Alexander Clarkson
@aphclarkson.bsky.social
Lecturer for European Politics and History at King's College London. Opinions my own. RT not always endorsement.
Also to be found at @APHClarkson
https://www.ullstein.de/werke/die-macht-der-diaspora/hardcover/978354910
Also to be found at @APHClarkson
https://www.ullstein.de/werke/die-macht-der-diaspora/hardcover/978354910
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
Just heard through the grapevine:
US-Iranian meeting in Istanbul has been cancelled or postponed.
US-Iranian meeting in Istanbul has been cancelled or postponed.
February 3, 2026 at 5:11 PM
Just heard through the grapevine:
US-Iranian meeting in Istanbul has been cancelled or postponed.
US-Iranian meeting in Istanbul has been cancelled or postponed.
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
Three rules in FBI firearm training:
1. Always point your weapon downrange
2. Do not point your weapon at anything you do not intend to shoot
3. Don’t put your finger on the trigger unless you intend to shoot
Guns are not for threatening compliance for unarmed people doing things you don’t like
1. Always point your weapon downrange
2. Do not point your weapon at anything you do not intend to shoot
3. Don’t put your finger on the trigger unless you intend to shoot
Guns are not for threatening compliance for unarmed people doing things you don’t like
happening this morning in Minneapolis -- ICE agents drawing guns on observers. I reiterate again that it is only a matter of time before DHS kills more innocent people in Minnesota. Congress needs to shut this shit down right now.
February 3, 2026 at 4:50 PM
Three rules in FBI firearm training:
1. Always point your weapon downrange
2. Do not point your weapon at anything you do not intend to shoot
3. Don’t put your finger on the trigger unless you intend to shoot
Guns are not for threatening compliance for unarmed people doing things you don’t like
1. Always point your weapon downrange
2. Do not point your weapon at anything you do not intend to shoot
3. Don’t put your finger on the trigger unless you intend to shoot
Guns are not for threatening compliance for unarmed people doing things you don’t like
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
February 3, 2026 at 1:21 PM
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
Nothing like enjoying your slightly cheaper pint while imagining the toddler crying from hunger that paid for it.
Reform UK says it would re-impose two-child benefit cap for most families to fund £3bn support package for pubs - www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...
February 3, 2026 at 3:44 PM
Nothing like enjoying your slightly cheaper pint while imagining the toddler crying from hunger that paid for it.
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
I of course agree with all of this, and have been banging this drum for years.
The disconnect here is that this administration doesn't want to turn down the temperature. They want to intimidate, terrorize, and punish. The masks, camouflage, and BDUs are inseparable from that.
The disconnect here is that this administration doesn't want to turn down the temperature. They want to intimidate, terrorize, and punish. The masks, camouflage, and BDUs are inseparable from that.
Getting officers out of combat gear will help cooler heads prevail.
Our DHS secretary cosplaying in full combat gear and ICE and CBP officers costumed like Delta Force have only raised the temperature in what’s already a heated situation. | Karl Marlantes
https://ow.ly/zP7j50Y7otc
Our DHS secretary cosplaying in full combat gear and ICE and CBP officers costumed like Delta Force have only raised the temperature in what’s already a heated situation. | Karl Marlantes
https://ow.ly/zP7j50Y7otc
The Troubling Trend of Combat-Uniform Creep | National Review
What law enforcement officers wear matters.
ow.ly
February 3, 2026 at 4:42 PM
I of course agree with all of this, and have been banging this drum for years.
The disconnect here is that this administration doesn't want to turn down the temperature. They want to intimidate, terrorize, and punish. The masks, camouflage, and BDUs are inseparable from that.
The disconnect here is that this administration doesn't want to turn down the temperature. They want to intimidate, terrorize, and punish. The masks, camouflage, and BDUs are inseparable from that.
How in heaven's name did anyone convince themselves that appointing a loquacious narcissist like Mandelson as ambassador to Trump's Washington was a good idea?
