I was walking through a random park, only because the Tube unexpectedly stopped running one stop south of my destination, and all of a sudden a live brass trio began to play the Star Wars theme. Times like these I feel like I'm living in a novel.
Amy Sundberg
@amysundberg.bsky.social
SF/F and YA writer, reporter at @theurbanist.org, publisher of Notes from the Emerald City. She/her. Send tips on Signal (amysundberg.92) linktr.ee/amysundberg
ICE is buying torture gloves and scary robots to terrify people, and meanwhile new data shows ICE arrests reached a new high in WA State in July. I'm hearing they've just gotten quieter and more insidious about it.
Joseph Cox@josephcox.bsky.social · last wk.New: ICE plans to spend millions of dollars on Boston Dynamics dog robots. ICE says this is to improve "officer safety." The robots can open doors, pick up objects, have 360 cameras, infrared vision, etc. Boston Dynamics didn't respond to question on its stance on ICE www.404media.co/ice-plans-to...
I just saw two pairs of police officers carrying machine guns right on Kensington High Street in London. They all had their hands on their weapons ready to go. In the past I've only seen weapons like this at Heathrow. I've never seen so much dry, dead grass in the parks here either.
The Seattle Mayor's Office expects to make a decision about the new SPD Chief by the beginning of 2027. Also I'm now on vacation. 🔥
Idk almost like sheriffs are a problem www.timesunion.com/capitol/arti...
15 NY sheriffs file lawsuit challenging NY law banning ICE agreements
The new state law banning formal agreements with federal immigration agencies took effect Tuesday and is already being challenged in a separate lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice.
timesunion.com
Something like 90% of the text spam I receive on my phone is from the Democratic party, and it does not engender good feelings in me. It doesn't matter how much I block, mark as spam, or text to stop, the Dem spam texts just keep coming and coming, a neverending flood of low-level exploitation.
My latest on a proposed legislative package in Seattle about people living in RVs, including instituting a new one-time permitting program.
The Urbanist@theurbanist.org · 2w agoNEW STORY// Strauss Proposes Program Phasing Out Street Parking for RVs By Amy Sundberg via @theurbanist.org
Highlights from the new OIG report on Seattle's CARE team: "CARE’s scope of work remains significantly impacted by the terms of the SPOG contract. Even as the SPOG contract adds a new response type, expands call types, and removes the cap on new staffing, it also further limits the CARE Team."
Low chance of Sayles becoming the permanent SPD Chief.
Erica C. Barnett@ericacbarnett.bsky.social · 2w agoInterim Police Chief Sayles Filed Complaint Against Hate Crimes Detective for Speaking At Pro-LGBTQ Rally “Any further investigation would violate [the detective’s] constitutional rights and open the city to a lawsuit,” an investigator concluded when dismissing Sayles’ complaint.
This is a brilliant bit of satire and creative activism. Darth Vader gives public comment in San Diego in favor of Flock cameras and mass surveillance. H/t @andyengelson.bsky.social.
Darth Vader speaks out in support of Flock at San Diego City Council meeting (Aug. 19, 2026)
YouTube video by Matt Novak
youtu.be
Updates on the U.S. surveillance state notesfromtheemeraldcity.com/updates-on-t...
Updates on the U.S. surveillance state - Notes from the Emerald City
Local News: I wrote a piece about Seattle’s efforts to pull together a coordinated gun violence prevention strategy, which took some doing given the focus on Chief Barnes’s resignation during the time...
notesfromtheemeraldcity.com
Okay, Bluesky, I'm reading that we are now recommended to be at the airport 3 hours before an international flight (vs 2 hours for all the years I've been flying international). Is 3 hours a real thing people think is advisable? It seems like so much time.
I forget who here on Bluesky recommended Mioposto's potato pizza, but whoever you are, thank you. It was delicious! They also have a seasonal peach and prosciutto pizza right now for those interested.
Ugh. I can make a highlight reel of my night IN MY OWN BRAIN, aka whatever I happen to remember and think was enjoyable/touching/funny/interesting/important. I don't need a creepy surveillance-enabled video to commemorate the things I choose to do.
Woodrow Hartzog@hartzog.bsky.social · 3w agoThey will never stop trying to put facial recognition into everything. We must ban it.
On Monday night, the Shoreline City Council will consider whether to go on the record in opposition to the two anti-trans ballot initiatives that are set to be voted on statewide in November. The move was advanced by CMs Laura Mork and @electroberts.bsky.social.
These two SPD command staff members leaving frees up half a million dollars ($550k actually). That is a similar amount to the amount of $$ that caused the entire universal school meals vs food vouchers for weekends brouhaha last month.
