Curtis
@soccurt.bsky.social
Overly caffeinated prof in SW Ontario, and probably having another cup of coffee way too late at night. Politics: liberal socialism, limitarianism, electrify everything. Posts my own and do not reflect my employer. He/him. 🏳️🌈
Second Elizabeth's recommendation. It's the most stunning work of ethnography I've ever read.
A book I highly recommend on electronic slot machines—which fully convinced me they should be illegal for how they systematically mislead our brains—is Natasha Dow Schüll‘s ADDICTION BY DESIGN
Gamified online gambling seems much worse, & is becoming much more ubiquitous
It will immiserate so many
Gamified online gambling seems much worse, & is becoming much more ubiquitous
It will immiserate so many
I see no reason not to look at the online gambling and prediction market craze as a new opioids crisis.
It will wreak havoc on lower-income Americans and leave a trail of destruction and despair in its wake.
The companies are just Purdue Pharma 2.0
www.liberalcurrents.com/from-pill-mi...
It will wreak havoc on lower-income Americans and leave a trail of destruction and despair in its wake.
The companies are just Purdue Pharma 2.0
www.liberalcurrents.com/from-pill-mi...
February 14, 2026 at 10:49 PM
Second Elizabeth's recommendation. It's the most stunning work of ethnography I've ever read.
Starting a counter-hegemonic movement of foods and snacks based on beans. Yes, there's protein, but it's also a Trojan horse for dietary fiber and The Bean New Deal.
February 14, 2026 at 8:59 PM
Starting a counter-hegemonic movement of foods and snacks based on beans. Yes, there's protein, but it's also a Trojan horse for dietary fiber and The Bean New Deal.
New book day. Picked up Furious Minds on the recommendation of @mattpolprof.bsky.social or @1t2ls.bsky.social (maybe both).
(And no points for noticing the irony of posting an attention manifesto on social media.)
(And no points for noticing the irony of posting an attention manifesto on social media.)
February 14, 2026 at 6:19 PM
New book day. Picked up Furious Minds on the recommendation of @mattpolprof.bsky.social or @1t2ls.bsky.social (maybe both).
(And no points for noticing the irony of posting an attention manifesto on social media.)
(And no points for noticing the irony of posting an attention manifesto on social media.)
Realizing I don't own a copy of The Communist Manifesto and also realizing this lack is unlikely to be fixed by actually existing communism (little free libraries in my neighbourhood).
February 14, 2026 at 1:37 PM
Realizing I don't own a copy of The Communist Manifesto and also realizing this lack is unlikely to be fixed by actually existing communism (little free libraries in my neighbourhood).
Dreaming of spring and future garden plants.
February 14, 2026 at 12:40 AM
Dreaming of spring and future garden plants.
Reposted by Curtis
you missed the best one
February 12, 2026 at 4:21 PM
you missed the best one
I don't need to listen to true crime podcasts as such, because I'm getting plenty of lurid stories of criming from Maintenance Phase and @ifbookspod.bsky.social.
February 13, 2026 at 2:31 PM
I don't need to listen to true crime podcasts as such, because I'm getting plenty of lurid stories of criming from Maintenance Phase and @ifbookspod.bsky.social.
Reposted by Curtis
Reposted by Curtis
Which way western man?
February 13, 2026 at 10:32 AM
Which way western man?
The romance of celebrating Valentine's Day two days early. 🥰
February 13, 2026 at 3:00 AM
The romance of celebrating Valentine's Day two days early. 🥰
"Nasty piece of cornbread" is going to become one of my go-to insults.
She is an empty suit, of course. And an absolute nasty piece of cornbread.
She is also, to my somewhat trained ear, absolutely, positively terrified here. She is either intimidated by the process or deeply anxious about her relationship with her boss. Or both.
But she is terrified.
She is also, to my somewhat trained ear, absolutely, positively terrified here. She is either intimidated by the process or deeply anxious about her relationship with her boss. Or both.
But she is terrified.
