Cat Clifford
@catcliff.bsky.social
She/they, English prof, queer ace spinster, early modern drama, NWSL and USWNT fangirl, ultrarunner
*Views are mine, not my employer’s.*
*Views are mine, not my employer’s.*
Reposted by Cat Clifford
I see some book piracy discourse, and, to make a positive argument in favor of buying books, your marginal ability to influence what books get published and support the careers of writers you like is massive compared to most other forms of media.
November 24, 2025 at 5:54 PM
I see some book piracy discourse, and, to make a positive argument in favor of buying books, your marginal ability to influence what books get published and support the careers of writers you like is massive compared to most other forms of media.
Reposted by Cat Clifford
The Walton family (who own Walmart) are worth over $400 billion, yet many of their employees are on SNAP.
Bezos is worth over $400 billion, many Amazon employees require SNAP.
The people who need help are not the problem.
It’s corporate greed. It’s an unwillingness to pay a living wage.
Bezos is worth over $400 billion, many Amazon employees require SNAP.
The people who need help are not the problem.
It’s corporate greed. It’s an unwillingness to pay a living wage.
October 27, 2025 at 9:08 PM
The Walton family (who own Walmart) are worth over $400 billion, yet many of their employees are on SNAP.
Bezos is worth over $400 billion, many Amazon employees require SNAP.
The people who need help are not the problem.
It’s corporate greed. It’s an unwillingness to pay a living wage.
Bezos is worth over $400 billion, many Amazon employees require SNAP.
The people who need help are not the problem.
It’s corporate greed. It’s an unwillingness to pay a living wage.
Reposted by Cat Clifford
This makes a good argument for how REAL reading requires moving beyond "excerpts" and focusing on the organic relation of part to whole: "We need whole texts—novels, plays, or poems—to care about literature." slate.com/life/2025/10...
There’s a Literacy Crisis. One Classroom Solution Should Be Obvious.
You can't get better at reading until you care about a text.
slate.com
October 26, 2025 at 12:06 PM
This makes a good argument for how REAL reading requires moving beyond "excerpts" and focusing on the organic relation of part to whole: "We need whole texts—novels, plays, or poems—to care about literature." slate.com/life/2025/10...
Reposted by Cat Clifford
Happy John Brown’s Raid day to all who celebrate
October 16, 2025 at 7:58 PM
Happy John Brown’s Raid day to all who celebrate
Reposted by Cat Clifford
cry havoc and let slip the frogs of war
October 11, 2025 at 12:32 AM
cry havoc and let slip the frogs of war
Reposted by Cat Clifford
Happy coming out day. I’m a genderqueer biromantic asexual. Most often this is someone’s punchline or ignored entirely, because people assume I am a woman married to a man.
There’s a lot wrong with that assumption and the effects!
But the worst is usually the way people react to the asexuality.
There’s a lot wrong with that assumption and the effects!
But the worst is usually the way people react to the asexuality.
October 11, 2025 at 9:05 PM
Happy coming out day. I’m a genderqueer biromantic asexual. Most often this is someone’s punchline or ignored entirely, because people assume I am a woman married to a man.
There’s a lot wrong with that assumption and the effects!
But the worst is usually the way people react to the asexuality.
There’s a lot wrong with that assumption and the effects!
But the worst is usually the way people react to the asexuality.
Reposted by Cat Clifford
a bunch of insecure, immature men children playing government. i read every single one of their quotes in milhouse's voice and it's never not worked.
September 30, 2025 at 2:25 PM
a bunch of insecure, immature men children playing government. i read every single one of their quotes in milhouse's voice and it's never not worked.
Reposted by Cat Clifford
Little known fact: the original version of 3.6 in Macbeth included lines where the Lord and Lennox talk about that one time Duncan wore a tan suit and how everyone made a big deal about it
September 21, 2025 at 1:09 AM
Little known fact: the original version of 3.6 in Macbeth included lines where the Lord and Lennox talk about that one time Duncan wore a tan suit and how everyone made a big deal about it
Reposted by Cat Clifford
NWSL fans finding out about another new network
September 16, 2025 at 2:31 PM
NWSL fans finding out about another new network
Just thinking about how unhinged this would be in another job.
