Dan Davies
@dsquareddigest.bsky.social
Malcolm Sparrow in the streets, Stafford Beer in the sheets. Once I wrote about fraud and its detection; currently writing about the industrialisation of decision making in general
Reposted by Dan Davies
Kevin Roberts and the Opus
Dei connection
The president of the Heritage Foundation, who caused a huge scandal by defending the platforming the far-right figure Nick Fuentes, is a regular at
the Opus Dei hub in Washington, DC
garethgore.substack.com/p/kevin-robe...
Dei connection
The president of the Heritage Foundation, who caused a huge scandal by defending the platforming the far-right figure Nick Fuentes, is a regular at
the Opus Dei hub in Washington, DC
garethgore.substack.com/p/kevin-robe...
Kevin Roberts and the Opus Dei connection
The president of the Heritage Foundation is a regular at the Opus Dei hub in DC
garethgore.substack.com
November 10, 2025 at 7:16 PM
Kevin Roberts and the Opus
Dei connection
The president of the Heritage Foundation, who caused a huge scandal by defending the platforming the far-right figure Nick Fuentes, is a regular at
the Opus Dei hub in Washington, DC
garethgore.substack.com/p/kevin-robe...
Dei connection
The president of the Heritage Foundation, who caused a huge scandal by defending the platforming the far-right figure Nick Fuentes, is a regular at
the Opus Dei hub in Washington, DC
garethgore.substack.com/p/kevin-robe...
From the diary of Captain Robert Falcon Scott, 1912
November 10, 2025 at 9:50 PM
From the diary of Captain Robert Falcon Scott, 1912
Reposted by Dan Davies
I think this touches a deep, often-overlooked point. In my labour law days, I saw some employers spend MORE money fighting unionization than they would have paid accepting it. Loss of control was driving them at least as much as profits! Control is vital – with environmental policy as well.
I should write the argument up properly somewhere, but I think this is fundamentally wrong. A decisive fraction of the capitalist class does oppose addressing the climate crisis, but *not* because it would be bad for profits. If anything, a green New Deal type program would raise aggregate profits.
Yes, this is correct. And the reason is because our capitalist classes have decided that it is not sufficiently profitable, so they're not going to do it.
We must understand this reality. Capital *cannot* be relied upon to address the climate crisis.
We must understand this reality. Capital *cannot* be relied upon to address the climate crisis.
November 10, 2025 at 4:37 PM
I think this touches a deep, often-overlooked point. In my labour law days, I saw some employers spend MORE money fighting unionization than they would have paid accepting it. Loss of control was driving them at least as much as profits! Control is vital – with environmental policy as well.
Reposted by Dan Davies
The problem from their point of view is that rapid decarbonization requires public, collective decisions about the organization of production, in a way that threaten capital-owners' authority over both the production process and the political system.
November 10, 2025 at 4:20 PM
The problem from their point of view is that rapid decarbonization requires public, collective decisions about the organization of production, in a way that threaten capital-owners' authority over both the production process and the political system.
Reposted by Dan Davies
doing the inverse of the “comic book hidden in a newspaper thing” where I rig my phone to make loud sports gambling noises but I’m actually reading Jane Austen
November 10, 2025 at 12:56 PM
doing the inverse of the “comic book hidden in a newspaper thing” where I rig my phone to make loud sports gambling noises but I’m actually reading Jane Austen
at one point in his life, Andreesen invented the graphical browser. Ever since then, he has done his level best to make sure that rather than this, his obituary will read "That Shitco Guy".
It amuses me how low the Conehead has fallen. open.substack.com/pub/infinite...
Marc Andreessen as Avatar for Societal Decay
How one venture capitalist represents everything wrong with social media
open.substack.com
November 10, 2025 at 3:13 PM
at one point in his life, Andreesen invented the graphical browser. Ever since then, he has done his level best to make sure that rather than this, his obituary will read "That Shitco Guy".
Reposted by Dan Davies
it‘s also changed the incentives a bit. You don’t get on a programme by leading a campaign or having expertise in an area, you get on it by saying something a bit spicy on Twitter before 11am in the hope that an overworked 24 year old researcher books you.
November 10, 2025 at 2:56 PM
it‘s also changed the incentives a bit. You don’t get on a programme by leading a campaign or having expertise in an area, you get on it by saying something a bit spicy on Twitter before 11am in the hope that an overworked 24 year old researcher books you.
Reposted by Dan Davies
No more noble British tradition than resigning over some nonsense everyone is only pretending to be angry about rather than all of the actually bad things you've done.
