Bob
@bobherc.bsky.social
War Studies at KCL alum.
Cyber, Maritime, CNI Defense.
Journalism, Film, Music.
I know a lot about cocktails.
ILoF.
Cyber, Maritime, CNI Defense.
Journalism, Film, Music.
I know a lot about cocktails.
ILoF.
Reposted by Bob
For a year, the bottom of the Baltic Sea was overwhelmingly quiet.
Then, within a few days, six cables were damaged or even cut.
But the world was watching Washington, Venezuela and Greenland.
foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/16/b... (Me @foreignpolicy.com. Gift link.)
Then, within a few days, six cables were damaged or even cut.
But the world was watching Washington, Venezuela and Greenland.
foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/16/b... (Me @foreignpolicy.com. Gift link.)
January 17, 2026 at 11:05 AM
For a year, the bottom of the Baltic Sea was overwhelmingly quiet.
Then, within a few days, six cables were damaged or even cut.
But the world was watching Washington, Venezuela and Greenland.
foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/16/b... (Me @foreignpolicy.com. Gift link.)
Then, within a few days, six cables were damaged or even cut.
But the world was watching Washington, Venezuela and Greenland.
foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/16/b... (Me @foreignpolicy.com. Gift link.)
Reposted by Bob
Every Chinese commercial ship has links to the PLAN and/or Coast Guard, and this is one of the reasons why
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Thousands of Chinese Fishing Boats Quietly Form Vast Sea Barriers
China is practicing vast maneuvers that could be used to disrupt U.S. naval movement, a New York Times analysis of ship data reveals.
www.nytimes.com
January 17, 2026 at 10:18 AM
Every Chinese commercial ship has links to the PLAN and/or Coast Guard, and this is one of the reasons why
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Reposted by Bob
Peter Yazzie, a Navajo man, was asked by ICE agents to prove he was a US citizen. He produced both US and Navajo IDs. They didn't care. www.azcentral.com/story/news/p...
January 17, 2026 at 5:01 AM
Peter Yazzie, a Navajo man, was asked by ICE agents to prove he was a US citizen. He produced both US and Navajo IDs. They didn't care. www.azcentral.com/story/news/p...
Reposted by Bob
Are you ready for the history lesson you never had?
Join us for the launch of our Trans+ History Week workbook with @transhistoryweek.com 🏳️⚧️
More details:
Join us for the launch of our Trans+ History Week workbook with @transhistoryweek.com 🏳️⚧️
More details:
Trans+ History Week 2026 Workbook Launch | The History Lesson You Never Had Tickets - London - OutSavvy
Join us for the Trans+ History Week 2026: Workbook LaunchWe’re launching our third workbook 3 months ahead of Trans+ History Week so you can plan your own activities. Our workbook is a practical tool for learning, sharing and protecting Trans+ history at a time when our stories face mounting erasure. It's time for the history lesson you were denied and continue to be denied. Join us as we launch the workbook for the third edition of Trans+ History Week this coming May 4-10. This session will help you to get ready to celebrate Trans+ History Week with a new set of global history lessons for you to share. Who is this for?This session is for the Trans+ community and allies who want to learn more about the history we’ve all been denied and how you can pull together an event to mark the week. This may be in your workplace and community. You may be a community organiser, affinity network chair, EDI leader, culture worker, educator. Whoever you are, this is for you.What is the workbook?Our workbook is a free resource, packed full of stories and ideas on how you can mark the week at your organisation. We’re worked with QueerAF and commissioned four writers from our alumni creative community to produce four new stories. This year we uncover Uganda’s Lango people, study the legacy of the Shinjuku Boys of Tokyo, look at the influence the Compton’s Cafeteria Riot had on the LGBTQIA+ rights movement and pick through the archives to find moments where we’ve created the families. Join our founder, Marty Davies. Our lead researcher, Gray Burke-Stowe and others as we introduce you to this year’s lessons and help you to share them with the world. We’ll leave you inspired to put on your own event in May and with a whole lot of advice to get your going. Expect insights, take-aways & shared experiences from a fantastic panel of trans+ thought leaders and change makers on what YOU can do in the real world to make life better for Trans+ people in 2026. The Trans+ History Week 2026: Workbook Launch with QueerAF, powered by DIVA Charitable Trust and hosted at Allianz