While I’m on a posting roll, I just realized that the way to save the Humanities is by rebranding Higher Ed as where you go to learn how to Do Your Own Research

If only the government pushed rail as enthusiastically as pretty much anything to do with driving or flying.

Playgrounds are car infrastructure

A question for Times columnist Sebastian Payne: What is this cheaper source of "energy" that you speak of? The world's energy experts would like to know…

"We have had major reviews by the CMA and the government itself which suggest that the problem is less the blockages imposed by planning rules, and more the model of private housebuilding itself. Volume house builders...have no interest in reducing the value of their only product."

#OtD 3 Oct 1937 almost a year after their defeat at Cable St, Mosley's Blackshirts attempted to march through Bermondsey, South London. Met with strong local opposition and barricades in the streets, the march never arrived at its intended destination workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e35-...

Just one pedestrian killed by a pedal cyclist in the UK in 2024. 265 killed by cars www.gov.uk/government/s...

"Investing in Gatwick expansion is a choice. It is a choice to prioritise frequent flyers over repairing the UK’s broken transport system, strengthening the NHS, or investing in climate resilience. More flights mean more emissions, worsening climate change for everyone."

Pope Leo--weirdly normal Midwesterner--gave a key climate speech yesterday that couldn't have been more different from Trump's disturbing and dangerous harangue of the generals billmckibben.substack.com/p/a-differen...

💩

In other news, Kemi Badenoch's party has taken at least £7 million in donations from funders and directors of climate change denial lobby groups bylinetimes.com/2025/03/18/k...

In all honesty, it’s not rhetoric any more. It’s not narrative. I’ve experienced more racism in the last 4 months than I can ever remember. The wheels are off in the UK and it’s being led by 3 political parties.

Don’t worry everyone the IDF has now stopped the baby food delivery so the babies will safely carry on starving

But what about that speech everyone was celebrating [checks notes] yesterday? That was a good speech, I’m told, so

Good morning to almost everyone

Tory party’s long journey away from science, reason, responsibility, common sense and truth is complete

Meanwhile

The Climate Change Act did not give the UK the world's highest power prices, it was policy mistakes by successive governments. Tomorrow @kemibadenochmp.bsky.social will say she wants to repeal it. I will support any #Turquoise candidate that challenges her for @conservatives.bsky.social leadership.

Not all tories have embraced the post-truth era the party leadership have descended into

He should have been expelled. This is way more than policing opinions. - Inciting violence at far right rallies - Interfering in government affairs - Destroying health and science infrastructures - Ensuring thousands will die Abusers, excused and enabled by craven others, always grow in power.

Yikes they’ve really fumbled this horribly, painful to watch 🫣

5/5 The best way to fight back? Donate to Wikipedia if you can. Support independent fact-checking. Call out lies. And never let oligarch billionaires decide what truth looks like

Zohran Mamdani calling it a genocide on The View and getting applause.

@solarchase.bsky.social I don’t know if you know @davidho.bsky.social but he tells me he is an aspiring goose owner. Any words of advice? 🪿

"The excuse most often provided for turning away from green measures, for expanding fossil fuel production, for ignoring the science, is pragmatism.... this is dangerous drivel". @profbillmcguire.bsky.social hits the nail on the head www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

This is what happens when politicians act bravely and deliver progressive change. Notable from the news story where other metro mayors are still deliberating and delaying on such measures, they still have illegal air quality issues. Cough cough Manchester & Andy Burnham, Liverpool & Birmingham...

This is what NextDoor is crying about

@andymcdonaldmp.bsky.social - best transport secretary we never had - saying all the sensible stuff anyone who knows anything about this issue would say uk.news.yahoo.com/britain-need...

this new @carolecadwalla.bsky.social stuff is terrifying

Some good news. London is meeting legal limits for toxic NO2 pollution for the first time – almost 200 years earlier than predicted – following the Mayor’s "world leading air pollution policies," City Hall announces. The Ultra Low Emissions Zone - and similar policies - really do work.

Oh yes, this is clearly now.

OTOH a shouty fringe of car brained London donut freedom fighters were so furious about it they set off improvised explosive devices and took angle grinders to loads of lamp posts, so who’s to say who was right or wrong really when it comes to the ULEZ www.independent.co.uk/climate-chan...

Krishnan Guru Murthy, "Isn't it a bit insulting to say to an Indian doctor who is working 60-70 hours a week that in order to get settled status he's got to volunteer?" Rachel Reeves, "We want people to contribute if they come to our country" Labour have gone utterly bonkers

Good morning to almost everyone

Here's one of Barcelona's famous superillas, or superblocks, on Rocafort-Consell de Cent. All of this used to be asphalt and space for moving and storing cars. Now it's green, quiet, calm, and safe.

“Private car use also exacerbates inequity, with most of the benefits accruing to car users and most of the harms falling on others, particularly the most disadvantaged.”

There's a really nice new study using phone data from Americans who relocated from one city to another to look at the effect of walkable environments on physical activity. E.g., people move TO New York and walk more, they move FROM New York and walk less www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Skillz.

Oh good more grannies being bundled into the back of police vans, but now at the Labour Party Conference

Top tip: This also happens when you make it really hard to drive some journeys

Happy (?) 17th birthday to the excellent "Wake Up,Freak Out, then Get a Grip" video of @crisortunity.bsky.social Posted online Sept 29 2008 www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnyL...

Also from last week: 👉 The co- benefits of plant-rich/plant-based diets: shorturl.at/vFN2X 👉 How the meat industry orchestrated backlash to the (plant-rich) Planetary Health Diet: changingmarkets.org/wp-content/u...

This reminds of the time the British meat lobby monstered Blue Peter for accurately telling kids that eating less beef was one of the best things they could do to reduce their personal warming impact, and the BBC caved and replaced this advice with unevidenced meat industry talking points

Motonormativity in action: my city's main hospital has been built miles outside the city, up by a motorway junction. You want to get there but you can't drive? Tough, your time has no value

Good evening to all almost everyone

Regret to inform I’ve logged into NextDoor again this morning

As Reform's Nathan Gill admits taking bribes from Russian 'secret service pawn' Oleg Voloshyn, here’s a nice photo of Nigel Farage with Voloshyn’s wife.

Govt failure to electrify main line comes at a price