Victor Shammas
@victorshammas.com
Oslo, Norway-based Associate Professor of Sociology—with a global perspective. Research: victorshammas.com. Newsletter on politics, culture, and social theory: theorybrief.com.
AI’s invisibilized human labor and the manual annotations needed to make AI work: “My short film…“Their Eyes,” spotlights the invisible, human work behind A.I. In it I explore the daily lives of workers from Venezuela, Kenya and the Philippines who annotate images for self-driving cars.”
Opinion | Self-Driving Cars Can’t See Without Their Eyes
www.nytimes.com
January 2, 2026 at 10:28 AM
AI’s invisibilized human labor and the manual annotations needed to make AI work: “My short film…“Their Eyes,” spotlights the invisible, human work behind A.I. In it I explore the daily lives of workers from Venezuela, Kenya and the Philippines who annotate images for self-driving cars.”
”The deals represent a reduction in total U.S. health spending for each country, the center said, with annual U.S. financial support down 49% compared with 2024.”
US signs new health deals with 9 African countries that mirror Trump's priorities
The U.S. government has signed health deals with at least nine African countries. These new deals reflect the Trump administration's priorities and its focus on mutual benefits.
apnews.com
January 1, 2026 at 1:30 PM
”The deals represent a reduction in total U.S. health spending for each country, the center said, with annual U.S. financial support down 49% compared with 2024.”
“Boebert is claiming that…Trump killed a massive clean water project in her district as punishment for her voting to release the Epstein files … ‘Nothing says ‘America First’ like denying clean drinking water to 50,000 people in Southeast Colorado, many of whom enthusiastically voted for him.’”
Lauren Boebert Suggests Trump Vetoed Water Project for Stunning Reason
Donald Trump had tried to pressure Boebert out of voting to release the Epstein files.
newrepublic.com
January 1, 2026 at 1:27 PM
“Boebert is claiming that…Trump killed a massive clean water project in her district as punishment for her voting to release the Epstein files … ‘Nothing says ‘America First’ like denying clean drinking water to 50,000 people in Southeast Colorado, many of whom enthusiastically voted for him.’”
"Reckless intent means, in essence, that the perpetrator is indifferent to a crime that will likely occur. The case the Swedish prosecutors are making is that the information was there...but executives contracted with the Sudanese government anyway, and this constitutes complicity in a war crime."
Opinion | The Oil Company Drilled. The Government Slaughtered. Who Is Guilty?
www.nytimes.com
December 30, 2025 at 10:45 PM
"Reckless intent means, in essence, that the perpetrator is indifferent to a crime that will likely occur. The case the Swedish prosecutors are making is that the information was there...but executives contracted with the Sudanese government anyway, and this constitutes complicity in a war crime."
Reposted by Victor Shammas
There are 3,508 billionaires on the planet. About a third were in the U.S.—their fortunes accounted for 43% of the collective wealth, according to Altrata, a wealth-intelligence firm.
🔗: on.wsj.com/4qsIGn2
🔗: on.wsj.com/4qsIGn2
December 24, 2025 at 7:26 AM
There are 3,508 billionaires on the planet. About a third were in the U.S.—their fortunes accounted for 43% of the collective wealth, according to Altrata, a wealth-intelligence firm.
🔗: on.wsj.com/4qsIGn2
🔗: on.wsj.com/4qsIGn2
“The investigation cites an expert report, internal to the Swiss army, that assessed Palantir’s status as a US company meant there was a possibility sensitive data shared with it could be accessed by the US government and intelligence services.”
MPs question UK Palantir contracts after investigation reveals security concerns
Journalists find Swiss government rejected company over fears US intelligence might gain access to sensitive data
www.theguardian.com
December 23, 2025 at 5:27 PM
“The investigation cites an expert report, internal to the Swiss army, that assessed Palantir’s status as a US company meant there was a possibility sensitive data shared with it could be accessed by the US government and intelligence services.”
Reposted by Victor Shammas
BREAKING: WATCH the full 60 Minutes CECOT segment here. This was sent to me anonymously. It appears to be the segment CBS' Bari Weiss killed. www.muellershewrote.com/p/watch-the-...
WATCH: The 60 Minutes CECOT Segment
I was sent the CECOT segment anonymously in a group chat.
www.muellershewrote.com
December 22, 2025 at 10:46 PM
BREAKING: WATCH the full 60 Minutes CECOT segment here. This was sent to me anonymously. It appears to be the segment CBS' Bari Weiss killed. www.muellershewrote.com/p/watch-the-...
‘“If the [Trump] administration’s refusal to participate becomes a valid reason to spike a story, we have effectively handed them a ‘kill switch’ for any reporting they find inconvenient,” [reporter Sharyn Alfonsi] said.’
Outrage after CBS pulls 60 Minutes segment on El Salvador’s Cecot prison
Controversially appointed editor-in-chief Bari Weiss says: ‘I held that story and I held it because it wasn’t ready’
www.theguardian.com
December 22, 2025 at 6:10 PM
‘“If the [Trump] administration’s refusal to participate becomes a valid reason to spike a story, we have effectively handed them a ‘kill switch’ for any reporting they find inconvenient,” [reporter Sharyn Alfonsi] said.’
