Tom King
@tallgeekychap.bsky.social
Seeking a future that isn't the end-point of where we are.
I believe in a more generous society: generoussociety.com
Political consultant running a small firm after many years of working for others.
I believe in a more generous society: generoussociety.com
Political consultant running a small firm after many years of working for others.
Pinned
Tom King
@tallgeekychap.bsky.social
· Oct 16
Many people are saying the BBC's news values are a bit skew-whiff.
Nigel Farage is more wary of seeming to agree with Tommy Robinson than this. I'm not even kidding.
Asked how happy Keir Starmer is that Tommy Robinson is now backing his asylum plans, his spokesman replies that "the public can tell that the pace and scale of illegal immigration is out of control..."
"We must restore order... or we will lose public consent for giving refuge at all".
"We must restore order... or we will lose public consent for giving refuge at all".
November 17, 2025 at 1:11 PM
Nigel Farage is more wary of seeming to agree with Tommy Robinson than this. I'm not even kidding.
'Mean-spirited' is pretty weak. I think what you're looking for is 'evil'.
Lib Dem Max Wilkinson talking to the BBC: party has "significant concerns" about details of the government immigration plan.
Says there's "unanswered questions" about time limited asylum visas and reports about seizing jewellery are "mean-spirited and un-British"
Says there's "unanswered questions" about time limited asylum visas and reports about seizing jewellery are "mean-spirited and un-British"
November 17, 2025 at 12:18 PM
'Mean-spirited' is pretty weak. I think what you're looking for is 'evil'.
This thread ought to embarrass the Liberal Democrats, a party that exists to entertain and enable the wonkiest nerdiest policy wonks in the UK to develop what they consider to be the most evidence-based ideas into policy.
We asked the public which political party has the best policies on a range of issues🧵
November 17, 2025 at 9:14 AM
This thread ought to embarrass the Liberal Democrats, a party that exists to entertain and enable the wonkiest nerdiest policy wonks in the UK to develop what they consider to be the most evidence-based ideas into policy.
Most modern information technology is about increasing volume and quantity at the expense of quality, filtering, and judgement.
If you were designing a system to undermine the ways we have successfully communicated in the past, you'd be hard-pressed to do better than the LLM-accelerated internet.
If you were designing a system to undermine the ways we have successfully communicated in the past, you'd be hard-pressed to do better than the LLM-accelerated internet.
It's a useful reminder that sometimes tech can make a task more efficient for one side (applying for jobs), and more efficient for the other side (writing job adverts), and yet make the system as a whole completely inefficient.
November 14, 2025 at 11:29 AM
Most modern information technology is about increasing volume and quantity at the expense of quality, filtering, and judgement.
If you were designing a system to undermine the ways we have successfully communicated in the past, you'd be hard-pressed to do better than the LLM-accelerated internet.
If you were designing a system to undermine the ways we have successfully communicated in the past, you'd be hard-pressed to do better than the LLM-accelerated internet.
I despair at the stupidity of this government, yet again.
November 13, 2025 at 4:58 PM
I despair at the stupidity of this government, yet again.
Definitely plausible, not least because he has, and is already using, the easiest get-out from having to answer whether he's standing: "I've done it before, and have no desire to do so again"... which of course doesn't rule out the classic reluctant "people have prevailed upon me".
Verdict of one Labour grandee I just bumped into: “Ed Miliband is the person most likely to be the most next Prime Minister”.
November 13, 2025 at 1:34 PM
Definitely plausible, not least because he has, and is already using, the easiest get-out from having to answer whether he's standing: "I've done it before, and have no desire to do so again"... which of course doesn't rule out the classic reluctant "people have prevailed upon me".
Are we finally going to get the promised white paper this side of the new year?
Police and crime commissioners to be abolished, government to announce
Police and crime commissioners to be abolished, government to announce
System introduced in 2012 across England and Wales has faced criticism from police chiefs
*
UK politics live – latest updates
The controversial system of police and crime commissioners is to be abolished by the government, the Guardian has learned.
Under the system, introduced under the Conservatives, all 43 police forces covering local areas across England and Wales had to answer to an elected official. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
November 13, 2025 at 11:32 AM
Are we finally going to get the promised white paper this side of the new year?
