Robin L Turner
@robinlturnerphd.blacksky.app
Mostly a reskeeter. tradition, gender, land tenure, and resource politics in Southern Africa. I block would be followers without profiles.
Reposted by Robin L Turner
This looks like an incredible opportunity! Black Spatial Relics 2025 Culture Council Funds - funding for Black gathering spaces that center cultural organizing - www.blackspatialrelics.org/conjurecounc... #BlackSky #SFF #QueerCommons
November 10, 2025 at 8:05 PM
This looks like an incredible opportunity! Black Spatial Relics 2025 Culture Council Funds - funding for Black gathering spaces that center cultural organizing - www.blackspatialrelics.org/conjurecounc... #BlackSky #SFF #QueerCommons
Reposted by Robin L Turner
Yes! And to build on this, there are often times I start writing something and by the end I have problematized my own argument to the point where I have talked myself out of it.
And that is very annoying but also a sign that the writing is doing its job
And that is very annoying but also a sign that the writing is doing its job
This. Especially because I believe that writing is thinking (for me). I don’t want to lose that.
What people do not do, they often lose the ability to do. Which is sometimes fine! In my own life, I don’t have any great need to know how to do some of the math I once learned. But I don’t want to forget how to write.
November 8, 2025 at 1:39 PM
Yes! And to build on this, there are often times I start writing something and by the end I have problematized my own argument to the point where I have talked myself out of it.
And that is very annoying but also a sign that the writing is doing its job
And that is very annoying but also a sign that the writing is doing its job
Reposted by Robin L Turner
You cannot run the basic infrastructures of a functioning society- healthcare to education-on systems that cut out human empathy & negotiation. So we have to reassert over and over again that the problems aren’t glitches or errors—even big ones. The problems are fundamental, systematic, endemic.
November 8, 2025 at 1:54 AM
You cannot run the basic infrastructures of a functioning society- healthcare to education-on systems that cut out human empathy & negotiation. So we have to reassert over and over again that the problems aren’t glitches or errors—even big ones. The problems are fundamental, systematic, endemic.
Reposted by Robin L Turner
Identifying flaws in GenAI unfortunately offers a pretext for claims that perfecting the product is just a matter of time & money. So pointing to chatbots’ role in,say, suicides can only go so far if we don’t also identify the systemic, irresolvable lack of Gen AI’s human commitment bc math has none
November 8, 2025 at 1:51 AM
Identifying flaws in GenAI unfortunately offers a pretext for claims that perfecting the product is just a matter of time & money. So pointing to chatbots’ role in,say, suicides can only go so far if we don’t also identify the systemic, irresolvable lack of Gen AI’s human commitment bc math has none
Reposted by Robin L Turner
When I told a French colleague about the student debt crisis in the US, his response was something like, “oh, they designed that to make it impossible to protest, because everyone will be in debt to the system.”
November 9, 2025 at 8:58 PM
When I told a French colleague about the student debt crisis in the US, his response was something like, “oh, they designed that to make it impossible to protest, because everyone will be in debt to the system.”
Reposted by Robin L Turner
Call the United States Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and they will connect you with your senator's office.
If you're represented by one of the squishier centrists, be sure to make a call. Now.
If you're represented by one of the squishier centrists, be sure to make a call. Now.
Sounds like the squishes in the senate caucus are ready to pull the plug with no ACA changes. This is real. If you want to register your opinion you shld call yr senator in the next hour. They not only want to reopen w/nothing. They want cover from their colleagues who still want to hold out.
November 9, 2025 at 8:47 PM
Call the United States Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and they will connect you with your senator's office.
If you're represented by one of the squishier centrists, be sure to make a call. Now.
If you're represented by one of the squishier centrists, be sure to make a call. Now.
Reposted by Robin L Turner
Republicans are for “state’s rights” when that means promoting segregation and tormenting LGBTQ folks.
When state’s rights means feeding your state’s residents, they are all in for the federal government ensuring starvation.
When state’s rights means feeding your state’s residents, they are all in for the federal government ensuring starvation.
The US Department of Agriculture has ordered that "states must immediately undo any steps taken to issue full SNAP benefits for November 2025".
November 9, 2025 at 7:15 PM
Republicans are for “state’s rights” when that means promoting segregation and tormenting LGBTQ folks.
When state’s rights means feeding your state’s residents, they are all in for the federal government ensuring starvation.
When state’s rights means feeding your state’s residents, they are all in for the federal government ensuring starvation.
Reposted by Robin L Turner
Reductions in Force not required by shutdowns, have never happened in any previous shutdown, and a judge has ruled they are illegal.
The shutdown is an excuse, not a reason, for them to do what they wanted to do: destroy government.
