Re-upping this for the Monday crowd... I think my favourite, most revealing detail is that the guy seems to not realise he's in trouble because London Centric's reporting didn't hit anything like his view counts, so therefore it can't really matter.

The best Epstein account I’ve read so far: about the place of the women in those men’s world

On Wednesday 18 February, journalist, novelist and 𝘓𝘙𝘉 contributing editor James Meek will be at the @londonreviewbookshop.co.uk to discuss his latest novel, 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘞𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘔𝘦, with Lara Pawson. Tickets here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/james-meek...

Also grateful to Stuart Kelly for this, with I think a ten year old photo?

Thanks to Catherine Taylor for this thoughtful and insightful review in the FT www.ft.com/content/e88b...

This has come out into the world

HOW? HOW DOES THE BBC "UNDERSTAND" THESE THINGS? Ouija board? Cup attached to a piece of string?

My cover story for this week's The New World

Amazing insight into the tawdry detail of snouts in the trough favour peddling that hardly died with Epstein

Banned Wikipedia entry from 2027: The former democracy known as the United States of America lasted for 250 years, fewer than four lifetimes. Long after the end, residents would still describe themselves as living in a democracy, and as part of, even leaders of, ‘the free world’.

Highlighting the limitations

‘Ever since Trump’s obsession with Greenland emerged, he and his underlings have been coming up with reasons why it should become part of America, not one of which makes much sense.’ @jamesmeek.bsky.social in Greenland, from last year: www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...

From the ever sound Owen Hatherley

On passing through the veil into fascism

The lackeys seem to genuinely believe European leaders will do something that they not only will not and cannot do but might reasonably believe not doing will make them politically stronger

I feel I should bang the drum for this post, which hasn't received the love it deserves. It helps to know that Jenrick's constituency is Newark.

John Boorman is 93. This anecdote about him & Lee Marvin has quite the punchline.

America has the military might, but Europe has Big Beret

subscriptions >>> shop.viz.co.uk/viz351bs

Holy Jesus I didn't look close enough, saw the green logo quickly and thought this was The Onion and started chuckling man what have we done lol

Like, for instance, are they just going to send troops, or will they have joint responsibility with Ukraine for controlling the airspace above the troops - as things stand, a much bigger deal

'The UK and U.S. defence and security relationship is the deepest in the world' - and if US troops stage in Britain and fly from British bases to invade Greenland? www.gov.uk/government/n...

Je propose dique-pique, sur le modèle de pique-nique.

I see people clinging to the ‘security and minerals’ rationalisation for Trump and Greenland. Why rationalise the irrational? I still think cartographic aesthetics is the root. tinyurl.com/kfb2sxc8

MICHIGAN: Police arrest protestor of Trump’s attack on Venezuela while she’s live on air 🤔🇺🇸

amazing how the entire machine can pivot within 24 hours. no need to slowly upsell the argument; just issue new marching orders

Silicon Valley’s alliance with Donald Trump was a mask off moment and showed the world we can’t depend on US tech companies. For the past few months, I’ve been trying to get off US tech and I put together a guide so you find alternatives too. I hope you find it helpful!

But it worked so well the last time they attacked a country with that many people that had tons of oil

an absolute must-read from @jamesmeek.bsky.social in @lrb.co.uk. it illuminates the cultural, political, and economic cross-currents that define the present more clearly than anything else I've read this year. www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4....

lol

Found when sorting an old drive. I still, very occasionally, say 'not many badgers in the House of Lords' and this is why:

Not a fan of the Taliban or Peaky Blinders, love the crossover

Sure, we're the weak and decaying ones...

Brilliant @jamesmeek.bsky.social piece in @lrb.co.uk on the failure of British industrial strategy - indeed of British industrial capitalism - and how that collides with the rise of reform in North East rustbelt town Blyth www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...

column maybe coming on this but I don't hugely care about what 61-year-old Farage got up to at school? and I think that Fleet Street finally gunning for him is symptomatic of a culture where the gotcha/scoop factor matters so much that hidden past actions are seen as worse than current, public ones

Brilliant choice of Misha Glenny for In Our Time! He interviewed me at the Vienna Humanities festival a few weeks ago and he had the perfect wide-ranging interests and intelligence. As a fan of IOT I am cheering. www.bbc.com/mediacentre/...

A brilliant if bleak piece by @jamesmeek.bsky.social - well worth setting time aside for. You can feel democracy fading as you read it.

(Away from UK politics news for a couple of days, tap in) British Economy Booming Under Labour, Say Tories, Chancellor Must Resign (tap out)

I mean

Issue 47.22 is now online, featuring: @jamesmeek.bsky.social on the green energy transition and North-East England Clare Bucknell on Robert Frost @jwmueller-pu.bsky.social on American post-liberalism and Maureen N. McLane on Claire-Louise Bennett’s new novel. Read online at www.lrb.co.uk

In keeping with the Pope's anathema on clickbait, I offer this article about Reform, Jeremy Corbyn, Shakespearan railways, batteries, jobmaking and the Northumbrian town of Blyth

I guess it’s a compliment that the top story on BBC London’s TV/online output today is a direct lift of a month-old London Centric story? But once again the BBC is consistently the worst news outlet for actually remembering to credit others.

A lot of commenters have internalised the Trump-Putin delusion that Ukrainian resistance is 'Zelensky's war' and his corruption-related weakness is a good time to get him to end it. In fact the Ukrainians angriest about Ze & corruption are generally those most against giving Russia this much