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philfree.bsky.social
Phil Free
@philfree.bsky.social
870 followers 840 following 8.4K posts
Politics, economics, planet - I live in Essex, UK.
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philfree.bsky.social
World roundup: February 12 2026
open.substack.com/pub/fx/p/wor...
World roundup: February 12 2026
Stories from Israel-Palestine, Bangladesh, Cuba, and elsewhere
open.substack.com
February 13, 2026 at 3:02 PM
philfree.bsky.social
“The assessment notes that ecosystem degradation is occurring across all global regions, adding that every critical ecosystem is on a pathway to irreversible loss of function beyond repair.”

Biodiversity loss ‘threat to security’
theecologist.org/2026/jan/29/...
Biodiversity loss 'threat to security'
The British government’s own security experts join the dots between nature loss, security and the wellbeing of society.
theecologist.org
February 13, 2026 at 1:34 PM
philfree.bsky.social
“Forced removal, denial of legal & political recognition, & the systematic erasure of historical memory erodes collective identity & fractures intergenerational continuity.

The role of environmental destruction further exemplifies this eliminatory strategy.”
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Settler colonialism and the rhetoric of voluntary migration in Gaza
This article examines the forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza as a core mechanism within Israel’s settler-colonial strategy. Drawing on historical analysis, international legal instruments ...
www.tandfonline.com
February 13, 2026 at 1:04 PM
philfree.bsky.social
“Human ingenuity has bequeathed us splendid technologies. But like a cruel divinity, capital not only prevents us from using them from using them for our collective good, but in fact coerces us to deploy them towards our collective doom.” #PostCapitalism #Degrowth
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
We can move beyond the capitalist model and save the climate – here are the first three steps | Jason Hickel and Yanis Varoufakis
Capitalism cares about our species’ prospects as much as a wolf cares about a lamb’s. But democratise our economy and a better world is within our grasp, say Jason Hickel and Yanis Varoufakis
www.theguardian.com
February 13, 2026 at 10:31 AM
philfree.bsky.social
Cliodynamics & Cybernetics II
open.substack.com/pub/petertur...
Cliodynamics and Cybernetics II
A Really Dystopian Scenario
open.substack.com
February 13, 2026 at 12:03 AM
philfree.bsky.social
Republicans want to protect free speech for themselves & no one else
madness.ghost.io/republicans-...
Republicans want to protect free speech for themselves and no one else
The Trump administration and Republicans in Congress continue to attack free speech in numerous ways.
madness.ghost.io
February 12, 2026 at 11:30 PM
philfree.bsky.social
'I want my father back':
www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/i-wa...
'I want my father back':
Israel's relentless war on the Palestinian territory has forced tens of thousands of children into survival mode
www.middleeasteye.net
February 12, 2026 at 11:10 PM
philfree.bsky.social
They were forced to hand one son over to the Israeli army in return for another. Eight months later he was dead in prison
www.middleeasteye.net/news/palesti...
They were forced to hand one son over to the Israeli army in return for another. Eight months later he was dead in prison
Palestinians abused in Israeli prisons are dying in unprecedented numbers due to medical neglect, and their bodies are not being returned to their families
www.middleeasteye.net
February 12, 2026 at 10:48 PM
philfree.bsky.social
'Statistics Are Human Beings With the Tears Wiped Away': Silicosis, Dead Workers, & Corporate Greed
www.commondreams.org/opinion/sili...
'Statistics Are Human Beings With the Tears Wiped Away': Silicosis, Dead Workers, and Corporate Greed | Common Dreams
The counter-top manufacturing industry doesn’t want to protect workers from harm; it wants protection from the workers it harms.
www.commondreams.org
February 12, 2026 at 10:29 PM
philfree.bsky.social
Reflections on the End of Democracy: The Orbán-Trump Connection
www.commondreams.org/opinion/orba...
Reflections on the End of Democracy: The Orbán-Trump Connection | Common Dreams
As academics based in Hungary who have closely followed the trajectory of Orbánism, we urge American citizens to reflect deeply on the nature of the political crossroads facing them.
www.commondreams.org
February 12, 2026 at 10:07 PM
philfree.bsky.social
Inside the Shadowy Forum Trying (& Likely Failing) to Make Deep-Sea Mining Happen
www.commondreams.org/opinion/trum...
Inside the Shadowy Forum Trying (and Likely Failing) to Make Deep-Sea Mining Happen | Common Dreams
The goal of an invitation-only event seemed to be to foster a shared belief among government officials and mining industry executives that deep-sea mining has a future. I’m not sure it worked.
www.commondreams.org
February 12, 2026 at 9:50 PM
philfree.bsky.social
Trump, Extreme Wealth Concentration, & Our Societal Crisis
www.commondreams.org/opinion/trum...
Trump, Extreme Wealth Concentration, and Our Societal Crisis | Common Dreams
The US government simply has not done enough to ensure that the livelihoods of all Americans are protected or improved in this new Gilded Age. What it has done is made sure the rich get richer by the ...
www.commondreams.org
February 12, 2026 at 9:27 PM
philfree.bsky.social
No Climate Solutions Without Strong Democracy
www.commondreams.org/opinion/no-c...
No Climate Solutions Without Strong Democracy | Common Dreams
If we want to make progress on either front, we need to understand just how deeply our climate and democracy crises are connected.
www.commondreams.org
February 12, 2026 at 8:58 PM
philfree.bsky.social
Economics education is broken—only a revolution can save it
rwer.wordpress.com/2025/08/22/e...
Economics education is broken — only a revolution can save it
from Lars Syll Today, economics education has all but erased courses on the history of economic thought and economic methodology. This is not just an oversight — it is an intellectual crisis. A dis…
rwer.wordpress.com
February 12, 2026 at 6:57 PM
philfree.bsky.social
Peter Mandelson Sold Off Britain to the Super-Rich. He’s Not The Only One
novaramedia.com/2026/02/10/p...
Peter Mandelson Sold Off Britain to the Super-Rich. He’s Not the Only One | James Schneider
Mandelson - minister, fixer, envoy, consultant, intermediary between cabinet and capital - isn’t an aberration of our political system. He’s its most perfect expression, writes James Schneider.
novaramedia.com
February 12, 2026 at 6:44 PM
philfree.bsky.social
Inside the summit uniting the world’s most successful far-right activists
www.opendemocracy.net/en/far-right...
In the European Parliament, global politicians pledged alleg
In Brussels, the far right blamed the left for attacking democracy. The Epstein files told a very different story.
www.opendemocracy.net
February 12, 2026 at 6:23 PM
philfree.bsky.social
“This is the definition of Resource Entropy Singularity: The point where the solution to resource depletion (more complexity/technology) consumes more energy than it liberates. It is the moment the maintenance cost of the system exceeds its metabolic intake.”
open.substack.com/pub/theuaob/...
The Thermodynamic Blind Spot: Why 'Peak Oil' Failed, and Why We Are Finally at the Singularity
If you mention ‘Peak Oil’ today in polite company—or even among serious economists—you are immediately filed away in the same cabinet as Y2K survivalists and Mayan Calendar enthusiasts.
open.substack.com
February 12, 2026 at 5:56 PM
philfree.bsky.social
“The first goal of the State is to preserve the State. The first goal of the Few is to stay in charge. If there’s ever a real rebellion against their misrule, they want to stay armed. ICE is an army they’ll need.”

