Nate Ledbetter
@nhledbetter.bsky.social
ABD, Princeton, East Asian Studies. Instructor, Asian History, Rider University. Perpetually writing my dissertation (warfare in 16th C. Kyushu, Japan). He/Him/あいつ/"That Nagashino Guy." At some point I'll start posting useful stuff here. Maybe.
Pinned
Since I've got double the followers from a week ago, guess it's time for an intro thread. A post per topic I habitually post about:
I'm a PhD candidate at Princeton, very slowly working on a dissertation on 16th C. warfare in southern Japan (centered around the Shimazu family). 1/
I'm a PhD candidate at Princeton, very slowly working on a dissertation on 16th C. warfare in southern Japan (centered around the Shimazu family). 1/
“Enrolling in law school”
Um.
Pete?
Princeton doesn’t have a law school.
Which you should know, Pete.
You went to Princeton.
Um.
Pete?
Princeton doesn’t have a law school.
Which you should know, Pete.
You went to Princeton.
February 13, 2026 at 11:42 PM
“Enrolling in law school”
Um.
Pete?
Princeton doesn’t have a law school.
Which you should know, Pete.
You went to Princeton.
Um.
Pete?
Princeton doesn’t have a law school.
Which you should know, Pete.
You went to Princeton.
Reposted by Nate Ledbetter
"You're going to punch me? yes, you're going to get in trouble for that"
"Okay"
"Okay"
February 13, 2026 at 11:15 PM
"You're going to punch me? yes, you're going to get in trouble for that"
"Okay"
"Okay"
Reposted by Nate Ledbetter
🎯🎯. One of my colleagues turned up in the Epstein files, asking for funding for his “campus rape is just women claiming victimhood, actually.” For more than a decade before Chr sent that email, I begged UT to deal with his vicious harassment of me. They declined.
Eliminating gender studies courses helps to ensure that universities and other institutions will continue to protect men who benefit from the abuse of women and girls, either directly or through their connections to those who exploit girls and women for profit.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Gender studies courses are shutting down across the US. The Epstein files reveal why | Joan Wallach Scott
Texas A&M University is the latest school to end women’s and gender studies programs and teaching race. We know why
www.theguardian.com
February 13, 2026 at 10:19 PM
🎯🎯. One of my colleagues turned up in the Epstein files, asking for funding for his “campus rape is just women claiming victimhood, actually.” For more than a decade before Chr sent that email, I begged UT to deal with his vicious harassment of me. They declined.
Reposted by Nate Ledbetter
Eliminating gender studies courses helps to ensure that universities and other institutions will continue to protect men who benefit from the abuse of women and girls, either directly or through their connections to those who exploit girls and women for profit.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Gender studies courses are shutting down across the US. The Epstein files reveal why | Joan Wallach Scott
Texas A&M University is the latest school to end women’s and gender studies programs and teaching race. We know why
www.theguardian.com
February 13, 2026 at 5:38 PM
Eliminating gender studies courses helps to ensure that universities and other institutions will continue to protect men who benefit from the abuse of women and girls, either directly or through their connections to those who exploit girls and women for profit.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Reposted by Nate Ledbetter
Thomas, none of these words are in the Lotus Sutra.
It is important to go mogging in fleshspace in addition to the internet, but those moids in the wild, y'all, it's crazy out there.
February 13, 2026 at 9:30 PM
Thomas, none of these words are in the Lotus Sutra.
Reposted by Nate Ledbetter
Guillotines are the moderate solution
On Thanksgiving, the immigrant children held at the Dilley detention center gathered in the gym for what they thought was a holiday feast.
The kids salivated over a spread of turkey, sandwiches, pastries and pies, a family told me.
But the food wasn’t for detainees — it was for the staff.
The kids salivated over a spread of turkey, sandwiches, pastries and pies, a family told me.
But the food wasn’t for detainees — it was for the staff.
February 13, 2026 at 8:14 PM
Guillotines are the moderate solution
YAIS
introducing EU regulations requiring Olympic figure skaters to do routines to whatever their country's entry for the most recent Eurovision was
my mom believes that the figure skaters should all have to do routines to their national music, and I DEMAND seeing a Swiss figure skater in lederhosen attempt to do a quad axel to aggressive yodeling
February 13, 2026 at 9:20 PM
YAIS
For the record, I'm 5'10" and a 1/2, thank you.
we’ve narrowed it down to the most average man in the country
February 13, 2026 at 9:16 PM
For the record, I'm 5'10" and a 1/2, thank you.
Reposted by Nate Ledbetter
“Model airplanes,” a thoroughly depressing cartoon from a May 1943 issue of 国民防空
[Child A] “Your airplane flies well.”
Child B] “But it jumped into someone’s garden and won't come back.”
