Joel Pierce
@joelpierce.bsky.social
Theologian and ethicist in Scotland. Minister's husband. Baker. Librarian.
Reposted by Joel Pierce
If it were steel works we would have a government bailout plan, yet losing thousands of jobs at unis is met with a shrug. & unlike steelworks universities were profitable when they had foreign students.
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…
HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…
HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
Every sympathy for University of Essex (and pressures facing them) but this is very bad news for Southend.
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... Essex university to cut 400 jobs as overseas student numbers plummet
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... Essex university to cut 400 jobs as overseas student numbers plummet
Essex university to cut 400 jobs as overseas student numbers plummet
Roles to be lost are part of wave of redundancy programmes across UK’s higher education sector
giftarticle.ft.com
December 3, 2025 at 8:14 AM
If it were steel works we would have a government bailout plan, yet losing thousands of jobs at unis is met with a shrug. & unlike steelworks universities were profitable when they had foreign students.
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…
HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…
HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
Remind me again how this is growing the economy? That's what Labour is all about right? Growth?
Great article from @amyborrett.ft.com. But it does make me wonder again why there was zero national media coverage when the University of Brighton closed down its big, decades-old campus in Eastbourne. Now of course, it would make a great case study for a journalist of the economic/cultural impact.
Essex university to cut 400 jobs as overseas student numbers plummet
Roles to be lost are part of wave of redundancy programmes across UK’s higher education sector
www.ft.com
December 6, 2025 at 11:42 AM
Remind me again how this is growing the economy? That's what Labour is all about right? Growth?
BP made a profit north $2,200,000,000 in the last quarter alone, but can't seem to afford a modest pay increase for their lowest paid workers. Hmmm...
BP to scrap paid rest breaks and most bank holiday bonuses for forecourt staff
Exclusive: Plans to offset increase in minimum ‘fair pay’ set by Living Wage Foundation will affect 5,400 employees
www.theguardian.com
December 5, 2025 at 11:25 PM
BP made a profit north $2,200,000,000 in the last quarter alone, but can't seem to afford a modest pay increase for their lowest paid workers. Hmmm...
The real truth is that Originalism is more accurately called Humpty Dumptyism, where the careful consideration embodied in over a century of case law can be thrown out because for Roberts et al words mean only and exactly what they decide they mean.
Supreme Court Agrees to Review Trump Order Restricting Birthright Citizenship
www.nytimes.com
December 5, 2025 at 11:16 PM
The real truth is that Originalism is more accurately called Humpty Dumptyism, where the careful consideration embodied in over a century of case law can be thrown out because for Roberts et al words mean only and exactly what they decide they mean.
A little part of my inner Kantian dies every time I hear an AI enthusiast say something along the lines of, 'Wouldn't it be cool if we could create a sentient rational agent except we get to make all the decisions about what emotions and dispositions it can and can't have?'
December 5, 2025 at 2:58 PM
A little part of my inner Kantian dies every time I hear an AI enthusiast say something along the lines of, 'Wouldn't it be cool if we could create a sentient rational agent except we get to make all the decisions about what emotions and dispositions it can and can't have?'
Reposted by Joel Pierce
#bbcqt please can someone correct the speaker who says people who are on a visa claim benefits and social housing? It's stamped on the permit that we can't.
It's only ever allowed in extreme cases
It's only ever allowed in extreme cases
December 4, 2025 at 11:29 PM
#bbcqt please can someone correct the speaker who says people who are on a visa claim benefits and social housing? It's stamped on the permit that we can't.
It's only ever allowed in extreme cases
It's only ever allowed in extreme cases
Reposted by Joel Pierce
My general feeling is that if something is called a “Revolution”, but there is no mention of the people and/or cultures destroyed in the process, it’s either not a revolution or it’s violences are being intentionally obscured
December 1, 2025 at 2:53 PM
My general feeling is that if something is called a “Revolution”, but there is no mention of the people and/or cultures destroyed in the process, it’s either not a revolution or it’s violences are being intentionally obscured
Look my favourite podcast is back for Advent! Part history, party music theory, and 100% worth your time.
Hark! The stories of our favorite Christmas carols
Bonus: Advent Scripture Reflections for Hark Listeners Sign up to receive Scripture reflections (normally only available for America subscribers)
www.americamagazine.org
December 1, 2025 at 11:46 AM
Look my favourite podcast is back for Advent! Part history, party music theory, and 100% worth your time.
Fifty years ago, this column would be:
'I am creating hyper-addictive tobacco products, but I'm confident these three parenting tricks will create a world where my son will smoke recreationally and never get hooked.'
I'm so tired of tech folks' solution to their bad products being my parenting.
'I am creating hyper-addictive tobacco products, but I'm confident these three parenting tricks will create a world where my son will smoke recreationally and never get hooked.'
I'm so tired of tech folks' solution to their bad products being my parenting.
Opinion | How to Prepare Your Kids for the A.I. Revolution
www.nytimes.com
December 1, 2025 at 11:25 AM
Fifty years ago, this column would be:
'I am creating hyper-addictive tobacco products, but I'm confident these three parenting tricks will create a world where my son will smoke recreationally and never get hooked.'
