John Bull
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garius.bsky.social
John Bull
@garius.bsky.social
He/Him. Author. Historian (inc of obscure Military Holy Orders). Strategy streamer. Tech/Transport Strategist. Editor of @lonrec. Orient fan. Business/Writing: [email protected]. Agent: @pastpreservers.bsky.social
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The latest in my history of home computers is live. Covers the era of Commodore, Atari and Jack Tramiel.

He was a brutal manager. But also an Auschwitz survivor, and that shaped him, and his legit drive to build a better world.

This warning from him hit home, right now.

every.to/the-crazy-on...
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My cartoon in The Oldie
February 6, 2026 at 12:32 PM
Well that's my weekend sorted.
February 6, 2026 at 2:18 PM
If you're wondering how long it takes her to forget who wins in a fight between a small Tortie and an 18inch long ancient koi...

...the answer is five months.
February 6, 2026 at 1:15 PM
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It's just over a year since we joined @bsky.app. Check out our updated #StarterPack and see what's changed!
February 6, 2026 at 12:44 PM
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When live-action footage meets CGI mecha in Old Tokyo - now the battleground for televised 'Scoot' battles.

📺: Phantom Crash, Genki, 2002 (Xbox)
February 6, 2026 at 12:43 PM
I believe a group of academics is known as a 'quarrel'
There's gotta be a name for this many academics outside in the pouring rain during a fire alarm at the BL.
February 6, 2026 at 12:54 PM
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Althea Gibson was the first African American to compete in a pro-world tennis tour and in 1956, the first African American woman to win a Grand Slam title. Overall, Gibson garnered 11 Grand Slam wins, including six singles titles. #BlackHistoryMonth
February 5, 2026 at 12:48 PM
To be fair, Douthat was pretty busy. Had to write that piece outing himself as being in the Epstein files.
👀 Apparently, Ross Douthat invited Seth Harp to debate him on Douthat's "Interesting Times" NYT podcast. Harp says that the episode was recorded, Douthat got crushed, and RD/NYT decided not to publish it.

What? x.com/sethharpesq/...
February 6, 2026 at 12:50 PM
Oo-de-lally!
February 6, 2026 at 11:31 AM
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If it’s 6 February, that must mean... yes, of course: the 899th anniversary of the night a monk saw THE DEVIL’S OWN SATANIC HORDES riding through the forest near, er... Peterborough 🧵
February 6, 2026 at 9:32 AM
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I came across this Robin Hood concept art today in a book
February 6, 2026 at 1:11 AM
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OMG it’s Friday. Weird.

Anyway this week the theme is…spooky. Why? Just because.

So let’s see ghosts and ghouls and things that go bump in the night.

As usual i’ll repost the lot and if you like something, share it!

#Nerdlings #FindFolkFriday
February 6, 2026 at 9:02 AM
The forbidden gumi
A little bear figurine carved out of amber some 6,000 years ago 🐻❤️

A hole runs through the bear’s torso suggesting it was threaded on a cord, perhaps worn or carried as a protective charm.

Found in a peat bog near Słupsk, Poland, in 1887.

📷 National Museum in Szczecin

#FindsFriday
#Archaeology
February 6, 2026 at 9:06 AM
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Wow!
February 6, 2026 at 4:11 AM
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Context: this speech is from SIR THOMAS MORE, a history written, as near as scholars can tell, in the early 1600s by 6 or 7 people including Dekker, Heywood, Chettle, Shakespeare, and Munday.

