James von Simson
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jvs.bsky.social
James von Simson
@jvs.bsky.social
get cape. wear cape. fly
Reposted by James von Simson
The complete Bayeux Tapestry has finally been released and proves that Bishop Odo had absolutely nothing to do with the illegal Norman invasion of England.
December 20, 2025 at 12:38 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
It's never truly Xmas till the @alphaville.ft.com Person of Interest list arrives
www.ft.com/content/6d1e...
Person of Interest 2025: the longlist
A 12th annual celebration of cancellation
www.ft.com
December 19, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
every so often people rediscover r/neverbrokeabone and it's always a joy to behold the response
Obsessed with the subreddit for people who have never broken any bones, and when they finally do they're ruthlessly shamed into leaving
May 24, 2024 at 9:58 AM
Reposted by James von Simson
The "political genius" of Morgan McSweeney in one chart
December 18, 2025 at 8:55 PM
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This is a wild hack. a16z gave a million dollars to startup called Doublespeed. They use a phone farm to flood social media with AI generated influencers and ads. A hacker remotely broke into the phone farm, unmasking the AI influencers/fake accounts, gave us the data www.404media.co/hack-reveals...
Hack Reveals the a16z-Backed Phone Farm Flooding TikTok With AI Influencers
A hacker gained control of a 1,100 mobile phone farm powering covert, AI-generated ads on TikTok.
www.404media.co
December 17, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
If we are banning cell phones for kids we need to be talking about banning chatbots for boomers
www.persuasion.community/p/my-chatgpt...
December 17, 2025 at 4:38 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
Open source could pop the AI bubble — and soon: very interesting oped here from Mark Surman of Mozilla www.ft.com/content/353a...
December 18, 2025 at 7:02 AM
Reposted by James von Simson
There has been a strong reaction to the antisemitism allegations levelled at Nigel Farage - except from those you might have expected to condemn it most loudly. My piece for @jewishnews.bsky.social on a strange silence
www.jewishnews.co.uk/jonathan-fre...
JONATHAN FREEDLAND: Why Britain’s Jewish leaders are silent on Farage’s schoolyard antisemitism
While the Reform UK leader and his allies smear accusers as liars, the Board, JLC and HET remain mute, fearing the wrath of a rising politician
www.jewishnews.co.uk
December 11, 2025 at 1:41 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
Excellent deep dive into the scandal over the missing billions of an Hermes heir by Avantika Chilkoti of the @economist.com www.economist.com/1843/2025/12...
The Hermès heist: how an heir to the luxury dynasty was swindled out of $15bn of shares
Nicolas Puech had a 6% stake in the French fashion house. Then his stock went missing
www.economist.com
December 12, 2025 at 12:49 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
English was Queen Victoria's second language.
This is a really appalling editorial error on BBC Question Time

"Apparently one in three children don't speak English as a first language, why does this matter?"

Chair says "have English as a second language"

Caption changes the meaning entirely
"Don't speak fluent English"
December 12, 2025 at 12:53 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
It would be very funny if this was the top
CISCO SHARES UP 0.9%, HITTING FIRST RECORD SINCE MARCH 2000
December 10, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
The border inspector’s 2022 description of Home Office data as “inexcusably awful” remains undefeated
The real asylum scandal is the incompetence of the Home Office inews.co.uk/opinion/the-...
December 10, 2025 at 7:44 PM
For a party that claims the Lords is an important institution, the Tories strangely seem on insisting on elevating The. Absolute. Worst. People
Lib Dems announce 5 peers including ex-MP Sarah Teather, Tories announce 3 including Olympic swimmer/ women's rights activist Sharon Davies, historian Simon Heffer and former cabinet minister John Redwood. Reform UK don't get any.
December 10, 2025 at 9:04 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
When they want to increase public spending, every politician is asked how they will pay for it, but the same is not true (yet) for cutting immigration (because it is incorrectly understood as not having a cost.) I wonder if that will change as the impact on the economy becomes more visible.
Tighter visa rules will cost UK up to £10.8bn giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
December 10, 2025 at 9:38 AM
Reposted by James von Simson
But the good news is, by doing this, we defeated racism in the UK.
Government has now - belatedly -published the impact assessment for the changes to skilled worker and care worker visas announced in May.

Impact is estimated between -£2 billion and £-10 billion (central - £10 billion).

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6937e6...
assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
December 9, 2025 at 1:01 PM
Every day is a school day; I had no idea selling more commercials was a player welfare measure…
News: Every 2026 World Cup match will feature two "hydration breaks," no matter the weather.

Each half will pause for exactly three minutes midway through.

It's a player welfare measure. It also has sporting & commercial implications.

More @theathleticfc.bsky.social:
2026 World Cup to feature three-minute hydration breaks in every half throughout tournament
Every game will pause for three minutes in the middle of each half, which will essentially split the match into quarters.
www.nytimes.com
December 8, 2025 at 2:30 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
It's also: you don't know who is going to become what. A society more confident in itself would believe a little bit more in its ability to make anyone thrive and give back.
My dad abhors any negative comments about immigrants. Asked him recently why he’s so strong on it: ‘Because we’re always happy to take the rich and clever ones. Which means it’s not about disliking immigrants. It’s about disliking the poor and vulnerable. And that’s a bad human instinct.’
This is so disgusting.
December 7, 2025 at 8:46 AM
Reposted by James von Simson
my great-grandparents arrived in the UK in the 1890s with nothing.
they sold pickles from the front room window, took in laundry, worked as tailors.
their children were nurses, teachers, salesmen.
their grandchildren were professors, designers, opticians, doctors, magistrates, entrepreneurs.
This is so disgusting.
December 7, 2025 at 8:59 AM
Reposted by James von Simson
Buying Time Warner is now an official point in every bubble
December 5, 2025 at 2:10 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
Oh, non-league football has seen a lot worse. Such as one of London's highest placed clubs being managed by the leader of a feared drug-dealing gang, or the player arrested on the pitch just before a game as he was actually on the run at the time...
Morecambe FC ownership group “Panjab Warriors” has distanced itself from its former frontman after he was sanctioned over alleged terrorist links involving plans for a violent uprising in the Punjab.

Peak, peak non-league stuff. www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...
Panjab Warriors: Morecambe takeover figure accused of terrorism involvement
A key figure behind the Morecambe FC takeover deal is sanctioned by the UK government over accusations of involvement in terrorism.
www.bbc.co.uk
December 5, 2025 at 12:56 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
If it were steel works we would have a government bailout plan, yet losing thousands of jobs at unis is met with a shrug. & unlike steelworks universities were profitable when they had foreign students.
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…

HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
Every sympathy for University of Essex (and pressures facing them) but this is very bad news for Southend.

giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... Essex university to cut 400 jobs as overseas student numbers plummet
Essex university to cut 400 jobs as overseas student numbers plummet
Roles to be lost are part of wave of redundancy programmes across UK’s higher education sector
giftarticle.ft.com
December 3, 2025 at 8:14 AM
Reposted by James von Simson
Oh good god. We're so doomed.
December 2, 2025 at 3:35 PM
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Bong Joon Ho hit me up for the squad you legend deadline.com/2025/11/bong...
November 29, 2025 at 12:49 PM
Reposted by James von Simson
Kinnock voice - "I’ll tell you what happens with impossible promises. You start with far-fetched resolutions....and you end up in the grotesque chaos of a Labour government, a *Labour* government, rejecting visas for homeless 8 yr olds trying to joing their parents"
November 28, 2025 at 10:43 AM
Reposted by James von Simson
Bahahaharcalona 😂
November 25, 2025 at 9:35 PM