Jon Shaffer
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jonshaffer.bsky.social
Jon Shaffer
@jonshaffer.bsky.social
3.2K followers 3.2K following 860 posts
Assistant Professor of Sociology @UVM | STS | Med Soc | Social Movements | Previously Post-doc @BermanInstitute, Partners In Health

Personal Website: https://www.jonathanshaffer.net
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jonshaffer.bsky.social
Jon Shaffer @jonshaffer.bsky.social · Sep 23
Public health people have to get themselves organized to fight back, otherwise we're toast.

If we don't, the eugenic madness coming from Trump, RFK Jr., Oz, etc is going to kill lots of people.

Here I share some thoughts about how we can start to organize: www.infectiousdose.com/post/from-ev...
From Evidence to Power: Organizing for Public Health with Jon Shaffer, PhD
Sociologist–organizer Jon Shaffer, PhD, joins Infectious Dose to explain why organizing—not just evidence—wins public-health protections, how DPH is building state teams, and what you can do next.
www.infectiousdose.com
jonshaffer.bsky.social
Marty Supreme: 👍👍
December 25, 2025 at 11:21 PM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
band.myatproto.social
...effective political organisers may know what psychoanalysis can teach: being sensitive to unspoken fear & desire, listening more than speaking, holding space for agency while acknowledging constraint, the importance of timing & ‘empathy’ & ‘tact’, even the workings of transference & projection.
lrb.co.uk London Review of Books @lrb.co.uk · 1d
‘There​ is a difference, I want to suggest, between allowing a rational fear of domination to shape our politics, and making that fear the totality of our politics.’

Amia Srinivasan on psychoanalysis, in her Winter Lecture of Friday 12 December.

www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
Amia Srinivasan · The Impossible Patient: Return of the Unconscious
You may not wish to commit yourself ontologically to some thing called the ‘unconscious’, and you may reasonably...
www.lrb.co.uk
December 25, 2025 at 3:51 PM
jonshaffer.bsky.social
All we’ve got: abduction and (political) regimes of justification.
nkalamb.bsky.social Nathan Kalman-Lamb @nkalamb.bsky.social · 1d
This is a real tweet.
In college, as a progressive, I was told by a friend that race was socially constructed and had no genetic basis. This was obviously insane to me. I can classify people into races by sight with high (though not perfect) reliability. So race exists. No category is perfect. “Chair” is not perfect. Even “hydrogen” can become fuzzy in certain regimes. All reasoning is about inferring attractors, common patterns, regions of phase space occupied at much greater frequency than other regions. All thought is impossible without this concept. The exact same pattern of reasoning that opposes the reality of race could be used to oppose the reality of any concept at all.
December 25, 2025 at 3:23 PM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
lrb.co.uk
‘There​ is a difference, I want to suggest, between allowing a rational fear of domination to shape our politics, and making that fear the totality of our politics.’

Amia Srinivasan on psychoanalysis, in her Winter Lecture of Friday 12 December.

www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
Amia Srinivasan · The Impossible Patient: Return of the Unconscious
You may not wish to commit yourself ontologically to some thing called the ‘unconscious’, and you may reasonably...
www.lrb.co.uk
December 25, 2025 at 12:10 PM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
sonjadrimmer.bsky.social
Hell yes. This was precisely the point I was making in a paper that disputed efforts to “scientize” paleography computationally. static1.squarespace.com/static/55577...
Regarding the first suggestion: questioning the utility of "scientific" precision to guarantee accuracy. Unreliable as it is, visual perception is indispensable to any materially based form of history. Imagine the state in which archaeology would find itself if it denied the legitimacy of perceptions and judgments based on form; excavation itself calls on visual discerning to distinguish strata. In an argumentum ad absurdum, C. S. Peirce, for example, wondered how it is that we know Napoleon really existed when all that remains of his existence are objects and documents-things that themselves require authentication. The answer is that we can only determine that they are authentic attestations to the life of Napoleon by abduction, a process of inference that accepts the validity of physical testimony and infers the most probable explanatory cause. 136 Unlike the objects of inquiry in the hard sciences, Napoleon is not a replicable experiment and cannot be "proved." Likewise, we cannot resurrect the writing agent to produce new specimens of his or her writing to test against preexisting ones. Nor can we feed graphemes into software to measure probable matches between samples without introducing a discerning human agent to dictate allowable degrees of variation to that very program, concerns that have recently been voiced after an initial period of optimism about the possibilities of automa-tion. 137 All the computer achieves is to render more efficient and consistent-that is, to optimize-judgments that were first made by human estimation, while in the same stroke cloaking the biases of its conclusions in the deceptively neutral format of charts and graphs. 138 Estelle Stubbs acknowledged that "[scribal hand analysis is far from an exact science," yet the inexactitude of it may be counteracted by digital images: "Manipulation of the digitized image presents information difficult to see with the naked eye ... Close encounters with an enhanced digital image makes the detection of idiosyncratic features easier." 139 The word manipulation is key here. Just as photographs of works of art are representations of those works—shaped by the technology that apprehended those works on a photosensitive surface and the human who placed the apparatus at a certain angle, in certain light conditions, and so forth— so too the digital images of manuscripts fed into software are representations of those manuscripts. These digital images are reflective of the moment when they were pro-duced, susceptible to the same prejudices built into the apparatuses that produce them, encouraging of ocular protocols peculiar to those apparatuses, and vulnerable to the hands that maneuver their appearance on a screen. 140
December 25, 2025 at 2:56 AM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
hankgreen.bsky.social
Someone remake “It’s a Wonderful Life” but Mr. Potter believes that hoarding is morally required so he can devote resources to delivering a far future with trillions of humans while George Bailey is like, “Gosh Darnit! What if taking care of people today is what takes care of people in the future?!”
December 25, 2025 at 2:35 AM
jonshaffer.bsky.social
Abductive logic (as opposed to inductive or deductive) is the truly human mode of discovering and making meaning from qualitative data.
jessicacalarco.com Jess Calarco @jessicacalarco.com · 1d
This thread perfectly explains why AI has little value for qualitative research.

