AJ Thomas
@zzypt.bsky.social
I wouldn’t follow me if I were you.
Posting to get thoughts out of my head so I can see how rubbish they are.
Mostly post about politics, rugby, music, TV and movies.
@zzypt everywhere else.
Posting to get thoughts out of my head so I can see how rubbish they are.
Mostly post about politics, rugby, music, TV and movies.
@zzypt everywhere else.
Pinned
Reposted by AJ Thomas
“Now, the volunteers in Maine say federal agents have started showing up at their homes and intimidating them or threatening arrest. Some of them, masked and wearing tactical gear, have issued stark warnings not to follow them.”
Why is the msm outside of Maine not covering this? It seems like a huge and very troubling story to me. ICE coming to observers houses or calling them on the phone warning them to back off??!! www.pressherald.com/2026/01/23/i...
ICE watchers in Maine say they were threatened by federal agents
Community members have been monitoring the activity of immigration agents in Greater Portland.
www.pressherald.com
January 26, 2026 at 10:28 PM
“Now, the volunteers in Maine say federal agents have started showing up at their homes and intimidating them or threatening arrest. Some of them, masked and wearing tactical gear, have issued stark warnings not to follow them.”
Reposted by AJ Thomas
There are at least 365 MPs with BlueSky accounts (a majority of 65!) acc to this @politicshome.bsky.social tracker, with 244 having posted on the site this month/since new year
Labour 265 (65%)
LibDem 61 (85%)
Cons 6 (5%)
Green 4 (100%)
SNP 4 (44%)
Plaid 2 (50%)
Reform 0 (0%)
mps.dowu.uk#parties
Labour 265 (65%)
LibDem 61 (85%)
Cons 6 (5%)
Green 4 (100%)
SNP 4 (44%)
Plaid 2 (50%)
Reform 0 (0%)
mps.dowu.uk#parties
UK MPs on Bluesky
Track which UK Members of Parliament are on Bluesky. See adoption rates by party, find missing MPs, and explore the constituency map.
mps.dowu.uk
January 26, 2026 at 11:06 PM
There are at least 365 MPs with BlueSky accounts (a majority of 65!) acc to this @politicshome.bsky.social tracker, with 244 having posted on the site this month/since new year
Labour 265 (65%)
LibDem 61 (85%)
Cons 6 (5%)
Green 4 (100%)
SNP 4 (44%)
Plaid 2 (50%)
Reform 0 (0%)
mps.dowu.uk#parties
Labour 265 (65%)
LibDem 61 (85%)
Cons 6 (5%)
Green 4 (100%)
SNP 4 (44%)
Plaid 2 (50%)
Reform 0 (0%)
mps.dowu.uk#parties
Reposted by AJ Thomas
I'm now old enough to find it bizarre that TV is only 100 years old. I feel like TV's been around forever and ever, but it was invented so comparatively recently (1926) that my grandparents' were already adults
TV is (probably) a century old today. This event is happening a few miles from me but, sadly, I can’t go. I may chase up later.
May be a few tickets left …
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-future...
May be a few tickets left …
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-future...
Bournemouth University rebuilds John Logie Baird's first TV set
Exactly one century on, a team at Bournemouth University is recreating the first receiver.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 26, 2026 at 11:04 PM
I'm now old enough to find it bizarre that TV is only 100 years old. I feel like TV's been around forever and ever, but it was invented so comparatively recently (1926) that my grandparents' were already adults
Reposted by AJ Thomas
MAGA military geniuses are talking about Minnesota protestors like they are the Iraqi insurgency, the Taliban, and the Viet Cong all rolled into one.
January 26, 2026 at 5:10 PM
MAGA military geniuses are talking about Minnesota protestors like they are the Iraqi insurgency, the Taliban, and the Viet Cong all rolled into one.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Age gating VPNs is a truly horrible idea. Teenagers deserve some kind of private access to the internet – which might mean LGB resources, or access to contraception or abortion advice, or resources to help with parental abuse.
