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Reposted by Simon McGarr

Lisa Carey @msleedy.bsky.social · 2h

I work in IT and literally use the skills I developed in my English and History degrees daily: organising information, researching, assessing critically, making arguments, explaining things clearly.

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 3h

This is a speech, not a law.

Jacob Öberg @profjacob.bsky.social · 3h

🚨🚨 #Denmark aims to ban #socialmedia for children under 15. PM Mette Frederiksen says "We have unleashed a monster" to Danish lawmakers. 🧵https://www.politico.eu/article/denmark-mette-frederiksen-partially-ban-social-media-children-under-15/

Denmark aims to ban social media for children under 15, PM says

“We have unleashed a monster,” Mette Frederiksen tells Danish lawmakers.

www.politico.eu

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Reposted by Simon McGarr

Internet Archive @archive.org · 19h

🐹 Before viral videos on TikTok or YouTube, there was Hampsterdance.

Full of dancing hamster GIFs & a sped-up tune, it became one of the internet’s first viral hits.

You can still dance to it on the #WaybackMachine ➡️ web.archive.org/web/19991222...

#Wayback1T

🧵

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Reposted by Simon McGarr

Rhiv @rhivre.bsky.social · 4h

Absolutely. The two most important things I learned at uni were "Check the source. If it gives you an emotional response, check it twice. If you want it to be true, check it three times" and "Who gave them the flag?" and these were in the social geography classes I took one semester.

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 4h

I mean, I think that AI won’t be actually able to do any reliable automation, but will manage to generate vast quantities of meaningless (and anti-meaning) gunk along the way.

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Phil Rothwell @phillyrothers.bsky.social · 4h

Many mistaken assumptions made about the skills required in a post-AI world. Tech and formulaic stuff will be largely automated. The ability to write and parse complex text, present and influence will be key skills. Talking as an English Lit grad now working in complex tech roles and researching AI

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 4h

It is worth adding that the current Tory leader appears not to understand what an English degree- or an education in general- actually is.

This is merely one of a long list of things she has gleefully demonstrated not understanding.

We may add it to “Laws”, “Politics” and “Being Elected”, to start

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 5h

I have an English degree, and if you have ever read anything I have written about a complicated thing and thought “Hey, I get that now” that is the primary reason why.

Before you can clearly explain it, you have to have understood a thing.

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 5h

Just to be clear, an English degree - learning to critically assess texts - is actually one of the most dangerous for people such as Badenoch.

An educated population, able to bring hundreds of years of context to statements in a dawning age of AI slop and attention-seeking dishonesty is also vital.

The Bear @bearlypolitics.co.uk · 6h

So, the plan is to cut English, the arts, and sociology - the degrees that actually study culture - while on another part of your platform claiming to “defend” British culture.

It’s performance nationalism with a reading age of seven.

Badenoch: Curb students taking 'rip-off' degrees such as English
The performing arts, sociology and anthropology are among the subjects the Conservatives would like to cut

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 5h

This was always more of a CJEU question.

Steve Peers @stevepeers.bsky.social · 22h

The EU's General Court has upheld the EU/US arrangements for transfers of personal data to the US. Analysis by Dr Samira Allioui: eulawanalysis.blogspot.com/2025/10/the-...

The General Court of the European Union upholds the Data Privacy Framework

Dr Samira Allioui , Research fellow, Centre d'études internationales et européennes, Université de Strasbourg Photo credit : Ibrahim...

eulawanalysis.blogspot.com

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The Irish Times @irishtimes.com · 14h

Gaza flotilla members ‘kidnapped and tortured’ by Israeli military, says Greta Thunberg

Swedish activist alleges she and others were subject to torture during detention in Israeli prison

www.irishtimes.com

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Reposted by Simon McGarr

Grem, of 𝐆𝐑𝐄𝐌𝐂𝐎𝐑𝐏 🔜 MCAtlanta! @gremlin.world · 2d

I will never not repost this

(Sound on for maximum effect)

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 14h

In other words, if the nature of the corruption is not extrinsic, but is intrinsic to the rotten morals of the incumbent judges.

In such a case, are those perverse decisions still legal?

Are grotesque interpretations to stand as legitimate until a later court of less malign make-up overturns them?

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 14h

Oh, I’d forgotten that one. I’m glad it gave the very impression I’d hoped.

Despair is a trap, and if we can jump over it, we can do ourselves and others so much better service.

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 20h

It seems that discussion of judicial corruption focus on judges being wrongly influenced from without.

There is less attention paid to what should happen if a judiciary- as a system and a group- act in co-ordinated malice and issue wrongful decisions.

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 20h

Source link:

www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel...

“Corruption in the judiciary threatens the rule of law and protection for human rights,” warns UN expert

NEW YORK (24 October 2012) – The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, Gabriela Knaul, warned today that the existence of corruption in the judiciary remains a d...

www.ohchr.org

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 20h

In 2012, the UN High Commissioner on Human rights warned against the dangers of judicial corruption.

But corruption was imagined and presumed to be the result of external forces.

The suggested solution was strengthening judicial independence.

But this doesn’t solve judges choosing to go bad.

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 20h

Is the law what courts say it is?

This seems like an easy question at first glance.

Politicians pass laws, courts interpret them.

But what if the courts go bad?

What if they start producing perverse interpretations of laws?

Are these perverse interpretations still legal?

And if not, what is?

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Orla Hegarty @orla-hegarty.bsky.social · 22h

“targeted measures for the most vulnerable” #Budget2026 #Speirgorm

RTÉ News @news.rte.ie · 22h

The Government will reduce the VAT rate on the sale of completed apartments to 9% from 13.5%, from tonight until the end of December 2030

Govt to cut VAT rate on apartments sales from 13.5% to 9%

The Government will reduce the VAT rate on the sale of completed apartments to 9% from 13.5%, from tonight until the end of December 2030.

www.rte.ie

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Reposted by Simon McGarr

Darren Dahly @statsepi.bsky.social · 1d

Now he will win. Because that's how it is here. It's simply too funny not to do, so that's what will happen. I don't make the rules.

The Journal @thejournal.ie · 1d

The counting of votes will proceed as normal, the returning officer said, “in line with the rules for the counting of votes as set out in the 1993 Act”.

http://jrnl.ie/6837130

Jim Gavin will be on the ballot and votes will be counted as normal, returning officer confirms

Gavin made the shock announcement late on Sunday night to withdraw from the presidential election.

jrnl.ie

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Reposted by Simon McGarr

Ex-Optimist 🇬🇧 @grumpyearthling.bsky.social · 23h

A great read, especially for those of us who like to get the chronology right.
bylinetimes.com/2025/10/07/t...

The Great X-Tinction: Why My Time's Up On Twitter

Otto English explains why, after 15 years, he has left the social media platform now disseminating disinformation worldwide under the control of Elon Musk

bylinetimes.com

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Reposted by Simon McGarr

Aieee-Iain Clark @iainjclarkart.com · 1d

Part of Russell T Davies' speech on being awarded Outstanding Contribution to Television at the Bafta Cymru awards. (via www.instagram.com/baftacymru)

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 1d

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 1d

Say the system collects you country. Not precise
Say it collects your city? Not precise
Say it collects your neighbourhood? Not precise.
Say it collects your house location? Not precise

It knows what room are you are in? Hey, not precise, it doesn’t know where you are in the room.

It is an evasion

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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 1d

As @johnnyryan.bsky.social points out, there is an embarrassment of reports, findings and confirmations to confirm that the RTB system (Internet ad sales, basically) includes location data.

But is it precise? Well, without a definition, precise can mean anything it needs to avoid action.

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