James Hawes
@jameshawes.bsky.social
390 followers 200 following 240 posts
Father of three boys. Married to an Irishwoman. Ex-novelist. Historian. Teacher of writing. Novel “Speak for England” (2005) predicted Brexit - “it deserves some kind of prescience prize" (Observer, 2017).
Posts Media Videos Starter Packs
jameshawes.bsky.social
Listen to AI! It implies that every student in Britain should consider becoming fluent in German as part of their university studies!
jameshawes.bsky.social
In 1989, on this day, I was in my office in Maynooth 🇮🇪 - in my first job as a Germanist.

This calendar was on my wall.

None of my colleagues anywhere in the world had any idea that within a week, the #DDR would be finished.
jameshawes.bsky.social
It’s long-wave history time again as polling in #Wales - now a two horse-race between the civic/cultural nationalism of #Plaid and the toxic “Empire 2.0” fantasies of #Farage - looks extremely familiar…
jameshawes.bsky.social
Da die AfD nur in gewissen Staaten die Aufsicht hat, an die Macht zu kommen, ist est ganz einfach, was Sie in dem Fall tun - gerade das, was Millionen schon vor dem ersten Weltkrieg taten: Sie begehen Ostflucht.
tieresindfreaks.bsky.social
Danke für die vielen klugen und eindrücklichen Kommentare.
tieresindfreaks.bsky.social
Was bedeutet es für das eigene Leben, wenn die AfD in Regierungsverantwortung gelangt?
www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/vorm...
jameshawes.bsky.social
What he said. As discussed by myself and @nickcohen.bsky.social on his podcast a couple of months ago.
rorza8472.bsky.social
the Conservative brand has been dying for a while now, Johnson was it's last hurrah as a political force, since then it's been the walking dead so all it's money, influencers & outriders are migrating to Reform.

Reform aren't insurgent or different, they are just a more right wing rebrand of Tories
jameshawes.bsky.social
Es ist mir völlig unbegreiflich, dass ich dieses kleine Meisterwerk erst jetzt richtig lese.
Reposted by James Hawes
garvanwalshe.org
Important stuff here by @jeremycliffe.bsky.social on the regional elections in NRW, Germany.

You’ll see a lot of stories about a “far right surge” (the FT has one this morning).

But that happened a couple of years ago. These results record voter shifts that already happened. 1/
jeremycliffe.bsky.social
North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany's most populous state, held local elections today. Support for AfD up but at 15% well below party's national polling. And lower among the young: 5th place on 11% among under-25s, who also delivered a smaller swing towards the party than did older generations.
jameshawes.bsky.social
Excellent point. And in Germany’s multiparty system the vital point is this: over 70% of all voters still back parties which are absolutely explicit in their support for NATO and EU. @zeit.de @helenebismarck.bsky.social @annettedittert.bsky.social
jeremycliffe.bsky.social
Another caveat to AfD surge in North Rhine-Westphalia: party's vote share in today's local elections slightly *down* on its share in the state at Bundestag election in February.

bsky.app/profile/schi...
schieritz.bsky.social
Das ist wirklich interessant: Die AfD hat in NRW bei der Kommunalwahl (14,6 Prozent) im Vergleich zur Bundestagswahl (16,4 Prozent) Stimmen VERLOREN und nicht gewonnen.
jameshawes.bsky.social
Richtig! Und vor allem wichtig ist: über 70 % aller Stimmen sind für Parteien, die ausgesprochen für NATO und für die EU abgegeben worden.
martingross.bsky.social
Im Vergleich zur Prognose zeigt sich das übliche Bild: der Blick auf kreisfreie Städte und Kreistage verzerrt die Ergebnisse zugunsten der AfD (was wiederum medial dann weitergesponnen wird).

