@cardinal1608.bsky.social
An actual, real life "Cobra Effect". This is like seeing the survivorship bias plane landing at Stansted.
December 4, 2025 at 8:54 AM
An actual, real life "Cobra Effect". This is like seeing the survivorship bias plane landing at Stansted.
I enjoy that Argentina gets exempted from being "settler colonialist" in public discourse only by virtue of having run their country extremely, extremely badly.
December 2, 2025 at 6:45 PM
I enjoy that Argentina gets exempted from being "settler colonialist" in public discourse only by virtue of having run their country extremely, extremely badly.
Tremendously important that this is pronounced "val-uht" not "val-ay". We are not parking cars in Las Vegas for tips.
November 30, 2025 at 10:23 AM
Tremendously important that this is pronounced "val-uht" not "val-ay". We are not parking cars in Las Vegas for tips.
When Arsenal were small, possession dominant but unable to score, and constantly fouled, that was bad and "not proper football". Now Arsenal are massive, physical, and other teams are whining about them whanging in headers and winning games with sub-50% possession. I know which I prefer!
November 27, 2025 at 4:31 PM
When Arsenal were small, possession dominant but unable to score, and constantly fouled, that was bad and "not proper football". Now Arsenal are massive, physical, and other teams are whining about them whanging in headers and winning games with sub-50% possession. I know which I prefer!
Is it not just that (a) British people of Nigerian background and Brazilians are very overrepresented in elite footballers, and (b) those are two very religious communities.
November 27, 2025 at 12:17 AM
Is it not just that (a) British people of Nigerian background and Brazilians are very overrepresented in elite footballers, and (b) those are two very religious communities.
My god, this is such a good point. Comparing the press treatment of Nigel Farage (crimes: racist of longstanding, determined to rip this country apart, party awash with FSB money) to Meghan Markle (crimes: quite annoying, Californian, not white) is so instructive.
November 25, 2025 at 3:33 PM
My god, this is such a good point. Comparing the press treatment of Nigel Farage (crimes: racist of longstanding, determined to rip this country apart, party awash with FSB money) to Meghan Markle (crimes: quite annoying, Californian, not white) is so instructive.
I think that with a lot of problems in the UK - tax shortfall, costs of care ("dementia tax"), triple lock, planning - the only possible way out is for a government to accept it has to be done, accept they will be destroyed by it, and do it anyway. I just don't know if that is itself possible.
November 21, 2025 at 9:42 AM
I think that with a lot of problems in the UK - tax shortfall, costs of care ("dementia tax"), triple lock, planning - the only possible way out is for a government to accept it has to be done, accept they will be destroyed by it, and do it anyway. I just don't know if that is itself possible.
People think Trump is being bribed and blackmailed by Russia, but what if it was BAE Systems, Dassault and Saab all along?
November 21, 2025 at 8:57 AM
People think Trump is being bribed and blackmailed by Russia, but what if it was BAE Systems, Dassault and Saab all along?
That and "PAPYRUS!"
November 18, 2025 at 9:40 AM
That and "PAPYRUS!"
So having watched the Tories burn their credibility and hand the right to Reform and Britain First with the Rwanda plan, their reponse was "we can replicate that, but be even shitter because whereas their backbenchers loved it, ours will hate us immediately and forever."
November 17, 2025 at 12:17 PM
So having watched the Tories burn their credibility and hand the right to Reform and Britain First with the Rwanda plan, their reponse was "we can replicate that, but be even shitter because whereas their backbenchers loved it, ours will hate us immediately and forever."
So, to be clear, the government has now committed absolutely to the position that existing levels of asylum seeking are a crisis which it must solve or be deemed a failure, while putting forward a plan which it will not succeed in passing or implementing, leaving those levels unchanged. 1/2
November 17, 2025 at 12:17 PM
So, to be clear, the government has now committed absolutely to the position that existing levels of asylum seeking are a crisis which it must solve or be deemed a failure, while putting forward a plan which it will not succeed in passing or implementing, leaving those levels unchanged. 1/2
Yes - I agree with that. Except that I think American / British conception struggles to deal with placing those elites. In that, there are large numbers of people in Mexico, let alone Argentina, who consider themselves 'white', but who Americans in particular treat as "Hispanic people of colour".
