@rowan-adams.bsky.social
In 1982-4 (before the Tories forced local councils to sack people and employ contractors) my first job was as a council gardener, about twenty miles from Reading. We stopped for heavy rain. Only once did we have to stop all day. Now that would be normal for many days.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Most consecutive days of rain since 1908, Reading University says
The only Januarys wetter than this year's were in 1939, 1995 and 2014, meteorologists say.
www.bbc.co.uk
February 10, 2026 at 7:42 AM
In 1982-4 (before the Tories forced local councils to sack people and employ contractors) my first job was as a council gardener, about twenty miles from Reading. We stopped for heavy rain. Only once did we have to stop all day. Now that would be normal for many days.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Making students pay for their university education was a mistake by the last Labour government. Now this 'Labour' government will make things even more unfair. As the editorial says, education is an investment - in the whole of society.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
The Guardian view on student loans: a graduate levy by stealth is no way to fund the NHS | Editorial
Editorial: By freezing thresholds, Labour is quietly loading the cost of public services on to young graduates, while insisting it has not raised taxes at all
www.theguardian.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:52 AM
Making students pay for their university education was a mistake by the last Labour government. Now this 'Labour' government will make things even more unfair. As the editorial says, education is an investment - in the whole of society.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
The risk of nuclear war is rising again. We need a new movement for global peace | David Cortright www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
The risk of nuclear war is rising again. We need a new movement for global peace | David Cortright
With the end of the New Start treaty, we face a potentially catastrophic arms race. It can still be prevented
www.theguardian.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:38 AM
The risk of nuclear war is rising again. We need a new movement for global peace | David Cortright www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
John Harris is right. The 'Labour' Party needs to change the horrendous inequality and injustice we're living in. We need politicians who are not dazzled by mega-rich people, politicians who do not worship money, but who work for a fairer society for everybody.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Politicians ‘don’t live how we live’, voters tell me. Morgan McSweeney's resignation won’t change their minds | John Harris
Whoever succeeds Keir Starmer will still have an almost impossible task: convincing voters that politicians will serve the people, not themselves, says Guardian columnist John Harris
www.theguardian.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:36 AM
John Harris is right. The 'Labour' Party needs to change the horrendous inequality and injustice we're living in. We need politicians who are not dazzled by mega-rich people, politicians who do not worship money, but who work for a fairer society for everybody.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Well said Lord Alf Dubs.
What's also horrible is the proposal to set an income threshold for asylum seekers. As if how much money people had determined their true worth, or how much they needed help. Why refuse help to the poorest people?
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
What's also horrible is the proposal to set an income threshold for asylum seekers. As if how much money people had determined their true worth, or how much they needed help. Why refuse help to the poorest people?
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
‘Pulling up the drawbridge’: Alf Dubs criticises Shabana Mahmood’s plans for child refugees
Exclusive: Labour peer, who came to UK as a refugee, says some ministers try to show they won’t ‘just do things because of their background’
www.theguardian.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:20 AM
Well said Lord Alf Dubs.
What's also horrible is the proposal to set an income threshold for asylum seekers. As if how much money people had determined their true worth, or how much they needed help. Why refuse help to the poorest people?
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
What's also horrible is the proposal to set an income threshold for asylum seekers. As if how much money people had determined their true worth, or how much they needed help. Why refuse help to the poorest people?
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
I almost feel sorry for him. But it's no good claiming that only the Labour Party cares about 'ordinary people', if you also didn't see that Peter Mandelson enjoyed so much time with rich people that perhaps he might not be trustworthy.
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Starmer in fight to reassert control over Labour party after McSweeney exit
Allies hope aide’s departure can quell anger over Mandelson scandal but others say it leaves PM dangerously exposed
www.theguardian.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:11 AM
I almost feel sorry for him. But it's no good claiming that only the Labour Party cares about 'ordinary people', if you also didn't see that Peter Mandelson enjoyed so much time with rich people that perhaps he might not be trustworthy.
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Reposted
The world heard JD Vance being booed at the Olympics. Except for viewers in the US | Bryan Armen Graham
The world heard JD Vance being booed at the Olympics. Except for viewers in the US | Bryan Armen Graham
The real risk for American broadcasters is not that dissent will be visible. It is that audiences will start assuming anything they do not show is being hidden
www.theguardian.com
February 8, 2026 at 10:04 AM
The world heard JD Vance being booed at the Olympics. Except for viewers in the US | Bryan Armen Graham
Reposted
Looking to find out the differences between Cherry Plum, Blackthorn and Hawthorn?
Check out this helpful #WildFlowerID resource from top botanist Kevin Widdowson:
bsbi.org/learn/resour...
Check out this helpful #WildFlowerID resource from top botanist Kevin Widdowson:
bsbi.org/learn/resour...
