Tom Griffin
tcgriffin.bsky.social
Tom Griffin
@tcgriffin.bsky.social

Author of State-Private Networks and Intelligence Theory (Routledge 2022). Writing on intelligence history on substack. https://intelligencehistory.substack.com

Political science 30%
Sociology 27%
The killing of Alex Pretti is a heartbreaking tragedy. It should also be a wake-up call to every American, regardless of party, that many of our core values as a nation are increasingly under assault.

Suspect Trump would prefer a violent response as it would make it harder to continue the mass mobilisation that there's been in Minnesota.
One lesson to be learned from extremism in the 1970s is that violence can be avoided if calls for radical change are given a political outlet—but if governments ignore people's needs, “the violence will soon return,” Jason Burke argues:
Lessons From the Extremists Who Hijacked the 1970s
If calls for radical change aren’t given a political outlet, violence will always return.
bit.ly

Reposted by Tom Griffin

One lesson to be learned from extremism in the 1970s is that violence can be avoided if calls for radical change are given a political outlet—but if governments ignore people's needs, “the violence will soon return,” Jason Burke argues:
Lessons From the Extremists Who Hijacked the 1970s
If calls for radical change aren’t given a political outlet, violence will always return.
bit.ly
The BBC coverage is absolutely terrible.

It leads on "sharply contested narratives"

It has a dramatic skew to the US government

It has posted the video but has failed to report on what it shows: it shows the US govt account is untrue

Reposted by Tom Griffin

This is even worse from the BBC! Stop giving prominence to people with a track record of lies above the videos we can all see.
Worth remembering when looking at the horrific scenes in the US right now that both Reform and the Tories have pledged to bring in ICE-style organisations to the UK if they win power
The federal government is gunning people down in the streets, lying about what happened and then preventing any independent investigation of the killings

Reposted by Tom Griffin

From his colleague . . .
If you're living somewhere outside the USA, one thing you can do is pressure your leaders to boycott World Cup and Olympic events here.
We have been told for nearly 30 years that America needed to tolerate mass shootings because the broad availability of guns would help us defend ourselves from an overreaching federal government. That day has come. The people who said this are supporting the federal agents. Many have joined them.

Latest newsletter - Keeping an eye on the embassy:
Diplomatic cover in a changing intelligence landscape intelligencehistory.substack.com/p/keeping-an...
Keeping an eye on the embassy
Diplomatic cover in a changing intelligence landscape
intelligencehistory.substack.com

Reposted by Tom Griffin

It’ll be interesting to see if there’s now an increase in applications for Labour membership.

You have to be one for 6 months to vote in a leadership election.

It’ll also be interesting to see if there’s an increase in the time taken to process such applications (or in the % rejected).
I told the White House the state must lead the investigation.

Let state investigators secure justice. As we process the scene, stay peaceful and give them space.

The State has the personnel to keep people safe – federal agents must not obstruct our ability to do so.
Ed Miliband tells the Fabian Society conference: “I very much hope the local party will have the option of selecting Andy Burnham as the candidate”.
To repeat: Abolish ICE.
I just spoke with the White House after another horrific shooting by federal agents this morning. Minnesota has had it. This is sickening.

The President must end this operation. Pull the thousands of violent, untrained officers out of Minnesota. Now.
Appears this is also true for fascism.
Initial report is that two observers got into a shoving match with eight agents, one observer was wrestled to the ground, and then an ICE agent pulled out a sidearm and shot the man on the ground five times.
in case you're curious about how angry Minnesota is about ICE, it was -20 today

Reposted by Tom Griffin

The images from Minneapolis are heavily redolent of those from Derry before Bloody Sunday.

The logic of challenged militarism, faced with civilian resistance, is to increase the violence levels.

That’s their one trick. Violence, or additional violence.
"1 in 5 pupils are getting a SEND diagnosis..the vast majority then trip into the benefit system because they get child disability allowance allowance.'

This is completely false from Milburn. He's supposed to be reviewing this issue and he's just making things up. Inexcusable.
Trump's comments about European contributions to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have managed to stoke anti-Americanism in what were once America's closest allies in Europe
Short of getting caught orchestrating a coup or assassination, this is absolutely the core case of what you expel an ambassador for.
Bessent pushes Albertan independence from Canada: "Albertans are very independent people. There's a rumor they may have a referendum on whether they want to stay in Canada or not. People are talking. People want sovereignty. They want what the US has got."
Bessent pushes Albertan independence from Canada: "Albertans are very independent people. There's a rumor they may have a referendum on whether they want to stay in Canada or not. People are talking. People want sovereignty. They want what the US has got."
NEW

Why the Hillsborough law campaigners are right to be resolute

The attempts to water down the duty of candour should be resisted

Me at @prospectmagazine.co.uk

www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/law/th...

Reposted by Tom Griffin

Marginally more seriously, if I were Foreign Secretary I'd be tempted to tell the US Ambassador that if they don't like the Chagos deal, the UK will adopt Tory policy (implied), and give sovereignty back to the islanders. And so the US has six months to get off Diego Garcia.
NEW | India is forging a different #energytransition path to China 🇮🇳⚡

Where China built first on coal and gas, India is taking a shortcut — using cheap solar to meet rising demand, relying far less on fossil fuels, and electrifying transport earlier.

https://loom.ly/UFDLamw
www.joxleywrites.jmoxley.co.uk/p/airport-bo...
Great piece on “airport book brain” - the tendency of politicians to swallow simplistic solutions. Latest example the Jonathan Haidt book shaping policy on teens and social media
the most extraordinary piece of reporting: a year inside the FBI (and yes there are implications here for British security- the Five Eyes bit is bonkers) www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Kash Patel’s FBI Is Making America Less Safe, Current and Former Employees Say
Forty-five current and former employees on the changes they say are undermining the agency and making America less safe.
www.nytimes.com
As leaders enter the emergency 🇪🇺#EUCO summit, some are having to debunk American fake news.

Danish PM Mette Frederiksen refutes reports that Trump's 'deal' will hand over small pieces of Greenland to 🇺🇸.

Danish sovereignty “cannot be discussed, it cannot be changed" she says.