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Laura Sell

@laurasell.bsky.social
1.2K followers 446 following 637 posts

I promote books at Duke University Press. Reader, cat lover, messy cook and lazy gardener. Will plunge into any nearby body of water.

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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Glad you go to see it this time!
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Tom McKay @catturd2.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Some context on the last state sanctioned public execution in the US gizmodo.com/the-pentagon... @gizmodo.com
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jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 09/10/2026
i am genuinely shocked by the psychotic bloodthirst on display with hegseth
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vijay iyer @vijayiyer.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Three years of livestreamed genocide and more than a dozen years of live-documented extrajudicial killings by police and vigilantes have trained you for the coming era of state-sponsored public executions
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Reading to my kids, introducing them to my favorite childhood books, was one of my favorite moments of parenting. What is this guy going to remember?
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Jess Calarco @jessicacalarco.com · 08/10/2026
It's telling that men would rather try to invent tech to replace humans' role in caregiving than step up as equal partners in parenting. Telling, that is, in that it shows how financial capitalism and patriarchy work together to dissuade men from doing "unprofitable" labor, like the work of care.
X post from AI industry insider Alvin Sng :

My wife: Can you read our baby a book?
Me: I can just play an audiobook from my phone.
My wife: But then it won't be in your voice.
Me: I can train a voice model.
Parenting hits different when you work in Al.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
I know someone whose ex-husband spied on her through their security system. Our focus on these apps is often whether the government can track us, but women especially need to be aware of their abuse by domestic partners.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Listen to the librarians! www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
nytimes.com
Librarians Discuss the Challenges and Triumphs of Running a Library Today
We asked dozens of them about America’s libraries — what they provide, what they need to survive. Here’s what they told us.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
I wondered if it was an excerpt. It could be the LGBTQ version of Blood Done Sign My Name.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Wow, this is so good.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
I agree that flexibility and time off really help with morale. I'd add that closing down the days between Xmas & New Year's would also be great. My own university refuses to do that even though many do. www.insidehighered.com/opinion/colu...
insidehighered.com
It’s My Birthday and I’ll Take Off if I Want To
Flexible and shortened schedules—birthday leave, summer Fridays, even the four-day week—aren’t just nice perks. They’re simple, low-cost ways to decrease burnout and show employees they are valued.
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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 01/10/2026
I recommend people read this to get a sense of the president's grave cognitive impairment. Trump is either unwilling or unable (or maybe both) to answer the questions he's actually asked, so he just rants and raves while the interviewers do their best to provide structure to his random brain firings
time.com
Read TIME’s ‘What Trump Has Built’ Interview Transcript
The U.S. President discussed the war in Iran, press freedom, AI, and more ahead of the midterm elections.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I like to host, but it's expensive if no one ever reciprocates, so we mostly eat at restaurants with friends. Which is also expensive.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Part of me does think that if we're going to have state-sanctioned murder (which I think we should not have), the governor should have to shoot the prisoner in the head, in public. But part of me is afraid too many Americans would like that.
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Matthew Dowd @matthewjdowd.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Latest WSJ poll: "63% want to pause AI development 61% want a billionaire wealth tax 59% want Medicare for All 57% want a $20 minimum wage 58% want to end U.S. military aid to Israel" This is the center of the country politically. it is time all adjust to this political spectrum, esp. media.
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Greg Sargent @gregsargent.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Something remarkable is happening: James Talarico is running an expansively pro-immigrant campaign in Texas, a state Trump won by 14 points, speaking in Biblical terms about our duty to "the stranger." And it's resonating. That's seismic. 1/ (new piece) newrepublic.com/article/2160...
newrepublic.com
In Texas, Something Seismic Is Happening—and It’s All Trump’s Fault
Thanks to the economy and ICE, Trump has lost Texas Latinos. And James Talarico is developing a humane pro-immigrant message that’s resonating—even in this ultra-Trumpy state.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Government playbook: Complain that higher ed is too expensive and bloated with administrators. Turn around and issue new regulations that require many hours of admin work: www.insidehighered.com/news/admissi...
insidehighered.com
Institutions Outline Challenges Collecting ACTS Data
About two-thirds of institutions needed at least the 200 hours that the Education Department anticipated they would require to compile ACTS data. Difficulty remedying errors and unclear definitions ma...
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Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
ANOTHER death in ICE detention which appears likely to be the result of medical neglect. A diabetic who told his family members he wasn't receiving regular insulin shots OR getting diabetic-appropriate meals just died in custody. The U.S. prison-ICE detention-industrial complex kills.
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Democracy Docket @democracydocket.com · 23/09/2026
Tighter rules around envelope errors and voting assistance will disenfranchise scores of North Carolina voters, pro-voting groups argue. The state board skirted legislative review and ignored public dissent to pass new rules — the same day ballots were sent out: demdock.com/4dPzchy
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
I ❤️Durham HEART!
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
I'd love to see us expand class consciousness to everyone who works for wages, as opposed to the owner class. I agree that "working class" is very murky. newrepublic.com/article/2155...
newrepublic.com
The Term Working Class Is Useless
Too many political analysts and pollsters are relying on education to define the working class, and it’s leading us to the wrong conclusions.
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INDY Week @indyweek.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
An INDY investigation finds judges and magistrates in Durham have repeatedly flagged people for citizenship checks when they didn’t need to, landing some in ICE custody.
indyweek.com
Durham Judicial Officials Are Unnecessarily Putting People on ICE's Radar for Low-Level Crimes
Durham judicial officials flagged people for citizenship checks when they didn’t need to, landing some in ICE custody, INDY found.
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M Meerkat @kackbro.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
THIS 👇 HERE.......
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Really great story. I stayed in South Beach for a weekend a couple of years ago & the ground floor apartment we rented flooded a bit. We got a $35 AirBnB credit for the "inconvenience."
