omg

Screenshot of part of the Connections game today, with the words "meatless" and "cannibalism" prominent

Connections seems to be encouraging the eating of vegetarians today

The full-length American Utopia film, directed by Spike Lee, is absolutely worth watching if you like this stuff at all

David Byrne utopian ensemble - YouTube

My current obsession: David Byrne's recent performances after the American Utopia and Who Is the Sky? albums, with the band all in motion (choreography by Annie-B Parson et al). Absolutely enthralling. Playlist here: youtube.com/playlist?lis...

The Machine Is Friendly. That's Why It Wins. How Australia kept its third places alive, what it hid inside them, why Britain’s fix made the problem worse, and what happened when I tried to beat the machine.

Curious why in one NSW town of 2,209 people gambling machines extracted almost $4,000 per person? I wrote about how Australia kept its third places alive by hiding the cost inside them, why Britain’s reform backfired and I even tried to beat the machine myself. open.substack.com/pub/laurenle...

Not now, mysterious island suddenly appearing where no island has been before

UK reliance on US big tech companies is ‘national security risk’, claims report | Computer Weekly The UK is over-reliant on a small number of big tech companies to provide critical data centres, software and digital infrastructure, placing national security at risk. A report by the Open Rights…

The UK's "over-reliance on foreign [tech] companies has become an urgent issue of national security as US foreign policy actions are creating geopolitical uncertainty.”

Our new report calls for the UK to pursue Digital Sovereignty to protect its critical infrastructure.

🗣️ ORG's @jim.killock.org.uk

Said it before but the UK could do a lot worse than to market itself as "The World's University", throw ourselves open to international students and use some of the money to drive regeneration in towns by setting up English-language immersion summer schools there using eg disused mills.

Whistleblower says Trump officials thought USAID did 'just abortions,' asked for 'Barney-style' slides before gutting agency, per new book Read an exclusive excerpt from Nicholas Enrich's "Into the Wood Chipper"

NEW—I got an exclusive excerpt from a USAID whistleblower's new book that made me gasp multiple times. It details Trump's dismantling of the humanitarian aid agency & his team/DOGE's shocking ignorance to public health.

'Into the Wood Chipper' by Nicholas Enrich is out tomorrow. Read excerpt here:

a screenshot of the "New Bestsellers" list from Substack, with Andrew Tate in the #1 position

Hey, look at Substack promoting Andrew Tate as the #1 new bestseller. The company's amoral leadership & backers will platform anyone, even ludicrously toxic rapists & human traffickers.

Close-up of a bluebell with green and brown foliage in the background.

Did you know it takes at least five years for a bluebell seed to grow into a bulb?

In the coming weeks, wide seas of violet will appear across ancient and semi-ancient woodland.⠀
⠀
To help look after these beautiful flowers please remember to stick to paths 💜

📸: Ian Micklewright

It has come to my attention that not all of you are aware that this exists. So, here it is. It exists. Dozens of channels of randomized music videos and bumpers. Choose your era and return to your childhood. Bookmark it for when you need to escape back.

wantmymtv.vercel.app/player.html

Two cocktails on a table, one in a coupe and one in a tumbler with ice

What a Good Friday it is to stay home, am I right? Certainly it is when you have Friday-at-home #cocktails . Today, we have one Alfa-Romeo and one rhubarb Mother Root. Cheers!

Such stupid, unnecessary self-harm. Really feel sympathy for folks like this.

Cartoon XMen style characters. Steamer - shoots steam from his fingers. Can make a frothy coffee, open letters undetected and remove wallpaper.

The Unhelpful X-Men

The clocks go forward every second of every day, always. You should be used to it.

Two cocktails on a shelf - one red and one clear

Hello Friday, my old friend. Time for staying in with some Friday-at-home #cocktails, I think. Here we have a Botivo and a negroni d'Amalfi. Cheers!

The UK Covid Inquiry has laid bare the avoidable horror of the second Covid wave It is becoming ever clearer both how devastating the second wave of winter 2020/21 was, and how much of that devastation could have been avoided.

I wrote about the findings from the inquiry about the impact of the pandemic on the NHS, and the mistakes of the first year.

I hope it makes you angry - it should make us all angry.

open.substack.com/pub/christin...

I absolutely adore this

I've found Goodhart's Law a useful way of avoiding some bad decisions in management. I never imagined it would have an application in warfare logistics.

This guy is getting so incoherent

Screenshot of text from a blog post, reading: "Friday’s press gaggle. Barely exaggerated: at 12:03 PM, President Trump told reporters he wanted a ceasefire with Iran. At 12:05 he declared victory. At 12:07 he announced he was sending Marines. At 12:08 he said no boots on the ground. At 12:11 he said he did not want a ceasefire. At 12:16 he declared victory again. At 12:17 he asked for a ceasefire. At 12:23 he told NATO they were cowards. At 12:29 he said Iran was begging for a ceasefire. At 12:31 he said everything was perfect. At 12:36 he said $500 oil was a good thing. At 12:37 he demanded Iran open Hormuz. At 12:39 he said Hormuz was never closed. At 12:41 he said the US was not at war with Iran. At 12:42 he declared victory in Iran."

This is an excellent portrait of the dangerous, incoherent, incompetent war that Trump, Netanyahu & co. have started with Iran.

no01.substack.com/p/march-19-2...

The whole thing's worth a read. But this passage really caught my attention. We should see more often just how incoherent Trump's BS is.

Learned something today!

Screenshot of a tweet: Ben Graham @BenGrahamUK X.com Britain has been a Christian nation for over 1,400 years. Through wars, plagues, and countless kings, Easter has always been celebrated. Yet now, Cadbury won't even use the word 'Easter' on their eggs. When did celebrating British traditions become controversial? Above a photo of Easter Eggs

Screenshot of a tweet: ClIr Jaymey Mclvor * @McivorJaymey x.com Any chance I can get an Easter Egg please M&S? Will they ever learn It's like they do it on purpose to offend. Easter is not National Chocolate Day. Which extremists are you trying hard to not offend? @marksandspencer @GBNEWS Above images of Easter Eggs in M&S

🧵And we're off, ladies and gentlemen!

It's "they're banning the word EASTER" week.

Regular as clockwork...

So here comes a history lesson and media lesson all rolled into one thread!

PS, I can't believe there's no easter egg emoji?

This was the best I could do - 🗿🥚

🤣 I digress!

1/19

Zouzou, a tabby cat, showing her belly in the sunlight

Mysha, a black cat, relaxing on a bed

Zouzou and Mysha, a mother cat and her son, lying together on a bed

I think they're happy with us

#Cats

Two cats - Zouzou, a tabby, and Mysha, a black - curled up together on a futon

Zouzou, a tabby cat, sitting upright and looking very composed

Mysha, a black cat, sitting up and contemplating something off to the side

It's exactly a year since we brought Zouzou and Mysha home for the first time.

This is incredibly irresponsible journalism. You cannot write this headline without acknowledging all the times Elon Musk has promised to pay for things, then didn't.

Let's take a stroll down memory lane. 🧵

THE GREAT BRITISH SEWING BEE: oh my this is fun, oh what larks

THE GREAT BRITISH REAPING BEE: well this is a spot of bother and make no mistake, what on earth

Ooh! This will be good. "Good Services" certainly was.

They’re telling me a great empire will be destroyed if I attack Persia. Even the oracles who don’t like me very much, very nasty, they all said to me, “Sir, it’s one of the great empires, and it’ll be destroyed. And all because you attacked Persia.” That’s what they’re telling me.