Benjamin D Lane
@slowtalking.bsky.social
Internationalist WHO (Retired) Health Systems Governance and Emergencies Public Economics. Worked : AT/CH/KH/PH/SB/YE Novels: Pale Fire / Der Zauberberg Political philosophy: The Devil’s Dictionary Play: Chopin
Je suis un peu déçu
Edwy Plenel@edwyplenel.bsky.social · yesterdayLe 2 août, journée de commémoration du génocide des Roms, Sintis, Gitans, Manouches, Yéniches et Voyageurs. Le 4 août, journée de perdition du candidat à l’élection présidentielle Gabriel Attal qui charge les « gens du voyage » et attise l’antitsiganisme. www.mediapart.fr/journal/fran...
Gotta love the “or stocks” part. Like Gemini realized its first answer was nuts so it tried to wedge in a better one.
hey kids it's a quick look at the news www.dailykos.com/stories/2026...
Headline news 2026
A cartoon by Tom Tomorrow.
dailykos.com
Tribuna | "El multimillonario aparenta ser normal porque no quiere que pensemos que es la versión 2.0 del capitalista que fuma puros con los pies sobre la mesa", por Jahel Queralt social.elpais.com/aj6…
Congressman Moulton introduced the NOEM Act in December to hold ICE and other immigration law enforcement accountable for constitutional violations. We cannot accept the status quo and allow ICE to keep terrorizing our communities. The message is clear: Abolish ICE AND prosecute ICE.
NEWS: Former Senator Jeff Flake (R-AZ) has endorsed Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA) for re-election Flake: “I’m still a conservative Republican. But character matters. And I want someone in that seat who takes the institution seriously and will protect the institution.”
In addition to costing close to $50 billion, Trump's border wall is also siphoning off much of the scarce water in the US-Mexico border region. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
Crews building Trump border wall in drought-hit New Mexico ordered to stop drilling wells
Residents and farmers say contractors have tapped border aquifers that threaten water supply for those nearby
theguardian.com
Just leaving this here
Jacob Öberg@profjacob.bsky.social · 3d ago🚨🚨" far-right and MAGA politicians, influencers, and podcasters will immediately use the most divisive language possible in order to make voters as angry as possible, as fast as possible, regardless of what actually happened. " Strong piece by @anneapplebaum.wsocial.eu on FR reactions to #ceuta:
I don't think Markwayne Mullin understands just how dangerous a heresy he committed by suggesting that immigrants can help the US economy. He undermined the entire core mythology of MAGA. Final thoughts on all this here: newrepublic.com/article/2138...
This is jaw-dropping from the administration that ordered mandatory hantavirus quarantine against CDC's advice and blocked Americans from returning home because of the Ebola outbreak
Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD@elizabethjacobs.bsky.social · 2d agoLet’s unpack this post by NIH and CDC Director and self-made victim Jay Bhattacharya. 1. This was not misreporting. This is what RFK Jr. said in his interview. 2. Free speech was not “suspended”. If it had been no one would know who Bhattacharya is.
The United States did not have COVID lockdowns. Ever.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Finally, we have a PM for the digital age. But real change requires more than just being good on camera | Nesrine Malik
Connection with voters on screen only pays off when it’s matched with bold policies in the real world – as it has for Zohran Mamdani in New York, says Guardian columnist Nesrine Malik
theguardian.com
No camera. No AI. Just Normal Sunglasses. From DuckDuckGo x @Knockaround. (Yes, these are actually real. Get a pair here: knockaround.com/products/duc...)
Latest in @theatlantic.com . Recent developments not only show we are experiencing an RMA, we should be witnessing a revolution in how states organise their defense. Relying on others, especially for production and adaptation, is a dangerous game. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
The U.S. Isn’t Making Enough Weapons
Allies that depend on U.S. military equipment need a Plan B.
theatlantic.com
La justice administrative rejette un recours de Xenia Fedorova contre son expulsion
La justice administrative rejette un recours de Xenia Fedorova contre son expulsion
Le tribunal administratif de Paris a rejeté lundi un recours en référé-liberté de la chroniqueuse pro-russe Xenia Fedorova contre son expulsion du territoire et le gel de ses avoirs, faute d'avoir démontré une "extrême urgence".
f24.my
You can talk about tech sovereignty and defence all you like, but it doesn't matter if you're caving in to hybrid attacks within five minutes. Might as well save the money on the weapons, frankly, if European leaders are just going to surrender to hybrid attacks like this.
