gastrogeorge
@gastrogeorge.bsky.social
Council house to university. Left and chippy about it.
Reposted by gastrogeorge
If we’d learned in 2018 that e.g. Seumas Milne was passing privileged government info to a secret network of influence-peddling sex offenders led by the world’s most notorious nonce - do you think the lads would struggle to understand why that had grave implications, far beyond Milne’s office?
I mean: this summary of how fucked it is does not even touch the sides of just how bad it is.
February 10, 2026 at 1:27 PM
If we’d learned in 2018 that e.g. Seumas Milne was passing privileged government info to a secret network of influence-peddling sex offenders led by the world’s most notorious nonce - do you think the lads would struggle to understand why that had grave implications, far beyond Milne’s office?
Reposted by gastrogeorge
It’s 2151. The last survivors are at war in the ruins over the remaining drops of potable water. Polly Toynbee is poring over her 2,323rd “Labour must embrace its inner radical” column
Public faith in politics is now in the gutter. Here’s how Labour should drag it out | Polly Toynbee
With Britain sliding down the index of transparency and voters angry, the looming election bill fails to confront the real issues, says Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee
www.theguardian.com
February 10, 2026 at 1:09 PM
It’s 2151. The last survivors are at war in the ruins over the remaining drops of potable water. Polly Toynbee is poring over her 2,323rd “Labour must embrace its inner radical” column
Reposted by gastrogeorge
Weird, because I seem to recall proscribing these people as equivalents to Al Qaeda or ISIS was justified by senior politicians claiming they had Sekrit Damning Evidence Of Terrorisms that they couldn’t disclose. Perhaps it was too Sekrit for Channel 4?
February 10, 2026 at 1:05 PM
Weird, because I seem to recall proscribing these people as equivalents to Al Qaeda or ISIS was justified by senior politicians claiming they had Sekrit Damning Evidence Of Terrorisms that they couldn’t disclose. Perhaps it was too Sekrit for Channel 4?
Reposted by gastrogeorge
This is the 38th time that the U.S. military has unlawfully killed civilians on the orders of Pete Hegseth and Donald Trump. At least 130 people — never charged with crimes, their identities unknown to their executioners — are now dead.
We are murdering people and it is basically just background noise at this point. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/09/u...
U.S. Boat Strike Kills 2 in Pacific, With One Survivor
www.nytimes.com
February 10, 2026 at 11:29 AM
This is the 38th time that the U.S. military has unlawfully killed civilians on the orders of Pete Hegseth and Donald Trump. At least 130 people — never charged with crimes, their identities unknown to their executioners — are now dead.
Reposted by gastrogeorge
Also "everyone, even me and my mates, was looking the other way over this" leads to further questions about why *more* people aren't resigning in disgrace, does it not? Surely it points to a system riddled with corruption and self dealing, unable to police itself? No?
Lewis does make some good points here, but look: Mandelson is not just some guy here. He has been at the core of the Labour right for decades; he was clearly right in the middle of McSweeney’s project all along, both the secret wrecking campaign and after; he was *literally picking candidates*.
February 10, 2026 at 12:42 PM
Also "everyone, even me and my mates, was looking the other way over this" leads to further questions about why *more* people aren't resigning in disgrace, does it not? Surely it points to a system riddled with corruption and self dealing, unable to police itself? No?
Reposted by gastrogeorge
Tim Allan may be getting less attention than Morgan McSweeney, but his links raised serious questions - and they’re part of the wider pattern of questionable appointments.
This isn’t really about individuals.
It’s about the state of the Labour Party.
news.sky.com/story/invest...
This isn’t really about individuals.
It’s about the state of the Labour Party.
news.sky.com/story/invest...
Investigation demanded into Keir Starmer's comms chief's lobbying links
Tim Allan's minority ownership of a lobbying firm has led to accusations of a perception of a conflict of interest.
news.sky.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:21 PM
Tim Allan may be getting less attention than Morgan McSweeney, but his links raised serious questions - and they’re part of the wider pattern of questionable appointments.