The question for Baghdad Bondi was, how many of Epstein’s co-conspirators and pedophiles have you indicted or investigated?
Answer: The Dow is over $50K.
Answer: The Dow is over $50K.
February 12, 2026 at 3:36 PM
"Nasty piece of cornbread" is going to become one of my go-to insults.
@aselrod.bsky.social with a good piece on the scourge of online sports betting (OSB).
And for further reading on the addictive design of gambling, I recommend Natasha Schull's magisterial ethnography "Addiction by Design". OSB will be even worse than the slot machines she studied in her work.
And for further reading on the addictive design of gambling, I recommend Natasha Schull's magisterial ethnography "Addiction by Design". OSB will be even worse than the slot machines she studied in her work.
"Surveys have found that nineteen percent of 18-to-24-year-olds qualify as problem gamblers, and thirty-seven percent of Gen Z gamblers self-report as having an addiction. A 2025 Siena poll found that forty-eight percent of all men aged 18-49 have an active online sports betting account."
From Pill Mills to Prop Bets: Prediction Markets and Mobile Sports Betting Apps Are Fueling America’s Next Addiction Crisis
Against the gamblification of the world.
www.liberalcurrents.com
February 12, 2026 at 3:04 PM
@aselrod.bsky.social with a good piece on the scourge of online sports betting (OSB).
And for further reading on the addictive design of gambling, I recommend Natasha Schull's magisterial ethnography "Addiction by Design". OSB will be even worse than the slot machines she studied in her work.
And for further reading on the addictive design of gambling, I recommend Natasha Schull's magisterial ethnography "Addiction by Design". OSB will be even worse than the slot machines she studied in her work.
I have four "to read" lists:
1. My Bluesky bookmarks.
2. Online.
3. In my notebook.
4. On my bookshelf (books ordered, not read).
I have a problem.
1. My Bluesky bookmarks.
2. Online.
3. In my notebook.
4. On my bookshelf (books ordered, not read).
I have a problem.
February 12, 2026 at 2:47 PM
I have four "to read" lists:
1. My Bluesky bookmarks.
2. Online.
3. In my notebook.
4. On my bookshelf (books ordered, not read).
I have a problem.
1. My Bluesky bookmarks.
2. Online.
3. In my notebook.
4. On my bookshelf (books ordered, not read).
I have a problem.
Generalizing this principle to "For every belief system x, there are ∞ possible ways to be a member of x."
Asshole New Atheists. McMindfulness Buddhists. Progressive Christians. All are possible, and so are many other combinations.
Asshole New Atheists. McMindfulness Buddhists. Progressive Christians. All are possible, and so are many other combinations.
Inside Catholics there are two Catholics.
February 12, 2026 at 2:29 AM
Generalizing this principle to "For every belief system x, there are ∞ possible ways to be a member of x."
Asshole New Atheists. McMindfulness Buddhists. Progressive Christians. All are possible, and so are many other combinations.
Asshole New Atheists. McMindfulness Buddhists. Progressive Christians. All are possible, and so are many other combinations.
Reposted by Curtis
Behold, the creator of Surplus Value!
February 11, 2026 at 12:14 PM
Behold, the creator of Surplus Value!
Reposted by Curtis
“The idea of public ownership of electricity may sound like a socialist’s dream but municipal and public power are as American as baseball and apple pie, with a track record of solid, affordable, and reliable performance.” www.liberalcurrents.com/the-liberal-...
The Liberal Case for Public Power
When power is treated as a public good, it becomes cheaper, more reliable, and better positioned to meet the challenges of the future than privately held electrical utilities have ever demonstrated.
www.liberalcurrents.com
February 11, 2026 at 11:02 AM
“The idea of public ownership of electricity may sound like a socialist’s dream but municipal and public power are as American as baseball and apple pie, with a track record of solid, affordable, and reliable performance.” www.liberalcurrents.com/the-liberal-...
Reposted by Curtis
Reason, left to work alone, creates monsters; while imagination
unalloyed by the power of reason gives rise to futile ideas.
