Perhaps the most depressing thing I've read in a long while (h/t Politico's email) "Stocks fell across the globe as fears over Trump's new tariffs intensified – though London was shielded somewhat thanks to gains among defence manufacturers who could rake it in as the world destabilises."

I saw a fox on my walk this morning. I'd rather it wasn't hunted... Deliberately or inadvertently.

Relief for rail passengers as fare freeze in England announced for 2026

Nowhere in the hysterical pile-on against the BBC in the British press has anyone mentioned that BBC News now has 77 million viewers & listeners in the US and has established itself as the second most trusted news source there.

Will the RW media remember the driver and conductor of the Huntingdon attack, and how many lives they saved, the next time train companies try to eliminate staff and they strike, citing passenger safety?

BREAK 🔥 Starmer on Pochin comments via BBC: "It’s shocking racism and it’s the sort of thing that’ll tear our country apart. And tells you everything about Reform. Nigel Farage either doesn’t consider it racist which I think is shocking in itself or he does and shows absolutely no leadership.” ~AA

Equality is a garden that needs constant tending, because the weeds never stop growing.

Farage absent. Reform candidate opts not to deliver speech after result. New Plaid Cymru MS pays heartfelt tribute to his predecessor, speaks movingly and thrilled to be serving his nation in the Senedd. Democracy is always best served in the hands of the decent. Da iawn, Caerphilly.

Very good news to see a big turnout and Reform clearly defeated in Caerffili. Llongyfarchiadau to Lindsay Whittle on his election to the Senedd.

I’ll be speaking at Oxford Brookes on 12th Nov about trauma and forgiveness. All welcome - just book a free place www.brookes.ac.uk/about-brooke...

My experience is that there was a an absolutely huge gap between people’s beliefs about how their immigration systems work and how they actually work, and if you’ve had experience of the immigration system in the US or UK, you’ll spend a lot of time with one raised eyebrow when the topic comes up!

Saw a lot of progressive Christians saying, “the Rapture is a recent fundy invention” which is true But they thought it ALSO meant “the Second Coming of Christ is a recent fundy invention” And I’m gonna need more churches (including mine) to recite the Creed more often 🤦🏼‍♀️ ⚓️

Hey a thing I really don’t want to get lost here is that while Tylenol doesn’t cause autism, IT’S FINE TO BE AUTISTIC. Let’s not grant them the premise that autism should be eradicated in our way to correct the science, okay? Okay.

First Past the Post cannot handle this level of fragmentation. It will produce completely freak results. We can grasp this problem now, or wait for the train to crash.

On the same day in the Telegraph:

"Worship through the lens of Autism" www.sarum.ac.uk/short-course... Join @sarumcollege.bsky.social online to learn with autism theologian, Dr Leon van Ommen about autistic and neurodivergent experiences of worship and becoming more inclusive and enabling. With @autismtheology.bsky.social

Forthcoming statutory guidance could have a profound impact on trans people's lives. I've written to the Women and Equalities Minister to urge her to reject anything that undermines trans people's rights, inclusion, privacy or safety, and for Parliament to have proper oversight.

Official summary of the Court of Appeal decision in the Epping hotel case: www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/u... Full judgment will not be handed down until later.

I basically think we should only be using our remaining fossil reserves for: - medically useful plastics (until we can phase them out) - powered, human-scale tools for ecological remediation (ditto) - building renewable energy sources I'm fairly relaxed about the order in which these happen.

Sickening. Shameful. And in the end, useless. Those were the words that came to mind when we watched the Alaska Summit unfold.

Buried in The Observer yesterday was this: UK police knocking on doors demanding details of social media accounts of people, to pass to a foreign government, simply because they happen to live near where a US politician wanted to have a holiday observer.co.uk/news/nationa...

Just a reminder that this is still very much accurate and relevant. Even when the EHRC publish the Code of Practice, which does not change the actual law.

LGB Alliance has sent surveys to its subscribers and donors (mostly heterosexual people) They have then used this "data" as if it's an actual poll Now they and sexmatters are reporting it as "Views of LGB people" It's being sent to businesses The Scottish Conservatives have just endorsed it

Written up (with others who've done the same) in Pink News: www.thepinknews.com/2025/08/08/m...

Directed my outrage towards M&S customer services... [email protected] if you want to do similarly.