Sobald die kleineren Gemeinden ausgezählt sind, sinkt der Stimmenanteil, da sie dort keine Bewerber finden.
de.whln.eu
NORDRHEIN-WESTFALEN | Hochrechnung Kommunalwahl Infratest dimap/WDR, 21:12 Uhr

CDU: 33,7% (-0,6)
SPD: 22,1% (-2,2)
AfD: 15,0% (+9,9)
GRÜNE: 13,1% (-6,9)
LINKE: 5,5% (+1,7)
FDP: 3,5% (-2,1)
Sonstige: 7,1%

Änderungen zum Wahlergebnis von 2020 (landesweites Ergebnis)
#Kommunalwahl
jameshawes.bsky.social
Was aber vor allem in NRW wichtig ist: 70% aller Stimmen sind für Parteien abgegeben, die ausgesprochen pro-NATO und pro-EU sind.
Reposted by James Hawes
gilesmacdonogh.bsky.social
France's arsonist-in-chief thinks there's something in it for her.
Reposted by James Hawes
adapalmer.bsky.social
Attention #AcademicSky Everyone is talking about books, but thousands of academic journals were also pirated and are entitled to up to $3,000 *per pirated volume!!!* if editors submit titles to join the suit. Incredible opportunity for underfunded journals to get some $$! #SkyStorians #MedievalSky
Reposted by James Hawes
ghilondon.bsky.social
Dear colleagues and friends,

A quarter of a century after its last major refurbishment, the GHIL is embarking on a new project to renovate and modernise its building. In a few weeks the builders will move in to make the public facing rooms of the Institute ready for the coming decades. 🧱🔨
jameshawes.bsky.social
It isn’t war against anyone else he’s thinking of…

monocle.com/affairs/plan...
jameshawes.bsky.social
Diese Vermögensspalte wurde 1948 sozusagen eingebaut:
jameshawes.bsky.social
„ …und seine Seele kostete Unzucht, und Raserei des Untergangs“ (Thomas Mann, Der Tod in Venedig, frei nach Gedächtnis)
annettedittert.bsky.social
There is some frenzied lust of final self-destruction dominating papers like the Mail or the Telegraph these days, that is astonishing even to their own standards.
Where will this end?
pmdfoster.bsky.social
Honking endorsement for Farage, Johnson et la, without a moment’s reflection that 10 years of UKIPified Tory govt created the mess they’re railing about — booming benefits bills, bond market routs, immigration surges, trade slump and investment slumps. Bring back Boris and Nadine! That’ll fix it. 🙈
jameshawes.bsky.social
Leider heißt Geschichte schreiben notwendigerweise auch pauschal sehen. Seit Kaisers Zeiten haben deutsche Wähler jenseits der Elbe/Saale immer wieder weit überproportional dazu tendiert, rechtspopulistiche, autoritäre Parteien zu wählen.

Wer dies ändern will, muss es zuerst erkennen.
davidbegrich.bsky.social
In den heutigen Kommentaren bitte keine Belehrungen, kein Zynismus, kein "Baut die Mauer wieder auf", kein " Ossis sind nicht Demokratie fähig" Bitte nicht pauschalisieren. Bitte den Blick auf jene richten, für die das Erstarken der AfD eine Gefahr darstellt. Danke.
jameshawes.bsky.social
The Achilles heel (which of course, turned out to be his personal nemesis with Gulf 2) is the entirely pointless notion that Britain has to be “a nation of power and influence”. Why? How about just being an ordinary country trying to make an honest living in the world?
Reposted by James Hawes
colmocinneide.bsky.social
The report also glosses over - in a single paragraph! - how the GFA refers to the ECHR (not 'ECHR righs') as being a key 'safeguard' of the Agreement. That's the single most relevant clause in the whole text, and the report just wriggles away from it.
jameshawes.bsky.social
@bendorgrosvenor.bsky.social

Trying to work out which old master this photograph of Djokovic yesterday reminds me of. I thought perhaps a minor figure in a crucifixion by Rubens, but I can’t find anything…