Martin Rayner
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martinrayner.bsky.social
Martin Rayner
@martinrayner.bsky.social
7.7K followers 510 following 24K posts
“Si fractus illabatur orbis impavidum ferient ruinae” — Horace
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martinrayner.bsky.social
Curious that Newsom gets grief from the corporate media about his hilarious mocking of Trump, while at the same time they stubbornly refuse (for nearly a decade now) to confront the US president over how childish, comprehensively false, ridiculous, and often bizarrely aberrant his online posts are.
acyn.bsky.social Acyn @acyn.bsky.social · 16h
Newsom: They want to wash my mouth out with soap. Without any situational awareness that they've said not a word about Donald Trump dressing up as the Pope. Donald Trump putting his picture up on mount Rushmore. Donald Trump sending insane all cap tweets that are just madness.
November 11, 2025 at 9:35 AM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Drawing on historical wonkery about Senatorial dealmaking, Lawrence O’Donnell offers a spirited defence of the Dems who voted to end the government shutdown, arguing that, contrary to widespread opinion, Mike Johnson is, in fact, the “big loser in this compromise”...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eqe0...
Lawrence: With Trump's shutdown ending, Dems are closer than ever to forcing Epstein files release
YouTube video by MSNBC
www.youtube.com
November 11, 2025 at 9:06 AM
martinrayner.bsky.social
“Gypsy Escape”… one of the best tracks from the 1971 album “Galactic Zoo Dossier” by Kingdom Come, a seminal prog rock band fronted by Arthur Brown.
#Musicsky
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mFN...
13 Kingdom Come - Gypsy Escape
YouTube video by HM Choi
www.youtube.com
November 11, 2025 at 8:26 AM
martinrayner.bsky.social
What a hilariously empty threat. There’s no need to “unwind” something that never existed in the first place. All these “trillions” of dollars of investments Trump is always bragging about lately are nothing but the most fantastical puffery, detached from reality and unsupported by actual deals.
atrupar.com Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 9h
Oh, so he totally stole the money
The U.S. Supreme Court was given the wrong numbers. The “unwind” in the event of a negative decision on Tariffs, would be, including investments made, to be made, and return of funds, in excess of 3 Trillion Dollars. It would not be possible to ever make up for that kind of a “drubbing.” That would truly become an insurmountable National Security Event, and devastating to the future of our Country - Possibly non-sustainable!
November 11, 2025 at 7:09 AM
martinrayner.bsky.social
“Armistice”... central figure of the amazing Liberty Memorial great frieze completed in 1935 by the American sculptor and educator Edmond Romulus Amateis, now part of the National War Memorial in Kansas City, MO.
#Art, #Sculpture, #VeteransDay
Central figure of the Liberty Memorial great frieze showing a woman with outstretched wings symbolizing peace and understanding. Of the four men huddled beneath her wings, two with bowed heads face east towards the memories of war, while the other pair with heads uplifted gaze west toward everlasting peace. Expansive great frieze of of the Liberty Memorial, the inscription of which reads: “These have dared bear the torches of sacrifice and service. Their bodies return to dust but their work liveth evermore. Let us strive on to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”
November 11, 2025 at 6:45 AM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Brilliant goofiness...
genius.com/Oj-the-alien...
November 11, 2025 at 5:52 AM
martinrayner.bsky.social
“The Homecoming”... a bronze statue in Victoria, BC, created by local sculptor Nathan Scott to commemorate the Royal Canadian Navy’s presence in the city on its centenary in 2010.
#RemembranceDay
Bronze sculpture depicting a Canadian sailor on bended knee, with arms open, reuniting with his young daughter and dog upon returning from a naval deployment. Another view of "Homecoming" statue.
November 11, 2025 at 5:02 AM
martinrayner.bsky.social
“New Gold Dream” from the 1982 album by Simple Minds.

“And the world goes hot
And the city takes
And the beat goes crashing
All along the way…”