November 17, 2025 at 12:12 PM
Yes - I agree with that. Except that I think American / British conception struggles to deal with placing those elites. In that, there are large numbers of people in Mexico, let alone Argentina, who consider themselves 'white', but who Americans in particular treat as "Hispanic people of colour".
It is odd to me how under-discussed it is that most South American countries are settler colonialist states. And that they are so often somehow treated as being in the anti-colonialist / non-aligned / global south etc camp.
November 17, 2025 at 11:57 AM
It is odd to me how under-discussed it is that most South American countries are settler colonialist states. And that they are so often somehow treated as being in the anti-colonialist / non-aligned / global south etc camp.
The opposite of what the last government did to this one. I would be interested to read an analysis of the extent to which Callaghan was responsible for thr success of Thatcher and Major was responsible for the success of Blair - essentially the only successful periods of government in memory!
November 15, 2025 at 11:05 AM
The opposite of what the last government did to this one. I would be interested to read an analysis of the extent to which Callaghan was responsible for thr success of Thatcher and Major was responsible for the success of Blair - essentially the only successful periods of government in memory!
I read this (very good) thriller a few years ago and thought "what an extraordinary conspiracy to have invented". I would not in a million years have thought it was based on a thing which was actually happening.
www.waterstones.com/book/to-the-...
www.waterstones.com/book/to-the-...
To The Lions by Holly Watt | Waterstones
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November 14, 2025 at 5:38 PM
I read this (very good) thriller a few years ago and thought "what an extraordinary conspiracy to have invented". I would not in a million years have thought it was based on a thing which was actually happening.
www.waterstones.com/book/to-the-...
www.waterstones.com/book/to-the-...
"Torment Nexus" is right up there with "Leopards Eating People's Faces Party" as the skeleton key for understanding our world.
November 14, 2025 at 2:01 PM
"Torment Nexus" is right up there with "Leopards Eating People's Faces Party" as the skeleton key for understanding our world.
How can there have been an investigation which did not entail the investigators reviewing these emails? And if the NYT's investigation did review these emails, how can your argument that no-one else knew about these emails possibly run?
November 14, 2025 at 8:19 AM
How can there have been an investigation which did not entail the investigators reviewing these emails? And if the NYT's investigation did review these emails, how can your argument that no-one else knew about these emails possibly run?
There was a fairly common business practice in Russia in the 1990s of putting an incorrect date of birth by your signature on documents, so that if the document ever became inconvenient you could say it must be forged as you would not have got your own birthday wrong.
November 12, 2025 at 9:44 PM
There was a fairly common business practice in Russia in the 1990s of putting an incorrect date of birth by your signature on documents, so that if the document ever became inconvenient you could say it must be forged as you would not have got your own birthday wrong.
And, horrifyingly, Sunak and Starmer are probably the *best* you can hope for in the current circumstances.
November 12, 2025 at 9:47 AM
And, horrifyingly, Sunak and Starmer are probably the *best* you can hope for in the current circumstances.
Since England switched to phonics across the board, primary school reading standards are unbelievably better. I cannot believe how much better it is from my kids. And the data all points the same way. The educators fighting for whole word this are the anti-vaxxers of literacy.
November 11, 2025 at 9:57 PM
Since England switched to phonics across the board, primary school reading standards are unbelievably better. I cannot believe how much better it is from my kids. And the data all points the same way. The educators fighting for whole word this are the anti-vaxxers of literacy.
I think if they got subs, they must acquit. Much harder to extrapolate from rye or sliced.
November 5, 2025 at 5:22 PM
I think if they got subs, they must acquit. Much harder to extrapolate from rye or sliced.
I have just found and ordered it online, and thank you for the recommendation.
October 31, 2025 at 11:43 AM
I have just found and ordered it online, and thank you for the recommendation.
I think that in (Protestant) England, Guy Fawkes Night (celebration of anti-Papist bigotry) replaced Halloween (Catholic festival). Halloween survived in (Catholic) Ireland and was taken to America, where the sectarian divide was forgotten before it returned to (not really Christian now) England.
October 31, 2025 at 11:10 AM
I think that in (Protestant) England, Guy Fawkes Night (celebration of anti-Papist bigotry) replaced Halloween (Catholic festival). Halloween survived in (Catholic) Ireland and was taken to America, where the sectarian divide was forgotten before it returned to (not really Christian now) England.