[Child A] “What are you talking about? That’s an excellent suicide attack.”
[Child A] “Your airplane flies well.”
Child B] “But it jumped into someone’s garden and won't come back.”
[Child A] “What are you talking about? That’s an excellent suicide attack.”
February 13, 2026 at 9:13 PM
“Model airplanes,” a thoroughly depressing cartoon from a May 1943 issue of 国民防空
[Child A] “Your airplane flies well.”
Child B] “But it jumped into someone’s garden and won't come back.”
[Child A] “What are you talking about? That’s an excellent suicide attack.”
[Child A] “Your airplane flies well.”
Child B] “But it jumped into someone’s garden and won't come back.”
[Child A] “What are you talking about? That’s an excellent suicide attack.”
The dentist called it "tooth lengthening."
What they really mean is "we're going to saw your gums down."
What they really mean is "we're going to saw your gums down."
February 13, 2026 at 3:48 PM
The dentist called it "tooth lengthening."
What they really mean is "we're going to saw your gums down."
What they really mean is "we're going to saw your gums down."
"because “AI sex” is so much better" = "I don't have to take a computer's feelings and enjoyment and anxieties and comfort into consideration, I can just get off."
This is actually the ONE use-case for AI chatbots I see, because we're all better off if these people can't harm human partners.
This is actually the ONE use-case for AI chatbots I see, because we're all better off if these people can't harm human partners.
Humans have failed each other and flattering chat bots are now preferred companions. Did I tell you that a third-party acquaintance has decided to stop dating because “AI sex” is so much better? I don’t even know what that means.
A genuinely alarming piece in the NYT about how the developers, scientists and assorted techbros behind "AI companions"/"synthetic care" do not even know or understand the potential harms of the tech they're developing but they're too greedy to stop themselves from developing it.
February 13, 2026 at 3:12 PM
"because “AI sex” is so much better" = "I don't have to take a computer's feelings and enjoyment and anxieties and comfort into consideration, I can just get off."
This is actually the ONE use-case for AI chatbots I see, because we're all better off if these people can't harm human partners.
This is actually the ONE use-case for AI chatbots I see, because we're all better off if these people can't harm human partners.
Got the new updated Yakuza 3 Kiwami and so far really liking the changes. Haven't progressed enough to know if That Substory is still in it, but I'm hopeful they killed it. It's not so much a remastering as it is "let's keep the general story, but the reengineer the whole game & substories."
February 13, 2026 at 3:02 PM
Got the new updated Yakuza 3 Kiwami and so far really liking the changes. Haven't progressed enough to know if That Substory is still in it, but I'm hopeful they killed it. It's not so much a remastering as it is "let's keep the general story, but the reengineer the whole game & substories."
Reposted by Nate Ledbetter
I had an email exchange with a guy yesterday who insisted I was making a mistake not outsourcing my writing to an LLM. He said, "It knows more than you do." He couldn't understand that this was impossible because the work of writing is figuring out what "I" think.
February 13, 2026 at 2:29 PM
I had an email exchange with a guy yesterday who insisted I was making a mistake not outsourcing my writing to an LLM. He said, "It knows more than you do." He couldn't understand that this was impossible because the work of writing is figuring out what "I" think.
Except Travis does not know how to be embarrassed, otherwise he wouldn't be Travis.
Clay Travis: “The so-called Epstein victims…”🤔
FRANKLIN, TN-based Clay Travis refers to the survivors as ‘SO-CALLED’
@mikenellis.bsky.social : “This is embarrassing for you.”
@isaiahrmartin.bsky.social : “Wow.”
FRANKLIN, TN-based Clay Travis refers to the survivors as ‘SO-CALLED’
@mikenellis.bsky.social : “This is embarrassing for you.”
@isaiahrmartin.bsky.social : “Wow.”
February 13, 2026 at 2:53 PM
Except Travis does not know how to be embarrassed, otherwise he wouldn't be Travis.
Reposted by Nate Ledbetter
At literally no point in this headline was it possible to predict the next word, 10/10 work
ICYMI: Fukushima's radioactive hybrid terror pig boom was driven by amorous mothers
Fukushima's radioactive hybrid terror pig boom was driven by amorous mothers
Genetic study finds domestic pigs’ year-round breeding sped gene flow into wild boar
Back in 2021, in the thick of pandemic mania, The Register gleefully reported that "radioactive hybrid terror pigs" were thriving in Japan's Fukushima exclusion zone.…
dlvr.it
February 13, 2026 at 1:33 PM
At literally no point in this headline was it possible to predict the next word, 10/10 work
Reposted by Nate Ledbetter
Again, there ought to be a 'war council' of lawyers somewhere in Democratic Party land spending the next three years gaming out the mechanisms by which these goons can be held accountable, so there's a game plan on the table Day One for a new administration with a new attorney general.
