This is a painful read. I mean seriously painful. But it’s also a must-read, and must-share, for everyone.
Lives in Devon. Retired. One time pharmacology academic. Sails.
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This is a painful read. I mean seriously painful. But it’s also a must-read, and must-share, for everyone.
It's beyond me why the PM doesn't want to put out this simple message. It's not hard. Hold a reception for prominent non-white British sportspeople, actors, etc to point out the kinds of well known and well liked people this kind of ugly nationalism is attacking. It's really not rocket science. 5/5
Angela Rayner is a "great British success story" and it is a "mistake" for people to be briefing against her, Keir Starmer has said news.sky.com/story/angela...
It would be so unbelievably easy to make a patriotic and pride case for Britain while simultaneously putting the racists and bigots firmly back in their box. I mean the speech writes itself. So why is nobody writing it?
In just the past week or so, Russia has bombed a US factory in Ukraine, bombed an EU office in Ukraine, and jammed the navigation system on a plane carrying the EU president, forcing the pilots to land using paper maps. Putin does not want peace. He will keep pushing until we fight back.
Our government tried to send a planeful of unaccompanied minors to Guatemala without due process. Fortunately a judge was able to block it before they took off. What fucking monsters the United States has become. Trafficking innocent children. www-cbsnews-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.cbsn...
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
Maybe it's time Trump started thinking about how to get the US to manufature things that people actually want to buy at prices they can afford.
As long as guns are easily available to crazy people, mass killings directed at so-called soft targets will continue. This is a fact. Countries where it's more difficult for crazy people to obtain guns have less shootings. This is also a fact. Do with these facts as you will.
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
I'd call that deliberately misleading.
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
When I were a lad, TV presenters used to be people who knew something about something, and weren't just ignorant mouthpieces for the latest populist fad.
I turn on my TV and a TV presenter is asking a Govt minister why they are talking about rolling out free childcare when the big issue is asylum hotels. This is objectively insane.
The ever-more radcalised Elon Musk regularly shares content from Steve Laws. Laws leads breakaway faction quitting Homeland for its leader only supporting the voluntary, not forced repatriation of British-born minorities "I don't care if they were born here, every single one must go" i
Farage is whipping up anger against the ECHR with false claims. As The Bear brilliantly writes: “The ECHR [is] the foundation that protects you from your own government.” That's why leaving the ECHR would be a Really Bad Idea.
BREAKING: Our hearts Our new front page #ProtectJournalistsInGaza #LetReportersIntogaza Www.bylinetimes.com
A great question. #nyc #nyclife #newyorkcity
Slovenian Foreign Minister: "We have taken actions against Israel, including banning the entry of ministers and prohibiting trade and arms dealings with Israel. We will urge the European Union to take even stricter actions against Israel".
Reminder for tariff doubters: WE PAY those tariffs, not foreign manufacturers or their governments bsky.app/profile/lesl...
To be able to say things like this with a straight face, you have to know with certainty that you are talking to babies
This racist sewage fragment moved to the USA four years ago
So what precisely do the right want to do about the white working classes? Certainly not go to university, as they want numbers down. Nor to have a unionised manufacturing job, as they don't want unions. No, they just want pawns as part of their culture wars. They don't give a toss.
"Asylum seekers should not be allowed to work!" "Asylum workers should not be subsidised at the public expense!" - and loop.
Reminder that small boat migration is c.5% of all UK immigration. And asylum-seeking generally is far lower per head of UK population than most other west European countries e.g. 🇩🇪 🇫🇷 🇮🇹 🇪🇸 🇧🇪 🇳🇱 🇦🇹 🇮🇪. Yes even Ireland takes way more. Yet none have the same sense of crisis and moral panic as the UK.
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
Great work! And something those who think patriotism is plastering everywhere with the flag commemorating a Greek born Roman soldier who never visited Britain would never be able to understand.
As noted elsewhere in this thread, Isaac from Crystal Clean Windows York Limited came over and cleaned the restaurants windows for free and helped remove the graffiti. That's patriotism! Trying to make your community better. Reaching out and helping others.
Question: Is it the Bluesky echo chamber that makes it appear as if our media is committed to a racist, radical right Reform government? Or is it the boiled frog echo chamber of Twitter that has convinced our media that’s what everyone else wants?
