James Oates
@jboates.bsky.social
Commentator & Banker with a side order of politics
The Alaska summit is a new humiliation, even for Trump. Meanwhile, despite continuing attacks on Ukrainian cities, the Ukrainian army appears to have rolled back six weeks of Russian gains in a single day. The insolence of Lavrov and Putin may blow up in their faces.
August 16, 2025 at 6:25 AM
The Alaska summit is a new humiliation, even for Trump. Meanwhile, despite continuing attacks on Ukrainian cities, the Ukrainian army appears to have rolled back six weeks of Russian gains in a single day. The insolence of Lavrov and Putin may blow up in their faces.
The relentless brutality, endless rage, utter lack of manners... the point is that Trump becomes very tiring.
It certainly seems like the Murdoch´s are tiring of their creation. When this is all over though, I hope we will learn the lessons and dismantle the political media complex
It certainly seems like the Murdoch´s are tiring of their creation. When this is all over though, I hope we will learn the lessons and dismantle the political media complex
July 24, 2025 at 7:38 AM
The relentless brutality, endless rage, utter lack of manners... the point is that Trump becomes very tiring.
It certainly seems like the Murdoch´s are tiring of their creation. When this is all over though, I hope we will learn the lessons and dismantle the political media complex
It certainly seems like the Murdoch´s are tiring of their creation. When this is all over though, I hope we will learn the lessons and dismantle the political media complex
Today is probably the day when fear of Trump gave way to absolute contempt. The utter chaos and demonstrable incompetence of the regime is now clear. Trump may think his climb down on tariffs lets him fight another day. But the markets have marked his card. He is now on very thin ice indeed.
April 9, 2025 at 7:18 PM
Today is probably the day when fear of Trump gave way to absolute contempt. The utter chaos and demonstrable incompetence of the regime is now clear. Trump may think his climb down on tariffs lets him fight another day. But the markets have marked his card. He is now on very thin ice indeed.
The Fall of America is a tragedy, but when a mighty tree falls in the forest, then there is an opportunity for new flora. The rise of Europe and Democratic Asia can be accompanied by the rise of Africa too. A fairer and more open world can still be the result of the moral decadence of Trump.
March 19, 2025 at 11:42 AM
The Fall of America is a tragedy, but when a mighty tree falls in the forest, then there is an opportunity for new flora. The rise of Europe and Democratic Asia can be accompanied by the rise of Africa too. A fairer and more open world can still be the result of the moral decadence of Trump.
Trumps chaotic and incompetent imposition of tariffs against long term allies may not be the biggest threat to the American economy. Consumers are beginning to boycott the US. The end of USD reserve status could come much sooner than we thought.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
‘I feel utter anger’: From Canada to Europe, a movement to boycott US goods is spreading
Tesla sales are falling and apps and online groups are springing up to help consumers choose non-US items
www.theguardian.com
March 12, 2025 at 8:47 AM
Trumps chaotic and incompetent imposition of tariffs against long term allies may not be the biggest threat to the American economy. Consumers are beginning to boycott the US. The end of USD reserve status could come much sooner than we thought.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
"Once you eliminate the impossible, what ever remains, however improbable, must be the truth". The United States has been subverted by Russia. The wilful and reckless destruction of the US government cannot be in the interests of Americans. It is, however, certainly in the interests of Putin.
March 9, 2025 at 9:11 PM
"Once you eliminate the impossible, what ever remains, however improbable, must be the truth". The United States has been subverted by Russia. The wilful and reckless destruction of the US government cannot be in the interests of Americans. It is, however, certainly in the interests of Putin.
Yet more crass insults from the Trump regime. They insult US allies and conciliate Russia. I do not believe the 1000s of Americans who have served with British and French troops in Iraq agree with the slurs offered by Vance and Trump. Sooner or later these insults will cost them dearly.
March 5, 2025 at 8:27 PM
Yet more crass insults from the Trump regime. They insult US allies and conciliate Russia. I do not believe the 1000s of Americans who have served with British and French troops in Iraq agree with the slurs offered by Vance and Trump. Sooner or later these insults will cost them dearly.
Watching Trump and Vance behave like thugs makes me believe that Government of the People, by the Bullshitters, for the Crooks will have a very short shelf life.
Within a year Trump will be the most unpopular President in history, but in that time, what damage will he and his cronies have done?
Within a year Trump will be the most unpopular President in history, but in that time, what damage will he and his cronies have done?
March 4, 2025 at 8:18 AM
Watching Trump and Vance behave like thugs makes me believe that Government of the People, by the Bullshitters, for the Crooks will have a very short shelf life.
Within a year Trump will be the most unpopular President in history, but in that time, what damage will he and his cronies have done?
Within a year Trump will be the most unpopular President in history, but in that time, what damage will he and his cronies have done?
Trump may have congratulated the CDU/CSU on their "conservative" victory in the German election, but when we also see Musk congratulating the AfD, we truly see where the US stands. Merz certainly does: "Europe must come together and defy the neo-Fascists both in Moscow and in Washington".
