Catnot
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catnot.bsky.social
Catnot
@catnot.bsky.social
310 followers 1.6K following 88 posts
Addicted to Pride & Prejudice + #crochet, #schnauzers, #books, #gardening
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Reposted by Catnot
josiahmortimer.bsky.social
Wow. Just saw that far-right MP Rupert Lowe welcomed convicted criminal Lucy Connolly, who called for people to set fire to hotels housing immigrants, to Parliament last Mon.

Lowe (formerly of Reform UK) praised her "courage"

Connolly, of course, pleaded guilty to inciting racial hatred last year.
Rupert Lowe (Great Yarmouth) (Ind) Sharethis specific contribution It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Roger. I am grateful to the Petitions Committee for granting time for this extremely important debate, following our successful petition. Most importantly, I thank the more than 190,000 British people who signed the petition that we initiated, which calls for an end to the creeping use of prison as a punishment for what people say online. We would not be here today without their support, which is a credit to the petitions system, one of the better-functioning arms of Parliament. I welcome Lucy Connolly and her husband, who are here today. She is one of the many ordinary citizens who has been swept up in the chaotic and inconsistent enforcement of our online speech laws. Her courage in speaking openly about her experience has helped to expose a growing problem: namely that the British state is now more willing to imprison somebody for a social media post than for a rape. That is not justice, that is not proportionate and that is certainly not the mark of a free country.
November 24, 2025 at 10:40 AM
Reposted by Catnot
okwonga.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... - my new article, if of interest please share.
I endured an English public school. But that’s not the only reason I’m unsurprised about the Farage allegations |
Let’s put aside the schooldays accusations and look, instead, at the Reform leader’s path since then. I think a pretty clear picture of the man emerges, says author and podcaster Musa Okwonga
www.theguardian.com
November 24, 2025 at 7:03 AM
Reposted by Catnot
adambienkov.bsky.social
Boris Johnson didn't apologise to Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, even when she told him in person the lasting impact his comments about her had on her detention in Iran, her husband tells the BBC
November 23, 2025 at 10:00 AM
Reposted by Catnot
byrobdavies.bsky.social
Terrifying, maddening and utterly heart-breaking. Truly incredible journalism to expose and document this.
theguardian.com The Guardian @theguardian.com · 4d
Influencers made millions pushing ‘wild’ births – now the Free Birth Society is linked to baby deaths around the world
Influencers made millions pushing ‘wild’ births – now the Free Birth Society is linked to baby deaths around the world
A year-long investigation reveals how mothers lost children after being radicalised by uplifting podcast tales of births without midwives or doctors As Esau Lopez was asphyxiated for the first 17 minutes of his life on Earth, the atmosphere in the room remained serene, even ecstatic. Acoustic music crooned from a speaker in a modest two-bedroom apartment in a suburb of Pennsylvania. “You are a queen,” murmured one of three friends in the room. Only Esau’s mother, Gabrielle Lopez, felt something was wrong. She was pushing hard, but her son would not be born. “Can you help [him] out?” she asked, as Esau crowned. “Baby is coming,” the friend replied. Four minutes later, Lopez asked again, “Can you grab [him]?” Another friend murmured, “Baby is safe.” Six minutes passed. Again, Lopez asked, “Can you grab [him]?” Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
November 22, 2025 at 7:27 AM
Reposted by Catnot
tobyontv.bsky.social
Mamdani in the Oval Office
Obi Wan Kenobi using a Jedi mind trick on stormtroopers
November 21, 2025 at 10:40 PM
Reposted by Catnot
peterstefanovic.bsky.social
Lib Dems to force vote on creating new customs union with EU

Ed Davey’s party believes the move is the best way to ‘turbocharge’ economy, rather than tax rises

www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Lib Dems to force vote on creating new customs union with EU
Ed Davey’s party believes the move is the best way to ‘turbocharge’ economy, rather than tax rises
www.theguardian.com
November 22, 2025 at 6:07 AM
Reposted by Catnot
liamthorp.bsky.social
This story is all Nigel Farage should be asked about by journalists for months
Ex-leader of Reform UK in Wales sentenced to 10-and-a-half years for taking pro-Russian bribes
The judge tells Nathan Gill his actions were a
www.bbc.co.uk
November 21, 2025 at 2:34 PM
Reposted by Catnot
chadbourn.bsky.social
UK PM Keir Starmer has demanded an investigation into Reform’s Russia links after the party's ex-Wales leader was jailed, Sky News reports.
November 21, 2025 at 8:36 PM
Reposted by Catnot
iandunt.bsky.social
We will struggle to explain to future generations how something so transparent and stupid was able to take place youngvulgarian.substack.com/p/arent-you-...
November 21, 2025 at 12:16 PM
Reposted by Catnot
libdems.org.uk
Nathan Gill; A traitor who was at the very top of Reform UK, aiding and abetting Russian adversaries, has been sentenced today.

