consensus on what the best is may differ from what I prefer, but that’s an other people thing. If I have a clear favorite, it’s always going to be the one I would also vote for as the best one.
Oh wait, people didn’t like House of Dynamite? Aside from fumbling the abruptness of the ending, I thought this was actually pretty great.
October 26, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Oh wait, people didn’t like House of Dynamite? Aside from fumbling the abruptness of the ending, I thought this was actually pretty great.
I stopped House of Dynamite with 12:43 left to go to the bathroom, so I could focus on the ending. It turns out, there was in fact only 50 second left before credits. This, in and of itself, may tell you a little something about the end of House of Dynamite.
October 26, 2025 at 2:52 PM
I stopped House of Dynamite with 12:43 left to go to the bathroom, so I could focus on the ending. It turns out, there was in fact only 50 second left before credits. This, in and of itself, may tell you a little something about the end of House of Dynamite.
Reposted by Damian Masterson
I wrote about the degrading choices our political system forces on us, the importance of respecting yourself, and the time I experienced a mild Oliver Stone moment at Sammy's Deluxe in Rockland, Maine. defector.com/what-job-is-...
What Job Is A Guy With A Nazi Tattoo Qualified For? | Defector
The man that my wife and I found ourselves talking to at the bar of a restaurant in Rockland, Me. in the summer of 2019 had arrived in town as your fancier visitors do, which is by boat. He told us th...
defector.com
October 22, 2025 at 3:36 PM
I wrote about the degrading choices our political system forces on us, the importance of respecting yourself, and the time I experienced a mild Oliver Stone moment at Sammy's Deluxe in Rockland, Maine. defector.com/what-job-is-...
Reposted by Damian Masterson
The first chapter of my new short biography of Wittgenstein is free to read at Lit Hub: lithub.com/on-the-simpl...
On the Simple Life of Ludwig Wittgenstein and Philosophy as “Neverending Therapy”
In 1931, at the age of forty-one, Ludwig Wittgenstein mused in his diary that perhaps his name would live on only as the end point of Western philosophy—“like the name of the one who burnt down the…
lithub.com
October 22, 2025 at 3:42 PM
The first chapter of my new short biography of Wittgenstein is free to read at Lit Hub: lithub.com/on-the-simpl...
I student taught a class today and, if I may say so myself, I crushed it.
October 22, 2025 at 12:25 AM
I student taught a class today and, if I may say so myself, I crushed it.
Reposted by Damian Masterson
I just saw someone use the abbreviation “AI;DR” and I’ll be laughing for a while.
October 6, 2025 at 10:00 PM
I just saw someone use the abbreviation “AI;DR” and I’ll be laughing for a while.
I got to read an advance copy of Tim’s book and loved it. He isn’t dishy about his career (aside from some pointed remarks about his co-stars in Oscar), but he covers most everything he did, and shares quite a lot about about his family and upbringing. Glad to see him get to take this victory lap.
I absolutely loved having this long conversation with Tim Curry, whose memoir comes out Tuesday. He told terrific stories about, among others, Meat Loaf, Ivana Trump, John Huston, Truman Capote, and Miss Piggy. What a life! www.newyorker.com/culture/the-...
Tim Curry Does the Time Warp
The actor and singer discusses the origins of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” his relationship with David Bowie, and the joy of working with Miss Piggy.
www.newyorker.com
October 12, 2025 at 7:59 PM
I got to read an advance copy of Tim’s book and loved it. He isn’t dishy about his career (aside from some pointed remarks about his co-stars in Oscar), but he covers most everything he did, and shares quite a lot about about his family and upbringing. Glad to see him get to take this victory lap.
Reposted by Damian Masterson
I know there's a million worthy causes to fund but may I suggest this teacher in Maryland who wants to buy two Albert Camus novels for his AP students? Please and thank you?
www.donorschoose.org/project/2-no...
www.donorschoose.org/project/2-no...
2 Novels From Albert Camus, a project from Dr. Michael Buso
Help me give my students a physical copy of a book we will read in our AP Literature classroom. This will allow each student to read the novels of Albert Camus in printed form. Since his novels are...
www.donorschoose.org
October 10, 2025 at 8:44 PM
I know there's a million worthy causes to fund but may I suggest this teacher in Maryland who wants to buy two Albert Camus novels for his AP students? Please and thank you?
www.donorschoose.org/project/2-no...
www.donorschoose.org/project/2-no...