John Bayliss
@johnbayliss.bsky.social
A friend once said of me "he doesn't say much but when he does he's worth listening to."
It's up to other bluesky users to decide if that is true or not.
It's up to other bluesky users to decide if that is true or not.
"Permanently pause" is now my favourite example of an oxymoron.
President Donald Trump has pledged to “permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries,” in what would be a major escalation of the US government’s tough-on-immigration policy.
Trump vows to ‘permanently pause’ migration from ‘Third World countries’
U.S. president pledges to intensify crackdown after 2 National Guard members were shot in Washington.
www.politico.eu
November 28, 2025 at 11:55 AM
"Permanently pause" is now my favourite example of an oxymoron.
Reposted by John Bayliss
Gary Lineker: "This is the mistake the BBC makes. The BBC tries to appease the people that hate the BBC, rather than worrying about the people that love the BBC."
April 22, 2025 at 7:35 AM
Gary Lineker: "This is the mistake the BBC makes. The BBC tries to appease the people that hate the BBC, rather than worrying about the people that love the BBC."
The far right will always hate the BBC irrespective of how right wing the BBC gets because billionaires can't buy it and make money out of it.
November 9, 2025 at 8:07 PM
The far right will always hate the BBC irrespective of how right wing the BBC gets because billionaires can't buy it and make money out of it.
Shades of Ozymandias
'"Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
No thing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
'"Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
No thing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
A 450-foot Prometheus. A 500-foot George Washington. Tech investors are racing to build colossal monuments celebrating Western power.
America’s Tech Right Is Obsessed With Building Giant Statues
With proposals for a 450-foot statue of Prometheus on Alcatraz and a 650-foot George Washington, MAGA adherents are racing to build America’s largest statue.
bloom.bg
November 8, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Shades of Ozymandias
'"Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
No thing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
'"Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
No thing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
Reposted by John Bayliss
Word of the Day: CUÑADISMO (Spanish slang) — literally: ‘brother-in-law-ism’; speaking on topics you know little about as if you were an expert and smarter than everyone else.
November 7, 2025 at 11:23 AM
Word of the Day: CUÑADISMO (Spanish slang) — literally: ‘brother-in-law-ism’; speaking on topics you know little about as if you were an expert and smarter than everyone else.
Reposted by John Bayliss
The Chinese Box and Turing Test: Is AI really intelligent?
The Chinese Box and Turing Test: Is AI really intelligent?
No, it's just good at mass-production copy and paste. And yes, we're correctly applying Betteridge's Law
Opinion Remember ELIZA? The 1966 chatbot from MIT's AI Lab convinced countless people it was intelligent using nothing but simple pattern matching and canned responses. Nearly 60 years later, ChatGPT has people making the same mistake. Chatbots don't think – they've just gotten exponentially better at pretending.…
dlvr.it
October 27, 2025 at 9:02 AM
The Chinese Box and Turing Test: Is AI really intelligent?
Reposted by John Bayliss
The ability to remove your post when a hostile account quote-tweets you is a great feature of Bluesky.
To do it, go to their quote-tweet of you, click on the three dots in the bottom right, then click “detach quote.”
It shows up as “removed by author.”
To do it, go to their quote-tweet of you, click on the three dots in the bottom right, then click “detach quote.”
It shows up as “removed by author.”
October 18, 2025 at 1:32 PM
The ability to remove your post when a hostile account quote-tweets you is a great feature of Bluesky.
To do it, go to their quote-tweet of you, click on the three dots in the bottom right, then click “detach quote.”
It shows up as “removed by author.”
To do it, go to their quote-tweet of you, click on the three dots in the bottom right, then click “detach quote.”
It shows up as “removed by author.”
Reposted by John Bayliss
Whilst the immediate future looks bleak, have the kids got this?
October 17, 2025 at 7:38 PM
Whilst the immediate future looks bleak, have the kids got this?
Reposted by John Bayliss
One of the highest per capita consumers of Worcestershire sauce is El Salvador, where it is known as salsa inglesa ('English sauce') or salsa Perrins.
October 15, 2025 at 9:30 AM
One of the highest per capita consumers of Worcestershire sauce is El Salvador, where it is known as salsa inglesa ('English sauce') or salsa Perrins.
Reposted by John Bayliss
October 13, 2025 at 12:04 AM
Reposted by John Bayliss
Reposted by John Bayliss
BBC accused of 'extraordinary' anti-Green bias after party say the Laura Kuenssberg Show scrapped a promised interview with @zackpolanski.bsky.social on Sunday.
Green sources say the show also refused to interview Polanski after he was elected as leader last month
bylinetimes.com/2025/10/06/b...
Green sources say the show also refused to interview Polanski after he was elected as leader last month
bylinetimes.com/2025/10/06/b...
October 6, 2025 at 10:30 AM
BBC accused of 'extraordinary' anti-Green bias after party say the Laura Kuenssberg Show scrapped a promised interview with @zackpolanski.bsky.social on Sunday.
Green sources say the show also refused to interview Polanski after he was elected as leader last month
bylinetimes.com/2025/10/06/b...
Green sources say the show also refused to interview Polanski after he was elected as leader last month
bylinetimes.com/2025/10/06/b...
I'm guessing that one of those "N" words is "nepotism".
Trump to generals: "We can't let people throw around that word. I call it the N word. There are two N words and you can't use either of them."
September 30, 2025 at 2:27 PM
I'm guessing that one of those "N" words is "nepotism".
Why are so many of the flags at half-mast? Has someone died?
Or perhaps it's patriotism that's died.
