Katherine Smock
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ksmock.bsky.social
Katherine Smock
@ksmock.bsky.social
78 followers 95 following 8 posts
doctoral candidate at UCLA Sociology studying housing and homelessness, organizations, and local governance in LA
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Reposted by Katherine Smock
awalkerinla.bsky.social
*taps sign*
awalkerinla.bsky.social Alissa Walker @awalkerinla.bsky.social · Jun 26
Two years ago I interviewed a 31-year-old NY state assemblymember about a 7-year-old girl killed by an SUV driver in his district. I hung up the phone, astonished that I'd talked to a legislator who so thoughtfully articulated what actually needs to change on our streets.

He'll make a great mayor
In February, 7-year-old Dolma Naadhun was crossing the intersection of Newtown Road and 45th Street in Astoria with her mother and sister when the driver of a 2021 Ford Explorer blew through a stop sign, striking and killing Dolma. One month later, New York City Department of Transportation commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez visited the crash site with other officials, met with community members demanding a traffic signal be installed, and promised to make changes to the street - including "daylighting" the intersection using curb extensions and plastic bollards. State assemblymember Zohran Mamdani also visited the scene that day and realized that something else needed to change. "When you take a step back and think about traffic violence in New York City," he said, "you start to understand that this is a systemic issue that is incentivized by the policies that we have in place with regard to the design of our streets and what kind of vehicles we allow to be on our roads." Whether a driver runs a stop sign or a red light, statistically, certain cars - namely, bigger SUVs and trucks - are more likely to kill a 7-year-old. This is why Mamdani is co- introducing legislation for a weight-based vehicle-registration fee intended to discourage people from purchasing heavier vehicles. "The car industry is pushing the sale of heavier and larger vehicles," he says. "The state has to make it clear that these types of vehicles come with a certain kind of cost." soar above adult shoulders. But there may be another way to disincentivize the purchases of such vehicles, says Edwards. "One other potential idea would be for someone, maybe a city's DOT, to start keeping a list of the different makes and models of vehicles that are killing pedestrians and cyclists, or kids specifically, and post that publicly," he says. "That could bring awareness to which cars are more dangerous and also potentially affect insurance rates, which would possibly convince people not to buy certain cars." There's a bit of accountability in New York's bill, which would require the State DOT to track all fatal crashes by vehicle weight. But the other encouraging aspect of the proposal is that the collected fees stay local, by county, and, after the annual dedications to highway, bridge, and transit trust funds are met, a full 75 percent of the funds raised will go toward safety improvements like bike lanes, bollards, road diets, pedestrianization of streets, and raised crosswalks. This means the neighborhoods most impacted by large vehicles are likely to see the biggest changes. And that might be the most important part of the legislation, says Mamdani. "This is an initiative to make our streets safer for our children," he says. "And we are making sure a significant portion of this funding goes toward creating the very streetscapes that we know will save their lives."
November 5, 2025 at 2:12 AM
ksmock.bsky.social
It's really giving live, laugh, love
onestpress.onestnetwork.com Olga Nesterova @onestpress.onestnetwork.com · 6d
New sign outside the Oval Office..
November 5, 2025 at 10:29 PM
Reposted by Katherine Smock
drjoehanson.bsky.social
When people learn with ChatGPT instead of following their own searches, they end up knowing less, caring less, and producing worse advice, even when the facts are the same.

Friction is an essential ingredient for learning! Convenience makes us shallow.

academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/ar...
Experimental evidence of the effects of large language models versus web search on depth of learning
Abstract. The effects of using large language models (LLMs) versus traditional web search on depth of learning are explored. A theory is proposed that when
academic.oup.com
October 28, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Reposted by Katherine Smock
knockdotla.bsky.social
New on Knock: Getting up early to beat the crowds? LAPD and City Attorney Feldstein Soto sought court permission to use force against journalists ahead of the No Kings protests. City Council disagreed, unanimously voting to block the attempt.

knock-la.com/lapd-city-at...
LAPD, City Attorney want to shoot more journalists; City Council disagrees - Knock LA
"Shooting journalists with rubber bullets while they are covering protests is bad." - Controller Kenneth Mejia
knock-la.com
October 18, 2025 at 12:47 AM
ksmock.bsky.social
my paper with my colleague and friend Victoria Tran is finally out!
uaanews.bsky.social Urban Affairs Association (UAA) @uaanews.bsky.social · Oct 6
NEW JUA #ARTICLE: Between the city and the people: The pitfalls and potential of hyper-local governance of the homelessness crisis in Los Angeles www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.... @bhanlonurban.bsky.social
October 7, 2025 at 7:26 PM
Reposted by Katherine Smock
knockdotla.bsky.social
New on Knock: the looming redevelopment of William Mead Homes in Chinatown raises fears in Mar Vista Gardens, the only public housing project on the west side of LA. Story from @marvistavoice.bsky.social