The shutdown is an excuse, not a reason, for them to do what they wanted to do: destroy government.
Lee Zeldin announces on Fox that there will be "severe" layoffs at the EPA if the shutdown continues
November 9, 2025 at 3:28 PM
Reductions in Force not required by shutdowns, have never happened in any previous shutdown, and a judge has ruled they are illegal.
The shutdown is an excuse, not a reason, for them to do what they wanted to do: destroy government.
The shutdown is an excuse, not a reason, for them to do what they wanted to do: destroy government.
Reposted by Robin L Turner
$1.99 ✦ Forbidden by Beverly Jenkins
When they first meet, he finds her passed out in the Nevada desert. She's a cook headed to California with dreams of opening her own restaurant.
Historical Romance (MF) amzn.to/4hQdRFQ
When they first meet, he finds her passed out in the Nevada desert. She's a cook headed to California with dreams of opening her own restaurant.
Historical Romance (MF) amzn.to/4hQdRFQ
Forbidden (Old West Book 1)
amzn.to
November 9, 2025 at 4:39 PM
$1.99 ✦ Forbidden by Beverly Jenkins
When they first meet, he finds her passed out in the Nevada desert. She's a cook headed to California with dreams of opening her own restaurant.
Historical Romance (MF) amzn.to/4hQdRFQ
When they first meet, he finds her passed out in the Nevada desert. She's a cook headed to California with dreams of opening her own restaurant.
Historical Romance (MF) amzn.to/4hQdRFQ
Reposted by Robin L Turner
the only time the filibuster has ever been used to protect a particular interest of a set of states is to kill anti-lynching and civil rights legislation. that's it.
November 8, 2025 at 10:14 PM
the only time the filibuster has ever been used to protect a particular interest of a set of states is to kill anti-lynching and civil rights legislation. that's it.
Reposted by Robin L Turner
What's happening in Sudan is horrific and deserves more of our attention.
“We're seeing a level of proliferation of bodies & body piles from space that's unlike anything I've ever seen…”
Human rights investigator Nathaniel Raymond explains how more people could be killed within a week in Sudan, compared to the past two years in Gaza.
🔗 zeteo.com/p/sudans-dea...
Human rights investigator Nathaniel Raymond explains how more people could be killed within a week in Sudan, compared to the past two years in Gaza.
🔗 zeteo.com/p/sudans-dea...
November 9, 2025 at 7:43 PM
What's happening in Sudan is horrific and deserves more of our attention.
Reposted by Robin L Turner
Two things:
The federal government is starving the public but plans to buy warehouses for mega detention centers.
The plan is for detention centers to be run and staffed by the government. We can’t limit our critiques of the prison industrial complex to privatization!
apple.news/A-w34SnpqSzq...
The federal government is starving the public but plans to buy warehouses for mega detention centers.
The plan is for detention centers to be run and staffed by the government. We can’t limit our critiques of the prison industrial complex to privatization!
apple.news/A-w34SnpqSzq...
'Mega detention centers': ICE considers buying large warehouses to hold immigrants — NBC News
The Trump administration is exploring a plan to buy warehouses designed for companies like Amazon, sources said, which would drastically increase the Trump administration’s capacity for detaining immi...
apple.news
November 9, 2025 at 7:43 PM
Two things:
The federal government is starving the public but plans to buy warehouses for mega detention centers.
The plan is for detention centers to be run and staffed by the government. We can’t limit our critiques of the prison industrial complex to privatization!
apple.news/A-w34SnpqSzq...
The federal government is starving the public but plans to buy warehouses for mega detention centers.
The plan is for detention centers to be run and staffed by the government. We can’t limit our critiques of the prison industrial complex to privatization!
apple.news/A-w34SnpqSzq...
Reposted by Robin L Turner
Last night, the Trump Administration sent a letter suggesting Wisconsin should return our FoodShare payments.
My response ⬇️
My response ⬇️
November 9, 2025 at 5:05 PM
Last night, the Trump Administration sent a letter suggesting Wisconsin should return our FoodShare payments.
My response ⬇️
My response ⬇️
Reposted by Robin L Turner
There is always money for the consultants. No matter how much “austerity.” Always always always.
"Outsourcing our flagship state university’s future to drop-in budget consultants is not the way forward" -- Jeffrey Dudas, President of UConn AAUP @uconnaaup.bsky.social
Opinion: UConn's administration should consult its own experts
Genuine collaboration and shared governance - not outside consultants - should guide the decisions of a major university.
ctmirror.org
November 9, 2025 at 5:58 PM
There is always money for the consultants. No matter how much “austerity.” Always always always.
