Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
"They told us what they were going to do. They published it. They put it on a website. And when it happened, the press was surprised."
Hoo boy, everyone should bookmark this @parkermolloy.com piece & make sure everyone involved in media reads it.
Hoo boy, everyone should bookmark this @parkermolloy.com piece & make sure everyone involved in media reads it.
This is Literally the Job
Political journalists need to stop pretending they don't know what Republicans are going to do.
www.readtpa.com
January 27, 2026 at 9:37 PM
"They told us what they were going to do. They published it. They put it on a website. And when it happened, the press was surprised."
Hoo boy, everyone should bookmark this @parkermolloy.com piece & make sure everyone involved in media reads it.
Hoo boy, everyone should bookmark this @parkermolloy.com piece & make sure everyone involved in media reads it.
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
Perhaps the most interesting view of AI is a sociological one in which we try and understand how and why intelligent humans ignore all previous research and centuries of human thought in pursuit of creating a toaster with anxiety.
Anthropic's philosopher, Amanda Askell, says she worries that AI might not 'feel that loved' and grow up feeling 'always judged.'
Anthropic's philosopher says we don't know for sure if AI can feel
Anthropic's philosopher, Amanda Askell, says she worries that AI might not 'feel that loved' and grow up feeling 'always judged.'
www.businessinsider.com
January 26, 2026 at 12:21 PM
Perhaps the most interesting view of AI is a sociological one in which we try and understand how and why intelligent humans ignore all previous research and centuries of human thought in pursuit of creating a toaster with anxiety.
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
unlike all the strident leftists who were correct too early, i am correct at exactly the right time
January 25, 2026 at 8:01 PM
unlike all the strident leftists who were correct too early, i am correct at exactly the right time
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
Your model has to track the world and account for its function. That’s the Beeb’s job. Not to bow to political opinion either in the studio or nationally. To track the reality and show its workings. To make the model available and update it as science and evidence dictate.
January 25, 2026 at 10:09 AM
Your model has to track the world and account for its function. That’s the Beeb’s job. Not to bow to political opinion either in the studio or nationally. To track the reality and show its workings. To make the model available and update it as science and evidence dictate.
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
A reminder to the news media: “conflicting accounts” is what you say BEFORE the incontrovertible video evidence appears. After that, your job is to ask why one side is lying, not to repeat the lie and pretend no one knows the truth.
January 25, 2026 at 12:28 PM
A reminder to the news media: “conflicting accounts” is what you say BEFORE the incontrovertible video evidence appears. After that, your job is to ask why one side is lying, not to repeat the lie and pretend no one knows the truth.
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
The reason the BBC coverage of Alex Pretti's murder reads like Fox News, while the likes of the NYT are reading the room and dropping the both-sideism, is that the BBC's news team is institutionally captured by people who are proud of only ever listening to the opinions of racists and transphobes.
January 25, 2026 at 12:33 PM
The reason the BBC coverage of Alex Pretti's murder reads like Fox News, while the likes of the NYT are reading the room and dropping the both-sideism, is that the BBC's news team is institutionally captured by people who are proud of only ever listening to the opinions of racists and transphobes.
@bsky.app v1.115.0 ❌
Every new version I try pasting a GIF into the app and am disappointed. Don’t know why I thought this one would be different.
And this lack is about 80% of the reason I’ve not started making GIFs again. The inability to share them on the only social network I use.
And this lack is about 80% of the reason I’ve not started making GIFs again. The inability to share them on the only social network I use.
January 25, 2026 at 8:50 AM
@bsky.app v1.115.0 ❌
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
Did no-one in the BBC stop and think, hey, maybe actually this time we shouldn‘t both-sides a shooting of which there’s widely available footage, maybe we should ask our correspondent to rethink his piece, so we don’t look like we’re chin-stroking our way into fascism
January 25, 2026 at 12:34 AM
Did no-one in the BBC stop and think, hey, maybe actually this time we shouldn‘t both-sides a shooting of which there’s widely available footage, maybe we should ask our correspondent to rethink his piece, so we don’t look like we’re chin-stroking our way into fascism
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
It has gotten so bad that the @nytimes.com has stopped using the passive voice to describe the violence.
January 24, 2026 at 5:15 PM
It has gotten so bad that the @nytimes.com has stopped using the passive voice to describe the violence.
