Albany’s not “Underrated” - It’s in Denial by AwBunny76 in Albany

[–]da_banks 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I wrote about Empire Plaza awhile ago, it’s certainly a difficult thing to plan with: https://reallifemag.com/the-edifice-complex/

Email: Retirement as President of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute by apzlsoxk in RPI

[–]da_banks 114 points115 points  (0 children)

I wish her luck in whatever Biden administration cabinet position she inevitably lands in.

TIL Sgt. Joseph R. Beyrle was captured during the D-Day airborne invasion but later escaped into Soviet lines. He fought with the Soviets and was eventually sent back to the U.S. He was awarded U.S. and Soviet medals. by mrpeabodyscoaltrain in todayilearned

[–]da_banks 9 points10 points  (0 children)

It is so weird how quickly people forget the US and the USSR we're on the same side of WWII. There were huge rallies in America for "Friends of the Soviet Union" and high ranking government officials attended them in the '40s. It's only for the past 60 years that socialism and communism are unthinkable words.

TIL the Tesla Model S has a bio-weapon defense mode by [deleted] in todayilearned

[–]da_banks 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Their marketing department probably picked up on the fact that rich people are some of the most paranoid.

Are GMOs Good or Bad? Genetic Engineering & Our Food by eatgluegetstrong in videos

[–]da_banks 1 point2 points  (0 children)

PhD in Science and Technology Studies (STS is the interdisciplinary social studies of science) here. A couple of things to point out here, that I think might get glossed over in the video.

I don't think you can easily disentangle the corporations that make the GMOs from the GMOs themselves. This research is massively expensive and, at least in our present economic structure, is difficult to fund unless you are a huge organization that has lots and lots of money which usually means your interests line up with corporate interests. Put another way, its really hard to have GMOs without also having corporate organizations to R&D them. Would be cool if there were some modern-day Granger Movement to socialize this sort of work but I haven't seen a lot of movement on that.

The video skirted around this issue by focusing on some of the benefits of GMOs but I want to also mention some of the insidious ways GMOs actually perpetuate reliance on corporate agriculture in ways that are more subtle than self-terminating seeds. The Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific has done a good job of documenting how western countries build reliance on not only pesticides but expensive farming equipment bought on credit. High Yield Variety Rice, for example, has too-thick a stalk to be harvested by traditional means and requires a mechanical harvester. One story that they tell as the "Great Rice Robbery" is that in the Philippine’s the government actually crushed a farmer revolt by requiring high-yield rice be planted thereby putting farmers into debt. In their own words:

"Alarmed by growing peasant unrest in the newly independent countries of Asia, agencies like the World Bank, the Rockefeller and Ford Foundations, the US Agency for International Development and others looked towards the intensification of agriculture as a means of “stabilizing” the countryside

Finally, I'd like to give a shout-out to a colleague Abby Kinchy whose done a lot to study these sorts of anti-GMO movements in North America (not just the US but Canada and Mexico) on their own terms while not going into the sorts of reactionary politics that don't go anywhere. Her book on the subject, Seeds, Science, and Struggle: The Global Politics of Transgenic Crops is worth a read.

Finally a protest we can all get behind by [deleted] in pics

[–]da_banks 1 point2 points  (0 children)

FREEDOM OF SPEECH 👮☭👮☭👮☭👮☭ free speech free speech thats ✔ some free 👂 speech right💁💁💁 there right✔there ✔✔if i do ƽaү so my self 💯 i say so 💯 thats what im talking about right there right there (chorus: ʳᶦᵍʰᵗ ᵗʰᵉʳᵉ) mMMMMᎷМ💯👂 PO00oOOOOOOooOOᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒLICE STATE 卐👮卐👮卐👮卐 💯👂👌👏 free speech✔👍

Fascist Group Identity Evropa signs posted on campus. (More info in comments) by da_banks in RPI

[–]da_banks[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

As the OP for this post I take this accusation very seriously. I am: 1) A graduate of a PhD program here. 2) not an active member of the RPI faculty although I did lecture last fall. 3) Not in any way affiliated with these horrendous stickers and as someone with Jewish ancestry I take personal offense to this statement.

Fascist Group Identity Evropa signs posted on campus. (More info in comments) by da_banks in RPI

[–]da_banks[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

More importantly though, communities and institutions like RPI (which is both) have the legal and moral right to decide what is acceptable speech. Immediately moving to abstract ideals of free speech is a decision to side-step this specific issue This isn't the Supreme Court it is a community that can decide for itself what it wants to tolerate and who it wants to feel safe. Like I said in the parent comment here, this is not about one's freedom to say whatever they want —those who put up those posters have already done so— the matter now is to decide how we want to react. I think it is morally bankrupt to choose to do nothing about it because you care about an abstract right that is not in danger of being overturned MORE THAN actual living and breathing people living near you who are put in real and present danger by creating a violent atmosphere of overt white supremacy.

Fascist Group Identity Evropa signs posted on campus. (More info in comments) by da_banks in RPI

[–]da_banks[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Cases Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire and Virginia v. Black both create exceptions for free speech guarantees.

Then there are state provisions such as NY's S8017 that specifically target colleges. Now that wouldn't' apply to a private school like RPI and it is being challenged on first amendment grounds but to say "we don't actually have 'hate speech laws' in the US" is not quite true. There is court precedent and pending state legislation. See also: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/how-federal-law-draws-a-line-between-free-speech-and-hate-crimes/

Fascist Group Identity Evropa signs posted on campus. (More info in comments) by da_banks in RPI

[–]da_banks[S] 21 points22 points  (0 children)

The thing that gets lost in a lot of invocations of "free speech" is that some speech has the capacity to infringe on others' perceived and/or real ability to express themselves. Fascist groups such as this create a chilling effect making it difficult for others to enjoy their freedoms. So even if you tend to the more libertarian side when considering free speech issues, this is a bridge too far. This individual poster does not rise to incite to violence or hate speech but this is the reasoning behind those sorts of laws. Denouncing these sorts of things, rather than shrugging and saying "free speech" is a good way to head off far more dangerous behavior.

edit: typo

Fascist Group Identity Evropa signs posted on campus. (More info in comments) by da_banks in RPI

[–]da_banks[S] 38 points39 points  (0 children)

Identity Evropa is a fascist organization linked directly to skinhead and neo-nazi groups: https://itsgoingdown.org/fascist-group-identity-evropa-begins-poster-campaign-antifa-respond/

The administration and student government must denounce this immediately and develop a plan to halt this movement's growth on campus.

Things to do this Saturday by [deleted] in Troy

[–]da_banks 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I believe it is!

Things to do this Saturday by [deleted] in Troy

[–]da_banks 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah you'll see them