Louise Seamster
@louiseseamster.bsky.social
debt, development, infrastructure, the economics of racial inequality, and the myth of racial progress. I express my own views
🤯
Dell has been on this beat since the very beginning and points out a thing often missed: the cost to all of us for Amazon’s loss prevention strategy is a nationwide surveillance network.
Ring is first and foremost a scheme to charge Amazon customers to deter crime that costs Amazon (not the customers themselves) billions annually in refunds, returns, double shipping, and customer service overhead.
February 12, 2026 at 1:55 AM
🤯
Reposted by Louise Seamster
They are dismissed as hysterical or non-expert or irrationally cautious.
Then you wake up one day and Peter Theil and Elon Musk own your water and your attention and your political process.
Then the men emerge to tell us what women told us a decade before.
Then you wake up one day and Peter Theil and Elon Musk own your water and your attention and your political process.
Then the men emerge to tell us what women told us a decade before.
February 11, 2026 at 5:55 PM
They are dismissed as hysterical or non-expert or irrationally cautious.
Then you wake up one day and Peter Theil and Elon Musk own your water and your attention and your political process.
Then the men emerge to tell us what women told us a decade before.
Then you wake up one day and Peter Theil and Elon Musk own your water and your attention and your political process.
Then the men emerge to tell us what women told us a decade before.
also you have to keep trying to use the dried out marker five times in a row. even more mystique
February 11, 2026 at 8:18 PM
also you have to keep trying to use the dried out marker five times in a row. even more mystique
Reposted by Louise Seamster
More people should listen to @tressiemcphd.bsky.social
When people say AI is inevitable, let them know the future isn’t settled.
When people say AI is inevitable, let them know the future isn’t settled.
February 11, 2026 at 2:35 PM
More people should listen to @tressiemcphd.bsky.social
When people say AI is inevitable, let them know the future isn’t settled.
When people say AI is inevitable, let them know the future isn’t settled.
Reposted by Louise Seamster
This Day in Labor History: February 11, 1937. The Flint Sit-Down strike ended after General Motors recognized the United Auto Workers at the bargaining agent for GM employees. This legitimized the CIO, ushering in the nation’s great period of industrial unionism. But soon, sit-downs would be illegal
February 11, 2026 at 3:06 PM
This Day in Labor History: February 11, 1937. The Flint Sit-Down strike ended after General Motors recognized the United Auto Workers at the bargaining agent for GM employees. This legitimized the CIO, ushering in the nation’s great period of industrial unionism. But soon, sit-downs would be illegal
Reposted by Louise Seamster
massive. catapult.
Elon Musk told employees at xAI, his artificial intelligence company, on Tuesday that the company needed a factory on the moon to build A.I. satellites and a massive catapult to launch them into space.
Elon Musk Wants to Build an A.I. Satellite Factory on the Moon
In a meeting with employees at his company xAI, Mr. Musk revealed a vision for a facility that includes a giant catapult to launch his satellites into space.
nyti.ms
February 11, 2026 at 1:43 PM
massive. catapult.
Reposted by Louise Seamster
“Four of my children just evaporated,” Badran said, holding back tears. “I looked for them a million times. Not a piece was left. Where did they go?”
There are no words to adequately describe the evil here.
There are no words to adequately describe the evil here.
Israel used weapons in Gaza that made thousands of Palestinians evaporate
US-made thermal weapons burning at 3,500C caused 2,842 people to "evaporate" in Gaza, Al Jazeera investigation finds.
www.aljazeera.com
February 10, 2026 at 10:29 PM
“Four of my children just evaporated,” Badran said, holding back tears. “I looked for them a million times. Not a piece was left. Where did they go?”
There are no words to adequately describe the evil here.
There are no words to adequately describe the evil here.
Reposted by Louise Seamster
Word choices matter. Like saying “scientists and philosophers have come to understand” is very different from “scientists and philosophers are claiming“
One primes your audience to respect authority and the other primes your audience to question
One primes your audience to respect authority and the other primes your audience to question
Researchers working with the A.I. system Claude have come to understand that the model’s selfhood, like our own, is a matter of both neurons and narratives. newyorkermag.visitlink.me/kEX1vV
February 11, 2026 at 1:29 PM
Word choices matter. Like saying “scientists and philosophers have come to understand” is very different from “scientists and philosophers are claiming“
One primes your audience to respect authority and the other primes your audience to question
One primes your audience to respect authority and the other primes your audience to question
Reposted by Louise Seamster
Jesus
“The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill recently rolled out a new policy that permits university officials to record classes without notifying the instructor. It’s a practice administrators have used in the past to investigate professors but have now formalized in writing.”