September 11, 2025 at 5:40 PM
Just thinking about how unhinged this would be in another job.
He’s a walking post hoc fallacy. Just the worst kind of stupid man because he thinks he’s a smart man.
RFK Jr: We had lots of guns when we were kids. Kids brought guns to school and were encouraged to do so. And nobody was walking into schools and shooting people. There are many things that could explain this. One is the dependence on psychiatric drugs.
September 10, 2025 at 1:53 AM
He’s a walking post hoc fallacy. Just the worst kind of stupid man because he thinks he’s a smart man.
Reposted by Cat Clifford
🌟Publication Day!🌟
The Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare and Early Modern Authorship, ed. Rory Loughnane and Will Sharpe
For more details about the book's contents and contributors, see here: global.oup.com/academic/pro...
The Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare and Early Modern Authorship, ed. Rory Loughnane and Will Sharpe
For more details about the book's contents and contributors, see here: global.oup.com/academic/pro...
September 9, 2025 at 10:49 AM
🌟Publication Day!🌟
The Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare and Early Modern Authorship, ed. Rory Loughnane and Will Sharpe
For more details about the book's contents and contributors, see here: global.oup.com/academic/pro...
The Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare and Early Modern Authorship, ed. Rory Loughnane and Will Sharpe
For more details about the book's contents and contributors, see here: global.oup.com/academic/pro...
Reposted by Cat Clifford
A news item on how AI is making college less important for young job seekers. "Universities used to promise that if you do a degree you'll get a job, but-"
No; that's what pols and pundits *demanded* that universities promise. And, now they're run by people who promise this, we see it doesn't work.
No; that's what pols and pundits *demanded* that universities promise. And, now they're run by people who promise this, we see it doesn't work.
August 29, 2025 at 11:48 PM
A news item on how AI is making college less important for young job seekers. "Universities used to promise that if you do a degree you'll get a job, but-"
No; that's what pols and pundits *demanded* that universities promise. And, now they're run by people who promise this, we see it doesn't work.
No; that's what pols and pundits *demanded* that universities promise. And, now they're run by people who promise this, we see it doesn't work.
THIS 💯
One of the skills of a doctor is diagnosis. That skill is rooted in knowledge, attitudes, and habits-of-mind. Automation is an interruptor to the habits-of-mind that allow doctors to do their work. The quest for increased efficiency in this case is actually a block on an important practice.
August 28, 2025 at 10:04 PM
THIS 💯
Reposted by Cat Clifford
Transgender studies professor Dr. Susan Stryker tears Gavin Newsom a new one while accepting the Transgender Legacy Award from the California state legislature 🔥🔥🔥 @susanstryker.bsky.social
August 25, 2025 at 10:20 PM
Transgender studies professor Dr. Susan Stryker tears Gavin Newsom a new one while accepting the Transgender Legacy Award from the California state legislature 🔥🔥🔥 @susanstryker.bsky.social
The most annoying thing about AI to me right now as a person working in higher ed is how much brain space I have to devote to dealing with it. I just want to read and write things myself! Let me live!!
"Dude. A.I. is inevitable. Get over it."
1. No it isn't.
2. Even if it were? I'd still say "Fuck A.I." and refuse to interact with it. I will lock myself off to modern media in a heartbeat if it becomes truly unsvoidable. I have YEARS of shit to catch up on.
3. Grow a fucking backbone.
1. No it isn't.
2. Even if it were? I'd still say "Fuck A.I." and refuse to interact with it. I will lock myself off to modern media in a heartbeat if it becomes truly unsvoidable. I have YEARS of shit to catch up on.
3. Grow a fucking backbone.
August 20, 2025 at 3:09 PM
The most annoying thing about AI to me right now as a person working in higher ed is how much brain space I have to devote to dealing with it. I just want to read and write things myself! Let me live!!
Reposted by Cat Clifford
My job as a professor is not to create a serviceable worker. My job is to help foster thoughtful citizens or community members.
