I fear Labour people risk falling into an ecological fallacy visible from space when reacting to these results. Here is what is very clear in results so far: Labour are losing *seats* to Reform, but... Labour are losing *votes* to the Greens Greens split the vote, Ref comes thru middle

Seeing as I appear on a couple of Bluesky lists accusing me of it, I thought I'd better mention a few salient things.

I’m starting to wonder if this is how the monks felt when Henry VIII started his “wide-ranging restructure of the monastery system”.

Can we spare a moment to think about all the poor Polling Station staff up and down the country, patiently explaining to angry white men why they can't vote for Nigel Farage in their local council elections today?

My university has just described the closure of a department & cutting of courses as 'an exciting opportunity', creating 'new possibilities for growth'. The only growth here is in senior management using marketing bullshit to describe the sector-wide destruction of the arts & humanities.

Just visited the Sistine chapel. Oh my.

Trashing disciplines that explore what it means to be human is the definition of self-defeating, not “responsible budgeting”. While we lament the loss of colleagues and courses, we must reject the lie that extending our shared understanding of the world and ourselves is an unaffordable luxury. 5/

We desperately need to transform UK higher ed’s disastrous funding model. This is not just about tinkering with the loan system or debating how much direct government support the sector needs. It is time to reconsider how we account for higher education’s value and purpose from the bottom up. 4/

Why would we want to learn from our pasts, or ponder the power of the written and spoken word, or explore the deep questions of humanity? According to the University of Hertfordshire, we wouldn't. They've just cut all of our undergrad Humanities programmes

I see that Facebook is having another completely normal one with “take your own pen to the polling booth” day.

Out and about in that Rome

“Everyone should want exactly the same as me, all the time”

These elections are LOCAL. The General Election is FAR AWAY.

Nah, think I’ll just read the poem again, thanks.

You know what user interface has held up remarkably well? Books with pages bound together (the codex). Turning pages began to overtake scrolling around the year 300. May it do so again.

“AI Literacy” and “Ethical AI” are marketing slogans serving as Trojan horses for the colonization and ultimate ransacking of the education sector.

Blessings of Beltane be upon you, b3ta. Artist: Captain Howdy https://b3ta.com/board/11427857

Never met Tony Peters, don’t know who he is, but a million years ago on Facebook he posted this and I don’t think anyone’s ever put it better.

University of Hertfordshire closes a swathe of Humanities courses, accelerating the sweeping tide against Human-centred disciples in the UK. Because understanding humans is so yesterday today. With such happy consequences, as we see when we look around us.

Just once, I'd like a contestant on Pointless, at the start of their third episode, to say "Sorry Xander, I don't have a third anecdote. I made stuff up on the form to get on here, and I've forgot what I'd put."

Tempted, although perhaps not in Rome traffic

I’m nothing if not thorough in matching my reading list to my travel destinations. Just finished Conclave and about to start on The Agony and the Ecstasy.

has anyone shown alanis morissette how to use the side of a spoon in a sawing motion

Just another reason why so much of this stuff is dogshit.

Three guesses where I am

Let me count the number of ways in which this can fuck off.

Slightly diminish a book Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Civil Servant

Diminish a book: Minimal Expectations

Slightly diminish a book Dirk Gently’s Partial Detective Agency

You see!! AI is actually a job creation scheme, albeit unpaid, horrible, jobs.

The trouble is, quite a lot of the 'diminish a book' titles are things I quite fancy reading. Portishead Revisited. I'm in, frankly.

I often hear people say, ‘My city has always been like this, and there’s no way we can get rid of these urban motorways”. Time and again, we’ll show that it is possible when there’s a vision and the political will to bring about change. Paris has done it ✅ So, let’s get started 💪🏼

Nice homely atmosphere there then #TopOfTheThrops

I like it that Richard has donned a suit for the board meeting #TopOfTheThrops

Oh. A running wanker #TopOfTheThrops

Ooh cat fight! #TopOfTheThrops

Saucy Cribbins. #TheGoodOlddays

Avert your eyes, madam! #TheGoodOldDays

How about your mind your own fucking business, Shaw? #TheGoodOldDays

Top quality warbling bintage tonight then #TheGoodOldDays

Wig. WIIIIIIIIIIIIGGGGGGGGG #TheGoodOldDays

I reckon Barry Cryer found this bloke's kilt left behind in the dressing room and used it for the rest of his appearances on the show. #thegoodolddays

It’s a twirling bint #TheGoodOldDays

Also, that Dawkins designantes the sycophant machine as female.

Cribbins! #TheGoodOldDays

Absolutely fucking this. In triplicate. With a bow

Found a baby songbird? Here's a newly updated chart!

There are no short cuts to this sort of knowledge. There should be no short cuts to knowledge at all. AI makes us arrogant and stupid.

I’m just floored by the contempt than many in tech have for the humanities. They don’t even try to understand or appreciate what it is we do before arrogantly assuming they can do it better with a non-human machine.

Meanwhile, in the good ‘ole US of A they are trying to ban young women access to the vaccination because whores, or something. Well done, Australia. And thank you.