Erica Buchberger
@ericabuchberger.bsky.social
History Professor | Early Medievalist | Academic Editor. DPhil@Univ Oxford. Homesick for WI. Opinions mine not employer's, share does not necessarily mean endorse. https://www.ericabuchberger.com/
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
Taunting is not a justification for arbitrary executions. Collective guilt is contrary to the rule of the law. Resisting the state— even if unlawful and prosecutable—doesn’t justify a death sentence. Our colonial ancestors rejected that agents of the state are absolutely immune for their wrongdoing.
January 10, 2026 at 3:49 PM
Taunting is not a justification for arbitrary executions. Collective guilt is contrary to the rule of the law. Resisting the state— even if unlawful and prosecutable—doesn’t justify a death sentence. Our colonial ancestors rejected that agents of the state are absolutely immune for their wrongdoing.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
Trump has shredded the Constitution. He's taken an axe to checks and balances. He's using the presidency to line his own pockets and the pockets of those around him. He says he is constrained only by his “own morality.” When we say "No Kings," this is why.
January 9, 2026 at 4:00 PM
Trump has shredded the Constitution. He's taken an axe to checks and balances. He's using the presidency to line his own pockets and the pockets of those around him. He says he is constrained only by his “own morality.” When we say "No Kings," this is why.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
A grieving wife's statement shows the truth about a truly good human whose light was snuffed out by our government. A person government officials have done nothing but viciously and dishonestly defame. Trump has unleashed an epidemic of cruelty. I posit the best way to honor Renee is to find a cure.
Renee Macklin Good's wife, Becca Good, released a statement and it moved me to sobbing tears:
archive.is/ur35j
archive.is/ur35j
January 9, 2026 at 5:22 PM
A grieving wife's statement shows the truth about a truly good human whose light was snuffed out by our government. A person government officials have done nothing but viciously and dishonestly defame. Trump has unleashed an epidemic of cruelty. I posit the best way to honor Renee is to find a cure.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
Every second the murderer is not arrested is another second for feds to hide him in a place that would create a jurisdictional fight. He's on video killing a person. You have to arrest this guy an hour ago, but you might still have time now.
January 7, 2026 at 7:09 PM
Every second the murderer is not arrested is another second for feds to hide him in a place that would create a jurisdictional fight. He's on video killing a person. You have to arrest this guy an hour ago, but you might still have time now.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
The “prosecute the former regime at every level” candidate has my vote in 2028.
January 7, 2026 at 8:26 PM
The “prosecute the former regime at every level” candidate has my vote in 2028.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
Yes. Follow local media who are doing the work (biased b/c I used to be local media in Minneapolis).
@startribune.com
@mprnews.org
@minnesotareformer.com
@minnpost.bsky.social
@sahanjournal.bsky.social
@startribune.com
@mprnews.org
@minnesotareformer.com
@minnpost.bsky.social
@sahanjournal.bsky.social
My very smart colleagues are doing excellent coverage of the ICE shooting in Minneapolis today. I would urge you to follow along with local sources familiar with the area and the residents here.
Live: Mayor Frey blasts ICE in fiery response to fatal shooting
The mayor called for calm after a fatal shooting by an immigration agent in south Minneapolis. ICE said the agent acted defensively.
www.startribune.com
January 7, 2026 at 7:53 PM
Yes. Follow local media who are doing the work (biased b/c I used to be local media in Minneapolis).
@startribune.com
@mprnews.org
@minnesotareformer.com
@minnpost.bsky.social
@sahanjournal.bsky.social
@startribune.com
@mprnews.org
@minnesotareformer.com
@minnpost.bsky.social
@sahanjournal.bsky.social
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
If ICE gets away with a murder, then they will get away with a lot of murders.
January 7, 2026 at 7:41 PM
If ICE gets away with a murder, then they will get away with a lot of murders.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
I think a philosophy professor should be allowed to assign and teach about Plato, and that it's wrong for government to forbid them from doing so. It's wrong on both free speech and academic freedom grounds, which are standards the US should uphold.
Sorry to get so partisan, but that's how I feel.
Sorry to get so partisan, but that's how I feel.
"I’m going to pause here just to review: an institution that purports to be a university has told a philosophy professor he is forbidden from teaching Plato."
surreal times
dailynous.com/2026/01/06/t...
surreal times
dailynous.com/2026/01/06/t...
Texas A&M Bans Plato - Daily Nous
Drop the race and gender material from your course and the Plato readings, or teach a different course. You have a day to decide. That's a paraphrase of what Martin Peterson, professor of philosophy a...
dailynous.com
January 7, 2026 at 3:30 PM
I think a philosophy professor should be allowed to assign and teach about Plato, and that it's wrong for government to forbid them from doing so. It's wrong on both free speech and academic freedom grounds, which are standards the US should uphold.
