@stefanpaetow.bsky.social
@stefanpaetow.bsky.social
Queer, sweary Afro-European immigrant (and despised by right-wingers). River user. eduroam(er) troubleshooter. 🧫🐀 . Shire resident. Haver of many opinions. #saynotofascism. RT ⊆ endorsement. Same handle on 🐘 (rarely used). 💩ter refugee. 🏳️🌈🇳🇦🇩🇪🇬🇧 He/him
Pinned
I'll post my annual eduroam advice again:
1. *ALWAYS* check your username first. It *MUST* be in email-style format (like [email protected]). Otherwise eduroam doesn't know where you belong!
1. a) Yes, on campus you might find that just 'your_id' works, but that's *bad* configuration!
(1/x)
1. *ALWAYS* check your username first. It *MUST* be in email-style format (like [email protected]). Otherwise eduroam doesn't know where you belong!
1. a) Yes, on campus you might find that just 'your_id' works, but that's *bad* configuration!
(1/x)
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
Today on Volts: I've had more requests to cover this than almost any other topic in the pod's history, so now, at long last, balcony solar! We dig into how "plug-in solar" took off in Europe & how it's making its way to the US, starting in Utah. Backyard DIY types rejoice!
What's the deal with balcony solar?
Cora Stryker joins me to explain how "plug-in" solar took Europe by storm and is finally, via Utah (?), making its way to America.
www.volts.wtf
November 26, 2025 at 6:24 PM
Today on Volts: I've had more requests to cover this than almost any other topic in the pod's history, so now, at long last, balcony solar! We dig into how "plug-in solar" took off in Europe & how it's making its way to the US, starting in Utah. Backyard DIY types rejoice!
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
The OBR is run independently from Government. It literally was somebody else's fault.
You'd think Kemi Badenoch would know that given her own party created it in Government, but apparently not
You'd think Kemi Badenoch would know that given her own party created it in Government, but apparently not
December 1, 2025 at 5:31 PM
The OBR is run independently from Government. It literally was somebody else's fault.
You'd think Kemi Badenoch would know that given her own party created it in Government, but apparently not
You'd think Kemi Badenoch would know that given her own party created it in Government, but apparently not
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
I don’t think there is any read across - at all - from the OBR’s ability post a document to its website at the right time and the OBR’s ability to produce fiscal and economic forecasts.
December 1, 2025 at 6:25 PM
I don’t think there is any read across - at all - from the OBR’s ability post a document to its website at the right time and the OBR’s ability to produce fiscal and economic forecasts.
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
This is why military service members should refuse to follow illegal orders. Because when the shit hits the fan, Trunp and Hegseth will deny everything and blame you. bsky.app/profile/acyn...
Reporter: Does the administration deny that that second strike happened or did it happen and the administration denies that Hegseth gave the order
Leavitt: The latter is true
Leavitt: The latter is true
December 1, 2025 at 7:33 PM
This is why military service members should refuse to follow illegal orders. Because when the shit hits the fan, Trunp and Hegseth will deny everything and blame you. bsky.app/profile/acyn...
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
A trans teacher at OU was specifically targeted by a student being groomed to be a Turning Point USA campus crusader.
So of course white cishet academics talk over trans people to say this is principally ideological and just what conservatives do, as if we are an issue and not people.
So of course white cishet academics talk over trans people to say this is principally ideological and just what conservatives do, as if we are an issue and not people.
December 1, 2025 at 7:33 PM
A trans teacher at OU was specifically targeted by a student being groomed to be a Turning Point USA campus crusader.
So of course white cishet academics talk over trans people to say this is principally ideological and just what conservatives do, as if we are an issue and not people.
So of course white cishet academics talk over trans people to say this is principally ideological and just what conservatives do, as if we are an issue and not people.
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
If it was a resigning offence to suddenly discover WordPress has more bugs than a tramp's vest, there would be no web developers left on the planet.