John Springford@johnspringford.bsky.social · 3d agoTreating this as a pan-European crisis and closing borders disproportionately *encourages* other countries to use these tactics as political weapons. Sow division, isolate EU countries who are particular enemies.
Monty Roberts, Horse Trainer Who Preached Kindness, Dies at 91 www.nytimes.com/2026/08/02/o...
Monty Roberts, Horse Trainer Who Preached Kindness, Dies at 91 (Gift Article)
His approach was in contrast to centuries of conventional wisdom and won the enthusiastic approval of Queen Elizabeth II, with whom he became friends.
nytimes.com
“If Spain loses control over Ceuta, the US will likely replace it with a military base, allowing it to conduct its operations against Iran without needing the European pillar of NATO.” 2/2
Spanish Intelligence services conclude that Rabat permitted and used the human wave over Ceuta but did not plan it. Los Servicios De Inteligencia Concluyen Que Rabat Permitió Y Utilizó La Oleada Humana Sobre Ceuta, Pero No La Planeó elpais.com/espana/2026-...
Los servicios de inteligencia concluyen que Rabat permitió y utilizó la oleada humana sobre Ceuta, pero no la planeó
La Moncloa no ha reunido el gabinete de crisis, pese a calificar lo sucedido de “violación de la integridad territorial”
elpais.com
L'interview de Dominique Reynié dans le Figaro du jour est hallucinante. Mais hallucinante. Comme les quatre pages et la Une consacrées à un seul message : les effets du réchauffement, c'est de la faute aux écologistes.
Le Figaro@lefigaro.fr · 3d agoClimatisation, incendies, nucléaire… L’été dantesque consacre la défaite de l’écologisme politique. →https://l.lefigaro.fr/ILSE
Please stop saying “lockdowns.” There were never true lockdowns in the US, and it fuels far right narratives to repeat this inaccurate statement. You can say closures, you can say restrictions, or better, you can say public health measures which saved many lives.
Dr. Lucky Tran@luckytran.com · 6d agoPeople still complain about “lockdowns” but we had none in the US. We had stay-at-home orders, where although businesses were closed, you could still go outside whenever you wanted. Other countries had far stricter rules, and yet have been much more accepting of them as they saved many more lives.
Vance, Farage and Weidel posted fear-mongering messages about a Spanish migrant crisis that weren't true. They haven't retracted them. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
The Far Right Is Distorting Ceuta
We’ve seen this before.
theatlantic.com
Former Ukraine Foreign Minister Kuleba: Something has broken in the story of missile transfers. What has broken? In my opinion, people around Trump who are not pro-Ukraine convinced him to change his opinion. Not for us-for Russia. Because around him there is a constant commotion.
The USA is at the same time a nuclear armed superpower, and one of the most ridiculous states in the history of the world.
🇪🇸 Ministerpräsident Pedro Sánchez: - beeindruckende Wirtschaftsdaten - Krisen seit 2000 gut bewältigt, besser als 🇦🇹 - verteilungspol Akzente (zB Mindestlöhne ⬆️) - aktiv gegen Klimakrise - bietet Trump die Stirn - Ceuta-Frage gut gemeistert - proeuropäisch & hat europäische Solidarität verdient
Some brief thoughts: 1. Discourse got polarised fast, not helped by some scientists (often not directly involved in response) speculating on how they'd run country 2. Media played role here – I gave up on interviews for some outlets, because would always start "is govt is getting everything wrong?"
Lewis Goodall@lewisgoodall.com · 4d agoNo need for anyone to agree with me - but some of the responses to this on here reminds me just how stifling and absolutist a period in our national discourse Covid was.