Oliver Rivers
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maxrothbarth.bsky.social
Oliver Rivers
@maxrothbarth.bsky.social
860 followers 610 following 1.5K posts
COO at OCCRP. Usual disclaimers about whose these opinions are (mine) apply in the usual (obvious) way. Aspiring cat owner. Corruption, investigative journalism, art, classical music, not necessarily in that order.
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maxrothbarth.bsky.social
Chuck in a cones hotline, that should clinch it.
February 4, 2026 at 10:58 PM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
stephenkb.bsky.social
The Al Carns stuff is a real “the PLP has learned nothing and forgotten nothing” thing.
paulbrand.bsky.social Paul Brand @paulbrand.bsky.social · 7h
Talk has turned to who replaces Starmer (again).

Labour MP tonight:

“As far as I'm concerned, Starmer is done. What matters is what's next. If it's Angela, the honeymoon lasts a week. If it's Wes, a month. If it's Al, 6 months. Hard to see how it turns around beyond that.”
February 4, 2026 at 10:24 PM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
dell.bsky.social
I don’t like this
Letter from Senator Ron Wyden: Dear CIA Director Ratcliffe, I write to alert you to a classified letter I sent you earlier today in which I express deep concerns about CIA activities. Thank you for your attention to this important matter. Sincerely, Ron Wyden U.S. Senator
February 4, 2026 at 7:49 PM
maxrothbarth.bsky.social
He doesn’t.
rmcunliffe.bsky.social Rachel Cunliffe @rmcunliffe.bsky.social · 15h
The tone of this debate about releasing the Mandelson info is really fascinating. It's become a matter on the sovereignty of parliament itself. Owen Patterson has been mentioned. And Labour MPs are standing firm against the government.

Starting to really wonder how Starmer gets through this
February 4, 2026 at 2:45 PM
maxrothbarth.bsky.social
Stupidest line in an atrocious performance. Political instincts of a slug.
kevinschofied.bsky.social Kevin Schofield @kevinschofied.bsky.social · 17h
Keir Starmer: "Morgan McSweeney is an essential part of my team. He helped me change the Labour Party and win the election. Of course I have confidence in him."
February 4, 2026 at 2:31 PM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
duncanweldon.bsky.social
I’m not sure ‘our national security developed vetting technique can be beaten if a candidate is prepared to lie’ is an especially helpful line to push.
February 4, 2026 at 12:49 PM
maxrothbarth.bsky.social
Starmer’s cooked. Awful performance.
February 4, 2026 at 12:16 PM
maxrothbarth.bsky.social
An Anglican bookshop called Maslow’s Hierarchy of Creeds.
preachypreach.bsky.social Richard J @preachypreach.bsky.social · 21h
A bookstore specialising in the works of Herman Hesse called Maslow’s Hierarchy of Beads.
byzantienne.bsky.social Arkady Martine | Dr. AnnaLinden Weller @byzantienne.bsky.social · 23h
A consulting detective agency called Maslow & Maslow’s Hierarchy of Leads
February 4, 2026 at 8:28 AM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
gabyhinsliff.bsky.social
Wes Streeting saying on Today that Mandelson is ‘not the man we thought he was’ but the trouble is, he is exactly the man we thought, just on a much worse scale than almost anyone thought. And there is an alternative world where none of this is this govt’s problem, because they never gave him a job
February 4, 2026 at 8:16 AM
maxrothbarth.bsky.social
This is a wonderful thread.
michaelharriot.bsky.social Michael Harriot @michaelharriot.bsky.social · 1d
I've told this story on ContrabandCamp but it's worth sharing for BHM because it's one of the greatest stories ever.

A thread.
February 4, 2026 at 7:32 AM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
occrp.org
Only 2 days left to join OCCRP Briefing "After Maduro: The Future of Venezuela's Criminal State" where our expert panel will analyze the implications for regional security and financial crime, and what compliance professionals should anticipate as power dynamics shift in Caracas buff.ly/62eEEUb
February 3, 2026 at 8:54 PM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
beijingpalmer.bsky.social
a lot of the men who were not *directly* abusers still had essentially a class interest in defending abusers
cooperlund.online Cooper Lund @cooperlund.online · 1d
You can really see why they fought so hard against Me Too, they're all implicated either in deed or silence and it's hugely fucking embarrassing for the Masters of the Universe
February 3, 2026 at 7:48 PM
maxrothbarth.bsky.social
Credit to the FT landing this. Genuinely huge work.
February 3, 2026 at 5:29 PM
maxrothbarth.bsky.social
Funny that.
February 3, 2026 at 2:18 PM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
patblanchfield.bsky.social
the wealthiest man alive, custodian of the light of Consciousness unto the stars, and guy who once offered a flight attendant a pony for a handjob:

you idiots - I could simply have optimized myself into an exponentially more efficient sex monster than Jeffrey Epstein. I even did the math long ago
its elon musk tweeting "If I actually wanted to spend my time partying with young women, it would be trivial for me to do so without the help of a creepy loser like Epstein and I would still have 99% of my mind available to think about other things. But I don't."
February 1, 2026 at 2:51 PM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
opsnowcrash.bsky.social
If you’re exploring non-US search engines:

DuckDuckGo is American too.