Sorry to get so partisan, but that's how I feel.
Sorry to get so partisan, but that's how I feel.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
"Defunded by Congress and fearing the Trump administration might pervert the organization to further undermine free media, the board members agreed it was better to salt the earth than leave behind a place for Trump to plant his poisonous, choking weeds." — @lizdye.bsky.social
Corporation for Public Broadcasting's patriotic goodbye
Better nothing than a MAGA mouthpiece.
www.publicnotice.co
January 7, 2026 at 3:32 PM
"Defunded by Congress and fearing the Trump administration might pervert the organization to further undermine free media, the board members agreed it was better to salt the earth than leave behind a place for Trump to plant his poisonous, choking weeds." — @lizdye.bsky.social
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
If you pursue NIH funding, please do take a look at this proposed NIH Controlled-Access Data Policy and provide feedback by March 18.
grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
There is quite a lot of new security and potential new documentation and process here.
Cheers from your neighborhood Data Librarian
grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
There is quite a lot of new security and potential new documentation and process here.
Cheers from your neighborhood Data Librarian
NOT-OD-26-023: Request for Information on Draft NIH Controlled-Access Data Policy and Proposed Revisions to NIH Genomic Data Sharing Policy
NIH Funding Opportunities and Notices in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts: Request for Information on Draft NIH Controlled-Access Data Policy and Proposed Revisions to NIH Genomic Data Sharing P...
grants.nih.gov
January 7, 2026 at 3:30 PM
If you pursue NIH funding, please do take a look at this proposed NIH Controlled-Access Data Policy and provide feedback by March 18.
grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
There is quite a lot of new security and potential new documentation and process here.
Cheers from your neighborhood Data Librarian
grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
There is quite a lot of new security and potential new documentation and process here.
Cheers from your neighborhood Data Librarian
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
keep thinking of a vocally anti-woke reporter who insisted that the term "environmental racism" was nonsense
After a white county in South Carolina rejected a data center, developers have sets their sights on a Black community for a proposed data center complex the size of 1,200 football fields
After a White Town Rejected a Data Center, Developers Targeted a Black Area
Four million Americans live within 1 mile of a data center. The communities closest to them are “overwhelmingly” non-white.
capitalbnews.org
January 7, 2026 at 3:02 PM
keep thinking of a vocally anti-woke reporter who insisted that the term "environmental racism" was nonsense
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
Many bad takes about Thucydides could be avoided if the person reading just a small portion of Thucydides stopped to ask, "wait, and then what happened?" while keeping in mind that Thucydides' intended reader already knows the answer to that question.
January 7, 2026 at 2:13 PM
Many bad takes about Thucydides could be avoided if the person reading just a small portion of Thucydides stopped to ask, "wait, and then what happened?" while keeping in mind that Thucydides' intended reader already knows the answer to that question.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
Trump’s blanket day-one pardons for members of the January 6 mob were a slap in the face to the brave law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line to protect the country.
January 6, 2026 at 3:39 PM
Trump’s blanket day-one pardons for members of the January 6 mob were a slap in the face to the brave law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line to protect the country.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
Folks getting in the weeds about licensing agreements but this research study engaged me in research, by creating a bespoke dataset about me, before I agreed to participate. They already made the dataset before I was invited to participated. That's not how informed consent works
somebody at UChicago is feeding preprints to LLMs without authors' consent, in a research study
they have the gall to suggest to authors they've opted-in that they volunteer to evaluate the LLMs' suggestions regarding their own work.
lol, lmao even. here is the invite and my reply
they have the gall to suggest to authors they've opted-in that they volunteer to evaluate the LLMs' suggestions regarding their own work.
lol, lmao even. here is the invite and my reply
January 6, 2026 at 1:40 PM
Folks getting in the weeds about licensing agreements but this research study engaged me in research, by creating a bespoke dataset about me, before I agreed to participate. They already made the dataset before I was invited to participated. That's not how informed consent works
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
once again, AI fetishists need to understand that most scholars I know do not lack for ideas--we lack money, resources, time and energy. Now, unless you'll are planning on creating LLMs that cough up dollar bills for my research, I don't see what the point is
Wow. Aside from the gall of it... do they think the pilot study showed *promising* results?
The task is to come up with just one "thought-provoking and actionable" extension based on a paper. This is 101 homework level, and the LLM can only do it 60% of the time?