February 13, 2026 at 1:41 PM
Again, there ought to be a 'war council' of lawyers somewhere in Democratic Party land spending the next three years gaming out the mechanisms by which these goons can be held accountable, so there's a game plan on the table Day One for a new administration with a new attorney general.
Reposted by Nate Ledbetter
Those interested in Emperor Hirohito and the war may find the March edition of Chuo Koron worthwhile.
chuokoron.jp/chuokoron/la...
chuokoron.jp/chuokoron/la...
中央公論 2026年3月号｜最新号｜中央公論.jp
【 特集 】昭和天皇と戦争──二・二六事件90年の冬 〔対談〕反軍ムード、ポピュ...
chuokoron.jp
February 13, 2026 at 7:49 AM
Those interested in Emperor Hirohito and the war may find the March edition of Chuo Koron worthwhile.
chuokoron.jp/chuokoron/la...
chuokoron.jp/chuokoron/la...
Reposted by Nate Ledbetter
PwC somehow more lucid on AI and education than most university leaders these days
February 13, 2026 at 6:52 AM
PwC somehow more lucid on AI and education than most university leaders these days
Because everything is dumb, they will implement this in the least nuanced, most evil way possible, and my (very white) 2 children born in a US military hospital in Japan will be at risk. Not that whiteness means my kids deserve better than children of color, ofc, just that’s how dumb it all is.
cool, cool. so we are sort of like citizens, but not really?
February 13, 2026 at 12:09 AM
Because everything is dumb, they will implement this in the least nuanced, most evil way possible, and my (very white) 2 children born in a US military hospital in Japan will be at risk. Not that whiteness means my kids deserve better than children of color, ofc, just that’s how dumb it all is.
Reposted by Nate Ledbetter
Apologies to my neighbors, my dogs and anyone who walked past the house as I screamed: ‘I don’t want a fucking app for my fucking hair dryer!!’
February 12, 2026 at 11:55 PM
Apologies to my neighbors, my dogs and anyone who walked past the house as I screamed: ‘I don’t want a fucking app for my fucking hair dryer!!’
Dude at least cite the Imperial Japanese Army for the idea you're stealing.
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 5:50 PM
Dude at least cite the Imperial Japanese Army for the idea you're stealing.
I remember my section at (place) briefing a DoD official once on Japan's "will they or won't they" anxiety over the US honoring the alliance commitments and they couldn't understand why Japan would ever question our commitment.
"lol"
and or
"lmao"
"lol"
and or
"lmao"
Actually there's this from Ambassador Glass in November. But completely undermined by Trump telling Takaichi to tone things down with China
February 12, 2026 at 5:22 PM
I remember my section at (place) briefing a DoD official once on Japan's "will they or won't they" anxiety over the US honoring the alliance commitments and they couldn't understand why Japan would ever question our commitment.
"lol"
and or
"lmao"
"lol"
and or
"lmao"
Who's the most famous alum of your high school?
Todd Grisham, UFC/ESPN announcer (same yr as me)
Brian Patrick Wade, Actor (2 yrs after me)
Kat Cole, Hooters Girl->Hooters EVP->Pres of Cinnabon->CEO of own company (2 yrs after me)
Sahel Kazemi, killed NFL QB Steve McNair in a murder-suicide.
Todd Grisham, UFC/ESPN announcer (same yr as me)
Brian Patrick Wade, Actor (2 yrs after me)
Kat Cole, Hooters Girl->Hooters EVP->Pres of Cinnabon->CEO of own company (2 yrs after me)
Sahel Kazemi, killed NFL QB Steve McNair in a murder-suicide.
Who's the most famous alum of your high school?
I'll go first: David Draiman of Disturbed
I'll go first: David Draiman of Disturbed
guys i just found out i went to the same high school as howard lutnick. please respect my privacy at this time.
February 12, 2026 at 5:13 PM
Who's the most famous alum of your high school?
Todd Grisham, UFC/ESPN announcer (same yr as me)
Brian Patrick Wade, Actor (2 yrs after me)
Kat Cole, Hooters Girl->Hooters EVP->Pres of Cinnabon->CEO of own company (2 yrs after me)
Sahel Kazemi, killed NFL QB Steve McNair in a murder-suicide.
Todd Grisham, UFC/ESPN announcer (same yr as me)
Brian Patrick Wade, Actor (2 yrs after me)
Kat Cole, Hooters Girl->Hooters EVP->Pres of Cinnabon->CEO of own company (2 yrs after me)
Sahel Kazemi, killed NFL QB Steve McNair in a murder-suicide.
THE DOW IS OVER 50,000iii
February 12, 2026 at 3:19 PM
THE DOW IS OVER 50,000iii