Amyn Merchant
@amynmerchant.bsky.social
Musician, Bookworm, Europhile, Family Man & #AutismParent. All views are personal.
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
"An exodus of UK citizens is being driven by tens of thousands of eastern Europeans moving home and taking British partners with them."
Going over there, taking their jobs, etc. ~AA
Going over there, taking their jobs, etc. ~AA
December 1, 2025 at 5:13 PM
"An exodus of UK citizens is being driven by tens of thousands of eastern Europeans moving home and taking British partners with them."
Going over there, taking their jobs, etc. ~AA
Going over there, taking their jobs, etc. ~AA
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
Mind-blowingly cool use of AI
“Altogether, these findings are leading us to an extraordinary conclusion: Whales may possess a communication system more intricate than our own, one that possibly predates human language by tens of millions of years.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/23/o...
“Altogether, these findings are leading us to an extraordinary conclusion: Whales may possess a communication system more intricate than our own, one that possibly predates human language by tens of millions of years.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/23/o...
Opinion | I’m a Marine Biologist. This Is How I Talk to Whales.
www.nytimes.com
November 30, 2025 at 8:58 PM
Mind-blowingly cool use of AI
“Altogether, these findings are leading us to an extraordinary conclusion: Whales may possess a communication system more intricate than our own, one that possibly predates human language by tens of millions of years.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/23/o...
“Altogether, these findings are leading us to an extraordinary conclusion: Whales may possess a communication system more intricate than our own, one that possibly predates human language by tens of millions of years.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/23/o...
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
Translation: Pete may well go down for this. But I’m not going with him.
Reporter: If there were a second strike that killed wounded people, would that be legal?
Trump: I don’t know that happened and Pete said he did not even know what people were talking about. I wouldn’t have wanted a second strike. The first strike was very lethal. It was fine.
Trump: I don’t know that happened and Pete said he did not even know what people were talking about. I wouldn’t have wanted a second strike. The first strike was very lethal. It was fine.
November 30, 2025 at 11:21 PM
Translation: Pete may well go down for this. But I’m not going with him.
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
The death of browsing is part of the reason art is the way it is now. Our opinions are largely fed to us by algorithms. Spending a spare 15 minutes wandering around a bookstore or comic shop or video rental place was how you found stuff you wouldn't ordinarily pick up and thereby expanded your taste
Bookselling is like the most "people go to the store and buy what looks cool to them without a particular agenda" type business left, and your purchases have a huge influence on what is ordered, what is displayed, and what is recommended.
November 29, 2025 at 6:44 PM
The death of browsing is part of the reason art is the way it is now. Our opinions are largely fed to us by algorithms. Spending a spare 15 minutes wandering around a bookstore or comic shop or video rental place was how you found stuff you wouldn't ordinarily pick up and thereby expanded your taste
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
Experts say it’s highly unusual for the White House to tell agents to give up custody of potential evidence in an investigation, as it did with the Tates.
“I’ve never heard of anything like that in my 30 years working,” an ex-DHS official said.
“I’ve never heard of anything like that in my 30 years working,” an ex-DHS official said.
The White House Intervened on Behalf of Accused Sex Trafficker Andrew Tate During a Federal Investigation
Federal authorities were chided for seizing electronic devices from Tate and his brother, and told to return them, records and interviews show. Experts said the intervention was highly inappropriate.
www.propublica.org
November 28, 2025 at 4:00 AM
Experts say it’s highly unusual for the White House to tell agents to give up custody of potential evidence in an investigation, as it did with the Tates.
“I’ve never heard of anything like that in my 30 years working,” an ex-DHS official said.
“I’ve never heard of anything like that in my 30 years working,” an ex-DHS official said.
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
🔥 The mood in Brexit-world is changing...
November 29, 2025 at 10:19 PM
🔥 The mood in Brexit-world is changing...
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
Can't wait until he's convicted of murder. 💥
November 29, 2025 at 12:53 PM
Can't wait until he's convicted of murder. 💥
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
The country is losing £90 billion a year in tax revenue because of Brexit
Which Sunak campaigned for
He can shut the F up about powering the country's economy
Which Sunak campaigned for
He can shut the F up about powering the country's economy
So much winning...
Brexit is costing the average Briton £2,700 to £3,700 a year
Brexit is costing the Treasury up to £90bn a year in lost tax revenue
Analysis from the House of Commons Library
Brexit is costing the average Briton £2,700 to £3,700 a year
Brexit is costing the Treasury up to £90bn a year in lost tax revenue
Analysis from the House of Commons Library
Brexit costing UK up to £90bn in lost tax revenue , new analysis shows
Exclusive: Britons also up to £3,700 worse off, leading to calls for the Labour government to improve relations with the EU
www.independent.co.uk
November 30, 2025 at 8:35 AM
The country is losing £90 billion a year in tax revenue because of Brexit
Which Sunak campaigned for
He can shut the F up about powering the country's economy
Which Sunak campaigned for
He can shut the F up about powering the country's economy
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
🧵A legal scholar finds the killing by special forces of survivors in the Navy attack on an alleged drug boat to be a war crime and murder.