“It was supposed to be a celebratory milestone, the final step in the process to obtain U.S. permanent residency. Instead, as each interview with an immigration officer wrapped up, federal agents swooped in, handcuffed the foreign spouse and took him or her away.”
Green Card Interviews End in Handcuffs for Spouses of U.S. Citizens
www.nytimes.com
November 27, 2025 at 6:20 AM
“It was supposed to be a celebratory milestone, the final step in the process to obtain U.S. permanent residency. Instead, as each interview with an immigration officer wrapped up, federal agents swooped in, handcuffed the foreign spouse and took him or her away.”
“Beckert emphasizes how capitalism has depended at every stage of its development on the military power of the modern state and frequently on practices of extreme violence, such as the outright terror required to build the Atlantic system of slavery.”
How Capitalism Took Over the World
www.nytimes.com
November 26, 2025 at 5:28 PM
“Beckert emphasizes how capitalism has depended at every stage of its development on the military power of the modern state and frequently on practices of extreme violence, such as the outright terror required to build the Atlantic system of slavery.”
"I had thought…that I’d never again have to think about the antisemitic taunts I suffered from Nigel Farage at school.… It was alarming to me that all people seemed to see was Farage the entertainer, the nonconformist political figure…a straight-talking man of the people, holding up his pint glass."
Don’t believe Nigel Farage’s denials. He targeted me for being Jewish – and it hurt | Peter Ettedgui
Now that my former classmate has finally spoken about the allegations of his behaviour at school, I feel compelled to address his points directly, says Peter Ettedgui, a film director and producer
www.theguardian.com
November 26, 2025 at 9:51 AM
"I had thought…that I’d never again have to think about the antisemitic taunts I suffered from Nigel Farage at school.… It was alarming to me that all people seemed to see was Farage the entertainer, the nonconformist political figure…a straight-talking man of the people, holding up his pint glass."
Reposted by Victor Shammas
Rush Hour 4 in development after Trump reportedly pushed for sequel
Rush Hour 4 in development after Trump reportedly pushed for sequel
Rush Hour 4 in development after Trump reportedly pushed for sequel
www.independent.co.uk
November 26, 2025 at 5:31 AM
Rush Hour 4 in development after Trump reportedly pushed for sequel
Reposted by Victor Shammas
www.theorybrief.com/p/the-great-... 💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔
The Great American Decoupling
Under Trump 2.0, the U.S. is decoupling from the world—and the world from it. Both are worse off for it.
www.theorybrief.com
April 16, 2025 at 10:26 AM
www.theorybrief.com/p/the-great-... 💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔
"Are Democrats on par with Republicans in the digital media space? Not yet. The gap remains wide, according to audience numbers and interviews with creators and strategists. … But Democrats are making headway."
How Democrats are building their own digital media army
The 2024 election spurred Democrats to seek out podcasts and social media creators to spread their message and catch up with their Republican counterparts.
wapo.st
November 25, 2025 at 3:19 PM
"Are Democrats on par with Republicans in the digital media space? Not yet. The gap remains wide, according to audience numbers and interviews with creators and strategists. … But Democrats are making headway."
Reposted by Victor Shammas
Reposted by Victor Shammas
“the most recent turn to #nativism is a marked shift away from a worldview premised on cosmopolitanism, cultural experimentation, and liberal humanism. It’s a worldview that has stood the country in remarkably good stead.” #Denmark open.substack.com/pub/victorsh...
Have Denmark’s Right-Leaning Social Democrats Finally Learned Their Lesson?
Denmark’s recent elections suggest the Social Democrats’ rightward turn on immigration won’t always win. Voters expect more from the left—even in the age of Trump, Meloni, and Farage.
open.substack.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:56 PM
“the most recent turn to #nativism is a marked shift away from a worldview premised on cosmopolitanism, cultural experimentation, and liberal humanism. It’s a worldview that has stood the country in remarkably good stead.” #Denmark open.substack.com/pub/victorsh...
Denmark’s Social Democrats bet that a hardline immigration stance would keep the far right at bay. After suffering a setback in recent local elections, will they finally rethink that strategy?
Have Denmark’s Right-Leaning Social Democrats Finally Learned Their Lesson?
Denmark’s recent elections suggest the Social Democrats’ rightward turn on immigration won’t always win. Voters expect more from the left—even in the age of Trump, Meloni, and Farage.
open.substack.com
November 24, 2025 at 2:03 PM
Denmark’s Social Democrats bet that a hardline immigration stance would keep the far right at bay. After suffering a setback in recent local elections, will they finally rethink that strategy?
70 percent of Americans polled by CBS/YouGov oppose U.S. taking military action in Venezuela.
November 23, 2025 at 4:54 PM
70 percent of Americans polled by CBS/YouGov oppose U.S. taking military action in Venezuela.
‘“I have a few simple words to say to the Home Office: you destroyed my life,” he says. “How can they hold on to a person for 17 years who has done nothing wrong? Being an asylum seeker here is like living in an open prison.’