I'm so tired of tech folks' solution to their bad products being my parenting.
'I am creating hyper-addictive tobacco products, but I'm confident these three parenting tricks will create a world where my son will smoke recreationally and never get hooked.'
I'm so tired of tech folks' solution to their bad products being my parenting.
Looks like I've reached the age where once the endorphins have worn off, my whole body is going to let me know how much it doesn't think running is a good idea. Just going to creak through the rest of the day...
November 28, 2025 at 2:34 PM
Looks like I've reached the age where once the endorphins have worn off, my whole body is going to let me know how much it doesn't think running is a good idea. Just going to creak through the rest of the day...
Okay, this is just silly. Is the next step to bar BBC staff from reporting on anything Democrats say, since it won't be fawning approval of Trump and therefore even the reporting of it could be construed as somehow defamatory? Trump is a spoiled child and should not be indulged.
BBC tells staff they cannot quote Trump line removed from Reith lecture
Journalists not allowed to repeat Rutger Bregman’s corruption claims against US president in coverage of edit
www.theguardian.com
November 27, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Okay, this is just silly. Is the next step to bar BBC staff from reporting on anything Democrats say, since it won't be fawning approval of Trump and therefore even the reporting of it could be construed as somehow defamatory? Trump is a spoiled child and should not be indulged.
Exhibit A in why it's a bad idea for Labour to remove the ability of refugees to normalise their status. In the US the TPS status relied on people with power not being monsters to refugees, not demanding they return to violent and chaotic situations. Well, we live in the age of monsters.
Trump says Haiti no longer meets requirements for TPS. Haitians have to leave
The Department of Homeland Security said TPS for Haiti ends Feb. 3, 2026, affecting over half a million people who may face return to gang-controlled Port-au-Prince.
amp.miamiherald.com
November 26, 2025 at 10:55 PM
Exhibit A in why it's a bad idea for Labour to remove the ability of refugees to normalise their status. In the US the TPS status relied on people with power not being monsters to refugees, not demanding they return to violent and chaotic situations. Well, we live in the age of monsters.
Reposted by Joel Pierce
“They had submitted extensive paperwork and paid fees. The foreign spouses had been fingerprinted and passed medical exams. None had criminal records. None had entered the country illegally. They had already been granted employment authorization.”
Illegal. Immoral.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/26/u...
Illegal. Immoral.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/26/u...
Green Card Interviews End in Handcuffs for Spouses of U.S. Citizens
www.nytimes.com
November 26, 2025 at 6:38 PM
“They had submitted extensive paperwork and paid fees. The foreign spouses had been fingerprinted and passed medical exams. None had criminal records. None had entered the country illegally. They had already been granted employment authorization.”
Illegal. Immoral.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/26/u...
Illegal. Immoral.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/26/u...
Let's say worst case scenario for PA and they've been implicated in some serious criminality. I doubt it would come near to approaching anything an organised crime racket would do, and yet they're able to be tried in a normal courtroom. This whole system is farcical and antidemocratic.
‘Unavoidably unfair’: the secret courts system hearing part of Palestine Action case
The CMP system means Huda Ammori will not be allowed to know what allegations were made against her
www.theguardian.com
November 26, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Let's say worst case scenario for PA and they've been implicated in some serious criminality. I doubt it would come near to approaching anything an organised crime racket would do, and yet they're able to be tried in a normal courtroom. This whole system is farcical and antidemocratic.
Reposted by Joel Pierce
Seen any of these lately in our politics?
November 25, 2025 at 9:47 PM
Seen any of these lately in our politics?
I'm in a village pantomime! So if you're in NE Scotland and are looking for some silliness to kick off your holiday season, come along and see me... and some other people with actual talent :)
November 21, 2025 at 11:44 AM
I'm in a village pantomime! So if you're in NE Scotland and are looking for some silliness to kick off your holiday season, come along and see me... and some other people with actual talent :)
Reposted by Joel Pierce
Mahmood/government should say explain *objective* of increasing time to settlement for 15 years for care workers who arrived 2022-24
Is it
A) to get them to leave? Why?
B) to save money? Then why not just restrict benefits?
C) to "encourage integration"? How? Will do opposite.
Is it
A) to get them to leave? Why?
B) to save money? Then why not just restrict benefits?
C) to "encourage integration"? How? Will do opposite.
15 years for people in medium skilled jobs and care workers too. I believe this goes down to 10 years if they earn over £50,270. Someone in a high skilled job earning over that qualifies in 5 years.
November 21, 2025 at 10:04 AM
Mahmood/government should say explain *objective* of increasing time to settlement for 15 years for care workers who arrived 2022-24
Is it
A) to get them to leave? Why?
B) to save money? Then why not just restrict benefits?
C) to "encourage integration"? How? Will do opposite.
Is it
A) to get them to leave? Why?
B) to save money? Then why not just restrict benefits?
