A Pulitzer for Julie K. Brown. Richly deserved, and overdue!

If the past really is a foreign country I’m surprised so many right-wingers want to live there.

LOL.

At least one of our newspapers didn't whitewash Trump's vile and intemperate outburst. #Trump #DonaldTrump #Iran #StraitofHormuz

That famous treaty they made entirely with themselves. That one.

This image of home just came down from the Artemis II crew. Taken after their translunar injection burn, there are aurorae at top right and lower left, and zodiacal light at lower right. Credit: NASA/Reid Wiseman

Tuesday

Not fighting a war with Iran would presumably have a similar effect.

“The markets have largely swallowed the fundamental underlying Trump idiocy, which is that he is the only pertinent person in world affairs. Plainly he believes this, but he is wrong. And he is discovering how wrong he is as we speak.” open.substack.com/pub/iandunt/...

We have awarded these people contracts in the Ministry of Defence. What the fuck are we doing.

The impact of Brexit on UK immigration - new research by @johnspringford.bsky.social & me for @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social & @ukandeu.bsky.social Brexit a) reduced EU-origin employees by 785K (2.3% of workforce) b) increased non-EU origin employees by 992K (2.95%) www.cer.eu/insights/imp...

I love Jeremy Bowen in "I'm too old for this shit" mode #wato

It’s being said a lot that the shadow of Iraq is hanging over Keir Starmer and the Labour Party during this Iran crisis. It absolutely should. What’s remarkable is how little much of the British media and the rest of politics seem to be thinking about it at all, or learning its lessons.

Watch this twice. Once for Hannah's speech and a second time for Matt Goodwin's face throughout it...

a year is a long time in politics

A retired British primary school administrator with a British passport and a valid visa was shackled, chained and detained for six weeks by ICE www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

this FT reporting team exposed a secret Russian smuggling team by using this one weird trick -- they all shared the same email address??? as.ft.com/r/aa78dec9-c...

In Europe, the publication of the Epstein files above all helps right-wing populists. Which was probably the plan. www.stern.de/politik/ausl...

Name them shame them

Never trust ChatGPT

How the far right is gaining ground in the UK - and why. My report for @deutschlandfunk.de.web.brid.gy, featuring @petergeoghegan.bsky.social, @pnjackson.bsky.social and @joemulhall.bsky.social. (Audio in German only.) 👇Listen here: www.deutschlandfunk.de/grossbritann...

Brilliant piece by my colleague @christineheuer.bsky.social on the rise of the far right in the UK, and on who finances them. In German, sorry! Aus der DLR App | Hintergrund | Großbritannien – Die Rechte im Aufschwung share.deutschlandradio.de/dlf-audiothe...

That is actually funny

BBC News - www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cd... Prince Harry says sacrifices by Nato troops in Afghanistan deserve 'respect' after Trump comments - BBC News

Any Australian parents here who would talk to me about the social media ban? Is it working? Is it effective?

“We’ve invented a magic computer. It uses all of the earth’s resources, we’ve spent trillions on it and it’s the sole growth area of the US economy.” “What does it do?” “We were hoping you could tell us.”

Is South East Water CEO David Hinton doing a rain dance or what? This what 30 years of no investment into the water industry look like.

Interviewed the brilliant @snellarthur.bsky.social for stern magazine last week about the state of NATO and Europe and what we can do about this mess: url-shortener.me/798F

All going according to plan? www.ft.com/content/b3a2...

it has helped me tremendously to think of Donald Trump as someone whose greatest success and primary achievement has been as a reality TV star like reality TV, there are a lot of sudden shocking developments and rule-changes. the only principle is: keep it moving, keep eyes on us.

Trump is probably focused on the money he wrongly thinks he'll make from Venezuelan oil. But he's not a details guy and nobody has thought through the details. Essentially, the US has taken over Venezuela by mistake. Stranger things have happened, but not many. open.substack.com/pub/arthursn...

podcasts

Christmas in Trump’s America: The US administration sanctions individuals fighting hate on the internet, amongst them a German who received the Bundesverdienstkreuz for her work. www.tagesschau.de/ausland/amer...

🔉What dangers does X pose to our democracy? And should the government stop using it? Good to hear yesterday from @sundersays.bsky.social and @petergeoghegan.bsky.social on the immense risk of X as it ignores legal obligations and its owner tries to influence UK politics. @commonswec.parliament.uk

Quick thread on the BBC and the political and societal significance of recent developments: One of the main reasons the UK has historically been so much less polarised than the US, is that Britain has a shared source of information, consumed and trusted by most people regardless of their politics.

"They're looking for someone with a thick skin and recent experience of flagship BBC news programming."

Great interview with Andrew Lownie about his book on the former Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson & the reaction to it by the palace. With a mention of the @fpalondon.bsky.social! We invited him for a press briefing in September when the UK media still tried to ignore the book.

Not that we didn’t know this already, but here’s proof: news.sky.com/story/the-x-...

Astonishing video, worth watching in full.

Honestly TELL THE STORY. Won’t someone just tell the fucking story of how Brexit created this economic hardship, how a Muslim immigrant just saved the lives of those commuters on that train, won’t someone in politics or even media just connect the fucking dots and TELL THE STORY. IT’S RIGHT THERE

For years people made fun of big tech for inventing things that already exist and they responded with their magnum opus: inventing fascism. Incredible work

Together with my colleague Leonie Scheuble in Washington, I did a deep dive into the Epstein affair. Just at the right time, as it turned out. www.stern.de/politik/ausl...

Virginia Giuffre’s memoirs were not an easy read - but an important one www.stern.de/politik/ausl...

A ‘poor performer’? Is that what Andrew is called now? More like an entitled performer, if you ask Virginia Giuffre

Apropos of nothing, I really do think UK journalists and politicians need some reminding that mass deportation of LEGAL immigrants, particularly those with permanent status, is far more extreme than even Trump's America and would basically place Britain completely on its own among democracies.

Even the dead Epstein is haunting Prince Andrew et al: www.stern.de/politik/ausl...