punkacademic
@punkacademic.bsky.social
He/him | Queer | Anarchist | Historian | MS | Everton | Celtics
The Guardian's AI boosterism since they signed that partnership with Open AI is truly embarassing.
January 6, 2026 at 12:00 AM
The Guardian's AI boosterism since they signed that partnership with Open AI is truly embarassing.
I keep seeing this come up. It's up there with 'they can't do that, that's illegal' but let's play along for a second and explain why this is ridiculous.
Other than the US, there are two nuclear powers in NATO.
Let's start with the UK.
/1
Other than the US, there are two nuclear powers in NATO.
Let's start with the UK.
/1
January 5, 2026 at 2:46 AM
I keep seeing this come up. It's up there with 'they can't do that, that's illegal' but let's play along for a second and explain why this is ridiculous.
Other than the US, there are two nuclear powers in NATO.
Let's start with the UK.
/1
Other than the US, there are two nuclear powers in NATO.
Let's start with the UK.
/1
Reposted by punkacademic
this seems small in comparison, but we need a boycott of the World Cup. we need to see empty stadiums, teams staying home, and massive financial losses. it gives me no pleasure as a soccer fan, but anything less is a tacit endorsement of war crimes.
The US invasion of Venezuela is a clear violation of international law and the UN Charter. Celebrating the capture of Maduro, Donald Trump went further, calling it an “attack on sovereignty” itself.
Countries the world over must work together to rein in the United States before it’s too late.
Countries the world over must work together to rein in the United States before it’s too late.
The United States is a rogue state
Donald Trump’s “attack on sovereignty” in Venezuela has terrible consequences for the world
disconnect.blog
January 4, 2026 at 1:34 AM
this seems small in comparison, but we need a boycott of the World Cup. we need to see empty stadiums, teams staying home, and massive financial losses. it gives me no pleasure as a soccer fan, but anything less is a tacit endorsement of war crimes.
Reposted by punkacademic
In the recent past, discussing America as an imperial power was considered gauche and subject to snide by liberals at least as much as conservatives. That’s surely over as Trump boldly declares ‘we’re going to be taking a tremendous amount of wealth from the ground’ in Venezuela?
January 3, 2026 at 8:02 PM
In the recent past, discussing America as an imperial power was considered gauche and subject to snide by liberals at least as much as conservatives. That’s surely over as Trump boldly declares ‘we’re going to be taking a tremendous amount of wealth from the ground’ in Venezuela?
The fact that people are even bringing up the 'Hugh Grant moment' in Love Actually shows how childlike and infantilised British political culture really is.
January 3, 2026 at 6:53 PM
The fact that people are even bringing up the 'Hugh Grant moment' in Love Actually shows how childlike and infantilised British political culture really is.
Reposted by punkacademic
The hunch is right.
UK is a US vassal state with US nuclear weapons 80 miles northeast of London, whose military infrastructure relies on US systems (not just the 'deterrent') & whose economic sovereignty is a mirage for a variety of reasons, not least US tech.
And that isn't to excuse Starmer /1
UK is a US vassal state with US nuclear weapons 80 miles northeast of London, whose military infrastructure relies on US systems (not just the 'deterrent') & whose economic sovereignty is a mirage for a variety of reasons, not least US tech.
And that isn't to excuse Starmer /1
Anyone else have a hunch that Keir Starmer probably won't condemn this flagrant breach of international law?
A defining moment for Europe. If it endorses/fails to condemn this flagrant breach of international law, it will have surrendered its core justification for opposing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
January 3, 2026 at 11:10 AM
The hunch is right.
UK is a US vassal state with US nuclear weapons 80 miles northeast of London, whose military infrastructure relies on US systems (not just the 'deterrent') & whose economic sovereignty is a mirage for a variety of reasons, not least US tech.
And that isn't to excuse Starmer /1
UK is a US vassal state with US nuclear weapons 80 miles northeast of London, whose military infrastructure relies on US systems (not just the 'deterrent') & whose economic sovereignty is a mirage for a variety of reasons, not least US tech.
And that isn't to excuse Starmer /1
Reposted by punkacademic
This won't end in Venezuela bsky.app/profile/atru...
January 3, 2026 at 5:34 PM
This won't end in Venezuela bsky.app/profile/atru...
The provincial puppet leader will never break fealty with his emperor.
Starmer asked to respond to Trump breaking international law and seizing the leader of another sovereign nation replies that it is his "responsibility" to have a good relationship with the US President.
"I have stepped up that responsibility [and] I do get on with President Trump," he tells the BBC
"I have stepped up that responsibility [and] I do get on with President Trump," he tells the BBC
January 3, 2026 at 5:35 PM
The provincial puppet leader will never break fealty with his emperor.
Reposted by punkacademic
Caine, in what happened when the military invaded Maduro’s compound: “On arrival into the target area, the helicopters came under fire, and they replied to that fire with overwhelming force in self-defense.”
