Philip Grobler
@philipgrobler.bsky.social
Occasional curmudgeon.
Not a fan of fascism.
Solvitur ambulando.
📍Leafy Surrey, England
Not a fan of fascism.
Solvitur ambulando.
📍Leafy Surrey, England
Pinned
Philip Grobler
@philipgrobler.bsky.social
· Jan 23
“In the dark times
Will there also be singing?
Yes, there will also be singing.
About the dark times.”
— Bertolt Brecht
Will there also be singing?
Yes, there will also be singing.
About the dark times.”
— Bertolt Brecht
On Holocaust Memorial Day …
Auschwitz was at the end of a process. We must remember that it did not start from gas chambers.
This hatred gradually developed: from ideas, words, stereotypes & prejudice through legal exclusion, dehumanization & escalating violence... to systematic and industrial murder.
Auschwitz took time.
This hatred gradually developed: from ideas, words, stereotypes & prejudice through legal exclusion, dehumanization & escalating violence... to systematic and industrial murder.
Auschwitz took time.
January 27, 2026 at 2:25 PM
On Holocaust Memorial Day …
Reposted by Philip Grobler
Downfall Bovino Edition. You're welcome.
January 27, 2026 at 5:36 AM
Downfall Bovino Edition. You're welcome.
Reposted by Philip Grobler
If that's what they're willing to do in public, while being filmed, what do they do behind closed doors?
www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/...
Video shows moments around fatal shooting in Minneapolis
Bystander footage has captured the seconds before the killing of 37-year-old Alex Pretti.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 26, 2026 at 10:01 AM
If that's what they're willing to do in public, while being filmed, what do they do behind closed doors?
www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/...
Reposted by Philip Grobler
I swear to god some of these corporate news outlets would open a window right now and say “We can’t confirm it, but it appears that the ground is allegedly being snowed upon.”
January 25, 2026 at 6:10 PM
I swear to god some of these corporate news outlets would open a window right now and say “We can’t confirm it, but it appears that the ground is allegedly being snowed upon.”
"We know they are lying.
They know they are lying,
They know that we know they are lying.
We know that they know that we know they are lying.
And still they continue to lie."
— Alexander Solzhenitsyn
They know they are lying,
They know that we know they are lying.
We know that they know that we know they are lying.
And still they continue to lie."
— Alexander Solzhenitsyn
January 24, 2026 at 11:41 PM
"We know they are lying.
They know they are lying,
They know that we know they are lying.
We know that they know that we know they are lying.
And still they continue to lie."
— Alexander Solzhenitsyn
They know they are lying,
They know that we know they are lying.
We know that they know that we know they are lying.
And still they continue to lie."
— Alexander Solzhenitsyn
Reposted by Philip Grobler
🧵“How do seemingly ordinary people become agents of state murder?” This is one of the guiding questions I ask students in my graduate class on genocide/state violence. With recent events, it is a question many Americans are asking.
I do not have a definitive answer, but here is a reading list: 1/
I do not have a definitive answer, but here is a reading list: 1/
January 24, 2026 at 5:45 PM
🧵“How do seemingly ordinary people become agents of state murder?” This is one of the guiding questions I ask students in my graduate class on genocide/state violence. With recent events, it is a question many Americans are asking.
I do not have a definitive answer, but here is a reading list: 1/
I do not have a definitive answer, but here is a reading list: 1/
"Terrible things are happening outside. Poor helpless people are being dragged out of their homes.
Families are torn apart.
Men, women, and children are separated. Children come home from school to find that their parents have disappeared."
- Diary of Anne Frank
January 13, 1943
Families are torn apart.
Men, women, and children are separated. Children come home from school to find that their parents have disappeared."
- Diary of Anne Frank
January 13, 1943
January 24, 2026 at 4:24 PM
"Terrible things are happening outside. Poor helpless people are being dragged out of their homes.
Families are torn apart.
Men, women, and children are separated. Children come home from school to find that their parents have disappeared."
- Diary of Anne Frank
January 13, 1943
Families are torn apart.
Men, women, and children are separated. Children come home from school to find that their parents have disappeared."
- Diary of Anne Frank
January 13, 1943
Reposted by Philip Grobler
Appears this is also true for fascism.
January 24, 2026 at 3:56 PM
Appears this is also true for fascism.
Reposted by Philip Grobler
Board of Peace - Season 1
January 24, 2026 at 7:45 AM
Board of Peace - Season 1
Reposted by Philip Grobler
Zack Polanski stood outside Palantir HQ to demand that the spy-tech firm - which has supported deadly ICE raids and enabled genocide in Gaza - gets out of our NHS
Say no to Palantir in the NHS ❌👇
goodlaw.social/658abc
Say no to Palantir in the NHS ❌👇
goodlaw.social/658abc
January 23, 2026 at 8:17 AM
Zack Polanski stood outside Palantir HQ to demand that the spy-tech firm - which has supported deadly ICE raids and enabled genocide in Gaza - gets out of our NHS
Say no to Palantir in the NHS ❌👇
goodlaw.social/658abc
Say no to Palantir in the NHS ❌👇
goodlaw.social/658abc
“We hear a lot of negativity from a loud minority in this country. I believe it’s not what truly represents the British public, because we have been accommodated by people from all cultures, races and backgrounds.”
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
‘It has been overwhelming’: Sudanese friends complete 900-mile UK walk
Giel Malual and John Kuei trekked from Dungeness to John o’Groats to raise funds for new schools in Sudan
www.theguardian.com
January 22, 2026 at 9:53 PM
“We hear a lot of negativity from a loud minority in this country. I believe it’s not what truly represents the British public, because we have been accommodated by people from all cultures, races and backgrounds.”
