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University of Toronto Snags Yale Professors as Canada Raids American Brain Trust

deanblundell.substack.com

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Re: University of Toronto Snags Yale Professors as Canada Raids American Brain Trust

#41

Post by refurb »

Kim_Bruning wrote: post #13
mnky9800n wrote: post #2

I find this generally a narrative that is easy to buy into but I wonder how many will actually make the jump. I’m unsure about salaries in Canada but I’ve heard some American academics talking about moving to Europe to find academic jobs there. i think the salary would kill the idea for most americans who would want to move. according to this chart: https://oira.unc.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/297/2024/05/Fa... the…

Mind, salaries often tend to be indexed to the local cost of living. So you could have a pretty decent standard of living even if your nominal salary is a bit lower.

Canada’s COL is an exception.

Wages are about half of the US yet in places like Toronto the COL is super high.

These profs likely negotiated a fat payday. It happens all the time - profs move from Harvard, Stanford, Yale to less prestigious schools because they’ll get something they otherwise can’t get - tenure, head of a school, more money, whatever.

Considering this move would have taken months to negotiate it likely has nothing to do with politics at all.

Re: University of Toronto Snags Yale Professors as Canada Raids American Brain Trust

#43

Post by Arainach »

DiscourseFan wrote: post #38
WeylandYutani wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You are right but this requires Americans to stop thinking their country is perfect. Any deep introspection and the whole facade breaks down... Anyone who does not want to worship Jesus or Trump is welcome to check out the Netherlands.

It is difficult not to think your country is perfect when you can't make good money anywhere else in the world...

Salaries in the rest of the world look great when you realize that in Europe you're not one medical incident while unemployed from utter bankruptcy

Re: University of Toronto Snags Yale Professors as Canada Raids American Brain Trust

#44

Post by yalogin »

The administration has been totally against facts and science from the first term itself but this time around they started the full descent into idiocracy. The people picked to run agencies, full frontal proclamations by the director of the fbi to go after media entities, catering to the lowest common denominators in their base by making a mockery of the law. All of them are just distractions, the fact that the richest and most powerful corporations, universities and previously reputable news organizations are keeling over, these are canaries in the coal mine. All of this will have a lasting impact on the valley and the U.S. in general, if we are honest about it.

As a person in tech, this time around the tech community gave up on innovation and independence, they are the first to pander to the administration. I cannot imagine the same thing happening a decade or two ago. Something fundamentally changed here in the Valley. I take it as a signal that the powers be don’t believe in AI revolution and that they just want to make a quick buck while they can

Re: University of Toronto Snags Yale Professors as Canada Raids American Brain Trust

#45

Post by kerkeslager »

mnky9800n wrote: post #2

I find this generally a narrative that is easy to buy into but I wonder how many will actually make the jump. I’m unsure about salaries in Canada but I’ve heard some American academics talking about moving to Europe to find academic jobs there. i think the salary would kill the idea for most americans who would want to move. according to this chart: https://oira.unc.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/297/2024/05/Fa... the…

The salary for an academic who insists on teaching and publishing the truth may be 0 in the US in a few years given its current trajectory.

How does that compare to academic jobs in Europe?

Re: University of Toronto Snags Yale Professors as Canada Raids American Brain Trust

#46

Post by ripley12 »

refurb wrote: post #41
Kim_Bruning wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Mind, salaries often tend to be indexed to the local cost of living. So you could have a pretty decent standard of living even if your nominal salary is a bit lower.

Canada’s COL is an exception. Wages are about half of the US yet in places like Toronto the COL is super high. These profs likely negotiated a fat payday. It happens all the time - profs move from Harvard, Stanford, Yale to less prestigious schools because they’ll get something they otherwise can’t get - tenure, head of a school, more money, whatever. Considering this move would have taken months to negotiate it like…

From the article:

"Of course our American catastrophe played a role in our final decision."

"My decision was entirely because of the political climate in the United States."

"Both Toronto and the Munk School were and are very attractive places unto themselves... bracketing the American descent into fascism."

Re: University of Toronto Snags Yale Professors as Canada Raids American Brain Trust

#47

Post by UncleEntity »

Ar-Curunir wrote: post #18
readthenotes1 wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Were they supplied arms by the USA or USSR?

Just take South Korea for an example. The president tried to enforce martial law, and got his ass handed back to him. Can you imagine anything similar to that happening to Trump?

To be fair, I suspect the top military officers take their commitment to protecting the constitution a lot more seriously than the current batch of cabinet level officials. Even back when there was the 'contested' election results the military basically told Trump to go pound sand.

Sure, they can spend the next few years filling the top ranks with loyalists but that doesn't mean anyone will follow their unlawful orders because in the military it is a crime to follow an order you know to be unlawful.

Re: University of Toronto Snags Yale Professors as Canada Raids American Brain Trust

#48

Post by theGeatZhopa »

regularjack wrote: post #27
culturthrowaway wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

Never heard of the guy. Why do you dislike him so much?

just googled, seems to be a philosopher teaching and researching fascism and such. Also, known for writing books like "how fascism works" or "how propaganda works" - total scum-bag. You know why to hate him.

\s

Re: University of Toronto Snags Yale Professors as Canada Raids American Brain Trust

#49

Post by telchior »

yalogin wrote: post #44

The administration has been totally against facts and science from the first term itself but this time around they started the full descent into idiocracy. The people picked to run agencies, full frontal proclamations by the director of the fbi to go after media entities, catering to the lowest common denominators in their base by making a mockery of the law. All of them are just distractions, the fact that the riche…

Re: same thing not being able to happen a decade ago, perhaps so, but I'd argue that the signs were clear that it was about to happen. Some of the most powerful people in SV have been visibly showing hard right attitudes for at least that long. Not generally on social issues, but more of a muddy libertarianism. The social issues of SV just turned this into a pressure cooker; people who absolutely knew that they were brilliant revolutionaries, standing far above the masses, simultaneously had to put up with people telling them that the closest city had to be a haven for people on the lowest rung and that rich white men were essentially flawed and bad.

But I think whether that pressure cooker creating the most extreme examples had existed or not, the "Do no evil", utopian phase of tech was always destined to be a blip, caused by a sudden, massive influx of cash to people who hadn't been inculcated in the culture of how to defend and grow such a cash hoard. They learned. No surprise at all to see, for example, Zuckerberg tossing the president a $20 million "legal settlement" bribe a few days after he was voted in; he has his priorities in order for his role.

Re: University of Toronto Snags Yale Professors as Canada Raids American Brain Trust

#50

Post by piva00 »

DiscourseFan wrote: post #38
WeylandYutani wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You are right but this requires Americans to stop thinking their country is perfect. Any deep introspection and the whole facade breaks down... Anyone who does not want to worship Jesus or Trump is welcome to check out the Netherlands.

It is difficult not to think your country is perfect when you can't make good money anywhere else in the world...

Culturally you've been brought up with the idea that more money is the only measure of quality of life, through that lens I do understand your thinking but I believe you might need to reconsider if that even makes sense.

Making good money is necessary in the USA for one to feel free, without it you don't have freedom since almost everything in the USA revolves around money. When you experience freedom even from the need of making good money while still having a decent life you'll know true freedom.

Other parts of the developed world can deliver that, consuming is not the point after a certain level of comfort, more and bigger doesn't translate to a better life, it's just that in the USA it does.

You can live a very fulfilling life without having to worry about making more money to buy another car, to save for your kids' education, to save for medical emergencies, to access cultural experiences, etc. It's just a very different way of living, unfortunately Americans have been turned into hyperconsumers, your whole economy is designed around that idea and so the thought that life is more than purchases feels alien.

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