Rachel E. Davis

Screenshot of an excerpt from the article that reads: Conservatives' fundamental problem is that they cannot compete with major universities, in the way that conservative political candidates can compete with liberals in election campaigns. Many of America's leading corporations are less than a hundred years old; few of its leading research universities are. To acquire a large tract of land in a population center, put up dozens of buildings, create a full suite of academic departments, and add the professional schools and hospitals that support the universities' scholarly activities economically—it's all but impossible.

Screenshot of an excerpt from the article that reads: Conservatives are likely never going to be able to create universities they approve of that are anywhere near the level of the universities some of them would like to destroy. But that does not mean that universities are going to get beyond the crisis of the past couple of years intact— that a truly effective collective resistance will emerge, or that the moment will pass, or that the public will become aware of how valuable the universities are.

Screenshot of an excerpt from the article that reads: Back in the days when the system that is now under attack was being invented, Clark Kerr gave a lecture at Harvard in which he posed this question: "How may the contributions of the élite be made clear to the egalitarians, and how may an aristocracy of intellect justify itself to all men?" People who spend their lives in universities think they know the answer— medical breakthroughs, opportunities for future leaders from humble backgrounds, the expansion of knowledge-but the public, evidently, isn't persuaded. Can the government, even in different hands, forget what it has learned in the past year about how easy it is to get universities to give it the deference that businesses give their largest customers? It seems unlikely.

The Unmaking of the American University For decades, research universities have relied on federal funding, with no guarantee that it will last. Now their survival may depend on compliance with the government.

“What if a university president had taken the conservative critique seriously long before Trump recaptured the White House—would it have made a difference? We have a natural experiment to test that question: Johns Hopkins. And we know what happened: it didn’t help.” www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

Screenshot of an excerpt from the article reading: As American journalistic institutions are consolidated and politicized by tech billionaires seeking to dominate the industry, those who consume news on the internet are increasingly left to assemble the disparate pieces on their own.

War in the Age of the Online “Information Bomb” Memes such as “monitoring the situation” reflect a deluded belief that we can be more than just passive, confused bystanders to a spray of digital shrapnel.

“Once the information bomb has detonated, even reality takes on the feeling of conspiracy.” www.newyorker.com/culture/infi...

Operation Epic Fury [I slide one foot out from under me and fall on my ass. It's not clear what kind of move I was trying to do]

When DOGE Unleashed ChatGPT on the Humanities

“The filing notes a list Mr. Fox compiled of what he called the “craziest” and “other bad” grants, which he planned to highlight on DOGE’s X account. He used three dozen keywords, including LGBTQ, BIPOC, tribal, ethnicity, gender, equality, immigration, citizenship, and melting pot.”

SOCIOLOGY & ANTHROPOLOGY SCHOLARSHIPS Email materials to Paul.Eubanks@mtsu.edu DUE 5PM MARCH 18TH • Up to $2,000! • SOC / ANTH majors • Apply via email • Merit-based • Need-based Scan QR code for more info

💰🚨 Free money alert! 💰🚨 Check out the departmental scholarships and awards currently accepting applications! Applications and supporting materials should be submitted to Dr. Paul Eubanks no later than March 18th at 5:00 PM. For additional information, see soc.mtsu.edu/scholarships/

I’m so proud of Paige and excited about this project!

Follow me at
fable.co/fabler/rache...

Book covers and ratings out of 5. Awake by Jen Hatmaker (4) The Dilemmas of Working Women by Fumio Yamamoto (4) The Trees by Percival Everett (5) Troubling Love by Elena Ferrante (4) Vigil by George Saunders (4) Sam by Allegra Goodman (4)

February reading wrap-up 📚📖

Photo of (from left to right) Vaun, Rachel, Cassie, and Venice

Yesterday, Vaun Baltimore's Social Problems students enjoyed a panel discussion about gender and sexualities featuring Dr. Rachel Davis and graduate student Cassie Sistoso from Sociology and Venice from @mtlambda.bsky.social!

US military used laser to take down Border Protection drone, lawmakers say The U.S. military used a laser to shoot down a Customs and Border Protection drone, members of Congress said Thursday, and the Federal Aviation Administration responded by closing more airspace near E...