"An email appears to show Lord Mandelson telling Epstein he'd spent "all day first with [Gordon Brown] then with Libs. They are all pretty bonkers…"" www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
'Finally got him to go today': Mandelson's emails to Epstein on Gordon Brown
Emails released by the US appear to shed new light on the dying days of Gordon Brown's government.
www.bbc.co.uk
February 3, 2026 at 4:44 PM
How in heaven's name did anyone convince themselves that appointing a loquacious narcissist like Mandelson as ambassador to Trump's Washington was a good idea?
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
MSNBC broadcasts body cam footage of the FBI raid at the Fulton County elections office
February 3, 2026 at 3:12 PM
MSNBC broadcasts body cam footage of the FBI raid at the Fulton County elections office
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
Russia just keeps terrorizing civilians in Ukraine. A Russian Shahed drone struck a residential building in Kharkiv, according to reports. Witnesses say the drone deliberately targeted the building. Three people have been reported injured so far following the strike. #Ukraine
February 3, 2026 at 3:16 PM
Russia just keeps terrorizing civilians in Ukraine. A Russian Shahed drone struck a residential building in Kharkiv, according to reports. Witnesses say the drone deliberately targeted the building. Three people have been reported injured so far following the strike. #Ukraine
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
The current leadership might fall but particularly now Labour MPs are not going to trigger elections. Come on people.
February 3, 2026 at 3:16 PM
The current leadership might fall but particularly now Labour MPs are not going to trigger elections. Come on people.
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not after you...
as someone who pushes hard against conspiratorial thinking in my professional and political life, it is deeply irritating when, on top of the untold human harms Epstein caused, it turns out he was at the center of at least half a dozen actual conspiracies
February 3, 2026 at 2:56 PM
Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not after you...
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
Once a protest movement gets larger than a few hundred people self-policing the dipshits within it is an almost insoluble problem.
February 3, 2026 at 3:03 PM
Once a protest movement gets larger than a few hundred people self-policing the dipshits within it is an almost insoluble problem.
Has there been a closer look at Mandelson's longstanding relationships with other influential states and financial market actors?
February 3, 2026 at 3:11 PM
Has there been a closer look at Mandelson's longstanding relationships with other influential states and financial market actors?
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
Looks increasingly like Mandelson's salary was nominally paid by the taxpayer, yet he was actually working for Epstein
EXCLUSIVE:
Lord Peter Mandelson lobbied the US government on behalf of Jeffrey Epstein and Jes Staley in 2010 when he was business secretary, using their talking points in conversations with an American official about financial-crisis reforms
www.ft.com/content/e50f...
Lord Peter Mandelson lobbied the US government on behalf of Jeffrey Epstein and Jes Staley in 2010 when he was business secretary, using their talking points in conversations with an American official about financial-crisis reforms
www.ft.com/content/e50f...
Peter Mandelson lobbied against US bank reforms on behalf of Jeffrey Epstein and Jes Staley
Former UK business secretary used talking points in conversations with US official about financial crisis measures
www.ft.com
February 3, 2026 at 1:42 PM
Looks increasingly like Mandelson's salary was nominally paid by the taxpayer, yet he was actually working for Epstein
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
Neue Folge: Ich habe mit @aphclarkson.bsky.social darüber gesprochen ob Trump die USA lähmt und ob Europa zu langsam in allem ist. foreigntimes.de/2026/02/03/p...
<img style="height: 24px" src="/wp-content/themes/moetheme/premium.png" alt="PREMIUM">ForeignTimes092 mit Alexander Clarkson über den gelähmten Trump und das bemühte Europa
Alexander Clarkson auf BlueskyAlexander Clarkson auf XBlog von Alexander ClarksonAlexander bei WPRSteady: Gesamtabo Foreign Times + Mikroökonomen PodcastAbo des Foreign Time
foreigntimes.de
February 3, 2026 at 2:07 PM
Neue Folge: Ich habe mit @aphclarkson.bsky.social darüber gesprochen ob Trump die USA lähmt und ob Europa zu langsam in allem ist. foreigntimes.de/2026/02/03/p...
