Graham Sanders (he/him)
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gmsprof.bsky.social
Graham Sanders (he/him)
@gmsprof.bsky.social
410 followers 180 following 220 posts
Professor of classical Chinese literature at the University of Toronto, among other pursuits.

若復不為無益之事則安能悅有涯之生？“Without trivial pursuits, how can we enjoy a life that must end?”
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gmsprof.bsky.social
This #poem came up during my grad seminar on Tang #poetry, and I decided to take a crack at a #translation. Han Yu (768–824) was fond of writing in a looser ancient style, but this piece is a rare example of his using the later regulated style of four couplets of five-syllable lines.
October 17, 2025 at 5:27 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
I found a break from the bleakness in this #poem: “The City Limits” by AR Ammons (1926–2001).

consider the radiance...
...each is accepted into as much light as it will take

#poetry #solace #light
The City Limits A. R. Ammons 1926–2001 When you consider the radiance, that it does not withhold itself but pours its abundance without selection into every nook and cranny not overhung or hidden; when you consider that birds’ bones make no awful noise against the light but lie low in the light as in a high testimony; when you consider the radiance, that it will look into the guiltiest swervings of the weaving heart and bear itself upon them, not flinching into disguise or darkening; when you consider the abundance of such resource as illuminates the glow-blue bodies and gold-skeined wings of flies swarming the dumped guts of a natural slaughter or the coil of shit and in no way winces from its storms of generosity; when you consider that air or vacuum, snow or shale, squid or wolf, rose or lichen, each is accepted into as much light as it will take, then the heart moves roomier, the man stands and looks about, the leaf does not increase itself above the grass, and the dark work of the deepest cells is of a tune with May bushes and fear lit by the breadth of such calmly turns to praise. From The Selected Poems: 1951-1977, Expanded Edition, W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. Copyright © 1986 by A. R. Ammons.
March 2, 2025 at 7:54 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
Oops. That cocktail picture came out blurry. Here is a better version...
February 25, 2025 at 3:51 AM
gmsprof.bsky.social
Somehow, Aparna Halpé always pulls together the best looks from wildly disparate elements. The woman has #style. You can come see her and @solidaridadtango.bsky.social play at Drom Taberna in Toronto, today at 3–5pm. Fantastic live #tango #music, food, and drink. Would love to see you there!
Beautiful Sri Lankan woman dressed in funky clothes and boots, wearing a Betty Boop tie, holding a black carbon fibre violin, standing in a sunlit room on a snowy winter's day.
February 23, 2025 at 4:53 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
Oh crap. I responded to this email to jam the signal. Does that mean I'm hired?
February 23, 2025 at 3:32 AM
gmsprof.bsky.social
February 23, 2025 at 3:28 AM
gmsprof.bsky.social
February 23, 2025 at 3:27 AM
gmsprof.bsky.social
Elon Musk instructed federal workers to summarize their weekly accomplishments in an email, a tactic he previously used to downsize staff at X.

“Please reply to this email with approximately five bullet points of what you accomplished this week and CC your manager.”

You know what to do...
February 23, 2025 at 3:20 AM
gmsprof.bsky.social
A very #Canadian picture

#Canada will not be part of the #USA
Shot of a hockey fan from behind watching a Canada v USA hockey game, wearing a red and white toque and a red jersey with white lettering spelling “NEVER 51”.
February 22, 2025 at 4:30 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
A red MAGA baseball cap, emblazoned with the words “Make America 2nd Greatest Again”.
February 22, 2025 at 5:41 AM
gmsprof.bsky.social
Typically #Canadian #winter weather has returned and, with it, typically Canadian winter #parking techniques.

This particular maneuver is known as the...

“Fuck it, eh? I'm leaving it here and grabbing a beer and watching the game.”