#Musicsky, #NewWave
www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWAC...
Simple Minds - New Gold Dream (Maxi) 12"
YouTube video by fery2
www.youtube.com
November 11, 2025 at 4:28 AM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Antisemitism can largely be traced back to the Emperor Constantine, who denounced Jews as a “nation of parricides and Lord-killers”, “mentally blind”, “a detestable mob”, and “thoroughly evil persons”, etc., thus paving the way for 17 centuries of Christian hate.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpyY...
Constantine criticises the Jewish nation. The Emperor Constantine's savage attack on Jews & Judaism.
YouTube video by Flavius Claudius Julianus
www.youtube.com
November 11, 2025 at 3:38 AM
martinrayner.bsky.social
The Bulwark’s “B-Team” explores the curious case of Nancy Mace and her bizarre feud w/ security officials at the Charleston Airport. Makes you wonder about the sanity of voters in her South Carolina district who tolerate the crazed antics of this unhinged psycho.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3H2X...
Nancy Mace Has TOTALLY Lost Touch With Reality
YouTube video by The Bulwark
www.youtube.com
November 11, 2025 at 3:01 AM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Found some old seed packets recently, so decided to repurpose a disused planter to see if I could grow a little vegetable garden in my bathroom. First sprouts after a week or so… radishes, a pea, and not sure what the other one is, but it sure looks promising. Always such a joy to watch every day.
First sprouts of a future little indoor vegetable garden.
November 11, 2025 at 2:21 AM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Quite a dismal little road when not being illuminated by light from the setting sun.
#clouds, #photography
Summit Avenue (Victoria, BC) on a late autumn afternoon as the sun is setting. BC Hydro Horsey substation on one side and a private car parkade (used by neighboring dealerships) on the other.
November 11, 2025 at 1:46 AM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Interesting discussion between Bill Kelly and journalist Markham Hislop of Energi Media talking about a wide range of issues, from new energy policies buried in Budget 2025 to how Canada should respond to China’s strategic trade pivot away from the US.
#CdnPoli
www.youtube.com/watch?v=pD-6...
Carney's Budget Has Potential, But IGNORES THIS Critical Data... | Ep. 267 Canada Politics News
YouTube video by The Bill Kelly Podcast 🇨🇦
www.youtube.com
November 10, 2025 at 11:27 PM
martinrayner.bsky.social
You’d think they’d learn by now… 🙄
Editorial cartoon by Pat Bagley (Salt Lake City Tribune) drawing on the familiar Lucy and the Football trope from "Peanuts".
November 10, 2025 at 11:01 PM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Is there any question left that Gavin is running for president in 2028? He was on fire in Texas this weekend and the crowd loved it. A welcome antidote to the current situation in Washington.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rfb9...
Redistricting: Newsom rallies in Texas over Prop 50
YouTube video by LiveNOW from FOX
www.youtube.com
November 10, 2025 at 8:42 PM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Mehdi Hasan & Prem Thakker expressing the rage being felt by many Dem supporters following the shameful and pointless surrender of eight senators who managed almost overnight to effectively deflate last week’s “Blue Wave” of enthusiasm w/ their feckless treachery.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ly2z...
Mehdi and Prem GO OFF on ‘Useless’ Democrats for Caving on Government Shutdown
YouTube video by Zeteo
www.youtube.com
November 10, 2025 at 8:16 PM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Dig it. ZZ Top’s classic “La Grange” gets a bright new Asian metal makeover with traditional Chinese stringed instruments (i.e., the sanxian and liuqin, aka lute and mandolin) replacing the original pulsing guitar riffs.
#Musicsky
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jufj...
ZZ Top – La Grange (Asian Folk Metal Cover) | NiNi Music
YouTube video by Nini Music
www.youtube.com
November 10, 2025 at 7:15 PM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Thought for a moment there it was Chuck Schumer and his “centrist” pals in the Senate. 😉
November 10, 2025 at 6:45 PM
martinrayner.bsky.social
An amazed German takes a closer look at Edmonton, AB, the northernmost metropolitan area in North America and w/ over a million people, one of the largest northern cities in the world. Features some great aerial shots of the city and its sprawling urban footprint.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=fU7H...
Why Is This Mega-City In the Middle Of Nowhere?
YouTube video by imperatur
www.youtube.com
November 10, 2025 at 6:28 PM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Floor plan of a 267 sq. ft. (25 m2) “shoebox” condo that’s half the size of those typically built 40-50 years ago and have been cynically designed and built in recent decades (around the GTA especially) mostly with investors and developers, not tenants, in mind.

More here: tinyurl.com/536zcrr2
Floor plan of an incredibly tiny condo. “I think by the time you lay out your bed, which right now is a pull out couch, you could probably open the fridge with your toes,” quipped one realtor. “I think it really speaks to the fact that we’re living in a literal shoe box.”
November 10, 2025 at 6:13 PM
martinrayner.bsky.social
A day that will live in infamy, but maybe also one that marks a critical inflection point in the effort remove the Dems’ sclerotic and out-of-touch gerontocracy from office to make way for a new generation of leadership that will “fight, fight, fight” (to borrow a phrase).
tinyurl.com/4ubvfhxt
‘Oh, F*ck Off!’ Democrats Rage at ‘Pathetic’ Shutdown ‘Betrayal’ in Mass Backlash
Eight members of the Democratic caucus who voted to reopen the government ignited backlash from colleagues slamming the move as a “pathetic” surrender.
tinyurl.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:03 PM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Striking photo of the 1919 homecoming parade in Kansas City, MO, featuring the victory arch built to welcome back returning soldiers. Many such “temporary” structures were erected around the US following WWI, though most were demolished not long afterwards (much like those built for world’s fairs).
US troops returning from "the Great War" in Kansas City, MO underneath the temporary Victory Arch constructed for the homecoming parade.
November 10, 2025 at 4:45 PM
martinrayner.bsky.social
From the Land of Broken Clocks...

More reactions to this “spectacularly dumb” idea here: www.rawstory.com/trump-regret...
X/Tweet from MTG dumping on Trump's 50-year mortgage idea.
November 10, 2025 at 3:48 PM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Interesting compare/contrast between two different tax incentives that are currently being pitched, one by the Liberal government in Budget 2025, the other by the Conservative opposition... and what they say about their respective approaches to tax policy.
#CdnPoli
www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMeQ...
Good Policy vs Bad Policy
YouTube video by Claus Kellerman POV
www.youtube.com
November 10, 2025 at 3:39 PM
martinrayner.bsky.social
Over the weekend, Trump granted full pardons to 77 allies involved in the criminal conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election results, including Rudy Giuliani, Mark Meadows, and Sidney Powell. This brings the total number of pardons and commutations issued to 1,677—in less than a year!
Editorial cartoon by Bill Bramhall (New York Daily News). Trump as "The Godfather" holding marionette strings that spell out "Pardons"... BTW, Trump has issued almost as many pardons and commutations in less than a year as were issued by Obama over the course of 8 years!
November 10, 2025 at 3:13 PM