Yes, large language models can find patterns in qualitative data. But, they're trained on what we already know. So, they won't find anything surprising. And, surprise is qualitative research's primary value-add.
kevinmkruse.bsky.social Kevin M. Kruse @kevinmkruse.bsky.social · 4d
Absolutely right.

AI might be able to summarize (poorly) what we currently know, but a major goal of historical research is to find the hidden surprises out there.

Let me illustrate …
December 24, 2025 at 10:09 PM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
jakemgrumbach.bsky.social
A legend indeed
TS: Well, I anticipated a lot of what would happen if Trump were reelected, but I did not anticipate the quick acquiescence of almost every American elite sector. The universities are part of a larger story. In many ways, it started with law firms - or you could say it started with the fact that we no longer have corporations so much as we have megalomaniacal multibillionaire tech bros who operate as individuals - sycophants trying to buy their way in. Musk is the most obvious, but they're all that way right now. They're inescapable because they control huge sectors of internet-enabled stuff that everybody needs. In some ways, Musk is the most vulnerable because of Tesla.
December 23, 2025 at 5:42 PM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
iansociologo.bsky.social
Important publication (by @ginnybraun.bsky.social and co-authors) to add to any critical AI reading list.

journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
We Reject the Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence for Reflexive Qualitative Research - Tanisha Jowsey, Virginia Braun, Victoria Clarke, Deborah Lupton, Michelle Fine, 2025
Four hundred and nineteen experienced qualitative researchers from 32 countries invite readers of Qualitative Inquiry to consider their position on use of gener...
journals.sagepub.com
December 23, 2025 at 12:10 PM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
arrianna-planey.bsky.social
Just saw that this article is live (still 'in press'):

Nwadiuko J, Planey AM, Zewde N & Bustamante AV. (2025) GDP per capita and physician migration across world regions, 2000–2021. Globalization & Health

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/41340...
GDP per capita and physician migration across world regions, 2000-2021 - PubMed
GDP per capita and physician migration across world regions, 2000-2021
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
December 23, 2025 at 1:42 PM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
bubbaprog.xyz
The full spiked 60 Minutes CECOT package, clean & subtitled. 1/5
December 23, 2025 at 1:28 AM
jonshaffer.bsky.social
Mannheim Steamroller is cranked on the stereo. Mulled wine heating on the stove.

About to pop on The Holdovers.

You know what time it is.
a man in a blue coat is standing next to a small christmas tree
Alt: a man (the great Paul Giamatti) in a blue coat is standing next to a small christmas tree
media.tenor.com
December 23, 2025 at 12:20 AM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
elizabethjacobs.bsky.social
It is utterly catastrophic that RFK Jr. plans to end CDC recommendations for most childhood vaccines.

It’s a betrayal of science, ethics, compassion, and the people of the United States.

And it was also a specific goal of Project 2025 (page 254).
Screenshot from project 2025 that says By statute or regulation, CDC guidance must be prohibited from taking on a prescriptive character. For example, never again should CDC officials be allowed to say in their official capacity that school children "should be" masked or vaccinated (through a schedule or otherwise) or prohibited from learning in a school building. Such decisions should be left to parents and medical providers. We have learned that when CDC says what people "should" do, it readily becomes a "must" backed by severe punishments, including criminal penalties. CDC should report on the risks and effectiveness of all infectious disease-mitigation measures dispassionately and leave the "should" and "must" policy calls to politically accountable parties. Conflicts of Interest. There was a time when the CDC could not take money
December 20, 2025 at 12:50 AM
jonshaffer.bsky.social
“In democratic countries, knowledge of how to combine is the mother of all other forms of knowledge; on its progress depends that of all the others.”

