James Gillespie
@jamesgillespie.bsky.social
Technology, geopolitics, films / affil. @adamsmith.org @rusi.bsky.social / ex HM Treasury policy wonk / Swiftie
"Liberal cultist"/"MAGA intelligentsia"
"Smug provocateur drunk on his own arguments"
"Liberal cultist"/"MAGA intelligentsia"
"Smug provocateur drunk on his own arguments"
It's an interesting strategic dilemma. Being on the ticket for a party will get you a lot of votes just through brand recognition or unthinking loyalty, but sometimes the party brand can be a drag for particular candidates. You probably need to approach it on a case-by-case basis.
I think Mamdani has done the smartest thing, run in the election for the party you belong to, which Sanders wouldn't do. The main counter I can think of is Lieberman vs Lamont, and Lieberman obviously had some lingering good will in way I don't think Cuomo does.
My initial, off the cuff, thought is that he won't -
Dems will coalesce around mamdani, cuomo will be fighting for the same votes as adams
Dems will coalesce around mamdani, cuomo will be fighting for the same votes as adams
June 27, 2025 at 6:19 AM
It's an interesting strategic dilemma. Being on the ticket for a party will get you a lot of votes just through brand recognition or unthinking loyalty, but sometimes the party brand can be a drag for particular candidates. You probably need to approach it on a case-by-case basis.
Extraordinary for an MP to be this blunt about his leader on the floor of the House. Badenoch's authority is draining.
After Kemi Badenoch mocks Keir Starmer for skipping PMQs in order to attend the G7 and NATO summits, Conservative MP Mark Pritchard condemns her "partisan" jibes, adding that "I may get the whip withdrawn for saying that, but so be it. There are some things that go beyond party politics."
June 26, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Extraordinary for an MP to be this blunt about his leader on the floor of the House. Badenoch's authority is draining.
Roth gets things wrong here. The complaints have not led to the authoritarian push, the failure of universities to seriously address these issues has.
June 26, 2025 at 11:45 AM
Roth gets things wrong here. The complaints have not led to the authoritarian push, the failure of universities to seriously address these issues has.
This is some God-tier trolling 💀
Hello Bluesky, I've been told this app has become the place to go for common sense political discussion and analysis. So I'm thrilled to be here to engage with all of you.
June 18, 2025 at 10:51 PM
This is some God-tier trolling 💀
Reposted by James Gillespie
Good lord
HASSAN: What is habeas corpus?
NOEM: Habeas corpus is a constitutional right that the president has to be able to remove people from this country
HASSAN: That's incorrect
NOEM: Habeas corpus is a constitutional right that the president has to be able to remove people from this country
HASSAN: That's incorrect
May 20, 2025 at 4:10 PM
Good lord
Kneecap going full Karen and threatening to sue people who want them dropped from the Glasto lineup is a very amusing plot twist
May 20, 2025 at 8:25 AM
Kneecap going full Karen and threatening to sue people who want them dropped from the Glasto lineup is a very amusing plot twist
Reposted by James Gillespie
In the wake of the EU-UK Summit, RUSI's @edrusi.bsky.social offered insights into the defence pact, pointing out that it showed “disagreements remain, despite all of the language used about close alignment.” 👇
Britain and the EU have made a pact to cooperate more closely on support for Ukraine.
But a further deal allowing UK companies to benefit from an EU plan to boost defense spending is still to be agreed.
But a further deal allowing UK companies to benefit from an EU plan to boost defense spending is still to be agreed.
EU-UK defense pact saves the hard part for later
A further deal allowing U.K. companies to benefit from an EU plan to boost defense spending is still to be agreed.
ow.ly
May 20, 2025 at 8:24 AM
In the wake of the EU-UK Summit, RUSI's @edrusi.bsky.social offered insights into the defence pact, pointing out that it showed “disagreements remain, despite all of the language used about close alignment.” 👇
Reposted by James Gillespie
Tories now in fourth place, via YouGov
The first time since the nadir of 2019
The first time since the nadir of 2019
May 20, 2025 at 5:55 AM
Tories now in fourth place, via YouGov
The first time since the nadir of 2019
The first time since the nadir of 2019
Reposted by James Gillespie
Remember this one crossing my desk when worked in HMT back in 2019.
