With deep sadness I post this. My Mother, Catherine Keohane (née Donohoe), passed away a week ago. Some on here met her but wouldn’t have known.

The simplest way I can describe my Mum is that she was my best friend, and the best person I’ve ever known.

Below is my favourite picture of both of us:

Julius Caesar conquered Gaul in 51 BC and died in 44 BC, therefore all of Asterix's adventures took place over the course of less than seven years, probably much less since Asterix's chieftain was at the battle of Alesia, were it is probable Asterix and Obelix's fathers died. In this essay, I will

🇵🇱 My @thetimes column: Poland’s economic miracle

12 out of 17 Polish regions are now richer than West Wales. It has faster internet, cheaper electricity and more high speed rail than Britain

When it comes to regional development it’s the UK, not Poland, that needs to catch up

1/3

Has anything great happened in your life because of social media?

I agree. I've seen Putin described as risk-averse; I don't think that's right. He takes risks that other leaders wouldn't, but only when he assesses that the likelihood of an effective response is low. The West has yet to change his assessment that he can keep pushing us back.

Here is @nigelgould-davies.bsky.social on Russia’s disruption campaign against Europe. I’m not sure I would be so optimistic on the Kremlin being worried by US & EUR behaviour, but the conclusion is unshakeable: absent a serious response, this will get much worse.

www.iiss.org/online-analy...

Belgium has laid out its red lines for using Russian assets to fund a €140 billion reparations loan to Ukraine.

This includes an agreement by EU countries to share all current and future risks related to the plan for an amount exceeding €170 billion.

And here we go. I never wrote this article, and yet it is cited here.

www.liberalbriefs.com/geopolitics/...

And of course, it sounds so plausible, I seriously checked whether I had forgotten it, or the footnote was slightly wrong.

#AIisnotresearch

A Voter’s Lament.
So we’n have neither the PR pleasure of choosing which candidates deserve second or lower preferences, or none.
Nor the intricate PR delights of watching, analysing and predicting the transfers.
Unless, God help us, ‘Jim Gavin’ gets more votes than the gap between HH and CC.
😢