― Alexis de Tocqueville
December 18, 2025 at 10:12 PM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
dieworkwear.bsky.social
A story I found about Haiti:

In 1999, a group of Haitians were tired of political disorder and dreamed of a better life in the United States. So they built a small, 23-foot boat by hand using pine trees, scrap wood, and used nails. They called the boat "Believe in God."
Some photos of Haitians running in the streets. There's smoke in the background. It looks like political disorder. A Haitian man stands next to a wall with some barbed wire behind him. The original Magnum caption said the man felt Haiti was a prison and he dreamed of making it to the United States. He wanted to be a rapper. Some men take a break from building a boat. A boat sets sail far off into the distance.
December 18, 2025 at 2:43 AM
jonshaffer.bsky.social
You can quote me:

Fuck all AI bullshit.
December 18, 2025 at 1:41 AM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
scoiattolo.mountainherder.xyz
The Vanity Fair photographer knew what he was doing. (I doubt I’m the first to notice this but it hasn’t graced my TL)
Side-by-side black and white headshot photographs of two men, likely from the mid-20th century. One is Stephen Miller. The Other is Goebbels
December 18, 2025 at 1:11 AM
jonshaffer.bsky.social
"Some people love trees and others love fish. But if tree people and fish people can’t work together and think the other camp is wrong and feel misunderstood by each other, then we miss the point."

wagingnonviolence.org/2025/12/mars...
Veteran organizer Marshall Ganz sees a path to power under Trump
The lifelong organizer diagnoses how we hit rock-bottom and identifies where we must go next, citing the Mamdani campaign as a model.
wagingnonviolence.org
December 18, 2025 at 12:56 AM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
tamkay.bsky.social
Great work @jonshaffer.bsky.social. This kind of research is so critical.
December 18, 2025 at 12:45 AM
jonshaffer.bsky.social
New article in Contemporary OB/GYN covering our paper in @jamahealthforum.com showing that restrictive abortion laws without health exceptions are associated with increased EMTALA violations.

Article: www.contemporaryobgyn.net/view/restric...

Our JAMA paper: jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Restrictive abortion laws linked to increased EMTALA violations | Contemporary OB/GYN
In a recent study, states enforcing abortion bans without health exceptions saw significant increases in obstetric-related EMTALA violations.
www.contemporaryobgyn.net
December 18, 2025 at 12:38 AM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
eric-reinhart.com
As I wrote today for The Guardian, this despicable move coincides with Harvard's firing of Mary Bassett at Larry Summers' behest, after which Alan Garber––who oversaw that––has now been rewarded with an appointment as permanent president of Harvard.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
December 17, 2025 at 3:49 PM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
lilymasonphd.bsky.social
New post-doc position working with me in a new lab at @snfagora.bsky.social ! It's one year appointment, renewable for up to 5 years. The position includes data analysis and independent research, mentorship of lab members, and participation in SNF Agora Institute life.

apply.interfolio.com/178796
Apply - Interfolio {{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio
apply.interfolio.com
December 16, 2025 at 8:08 PM
Reposted by Jon Shaffer
gavinyamey.bsky.social
Unforgivable. And standing next to him when he made the recommendation were 2 fawning physicians, Drs Makary & Bhattacharya, who were smiling obsequiously—serving their anti-vaccine master as always.
ryanmarino.bsky.social Ryan Marino, MD @ryanmarino.bsky.social · 10d
The Health Secretary of the United States instructed the US Food & Drug Administration to recommend AGAINST COVID vaccines for people who are or could be pregnant. That recommendation leads to severe illness and premature birth.
drianweissman.bsky.social Ian Weissman, DO @drianweissman.bsky.social · 10d
A new study says the COVID-19 vaccine protects pregnant women from getting severely ill or giving birth prematurely.
www.ctvnews.ca/vancouver/ar...
December 16, 2025 at 12:03 PM
jonshaffer.bsky.social
🙏🏻🙏🏻
mayasen.bsky.social Maya Sen @mayasen.bsky.social · 11d
Predicting that some universities will soon pledge to provide AI-free instruction, and that this will be an advantage in recruiting and training top students
egojunk.bsky.social eric gonzalez juenke @egojunk.bsky.social · 11d
Nothing will make you an education AI skeptic faster than grading some college take home assignments. Admins who haven’t been in a classroom in years push it as a learning tool. Students are laughing at them as they use it as a cheating tool. It’s all instructors are texting about with each other.
December 14, 2025 at 8:02 PM
jonshaffer.bsky.social
Love to all my Jewish friends. Love to all my higher ed comrades and friends at Brown.

Get rid of all of the guns.
December 14, 2025 at 12:34 PM