2) and 3) are intimately linked, in that the BBC (the organisation that really matters in the modern environment) treats 'claims by rival parties' as the operating frame for how it covers everything. The failure from Labour and the Conservatives to say 'this stuff is bad' is really, really bad.

John Oxley@joxley.jmoxley.co.uk · 21h ago

So in one week: 1) Reform get stung for dodgy finances, and the regulators play pass the parcel about enforcement 2) Farage announces plans to largely dismantle independent scrutiny of govt, and barely any press discussion of it 3) Masked thugs blockade a port, with narry a word from senior govt

Reform have normalised violence to women. It was never aboot protecting women. It was 'they are oor women to batter'

Shortbreadfairy©️@shortbreadfairy.bsky.social · yesterday

It wasn't just the violent oot of control pensioners hitting It was the oher people standing laughing. Look at the old womans face, pure glee & spite enjoying herself.

A Reform government would force schools to sing the National Anthem and if they don't oblige parents will be encouraged to report them to the authorities. Yeah that's not like really scary and authoritarian schoolsweek.co.uk/reform-there...

Reform: 'There will be consequences for not singing anthem'

Braverman believes parents will tip her off if heads don't follow her anthem and hymns rules

schoolsweek.co.uk

This is shameful discriminatory and misogynistic reporting. People aren’t choosing disability to be “cool”. Young women don’t have to “prove” to you that they’re sick. Disability rates are skyrocketing because we’ve left a disabling virus rip through the population for over 6 years.

Amethyst and ruby red sky. Absolutely gorgeous sunset last night here in Glastonbury.

Every time I think Jenrick could not make my skin crawl even more, he somehow manages to creep under that limbo bar of revulsion.

Can it hurt to give this one more nudge? Perhaps, slightly (because every time I do any self promotion I feel an irrepressible wave of nausea). But I'm going to do it anyway. Because it might bring a mistreated book to three or four new readers. And that's VERY much worth my while.

Tom Cox@dj-acid-reflux.bsky.social · 2d ago

A big ask, no pressure & I know people have better things to do but if about 15-20 people buy this from Blackwell's in the next few hours it's likely I'd have the number 1 & 2 books in their chart & that might be enough to finally persuade an American publisher to get my books out over there...

Content warning: Multiple men violently assault a female protester at Reform's conference at the Birmingham NEC, to the visible delight of Nigel Farage.

Fascinating when the British state responds with sending the army in to do crimes and when it sits idly. Nothing to worry about that they don’t feel this is a threat.

Mic Wright@brokenbottleboy.bsky.social · 2d ago

‘Masked paramilitary group occupies crucial port’ is the headline the media would go for if it wasn’t happening in Britain.

It's craven, it's politically stupid, and it's morally wrong. Number 10 does not struggle to get Andy Burnham in front of a camera when it wants him to be there. Every minute he's not on show over this is the result of a deliberate decision.

Jonn Elledge@jonnelledge.bsky.social · 2d ago

I simply do not understand what's going on in Labour that renders its leaders incapable of finding a TV camera and speaking out against street violence. Even if you assume they agree about immigration, violence is wrong, unpopular AND against the interests of any even vaguely left wing govt.

I simply do not understand what's going on in Labour that renders its leaders incapable of finding a TV camera and speaking out against street violence. Even if you assume they agree about immigration, violence is wrong, unpopular AND against the interests of any even vaguely left wing govt.

It would be another 15 years before any women could vote in Britain, and even then it was only some of them. These days the suffragettes are broadly considered to be noble freedom-fighters. At the time they were terrorists. Views have changed because they (eventually) won. ✊

Relatedly, the Vermont state police have posted the mug shots of those arrested while protesting, which include them wearing their collars and stoles. vtstatepolice.blogspot.com/2026/09/vsp-...

NEW: Seven faith leaders were arrested in Vermont this morning while blocking entrances to a building that houses a group ICE uses to target its efforts. Two clergy were physically carried out as they were arrested. religionnews.com/2026/09/04/s...

Seven Vermont clergy arrested while protesting ICE targeting center

(RNS) — 'I think it is imperative on me, as a faith leader, to proclaim that human beings are not targets and that God is a God of justice and of love,’ said the Rev. Rebecca Girrell, a United Methodi...

religionnews.com

“The president wants to end all international trade” is one of the most deranged views ever held by a US leader. Moreover, he is clearly attempting to bring it to fruition with tariff policy. It will neither be reported as news nor have any bearing on whether his policies go into effect.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 2d ago

“We could do tremendous good for ourselves by just not trading with countries” — Trump’s bonkers view of trade is that you become wealthy by not engaging in commerce

Some photography jobs are easier than others. This pic of the former lead singer of Marillion was like shooting Fish in apparel. #totp

they’ll figure it out if they get hungry enough

I’ve so missed Nadine Dorries’ unique and dynamic approach to live television interviews. Channel 4 News.

Wheeling Nadine Dorries out to defend the Reform leader on Channel 4 news is paying off exactly as one might expect.

Kanan Stark (Ioneemno Karan): 'He Guilty As F***!'

Alt: Guilty!

static.klipy.com

Other parties get their funding from their billionaire backers and big business. We do politics differently. If you believe politics should answer to the people, support the Green Party to help us build an alternative. 💚 donatetothe.greenparty.org.uk

The government must know full well that many people have neither the space nor the money to store extra food in their homes. It is individuating responsibility for a collective problem. As usual, it is the poorest and most excluded who will suffer from it. 🧵 www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Minister tells Brits to stock up on days of supplies after ‘supersize’ El Niño warning

Exclusive: Angela Eagle urges UK citizens to be ‘a bit more resilient’ as they plan for national emergencies

theguardian.com

I like this bit especially because it's true

Liberal Currents@liberalcurrents.com · 4d ago

“Taking from students the analytical tools to recognize the often invisible or unarticulated ways that religion influences their lives is tantamount to rendering them unable to recognize the forces that are working across societies around the world” www.liberalcurrents.com/religion-hum...

ICE hasn’t paid for detainee medical care since October. Advocates call it the ‘death policy’ — my latest, w/ @kolyncheang.bsky.social. Spend some time with it www.sfchronicle.com/politics/art...

ICE hasn’t paid for detainee medical care since October. Advocates call it the ‘death policy’

ICE owes millions in unpaid bills to hospitals and, in some cases, detainees themselves have been directly billed for care, records show.

sfchronicle.com

To add a little loveliness to your day, a splash of living colour in the form of a holly blue butterfly. How much poorer our lives are for nature loss, and how much richer for its return via rewilding.

"Bottom 60% of households" is a wild phrase

Given that we know this is coming, will be devastating and have the best part of a year to prepare, any chance we might, you know, get on with doing things that mitigate the effects of extreme heat?

The Guardian@theguardian.com · 4d ago

‘Supersizing before our eyes’: UN warns of record El Niño approaching

🔴 Police Contradict Reform Council Over Claim Town Centres are ‘Unsafe’ Due to Asylum Seekers Force says Braintree, Colchester and Chelmsford “are safe” and crime is down, as Reform-run county council launches £150,000 private security patrols over asylum seeker arrivals

Police Contradict Reform Council Over Claim Town Centres are 'Unsafe' Due to Asylum Seekers

Force says Braintree, Colchester and Chelmsford "are safe" and crime is down, as Reform-run county council launches £150,000 private security patrols over asylum seeker arrivals

bylinetimes.com

This is what asylum sector warned the government about. After small boat sales were restricted in Calais in 2021 we saw an increase in number of people per boat. With increased crackdowns, but no genuine alternative safe routes provided, numbers will only increase. 1/ www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Channel smuggling gangs resort to 'mega-dinghies' as crackdown limits small boat supply

Once-rival criminal groups are being forced to work together because of a shortage of small boats, a BBC investigation has found.

bbc.co.uk

Fantastic news as data shows that shingles vaccine in older people is helping reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease! Shingles is reactivation of chickenpox so this data must also strengthen case for chicken pox vaccine in children (given with MMR as the MMRV vax)

Shingles vaccine linked to lower risk of heart attack and stroke, study finds

Researchers say benefits of two-dose Shingrix vaccine could be comparable to taking daily blood pressure medication

theguardian.com

“faculty of arts social sciences, 0% agreed with: “I trust the University of Sydney. …” It was the issue of trust, alongside longstanding concerns over staff protections from AI, workload fairness & job security, that saw about 2,000 walk off the job Wednesday. www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

‘We have had enough’: thousands of University of Sydney staff walk off the job over AI and job security

Hundreds of university staff were stationed at picket lines, calling for stronger protections around the use of AI

theguardian.com