My hypothesis is that this is cope to avoid having to land on an opinion that is politically uncomfortable (that one's ideological team includes thousands of crazy, toxic people).

Did the Iranian government's social media guy defect? A weird theocratic vibe.

Rural public transport doesn't have to be this bad. Mini Switzerland shows what's actually possible. @freewheeling.info @jamesomalley.co.uk @mjrobbins.com

New video: How Trump Is Building an American Dictatorship youtu.be/kSuIHppLMOY?...

But let's be honest: there's a large cadre that basically cheers on chasing off any lib/centrist/academic who's the punchbag of the day. There's a culture of saying "fuck off back to X, then". And the anti- bedtime leftists set too much of the culture.

I tend to get dogpiled every time I say this but: as someone *who likes bluesky and benefits from being here* we have a problem. The network is shrinking, not growing. It's shrinking a lot: only about 1.1m people a day even like a post. This time last year it was 1.6m.

Correct

Multi-destination train holidays are good – maybe even the best – holidays.

Finally someone is speaking up for the interests of the wealthy!

‘Modernisation required’: www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/1...

Nice review of the pod! If you've not given it a try yet, now is a good time to enjoy our well-edited millennial uptalk! yimbypod.com

This is going to sound crazy but I think there might actually be some good geopolitical news.

Sure, why not? Let's give Juche a go.

So much of what we see online is performance. It’s shallow and brittle, even if it’s purportedly linked to a social justice cause. Prod it and it crumbles. There’s nothing behind it. It’s attention for attention’s sake. Smoke and mirrors. 1/7

Excellent nominative determinism, BBC News website.

ICYMI:

Bloody hell this is depressing reading. Myanmar's coup leader who set off a brutal civil war is set to become president www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Evening crew – an incredibly spicy take!

VERY satisfying to see my automated, vibe-coded bin reminder app has automatically adjusted the day in my calendar because of the bank holiday weekend.

Excellent nominative determinism, BBC News website.

Now work is done for the week, you can read this!

When your business has a literal moat.

Britain seems to have taken the worst possible position on the AI/copyright debate (FREE TO READ!) takes.jamesomalley.co.uk/p/britain-ta...

I have seriously exciting news: 🇨🇭Mini Switzerland is funded!! The DfT today announced £6m of funding to deliver a national demonstrator of Swiss-style transport integration in the Hope Valley. Those who follow me will know I've been leading a voluntary team to try to make this happen.

The Brexit Wars were defined by a deafening amount of noise and magical thinking. The AI/copyright debate is going the same way. takes.jamesomalley.co.uk/p/britain-ta...

Another normal day at Authority Media Towers, where the editorial team need to have a discussion about whether a Kent councillor's post is racist in one way or an entirely different way.

Challenge your existing opinions with this lunchtime reading:

Imagine what this £190m could do if it was donated to a post-1992 university.

Imagine telling the Duke of Wellington in 1833 that one day, a baby tortoise on St Helena would be involved in a viral crypto death scam.

Wrote this about Dudley / the prospects of Reform becoming a YIMBY party, when he was first appointed. His awful comments obviously make his role untenable, but it probably does make Reform more directionally NIMBY in the long run. takes.jamesomalley.co.uk/p/can-reform...

The more heated the debate becomes, the more I see the unreality, that reminds me so much of the bullshit during Brexit. And though I’m more sympathetic towards the creative industries than I was towards the Brexiteers, I can’t help but conclude that we have to let the AI companies train.

Surely – surely – this cannot be real?

UK politics now in a bidding war of universal fuel subsidies (sorry, "support") to, per ed davey "keep britain moving". The reality - that consumption must fall - is going to be a nasty surprise

Catch up with this week's YIMBY Pod as in an amazing piece of timing, just days after we published our interview with @freewheeling.info, DfT has *funded his Mini Switzerland proposal*!!! 🎉

You’re probably gonna have this. But I don’t think he’s entirely wrong.

The Brexit Wars were defined by a deafening amount of noise and magical thinking. The AI/copyright debate is going the same way. takes.jamesomalley.co.uk/p/britain-ta...

Britain seems to have taken the worst possible position on the AI/copyright debate (FREE TO READ!) takes.jamesomalley.co.uk/p/britain-ta...

Go humans!

Oh my god, I did not expect the launch poll to go well after all of those issues.

Is it just a normal thing in the world now that people doing normal jobs are filming customers and posting them on TikTok/Shorts/etc? What's shocking is the way the woman at the end says it was fine to film her, like it was expected? www.youtube.com/shorts/-Kgbm...

Speedrunning Tesco – plus mixed feelings about Artemis, Mormon gambling, and a council finance nightmare. (Odds and Ends #93) takes.jamesomalley.co.uk/p/speedrunni...

I don’t understand the general public.

I agree with the critique that ‘cancel culture’ overreached during its 2020ish peak, but I do think Kanye West should probably remain cancelled.

Further to the powerful point I made below I would also like to play tribute to comedians for being good at comedy. I was reminded of this by Facebook serving up some absolutely woeful April Fools slop this morning.

To celebrate the new bin rules coming into force, I have reprised this excellent piece from @lizlutgendorff.bsky.social, who used to work in waste management, on why bins are so complicated, and why some people think we need seven of them. takes.jamesomalley.co.uk/p/why-we-nee...

Come on, if you're trying to do an April Fools post it at least has to be vaguely plausible.

Really interesting interview with Jared Isaacman, who might actually be the one good Trump appointment. www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPUe...

Just saw someone post an April Fools joke. Like a relic from a different era.

Speedrunning Tesco – plus mixed feelings about Artemis, Mormon gambling, and a council finance nightmare. (Odds and Ends #93) takes.jamesomalley.co.uk/p/speedrunni...