Phil Burton-Cartledge
@philbc3.bsky.social
Does political sociology @DerbyUni | Blogger | Author: 'The Party's Over: The Rise and Fall of the Conservatives from Thatcher to Sunak' | Bylines @Tribune & @Jacobin | Bits of SF too | Writes things: http://averypublicsociologist.blogspot.co.uk
"Starmer is right that this should be "moment for the whole country to pull together". But not one where we, collectively, raise the white flag ..."
Grown Up Politics
Is this what adulting looks like? After straying outside of his comfort zone at the weekend for saying "no" to the United States, Keir Star...
averypublicsociologist.blogspot.com
January 19, 2026 at 9:48 PM
"Starmer is right that this should be "moment for the whole country to pull together". But not one where we, collectively, raise the white flag ..."
Reposted by Phil Burton-Cartledge
To start, I just read this translated interview networkcultures.org/geert/2025/0... which was a bit life-changing
January 19, 2026 at 2:35 PM
To start, I just read this translated interview networkcultures.org/geert/2025/0... which was a bit life-changing
If your first thought about Trump and Greenland is "Zack Polanski!", you are not a serious person.
This is real leadership by Keir Starmer. A serious politician for serious times.
Which is more than you can say about the Green Party 🤡 that is Zack Polanski. Under him, thousands of British jobs would be lost, the security of our country would be at risk and British citizens would be worse off.
Which is more than you can say about the Green Party 🤡 that is Zack Polanski. Under him, thousands of British jobs would be lost, the security of our country would be at risk and British citizens would be worse off.
January 19, 2026 at 12:41 PM
If your first thought about Trump and Greenland is "Zack Polanski!", you are not a serious person.
Whichever way you slice it, it comes back to class and class interests.
The Softness of the Hard Right
Blimey. On Friday, Keir Starmer put out a statement that said "no" to the White House. The language wasn't tough and it did play into the f...
averypublicsociologist.blogspot.com
January 19, 2026 at 12:07 PM
Whichever way you slice it, it comes back to class and class interests.
Once again, Trump is *quite well* thank you very much.
I suppose pretending he's mentally ill is easier than acknowledging that, fundamentally, the interests he stands for are no different than the ones you support.
I suppose pretending he's mentally ill is easier than acknowledging that, fundamentally, the interests he stands for are no different than the ones you support.
I'm honestly less mad at the President, who is clearly not well, that I am at his outriders and enablers.
They see messages like this and then, with straight faces, go on television or write op-eds retroactively constructing grand strategy justifications.
Pathetic.
They see messages like this and then, with straight faces, go on television or write op-eds retroactively constructing grand strategy justifications.
Pathetic.
Unhinged
January 19, 2026 at 9:02 AM
Once again, Trump is *quite well* thank you very much.
I suppose pretending he's mentally ill is easier than acknowledging that, fundamentally, the interests he stands for are no different than the ones you support.
I suppose pretending he's mentally ill is easier than acknowledging that, fundamentally, the interests he stands for are no different than the ones you support.
Whichever way you slice it, it comes back to class and class interests.
The Softness of the Hard Right
Blimey. On Friday, Keir Starmer put out a statement that said "no" to the White House. The language wasn't tough and it did play into the f...
averypublicsociologist.blogspot.com
January 19, 2026 at 8:58 AM
Whichever way you slice it, it comes back to class and class interests.
Alternatively, a grasp of the crudest of crude Marxisms will get you by fine.
I genuinely think Trump is a Outside Context Problem for other nations: a problem which they just dont have the intellectusl framework to understand, let alone properly respond to.
He'd make more sense to a 14thC mind than a modern one: and even then there were far more mechanisms to restrain him
He'd make more sense to a 14thC mind than a modern one: and even then there were far more mechanisms to restrain him
James is exactly right on Trump and European leaders (finally) waking up to him. But it’s the same problem as we have in our commentariat and elites. Trump doing terrible and dangerous this is how he works. We’ve known this for over a decade. Why has it taken so long for our leaders to wake up?
January 19, 2026 at 8:57 AM
Alternatively, a grasp of the crudest of crude Marxisms will get you by fine.
Reposted by Phil Burton-Cartledge
This is a really good essay from Juliet Jacques on intellectuals & the politics of the media. novaramedia.com/2026/01/15/t...
Today’s Public Intellectuals Are More Likely to Serve Power Than Challenge It | Juliet Jacques
30 years ago, the BBC invited Palestinian thinker Edward Said to deliver six lectures on the public intellectual, writes Juliet Jacques. Can you imagine something so outlandish happening today?
novaramedia.com
January 18, 2026 at 9:50 PM
This is a really good essay from Juliet Jacques on intellectuals & the politics of the media. novaramedia.com/2026/01/15/t...
