Mike McCarthy
@itsmccarthy.bsky.social
University of California Santa Cruz Prof. Director of Community Studies. Author: The Master’s Tools (Verso) + Dismantling Solidarity (Cornell). Likes: economic democracy, critical social theory, 2x2 tables.
I will be at UC Berkeley later this moth to give a public talk: "Financial democracy or democratic finance?"
February 3, 2026 at 8:51 PM
I will be at UC Berkeley later this moth to give a public talk: "Financial democracy or democratic finance?"
For those that need extra content, the article argues makes the (sloppy and stupid) case that it is justified to fire professors for the because of the political implications and content of their work.
January 27, 2026 at 7:11 PM
For those that need extra content, the article argues makes the (sloppy and stupid) case that it is justified to fire professors for the because of the political implications and content of their work.
Shocking to see an editorial board with a political axe to grind completely destroy the scientific credibility of a journal in the name of...science! Theory & Society further sinks itself into the bog of bitter sociology in this latest one, an argument for the need to end academic freedom.
January 27, 2026 at 5:28 PM
Shocking to see an editorial board with a political axe to grind completely destroy the scientific credibility of a journal in the name of...science! Theory & Society further sinks itself into the bog of bitter sociology in this latest one, an argument for the need to end academic freedom.
I started a substack and am calling it, Theory Decay. This is my first (and possibly last) post. Link below:
December 30, 2025 at 9:04 PM
I started a substack and am calling it, Theory Decay. This is my first (and possibly last) post. Link below:
This piece at @lrb.co.uk by Amia Srinivasan is excellent. It speaks directly to the ways that the unconscious -- related to identity, desire, and fantasy -- relate to politics and therefore organizing. Organizers intuitively know these things, rational actor models less so.
December 19, 2025 at 5:07 PM
This piece at @lrb.co.uk by Amia Srinivasan is excellent. It speaks directly to the ways that the unconscious -- related to identity, desire, and fantasy -- relate to politics and therefore organizing. Organizers intuitively know these things, rational actor models less so.
Interesting article on the sociological approach to freedom at @sociologicaltheory.bsky.social
December 18, 2025 at 7:31 PM
Interesting article on the sociological approach to freedom at @sociologicaltheory.bsky.social
This is a really wonderful paper by Muriam Haleh Davis, laying out the key debates of the Algerian left that Fanon's work was central too. We could use more lively debates like this today, especially in the US.
December 17, 2025 at 5:14 PM
This is a really wonderful paper by Muriam Haleh Davis, laying out the key debates of the Algerian left that Fanon's work was central too. We could use more lively debates like this today, especially in the US.
Perception versus reality...social science differentiates between the two.
December 17, 2025 at 1:18 AM
Perception versus reality...social science differentiates between the two.
Teaching a grad seminar on class, race, and ideology at UC Santa Cruz this winter. It is the first in a series on "articulations," with another on class, the state, and gender bouncing around in the back of my head unrealized. Any thoughts welcome, it's not finalized just yet...
December 15, 2025 at 7:28 PM
Teaching a grad seminar on class, race, and ideology at UC Santa Cruz this winter. It is the first in a series on "articulations," with another on class, the state, and gender bouncing around in the back of my head unrealized. Any thoughts welcome, it's not finalized just yet...
Trump is doing what Allende never could, arming his base.
December 12, 2025 at 11:57 PM
Trump is doing what Allende never could, arming his base.
The ancient Greeks had a machine for democracy, the kleroterion, today democracies are dominated by the tech of financial markets. My conversation about capitalism, class analysis, and democratic theory - first published in the Swedish magazine Röda Rummet, now in English at @versobooks.bsky.social
December 11, 2025 at 5:19 PM
The ancient Greeks had a machine for democracy, the kleroterion, today democracies are dominated by the tech of financial markets. My conversation about capitalism, class analysis, and democratic theory - first published in the Swedish magazine Röda Rummet, now in English at @versobooks.bsky.social
Congratulations to Dr. James Sirigotis, who defended his dissertation Resilient Optionality: (Infra)structures of Climate, Feeling, and Finance at UC Santa Cruz. Sirigotis offers a comprehensive account of how capitalism now mirrors the logic of financial options, a truly brilliant work.
December 8, 2025 at 11:06 PM
Congratulations to Dr. James Sirigotis, who defended his dissertation Resilient Optionality: (Infra)structures of Climate, Feeling, and Finance at UC Santa Cruz. Sirigotis offers a comprehensive account of how capitalism now mirrors the logic of financial options, a truly brilliant work.
Revisiting this excellent review of the new literature on old financial markets. Highly recommended for anyone looking for a longer view.
November 29, 2025 at 4:25 AM
Revisiting this excellent review of the new literature on old financial markets. Highly recommended for anyone looking for a longer view.
It is thrilling to see these democratic processes increasingly put in place. I argue for something very similar in my recent book.
November 28, 2025 at 11:51 PM
It is thrilling to see these democratic processes increasingly put in place. I argue for something very similar in my recent book.
Thoughts on governance and compromise
November 25, 2025 at 8:12 PM
Thoughts on governance and compromise
Thinking Alan Dershowitz is mainstream is beyond self parody.
November 25, 2025 at 7:45 AM
Thinking Alan Dershowitz is mainstream is beyond self parody.
Nobody on the right goes: "OK, but is he really a communist? Here is a historical comparison suggesting otherwise."
November 21, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Nobody on the right goes: "OK, but is he really a communist? Here is a historical comparison suggesting otherwise."
A good reason why it is a bad idea to treat educational attainment as a proxy for economic class, even if it does generate important cultural distinctions and divisions.
November 18, 2025 at 6:02 PM
A good reason why it is a bad idea to treat educational attainment as a proxy for economic class, even if it does generate important cultural distinctions and divisions.
Even better, what if we have 100 year mortgages where our future progeny pay back the bank in labor hours.
November 17, 2025 at 5:39 PM
Even better, what if we have 100 year mortgages where our future progeny pay back the bank in labor hours.
Same Saturday night Max Weber. We definitely live in an age of high political vanity. As Weber suggests, what comes of it is violence.
November 16, 2025 at 7:29 AM
Same Saturday night Max Weber. We definitely live in an age of high political vanity. As Weber suggests, what comes of it is violence.
Democratizing finance by turning everyone into a venture capitalist.
November 10, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Democratizing finance by turning everyone into a venture capitalist.
Authors find increase in cultural protest (left: war, enviro, + right: anti-immigrant, anti-EU, and both: Covid pro and anti-containment measures) across Europe and diminishing economic protests, which are typically led by unions. Where is European labor these days?
November 9, 2025 at 2:17 AM
Authors find increase in cultural protest (left: war, enviro, + right: anti-immigrant, anti-EU, and both: Covid pro and anti-containment measures) across Europe and diminishing economic protests, which are typically led by unions. Where is European labor these days?
Billionaires, so passé!
November 7, 2025 at 3:15 AM
Billionaires, so passé!
Let's see what happens after he makes a bunch of parents miss their kid's soccer game this weekend.
November 6, 2025 at 8:48 PM
Let's see what happens after he makes a bunch of parents miss their kid's soccer game this weekend.
I'll be teaching this whole debate in my grad seminar on class analysis next quarter. Genuinely excited to dig into this!
November 5, 2025 at 4:24 PM
I'll be teaching this whole debate in my grad seminar on class analysis next quarter. Genuinely excited to dig into this!