by my tally we are now spending ~$2B to companies to NOT build more energy infrastructure. in the middle of an energy crisis

Authoritarian personality cult watch

FWIW, the OPEC article Jeff links to is one of my favorite ones to teach for both grads and undergrads. Had a former undergrad this week ask hopefully if I still included it in my IPE syllabus, which I do. Great to teach research design, need to test “common sense,” role of beliefs, and oil politics

Since I’m in the middle of writing a final exam question based on your article, @jeffcolgan.bsky.social, I’m eager to hear your take on this! United Arab Emirates Says It Will Leave OPEC in Blow to Oil Cartel www.nytimes.com/2026/04/28/w...

Silly soldier. Insider trading is only for those at the top of the chain of command (and his family and BFFs).

I said this exact thing about bad student research. The ones really winning from AI are the bad researchers and writers who don’t use AI, because I give them so much more credit now!

Check it out, @sarahkbowen.bsky.social .

I think hardcore AI proponents fail to reckon with the speed at which this particular industrial revolution is happening. Yes, we’ve come thru industrial revolutions before. But this one is happening at super-computer speed, not spinning jenny speed. And that matters for disruption. 1/2

If your party leaders are worried by the news of a Hungarian autocrat’s electoral shellacking, it says a lot about your party.

Orban crushed. Very good news for not only Hungary, but Europe — and all of us, in terms of global resistance to the far right

Here’s what to know: “the Trump administration and the Kremlin” are rooting for the same guy.

The President of the US is openly threatening genocide. Really praying there are some leaders high up in the military command who have the legal and ethical fortitude to resist this.

Teaching students to ask a question, find and consider evidence, and craft and clearly articulate an argument is at the core of all teaching. It is a slow, messy, non-linear process, but a skill that can be taught. AI short circuits that learning. As Karamanis writes, failure is the curriculum.

How great is the war going? So great we don’t even need an Army Chief of Staff, that’s how great.

In what world is it okay for the Defense Secretary to make multi-million dollar investments in defense companies: a) Ever; b) In the run-up to starting a war in the Middle East FT has the scoop: www.ft.com/content/744e... In a functional democracy, he would offer his resignation tonight.

Alt headline: Stephen Miller wonders why Texas is passing up chance to create a still larger permanent underclass of black and brown people.

There’s a lot of good evidence that this administration is corrupt to its core.

I wasn’t affiliated with V-Dem but I spent a year as a Fulbright scholar with the @qoginstitute.bsky.social housed in the same dep’t. What a remarkable place to do a postdoc! Collegial and intellectually stimulating atmosphere. And Gothenburg is a fun place to live! If you’re on the fence, apply!

From @investopedia.com: “Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said in his semiannual testimony before the U.S. Senate Banking Committee in March 2022 that every $10 per barrel increase in the price of crude oil raises inflation by 0.2% and sets back economic growth 0.1%.”

It’s hard to keep up with all of the craziness at this moment. But can we pause for a moment to imagine how loud the calls for impeachment would have been had Michelle Obama or Jill Biden been asked to preside over a UN Security Council meeting?

The ghouls pushing AI tools with no ethical guardrails will be thrilled to see their technology creating a permanent underclass that has been robbed of the ability to think systematically and critically.

A war of Trump’s own making. Look at this chart and then look at those pictures of a girls’ school that we’ve destroyed.

No coverage of this war should exclude this context. Ideally it would be upfront. Trump decided, contrary to evidence, that the JCPOA was bad. And now we’re at war.

Regret to inform you that @matthewdownhour.bsky.social is still correct

Make Anti-Trust Great Again.

Once again, in actual democracies, people do not need to engage in permanent litigation & political mobilization to retain the basic right to vote, because none of the major political parties make restricting suffrage the central pillar of their policy platform. We also don't have to live like this.

Pretty surprised to hear Theda Skocpol on NPR this morning talk about Larry Summers’ long overdue retirement as a loss. Good to be part of the club, I guess.

No honor among thieves.

Looking forward to the research that comes out of this! elpais.com/espana/2026-...

FYI, Academia.edu has changed its terms of service to give an irrevocable worldwide license for anything uploaded to its site to be used for generative AI. I do not consent to this and have pulled all my papers.

Looking forward to reading this and maybe buying a few copies for my local city councilors and county commissioners.

There’s an awful lot of snowflakes in Texas for a state that gets no snow.

I truly love teaching this book, @rgalemba.bsky.social! I’ve taught it 4 times now in my grad seminar on illicit economies. Each time I get something new. Each time it really draws my students in and masterfully turns their expectations about smuggling upside down. @stanfordpress.bsky.social

This seems of massive significance to me. They may not be doing it for the reasons I think they should but the fact "95% of UK card transactions are made using payment systems owned by Mastercard & Visa" is a market-domination, national security problem that should've been addressed a long time ago

Co-sign.

We should try to come up with ways to make the ultra-rich contribute to the public goods on which their wealth depends. Any ideas? Anyone? Personally, I’m just stumped. Darn.

“Despite.” What, because we think Steve Bannon is normally the model of strict character standards?

Cautionary tale: I asked Gemini to transcribe a 1-page PDF from The Morning Post from the early 1800s. I was interested in testing its accuracy. It hallucinated a full transcription of book review that doesn't exist and then invented false citations when I asked where the review was from. #AI

Because legally qualified American voters don't want to be harassed and intimidated by masked gunmen as a condition of going to vote. Is that really hard to understand?

It's Mandatory Monday and AI is clearly the future. mandatoryrollercoaster.com/post/8081046...

Seems like “alleged” is a better word than “suspected,” NY Times. Or better yet, “The administration claims without evidence that the people it has killed are smuggling drugs.”

They’re saying very clearly what they plan to do.

These are concentration camps and its our duty as citizens to ensure these things don't get built.

Gonna side with my local theatre on this one. Defund ICE.

This is the 38th time that the U.S. military has unlawfully killed civilians on the orders of Pete Hegseth and Donald Trump. At least 130 people — never charged with crimes, their identities unknown to their executioners — are now dead.

Just had a Super Bowl halftime where the singer: 1) boasts about the poor place he’s from; 2) boosts the value of agriculture; 3) celebrates small town life; 4) highlights the joy of inter-generational celebrations; and 5) promotes marriage. And tomorrow, the MAGA movement will attack it.

Perhaps the best commentary on bitcoin that I’ve seen to-date.

Complicity on the part of NBC.

Clearly symbolism meant to reflect economic anxiety.