Reposted by Phil Burton-Cartledge
Bluesky has seen a 40% rise of app installs in the past few weeks, which is consistent with the increase in activity that is visible in other metrics
Via @sarahp.bsky.social
Via @sarahp.bsky.social
Bluesky rolls out cashtags and LIVE badges amid a boost in app installs | TechCrunch
Bluesky adds new features to its app amid a boost in installs due to the deepfake drama on X.
techcrunch.com
January 18, 2026 at 9:44 PM
Bluesky has seen a 40% rise of app installs in the past few weeks, which is consistent with the increase in activity that is visible in other metrics
Via @sarahp.bsky.social
Via @sarahp.bsky.social
I wonder if the "Labour defector" is looking at the recent haul of "Taxes" Zahawi, "Honest" Bob Jenrick, and "Allegations" Rosindell and are having second thoughts.
January 18, 2026 at 9:58 PM
I wonder if the "Labour defector" is looking at the recent haul of "Taxes" Zahawi, "Honest" Bob Jenrick, and "Allegations" Rosindell and are having second thoughts.
Whichever way you slice it, it comes back to class and class interests.
The Softness of the Hard Right
Blimey. On Friday, Keir Starmer put out a statement that said "no" to the White House. The language wasn't tough and it did play into the f...
averypublicsociologist.blogspot.com
January 18, 2026 at 9:41 PM
Whichever way you slice it, it comes back to class and class interests.
Hannan and other senior commentators who are wrong about everything are not employed because of their accuracy. They have a job to do, and that job is selling the interests of their employers.
He's still committing his frauds against reality and getting paid for it. Falling upwards must stop.
January 18, 2026 at 2:46 PM
Hannan and other senior commentators who are wrong about everything are not employed because of their accuracy. They have a job to do, and that job is selling the interests of their employers.
What's interesting about Trump is that he openly declares that his government is by and for the oligarchy, and yet there are still people who absolutely refuse to acknowledge this.
January 18, 2026 at 10:59 AM
What's interesting about Trump is that he openly declares that his government is by and for the oligarchy, and yet there are still people who absolutely refuse to acknowledge this.
🤔
Week by week - Laura Kuenssberg is interviewing the party leaders.
When I agreed to come on the show, I was told Nigel Farage was also doing it.
He's now pulled out - and they've sent the deputy instead.
The same Nigel Farage who's refusing to debate me.
A pattern emerging...
When I agreed to come on the show, I was told Nigel Farage was also doing it.
He's now pulled out - and they've sent the deputy instead.
The same Nigel Farage who's refusing to debate me.
A pattern emerging...
January 18, 2026 at 9:27 AM
🤔
Some people will say or do anything for a nice career.
Nine years ago a Twitter user was sending poetry to Sadiq Khan about London’s many cultural identities. A decade on, Reform UK’s mayoral candidate doesn’t dispute it was her old account - so what’s changed?
Our profile of Laila Cunningham: www.londoncentric.media/p/laila-cunn...
Our profile of Laila Cunningham: www.londoncentric.media/p/laila-cunn...
January 18, 2026 at 9:16 AM
Some people will say or do anything for a nice career.
Well yes, but to understand this you need to go deeper.
*Why* is the right wing press so pro-Trump? It's not about "obsessions" but is always, *always* about their read on their class interests.
*Why* is the right wing press so pro-Trump? It's not about "obsessions" but is always, *always* about their read on their class interests.
These so-called "patriotic" 🇬🇧newspapers who brought you Brexit were never really patriotic at all.
They are driven by a disdain for Britain's European neighbours, and a fawning obsession with America.
They do not really want 🇬🇧 to be sovereign. They're content being a 🇺🇸vassal.
They are driven by a disdain for Britain's European neighbours, and a fawning obsession with America.
They do not really want 🇬🇧 to be sovereign. They're content being a 🇺🇸vassal.
January 18, 2026 at 9:05 AM
Well yes, but to understand this you need to go deeper.
*Why* is the right wing press so pro-Trump? It's not about "obsessions" but is always, *always* about their read on their class interests.
*Why* is the right wing press so pro-Trump? It's not about "obsessions" but is always, *always* about their read on their class interests.
Reposted by Phil Burton-Cartledge
How it started ... How it's going
January 17, 2026 at 9:58 PM
How it started ... How it's going
Some satday night tune.
Kato feat. Jon - Turn the Lights Off
Plenty going on, but not feeling particularly writerly at the moment. So enjoy this tune, one that waited 18 years to become a hit until a m...
averypublicsociologist.blogspot.com
January 17, 2026 at 9:38 PM
Some satday night tune.
Reposted by Phil Burton-Cartledge
And for the bajillionth time, they do not have the guys for any of this
Even with hypothetically calling up the entire Guard and using half of the AD Army (both of which are beyond impossible as a practical matter) they would still not have enough guys
Even with hypothetically calling up the entire Guard and using half of the AD Army (both of which are beyond impossible as a practical matter) they would still not have enough guys
wrote about the occupation in minnesota with a closing note on how the white house has exactly one tactic — repression with goons — but no particular strategy for dealing with entrenched resistance. gift link.
