Maurits van der Veen
@amauritsvdv.bsky.social
Political scientist. Teaching Government & Data science @ William & Mary. Eppur si muove. Opinions, reposts, etc. are my own, _not_ those of my employer.
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
If you have to get your syllabus approved by an apparatchik before you can teach a class, you're not a university anymore you're a regime indoctrination center.
TX Tech has a flow chat for guidance on what can be taught in the university system. Two things:
1. Very little content seems to be permitted. This is partisan control of the curriculum.
2. I would not enjoy teaching under these conditions, but I really would not want to be a Chair or Dean.
1. Very little content seems to be permitted. This is partisan control of the curriculum.
2. I would not enjoy teaching under these conditions, but I really would not want to be a Chair or Dean.
December 2, 2025 at 12:11 AM
If you have to get your syllabus approved by an apparatchik before you can teach a class, you're not a university anymore you're a regime indoctrination center.
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
"Never spread the lie in the headline" should be a hard rule of 21st century journalism.
Research shows that repeating lies helps to spread them, and people read headlines more than they read stories.
Research shows that repeating lies helps to spread them, and people read headlines more than they read stories.
News media has to do better with headlines that present false and unverified public health claims.
November 30, 2025 at 2:04 AM
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
Absolute debasement of academic standards
*student submits opinion in psych class
*gets bad grade
*instructor says she can make whatever arguments she wants but must draw on empirical sources
*student & Turning Point says her religious freedom & first amendment rights violated
*professor suspended
*student submits opinion in psych class
*gets bad grade
*instructor says she can make whatever arguments she wants but must draw on empirical sources
*student & Turning Point says her religious freedom & first amendment rights violated
*professor suspended
OU has put the professor here on administrative leave:
November 30, 2025 at 9:37 PM
Absolute debasement of academic standards
*student submits opinion in psych class
*gets bad grade
*instructor says she can make whatever arguments she wants but must draw on empirical sources
*student & Turning Point says her religious freedom & first amendment rights violated
*professor suspended
*student submits opinion in psych class
*gets bad grade
*instructor says she can make whatever arguments she wants but must draw on empirical sources
*student & Turning Point says her religious freedom & first amendment rights violated
*professor suspended
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
A White House website with a dedicated Lügenpresse tab marks a pretty bleak moment in US history.
Don't know whether this is new or has been up for awhile. Either way, when the White House creates a hit list of journalists it doesn't like, the free press is in danger. www.whitehouse.gov/mediabias/
Media Offenders
Explore the Media Bias Tracker that fact checks and holds Fake News accountable. False claims debunked, Hall of Shame for serial offenders, Leaderboard of networks ranked by Repeated Lies. Stay inform...
www.whitehouse.gov
November 30, 2025 at 12:16 AM
A White House website with a dedicated Lügenpresse tab marks a pretty bleak moment in US history.
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
It’s infuriating to me that I need to evaluate media to determine whether it’s AI generated now. The great “time saver” technology wastes incalculable time and energy for people who want to retain their grasp on reality
November 28, 2025 at 8:48 PM
It’s infuriating to me that I need to evaluate media to determine whether it’s AI generated now. The great “time saver” technology wastes incalculable time and energy for people who want to retain their grasp on reality
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
It is interesting that "right to defend itself" seems to not be something the Lebanese or Syrians, or God forbid the Palestinians, possess.
November 29, 2025 at 6:59 PM
It is interesting that "right to defend itself" seems to not be something the Lebanese or Syrians, or God forbid the Palestinians, possess.
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
Just to be clear: armed government agents are allowed to wear masks, balaclavas, and glasses that completely hide their identities as they disappear people off streets and out of public places, but students can't wear masks while protesting even in approved "time, manner, and place".
November 29, 2025 at 1:25 AM
Just to be clear: armed government agents are allowed to wear masks, balaclavas, and glasses that completely hide their identities as they disappear people off streets and out of public places, but students can't wear masks while protesting even in approved "time, manner, and place".
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
No one shld lose sight of the fact that the Guard was only in DC as part of an extended political messaging stunt. The shooter is guilty for the attacks/carnage. Donald Trump is responsible for them. This is the collateral damage of Trump abusing his powers as President.
Pirro: "These Guardsmen and all who are here to protect the District are the line that separates a civilized society from a barbaric one."
November 27, 2025 at 4:19 PM
No one shld lose sight of the fact that the Guard was only in DC as part of an extended political messaging stunt. The shooter is guilty for the attacks/carnage. Donald Trump is responsible for them. This is the collateral damage of Trump abusing his powers as President.
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
When troops are deployed overseas in places they absolutely should not be because of a warmonger ass president, and they are killed by someone who acted on their own accord, we typically don’t have a problem blaming the U.S. commander in chief
"In the months leading up to the D.C. deployment, Beckstrom worked for a community health center that serves people with mental illness and substance abuse disorders." www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
National Guard member killed in D.C. shooting remembered for 'heart of gold'
The slain soldier’s former boyfriend recalled her empathy and generosity. “She doesn’t even have to know you and she’ll do anything for you,” he said.
www.nbcnews.com
November 28, 2025 at 8:42 PM
When troops are deployed overseas in places they absolutely should not be because of a warmonger ass president, and they are killed by someone who acted on their own accord, we typically don’t have a problem blaming the U.S. commander in chief
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
I made a machine steal the work of a real human being. It's almost as if the stolen work it regurgitated seems like it was written by a real human being. Instead of giving that credit to the breathing person it was stolen from... perhaps the theft machine is actually alive??
November 26, 2025 at 2:31 AM
I made a machine steal the work of a real human being. It's almost as if the stolen work it regurgitated seems like it was written by a real human being. Instead of giving that credit to the breathing person it was stolen from... perhaps the theft machine is actually alive??
