Excellent point here from an expert in international relations. Trump’s brand of authoritarianism is, at its core, an aesthetic. He does not seek to achieve policy goals—he seeks a global reputation for appearing powerful.

This completely. I grew up surrounded by migrants in my family and communities, and find the discussion in the UK, US and EU that reduces fascinating people into mere fuel for an economic machine disgustingly dehumanising👇🎯

This is how it happens; agency by agency, institution by institution… until capture by the regime of all possible sources of dissent is complete.

This is not the first time he's ended up in a slightly watery version of what is nonetheless the right position. But why does it take him so long? It feels like even the Prime Minister is waiting to get quotes signed off. But that can't be right, surely

Today’s poem is for all the parents back on the school run for the first time after the holidays. Dawn Watson’s collection ‘We Play Here’ is an incredible piece of work and highly recommended. Very excited to see new work from her in 2026. #poetry #poemoftheday

Good. But my guess is that if the US did try to seize Greenland, this Labour government would dish up some ‘let’s not rush to judgment’ word salad. Short of striking the UK directly (and that may one day not be wholly inconceivable), there is no US action that a UK government would fully condemn.

🐟 ¡La ingeniería al servicio de la naturaleza! 🌿 Una escala para peces en Suiza, una estructura diseñada con amor por la biodiversidad 💧🇨🇭

This is an argument that reduces Britain to complete vassel status. Is there *any* US action, no matter how deplorable or contrary to British interests, that he would opposed? This kind of cravenness only encourages Trump to go further and faster, confirming (accurately) in his mind his methods.

Trump's Razor: The pettiest explanation is usually the correct one.

Every morning I wake and check what the evil lunatic has said overnight. If the US can’t find a mechanism to remove him, one day I’ll wake to find the world at war.

There have been occasional glimpses of a better United under Amorim but he’s been ducking responsibility for the team’s general underperformance. Here he’s saying, in effect, that he’ll get his coat and show himself out. And that’s probably best for all concerned.

The strongest and most correct reaction amongst European countries has come from Spain. Good. Let’s follow Spain’s example.

Great survey of world reaction. China, Brazil and South Africa are the most pointed and principled. Russia is firmer than the snippet I saw earlier suggested. France is unsurprisingly the strongest European reaction. Starmer and Von der Leyen competing for title of best-behaved lapdog.

During Fiona Hill's testimony to Congress on Oct 14, 2019, she described how Trump and Putin discussed exchanging Ukraine for Venezuela. The quid pro quo was if Trump refuses to help Ukraine fight off a Russian invasion, Putin would not help Venezuela (a Russian ally) resist a US takeover.

I love целесообразный. English translations are ‘expeditious’, ‘appropriate’, ‘purposeful’ etc but none quite capture the meaning created by the components, which are ‘goal’ + ‘formulate’ + adj. Here, it’s to do with military strategy in War and Peace. #langsky

If Trump’s concern was drugs, he’d not have pardoned Honduras’s corrupt leader; if terrorism, he’d have gone after Iran; if world order, Russia; if preserving US power, China. If democracy, human rights or humanitarian motive, dozens of other worthy cases. What’s left is oil. And Epstein.

European weakness on full display by these horribly contorted responses from Merz, Macron and Starmer - neither condoning nor condemning US actions in Venezuela Such weakness only risks making the Europeans more vulnerable (ie Greenland)

Hopeless and cowardly from Starmer, covering Trump’s evil ass. Chancellor Merz has done the same. A generally poor response from European democracies and from the EU.

It’s not hard to list countries whose elections were rigged (indeed Trump lies that any US election he loses is rigged) but that’s no justification for yesterday’s lawless intervention. Trump will bank this hopeless, cowardly response from the German Chancellor.

cc @faineg.bsky.social

I think the most straightforward framing that captures the severity of the situation is that the government of the United States has been seized by a mad authoritarian regime not meaningfully distinct from Putin or Kim or, well, Maduro, and its members must be brought to harsh justice

I’m sorry what

Be it thy course to busy giddy minds With foreign quarrels, that action, hence borne out, May waste the memory of the former days

The wife thing. Why did they also kidnap the wife? What’s that about? Genuine question.

