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Thomas Pink

@leonard33.bsky.social

190 followers 320 following 9 posts

Emeritus Professor of Philosophy, King’s College London

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Philosophy 52%

Political science 23%

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

John T @jtatlife.bsky.social · 2d

Do homework before PMQs. Pick some areas where Labour might be seen to be doing badly but Reform are less comfy (education, benefits, foreign policy) and highlight those instead of being Nigel's warm up act.
None of those guarantee a win, but they leave you in an OK place for something to turn up

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

John T @jtatlife.bsky.social · 2d

For a start starting a fight with Jenrick to kick off a leadership challenge on the subject of 'gutter racism: yes or no' and hopefully winning an extra year. Then wait for Reeves to raise taxes at the Budget, condemn, propose some mindless but plausible benefit cuts instead. Be nice to journalists.

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

Richard K @rkemb.bsky.social · 2d

"Properly costed" in the sense that the spreadsheet adds up, not that it reflects what anything actually costs.

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Thomas Pink @leonard33.bsky.social · 2d

How could Badenoch ever lose now?

thecritic.co.uk/one-small-st...

One small step… | Robert Hutton | The Critic Magazine

“I thought you’d like that one!” Kemi Badenoch shouted as the Conservative Party rose to its feet to cheer. She chuckled happily. There’s nothing Tories like more than a tax cut, and she’d just…

thecritic.co.uk

Reposted by Thomas Pink

Chairman Moët @chairmanmoet.bsky.social · 2d

There's a touch of the Liz Truss about Kemi Badenoch. Both in the tax cut paid for by fantasy figures and also a belief there's This One Special Trick The British State Doesn't Want You To Know About! that will somehow solve everything.
Be rude to some civil servants and the UK's problems vanish!

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Reposted by Peter Adamson, John Wilkins, Thomas Pink

Centre for Logic and Philosophy of Science (CLPS) @clpskuleuven.bsky.social · 2d

In recent decades, scholars have examined various facets of Avicenna’s #logic. But how did Avicenna himself conceptualize logic—its definition, status, and purpose? PhD student Shahab Khademi explores this question in a new paper! 👇📃 www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.... #philsky #histphil #HPS

Avicenna on the Meaning of Logic: Revisiting Five Major Works

Avicenna's logic has gathered much interest in recent decades. However, one significant point that has hitherto been frequently neglected is what logic means to Avicenna in the first place. Conside...

www.tandfonline.com

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

Robert Hutton @roberthutton.co.uk · 2d

Wondering how Kemi Badenoch can stand up and complain that no one can get a GP appointment? She's taken SUPER MAGIC DEFEAT-O! thecritic.co.uk/super-magic-...

Super Magic Defeat-O! | Robert Hutton | The Critic Magazine

Are YOU a politician struggling with the big challenges facing twenty-first century economies? Are you UNCERTAIN how to satisfy an aging population that wants to be looked after but doesn’t want to…

thecritic.co.uk

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

Rachel Cunliffe @rmcunliffe.bsky.social · 2d

"While Britain was redefining what a woman is, China was building five nuclear reactors," says Kemi Badenoch.

I cannot be the only person curious about how these two things are related

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

Robert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 2d

The "line to take" for Badenoch's supporters seems to be "we've changed leaders too often in the past".

So which of those leaders should *not* have been removed?

Liz Truss? IDS? May, after those huge defeats? Johnson, despite lying to Parliament?

The problem isn't the firing. It's everything else

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

Josh Fruhlinger @jfruh.bsky.social · 3d

I think the historiography is changing but it used to be taken for granted that England had never been successfully invaded since 1066. London was occupied by Dutch troops for a year and half!

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Reposted by Ben H. Ansell, Will Jennings, Steve Peers , and 3 more Ben H. Ansell, Will Jennings, Steve Peers, Lesley A. Hall, Peter Campbell, Thomas Pink

Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 3d

Party donor Nick Candy says "I cherish the values we grew up with here in the West. But today you are more likely to find the values we grew up with in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.’

Via Sam Leith in the Spectator
www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-...

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 3d

"The day had begun with Robert Jenrick accused of racism. This is of course quite unfair. Racists believe in something." Absolutely fantastic sketch by @roberthutton.co.uk. Every line is a banger:

Rob whistle | Robert Hutton | The Critic Magazine

The day had begun with Robert Jenrick accused of racism. This is of course quite unfair. Racists believe in something. Some of us remember Jenrick as a chubby-cheeked fan of David Cameron fighting…

thecritic.co.uk

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Reposted by Steve Peers, Steven Van de Walle, Michael H. Whitworth , and 1 more Steve Peers, Steven Van de Walle, Michael H. Whitworth, Thomas Pink

General Boles @generalboles.bsky.social · 3d

Everyone who advocates for turning the UK into the UAE assumes they'll be the one with a marina penthouse rather than the guy working on a building site in 50c heat

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Reposted by Ben H. Ansell, Stephen Jones, Thomas Pink

Paul Bernal @paulbernal.bsky.social · 3d

A Tory party under Jenrick might take a few of the racist votes from Reform, but they’d haemorrhage bucketloads to the Lib Dems.

So, on balance…

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

Kevin Zollman @kevinzollman.com · 16d

I have heard about this issue for some time. I had an undergraduate professor and a colleague (now sadly died) from Argentina, and both reported their frustration with this fact to me.