"the currently governing DOD Manual in Section 5.9 states clearly that persons “placed hors de combat may not be made the object of attack.” ...
"the currently governing DOD Manual in Section 5.9 states clearly that persons “placed hors de combat may not be made the object of attack.” ...
A Dishonorable Strike
Indulging all assumptions in favor of the administration’s boat strikes, killing helpless men is murder
open.substack.com
November 29, 2025 at 4:58 PM
🧵A legal scholar finds the killing by special forces of survivors in the Navy attack on an alleged drug boat to be a war crime and murder.
"the currently governing DOD Manual in Section 5.9 states clearly that persons “placed hors de combat may not be made the object of attack.” ...
"the currently governing DOD Manual in Section 5.9 states clearly that persons “placed hors de combat may not be made the object of attack.” ...
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
petition.parliament.uk/petitions/74... - Sign the petition in confidence. Personal details, name, address, etc are kept confidential. So please sign and keep the pressure up on crooked MP's who take Russian money.
Petition: Call a public inquiry into Russian influence on UK politics & democracy
We are concerned about reported efforts from Russia to influence democracy in the US, UK, Europe and elsewhere. We believe we must establish the depth and breadth of possible Russian influence campaig...
petition.parliament.uk
November 28, 2025 at 11:41 AM
petition.parliament.uk/petitions/74... - Sign the petition in confidence. Personal details, name, address, etc are kept confidential. So please sign and keep the pressure up on crooked MP's who take Russian money.
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
"A question for history will be whether Putin entertained this approach in the interest of ending the war, or as a ploy to pacify the U.S. while prolonging a conflict he believes is his place in history to slowly, ineluctably win"
November 29, 2025 at 5:38 AM
"A question for history will be whether Putin entertained this approach in the interest of ending the war, or as a ploy to pacify the U.S. while prolonging a conflict he believes is his place in history to slowly, ineluctably win"
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
Historical precedent of note...
November 28, 2025 at 6:29 PM
Historical precedent of note...
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
In other shocking news, adjascent apples in same barrel also appear brownish.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
PS I know it shouldn't surprise me, but OF COURSE he lives in France.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
PS I know it shouldn't surprise me, but OF COURSE he lives in France.
Former Brexit Party MEP denies taking payment from pro-Russian campaign
A prominent former MEP for Nigel Farage's old party denies taking bribes in a pro-Russian campaign.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 28, 2025 at 9:46 AM
In other shocking news, adjascent apples in same barrel also appear brownish.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
PS I know it shouldn't surprise me, but OF COURSE he lives in France.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
PS I know it shouldn't surprise me, but OF COURSE he lives in France.
Headline on The World at One just now:
"Sir Keir Starmer has denied putting the Labour Party before the country by ending the two-child benefit cap".
Can we please go back to reporting the actual news, not someone's partisan take on it?
"Sir Keir Starmer has denied putting the Labour Party before the country by ending the two-child benefit cap".
Can we please go back to reporting the actual news, not someone's partisan take on it?
November 28, 2025 at 8:40 AM
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
By all means cover the attack lines and rebuttals in the report that follows. But the actual headline here should be not be shaped by either side's partisan briefings.
November 27, 2025 at 1:11 PM
By all means cover the attack lines and rebuttals in the report that follows. But the actual headline here should be not be shaped by either side's partisan briefings.
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
Headline on The World at One just now:
"Sir Keir Starmer has denied putting the Labour Party before the country by ending the two-child benefit cap".
Can we please go back to reporting the actual news, not someone's partisan take on it?
"Sir Keir Starmer has denied putting the Labour Party before the country by ending the two-child benefit cap".
Can we please go back to reporting the actual news, not someone's partisan take on it?
November 27, 2025 at 1:11 PM
Headline on The World at One just now:
"Sir Keir Starmer has denied putting the Labour Party before the country by ending the two-child benefit cap".
Can we please go back to reporting the actual news, not someone's partisan take on it?
"Sir Keir Starmer has denied putting the Labour Party before the country by ending the two-child benefit cap".
Can we please go back to reporting the actual news, not someone's partisan take on it?
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
Fewer workers. Fewer international students. More people leaving.
A "step in the right direction" according to the PM.