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
New: Together with colleagues I’ve been testing Grok.
The chatbot still produces sexualized images —
even when told the subjects don’t consent.
even when told the photos will be used for public humiliation.
even when told the subjects are survivors of abuse.
www.reuters.com/business/des...
The chatbot still produces sexualized images —
even when told the subjects don’t consent.
even when told the photos will be used for public humiliation.
even when told the subjects are survivors of abuse.
www.reuters.com/business/des...
Exclusive: Despite new curbs, Elon Musk’s Grok at times produces sexualized images - even when told subjects didn’t consent
Elon Musk’s flagship artificial intelligence chatbot, Grok, continues to generate sexualized images of people even when users explicitly warn that the subjects do not consent, Reuters has found.
www.reuters.com
February 3, 2026 at 11:37 AM
New: Together with colleagues I’ve been testing Grok.
The chatbot still produces sexualized images —
even when told the subjects don’t consent.
even when told the photos will be used for public humiliation.
even when told the subjects are survivors of abuse.
www.reuters.com/business/des...
The chatbot still produces sexualized images —
even when told the subjects don’t consent.
even when told the photos will be used for public humiliation.
even when told the subjects are survivors of abuse.
www.reuters.com/business/des...
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
Things are still bad here in MN. But until Bovino left, the admin would meet each challenge with more escalation. Withdrawing him cracked their resolve. Now they seem increasingly scared to escalate. So they’re stuck. They should simply leave.
HOLY SHIT!!! Lost in the news today is THIS BANGER, wherein THE REGIME TOLD TROOPS IN AK and MN to STAND DOWN!!!
h/t to @maddow.bsky.social !!!!!
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/u...
h/t to @maddow.bsky.social !!!!!
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/u...
Northern Command Tells N.C., Alaska Troops to Stand Down on Possible Minnesota Deployment
www.nytimes.com
February 3, 2026 at 7:04 AM
Things are still bad here in MN. But until Bovino left, the admin would meet each challenge with more escalation. Withdrawing him cracked their resolve. Now they seem increasingly scared to escalate. So they’re stuck. They should simply leave.
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
Hadn't previously thought this, but if this Labour government wants to show any understanding of the situation then McSweeney's position is untenable. Now. Not after May.
The change needed is in attitudes more than delivery.
The change needed is in attitudes more than delivery.
February 3, 2026 at 8:33 AM
Hadn't previously thought this, but if this Labour government wants to show any understanding of the situation then McSweeney's position is untenable. Now. Not after May.
The change needed is in attitudes more than delivery.
The change needed is in attitudes more than delivery.
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
alle preise, die sich nicht auf luxusgüter beziehen, haben einen starken einfluss auf die wahrnehmung der meisten menschen. das war mal eine grundlage jeden ökonomischen denkens.
in unsereren überflussgesellschaften fehlt dafür aber mittlerweile das denken.
in unsereren überflussgesellschaften fehlt dafür aber mittlerweile das denken.
Excellent piece here. www.ft.com/content/320c...
Plus people experience inflation in different ways and food prices seem to have a particularly important influence on perceptions. www.bankofengland.co.uk/working-pape...
Plus people experience inflation in different ways and food prices seem to have a particularly important influence on perceptions. www.bankofengland.co.uk/working-pape...
February 3, 2026 at 8:39 AM
alle preise, die sich nicht auf luxusgüter beziehen, haben einen starken einfluss auf die wahrnehmung der meisten menschen. das war mal eine grundlage jeden ökonomischen denkens.
in unsereren überflussgesellschaften fehlt dafür aber mittlerweile das denken.
in unsereren überflussgesellschaften fehlt dafür aber mittlerweile das denken.
