Palantir was a warning sign. Keir Starmer choosing to hand our data and security to US tech companies is an outrageous failure of judgment. All in the name of "investment." What about national security?

"And we now have María on the line who would like to swap a Nobel Peace Prize for the presidency of Venezuela..."

Finally got out for a walk this morning.

Also interesting to see the comparison of the characters of Lincoln, Grant, Lee, etc and how they compare to the current crop.

Well, because of an Onion post this morning I wound up watching Ken Burns 1990 Documentary, The Civil War. All 10 hours of it. It's very good. Interesting to hear the narrator's obvious confusion as to how Americans could be so divided. I assume that's not a mystery to him anymore.

Just thinking of the people of #Iran, stay safe, good luck.

Merry Christmas to those who do. Have a great Thursday to those who don't. Lovely message.

Lead free solder is absolutely fine. People who "can only use" leaded solder are just shit at soldering.

This has been the worst December of 2025 by a mile.

If you're heading out this evening, be careful, it's Black Eye Friday. 🐼

www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QDK... Stompbrowser is a handy free VST3 that connects to Tonehunt3000 and allows you to download and use distortion pedal NAM captures. I tried it out last night, has a couple of small bugs, but dang it, it's 95% there. You'll need a Tonehunt account. #guitar

NEW | There are some familiar faces in the latest part of the year’s most calamitous chart… The 25 Worst Columns of 2025, Part Three: Clarkson vs the NHS, the phoney war on 'woke', and Boris' beard buffet brokenbottleboy.substack.com/p/the-25-wor...

When @dfriedman.bsky.social discovered a Goodreads page tied to the email of a top Pentagon official featuring “Asian wife sharing” books and other pornographic works, he did what any reporter would do: ask the Pentagon questions. The very next day, a threatening email from Jack Posobiec arrived.

I just read that trump claimed 82% of Ukrainians demand a peace settlement. No. That’s a lie. A Ukrainian is speaking.

Someone's just done E1M1 in #Quake in 18 seconds! www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uu1_...

it should probably be a bigger story that the richest man on earth and leading Republican is a fucking Nazi media needs to stop beating around the bush. this is Nazi shit.

Does breaking wind, then saying the cat's name in an accusatory fashion, count as a hobby?

Very sad to hear about the passing of Robin Smith. www.bbc.com/sport/cricke... #RIP #Cricket

Deciding T20 between #Bangladesh and #Ireland. Streaming live now. www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJ11... #cricket

“A petition demanding a full inquiry into Russian influence in UK politics has surged past 100,000 signatures after being shared at remarkable speed across social media.”

My Guv'nor Plus pedal arrived today. I can see why they weren't popular - it has very, very little treble - someone's got a component value wrong and didn't admit the mistake. I'm going to have to mod it, I reckon. #guitar

Ordered myself another distortion pedal. Guv'nor Plus. I used an original Guv'nor for years, always curious about the second one. They're not as well regarded, but they are cheap enough - £40 second hand. #guitar

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/74... Please sign and share EVERYWHERE 🙏

That's been an amazing day's play (so far!). Low scoring test matches are easily my favourite format of #cricket. #TheAshes #Ashes

The opening session of The #Ashes rarely disappoints. Unless you don't like #cricket.

Playing Assetto Corsa Rally and having a few glasses of Shiraz. Remember kids, drinking and driving is neither big nor clever. #acrally

RIP Mani What a bass player. youtu.be/NSD11dnphg0?...

Winter wonderland here.

She wants me to push her round the house, chasing after mice.

Yes! Get in there, the UK Supreme Court!! www.bbc.com/news/live/c2...

So this arrived in the post today. Love it to bits already. It sounds like 2 broken fuzz pedals together.

First Test, Sylhet International Cricket Stadium (day two of five) Ireland 286: Stirling 60; Miraz 3-50 Bangladesh 338-1: Joy 169; Humphries 1-78 Bangladesh lead by 52 runs #cricket #testmatch #ireland #ouch

The British government admits it is now monitoring VPNs use by UK residents. Regulator Ofcom has contracted with an AI-powered surveillance service to detect the number of citizens using VPNs to evade the Online Safety Act. The UK tech minister has said a VPN ban is on the table.

So it turns out the guy that drove the truck in 'Smokey and the Bandit' - Jerry Reed - was one of the best guitarists to ever draw breath. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ni8K...

Happy There Is A Circulatory System Walking Through The Kitchen Day to all who celebrate.

Watching #Pluribus. Is that what Americans think socialism is?

Saw 'Frankenstein' - the 2025 version - last night. It was very good. Looked amazing, and Harry Maguire was great. #lfc

X is designed to radicalise people. The algorithm promotes Elon Musk's agenda to promote racists and people who want violence bought - specifically - to the streets of Britain. Members of Parliament, major institutions and the media should not be there. news.sky.com/story/the-x-...

Forced myself to sit down this morning for half an hour to re-wire the input sockets in the 5E3 amp I'm building. I needed to turn them round, so the tip connector bit was away from the bottom of the amp and the circuit board. Need to pull my finger out and get the thing finished!

I've got a brand new chimney built on top, and it's made out of human skulls. That cannot be within planning regs. I'm gonna fire that builder.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkIc... Great finish to the 2025 Bathurst 1000. If you have a spare 25 mins, well worth it. #motorsport

The cool thing about the GPS tracker is it recorded my time round the Tandragee 100 road racing circuit. For comparison, Michael Dunlop did it in 2m55s. I was very, very close with 6m46s. An average speed of 47.5mph. That's my average speed, not Michael's. #motosky #motorbikes #practicallythesame

Look, if I had a leaf blower, I'd use a leaf blower! Since it was dry, I took Big Suze out for run instead. #motosky #motorbikes

Apologies if I've asked this before, but is using a hairdryer on your bike (to dry the bike, not what's left of my hair) a sign of madness? #motosky #motorbikes

www.bbc.com/news/article... I wonder did they ever get 'Possessed to Skate' by Suicidal Tendencies in on 12" yet, it's been 40 years since I ordered it.

The resistance fought valiantly to push back the fascist forces, risking arrest & harm. The fascists tried beating them, tear gassing, and water cannons to push them back. The resistance was armed with only signs, flags, and the strength of their bravery. #3E #GeorgiaProtests

Old age is great. Stood for about 20 seconds this morning using the car remote unlock to try to open the freezer.

I saw One Battle After Another last night, it was pretty good say 7.5/10, well acted, decently made, but I don't think it was close to film of the year stuff. Maybe a touch too long.

There's a nice video highlighting Russia's behaviour. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljgO...