Every political apology/excuse. “Yes we made mistakes. We didn’t communicate our obviously wonderful policies well enough.”

Breaking: Israel has launched a “preemptive strike against Iran,” Israeli Minister of Defense Israel Katz said, declaring a special state of emergency across the country. Several explosions were heard in Tehran, according to Iranian state media. Read more:

Once again, in actual democracies, people do not need to engage in permanent litigation & political mobilization to retain the basic right to vote, because none of the major political parties make restricting suffrage the central pillar of their policy platform. We also don't have to live like this.

Look at that! Imminence is back. If only there was, I don’t know, a deal that dealt with this threat. www.nytimes.com/live/2026/02...

It's not "sectarian" to oppose genocide.

Netanyahu Calls Iran Strikes Necessary To Prevent War He Just Started

Remember when Congress authorized the use of force against Iran? Me neither. Any U.S. attack on Iran would violate U.S. and international law.

Preemptive is another word for aggressive.

CNN reporting that the strikes on Iran tonight are joint US and Israeli strikes. Which means Donald Trump should be impeached for a third time. What he has done tonight is illegal under the US constitution and the UN charter.

illegal use of force by every measure, domestic & international

This speech has, sadly, remained relevant every year of my life youtu.be/HfXmpJRZPYI?...

LabourList suggest voice of asylum pitch may be key reason why landed negatively with members Oppose 61% Support 33% More support specific measures That kind of polling can be a bit of a comfort blanket. Does shows mixed views: most members are control + compassion labourlist.org/2025/12/shab...

Different responses? *continuity Blue Labour may need to get behind Keir Starmer, to avoid a contest * persuade candidates to defend continuity to members? (could Mahmood content be pitched in a way to take Lab opinion with it, rather than seeing party opposition as credential that tough enough?)

Triangulating "open borders" of Greens & mass deportations of Zia Yisuf is a standard if banal rhetorical device of every immig speech since 2001 but that is a v wide space! This Stamer/Mahmood administration (to May 2026? Beyond?) and/or contenders to lead next Labour govt face some key questions

So much looking forward to seeing how UK government will go about explaining how unprovoked bombing is legitimate, justified and proportionate when it’s the USA doing it.

What “imminent threats?”

Dick Cheney must be raging in his grave. All the lying they had to do to start an illegal war.

Mio commento sulla sconfitta del Labour e sulle prospettive dei Verdi in Uk. Potete leggerlo oggi, come sempre, su @mm-ilmanifesto-bot.bsky.social

which is to say, she was responding directly to attacks on her community, in her state

For additional context, it was specifically a screed against ”Somali pirates” and this was in direct response to the following

Da leggere Francesca Coin, oggi su @mm-ilmanifesto-bot.bsky.social

Notre amie et camarade Susan George nous a quittés. Nous témoignons de notre peine face à sa disparition, elle qui a accompagné de sa présence active l’ensemble de notre association dont elle fut membre fondatrice en 1998 et toujours présidente d’honneur. france.attac.org/actus-et-med...

La militante altermondialiste et présidente d’honneur d’Attac, Susan George, est morte à l’âge de 91 ans. ➡️ https://l.humanite.fr/6Tr

The Transnational Institute mourns the sad news of the passing of Susan George. No one has done more to shape, energize and inspire TNI over the decades – she has been our inspiration, our honorary leader, our intellectual soul, and our beloved friend. www.tni.org/en/article/s...

On Friday 13 March, the Visions for the Future Project and Studium Generale Utrecht will be hosting Quinn Slobodian and Ben Tarnoff in Utrecht's City Library. They will talk about their book MUSKISM. Tickets are free: www.sg.uu.nl/agenda/2026/...

Worth watching: open.spotify.com/episode/3w4Q... @theresthistory.bsky.social

Need a Rachel Reeves version bsky.app/profile/mari...

🤦🏻‍♂️

5. Forgive my cynicism, but what we have before us does not look to me like a glowing paragon of consistent values and selfless behaviour. It looks like someone who will stop at very little to gain power, even if he hasn’t the faintest idea what to do with it when it arrives.

4. His ruthlessness as Director of Public Prosecutions sat oddly with his history as a defence lawyer. People remarked on it at the time. Perhaps human rights was not in fact soaked into his fabric, but something else was. Ambition. By any means.

3. Now, I can’t look into Starmer’s soul. I don’t know what his motivations and strategy might have been. But if you wanted to map out a career path that took you from law to public recognition to power, this is as good as any.

2. There are many brilliant and selfless human rights lawyers, and their role is indispensable. But it’s also the case that if you want a high public profile in law, human rights is the way to go. Think about it: most of the lawyers you’ve heard of are human rights lawyers.

1. People struggle to reconcile Keir Starmer’s ruthless ambition, Machiavellian manoeuvres, breaking of promises, collaboration in genocide, bans on protest, aid cuts, benefit cuts and war on nature with his history as a human rights lawyer. But perhaps there is no contradiction. Read on.🧵

Everything you need to know about Starmer's relation to his erstwhle profession is summarised in this passage: A pursuit of a hallowed credentialism with which he could swat down any and all critiques through recourse to a meticulous technocratic method belied by his obvious partisanship and malice.

Prometto che lo leggerò, ma la vera domanda, più che cosa insegna, è se ci sia qualcuno disposto a imparare.

assignment for this semester: compare this statement with the appeal about Europe signed by four presidents of bishops' conferences in Europe (Italy, France, Germany, Poland).

@massimofaggioli.bsky.social www.thetablet.co.uk/news/church-...

Update: bad news/good news

Addio al New Labour. Cosa riserva il futuro? Oggi @mm-ilmanifesto-bot.bsky.social

We’re getting close to New Labour’s requiem, time to go back to some old books. Still interesting, and of course Mandelson is all over the place, some passages are revelatory in retrospect.

Da leggere Carlotta Cossutta, oggi su @mm-ilmanifesto-bot.bsky.social

From BBC website. Trump's vainglory, creepiness, fraud, and ultimate futility wrapped into one.

Al Carns MP for Birmingham Selly Oak, since July 2024 www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...

Carns has been in the arctic - so we can't be sure who is briefing this stuff apparently to promote him that could end his hopes in the hypothetical contest www.thetimes.com/uk/defence/a...

Actually, there are 3 [current Reform] policies to right of the government which would qualify as "much tougher" - but which are v unpopular with Labour voters - Commit to net zero immigration + a shrinking population/decade of net emigration - Quit ECHR - Mass deportation of legal migrants

The only "much tougher" policies well to the right of the current approach (cut numbers well below net 200k; double/triple settlement) would be - quit ECHR (Reform) - mass deportations of legal migrants; revoke ILR (Reform) Both of those are toxic with Labour voters, never mind Labour members

Could have a viable leadership bid that would be much more *effective* on immigration & asylum, but no scope to be noisier, rhetorically "tougher" + viable - end hotel use in months, not years - actually stop boats, instead of reheating Patel/Braverman again www.britishfuture.org/publication/...