Memories of the Kant-Fest in Berlin in 2024

Urgency was they weren't sure how Trump would react so wanted to get it under "Dach und Fach" under Biden. @stephenkb.bsky.social

Quite shocked at Emily Thornberry claiming on air she had seen the famous red boxes about PMan, and that this justified OR sacking, and then conceding that actually she hadn't, only the famous template.

Sure there was a feeling in FCDO they had to find a solution, also hinted at by report of UKDV acknowledging FCDO might want to go ahead. Best take is they thought they were doing what government wanted and that KS or McS would not want to have their fingerprints on a mitigation fudge.

And then as OR said if KS had ignored the assessment if reputational damage etc, ignored any press reports of links to Eptsein, hot the king's approval and US presidential approval, I am just imagining response in No10 if DV refused.

I just wonder if he was covering for people lower down who actually made the DV decision and didn't want to go into details so as to not have them immediately be hauled over the coals (and I need to look at the transcript but I think he said there was a note which would come out when files opened.

From his testimony he didn't interact with UKDV directly but only with the FCDO security department. He a/c to testimony had never seen the famous template ever (and he had previously been in national security). Again something doesn't seem quite right.

That was the strangest part of the testimony for me, much more so than any of the other "jaw droppers". I just can't fathom that a civil servant with the experience of OR on a matter as sensitive as PMan would not have kept a record or minute of the discussion.

And originally the DSG (West German successor to Mitropa) used the same logo but WITH the Eagle's head (which had been decapitated in the GDR)

I wonder if it used to be a hairdresser's @ecumenika.bsky.social

Erasmus Darwin is portrayed as a spectator, seated front left, in Wright of Derby’s most famous painting: An Experiment 1768. With profile largely in shadow, he is watching the experiment intently. Erasmus Darwin, Midlands Enlightenment thinker, physician, inventor, abolitionist, died #OTD 1802; founding member of Lunar Society (with Watt, Boulton & Wedgwood), grandfather of Charles Darwin, friend of Benjamin Franklin. National Gallery London

Portrait of Erasmus Darwin by Wright of Derby c.1770 Birmingham Art Gallery

Erasmus Darwin, Midlands Enlightenment thinker, physician, inventor, abolitionist, died #OTD 1802; founding member of Lunar Society (with Watt, Boulton & Wedgwood), grandfather of Charles Darwin, friend of Benjamin Franklin.
An Experiment 1768 by Wright of Derby
Portrait 1770 Birmingham AG - ALT

I went to UEA - it was definitely Norwich and definitely Norfolk (though TBH we tended to think of Norfolk as the agricultural parts of the county)

I follow a French substack-style financial writer. He has used AI to help build financial analysis tools and is very happy with the results. He tried using AI for his posts and has discontinued for exactly this reason - it doesn't really express his thoughts and produces cardboard prose

Reminds me I need to get a coffee before I go back to my desk to carry on writing

Even nonconformists

Gelbe Briefe begins with an incident involving the minister of culture. the action that follows is filmed in Berlin - explicitly, as the film states Berlin is Ankara. Highly recommended as a film, portraying shrinking spaces for intellectual and artistic endeavour.

British conductor Sir Simon Rattle was awarded the title "Honorary Conductor of the Staatskapelle Berlin" this week, in recognition of his outstanding artistic achievements.

The award honours the 18-year-old close artistic collaboration between Rattle and Staatskapelle Berlin.

Thanks. I can be very precise now in what I am looking for, dates, place, organizers, etc

I have the same problem because to follow up the document I found today I need access to archives at Yale :-(

I didn't know this document existed so couldn't have asked someone to look out for it but as soon as I saw it despite the rather bland title I realised what it meant

@stephanieseul.bsky.social once again the value of being able to research yourself in archives proved - discovered a document without warning (not flagged up in description) in a folder which is incredibly important but not sure if anyone doing archival research for me would have realised importance

In Strasbourg to consult the archives of Suzanne de Dietrich passionate French ecumenist WSCF @oikoumenewcc.bsky.social

Interesting. Think my chances with Swedish better than Finnish

Swedish -speaking part of Finland?

I just did

And Renault throws the water bottle in the bin which is finally revealed to be ... Vichy water

Misunderstood completely what you meant by the 80K limit and thought you were referring to the tendency to insist that PhDs are shorter and shorter

Are you sure this wasn't ChatGPT generated

The other day I saw someone on here describing Luther as “an early Lutheran preacher” and I cannot stop thinking about that.

Is that because March used to mark the beginning of the New Year?