Pawel Swidlicki
@pswidlicki.bsky.social
Currently clean on OPSEC
Reposted by Pawel Swidlicki
Remarkable given it’s Fico of all people admitting this
Robert Fico, one of the few EU leaders to frequently support Trump, was concerned about the U.S. president’s “psychological state.” Fico used the word “dangerous” to describe how the president came across during their meeting at Mar-a-Lago on Jan. 17. www.politico.eu/article/dona...
European leader spoke of shock at Trump’s state of mind after Mar-a-Lago meeting
The Slovak PM, a Trump ally, told leaders at last week’s EU summit he was concerned about the way the U.S. president spoke to him, European diplomats said.
www.politico.eu
January 28, 2026 at 1:56 PM
Remarkable given it’s Fico of all people admitting this
We need to appeal to the people who have left the party and currently say they hate us, not the people who are still here for now www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Centrist ideas no longer wanted in Conservative party, says Kemi Badenoch
Party leader tells MPs that one-nation Tories doubting her rightward direction ‘need to get out of the way’
www.theguardian.com
January 28, 2026 at 1:09 PM
We need to appeal to the people who have left the party and currently say they hate us, not the people who are still here for now www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Is it more or less prominent than the Churchill bust though? That's the only thing that matters
January 28, 2026 at 12:31 PM
Is it more or less prominent than the Churchill bust though? That's the only thing that matters
Clegg is obviously somewhat of a tarnished messenger, but his underlying point here - that Farage seems to have escaped any scrutiny of how Brexit has played out in practice - is a sound one www.lbc.co.uk/article/nick...
'Disaster for this country': Nick Clegg tears into Nigel Farage over 'tremendous damage' done by Brexit | LBC
Sir Nick suggested that we should aim over time to rejoin the European Union
www.lbc.co.uk
January 28, 2026 at 12:20 PM
Clegg is obviously somewhat of a tarnished messenger, but his underlying point here - that Farage seems to have escaped any scrutiny of how Brexit has played out in practice - is a sound one www.lbc.co.uk/article/nick...
'By Daily Mail Reporter' vibes
Amazon’s MGM studios spent tens of millions, but the documentary is projected to make just $1M in its first week.
This comes as a new report from Rolling Stone details serious labor issues and two-thirds of the film’s staff requesting not to be credited at the end of the film. trib.al/Clr03cD
This comes as a new report from Rolling Stone details serious labor issues and two-thirds of the film’s staff requesting not to be credited at the end of the film. trib.al/Clr03cD
Melania Documentary Flops as Crew Reveals Behind-the-Scenes Chaos
The first lady’s documentary was a mess in production—and now it’s struggling at the box office.
trib.al
January 27, 2026 at 11:09 PM
'By Daily Mail Reporter' vibes
UKIP may have morphed into Reform but good to seee Goodwin following in the proud tradition of Paul Nuttall
Matt Goodwin makes a living out of railing against university educated elites & his whole schtick is "he was the first person in his family to go to university", which is a bit weird given that his Dad, now being heavily invoked for his Manchester connection, appears to have a string of degrees.
January 27, 2026 at 7:46 PM
UKIP may have morphed into Reform but good to seee Goodwin following in the proud tradition of Paul Nuttall
"Hillary wants to abolish, essentially abolish the Second Amendment. By the way, and if she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks. But the Second Amendment people, maybe there is, I don't know."
Trump: "With that being said, you can't have guns. You can't walk in with guns. You just can't. You can't walk in with guns. You can't do that. But it's just a very unfortunate incident."
January 27, 2026 at 6:29 PM
"Hillary wants to abolish, essentially abolish the Second Amendment. By the way, and if she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks. But the Second Amendment people, maybe there is, I don't know."
Just seen the news - if Goodwin loses, this place is going to pop off. Might even be worth staying up for.
January 27, 2026 at 6:10 PM
Just seen the news - if Goodwin loses, this place is going to pop off. Might even be worth staying up for.
Reposted by Pawel Swidlicki
Badenoch’s Tories zeroing in on “hmm. I like Reform’s policies, but what I want is for it to come from someone tainted by the past and who is deeply personally unpleasant”. Does that voter exist?
not sure this is the classiest response from the Tories to the latest defection to Reform UK
January 26, 2026 at 3:01 PM
Badenoch’s Tories zeroing in on “hmm. I like Reform’s policies, but what I want is for it to come from someone tainted by the past and who is deeply personally unpleasant”. Does that voter exist?
