Rob Abram
@robabram.bsky.social
Emigré Brit, ex-Berliner, now herding cats across the asparagus fields of Beelitz. Tin-opener-in-chief to four cats. Did I mention the cats?
#nobridge
#nobot
#nobridge
#nobot
Reposted by Rob Abram
Miniature musical instrument makers admit defeat as violin size requirement for story is declared "too small to build."
December 27, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Miniature musical instrument makers admit defeat as violin size requirement for story is declared "too small to build."
Reposted by Rob Abram
Saddened to learn of the recent death of John Varley, a brilliantly talented writer.
December 26, 2025 at 6:05 PM
Saddened to learn of the recent death of John Varley, a brilliantly talented writer.
Reposted by Rob Abram
i'm fascinated by how much people love and are amazed by chat gpt saying "nice catch!" and "great observation!" because i personally find the condescension and obsequiousness the most skin-crawling thing about how LLMs "talk"
If we are banning cell phones for kids we need to be talking about banning chatbots for boomers
www.persuasion.community/p/my-chatgpt...
www.persuasion.community/p/my-chatgpt...
December 18, 2025 at 12:09 PM
i'm fascinated by how much people love and are amazed by chat gpt saying "nice catch!" and "great observation!" because i personally find the condescension and obsequiousness the most skin-crawling thing about how LLMs "talk"
Reposted by Rob Abram
A reminder that @techdirt.com doesn't do any of this nonsense.
December 15, 2025 at 12:54 AM
A reminder that @techdirt.com doesn't do any of this nonsense.
Reposted by Rob Abram
For the record, Robin Ince is a superb comedian, an absolute mensch, a remarkable thinker and the kindest human you’ll ever meet. And the BBC is a genuinely great and globally unique institution that needs to stop being afraid. I think that’s where most of its faults and issues stem from.
December 13, 2025 at 11:21 AM
For the record, Robin Ince is a superb comedian, an absolute mensch, a remarkable thinker and the kindest human you’ll ever meet. And the BBC is a genuinely great and globally unique institution that needs to stop being afraid. I think that’s where most of its faults and issues stem from.
Reposted by Rob Abram
Fuck them all. Fuck Gen AI where idiots thinks it breathes. Like Ethan Hawke says, open revolt.
December 11, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Fuck them all. Fuck Gen AI where idiots thinks it breathes. Like Ethan Hawke says, open revolt.
Reposted by Rob Abram
On the one hand, I know the metric that Time chooses this on is not the metric we all think it is.
On the other I hope these people never know a picosecond of happiness for the rest of their fucking lives because of the abject destruction and chaos their boneheaded decisions have wrought
On the other I hope these people never know a picosecond of happiness for the rest of their fucking lives because of the abject destruction and chaos their boneheaded decisions have wrought
Time Magazine puts the "architects of AI" on its Person of the Year cover time.com/7339685/pers...
December 11, 2025 at 1:58 PM
On the one hand, I know the metric that Time chooses this on is not the metric we all think it is.
On the other I hope these people never know a picosecond of happiness for the rest of their fucking lives because of the abject destruction and chaos their boneheaded decisions have wrought
On the other I hope these people never know a picosecond of happiness for the rest of their fucking lives because of the abject destruction and chaos their boneheaded decisions have wrought
Reposted by Rob Abram
SKULL OF THOMAS AQUINAS: TAKE A LEFT NOW
PRIEST: No, the GPS says we have to keep going—
SKULL: I KNOW A SHORTCUT
PRIEST: Do you remember the last ti—
SKULL: FOR THOSE WITH FAITH, NO EVIDENCE IS NECESSARY; FOR THOSE WITHOUT IT, NO EVIDENCE WILL SUFFICE
PRIEST: No, the GPS says we have to keep going—
SKULL: I KNOW A SHORTCUT
PRIEST: Do you remember the last ti—
SKULL: FOR THOSE WITH FAITH, NO EVIDENCE IS NECESSARY; FOR THOSE WITHOUT IT, NO EVIDENCE WILL SUFFICE
'Skull of St. Thomas Aquinas being transported to Fossanova Abbey.'