I think the value of having a lingua franca is probably worth it, but it's also good to acknowledge the loss.

Text: A Lingering Loss
Surprisingly, almost 90% of NNES respondents also said that frequent use of English in academia had interfered with their ability to do philosophy in their own language.

I (Uwe) can relate. I’m a German (originally from East Berlin). After almost a decade of doing philosophy in English-speaking countries (e.g., New Zealand, Canada, the UK), I now struggle to explain my research in German. All I know in philosophy is ‘encoded’ in English in my mind. When German-speaking colleagues ask what I work on, I often freeze because I don’t know how to say it in German. Reaching a certain NNES proficiency may come at the cost of fluency in one’s native language—a loss that may be subtle but deeply felt.

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Reposted by Will Jennings, Steve Peers, Ben Worthy , and 3 more Will Jennings, Steve Peers, Ben Worthy, Seán Hanley, Stuart White, Thomas Pink

Ben Ansell @benansell.bsky.social · 18d

I hate to admit it but I suspect McSweeney is right that the 2029 election will be a ‘republican front’ vs Farage. Farage veering further right makes that easier to do. Whether McSweeney’s own advice over the past year has made this situation more likely is another question…

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

Michael Merrick @michaelmerrick.bsky.social · Aug 29

That address from Pope Leo XIV has absolutely shredded the public/private distinction in matters of religion that has become the hallmark of polite western liberal norms. Complete and utter rejection

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

Digressionsimpressions @nescio13.bsky.social · Mar 10

Newton and Nature does nothing in vain, pt. 4 open.substack.com/pub/digressi...

Newton and Nature does nothing in vain, pt. 4

Back in 1966 J.

open.substack.com

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

Alan Beattie @alanbeattie.bsky.social · Mar 10

My Trade Secrets today. Two theories on Trump's tariff chaos: 1. It's a cunning and deliberate discombobulation of trading partners. 2. It's a shambles from an administration full of clashing motives, wrongheaded ideas and a capricious boss.

Guess what? I'm going with 2.

First 300 clicks free.

Donald Trump’s coercion descends into chaos

[FREE TO READ] The US’s tariff policy evokes bafflement as well as fear

on.ft.com

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

Philipp Heimberger @heimbergecon.bsky.social · Mar 5

Germany is back. Conservatives and Social Democrats have agreed on a large fiscal package, including a €500 billion fund for infrastructure investment; defence spending >1% of GDP not counted for debt brake; allowing federal states to borrow 0.35% of GDP per year for investment.

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Reposted by Patricia Aufderheide, Thomas Pink

Tim Ellis 🍁 @djdynamic.ca · Mar 5

If you're wondering about the vibe in Canada right now, I just got served this ad for a brewhouse that is just a portrait of the White House being burned down. No text, just a bigass picture of the White House burning and a link directly to their menu lolol

A gorgeous portrait of the White House entirely aflame, the smoke billowing and the flames lighting up the night sky. It sparks deep patriotic ferver. This is what democracy looks like.

Also there's a white button with blue text below the portrait. The text reads "Learn more" and if clicked it takes you to the menu of a local brewhouse.

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Thomas Pink @leonard33.bsky.social · Mar 4

Anatol Lieven on the current pointless European grandstanding

Europe struggles for relevance at Starmer's London summit

The UK and European Union governments face two interlinked dilemmas in their approach to the Ukraine peace process initiated by the Trump administration. It is not clear from the conclusions of Sunday...

unherd.com

Thomas Pink @leonard33.bsky.social · Mar 4

Anatol Lieven on the current pointless European grandstanding

Europe struggles for relevance at Starmer's London summit

unherd.com

Reposted by Thomas Pink

Jo Wolff @jowolff.bsky.social · Mar 4

I think the smart money is getting out of the world’s stock markets and putting it all into Philosophy futures. Existentialism, Stoicism and Nihilism especially bullish.

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Thomas Pink @leonard33.bsky.social · Mar 3

Wolfgang Münchau on European gesture politics about Ukraine

unherd.com/2025/03/euro...

Europe's reckless bid for victory

unherd.com

Reposted by Thomas Pink

Robert Hutton @roberthutton.co.uk · Feb 27

Visiting Great Uncle Don: my SKETCH of Today in Managing elderly unstable presidents. thecritic.co.uk/visi...

Visiting great uncle Don | Robert Hutton | The Critic Magazine

Eight years ago, when Theresa May charged across the Atlantic to meet the newly-enthroned Donald Trump, I was in the Oval Office as the much-obsessed-over bust of Winston Churchill was ceremonially…

thecritic.co.uk

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The Spectator @thespectator1828.bsky.social · Feb 20

Trump’s savage attack on a close American ally has no precedent in the modern history.

✍️ Owen Matthews

The Trump-Zelensky train wreck will cost Ukraine dearly

Zelensky has fallen foul of a vengeful and thin-skinned man who has long been itching for an excuse to settle old scores.

buff.ly

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Reposted by Thomas Pink

The Spectator @thespectator1828.bsky.social · Feb 19

Trump is factually wrong – but not for the reason most commentators have assumed. Zelensky could indeed have averted the war back in October 2019, and came very close to doing so.

✍️ Owen Matthews