David Allsopp
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doublehelix.bsky.social
David Allsopp
@doublehelix.bsky.social
3.3K followers 2.4K following 5.2K posts
Scientist turned software engineer. He/him

🏹 Field archery 🐀 Rats 😷 COVID cautious 🏃 Parkrun

https://medium.com/@davidallsopp
@[email protected]
@doublehelix on the birdsite
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doublehelix.bsky.social
David Allsopp @doublehelix.bsky.social · Nov 17
A short thread of my essays on Medium - mostly debunking anti-trans disinformation and other bigotry

1) "Sex-based rights" are contradictory nonsense

The term is a dog-whistle slogan, coined just to exclude trans people, with multiple meanings — none of which make sense
medium.com/@davidallsop...
“Sex-based rights” are contradictory nonsense
The term is a dog-whistle slogan, coined just to exclude trans people, with multiple meanings — none of which make sense.
medium.com
Reposted by David Allsopp
ericaodd.bsky.social
If y'all want to get your sci-fi groove on without having to buy into a streaming service...

cordcuttersnews.com/babylon-5-is...
Babylon 5 Is Now Free to Watch On YouTube | Cord Cutters News
In a move that has delighted fans of classic science fiction, Warner Bros. Discovery has begun uploading full episodes of the iconic series Babylon 5 to YouTube, providing free access to the show just...
cordcuttersnews.com
February 13, 2026 at 7:56 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
pickwick.bsky.social
I'd love it if we didn't have quite so many rich Scottish guys who are extremely invested in making sure sex pests face no consequences even after death

news.stv.tv/scotland/mil...
Millionaire takes over legal rights to Salmond case against Scottish Government
The former first minister took action against the Government, naming Nicola Sturgeon and former top civil servant Leslie Evans specifically
news.stv.tv
February 14, 2026 at 6:09 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
nocontextbritss.bsky.social
Roses are red.
Violets are tender.
A man with short gray hair and glasses is shown from the chest up, wearing a dark blazer. Behind him is a blurred exterior scene with a building that appears to be a church.
February 14, 2026 at 4:31 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
mayor.nyc.gov
Everyone in the world comes to get married at the NYC Marriage Bureau. Last week, the Mayor stopped by to officiate a few of those ceremonies. 
 
Thank you to all the couples who shared their joy with us. Happy Valentine's Day, New York. 
 
 Watch the full video at Youtube.com/nycmayorsoffice
February 14, 2026 at 4:09 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
flyingrodent.bsky.social
Really helpful about what the Epstein class is, here: it’s corrupt officials from captured political parties turning their connections into money, by acting in concert with donors and various billionaires including straight up criminals, to buy up whatever is left of the postwar settlement.
So many incentives are put in place throughout a political career to leave yourself when you leave government or leave the civil service in a position that allows you to enter this world without any problem. I mean, I wanted to just highlight one of the things that came out through these files, which is a recording of a conversation that Epstein had had with the former Israeli prime minister whose name I forget. Ehud Barak. Yes. Sorry. Yeah. So he essentially gives the kind of blueprint for how you set one of these advisory firms up. And he says to him, essentially, make a list of all the people who from your political career owe you a favor or two. And from that list draw your first clients and stuff. I think that's entirely right. I have a long running argument with an Italian friend about whose country is more corrupt. And he says, quite rightly, look at this kind of the vast range of corruption here in Italy. And I said, well, at least you prosecute people for it. I mean, in Britain, it's legal. I mean, we do it legally. We have a register of people who say, you know, well, because I've told you that I've taken this money or these tickets or whatever, then I can't possibly be accused of any conflict of interest. Or, you know, I mean, nominally, we don't elevate people to the House of Lords as a piece of political patronage. But of course, donors are elevated to the House of Lords on the back of their donations. And of course, the thing that we should stress about that is elevating someone to the House of Lords is a means of allowing them to profit from that position. And it's one of the points that sort of Jack Straw made when he was caught lobbying various clients prior to what he expected to be his elevation to the House of Lords. He said, well, the rules are a lot broader there. I can get away with all sorts of things. That's the point. The point is allowing them to become a Lord so they can sit on various boards and so on and so on and so on. Let's talk about these people a bit. I think it's worth mentioning one of those moments where politics really does arise in these files which is an email sent by Epstein to Teal, two piece of Teal of Palantir, around Brexit. It's an email thread with lots of other people. He says, this is the beginning of effectively a global change, increased tribalism, lots of distressed assets for us to snap up. Again, this is one of those moments where you think, gosh, I find myself reaching for my more conspiratorial reasoning here. But as we've said, this is simply the way in which these people think about power and global events. I wonder if Peter, if you have something to say about that particular cluster of Epstein Correspondence and Epstein Networks, so it encapsulates Palantir, which is this huge tech surveillance state provision company, along with Bannon, who's this huge figure on the new political right globally. There's a cluster of interest here around technology, around
February 14, 2026 at 5:35 PM
doublehelix.bsky.social
A succulent chocolate coin?
katelynburns.com Katelyn Burns @katelynburns.com · 3h
Ok but detained for what crime exactly?
prdolan.bsky.social 🌒 West 🌒 @prdolan.bsky.social · 4h
I could fix her. But why would I want to?
February 14, 2026 at 5:43 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
bradheath.bsky.social
President Trump's lawyers have told a court he shouldn't have to respond to lawsuits because it would distract him from running the government.