Photograph by Daniel Ibanez
Photograph by Daniel Ibanez
December 10, 2025 at 5:10 PM
SKULL OF THOMAS AQUINAS: TAKE A LEFT NOW
PRIEST: No, the GPS says we have to keep going—
SKULL: I KNOW A SHORTCUT
PRIEST: Do you remember the last ti—
SKULL: FOR THOSE WITH FAITH, NO EVIDENCE IS NECESSARY; FOR THOSE WITHOUT IT, NO EVIDENCE WILL SUFFICE
PRIEST: No, the GPS says we have to keep going—
SKULL: I KNOW A SHORTCUT
PRIEST: Do you remember the last ti—
SKULL: FOR THOSE WITH FAITH, NO EVIDENCE IS NECESSARY; FOR THOSE WITHOUT IT, NO EVIDENCE WILL SUFFICE
Reposted by Rob Abram
“I am so bored by AI. One of the things I love about the theatre is AI can’t do it.”
Ethan Hawke is a dude 👌🏻
Ethan Hawke is a dude 👌🏻
December 9, 2025 at 8:36 PM
“I am so bored by AI. One of the things I love about the theatre is AI can’t do it.”
Ethan Hawke is a dude 👌🏻
Ethan Hawke is a dude 👌🏻
Reposted by Rob Abram
It is so weird that Labour have a huge majority and are in government but have spent the whole time acting like an opposition party on the ropes
December 9, 2025 at 11:22 PM
It is so weird that Labour have a huge majority and are in government but have spent the whole time acting like an opposition party on the ropes
Reposted by Rob Abram
Keep reading about new defence tech and whizzy applications of AI.
At risk of sounding very twentieth century: if I was a defence planner I’d probably be valuing a larger stockpile of 155mm shells over a lot of this stuff.
At risk of sounding very twentieth century: if I was a defence planner I’d probably be valuing a larger stockpile of 155mm shells over a lot of this stuff.
December 9, 2025 at 12:23 PM
Keep reading about new defence tech and whizzy applications of AI.
At risk of sounding very twentieth century: if I was a defence planner I’d probably be valuing a larger stockpile of 155mm shells over a lot of this stuff.
At risk of sounding very twentieth century: if I was a defence planner I’d probably be valuing a larger stockpile of 155mm shells over a lot of this stuff.
Reposted by Rob Abram
Keir Starmer's Substack: the obvious choice for a middle-aged man about to find himself unexpectedly out of a job.
thecritic.co.uk/hes-...
thecritic.co.uk/hes-...
December 8, 2025 at 8:21 PM
Keir Starmer's Substack: the obvious choice for a middle-aged man about to find himself unexpectedly out of a job.
thecritic.co.uk/hes-...
thecritic.co.uk/hes-...
Reposted by Rob Abram
Oh look. They’ve actually drawn a diagram for all the people stupid enough to need a bloody diagram.
Elon Musk and his Russian friends call for the abolishment of the EU
December 6, 2025 at 6:05 PM
Oh look. They’ve actually drawn a diagram for all the people stupid enough to need a bloody diagram.
Reposted by Rob Abram
Farage is currently "boycotting the BBC".
Perhaps the BBC and every other reputable broadcaster should instead be boycotting Mr Farage
Perhaps the BBC and every other reputable broadcaster should instead be boycotting Mr Farage
December 6, 2025 at 9:01 PM
Farage is currently "boycotting the BBC".