#Canada
A snowy street in downtown Toronto. An SUV has created a parking space by pulling halfway up onto a tall snowbank, tilting the car drastically to one side.
February 22, 2025 at 3:57 AM
gmsprof.bsky.social
“One day, my father took me up one of the towers and he pointed at the slums below. He said, ‘It is an accident of birth: you could’ve been there, or you could’ve been here. Use your life to make a difference. Because, being in a position of privilege, you have a duty to lift others up.’” —Asma Khan
Screen capture from an episode of the TV show Chef's Table, featuring London-based Indian chef Asma Khan. It shows her standing in front of and contemplating the ruins of her family's ancestral fortress in India.
February 14, 2025 at 9:38 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
I couldn’t resist turning those words of wisdom turning into a 👕...
A light blue t-shirt, with an icon of someone shushing, and the words: I want you to shush your mouth. You are not the President. You need to go away.
February 14, 2025 at 12:45 AM
gmsprof.bsky.social
#Wendigo is the perfect #Anishnaabe word for #broligarchy #billionaires

SOURCE: sleepopolis.com/education/sl...
An eerie image showing a humanoid monster with the head of a stag and burning eyes emerging from a misty nighttime forest. The caption reads: Legend has it that the Wendigo was a lost hunter. Facing starvation during a brutally cold winter, his intense hunger drove him to the taboo of all taboos—cannibalism. Shortly after feasting on human flesh, the man transformed into a beast-like creature, destined to roam the frozen forests in search of people to eat, never to be satisfied. SOURCE: https://sleepopolis.com/education/sleep-myths-the-wendigo/
February 12, 2025 at 9:30 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
#TARIFFS = SALES #TAX = SHIFTING TAX BURDENS FROM THE #WEALTHY TO EVERYONE ELSE

#broligarchy #swindle
TARIFFS = SALES TAX = SHIFTING TAX BURDENS FROM THE WEALTHY TO EVERYONE ELSE So, I think I finally have this tariff thing worked out and realize why some might consider it “the most beautiful word in the English language”… 1. Under a progressive income tax system, the wealthiest income earners (at least the ones who don’t hide their income offshore to evade taxes) will naturally pay the most taxes, as it should be. BUT 2. If you want to lower the tax rates for those wealthy people, and by law you have to account for that drop in revenue by cutting costs and increasing revenue elsewhere in the government, THEN 3. You can slash government programs that help all the people who are not rich, while being careful not to touch programs that benefit the billionaires who have contracts with the government, AND 4. Raise revenues from tariffs on imported goods, which will ultimately be paid for by US consumers, hitting those with the least money the hardest because they can’t afford for the cost of living to rise (unlike billionaires, who won’t notice). The added bonus (if your wealthy) is that all that tariff revenue raised on the backs of US consumers flooding into the US treasury will be controlled by the billionaires and their friends who are now running the country.
February 12, 2025 at 8:59 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
Aparna and I just completed this #translation of a #Chinese #poem written 1,800 years ago by Cao Zhi (192–232) 曹植. He was a prince and a younger brother of Cao Pi 曹丕 (187–226), Emperor Wen (r. 220–226) of the Wei dynasty 魏文帝, who suspected that his many princely brothers were plotting against him.
“A Poem for Prince Biao of Baima” by Cao Zhi (192–232), Prince Si of Chen In the first month of the fourth year of the Huangchu reign (223 CE), [my brothers], the Prince of Baima and the Prince of Rencheng, and I went to pay court [to our elder brother the emperor] at the seasonal assembly in the capital. After we arrived in Luoyang, the Prince of Rencheng met his demise. In the seventh month, I set out with the Prince of Baima to go back to our principalities, but then an official in charge deemed it more judicious for the two of us to stop and lodge separately on our return journey. I despise this in my thoughts. As we are likely to part forever in a matter of days, I bare my heart in bidding farewell to the Prince, and compose these verses in my indignation. From the Imperial Hall of Receiving Light I depart for my homeland At dawn, I leave the Royal City at dusk, I pass Shouyang Yi and Luo are wide and deep without a bridge to cross I sail my boat upon the waves resenting that long east road With yearning, I gaze back at the towers craning my neck, I’m wounded. The valley before me is vast and wide lush mountain trees grey-green Steady rain muddies my road water rushes everywhere At the crossroads, no tracks are left I turn to higher ground An unending slope to cloud and sun my horse is weary and worn. Weary and worn, but pressing on my thoughts tangled and twisted Tangled and twisted, on whom do I dwell? Dear brother parted from me We planned to make our way together were forced apart mid-journey Horned owls screech from the carriage yoke dholes and wolves block the way Swarms of flies turn white to black slander separates kin I seek to return, but the path is gone I pull the reins and falter. Why do I falter and linger here? Unceasing thoughts of you Autumn winds stir a chill cicadas sing by my side Empty meadows, gloom and bleakness the bright sun flees to the west The homing bird flies to tall woods flapping and beating its wings The lonely beast looks for its herd with grass in mouth, it bolts Feeling their plight wounds my heart I strike my chest, sigh deeply. Such deep sighs, what can I do when Heaven turns fate against me? Tis pointless to dwell on my dead brother when his like will never return. His lonely soul haunts his homeland his coffin rests in the city We who remain will quickly pass bodies decaying in death A person holds but one brief life is gone with the morning dew My years grow dim in mulberry and elms shadows and echoes escape me I regard myself, not metal nor stone oh, my heart in sorrow. My heart in sorrow rouses my spirit begone with this, no more! A great man’s will spans four oceans ten thousand li is near A bond of love that remains undimmed grows stronger from afar Must we share a quilt and curtain to show our true affection? A fretful love that makes one ill is merely the care of children Yet how can such strife with kin not make me bitter with woe? What thoughts may come from bitter woe but doubt of Heaven’s fate? Vain it is to seek the Immortal when long he has cheated me A life can change in but a minute who can grasp its span? Thus parted, never more to meet when will I clasp your hand? Cherish your jade frame well, my prince may we see our silver years I gather my tears on this long road and say farewell with this brush. translated by Graham Sanders and Aparna Halpé © 2025
February 11, 2025 at 11:22 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
#Snow day at last!
February 9, 2025 at 1:05 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
Get a load of the school motto...
Crest in gold for the Alice Independent School District, with the motto underneath, reading “It Starts with ME! I Matter!”
February 6, 2025 at 5:27 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
“If it doesn’t affect my children, then why should I care? Besides, those children deserve to be harassed because of who they are.”
A letter from the Alice Independent School District in Texas, USA, which reads: February 5, 2025 Dear Parents and Guardians, We want to bring to your attention an important matter regarding student travel for extracurricular activities, including sports, band, and other co-curricular events. We have received information that U.S. Border Patrol agents may be boarding school buses at highway checkpoints in and out of the Valley to question students about their citizenship status. We strongly encourage families to be aware of the potential implications of these encounters. If a student is found to be without proper documentation, they may be removed from the bus, detained, and possibly deported under current immigration policies. Additionally, if a student provides false information regarding their citizenship and it is later discovered, this could result in a permanent bar to future U.S. citizenship. To ensure that families are fully informed, we are reviewing our student travel waivers and may include language advising parents of this possibility. Furthermore, we are considering additional measures, such as having a designated chaperone vehicle travel with school buses. In the event that a student is detained, a school administrator in the chaperone vehicle would be able to stay with the student while the rest of the group continues their journey. We understand that this information may be concerning, and we are committed to supporting our students and families through these changes. If you have any questions or would like to discuss this matter further, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. Thank you for your attention to this important matter. The clause “while the rest of the group continues their journey” is highlighted in green and indicated with a red arrow, labeled “How fascism gains a foothold.”
February 6, 2025 at 5:27 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
cont...
Here, too, Mr Musk seems to be applying lessons from his takeover of Twitter, where a small group of trusted acolytes combed through records such as the company's Slack channels and email accounts to decide whom to fire. Yet the federal government is a much larger beast than Twitter, which at its peak had just 6,500 workers. And Mr Musk has been touching some extremely sensitive parts of it. On January 31st it emerged that David Lebryk, a senior career Treasury official, retired after clashing with officials from DOGE. They may have obtained access to the government payments system, which pays the government's bills and makes almost 90% of its bank transfers. Mr Musk suggested in a tweet that he has direct control, claiming that his team is "rapidly shutting down" government payments to contractors. On his midnight X talk, he claimed that a large share of government spending is being stolen by charities. Already some with government contracts-to ferry elderly patients to medical appointments, for example-report that payments they expected have not turned up. Is any of this legal? The belated appointment of Mr Rubio as acting administrator of USAID suggests a recognition that agencies established by Congress cannot simply be shut down by fiat. Meanwhile, laws about the handling of government data remain in force. Few legal experts think that the offer of "deferred resignation" is legal. Nick Bednar, of the University of Minnesota's law school, notes that there are laws for severance packages for federal workers-and they cap payments at $25,000. Mr Musk's deferred-resignation offer would also seem incompatible with laws intended to reduce waste and corruption, says Mr Bednar. Workers who accept the offer-which has a deadline of February 6th-"could very much be left high and dry", he adds. Lawsuits are being filed, and a few workers are resisting forced downsizing. But protest has been notably limited. On February 3rd, as USAID's Washington office was shut down, a few demonstrators milled outside. One, Kristina Drye, a USAID speechwriter, says that she "signed a contract to serve the American people" and, despite getting the email, decided to go into the office anyway. She retrieved some books, as well as a pair of beloved high heels. She says she does not expect to ever go back in. What Mr Musk is doing is "sheer, blatant disregard" for important work, she says. For now, nobody is stopping him.
February 4, 2025 at 3:52 AM
gmsprof.bsky.social
The #Economist has been documenting the #coup in action. (I screen capped the article for those who don’t have access.)

