Jacob Romanow
@jakeromanow.bsky.social
ars longa, vita brevis
https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/english/faculty/jr75399
https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/english/faculty/jr75399
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
This NYT column by @polgreen.bsky.social is the truest thing I've ever seen about the REAL reason public trust in the media collapsed
February 14, 2026 at 2:31 PM
This NYT column by @polgreen.bsky.social is the truest thing I've ever seen about the REAL reason public trust in the media collapsed
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey has supported immigration enforcement against people with criminal records and defended an agreement her state has with ICE. “I’m all for getting the bad guys,” she told Boston’s CBS affiliate.
Inside ICE’s Only Contract with a Blue State
As part of a 287(g) contract between state officials and ICE, Massachusetts continues to release prisoners into deportation—even as state lawmakers look to ban other forms of ICE collaboration.
boltsmag.org
February 12, 2026 at 8:01 PM
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey has supported immigration enforcement against people with criminal records and defended an agreement her state has with ICE. “I’m all for getting the bad guys,” she told Boston’s CBS affiliate.
The synthesis of this contradiction is IMO that a lot of the rhetoric of chatbot personhood is produced through and for sadistic fantasy. The *reason* a lot of people want to convince themselves that chatbots are people so badly is SO they can get off on "abusing" them
If you think this is in any way real or serious then turning a bot off is tantamount to murder. You can't afford the subscription anymore? You treat that as seriously as killing a human person. Yet nobody I see pushing this garbage ever does that.
February 12, 2026 at 10:40 PM
The synthesis of this contradiction is IMO that a lot of the rhetoric of chatbot personhood is produced through and for sadistic fantasy. The *reason* a lot of people want to convince themselves that chatbots are people so badly is SO they can get off on "abusing" them
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
Fuentes then fantasizes about “breeding gulags”: “So just like Hitler imprisoned Gypsies, Jews, communists, you know, all of his political rivals, we have to do the same thing with women… They go to the breeding gulags. The good ones will be liberated. The bad ones will toil in the mines forever.”
February 12, 2026 at 12:19 PM
Fuentes then fantasizes about “breeding gulags”: “So just like Hitler imprisoned Gypsies, Jews, communists, you know, all of his political rivals, we have to do the same thing with women… They go to the breeding gulags. The good ones will be liberated. The bad ones will toil in the mines forever.”
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
But when I read about *how* its being used, it's mostly stories like OP--people using it for convenience, and only later some developing serious confusion and mystification that god is speaking to them or they are dating a computer. The mystification emerges more from habit than epistemology
February 8, 2026 at 8:56 PM
But when I read about *how* its being used, it's mostly stories like OP--people using it for convenience, and only later some developing serious confusion and mystification that god is speaking to them or they are dating a computer. The mystification emerges more from habit than epistemology
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
The International Olympic Committee ruled that an image of Toussaint Louverture, born into slavery and and leader of the Haitian Revolution, on Haiti’s uniforms violated Olympic rules barring political symbolism
Haiti's Winter Olympics team shines a positive light even as IOC removes patriot from uniforms
Haiti is making a statement at the Milan Cortina Winter Games with two athletes proudly representing the nation.
apnews.com
February 6, 2026 at 3:26 PM
The International Olympic Committee ruled that an image of Toussaint Louverture, born into slavery and and leader of the Haitian Revolution, on Haiti’s uniforms violated Olympic rules barring political symbolism
Thank you and farewell to this maestro of effervescence and sting
Sad news today. XJ "Joe" Kennedy—a giant of poetry and great friend to Light—has died at 96. We’ll share more about him and his work soon. For now, here’s one of our favorites of his:
#XJKennedy @aestallings.bsky.social @colemanglenn.bsky.social @juliekanepoet.bsky.social @allisonpoet.bsky.social
#XJKennedy @aestallings.bsky.social @colemanglenn.bsky.social @juliekanepoet.bsky.social @allisonpoet.bsky.social
January 31, 2026 at 3:00 AM
Thank you and farewell to this maestro of effervescence and sting
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
‘In major assessments for maths, science and reading from 2011 to 2019, greater in-school computer use for learning correlates with lower scores. In contrast, students in classes with rare or no computer use at all typically score highest’
January 24, 2026 at 2:28 PM
‘In major assessments for maths, science and reading from 2011 to 2019, greater in-school computer use for learning correlates with lower scores. In contrast, students in classes with rare or no computer use at all typically score highest’
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
Blistering piece on ed tech in @economist.com.