Honestly, this seems unnecessarily harsh.
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Honestly, this seems unnecessarily harsh.
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
OBR chair quits after inquiry into early release of Reeves’s budget
Richard Hughes departs after investigation into how official forecaster accidentally published budget 40 minutes early
www.theguardian.com
December 1, 2025 at 6:20 PM
If it was a resigning offence to suddenly discover WordPress has more bugs than a tramp's vest, there would be no web developers left on the planet.
Honestly, this seems unnecessarily harsh.
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Honestly, this seems unnecessarily harsh.
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
Can somebody please just leak the Epstein files in their entirety already?
November 30, 2025 at 10:31 PM
Can somebody please just leak the Epstein files in their entirety already?
I wholeheartedly agree with Gaby here. He didn't have to resign over the URL, but he should have some serious words over the technology that was being used... Free Wordpress plugins? REALLY?
More fuel for the ‘some top jobs are becomg impossible’ to do. Yes the leak was bad and dumb and embarrassing! But on the whole i think resign when you have demonstrably hurt someone/failed in a core duty. Nobody died of ‘having an URL people can guess’ www.theguardian.com/business/202...
OBR chair quits after inquiry into early release of Reeves’s budget
Richard Hughes departs after investigation into how official forecaster accidentally published budget 40 minutes early
www.theguardian.com
December 1, 2025 at 7:34 PM
I wholeheartedly agree with Gaby here. He didn't have to resign over the URL, but he should have some serious words over the technology that was being used... Free Wordpress plugins? REALLY?
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
A reminder of how the BBC covered Boris Johnson's long record of lying, as being a "complicated relationship with the truth".
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-poli...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-poli...
December 1, 2025 at 3:08 PM
A reminder of how the BBC covered Boris Johnson's long record of lying, as being a "complicated relationship with the truth".
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-poli...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-poli...
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
This is somewhat nerdy/technical but reveals utterly woeful practices at the OBR – where they relied on free Wordpress plugins to protect some of the most sensitive economic data the UK publishes.
Absolutely dismal stuff, and not just one junior staffer screwing up.
Absolutely dismal stuff, and not just one junior staffer screwing up.
OBR PDFgate investigation is out. obr.uk/docs/dlm_upl...
obr.uk
December 1, 2025 at 2:49 PM
This is somewhat nerdy/technical but reveals utterly woeful practices at the OBR – where they relied on free Wordpress plugins to protect some of the most sensitive economic data the UK publishes.
Absolutely dismal stuff, and not just one junior staffer screwing up.
Absolutely dismal stuff, and not just one junior staffer screwing up.
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
If I was the OBR, next year, I would upload a file using the same predicable url structure for the budget report for 2026 -- and have a PDF that just says "yeah, right".
December 1, 2025 at 3:37 PM
If I was the OBR, next year, I would upload a file using the same predicable url structure for the budget report for 2026 -- and have a PDF that just says "yeah, right".
Absolutely spot on. Gibb and his paymasters have a lot to answer for.
🔴Rachel Reeves and the Daily Mailification of the BBC
For all the focus on its supposed “left wing bias”, the BBC’s heavy coverage of allegations of dishonesty against Rachel Reeves shows how its political coverage is still largely led by the right-wing press
bylinetimes.com/2025/12/01/r...
For all the focus on its supposed “left wing bias”, the BBC’s heavy coverage of allegations of dishonesty against Rachel Reeves shows how its political coverage is still largely led by the right-wing press
bylinetimes.com/2025/12/01/r...
Rachel Reeves and the Daily Mailification of the BBC
For all the focus on its supposed "left wing bias", the BBC's heavy coverage of Conservative allegations of dishonesty against Rachel Reeves shows how its political coverage is still largely led by th...
bylinetimes.com
December 1, 2025 at 2:09 PM
Absolutely spot on. Gibb and his paymasters have a lot to answer for.
