Political Science, development/conflict, Nigeria (📚=Muslims Talking Politics and Boko Haram: A Short History). Not posting on behalf of my employer.
Joined January 2011
- Tweets2.6K
- Following820
- Followers2.3K
- Likes5.7K
I knew I was going to marry my girlfriend (now wife of 19 years) when I bailed on Rocket From the Tombs reunion tickets to take her home to meet my parents. Glad I got to see them eventually, and so grateful for Cheetah and those incredible reunion albums.
Cheetah Chrome, the guitarist of the Dead Boys, died Sunday, his bandmates confirmed on Instagram. He was 71.
variety.com/2026/music/peopl…
Counterpoint: the continued influence of neil young on young indie bands is maybe the single bright spot in American civilization at this point, and a sign that the kids may in fact be alright.
Brandon Kendhammer retweeted
R.I.P. to the legendary music writer Dave Marsh, whose magnificent book on the Who was one of my original inspirations for pursuing this insane line of work. He was always kind and generous to me personally as well. Condolences to @JimRotolo and all of his friends and family.
If you are donor who wants to invest in making northeastern Nigeria more resilient to terrorism (ai-enabled or otherwise), we are not short on ideas.
I just cannot help but wonder what Yusuf and Shekau would think about this. About the two most unlikely figures you could possibly imagine founding what has become an AI-enhanced terrorist group.
6/9 AI training & knowledge are diffusing through transnational jihadist networks.
Since 2023, ISIS-linked operatives trained selected commanders in person, teaching them how to prompt and jailbreak. Both factions of Boko Haram have since set up dedicated AI units.
They “assembled the top people in a room and used a projector to show how it works on a big screen."
I don't mean to be glib about it, because these groups and the ware they have perpetrated for nearly 2 decades has taken a horrific toll. But this is the most Boko Haram/Iswap thing ever. If I'd heard this story without the group being named, I'd have guessed them immediately.
Brandon Kendhammer retweeted
In a hotel room in northeast Nigeria, I opened a leading AI chatbot, turned my laptop toward a former Boko Haram commander, and asked if he'd used it. He nodded.
"You type in the question… like 'How can I build a bomb?', and then it tells you how. It is like a human robot. We used it a lot."
My new study on how the jihadist terrorist group Boko Haram uses frontier AI with @CamAISciPolicy, covered today in @nytimes 🧵/9
Brandon Kendhammer retweeted
40 years ago. Jan. 18, 1986. Harry Dean Stanton and The Replacements give us quite possibly the booziest episode ever. The Replacements spent most of the day drinking together with Harry & after these performances, the ‘Mats would be "banned" from SNL.
(Sala-i-Martin voice) "I just preregistered 4 million hypotheses"
Every year is a great year in new music if you listen to new music. And as an old '90s alt.country guy/African music fan in particular, this is such an amazing era.
Brandon Kendhammer retweeted
The Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirms US “precision hits" against the Islamic State in northwest Nigeria.
I'm far enough out of the game these days that I don't have much to say about the potential damage inflicted on jihadi groups by the US airstrikes in Sokoto State today. But a few quick general observations...
2) It continues to be the the case that militant groups (however connected to ISIS or not) in northwestern Nigeria are a major threat to the many civilians in the region, and airstrikes have never really been effective in Nigeria at creating the conditions for needed security.
Honestly, I checked a Glen Campbell greatest hits cd out of the public library when I was 24, and it was kind of earth shattering.
Apropos of the recent "faculty jobs are great!" discourse, the media tenure-track salary at my (nominally) R1 university is in the mid-$90ks (across all ranks), and the state legislature dramatically weakened the actual job security.