Impossible to take PM/govt seriously on growth if they are deliberately reducing it (and making the fiscal position worse) *as a matter of policy*.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
A "step in the right direction" according to the PM.
Impossible to take PM/govt seriously on growth if they are deliberately reducing it (and making the fiscal position worse) *as a matter of policy*.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
UK net migration falls sharply with drop in arrivals for work and study
Provisional figures for net migration to the UK show levels dropped to 204,000 in the year to June 2025.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 27, 2025 at 8:17 PM
Fewer workers. Fewer international students. More people leaving.
A "step in the right direction" according to the PM.
Impossible to take PM/govt seriously on growth if they are deliberately reducing it (and making the fiscal position worse) *as a matter of policy*.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
A "step in the right direction" according to the PM.
Impossible to take PM/govt seriously on growth if they are deliberately reducing it (and making the fiscal position worse) *as a matter of policy*.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
🔥POWERFUL AD ABOUT ICE AGENTS: “What will you say when your kids ask you about your day? A mask can’t hide you from your neighbors, your family, God… you can walk away, but the shame will follow you home.”
November 27, 2025 at 9:43 PM
🔥POWERFUL AD ABOUT ICE AGENTS: “What will you say when your kids ask you about your day? A mask can’t hide you from your neighbors, your family, God… you can walk away, but the shame will follow you home.”
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
'This isn't an opinion. This is counting.'
- A 100,000 drop in net migration costs us £7bn
- Scrapping the two-child benefit cap costs us £3bn
What gets more attention?
James O’Brien says 'we have become a ludicrous country'.
- Scrapping the two-child benefit cap costs us £3bn
What gets more attention?
James O’Brien says 'we have become a ludicrous country'.
November 27, 2025 at 11:29 AM
'This isn't an opinion. This is counting.'
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
Abysmal, mindless, utterly zombified. You can't even call it policymaking because that implies a degree of thought which simply isn't present. Pretty soon they might actually hit Cameron's 'tens of thousands' target and then they'll shit themselves with horror at the consequences.
PM describes net migration of 205k as "a step in the right direction". His govt has no public position on a sustainable level of immigration is, nor any known process to decide what, why & how. Starmer is now implying he wants it significantly lower
www.standard.co.uk/news/politic...
www.standard.co.uk/news/politic...
Net migration drop ‘step in the right direction’ – Starmer
Net migration peaked at a record 944,000 in the year to March 2023 but has fallen sharply since then.
www.standard.co.uk
November 27, 2025 at 4:46 PM
Abysmal, mindless, utterly zombified. You can't even call it policymaking because that implies a degree of thought which simply isn't present. Pretty soon they might actually hit Cameron's 'tens of thousands' target and then they'll shit themselves with horror at the consequences.
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
Today's migration stats illustrate the migration doom loop in action...
(from my presentation at the IMF last week)
(from my presentation at the IMF last week)
November 27, 2025 at 11:02 AM
Today's migration stats illustrate the migration doom loop in action...
(from my presentation at the IMF last week)
(from my presentation at the IMF last week)
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
“The last time income tax was raised was 1975 - that’s 50 years ago. This has led to a ballooning of the number of measures in every budget from a few with a big impact to hundreds with small impacts. It is a deliberate confusion of tax policy.”
🆕 SPOILER ALERT - Unpicking the Budget 📈
The good stuff
The less good stuff
The economic rationale
The political consequences
Balance, humour, @pimlicat.bsky.social , @sturdyalex.bsky.social & top economist Vicky Pryce.
🍊 open.spotify.com/episode/05mP...
🍏 podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/q...
The good stuff
The less good stuff
The economic rationale
The political consequences
Balance, humour, @pimlicat.bsky.social , @sturdyalex.bsky.social & top economist Vicky Pryce.
🍊 open.spotify.com/episode/05mP...
🍏 podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/q...
Unpicking the most-leaked Budget in history, with Vicky Pryce
Podcast Episode · Quiet Riot · 26/11/2025 · 1h 18m
podcasts.apple.com
November 27, 2025 at 11:36 AM
“The last time income tax was raised was 1975 - that’s 50 years ago. This has led to a ballooning of the number of measures in every budget from a few with a big impact to hundreds with small impacts. It is a deliberate confusion of tax policy.”
Reposted by Amyn Merchant
This emotional argument is Always employed when people make suggestions about elderly people downsizing from houses they can't really afford but I don't think they realise how many u-40s can't relate at all to the idea of having a home they could stay in for the rest of their life
November 27, 2025 at 7:38 AM
This emotional argument is Always employed when people make suggestions about elderly people downsizing from houses they can't really afford but I don't think they realise how many u-40s can't relate at all to the idea of having a home they could stay in for the rest of their life