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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 1d

Insert the "Don't let me leave" clip from Interstellar here

Old facebook status from october 2012 saying "First paper for Medieval Europe done, feel pretty good about this whole "being a history major" thing, definitely worth it."

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Reposted by Jon Dell Isola

Josh Marshall @joshtpm.bsky.social · 1d

Here's my take on Vought's mass layoffs announcement talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/new-m...

New Mass Layoffs?

You’ve probably seen that Russ Vought went on Twitter today and said...

talkingpointsmemo.com

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 2d

Incredible commitment to the bit here

McSweeney's @mcsweeneys.net · 2d

"When they fought, the Vikings fought hahd! N’ some’ah the ones that got the most famous fahr fightin’ the fuckin’ hahdest were the Varangians who fought in Constantinople befoh r’it turned intah a Turkish caliphate ah whatevah." #LeifEriksonDay

A Short History of the Varangian Guard for Bostonians

Art by Matt Smith - - -Now, evuhryone knows that the Vikings were some sehriously hahdco’ah fuckin’ fightahs. ’Cept most’ah ’em actually didn’t go...

buff.ly

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 2d

When cultural products become homogenized, this is how people will think -> Broadway signifies a specific aesthetic, so every show should be similar. Every movie is a Marvel movie, etc.

Lux "Nightmare" Alptraum @luxalptraum.com · 3d

TFW you paid $1400 to see Beckett’s most famous work without knowing anything about it

One Star Review of Waiting for Godot on Broadway
I recently attended Waiting for Godot on Broadway and spent over $1,400 for two Row C seats (103 and 104). I'm a longtime admirer of Broadway productions and even hold a season pass for Shea's Performing Arts Theatre, so I came in with genuine enthusiasm and high expectations. Unfortunately, this show was unlike anything ! have ever experienced —and not in a good way.
What I encountered was not the artistry, music, or emotional storytelling I usually associate with Broadway, but instead what felt like an endless cycle of nonsensical conversation between characters who seemed trapped in their own madness. I tried-truly tried-to find meaning, symbolism, or even a thread of emotional resonance. I stayed through the first half hoping the second would offer clarity. But by intermission, it was clear: this was a waste of both time and money.
Keanu Reeves is an actor I respect greatly, but I cannot fathom why he would agree to participate in such a disjointed, inaccessible production. His talent was lost in a performance that defied reason rather than provoked insight.
To anyone considering attending: unless you are drawn to highly abstract, nearly incomprehensible theater, I strongly caution you against this show. For the average, educated, thoughtful theatergoer, it is far more frustrating than fulfilling. In my opinion, this was the single most disappointing Broadway experience I've ever had - an unfortunate waste of money and, more importantly, of time.

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 2d

"we are sold the myth that the language of legality is preferable to the language of morality because it is impartial and fixed"

Thinking about the central message in The Great Silence, where the villain kills an entire room of people and others, but who "legally" doesn't commit any crimes

Sam Bagenstos @sbagen.bsky.social · 3d

You should totally read this Joseph Margulies piece in @bostonreview.bsky.social on the moral harms that arguments about legality can obscure: www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...

The Moral Stupefaction of the American Public - Boston Review

Trump’s actions are illegal, yes. Worse than that, they are wrong—precisely what the legality debate is meant to obscure.

www.bostonreview.net

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 3d

Most of my professional connections and opportunities have come from medieval Twitter and then bluesky

Conrad Hackett @conradhackett.bsky.social · 3d

Has anything great happened in your life because of social media?

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 3d

- let me cut this down so it is well under the limit
- 30 seconds to spare

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Reposted by Jon Dell Isola

David M. Perry @lollardfish.bsky.social · 3d

Pre-order The Public Scholar here. Pay zero shipping from @bookshop.org.

I tried to write it real good for you!

bookshop.org/p/books/the-...

The Public Scholar: A Practical Handbook

A Practical Handbook

bookshop.org

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 3d

Sad to have left the wonderful MGH library but I am glad to be back home after more than two months away. My first stop is maybe a Mexican place, or perhaps a really good steak and cheese sub

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 3d

I would actually broaden this to most "elites" at any task. Ive met brilliant people in a given field that have no personality at all. Its the way that hyperspecialization robs us and why I always encourage grad students especially to take time doing stuff besides work

Denny Carter @dennycarter.bsky.social · 3d

People raised from birth to be elite athletes have basically zero human experience outside of training for their sport. They don't read anything, they don't have any outside interests. They are essentially robots. It's why there are zero interesting pro athletes, and probably never will be.

patchcat @patchcat.social · 3d

Connor McDavid also has the personality of a slice of Wonder bread. He’s marginally more interesting than Trout, but not by much.

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 3d

Fascinating if depressing

Drew Engelhardt @amengel.bsky.social · 3d

Construction of Confederate Monuments in the South reduced lynching. Removal in recent years increased anti-Black hate crimes. Generally, paper makes the case that symbols, like monuments, can substitute for other actions, like violence, that inform racial order.

www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

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Reposted by Jon Dell Isola

jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 5d

anyway, looking forward to bari weiss restoring “trust in news” where “trust in news” means pumping out propaganda for your oligarch boss

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 9d

Every day I see my future recede further and further

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 9d

Just fundamentally no reason to engage with negotiations with a president who doesn't believe Democrats are legitimate members of US society.

Politico @politico.com · 9d

Trump has said he’ll meet with Vought to decide which “Democrat Agencies” to cut as the shutdown continues.

Trump to talk with Vought about which ‘Democrat Agencies’ should be cut

Vought told House Republicans on Wednesday that mass firings would kick off “in a day or two.”

www.politico.com

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 10d

I use this a lot, its an incredibly useful database

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 11d

"Dems need to turn down the temperature"

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 11d

Trump to generals: "America is under invasion from within. We're under invasion from within. No different than a foreign enemy, but more difficult in any ways because they don't wear uniforms. At least when they're wearing a uniform you can take them out."

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 11d

Pretty much this entire government operates with the understanding of a 7 year old

Kevin M. Kruse @kevinmkruse.bsky.social · 11d

Hegseth is on an extended riff about how "war" is a better word than "defense" and it's like listening to a 7-year-old

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 11d

They are calling it the most NYT sentence of all time

JVG 骨 @jasonv.bsky.social · 11d

Absolute all-timer sentence in today's @nytimes.com

"some legal experts have called it a crime to summarily execute civilians" says today's New York Times, continuing their long tradition of whitewashing fascism

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 12d

I think we need a moratorium on people using "bend the knee", pack it up

Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 13d

Fully convinced Sunday is now the best time to be on this site, because 80%+ of my feed is just NFL shitposting instead of the HorrorsTM

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 13d

I don't think we need to "ask two people who work on escalators" about this

Norman Rockwell's Freedom of Speech painting

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 13d

New post is up, wrapping up my time in Munich and offering some thoughts on the relationship between charters, their production, and royal interests #medievalsky

Archives are Fun (and Sometimes Frustrating): The Munich Finale Post

I only have a few more days left in Munich, where I have been conducting research at the Monumenta Germaniae Historica. The MGH library is world class, and the idea of not having access to it is despa...

among-the-ruins.ghost.io

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 16d

I keep Facebook around mainly for the Seinfeld group

Scene from Seinfeld of Kramer pointing to his head while saying to George: "Rapture? Up here, I'm already gone."

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 17d

As usual very good. Once again Linz' "Perils of Presidentialism" is too relevant

jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 17d

to me, the “column” is less a form than an opportunity (and a challenge). you’re telling me i have as much space as i’d like to make an argument about anything i’d like to an audience inclined to pay close attention? well let’s see if they’ll read 2000 words on democratic legitimacy. (gift link)

Opinion | This Is About So Much More Than Lisa Cook

www.nytimes.com

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Jon Dell Isola @medievaljon.bsky.social · 17d

Talking to a friend last night about what I was up to once I get back to the US, I realized I have a book proposal, 3 articles, a conference roundtable and moderating another panel, as well as a planned working group/mini conference. I may not have an academic job, but I am still in that world

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