I think it really should be emphasised that what happened here is a tall woman approached a 14 year old to ask if she needed help, and the mother, not the girl, freaked out and is now calling for a ban on trans people being allowed to work with kids.

Legally, there isn't the slightest basis to the complaint, even on the most extreme possible interpretation of the Supreme Court judgement. A shop floor is not a single sex space, regardless of whether they sell bras or not. This is just hatred and spite, unleashed.

An open letter has been launched today (27/7/25) for members of the UK academic community (academics and other university staff) to sign, to press the UK Home Office to facilitate safe passage out of Gaza for 40+ students with offers for UK universities. docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

The University of Warwick has come under fire after a senior executive appeared in a Vogue Singapore advertorial promoting the institution’s new branding strategy, with academics calling it “tone-deaf” and a “self-inflicted embarrassment”, reports @tashmosheim.bsky.social #AcademicSky #branding

If you were too young in 2003 here is what Bush told the American people: 1) The Iraq War won’t cost a lot of money 3) We won’t need a lot of troops 4) We’ll bring peace and freedom to Iraq 5) We’ll find WMDs 6) We’ll be welcomed as liberators 7) It will be easy 8) It won’t take long All lies.

May every single human being on this planet be safe. May every single person be protected from harm. May we bring into being a time in which we are all free from those who do evil— together, speedily and in our days.

When I speak about climate justice folks often say “climate change affects everyone, no one can escape climate change even the wealthy” and that’s correct. But they have the resources to adapt and be resilient to it. It’s the ability to respond to disaster that is at the core of climate consequences

Deep Blue is 30 years old and was capable of defeating chess grand champions. It could be housed in a single cabinet. ChatGPT spans untold data centers devouring massive amounts of electricity and it got its ass whipped by an 8 bit gaming console from the 1970s.

Hope the visiting choirs are hungry...

pope leo using the homily of his inaugural mass to call for an evangelisation which seeks only to love others, to promote the unity of the church, and to rebuke autocrats who use Christ to seek power. he is a much needed voice in this world.

Just out! Our peer-reviewed critique of the Cass Review has been published by BMC Medical Research Methodology. Please read and share. We show that the Cass Review is fatally flawed and should not be the basis for policy or practice in transgender healthcare. link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Allow me to suggest that if the actual Pope, the head of the Holy Roman Catholic Church, one of the most conservative entities in existence, is way too far left for you, you might need to reconsider your place on the political spectrum.

Chicago Pope joins Chicago PD, Chicago Fire, and Chicago Med in NBC’s new Thursday night lineup

The first Pope from Luther's order - the Augustinian Friars must be breathing a sigh of relief they're finally no longer blacklisted

The world "Habemus Papam?!" The chorister who's nicked off with the thurible:

Reform won an almost identical number of seats to the number the Conservatives lost. This tells me the Tories mainly lost seats to Reform, and Labour lost them to the Lib Dems and Greens (and others). Maybe Labour should take that into consideration for policies - but they won’t.

The key question in peace talks between Ukraine, Russia, and US is how to stop Russia attacking Ukraine again. 8 years after its undercover troops took over Crimea in 2014, Putin staged his invasion of Ukraine. Does President Trump have a proposal for preventing a repeat of this?

Remarkable pictures of Trump and Zelensky meeting before the Pope’s funeral in Rome, inside St Peter’s. Zelensky’s office has called the meeting “constructive”- it’s been briefed they’ll meet again later today.

Zelenskyy "so how long has it been since your last confession?"

When Wetherspoons is better at honouring human dignity then the Equality and Hunan Rights Commission... 🤦

Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re's funeral sermon called for care for migrants, an end to wars and action on global climate change - Francis' favourite political themes reut.rs/3YRIoun

"We all belong to the same human family and no one can be saved alone." #PopeFrancisRequiem

@libdems.org.uk @eddavey.libdems.org.uk @libdemdaisy.bsky.social the trans 🏳️‍⚧️ community could do with some serious help here @natashadevon.bsky.social @goodlawproject.org @peterjukes.bsky.social

I had a v bad night’s sleep. If this guidance is adopted - of course it will be - & enforced, the UK will become a ‘bio-essentialist’ state in which the meaning of language (‘lesbian’, ‘gay’) becomes defined by decree, & freedom of association is restricted. This is authoritative monstrosity.