PHOTO by Quang Vuong. A narrow aisle stretches deep into a monochrome labyrinth of tall bookshelves, packed tightly with aged spines and endless stories. Overhead signs mark categories—Poetry, U.S. History, Literary Bios—dangling above the quiet corridor. A lone step ladder waits mid-path, inviting the seeker upward. Fluorescent lights cast a sterile glow, yet the space feels timeless, suspended between thought and memory. The silence is thick, broken only by the imagined rustle of turning pages.

If you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking.

- Haruki Murakami, Norwegian Wood

A Peacock Pansy (Junonia almana) butterfly shows off its beautiful overwing pattern in Rajkot, Gujarat, India. Photo by Raju Karia #butterfly #peacockpansy #nature #wildlife #india

Not bothered by people who want Starmer to go. I agree. My reasons are selfishly practical - he lacks the vision and charisma to lead the UK through impossibly challenging times. What bothers me is when people cosplay moral outrage to not just oust, but destroy him, because it gives them a thrill.

In the Heat of the Night (1967) Directed by Norman Jewison stars Sidney Poitier, Rod Steiger, Lee Grant and Warren Oates.

Shabana Mahmood has been accused of showing a 'sickening indifference' to human life after she joked about tasering and deporting her political rivals

Mahood said in jest: political rivals, however, chillingly serious about her radical immigration policy operation- outperform Reform by abject cruelty.

This Isn't Trading. It's Theft from Your Retirement. Someone keeps making perfectly-timed bets right before the President speaks. The victims are your pension, your 401(k), and the country I took an oath to defend.

Fifteen minutes before the President announced he was pausing strikes on Iran, somebody moved $500 million in oil futures. Somebody knew. Somebody told them. Or somebody is them.
New piece ↓
open.substack.com/pub/adamkinz...

I despise and occasionally loathe certain political figures, just like anyone else with any concern for justice and due process

but using their issues with substance abuse to mock, deride, and diminish them

only stigmatizes those who struggle with substances

and complicates my day job

A sunny landscape with two very young lambs( black faces and legs) playing chase around a large tree. Denmead, Hampshire

Peekaboo. Unfortunately, I was unable to get any closer but watching these little guys larking around in the sun brought a little joy on an otherwise dark day (UK politics) 😱
🥾Denmead, Hampshire

A lot of people spent days going "OMG OMG OMG popcorn at the ready SiR kEiTh obvs lying; Olly Robbins has the receipts". Now they're like "too clever to get caught, they did it with VIBEZ."

From "Starmer is really bad at politics" straight to "Starmer is Machiavelli reincarnated" - like every week.

Gustave Caillebotte, French (1848-1894), Le petit bras de la Seine, Argenteuil, c. 1890, oil on canvas, 81 x 65 cm, private collection

Area warlord fails to understand what the number one killer of soldiers has been in history

They are all fucking idiots.
www.history.com/articles/sma...

Ollie Robbins appears to be confirming this morning what KS said all along.

‘It was a shock’: Emily Thornberry on her demotion from Starmer’s Labour frontbench Former shadow attorney general speaks of pain of missing out on government job and her fears for young ministers

www.theguardian.com/politics/202... Emily Thornberry chairing the Foreign Affairs Committee, where she is currently challenging Sir Olly Robins regarding his failure to disclose information about Lord Mandelson’s vetting. This should be interesting as Thornberry has no beef with Starmer?

First Maya molar with jade inlay from Popol Vuh Museum: the Maya had therapeutic dentistry with sacred materials 1,500 years ago

First Maya molar with jade inlay from Popol Vuh Museum: the Maya had therapeutic dentistry with sacred materials 1,500 years ago

The utter cruelty of some university management teams is staggering.

We’re defending Western Civilization by kicking Plato and Shakespeare out of university classes.

🔥 “I’m so glad people are finally waking up to your cruelty — and to the idiocy of your star disciple Pete Hegseth.”

@wajahatali.bsky.social eviscerates Hegseth’s pastor Doug Wilson (with @timmiller.bsky.social & piers in the front row)

Morning 🌞
I've chosen a Linnet in a cover crop for today's #BirdOfTheDay #Petals&Perches Black Tailed Godwits seen at Blacktoft Sands on Sunday for the alt theme #WhatTheFlock

Netanyahu claimed last week that Magyar invited him to Hungary.

Today Magyar said that Netanyahu will be arrested if he enters Hungary:

“I made it clear to the Israeli PM — we will not back down... If a state is an ICC member and a person who is wanted enters that territory, they must be detained”

Amedeo Modigliani, "Young Woman with Rose (Margherita)," oil on canvas, 1916; photo: Christie's. #modigliani #art #arte #modernart #portrait #portraitpainting #paintings #peintures #kunst #museum #artgallery

On Thursday, Venus will appear telescopically close to Uranus. Binoculars required. 🔭 🧪

If journalists had any integrity and courage, they would boycott the White House Correspondents Dinner. It should be as empty as a TPUSA event.

Groan. Just fess up. “ Of course I lied , “ and you lot went along with it because a) you desperately wanted a trade deal with the orange one b) we all knew it would take one bastard to deal with another bastard.

A very small cabbage white butterfly feasting on dark green nettles.

Tiny little cabbage white making its debut in the mid -afternoon sunshine. 🥾
Denmead, Hampshire

Good piece but, tho' it's true Labour are edging to seeking something like 'Chequers', it's misleading to call that the "Chequers deal" - it was a proposal, most of which was rejected by the EU (e.g. Tusk statement after Salzburg summit 09/18).

And since it is a gorgeous day and you all seem to be in such a lovely and pro-European mood, why not press play on this? x

Trump leaving the umbrella for someone else to close, because he can’t do it himself, is a perfect illustration of what he did with Iran.