Starmer is slow, weak, clueless - overtaken and overwhelmed by events; he doesn’t take decisions, decisions take him. There is opportunity in this situation for the UK to reset its relationship with the former lynchpin of the Western alliance. He won’t seize or even see it.

Movie. Now.

Maduro is a brutal and oppressive dictator of Venezuela. Trump has no legitimate legal basis for military action against Venezuela under United States or international law. Both of those facts are simultaneously true.

I have great respect for Kaja Kallas but this is rubbish from her and from the EU. My guess is the UK response will be even more rubbish.

Marco Rubio is reportedly saying Maduro will stand trial in US courts. Which means it’s now the US administration’s position that US courts can hold foreign presidents, but not the US president, accountable for crimes.

‘Captured’ is a military term. A better one would be upfront about the criminality here - kidnapped or abducted. This won’t end well for the US or for the world.

Very useful explainer on what's going on.

So what will Britain’s response be to the US’s wildly stupid war against Venezuela? I doubt there will be the full-throated condemnation it deserves.

This passage from War and Peace contained перебежчик: пере (across) + беж (run) + ик (-er) = a deserter. Once you understand roots and affixes in Russian, meanings become delightfully clear! #langsky

I loathe India’s horrible sub-fascist, Russia-friendly, Hindu nationalist government. But on this issue it is leading. And it has clout - its social media audience is simply too vast to ignore.

The split-screen here is unbelievable - first from yesterday, the others from 2017. Musk’s Twitter has truly driven us mad. People absorb far more of their beliefs from their social environment than they realize, and we’ve created an environment where being a gutter bigot is the baseline expectation

This Upton Sinclair quote never misses “It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.”

I saw this footage yesterday and this extraordinary sentence was still rolling around my head this morning. It has a Shakespearean cadence and resonance.

This would be a mistake. In the end it always costs households (and governments) more to retrofit.

His progress will be watched very closely not just in the US with its sinking parties and failing political system but also in democracies worldwide threatened by fascism - very much including the UK. I’ve got everything crossed for him and for New York.

Here he speaks thoughtfully and warmly in beautifully crafted English. I’ve also seen footage of him speaking excellent Hindi/Urdu, pretty good Spanish and (I am told) fine Arabic. I love this guy and wish him every success in New York. #langsky

a politician able to use proper words and reasonably complex sentences instead of sounding like GenAI trying to communicate with primary school children

This cleared up a question I’ve sometimes asked myself about how and why Romance languages lost case endings. And there’s a useful book recommendation in there. #langsky

She’s not joking about it being a long thread, but it is full of good points.

This is in a Guardian piece about a senior Labour figure spelling out for Starmer the existential threat posed by Reform to our democracy and public order. House about to go up in flames? Oh dear, here, have another canapé…

As we start a new year Brendan Kennelly gives us a poem of hope, of finding joy in small things, of promises & choices & dreams There is resilience & determination ‘that we will forever begin’. Start from where you are, with what you have, & trust that this is enough #poetry #poemoftheday #NewYear

I’m not going to the US whilst the orange Führer is President but I might well be persuaded to visit an independent rainbow republic of New York…

This looks like something you'd see in a museum about fascism after 100 million people have died to defeat it

2026 Russian - more Tolstoy German - make friends, get conversational Dutch - restart, talk to Dutch in-laws French - more soulful connection with la francophonie Spanish - resurrect a once good conversational level Italian - get conversational, more time in the country and culture #langsky

On Christmas Eve we dangled lights we bought for a few quid in three empty bottles whose textured surfaces we liked - to represent the Magi. We’ve decided to keep them as a more permanent table decoration.