Mark Appleby
@markappleby.bsky.social
Enterprise Architect, Bristol UK
Reposted by Mark Appleby
who could have predicted that stopping international students, care workers and nurses from coming to the UK would damage the economy/public finances while yielding precisely no political benefits?
Oh. Me.
[& lots of others obviously]
Oh. Me.
[& lots of others obviously]
January 10, 2026 at 1:50 PM
who could have predicted that stopping international students, care workers and nurses from coming to the UK would damage the economy/public finances while yielding precisely no political benefits?
Oh. Me.
[& lots of others obviously]
Oh. Me.
[& lots of others obviously]
Reposted by Mark Appleby
Immigration is good for the UK economy. It might end this year and cost billions bit.ly/49sYeQK so the anti-immigration drive damages the UK.
Rachel Reeves faces tax rise dilemma over immigration forecast
Chancellor could be forced to make up for a shortfall of billions of pounds as figures predict a collapse in net migration would have consequences for the economy
bit.ly
January 10, 2026 at 10:20 AM
Immigration is good for the UK economy. It might end this year and cost billions bit.ly/49sYeQK so the anti-immigration drive damages the UK.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
Well, it’s started
Indonesia blocks Musk’s Grok chatbot due to risk of pornographic content
Indonesia blocks Musk’s Grok chatbot due to risk of pornographic content
Move comes after governments and regulators from Europe to Asia have condemned the AI tool and some have opened inquiries into sexualised content
Indonesia temporarily blocked Elon Musk’s Grok chatbot on Saturday due to the risk of AI-generated pornographic content, becoming the first country to deny access to the AI tool.
The move comes after governments, researchers and regulators from Europe to Asia have condemned and some have opened inquiries into sexualised content on the app. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
January 10, 2026 at 8:15 AM
Well, it’s started
Reposted by Mark Appleby
This story is a textbook case of how likes of Musk (and Trump) can so easily destroy liberal democratic institutions
Musk responds to questions about Grok creating AI porn with ‘legacy media lie’
Royal Society decides kicking him out would do ‘do more harm than good’ 🤯
www.ft.com/content/088b...
Musk responds to questions about Grok creating AI porn with ‘legacy media lie’
Royal Society decides kicking him out would do ‘do more harm than good’ 🤯
www.ft.com/content/088b...
January 10, 2026 at 8:21 AM
This story is a textbook case of how likes of Musk (and Trump) can so easily destroy liberal democratic institutions
Musk responds to questions about Grok creating AI porn with ‘legacy media lie’
Royal Society decides kicking him out would do ‘do more harm than good’ 🤯
www.ft.com/content/088b...
Musk responds to questions about Grok creating AI porn with ‘legacy media lie’
Royal Society decides kicking him out would do ‘do more harm than good’ 🤯
www.ft.com/content/088b...
Reposted by Mark Appleby
It’s the Royal CSAM Society now.
Musk should remain member of UK Royal Society, says president ft.trib.al/tC0vaAa
Musk should remain member of UK Royal Society, says president
Paul Nurse tells FT that national science academy should avoid ‘making judgments’ about ‘character’ of fellows
ft.trib.al
January 9, 2026 at 6:00 PM
It’s the Royal CSAM Society now.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
A right wing fifth columnist defending the right of the world's richest man to transform a social media platform into a sex abuse image generator.
January 9, 2026 at 12:10 PM
A right wing fifth columnist defending the right of the world's richest man to transform a social media platform into a sex abuse image generator.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
Republican bullies deploy more threats against the UK to protect their big tech corporate allies.
January 9, 2026 at 10:36 AM
Republican bullies deploy more threats against the UK to protect their big tech corporate allies.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
This is a very good piece.
Banning X and leading a campaign for our allies to do the same would be a great place to start.
Banning X and leading a campaign for our allies to do the same would be a great place to start.
I wonder if @pollymackenzie.bsky.social provided the answer to why Starmer is so reluctant to reduce govt's dependence on X in howtorunacountry.substack.com/p/there-aren... - i.e. Starmer only sees his power as pulling levers and not about setting culture - and so doesn't see...
January 9, 2026 at 7:28 AM
This is a very good piece.
Banning X and leading a campaign for our allies to do the same would be a great place to start.
Banning X and leading a campaign for our allies to do the same would be a great place to start.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
So this continues to have been a truly disastrous appointment by Starmer, as some of us warned at the time
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Mandelson accuses European leaders of ‘histrionic’ reaction to Trump’s Greenland stance
Article by former British ambassador to US is likely to be seen as criticism of Keir Starmer
www.theguardian.com
January 8, 2026 at 11:40 AM
So this continues to have been a truly disastrous appointment by Starmer, as some of us warned at the time
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Reposted by Mark Appleby
Just seen Grok putting the body of the victim of the ICE shooting in Minneapolis into a bikini. Digital corpse desecration now available to the public.