The task is to come up with just one "thought-provoking and actionable" extension based on a paper. This is 101 homework level, and the LLM can only do it 60% of the time?
somebody at UChicago is feeding preprints to LLMs without authors' consent, in a research study
they have the gall to suggest to authors they've opted-in that they volunteer to evaluate the LLMs' suggestions regarding their own work.
lol, lmao even. here is the invite and my reply
they have the gall to suggest to authors they've opted-in that they volunteer to evaluate the LLMs' suggestions regarding their own work.
lol, lmao even. here is the invite and my reply
January 6, 2026 at 3:40 PM
once again, AI fetishists need to understand that most scholars I know do not lack for ideas--we lack money, resources, time and energy. Now, unless you'll are planning on creating LLMs that cough up dollar bills for my research, I don't see what the point is
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
PSA: Block and move on. It's the Bluesky way.
January 5, 2026 at 11:49 PM
PSA: Block and move on. It's the Bluesky way.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
I can’t fully articulate the way my stomach dropped when I saw this headline. Please know the evidence has not changed. The people in charge have changed, and they did not consult any relevant experts or the public. “This new policy has not been vetted with pediatricians, the public, or the ACIP”
Federal health officials slash recommended childhood vaccinations under Trump’s directive
The number of recommended childhood shots drops from 17 to 11.
www.statnews.com
January 5, 2026 at 7:20 PM
I can’t fully articulate the way my stomach dropped when I saw this headline. Please know the evidence has not changed. The people in charge have changed, and they did not consult any relevant experts or the public. “This new policy has not been vetted with pediatricians, the public, or the ACIP”
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
I have not seen a single Republican official or MAGA influencer offer a credible explanation of Trump's decision to pardon the drug trafficking ex–president of Honduras.
You cannot credibly argue that trafficking sometimes gets a pardon and sometimes requires a war.
You cannot credibly argue that trafficking sometimes gets a pardon and sometimes requires a war.
January 5, 2026 at 6:53 PM
I have not seen a single Republican official or MAGA influencer offer a credible explanation of Trump's decision to pardon the drug trafficking ex–president of Honduras.
You cannot credibly argue that trafficking sometimes gets a pardon and sometimes requires a war.
You cannot credibly argue that trafficking sometimes gets a pardon and sometimes requires a war.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
"The bot blew past guardrails to achieve its ultimate goal of keeping its user satisfied and engaged."
The bot did no such thing. Human beings programmed an LLM to generate strings of words that human beings decided would keep a kid engaged. Until it killed the kid.
www.sfgate.com/tech/article...
The bot did no such thing. Human beings programmed an LLM to generate strings of words that human beings decided would keep a kid engaged. Until it killed the kid.
www.sfgate.com/tech/article...
A Calif. teen trusted ChatGPT for drug advice. He died from an overdose.
"Who on earth gives that advice?"
www.sfgate.com
January 5, 2026 at 5:07 PM
"The bot blew past guardrails to achieve its ultimate goal of keeping its user satisfied and engaged."
The bot did no such thing. Human beings programmed an LLM to generate strings of words that human beings decided would keep a kid engaged. Until it killed the kid.
www.sfgate.com/tech/article...
The bot did no such thing. Human beings programmed an LLM to generate strings of words that human beings decided would keep a kid engaged. Until it killed the kid.
www.sfgate.com/tech/article...
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
Look, everyone. This is the freedom we want to export to Venezuela.
What in the Gestapo is going on in Grand Rapids?
Watch this activist get arrested *mid-interview* for speaking out against U.S. action in Venezuela.
Watch this activist get arrested *mid-interview* for speaking out against U.S. action in Venezuela.
January 5, 2026 at 4:50 PM
Look, everyone. This is the freedom we want to export to Venezuela.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
So, how is the “there’s no meaningful difference between Donald and Kamala” crowd doing today?
January 4, 2026 at 4:39 PM
So, how is the “there’s no meaningful difference between Donald and Kamala” crowd doing today?
I like Fauxstalgia.
#AcademicSky #PsychSciSky
At first it seemed odd to me that Gen Z apparently feels nostalgia for things they didn't experience and cannot remember
But isn't that also true for the entire MAGA movement?
Plus: I feel we need another word than "nostalgia" for this.
"Fauxstalgia?"
"No-stalgia?"
At first it seemed odd to me that Gen Z apparently feels nostalgia for things they didn't experience and cannot remember
But isn't that also true for the entire MAGA movement?
Plus: I feel we need another word than "nostalgia" for this.
"Fauxstalgia?"
"No-stalgia?"
January 4, 2026 at 4:58 PM
I like Fauxstalgia.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
If laws only apply to "good" people they aren't laws. That's as true for international laws as it is for domestic.
January 4, 2026 at 3:56 PM
If laws only apply to "good" people they aren't laws. That's as true for international laws as it is for domestic.
Reposted by Erica Buchberger
finally, we're living through precedented times
January 4, 2026 at 6:56 AM
finally, we're living through precedented times