If that sounds fanciful it’s bc corporate interests have spent decades framing how we talk about education so they don’t take the heat for immiserating labor conditions.
If that sounds fanciful it’s bc corporate interests have spent decades framing how we talk about education so they don’t take the heat for immiserating labor conditions.
Do not accept the premise that education is to blame for abysmal jobs outcomes.
“The fantasy economy's framing of economic inequality… focuses exclusively on education…deflects attention away from decades of public policies and changing business practices that have…contributed to stagnating wages”
“The fantasy economy's framing of economic inequality… focuses exclusively on education…deflects attention away from decades of public policies and changing business practices that have…contributed to stagnating wages”
August 18, 2025 at 5:48 PM
My job as a professor is not to create a serviceable worker. My job is to help foster thoughtful citizens or community members.
If that sounds fanciful it’s bc corporate interests have spent decades framing how we talk about education so they don’t take the heat for immiserating labor conditions.
If that sounds fanciful it’s bc corporate interests have spent decades framing how we talk about education so they don’t take the heat for immiserating labor conditions.
Reposted by Cat Clifford
hey dude, I noticed you attempting to carve a small space for joy in the face of overwhelming sadness. kind of problematic considering all the horrors
October 14, 2024 at 8:52 PM
hey dude, I noticed you attempting to carve a small space for joy in the face of overwhelming sadness. kind of problematic considering all the horrors
"We've been so good at imperialism abroad that now we need to bring it home" is quite the argument
Comer: "We're gonna support doing this in other cities if it works out in Washington DC. We spend a lot on our military. Our military has been in many countries around the world for the past two decades walking the streets trying to reduce crime. We need to focus on the big cities in America now."
August 14, 2025 at 3:55 PM
"We've been so good at imperialism abroad that now we need to bring it home" is quite the argument
Reposted by Cat Clifford
If I have to explain to you why it's a bad idea to use a machine that makes shit up 15-80% of the time AND destroys the environment AND contributes to rising fascism and genocide AND puts brilliant skillful creatives out of work by stealing their work, then we're already speaking different languages
August 6, 2025 at 1:01 AM
If I have to explain to you why it's a bad idea to use a machine that makes shit up 15-80% of the time AND destroys the environment AND contributes to rising fascism and genocide AND puts brilliant skillful creatives out of work by stealing their work, then we're already speaking different languages
Reposted by Cat Clifford
Maybe the men could shut the hell up about women's sports. We don't need your input.
“I think most reasonable people would recognize that there are serious fairness issues if you just treat this as not mattering when a trans athlete wants to compete in women’s sports.” — Pete Buttigieg
Craven shit.
Craven shit.
July 30, 2025 at 6:18 PM
Maybe the men could shut the hell up about women's sports. We don't need your input.
Reposted by Cat Clifford
t's amazing how this is from more than 20 years ago but very well could have been from today.
July 28, 2025 at 8:44 PM
t's amazing how this is from more than 20 years ago but very well could have been from today.
Reposted by Cat Clifford
Hey, did you know there's an alternative to ChatGPT that makes sense economically and doesn't destroy the environment?
It's called English majors and they will happily fix all of your documents for the low price of health insurance and a living wage.
It's called English majors and they will happily fix all of your documents for the low price of health insurance and a living wage.
April 14, 2025 at 9:12 PM
Hey, did you know there's an alternative to ChatGPT that makes sense economically and doesn't destroy the environment?
It's called English majors and they will happily fix all of your documents for the low price of health insurance and a living wage.
It's called English majors and they will happily fix all of your documents for the low price of health insurance and a living wage.
Reposted by Cat Clifford
I love when people are like "AI will replace writers because writing is low-grade/meaningless/unskilled work" but then are like "I can't write a whole paper because that's hard." Like girl which is it.
July 24, 2025 at 6:57 PM
I love when people are like "AI will replace writers because writing is low-grade/meaningless/unskilled work" but then are like "I can't write a whole paper because that's hard." Like girl which is it.