January 8, 2026 at 1:30 PM
Just seen Grok putting the body of the victim of the ICE shooting in Minneapolis into a bikini. Digital corpse desecration now available to the public.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
I understand the pressures on the BBC, but Radio 4's coverage of the Minneapolis shooting is an example of "bad balance".
It's all "the Trump regime says she was a terrorist, but Democrats say it was murder".
The BBC has the footage. It doesn't have to treat truth and falsehood as equally valid.
It's all "the Trump regime says she was a terrorist, but Democrats say it was murder".
The BBC has the footage. It doesn't have to treat truth and falsehood as equally valid.
January 8, 2026 at 8:38 AM
I understand the pressures on the BBC, but Radio 4's coverage of the Minneapolis shooting is an example of "bad balance".
It's all "the Trump regime says she was a terrorist, but Democrats say it was murder".
The BBC has the footage. It doesn't have to treat truth and falsehood as equally valid.
It's all "the Trump regime says she was a terrorist, but Democrats say it was murder".
The BBC has the footage. It doesn't have to treat truth and falsehood as equally valid.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
The “rules-based international order” Trump is so rapidly dismantling made America both the richest and the indisputably most powerful nation on earth.
Usually systems are dismantled by those losing out under them, not by the winners.
Usually systems are dismantled by those losing out under them, not by the winners.
We’re withdrawing from the International Law Commission??? This whole list is absolutely insane.
www.whitehouse.gov/presidential...
www.whitehouse.gov/presidential...
Withdrawing the United States from International Organizations, Conventions, and Treaties that Are Contrary to the Interests of the United States
MEMORANDUM FOR THE HEADS OF EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United
www.whitehouse.gov
January 8, 2026 at 8:11 AM
The “rules-based international order” Trump is so rapidly dismantling made America both the richest and the indisputably most powerful nation on earth.
Usually systems are dismantled by those losing out under them, not by the winners.
Usually systems are dismantled by those losing out under them, not by the winners.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
If the UK government had a Culture Secretary, that person would be in a position to take a view about whether child porn on demand was a good thing, or a bad thing. thecritic.co.uk/brin...
January 7, 2026 at 9:49 AM
If the UK government had a Culture Secretary, that person would be in a position to take a view about whether child porn on demand was a good thing, or a bad thing. thecritic.co.uk/brin...
Reposted by Mark Appleby
In the end, someone has to ask *why* people have been persuaded to be so terrified of immigration, when it has so many benefits and so few real downsides. Almost all of the claimed downsides are either lies or misinterpretations of statistics.
Why would any sane country do this to itself?
Why would any sane country do this to itself?
January 6, 2026 at 8:13 AM
In the end, someone has to ask *why* people have been persuaded to be so terrified of immigration, when it has so many benefits and so few real downsides. Almost all of the claimed downsides are either lies or misinterpretations of statistics.
Why would any sane country do this to itself?
Why would any sane country do this to itself?
Reposted by Mark Appleby
HMG apparently
"I stayed on Twitter through Nazi-ism and the owner causing 600,000 Africans to die so if you think a bit of child pornography is going to get me to leave you are barking up the wrong tree my friend"
Some people apparently
Some people apparently
January 5, 2026 at 4:26 PM
HMG apparently
Reposted by Mark Appleby
Cabinet Office Minister Baroness Anderson tells the Lords the Government will keep on using X.
"I still believe that X is an appropriate platform to use because I believe in freedom of speech..."
"It is incredibly important that there is a counter narrative on those platforms," she says.
"I still believe that X is an appropriate platform to use because I believe in freedom of speech..."
"It is incredibly important that there is a counter narrative on those platforms," she says.
January 5, 2026 at 3:58 PM
Cabinet Office Minister Baroness Anderson tells the Lords the Government will keep on using X.
"I still believe that X is an appropriate platform to use because I believe in freedom of speech..."
"It is incredibly important that there is a counter narrative on those platforms," she says.
"I still believe that X is an appropriate platform to use because I believe in freedom of speech..."
"It is incredibly important that there is a counter narrative on those platforms," she says.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
The absolute dumbest possible timeline. That's what we live in.
WH sources say Venezuela's opposition leader committed the "ultimate sin": She accepted the Nobel Peace prize.
“If she had turned it down and said, ‘I can’t accept it because it’s Donald Trump’s,’ she’d be the president of Venezuela today,” one said.
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
“If she had turned it down and said, ‘I can’t accept it because it’s Donald Trump’s,’ she’d be the president of Venezuela today,” one said.
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
January 5, 2026 at 5:42 AM
The absolute dumbest possible timeline. That's what we live in.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
Looked for a peer-reviewed piece of scientific research to back up this blanket claim that LTNs cause more pollution not less.
In fact this is a typical hit piece from the Times, which looks at one LTN, that hasn't even started yet. The "analysis", done by The Times hacks, isn't worth a jot.
In fact this is a typical hit piece from the Times, which looks at one LTN, that hasn't even started yet. The "analysis", done by The Times hacks, isn't worth a jot.
Low Traffic Neighbourhoods cause more pollution not less bit.ly/49iebJp analysis finds.
