On British political discourse (which is pretty insane) “The question is not ‘what in god’s name are the Americans doing, have they gone insane?’ It is: Why is Britain not involved?”

My lord! The frigate the US submarine torpedoed, the one the White House has been bragging about, was unarmed and headed home from an international naval exercise, hosted by India, that the US pulled out of at the last minute! www.military.com/daily-news/i...

FT comments section this morning - saying what everyone else is thinking, right?

If Donald asks Zelensky for anti drone systems, he better wear a suit, ask nicely and say thank you.

Finding the US and Israeli emphasis on how many sorties they’ve flown and how much munitions they’ve dropped quite Vietnam-era-press-conference-esque.

He’s certainly no FDR

If there's one thing that'll get me fully behind Starmer, it's that evil scumbag across the Atlantic attacking him. I suspect I'm not alone on this.

I could be missing something here, but there is a difference between putting jets in the air to intercept drones/missiles which may hit some of the 100,000 Brits in the UAE, and putting jets in harm’s way to prevent a full scale invasion by the world’s 2nd most powerful military, & a nuclear power

Important reading on the chaos in the Middle East.

TARANTINO, on how theatrical movie distribution has become a “show pony exercise” — and how live theater may be the only audience magic we have left. 💔 @michaelsantoli.bsky.social

Opinium/Byline Times Gorton & Denton poll tables are now up. www.opinium.com/wp-content/u...

I understand why chatbot cheating happens but every time I read about it I want to gently remind everyone that the point of schoolwork is not for the submission to exist. Teachers are not just greedy for more essays or solved equations. The point is to do the work WITH YOUR OWN BRAIN, FOR LEARNING.

Ceiling seems to be firmly hit. Now let’s see if Rupert Lowe’s Musk-backed Restore party takes its toll on Reform.

its amazing how chatgpt knows everything about subjects I know nothing about, but is wrong like 40% of the time in things im an expert on. not going to think about this any further

Paraskavedekatriaphobia [paer-AS-kuh-ved-ehk-at-rahy-uh-FOH-bee-uh] (n.) - The superstitious fear of Friday the thirteenth. Used in a sentence: “Once working remotely from home became an option, Bob’s paraskavedekatriaphobia was no longer problematic with his employer.”

Have you ever once seen the New York Times quote Trump like this?

Robert Duvall, the legendary actor whose career has spanned over six decades, has died at 95, his wife announced

Dan Hannan’s predictions for 2025 UK: “We lead the world in biotech, law, education, the audio-visual sector, financial services and software. New industries, driverless cars…around the country.” 2026 Dan Hannan: Weren’t old coins handsome, though? Why did we decimalise?

Wasn’t aware UK planning was like this, by @dsquareddigest.bsky.social . TL;DR How planning should be: here’s the regs & concerns Mr Developer. Comply with/address them and you should be fine. UK: build it, but plan for every possible court case you can think of.

A century of Valentine's Day front pages from the Daily Mirror 1. Hitman at Maggie House (1996)

Utterly surreal…and absolutely terrible

5/5 PMs with approval ratings of measles isn't just a feature of failed leadership. It's Brexit Britain. There's no money for anything people want and were promised they would have, and no one can blame the people who got us into this mess because they got 52% of the vote (let alone reverse it).

What a nasty, joyless soul. I hope he’s undone by his own fanaticism. He comes across as a man consumed by drinking the tears of his enemies.

It's 1998. Peter Mandleson has resigned in disgrace from Labour. It's 2001. Peter Mandleson has resigned in disgrace from Labour. It's 2025. Peter Mandleson has resigned in disgrace from Labour. It's 2026. Peter Mandleson has resigned in disgrace from Labour.

Epstein: “Ukraine upheaval should provide many opportunities, many” Opportunities to do what, exactly? And is that billionaire banker Ariane de Rothschild? #epstein

The graph is worrying, the narrative leaves space for optimism. Democratic decline in the US

How would you sum up January 2026?

