Stuart Semmel
@semmiotic.bsky.social
British history, political thought, history of consciousness, movies, snacks
Pinned
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
Benicio del Toro up first at @nyfcc.bsky.social awards. And here’s my booklet essay, for his Best Supporting Actor win.
January 7, 2026 at 12:55 AM
Benicio del Toro up first at @nyfcc.bsky.social awards. And here’s my booklet essay, for his Best Supporting Actor win.
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
From “The known unknowns” to “The unknowns in Venezuela are brutally obvious”
January 5, 2026 at 8:27 PM
From “The known unknowns” to “The unknowns in Venezuela are brutally obvious”
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
The Washpost editorial board just realized this Venezuela thing could go, erm, south pretty quickly
From “A victory for America” to “Grave challenges remain”
From “A victory for America” to “Grave challenges remain”
January 5, 2026 at 9:35 AM
The Washpost editorial board just realized this Venezuela thing could go, erm, south pretty quickly
From “A victory for America” to “Grave challenges remain”
From “A victory for America” to “Grave challenges remain”
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
We banned overdraft fees. Trump brought them back.
The 20 biggest US banks made over $3 billion last year in overdraft fees.
US overdraft fees jump at big banks amid regulatory, economic shifts
Fourteen of the largest U.S. retail banks posted jumps in the income they generated from overdraft and bounced-check fees during the first nine months of the year, while two big banks reported sharp d...
www.reuters.com
January 5, 2026 at 7:46 PM
We banned overdraft fees. Trump brought them back.
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
Has a court ruled on whether, under Section 230, a web site’s AI generating content based on a user prompt is treated as the web site’s speech? Seems to me it should be, just as if the site operator published speech answering someone’s question.
BWEPRA
BWEPRA
I am not a Section 230 expert but being that Twitter is creating and publishing these photos I wonder if they actually have any civil legal protection? @kenwhite.bsky.social ? @akivamcohen.bsky.social ?
What X is allowing Grok to do is unlawful or regulatory-illegal in multiple jurisdictions, creates clear DSA violations, and continues despite regulator scrutiny. The images do not need to be pornographic, non-consensual sexualised or intimate depictions are enough.
January 5, 2026 at 4:09 PM
Has a court ruled on whether, under Section 230, a web site’s AI generating content based on a user prompt is treated as the web site’s speech? Seems to me it should be, just as if the site operator published speech answering someone’s question.
BWEPRA
BWEPRA
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
My friends on the left: take "yes" for an answer. On Capitol Hill, the Democrats are pretty much with you.
www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2026/01/the-...
www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2026/01/the-...
The Dem Reaction - Lawyers, Guns & Money
Where are the Democrats right now? Friend of the blog Jamie Mayerfeld has done the research: I saw someone write on Facebook: “Only a short matter of time before we see establishment liberals falling ...
www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com
January 4, 2026 at 9:21 PM
My friends on the left: take "yes" for an answer. On Capitol Hill, the Democrats are pretty much with you.
www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2026/01/the-...
www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2026/01/the-...
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
Excellent reporting.
This is the precisely the purpose of algorithms that displace human labor and human interaction; it’s not a glitch, and rather than focus on hypothetical harms and doomsday scenarios that only serve as PR for how powerful “AI” is, look at the harms it’s doing right now.
This is the precisely the purpose of algorithms that displace human labor and human interaction; it’s not a glitch, and rather than focus on hypothetical harms and doomsday scenarios that only serve as PR for how powerful “AI” is, look at the harms it’s doing right now.
You've probably been following the story about fraud in MN. I wrote about the people who provide services who are being driven into bankruptcy, thanks to the Walz' administration decision to hire Optum AI to screen all payments. It's a disaster.
Perry: Trusted providers are being unfairly swept up in Minnesota’s fraud crackdown
As the state's new anti-fraud screening system went into effect, the Holland Center expected to receive $212,000 in payments. It instead received $22,000, David M. Perry writes. If nothing changes soo...
www.startribune.com
January 4, 2026 at 3:02 AM
Excellent reporting.
This is the precisely the purpose of algorithms that displace human labor and human interaction; it’s not a glitch, and rather than focus on hypothetical harms and doomsday scenarios that only serve as PR for how powerful “AI” is, look at the harms it’s doing right now.
This is the precisely the purpose of algorithms that displace human labor and human interaction; it’s not a glitch, and rather than focus on hypothetical harms and doomsday scenarios that only serve as PR for how powerful “AI” is, look at the harms it’s doing right now.
“Wegmans and other businesses that collect biometric data are required to post signs announcing the practice because of a 2021 city law.” So is it happening unannounced in Wegmans elsewhere?
January 3, 2026 at 11:34 PM
“Wegmans and other businesses that collect biometric data are required to post signs announcing the practice because of a 2021 city law.” So is it happening unannounced in Wegmans elsewhere?
