Yesterday, five-year-old Liam and his dad Adrian were released from Dilley detention center. I picked them up last night and escorted them back to Minnesota this morning. Liam is now home. With his hat and his backpack.

People can argue, with reasons, about whether the Battle of Stamford Bridge was fought anywhere near the village of Stamford Bridge, near York, which was the city Harald Hardrada was defending against Harold Godwinesson. This was all part of 1066 and all that.

This spins off from a couple of threads I am in. I provided links to web-pages run by reputable organisations. They're not loaded with adverts or other abusive extras. But should I just let them use cookies. Who can you trust?

I had a shop-name and a street name/number. Google gave a location-marker on their own "maps" that was a couple of blocks away, on the wrong side of the street. Their Streetview images, half a year old, showed both sites as un-used and "To Let". But I could see the street-number. Google ++Ungood

Is this the real song, is this just parody? Print in a songbook, tuneless ukelele... Open your ears, look out from the tears, and see I'm just a filker, no need for sympathy Because my easy words, in a row, singing high, maybe low Are lost from where the song goes, It doesn't really matter to me....

The BBC runs a weekly news quiz. What do you remember about recent news? It falls apart when they ask you to pick the reason why an infamous madman did what he did this week.

With each COVID infection, your brain's gray matter deteriorates 2-3%. The average American has had approximately five infections. If you think people are getting stupider, it's not your imagination.

Non-English names in headlines are always going to confuse some people.

I am grumpy this morning. "Memorable information" is a network security concept imposed on us by people (I use the term loosely) who have no fsck-ing idea how human memory works.

Here in Britain the Lidl supermarket chain has a promotion for eastern and central European food, The brandname used is a trademark of Lidl in Germany. That doesn't mean it's a bad version, but I doubt somebody from Poland would hasten to seek it out. I value my Polish friends too much to ask them.

I have just been told that "new potatoes" are on the menu as a "wintery option." Er, yes... I have done enough ploughing to be very doubtful about anything labelled as a "Ploughman's lunch." It isn't so well balanced. even allowing for modern marketing redesign.

What I'm hearing goes more like this. "The UK NCA says at least 67% of theft and fraud happens online. Are you a career criminal being left behind? Sign up for this government funded initiative to learn the skills you need to get your hands on your share of that sweet cyberloot."

Friends in the USA ask mr what weather I am having. It is raining. It's not quite freezing but the wind is gusting to Gale Force and the Wind Chill is bad. The only source of hot air is politicians. They're easy to buy, but too expensive for most of us.

It got a blink-and-you'll-miss-it mention on the BBC. Today, 27th January, is Holocaust Memorial Day. We're supposed to remember, so that we don't repeat. Lighting a candle tonight is only a symbol. It isn't enough.

There has been another right-wing British politician. who was n the government, changing the party she is a member of. The leader of the Party she joined has managed to put out a photo which looks like an announcement of a coming wedding. Both display horrific smiles.

It is possible to find help in Britain. There are still people who think they are entitled to hunt my friends. This may not go well for such fools.

I have been working in textures for a character in a virtual world. And so many colours seem perilous. Dark blue for cops, Black or brown for fascists. Military use changed over the 19th Century but is a red coat safe yet?

Is there a film in which David Niven is trying to smuggle a cow out of Casablanca while the city is occupied by the Americans?

I have found that virtual worlds are loaded with idealised men and women, maybe not quite at the level of a film or TV star, but there are the Spinal Tap moments where their dial has been turned up to 11. They seem to be in the habit of declaring that "Tomorrow Belongs To Me".

“nobody is insider trading off his death so it almost certainly didn’t happen” really sums up the state of the world in 2026 huh

Please try not to be political in any answers. How often does an airliner crossing the North Atlantic return to its starting point because of a mechanical fault. That is, not a crew or passenger problem.

One annoying thing about the modern internet is the way that a physical connection — a landline — can move between major cities without warning. One moment I am in Glasgow and the next in Solihull. Parts of the internet still demand I use IP4 addresses. "Smart" components fail it they see IP6.

Bluesky had moderation filters that a user can define, which have various options. Even a mere 24-hour duration for a National elected politician feels drastic. It is a shame for a British user that I cannot easily tell such a dimwit to F* Off, though whoever is in their office won't enjoy it.

Several #SiliconValley operations use unreliable #Search systems. Whether they are trying to sell some sort of merchandise, or just provide "relevant" text, you will struggle. Some of that might be language differences, but some confuse "male" and "female"

Over the decades I have read many hooks with vampires as lead characters. I do think the quality of the writing and storytelling has improved. They don't work so well for me. I have changed too. Am I too old to believe anyone could live forever?

I have been infected by COVID and I can no longer rely on my sense of taste. The alleged Caesar salad had none of the ingredients that add texture. It could easily have been Coleslaw.