#Musk #DOGE #broligarchs #vandals
United States | The Twitter playbook Elon Musk is shredding America's government like he did Twitter Some of his operatives are barely out of their teens PHOTOGRAPH: AP JUST PAST midnight on February 3rd, Elon Musk appeared on X to J explain what he is doing to the federal government. He had to speak over the patter of his four-year-old son, also called X. The bureaucracy, Mr Musk argued, constitutes "a fourth branch of government" which is "arguably the most powerful branch." He then came to the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which he denounced as little more than a device to funnel taxpayers' money to Marxists and criminals. He had, he claimed, the full support of Donald Trump and is "shutting it down", notwithstanding that the agency's existence is mandated by Congress. Later he posted that he had spent the weekend "feeding USAID into the woodchipper". Even as Mr Musk was speaking, workers at USAID's headquarters in Washington were being told not to come in the next day. Some 600 of the agency's staff seem to have been locked out of their emails. That followed a weekend in which the agency's website went offline; its X feed was deleted; and workers from Mr Musk's new government unit, the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, reportedly tried to enter the agency and were initially stopped by senior staff from downloading classified data. Later on February 3rd Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, announced he had been made acting head of the agency while it faces "reorganisation". The takedown of USAID is the most dramatic example of what seems to be Mr Musk's plan for the whole of government. It is drawn from his playbook as a corporate boss. Just over two years ago Mr Musk took over Twitter in a messy $44bn deal. Within a few months, much of which he spent at the company's headquarters in San Francisco, he had reduced headcount by around four-fifths. A third of the staff accepted buyouts; many of the rest were fired. They included senior executives who were sacked instantly to stop their stock options vesting. Every decision, such as those about which Twitter accounts to ban, was put directly into Mr Musk's hands. Now he is trying to do the same thing with over 2m federal employees, in an attempt to cut $1trn-more than half of all discretionary spending-out of the federal budget. It is, says Donald Kettl, of the School of Public Policy at the University of Maryland, like nothing that has ever happened before. "On a scale of one to ten, this is about 145. It's so far off the charts," he says. Richard Nixon was the most recent American president to govern as if the laws of the land did not apply to him, but "this is far beyond anything that Nixon even attempted". The first hints of Mr Musk's seriousness came on January 28th, when more than 2m federal employees were sent an email by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the closest thing the government has to a human-resources department. The message offered "deferred resignation". It had the subject line "fork in the road", the same as in the email sent to Twitter employees when Mr Musk took over there. Lots of federal employees have been sent two more emails affirming the offer since. One went out to air-traffic controllers less than a day after a plane crash in Washington, DC, which has raised questions about short-staffing at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. DOGE is technically embedded in the US Digital Service, an organisation created by Barack Obama to spread the use of new technology across government. But DOGE seems to be an entirely new thing. Many of its employees seem to be junior workers pulled in very recently from Mr Musk's many private firms. Their names have not been made public. But Wired, a magazine, has identified six engineers now working with DOGE. The one who sent the email shutting down USAID, Gavin Kliger, graduated from high school in 2017. The youngest of the six, Edward Coristine, is 19; his relevant work experience consists of a few months interning at Neuralink, Mr Musk's brain-implant firm. On his now-deleted LinkedIn profile, he took the moniker "bigballs". These engineers-and it is unclear how many more there may be-now seem to be able to enter just about any government building they like. They have apparently installed sofa beds in the office of the OPM. Under an executive order that Mr Trump signed on his first day in office, they are promised "full and prompt access to all unclassified agency records, software systems, and IT systems." Some DOGE workers may also have been issued interim "Top Secret" clearances, which would allow them access to classified data. Government employees in various agencies report that staffers from DOGE are turning up at their offices, plugging in servers and running "code reviews". In the past week many government websites have gone offline, including vital ones, like that of the Census Bureau. Services like the passport-application website also disappeared. This may be linked to the purging of all "DEIA”-related material. What the DOGE people seem most keen on is access to personnel records and as much information as possible about what employees actually do. According to one civil servant interviewed by DOGE personnel, the questions include, "Which of your colleagues are most expendable?"
February 4, 2025 at 3:52 AM
gmsprof.bsky.social
But, wait, FAUX NEWS says otherwise...
Screen cap of Fox News website, with a picture of Justin Trudeau and Donald Trump and the caption: TRADE WAR WIN Canada blinks, President Trump delays tariffs on northern neighbor for at least 30 days
February 4, 2025 at 3:44 AM
gmsprof.bsky.social
My (not original, but hopefully well-synthesized) take on the ongoing #coup in the #USA right now.
#thiel #yarvin #trump #oligarchy #billionaires
Screen cap of the following social media post: 𝙆𝙉𝙊𝙒 𝙔𝙊𝙐𝙍 𝙀𝙉𝙀𝙈𝙔 The billionaire Peter Thiel (who made his money with PayPal, Facebook, and Palantir) is a big fan of the work of Curtis Yarvin (aka Mencius Moldbug). When Peter Thiel was grooming and funding JD Vance to enter politics, he told him to read Yarvin, and JD obediently started citing him in his interviews. Peter Thiel is famous for trying to start his own libertarian utopias, without success. More than one person has suggested that Thiel might have realized it would be more effective to take over an existing country and reshape it, rather than start a new one from scratch. How committed he is to this goal is anyone’s guess, but there are plenty of Silicon Valley bros who agree with him. They were all on stage at Trump’s inauguration, except for one, who preferred to remain behind the scenes of what amounted to a bloodless coup by billionaires to seize 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘵 control of an entire country. Here is a summary of Yarvin’s main beliefs, based on his work and interviews (see comments for links): 𝗔𝗻𝘁𝗶-𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗰𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘆: Believes democracy is unstable and inefficient, advocating for authoritarian or monarchist systems instead. 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗼𝗰𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗚𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲: Supports rule by a technocratic elite, emphasizing expertise and technology for effective management. 𝗥𝗲𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗺: Critiques progressive ideologies as destructive to tradition, hierarchy, and societal order. 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗛𝗶𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘀: Argues that inequality and hierarchies are natural and necessary for a functional society. 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗾𝘂𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀: Views contemporary institutions (media, academia, government) as corrupt and self-serving, requiring radical reform. Composite photograph of JD Vance, Peter Thiel, and Curtis Yarvin.
February 2, 2025 at 8:10 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
Listen at 3pm (EST) on #CBC 99.1 to hear Aparna Halpé and Orquesta #Solidaridad #Tango on Canadian national #radio (again)!

