New from me this morning, a deep dive on Elon Musk's Grokipedia-- the forthrightness of the white nationalist and eugenic advocacy in many entries surprised me and the experts I spoke to www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

The ruling Georgian Dream party has announced plans to prevent Georgians residing abroad from voting in parliamentary and local elections, citing fears of ‘political pressure’. 🔗 Read more: oc-media.org/georgian-dre...

I haven't got much to add to the general horror at Labour's migration plans, but the bizarre focus on ebikes as assets seems to serve - intentionally perhaps - to increase the stigmatisation of ebike riders (read: delivery drivers) still further and undermine migrants' everyday mobilities.

always disappointing when an author otherwise content to set their story in our world lacks even the minor boldness to speak negatively of a real government

a big runoff last night, in New Orleans: Calvin Duncan was exonerated after spending *28 years* in prison; he tried to get his own case records from the New Orleans city clerk—but the office dragged its feet. So Duncan ran to become city clerk himself, and yesterday ousted the incumbent.

"Dozens of deportees have been sent to Africa from the U.S. since July after the Trump administration struck largely secretive agreements with at least five African nations — including Eswatini, Rwanda, and South Sudan — to take migrants under a new third-country deportation program."

georgian cyber scammers arrested in bangkok, this might be my niche www.khaosodenglish.com/news/2025/11...

today in literary food

in less than surprising news: the us gov funded program that paid for a random 20 hours of ukrainian lessons last winter (aiming to provide 'alumni with the ukrainian language skills needed to pursue critical cross-cultural partnerships, research, and industry work') not offering ukrainian this year

Amid social protests and rising tensions in Ecuador, dozens of bank accounts that belong to Indigenous leaders and organizations, land rights activists and nonprofits have been reportedly frozen for weeks, by order of the state. Sources told Mongabay their accounts froze suddenly without warning.

neat, yeah, as the author alludes, chinese travelogues to the region are rather rare, much less those translated into/originally in english didn't get that same sorta "oh, this is a _chinese_ highway_ feel on the road in from khujand, aside from the obvious new tunnels. quite a trip regardless

An expedition to the extreme south of Algeria has revealed a suite of typically sub-Saharan species just beyond the Western Palearctic boundary:

#ornithology Wait, birds as truffle dispersers? What a cool research! www.cell.com/current-biol...

picked the perfect day to google if there were non-flight connections from oman to pakistan~ profit.pakistantoday.com.pk/2025/11/14/c...

Clifford Rowe’s paintings reflect the spirit of realist art in Britain during the interwar years, portraying people at work and at leisure. 'The Fried Fish Shop,' (1936) draws on personal memory and social history, recalling a once cheap, filling meal for the working classes.

'Six units of the Ukrainian military intelligence service HUR received an aid package from an anonymous donor in the Netherlands. It includes more than 700 pump-action shotguns, 130 collimator sights, as well as 20,000 rounds of ammunition. Value: €350,000.' www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato/4...

working on two articles simultaneously, having an online chat in georgian about khevsurian embroidery and reading some background reports on the technical infrastructure of the great firewall, not going well in the brain

Across the U.S., various organizations work to ensure that people who are incarcerated have access to literature.

It’s wild that you can just openly bribe the President of the United States with chunks of gold to get whatever you want, it’s fine, you don’t have to hide it, just say “I am bribing the President with gold,” zero consequences.

With all the talk of unlocking decades long closed railway and road connections between Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey, Iran is warming up to the idea to reopen the decades long closed Julfa - Yerevan connection through Nakhchivan, to unlock access to the Black Sea ports. transcor.ge/%e1%83%96%e1...

“Many of the women say that they were pressured to have unwanted or unnecessary gynecological procedures while in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement”

Microsoft, Google say their data centers create thousands of jobs. Their permit filings say otherwise https://restofworld.org/2025/data-centers-jobs-microsoft-google-chile/?utm_campaign=row-social&utm_source=bluesky&utm_medium=social&utm_content=1763146621

A new study from Colombia's Labor Lab finds that the use of prisoner labor along Hyundai's supply chain in Alabama lowered non-incarcerated worker wages. "We find that a 10% increase in the share of incarcerated workers in a plant is associated with a 10-14% drop in wages for free workers."