Getting closer and closer to the experiment of recreating the 2019-24 Tories sans Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt.
January 26, 2026 at 12:40 PM
Getting closer and closer to the experiment of recreating the 2019-24 Tories sans Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt.
Reposted by Pawel Swidlicki
Something enjoyable in the fact that Whitehall were prepared to consider regional devolution and only if it was preceded by nuclear holocaust.
January 26, 2026 at 12:25 PM
Something enjoyable in the fact that Whitehall were prepared to consider regional devolution and only if it was preceded by nuclear holocaust.
The only interesting thing about this news is why it took so long, unlike Zahawi there is not a 'former critic turned convert' angle and unlike Jenrick there is not a 'senior Tory who still had a plausible shot at becoming leader'. Suella has been on the fringes for a while now.
New: Nigel Farage unveils Suella Braverman, former Home Secretary, as his latest defector
January 26, 2026 at 12:23 PM
The only interesting thing about this news is why it took so long, unlike Zahawi there is not a 'former critic turned convert' angle and unlike Jenrick there is not a 'senior Tory who still had a plausible shot at becoming leader'. Suella has been on the fringes for a while now.
Reposted by Pawel Swidlicki
I think the main point about the £100k+ plus tax system where you can pay effective marginal rates above 100% once childcare is factored in is not that it creates hardship or unfairness but that it's just completely dumb.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
On £100k and feeling hard-done-by? It seems absurd – but a cold truth lies beneath | Jason Okundaye
It comes to something when ‘Henrys’ in London worry about money, but that’s the reality of today’s wages and the cost of city living, says Jason Okundaye, a Guardian assistant opinion editor
www.theguardian.com
January 26, 2026 at 12:01 PM
I think the main point about the £100k+ plus tax system where you can pay effective marginal rates above 100% once childcare is factored in is not that it creates hardship or unfairness but that it's just completely dumb.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Reposted by Pawel Swidlicki
You have lived long enough to see a French anti-fascist organisation (a traditionally very anti-US milieu) organise a ‘rally in solidarity with the American people’.
La Digue appelle à un rassemblement de solidarité avec le peuple palesti... ah, non, avec le peuple américain, ce mercredi devant le MEAE.
What a time to be alive...
What a time to be alive...
January 26, 2026 at 9:29 AM
You have lived long enough to see a French anti-fascist organisation (a traditionally very anti-US milieu) organise a ‘rally in solidarity with the American people’.
Is a 'Stalinist 15-minute cit' once where you can be denounced, arrested, tried, executed and buried all within a quarter of an hour?
January 25, 2026 at 10:47 PM
Is a 'Stalinist 15-minute cit' once where you can be denounced, arrested, tried, executed and buried all within a quarter of an hour?
Reposted by Pawel Swidlicki
>Mearsheimer says the IRGC defeated a CIA colour revolution in Iran
Its wild to see someone radicalizing himself live. He's not paid, its pure audience capture. Only tankies/Tuckerites give him attention so he morphs ever more to fit these circles. Which lead to mainstream academic/public isolation
Its wild to see someone radicalizing himself live. He's not paid, its pure audience capture. Only tankies/Tuckerites give him attention so he morphs ever more to fit these circles. Which lead to mainstream academic/public isolation
January 25, 2026 at 5:30 PM
>Mearsheimer says the IRGC defeated a CIA colour revolution in Iran
Its wild to see someone radicalizing himself live. He's not paid, its pure audience capture. Only tankies/Tuckerites give him attention so he morphs ever more to fit these circles. Which lead to mainstream academic/public isolation
Its wild to see someone radicalizing himself live. He's not paid, its pure audience capture. Only tankies/Tuckerites give him attention so he morphs ever more to fit these circles. Which lead to mainstream academic/public isolation
It probably won't be complex or sophisticated, and there's no saying they'll succeed in pulling it off, but given their actions to date you have to fear what even a crude and unsuccessful effort would look like
strange to me that a lot of people on this website simultaneously agree that the administration is run by incompetents who struggle to carry out their agenda without major political blowback AND that they’ll pull off a complex and sophisticated effort to rig elections and prevent defeat in November
January 25, 2026 at 5:29 PM
It probably won't be complex or sophisticated, and there's no saying they'll succeed in pulling it off, but given their actions to date you have to fear what even a crude and unsuccessful effort would look like
Reposted by Pawel Swidlicki
i think this attitude — that all opposition is illegitimate and nothing we do can be questioned— is probably pervasive in the white house and helps explain why they keep making terrible political choices
Putin pioneered this. No opposition is legitimate. Regular, decent, “ordinary” people cannot possibly be against us because only we represent “the real people.”