Erica C. Barnett@ericacbarnett.bsky.social · 4w agoTechnically, DeLollis is resigning to care for an ill family member who she has been taking care ofwhile on leave. Hunt is technically retiring. Barnes was reportedly asked to cut his executive staff, which he expanded dramatically when former mayor Harrell hired him, but declined to do so.
note that the investigation runs from 2009 to 2022. in other words this is not a 'trump bad' problem this is a 'surveillance state enables intimate partner violence' problem
Brendan McQuade@bmcquade.bsky.social · 4w ago"...a CBP officer allegedly used government databases to contact a flight attendant....CBP employees were accused of providing border-crossing data to someone involved in a “heated divorce” another DHS employee allegedly...track[ed] several coworkers’ cell phones" www.wired.com/story/cbp-wo...
My latest on the ordinance about grocery algorithmic pricing discrimination currently being discussed in Seattle. You might remember a state bill earlier this year (that didn't make it through) grappling with the same subject. This would be potential model legislation for cities across the US.
The Urbanist@theurbanist.org · 4w agoThe Seattle City Council has taken up an ordinance aimed at encouraging fair pricing for groceries by banning algorithmic price discrimination. It’s another piece of Mayor Katie Wilson’s affordability agenda. Story: www.theurbanist.org/seattle-adva...
“Experts say systems like smart cameras and automated license plate readers are sold to the public as ways to increase safety, but there are few, if any, guardrails to prevent them from becoming tools of domestic violence.” 19thnews.org/2026/08/floc...
Flock is just the latest example of using surveillance to stalk women
The technology is under fire for how police officers have abused it. But it’s only the symptom of a larger problem.
19thnews.org
Looks like a new torture weapon might be being deployed by ICE soon. People will need to be on the lookout for agents wearing gloves.
Spencer Ackerman@attackerman.bsky.social · 4w agoI went through the users manual for the GLOVE, the electric-shock weapon that ICE is reportedly about to get to use on whoever they feel like. All the promotional material shows a person immediately complying upon contact. But wait till you see what the recommended duration of the shock is.
It was so difficult to be a renter with a dog, and one of those difficulties was definitely pet rent. So happy people won't have to suffer through that in Seattle anymore!
Guy Oron@guyoron.net · 4w agoBREAKING: The Seattle City Council has just voted 8-0 to pass the new ordinance banning landlords from imposing junk fees and requiring up-transparency in rental listings.
I'm following up to confirm the OIG review is expected in MID-DECEMBER, not September as CM Juarez said this morning. I went back to listen again to be sure, and then checked in with the Mayor's Office. December is the correct date.
Amy Sundberg@amysundberg.bsky.social · 4w agoCM Juarez is saying she thinks the Mayor's Office could be telling everyone right now why there was a 5 hour delay for the press conference after the shooting. The MO has asked the OIG to conduct a review about all the comms issues around the shooting that should be done ~mid-Sept.
Something I noticed this morning was the confirmation that not only was Barnes out of town foe the shooting, but both of his deputy chiefs were also on vacation. He brought in a second deputy chief himself, which is a bit unusual (and also expensive.)
Amy Sundberg@amysundberg.bsky.social · 4w agoAt this point it's probably smart to have this independent review because the council is out for Mayor's Office blood, regardless of what actually happened. My understanding is that it might well have been primarily an SPD issue, and I don't know that the council would accept that answer right now.
I personally think the police chief should move to the region, and all previous police chiefs from out of town have done so. I also think lunging at a reporter asking a reasonable question could be a fireable offense in itself. But there were lots of other issues with Barnes, as I've covered:
Issues With Former Police Chief Barnes Weren't Just About His Travel or Where He Lived - PubliCola
By Erica C. Barnett Mainstream media outlets and many Seattle City Councilmembers have expressed outrage over Mayor Katie Wilson’s decision…
publicola.com
At this morning's Seattle CC public safety meeting, interim SPD Chief Sayles has said SPD is still looking through video evidence pertaining to the Bite of Seattle shooting. And also prepping some search warrants.
I give an update on how Seattle's gun violence prevention policy is developing. I expect there will continue to be more news about this in the coming weeks.
The Urbanist@theurbanist.org · 4w agoNEW STORY// Seattle Prepares Gun Violence Prevention Policy Update By Amy Sundberg via @theurbanist.org
"Hall used statistical models to examine when one category of relationship became more likely than the next. The estimated probability crossed 50 per cent at about 94 hours for acquaintance to casual friend, 164 hours for casual friend to friend, and 219 hours for friend to close or best friend."
Adult loneliness is often treated as a failure to connect, but among recently relocated adults one study estimated friendship crossed into close territory around 219 hours, and adult life keeps removi...
The modern adult week offers fewer unplanned collisions with potential friends, making deep connection less a matter of personality than of time that no longer naturally accumulates.
siliconcanals.com