Commercial's offices at 15 BishopsgateRun of show5.30PM | ARRIVAL & REGISTRATION with refreshments6.00PM | WELCOME & SCENE SETTING | Marie-Helene Tyack, Chair of the Board of Trustee, DIVA Charitable Trust and Global Inclusion, Diversity & Belonging Manager Allianz Commercial6.10PM | KEYNOTE: Trans+ History Week Year 3 | Marty Davies, Founder, Trans+ History Week6.20PM | LAUNCH: Trans+ History Week Workbook | Gray Burke-Stowe, Leader Researcher, Trans+ History Week6.30PM | CONTRIBUTORS EXPERIENCE, RESEARCH & STORIES 6.40PM | PANEL DISCUSSION: Storytelling, collaboration & action 7.00PM | BREAKOUT DISCUSSION: Idea sharing7.15PM | AUDIENCE Q&A7.30PM | CLOSING REMARKS: Key take-aways & calls to action 7.35PM | NETWORKING & REFRESHMENTS8.30PM | Close Tell me more about Trans+ History WeekTrans+ History Week CIC is a Trans+ led nonprofit, social enterprise and QueerAF launchpad project. It exists to popularise the newly created global awareness week: Trans+ History Week, 4–10 May 2026, and Trans+ History Day, 6 May. It is a week-long reflective period to learn and celebrate the momentous and millennia-old history of transgender, non-binary, gender-diverse and Intersex people. Our rights and our stories are under threat from the anti-rights movement. With book bans, media exclusion and misrepresentation and with censorship in academia and the arts making headlines, we’re seeing ever-intensifying attacks on our rights across the world. We have become a year-round movement to save our stories. Challenging erasure and prejudice by restoring Trans+ people’s place in our collective human story. We’re reclaiming our common humanity and in doing so creating more fertile ground for securing our rights and preventing rights rollbacks. The organisation commissions content and hosts events and exhibitions that reflect on history and surface learnings for our present to secure a better future. Since formation, the organisation has raised over £100,000 and along with QueerAF invested in over 75 Trans+ creatives: writers, illustrators, audio producers, musicians, photographers, speakers, journalists, poets and comedians to surface Trans+ stories. Accessibility info This will be a hybrid event enabling all to attend either online or in-person. The venue is wheelchair accessible. Please advise on on any additional access requirements upon registration.A recording will be available following the event___Stay up to date on Trans+ History Week activity, follow us on Instagram @transhistoryweek and subscribe to QueerAF. https://www.wearequeeraf.com/
www.outsavvy.com
January 17, 2026 at 9:31 AM
Are you ready for the history lesson you never had?
Join us for the launch of our Trans+ History Week workbook with @transhistoryweek.com 🏳️⚧️
More details:
Join us for the launch of our Trans+ History Week workbook with @transhistoryweek.com 🏳️⚧️
More details:
Reposted by Bob
"If, as Noem said on Thursday, the administration’s view is that anyone 'surrounding' any person involved in a Kavanaugh stop can have their citizenship questioned — a Kavanaugh stop once removed, if you will — then virtually anyone in the U.S. could find themselves subject to a Kavanaugh stop."
Noem says that virtually anyone could face a Kavanaugh stop
Trump started off the day with an Insurrection Act threat. DHS Sec. Noem followed up by saying that anyone "surrounding" any DHS target has to prove their legal status.
www.lawdork.com
January 16, 2026 at 4:23 AM
"If, as Noem said on Thursday, the administration’s view is that anyone 'surrounding' any person involved in a Kavanaugh stop can have their citizenship questioned — a Kavanaugh stop once removed, if you will — then virtually anyone in the U.S. could find themselves subject to a Kavanaugh stop."
Reposted by Bob
EVENT: How to Integrate the Study of Political Violence
We'll be joined by Professor Stathis Kalyvastake to discuss his proposal for a new approach aimed at optimising and clarifying the study of violent political conflict
🕙 18.15
📅 17 February
Join us ⬇️
www.eventbrite.com/e/how-to-int...
We'll be joined by Professor Stathis Kalyvastake to discuss his proposal for a new approach aimed at optimising and clarifying the study of violent political conflict
🕙 18.15
📅 17 February
Join us ⬇️
www.eventbrite.com/e/how-to-int...
How to Integrate the Study of Political Violence
A Department of Political Economy Distinguished Lecture.
www.eventbrite.com
January 16, 2026 at 8:58 AM
EVENT: How to Integrate the Study of Political Violence
We'll be joined by Professor Stathis Kalyvastake to discuss his proposal for a new approach aimed at optimising and clarifying the study of violent political conflict
🕙 18.15
📅 17 February
Join us ⬇️
www.eventbrite.com/e/how-to-int...