‘Although ed-tech companies tout huge learning gains, independent research has made clear that technology rarely boosts learning in schools—and often impairs it.’
economist.com/united-state...
‘Although ed-tech companies tout huge learning gains, independent research has made clear that technology rarely boosts learning in schools—and often impairs it.’
economist.com/united-state...
Ed tech is profitable. It is also mostly useless
Independent research identifies few learning gains
economist.com
January 24, 2026 at 2:24 PM
Blistering piece on ed tech in @economist.com.
‘Although ed-tech companies tout huge learning gains, independent research has made clear that technology rarely boosts learning in schools—and often impairs it.’
economist.com/united-state...
‘Although ed-tech companies tout huge learning gains, independent research has made clear that technology rarely boosts learning in schools—and often impairs it.’
economist.com/united-state...
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
Legendary reggae drummer Sly Dunbar, one half of Sly & Robbie, has died at 73
stereogum.com/2486631/sly-...
stereogum.com/2486631/sly-...
January 26, 2026 at 6:03 PM
Legendary reggae drummer Sly Dunbar, one half of Sly & Robbie, has died at 73
stereogum.com/2486631/sly-...
stereogum.com/2486631/sly-...
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
1. ICE has STOPPED PAYING for medical treatment for its 73,000 detainees
ICE has not paid its bills to 3rd party providers since OCTOBER and the situation will likely persist for MONTHS, a Popular Information investigation reveals
Meanwhile, critically ill ICE detainees are not receiving care
🧵
ICE has not paid its bills to 3rd party providers since OCTOBER and the situation will likely persist for MONTHS, a Popular Information investigation reveals
Meanwhile, critically ill ICE detainees are not receiving care
🧵
ICE has stopped paying for detainee medical treatment
ICE halted payments in October, and the situation will persist for at least several more months
popular.info
January 20, 2026 at 1:42 PM
1. ICE has STOPPED PAYING for medical treatment for its 73,000 detainees
ICE has not paid its bills to 3rd party providers since OCTOBER and the situation will likely persist for MONTHS, a Popular Information investigation reveals
Meanwhile, critically ill ICE detainees are not receiving care
🧵
ICE has not paid its bills to 3rd party providers since OCTOBER and the situation will likely persist for MONTHS, a Popular Information investigation reveals
Meanwhile, critically ill ICE detainees are not receiving care
🧵
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has upheld a decision by city parks and arts officials to allow the controversial Vaillancourt Fountain to be removed from Embarcadero Plaza.
S.F. supervisors clear way for removal of controversial fountain from Embarcadero Plaza
Preservationists on Tuesday failed to block removal of the Vaillancourt Fountain from Embarcadero Plaza after a 10-1 vote by San Francisco supervisors.
bit.ly
January 14, 2026 at 2:20 AM
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has upheld a decision by city parks and arts officials to allow the controversial Vaillancourt Fountain to be removed from Embarcadero Plaza.
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
These 75 Democrats joined Republicans to "express gratitude" to ICE agents and call for greater local and state collaboration with ICE.
jonathancohn.medium.com/a-tale-of-tw...
jonathancohn.medium.com/a-tale-of-tw...
June 10, 2025 at 4:27 AM
These 75 Democrats joined Republicans to "express gratitude" to ICE agents and call for greater local and state collaboration with ICE.
jonathancohn.medium.com/a-tale-of-tw...
jonathancohn.medium.com/a-tale-of-tw...
In the new VLC, @bassidiki.bsky.social deftly reveals the shared imperial logic bridging the juridical + medical senses of "immunity," showing why The Sign of Four is an island novel—and, by bringing in Ross, a less exceptional one than people pretend. Read it while it's hot!
tinyurl.com/ywv45d3z
tinyurl.com/ywv45d3z
Imperial Immunities: Ronald Ross and Arthur Conan Doyle in the Andaman Islands | Victorian Literature and Culture | Cambridge Core
Imperial Immunities: Ronald Ross and Arthur Conan Doyle in the Andaman Islands - Volume 53 Issue 3
tinyurl.com
January 6, 2026 at 2:40 PM
In the new VLC, @bassidiki.bsky.social deftly reveals the shared imperial logic bridging the juridical + medical senses of "immunity," showing why The Sign of Four is an island novel—and, by bringing in Ross, a less exceptional one than people pretend. Read it while it's hot!
tinyurl.com/ywv45d3z
tinyurl.com/ywv45d3z
Gwendolyn Brooks (at 16)
December 31, 2025 at 9:03 PM
Gwendolyn Brooks (at 16)
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
Osita Nwanevu with the perfect rejoinder to that nonsense Compact piece (which way too many self-professed "liberals" took at face value), fleshed out with the types of actually diligent statistics and contextual analyses sorely absent from the conversation: www.ositanwanevu.com/on-race-gend...
