Ron Manton
@ronmanton.bsky.social
Unit of capitalist production. Never TPFP. Aspiring musician. Keeper of wolves.
Starmer. Leadership. Here we go again with the usual cycle of The Guardian's "is said to"'s. Soon we'll be confronted with the perfunctory Commons tea room "tittle-tattle". Commentators will whip up a self-fulfilling prophecy, there will be a GE, and it will all start again - again. It's insulting.
November 12, 2025 at 10:36 AM
Starmer. Leadership. Here we go again with the usual cycle of The Guardian's "is said to"'s. Soon we'll be confronted with the perfunctory Commons tea room "tittle-tattle". Commentators will whip up a self-fulfilling prophecy, there will be a GE, and it will all start again - again. It's insulting.
If the #BBC were to settle out of U.S. court, that would be the end of my licence fee. Personally, I would feel more comfortable if the organisation were to reverse its expansion in the U.S.; I am increasingly irritated by the volume of American news beamed into my living room by "The Context".
November 10, 2025 at 5:22 PM
If the #BBC were to settle out of U.S. court, that would be the end of my licence fee. Personally, I would feel more comfortable if the organisation were to reverse its expansion in the U.S.; I am increasingly irritated by the volume of American news beamed into my living room by "The Context".
November 6, 2025 at 6:19 PM
Andrew M-W does not change the longstanding, fundamental and substantive reasons why Britain must become a republic. Let's not muddy the waters, and overplay his importance as an individual. #republicUK is about #democracy; plain Andrew needs to face the legal system for his alleged behaviour.
October 31, 2025 at 9:52 PM
Andrew M-W does not change the longstanding, fundamental and substantive reasons why Britain must become a republic. Let's not muddy the waters, and overplay his importance as an individual. #republicUK is about #democracy; plain Andrew needs to face the legal system for his alleged behaviour.
If Andrew Windsor does move in, the good people of Adelaide should, en masse, lobby the UK Govt. for an immediate renaming of the new location for his "house arrest". #republicUK
October 27, 2025 at 5:02 PM
If Andrew Windsor does move in, the good people of Adelaide should, en masse, lobby the UK Govt. for an immediate renaming of the new location for his "house arrest". #republicUK
@chrisj3nnings.bsky.social could you please knock me up an abstract in oils? Theme or symbolism is not so important; it's more a question of square feet.
October 24, 2025 at 8:43 PM
@chrisj3nnings.bsky.social could you please knock me up an abstract in oils? Theme or symbolism is not so important; it's more a question of square feet.
Spent most of today thinking about someone on the other side of the world. Love. "The trick...is not minding that it hurts".
October 24, 2025 at 7:32 PM
Spent most of today thinking about someone on the other side of the world. Love. "The trick...is not minding that it hurts".
Labour govt. announces an ambitious new plan for university education: make it ever more expensive, and saddle students with greater debt. Remember Clegg? Well, remember this moment too. It appears the post-Brexit UK economy cannot afford to prioritise the futures of young people.
October 20, 2025 at 5:52 PM
Labour govt. announces an ambitious new plan for university education: make it ever more expensive, and saddle students with greater debt. Remember Clegg? Well, remember this moment too. It appears the post-Brexit UK economy cannot afford to prioritise the futures of young people.
From "The Guardian": 'Parliamentary rules state that “questions that cast reflections on the sovereign or the Royal Family” more broadly are inadmissible'. That the fundamental instrument of UK democracy cannot scrutinise without fear or favour is both a critical flaw and a disgrace. #republicUK.
October 19, 2025 at 9:04 PM
From "The Guardian": 'Parliamentary rules state that “questions that cast reflections on the sovereign or the Royal Family” more broadly are inadmissible'. That the fundamental instrument of UK democracy cannot scrutinise without fear or favour is both a critical flaw and a disgrace. #republicUK.
Sadly, 10,000 men have now also been made redundant. I hope they will receive appropriate support.
October 17, 2025 at 7:53 PM
Sadly, 10,000 men have now also been made redundant. I hope they will receive appropriate support.
No. Look. Couldn't he just be exiled to St. Helena? Apart from anything else, there's an elegance to the solution if you think about visits to small islands.
#republicUK
#republicUK
October 17, 2025 at 7:41 PM
No. Look. Couldn't he just be exiled to St. Helena? Apart from anything else, there's an elegance to the solution if you think about visits to small islands.
#republicUK
#republicUK
It's just about the right time to remind myself, although a reminder is hardly necessary, how much I miss being in #Sydney. If I got my Emirates A380 skates on, I could be in "The Trinity" for a Sunday sharpener.
trinitybar.com.au #TrinityBarAU
trinitybar.com.au #TrinityBarAU
Best Pub Surry Hills with Rooftop Bar & Live Sports Bar
A local institution bringing the community together for
all occasions since 1882.
trinitybar.com.au
October 17, 2025 at 8:41 AM
It's just about the right time to remind myself, although a reminder is hardly necessary, how much I miss being in #Sydney. If I got my Emirates A380 skates on, I could be in "The Trinity" for a Sunday sharpener.
trinitybar.com.au #TrinityBarAU
trinitybar.com.au #TrinityBarAU
Woke up this morning, and I felt trapped in my life. There's someone I care about very much, and I know it's not to be. It's all in #GrahamGreene. Everything. I just know where things are going. Nothing is "written", but some paths are no longer open.