But he's found time to bring lawsuits of his own, against the New York Times and even against his own administration.

www.reuters.com/legal/govern...
February 14, 2026 at 12:17 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
crindivisible.bsky.social
Yesterday morning kids were sent running from their bus stop in panic because ICE showed up. This guy at today’s ICE Out of Lindenwold protest is a must watch 😭. @maddow.bsky.social
February 14, 2026 at 2:37 AM
Reposted by David Allsopp
misterjayem.bsky.social
"'She is dead,'" Officer Auderer told Officer Solan, before bursting out laughing.

"'No, it’s a regular person,' Officer Auderer said, adding: 'Yeah, just write a check — $11,000. She was 26, anyway. She had limited value.'"
Seattle to Pay $29 Million to Family of Woman Fatally Struck by Police S.U.V.
www.nytimes.com
February 13, 2026 at 3:56 AM
Reposted by David Allsopp
paulvandermeer.bsky.social
Norway’s former Prime Minister Thorbjørn Jagland has been charged with “aggravated corruption” after a police probe into his alleged ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to the law firm representing him.
February 14, 2026 at 1:28 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
davidpaisley.net
I know I'm Scottish, therefore I love all things battered, and I'm fond of a brussels sprout, but even I am unsure about this...
An image of a packet of battered Brussels sprouts from Aldi
February 14, 2026 at 4:45 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
emilymbender.bsky.social
Here's an example of the reaction I'm describing here, and I appreciate something this particular poster makes clear: They neither understand nor respect boundaries. There's no policing happening here, just my own decisions about who I will have a conversation with.
Screencap of a tweet, with handle/name of poster truncated. Text: Eg, when Emily Bender says she won’t speak with anyone who doesn’t consider her a fully sentient human being, she is policing ontological *beliefs* of other people. When she denies LLMs can think (no ext reference) she is excluding them from meaningfulness *due to* their ontology
February 14, 2026 at 4:37 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
rspb.bsky.social
Happy Valentine’s Day, from us to you. Tag your exes. Xoxox
Coral background with faint heart illustrations. A glossy male Blackbird with a bright yellow bill faces left. Large title reads: “Birds as bad exes*” Smaller text reads: “*Yes, you read that right.”
February 14, 2026 at 2:21 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
goodlawproject.bsky.social
Feeling confused about the High Court’s ruling? Read our FAQs on where this judgment leaves us and what happens next:

https://goodlaw.social/ioen
FAQ: Trans inclusion after the High Court decision on the EHRC’s interim guidance | Good Law Project
An explanation of where things stand for services and workplaces
goodlaw.social
February 14, 2026 at 2:01 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
davekronig.bsky.social
When I clerked, my chambers were right around the corner from Judge McMahon's and she was friends with my judge. This is extraordinarily out of character for her. It's emblematic of how bad the situation is with the government flagrantly abusing the judicial process and ignoring court authority.
clapifyoulikeme.favrd.social Mrs. Detective Pikajew, Esq. @clapifyoulikeme.favrd.social · 12h
hi, judge expert here, judges only do this when they're in extreme distress!
storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
MEMO ENDORSEMENT on re: 210 Letter, filed by Modern Language Association of America, American Council of Learned Societies, American Historical Association. ENDORSEMENT: I am quite tired of your discovery disputes. The documents MUST BE PRODUCED by Monday, even if Monday is a federal holiday. I will not modify the schedule for briefing purposes in this letter, as I have already signed off on it. PS - I am not interested in further argument. Produce the documents now. (Signed by Judge Colleen McMahon on 2/13/2026) (mml) (Entered: 02/13/2026)
February 14, 2026 at 3:14 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
clapifyoulikeme.favrd.social
hi, judge expert here, judges only do this when they're in extreme distress!
storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
MEMO ENDORSEMENT on re: 210 Letter, filed by Modern Language Association of America, American Council of Learned Societies, American Historical Association. ENDORSEMENT: I am quite tired of your discovery disputes. The documents MUST BE PRODUCED by Monday, even if Monday is a federal holiday. I will not modify the schedule for briefing purposes in this letter, as I have already signed off on it. PS - I am not interested in further argument. Produce the documents now. (Signed by Judge Colleen McMahon on 2/13/2026) (mml) (Entered: 02/13/2026)
February 14, 2026 at 6:24 AM
Reposted by David Allsopp
mddoogie3.bsky.social
I don’t really know what I expect in posting this, but maybe some people see it and can learn from it.

I’ll call it “lessons from an unwilling immigration attorney.”

1/
February 11, 2026 at 9:56 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
mddoogie3.bsky.social
4. Medical malpractice. Here’s why I say stopping this detention-to Texas pipeline is life of death.

An 18-month old hospitalized after nearly dying of three simultaneous respiratory infections. When she returned to the camp, DHS withheld her meds.

23/

www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...
18-month-old girl hospitalized with respiratory failure in ICE detention, lawyers say
Dilley Immigration Processing Center in rural Texas withheld medication after ‘gravely ill’ toddler was sent back into its custody, according to federal lawsuit
www.independent.co.uk
February 11, 2026 at 9:56 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
radleybalko.bsky.social
Please read this long but important thread from an immigration defense attorney.

If this administration is permitted to scale its current abuse, neglect, and inhumane treatment of immigrants to the breadth and scope for which they’re currently planning, we’ll all be witness to mass atrocities.
mddoogie3.bsky.social MdDoogie3 @mddoogie3.bsky.social · 2d
I don’t really know what I expect in posting this, but maybe some people see it and can learn from it.

I’ll call it “lessons from an unwilling immigration attorney.”

1/
February 14, 2026 at 1:44 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
bradheath.bsky.social
NEW: Hundreds of judges around the country have ruled more than 4,400 times since October that President Donald Trump’s administration is detaining immigrants unlawfully, a Reuters review of court records found.

The government keeps doing it nonetheless.

www.reuters.com/legal/govern...
February 14, 2026 at 12:14 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
bradheath.bsky.social
The government has struggled to keep up with the pace at which it's being sued, and the pace at which it's losing.

Reuters found more than 700 Justice Department lawyers now assigned to immigration detention cases.

And we found five DOJ attorneys who each appeared in more than 1,000 cases.
February 14, 2026 at 1:05 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
dominicervolina.com
2/12/2026 - Lindenwold, NJ

ICE agents chase children who were waiting at a bus stop for an elementary school

These are elementary school-age children running from adult federal agents attempting to kidnap them
February 14, 2026 at 6:25 AM
doublehelix.bsky.social
I mean, CO2 is absolutely lethal to animal life in sufficient concentration. But climate denial in a 'mainstream' newspaper isn't a good look either.
davidho.bsky.social David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 6h
Spoken like someone locked in a poorly ventilated room.
Headline from The Telegraph of an idiotic piece by Matt Ridley: CO2 is simply not a danger to human health, and it's actively good for crops.
February 14, 2026 at 4:53 PM
Reposted by David Allsopp
davidho.bsky.social
Spoken like someone locked in a poorly ventilated room.
Headline from The Telegraph of an idiotic piece by Matt Ridley: CO2 is simply not a danger to human health, and it's actively good for crops.
February 14, 2026 at 11:46 AM
Reposted by David Allsopp
rodger.bsky.social
CURLING BEEF! CURLING BEEF! CURLING BEEF! CURLING BEEF!

(I never post Olympic videos bc the IOC will hunt you down but I am taking that risk so that you can hear the Canadian curling cursing)
February 13, 2026 at 9:44 PM