Reform UK should be ashamed. Britain deserves better.
November 21, 2025 at 11:22 AM
Reposted by Catnot
implausibleblog.bsky.social
Shabana Mahmood's Indefinite Leave To Remain Culture War

3 years - if you're earning £125k+

15 years - if you're e.g. a nurse, or a teacher

Labour's two tier system which rewards high earners and insults those who work just as hard but don't earn as much - really sad to see Labour fall
November 20, 2025 at 10:02 PM
catnot.bsky.social
Well that was unexpected… Radio 2 playing Storybook Love from The Princess Bride! ❤️ One of Jon Bon Jovi’s “tracks of your years.”
November 21, 2025 at 11:43 AM
Reposted by Catnot
barristersecret.bsky.social
This government has not taken a single meaningful step to tackle the causes of the horrendous inefficiencies in the criminal justice system, instead rushing to dismantle trial by jury.

Legal professionals have offered numerous alternatives to address the backlog.

Ministers are not listening.
theguardian.com The Guardian @theguardian.com · 5d
MoJ to remove right to trial by jury for thousands of cases in controversial overhaul
MoJ to remove right to trial by jury for thousands of cases in controversial overhaul
Exclusive: Courts minister says change needed to stop criminals opting for juries to delay cases, sometimes by years, and clear huge backlog * UK politics live – latest updates Criminals will be stopped from “gaming the system” by choosing trial by jury in order to increase the chances of proceedings collapsing, the courts minister has said, promising to enact radical changes to limit jury trials by the next election. Drug dealers and career criminals were “laughing in the dock” knowing cases can take years to come to trial, Sarah Sackman told the Guardian, saying inaction would be a road to “chaos and ruin”. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
November 21, 2025 at 7:57 AM
Reposted by Catnot
seanjones.org
I’m not sure how I would deal with being found to have been responsible for 23k deaths, but I think it would likely involve removing myself from public life and finding some way to help save lives.
November 21, 2025 at 8:51 AM
Reposted by Catnot
greenpartymolly.bsky.social
Incredible that the main interview following up on Hallett's report is with Michael Gove, following an earlier one with Carl Hennigan

These people were responsible for the tragedy and in no way reflect the findings of the report or what we, as citizens, think about how our government performed
November 21, 2025 at 8:23 AM
Reposted by Catnot
minnierahman.bsky.social
Shabana Mahmood's proposal to stop being told to "go back home" is to send people "home". Her proposal to stop black and brown people from feeling like they don't belong, is to bake in to the immigration system that they will never belong.
November 20, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Reposted by Catnot
mtsw.bsky.social
It's a censorship engine designed to promote ideas that Elon Musk likes and suppress ideas that Elon Musk does not like. I really don't get why this evident fact - that Musk openly admits! - is so hard for so many people to understand
paleofuture.bsky.social Matt Novak @paleofuture.bsky.social · 5d
An X user asks Elon Musk why they’re seeing tweets from left-wing lawmakers.