“ILLEGALS” MY ASS! Green card holder Rami Othmane speaks out after being snatched off the street by ICE while driving to the grocery store. He’s a documented immigrant and the husband of Dr Wafaa Alrashid, chief of staff at a local hospital. He was locked in detention for 13 days.
This is where the empty headed Flag shagging leads. Race hate.
In 2024, I deployed the California Highway Patrol to operate regional partnerships in Bakersfield, San Bernardino, and Oakland. As a result, crime is down — with 9,000+ arrests, nearly 5,800 stolen vehicle recoveries, and 400+ illegal gun seizures. We're going to hold the line on these strategies.
🔴 Brexiteers hate the world they created They claim that Britain is broken, while still clutching the hammer. 📝 New post 👇🏻
Welch: The people that elected Donald Trump are the people that he's punishing the most with this stuff. And you guys, if a democratic president was doing this, would be going bananas. You guys would lose your minds.
A federal judge has ordered Florida to shut down "Alligator Alcatraz," after the state spent a staggering $218M to build the now-vacant detention camp. Closing it will run taxpayers another $20M. An utterly cruel and costly waste.
Appalling that Policy Exchange’s offices were violently attacked last night - just the latest in a lengthy series of such intimidatory attacks targeted at think tanks and campaign groups, doing perfectly legitimate work that is part of our democratic process.
Minimum wage increases since 2015 have all but ended ‘low’ pay. In 2011, 21% of workers were low paid – defined as hourly pay below two-thirds of the overall median. By April 2024 3.4% of employees were low paid on this measure. Read more: buff.ly/0OSArrI
At least this clarifies that the attempt to sack Lisa Cook was not for 'cause'.
BBC Breakfast this morning had a long segment about the 30th anniversary of Windows 95. So what vintage computer did they put in the studio as a handy prop? #windows95
Some key consequences outlined include: 1️⃣ The UK would be the only country to leave bar Russia 2️⃣ UK citizens would lose external scrutiny of their human rights 3️⃣ ECHR membership underpins the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement 4️⃣ The UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) depends on UK membership
This is an absolute slap in the face to every single serviceperson who has protected this country and the Constitution. Ashli Babbitt was a traitor who deserves no recognizance whatsoever. Every person involved in this decision deserves the same.
The # of SUVs in England cities has increased from 3% to 30% of cars in the last 2 decades. “In physical terms, London’s SUVs now take up the same space as the entire borough of Kensington & Chelsea, while the entire country’s SUVs would cover all of Manchester.” www.standard.co.uk/news/london/...
There are literally dozens of landmark cases where Brits relied on the ECHR: ⚠️Gay soldiers ⚠️Children beaten in schools ⚠️Women punished for fleeing domestic abuse ⚠️Journalists fined for protecting sources ⚠️Activists sued by McDonald All defended by the ECHR when Britain failed them.
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
I hope Trump paid the $5m, since he is clearly the one responsible for her death. How can her family receive compensation with no action taken against the man responsible?
I'm sorry, the justification to wear masks is... because that's what criminals do?? Did he hear himself saying that?
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
WTF!
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
I know this is in the US, but why the f*ck do they need to be armed to the teeth with assault rifles etc, and hide their identity.
Is this the "ICE style deportation enforcement" that Farage has in mind? Does this seem like a happier, safer place to you? Machine-gun armed militias, with faces covered, yanking people into unmarked cars? The full Mark Stone report is a must-watch👇🏽. ~AA www.youtube.com/watch?v=KolI...
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
But it's a very welcome part of taking incremental steps in the right direction.
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
Not merely politicising, deliberately undermining the health of the nation! The only beneficiaries are the billionaires and Putin.
Director of the Vaccine Education Center: We've had the largest measles epidemic in the last 33 years. What has RFK Jr done about that? He's said, falsely, the measles vaccine kills people. With him as the head of HHS, children in this country are in the most dangerous position they ever have been
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
I look at RFK Jr and wonder every time how a drug addled, brain damaged attention seeker who happens to have a famous family name could end up where he is. And then I wake up and remember Trump won the election. 😱
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
I spent 40 years of my life in London, and I have no idea where that is, other than on a canal! It looks great, as do so many places in London
Lies without hesitation. Like Trump NOTHING GOOD for the U.K. will come of the air time and coverage being given to Trump v3 Farage. Nor will the pandering of him by both Tories and Labour. Which is what happened with Brexit. He will exploit their weakness…as he already is.