Adorno and Horkheimer, Dialectic of Enlightenment
unalloyed by the power of reason gives rise to futile ideas.
Adorno and Horkheimer, Dialectic of Enlightenment
February 11, 2026 at 12:07 AM
Reason, left to work alone, creates monsters; while imagination
unalloyed by the power of reason gives rise to futile ideas.
Adorno and Horkheimer, Dialectic of Enlightenment
unalloyed by the power of reason gives rise to futile ideas.
Adorno and Horkheimer, Dialectic of Enlightenment
Going to try to follow a program to lift things to get in better shape. Wish me luck.
February 10, 2026 at 2:49 AM
Going to try to follow a program to lift things to get in better shape. Wish me luck.
Checked up on an old nemesis of mine from my undergrad years. Seems like they're doing well as a journalist and discarded their odious, reactionary politics.
February 9, 2026 at 8:23 PM
Checked up on an old nemesis of mine from my undergrad years. Seems like they're doing well as a journalist and discarded their odious, reactionary politics.
Now reading, featuring @brunoleipold.com
February 9, 2026 at 4:44 PM
Now reading, featuring @brunoleipold.com
@3cityyimby.bsky.social posting about the "carb periodic table" (delicious phrase!) has me craving potato kugel.
I make the recipe from "The Joy of Cooking" (2019), but this one looks tasty too: www.allrecipes.com/recipe/20413...
I make the recipe from "The Joy of Cooking" (2019), but this one looks tasty too: www.allrecipes.com/recipe/20413...
Potato Kugel
This easy potato kugel is made with grated potatoes, onion, and eggs, baked until golden brown and crispy on top for a delicious Passover side dish.
www.allrecipes.com
February 9, 2026 at 3:01 PM
@3cityyimby.bsky.social posting about the "carb periodic table" (delicious phrase!) has me craving potato kugel.
I make the recipe from "The Joy of Cooking" (2019), but this one looks tasty too: www.allrecipes.com/recipe/20413...
I make the recipe from "The Joy of Cooking" (2019), but this one looks tasty too: www.allrecipes.com/recipe/20413...
This dipshit might become the world's first trillionaire. Limitarianism now.
What a pathetic loser. How empty he is inside. The reason no one was interested in his tweet was that it was boring and bad!
February 9, 2026 at 3:51 AM
This dipshit might become the world's first trillionaire. Limitarianism now.
Reposted by Curtis
My favorite Super Bowl memory is still when Elon Musk was at the 2023 game in Arizona and panicked about his Eagles tweet getting less engagement than Joe Biden's. He then flew immediately to Twitter's San Francisco office to start emergency meetings to fix the site's algorithm.
February 9, 2026 at 3:40 AM
My favorite Super Bowl memory is still when Elon Musk was at the 2023 game in Arizona and panicked about his Eagles tweet getting less engagement than Joe Biden's. He then flew immediately to Twitter's San Francisco office to start emergency meetings to fix the site's algorithm.
A few thoughts on Samantha's post.
First, there was a doomer version of this in peak oil circles that I was briefly a part of. Climate change would be a moot problem because oil would get too expensive too fast.
This underestimated the role of capitalism (and market signals).
First, there was a doomer version of this in peak oil circles that I was briefly a part of. Climate change would be a moot problem because oil would get too expensive too fast.
This underestimated the role of capitalism (and market signals).
"it's eco-socialism or barbarism" [cheap solar bursts through the wall like the kool aid man] "god DAMNIT"
February 9, 2026 at 2:26 AM
A few thoughts on Samantha's post.
First, there was a doomer version of this in peak oil circles that I was briefly a part of. Climate change would be a moot problem because oil would get too expensive too fast.
This underestimated the role of capitalism (and market signals).
First, there was a doomer version of this in peak oil circles that I was briefly a part of. Climate change would be a moot problem because oil would get too expensive too fast.
This underestimated the role of capitalism (and market signals).
Reposted by Curtis
