Tom Seiple

Tom Seiple

@tomlovesdata.bsky.social

Someone once accused me of being too damn curious, and I took it as a compliment. Data and design nerd, history and economics obsessed, eternally curious as to how the world works. Find me on Medium: medium.com/@seiple.tom *Views are my own*

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The other day, I received a Target gift card. I went to use it but encountered an issue, the bar code wouldn’t scan correctly for the cashier. Turns out, the “bar code” was to be scratched off to reveal another barcode and access code below. This is horribly designed, a thread 🧵 to follow:

Tom Seiple reposted

i think jesse jackson was one of the most important american political figures of the post-war era and i think that his 1984 and 1988 campaigns for the democratic nomination still have a great deal to teach about forging a path to a more egalitarian world. RIP.

Tom Seiple reposted

1. I would vote for anyone who could win a Democratic primary in 2028 2. I will vote for the most credible left candidate in the primary 3. The two-party system is bad and we should replace it with proportional representation 4. The presidency is bad and we should replace it with a Prime Minister

Tom Seiple reposted

Medicare for All would save $450B a year. Every dollar spent on food stamps generates $1.50-$1.80 in economic activity. Each dollar going to low-wage workers adds $1.20 to the economy overall. It’s not about what this country can or can’t afford. It’s about priorities.

Tom Seiple reposted

Here's how the Olympics are used by local governments to expand policing and militarization long after the closing ceremony.

Tom Seiple reposted

This is an authoritarian power grab, full stop. Nationalizing elections would put the executive branch in control of who votes and how. That’s how dictators rig outcomes, crush opposition, and assault democratic self-government. This should alarm everyone: www.ms.now/news/trump-s...

ms.nowTrump suggests federal control of elections in ‘some areas’In a lengthy interview with NBC, the president said he will accept the results of the midterm elections if they are “honest.”

Tom Seiple reposted

Amazon just announced another round of 16,000 layoffs, months after it laid off 14,000 workers. Reminder that Amazon CEO Andy Jassy raked in over $40M in 2024. And Amazon is spending at least $75 million producing and promoting the Melania documentary. The system is rigged.

Tom Seiple reposted

The officer who shot Alex worked for DHS for 8 years. The officer who shot Renee worked for DHS for over 10 years. Both are considered “highly trained.” The problem isn’t "training." DHS was built to violate our rights and has been empowered to act with impunity. We must MELT ICE and dismantle DHS.

Tom Seiple reposted

Needless to say that Renee Good and Alex Pretti will go down as heroes here in Minnesota and nationally, their names synonymous with sacrifice and caring for vulnerable neighbors even at the risk of your own life. And hopefully no more innocent lives are lost.

Tom Seiple reposted

"Many struggle w/ the pretext that ICE/CBP are in Mpls to enforce immigration law. Bondi’s letter makes vividly clear the real purpose is to compel opposition states — Free States if you will — through violence, to surrender sovereignty to brutal outside rule which treats them as a conquered people"

talkingpointsmemo.comRemembering the Boston Massacre as Minneapolis Writhes Under OccupationOpposition to garrisoning soldiers in civilian towns was a cornerstone of the...

Tom Seiple reposted

In the first half of the 20th century, tens of thousands of people (mostly children) suffered paralysis from polio. The first vaccine was introduced in the USA in 1955. Notice the trend afterwards. (by @ourworldindata)

Tom Seiple reposted

If people don't actually use the shitty AI we keep violently thrusting at them, the bubble will pop, and our wasteful investments into water guzzling, anti-human infrastructure will bankrupt us. Despite spouting shit about free markets/consumer first, we have decided you WILL use our slopgorithms.

Tom Seiple reposted

Felon47 made more money last year, (2025), than he's made his entire miserable life... Tell me again how he's not taking a paycheck... He's robbing Americans.

Tom Seiple reposted

Mamdani: "I am in support of abolishing ICE. What we see is an entity that has no interest in fulfilling its stated reason to exist. We're seeing a government agency that is supposed to be enforcing some kind of immigration law, but instead what it's doing is terrorizing people."

Tom Seiple reposted

Someone set fire to the only synagogue in Mississippi’s capital. No coverage yet in our nations leading publications, outside an AP story in WaPo.