Ecosia is German but built on U.S. crawlers.

Mojeek is British with its own crawler.

Fireball adds another German crawler to the mix.

There are more options. Indie search is bigger than people think. #EndOligarchy #Trump
kentindell.bsky.social Ken Tindell @kentindell.bsky.social · 2d
“The main event is this: the world is building optionality away from U.S. policy and platform dependence. And once you see it, you can’t unsee it — because it’s showing up in procurement decisions, supply chains, defense budgets, and capital flows”
Europe just started building a ‘kill switch’ for U.S. tech — and the market isn’t priced for it, says this strategist — MarketWatch
Zoom and Microsoft are among those companies that could lose business, says Matthew Tuttle
apple.news
February 3, 2026 at 7:25 AM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
patrickosgood.bsky.social
Starmer is a mannequin who took office not even owning the shirt on his back or the glasses on his own face. No confidence he’ll do the necessary. But worth pointing out the hypocrisy of mr clean up politics if there’s no empowered, broad inquiry and a clear mandate for the police
February 2, 2026 at 11:34 PM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
patrickosgood.bsky.social
One reason for Mandy to shun Epstein’s ‘advice’ was that Epstein *was in prison for soliciting a minor for prostitution* while Mandy was breezily forwarding him secret government financial assessments. He has to be thoroughly investigated, well beyond Epstein
February 2, 2026 at 11:31 PM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
patrickosgood.bsky.social
“There was no reason to shun his advice” - utterly unrepentant, a total shit
flyingrodent.bsky.social flyingrodent @flyingrodent.bsky.social · 2d
Let’s do a fun thought experiment: imagine that e.g. Seumas Milne had just been caught sending sensitive emails to a notorious international noncemaster and giving foreign bankers tips on how to strong-arm the Chancellor during a global crisis. Do you think the Times coverage would look like this?
Mandelson continues to dispute several of the allegations. He accepts that his husband took money from Epstein — whom he likens to "bubonic plague" — to fund an osteopathy course. Why accept it? "Epstein told Reinaldo that he had an educational foundation which gave bursaries or scholarships and offered one for an osteopathy course. I saw this as kindness, nothing more. It was a great help to Reinaldo and I thanked him." And now? "In retrospect, it was clearly a lapse in our collective judgment for Reinaldo to accept this offer. At the time it was not a consequential decision." There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing by Reinaldo. • Epstein is asked 'Are you the devil himself?' in released video Only Mandelson was also business secretary, so didn't this open him up to potential bribery? Epstein was lobbying him to change the banker bonus rules. "There was nonstop discussion from the entire industry about reforming the banks and how to strike the right balance in regulation," Mandelson recalls. Did he give Epstein's views on the issue extra weight? "The idea that giving Reinaldo an osteopath bursary is going to sway mine or anyone else's views about banking But as the latest emails suggest, Mandelson's relationship to Epstein was not "like everyone else's". They spoke frequently; he once referred to the financier as his "best pal". "I don't know what his motives were - probably mixed - but he provided guidance to help me navigate out of the world of politics and into the world of commerce and finance," Mandelson says. "Perhaps he wanted to be a mentor and I was naive in regarding him as a good-faith actor. There was no reason to shun his advice, but I was too trusting. He was always very free and forthright with his views and always presented them as in my best interests." Of course, this isn't the first time Mandelson has found himself turfed out over bad judgment involving the rich and powerful. In fact, it's been a common thread of his career, from an undeclared loan from a millionaire colleague to a row over a passport application for a billionaire (he was later cleared). Is this the one scandal he can't find a way back from? His old friend, Sky's Trevor Phillips, said he had been "at best, naive and foolish" and "at worst, greedy and duplicitous". "I've had a lot of bad luck, no doubt some of it of my own making," he tells me during our meeting in Wiltshire. "Does everyone like spicy food?" calls out Reinaldo from the kitchen to me and the photographer. "I'm a Brazilian. I have to check," he adds with a smile. Mandelson, meanwhile, is checking the photos he just sat for. "Too posed," he remarks to the photographer. "A friend has said to me, 'Remember, tough times don't last. Tough people do, " he tells me. "That's the belief I held on to. Someone else said, Remember, you are the same person with the same knowledge and the same skills you had before this crisis hit you. This crisis has not taken any of those things away from you.'" He has experience in both political death and reincarnation. He has been at the centre of UK politics across four decades. The original spin doctor for Neil Kinnock, he blended power and communications in a way no one else had. He became central to the Blair project — which also made him a lightning rod. He was forced to resign as trade secretary in 1998 and as Northern Ireland secretary in 2001, only to re-emerge as a European trade commissioner in 2004, then ennobled by Gordon Brown to become business secretary in 2008.
