Siobhan Hoffmann Sønderborg

Ah, yes. Another grenade. I'd just dealt with the last one.

Joys.

A picture of a simple solution to the situation in Strait of Hormuz where oiltankers would simply hit a trampoline and backflip over to the other side of the strait to avoid the dangers completely.

Saw the best and most realistic solution on reddit:

If you out here not knowing about Timbuktu, which still exists & where scholars still keep medieval manuscripts, get to know about Timbuktu.

(1) The accused declared, ordered, or otherwise indicated that there shall be no survivors or surrender accepted; (2) The accused thereby intended to threaten an adversary or to conduct hostilities such that there would be no survivors or surrender accepted; (3) It was foreseeable that circumstances would be such that a practicable and reasonable ability to accept surrender would exist; (4) The accused was in a position of effective command or control over the subordinate forces to which the declaration or order was directed; and (5) The conduct took place in the context of and was associated with hostilities.

✋ Former USG war crimes lawyer here.

Apropos of SecDef's remarks this morning:

Denial of quarter—even the declaration of no quarter—is a war crime.

And recognized as such by the US Government.

From DoD's Manual for Military Commissions.

Pentagon Sends Marine Expeditionary Unit to Middle East The Pentagon is moving a Marine expeditionary unit to the Middle East, as Iran steps up its attacks on the Strait of Hormuz, according to two U.S. officials. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has approve...

BREAKING: BOOTS ON THE GROUND. The pentagon is sending a Marine Expeditionary Unit of up to 2,500 to Iran. 1/ www.wsj.com/livecoverage...

what if the purpose of getting an education was to learn things and not creating a record of easily manipulated metrics used for future career placement

It occurs to me that this policy is intrinsically anti-trans ntm deeply misogynistic. Imagine changing your name to escape an abusive relationship, taking the unenrolled option so that your ex-partner couldn't trace you, and then being unable to change your bank details. Not a great look, Halifax.

This is the company the UK government has embedded in the nation’s services. Seriously, fuck everyone who is excusing this.

I did the final clearance of John's office yesterday. I saw a piece of paper on the floor, so went to pick it up so that the cleaners didn't have to. It was a passport photo of John. Somehow that was the only thing left in the room.
I put it in my pocket and tried not to cry. I now can't find it.

I suppose it's predictable that I have a migraine, today. I want to unscrew my head and put a new one on.

The police had done nothing for six months, even though this was a terrorism matter, and then rushed through a charge without the requisite decision from the attorney general. There was then an attempt to reissue the charge even though they knew it was a day late. And the CPS, rather than accepting defeat at first instance, devoted time and resources to an appeal, even though the applicable law was long settled. Terrorism law should be taken seriously. It is a special body of law in respect of dealing with particular threats. But the case of Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh shows two things. It shows the lack of seriousness with which the police take terrorism legislation, and it shows the utter seriousness of the CPS in trying to protect itself.

NEW

What the botched prosecution of Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh says about the police and CPS

A series of unforced errors show that terrorism law is not taken seriously by those who should be enforcing it

By me, at @prospectmagazine.co.uk
www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/law/th...

Quite

No time warp here. Just normal, annoying time.

Honestly, after watching that I’m in favour of replacing statues of Churchill with badgers.

DOGE staffer had ‘God-level’ Social Security access, whistleblower says Members of Congress demand investigations after complaint alleges unprecedented breach of Americans’ data

USAID public servants lost our careers, pensions, and healthcare. Some lost their homes. Some lost their children’s tuition. Some colleagues died by suicide. Now we learn our Social Security numbers were stolen and exposed too.

... I forgot I hadn't boiled the kettle. Whilst standing in front of the kettle waiting for it to boil. It was a long, difficult day, yesterday. My attention span was kaput.

Still. Just. I use the head above water metaphor a lot. I wish there were more buoyancy aids floating nearby. And fewer monsters swimming around my feet.

I'm not sure how I got through it, quite honestly.

I know I come across as a bit whiney on here, but, without sharing too much, life has been incredibly difficult over the past year.

But, God, I'm grateful for my sofa. And my velcro dog. And the existence of toast as dinner (albeit a lucklustre one).

Today I locked up the family home for the last time.

I really hope its new owners have a good life there.

I have, on 3 separate occasions today, attempted to make a cup of tea with cold water.

If that isn't an indication of how things have been, today, I don't know what is. I got home around 4.30 and cannot recall anything that has happened since then.

Fun.

Goodnight.

"You will burn and you will burn out; you will be healed and come back again."

Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Discovered something interesting, today. If you change your name, Halifax will not accept an unenrolled deed poll document as proof of that name change.

To put this in perspective, the British government accept unenrolled deed poll documents. You can change your passport but not your bank account.

Ergh. Electricians. Ergh. Gas engineers. Erghhhh. 😑

Billionaires are also sponging off everyone else: exploited staff; public infrastructure (and the education and work required to create and maintain it); environmental costs. The wealthier you are the MORE of a sponge you are.

buttondown.com/surekhadavie...

Restoring a painting is one of life’s great pleasures An effervescent hunt scene by Rubens is set to spring into life, thanks to experts at Dresden’s Gemäldegalerie

I wrote this about art restoration for the FT. www.ft.com/content/bfa0...

Parking Lot, Chicago, Photo by László Moholy-Nagy, 1937

Would it have been so much worse if it had been a nuke? Consider the fact that birth deficiencies and rates of leukemia and cancer in Iraq, post 2003- invasion, are worse than what was observed in Hiroshima. In Japan, rates of leukemia rose by 660% in the years following the bomb. In Falluja, it increased by 2,200%. The toxicity of war has never been greater, and we are in no way reckoning with the scope of the horror that's been unleashed.

The real damage comes years later, with elevated cancer rates, leukemia clusters, respiratory disease, cardiovascular failure, neurological damage, reproductive issues.

This is chemical warfare, with delayed carnage. Worse than radiation sickness.

I am ashamed to be American today.

2/2

First Aid training today where we learn that men have a higher survival rate after collapse requiring CPR because women’s breasts scare people.
PLEASE just do the fucking CPR.
Also please do the training.

An 'epidemic' of violence: The women and girls killed by men last year We tracked reports and contacted police and prosecutors for a deeper look at the situation across UK.

An 'epidemic' of violence: The women and girls killed by men last year

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Bombing of Iran’s oil infrastructure to have major environmental fallout, experts warn Monitors admit they are struggling to keep track of the environmental disasters arising from widening war

Bombing of Iran’s oil infrastructure to have major environmental fallout, experts warn