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
This is great! Engineering and a very good dog who's clearly having a tremendous time
I wish the internet was more about people 3D printing whistling mortar bombs for their very happy dogs to chase than arseholes secretly filming unsuspecting people for grifting and humiliation but I guess that ship has sailed
January 24, 2026 at 12:11 PM
This is great! Engineering and a very good dog who's clearly having a tremendous time
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
Also no mention of the general strike that was part of this today.
Zero.
Corporate media doesn’t want you to know this was a general strike
Zero.
Corporate media doesn’t want you to know this was a general strike
Fuck you CNN “hundreds”?!?!
Fucking spineless cowards - how many were really there you boot licking enablers?
Fucking spineless cowards - how many were really there you boot licking enablers?
January 24, 2026 at 1:47 AM
Also no mention of the general strike that was part of this today.
Zero.
Corporate media doesn’t want you to know this was a general strike
Zero.
Corporate media doesn’t want you to know this was a general strike
On a completely unrelated note I am trying and failing to find something I read in the last year about choosing from a pool of candidates to make things feel random without just using rand() and can I find it?
Search sucks so hard now.
Search sucks so hard now.
One from the archives: "Gun" from Miss Congeniality (2000).
After Victor once again pulls a bagel from her hand before she can eat it, Gracie pulls a gun and points it at him. He returns the bagel.
First posted, 14 December 2021.
https://gifs.cackhanded.net/miss-congeniality/gun
After Victor once again pulls a bagel from her hand before she can eat it, Gracie pulls a gun and points it at him. He returns the bagel.
First posted, 14 December 2021.
https://gifs.cackhanded.net/miss-congeniality/gun
January 23, 2026 at 12:07 PM
On a completely unrelated note I am trying and failing to find something I read in the last year about choosing from a pool of candidates to make things feel random without just using rand() and can I find it?
Search sucks so hard now.
Search sucks so hard now.
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
One from the archives: "Gun" from Miss Congeniality (2000).
After Victor once again pulls a bagel from her hand before she can eat it, Gracie pulls a gun and points it at him. He returns the bagel.
First posted, 14 December 2021.
https://gifs.cackhanded.net/miss-congeniality/gun
After Victor once again pulls a bagel from her hand before she can eat it, Gracie pulls a gun and points it at him. He returns the bagel.
First posted, 14 December 2021.
https://gifs.cackhanded.net/miss-congeniality/gun
January 23, 2026 at 12:01 PM
One from the archives: "Gun" from Miss Congeniality (2000).
After Victor once again pulls a bagel from her hand before she can eat it, Gracie pulls a gun and points it at him. He returns the bagel.
First posted, 14 December 2021.
https://gifs.cackhanded.net/miss-congeniality/gun
After Victor once again pulls a bagel from her hand before she can eat it, Gracie pulls a gun and points it at him. He returns the bagel.
First posted, 14 December 2021.
https://gifs.cackhanded.net/miss-congeniality/gun
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
Wow I wonder what happened in 2016. Don’t worry, the headline and first paragraphs will definitely not tell you.
And I remember how the airports were plastered in “Britain: open for business!” posters right after Brexit.
www.ft.com/content/66eb...
And I remember how the airports were plastered in “Britain: open for business!” posters right after Brexit.
www.ft.com/content/66eb...
UK consumer confidence marks 10 years without a positive reading
GfK index rose by 1 point to minus 16 in January, up from a low of minus 23 in April 2025
www.ft.com
January 23, 2026 at 8:56 AM
Wow I wonder what happened in 2016. Don’t worry, the headline and first paragraphs will definitely not tell you.
And I remember how the airports were plastered in “Britain: open for business!” posters right after Brexit.
www.ft.com/content/66eb...
And I remember how the airports were plastered in “Britain: open for business!” posters right after Brexit.
www.ft.com/content/66eb...
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
Perfect example of how to respond as an org when gently prompted to start doing alt text. 👍👍♥️
Other orgs and museums take note pls!
Other orgs and museums take note pls!
Thank you for bringing this to our attention, and we apologise that we hadn’t been using alt text previously. We’ve now added alt text to all of our scheduled posts and will be including it on all posts going forward. We really appreciate you highlighting this for inclusivity — thank you.
January 23, 2026 at 9:02 AM
Perfect example of how to respond as an org when gently prompted to start doing alt text. 👍👍♥️
Other orgs and museums take note pls!
Other orgs and museums take note pls!
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
As someone who likes #5E and has played a bit of #DrawSteel, here's what I think about the Negotiation system specifically and the full game generally. www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWOw...
Why aren't DRAW STEEL Negotiations in 5E?