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
Jonathan Gullis defects to Reform saying his former party has "lost touch with the people it was meant to serve".
He should know. When he was in Government he took a five-figure donation from JCB, then stayed silent when it axed hundreds of his constituents' jobs just two weeks later
He should know. When he was in Government he took a five-figure donation from JCB, then stayed silent when it axed hundreds of his constituents' jobs just two weeks later
Conservatives Promote JCB's 'Revolutionary' Pothole Machine While Taking Millions of Pounds in Donations from the Company
Senior Conservatives have repeatedly promoted a pothole repair machine made by a company which has donated huge sums to the party and its MPs
bylinetimes.com
December 1, 2025 at 11:33 AM
Jonathan Gullis defects to Reform saying his former party has "lost touch with the people it was meant to serve".
He should know. When he was in Government he took a five-figure donation from JCB, then stayed silent when it axed hundreds of his constituents' jobs just two weeks later
He should know. When he was in Government he took a five-figure donation from JCB, then stayed silent when it axed hundreds of his constituents' jobs just two weeks later
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
Feel like I'm going mad. The Budget's 'headroom' is based on frankly irresponsible and wildly optimistic claims about what Labour will do in the final year of the forecast, and on ignoring a bunch of upward pressures on spending, and the claim is that she was being exaggeratedly *pessimistic*?
Suggestion Rachel Reeves exaggerated fiscal pressures is absurd
Chancellor was instead far too optimistic about public finances and government’s ability to secure cuts
www.ft.com
December 1, 2025 at 11:05 AM
Feel like I'm going mad. The Budget's 'headroom' is based on frankly irresponsible and wildly optimistic claims about what Labour will do in the final year of the forecast, and on ignoring a bunch of upward pressures on spending, and the claim is that she was being exaggeratedly *pessimistic*?
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
There was maybe a 45 minute window where you could get coverage of what was actually in the budget and it was, crucially, the period when it was leaked by the OBR but before it was announced.
December 1, 2025 at 11:11 AM
There was maybe a 45 minute window where you could get coverage of what was actually in the budget and it was, crucially, the period when it was leaked by the OBR but before it was announced.
Couldn't have put this better myself. Clearly the tit on two legs thinks the Tories are not right-wing enough. I'm sure there are some Tories quietly muttering "good riddance" under their breath. ;-)
I see Reform have found room for Primark Hodor. He'll feel right at home. Gullis is so heroically stupid it's like he’s been bitten by a radioactive idiot. A discarded early draft of Chewbacca that someone dragged out of the bin and taught rudimentary table manners.
December 1, 2025 at 11:43 AM
Couldn't have put this better myself. Clearly the tit on two legs thinks the Tories are not right-wing enough. I'm sure there are some Tories quietly muttering "good riddance" under their breath. ;-)
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
The sheer scale of media outrage this week about plans to lift hundreds of thousands children out of poverty, by taxing millionaire homeowners, tells you everything you need to know about the real priorities of the British press
www.adambienkov.co.uk/p/the-real-b...
www.adambienkov.co.uk/p/the-real-b...
The Real 'Benefits Street' Protecting Britain's Wealthiest
The sheer scale of outrage about plans to lift children out of poverty, by taxing millionaire homeowners, tells you everything you need to know about the priorities of the British press
www.adambienkov.co.uk
November 29, 2025 at 4:29 PM
The sheer scale of media outrage this week about plans to lift hundreds of thousands children out of poverty, by taxing millionaire homeowners, tells you everything you need to know about the real priorities of the British press
www.adambienkov.co.uk/p/the-real-b...
www.adambienkov.co.uk/p/the-real-b...
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
Read the comments on this thread👇 to see how much we need UBI and how this would transform lives and liberate people.
And remember, those most in need (who would benefit the most) are unlikely to be on SoMe!
How would I use it? Probably to support local indie businesses and charities.
And remember, those most in need (who would benefit the most) are unlikely to be on SoMe!