February 24, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Trump may have congratulated the CDU/CSU on their "conservative" victory in the German election, but when we also see Musk congratulating the AfD, we truly see where the US stands. Merz certainly does: "Europe must come together and defy the neo-Fascists both in Moscow and in Washington".
Europe, including the UK, in less than three weeks has gone from hoping that the Atlantic Alliance will hold, to preparing plans to defend ourselves, not just from Fascist Russia, but from Fascist America. Now we know that the Atlantic Alliance is already dead. Time to take action.
February 19, 2025 at 11:16 AM
Europe, including the UK, in less than three weeks has gone from hoping that the Atlantic Alliance will hold, to preparing plans to defend ourselves, not just from Fascist Russia, but from Fascist America. Now we know that the Atlantic Alliance is already dead. Time to take action.
JD Vance came to lecture Europe about Press Freedom.
Some information: 1) in the White Press Room, Trump replaced AP, the most respected news wire service, with Breitbart, the far right propaganda channel. 2) The United States is ranked 55th in Press Freedom, behind Ivory Coast.
rsf.org/en/index
Some information: 1) in the White Press Room, Trump replaced AP, the most respected news wire service, with Breitbart, the far right propaganda channel. 2) The United States is ranked 55th in Press Freedom, behind Ivory Coast.
rsf.org/en/index
Index
RSF's World Press Freedom Index aims to compare the level of press freedom enjoyed by journalists and media in 180 countries and territories.
rsf.org
February 17, 2025 at 10:16 AM
JD Vance came to lecture Europe about Press Freedom.
Some information: 1) in the White Press Room, Trump replaced AP, the most respected news wire service, with Breitbart, the far right propaganda channel. 2) The United States is ranked 55th in Press Freedom, behind Ivory Coast.
rsf.org/en/index
Some information: 1) in the White Press Room, Trump replaced AP, the most respected news wire service, with Breitbart, the far right propaganda channel. 2) The United States is ranked 55th in Press Freedom, behind Ivory Coast.
rsf.org/en/index
JD Vance attacked the leaders of America´s democratic allies and then met the leaders of Germany´s neo-Fascist party. I think we have seen enough to judge the regime in Washington. We need to prepare for the end of NATO.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
JD Vance attacks Europe over free speech and migration
The vice-president's speech at the Munich Security Conference was denounced by several European leaders.
www.bbc.com
February 14, 2025 at 9:42 PM
JD Vance attacked the leaders of America´s democratic allies and then met the leaders of Germany´s neo-Fascist party. I think we have seen enough to judge the regime in Washington. We need to prepare for the end of NATO.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Musk thinks he and his pals are geniuses... Handing authority over the State Department to a guy called Big Balls is not yet even peak stupidity. There is no risk here: there is the absolute certainty of failure and quite possibly disastrous failure. #Muskfuckwit
www.yahoo.com/news/big-bal...
www.yahoo.com/news/big-bal...
‘Big Balls’ DOGE Guy, 19, Is Now a ‘Senior Adviser’ in State Department
Elon Musk’s teenage acolyte known online as “Big Balls” has taken on a significant role in the U.S. State Department that has some officials on edge, a report claims. Edward Coristine, 19, now works a...
www.yahoo.com
February 11, 2025 at 1:37 PM
Musk thinks he and his pals are geniuses... Handing authority over the State Department to a guy called Big Balls is not yet even peak stupidity. There is no risk here: there is the absolute certainty of failure and quite possibly disastrous failure. #Muskfuckwit
www.yahoo.com/news/big-bal...
www.yahoo.com/news/big-bal...
The UK should not let itself be bullied by a US administration that, with every decision it takes, is committed to policies that are either actually dangerous, probably reckless and certainly wrong. A "special relationship" with a treacherous, pariah state is worthless.
February 11, 2025 at 7:09 AM
The UK should not let itself be bullied by a US administration that, with every decision it takes, is committed to policies that are either actually dangerous, probably reckless and certainly wrong. A "special relationship" with a treacherous, pariah state is worthless.
Elon Musk, reputed to be the world´s wealthiest man, by closing at no notice the entire USAID department has just shut down the world´s largest emergency food programme.
The world´s poorest are being starved by a man who boasts he will be the world´s first trillionaire. An evil act by an evil man.
The world´s poorest are being starved by a man who boasts he will be the world´s first trillionaire. An evil act by an evil man.
February 8, 2025 at 10:52 AM
Elon Musk, reputed to be the world´s wealthiest man, by closing at no notice the entire USAID department has just shut down the world´s largest emergency food programme.
The world´s poorest are being starved by a man who boasts he will be the world´s first trillionaire. An evil act by an evil man.
The world´s poorest are being starved by a man who boasts he will be the world´s first trillionaire. An evil act by an evil man.