Reform MP says they will negotiate with the Taliban.
'we were trying to bomb a camera'
We’ll wait…🤔
This is an INSANE decision by the E.U. “By signing up to mutual recognition of vehicle standards with the U.S., the E.U. has waved the white flag on road safety. This is not a technical detail – it is a political choice that puts trade convenience ahead of saving lives.” This will kill people.
CDC erupts in chaos after ousted chief Susan Monarez refuses to resign
Abbe Lowell and I represent CDC Director #SusanMonarez. Contrary to govt statements, Dr. Monarez has neither resigned nor yet been fired. She will not resign. We have issued the following statement:
Why, you might ask, do the BBC and Sky News, casting their editorial guidelines to the wind, keep giving massive airtime to the far right, while shutting out leftwing voices? Don't their bosses understand the likely consequences? Only one explanation now remains. They do. And it is what they want.
Of course Telegraph, and others, opening gambit about the horrific school shooting in Minneapolis is to focus on attacker allegedly being trans. You notice no-one ever says "white man" in relation to other shootings. The shooter's gender identity is irrelevant to the hideous crime they committed.
Not an exaggeration. If anything, this understates how unhinged the video is. It is, quite literally, five white guys talking about how to free the states from the burdens of the 14th Amendment so churches can effectively be given ownership over "gangbangers in Baltimore."
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
If the Israelis don’t want a Palestinian state then they need to accept a one state solution. Equal rights and votes for all inhabitants. A secular society. But of course they don’t want that either, they want an apartheid state. The world must not let them.
Is the BBC Reform UK's mouthpiece? Yup. "Researchers at Cardiff University have produced a detailed analysis of every episode of the BBC’s flagship Question Time programme broadcast between September 2014 and July 2023 to see if the broadcaster was balancing political viewpoints."
This isn’t bad luck or coincidence or predestination. This is our choice. To live in a nation where our leaders teach hate, and military style guns are everywhere.
Brexit - championed by Farage - has been a significant factor in creating this mess - it’s time UK news shows started pointing that out youtu.be/be3b8RkMqvs?...
Reform UK, which has a grand total of four MPs, was just given an uninterrupted platform for an hour and a half on the BBC and Sky News channels, in order to talk about its plans for mass deportations When was the last time the Greens (with four MPs) or the Lib Dems (with 72) were given the same?
Open dictator talk. No kings.
Remember when Obama and Biden both gracefully respected the peaceful transfer of power to Trump? Remember when Clinton and Harris both conceded with grace on election night? Remember what Trump did? Any questions?
Moskowitz on Trump: "Just treat Russia like you're treating Washington DC, or how you treated Greenland or Canada when you came into office. Where is that President Trump with the Russians? It seems like he's tougher on Chicago than he is dealing with Putin."
Then they came for John Bolton www.publicnotice.co/p/john-bolto...
Deported to a country he has ZERO connection to. I am ashamed to be an American. And I will continue to do everything I can these next 15 months & beyond to defeat my former political party - a cruel, ignorant, fearful, un-American political party. Please do the same. Thanks.
Four Palestinian journalists, a rescue worker and several more people were killed on Monday after two Israeli strikes hit a hospital in southern Gaza on Monday, according to local officials. Israel confirmed its forces struck the hospital area, without saying why.
Last term - just a year ago! - a lot of my Republican colleagues were making a lot of noise about the pernicious influence of foreign "state owned enterprises". And here we are now.
With the claim that it’s racist to fly the Palestinian flag….Looks like they might be operating in breach of professional standards and as an unregulated law firm? I love it and fair play to the people that brought this action. Popcorn time…..:)
BREAKING: Award-winning Scottish screenwriter Paul Laverty has been arrested after wearing a T-shirt reading 'Genocide in Palestine, time to take action' Police arrested the I, Daniel Blake writer in Edinburgh this morning
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
Leaving out the trivial point that all motor mouths choose to ignore, that while small boat crossings may be high, migration as a whole, of which undocumented migrants make up a tiny part, has dropped massively over the past 2 years. Best to ignore the inconvenient facts that interfere!
Short answer: no. Longer answer: of course fucking not. More detailed answer: this has previously been suggested and was found to violate international law, including maritime law, risked increased loss of life and, minor point, a possible declaration of war on France. news.sky.com/story/is-it-...