We'll be joined by Professor Stathis Kalyvastake to discuss his proposal for a new approach aimed at optimising and clarifying the study of violent political conflict
🕙 18.15
📅 17 February
Join us ⬇️
www.eventbrite.com/e/how-to-int...
Reposted by Bob
Reminder that in the UK an incoming radical, populist government would have immediate access to immense, unchecked executive power.
And the current government is doing nothing to protect us from that.
And the current government is doing nothing to protect us from that.
NEW
The UK constitution is even more vulnerable than the US constitution
In the face of an illiberal radical assault, what has happened politically in America could easily happen in the UK
By me, at @prospectmagazine.co.uk
www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/law/th...
The UK constitution is even more vulnerable than the US constitution
In the face of an illiberal radical assault, what has happened politically in America could easily happen in the UK
By me, at @prospectmagazine.co.uk
www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/law/th...
January 15, 2026 at 5:34 PM
Reminder that in the UK an incoming radical, populist government would have immediate access to immense, unchecked executive power.
And the current government is doing nothing to protect us from that.
And the current government is doing nothing to protect us from that.
Reposted by Bob
Why tech oligarchs want Greenland: to create a tech dystopia without regulatory oversight.
by Casey Michel, author of the forthcoming book 'United States of Oligarchy: How America’s Wealthiest Ally with Dictators, Weaken the U.S., and Destroy Democracy'
#DefendDemocracy
#HandsOffOurEU🇪🇺
by Casey Michel, author of the forthcoming book 'United States of Oligarchy: How America’s Wealthiest Ally with Dictators, Weaken the U.S., and Destroy Democracy'
#DefendDemocracy
#HandsOffOurEU🇪🇺
Trump's obsession with Greenland didn't come out of nowhere. Instead, there are a whole range of American oligarchs and Trump donors who will gain immensely if the US seizes Greenland.
This is what the oligarchs taking over American foreign policy looks like.
newrepublic.com/article/2051...
This is what the oligarchs taking over American foreign policy looks like.
newrepublic.com/article/2051...
The Oligarchs Pushing for Conquest in Greenland
Trump’s fixation on filching the island territory from Denmark may seem like the demented ravings of a mad king. But to a cohort of plutocrat weirdos, it makes perfect sense.
newrepublic.com
January 15, 2026 at 7:45 PM
Why tech oligarchs want Greenland: to create a tech dystopia without regulatory oversight.
by Casey Michel, author of the forthcoming book 'United States of Oligarchy: How America’s Wealthiest Ally with Dictators, Weaken the U.S., and Destroy Democracy'
#DefendDemocracy
#HandsOffOurEU🇪🇺
by Casey Michel, author of the forthcoming book 'United States of Oligarchy: How America’s Wealthiest Ally with Dictators, Weaken the U.S., and Destroy Democracy'
#DefendDemocracy
#HandsOffOurEU🇪🇺
Reposted by Bob
Ukraine’s Energy Minister Shmyhal: There is not a single intact power plant left in Ukraine.
January 16, 2026 at 9:10 AM
Ukraine’s Energy Minister Shmyhal: There is not a single intact power plant left in Ukraine.
Reposted by Bob
On 16 January 1979 the Shah fled Iran for good. Now the question is how long will the regime that replaced him last. In this post I compare the situation 1979 revolution to the one currently underway. (£/free trial), open.substack.com/pub/samf/p/r...?
Revolution in Iran : Now and Then
Why the regime is doomed
open.substack.com
January 16, 2026 at 9:10 AM
On 16 January 1979 the Shah fled Iran for good. Now the question is how long will the regime that replaced him last. In this post I compare the situation 1979 revolution to the one currently underway. (£/free trial), open.substack.com/pub/samf/p/r...?
Reposted by Bob
Quick question for social science friends (esp. political science and economics): what would you say are "competitors" to game theory? I.e. what are theoretical frameworks that are different from game theory but trying to attack the same problems?
Note: they don't have to be good, just competitors.
Note: they don't have to be good, just competitors.
January 15, 2026 at 6:46 PM
Quick question for social science friends (esp. political science and economics): what would you say are "competitors" to game theory? I.e. what are theoretical frameworks that are different from game theory but trying to attack the same problems?
Note: they don't have to be good, just competitors.
Note: they don't have to be good, just competitors.
Reposted by Bob
Stunning photos from Minneapolis, including this one by John Locher for the Associated Press. www.theatlantic.com/photography/...
January 15, 2026 at 7:22 PM
Stunning photos from Minneapolis, including this one by John Locher for the Associated Press. www.theatlantic.com/photography/...