US Big Tech proves once and for all that they are dinosaurs. $300 billion of investment is not a rescue: it is proof that they do not understand the small, decentralised future. I do not want to hold any of these stocks and will sell all of them. www.ft.com/content/634b...
Big Tech lines up over $300bn in AI spending for 2025
Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and Alphabet forecast massive capital expenditure despite investor concerns about returns and DeepSeek
www.ft.com
February 7, 2025 at 1:19 PM
US Big Tech proves once and for all that they are dinosaurs. $300 billion of investment is not a rescue: it is proof that they do not understand the small, decentralised future. I do not want to hold any of these stocks and will sell all of them. www.ft.com/content/634b...
Killing USAid is not just an act of vandalism. It is stupid. Now the poorest will not look to the US nor the West for help, still less for leadership. The wretched of the Earth will look to China. Trump just ended US global leadership without a shot being fired.
February 7, 2025 at 9:55 AM
Killing USAid is not just an act of vandalism. It is stupid. Now the poorest will not look to the US nor the West for help, still less for leadership. The wretched of the Earth will look to China. Trump just ended US global leadership without a shot being fired.
Trump is threatening the Big Stick without speaking softly first. Its anti-diplomacy. Also, one note negotiation: I threaten/you cave, only works for a while. After that someone comes with a bigger stick and you need to make a far broader range of concessions. Performance cruelty is poor strategy.
February 4, 2025 at 11:43 AM
Trump is threatening the Big Stick without speaking softly first. Its anti-diplomacy. Also, one note negotiation: I threaten/you cave, only works for a while. After that someone comes with a bigger stick and you need to make a far broader range of concessions. Performance cruelty is poor strategy.
5 years on from Brexit. UK Living standards sharply down, growth stalled and the economy fundamentally weaker. Farage has large responsibility for this mess. Therefore anyone who thinks Nigel is the future doesn´t realise how unpopular Brexit has become. RefUK poll rating is a paper tiger.
February 1, 2025 at 2:18 PM
5 years on from Brexit. UK Living standards sharply down, growth stalled and the economy fundamentally weaker. Farage has large responsibility for this mess. Therefore anyone who thinks Nigel is the future doesn´t realise how unpopular Brexit has become. RefUK poll rating is a paper tiger.
The Populist approach. "move fast, break things", doesn´t survive much contact with reality. Firing staff in an organisation- say the FAA- and then expecting the survivors staff to go above and beyond, while being vilified. Trump relies on cruelty to lead but its his ignorance that is most obvious.
January 31, 2025 at 10:54 AM
The Populist approach. "move fast, break things", doesn´t survive much contact with reality. Firing staff in an organisation- say the FAA- and then expecting the survivors staff to go above and beyond, while being vilified. Trump relies on cruelty to lead but its his ignorance that is most obvious.
The death of the Conservatives is well merited, but its replacement by Reform is simply perverse. Those backing now backing RefUK may rue the day. Farage is a main author of the Brexit fiasco and his links with Trump reflect a highly defective moral compass.
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Two Tory donors pay £25,000 to attend Reform fundraising dinner
Exclusive: Bassim Haidar says Nigel Farage’s party ‘worth considering’ and Mohamed Amersi says energy at event was ‘electric’
www.theguardian.com
January 30, 2025 at 11:22 AM
The death of the Conservatives is well merited, but its replacement by Reform is simply perverse. Those backing now backing RefUK may rue the day. Farage is a main author of the Brexit fiasco and his links with Trump reflect a highly defective moral compass.
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
The shrews inherited the world after the death of the Dinosaurs. The small, distributed, open source models will kill off the massed power of big tech. With quantum computing advances on the way, a major market inflection point is coming soon. A year of volatility awaits us.
January 29, 2025 at 11:05 AM
The shrews inherited the world after the death of the Dinosaurs. The small, distributed, open source models will kill off the massed power of big tech. With quantum computing advances on the way, a major market inflection point is coming soon. A year of volatility awaits us.
The emergence of new AI chatbots like Deepseek is set to destroy big tech businesses, let alone government projects. Labour´s absurd government led AI "investment" project is already obsolete. Advances are coming in weeks or even days. Google, once cutting edge, is now a Dinosaur. UK Gov should note
January 27, 2025 at 9:28 AM
The emergence of new AI chatbots like Deepseek is set to destroy big tech businesses, let alone government projects. Labour´s absurd government led AI "investment" project is already obsolete. Advances are coming in weeks or even days. Google, once cutting edge, is now a Dinosaur. UK Gov should note
The UK must now recast our relationship with the US. Let Trump ask us for stuff, rather than Britain running at Washington´s beck and call. Let us reinforce economic relationships around the world. Most of all we must plan for our own defence. The days of an unconditional US-UK alliance are over.
January 21, 2025 at 9:59 AM
The UK must now recast our relationship with the US. Let Trump ask us for stuff, rather than Britain running at Washington´s beck and call. Let us reinforce economic relationships around the world. Most of all we must plan for our own defence. The days of an unconditional US-UK alliance are over.