Kamala Harris at her closing campaign rally: "Donald Trump intends to use the United States Military against American citizens who simply disagree with him."
CEO pay is up 1,085% since 1978, while typical worker pay is up just 24%. Why do we always hear "we can't afford to pay our workers more" but never "we can't afford to pay our CEO more"?
Peter Gray (@petergray.bsky.social) reply parent
A VP with no knowledge of history! Or perhaps, worse, one who knows perfectly well he’s talking out of his arse, but doesn’t want to upset the vengeful and hysterical Toddler in Chief
Daily Telegraph today refers to A Rayner’s property “empire”. Whatever you think of her housing arrangements, I don’t think constituency house (bought for 375k in 2016), house in Hove, plus use of ministerial flat in London is an “empire”. Duke of Westminster wont fear a rival!
The Pentagon is blocking Ukraine from using long-range missiles to hit Russian military targets. No wonder Putin still thinks he can win the war www.wsj.com/politics/nat...
The State of Illinois at this time has received no requests or outreach from the federal government asking if we need assistance, and we have made no requests for federal intervention.
This isn't about patriotism. It's about nationalism, and that's a different beast. There's no genuine "respect" behind putting up these flags. Quite the opposite. Those doing this are weaponising the flag to spread division. That's ultimately disrespectful to the flag www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
👇👇
Forgive us.
Ro Khanna on the Epstein Files: “Only 3% of the documents that were given to us were new. 97% were already in the public domain. Less than 1% of the Epstein Files have actually been released. They’re stonewalling and not releasing things.” ht: @marcofoster.bsky.social
we really do need to figure out how this guy managed to create an environment where he can say "i wasted an amount of taxpayer dollars so large I can't even tell you how much it was" & it doesn't cause immediate national outrage
It’s clear that the main goal of the Maxwell interview was to get her to say that she didn’t see Trump do anything wrong. Which can only mean that there is something in the files that suggests that he did. Why else would she need to say that? The interview is more incriminating, not less.
This felt inevitable: an interview with Allison Pearson given top billing in the Telegraph. Connolly suggests Starmer should relearn what freedom of speech means and "what the laws are in this country". I think he knows but Connolly/Pearson clearly don't. No lessons have been learned in prison.
The laziness and implied bias of the BBC here is extreme - "No 10 did not comment" presumably because the CPS and courts are independent, but there's no attempt to find anyone who would argue the opposite view, just the unchallenged whine of someone who called for asylum seekers to be burnt to death
Dr Tessa Dunlop, "The Gaza strip has been deliberately starved of life saving medicines, food and water" "A deliberate policy of the Israeli government"
Nick Clegg accidentally hits on a free speech test for Americans. Namely, if you enter the US/UK/EU, which of these might check your social media feeds to see if you're deemed a critic of the 'regime'? There's only one answer. Screw Americans' criticisms of Europe-style free speech.
This case is a lit match hurled onto a pile of kindling – what remains to be seen is whether the Home Office or higher courts can succeed in putting it out in time. ✏️ @jamesrball.com
The takeaway is not simply: the public are insatiable on this topic. There was also a significant drop in salience from a record high to a record low, which was associated with very significant shifts in perceptions of the positive contributions of immigration for work, NHS in 2016-22
63% of people think net migration rose in the last 12 months 8% of people think it fell Yet it fell by 400,000 in 2024 vs 2023 [It is falling further in 2025] Public service broadcasters are doing a core part of their job on this topic badly if that 8% is not closer to 30% at least
I know this is irrelevant to the thinking of many Reform voters, but in order to carry out Farage's utterly batshit, and sickening proposals, the UK would have to leave not just the ECHR, but pretty much every human rights treaty. We would be a pariah state. www.bbc.com/news/article...
Big pharma picking our pockets. Advanz, the sole supplier of liothyronine tablets (thyroid drug) in the UK, hiked price from £20 to £248 per box – an increase of over 1,110%. Corporations devour everything, have no ethics. Must return to Labour's 2019 manifesto - govt to produce generic drugs.
CEO-to-worker pay gap surges to 632 to 1 at US’s lowest-paying large firms. Starbucks CEO collected $95.8m, 6,666 times as much as the company’s $14,674 median pay. Workers rely on food banks and charity for survival whilst company engaged in union busting.