The life and limbo of a UK asylum seeker: one man’s harrowing 17-year wait for leave to remain
Ussu fled imprisonment and torture, only to find himself treated like a liar and outcast in the UK. Here’s how he survived homelessness and horrific injury in almost two decades without a decision
www.theguardian.com
November 23, 2025 at 8:59 AM
‘“I have a few simple words to say to the Home Office: you destroyed my life,” he says. “How can they hold on to a person for 17 years who has done nothing wrong? Being an asylum seeker here is like living in an open prison.’
Reposted by Victor Shammas
Ex-Brazil president Jair Bolsonaro 'tried to open ankle monitor' with soldering iron in 'escape attempt', court documents allege
Ex-Brazil president Jair Bolsonaro 'tried to open ankle monitor' with soldering iron in 'escape attempt', court documents allege
Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after allegedly trying to open his ankle monitor with a soldering iron in a bid to flee and avoid a jail term, according to court documents.
news.sky.com
November 22, 2025 at 9:42 PM
Ex-Brazil president Jair Bolsonaro 'tried to open ankle monitor' with soldering iron in 'escape attempt', court documents allege
“Oxbridge teachers (or ‘dons’) sometimes came from families of wealth and privilege. They were not an intelligentsia raised on brains and diligence, but an elite of ease. The author writes, ‘There was aristocratic resistance to a proliferation of middle-class swots’.”
TWILIGHT OF THE DONS | Kirkus Reviews
Elites in crisis.
www.kirkusreviews.com
November 22, 2025 at 8:20 PM
“Oxbridge teachers (or ‘dons’) sometimes came from families of wealth and privilege. They were not an intelligentsia raised on brains and diligence, but an elite of ease. The author writes, ‘There was aristocratic resistance to a proliferation of middle-class swots’.”
Never underestimate centrist Democrats’ capacity for self-sabotage: “The House voted 285-98 to approve a resolution condemning the “horrors of socialism” Friday morning … Eighty-six Democrats joined with Republicans to approve the measure.“
House votes to denounce ‘horrors’ of socialism ahead of Mamdani-Trump meeting
The incoming New York mayor will meet with the president at the White House this afternoon.
www.politico.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:13 PM
Never underestimate centrist Democrats’ capacity for self-sabotage: “The House voted 285-98 to approve a resolution condemning the “horrors of socialism” Friday morning … Eighty-six Democrats joined with Republicans to approve the measure.“
Right-wing media consolidation: “A merger of the Daily Mail and the Telegraph would redraw the traditional lines of Britain’s Fleet Street, creating one of the largest UK media groups and a dominant voice in rightwing politics.”
Daily Mail owner strikes £500mn deal for Telegraph
Tie-up would create one of the most powerful right-leaning media groups in Britain
on.ft.com
November 22, 2025 at 9:17 AM
Right-wing media consolidation: “A merger of the Daily Mail and the Telegraph would redraw the traditional lines of Britain’s Fleet Street, creating one of the largest UK media groups and a dominant voice in rightwing politics.”
Reposted by Victor Shammas
Great piece, so true.
‘The true definition of cancellation would be to disappear, left to exist only as an image in people’s minds. But that doesn’t often happen. TV interviews, podcasts, profiles and editorials can follow: “I Was Cancelled” or “Cancel Culture Ruined My Life”’.
on.ft.com/3XPPMFD
‘The true definition of cancellation would be to disappear, left to exist only as an image in people’s minds. But that doesn’t often happen. TV interviews, podcasts, profiles and editorials can follow: “I Was Cancelled” or “Cancel Culture Ruined My Life”’.
on.ft.com/3XPPMFD
It’s time to stop claiming people are ‘cancelled’
The phrase is permission not to think too closely
on.ft.com
November 22, 2025 at 7:26 AM
Great piece, so true.
‘The true definition of cancellation would be to disappear, left to exist only as an image in people’s minds. But that doesn’t often happen. TV interviews, podcasts, profiles and editorials can follow: “I Was Cancelled” or “Cancel Culture Ruined My Life”’.
on.ft.com/3XPPMFD
‘The true definition of cancellation would be to disappear, left to exist only as an image in people’s minds. But that doesn’t often happen. TV interviews, podcasts, profiles and editorials can follow: “I Was Cancelled” or “Cancel Culture Ruined My Life”’.
on.ft.com/3XPPMFD
While the Trump–Mamdani meeting “went well,” in the sense that Trump behaved himself and even seemed strangely protective, this could be even more dangerous for Mamdani’s political future than an outright feud between them: it forces a tone of reconciliation, which will only alienate Mamdani’s base.
Trump and Mamdani go from adversaries to allies after White House meeting
President Donald Trump has met the man who had proudly proclaimed himself “Donald Trump’s worst nightmare,” but he seemed to find the opposite.
apnews.com
November 22, 2025 at 6:57 AM
While the Trump–Mamdani meeting “went well,” in the sense that Trump behaved himself and even seemed strangely protective, this could be even more dangerous for Mamdani’s political future than an outright feud between them: it forces a tone of reconciliation, which will only alienate Mamdani’s base.