Mississippi Today@mississippitoday.org

Suspect arrested in predawn fire that left parts of Mississippi’s largest synagogue in charred ruins A fire heavily damaged Jackson’s only synagogue before dawn Saturday – the same house of worship that was firebombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967 because the rabbi had been an advocate for civil…

Tom Seiple reposted

BREAKING: Staggering scenes as brave Iranians stand up to their illegitimate government in Tehran... um, hang on, I'm being told this is actually Minneapolis. Forget I said anything...

We live in a fascist police state. Only way out is through radical change. Whether you believe “normal” is dead or never existed in the first place; either way, we can only look forward and propose an alternative future.

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At this point, I am begging other countries to sanction us. This country needs to experience deep economic strain for many of his voters to finally realize he is only making their lives more miserable.

Tom Seiple reposted

Democratic leadership badly fumbling the response so far. Shocking right? They’re denouncing Trump but it’s usually around the sixth paragraph. Enough throat clearing. The president is out of control and the opposition party needs to act like it.

Tom Seiple reposted

The top 10% of richest Americans own 87% of stocks. The top 1% alone own roughly half of all stocks. It's worth pointing out once again that the stock market is not the economy.

If you read only one thing today, make it this. Sarah perfectly captures the political climate of 2025 here. Sadly, I don’t expect that 2026 will be any better.

sarah jeong@sarahjeong.bsky.social

all meaning has collapsed in our post-literate society and i wrote a bunch of useless, useless words about it. read it if you, like me, are one of a diminishing minority who still reads www.theverge.com/policy/84960...

Tom Seiple reposted

NEW: Four key lessons that we can and must take out of 2025. It was a long and difficult year as President Donald Trump and his administration sought to push America into authoritarianism. But, they are losing — and we can get through this. Closing out the year at Law Dork:

lawdork.comThe four key lessons that we can and must take out of 2025It was a long and difficult year as President Donald Trump and his administration sought to push America into authoritarianism. But, they are losing — and we can get through this.

The other day, I received a Target gift card. I went to use it but encountered an issue, the bar code wouldn’t scan correctly for the cashier. Turns out, the “bar code” was to be scratched off to reveal another barcode and access code below. This is horribly designed, a thread 🧵 to follow:

View full thread

This is a classic example of Don Norman’s “Design of Everyday Things” principles that the Nielsen Norman group pioneered. There was an issue with the mapping of my actions and the desired outcome because my “perceived affordance” was inaccurate with the intended actions.

These types of examples are trivial, but they highlight just how much of our world leaves us confused and afraid to make mistakes rather than empowered and confident. Simple designs are often the best designs. Don’t over complicate things, offer simple and easy feedback.

The other day, I received a Target gift card. I went to use it but encountered an issue, the bar code wouldn’t scan correctly for the cashier. Turns out, the “bar code” was to be scratched off to reveal another barcode and access code below. This is horribly designed, a thread 🧵 to follow:

View full thread

A graphic designer thought they were very clever with their fake bar code design, but ultimately left me confused, created problems for cashiers, and created a back up all because of prioritizing a design over clear directions and functions.

The other day, I received a Target gift card. I went to use it but encountered an issue, the bar code wouldn’t scan correctly for the cashier. Turns out, the “bar code” was to be scratched off to reveal another barcode and access code below. This is horribly designed, a thread 🧵 to follow:

View full thread

Next, the instructions don’t indicate what is below the fake bar code, which leaves me with no feedback for my actions and makes mapping my options confusing. Instead I was just confused as to what was the real bar code.

Additionally, the cashier had no idea what was right. She scanned the bar code, it just threw an error and offered no solutions for her. Presumably, this gift card “fake bar code” was mass produced, why not program your system to return a message for the cashiers?

The other day, I received a Target gift card. I went to use it but encountered an issue, the bar code wouldn’t scan correctly for the cashier. Turns out, the “bar code” was to be scratched off to reveal another barcode and access code below. This is horribly designed, a thread 🧵 to follow:

Firstly, I read the “scratch off” instructions, but was worried that I might damage the fake bar code that I mistook for the real one. I didn’t want to risk making a mistake and lose 50 bucks.