It’s Friday night so instead of writing about cybersecurity I had a nice little reminisce about the good things I’ve eaten this fall subalternsbutter.substack.com/p/update-fro...

Tashkent's modernist buildings are being preserved for posterity but Samarkand + Bukhara, jewels in the crown of Uzbekistan's tourist trail, are scarred by destruction of their architectural heritage - read all about it on Substack + in my book Silk Mirage open.substack.com/pub/joannali...

next goal is to get into the prorail hq so i can investigate this… flying saucer?

NEW: Firm Tied to Kristi Noem Secretly Got Money From $220 Million DHS Ad Contracts www.propublica.org/article/kris... w @josh-kaplan.bsky.social @amierjeski.bsky.social

have been mysteriously invited to dinner at the eurail headquarters, no clue why (this invitation predates my public position as the occasional editor of a train blog) but i like trains and dinner so in utrecht i am

imagine thinking that cars are more ~traditional~ than… walking

nothing quite like experiencing nature’s glory with twenty guys with telescopes in a tiny hut while a different group of guys chainsaws trees in the background #flevolandlifestyle

The $6 billion Emirati investment project has stoked controversy in Georgia after the government decided to classify the details of the agreement. oc-media.org/after-a-seri...

🗣️ “This case has no connection to law or justice — neither to the qualification of the prosecutor’s charges nor to Judge Sakhelashvili’s verdict. My imprisonment is a political decision of the regime,” said Mzia Amaglobeli. #FreeMzia #RepressionsInGeorgia #JournalismIsNotACrime

The number of butterflies at risk of extinction across Europe has increased significantly in the past 15 years, a new assessment has warned:

New from 404 Media: ICE plans to spend as much as $180 million on bounty hunters to physically locate and stalk immigrants. I spoke to multiple private investigators/skip tracers. Some horrified. Others said they will do this work. "Money is money." www.404media.co/ice-plans-to...

Turkish Prosecutors Seek Over 2,000 Years for Incarcerated Istanbul Mayor www.occrp.org/en/news/turk...

New: A judge in Washington has ruled images from Flock surveillance cameras are public records and that anyone can request them. Highlights the pervasiveness of this tech and just how much surveillance is being done. Very notable ruling www.404media.co/judge-rules-...

another day in communist europe: a little old lady dog tax inspector at the door asking if we perhaps have a dog

EXCLUSIVE! from me in The Guardian today. Good news for night-train fans as @europeansleeper.eu announces it will run the Paris-Berlin route that ÖBB will be scrapping in December. www.theguardian.com/travel/2025/...

anyone with access feel like sending me this?

A grim read - Lesser Kestrels at the 1000-pair colony in Matera, Italy suffering large losses (65%) as a result of climate-induced heatwaves. For every 10 chicks, the heat killed 7. Not sure how they will adapt to that… www.lifefalkon.eu/en/news/the-...

“For decades, Iranians fleeing persecution have found protection in the United States. But this fall, the Trump administration deported a planeload of people to Iran after making a deal with Tehran.” www.nytimes.com/2025/11/11/w...

🟥 Journalists, citizens, and friends who came to attend Mzia Amaglobeli’s appeal hearing in Kutaisi are being denied entry to the courthouse yard. 🟥 The session will be held in a small room with space for only 24 people. #FreeMzia #RepressionInGeorgia #TerrorInGeorgia 1/2🧵

Vladimer Stepanian, a Georgian businessperson and head of Crystal Group, has been detained on charges of illegally constructing hotels in Bakuriani and earning unlawful income. Stepanian has previously donated money to the ruling Georgian Dream party.

Mayor calls for Black Liberators to be commemorated at Margraten www.dutchnews.nl?p=259802

Hey, it's @katharinegk.bsky.social! 🍄🍄🍄

cruel world

official flickr account of the embassy of japan to turkmenistan

In today’s Russian papers: “Budget revenues still falling, trade with China declining" & ”petrol supply problems in the regions.” Plus an interesting editorial: “In a situation where almost everything is prohibited, a little something at least should be permitted” #ReadingRussia

i too have been mournfully eating conference pears wondering if this was the fate of my doyenne de comice

NEW: The Trump admin told states it must immediately "undo" the work to provide full food stamp benefits, or face penalties. The feds sent this in a late-night memo, only adding to the chaos and confusion around SNAP. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/09/b...