A good reminder that long term projects are worth investing in as they will payoff some day!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
A good reminder that long term projects are worth investing in as they will payoff some day!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
UK weather forecast more accurate with Met Office supercomputer
Detailed weather forecasts and better predictions about the rain will soon be enjoyed in the UK.
www.bbc.co.uk
May 20, 2025 at 8:13 AM
Remember this one crossing my desk when worked in HMT back in 2019.
A good reminder that long term projects are worth investing in as they will payoff some day!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
A good reminder that long term projects are worth investing in as they will payoff some day!
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
I’m outraged that Coachella invited Kneecap to perform this year. Their music is fucken shite.
April 21, 2025 at 8:59 PM
I’m outraged that Coachella invited Kneecap to perform this year. Their music is fucken shite.
Reposted by James Gillespie
I for one am glad that attacking court judgments seems to be socially acceptable again among people who used to give very tedious lectures on the subject.
April 18, 2025 at 3:13 PM
I for one am glad that attacking court judgments seems to be socially acceptable again among people who used to give very tedious lectures on the subject.
Reposted by James Gillespie
Latest Gallup puts Trump's approval rating at 44% approve, 53% disapprove -- underwater and "well below post-World War II presidential norms," although effectively unchanged from their February/March readings
news.gallup.com/poll/659534/...
news.gallup.com/poll/659534/...
April 17, 2025 at 7:04 PM
Latest Gallup puts Trump's approval rating at 44% approve, 53% disapprove -- underwater and "well below post-World War II presidential norms," although effectively unchanged from their February/March readings
news.gallup.com/poll/659534/...
news.gallup.com/poll/659534/...
Reposted by James Gillespie
Folding like origami is unquestionably the right move when you have a strong hand but forgot the rules, are holding the cards facing out, handed two to your opponent, lit your pants on fire, called your wife by her sister's name, and just realised raising would require wagering your kidney.
Trump signaled a potential end to the tit-for-tat tariff hikes between the US and China that shocked markets, and that a deal over TikTok may have to wait reut.rs/3Es7HMQ
Trump signals tit-for-tat China tariffs may be near end; TikTok deal on ice
Trump's comments further pointed to a diminished appetite for sharply higher across-the-board tariffs on dozens of countries after markets reacted violently to their introduction on April 2.
reut.rs
April 18, 2025 at 7:38 AM
Folding like origami is unquestionably the right move when you have a strong hand but forgot the rules, are holding the cards facing out, handed two to your opponent, lit your pants on fire, called your wife by her sister's name, and just realised raising would require wagering your kidney.
Reposted by James Gillespie
Conflict with the President does not undermine the Fed's 'integrity'. It is directly foreseen in the strands of legislation limiting Presidential power. What other point would such limits have?
April 18, 2025 at 7:39 AM
Conflict with the President does not undermine the Fed's 'integrity'. It is directly foreseen in the strands of legislation limiting Presidential power. What other point would such limits have?
People were like "meh meh meh, only idiots buy Hawk Tuah coin - I'm smart and invest in the stock market" and now look
April 7, 2025 at 9:16 PM
People were like "meh meh meh, only idiots buy Hawk Tuah coin - I'm smart and invest in the stock market" and now look
Tell me you don't understand what an administrative stay is without telling me
very excited to learn that the constitution allows the federal government to disappear people to foreign gulags beyond the reach of any judicial remedy
NEW: Chief Justice Roberts has issued an administrative stay in the Abrego Garcia case, temporarily relieving the Trump administration of its duty to return him from El Salvador. www.documentcloud.org/documents/25...
April 7, 2025 at 9:10 PM
Tell me you don't understand what an administrative stay is without telling me
X raised equity earlier this month at a $32bn valuation, so clearly the market is a lot closer to what xAI has paid than the "$6 billion at most"
No one in their right mind would buy X for $45 billion—banks have marked it down to $6 billion at most. Which means Musk is ripping off xAI investors off by a spectacular amount, essentially stealing half of the company from them.
