Was struggling to find the right words to describe the latest ridiculousness, but - as often happens - Stephen was there already.
11.03.2026 12:24
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Was struggling to find the right words to describe the latest ridiculousness, but - as often happens - Stephen was there already.
I was struck when I read the Fulton speech for Borderlines how strongly Churchill condemned the Oder-Neiße Line.
This is a lovely thing to do; we appreciated it last year. My mother in law Janet Nicholson loved Mothering Sunday (and always called it that) and had a strong Christian faith. She died in 2010 and her children would be delighted to think of her being remembered like this. #Mums26.
I can hear the gentle pop of bubble wrap from here
keep in mind that, for years, orban has been waging war on 'foreign influence', shutting down NGOs & universities & taking over state & private media.
this is hypocrisy on steroids & highly telling abt orban's version of 'sovereignty' (which is simply code for personal power)
I bet there have been truly astonishing levels of insider dealing today even by the standards of the Trump mafia.
A bounce! /s
This will probably make linguists wince, but I have a tentative theory that ‘quisling’ took off because it just sounds like a pejorative term. The ‘-ling’ suggests little, perhaps contemptible. The ‘qui’ start sounds aggressive and means one curls one’s lip. And there’s a hiss in the middle.
Yeah. I prefer the timeline where we’re rich and there are golden statues of Eric Varley and Tony Benn in public places.
It was a rare position in 2011 that an AV-type system was good in itself, as opposed to a miserable compromise (part of the reason the referendum was such a fiasco). But people are coming round to it; as a long term PR advocate I can see (and have written about) its intrinsic merits.
It’s a lovely piece of writing www.orwellfoundation.com/the-orwell-f...
Another resonant thing about toads is that they are portents. Their appearance en masse for spawning marks the onset of spring in Northern Europe. And in Aztec mythology they were heralds of the god Tlaloc, of the rains that bring fertility and destruction. 🐸
A photo of a toad I met while gardening a few summers ago. Look at his beautiful coppery eyes!
Bow down before your local toad today and respect his supreme leathery authority. There is no time to waste.
You’ll have noted that I’ve never compared Nigel Farage to an amphibian. Though I can kind of see why people do it.
And yes toads are beautiful. Their faces and bearing have an absurd dignity about them, their eyes are flecked with gold and the patterns on their rough skin are fascinating if you approach the toad in a spirit of love and wonder.
Support your local toads! A good piece in the @theguardian.com about these beautiful creatures in the U.K. and how @froglife.bsky.social patrols protect them during their migration season. 🐸
R.I.P. Alex…
Alexander Butterfield, Who Revealed Nixon Tapes in Watergate Scandal, Dies at 99 www.nytimes.com/2026/03/09/u...
Not unlike the Derbyshire budget meeting in where a 4.9% increase was unveiled as a tax cut (max is 4.99%)
the best analysis money can buy and they’re all getting circles run around them by “orange man bad”
"Why are these yellow-bellied, jelly-hearted, lily-livered cowards unwilling to sail a large, slow, unarmoured target filled to the gunwales with flammable cargo through an active war zone."
Congratulations - you deserve the respect in which you’re held in so many quarters.
So you’re just going to let that dangle, are you?
Indeed. I get the impression but I can’t quote data to support it right now that the Tories haven’t up to now completely blown it with mainstream centre-right voters, but something surely has to give.
Another poll - I’ve seen them on things like Net Zero- where 2024 Conservative voters are a lot closer to the mainstream than the party leadership.
… jabbed one of the cabin crew in the side as she walked by with the trolley. A sky marshal got her under control and cops boarded the plane when we arrived at JFK. Hope she enjoyed the short trip to Riker’s Island.
It’s such a satisfying feeling to see an in-flight miscreant being dragged off by police on arrival. I was on a flight where a woman was loud and obnoxious and dissatisfied with her food and drink options and the speed of supply. She gave the cabin crew some abuse and finally…
I should add to my Alt Text that the image of the tweet is illustrated with a photograph of Tucker Carlson wearing his habitual stupid and amazed face, like a dog that’s surprised by its own farts.
Also on “X”
I’m reconciled to most of the Delmer legend being in the ‘interesting if true’ category… and kind of nice to see that irrepressible fraud Brendan Bracken pop up. Even if as a historian one winces at the idea of his papers being torched.