1/ Measures to prevent Russia using the Starlink system for drone navigation have prompted alarm among Russian warbloggers. They fear losing Starlink altogether at the front line, and warn that Russia's Starlink alternative is years away from implementation. ⬇️

Interesting interview with a man who must know a lot about world events. Nothing about submarines eating other submarines, but interesting on Russia being China’s junior partner, and I never knew the MI6 chief spoke to Russia’s SVR head - Smiley talking to Karla

That some of the world's wealthiest and most powerful men were writing crime e-mails to crime man Epstein on gmail suggests two non-exclusive things: a) Our meritocracy isn't all it's cracked up to be; b) Our overlords operate at levels of arrogance & impunity that make consequences unimaginable.

A reminder that those who took for granted that Trump victory would be the end of Ukraine were wrong. Ukraine continues to hold Ru off despite the fact that Trump ended US aid. Ukraine has innovated and developed its military capacity, Europe has stepped up, and Ru is weaker than many assume.

Auschwitz was at the end of a process. We must remember that it did not start from gas chambers. This hatred gradually developed: from ideas, words, stereotypes & prejudice through legal exclusion, dehumanization & escalating violence... to systematic and industrial murder. Auschwitz took time.

UK's Reform party is making me think twice about using the word "reform", which is a shame. Reform should not mean 'vandalise your country's national interest while pretending to be patriotic'.

Hell, the admin is beyond authoritarian, and "fascist" is the right word for many of them, including Trump, but yes, the point is that we are not living under fascism and all is not lost.

Media: “Conflicting views as to what happened” Maybe try watching one of the videos. You know, the things that actually show what happened.

Holy crap. This is the most damning video yet. It shows Border Patrol agents clearly taking Alex's firearm, running it away, and THEN executed him in cold blood by emptying a clip into his face. Murder.

So important. What they say is not the story. That is never the story. What happened is the story. Write what happened.

They know what they say is untrue, they do not care it is untrue. The media know that what they repeat is untrue, they do not care it is untrue. Their supporters know what they are told is untrue, they do not care it is untrue. Telling the truth is not enough, unless people care about the truth.

Beware Google image search dating today’s gun photo as something put on the internet a few days ago. As Eliot explains below 👇

He’s a treacherous turd. He was bad mouthing the UK in front of a congressional committee not long back. The Right seem happy to undermine the UK providing it’s done by a person they agree with. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

What ICE is discovering is that sheer terror is not enough, and any policing of a large population needs the consent or at least the forbearance/cooperation of the community. Even the Gestapo and Stasi knew this. Turning the local population actively against you is Keystone capers.

And every self-respecting news reporter should point out that US allies sacrificed a lot and that when article 5 was invoked, these allies the US “didn’t need” came to assist the US, shedding blood and money in the process.

Interesting thread 🧵

And it’ll go down as either “he didn’t mean it like that” or “well, that’s just Donald Trump 🤷‍♂️ “, not the diplomatic uproar and apology it should bring.

“We’ve never needed them” “They stayed a little back, off the frontline” 457 British personnel were killed in Afghanistan. Every one of them worth 10 of this worthless human being and his coterie of malicious incompetents.

Trump’s Board of Peace logo is basically the UN logo, except dipped in gold and edited so the world only includes America.

Great overview as usual, with some very quotable parts. If you find Trump taxing (as I do), this blog always brings a good level of clarity and a few reasons not to despair. On Trump, Nato, and what Europe might do (and in some cases is already doing)

When the US acquired the US Virgin Islands from Denmark, it did so through a negotiated treaty and purchase with congressionally appropriated funds. It was not/not done unilaterally by the US President. And the US Secretary of State included this declaration when signing the treaty.

Attn news commentators: Trump saying he could use force to obtain Greenland but won’t is not Trump saying he won’t use force to obtain Greenland. It is Trump using force as a threat to obtain Greenland. That is why he mentions it.

#pmqs .. this from Starmer is 💯 on the money .. Badenoch is woefully inadequate!