Disce aut Discede

[betterbooktitles]

Howard Zinn: A People’s History of the United States

[betterbooktitles]

Happy Columbus Day!

[confessionsofabrokegradstudent]

What grad school feels like

[betterbooktitles]

Shel Silverstein: The Giving Tree

[northgang]

[aubiefan12]

Yep

[aubiefan12]

How Princess Reema Is Opening Doors For Women In Saudi Arabia

In a country where women can't legally take the wheel of a car, one leader is finding creative ways to offer them other means of control.

"That's what I'm dealing with," Princess Reema—who'd listened diplomatically to the young woman and offered a pragmatic counterargument from an employer's point of view—told me after the girl left the room. "Here, the words feminist, radical, activist, liberal, empowerment are not useful to my goals. I'll lose half my audience." To effect any enduring change in a culture that largely prides itself on resisting it, Princess Reema says she must simultaneously invigorate and soothe, while being careful not to alienate conservative thinkers by wielding her ambition too aggressively. In some ways, she's walking the same line as female professionals everywhere.

[aubiefan12]

TransCanada Inc. said it would abandon its efforts to invoke eminent domain through the courts in Nebraska and will reapply for approval through the state’s Public Service Commission.

“The developer of the Keystone XL pipeline is shifting course in Nebraska and will withdraw lawsuits seeking to gain access to the property of landowners who oppose the project, the company announced Tuesday.TransCanada Inc., the developer, said it would abandon its efforts to invoke eminent domain through the courts and would reapply for state approval despite having received the go-ahead from former Gov. Dave Heineman in 2013.”

[aubiefan12]

The Kurds’ Democratic Experiment

In Eastern Syria, a fragile de facto republic holds out against both jihadists and hostile neighbors.

Along this stark boundary, the Kurds are there not only to fight against the Islamic State, but also to defend a precious experiment in direct democracy. In Rojava, the Kurdish name for this region of eastern Syria, a new form of self-government is being built from the ground up.

After the authority of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad collapsed at the start of the Syrian revolution in 2011, the Kurds took advantage of the vacuum to set up government without a state. There is no top-down authority, even within the military. One Y.P.G. commander gently corrected me when I addressed him as “general.”

“We have no ranks,” he said — and sure enough, his uniform bore no insignia of seniority. “We are a team.”

Alongside the men of the Y.P.G., fighters from the Women’s Protection Units, or Y.P.J., also fight at this front. Behind the lines, too, women are prominent in the forums in villages and towns that are part of Rojava’s democratic experiment.

Most of Syria has broken up along ethnic lines. But in Rojava, members of the Arab and Assyrian minorities are deliberately included.

[whatshouldwecallgradschool]

WHEN I THINK I’VE SET A REASONABLE GOAL

credit: Kellie

[aubiefan12]

A PhD program summarized in one neat GIF.

[aubiefan12]

Francis, the Perfect 19th-Century Pope

He’s really cool, but a lot of his thinking doesn’t work today.

I find Pope Francis to be just as delightful of a person as everyone else seems to, but this op-ed makes some important points about his image and what is still happening “on the ground” within the church.

As the noted religion writer Kenneth Briggs told me: “People here are ardently projecting a lot of things onto this pope, including a liberal new day for the church. But there hasn’t been any change in the moral teachings. It’s to Francis’ credit, I guess, that he gets credit for things he hasn’t done.”

[phdstudents]

when the creepy academic won’t stop talking to me

[aubiefan12]

There’s one at every conference . . .

[aubiefan12]

Problems at Volkswagen Start in the Boardroom

An insular governing structure, overseen by family members and labor, allowed the current scandal over the flouting of emissions standards to happen.

The company, founded by the Nazis before World War II, is governed through an unusual hybrid of family control, government ownership and labor influence. Even by German standards, “Volkswagen stands apart,” said Markus Roth, a professor at Philipps-University Marburg and an expert in European corporate governance. “It’s been a soap opera ever since it started.”

[brickhousewench]

OMG, saw this over on Facebook.  I am SCREAMING inside.

[whatshouldwecallme]

When I listen to the podcast "Serial"

[beingblog]

This is the first, wildest, and wisest thing I know, that the soul exists and that it is built entirely out of attentiveness

— Mary Oliver (via beingblog)

[confessionsofabrokegradstudent]

Realizing I have nothing done 24 hours before something’s due

As a 1st year:

As a 3rd year:

Thanks! 

[aubiefan12]

This is SO true.

[whatshouldwecallgradschool]

RIGHT AFTER THE UNDERGRAD SAYS HE UNDERSTANDS THE PROTOCOL

credit: Amanda

[aubiefan12]

This was spot-on today.

[aubiefan12]

A part of my adolescence fades into history.

Also, it's Delia*s, not Delia's, like duh. Get it right NYT!