@cbcradiocanada.bsky.social @solidaridadtango.bsky.social

(link to show in next post)
February 1, 2025 at 5:56 PM
gmsprof.bsky.social
#Tariffs on #Canada by the #USA do not make economic sense for either country, for the reasons I outline below. Why does someone in the #Trump administration think this is a good idea?
A screen-cap of a social media post that reads: THIS IS NOT COMMON SENSE Did you know that Canada is the largest market for US goods in the world? We import twice as much from the US as China does. Did you know that Canada accounts for 14% of all foreign direct investment in the US, second only to Japan (15%)? 🍁 Once oil imports are excluded, the US runs a trade surplus with Canada on goods. 🍁 Trade figures often do not include all the US services (especially digital and media ones) that Canada purchases from the US, which generate a huge surplus for the US. 🍁 Only 1% of incidents of US border control stopping people from entering occur at the border with Canada. 🍁 In 2024, just 19.5kg of fentanyl was seized at the northern border of the US, compared with 9,750kg at the southwestern border. 🍁 Despite the above two points, Canada has agreed to spend $1.3-billion on enhanced border security. So, why is the Trump administration insisting on moving forward on tariffs that will only raise prices in the US for businesses and consumers and will severely damage the Canadian economy and the livelihoods of millions of Canadians? We are an ally.
February 1, 2025 at 2:51 PM