Mags Campbell

Taken hostage, not "detained".

Abducting a person to hold them prisoner in exchange for some concession from an adversary, including surrender, is called "taking a hostage". It is an action which automatically reveals the hostage takers as villains.

Royal Bank of Scotland banknotes £5/£10/£20 showing animals mackerel, otters and squirrels respectively.

We've had beautiful wildlife banknotes in Scotland for a while. Little works of art

(Reuters) - U.S. intelligence indicates that Iran's leadership is still largely intact and is not at risk of collapse any time soon after nearly two weeks of relentless U.S. and Israeli bombardment, according to three sources familiar with the matter.

uk.news.yahoo.com/exclusive-us...

Gotta say that this is some extremely creepy language. And the argument basically is... that if the prevent people from treating gender dysphoria (adults, in this case), that they'll just... stop having it? That's not at all how any of this works.

The shoe thing is low on the "important global matters" scale, but HIGH on the "I'll take things a deranged Roman emperor would do for $500, Alex" chart.

The damage Trump has done to the rest of the world in just over a year is incalculable. Billions wasted, lives lost. Not going to be forgotten.

He should be apologising for about 90% of the shit he's pulled since becoming PM but he's full of his own importance. He thinks it's all justified, that he has to make tough choices. Pure ego.

I hate this prick so fucking much.

I’d say what does the Labour gov think is gonna happen with trans people when you ban HRT but I reckon they genuinely do not think about it and just think we’ll drop this whole “being trans“ thing and see they’re doing it for our own good

One of my favourite literary put-downs is from Douglas Adams's The Restaurant at the End of the Universe. Zaphod Beeblebrox, who often reacts in erratic ways, claims to be “pretty dangerous when I'm cornered,” to which Ford Prefect responds “you go to pieces so fast people get hit by the shrapnel.”

It's the birthday of Douglas Adams! Time to share favorite quotes!

Has any other medication in UK history ever been barred from use on a subset of society like HRT?

I fail to see how it it legal to single out a section of society in this fashion.

It's clearly government overreach. This is not democracy. This is autocracy. Government imposing its beliefs.

The government. Never knowingly on the right side of public opinion.

LET'S NOT PLAY FRISBEE WITH THAT POET ANYMORE. [This is a comic strip, with a poem laid over it. On each panel a new line of the poem is written. The scene is a park, in the summer. A man in a trenchcoat - implicitly Philip Larkin - stands folorn, motionless, looking at people throwing a frisbee. It becomes apparent as the comic progresses that they are trying to play frisbee with him. He stand stock still for the whole comic, watching the frisbee as, panel by panel it soars closer and closer to him]. After contemplating the approaching frisbee for two silent panels, Philip begins his thoughts: Unloosed, unheralded, You soar toward me Across the dying afternoon. bright disc of childhood, Long since thrown wide Of Youth's green imaginings, Your slow declining arc Figures a sky-written truth: We will all succumb, and soon To earth's hard oblivion. [The frisbee hits Philip on the head with a resounding DONK. He falls backwards, to the ground. [Ends]

Let's Not Play Frisbee With That Poet Anymore

Brought to you by Shabana Mahmood the Minister for Cruelty.

Starmer has to go along with all of his cronies. The rot is top to bottom.

Ncuti Gatwa's acclaimed theatre run of beloved classic play is set to stream for free Alongside Gatwa, the play stars Sharon D Clarke, Ronkẹ Adékọluẹ́jọ́, Eliza Scanlen and Hugh Skinner.

quick reminder that NT's production of The Importance of Being Earnest, starring human ray of sunshine Ncuti Gatwa, will be streaming FOR FREE on YouTube this weekend

www.radiotimes.com/movies/ncuti...

KENNEDY: You said, 'Republicans think can troll their way to ethnic cleansing.' Did I read that correctly?

BIER: DHS tweeted for 100m deportations. That would be ethnic cleansing!

K: You don't think it's hyperbolic?

B: I think advocating 100m deportations is ethnic cleansing. Yes. Your time is up

Must read: xAI is poisoning Mississippi, captured via thermal imaging.

Guess that was enough of feeling well enough to function for me because my energy levels fell off a cliff and I had abdominal pains while I was cooking some eggs.
Feeling pretty fucking bad now.
New Behind the Bastards on Netflix and back to my jigsaw. Comfort.

Me, in light brown cords, white trainers and navy blue sweatshirt and belt.

I wonder how I'm going to adjust to my summery dresses after months of dressing in actual men's clothing. Just screaming at the sight of my pasty white legs because I have precisely one long skirt.

Woke up late this morning after a much needed uninterrupted 10-hour sleep after a few days feeling terrible and realised I had pretty much no food in but half a loaf of bread in the freezer so I went shopping. Toast is fine when you're ill but it wasn't going to be enough today.

".. this is the realities of war, & those who target civilians, in particular the Iranian regime, that kind of action is appalling"

Govt minister Sarah Sackman on the bombing of the school in Minab, which more & more people are now admitting was done by the US

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.

One is too many.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cg5nelp5enpo

🧵

Trans healthcare needs to be led by trans people, to be accountable to trans communities and trans youth.

Folks who don't believe in the existence of a trans child cannot continue to hold the reins of healthcare policy and governance.

This is where we start.

Social media ban is "reactionary measure" that will harm LGBTQIA+ youth, campaigners warn It would disproportionately affect LGBTQIA+ young people, who rely more heavily on the platforms to connect with other queer people

Campaigners have been clear that restricting social media - framed as protecting youth - would disproportionately harm LGBTQIA+ young people, who rely on it more than their heterosexual counterparts

www.wearequeeraf.com/social-media...

Efficient! AuDHD man’s daily task list includes carefully planned five-minute scream An AuDHD man attempting to keep on top of the constant demands of his busy life by tracking tasks has expanded his to-do list to include blood-curdling screams at the horror of it all, sources have…

Paul Shinter, 45, recently made the decision to try and gain some control of his nonsense life by carefully listing what needs to be done each day, including five minutes of guttural wailing at this cursed timeline.

The tiny minority of loud, angry bigots must always get their way against the quieter, live-and-let-live, accepting and supportive majority. Of course. This is very sensible.

About — Don't Steal This Book AI companies are building their products by copying millions of books without permission or payment. The UK government is considering legalising this large-scale theft. We urge them to rule this out....

If AI developers wish to use our copyright work to build their software they can ask us for permission. If we agree, they can pay us to license it on clearly defined terms.
Tech companies ignoring copyright is theft. The UK government should uphold the existing law.
www.dontstealthisbook.com/about

Video appears to show U.S. cruise missile striking Iranian school compound The seven-second video was released by Iranian state media and directly contradicts statements made by President Trump, who said Iran was responsible for the strike.

The Iranian girls’ school was hit by a US tomahawk cruise missile. NPR has confirmed the footage.