Reposted by Bob
More Dems need to think about skating to where the puck will be not where it is.
All indications are Trump's brain has turned to mush and no one around him will even try to control his worst impulses.
He will just get way crazier and more evil and unpopular by November.
All indications are Trump's brain has turned to mush and no one around him will even try to control his worst impulses.
He will just get way crazier and more evil and unpopular by November.
January 15, 2026 at 3:30 PM
More Dems need to think about skating to where the puck will be not where it is.
All indications are Trump's brain has turned to mush and no one around him will even try to control his worst impulses.
He will just get way crazier and more evil and unpopular by November.
All indications are Trump's brain has turned to mush and no one around him will even try to control his worst impulses.
He will just get way crazier and more evil and unpopular by November.
Reposted by Bob
Non-protesting dad just trying to hustle his kids, as young as 6mo, out of the neighborhood. ICE threw a flash-bang INTO HIS car, all 6 kids in the hospital now.
If anyone wondered how things turn against occupying armies there's a case study playing out in front of you.
If anyone wondered how things turn against occupying armies there's a case study playing out in front of you.
That is what was relayed
January 15, 2026 at 4:27 AM
Non-protesting dad just trying to hustle his kids, as young as 6mo, out of the neighborhood. ICE threw a flash-bang INTO HIS car, all 6 kids in the hospital now.
If anyone wondered how things turn against occupying armies there's a case study playing out in front of you.
If anyone wondered how things turn against occupying armies there's a case study playing out in front of you.
Reposted by Bob
wikipedia turns 25 today! the last unenshittified major website! backbone of online info! triumph of humanity! powered by urge of unpaid randos to correct each other! somehow mostly reliable! "good thing wikipedia works in practice, because it sure doesn't work in theory" - old wiki adage
January 15, 2026 at 1:47 PM
wikipedia turns 25 today! the last unenshittified major website! backbone of online info! triumph of humanity! powered by urge of unpaid randos to correct each other! somehow mostly reliable! "good thing wikipedia works in practice, because it sure doesn't work in theory" - old wiki adage
Reposted by Bob
a tiny thing we can do: Go to Bookshop.org, pick a MPLS bookstore like Birchbark to support, order.
Bookshop.org: Buy books online. Support local bookstores.
A better way to buy books online. Every purchase financially supports local independent bookstores.
Bookshop.org
January 15, 2026 at 3:08 PM
a tiny thing we can do: Go to Bookshop.org, pick a MPLS bookstore like Birchbark to support, order.
Reposted by Bob
“[ELITE] tells you how many people are living in this area and what’s the likelihood of them actually being there,” a deportation officer with ICE’s Fugitive Operations Unit testified. “It’s basically a map of the United States. It’s kind of like Google Maps."
‘ELITE’: The Palantir App ICE Uses to Find Neighborhoods to Raid
Internal ICE material and testimony from an official obtained by 404 Media provides the clearest link yet between the technological infrastructure Palantir is building for ICE and the agency’s activit...
www.404media.co
January 15, 2026 at 2:07 PM
“[ELITE] tells you how many people are living in this area and what’s the likelihood of them actually being there,” a deportation officer with ICE’s Fugitive Operations Unit testified. “It’s basically a map of the United States. It’s kind of like Google Maps."
Reposted by Bob
The crisis is real, and this is part of our effort at new approaches to supporting scholars and advancing scholarship in the (vast!) early Americas.
Sharing again and would appreciate your sharing, too. More info in the thread. 🧵⬇️
Sharing again and would appreciate your sharing, too. More info in the thread. 🧵⬇️
Friends, I hope you’ll share this widely. The @jcblibrary.bsky.social is hiring 2 3-yr research associates for collaborative work on religions and freedoms in the early Americas. Info is here and I’m happy to take questions offline: brown.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/staff-...
January 15, 2026 at 12:08 PM
The crisis is real, and this is part of our effort at new approaches to supporting scholars and advancing scholarship in the (vast!) early Americas.
Sharing again and would appreciate your sharing, too. More info in the thread. 🧵⬇️
Sharing again and would appreciate your sharing, too. More info in the thread. 🧵⬇️
Reposted by Bob
Italy and Japan seek a shared path. A conversation with Prof Patalano.
Italy and Japan occupy complementary positions, sharing a form of political leadership capable of shaping today’s security debates in Europe and Indo-Pacific.
🔗Read more: decode39.com/13105/italy-...
Italy and Japan occupy complementary positions, sharing a form of political leadership capable of shaping today’s security debates in Europe and Indo-Pacific.