C) to "encourage integration"? How? Will do opposite.
People say AI/LLMs well never be as bad as they are today again (i.e. they'll only get better from here). But... will AI companies ever have this much cash to burn again? And won't the infrastructure they're investing in decay? If they can't turn a serious profit fast, how will they buy new stuff?
November 20, 2025 at 11:56 PM
People say AI/LLMs well never be as bad as they are today again (i.e. they'll only get better from here). But... will AI companies ever have this much cash to burn again? And won't the infrastructure they're investing in decay? If they can't turn a serious profit fast, how will they buy new stuff?
It makes my heart sick to have a supposedly centre left government be introducing these terrible immigration policies. It's a sign that you're out of ideas when you lead day after day with new ideas to marginalise people who have chosen your country and are working hard to make a life in it.
November 20, 2025 at 3:02 PM
It makes my heart sick to have a supposedly centre left government be introducing these terrible immigration policies. It's a sign that you're out of ideas when you lead day after day with new ideas to marginalise people who have chosen your country and are working hard to make a life in it.
All I want for Christmas is a government brave enough to explain to people that without immigrants much of what is valuable about British life would collapse.
Up to 50,000 nurses could quit UK over immigration plans, survey suggests
Exclusive: union leaders say proposed changes are immoral and could threaten patient safety if there is staff exodus
www.theguardian.com
November 20, 2025 at 9:23 AM
All I want for Christmas is a government brave enough to explain to people that without immigrants much of what is valuable about British life would collapse.
Reposted by Joel Pierce
We should be horrified.. and yet the urgency to do anything has been lost...while armies of fossil fuel lobbyists continue to have a hegemonic presence at COPs
@readfearn.bsky.social:"The loss of corals at Ningaloo was part of the 4th & worst global mass bleaching event on record that exposed >80% of reefs in >80 countries to temperatures high enough to cause bleaching."
2024 was 1st calendar year w mean 🌏 temp exceeding 1.5°C above pre-industrial level
2024 was 1st calendar year w mean 🌏 temp exceeding 1.5°C above pre-industrial level
November 19, 2025 at 9:10 PM
We should be horrified.. and yet the urgency to do anything has been lost...while armies of fossil fuel lobbyists continue to have a hegemonic presence at COPs
Reposted by Joel Pierce
A strong immigration system doesn't need to be a cruel one.
It shouldn't need saying - but refugees & asylum seekers are real people, fleeing war and persecution.
This daughter of an immigrant is proud of our British and Labour values of respect and not turning our backs on people in real need.
It shouldn't need saying - but refugees & asylum seekers are real people, fleeing war and persecution.
This daughter of an immigrant is proud of our British and Labour values of respect and not turning our backs on people in real need.
November 17, 2025 at 11:02 AM
A strong immigration system doesn't need to be a cruel one.
It shouldn't need saying - but refugees & asylum seekers are real people, fleeing war and persecution.
This daughter of an immigrant is proud of our British and Labour values of respect and not turning our backs on people in real need.
It shouldn't need saying - but refugees & asylum seekers are real people, fleeing war and persecution.
This daughter of an immigrant is proud of our British and Labour values of respect and not turning our backs on people in real need.
It's tempting to write this off as a red state issue, but last week I was chatting with someone at an R1 in a blue state whose work is focused on historical race and gender dynamics about how she's finding it increasingly difficult to do her job. The lesson from the 1930s is this can happen fast.
'Courses that “advocate race or gender ideology, sexual orientation, or gender identity” now require presidential approval at Texas A&M system campuses, the system Board of Regents decided Thursday.'
Much will rest on interpretations of 'advocate' and 'ideology'. Or will it? 1/4
Much will rest on interpretations of 'advocate' and 'ideology'. Or will it? 1/4
Texas A&M Requires Approval for Courses That “Advocate” Certain Ideologies
Many faculty members decried the new restrictions on race- and gender-related courses as an assault on academic freedom. Meanwhile, the board also discussed a once-per-semester systemwide course revie...
www.insidehighered.com
November 17, 2025 at 12:14 PM
It's tempting to write this off as a red state issue, but last week I was chatting with someone at an R1 in a blue state whose work is focused on historical race and gender dynamics about how she's finding it increasingly difficult to do her job. The lesson from the 1930s is this can happen fast.
Reposted by Joel Pierce
Imagine having a thumping majority in parliament and deciding to use it for something as squalid as this.
November 17, 2025 at 8:59 AM
Imagine having a thumping majority in parliament and deciding to use it for something as squalid as this.
Reposted by Joel Pierce
When you flee from home you take what you can.. and maybe sometimes you manage.. because you're already wearing it or something to hold on to jewelry or valuables that have deep meaning. Might be the last memory of a parent. And Mahmood is going to seize it from you
November 17, 2025 at 10:07 AM
When you flee from home you take what you can.. and maybe sometimes you manage.. because you're already wearing it or something to hold on to jewelry or valuables that have deep meaning. Might be the last memory of a parent. And Mahmood is going to seize it from you