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
one of the coolest things about ChatGPT is how you can actually just never use it. you can fill your whole entire life with simply not once using it. it's incredible.
November 25, 2025 at 4:15 PM
one of the coolest things about ChatGPT is how you can actually just never use it. you can fill your whole entire life with simply not once using it. it's incredible.
Well, heauty is in the eye of the beholder after all.
Tell me you’ve used AI to tweak an archive photo without telling me you’ve used AI to tweak an archive photo. Breeds musnuey, indeed.
November 25, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Well, heauty is in the eye of the beholder after all.
This is not good.
I wish I didn’t have to share this. But the BBC has decided to censor my first Reith Lecture.
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
November 25, 2025 at 12:05 PM
This is not good.
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
I wish I didn’t have to share this. But the BBC has decided to censor my first Reith Lecture.
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
November 25, 2025 at 9:26 AM
I wish I didn’t have to share this. But the BBC has decided to censor my first Reith Lecture.
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
Again, every elected Democrat needs to put out a video stating exactly what Kelly and the others said. If ever there were a line to draw in the sand, it’s here. The military is not the president’s Praetorian Guard.
“Within the White House, Trump and his lieutenants aren’t planning on letting up…Trump has told some advisers that he wants RICO prosecutions and conspiracy charges leveled against the six Democrats, a source with direct knowledge of the matter tells Zeteo…
zeteo.com/p/how-we-gre...
zeteo.com/p/how-we-gre...
November 24, 2025 at 7:30 PM
Again, every elected Democrat needs to put out a video stating exactly what Kelly and the others said. If ever there were a line to draw in the sand, it’s here. The military is not the president’s Praetorian Guard.
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
The number of ways this is disgraceful behavior from the Secretary of Defense is...a lot.
Service members do have a duty to refuse illegal orders
All Americans have a 1st Amendment right to say that out loud.
Service members do have a duty to refuse illegal orders
All Americans have a 1st Amendment right to say that out loud.
Hegseth is now threatening to recall Sen. Mark Kelly to active duty in order to court martial him.
November 24, 2025 at 5:29 PM
The number of ways this is disgraceful behavior from the Secretary of Defense is...a lot.
Service members do have a duty to refuse illegal orders
All Americans have a 1st Amendment right to say that out loud.
Service members do have a duty to refuse illegal orders
All Americans have a 1st Amendment right to say that out loud.
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
I don't understand how anyone can watch how blatantly Grok is manipulated to answer the way ownership desires it to and then act like the other LLM chatbots couldn't possibly be similarly but less obviously compromised to produce responses in whatever way corporate interests and priorities dictate.
November 23, 2025 at 7:13 PM
I don't understand how anyone can watch how blatantly Grok is manipulated to answer the way ownership desires it to and then act like the other LLM chatbots couldn't possibly be similarly but less obviously compromised to produce responses in whatever way corporate interests and priorities dictate.
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
If I’m understanding this correctly, X is owned by a white nationalist who pays poor people of color in developing countries to pretend to be working class white Americans to scare other white Americans into being afraid poor people of color from developing countries are going to ruin America?
November 23, 2025 at 7:30 PM
If I’m understanding this correctly, X is owned by a white nationalist who pays poor people of color in developing countries to pretend to be working class white Americans to scare other white Americans into being afraid poor people of color from developing countries are going to ruin America?
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
Future historians might want to reconstruct when NATO ceased to exist IN ITS TRANSATLANTIC FORM.
Here’s a hint. Look at this passage of the Ukraine „peace plan“. The US will act as a „mediator“ between NATO and Russia.
As if they were no longer the lead nation.
Here’s a hint. Look at this passage of the Ukraine „peace plan“. The US will act as a „mediator“ between NATO and Russia.
As if they were no longer the lead nation.
November 21, 2025 at 9:26 AM
Future historians might want to reconstruct when NATO ceased to exist IN ITS TRANSATLANTIC FORM.
Here’s a hint. Look at this passage of the Ukraine „peace plan“. The US will act as a „mediator“ between NATO and Russia.
As if they were no longer the lead nation.
Here’s a hint. Look at this passage of the Ukraine „peace plan“. The US will act as a „mediator“ between NATO and Russia.
As if they were no longer the lead nation.
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
This will probably not even make the front page of any significant national media org. That gives you some sense of how far through the looking glass we are.
The President of the United States is literally threatening opposing lawmakers with death for a video they made encouraging service members to refuse unlawful orders.
Trump posts again about Democrats, saying their behavior is “punishable by DEATH!”
November 20, 2025 at 3:44 PM
This will probably not even make the front page of any significant national media org. That gives you some sense of how far through the looking glass we are.
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
There's something kind of sick about this headline. Like they honestly can't see the value of morality in itself, they can only think about things in terms of winning the game.
Imagine looking around America in 2025 and thinking, "What we need less of is morality."
November 19, 2025 at 9:44 PM
There's something kind of sick about this headline. Like they honestly can't see the value of morality in itself, they can only think about things in terms of winning the game.
Reposted by Maurits van der Veen
To quote @mcopelov.bsky.social, “‘Who was actually president in 2020?’ continues to be the central cleavage in American politics in 2025.”
NEW: House Republicans on a judiciary subcommittee are laying the groundwork for a law-defying mid-decade census, claiming counting noncitizens and statistical errors in the 2020 Census justifies a recount to give the GOP more congressional seats.
To Weaken Minority Voting Power, Republicans Push For Unprecedented Mid-Decade Census
Read more here.
www.democracydocket.com
November 19, 2025 at 9:21 PM
To quote @mcopelov.bsky.social, “‘Who was actually president in 2020?’ continues to be the central cleavage in American politics in 2025.”