On Race, Gender, and Journalism
Hello all. This is a little essay on part of another essay that's been making the rounds over the holidays. Expect a proper end of the year post shortly.
One of the policy analyst Matt Bruenig’s best...
www.ositanwanevu.com
December 30, 2025 at 6:59 PM
Osita Nwanevu with the perfect rejoinder to that nonsense Compact piece (which way too many self-professed "liberals" took at face value), fleshed out with the types of actually diligent statistics and contextual analyses sorely absent from the conversation: www.ositanwanevu.com/on-race-gend...
*whispers* this would also be right about fan culture sorry 👀
Politics is not fan culture—none of these people are your friends. There are no permanent friends and no permanent enemies, only permanent interests.
We can be grateful that MTG is against Trump without liking her or thinking of her as a long-term ally. The anti-Trump coalition must be huge.
We can be grateful that MTG is against Trump without liking her or thinking of her as a long-term ally. The anti-Trump coalition must be huge.
December 29, 2025 at 9:17 PM
*whispers* this would also be right about fan culture sorry 👀
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
Dallas City Council members approved exploratory measures for privatizing City Hall as they seek to sell the community site, demolishing its I.M. Pei-designed Brutalist building and a public plaza with sculptures to make way for a new casino funded by Trump donor Miriam Adelson.
The Sinister Plan to Demolish a Brutalist Icon in Dallas
Behind the spectacle of City Hall’s potential demolition is the transfer of funding away from the public and into a few extraordinarily wealthy hands.
hyperallergic.com
December 28, 2025 at 4:42 PM
Dallas City Council members approved exploratory measures for privatizing City Hall as they seek to sell the community site, demolishing its I.M. Pei-designed Brutalist building and a public plaza with sculptures to make way for a new casino funded by Trump donor Miriam Adelson.
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
I got kicked off a committee for repeatedly asking "why would we want that?"
December 27, 2025 at 9:37 PM
I got kicked off a committee for repeatedly asking "why would we want that?"
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
Texas A&M University will not reinstate a lecturer who was fired after a video of her teaching about gender identity in a children’s literature class went viral, despite a faculty appeals panel unanimously concluding that her dismissal was not justified.
Texas A&M won’t reinstate fired lecturer despite findings
A vice chancellor upheld the firing of Melissa McCoul, seen in a viral video being confronted by a student on her gender identity teachings, saying the termination was done with “good cause.”
www.texastribune.org
December 24, 2025 at 11:02 PM
Texas A&M University will not reinstate a lecturer who was fired after a video of her teaching about gender identity in a children’s literature class went viral, despite a faculty appeals panel unanimously concluding that her dismissal was not justified.
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
Like the suburban developments named after whatever natural feature was destroyed to build them
It’s funny when you remember Bari Weiss called her outlet The Free Press
December 22, 2025 at 1:40 PM
Like the suburban developments named after whatever natural feature was destroyed to build them
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
A better framework is to address the broader project of AI to displace interpersonal contact, thought, negotiation; and to normalize this project. This aspect of AI is essential to the economic agenda that it underpins. 2/n
December 21, 2025 at 5:22 PM
A better framework is to address the broader project of AI to displace interpersonal contact, thought, negotiation; and to normalize this project. This aspect of AI is essential to the economic agenda that it underpins. 2/n
Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, and she'd say "Nice catch!" when I pointed to a potential problem, or "Great observation" in response to my comments.
December 17, 2025 at 7:19 PM
Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, and she'd say "Nice catch!" when I pointed to a potential problem, or "Great observation" in response to my comments.
Reposted by Jacob Romanow
Steve isn’t here anymore, but he always posted this picture on Hanukkah so I thought we could carry on his tradition and remember him.
Happy Hanukkah to our friends who celebrate. Rachel Posner, a rabbi’s wife in Kiel, Germany, took this photograph in 1931 -- a potent reminder that fascism must be fought in every generation, even if it's wrapped in an American flag and a red hat.
December 14, 2025 at 11:45 PM
Steve isn’t here anymore, but he always posted this picture on Hanukkah so I thought we could carry on his tradition and remember him.