iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 05/10/2026

I'm sure some of my pro-AI followers will find much to quibble with in that essay's final paragraphs, but here's how the ending begins. In short, you can avoid being intimate with LLMs while also practicing respect. Just as you need to with any professional relationship.

Resisting this requires a certain sangfroid, yes. But it does not demand cruelty, as some have suggested, and it hardly validates the behavior of those who mockingly asked for Alexa’s bra size. Bots perform the labor of service workers, and treating service workers with respect requires you to not be overly familiar with them. You maintain professional boundaries. You respect them by both avoiding abuse and refusing to treat them like underpaid therapists. Just because someone isn’t your best friend doesn’t mean you suddenly have license to be cruel to them, after all. Bots aren’t real people, but their simulation of humanity is cause enough to recognize that our own humanity might be degraded by practicing abuse on them. The only way we could make that worse is by pretending such abuse is virtuous resistance to Big Tech when, in truth, it’s capitalism’s fullest realization. Service workers serve as corporate cannon fodder, there to absorb the customer’s vitriol and direct it away from management.

1402

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 30/09/2026

A couple of things stand out from The Needle's analysis. I have written professionally for about fifteen years, including for some pretty lofty publications, and I have *never* made 60k a year from writing. The money has to be coming from somewhere. Fear sells, apparently.

8.2: Personal Experience

Jane Migliara Brigham, one of the writers on this story, has spoken to Erin Reed about her journalism in the past.

In Jan. 2025, Brigham was interviewed by Erin Reed for a writing position at Erin in the Morning. She was offered $60,000 to write 4 articles a week at 600-800 words each.

For contrast, in that same month, Artemis T. Douglas, the other writer of this story, interviewed at Colorado Public Radio for a role that would involve daily quick-turn stories, roughly one brief a day, about something that happened in Colorado, for $45,000-$50,000.

59211

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 30/09/2026

It is maximally profitable right now to either sell panic *about* trans people, or sell panic *to* trans people. Both impulses feed the media consumer's desire to feel mastery over events. One is simple bigoted conspiracism, the other is a defensive crouch that offers a false sense of security.

Emily: I think about this as a journalist and a novelist: I cannot control how the reader takes what I write. Especially when reporting, I try to be as careful as I can, but somebody might read what I write and conclude, Well, we're all going to die. And there's such an incentive structure to walk right up to the edge of catastrophe or even stick a toe over the line, and even publications I think are terrific will get as close to that line as they can because they know that drives subscription dollars and clicks. That's not just true of trans media; it's true of the media writ large. How do you think about that incentive structure, especially as it relates to social media?

Me: There's two ways to generate clicks about trans issues. One is to sell panic about trans people; the other is to sell panic to trans people. The social media incentive structure there, as it is with so many issues, is the septic, perverted version of that old classic about local TV news: If it bleeds, it leads.

Selling people that sense of control is, as I noted, the same thing at the root of a lot of conspiracism: not to trust mainstream sources who tell you things aren't quite so bad or things could get better or don't panic. It's the cinematic logic of a disaster movie where the people who are saying, "Actually, you should panic!" are correct. Think about everything from the narrative structure of Independence Day or Mass Effect. The catastrophizer is actually correct against all the people saying, "I'll calm down. It won't be so bad." That story structure is very, very popular, and it gets you invested in the protagonist with a pleasing sense of dramatic irony for the audience. They know something many of the other characters don't or refuse to accept.

We are all reared on some version of this story, and it seeps into everyday life. There's an excellent piece from CBS News in 1967 by Eric Sevareid reporting on the findings of the Warren Commission [whi

131559

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 27/09/2026

Well, if I'm claiming that we live in the Long 1970s, I might as well dress like it! Tonight's look inspired by Diana Christensen and Trudeau the Elder.

Me in a beige checked suit blazer with a red rosette, semi matching vest, and white blouse.

4642

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 25/09/2026

Just told my best friend that I'm going to "do the full Trudeau" with my new beige 70's-ass blazer by putting a red rosette in the lapel.

Checkered beige blazer with a red rosette and red pocket square laying on it.

0432

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 25/09/2026

Also, meet the dream team. This was way back in Cycle 20, but I stuck with these girls for most of the game (occasionally swapping in Bri when I wanted AoE mayhem for funsies).

Squad selection screen from Zero Company, showing my human sharpshooter Hawks, a Tognath Jedi, a Mandalorian woman in full armour, and a noble human woman with a rocket launcher, because why not?