Shutting them off puts them in greater danger. This is just bad policy.
Shutting them off puts them in greater danger. This is just bad policy.
I and many others predicted this long ago. VPNs now headed for UK age gating. Amendment 94a is also massive, given its potential scope. reclaimthenet.org/uk-house-of-...
UK House of Lords Votes to Extend Age Verification to VPNs
The vote marks a stunning turn, pulling VPNs and private platforms into an age-check regime once unthinkable in a democracy.
reclaimthenet.org
January 26, 2026 at 11:51 PM
Age gating VPNs is a truly horrible idea. Teenagers deserve some kind of private access to the internet – which might mean LGB resources, or access to contraception or abortion advice, or resources to help with parental abuse.
Shutting them off puts them in greater danger. This is just bad policy.
Shutting them off puts them in greater danger. This is just bad policy.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Bovino is just the patsy - a noxious and odious fall guy. Stephen Miller is the architect and prime mover of the whole thing. Everything they do is at his direction - often after his threats. As long as he runs policy in the WH, nothing will change no matter how many Bovinos come and go.
January 27, 2026 at 12:17 AM
Bovino is just the patsy - a noxious and odious fall guy. Stephen Miller is the architect and prime mover of the whole thing. Everything they do is at his direction - often after his threats. As long as he runs policy in the WH, nothing will change no matter how many Bovinos come and go.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Cannot repeat the Obama-era dodge of saying "we tortured some folks" and not holding accountable the torturers and especially the chain of command. You want to stop state-sanctioned crimes? Trials not words are the only way.
Bovino’s retirement needs to be a cage. His command environment yielded Renee Good’s death, Alex Pretti’s death & Julio Sosa-Celis’ shooting. Failure to prosecute Bovino & everyone else materially responsible for these atrocities will be understood by ICE, CBP, etc as a green light for the next ones
January 27, 2026 at 2:00 AM
Cannot repeat the Obama-era dodge of saying "we tortured some folks" and not holding accountable the torturers and especially the chain of command. You want to stop state-sanctioned crimes? Trials not words are the only way.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Reminder that, as of the latest reports, Liam Ramos is still in prison in Texas - now for 5 days.
His parents are legal asylum seekers with no criminal record.
His parents are legal asylum seekers with no criminal record.
January 27, 2026 at 12:30 AM
Reminder that, as of the latest reports, Liam Ramos is still in prison in Texas - now for 5 days.
His parents are legal asylum seekers with no criminal record.
His parents are legal asylum seekers with no criminal record.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
The Trump administration said, flatly, that people shouldn't have guns at protests. Every anti-gun group has all those statements saved to their hard drives now. They made life much more difficult for the 2A folks. And they know it.
January 26, 2026 at 9:50 PM
The Trump administration said, flatly, that people shouldn't have guns at protests. Every anti-gun group has all those statements saved to their hard drives now. They made life much more difficult for the 2A folks. And they know it.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
I think the thing that killed the administration was that they were so gung-ho to find a reason that Pretti deserved to die that they accidentally declared that that the second amendment isn't real.
I have been waiting for this signal from Senator Rand Paul.
Senator Paul, Chairman of Senate Homeland Security Committee follows House committee. Sends letters to heads of ICE, CBP, USCIS to testify in public hearing.
Senator Paul, Chairman of Senate Homeland Security Committee follows House committee. Sends letters to heads of ICE, CBP, USCIS to testify in public hearing.
January 26, 2026 at 9:41 PM
I think the thing that killed the administration was that they were so gung-ho to find a reason that Pretti deserved to die that they accidentally declared that that the second amendment isn't real.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
I mostly just stay off Twitter altogether but after double checking that the Walter Hudson post was still up I ran across this and just had to share so the Romancelandians who bought hand warmers could hear about the PROFESSIONAL GRADE LOGISTICS.
