Phil Dorroll
@phildorroll.bsky.social
Religious Studies professor in South Carolina; research on Islamic and Orthodox Christian theology in Turkish and Arabic; supports 🇺🇦
Pinned
Phil Dorroll
@phildorroll.bsky.social
· Dec 16
I made a starter pack for specialists in Eastern Christian Studies- check it out, share with others, and let me know who else to add!
go.bsky.app/8a9jSuF
go.bsky.app/8a9jSuF
Every day on social media for the past decade thousands of people, including many academics, have offered comments about authoritarianism, democratic backsliding, etc.
Nate is one of the very, very few people who have actual expertise in this topic, based on years of experience and research.
Nate is one of the very, very few people who have actual expertise in this topic, based on years of experience and research.
Glad to speak with @theguardian.com along with other experts about authoritarianism in America: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
American democracy on the brink a year after Trump’s election, experts say
Scale and speed of president’s moves have stunned observers of authoritarian regimes – is the US in democratic peril?
www.theguardian.com
January 21, 2026 at 4:40 PM
Every day on social media for the past decade thousands of people, including many academics, have offered comments about authoritarianism, democratic backsliding, etc.
Nate is one of the very, very few people who have actual expertise in this topic, based on years of experience and research.
Nate is one of the very, very few people who have actual expertise in this topic, based on years of experience and research.
Reposted by Phil Dorroll
Glad to speak with @theguardian.com along with other experts about authoritarianism in America: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
American democracy on the brink a year after Trump’s election, experts say
Scale and speed of president’s moves have stunned observers of authoritarian regimes – is the US in democratic peril?
www.theguardian.com
January 21, 2026 at 4:21 PM
Glad to speak with @theguardian.com along with other experts about authoritarianism in America: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
“Across disciplines and institutional types, faculty express deep concern about the consequences of widespread use of GenAI…95 percent of respondents believe these tools will increase students’ overreliance on artificial intelligence, with three-quarters saying that impact will be substantial. (1/3)
January 21, 2026 at 2:37 PM
“Across disciplines and institutional types, faculty express deep concern about the consequences of widespread use of GenAI…95 percent of respondents believe these tools will increase students’ overreliance on artificial intelligence, with three-quarters saying that impact will be substantial. (1/3)
The website with the storytelling musicologist is a perfect description of this place (laudatory)
Bluesky is owned by musicology now, I don’t make the rules
January 21, 2026 at 3:02 AM
The website with the storytelling musicologist is a perfect description of this place (laudatory)
Reposted by Phil Dorroll
It’s come to this: “Catholic members of the US armed forces could in good conscience consider disobeying orders to attack Greenland if such orders were issued, according to Archbishop Timothy Broglio, the bishop responsible for the pastoral care of US military personnel.”
Military archbishop: Troops could refuse orders on Greenland
Speaking to Britain's Sunday program on BBC, Archbishop Timothy Broglio reiterated that conscience could permit refusal of an unjust military order.
aleteia.org
January 20, 2026 at 1:24 AM
It’s come to this: “Catholic members of the US armed forces could in good conscience consider disobeying orders to attack Greenland if such orders were issued, according to Archbishop Timothy Broglio, the bishop responsible for the pastoral care of US military personnel.”
Reposted by Phil Dorroll
I think a good strategy for your non-leftist social media presence (ie everywhere but here) is to give this photo - the remains of Danish soldiers returning in coffins after being killed in America's war in Afghanistan - as wide an audience as possible. Remind people who we're betraying
January 19, 2026 at 4:32 PM
I think a good strategy for your non-leftist social media presence (ie everywhere but here) is to give this photo - the remains of Danish soldiers returning in coffins after being killed in America's war in Afghanistan - as wide an audience as possible. Remind people who we're betraying
Reposted by Phil Dorroll
Footage shows Danish troops arriving in Greenland as part of a new military deployment. Among the personnel who landed on the island is Major General Peter H. Boysen, Chief of the Danish Army Command. #Greenland
January 19, 2026 at 10:01 PM
Footage shows Danish troops arriving in Greenland as part of a new military deployment. Among the personnel who landed on the island is Major General Peter H. Boysen, Chief of the Danish Army Command. #Greenland
Reposted by Phil Dorroll
Quinnipiac Poll, Jan 8-12 - poll.qu.edu/poll-release...