Reposted by Robin L Turner
frame: smart glasses are just like an iPhone
negation: no, they're different in important ways
kirby: THIS IS A SURVEILLANCE TOOL. THEY WANT TO NORMALIZE CONSTANT SURVEILLANCE. they are making a bad faith comparison bc they want to move the boundaries of acceptable behavior
negation: no, they're different in important ways
kirby: THIS IS A SURVEILLANCE TOOL. THEY WANT TO NORMALIZE CONSTANT SURVEILLANCE. they are making a bad faith comparison bc they want to move the boundaries of acceptable behavior
while i appreciate @404media.co explaining this, if you ever find yourself explaining to someone why smart glasses recording people is different from a smartphone, i think you have to consider that they're playing with you, and you're playing back in turn.
November 5, 2025 at 4:07 PM
frame: smart glasses are just like an iPhone
negation: no, they're different in important ways
kirby: THIS IS A SURVEILLANCE TOOL. THEY WANT TO NORMALIZE CONSTANT SURVEILLANCE. they are making a bad faith comparison bc they want to move the boundaries of acceptable behavior
negation: no, they're different in important ways
kirby: THIS IS A SURVEILLANCE TOOL. THEY WANT TO NORMALIZE CONSTANT SURVEILLANCE. they are making a bad faith comparison bc they want to move the boundaries of acceptable behavior
Reposted by Robin L Turner
The question journalists need to be asking is: WHY is the government trying this?
It’s because they want to control universities in unlawful ways that courts will not allow; it’s not working; so they’re trying to get universities to sign up “voluntarily” for unlawful levels of government control.
It’s because they want to control universities in unlawful ways that courts will not allow; it’s not working; so they’re trying to get universities to sign up “voluntarily” for unlawful levels of government control.
October 3, 2025 at 8:41 PM
The question journalists need to be asking is: WHY is the government trying this?
It’s because they want to control universities in unlawful ways that courts will not allow; it’s not working; so they’re trying to get universities to sign up “voluntarily” for unlawful levels of government control.
It’s because they want to control universities in unlawful ways that courts will not allow; it’s not working; so they’re trying to get universities to sign up “voluntarily” for unlawful levels of government control.
Reposted by Robin L Turner
i made a template you can use to think about what "frame/negation/kirby" looks like for other issues.
For example:
Frame: DOGE is a govt efficiency project to save $
Negation: Actually it made things less efficient and cost $
Kirby: DOGE was a project to break and privatize federal bureaucracy
For example:
Frame: DOGE is a govt efficiency project to save $
Negation: Actually it made things less efficient and cost $
Kirby: DOGE was a project to break and privatize federal bureaucracy
September 25, 2025 at 8:23 PM
i made a template you can use to think about what "frame/negation/kirby" looks like for other issues.
For example:
Frame: DOGE is a govt efficiency project to save $
Negation: Actually it made things less efficient and cost $
Kirby: DOGE was a project to break and privatize federal bureaucracy
For example:
Frame: DOGE is a govt efficiency project to save $
Negation: Actually it made things less efficient and cost $
Kirby: DOGE was a project to break and privatize federal bureaucracy
Reposted by Robin L Turner
It's actually not swindling to tell people what they want to hear if you actually intend on doing those things. Swindling would be something like, just for example, announcing a fake Hyperloop system solely to kill California's high speed rail initiative.
November 8, 2025 at 11:57 AM
It's actually not swindling to tell people what they want to hear if you actually intend on doing those things. Swindling would be something like, just for example, announcing a fake Hyperloop system solely to kill California's high speed rail initiative.
Reposted by Robin L Turner
The world has focused on Zohran Mamdani, for VERY good reason. 🙌🏼
But don’t forget- he’s not the only one.👊🏼
Mayor Brandon Johnson of Chicago is on 🔥….
Much like Mamdani, he is focused on the right thing- affordability.
And fighting ICE.
We love him 💙 &
@jbpritzker.bsky.social
& @katmabu.bsky.social
But don’t forget- he’s not the only one.👊🏼
Mayor Brandon Johnson of Chicago is on 🔥….
Much like Mamdani, he is focused on the right thing- affordability.
And fighting ICE.
We love him 💙 &
@jbpritzker.bsky.social
& @katmabu.bsky.social
November 7, 2025 at 9:47 PM
The world has focused on Zohran Mamdani, for VERY good reason. 🙌🏼
But don’t forget- he’s not the only one.👊🏼
Mayor Brandon Johnson of Chicago is on 🔥….
Much like Mamdani, he is focused on the right thing- affordability.
And fighting ICE.
We love him 💙 &
@jbpritzker.bsky.social
& @katmabu.bsky.social
But don’t forget- he’s not the only one.👊🏼
Mayor Brandon Johnson of Chicago is on 🔥….
Much like Mamdani, he is focused on the right thing- affordability.
And fighting ICE.
We love him 💙 &
@jbpritzker.bsky.social
& @katmabu.bsky.social
Reposted by Robin L Turner
It was punk, metal and hip hop
Punk was hella mixed and queer
Metal was defiant
Hip hop was Black
Planet killing chatbot is billionaires toys so it’s coo
Punk was hella mixed and queer
Metal was defiant
Hip hop was Black
Planet killing chatbot is billionaires toys so it’s coo
40 years ago we’d have congressional hearings falsely accusing metal bands of putting backwards messages in their songs that told kids to kill themselves & now we have a planet-killing chatbot that’s all like “bet you won’t commit suicide chickenshit bitch” & the government is like here’s $5 billion
November 8, 2025 at 7:45 PM
It was punk, metal and hip hop
Punk was hella mixed and queer
Metal was defiant
Hip hop was Black
Planet killing chatbot is billionaires toys so it’s coo
Punk was hella mixed and queer
Metal was defiant
Hip hop was Black
Planet killing chatbot is billionaires toys so it’s coo
Reposted by Robin L Turner
Axios tried to bust James Talarico for following adult content creators on Instagram and I'm genuinely impressed by his campaign's response
November 8, 2025 at 4:09 PM
Axios tried to bust James Talarico for following adult content creators on Instagram and I'm genuinely impressed by his campaign's response
Reposted by Robin L Turner
The writer for the New York Times hack piece that this article describes is Jeremy Peters , who organized writers against criticisms by colleagues who were trans and gender non conforming by lithub.com/maybe-dont-t...
Maybe Don’t Talk to the New York Times About Zohran Mamdani
It’s remarkable, the people you’ll hear from. Teach for even a little while at an expensive institution—the term they tend to prefer is “elite”—and odds are that eventually someone who was a studen…
lithub.com
November 8, 2025 at 11:42 PM
The writer for the New York Times hack piece that this article describes is Jeremy Peters , who organized writers against criticisms by colleagues who were trans and gender non conforming by lithub.com/maybe-dont-t...
Reposted by Robin L Turner
me yesterday: look, Chuck Schumer is an incompetent dipshit, but somehow he’s played the shutdown semi-functionally because his opponents are even stupider
today: you fool, you idiot, Chuck Schumer has only appeared vaguely competent because his caucus actively revolted
should have known better
today: you fool, you idiot, Chuck Schumer has only appeared vaguely competent because his caucus actively revolted
should have known better
SCOOP: Schumer was more involved than reported with the attempted cave on the government shutdown. The Gang of 8 Senate Dems had his approval & he was getting daily updates.
In Thursday's caucus meeting, the Gang claimed they had 10 votes to cave. The caucus went nuts, leading to the new proposal.
In Thursday's caucus meeting, the Gang claimed they had 10 votes to cave. The caucus went nuts, leading to the new proposal.
Why Does Schumer Keep Trying to Cave? - The American Prospect
Most commentators, including me, concluded that the Tuesday election victory saved Democrats from capitulating to Republican demands to pass a simple continuing resolution to re-open the government, i...
prospect.org
November 9, 2025 at 12:46 AM
me yesterday: look, Chuck Schumer is an incompetent dipshit, but somehow he’s played the shutdown semi-functionally because his opponents are even stupider
today: you fool, you idiot, Chuck Schumer has only appeared vaguely competent because his caucus actively revolted
should have known better
today: you fool, you idiot, Chuck Schumer has only appeared vaguely competent because his caucus actively revolted
should have known better
Reposted by Robin L Turner
A Sharon Begley byline, almost 5 years after her death.
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA who died Thursday at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers.
www.statnews.com
November 8, 2025 at 1:39 PM
A Sharon Begley byline, almost 5 years after her death.
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
Reposted by Robin L Turner
According to the Observer--"To earn the full award, Musk must turn Tesla into a multi-trillion-dollar A.I. powerhouse while delivering millions of vehicles, bots and robotaxis."
Ain't NONE of that happening. Folks refuse to buy Tesla's now out of spite, and that's not changing any time soon.
Ain't NONE of that happening. Folks refuse to buy Tesla's now out of spite, and that's not changing any time soon.
November 8, 2025 at 7:27 PM
According to the Observer--"To earn the full award, Musk must turn Tesla into a multi-trillion-dollar A.I. powerhouse while delivering millions of vehicles, bots and robotaxis."
Ain't NONE of that happening. Folks refuse to buy Tesla's now out of spite, and that's not changing any time soon.
Ain't NONE of that happening. Folks refuse to buy Tesla's now out of spite, and that's not changing any time soon.