Thomas Hobbes would like a word.

This piece was greenlit and then killed by a British newspaper, so I’ve decided to publish myself instead. Trans People Deserve Better. "Gender critical" feminism doesn't help women but it does help the far right open.substack.com/pub/wellread...

The Home Secretary says "we have become the destination of choice in Europe, clearly visible to every people smuggler and would-be illegal migrant across the world" That is a factually untrue claim: the Home Office shows that the UK is fifth, getting 1/10 claims, while Germany gets 1/5 claims

The Duke of Wellington’s cone has been replaced by a pigeon wearing a tiny cone reading a newspaper. Scots will understand this fun nonsense 🤣

How delightfully quaint some of these old Devon village names are, their etymologies lost in the mists of time.

Small boy in totally A+ green outfit, at the Spanish court in the 1560s. By Sofonisba Anguissola, whose day is today.

Wow, he looks just like him!

The BBC should definitely not pay Trump any money, not least because that money is ours.

Listening to the FT podcast where they say Mahmood is McSweeney's top choice of successor and the idea that Starmer will go but the man most responsible for his catastrophic unpopularity will get to choose the next PM is, um, optimistic on his part

What, here in Edinburgh? Is he on Next Door complaining about students and the bins?

Bigotry is always fed by lies.

It’s the same thing as the terfery really: it’s just being an arsehole and a busybody, seething at people who are just quietly going about their business without harming or bothering anyone.

Yeah, there's no way that's all for his personal use

Look, for fuck’s sake, humans have been migrating continuously for our entire existence. Every single human in the world is the product of migration. It’s what humans do. There is nothing *more* human. That’s never going to change. Just grow up, get the fuck over it and plan accordingly.

This is what many of us have been saying. Part 3 of the Planning & Infrastructure Bill is based on a myth: that we don't have enough homes because wildlife and green spaces are protected. It will solve nothing, and inflict terrible harm on our remaining ecosystems www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Don't presume that just because something is an objectively bad idea, that it will be unpopular and ultimately die out. Someone in the last 20-odd years decided that cauliflower cheese could somehow be part of a Sunday roast. Some are still supporting that ludicrous lie.

There is no difference in practice between removing rights of individuals and leaving the ECHR. The end outcome is still the same, people lose rights. If human rights are an obstacle to your policy it is not the rights which are the issue, it is your policy. Labour going full Reform at this stage.

Correctly, I think the Labour Party is best understood as the performance of a centre left political party put on by several political strategists but (unwittingly) in a manner akin the producers.

Okay, I can't let this one go. I live in Ireland, not the UK, but the use of this image by a supposedly socialist party is so stupid and offensive, I'm going to get stuck in. Let me explain to you why any experienced illustrator/designer could have stopped you making so many miserable mistakes. 1/

Newly reissued to mark its 40th birthday, ‘Ring The Alarm’ continues to rattle speaker boxers. Wrongtom charts the history of its Stalag rhythm, from overlooked origins in the early 1970s to Tenor Saw’s 1985 masterpiece and beyond Reissue of the Week: Tenor Saw’s ‘Ring The Alarm’ buff.ly/MBpzm8Z

We need more of this: www.theguardian.com/education/20...

Well every word here was a new and unexpected twist

Equalities Minister tears apart logic of EHRC’s “trans-exclusive” guidance in High Court 👇 https://www.wearequeeraf.com/equalities-minister-tears-apart-logic-of-ehrcs-trans-exclusive-guidance-in-high-court/

If we accept someone is a genuine refugee and they build a life here, perhaps have children born here, what is the advantage to us of expelling them once we’ve persuaded ourselves that their country of origin is safe?

This is the Home Secretary's video about "why" A government which had the principle of *defusing* the salience by getting a grip with control, while maintaining compassion, would not use the rhetorical devices here to stoke up the salience of the issue they hope to defuse x.com/ShabanaMahmo...

The bloody neighbours have gone out and left John Cage’s 4’33 on full blast again.

What is truly pathetic about Labour is that this is all they have got. They have failed so spectacularly already, despite a whacking great majority, to even attempt to govern positively that all they have is punching down on marginalised groups and saying "oh but Reform will be worse".

Brutal, dehumanising, and won’t achieve either the apparent goal (reducing the number of irregular arrivals) nor the real one (seducing the Reform-curious) - the distinctive blend of delusion, crass evil and rank incompetence that characterises Starmer’s government.

Cracking interview with Alan Cumming on all the excitement of his inaugural season at Pitlochry Festival Theatre.

"What is certain, and felt instinctively by almost everybody, is that things cannot go on in their present way" – The Times, May 1975 “It is difficult to imagine a previous period when such an all-pervasive hopelessness was exhibited at all levels of British life” – Professor Stephen Haseler, 1975

This is political blackmail dressed up as pragmatism. Justifying their nasty policies with “Reform will be worse”.

NEW: The first two years of Massachusetts' millionaire tax has raised $3 billion more than expected. And rather than driving the rich away, IPS researchers found that the number of millionaires has *increased.* Tax the rich. Greg Ryan in @bloomberg.com:

Being a horrible right wing pos ages you 10x worse than smoking 60 a day or drinking a brewery’s worth of ales every morning. And it’s also much less cool than either of those.

The perfect photo to challenge narratives of progress.

'The prospect of hundreds of job cuts at Lancaster University could damage the city's economy, students have warned.' 'Could'? Surely 'will'.

@theferret.scot is ten whole years old. It has a new look, a new website, and has switched from Wordpress to Ghost. www.theferret.scot

Abolish the BBC? The ever-brilliant Dan Hind on the crisis at the national broadcaster: open.substack.com/pub/abolishw...

'The University of Cambridge has announced it has acquired and for the first time unsealed Levy’s personal archive, including letters, draft manuscripts, photographs and diary entries. It is expected the material will inform a wealth of new scholarship on her life, work and mental health.' 1/2

Well, it's a little clearer now why billionaires are so invested in technology that produces better written emails.

every other email at work now is ‘delighted to announce rollout of new RoboPay system for internal finances, with easy to use requisitioning protocol. pls note that you must NOT click big button labeled ‘OK’ after posting order as this will cause entire institution to default on its debt. thanks.’

We're two days away from opening! 🙌 Here's a wee guide to our most sold shows over the month of November. When are you coming to see the show? 📆 14 Nov - 21 Dec 📌 Auditorium, Pitlochry Festival Theatre 🎫on our website

“Sorry kids”. Yeah, that’ll definitely work.

From 1910. One hundred and fifteen years ago.

Scottish archaeologists, game designers and writers have collaborated to publish an illustrated book exploring the lives of the Picts, following a successful crowdfunding campaign

Robots staggering around and falling over like they were too drunk ever to learn to walk is my new favourite genre of short form video.

when you wear a size 9.5 shoe but the 8.5 was on sale

This is even funnier than it just being Streeting on manoeuvres.