January 20, 2026 at 12:15 AM
Quinnipiac Poll, Jan 8-12 - poll.qu.edu/poll-release...
American voters are morally responsible for how we treat other nations bc we live in a democracy that commands the most powerful military in history.
There is no excuse for shirking this responsibility, and it’s ridiculous to deride other nations’ citizens for demanding that we take it seriously.
There is no excuse for shirking this responsibility, and it’s ridiculous to deride other nations’ citizens for demanding that we take it seriously.
love to get a spirited defense of sneering condescension from a canadian (not even in europe nobody is talking to you)
January 19, 2026 at 9:52 PM
American voters are morally responsible for how we treat other nations bc we live in a democracy that commands the most powerful military in history.
There is no excuse for shirking this responsibility, and it’s ridiculous to deride other nations’ citizens for demanding that we take it seriously.
There is no excuse for shirking this responsibility, and it’s ridiculous to deride other nations’ citizens for demanding that we take it seriously.
Some personal favorites
January 19, 2026 at 9:10 PM
Some personal favorites
Reposted by Phil Dorroll
“The three highest-ranking Roman Catholic clerics who lead archdioceses in the United States said in a strongly worded statement on Monday that America’s ‘moral role in confronting evil around the world’ is in question for the first time in decades.”
Gift link below:
Gift link below:
Top Catholic Clerics Denounce U.S. Foreign Policy
www.nytimes.com
January 19, 2026 at 5:40 PM
“The three highest-ranking Roman Catholic clerics who lead archdioceses in the United States said in a strongly worded statement on Monday that America’s ‘moral role in confronting evil around the world’ is in question for the first time in decades.”
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This is absolutely true, the majority of Americans don’t, and it’s making me feel crazy
like i feel like Yanks do not get how utterly batshit the moment we are currently in is
the issue here is that the EU is currently looking to see if anyone in the US opposition is actually capable of, you know, assisting them against being economically coerced, you know?
January 19, 2026 at 5:23 AM
This is absolutely true, the majority of Americans don’t, and it’s making me feel crazy
“…at least 16,500 protesters have died and 330,000 have been injured…Most of the victims are thought to have been younger than 30.”
Far worse than the Rabaa massacre by Al-Sisi in 2013, and even the Hama massacre by Hafiz al-Assad in 1982.
Far worse than the Rabaa massacre by Al-Sisi in 2013, and even the Hama massacre by Hafiz al-Assad in 1982.
Iran report says 16,500 dead in ‘genocide under digital darkness’
Witnesses tell of the brutality inflicted on those taking part in anti-regime protests
www.thetimes.com
January 19, 2026 at 1:50 AM
“…at least 16,500 protesters have died and 330,000 have been injured…Most of the victims are thought to have been younger than 30.”
Far worse than the Rabaa massacre by Al-Sisi in 2013, and even the Hama massacre by Hafiz al-Assad in 1982.
Far worse than the Rabaa massacre by Al-Sisi in 2013, and even the Hama massacre by Hafiz al-Assad in 1982.
Europe is now caught between two Russias.
WELKER: Is Greenland or NATO more vital to natl security?
BESSENT: That's obviously a false choice
W: Not to European leaders
B: They will come around & understand they need to be under the US security umbrella. What would happen in Ukraine if the US pulled support? The whole thing would collapse
BESSENT: That's obviously a false choice
W: Not to European leaders
B: They will come around & understand they need to be under the US security umbrella. What would happen in Ukraine if the US pulled support? The whole thing would collapse
January 18, 2026 at 3:15 PM
Europe is now caught between two Russias.