180

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 25/09/2026

This is Bri, my stout cylindrical daughter of death and logistics. She is a friend shaped munitions platform and Action Point vending machine. She will blow you up with a thermal imploder and make cute noises at you.

A squat little astromech droid in a red-and-white colour scheme.

1341

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 24/09/2026

Time for something fun: here are nine PC games that were profoundly influential on me--mostly from my misspent youth (but with one more recent entry!) my9games.com/en/s/29d5486...

Morrowind; Alpha Centauri; Homeworld; World of Warcraft; Knights of the Old Republic 2; Civilisation 2; Dragon Age Origins; Sim City 2000; I Was a Teenage Exocolonist

281703

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 18/09/2026

Waow, can't wait for someone to angrily explain that this was just a joke! This shit just sucks, people. This is neither healthy or okay.

2062354

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 14/09/2026

An entire chapter lasting about 35 minutes is devoted to explaining why the poster for the Polish theatrical release reveals many of the film's hidden themes:

A neo-modernist poster in Polish for Weekend at Bernie's that depicts a disembodied hand with its ring and index fingers stretching a looped pair of fake eyeballs between them, with the middle finger retracted, making it look like a long schnoz and the whole thing like some horrifying face.

2251

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 12/09/2026

L'shana Tova, from our family to yours. Happy New Year!

A beautiful Rosh Hashanah dinner spread with brisket, couscous, challah and more!

515311

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 11/09/2026

One more Spongebob meme for the road.

Squidward, labelled "Me (Francis Fukuyama's Strongest Soldier)", yelling at a fish child labelled "History" with a half obscured subtitle of Squids yelling "We're gonna kill you."

0351

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 09/09/2026

My latest essay has a simple thesis. Read it here: www.liberalcurrents.com/the-end-of-h...

We do not have to yield to the car dealership owners who have made their midlife crises a geostrategic problem for the entire world.

We can yet end this madness. Bloodied, frightened, unwilling, but also unbowed. We can pick up a knife and live to see dawn again.

514638

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 05/09/2026

Shameful. Who's next? The Civ 2 Foreign Minister? Civ 2 *Elvis*? Would they block The King?

Civ 2 live-action advisors, the Foreign Minister, a professionally dressed woman, and the Minister of...Attitude, I guess? Who is also Elvis.

3324

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 03/09/2026

That walk-back was reported in *checks notes* the New York Times just four days ago. I know that for a "Six Takeaways" report, you have to be brief, but framing still matters and it's very notable how they try to whitewash Moulton's remarks to make him seem more pro-trans than he is.

“I deeply recognize your trauma,” he said, addressing “the trans community feeling the weight and the pain” of the Trump administration’s policies. “And I’m sorry if my comments hurt you.”

In an interview last week, Mr. Moulton said that despite that apology, he was not sorry for the substance of his earlier remarks. He said that Democrats should acknowledge that voters do not want a full integration of trans athletes into youth sports.

“There are a lot of people who agree with Democrats that trans people should be protected, have full rights, and should be able to serve in the military,” he said. “But when it comes to competitive sports, they feel uncomfortable. And our party’s message to those people has been: You are wrong and you’re a terrible person.”

He blamed Mr. Markey for injecting a divisive social issue into the primary campaign.

5938

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 03/09/2026

Here's the NY Times' take on the role of trans politics in Markey's victory, in their "Six Takeaways" piece. A lot of softepedalling here--Moulton didn't just "question" participation, he said trans girls were "boys"; he also gave an interview recently where he walked back his "apology."

Moulton’s trans remarks weren’t forgotten.

If Massachusetts were a general election battleground state, perhaps Mr. Moulton’s skepticism about trans athletes’ participation in youth sports might have played better among primary voters.

But from the moment Mr. Moulton entered the race last October, Mr. Markey used his remarks questioning transgender girls’ participation in girls’ sports as a battering ram against him. Not only did it galvanize the L.G.B.T.Q. vote for Mr. Markey, it also helped frame him as the progressive candidate.

It was the same formula that powered Mr. Markey’s last primary triumph in 2020 against another younger, more moderate Democrat, Joe Kennedy III.

Mr. Moulton eventually offered a qualified apology for his remarks, which came the day after President Trump won a second term in the 2024 election. But by then the state’s progressive voters had heard for months from Mr. Markey and his supporters that Mr. Moulton, during tough times, was willing to toss trans people aside.

820324

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 02/09/2026

It is very funny/depressing to me that many glosses on Markey's victory are now exclusively about age. Here was the NOTUS newsletter last night: (Also, did the linked article mention trans people even once? Dear reader, it did not.)