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
Bari Weiss’ Tiny Fake Austin College Sees Mass Staff, Advisor Exodus ino.to/wUAye4i
Bari Weiss’ Tiny Fake Austin College Sees Mass Staff, Advisor Exodus
Before she was hired by right wing billionaire Larry Ellison to turn CBS into a right wing propaganda and safe space, Bari Weiss tried her best to create a fake propaganda-fueled college in Austin.…
ino.to
January 3, 2026 at 12:02 AM
Bari Weiss’ Tiny Fake Austin College Sees Mass Staff, Advisor Exodus ino.to/wUAye4i
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
You should leave Substack in 2026, because they platform fascists regularly, but even before that I am *begging* you to stop referring to your writing as "my Substack" because why give them that agency. It's your writing, your posts, your words, on their platform.
January 3, 2026 at 3:54 AM
You should leave Substack in 2026, because they platform fascists regularly, but even before that I am *begging* you to stop referring to your writing as "my Substack" because why give them that agency. It's your writing, your posts, your words, on their platform.
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
I’ll call them Microslop from here on in then
January 2, 2026 at 6:27 PM
I’ll call them Microslop from here on in then
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
London in the good old days - before everyone's feet pointed forwards.
January 2, 2026 at 8:24 PM
London in the good old days - before everyone's feet pointed forwards.
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
Yes. This is like if a drunken farmer drove his tractor through a department store and his attorney issued an apology from the tractor.
January 2, 2026 at 7:45 PM
Yes. This is like if a drunken farmer drove his tractor through a department store and his attorney issued an apology from the tractor.
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
Parker's piece nails why this matters. "Tech companies... would rather not answer for their products’ failures. Every headline that says “Grok apologizes” or “Grok admits” or “Grok says” creates a world where the chatbot takes the fall while Musk and his executives face no scrutiny whatsoever."
I wrote about Grok's CSAM problem and how journalists keep fumbling the story
www.readtpa.com/p/grok-cant-...
www.readtpa.com/p/grok-cant-...
Grok Can't Apologize. Grok Isn't Sentient. So Why Do Headlines Keep Saying It Did?
Elon Musk’s chatbot has been “undressing” women and children in public. Journalists are letting xAI off the hook by pretending the bot is responsible.
www.readtpa.com
January 2, 2026 at 7:32 PM
Parker's piece nails why this matters. "Tech companies... would rather not answer for their products’ failures. Every headline that says “Grok apologizes” or “Grok admits” or “Grok says” creates a world where the chatbot takes the fall while Musk and his executives face no scrutiny whatsoever."
I saw “Scrooged” in Paris. The title was “Fantômes en fête.”
The German title for "Groundhog Day" is "Und Täglich Grüßt das Murmeltier," or "And Every Day the Marmot Says Hello."
January 2, 2026 at 2:14 PM
I saw “Scrooged” in Paris. The title was “Fantômes en fête.”
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
The German title for "Groundhog Day" is "Und Täglich Grüßt das Murmeltier," or "And Every Day the Marmot Says Hello."
January 2, 2026 at 1:53 PM
The German title for "Groundhog Day" is "Und Täglich Grüßt das Murmeltier," or "And Every Day the Marmot Says Hello."
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January 2, 2026 at 5:17 AM
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Reposted by Stuart Semmel
A List of Predictions Made in 1926 About 2026
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January 1, 2026 at 5:13 PM
A List of Predictions Made in 1926 About 2026
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Reposted by Stuart Semmel
Leave, delete the app, salt the earth behind you, do not look back.
January 2, 2026 at 2:11 AM
Leave, delete the app, salt the earth behind you, do not look back.
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
I think that, from the very start of his campaign, Zohran Mamdani understood that he could win. I absolutely do not think that he could have predicted that, in the process, he would also end up celebrating Jewish holidays with Mandy Patinkin basically forever
January 1, 2026 at 7:20 PM
I think that, from the very start of his campaign, Zohran Mamdani understood that he could win. I absolutely do not think that he could have predicted that, in the process, he would also end up celebrating Jewish holidays with Mandy Patinkin basically forever
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
Unused book titles from one of Dickens’s notebooks. (Via Robert Douglas-Fairhurst’s The Turning Point.)
January 1, 2026 at 12:05 AM
Unused book titles from one of Dickens’s notebooks. (Via Robert Douglas-Fairhurst’s The Turning Point.)
It’s so odd when people suddenly start noticing something that’s been clear for years.
I am determined as God is my witness to start the Trump fake hand conspiracy theory. His hand isn't showing signs of an undisclosed illness. It's a fake painted Halloween costume hand because his hand was already removed. It's time.
December 31, 2025 at 11:41 PM
It’s so odd when people suddenly start noticing something that’s been clear for years.
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
The nuance here is that the IRT Company went bankrupt, and its subway lines survived because the city took them over under the leadership of the socialist Fiorello LaGuardia.
December 31, 2025 at 1:26 PM
The nuance here is that the IRT Company went bankrupt, and its subway lines survived because the city took them over under the leadership of the socialist Fiorello LaGuardia.
Reposted by Stuart Semmel
JUST IN: AG Pam Bondi deletes a post touting a chart as proof of the Trump administration's success in reducing drug overdoses—after being informed the data actually reflected the *Biden* administration’s record.
December 31, 2025 at 12:11 AM
JUST IN: AG Pam Bondi deletes a post touting a chart as proof of the Trump administration's success in reducing drug overdoses—after being informed the data actually reflected the *Biden* administration’s record.