Reposted by Phil Dorroll
Iranian official says verified deaths in Iran protests reaches at least 5,000 reut.rs/3ZiPI21
Iranian official says verified deaths in Iran protests reaches at least 5,000
An Iranian official in the region said on Sunday the authorities had verified at least 5,000 people had been killed in protests in Iran, including about 500 security personnel, blaming "terrorists and armed rioters" for killing "innocent Iranians".
reut.rs
January 18, 2026 at 9:30 AM
Iranian official says verified deaths in Iran protests reaches at least 5,000 reut.rs/3ZiPI21
You could unironically call this The Clash within Civilizations
i think, however, this is a crystal clear example that the next cold war is actually democracy vs autocracy and the battle lines run right through every single advanced democracy. there aren't really any safe harbors.
January 17, 2026 at 9:17 PM
You could unironically call this The Clash within Civilizations
Reposted by Phil Dorroll
A devout seminary graduate, trusted by a top bishop. His friend, a theologian and choirman. Both arrested on absurd charges, tortured, and now face 20 years. Their crime? Being Orthodox men of Ukrainian heritage who questioned the war. (1/6)
January 17, 2026 at 7:22 PM
A devout seminary graduate, trusted by a top bishop. His friend, a theologian and choirman. Both arrested on absurd charges, tortured, and now face 20 years. Their crime? Being Orthodox men of Ukrainian heritage who questioned the war. (1/6)
Reposted by Phil Dorroll
Wow, sure would be pretty crazy if a ton of experts in the artificial intelligence field relentlessly warned everyone about this state of affairs being inevitable over and over for years.
January 17, 2026 at 11:38 AM
Wow, sure would be pretty crazy if a ton of experts in the artificial intelligence field relentlessly warned everyone about this state of affairs being inevitable over and over for years.
Reposted by Phil Dorroll
BREAKING: A full-scale airlift is running around the clock, transporting troops and military equipment to Greenland.
The operation is extensive, “beyond anything we’ve tried before,” a source tells DR. Danish F-35 fighter planes and warships from European allies involved.
www.dr.dk/nyheder/indl...
The operation is extensive, “beyond anything we’ve tried before,” a source tells DR. Danish F-35 fighter planes and warships from European allies involved.
www.dr.dk/nyheder/indl...
Stor operation i gang: Fly strømmer til Grønland med europæiske soldater
I flere døgn har militære transportfly fløjet i pendulfart mellem Danmark og Grønland. Fredag aften landede et stort antal soldater i Nuuk.
www.dr.dk
January 16, 2026 at 7:10 PM
BREAKING: A full-scale airlift is running around the clock, transporting troops and military equipment to Greenland.
The operation is extensive, “beyond anything we’ve tried before,” a source tells DR. Danish F-35 fighter planes and warships from European allies involved.
www.dr.dk/nyheder/indl...
The operation is extensive, “beyond anything we’ve tried before,” a source tells DR. Danish F-35 fighter planes and warships from European allies involved.
www.dr.dk/nyheder/indl...
Yep! This has been driving me crazy for over a year! I cannot for the life of me understand the contemporary media’s overriding fixation on technique and near total neglect of moral obligation.
January 16, 2026 at 7:51 PM
Yep! This has been driving me crazy for over a year! I cannot for the life of me understand the contemporary media’s overriding fixation on technique and near total neglect of moral obligation.
Reposted by Phil Dorroll
An important read. "On Tuesday, researchers at Stanford and Yale revealed something that AI companies would prefer to keep hidden...None of the AI companies mentioned in this article agreed to my requests for interviews."
January 16, 2026 at 6:58 PM
An important read. "On Tuesday, researchers at Stanford and Yale revealed something that AI companies would prefer to keep hidden...None of the AI companies mentioned in this article agreed to my requests for interviews."
You don’t say!
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AI’s Memorization Crisis
Large language models don’t “learn”—they copy. And that could change everything for the tech industry.
www.theatlantic.com
January 16, 2026 at 6:37 PM
You don’t say!
Gift link below:
Gift link below: