Fred Cowell
@fascowell.bsky.social
International Law Academic. South London based, former Labour Cllr (now retired). Also Arsenal, Playing Guitars, Philly Eagles, Record Collecting and Indian Cooking. Scfi-Fi Movie and History of WWII buff.
How to Draw Cartoons, by Julius Streicher
Adam Bienkov@adambienkov.bsky.social · 17h agoThe Green Party has written to the Telegraph demanding an apology and retraction for publishing these two cartoons, which they say use "well known racist and antisemitic tropes in depicting Mothin Ali and Zack Polanski"
I double-checked this on a couple of Xitter stat sites and it's true. Average views of the main AfD account dropped 90% and average engagement dropped by 60%. This is commercial social media for you: bots, damn bots and Russian bots.
Angry@angrystaffer.bsky.social · 18h agoWe’ve been talking about this for years. None of these far-right movements are organic.
I've been immersed in research on Reconstruction in Lousiana and it's a very difficult truth to absorb that the white terrorist movement in the South was among the most successful terrorist movements in global history. Took 10 years but it won a total & complete victory through murder and atrocity.
It is impossible not to notice the rise in casual antisemitism online and in person. If you don’t see it, you’re lying to yourself.
Right yes, "protect are women" by preventing a long-planned fundraiser for Cancer Research... Bastards.
Jane@localnotail.bsky.social · 2d agoPolice in Bristol said they asked organisers of a far-right protest in city centre to move it or reschedule, because the big Shine Night Walk big cancer charity 10K fundraising walk of 2,000 people - mainly women - was planned for Friday night. Police confirmed the group refused, so walk postponed.
Andrew Sissons@acjsissons.bsky.social · 3d agoNew blog: there are rumours swirling that the Warm Homes Plan and particularly the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (the heat pump subsidy) will be cut in the Budget. Scrapping it would be a disastrous decision, leaving UK climate and energy policy in disarray www.nesta.org.uk/blog/four-re...
60% of those who responded to the Bank of England consultation called for pictures of wildlife on bank notes. Does he think the British people are conducting a "slow, steady and relentless attack" on themselves?
Here’s a 32-year-old Nadhim Zahawi - then working as Jeffrey Archer’s press spokesperson on his Mayoral campaign - reading out Archer’s resignation statement, after the publication of the evidence of perjury that eventually saw Archer jailed.
NEW: What happened in Holborn? Some constituency polling to help us understand a bit more. TLDR: loyalty to Burnham + a local candidate won the day; no real sign of tactical voting; Greens never convinced ppl they could win but Polanski not toxic necessarily. @persuasionuk.bsky.social
Sorry but no, it is in fact notable that the US is doing something only very extremist regimes do. To willingly abandon “this isn’t who we are” as a response is to throw away a very powerful rhetorical weapon.
I do think the manoeuvre is typical of a bad form of left thinking: a cherished liberal myth about a good state or institution is shown to be at best a partial truth (fine!) but is then the basis for a maximalist rejection of any distinction between flawed institution and its worse alternatives.
Jordan@jordanpfot.bsky.social · 3d agoSorry but no, it is in fact notable that the US is doing something only very extremist regimes do. To willingly abandon “this isn’t who we are” as a response is to throw away a very powerful rhetorical weapon.
The Green Party need to kick out the antisemites and get back to what the party was supposed to be all about: Opposing solar farms and high speed rail.
If we are to avert global climate catastrophe, this is going to be critical. A new study confirms solar and wind costs are still falling, gas costs are soaring, and battery energy storage systems are now cheaper than gas peaking plants pretty much everywhere. www.businessgreen.com/news/4537069...
'Decisive and widening': Battery storage undercutting gas peaking plants on cost, study shows
Wood Mackenzie calculates four-hour battery storage projects are now less expensive than open-cycle gas turbines in all major markets
businessgreen.com
Very rare politics post, please forgive me. Initially I saw this as good for Polanski, but having dug further into the data it's quite worrying. Despite a 🟢+22%, overall vote share has barely shifted. Gains seemingly come from an independent candidate who is no longer standing, rather than Labour.
Britain Elects@britainelects.com · 3d ago‼️ Labour HOLD Holborn and St Pancras Labour: 45.0% (-3.9) Green: 32.7% (+22.3) Conservative: 7.0% (-0.2) Reform: 5.9% (-0.2) Liberal Democrats: 3.4% (-2.4) Restore: 2.5% (+2.5) Workers: 1.1% (+1.1)
Said possibly to one in principle and a ‘send me details and I’d see’ sort of reply. The next email they proposed two days later because that would give their “members time to read the book”. Lols - scam alert !
Will Clement@historywill.bsky.social · 6d agoIf you’re going to send a suspicious-reading AI book club scam email to academics… 1. Please use our titles. It’s basically all we have left 2. Don’t follow up by dropping the AI-written excessive flattery and instead behaving like someone left on read
There is a rather wider minority for abolishing the Monarchy (about 1 in 5 to 1 in 4) than for the controversy of whether only white people can be English (1 in 10). It is weird the media classes are so rarely across how niche this 'controversy' is - about 1/4 Reform voters, but few others
Peter Geoghegan@petergeoghegan.bsky.social · 4d ago‘Now we turn to the controversy that is what is it to be English?’ Nick Robinson says on radio 4 today before talking about Badenoch and Braverman Couldn’t turn the dial quick enough
I wonder who Nadine Dorries thinks this mocking of Badenoch is for - and what she thinks Reform will gain from attacking her on this
Awful - I am signed up for campaigning at the Myatts Field council by-election in Lambeth today, but if you can make it to Holborn to ensure Sagal gets over the line today, please do. This stuff needs to be stood up to.
Jewish News@jewishnews.bsky.social · 4d agoEXCLUSIVE: Dan Levene, 52, tells Jewish News he was kicked in the head and ribs by two men spraying the slogan 'Don't Vote Sagal Abdi-Wali A Puppet Of The Genocidal Israeli Regime' on cobbles
How sheepish is Europe? This map shows the distribution of sheep across Europe. Source: buff.ly/dSfHDOe
When people say the Conservatives play politics on easy mode this is what it means
"One problem is that AI may create value in areas which governments tax lightly while destroying value in the more heavily taxed bits. The economy could expand rapidly while leaving the government increasingly starved of funds" www.economist.com/finance-and-... From The Economist
How the AI boom could worsen the rich world’s fiscal crunch
Even with higher growth, taxes may be harder to find
economist.com
Thinking of creating a Bayeaux Tapestry but instead it's just comprised of tweets by fuckwits
Always find it astonishing how noticeable the Great Leap Forward is.
Max Roser@maxroser.bsky.social · 6d agoThe share of children who died before they were 5 years old in 1950 and 75 years later. Africa: 33% ↘ 6% Asia: 25% ↘ 2.5% Oceania: 9.3% ↘ 2% Latin America: 21% ↘ 1.5% Northern America: 3.8% ↘ 0.6% Europe: 10.5% ↘ 0.4% Globally: 23% ↘ 3.5%
Just comparing last week's pensions discourse with this week's £100k childcare discourse. In both instances, you have groups who are generally deemed "wealthy". For one, it's unthinkable to contemplate taking their state benefits away. For the other, there is outrage if you try to give it to them