February 2, 2026 at 11:23 PM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
flyingrodent.bsky.social
Let’s do a fun thought experiment: imagine that e.g. Seumas Milne had just been caught sending sensitive emails to a notorious international noncemaster and giving foreign bankers tips on how to strong-arm the Chancellor during a global crisis. Do you think the Times coverage would look like this?
Mandelson continues to dispute several of the allegations. He accepts that his husband took money from Epstein — whom he likens to "bubonic plague" — to fund an osteopathy course. Why accept it? "Epstein told Reinaldo that he had an educational foundation which gave bursaries or scholarships and offered one for an osteopathy course. I saw this as kindness, nothing more. It was a great help to Reinaldo and I thanked him." And now? "In retrospect, it was clearly a lapse in our collective judgment for Reinaldo to accept this offer. At the time it was not a consequential decision." There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing by Reinaldo. • Epstein is asked 'Are you the devil himself?' in released video Only Mandelson was also business secretary, so didn't this open him up to potential bribery? Epstein was lobbying him to change the banker bonus rules. "There was nonstop discussion from the entire industry about reforming the banks and how to strike the right balance in regulation," Mandelson recalls. Did he give Epstein's views on the issue extra weight? "The idea that giving Reinaldo an osteopath bursary is going to sway mine or anyone else's views about banking But as the latest emails suggest, Mandelson's relationship to Epstein was not "like everyone else's". They spoke frequently; he once referred to the financier as his "best pal". "I don't know what his motives were - probably mixed - but he provided guidance to help me navigate out of the world of politics and into the world of commerce and finance," Mandelson says. "Perhaps he wanted to be a mentor and I was naive in regarding him as a good-faith actor. There was no reason to shun his advice, but I was too trusting. He was always very free and forthright with his views and always presented them as in my best interests." Of course, this isn't the first time Mandelson has found himself turfed out over bad judgment involving the rich and powerful. In fact, it's been a common thread of his career, from an undeclared loan from a millionaire colleague to a row over a passport application for a billionaire (he was later cleared). Is this the one scandal he can't find a way back from? His old friend, Sky's Trevor Phillips, said he had been "at best, naive and foolish" and "at worst, greedy and duplicitous". "I've had a lot of bad luck, no doubt some of it of my own making," he tells me during our meeting in Wiltshire. "Does everyone like spicy food?" calls out Reinaldo from the kitchen to me and the photographer. "I'm a Brazilian. I have to check," he adds with a smile. Mandelson, meanwhile, is checking the photos he just sat for. "Too posed," he remarks to the photographer. "A friend has said to me, 'Remember, tough times don't last. Tough people do, " he tells me. "That's the belief I held on to. Someone else said, Remember, you are the same person with the same knowledge and the same skills you had before this crisis hit you. This crisis has not taken any of those things away from you.'" He has experience in both political death and reincarnation. He has been at the centre of UK politics across four decades. The original spin doctor for Neil Kinnock, he blended power and communications in a way no one else had. He became central to the Blair project — which also made him a lightning rod. He was forced to resign as trade secretary in 1998 and as Northern Ireland secretary in 2001, only to re-emerge as a European trade commissioner in 2004, then ennobled by Gordon Brown to become business secretary in 2008.
February 2, 2026 at 11:13 PM
maxrothbarth.bsky.social
Reactions at the time to Brown’s decision in 2008 to bring Mandelson into Cabinet.
McDonnell: an extraordinary step backward
Blunkett: a masterstroke
February 2, 2026 at 3:57 PM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
lewisgoodall.com
Of course the PM doesn’t have the power to unilaterally remove Mandelson from the Lords. But given it can only be removed via an act of Parliament in government time, Starmer is hardly powerless, indeed he is the only person who can make it happen.
February 2, 2026 at 1:16 PM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
danneidle.bsky.social
Who leaked this Number 10 discussion to Jeffrey Epstein? And are there consequences for the leaker?

It’s an internal discussion re. getting markets moving in the aftermath of the financial crisis. No doubt of great interest to Epstein and his financial market clients.
February 2, 2026 at 9:09 AM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
petergeoghegan.bsky.social
Really striking going through Epstein disclosures just how often British defamation lawyers are referred to: Schillings; Paul Tweed; oblique suggestions to sue to silence

Why? Because our libel laws let rich and powerful buy silence

Why I signed this last week pressgazette.co.uk/media_law/an...
Editors unite to demand Parliament takes action on SLAPPs
Editors from national newspapers including The Guardian and The Times demand action on SLAPPs in next King's Speech.
pressgazette.co.uk
February 1, 2026 at 8:35 PM
Reposted by Oliver Rivers
cooperlund.online
Heroes come in many forms and this is one of them
February 1, 2026 at 8:17 PM