January 25, 2026 at 9:03 PM
I mostly just stay off Twitter altogether but after double checking that the Walter Hudson post was still up I ran across this and just had to share so the Romancelandians who bought hand warmers could hear about the PROFESSIONAL GRADE LOGISTICS.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
so bari definitely got the heads up that noem is being shitcanned, right?
January 26, 2026 at 5:51 PM
so bari definitely got the heads up that noem is being shitcanned, right?
Reposted by AJ Thomas
RE: https://mastodon.social/@daringfireball/115963173431724210
My main problem with Notes is the crappy “smart” formatting it applies without asking. I use it quite a lot but would use it more if I could get plain text.
My main problem with Notes is the crappy “smart” formatting it applies without asking. I use it quite a lot but would use it more if I could get plain text.
mastodon.social
January 26, 2026 at 8:14 PM
RE: https://mastodon.social/@daringfireball/115963173431724210
My main problem with Notes is the crappy “smart” formatting it applies without asking. I use it quite a lot but would use it more if I could get plain text.
My main problem with Notes is the crappy “smart” formatting it applies without asking. I use it quite a lot but would use it more if I could get plain text.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Bovino being run out of town is the biggest L for Nazis since the Battle of Berlin
Leavitt throws Bovino under the bus: "Mr Bovino is a wonderful man and he's a great professional. He is very much going to continue CBP throughout and across the country. Mr Homan will be the main point of contact on the ground in Minneapolis"
January 26, 2026 at 6:53 PM
Bovino being run out of town is the biggest L for Nazis since the Battle of Berlin
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Bovino learning the inevitable fate of every Trump subcontractor.
Leavitt throws Bovino under the bus: "Mr Bovino is a wonderful man and he's a great professional. He is very much going to continue CBP throughout and across the country. Mr Homan will be the main point of contact on the ground in Minneapolis"
January 26, 2026 at 6:48 PM
Bovino learning the inevitable fate of every Trump subcontractor.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
ICYMI: Following Renee Good’s murder by ICE, her son’s Minneapolis charter school was forced to go fully online due to right-wing attacks
sahanjournal.com/education/mi...
sahanjournal.com/education/mi...
January 25, 2026 at 4:43 PM
ICYMI: Following Renee Good’s murder by ICE, her son’s Minneapolis charter school was forced to go fully online due to right-wing attacks
sahanjournal.com/education/mi...
sahanjournal.com/education/mi...
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Naming someone is not doxxing. They aren’t undercover. They aren’t intelligence agents overseas. This is outrageous - we are supposed to be a free Republic and these people want an authoritarian police state. Lawsuits should be filed & ranking Dems in Congress should act.
January 26, 2026 at 4:35 PM
Naming someone is not doxxing. They aren’t undercover. They aren’t intelligence agents overseas. This is outrageous - we are supposed to be a free Republic and these people want an authoritarian police state. Lawsuits should be filed & ranking Dems in Congress should act.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
there are these lines that come out of the Trump WH sometimes that are the perfect balance of “in its verbal and situational construction, extremely funny” and “in its consequences, unspeakably bad” and this one is the heaviest it’s been on both sides
January 26, 2026 at 7:21 PM
there are these lines that come out of the Trump WH sometimes that are the perfect balance of “in its verbal and situational construction, extremely funny” and “in its consequences, unspeakably bad” and this one is the heaviest it’s been on both sides
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Two weeks ago this guy announced he was providing legal help to the agent who shot Renee Good. That's how quickly the winds are shifting.
pretty wild statement re: Republican Chris Madel drop from race for MN governor:
"Saying he cannot support the national GOP's 'stated retribution on citizens of our state, nor can I count myself a member of a party that would do so."
"Saying he cannot support the national GOP's 'stated retribution on citizens of our state, nor can I count myself a member of a party that would do so."