UNC Admin Can Now, Officially, Secretly Record Faculty
The new policy prohibits students from recording class without permission but explicitly allows administrators to surveil professors for any “lawful purpose.”
www.insidehighered.com
February 11, 2026 at 1:31 PM
Jesus
not willing to look up the children ages! it seems no addendum makes it less creepy given the “nannies”!
February 10, 2026 at 4:35 PM
not willing to look up the children ages! it seems no addendum makes it less creepy given the “nannies”!
and bringing. your. kids. to do that.
February 10, 2026 at 4:20 PM
and bringing. your. kids. to do that.
Reposted by Louise Seamster
Not to mention the way SEO fucked with online searching in addition to Boolean searches no longer being effective.
suggesting online search > using a medical AI chatbot may underestimate how many websites are now full of AI slop (not to mention how AI has permeated online search)
this is why people are comparing AI to microplastics or a virus—there are no uncontaminated parts of our info ecosystem.
this is why people are comparing AI to microplastics or a virus—there are no uncontaminated parts of our info ecosystem.
"People are better off using online searches or their own judgement" is an unbelievably harsh indictment of AI chatbots
February 10, 2026 at 3:48 PM
Not to mention the way SEO fucked with online searching in addition to Boolean searches no longer being effective.
Reposted by Louise Seamster
The first draft of my effort to theorize the political/coalitional characteristics of student debt is out for review.
It's really the first step in an effort to think through how to design a free college program with durable long-term coalitions
It's really the first step in an effort to think through how to design a free college program with durable long-term coalitions
February 10, 2026 at 2:57 PM
The first draft of my effort to theorize the political/coalitional characteristics of student debt is out for review.
It's really the first step in an effort to think through how to design a free college program with durable long-term coalitions
It's really the first step in an effort to think through how to design a free college program with durable long-term coalitions
Reposted by Louise Seamster
It’s so odd to me that we’ve reached a point where making something shoddy is not only *not* a source of shame and embarrassment, but also something they double down on. Even more puzzling is the willful erosion of value (and the good name of one’s brand) in the online search function.
suggesting online search > using a medical AI chatbot may underestimate how many websites are now full of AI slop (not to mention how AI has permeated online search)
this is why people are comparing AI to microplastics or a virus—there are no uncontaminated parts of our info ecosystem.
this is why people are comparing AI to microplastics or a virus—there are no uncontaminated parts of our info ecosystem.
"People are better off using online searches or their own judgement" is an unbelievably harsh indictment of AI chatbots
February 10, 2026 at 2:05 PM
It’s so odd to me that we’ve reached a point where making something shoddy is not only *not* a source of shame and embarrassment, but also something they double down on. Even more puzzling is the willful erosion of value (and the good name of one’s brand) in the online search function.
remembering the same thing happened (maybe from NYT itself) in reading Kendrick Lamar’s human American flag as apolitical
February 10, 2026 at 1:58 PM
remembering the same thing happened (maybe from NYT itself) in reading Kendrick Lamar’s human American flag as apolitical
suggesting online search > using a medical AI chatbot may underestimate how many websites are now full of AI slop (not to mention how AI has permeated online search)
this is why people are comparing AI to microplastics or a virus—there are no uncontaminated parts of our info ecosystem.
this is why people are comparing AI to microplastics or a virus—there are no uncontaminated parts of our info ecosystem.
"People are better off using online searches or their own judgement" is an unbelievably harsh indictment of AI chatbots
⚠️ Despite all the hype, chatbots still make terrible doctors. Out today is the largest user study of language models for medical self-diagnosis. We found that chatbots provide inaccurate and inconsistent answers, and that people are better off using online searches or their own judgment.
February 10, 2026 at 1:26 PM
suggesting online search > using a medical AI chatbot may underestimate how many websites are now full of AI slop (not to mention how AI has permeated online search)
this is why people are comparing AI to microplastics or a virus—there are no uncontaminated parts of our info ecosystem.
this is why people are comparing AI to microplastics or a virus—there are no uncontaminated parts of our info ecosystem.
Reposted by Louise Seamster
this may be a radical take BUT I think we should proceed cautiously with the rushed integration of half-cooked automation into problematic business sectors in a broadly-corrupt country without functional regulatory oversight
As AI enters the operating room, reports arise of botched surgeries and misidentified body parts
Medical device makers have been rushing to add AI to their products. While proponents say the new technology will revolutionize medicine, regulators are receiving a rising number of claims of patient ...
www.reuters.com
February 9, 2026 at 8:56 PM
this may be a radical take BUT I think we should proceed cautiously with the rushed integration of half-cooked automation into problematic business sectors in a broadly-corrupt country without functional regulatory oversight
so excited to find these pieces as followup by @reprolawyer.bsky.social and @jessicavalenti.bsky.social ! bsky.app/profile/repr...