It was never performed, because Jacobean England was a police state and it was banned by the censor.
Sir Ian McKellen performing a monologue from Shakespeare’s Sir Thomas More on the Stephen Colbert show. Never have I heard this monologue performed with such a keen sense of prescience. Nor have I ever been in this exact historical moment.TY Sir Ian, for reaching us once again.
#Pinks #ProudBlue
February 5, 2026 at 2:30 PM
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Alright. As is now tradition, here are my 10 favorite African SFF stories from 2025 📖 📚

Featuring tales from: @fiyahlitmag.bsky.social @clarkesworldmagazine.com @omenanamag.bsky.social @giganotosaurus.bsky.social @zamashort.com @khoreo.bsky.social @willthisbeaproblem.bsky.social + more!
2025 was another great year for African short fiction! Author @wtalabi.com recommends 10 highlights across science fiction, fantasy, and horror, from "magic-for-wealth schemes" to an unsettling religious organization (in space). And if there's some ties in there...? We're not complaining.
Ten(ish) of the Best African Speculative Short Fiction Stories of 2025 - Reactor
Here are some of the speculative fiction gems that may have flown under the radar in 2025...
reactormag.com
February 5, 2026 at 11:08 PM
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Around 1650, Sweden’s ships sailed beyond the Baltic for the first time. Dutch captains and lieutenants in the Swedish navy guided this expansion. Join our online lecture on Monday, 1pm CET, in the Ships & Seafaring series: www.eventbrite.com/e/ships-seaf...
#earlymodern #maritimehistory #history
February 6, 2026 at 5:43 AM
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the highest and best category of human, in my opinion, is “when stuck on a long flight behind a screaming baby, plays peek-a-boo and makes funny faces to entertain child rather than getting mad or blaming parents.” few elected officials belong in this category but I believe Zohran does
Child at the podium: “A woo woo woo.”

Mamdani: That’s how I felt when we came up with this plan. Together, we will expand the idea of what is possible in our city—and what sounds and noises we can make at a press conference.
February 6, 2026 at 5:44 AM
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I’m such a sucker for pop art crochet patterns www.etsy.com/listing/4369...
February 6, 2026 at 4:38 AM
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when I was in high school I had male teachers in their 30s who I totally thought I was adult peer friends with. when I was in my 30s and was a high school youth group leader I was like “those are not my friends, those are children.” that’s when I realized those men just had bad boundaries
when i was a 16yo girl i thought i was an adult. coaching 12-17yo girls as a 28yo really hammered home how much i was wrong about being an adult at 16 and how obvious it is to actual adults that a 16yo is not an adult. if they say they cannot tell they are lying because they are a creep.
February 6, 2026 at 6:16 AM
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Asimov's actions, and the tolerance-up-to-celebration of it, absolutely drove women out of field and out of fandom, and made it easier for others in the field, writers, editors and fans, to follow his lead for decades. Asimov pinching asses was not about his work. It kept women and their work out.
February 5, 2026 at 9:54 PM
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And everyone can now read this piece on Softstar's Sword and Fairy 4, an admirably thoughtful RPG that dares to question and then challenge some important narrative pillars of the genre:

kimimithegameeatingshemonster.com/2026/02/06/s...
February 6, 2026 at 7:33 AM
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While reporting this, I had something happen that's never happened. A comms rep for one of the co's disputed my reporting and said what I was telling them was untrue because it was not in Grok, xAI's chatbot.

I was looking directly at the files. And this person was using AI to challenge the truth.
Epstein had many known connections to Silicon Valley CEOs, but less known was how he made money from those relationships.

We did a deep dive into how he got dealflow in Silicon Valley, giving him shots to invest in Coinbase, Palantir, SpaceX and other companies.

www.nytimes.com/2026/02/05/b...
Jeffrey Epstein’s Money Mingled With Silicon Valley Start-Ups
www.nytimes.com
February 5, 2026 at 5:38 PM
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It's time to change the laws around streaming services so that musicians get their fair share! Join me in signing to Musicians' Union petition to fix streaming! www.megaphone.org.uk/petitions/ch...
Change the law to fix music streaming
It's time to change the laws around streaming services so that musicians get their fair share! Join me in signing to Musicians' Union petition to fix streaming!
www.megaphone.org.uk
February 5, 2026 at 11:49 PM