We’re going to be reading that sentence for years.
We’re going to be reading that sentence for years.
January 3, 2026 at 5:14 PM
Caine, in what happened when the military invaded Maduro’s compound: “On arrival into the target area, the helicopters came under fire, and they replied to that fire with overwhelming force in self-defense.”
We’re going to be reading that sentence for years.
We’re going to be reading that sentence for years.
Reposted by punkacademic
If your position is that regime change should be forced on countries where the president does not respect democratic norms and regularly kidnaps opponents using an officially sanctioned paramiliatary, have I got news for you about your position on the United States
January 3, 2026 at 1:45 PM
If your position is that regime change should be forced on countries where the president does not respect democratic norms and regularly kidnaps opponents using an officially sanctioned paramiliatary, have I got news for you about your position on the United States
The hunch is right.
UK is a US vassal state with US nuclear weapons 80 miles northeast of London, whose military infrastructure relies on US systems (not just the 'deterrent') & whose economic sovereignty is a mirage for a variety of reasons, not least US tech.
And that isn't to excuse Starmer /1
UK is a US vassal state with US nuclear weapons 80 miles northeast of London, whose military infrastructure relies on US systems (not just the 'deterrent') & whose economic sovereignty is a mirage for a variety of reasons, not least US tech.
And that isn't to excuse Starmer /1
Anyone else have a hunch that Keir Starmer probably won't condemn this flagrant breach of international law?
A defining moment for Europe. If it endorses/fails to condemn this flagrant breach of international law, it will have surrendered its core justification for opposing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
January 3, 2026 at 11:10 AM
The hunch is right.
UK is a US vassal state with US nuclear weapons 80 miles northeast of London, whose military infrastructure relies on US systems (not just the 'deterrent') & whose economic sovereignty is a mirage for a variety of reasons, not least US tech.
And that isn't to excuse Starmer /1
UK is a US vassal state with US nuclear weapons 80 miles northeast of London, whose military infrastructure relies on US systems (not just the 'deterrent') & whose economic sovereignty is a mirage for a variety of reasons, not least US tech.
And that isn't to excuse Starmer /1
Reposted by punkacademic
Think it's really striking that whilst for most of the post-war period the material policy differences between the Conservatives and Labour were not that big, both parties still spoke in identifiably different ways, had their own idiom, imagined the public differently. Not now.
The ex-adviser dickhead here, and I note that if you wanted to slash benefits, shrink the state, unleash the power of free enterprise and so on, as well as smashing fuck out of the ethnics, then you should probably have campaigned on that and gained the support of the public for it.
January 2, 2026 at 2:21 PM
Think it's really striking that whilst for most of the post-war period the material policy differences between the Conservatives and Labour were not that big, both parties still spoke in identifiably different ways, had their own idiom, imagined the public differently. Not now.
Reposted by punkacademic
It's not surprising that a man who resigned over his abusive "jokes" about Diane Abbott also thought a British political prisoner a "joke" and colonial reparations a "distraction". The problem is that this casual racist disregard for human rights was, and remains, at the heart of Starmer's project.
January 2, 2026 at 11:06 AM
It's not surprising that a man who resigned over his abusive "jokes" about Diane Abbott also thought a British political prisoner a "joke" and colonial reparations a "distraction". The problem is that this casual racist disregard for human rights was, and remains, at the heart of Starmer's project.
Reposted by punkacademic
A reminder that OpenAI’s chief financial officer, Sarah Friar, met with the Taoiseach in May to push for the use of ChatGPT in schools in Ireland. And many in the government think we can’t face the future without it.
This is the technology our schools are encouraging our children to use.
January 1, 2026 at 7:28 PM
A reminder that OpenAI’s chief financial officer, Sarah Friar, met with the Taoiseach in May to push for the use of ChatGPT in schools in Ireland. And many in the government think we can’t face the future without it.
Reposted by punkacademic
The US government is openly touting the deportation of 100 million people for not being white. British people should note that the majority of UK print and broadcast media are in lockstep with precisely this form of industrial-level racism.
They want to wipe out almost a third of the country. It’s got nothing to do with illegal immigration.
It’s white nationalism pure and simple. They’re fascists, and there’s no reason to doubt it.
It’s white nationalism pure and simple. They’re fascists, and there’s no reason to doubt it.
January 1, 2026 at 2:59 PM
The US government is openly touting the deportation of 100 million people for not being white. British people should note that the majority of UK print and broadcast media are in lockstep with precisely this form of industrial-level racism.
Worth reading. It's a trivial thing by comparison, but Ford at one point on Twitter didn't know how Churchill came to power during the war.
Hit me hard that the naive presentism of much PolProfism political science, unmoored from critical understanding of history or context is part of this /1
Hit me hard that the naive presentism of much PolProfism political science, unmoored from critical understanding of history or context is part of this /1
"How did we get to this?" - a short PolProf thread (1/4)
January 1, 2026 at 1:30 PM
Worth reading. It's a trivial thing by comparison, but Ford at one point on Twitter didn't know how Churchill came to power during the war.