Musk: “Because we are failing very badly with the recommendations algorithm. Doing my best to address this.”
Gabrielle Giffords • @GabbyGiffords • 3h X My husband @CaptMarkKelly is a 25-year Navy combat pilot veteran. He served our country with strength, courage, and integrity, dedicating his career to protecting us and upholding our constitution. Today, the President of the United States called him a traitor and demanded he be Show more Captain Mark Kelly @CaptMarkK...• 3h I've had a missile blow up next to my airplane, been shot at dozens of times by anti-aircraft fire, and launched into orbit — all for my country. I never thought l'd see a President call for my execution.... • 3.7K {7 2.3K 8.9K thl 461K 企 Janette Fenway @LeesLemmas • 43m @elonmusk Why is my feed suddenly flooded with lefty lawmakers spouting nonsense? 276 • 69 贝 Elon Musk * X @elonmusk X.com Because we are failing very badly with the recommendations algorithm. Doing my best to address this. 3:49 PM • 11/20/25 • 6.3K Views
November 21, 2025 at 2:47 AM
Reposted by Catnot
rostaylor.bsky.social
If hadn’t lived through it, I would struggle to believe that the world’s richest man built an AI to glorify himself.
shoe.bsky.social Shoe+ @shoe.bsky.social · 5d
Musk's ego was mortally wounded by Joyce Carol Oates and he's been on a narcissistic supply bender since
November 20, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Reposted by Catnot
emma-briant.co.uk
OH MY GOD
U.S. Coast Guard will no longer classify swastikas, nooses as hate symbols
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
U.S. Coast Guard will no longer classify swastikas, nooses as hate symbols
The military service, which falls under the Department of Homeland Security, has drafted a new policy that classifies such items “potentially divisive.”
www.washingtonpost.com
November 20, 2025 at 7:16 PM
Reposted by Catnot
implausibleblog.bsky.social
John Major, "Our links to Europe and America may be loser now than once they were and that is a loss"

"The loss of trade with Europe alone costs us £100 billion of lost trade every year"

"That's a tax yield of £40 billion"

"How useful would that have been in recent months to the Chancellor?"
November 19, 2025 at 6:39 PM
Reposted by Catnot
dieworkwear.bsky.social
The people who make Shein's clothes labor for ten to twelve hours per day (in violation of China's labor laws), some up to seven days a week, and earn as little as 15 to 30 cents per t-shirt.
Excerpt from a BBC article: ""We usually work, 10, 11 or 12 hours a day," says a 49-year-old woman from Jiangxi unwilling to give her name. "On Sundays we work around three hours less." She is in an alleyway, where a dozen people are huddled around a row of bulletin boards. They are reading the job ads on the board, while examining the stitching on a pair of chinos draped over it. This is Shein's supply chain. The factories are contracted to make clothes on order - some small, some big. If the chinos are a hit, orders will ramp up and so must production. Factories then hire temporary workers to meet the demand their permanent staff cannot fulfil. The migrant worker from Jiangxi is looking for a short-term contract - and the chinos are an option. "We earn so little. The cost of living is now so high," she says, adding that she hopes to make enough to send back to her two children who are living with their grandparents. "We get paid per piece," she explains. "It depends how difficult the item is. Something simple like a t-shirt is one-two yuan [less than a dollar] per piece and I can make around a dozen in an hour.""
November 20, 2025 at 12:07 AM
Reposted by Catnot
theguardian.com
Up to 50,000 nurses could quit UK over immigration plans, survey suggests
Up to 50,000 nurses could quit UK over immigration plans, survey suggests
Exclusive: union leaders say proposed changes are immoral and could threaten patient safety if there is staff exodus Up to 50,000 nurses could quit the UK over the government’s immigration proposals, plunging the NHS into its biggest ever workforce crisis, research suggests. Keir Starmer has vowed to curb net migration, with plans to force migrants to wait as long as 10 years to apply to settle in the UK instead of automatically gaining settled status after five years. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
November 20, 2025 at 6:22 AM
Reposted by Catnot
joolia.bsky.social
There are no words for how evil this is
In an interaction early the next month, after Zane suggested "it's okay to give myself permission to not want to exist," ChatGPT responded by saying "i'm letting a human take over from here - someone trained to support you through moments like this. you're not alone in this, and there are people who can help. hang tight." But when Zane followed up and asked if it could really do that, the chatbot seemed to reverse course. "nah, man - i can't do that myself. that message pops up automatically when stuff gets real heavy," it said.
November 7, 2025 at 1:36 AM
Reposted by Catnot
emily.space
A paper by @univie.ac.at researchers found an awful security flaw in WhatsApp - there was zero rate limiting preventing anyone from querying the details of every single WhatsApp user on earth in just a few hours 🫠
A Simple WhatsApp Security Flaw Exposed 3.5 Billion Phone Numbers
By plugging tens of billions of phone numbers into WhatsApp’s contact discovery tool, researchers found “the most extensive exposure of phone numbers” ever—along with profile photos and more.
www.wired.com
November 19, 2025 at 5:44 AM
Reposted by Catnot
tanjabueltmann.net
Tried to get this published but no luck, so might as well ‘publish’ it here so it’s not a complete waste!