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
The stench of imperialism lingers on for more than a century.
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T. Greg Doucette @gregdoucette.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
The hilarious part about Trump arguing North Carolina is a shithole is that Republicans have had supermajorities in both chambers of the state legislature for a decade or so, and they have a 5-2 supermajority on the state Supreme Court, and have half of the statewide Executive Branch offices, and...
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Another reason to hate ai & data centers.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Maybe all police departments should have to prove they benefit their communities.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Very important read for NC voters. Capping property tax will make housing less affordable. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
theatlantic.com
The Property-Tax Revolution
States can’t afford these cuts.
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Radley Balko @radleybalko.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Here's a gift link to my 9/11 essay in the NYT. Civil libertarians long warned that before giving government new powers, we should consider how an administration with authoritarian ambition might abuse them. We were told that America was too exceptional to elect such a person. Well here we are.
nytimes.com
Opinion | Civil Libertarians Knew This Would Happen. We Should Have Listened. (Gift Article)
The civil libertarians’ warnings have come true.
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Elizabeth Warren @elizabeth-warren.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Here's what I think about Trump's pledge to give everyone $5,000 if he wins the midterms: It's as real as Trump's promise to lower costs on Day 1. Check the receipts from Groundwork for the 15 times Trump promised Americans $$$. Remember the DOGE dividend?
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
What? The premise is, there are some Muppets, and they put on a show each week. With a different guest star.
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Judd Legum @juddlegum.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
🚨 BEWARE of VoteSafe.org 🚨 While it bills itself as a “safe” way to register to vote, it is actually a digital surveillance machine created by Elon Musk’s super PAC.
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🇵🇪✊🏽 Isabella Scarlett 🏳️‍⚧️♿️ @isabellascarlett.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Gender affirming care is suicide prevention. Using folk’s chosen pronouns is suicide prevention. Using folk’s chosen names is suicide prevention. Queer education is suicide prevention. Queer inclusion is suicide prevention. #SuicidePreventionDay
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lucaswaldron.bsky.social @lucaswaldron.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
New analysis from @propublica.org: Ectopic Pregnancy Deaths Have Nearly Doubled. It’s Worse in States With Abortion Bans. www.propublica.org/article/ecto...
A chart showing the rate of deaths after an ectopic pregnancy, comparing states that banned abortion after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022 with those that did not. At the start of the chart, in 2014, the rate is higher in states with abortion bans, but the rates in the two groups of states are not far apart. The rate increases in both groups of states, but the climb is much steeper in states that banned abortion.
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Prism @prismreports.org · 09/09/2026
“‘His time is up & he needs to return to his cell block,' the supervisor said.” When I was prevented from completing the LSAT, I learned firsthand how North Carolina's carceral system blocks rehab & education for people on death row, writes Lyle C. May, an incarcerated aspiring law student.
prismreports.org
LSAT interrupted
When I was prevented from completing the LSAT, I learned how North Carolina's carceral system blocks education for people on death row
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Duke University Press @dukepress.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Tomorrow, here in Durham!
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Altogether Ooky Doktor Zoom @doktorzoom.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
After escaping the rubble of the WTC, Trump barely had time to get aboard Flight 93, lead the uprising against the hijackers, and parachute to safety.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
This is so terrible. His replacement may do so much damage to this treasured institution.
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Ruth Zakarin @ruthz.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Violent patriarchy. The leveraging of Lindsay Clancy’s story to demonize all women is violent patriarchy. Society’s silence on the scores of women who die at the hands of men while hyper focusing on the actions of this one woman is violent patriarchy. We have to call that out. 5/5
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Ruth Zakarin @ruthz.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Every single damn day men kill their family members, including an incident just last week where a man in MT killed 8 members of his family — 4 of them children. But you barely heard a peep about it in the national conversation. Men killing their families is so common there’s a name for it… 1/
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Rebecca Colesworthy @rcolesworthy.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
I’ve deleted The emails That were in My inbox And which You were probably Hoping I’d answer Forgive me They were torturous So long So old
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National Organization for Women @nationalnow.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Thank you, Gloria, for showing the world what it means to speak up for women’s equality. Thank you for fighting for our rights so that every woman and every person can live with dignity, freedom, and equality. #gloriasteinem
Thank you, Gloria, for showing the world what it means to speak up for women’s equality. Thank you for fighting for our rights so that every woman and every person can live with dignity, freedom, and equality. #gloriasteinem
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Tressie McMillan Cottom @tressiemcphd.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Because there are two Americas*, we are underestimating the amount of psychosocial grief unleashed this past week Michael Wright Cassandra Wilson Dolly Parton Tim Curry Gloria Steinem In basically one week
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Be this crow.
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Jon Ossoff @ossoff.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
This corruption is why nothing works for ordinary people.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
It's good to see some pushback on all this surveillance. Usually it feels like we just accept it.
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Chad Loder @chadloder.dev · 02/09/2026
"Bottom 60% of households" is a wild phrase
CBS NEWS
The findings? For the bottom 60% of U.S. households, a
"minimal quality of life" is out of reach, according to the group, a research organization focused on improving lower earners' economic well-being.
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Laura Sell @laurasell.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Active collaborators is probably more accurate than cowards. They WANT this.
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Tressie McMillan Cottom @tressiemcphd.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
One thing I wanted to say at the time but couldn’t find the strength: regular people have no idea how academics publish books. We rarely have editorial or fact-checking support or services. Academic stars — overwhelming white men — get those resources but we almost never do.
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