This isn’t really about individuals.
It’s about the state of the Labour Party.
news.sky.com/story/invest...
This isn’t really about individuals.
It’s about the state of the Labour Party.
news.sky.com/story/invest...
Reposted by gastrogeorge
Reform is threatening Bangor University over a student society’s decision. The society isn’t Bangor University—but this is a neat preview of how a Reform government would work: public money for supporters only. Trump-style politics, UK edition.
Authoritarian reflex is already working just fine.👇
Authoritarian reflex is already working just fine.👇
February 10, 2026 at 9:32 AM
Reform is threatening Bangor University over a student society’s decision. The society isn’t Bangor University—but this is a neat preview of how a Reform government would work: public money for supporters only. Trump-style politics, UK edition.
Authoritarian reflex is already working just fine.👇
Authoritarian reflex is already working just fine.👇
Reposted by gastrogeorge
I mean: this summary of how fucked it is does not even touch the sides of just how bad it is.
February 10, 2026 at 9:50 AM
I mean: this summary of how fucked it is does not even touch the sides of just how bad it is.
Reposted by gastrogeorge
“The eight most senior people in cabinet all have links to McSweeney going back years and decades. This entire political project is implicated and tainted by this scandal."
www.declassifieduk.org/starmer-on-b...
www.declassifieduk.org/starmer-on-b...
Starmer ‘on borrowed time’ after losing Mandelson and McSweeney
The prime minister’s “entire political project is implicated and tainted by this scandal”, his unofficial biographer believes.
www.declassifieduk.org
February 10, 2026 at 9:56 AM
“The eight most senior people in cabinet all have links to McSweeney going back years and decades. This entire political project is implicated and tainted by this scandal."
www.declassifieduk.org/starmer-on-b...
www.declassifieduk.org/starmer-on-b...
Reposted by gastrogeorge
Leaving aside the cynicism on display, this reads more like an address to Labour Party members than Streeting asking Mandelson his opinion. After all, you shouldn't need to explain Haaretz to him. It is also suspiciously free of typos.
February 10, 2026 at 9:23 AM
Leaving aside the cynicism on display, this reads more like an address to Labour Party members than Streeting asking Mandelson his opinion. After all, you shouldn't need to explain Haaretz to him. It is also suspiciously free of typos.
Reposted by gastrogeorge
"A modern-day concentration camp ... People have been killed by the staff here." Irish citizen Seamus Culleton has been in ICE detention since September, despite having a valid work permit and his own business in the US.
February 10, 2026 at 10:09 AM
"A modern-day concentration camp ... People have been killed by the staff here." Irish citizen Seamus Culleton has been in ICE detention since September, despite having a valid work permit and his own business in the US.
Reposted by gastrogeorge
The cruel fiction of ‘The Immigrant Question and its Solution’ in UK politics is the idea that you can indulge a reactionary worldview which perceives migrants as lesser humans deserving of exactly this treatment while formulating a technocratic solution that won’t trend toward this same end.
"A modern-day concentration camp ... People have been killed by the staff here." Irish citizen Seamus Culleton has been in ICE detention since September, despite having a valid work permit and his own business in the US.
February 10, 2026 at 10:22 AM
The cruel fiction of ‘The Immigrant Question and its Solution’ in UK politics is the idea that you can indulge a reactionary worldview which perceives migrants as lesser humans deserving of exactly this treatment while formulating a technocratic solution that won’t trend toward this same end.
Reposted by gastrogeorge
This is so powerful - the act of distancing yourself from the enablers. Networks of abusers exist in all walks of life - so many of them are passively maintained by people who choose to look the other way. If there is any legacy of the Epstein files, I hope it will involve bold stances like this.
Chappell Roan is leaving her talent agency led by Casey Wasserman after he appeared in the Epstein files.