YouTube is messing up dates and times today. One video posted today (and the content is current) is showing viewer comments as posted 11 month's ago.

This morning I saw a report that Gold prices were at a record high as a consequence of Trump's threatened Tariffs. I wonder how anyone can be sure that they own any of this gold being traded. If you buy a gold coin it can be delivered, but what is the reality of this trade?

David Willey has made a YouTube video about the famous "Denison Smock", worn by British Paratroopers since the earliest days in WW2. And there was no person of that name. The labeling pattern did not use personal names. It may be that somebody mis-copied "Denim". www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wrl6...

I have found that one advantage of running a furry character in a virtual world is that you get away from some of the racist memes. You dodge issues about big noses and slanted eyes. There are still things you need to be careful about, and there are Spinal Tap moments about setting some dials to 11

behold, courtesy of my amazing wife, the coolest thing anyone has ever made for me the Imperial Ministry of Silly Walks

I do not regret at all that the line "Ziggy Stardust's Lonely Hearts Club Band..." is running through my head. And it does sort of fit with the theme of the transient fame of rock music that you find in Bowie's lyrics.

Photographs are appearing of the Astronauts returned from the ISS in a medical evacuation. There are pictures. And I don't think any ICE thugs are visible.

The update for the Met Office Android App is out. You can now get weather forecasts for Britain from the people who know what rhey are doing. They set an example for the whole planet in science communication, and they know why it's wetter in Germany.

I have been having problems with some mesh clothing in #SecondLife and I fixed it by changing the "body fat" setting on the #shape to zero. The mesh body can be affected while the clothing may ignore the setting. A zero setting is not quite realistic. Neither is the other extreme.

Here in Britain, the details of how government works have no primary document. It is recorded, and making changes is difficult. So, today, we have Prime Ministers Questions in the House of Commons, and it's arguable that nobody has useful experience of what should happen. (more)

The BBC carried a report that the new commander of the Red Arrows, the RAF Aerobatic Display Team, is Wing Commander Sasha Nash. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

I wonder if the Star Trek episode "Planet of Farce" could be a useful model for dealing with right-wing thuggery.

There is a claim going around that power-cuts in Iran are exposing bot-farms on the internet. There are other reasons why internet connections can fail, anywhere in a world. A social-media account vanishing might have some other reason. So don't jump to conclusions. What were they posting?

HOLY BAT-ANNIVERSARY! 🥳 BATMAN premiered on this day 60 YEARS AGO! See Batman on Talking Pictures TV every Saturday at 9am. Older episodes from Sunday 18th January at 12:40. Please check your Bat-TPTV schedule for further details! #TalkingPicturesTV #Batman #Anniversary

Are there researchers who will do infiltrations like this? Yes, absolutely. But typically they'll do it under an alias, and have a mountain of evidence to back up that that's what they were doing, not just a Statement about "researching modern paganism".

I was watch the Kenneth Branagh version of "Love's Labours Lost", the one set in 1939 and using music of the time. The last third of the film is where it goes wrong. It becomes sluggish. And the fake newsreels of the conclusion, black-and-white, lose the colour-coding of the Lies of France. (more)

One of the stories coming out of the USA is of Trump announcing military attacks — bombers — on Mexico to destroy "Cartels". Is it coming out of an AI fake, or is Trump really so insane? If a government cannot decide that question, can they make any deal with the USA?

🎶 Gather round while I sing you of Elon Reeve Musk A man who saw downsides to ending apartheid Call him a Nazi, he’ll answer quite brusque And raise quite a furor. That’s Elon Reeve Musk. 🎶

No excuses. You know what's at stake. Organize. Fundraise. Protest. Lobby. Make good trouble. Fuck up some Nazis.

It’s important for the international community to boycott America That includes the World Cup and Olympics Refuse to support fascism Refuse to support a country that’s targeting all marginalized people, killing & detaining its citizens and threatening its allies It’s not safe. It’s not worth it.

The Met Office Shipping Forecast for Britain and the surrounding seas is dominated by the effects of Storm Gorretti. This will be centred at the western end of the English Channel by Midnight Thursday. Winds of Force 12 (Hurricane) are possible.

On the night before the Feast of the Epiphany, I'm sitting here hoping some wise men will show up. Some wise women would be equally welcome.

I have had a chance to watch "Wake Up Dead Man", and I can look up some details of the Catholic Church which the depiction gets totally wrong without any reason in the plot. There is a black actor, playing a senior cleric, with significant dialogue, who I have not found in any cast list. (more)

If a headline gives "Therapists" as a source for the story, BEWARE! Whatever the dreadful danger is, at best it is a symptom. If is labelled as "excessive" one could think there is a quite ordinary, no problem at all, level. Is the real risk a mob of shouting Politicians?