February 8, 2026 at 8:16 PM
Looking to find out the differences between Cherry Plum, Blackthorn and Hawthorn?
Check out this helpful #WildFlowerID resource from top botanist Kevin Widdowson:
bsbi.org/learn/resour...
Check out this helpful #WildFlowerID resource from top botanist Kevin Widdowson:
bsbi.org/learn/resour...
Reposted
This is such a good poem
This is from Matthew Rice’s collection ‘Plastic’.
A microcosm of working class life set in a single 12 hour factory night shift.
It is an astonishing book, its acute observations are at times stark and bleak, at other surreal, funny and humane
#poetry
#poemoftheday
A microcosm of working class life set in a single 12 hour factory night shift.
It is an astonishing book, its acute observations are at times stark and bleak, at other surreal, funny and humane
#poetry
#poemoftheday
February 7, 2026 at 5:27 PM
This is such a good poem
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
Why are we even aiming to increase the numbers of cars, instead of decreasing those numbers, by making it cheaper, better, and easier to travel by train and bus?
(I still have a car - the buses here are not good enough - but never again will I drive on motorways.)
Why are we even aiming to increase the numbers of cars, instead of decreasing those numbers, by making it cheaper, better, and easier to travel by train and bus?
(I still have a car - the buses here are not good enough - but never again will I drive on motorways.)
Most of England’s smart motorways are poor value for money, official reports find
AA says long-awaited evaluations show schemes are a ‘catastrophic waste of time, money and effort’
www.theguardian.com
February 6, 2026 at 2:53 PM
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
Why are we even aiming to increase the numbers of cars, instead of decreasing those numbers, by making it cheaper, better, and easier to travel by train and bus?
(I still have a car - the buses here are not good enough - but never again will I drive on motorways.)
Why are we even aiming to increase the numbers of cars, instead of decreasing those numbers, by making it cheaper, better, and easier to travel by train and bus?
(I still have a car - the buses here are not good enough - but never again will I drive on motorways.)
Reposted
Our right to protest must be defended.
Please join Amnesty UK, Palestine Solidarity Campaign and many other groups to defend our right to protest.
Please join Amnesty UK, Palestine Solidarity Campaign and many other groups to defend our right to protest.
February 4, 2026 at 8:13 PM
Our right to protest must be defended.
Please join Amnesty UK, Palestine Solidarity Campaign and many other groups to defend our right to protest.
Please join Amnesty UK, Palestine Solidarity Campaign and many other groups to defend our right to protest.
www.sustainweb.org/news/jan26-n...
Very glad that Sustain's comments and recommendations on this report include more nuts:
'A horticulture investment strategy that boosts commercial production of UK vegetables, beans, pulses, legumes and nuts, as well as increasing the UK market for these products'.
Very glad that Sustain's comments and recommendations on this report include more nuts:
'A horticulture investment strategy that boosts commercial production of UK vegetables, beans, pulses, legumes and nuts, as well as increasing the UK market for these products'.
UK food system reliance on imports and meat is a national security risk, intelligence report warns | Sustain
A UK government report says urgent change is needed to the way we produce and eat food to prevent worsening food insecurity and global conflict for resources.
www.sustainweb.org
February 6, 2026 at 2:36 PM
www.sustainweb.org/news/jan26-n...
Very glad that Sustain's comments and recommendations on this report include more nuts:
'A horticulture investment strategy that boosts commercial production of UK vegetables, beans, pulses, legumes and nuts, as well as increasing the UK market for these products'.
Very glad that Sustain's comments and recommendations on this report include more nuts:
'A horticulture investment strategy that boosts commercial production of UK vegetables, beans, pulses, legumes and nuts, as well as increasing the UK market for these products'.
Reposted
Four paintings from tne 'Bush flowers' series, by Raelene Stevens, contemporary Australian Indigenous artist from the Tweed Valley area of NSW #WomensArt
February 6, 2026 at 6:35 AM
Four paintings from tne 'Bush flowers' series, by Raelene Stevens, contemporary Australian Indigenous artist from the Tweed Valley area of NSW #WomensArt
I've been listening to two stories, one fictional from 1139 but based on the actual history, and another true story from 1986, about the duty of Christians to help people in need, including refugees from violence including civil wars.
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b...
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p...
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b...
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p...
February 6, 2026 at 9:03 AM
I've been listening to two stories, one fictional from 1139 but based on the actual history, and another true story from 1986, about the duty of Christians to help people in need, including refugees from violence including civil wars.
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b...
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p...
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b...
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p...