March 28, 2025 at 10:37 PM
X raised equity earlier this month at a $32bn valuation, so clearly the market is a lot closer to what xAI has paid than the "$6 billion at most"
Reposted by James Gillespie
Ukraine may receive 40,000 Starlink-like terminals from France’s Eutelsat (enough to replace Starlink), — Bloomberg
March 6, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Ukraine may receive 40,000 Starlink-like terminals from France’s Eutelsat (enough to replace Starlink), — Bloomberg
Reposted by James Gillespie
John Carpenter’s THE THING wasn’t just a movie—it was a sci-fi horror revolution. Alien paranoia, practical effects that still shock, and a chilling descent into madness.
Dive into the legacy of this genre-defining masterpiece: cinephiliabeyond.org/john-carpent...
Dive into the legacy of this genre-defining masterpiece: cinephiliabeyond.org/john-carpent...
March 1, 2025 at 11:11 PM
John Carpenter’s THE THING wasn’t just a movie—it was a sci-fi horror revolution. Alien paranoia, practical effects that still shock, and a chilling descent into madness.
Dive into the legacy of this genre-defining masterpiece: cinephiliabeyond.org/john-carpent...
Dive into the legacy of this genre-defining masterpiece: cinephiliabeyond.org/john-carpent...
This Trump/Vance-Zelensky press conference is a new low for the Trump administration. It'll play well with MAGA, but the majority of Americans (including Republican voters) support Ukraine. People will watch and cringe at how their president and VP are behaving on the world stage.
February 28, 2025 at 6:16 PM
This Trump/Vance-Zelensky press conference is a new low for the Trump administration. It'll play well with MAGA, but the majority of Americans (including Republican voters) support Ukraine. People will watch and cringe at how their president and VP are behaving on the world stage.
I don't really follow the NFL, so perhaps someone can enlighten me... if Philly win today do they actually get a superb owl? Will it get along with their eagle?
I'll see myself out... 🏈🦉🦅
I'll see myself out... 🏈🦉🦅
February 9, 2025 at 10:12 PM
I don't really follow the NFL, so perhaps someone can enlighten me... if Philly win today do they actually get a superb owl? Will it get along with their eagle?
I'll see myself out... 🏈🦉🦅
I'll see myself out... 🏈🦉🦅
Democrats, of course, have made no such suggestion about the current Supreme Court and have accepted its judgments with equanimity and grace 🫠🫠🫠
Two lawyers, one Yale educated, one Harvard educated; one the VP, one a senator, suggesting that decisions made by courts aren’t legitimate if they don’t like the outcome. This is dangerous territory.
February 9, 2025 at 8:51 PM
Democrats, of course, have made no such suggestion about the current Supreme Court and have accepted its judgments with equanimity and grace 🫠🫠🫠
Reposted by James Gillespie
EU courts, tech law
Upcoming hearing in EU General Court, March 6th: Zalando is challenging its designation as a "very large online platform" under the Digital Services Act
Main arguments of Zalando:
eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/L...
Upcoming hearing in EU General Court, March 6th: Zalando is challenging its designation as a "very large online platform" under the Digital Services Act
Main arguments of Zalando:
eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/L...
C_2023314EN.01000902.xml
eur-lex.europa.eu
February 4, 2025 at 10:24 AM
EU courts, tech law
Upcoming hearing in EU General Court, March 6th: Zalando is challenging its designation as a "very large online platform" under the Digital Services Act
Main arguments of Zalando:
eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/L...
Upcoming hearing in EU General Court, March 6th: Zalando is challenging its designation as a "very large online platform" under the Digital Services Act
Main arguments of Zalando:
eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/L...
A take to get both sides raging: US aid spending should remain at the current level (0.9% of GDP), but USAID should be brought under the State Department (as the Trump admin is reportedly considering). Aid should be more carefully aligned to geopolitical objectives.
February 3, 2025 at 11:17 PM
A take to get both sides raging: US aid spending should remain at the current level (0.9% of GDP), but USAID should be brought under the State Department (as the Trump admin is reportedly considering). Aid should be more carefully aligned to geopolitical objectives.