Now the military accidentally shot down a CBP drone with the laser, which uses AI, of course. 🫩 www.npr.org/2026/02/27/g...

Screenshot of my Facebook feed. Thumbnail for a reel depicting what appears to be an AI-generated, humanoid vulva clipping her (?) toenails in a spa, happy as can be.

⚠️ WARNING: Weirdly disturbing image. ⚠️

In case you’re wondering how things are going on Facebook, this just popped up on my feed against my will. For algorithmic context, I refuse to click on any reels, but it keeps showing me increasingly unhinged thumbnails in the hopes that I’ll cave.

🍀🤞

"its push alert systems recognized a euphemism for the slur used in stories and incorrectly inserted the full word"

Some systems are defined by their failure modes: what is possible when things go wrong?

"Adds slurs" is a very bad failure mode

Justice Department withheld and removed some Epstein files related to Trump An NPR investigation finds the public database of Epstein files is missing dozens of pages related to sexual abuse accusations against President Trump.

An NPR investigation finds the public database of Epstein files is missing dozens of pages related to sexual abuse accusations against President Trump. n.pr/4qTItsU

The “technology” they’re referring to is some sort of anti-drone LASER that they shot into the sky, btw.

Screenshot of a NY Times headline “Closing of El Paso Airspace Adds to Tension Between F.A.A. and Pentagon.” Description underneath reads: The Federal Aviation Administration is charged with flight safety, and the Defense Department with national security. Those missions keep colliding.

Screenshot of a paragraph from the article reading: But the episode turned bizarre when C.B.P. officials used the technology on what they thought was a cartel drone earlier this week but appeared to have been a party balloon, according to two officials. Defense Department officials were present at the incident.

This is CRAZY. Very “99 Luftballons” coded. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/12/u...

Reject medical neo-futurism. Refuse compliance.

I Will Not Grow The Third Set.

These are all from the "Yokai Parade" traveling exhibition that's currently on display at the MTSU Todd Art Gallery, btw. It looks like it's going to Atlanta next. www.jpf.go.jp/e/project/cu...

Replica of a set of menko (OG pogs) depicting various yokai, or Japanese monsters, entitled “New Playful Monster Collection” by Haseg Konobu, from the Edo period or later.

Replica of a set of menko (OG pogs) depicting various yokai, or Japanese monsters, entitled “Great New Monster Collection” by an unknown artist, from the Meiji period.

Replica of a set of menko (OG pogs) depicting various yokai, or Japanese monsters, entitled “New Monster Collection” by Utagawa Kunitoshi (1888).

Replica of a set of menko (OG pogs) depicting various yokai, or Japanese monsters, entitled “New Edition Monster Collection” by Tsuyamaru, from the Edo period.

Tag yourself, I’m all of them 👹

Mostly not. Intense brain fog like I’ve never experienced before. Plus severe, semi-regular panic attacks!

www.dukeupress.edu/p-fkn-r

😟😠

what in the world

Newspaper clipping of an old ad featuring a photo of my sister (left) and me (right) as children holding a wine glass full of milk and sporting barely visible milk mustaches. Text reads “Bank on Dairy. Dairy month June 1999. From the farm to the refrigerator, the dairy industry continues the tradition of building a strong and healthy America. Meigs County Bank joins with our community in saying thank you, not only during Dairy Month, but throughout the entire year. MCB, a Regions Bank”

Just got this incredible newspaper clipping from my dad of me and my sister 😂☠️🥛📰

Covers of books I read in January along with my rating out of 5. The Fort Bragg Cartel by Seth Harp (5) Paper Girl by Beth Macy (4) Four Treasures of the Sky by Jenny Tinghui Zhang (3) Discontent by Beatriz Serrano (3) A New New Me by Helen Oyeyemi (3) After Purity by Sara Moslener (5)

January reading wrap-up 📚 fable.co/fabler/rache...

The Dept. of Appearing to Take Things Rather Seriously While Wearing a Navy Sport Coat and No Tie is actively searching for a Dean of Comfortably Ordering Wine in a DC Steakhouse Where Denny Hastert Used to Sit Right Over There. The position will pay $580,000. The history department is abolished

I argue that the ways so-called sugar babies, blessees, and compensated daters are framed as criminals, victims, or rational subjects differ according to their race, class, and nationality in ways that reproduce controlling images. 👀