This is free to read version. as.ft.com/r/fe9a9b7f-5...

Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu share a lot of traits. They are both solipsistic, mendacious, narcissistic, and paranoid megalomaniacs who perceive themselves as victims of a cabal of elites. Now they share something else: They have lost a war together. Driven by vanity and hubris, the U.S. president and Israeli prime minister miscalculated Iran’s mettle, and now their mutually inflicted failure is causing them considerable political harm at home. What started as a Smith & Wesson partnership has degenerated into a Thelma & Louise ending.

Great piece by @alonpinkas.bsky.social—Trump and Netanyahu are co-authors of the fiasco in Iran. They have helped each other fail. It could not have happened to two more deserving monsters.
newrepublic.com/maz/article/...

You’re a wonderful analyst Billy, but I’ve been avoiding previews and predictions this weekend so I’m not sure I can read this right now.

But of course I will.
Thanks again.

Blessèd be the men, for they are normal, and innocent.

ZOHRAN: “TBH, I don’t think too much about how Republicans portray me. The power of an ideology is judged in the worth of its delivery— to be told a city-run grocery store is implausible but $500 MILLION/day to kill ppl in Iran & Lebanon is necessary speaks to a broken politics.”

Chasing ghosts, losing votes New research shows immigration is not driving voter anger, yet the Coalition is targeting it anyway – risking further losses in the diverse, urban seats it must win back.

Immigration is not what’s driving voter anger.
New research shows distrust of politicians dominates – and chasing One Nation risks losing the voters the Coalition needs, Kos Samaras writes.
#auspol #Politics #Election #Immigration

March into the Ruins | Bruce Robbins A reflection on the “wildly generous, proliferating creativity” of Alexander Kluge.

From Bruce Robbins, on the many collaborations and conversations of Alexander Kluge:

And the woman did speak unto the hound, saying, What do you mean, normal men, and the hound answered the woman, saying, We are just innocent men. And great was her emotion

The book is out now! Lovely review and profile of influential field biologist George Schaller here: news.mongabay.com/2026/04/geor...

(My own review died with the WaPo book review section, but this is better than I could've done anyway.)

“Happy tax day”

"Best communicator on the left anywhere in the world right now. And it’s just how he’s saying it- he actually has something to say." - @lewis_goodall

#sunset behind a tree! What a perfect photo!

What Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli right really mean when they invoke ‘Greater Israel’ | Daniel Levy The concept is about much more than acquiring territory, it is also about Netanyahu’s desire for Israel to become a regional superpower, says Daniel Levy, president of the US/Middle East Project

What Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli right really mean when they invoke ‘Greater Israel’ | Daniel Levy

The European city banning all fossil fuel and meat adverts in public Amsterdam initially proposed the move in 2020, becoming the first city in the world to do so.

“Amsterdam is set to ban climate-damaging advertising [fossil fuel & meat adverts] in public spaces, following a trend spreading across Dutch cities.

France has also enacted legislation outlawing adverts from non-renewable energy companies, & one Italian city has plans to do the same.” #UrbanTruth

Magyar’s speech is powered. From a contact in the audience: “He’s basically just asked all the puppets, all the supreme justices, all the heads of media, all the heads of the ministries to leave their jobs tomorrow and not wait to be fired.”

Happy for the Hungarians but also a momentous day for people who enjoy the thought of sad Tony Abbott

People in the Budapest Metro, Hungary, shouting: “Russians, go home!”

Cornershop - Brimful Of Asha, Norman Cook Mix (Tjinder Singh) Official Music Video YouTube video by Cornershop

youtu.be/5LBnMRWeV-E?...

From Caretakers to Combatants. The Age of the Combatant: How Every Side of Politics Is About to Be Remade

open.substack.com/pub/redbridg...

What Did We Learn? Apart from never doing that again of course

"Leg day is the periodic table and energy - hard, grinding stuff that actually makes you genuinely strong." @alexbhturnbull.bsky.social syncretica.substack.com/p/what-did-w...

McSweeney's is starting to compete with the Onion for "factual journalism thinly veiled as satire".

“profaned by the blasphemy of war and the brutality of business”

got this perfect line from pope Leo stuck in my head

sharing two great responses:
"He’s from Chicago. What dya expect" - @landisweaver.bsky.social

"Anybody wanna argue with that...? I thought not."
- @doublehelix.bsky.social

I have a long piece in the Guardian about... well, myself. As a writer and a historian, I generally tell other people's stories. So, this story was difficult to write. It took me about six months. It's about my understanding of my own identity: who, or what am I, really?

Israel's illegal invasion and ethnic cleansing of Lebanon. Not "contributing to" it is the literal sole cause of it. @SenatorWong The conflict in Lebanon is contributing to a humanitarian crisis. As UN Security Council members meet today to discuss the protection of UN and Humanitarian Personnel, Australia and partners call for international humanitarian law to be respected, and aid workers to be protected. 9:09 AM • Apr 9, 2026 • 10.7K Views Years of this passive language has desensitised us. Is the law being "disrespected"? No. It's being criminally breached by Israel, over and over again, which in turn, obligates states to react, to punish, to sanction. When someone is murdered, you do not "call for" the murderer to respect the law, you arrest them.

Years now of calling for these murderers to stop killing everyone and start "respecting" the law - this would be evil and absurd by itself, but to do this while also arming the murderers and funding them and calling them your "friend" makes this a uniquely ghoulish exercise of propaganda.

They’ll be calling for the Privy Council to be reinstated.

They might find something new on the moon now they've sent a woman up to look.

Well, it took me about two and a half years when I was young and could focus on all the detail. 2029 sounds about right - your Carlton might come good by then.
If they’re still hopeless there’s always Anthony Powell (if you haven’t yet).

It’s a good use of your time if you’re not expecting to be interested in the AFL this season.

Interesting argument @financialtimes.com.