October 12, 2025 at 10:58 AM
Woke up this morning, and I felt trapped in my life. There's someone I care about very much, and I know it's not to be. It's all in #GrahamGreene. Everything. I just know where things are going. Nothing is "written", but some paths are no longer open.
I assume this means the U.S. will "pull out of, and no longer recognise", the Nobel Prize? Perhaps AFPI will sponsor a new "beautiful" peace prize, and Trump will be anointed. "A lot of people, you know, people were saying I couldn't win, but we did it...".
#NobelPeacePrize
#NobelPeacePrize
October 10, 2025 at 4:38 PM
I assume this means the U.S. will "pull out of, and no longer recognise", the Nobel Prize? Perhaps AFPI will sponsor a new "beautiful" peace prize, and Trump will be anointed. "A lot of people, you know, people were saying I couldn't win, but we did it...".
#NobelPeacePrize
#NobelPeacePrize
Very upsetting news about "Crazy Horse". Best back row in an England/Tigers jersey. But rugby can't continue like this? Or is it life? Give it a rip doing what you want until something cracks? Probably. If I had a son, what would I be telling him? I don't know, but I do know this is bitter #mnd 🌹
October 6, 2025 at 10:45 AM
Very upsetting news about "Crazy Horse". Best back row in an England/Tigers jersey. But rugby can't continue like this? Or is it life? Give it a rip doing what you want until something cracks? Probably. If I had a son, what would I be telling him? I don't know, but I do know this is bitter #mnd 🌹
It's a bit like #Heisenberg. I decided to post about having posted 777 times, but then, all of a sudden, I hadn't. Made me remember that everything we do changes everything. #PhilSky
October 2, 2025 at 7:32 PM
It's a bit like #Heisenberg. I decided to post about having posted 777 times, but then, all of a sudden, I hadn't. Made me remember that everything we do changes everything. #PhilSky
The gift of a book. My beautiful 1909 edition of Thomas Mann's masterpiece, "Buddenbrooks", subtitled "Verfall einer Familie". This was gifted to me when I was in my teens by a lady from Graz. I have always treasured it. #BookSky
October 2, 2025 at 10:58 AM
The gift of a book. My beautiful 1909 edition of Thomas Mann's masterpiece, "Buddenbrooks", subtitled "Verfall einer Familie". This was gifted to me when I was in my teens by a lady from Graz. I have always treasured it. #BookSky
"If this new order [for access to Apple user data in the UK] isn't stopped, the UK Government will likely issue similar orders to other companies, too." Caroline Wilson Palow, legal director for Privacy International.
The new pursuit of Apple could leave every UK citizen less safe online.
The new pursuit of Apple could leave every UK citizen less safe online.
October 1, 2025 at 3:54 PM
"If this new order [for access to Apple user data in the UK] isn't stopped, the UK Government will likely issue similar orders to other companies, too." Caroline Wilson Palow, legal director for Privacy International.
The new pursuit of Apple could leave every UK citizen less safe online.
The new pursuit of Apple could leave every UK citizen less safe online.
Working on my indefinite leave to remain.
September 30, 2025 at 1:49 PM
Working on my indefinite leave to remain.
Just realised I have failed. Will need to be more circumspect after digital ID is implemented lest I be sanctioned or blacklisted for my opinions.
I'm saying nothing about state mandated digital id. I think you'll guess where I stand. #privacy
September 26, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Just realised I have failed. Will need to be more circumspect after digital ID is implemented lest I be sanctioned or blacklisted for my opinions.
"The government said that, in time, digital IDs would make it easier to apply for services such as driving licences, childcare and welfare. It said it would also simplify access to tax records" [BBC]. When is "mandatory for work", just mandatory? When it's from a disingenuous, autocratic govt. 1/2
September 26, 2025 at 1:19 PM
"The government said that, in time, digital IDs would make it easier to apply for services such as driving licences, childcare and welfare. It said it would also simplify access to tax records" [BBC]. When is "mandatory for work", just mandatory? When it's from a disingenuous, autocratic govt. 1/2
Magnificent as E.P. Thompson's magnum opus remains, I don't think he got into the soul of working class existence quite like this. Different planes, I know: theoretical, philosophical versus a drama of day to day life. Brilliant fiction lets you understand the essence of something. #BookSky
September 23, 2025 at 12:37 PM
Magnificent as E.P. Thompson's magnum opus remains, I don't think he got into the soul of working class existence quite like this. Different planes, I know: theoretical, philosophical versus a drama of day to day life. Brilliant fiction lets you understand the essence of something. #BookSky
Watching Jimi on BBC4, "Electric Church". He's playing a Strat with his teeth. So that's where I'm going wrong. Nothing in my guitar grades erring towards the orthodontic. Completely amazing. Completely. Great footage. Paul McCartney interviewed and described as "Musician". #ElectricChurch #Hendrix
September 19, 2025 at 8:21 PM
Watching Jimi on BBC4, "Electric Church". He's playing a Strat with his teeth. So that's where I'm going wrong. Nothing in my guitar grades erring towards the orthodontic. Completely amazing. Completely. Great footage. Paul McCartney interviewed and described as "Musician". #ElectricChurch #Hendrix