February 10, 2026 at 10:13 AM
This is so powerful - the act of distancing yourself from the enablers. Networks of abusers exist in all walks of life - so many of them are passively maintained by people who choose to look the other way. If there is any legacy of the Epstein files, I hope it will involve bold stances like this.
Reposted by gastrogeorge
NEW
Three reasons why the Mandelson disclosure exercise will be a shock for the government
Ministers and officials usually are in control of disclosure exercises - but here they will not be - and why that matters
A detailed post by me:
emptycity.substack.com/p/three-reas...
Three reasons why the Mandelson disclosure exercise will be a shock for the government
Ministers and officials usually are in control of disclosure exercises - but here they will not be - and why that matters
A detailed post by me:
emptycity.substack.com/p/three-reas...
February 10, 2026 at 10:56 AM
NEW
Three reasons why the Mandelson disclosure exercise will be a shock for the government
Ministers and officials usually are in control of disclosure exercises - but here they will not be - and why that matters
A detailed post by me:
emptycity.substack.com/p/three-reas...
Three reasons why the Mandelson disclosure exercise will be a shock for the government
Ministers and officials usually are in control of disclosure exercises - but here they will not be - and why that matters
A detailed post by me:
emptycity.substack.com/p/three-reas...
Reposted by gastrogeorge
If a student society doesn’t allow self-invites to people who have nothing of value of interest to say to them, they can be expected to be petrol bombed because ‘the people’ have no other choice or self-control.
February 10, 2026 at 11:27 AM
If a student society doesn’t allow self-invites to people who have nothing of value of interest to say to them, they can be expected to be petrol bombed because ‘the people’ have no other choice or self-control.
Reposted by gastrogeorge
The United States is purposefully blockading Cuba from accessing fuel that powers everything from grocery stores to hospitals. People will die. Children will die. What's being done to the people of Cuba is monstrous.
The people in power were ok with it in Gaza and now they're doing it to Cuba.
The people in power were ok with it in Gaza and now they're doing it to Cuba.
February 10, 2026 at 3:59 AM
The United States is purposefully blockading Cuba from accessing fuel that powers everything from grocery stores to hospitals. People will die. Children will die. What's being done to the people of Cuba is monstrous.
The people in power were ok with it in Gaza and now they're doing it to Cuba.
The people in power were ok with it in Gaza and now they're doing it to Cuba.
Reposted by gastrogeorge
Reposted by gastrogeorge
me when i shit myself in public but the next day i successfully do it all in the toilet
February 10, 2026 at 11:55 AM
me when i shit myself in public but the next day i successfully do it all in the toilet
Reposted by gastrogeorge
Lewis does make some good points here, but look: Mandelson is not just some guy here. He has been at the core of the Labour right for decades; he was clearly right in the middle of McSweeney’s project all along, both the secret wrecking campaign and after; he was *literally picking candidates*.
February 10, 2026 at 9:33 AM
Lewis does make some good points here, but look: Mandelson is not just some guy here. He has been at the core of the Labour right for decades; he was clearly right in the middle of McSweeney’s project all along, both the secret wrecking campaign and after; he was *literally picking candidates*.
Reposted by gastrogeorge
Keir Starmer and the Purge That Devoured Its Architects
The same shameless tactics that Starmer used to purge the UK's left are now destroying his project from within, @graceblakeley.substack.com writes.
Read:
zeteo.com/p/keir-starm...
The same shameless tactics that Starmer used to purge the UK's left are now destroying his project from within, @graceblakeley.substack.com writes.
Read:
zeteo.com/p/keir-starm...
Keir Starmer and the Purge That Devoured Its Architects
The same shameless tactics that Starmer used to purge the UK's left are now destroying his project from within.
zeteo.com
February 9, 2026 at 8:09 PM
Keir Starmer and the Purge That Devoured Its Architects
The same shameless tactics that Starmer used to purge the UK's left are now destroying his project from within, @graceblakeley.substack.com writes.
Read:
zeteo.com/p/keir-starm...