Opinion | This Is the Only Card Trump Can Play
www.nytimes.com
January 17, 2026 at 7:01 PM
And for the bajillionth time, they do not have the guys for any of this
Even with hypothetically calling up the entire Guard and using half of the AD Army (both of which are beyond impossible as a practical matter) they would still not have enough guys
Even with hypothetically calling up the entire Guard and using half of the AD Army (both of which are beyond impossible as a practical matter) they would still not have enough guys
Uncharacteristically blunt words from Starmer for Trump.
You will never see Nigel Farage do this.
You will never see Nigel Farage do this.
January 17, 2026 at 8:15 PM
Uncharacteristically blunt words from Starmer for Trump.
You will never see Nigel Farage do this.
You will never see Nigel Farage do this.
Reposted by Phil Burton-Cartledge
If anyone can't manage to put together a mid-budget Brit scifi/horror movie about a man trapped in this lookout post after a nuclear war in the 1960s, trying to escape before it falls in to the sea, then we should close down our film industry
www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...
www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...
Cold War nuclear bunker could be ‘days away’ from falling into sea
The structure is clinging to the cliff, with little of it left to support it
www.independent.co.uk
January 17, 2026 at 7:44 AM
If anyone can't manage to put together a mid-budget Brit scifi/horror movie about a man trapped in this lookout post after a nuclear war in the 1960s, trying to escape before it falls in to the sea, then we should close down our film industry
www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...
www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...
Reposted by Phil Burton-Cartledge
⏰NEXT WEEK⏰
Politics in the UK is becoming increasingly volatile
Join @cbarnard.bsky.social, @robfordmancs.bsky.social, @lisasmartmp.bsky.social & @seanlwoodcock.bsky.social as they discuss the impact of fragmentation on our politics
📆 Tues 20 Jan, 1pm GMT
💻 Online
ukandeu.ac.uk/events/ukice...
Politics in the UK is becoming increasingly volatile
Join @cbarnard.bsky.social, @robfordmancs.bsky.social, @lisasmartmp.bsky.social & @seanlwoodcock.bsky.social as they discuss the impact of fragmentation on our politics
📆 Tues 20 Jan, 1pm GMT
💻 Online
ukandeu.ac.uk/events/ukice...
UKICE Lunch Hour: Changing party politics in the UK - UK in a changing Europe
Join UK in a Chaging Europe online for a discussion on political fragmentation in the UK and what it means for our politics.
ukandeu.ac.uk
January 16, 2026 at 3:11 PM
⏰NEXT WEEK⏰
Politics in the UK is becoming increasingly volatile
Join @cbarnard.bsky.social, @robfordmancs.bsky.social, @lisasmartmp.bsky.social & @seanlwoodcock.bsky.social as they discuss the impact of fragmentation on our politics
📆 Tues 20 Jan, 1pm GMT
💻 Online
ukandeu.ac.uk/events/ukice...
Politics in the UK is becoming increasingly volatile
Join @cbarnard.bsky.social, @robfordmancs.bsky.social, @lisasmartmp.bsky.social & @seanlwoodcock.bsky.social as they discuss the impact of fragmentation on our politics
📆 Tues 20 Jan, 1pm GMT
💻 Online
ukandeu.ac.uk/events/ukice...
That they haven't learned this lesson speaks to a deeper malaise, surely.
One of the most astounding things about this government is their failure to grasp the primary lesson from the last one was so obviously "Don't mess about with Comms all the time, just do stuff that will probably work".
This is why there's a whole chapter in my book about the damage the grid has done to policy making.
January 17, 2026 at 10:22 AM
That they haven't learned this lesson speaks to a deeper malaise, surely.
Reposted by Phil Burton-Cartledge
28yrs since I transitioned at 16
NO regrets!!!
Gender affirming care and surgeries really do change and save lives. We know our minds and bodies, so let us live OUR LIVES !!
🏳️⚧️🏳️⚧️
NO regrets!!!
Gender affirming care and surgeries really do change and save lives. We know our minds and bodies, so let us live OUR LIVES !!
🏳️⚧️🏳️⚧️
January 17, 2026 at 4:51 AM
28yrs since I transitioned at 16
NO regrets!!!
Gender affirming care and surgeries really do change and save lives. We know our minds and bodies, so let us live OUR LIVES !!
🏳️⚧️🏳️⚧️
NO regrets!!!
Gender affirming care and surgeries really do change and save lives. We know our minds and bodies, so let us live OUR LIVES !!
🏳️⚧️🏳️⚧️
Reposted by Phil Burton-Cartledge
January 17, 2026 at 6:26 AM