How would I use it? Probably to support local indie businesses and charities.
Honest question: If everyone got Universal Basic Income, no strings attached, what would YOU do with it?
Re-post with your quote or drop your take below.
Re-post with your quote or drop your take below.
November 29, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Read the comments on this thread👇 to see how much we need UBI and how this would transform lives and liberate people.
And remember, those most in need (who would benefit the most) are unlikely to be on SoMe!
How would I use it? Probably to support local indie businesses and charities.
And remember, those most in need (who would benefit the most) are unlikely to be on SoMe!
How would I use it? Probably to support local indie businesses and charities.
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
Sultana and Corbyn act like they were put together in a competition by Simon Cowell and now they're contractually obliged to go on tour
November 29, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Sultana and Corbyn act like they were put together in a competition by Simon Cowell and now they're contractually obliged to go on tour
@hpsvanessa.bsky.social, and we preach this to eduroam members (the organisations who join eduroam to provide it to their users) that making sure their eduroam server certificates are always valid, *and* using the geteduroam app to ensure devices check the certificate's validity, is important!!
This is why it pisses me off that the 'security certificate' for UoB eduroam is always out of date. Joining a wifi channel can be dangerous, and so legit ones need to make sure they're clearly legit!
A Perth hacker who copied intimate images and sex videos from women's personal online accounts and set up fake Wi-Fi on Qantas flights is sentenced to more than seven years in prison.
November 29, 2025 at 3:36 PM
@hpsvanessa.bsky.social, and we preach this to eduroam members (the organisations who join eduroam to provide it to their users) that making sure their eduroam server certificates are always valid, *and* using the geteduroam app to ensure devices check the certificate's validity, is important!!
Whowouldathunk? Styrofoam panels to protect windows melted and provided fuel to the fire making its way up the building. Sounds like another high-rise fire disaster... #grenfell #neverforget www.bbc.co.uk/news/resourc...
A visual guide to how the Hong Kong fire spread - BBC News
What we know about how a deadly fire engulfed several high-rise apartment buildings in Hong Kong.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 29, 2025 at 3:31 PM
Whowouldathunk? Styrofoam panels to protect windows melted and provided fuel to the fire making its way up the building. Sounds like another high-rise fire disaster... #grenfell #neverforget www.bbc.co.uk/news/resourc...
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
A rare moment of a Republican genuinely giving a damn.
November 29, 2025 at 3:00 PM
A rare moment of a Republican genuinely giving a damn.
Reposted by @stefanpaetow.bsky.social
RIP, Russian laser plane.
You were weird, you were ambitious, and now you’re very, very dead.
www.laserwars.net/p/russian-la...
You were weird, you were ambitious, and now you’re very, very dead.
www.laserwars.net/p/russian-la...
November 29, 2025 at 2:30 PM
RIP, Russian laser plane.
You were weird, you were ambitious, and now you’re very, very dead.
www.laserwars.net/p/russian-la...
You were weird, you were ambitious, and now you’re very, very dead.
www.laserwars.net/p/russian-la...
And then people wonder why everyone now heads for @zackpolanski.bsky.social's party - The YP folks can't organise a piss-up in a brewery, nevermind set up a party properly because those who are meant to present a unified front (Corbyn and Sultana) can't even stand together over an internal rift.
Zarah Sultana boycotts first day of Your Party conference over 'witch hunt' expulsions
Zarah Sultana boycotts first day of Your Party conference over 'witch hunt' expulsions
Zarah Sultana has boycotted day one of the Your Party Conference over the expulsion of members of left-wing groups.
news.sky.com
November 29, 2025 at 2:31 PM
And then people wonder why everyone now heads for @zackpolanski.bsky.social's party - The YP folks can't organise a piss-up in a brewery, nevermind set up a party properly because those who are meant to present a unified front (Corbyn and Sultana) can't even stand together over an internal rift.