knock-la.com/william-mead...
William Mead Redevelopment Raises Fears for Mar Vista Gardens - Knock LA
Los Angeles is once again at a crossroads in its treatment of public housing, threatening communities like Mar Vista Gardens.
knock-la.com
September 24, 2025 at 7:29 PM
ksmock.bsky.social
this may be controversial but maybe tv stars should NOT be the last word on urban development

laist.com/news/climate...
A former reality star is influencing LA's post-fires rebuilding
Spencer Pratt is best known from his time on MTV reality show "The Hills." But he's now using his social media presence to weigh in on rebuilding efforts after the L.A. fires.
laist.com
September 16, 2025 at 8:40 PM
Reposted by Katherine Smock
jacobsoboroff.bsky.social
Nory Sontay Ramos was a thriving high school student in L.A. until she and her mom were deported by the Trump administration in July. For @msnbc.com, we visited her in Guatemala as she tries to graduate remotely while hiding from the same gang they fled years ago. www.msnbc.com/msnbc/news/n...
The disappearance of Nory Sontay Ramos
Nory and her mother were following the rules. But as MSNBC reports from L.A. and Guatemala, U.S. officials deported them anyway — throwing their futures into jeopardy.
www.msnbc.com
September 2, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Reposted by Katherine Smock
jessicacalarco.com
This is the fruit of a seed planted in the first Trump administration--a seed of skepticism around "social emotional learning" that, I'd argue, was planted to test whether fear-mongering around "too much empathy and not enough real learning in schools" could be used to justify attacks on DEI. 1/🧵
A New York Times opinion headline: “Is ‘Toxic Empathy’ Pulling Christians to the Left? How Allie Beth Stuckey is holding the line on the right.
July 17, 2025 at 7:26 PM
Reposted by Katherine Smock
eric-reinhart.com
Each time a remotely progressive candidate wins office in the US, the rich declare they're going to leave town. What do they actually do? Nothing. A 2016 study found only 0.04% of millionaires move in a given year due to tax increases. Rich people talk to feel important. Please properly tax them.
June 26, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Reposted by Katherine Smock
mkushel.bsky.social
📣Older adults are the fastest growing group of people experiencing homelessness. This @nytimes.com makes the crisis vivid. Proposed cuts & policy changes will make this problem so much worse. @ucsfbhhi.bsky.social Proud to have contributed 🧵 1/x www.nytimes.com/2025/05/27/u...
How a Generation’s Struggle Led to a Record Surge in Homelessness
www.nytimes.com
May 29, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Reposted by Katherine Smock
sorayanadiamcdonald.com
A masked woman in neon workout gear creating a dance video during the covid pandemic as the Myanmar coup unrolls behind her.
January 31, 2025 at 11:43 PM
Reposted by Katherine Smock
timwatson.bsky.social
we begged NYT to write about public universities, so their main HE reporter covers the new rules governing Florida's university system, doesn't even mention the abolition of all DEI programs, gives star billing to a Wayne State sociology prof who thinks the discipline has been hijacked by leftists
Florida Eliminates Sociology as a Core Course at Its Universities
In December, Florida’s education commissioner wrote that “sociology has been hijacked by left-wing activists.”
www.nytimes.com
January 25, 2024 at 2:14 PM
ksmock.bsky.social
excited to talk about stanley tumbler culture with my students in our Economy and Society class tomorrow :)
January 16, 2024 at 10:46 PM
ksmock.bsky.social
honestly one of my favorite podcasts. I was really excited to see them do this book.
ketanjoshi.co Ketan Joshi @ketanjoshi.co · Oct 26
Excellent episode of If Books Could Kill, tearing apart Michael Shellenberger's conservative anti homeless propaganda.

Shellenberger's MO in a nutshell here: pseudo-academic style, misrepresenting sources or just flat out lying

pca.st/episode/78f2... @michaelhobbes.bsky.social
San Fransicko - If Books Could Kill
The airport bestsellers that captured our hearts and ruined our minds
pca.st
October 26, 2023 at 6:49 PM
ksmock.bsky.social
why is no one talking about the obvious growth and transformation that happened between january and september
atrupar.com Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · Sep 27
new article of impeachment just dropped
September 27, 2023 at 5:53 PM
ksmock.bsky.social
LAPD so badly want this to be an anti-police murder story, but of course it's just a schizophrenic guy whose family hasn't been able to get help for him
Suspect in L.A. deputy killing heard voices, had attempted suicide, mother says
The suspect in the killing of a Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputy was diagnosed with schizophrenia, heard voices and twice tried to kill himself, his mother told The Times.
www.latimes.com
September 19, 2023 at 10:11 PM
ksmock.bsky.social
well bluesky is much better than threads, so I'm happy to be here
August 26, 2023 at 3:04 AM