Hit me hard that the naive presentism of much PolProfism political science, unmoored from critical understanding of history or context is part of this /1
Hit me hard that the naive presentism of much PolProfism political science, unmoored from critical understanding of history or context is part of this /1
Reposted by punkacademic
Times are tough, and some of my paid subscribers have had to cancel lately due to financial hardships. I get it, and I wish for better times for us all. Unfortunately, paid subscriptions are now dipping into unsustainable territory. I am hoping to get eight new paid subscribers before the new year.
Organizing My Thoughts
Kelly Hayes writes about things you should know if you want to change the world.
organizingmythoughts.org
December 28, 2025 at 9:28 PM
Times are tough, and some of my paid subscribers have had to cancel lately due to financial hardships. I get it, and I wish for better times for us all. Unfortunately, paid subscriptions are now dipping into unsustainable territory. I am hoping to get eight new paid subscribers before the new year.
About seven or eight years ago, was walking down Colquitt Street in town towards Bold Street when a stylishly dressed man who resembled Leighton Baines walked past me. I stopped in the street as my addled brain processed, and then exclaimed 'Fuck me, that's Leighton Baines' quite loudly.
Right folks. Feeling rather down at the moment so bringing back an oldie
Please Quote this with your most minor celebrity interaction
Please Quote this with your most minor celebrity interaction
December 29, 2025 at 9:34 PM
About seven or eight years ago, was walking down Colquitt Street in town towards Bold Street when a stylishly dressed man who resembled Leighton Baines walked past me. I stopped in the street as my addled brain processed, and then exclaimed 'Fuck me, that's Leighton Baines' quite loudly.
Signed off w/stress in early December. Medic (who's great) 'you need time away from things.' Right like but this Dec Mum hospitalised, blood transfusions & in over Xmas, hours with lawyers over Dad's care, hospital fucked up my MRI (which was for at 730am on 27th), bad MS falls...Everton That.
December 29, 2025 at 8:54 PM
Signed off w/stress in early December. Medic (who's great) 'you need time away from things.' Right like but this Dec Mum hospitalised, blood transfusions & in over Xmas, hours with lawyers over Dad's care, hospital fucked up my MRI (which was for at 730am on 27th), bad MS falls...Everton That.
Reposted by punkacademic
Several of the largest protest marches in the UK were trans rights marches in the the past few years. You probably wouldn't know this because the BBC coverage of them has been next to non-existent.
Meanwhile they will gladly headline a single transphobe staging a one-person protest.
Meanwhile they will gladly headline a single transphobe staging a one-person protest.
December 29, 2025 at 12:40 PM
Several of the largest protest marches in the UK were trans rights marches in the the past few years. You probably wouldn't know this because the BBC coverage of them has been next to non-existent.
Meanwhile they will gladly headline a single transphobe staging a one-person protest.
Meanwhile they will gladly headline a single transphobe staging a one-person protest.
Reposted by punkacademic
December 27, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Reposted by punkacademic
Holy Island, Northumberland, photo by Emma Rothera, Lindisfarne-based landscape and nature photographer.
December 27, 2025 at 9:06 AM
Holy Island, Northumberland, photo by Emma Rothera, Lindisfarne-based landscape and nature photographer.
Reposted by punkacademic
#OtD 27 Dec 1861 Mikhail Bakunin, Russian anarchist and leading figure in the First International, landed in Liverpool, having travelled the long way around the globe (via Japan, across the Pacific, USA and Atlantic) after escaping exile in Siberia stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9889...
December 27, 2025 at 9:20 AM
#OtD 27 Dec 1861 Mikhail Bakunin, Russian anarchist and leading figure in the First International, landed in Liverpool, having travelled the long way around the globe (via Japan, across the Pacific, USA and Atlantic) after escaping exile in Siberia stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9889...
I occupy a weird position as an anarchist communist who used to work as a parliamentary political adviser, but this is - in its own terms - spot-on. I disagree with the premise obviously (being an anarchist & all that) but if Labour were serious they'd read Butler & listen.
They won't, of course.
They won't, of course.
‘Voters for the historic duopoly mostly cite the lack of a better alternative that can plausibly win. If that sense changes, the floor will vanish beneath Labour’s feet.’
@piercepenniless.bsky.social on Britain’s political futures:
www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
@piercepenniless.bsky.social on Britain’s political futures:
www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
James Butler · Short Cuts: Labour’s Complacency
The few optimists in Labour claim that polling numbers aren’t meaningful this far from an election: faced with a...
www.lrb.co.uk
December 27, 2025 at 9:20 AM
I occupy a weird position as an anarchist communist who used to work as a parliamentary political adviser, but this is - in its own terms - spot-on. I disagree with the premise obviously (being an anarchist & all that) but if Labour were serious they'd read Butler & listen.
They won't, of course.
They won't, of course.