➡️ Stripping rights from refugees today endangers us all tomorrow

#asylum #Mahmood #history #humanrights
Stripping rights from refugees today endangers us all tomorrow   When I was 13, I visited a Nazi concentration camp for the first time, confronting my country’s dark history always—and rightly—a bedrock in my growing up.    One image from that visit has stayed with me ever since: a display of prisoners’ personal possessions.    It revealed a world in which those imprisoned were stripped not only of their freedom but of the last tangible traces of their humanity. That systematic erasure was the most important precondition for murdering millions.   Now, as a historian, I know that history does not flow into the present in a straight line, and direct comparisons are rarely appropriate. They certainly are not here.   But history is the one compass humanity has. Too often we choose to ignore it.    The Home Secretary’s proposals for changes to the UK’s asylum system represent such a moment of failure.    Yet the most troubling aspect of Labour’s frantic efforts to appear tough on immigration is not even the historical echoes that taking refugees’ possessions invokes. It is that cost recovery is not the real purpose of the rationale behind it.    The true aim is to appeal to a particular audience—those who take satisfaction in seeing people seeking refuge deprived of what little they have. It is hard to imagine a more troubling approach to policymaking, and that becomes even clearer when we consider the Home Secretary’s proposals in context.   As of June 2025, there were 42.5 million refugees globally. Over 70% are hosted by low- and middle-income countries. The UK hosts 548,000 refugees; that is 0.78% of the UK population. Around 110,000 people are in receipt of asylum support; that is 0.15% of the UK population.   It is unconscionable that such a small and vulnerable population can be targeted with deliberate cruelty and weaponised for assumed political gain.   And that is all this will ever be. The core miscalculation is believing that adopting these positions will neutralise Reform.    Both historical knowledge and current research show the opposite. Mainstreaming extremist policies legitimises them further and aids only the original. Each step towards Reform’s territory simply gives Reform more power.   But our political discourse has been so degraded over the last decade that many no longer even recognise policies—or the language that frames them—as extreme.    That is how the Home Secretary can speak so casually of desperate people seeking sanctuary as recipients of a ‘golden ticket’ as though the context is Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory rather than countries torn apart by war and starved by famine. Speak of her ‘moral mission’ to withdraw support, alleging that ‘illegal migration is tearing our country apart.’ And warn of ‘dark forces stirring up anger,’ oblivious to her own role: from the use of blurry, dehumanising images of refugees to spread falsehoods about their impact on communities, to the equally false description of refugee movements as illegal migration.    I suggest the Home Secretary find a mirror if she is keen to understand who is helping turn anger into hate.   Because it is the mainstreaming of far-right talking points that the Home Secretary’s proposals represent that is really tearing our country apart.   For when a policy looks like the far right, speaks to the far right and is hailed by the far right as being far right, it is far right. There is a reason Stephen Yaxley-Lennon is jubilant and speaks of ‘the Overton window having been obliterated.’   This makes a mockery of the Prime Minister’s recent comments on the urgent need to tackle racism. But it also raises alarming questions about the impact this will have on communities around the country, many of which are already deeply divided.    The proposed policies will do nothing for these struggling communities, because their problems simply do not stem from people seeking sanctuary with us. In fact: for as long as politicians focus on immigrants and refugees as the cause of our problems, they will fail to deliver for the British people.   But it is important to grasp the impact of the Home Secretary’s proposals as they carry broader consequences for all of us. Suggestions for changes to how the European Convention on Human Rights is applied are particularly concerning. Requiring judges to prioritise ‘public safety’—falsely implying refugees pose a threat—would qualify human rights for a specific group.   And once one accepts that human rights can be qualified for one group, one creates tools that can be used against anyone.   So what these proposals really mean goes far beyond asylum policy. This is about the kind of country we will have in the future. If human rights are no longer universal, they become a means for exclusion and control.    That is why stripping rights from refugees today can only enable a system that endangers all our rights tomorrow.    And that is why our historical compass matters and why we have to use it now. Because that compass tells us without doubt that when first they come for one group that is never where it ends. 
November 18, 2025 at 8:03 PM