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
Reposted by Philip Grobler
is it a good sign that 2 people you've invited to be on your "Board of Peace" can't join you in Switzerland because they would be arrested for war crimes?
January 22, 2026 at 2:32 PM
is it a good sign that 2 people you've invited to be on your "Board of Peace" can't join you in Switzerland because they would be arrested for war crimes?
Reposted by Philip Grobler
Isn't this a telling aspiration? To want robots to look after your kids, so you can do stuff, rather than robots to do stuff, so you can spend time with your kids?
The darkness inside these shrivelled men must be like a gaping unfillable void.
The darkness inside these shrivelled men must be like a gaping unfillable void.
January 22, 2026 at 5:39 PM
Isn't this a telling aspiration? To want robots to look after your kids, so you can do stuff, rather than robots to do stuff, so you can spend time with your kids?
The darkness inside these shrivelled men must be like a gaping unfillable void.
The darkness inside these shrivelled men must be like a gaping unfillable void.
Reposted by Philip Grobler
Outside Palantir this morning with @zackpolanski.bsky.social. This Trumpist corporation should be nowhere near our NHS (or indeed our military).
January 22, 2026 at 9:52 AM
Outside Palantir this morning with @zackpolanski.bsky.social. This Trumpist corporation should be nowhere near our NHS (or indeed our military).
Reposted by Philip Grobler
Thanks for taking part in today's geopolitical crisis. Don't forget another one will be starting first thing tomorrow morning.
January 21, 2026 at 8:10 PM
Thanks for taking part in today's geopolitical crisis. Don't forget another one will be starting first thing tomorrow morning.
Reposted by Philip Grobler
There's been a seismic change in geopolitics, the international rules-based system is over, an unparalled shift towards hegemonic hard power, we are entering a new world order. And that's why I still haven't done the washing-up.
January 21, 2026 at 9:53 AM
There's been a seismic change in geopolitics, the international rules-based system is over, an unparalled shift towards hegemonic hard power, we are entering a new world order. And that's why I still haven't done the washing-up.
Reposted by Philip Grobler
Davos, Switzerland, the World Economic Forum.
January 20, 2026 at 10:16 PM
Davos, Switzerland, the World Economic Forum.
“A single death is a tragedy; a million deaths is a statistic.”
Putin is responsible for more than two million deaths. He is the 21st century’s most prolific mass murderer
So far
www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...
So far
www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...
Kremlin says Putin has been invited to join Trump’s Gaza ‘board of peace’
Russia says it is seeking to ‘clarify all the nuances’ of offer it claims Washington has made before responding
www.theguardian.com
January 19, 2026 at 9:49 PM
“A single death is a tragedy; a million deaths is a statistic.”
Reposted by Philip Grobler
I don't want to put a downer on things but World War 3 is unlikely to be anywhere near as good as 1 or 2. The third instalment is almost always a disappointment.
January 19, 2026 at 1:11 PM
I don't want to put a downer on things but World War 3 is unlikely to be anywhere near as good as 1 or 2. The third instalment is almost always a disappointment.
Reposted by Philip Grobler
For the sake of clarity, the Nobel committee should specify how many countries someone needs to invade before they award the peace prize.
January 19, 2026 at 12:19 PM
For the sake of clarity, the Nobel committee should specify how many countries someone needs to invade before they award the peace prize.
Reposted by Philip Grobler
Are you getting ready for a long commute to work on this chilly blue-Monday morning? Why not bring @monkemma.bsky.social and I with you on the journey with episode 2 of Bear and Monk Debunk?
In it we discuss the so-called “perks” of immigration and poke a few holes in the narratives we often hear.
In it we discuss the so-called “perks” of immigration and poke a few holes in the narratives we often hear.
Bear and Monk Debunk #2: Immigration Benefits and “Perks”
From leisure cards, and benefit claims to PlayStations: what these stories really mean
www.bearlypolitics.co.uk
January 19, 2026 at 6:19 AM
Are you getting ready for a long commute to work on this chilly blue-Monday morning? Why not bring @monkemma.bsky.social and I with you on the journey with episode 2 of Bear and Monk Debunk?
In it we discuss the so-called “perks” of immigration and poke a few holes in the narratives we often hear.
In it we discuss the so-called “perks” of immigration and poke a few holes in the narratives we often hear.
Reposted by Philip Grobler
Britain’s HS2 rail project has been relegated by many to the status of sorry joke, but FT analysis showing that it is now the most expensive strip of train line in the world is really not very funny at all (at least, not if you’re a British taxpayer).
An #FTEdit 🧵 on how the costs have mounted 👇
An #FTEdit 🧵 on how the costs have mounted 👇
January 13, 2026 at 2:06 PM
Britain’s HS2 rail project has been relegated by many to the status of sorry joke, but FT analysis showing that it is now the most expensive strip of train line in the world is really not very funny at all (at least, not if you’re a British taxpayer).
An #FTEdit 🧵 on how the costs have mounted 👇
An #FTEdit 🧵 on how the costs have mounted 👇
Reposted by Philip Grobler
It's either going to undress all the missiles to make them extra sexy or recommend that Trump invades Poland.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced the integration of Elon Musk's xAI platform, Grok, into military networks as part of a new "AI acceleration strategy" during a visit to SpaceX.
January 13, 2026 at 9:07 AM
It's either going to undress all the missiles to make them extra sexy or recommend that Trump invades Poland.