Perhaps the BBC and every other reputable broadcaster should instead be boycotting Mr Farage
Perhaps the BBC and every other reputable broadcaster should instead be boycotting Mr Farage
Reposted by Rob Abram
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD USE HYPHENS
December 5, 2025 at 3:40 PM
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD USE HYPHENS
Reposted by Rob Abram
1. The European Parliament’s attempt to ban plant-based foods from being sold as “sausages”, “burgers” etc is a direct response to livestock industry lobbying. This is a short thread on how utterly bleeding ridiculous it is. 🧵1/6
December 3, 2025 at 10:26 AM
1. The European Parliament’s attempt to ban plant-based foods from being sold as “sausages”, “burgers” etc is a direct response to livestock industry lobbying. This is a short thread on how utterly bleeding ridiculous it is. 🧵1/6
Reposted by Rob Abram
2. It has *nothing* to do with improving clarity. There’s no evidence that people are confused by terms such as veggie burgers, meat-free sausages or oat milk. It’s a crudely protectionist measure designed to stamp out competition, by forcing plant-based companies to use offputting terms. 2/6
December 3, 2025 at 10:27 AM
2. It has *nothing* to do with improving clarity. There’s no evidence that people are confused by terms such as veggie burgers, meat-free sausages or oat milk. It’s a crudely protectionist measure designed to stamp out competition, by forcing plant-based companies to use offputting terms. 2/6
Reposted by Rob Abram
3. The industry knows that words are important. If Moses had been obliged by labelling laws to promise the Israelites a land of mammary secretions and insect vomit, I doubt many would have followed him into Canaan, though these are accurate descriptions of milk and honey. 3/6
December 3, 2025 at 10:27 AM
3. The industry knows that words are important. If Moses had been obliged by labelling laws to promise the Israelites a land of mammary secretions and insect vomit, I doubt many would have followed him into Canaan, though these are accurate descriptions of milk and honey. 3/6
Reposted by Rob Abram
4. If legislators are to insist on food literalism, they should at least be consistent. There's no dinosaur in turkey dinosaurs (and not much turkey). If a vegan hotdog is ruled out on the grounds that it contains no meat, the meat version should also be ruled out, as it contains no dog. 4/6
December 3, 2025 at 10:29 AM
4. If legislators are to insist on food literalism, they should at least be consistent. There's no dinosaur in turkey dinosaurs (and not much turkey). If a vegan hotdog is ruled out on the grounds that it contains no meat, the meat version should also be ruled out, as it contains no dog. 4/6
Reposted by Rob Abram
6. But again and again, legislators seem determined to make idiots of themselves on behalf of powerful industries. They are meant to represent our interests, not those of the lobbyists, but that message seems to have got lost. Vote for those who represent the people, not the money. 6/6
December 3, 2025 at 10:31 AM
6. But again and again, legislators seem determined to make idiots of themselves on behalf of powerful industries. They are meant to represent our interests, not those of the lobbyists, but that message seems to have got lost. Vote for those who represent the people, not the money. 6/6
Reposted by Rob Abram
5. Minced meat is meat, but mincemeat isn’t. Nor are sweetmeats, though sweetbreads are. Buffalo wings are an obvious attempt to mess with our heads. Shepherd’s pie, or so the printed ingredients claim, contains no shepherd. And don’t get me started on jelly babies. 5/6
December 3, 2025 at 10:29 AM
5. Minced meat is meat, but mincemeat isn’t. Nor are sweetmeats, though sweetbreads are. Buffalo wings are an obvious attempt to mess with our heads. Shepherd’s pie, or so the printed ingredients claim, contains no shepherd. And don’t get me started on jelly babies. 5/6
Reposted by Rob Abram
🚨Some personal news.
I'm thrilled to announce that I've just filed my first copy for The New Yorker.
A profile of Jonathan Gullis.
"You get the sense that offstage, Jonathan Gullis struggles with being Jonathan Gullis."
open.substack.com/pub/mrhenrym...
I'm thrilled to announce that I've just filed my first copy for The New Yorker.
A profile of Jonathan Gullis.
"You get the sense that offstage, Jonathan Gullis struggles with being Jonathan Gullis."
open.substack.com/pub/mrhenrym...
Jonathan Gullis, The Seagull's Lament
A New Yorker Profile
open.substack.com
December 2, 2025 at 11:01 AM
🚨Some personal news.
I'm thrilled to announce that I've just filed my first copy for The New Yorker.
A profile of Jonathan Gullis.
"You get the sense that offstage, Jonathan Gullis struggles with being Jonathan Gullis."
open.substack.com/pub/mrhenrym...
I'm thrilled to announce that I've just filed my first copy for The New Yorker.
A profile of Jonathan Gullis.
"You get the sense that offstage, Jonathan Gullis struggles with being Jonathan Gullis."
open.substack.com/pub/mrhenrym...
Reposted by Rob Abram
Prove you are a genuine Russian armed auxiliary ship with this simple Kamcaptcha...
November 26, 2025 at 10:15 PM
Prove you are a genuine Russian armed auxiliary ship with this simple Kamcaptcha...
Reposted by Rob Abram
Every single person in Britain: "the chippy" or, if we're being fancy, "the chip shop"
The New York Times: "the french fry restaurant"
The New York Times: "the french fry restaurant"
new favourite New York Times term for a British thing just dropped
November 26, 2025 at 10:33 AM
Every single person in Britain: "the chippy" or, if we're being fancy, "the chip shop"
The New York Times: "the french fry restaurant"
The New York Times: "the french fry restaurant"
Reposted by Rob Abram
This is what Peak Male Performance looks like.
November 26, 2025 at 7:59 AM
This is what Peak Male Performance looks like.