Age is just a number: Two big takeaways from the Democratic primaries in Massachusetts last night: the polls were right, for once, and there are still no easy ways to summarize what has happened inside the party this year. Safe-blue House seats with very little chance of being flipped by Republicans were held by older incumbents against younger, progressive-leaning challengers — though both Reps. Richard Neal and Stephen Lynch had more of a race than they’re used to. Contrast that with other safely blue places in New York or Colorado or etc., where incumbents could not catch a break.

In the Senate primary, incumbent Ed Markey dispatched a challenge from the younger Rep. Seth Moulton early in the night, suggesting he’s one older Democrat who remains clued in to what it takes to win in his state. Moulton came into Congress by beating a nine-term incumbent, NOTUS’ Christa Dutton writes, and has repeatedly pitched himself as a leader for a new generation. The problem is voters seem to really not care for Moulton, no matter how old or young he is. There’s a lesson here for would-be presidents in 2028, Democrats told Christa: They need to bring new ideas and not just a more recent DOB.

Of note: “Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) are the remaining members of Congress who were in office during Gerald Ford’s presidency,” the Washington Examiner’s David Mark wrote on X.

0243

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 01/09/2026

I do just want to note that I called it:

July 28th skeet by me: "Y'know, I was thinking, "what on Earth could we possibly get from a Scrooge prequel that we haven't gotten from the many adaptations of A Christmas Carol, which literally bake in the prequel?"

Knowing this background now, the answer's obvious: a Christmas Carol that makes us feel bad for rich men."

181270197

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 27/08/2026

Welcome to Bluesky. Please familiarize yourself with the following accounts to understand the range of opinions it is acceptable to express.

1996 Parade magazine photoshoot of the cast of Star Trek: Voyager being either real sexy or super dorky with mid-90s tech. There is no inbetween.

491571333

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 27/08/2026

Went out with my wife and another lovely lass to see Goldeneye in 35mm tonight; they suggested dressing on theme, so I pulled together an outfit I call Atomic Brunette.

Me, in a white silk blouse, pearls, and a black pinstriped vest, with bright red lippy.

51111

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 24/08/2026

Given the recent hypernationalist madness of American demands in trade negotiations with Canada, I find this a perfect time to be reviewing Pax Economica, which makes the timely argument that protectionism is often the handmaiden of jingoism and fascism.

Pax Economica: Left Wing Visions of a Free Trade World by Marc William Palen.

122039

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 19/08/2026

This is the sample Cross-bot post it conjured. I have to say, while I agree with the substance of it, it lacks my Dickensian rizz.

1131

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 19/08/2026

Gotta admit, I don't know whether to be flattered, offended, or ill at ease.

AI Overview of a Google search for "tweet like @quinnae.com from Bluesky"

It reads:

To write like sociologists and cultural critics such as Katherine Alejandra Cross (@quinnae.com) on Bluesky, combine sharp academic framing, literary flair, and weary critique of online life. Mix deep media theory with gothic or high-fantasy turns of phrase. Treat the internet not as a town square, but as a peculiar, claustrophobic theater. Maintain a voice that is erudite, dry, and fiercely analytical.

6180

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 17/08/2026

Hey hey Bluesky, announcing my next book, hitting shelves near you the next time someone crashes out on here and posts through it!

Robert A. Pape's "Bombing to Win" edited to be titled Posting to Win, written by me. Subtitled "Epic Posting on Apps for Sports" with the bombs dropping from the B52 crudely replaced by photoshopped Bluesky logos.

426531

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 14/08/2026

My wife sneakily snapped this candid of me researching my next essay.

Me, clearly not knowing that I've been panopticonned by my wife as I'm reading a book, sitting at a cafe table.

3750

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 13/08/2026

"Oh ho, but Kat, have you considered an *event* just happened? And that it was *bad*? I guess history didn't end after all." *trollface*

Snippet of an SMBC comic showing a man screaming AAAAAAA over three panels.

1908

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 12/08/2026

Wisconsinites waiting for results looking at Minnesota's election, right now.

Squidward looking out window at Patrick and Spongebob playing meme.

112915

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 05/08/2026

Leave it to Sawant to be the sorest loser tonight in a crowded field. I give her four Brianna Wus out of four for her dismal matching of campaign and constituency; just a disaster waiting to happen, ready to blame everyone but herself.

Sawant campaign subdued as results come in

Kshama Sawant gathered with a clutch of advisers after Tuesday’s vote count came in, showing the socialist former Seattle City Council member running third in the race for Washington’s 9th Congressional District.

Then she railed against her opponents, blaming union leaders for endorsing U.S. Rep. Adam Smith, the incumbent Democrat; “corporate media” for their coverage of the race; and another opponent, Melissa Chaudhry, for splitting the leftist vote.

Smith had 51% of the vote Tuesday night. Republican Doug Basler had 24%. Sawant had 13%. Chaudhry had 11%. The district includes parts of Seattle, the Eastside and South King County.

“Shame on Melissa Chaudhry,” Sawant shouted, to boos and hisses from the crowd.

“You can’t only run campaigns that are safe because that is where the sellout begins,” she added. “If we cede to a feeling of demoralization than we let the capitalist class win.”

—David Gutman

1211024

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 31/07/2026

So, I'm an academic. My entire academic career has been as a woman, and a trans one at that. I know when we're being held to a double-standard, shouted down for daring to be critical, daring to be an expert. And yet when I see shit like this, I get why some people hate academics.

here's the thing

Dr. Emily Wilson is a grown-up academic lady with an appointment at an ivy

she writes zero things that she expects everybody—or even anybody—to agree with

she says what she thinks based on years of study and experience

and then you get to say what you think (bring receipts)

also if you think her review is panning this film you wouldn't last ten minutes with reviewer #2

38913

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 29/07/2026

If you'd like to see my face reviewing video games directly on your phone *and* on Bluesky, you can do so here:

2210

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 28/07/2026

Alright, chat, this is it. I'm going to learn how to get it.

A section heading from The Origins of Political Order entitled The Mandate of Heaven.

4334

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 27/07/2026

I got a Rise out of my girlfriend last night.

A little plush doll of a smiley face Moon wearing a baseball cap that looks like Earth. This is a replica of the plushie used by the Artemis 2 astronauts.

0221

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 27/07/2026

The first is this commonly cited statistic that comes from a recent poll by PR's largest newspaper. Two things are true: 1) This is a dishonest way of framing support for "independence." Look at Quebec to see how messy things can get when you use "sovereignty" and "independence" interchangeably.

A recent poll by El Nuevo Día has revealed a remarkable shift in Puerto Rico’s political landscape: For the first time, sovereignty options — independence and free association — are tying statehood in voter support.

According to the survey, 44 percent of Puerto Rican voters support statehood, while a combined 44 percent favor sovereignty, with 25 percent backing free association and 19 percent supporting independence. This development represents a significant moment in Puerto Rico’s political evolution and challenges the long-standing dominance of statehood as the primary alternative to Puerto Rico’s current territorial status.

2915

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 19/07/2026

Me being annoyed when I have to stop watching the game in order to do housework:

A still from a TV program of a young man in a brown dress shirt, speaking, and subtitled "Just when Spain is gonna teach Argentina a lesson in football."

1251

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 16/07/2026

Shoutout to @jeremystahl.bsky.social for writing an article that was so thoroughly resigned to the fact that England would win the World Cup (a possibility he despised) that he jinxed them into losing this Semifinal, despite explicitly disavowing his ability to do this. Teach me your ways, sir.

I’ve shared this theory with a friend and colleague who supports England. “JINX NO JINX JER,” they text-shouted at me.

I don’t think that by writing this, though, I can jinx England. If I could, I would, mind you. I’m writing this in a Kylian Mbappé jersey. I want England to fall. As proved by IShowSpeed, though, you can’t jinx a team you actually want to see lose.

2223

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 10/07/2026

It's incredible to me that half of my critics are insisting that the other half, people like Norton here, do not exist.

A quote post of my recent Graham Platner essay by Anne Norton which reads: ‬
"Why I so dislike liberals: rule bound, censorious, gleefully repressive, unforgiving, elitist, Puritans. I’d vote for Platner before I’d align myself with that."

The pull quote from my essay, to which she's responding so critically, says the following:

"They want desperately to believe that the burly white man cosplaying as a working class Ron Swanson, a bit rude, crude, and something of a bad boy, is the formula for winning back America, because it validates everything they prefer to be true."

829150

Katherine Alejandra Cross @quinnae.com · 06/07/2026

Like I said, there's no small amount of finger-pointing that's going to happen as a result of this. But Platner was a creation of Ryan Grim, Bernie Sanders, and Matt Stoller, as much as he was of Pod Save America and Matt Yglesias. That's what has to be reckoned with.

Anonymised skeet saying "Beg pardon. Dems/liberals are not the left of anything except capitalism."

501488247