I don't think this kind of political ennui really helps much in any struggle to defend democracy. And elite fatalism certainly doesn't help the many people in civil society doing their best to help their communities in everyday life through anti-racism work, food banks, sports coaching and so on
The thing is, of course, if we put an actual concentrated effort into making people's lives better, it would make people's lives better, regardless of which "indicators" wobbled up or down.
But it's very evident that most voters don't actually care enough about each other to want that.
But it's very evident that most voters don't actually care enough about each other to want that.
My review of @profkepickett.bsky.social's new book, "The Good Society"
"If you’d asked Pickett in 2010 whether she’d have accepted this trade she’d presumably have jumped at it...But now, like most of the rest of us, she’s less than happy with the results."
www.theguardian.com/books/2026/f...
"If you’d asked Pickett in 2010 whether she’d have accepted this trade she’d presumably have jumped at it...But now, like most of the rest of us, she’s less than happy with the results."
www.theguardian.com/books/2026/f...
February 3, 2026 at 8:37 AM
I don't think this kind of political ennui really helps much in any struggle to defend democracy. And elite fatalism certainly doesn't help the many people in civil society doing their best to help their communities in everyday life through anti-racism work, food banks, sports coaching and so on
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
The fundamental problem with increasing defence spending isn't funding but real resources. And most defence spending isn't "investment" and does nothing to increase the underlying growth rate. Of course, the country has to be defended but there are opportunity costs.
February 3, 2026 at 8:22 AM
The fundamental problem with increasing defence spending isn't funding but real resources. And most defence spending isn't "investment" and does nothing to increase the underlying growth rate. Of course, the country has to be defended but there are opportunity costs.
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
This is what we need to see in the UK
🚨🚨Striking but welcome development in Portugese politics: To stop the explosive growth of the ultranationalist #Chega party, Portugal’s leading conservatives are doing the previously unthinkable: endorsing the center-left candidate for president. 🧵
www.politico.eu/article/port...
www.politico.eu/article/port...
Portugal’s conservatives back left-wing candidate to avoid a far-right president
Center-right leaders are taking pains to publicly reject the ultranationalist contender ahead of the country’s Feb. 8 vote.
www.politico.eu
February 3, 2026 at 5:59 AM
This is what we need to see in the UK
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
1. In 2009 I wrote this. I argued that Peter Mandelson's department “functions as a fifth column within government, working for corporations to undermine democracy and the public interest.”
This thread explains what I saw, and reaches a startling conclusion.🧵
www.monbiot.com/2009/05/04/m...
This thread explains what I saw, and reaches a startling conclusion.🧵
www.monbiot.com/2009/05/04/m...
Mandelson’s Fifth Column
The British government’s business department exists to undermine democracy.
www.monbiot.com
February 3, 2026 at 7:32 AM
1. In 2009 I wrote this. I argued that Peter Mandelson's department “functions as a fifth column within government, working for corporations to undermine democracy and the public interest.”
This thread explains what I saw, and reaches a startling conclusion.🧵
www.monbiot.com/2009/05/04/m...
This thread explains what I saw, and reaches a startling conclusion.🧵
www.monbiot.com/2009/05/04/m...
Reposted by Alexander Clarkson
Excellent piece here. www.ft.com/content/320c...
Plus people experience inflation in different ways and food prices seem to have a particularly important influence on perceptions. www.bankofengland.co.uk/working-pape...
Plus people experience inflation in different ways and food prices seem to have a particularly important influence on perceptions. www.bankofengland.co.uk/working-pape...
February 3, 2026 at 8:06 AM
Excellent piece here. www.ft.com/content/320c...
Plus people experience inflation in different ways and food prices seem to have a particularly important influence on perceptions. www.bankofengland.co.uk/working-pape...
Plus people experience inflation in different ways and food prices seem to have a particularly important influence on perceptions. www.bankofengland.co.uk/working-pape...