- @thomasneuburger.bsky.social
open.substack.com/pub/neuburge...
Elite Resistance to Trump: What Does It Mean?
If the rules that allow this to happen aren’t reversed now, they’ll stay in place for later.
open.substack.com
February 12, 2026 at 5:11 PM
philfree.bsky.social
“While some of these views can be rationalised & dismissed as the product of a less-enlightened & humane age, the core belief that the wealthy are fundamentally different & better than the poor is something that persists today.”

Jeremy Bentham’s rational inhumanity
open.substack.com/pub/weareund...
Jeremy Bentham's rational inhumanity
Bentham's plan for 250 privately owned for-profit workhouses provides a fascinating window into the minds and morals of the 19th century English ruling class
open.substack.com
February 12, 2026 at 4:43 PM
philfree.bsky.social
Utopia as Ideology: ‘The Years of Rice & Salt’ (Kim Stanley Robinson, 2002)
hwiccanreview.substack.com/p/the-years-...
Utopia as Ideology: 'The Years of Rice and Salt' (Kim Stanley Robinson, 2002)
A review of The Years of Rice and Salt, by Kim Stanley Robinson (2002)
hwiccanreview.substack.com
February 12, 2026 at 4:03 PM
philfree.bsky.social
“Journalism—like writing, like art, like any profession—must be a combat discipline in this era of ecological collapse. Don’t be a bystander. Choose a side, & take action.”

How Journalism Protects Elites & Maintains the Status Quo
open.substack.com/pub/maxwilbe...
How Journalism Protects Elites and Maintains the Status Quo
“Reinforcing for those on the winning team the comforting dualism of Civilization versus Barbarism”
open.substack.com
February 12, 2026 at 3:44 PM
philfree.bsky.social
Mapping out collapse research: understanding the ways societies end
open.substack.com/pub/theseeds...
Mapping out collapse research: understanding the ways societies end
Author: Florian Jehn
open.substack.com
February 12, 2026 at 3:00 PM
philfree.bsky.social
Basing a childcare system on how much private profit it generates is a recipe for certain disaster
billmitchell.org/blog/?p=62732
Basing a childcare system on how much private profit it generates is a recipe for certain disaster – William Mitchell – Modern Monetary Theory
billmitchell.org
February 12, 2026 at 1:43 PM
philfree.bsky.social
“When I meet my ageing baby-boomer friends, still displaying an almost undiminished zeal for neoliberalism, they seem like the ideological escapees from a world that disappeared long ago. They are not from Venus or Mars. They are from the Titanic.”
braveneweurope.com/branko-milan...
Branko Milanović - Defeated by reality - Brave New Europe
Like communism, neoliberalism was defeated by reality Branko Milanović is an economist specialised in development and inequality. His new book, The Visions of inequality, was published October 10, 202...
braveneweurope.com
February 12, 2026 at 1:13 PM
philfree.bsky.social
The risk of a hothouse Earth trajectory
www.cell.com/one-earth/fu...
The risk of a hothouse Earth trajectory
Earth’s climate is now departing from the stable conditions that supported human civilization for millennia. Crossing critical temperature thresholds may trigger self-reinforcing feedbacks and tipping...
www.cell.com
February 12, 2026 at 12:19 PM