A single LTN road closure to add 1.4 million extra miles to journeys
‘Green’ traffic restriction plan in Islington, North London, could generate 400 tonnes of CO2
bit.ly
January 4, 2026 at 1:09 PM
Looked for a peer-reviewed piece of scientific research to back up this blanket claim that LTNs cause more pollution not less.
In fact this is a typical hit piece from the Times, which looks at one LTN, that hasn't even started yet. The "analysis", done by The Times hacks, isn't worth a jot.
In fact this is a typical hit piece from the Times, which looks at one LTN, that hasn't even started yet. The "analysis", done by The Times hacks, isn't worth a jot.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
Europe needs to get much more comfortable threatening Trump with serious deterrent measures, and if necessary implementing them. Tariffs, taxes & bans on US firms; selloffs of US Treasuries; expulsions of American troops; sanctions on individuals. Speak his language: strength.
Why should Trump stop at Venezuela? They’re champing at the bit for territorial expansion. Katie Miller, Stephen Miller‘s wife, posted a map of Greenland marked as a US territory with the words „SOON“.
January 4, 2026 at 12:40 PM
Europe needs to get much more comfortable threatening Trump with serious deterrent measures, and if necessary implementing them. Tariffs, taxes & bans on US firms; selloffs of US Treasuries; expulsions of American troops; sanctions on individuals. Speak his language: strength.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
"Welcome to Decline" -- still one of my favourite graphs from last year. In the late 1970s, Britain's economic fate very clearly split in two. How much you blame Thatcher will depend on your politics, but her leadership is useful to understand the timing. tomforth.co.uk/welcometodec...
January 2, 2026 at 6:15 PM
"Welcome to Decline" -- still one of my favourite graphs from last year. In the late 1970s, Britain's economic fate very clearly split in two. How much you blame Thatcher will depend on your politics, but her leadership is useful to understand the timing. tomforth.co.uk/welcometodec...
Reposted by Mark Appleby
If the British government, and indeed other governments, can’t muster a fast and strong response to Twitter adding a facility enabling users to create and share AI child sexual abuse material then not sure what Musk could ever do that would actually provoke a response.
January 2, 2026 at 1:27 PM
If the British government, and indeed other governments, can’t muster a fast and strong response to Twitter adding a facility enabling users to create and share AI child sexual abuse material then not sure what Musk could ever do that would actually provoke a response.
Reposted by Mark Appleby
Just like the Tories, Labour's centrist hacks think themselves omniscient and infallible - they cannot fail, they can only be failed. So when they do fail, they blame everyone else.
We saw it with the Tories, and it's already started from the Starmerites with this idiotic dreck: archive.ph/rHoXA
We saw it with the Tories, and it's already started from the Starmerites with this idiotic dreck: archive.ph/rHoXA
January 2, 2026 at 7:44 AM
Just like the Tories, Labour's centrist hacks think themselves omniscient and infallible - they cannot fail, they can only be failed. So when they do fail, they blame everyone else.
We saw it with the Tories, and it's already started from the Starmerites with this idiotic dreck: archive.ph/rHoXA
We saw it with the Tories, and it's already started from the Starmerites with this idiotic dreck: archive.ph/rHoXA
Reposted by Mark Appleby
Well, this explains a lot about Labour's travails if little else.
Verging on conspiracism.
Hate to break it to politicians of this and all future generations, you will be governing in a complex society. You need to factor that into your operating model.
www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
Verging on conspiracism.
Hate to break it to politicians of this and all future generations, you will be governing in a complex society. You need to factor that into your operating model.
www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
Alaa Abd el-Fattah has shown supremacy of the Stakeholder State
My time working in No 10 showed me how much time and energy is sapped by people obsessed with fringe issues. It doesn’t have to be this way
www.thetimes.com
January 2, 2026 at 7:52 AM
Well, this explains a lot about Labour's travails if little else.
Verging on conspiracism.
Hate to break it to politicians of this and all future generations, you will be governing in a complex society. You need to factor that into your operating model.
www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
Verging on conspiracism.
Hate to break it to politicians of this and all future generations, you will be governing in a complex society. You need to factor that into your operating model.
www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
Reposted by Mark Appleby
Denmark's rounded up 99 per cent of the nation’s publishers and broadcasters into a coalition to negotiate with Big Tech - and it’s proving a bit of a bloodbath. "Meta and TikTok are facing fines that are the scale of Bahrain’s GDP" rickysutton.substack.com/p/inside-den...
Inside Denmark's strategy to front run Europe on Big Tech deals
#430: Apple's been referred to the police, Meta and TikTok faces fines the size of Bahrain's GDP and OpenAI and LinkedIn are headed to court...
rickysutton.substack.com
January 2, 2026 at 5:17 AM
Denmark's rounded up 99 per cent of the nation’s publishers and broadcasters into a coalition to negotiate with Big Tech - and it’s proving a bit of a bloodbath. "Meta and TikTok are facing fines that are the scale of Bahrain’s GDP" rickysutton.substack.com/p/inside-den...