Begging folks to stop referring to the pandemic in the past tense. It’s still “during COVID”. The pandemic isn’t over just because you want it to be. We have no sterilizing vaccine. No treatment or cure for Long Covid. People are still dying & becoming disabled every day because we refuse to adapt
Dave Thomas
@davethomas.bsky.social
Professor of Politics & International Relations, Mount Allison University. Studies global capitalism and Canadian corporations abroad. Covid aware. He/him. Also really enjoys baking and gardening.
It is not complicated. These two recent headlines encapsulate the binary that is colonization: the oppressor and the oppressed. This is what Israel has always been and what it has always done to Palestinians. This is Zionism. There is no peace until this injustice ends.
The New Brunswick Media Co-op @nbmediacoop.bsky.social is now on Bluesky. Give them a follow and support our alternative media outlet here in NB.
David Peck is relaunching his podcast with our conversation on Hidden Politics and the SDGs - have a listen & share for your students and colleagues! shows.acast.com/face2face-wi... @lcotula.bsky.social @davethomas.bsky.social @ryankatzrosene.bsky.social
Hidden Politics - Hidden Agendas | Face2Face with David Peck
Unpacking the Secret Powers of Commodities with Adam Sneyd
shows.acast.com
Hiring alert💥💥 Our Department of Politics & International Relations at Mount Allison University is hiring tenure-track in the field of Comparative Politics. Link to the full job ad here: mta.ca/about-mta/wo...
Assistant Professor - Politics and International Relations
Full-time tenure-track appointment
mta.ca
Hiring alert💥💥 Our Department of Politics & International Relations at Mount Allison University is hiring tenure-track in the field of Comparative Politics. Link to the full job ad here: mta.ca/about-mta/wo...
Assistant Professor - Politics and International Relations
Full-time tenure-track appointment
mta.ca
Kids helped me make a batch of these for the striking postal workers today. The workers are in good spirits despite the relentless drizzle this week. Solidarity with CUPW.
Although Netanyahu and Gallant will most likely never be tried, it is a small step toward justice for the ICC to clearly spell out the charges against them and issue the warrants. It is now incumbent upon every member state, including Canada, to enforce the warrants.
BREAKING — The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed during Israel's assault on Gaza.
In case anyone needed a reminder that the US is fully backing the genocide, even after a full year of slaughter and destruction.
BREAKING: U.S. vetoes UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, with 14 votes in favor and only the U.S. voting against.
Covid conscious community: I’ve started seeing a few of these air filters in classrooms on campus. Brand is Fellowes, Aeromax 4. Anyone know much about them? From my searching online they seem like a good option but expensive?
This is a great collection of interviews with some key thinkers on the connections between capitalism and the pandemic.
This is a really thought-provoking piece from a very smart and experienced organizer. Highly recommend.
I wrote about the need to rethink our approach to direct action in changing times.
Quick introduction to my research work here. I’ve typically worked on Canadian corporations abroad through a critical international political economy approach. My first book looked at Bombardier and a few of its high speed rail projects abroad. Link is here: fernwoodpublishing.ca/book/bombard...
Bombardier Abroad: Patterns of Dispossession
Centred around a theoretical framework that combines concepts of dispossession, political economy and important interventions from the field of settler colonial studies on the topic of colonial dispos...
fernwoodpublishing.ca
Coming back here after a long absence. The thing I liked about Twitter a long time ago was being part of several communities: academic, New Brunswick/Maritime, old friends, Covid aware, radical politics globally. Also a place to build community. Maybe it can happen again.
Dress warm. Bring a candle. Family friendly. A delegation inside will be presenting to council to urge them to call on Justin Trudeau to take meaningful action towards permanent ceasefire.
“The largest Canadian newspapers have given disproportionate attention to the deaths of Israelis, portrayed Israelis in more humanized ways, characterized their deaths as more worthy of indignation, and more often identified who was responsible for killing them”
Palestinian deaths count for less in Canada’s newspapers. Data proves it ⋆ The Breach
An analysis of thousands of sentences in Canada’s top newspapers shows a clear bias that serves to sanitize Palestinians’ deaths
breachmedia.ca
Another student emailing me today who is out with Covid. I’ve lost track of how many and it’s just October. I don’t think I’ve ever seen attendance this low in all my years of teaching. But sure, let’s just let it rip through everyone over and over with no protections.
When I first heard someone had recorded a new version of Tracy Chapman’s song Fast Car I was horrified and deeply sceptical. But I gotta say, Luke Combs does it justice and it’s a great sound. Others might disagree.
I teach a third year course called Global Capitalism this term. We are doing a unit on food and watching the documentary Food Inc from 2008. Still a classic for documenting the corporate concentration and control over food production and distribution in America. Very similar trends in Canada too.
Check out my new podcast with @blueprints.bsky.social. #COVIDisAirborne "We're over 3 years into the pandemic, is anyone even paying attention anymore? We see health officials start to wear masks again, a good time to talk about the COVID conscious community." podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM...
Blueprints of Disruption - COVID Conscious Under Capitalism
We are over three years into the COVID pandemic, is anyone even paying attention anymore? As we see health officials start to wear masks again, it seems a good time to talk about the COVID conscious c...
podcasts.google.com
For the Polisky crowd, especially IR folks. This was a good article to use with my third year Global Governance class on the topic of UN mediation efforts. Focuses on the case of Libya and effectively highlights why mediation can work in one case but not another. brill.com/view/journal...
Brand new CorsiRosenthal box for one of my classrooms this year. Without institutional efforts to add filtration to indoor spaces we do it ourselves.
Last school year was the first full school year NB entered without any protections. So myself and the @popnb.bsky.social l created a Safe September kit. We've updated the kit based on experience and new info this year. Find the PDF here protectnb.ca/SafeSeptemberToolkit2023.pdf
If someone were to ask me what one simple thing is to help you enjoy life, I would say grow some fresh herbs and smell them on a regular basis. Basil, dill, cilantro, rosemary, whatever. Added bonus if you add them to your food.
This book is such a gift. The photos and stories shared here are so valuable. It provides an insider’s perspective on what life was like inside the hospitals during brutal phases of the pandemic.
In preparation for the Fall, me and a few colleagues convinced our union to purchase a couple CO2 monitoring devices that will be lent out to faculty members. The institution doesn’t seem interested in monitoring indoor air quality, so we will start doing it ourselves.