Reposted
If Reform ever wins power in Westminster, it will be because of Labour’s cowardice | George Monbiot
If Reform ever wins power in Westminster, it will be because of Labour’s cowardice | George Monbiot
Starmer could improve our unfair electoral system to stop the hard right, but he won’t. All the party has left are threats about ‘splitting the vote’, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot
www.theguardian.com
February 4, 2026 at 9:20 AM
If Reform ever wins power in Westminster, it will be because of Labour’s cowardice | George Monbiot
Reposted
Wounaan Baskets from the Rainforest of Panama, created by master weavers such as Miriam Negria #womensart
February 4, 2026 at 4:00 AM
Wounaan Baskets from the Rainforest of Panama, created by master weavers such as Miriam Negria #womensart
Reposted
"Cooperation is not weakness, because we can do more together than we can apart."
Quakers in Britain joined a historic gathering at Methodist Central Hall this weekend to mark 80 years since the first United Nations General Assembly. www.quaker.org.uk/news-and-eve...
Quakers in Britain joined a historic gathering at Methodist Central Hall this weekend to mark 80 years since the first United Nations General Assembly. www.quaker.org.uk/news-and-eve...
Quakers mark UN anniversary and warn world cooperation is under threat
Quakers in Britain joined a historic gathering at Methodist Central Hall in London this weekend to mark 80 years since the first United Nations General Assembly.
www.quaker.org.uk
January 19, 2026 at 5:22 PM
"Cooperation is not weakness, because we can do more together than we can apart."
Quakers in Britain joined a historic gathering at Methodist Central Hall this weekend to mark 80 years since the first United Nations General Assembly. www.quaker.org.uk/news-and-eve...
Quakers in Britain joined a historic gathering at Methodist Central Hall this weekend to mark 80 years since the first United Nations General Assembly. www.quaker.org.uk/news-and-eve...
Reposted
"In the Quaker tradition, we affirm that there is a divine spark in every person. To have that Light extinguished by agents of the state is a grave moral failure."
A statement and call for justice from US Quakers:
A statement and call for justice from US Quakers:
We are mourning those killed by our government -- Alex Pretti, Renee Good, and at least 53 others in immigration custody. We demand justice and accountability, not terror. www.fcnl.org/updates/2026...
We mourn state killings and demand justice, not terror | Friends Committee On National Legislation
We are devastated, outraged, and profoundly alarmed by the escalating state killings, violent kidnappings, and the horrific response to those peacefully calling out injustice in Minneapolis and around...
www.fcnl.org
January 26, 2026 at 10:15 AM
"In the Quaker tradition, we affirm that there is a divine spark in every person. To have that Light extinguished by agents of the state is a grave moral failure."
A statement and call for justice from US Quakers:
A statement and call for justice from US Quakers:
'The ongoing transfer of tens of billions of pounds ... to the military to meet an arbitrary target dictated by the US Government will further exacerbate the climate crisis, geopolitical tensions and the deepening divisions within British society.'
rethinkingsecurity.org.uk/latest-updat...
rethinkingsecurity.org.uk/latest-updat...
Rethinking Security response to the National Security Strategy
Rethinking Security response to the National Security Strategy: a missed opportunity to promote human and common security Following from the recent Strategic Defence Review (SDR), the government’s …
rethinkingsecurity.org.uk
February 3, 2026 at 1:26 PM
'The ongoing transfer of tens of billions of pounds ... to the military to meet an arbitrary target dictated by the US Government will further exacerbate the climate crisis, geopolitical tensions and the deepening divisions within British society.'
rethinkingsecurity.org.uk/latest-updat...
rethinkingsecurity.org.uk/latest-updat...
Reposted
The Paul Foot Award for Investigative and Campaigning Journalism 2026 is now accepting submissions.
The winning entry will be awarded £8,000 at entries should be filed by noon, Tuesday 17th March 2026.
➡️ More info and entry form: private-eye.co.uk/paul-foot-aw...
The winning entry will be awarded £8,000 at entries should be filed by noon, Tuesday 17th March 2026.
➡️ More info and entry form: private-eye.co.uk/paul-foot-aw...
January 24, 2026 at 12:14 PM
The Paul Foot Award for Investigative and Campaigning Journalism 2026 is now accepting submissions.
The winning entry will be awarded £8,000 at entries should be filed by noon, Tuesday 17th March 2026.
➡️ More info and entry form: private-eye.co.uk/paul-foot-aw...
The winning entry will be awarded £8,000 at entries should be filed by noon, Tuesday 17th March 2026.
➡️ More info and entry form: private-eye.co.uk/paul-foot-aw...
Reposted
The guardrails are off AI and the consequences are becoming clear.
➡️ Watch the full episode of Page 94, the Private Eye podcast, on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=knLS...
➡️ Watch the full episode of Page 94, the Private Eye podcast, on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=knLS...
January 30, 2026 at 9:43 AM
The guardrails are off AI and the consequences are becoming clear.
➡️ Watch the full episode of Page 94, the Private Eye podcast, on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=knLS...
➡️ Watch the full episode of Page 94, the Private Eye podcast, on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=knLS...