November 9, 2025 at 6:10 PM
No more noble British tradition than resigning over some nonsense everyone is only pretending to be angry about rather than all of the actually bad things you've done.
Reposted by Dan Davies
Are we getting close to noticing yet
Maybe Keir should demand the heads of major US news networks any time they imply Britain is on the brink of civil war or that we live under sharia law. Or does it not work both ways?
November 10, 2025 at 2:11 PM
Are we getting close to noticing yet
Robbie Gibb criticising the BBC for journalistic standards is a glass house so big you could hold the Great Exhibition of 1851 in it and still have room for an excellent tomato crop
Should Gibb be sacked? yes, obviously. He's an abomination of basic journalistic standards. His GB News channel spreads conspiracy theory & disinformation. His Jewish Chronicle newspaper spreads invented stories. He is plainly trying to undermine the BBC so it's as bad as everything else he touches.
November 10, 2025 at 2:03 PM
Robbie Gibb criticising the BBC for journalistic standards is a glass house so big you could hold the Great Exhibition of 1851 in it and still have room for an excellent tomato crop
"systemic", in context means "having material amounts of use for purposes other than crypto speculation on a crypto exchange", which currently describes basically no products and IMO quite possibly never will
BoE systemic stablecoin proposals out. Backing 60/40 split UK gov debt and unremunerated reserves. Access to central bank liquidity. Holding limits www.bankofengland.co.uk/news/2025/no...
Bank of England launches consultation on regulating systemic stablecoins
The Bank of England (the Bank) has today published a consultation paper (CP) setting out its proposed regulatory regime for sterling-denominated systemic stablecoins.
www.bankofengland.co.uk
November 10, 2025 at 1:53 PM
"systemic", in context means "having material amounts of use for purposes other than crypto speculation on a crypto exchange", which currently describes basically no products and IMO quite possibly never will
Reposted by Dan Davies
BoE systemic stablecoin proposals out. Backing 60/40 split UK gov debt and unremunerated reserves. Access to central bank liquidity. Holding limits www.bankofengland.co.uk/news/2025/no...
Bank of England launches consultation on regulating systemic stablecoins
The Bank of England (the Bank) has today published a consultation paper (CP) setting out its proposed regulatory regime for sterling-denominated systemic stablecoins.
www.bankofengland.co.uk
November 10, 2025 at 9:23 AM
BoE systemic stablecoin proposals out. Backing 60/40 split UK gov debt and unremunerated reserves. Access to central bank liquidity. Holding limits www.bankofengland.co.uk/news/2025/no...
Reposted by Dan Davies
Excellent, excellent column this by Martin Wolf - capturing a neglected truth, which is this government is an 'Old Labour' one, not in the way it was useful for Blair and Corbyn to caricature, but in the 'how those governments actually governed (and mostly lost):
The disturbing victory of Old Labour over New Labour
In education, labour and housing we risk going back towards what we know will not work
www.ft.com
November 10, 2025 at 1:22 PM
Excellent, excellent column this by Martin Wolf - capturing a neglected truth, which is this government is an 'Old Labour' one, not in the way it was useful for Blair and Corbyn to caricature, but in the 'how those governments actually governed (and mostly lost):
Reposted by Dan Davies
Pov: you are a private equity firm investing in football:
November 10, 2025 at 12:31 PM
Pov: you are a private equity firm investing in football:
Reposted by Dan Davies
🚨 How good are rating agency ratings at predicting defaults? And are some agencies' ratings 'easier' than others?
Here are all the charts.
on.ft.com/47wneH4
Here are all the charts.
on.ft.com/47wneH4
Rating the rating data of credit raters
Deep-diving into Form NRSRO Exhibit 1 filings
on.ft.com
November 10, 2025 at 10:23 AM
🚨 How good are rating agency ratings at predicting defaults? And are some agencies' ratings 'easier' than others?
Here are all the charts.
on.ft.com/47wneH4
Here are all the charts.
on.ft.com/47wneH4
All I can really add to this is that I wasn't really thinking of media when I wrote "incompetence is a form of bias" but if the BBC wasn't in the training set, it has worked very well in the validation set.
open.substack.com/pub/backofmi...
open.substack.com/pub/backofmi...
November 10, 2025 at 11:37 AM
All I can really add to this is that I wasn't really thinking of media when I wrote "incompetence is a form of bias" but if the BBC wasn't in the training set, it has worked very well in the validation set.
open.substack.com/pub/backofmi...
open.substack.com/pub/backofmi...
Reposted by Dan Davies
Stephen really does have the best take on this. It’s not clear that the BBC Board or indeed the rest of the News team really understood the message of the previous reviews, which were about getting detail right. Instead they wanted to know what was ‘biased’ or not like they were blotting out stains.