On Friday, I wrote about what SRH care access advocates should know about Heritage's new insidious plan for "saving" (read: breaking) the U.S. Today, @jessicavalenti.bsky.social published a piece that offers a great big picture look at the plan: jessica.substack.com/p/theyre-com...
February 9, 2026 at 5:03 PM
so excited to find these pieces as followup by @reprolawyer.bsky.social and @jessicavalenti.bsky.social ! bsky.app/profile/repr...
"Seen how people like me, immigrants are been treated changes my perspective about the U.S. My mom and I came to The U.S looking for a good and safe place to live"
2/ “I miss my school and my friends I feel bad since when I came here to this Place, because I have been here too long.”
From 9-year-old Susej F, detained for 50+ days
From 9-year-old Susej F, detained for 50+ days
February 9, 2026 at 12:33 PM
"Seen how people like me, immigrants are been treated changes my perspective about the U.S. My mom and I came to The U.S looking for a good and safe place to live"
Reposted by Louise Seamster
jack asked if i would sketch up a poster to tell people in nearby neighborhoods about the partnership between flock and ring, and this is what i came up with. it can be printed on an 8.5x11 sheet of paper.
![YOUR RING CAMERA IS AN ICE AGENT
[a drawing of a ring camera with an ice agent dragging a person away in its field of vision]
"In October of 2025, Amazon's Ring announced its partnership with FLOCK, an A.I. surveillance group that freely shares its footage with ICE, the secret service, and the navy. Flock customers can use A.I. tools to sift through footage to assist in all manner of operations (like raids and deportations) without a warrant. Unplug Ring! Melt ICE! Protect your neighbors!
See: https://blog.ring.com/about-ring/ring-expands-community-requests-to-additional-community-safety-partners/
https://www.404media.co/ice-secret-service-navy-all-had-access-to-flocks-nationwide-network-of-cameras/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pp9MwZkHiMQ
https://www.aclum.org/campaigns-initiatives/get-the-flock-out-resource-guide/](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:p2aefnvhb3zmkrazk67dppxw/bafkreic7teyeocg7k5qcqxnc666k7clyiislh2zfi6iopcz6fs3e3lt6xy@jpeg)
January 19, 2026 at 8:15 PM
jack asked if i would sketch up a poster to tell people in nearby neighborhoods about the partnership between flock and ring, and this is what i came up with. it can be printed on an 8.5x11 sheet of paper.
this is not just conservative support for gender discrimination--it's support for gender subjugation.
February 8, 2026 at 11:27 PM
this is not just conservative support for gender discrimination--it's support for gender subjugation.
as a side note, I keep retweeting that heritage paper periodically because I find it so incredibly disturbing.
preferring HS-only women because they have more kids...
at the same time guys are coming out of the woodwork saying age gaps are good, Epstein's victims wanted to be sugar babies, etc.
preferring HS-only women because they have more kids...
at the same time guys are coming out of the woodwork saying age gaps are good, Epstein's victims wanted to be sugar babies, etc.
February 8, 2026 at 11:27 PM
as a side note, I keep retweeting that heritage paper periodically because I find it so incredibly disturbing.
preferring HS-only women because they have more kids...
at the same time guys are coming out of the woodwork saying age gaps are good, Epstein's victims wanted to be sugar babies, etc.
preferring HS-only women because they have more kids...
at the same time guys are coming out of the woodwork saying age gaps are good, Epstein's victims wanted to be sugar babies, etc.
Black Mirror now part of the training data feeding whoever turned to AI for "ideas for super bowl ads"
February 8, 2026 at 11:19 PM
Black Mirror now part of the training data feeding whoever turned to AI for "ideas for super bowl ads"
also worth noting masters degrees are in general now more held by women (as I've argued elsewhere, in part because women have to offset their own gender wage discrimination)
www.rsfjournal.org/content/11/1...
www.rsfjournal.org/content/11/1...
February 8, 2026 at 11:17 PM
also worth noting masters degrees are in general now more held by women (as I've argued elsewhere, in part because women have to offset their own gender wage discrimination)
www.rsfjournal.org/content/11/1...
www.rsfjournal.org/content/11/1...
As of 2021-22, Women earned 80% of masters degrees in education, health, social services. nces.ed.gov/programs/coe...
February 8, 2026 at 11:17 PM
As of 2021-22, Women earned 80% of masters degrees in education, health, social services. nces.ed.gov/programs/coe...