Or perhaps it's patriotism that's died.
'Yeah, let's make the whole of England look like Belfast's Shankill Road at the height of sectarian violence in the 1980s', said no one more than five minutes ago.
September 29, 2025 at 12:03 PM
Why are so many of the flags at half-mast? Has someone died?
Or perhaps it's patriotism that's died.
Or perhaps it's patriotism that's died.
Reposted by John Bayliss
Breaking News 🚨 Trump tells the truth.
"We have a lot of stupid people in this country running things."
"We have a lot of stupid people in this country running things."
September 23, 2025 at 10:54 AM
Breaking News 🚨 Trump tells the truth.
"We have a lot of stupid people in this country running things."
"We have a lot of stupid people in this country running things."
Reposted by John Bayliss
Worth a sign and share
petition.parliament.uk/petitions/73...
petition.parliament.uk/petitions/73...
Petition: By-elections to be called automatically when MPs defect to another party
When an MP decides they want to defect to another party a by-election should be automatically triggered to allow the constituents the opportunity have their democratic right to agree or not with their...
petition.parliament.uk
September 15, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Worth a sign and share
petition.parliament.uk/petitions/73...
petition.parliament.uk/petitions/73...
Reposted by John Bayliss
George Orwell went to Spain to fight fascism. Literally. Not to take holidays, but to stand against the likes of Robinson and Musk.
Orwell saw in Spain how fascist "leaders" turned resentment into organised cruelty. That is why he bled in the trenches there.
Orwell saw in Spain how fascist "leaders" turned resentment into organised cruelty. That is why he bled in the trenches there.
September 13, 2025 at 10:37 PM
George Orwell went to Spain to fight fascism. Literally. Not to take holidays, but to stand against the likes of Robinson and Musk.
Orwell saw in Spain how fascist "leaders" turned resentment into organised cruelty. That is why he bled in the trenches there.
Orwell saw in Spain how fascist "leaders" turned resentment into organised cruelty. That is why he bled in the trenches there.
Slightly diminish a book
Moderate Expectations
Moderate Expectations
Slightly diminish a book
Wuthering Hillocks
Wuthering Hillocks
Slightly diminish a book
Tristram 0% ABV
Tristram 0% ABV
September 8, 2025 at 7:23 AM
Slightly diminish a book
Moderate Expectations
Moderate Expectations
Reposted by John Bayliss
Andrea Jenkyns must be singing again. #emergencyalert
September 7, 2025 at 2:23 PM
Andrea Jenkyns must be singing again. #emergencyalert
Reposted by John Bayliss
How politics works
From the new Private Eye, out now.
From the new Private Eye, out now.
September 4, 2025 at 6:32 AM
How politics works
From the new Private Eye, out now.
From the new Private Eye, out now.
Reposted by John Bayliss
The Home Office's own (excellent) research summary says
a) asylum seekers come to the UK primarily because of social networks/ties
b) welfare and labour market policies are *not* a big "pull factor"
c) safe routes would help
freemovement.org.uk/wp-content/u...
a) asylum seekers come to the UK primarily because of social networks/ties
b) welfare and labour market policies are *not* a big "pull factor"
c) safe routes would help
freemovement.org.uk/wp-content/u...
September 2, 2025 at 7:48 AM
The Home Office's own (excellent) research summary says
a) asylum seekers come to the UK primarily because of social networks/ties
b) welfare and labour market policies are *not* a big "pull factor"
c) safe routes would help
freemovement.org.uk/wp-content/u...
a) asylum seekers come to the UK primarily because of social networks/ties
b) welfare and labour market policies are *not* a big "pull factor"
c) safe routes would help
freemovement.org.uk/wp-content/u...
Reposted by John Bayliss
Imagine the message it would send if Gary Lineker won 'Presenter of the Year' at this year's National Television Awards
Standing up for compassion & the right to speak out
And, the feathers it would ruffle
My lovely followers, you know what to do:
nationaltvawards.com/vote
🗓️ Deadline: 12th Sep
Standing up for compassion & the right to speak out
And, the feathers it would ruffle
My lovely followers, you know what to do:
nationaltvawards.com/vote
🗓️ Deadline: 12th Sep
Vote | National Television Awards
Choose your winners in this year’s National Television Awards
nationaltvawards.com
September 1, 2025 at 9:31 AM
Imagine the message it would send if Gary Lineker won 'Presenter of the Year' at this year's National Television Awards
Standing up for compassion & the right to speak out
And, the feathers it would ruffle
My lovely followers, you know what to do:
nationaltvawards.com/vote
🗓️ Deadline: 12th Sep
Standing up for compassion & the right to speak out
And, the feathers it would ruffle
My lovely followers, you know what to do:
nationaltvawards.com/vote
🗓️ Deadline: 12th Sep
Reposted by John Bayliss
Seems the BBC significantly exaggerated the Home Office case here, both in their wording on Twitter and on the broadcast itself. Home Office lawyers did *not* say this, which would be politically toxic, and play right into the hands of you know who. >
August 29, 2025 at 7:11 AM
Seems the BBC significantly exaggerated the Home Office case here, both in their wording on Twitter and on the broadcast itself. Home Office lawyers did *not* say this, which would be politically toxic, and play right into the hands of you know who. >
Reposted by John Bayliss
Slightly diminish a band: Led Hot Air Balloon
Slightly diminish a band: Slightly Problematic Straits
Slightly diminish a band: Half Gingerbread Man Half Biscoff
August 13, 2025 at 4:08 PM
Slightly diminish a band: Led Hot Air Balloon