January 26, 2026 at 2:38 PM
Two weeks ago this guy announced he was providing legal help to the agent who shot Renee Good. That's how quickly the winds are shifting.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Their lies are so funny that I legitimately now think he has days to live
January 26, 2026 at 3:54 PM
Their lies are so funny that I legitimately now think he has days to live
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Thread on the 1970 Kent State University shootings. 4 unarmed students killed and 9 injured while protesting against the Vietnam war.
The Republican governor’s description of the protesters sounds familiar.
The Republican governor’s description of the protesters sounds familiar.
Kent State's student body was fairly conservative, but the presence of troops on campus had radicalized many of them. This is how Ohio's governor described these young people: "We’re up against the strongest, well-trained, militant revolutionary group that has ever been assembled in America."
January 26, 2026 at 6:16 PM
Thread on the 1970 Kent State University shootings. 4 unarmed students killed and 9 injured while protesting against the Vietnam war.
The Republican governor’s description of the protesters sounds familiar.
The Republican governor’s description of the protesters sounds familiar.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Well, there it is.
Congratulations, America. You made Sepp Blatter the good guy. I hope you’re proud of yourself.
Congratulations, America. You made Sepp Blatter the good guy. I hope you’re proud of yourself.
(The Guardian) - Former Fifa president Sepp Blatter on Monday suggested he supports fans boycotting World Cup matches in the United States this year due to security concerns.
@theguardian.com
www.theguardian.com/football/202...
@theguardian.com
www.theguardian.com/football/202...
January 26, 2026 at 5:48 PM
Well, there it is.
Congratulations, America. You made Sepp Blatter the good guy. I hope you’re proud of yourself.
Congratulations, America. You made Sepp Blatter the good guy. I hope you’re proud of yourself.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
first the internet got me to side with Michael O'Leary in his spat with Musk, now this.
end times.
end times.
Sepp Blatter suggests fans should not travel to US for World Cup
Sepp Blatter suggests fans should not travel to US for World Cup
*
Ex-Fifa boss shows support for boycott calls
*
Security concerns over tournament have risen
Former Fifa president Sepp Blatter on Monday suggested he supports fans boycotting World Cup matches in the United States this year due to security concerns.
Blatter gave his support to comments from Swiss anti-corruption lawyer Mark Pieth, who worked with Fifa on potential reforms when Blatter was president, saying fans should stay away from the US for the tournament. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
January 26, 2026 at 5:36 PM
first the internet got me to side with Michael O'Leary in his spat with Musk, now this.
end times.
end times.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
This goes a long way to confirming the hypothesis that Trump's cognitive collapse is such that paths taken come down to who was the last person to speak with him at any one time.
First Rutte, now Walz
First Rutte, now Walz
January 26, 2026 at 4:52 PM
This goes a long way to confirming the hypothesis that Trump's cognitive collapse is such that paths taken come down to who was the last person to speak with him at any one time.
First Rutte, now Walz
First Rutte, now Walz
Reposted by AJ Thomas
This Thursday (29th Jan) is launch day for Attacking the Space!!
Wondering if it's for you? It's been described as:
'Well written, insightful and thought-provoking' by the Guardian
'an invaluable book - a brilliant resources for anyone interested in rugby' by Bernard Jackman
Wondering if it's for you? It's been described as:
'Well written, insightful and thought-provoking' by the Guardian
'an invaluable book - a brilliant resources for anyone interested in rugby' by Bernard Jackman
January 26, 2026 at 4:52 PM
This Thursday (29th Jan) is launch day for Attacking the Space!!
Wondering if it's for you? It's been described as:
'Well written, insightful and thought-provoking' by the Guardian
'an invaluable book - a brilliant resources for anyone interested in rugby' by Bernard Jackman
Wondering if it's for you? It's been described as:
'Well written, insightful and thought-provoking' by the Guardian
'an invaluable book - a brilliant resources for anyone interested in rugby' by Bernard Jackman