Tell-tale sign of authoritarianism.
Tell-tale sign of authoritarianism.
January 25, 2026 at 3:02 PM
i think this attitude — that all opposition is illegitimate and nothing we do can be questioned— is probably pervasive in the white house and helps explain why they keep making terrible political choices
Reposted by Pawel Swidlicki
Really hard to look at this and all the other examples of bravery and kindness from ordinary people in this moment not think also of the tremendous cowardice exhibited over the past year by some of the richest, most well-protected people in business, media and politics
Let us all have the courage displayed by the residents of Minneapolis.
January 25, 2026 at 2:24 PM
Really hard to look at this and all the other examples of bravery and kindness from ordinary people in this moment not think also of the tremendous cowardice exhibited over the past year by some of the richest, most well-protected people in business, media and politics
Reposted by Pawel Swidlicki
Which kind of shows how much of our lives could be decided by self-justifying explanations of 50 votes here and there, rather than trends and underlying data.
The outcome of this by-election will almost certainly define government policy for the next three years.
If Reform wins, expect Blue Labour to ramp up
If it's the Greens, the growing calls for a leftwing pivot will be vindicated and those voices around the Cabinet table will push for a rethink
If Reform wins, expect Blue Labour to ramp up
If it's the Greens, the growing calls for a leftwing pivot will be vindicated and those voices around the Cabinet table will push for a rethink
It's clear that the Green Party are the way to keep Reform out of Manchester.
We are already on the ground in Gorton and Denton - and we are going to be campaigning for every single vote.
A new Green MP representing the community.
Let's go!
Join.greenparty.org.uk
We are already on the ground in Gorton and Denton - and we are going to be campaigning for every single vote.
A new Green MP representing the community.
Let's go!
Join.greenparty.org.uk
January 25, 2026 at 2:36 PM
Which kind of shows how much of our lives could be decided by self-justifying explanations of 50 votes here and there, rather than trends and underlying data.
Reposted by Pawel Swidlicki
Nothing complicated or subtle or hard to understand about what is happening:
-"forcibly entered homes without a judge’s warrant"
-"interrogated people because of their ethnicity or accents"
-"broke windows and dragged occupants from their cars"
-"used force on people who were already restrained"
-"forcibly entered homes without a judge’s warrant"
-"interrogated people because of their ethnicity or accents"
-"broke windows and dragged occupants from their cars"
-"used force on people who were already restrained"
Videos From Minnesota Show How Aggressive ICE Has Gotten During Arrests and Encounters With Protesters
For weeks, residents have documented the impact of President Trump’s mass deportation campaign and captured many violent confrontations on camera.
www.nytimes.com
January 24, 2026 at 1:21 PM
Nothing complicated or subtle or hard to understand about what is happening:
-"forcibly entered homes without a judge’s warrant"
-"interrogated people because of their ethnicity or accents"
-"broke windows and dragged occupants from their cars"
-"used force on people who were already restrained"
-"forcibly entered homes without a judge’s warrant"
-"interrogated people because of their ethnicity or accents"
-"broke windows and dragged occupants from their cars"
-"used force on people who were already restrained"
In conclusion, America is a land of contrasts
January 24, 2026 at 11:04 PM
In conclusion, America is a land of contrasts
Battling President Crust Ahead
January 24, 2026 at 10:57 PM
Battling President Crust Ahead
It is profoundly ironic that the whole stated purpose of mass gun ownership in the US - which carries it with the associated cost of frequent mass shootings, including in schools - is to protect against oppressive tyrannical government and yet...
January 24, 2026 at 10:04 PM
It is profoundly ironic that the whole stated purpose of mass gun ownership in the US - which carries it with the associated cost of frequent mass shootings, including in schools - is to protect against oppressive tyrannical government and yet...
An oddly underappreciated point. It was really irksome when Labour people were running around saying 'yes, he might have tried to subvert a democracy at home but we can still work with him to advance common interests globally'
In my view, repression at home and thuggery abroad - most recently Greenland - are two sides of the same coin. Both reflect the worldview of people who think violence, power, threat and coercion are all that's required to push your agenda through & secure your interests.
January 24, 2026 at 9:48 PM
An oddly underappreciated point. It was really irksome when Labour people were running around saying 'yes, he might have tried to subvert a democracy at home but we can still work with him to advance common interests globally'