🔗Read more: decode39.com/13105/italy-...
Italy and Japan seek a shared path. A conversation with Prof. Patalano - Decode39
According to Alessio Patalano (King’s College), Italy and Japan occupy a “complementary” position in their respective strategic regions and share a form of political leadership capable of shaping secu...
decode39.com
January 15, 2026 at 1:34 PM
Italy and Japan seek a shared path. A conversation with Prof Patalano.
Italy and Japan occupy complementary positions, sharing a form of political leadership capable of shaping today’s security debates in Europe and Indo-Pacific.
🔗Read more: decode39.com/13105/italy-...
Italy and Japan occupy complementary positions, sharing a form of political leadership capable of shaping today’s security debates in Europe and Indo-Pacific.
🔗Read more: decode39.com/13105/italy-...
Reposted by Bob
NEW: 17 different models of Bluetooth headphones and speakers can be hijacked to play audio, eavesdrop thru mics, and in some cases even track your location—unless you install a patch, which many people don't. @agreenberg.bsky.social & @lhn.bsky.social w/ the scoop: www.wired.com/story/google...
Hundreds of Millions of Audio Devices Need a Patch to Prevent Wireless Hacking and Tracking
Flaws in how 17 models of headphones and speakers use Google’s one-tap Fast Pair Bluetooth protocol have left devices open to eavesdroppers and stalkers.
www.wired.com
January 15, 2026 at 1:35 PM
NEW: 17 different models of Bluetooth headphones and speakers can be hijacked to play audio, eavesdrop thru mics, and in some cases even track your location—unless you install a patch, which many people don't. @agreenberg.bsky.social & @lhn.bsky.social w/ the scoop: www.wired.com/story/google...
Reposted by Bob
ICE agents love to wave around paper that looks official. Most of it is a scam — administrative forms signed by ICE supervisors, not real judicial warrants signed by judges. Let's go through what that scam paper looks like versus a real judicial warrant.
How to Legally Protect People in Your Home from ICE | Shouldn't Need to Be a Lawyer by Matthew Cortland
Get more from Shouldn't Need to Be a Lawyer by Matthew Cortland on Patreon
www.patreon.com
January 15, 2026 at 6:05 AM
ICE agents love to wave around paper that looks official. Most of it is a scam — administrative forms signed by ICE supervisors, not real judicial warrants signed by judges. Let's go through what that scam paper looks like versus a real judicial warrant.
Reposted by Bob
Early on in this Presidency I said that a major indicator that a society has moved from democracy to authoritarianism is to treat all opposition as treason.
January 15, 2026 at 8:41 AM
Early on in this Presidency I said that a major indicator that a society has moved from democracy to authoritarianism is to treat all opposition as treason.
Reposted by Bob
fair play.
Foreign Ministers of Denmark and Greenland after their meeting with US Vice President and Secretary of State.
January 15, 2026 at 10:48 AM
fair play.
Reposted by Bob
Hi there, my Slate article about ICE is blowing up and I've been talking into a microphone nonstop all day
I'm going to make a thread of the interviews I've done already, and the ones I'm going to do in the next few days. Feel free to check them out if you would like to!
🧵
I'm going to make a thread of the interviews I've done already, and the ones I'm going to do in the next few days. Feel free to check them out if you would like to!
🧵
You’ve Heard About Who ICE Is Recruiting. The Truth Is Far Worse. I’m the Proof.
What happens when you do minimal screening before hiring agents, arming them, and sending them into the streets? We're all finding out.
slate.com
January 15, 2026 at 8:49 AM
Hi there, my Slate article about ICE is blowing up and I've been talking into a microphone nonstop all day
I'm going to make a thread of the interviews I've done already, and the ones I'm going to do in the next few days. Feel free to check them out if you would like to!
🧵
I'm going to make a thread of the interviews I've done already, and the ones I'm going to do in the next few days. Feel free to check them out if you would like to!
🧵
Reposted by Bob
#Ukraine has declared a state of #emergency in the country's #energy sector, with a particular focus on #Kyiv, as ongoing #Russia #strikes continue to leave thousands of residents without #power.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Zelensky declares state of emergency in Ukraine's energy sector
The move comes as US President Donald Trump said Ukraine is "less ready" than the Russian president to make a peace deal.
www.bbc.com
January 15, 2026 at 8:55 AM
#Ukraine has declared a state of #emergency in the country's #energy sector, with a particular focus on #Kyiv, as ongoing #Russia #strikes continue to leave thousands of residents without #power.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...