YouTube video by Mystic Arts
www.youtube.com
January 22, 2026 at 3:50 PM
As someone who likes #5E and has played a bit of #DrawSteel, here's what I think about the Negotiation system specifically and the full game generally. www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWOw...
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
The very first web browser: Tim Berners-Lee's WorldWideWeb browser (yes, that's what it was called!). This is a 1993 screen shot, via CERN.
January 21, 2026 at 4:18 PM
The very first web browser: Tim Berners-Lee's WorldWideWeb browser (yes, that's what it was called!). This is a 1993 screen shot, via CERN.
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
The US granted visas to Jews but only allowed 30,000 in from Germany a year. You had to wait for your number to come up.
Meet Robert Smallbones. An unassuming British diplomat who 'hacked' this system so effectively (saving 48 THOUSAND Jews) the UK government kept his scheme secret for decades /1 🧵
Meet Robert Smallbones. An unassuming British diplomat who 'hacked' this system so effectively (saving 48 THOUSAND Jews) the UK government kept his scheme secret for decades /1 🧵
January 21, 2026 at 12:52 PM
The US granted visas to Jews but only allowed 30,000 in from Germany a year. You had to wait for your number to come up.
Meet Robert Smallbones. An unassuming British diplomat who 'hacked' this system so effectively (saving 48 THOUSAND Jews) the UK government kept his scheme secret for decades /1 🧵
Meet Robert Smallbones. An unassuming British diplomat who 'hacked' this system so effectively (saving 48 THOUSAND Jews) the UK government kept his scheme secret for decades /1 🧵
@bsky.app v1.114.0 ❌
Every new version I try pasting a GIF into the app and am disappointed. Don’t know why I thought this one would be different.
And this lack is about 80% of the reason I’ve not started making GIFs again. The inability to share them on the only social network I use.
And this lack is about 80% of the reason I’ve not started making GIFs again. The inability to share them on the only social network I use.
January 20, 2026 at 8:30 AM
@bsky.app v1.114.0 ❌
I have worked with people that genuinely think having the idea is the hard part and that they could have a million-dollar idea and be set for life without actually doing any of the work to make the idea real.
OpenAI has absolutely zero ideas. They have no business. This is not a real business line and it’s so utterly vague and specious, I’m shocked at the credulousness to just print it without saying “there is no logical way this works of course” or talking about how the CFO of OpenAI is saying nonsense
January 20, 2026 at 7:37 AM
I have worked with people that genuinely think having the idea is the hard part and that they could have a million-dollar idea and be set for life without actually doing any of the work to make the idea real.
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
I like that the same day a guy was like “this place will never be Twitter” this thread gave us the most 2015 Twitter experience (complimentary) imaginable.
I just woke up from a nap and somehow while I was asleep, everyone on the bus has figured out we are not going to the right place
January 20, 2026 at 4:38 AM
I like that the same day a guy was like “this place will never be Twitter” this thread gave us the most 2015 Twitter experience (complimentary) imaginable.
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
Me pitching a train ad campaign
January 20, 2026 at 4:11 AM
Me pitching a train ad campaign
Reposted by Mark Norman Francis
This is a very scary thread, but now that everything's all right, I think it's everyone's duty to convince this person they never actually woke up.
I just woke up from a nap and somehow while I was asleep, everyone on the bus has figured out we are not going to the right place
January 20, 2026 at 5:07 AM
This is a very scary thread, but now that everything's all right, I think it's everyone's duty to convince this person they never actually woke up.
Clearly the word “roadmap” means something different now, as that’s just a list of New Year’s resolutions.
Might as well say digital government will lose weight, improve its wellness, and embrace its inner strengths in order to turn its life around.
Might as well say digital government will lose weight, improve its wellness, and embrace its inner strengths in order to turn its life around.
It appears that DSIT have published the much-awaited 'Roadmap for modern digital government' roadmap-for-modern-digital-government.campaign.gov.uk
Ministerial statement here: questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-stat...
Ministerial statement here: questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-stat...
Roadmap for modern digital government
Our plan to build a modern digital government that works for you - making life easier, driving growth and delivering smarter, more efficient public services
roadmap-for-modern-digital-government.campaign.gov.uk
January 19, 2026 at 1:21 PM
Clearly the word “roadmap” means something different now, as that’s just a list of New Year’s resolutions.
Might as well say digital government will lose weight, improve its wellness, and embrace its inner strengths in order to turn its life around.
Might as well say digital government will lose weight, improve its wellness, and embrace its inner strengths in order to turn its life around.