The same shameless tactics that Starmer used to purge the UK's left are now destroying his project from within, @graceblakeley.substack.com writes.
Read:
zeteo.com/p/keir-starm...
Reposted by gastrogeorge
Claims of neutrality are an admission of bias in and of themselves
No research is undertaken in a neutral space as funding, hierarchies, job perpectives, privileges, power and hegemony all come into play when deciding what will be research and how
No research is undertaken in a neutral space as funding, hierarchies, job perpectives, privileges, power and hegemony all come into play when deciding what will be research and how
“Scientists should stop trying to be neutral and instead embrace their values,”says a group of top climate scientists, including @katharinehayhoe.com. The neutrality myth is harming the reputation of science right when we need it most.” #ClimateCrisis
Science isn’t neutral. It’s science.
Science isn’t neutral. It’s science.
Prominent climate scientist argues it's time to ditch the 'myth of neutrality' | CBC Radio
Climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe talks to Bob McDonald about the polarization of science and why she thinks scientists should stop pretending to be neutral when it's our planet at risk.
www.cbc.ca
February 10, 2026 at 9:01 AM
Claims of neutrality are an admission of bias in and of themselves
No research is undertaken in a neutral space as funding, hierarchies, job perpectives, privileges, power and hegemony all come into play when deciding what will be research and how
No research is undertaken in a neutral space as funding, hierarchies, job perpectives, privileges, power and hegemony all come into play when deciding what will be research and how
Reposted by gastrogeorge
This whole argument never mentions who created the OBR and why he did it. Fascinating.
New post: Fiscal watchdogs, pluralist democracy, technocracy and evidence based policy
mainlymacro.blogspot.com/2026/02/fisc...
Calls to abolish the OBR are inherently populist, and would have the effect of suppressing the influence of knowledge on decision making.
mainlymacro.blogspot.com/2026/02/fisc...
Calls to abolish the OBR are inherently populist, and would have the effect of suppressing the influence of knowledge on decision making.
Fiscal watchdogs, pluralist democracy, technocracy and evidence based policy
When I write about fiscal watchdogs like the OBR in the UK, I generally get some comments along the lines that these watchdogs produce tec...
mainlymacro.blogspot.com
February 10, 2026 at 9:02 AM
This whole argument never mentions who created the OBR and why he did it. Fascinating.
Reposted by gastrogeorge
"And now that his days are numbered and the Labour right have suffered an historic embarrassment, he remains the tool of others, a meat shield whose sole purpose is to take the electoral beating coming the government's way."
What is the Point of Keir Starmer?
This is the worst 24 hours of Keir Starmer's leadership! Or, as the Simpson's meme has it, this is the worst 24 hours of Keir Starmer's lead...
averypublicsociologist.blogspot.com
February 10, 2026 at 9:02 AM
"And now that his days are numbered and the Labour right have suffered an historic embarrassment, he remains the tool of others, a meat shield whose sole purpose is to take the electoral beating coming the government's way."
Reposted by gastrogeorge
Not a great sign here: until now, it’s been the hardcore of regime psychos who have been left to explain themselves. Even though this is just all the lads piling in to shitehouse it, to keep it propped up until May, it’s still them stepping in to say it’s fine, actually.
February 10, 2026 at 9:05 AM
Not a great sign here: until now, it’s been the hardcore of regime psychos who have been left to explain themselves. Even though this is just all the lads piling in to shitehouse it, to keep it propped up until May, it’s still them stepping in to say it’s fine, actually.
Reposted by gastrogeorge
A 'failure of moral seriousness' is one of the most damp squib things I've ever read to describe an international cabal of billionaire right-wing paedophiles operating with impunity in your midst.
This is the funniest headline I seen in a long time. And bravo to whoever underlined the desperation with the juxtaposed link.
February 10, 2026 at 8:41 AM
A 'failure of moral seriousness' is one of the most damp squib things I've ever read to describe an international cabal of billionaire right-wing paedophiles operating with impunity in your midst.