The impossible dream some people on the British right are chasing is that you can have a BBC News operation that retreats from detail and expertise, that takes dictation from the government, but this will only create incompetence and failure when it suits you:
To fix the BBC, focus on competence and cash
Corporation fails to learn from criticism, while politicians have consciously reduced its scope for quality journalism
www.ft.com
November 10, 2025 at 10:20 AM
Stephen really does have the best take on this. It’s not clear that the BBC Board or indeed the rest of the News team really understood the message of the previous reviews, which were about getting detail right. Instead they wanted to know what was ‘biased’ or not like they were blotting out stains.
Reposted by Dan Davies
Indeed. I feel like a lot of the reactions to the BBC exits are repeating the flaws of this era in BBC News, which is to go 'never mind the professionalism, let's focus on the politics'.
'Leave to one side for now the direct allegations about specific failures of BBC coverage' - you can't do that. That's ridiculous.
November 9, 2025 at 11:37 PM
Indeed. I feel like a lot of the reactions to the BBC exits are repeating the flaws of this era in BBC News, which is to go 'never mind the professionalism, let's focus on the politics'.
Reposted by Dan Davies
This is true, but you know, equally, it's not like the BBC has in any way taken on *any* of the challenges in the serious thematic reviews into its coverage of the economy or of migration either!
Prescott's 19 page memo criticising specific programmes in 6 different areas. It is much more subjective - coming from his own perspective across issues - than the thematic reviews conducted by the BBC with a clear methodology & engagement with all perspectives
www.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/...
www.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/...
www.bbc.co.uk
November 10, 2025 at 12:03 AM
This is true, but you know, equally, it's not like the BBC has in any way taken on *any* of the challenges in the serious thematic reviews into its coverage of the economy or of migration either!
Reposted by Dan Davies
If you are astonished by what is happening at the BBC today, you might want to read this seemingly unrelated by highly relevant piece
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
In Trump 2.0, MAGA-aligned influencers and media emerge as the new mainstream
How right‑wing influencers and Trump officials work in lockstep — targeting perceived adversaries, amplifying false claims and reshaping US media.
www.reuters.com
November 9, 2025 at 11:20 PM
If you are astonished by what is happening at the BBC today, you might want to read this seemingly unrelated by highly relevant piece
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
Reposted by Dan Davies
Jobs will be got by the Boomer dream method of going door to door in your suit with a stack of hand-typed CVs and a firm handshake
As I have remarked many times since ChatGPT burst on the scenes, a lot of bad things happen when the price of custom plausible bullshit falls through the floor. This example is the planning system but there are so, so many more.
November 9, 2025 at 11:39 PM
At this rate of doubling, she'll be producing 5 tonnes in 10 years, what's she complaining about?
son brought home a pinto bean plant from school last spring. it yielded one (1) bean, which we planted. *that* plant yielded ... one (1) bean, which we have also planted. Five months of cultivation has yielded two beans. anyway, you were saying something about "grow your own food"
November 9, 2025 at 11:34 PM
At this rate of doubling, she'll be producing 5 tonnes in 10 years, what's she complaining about?
Reposted by Dan Davies
for anyone who hasn't seen this, it's genuinely excellent:
Nov 9th - Sarah Wilder, at her half-sisters wedding, found herself stuck in a timeloop with Nyles, another wedding guest. Nyles was already stuck in the timeloop, and had been for some time.
📽️📅 Palm Springs (2020)
📽️📅 Palm Springs (2020)
November 9, 2025 at 7:10 PM
for anyone who hasn't seen this, it's genuinely excellent:
I genuinely think there is a case that anyone using an AI product of this kind should face a short prison sentence. It's vandalism, just like painting on a wall or smashing a bus stop.
And you don’t even need an actually good bit of tech, which “Objector” may or may not be, to do this! If you just ask the free version of any genAI to do something plausible it still louses up everyone else’s productivity to work out it is bollocks!
The automated problem factory!
November 9, 2025 at 5:20 PM
I genuinely think there is a case that anyone using an AI product of this kind should face a short prison sentence. It's vandalism, just like painting on a wall or smashing a bus stop.
The automated problem factory!
‘A new service called Objector is offering “policy-backed objections in minutes” to people who are upset about planning applications near their homes.’
Another reminder that AI can be used for things you don’t like as well as things you like…
Another reminder that AI can be used for things you don’t like as well as things you like…
Bloody hell www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
November 9, 2025 at 4:26 PM
The automated problem factory!