Reposted by Tom King
“In an email from January 2019, Mr. Epstein wrote to Mr. Wolff of Mr. Trump: “Of course he knew about the girls as he asked Ghislaine to stop.””
Starting to see why Mike Johnson kept the House shut down for weeks rather than allow the 218th signature to release the Epstein docs…
Starting to see why Mike Johnson kept the House shut down for weeks rather than allow the 218th signature to release the Epstein docs…
"In one email, Epstein told Maxwell, 'I want you to realize that that dog that hasn’t barked is Trump.' He added that an unnamed victim 'spent hours at my house with him ,, he has never once been mentioned.'"
“'I have been thinking about that,' Maxwell wrote back."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/u...
“'I have been thinking about that,' Maxwell wrote back."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/u...
Epstein Alleged in Emails That Trump Knew of His Conduct
www.nytimes.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:57 PM
“In an email from January 2019, Mr. Epstein wrote to Mr. Wolff of Mr. Trump: “Of course he knew about the girls as he asked Ghislaine to stop.””
Starting to see why Mike Johnson kept the House shut down for weeks rather than allow the 218th signature to release the Epstein docs…
Starting to see why Mike Johnson kept the House shut down for weeks rather than allow the 218th signature to release the Epstein docs…
It really does take quite a lot of incompetence to make Kemi Badenoch look in control and on the front foot.
November 12, 2025 at 12:15 PM
It really does take quite a lot of incompetence to make Kemi Badenoch look in control and on the front foot.
Reposted by Tom King
I do like how, in the bit of Prescott's memo where he criticises the BBC for editing together different parts of Trump's speech, his own quote of "what Trump actually said" is... edited together from different parts of his speech.
November 10, 2025 at 9:45 AM
I do like how, in the bit of Prescott's memo where he criticises the BBC for editing together different parts of Trump's speech, his own quote of "what Trump actually said" is... edited together from different parts of his speech.
You'll never guess what county the people who created this are from.
‘A new service called Objector is offering “policy-backed objections in minutes” to people who are upset about planning applications near their homes.’
Another reminder that AI can be used for things you don’t like as well as things you like…
Another reminder that AI can be used for things you don’t like as well as things you like…
Bloody hell www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
November 10, 2025 at 9:36 AM
You'll never guess what county the people who created this are from.
Reposted by Tom King
By my reading, it's hard to remember a more scandalous example of a social media company being negligent in their responsibility to users. It's so so bad, and deeper investigation and regulatory action must surely follow.
This piece suggests Meta is dragging its heels on reducing the (very large) number of scam ads on its services because they're concerned it will materially hurt revenue (the article estimates they make as much as $16bn a year from scam ads)
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
www.reuters.com
November 6, 2025 at 12:13 PM
By my reading, it's hard to remember a more scandalous example of a social media company being negligent in their responsibility to users. It's so so bad, and deeper investigation and regulatory action must surely follow.
It's a great song, but I cannot get over the fact that one of the long drawn out notes he sings sounds painfully flat to my ear. I am conscious this is disputed.
November 4, 2025 at 11:40 AM
It's a great song, but I cannot get over the fact that one of the long drawn out notes he sings sounds painfully flat to my ear. I am conscious this is disputed.
Brb, sending this to everyone I know
This New Yorker documentary about the 1988 UK government ban on broadcasting the voices of Sinn Féin and I.R.A. leaders is pretty good but they show *that clip from The Day Today with no explanation and no indicator that it is satire.
www.newyorker.com/video/watch/...
www.newyorker.com/video/watch/...
The Ban
www.newyorker.com
November 3, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Brb, sending this to everyone I know
Nigel Farage is currently giving a speech that is solely about defending the right of wealthy City boys and their international, borderless non-dom overlords to do whatever they want, whenever they want.
He wants them all to come back to London, a place where you apparently can't wear a watch.
He wants them all to come back to London, a place where you apparently can't wear a watch.
November 3, 2025 at 11:34 AM
Nigel Farage is currently giving a speech that is solely about defending the right of wealthy City boys and their international, borderless non-dom overlords to do whatever they want, whenever they want.
He wants them all to come back to London, a place where you apparently can't wear a watch.
He wants them all to come back to London, a place where you apparently can't wear a watch.
Reposted by Tom King
Rest In Peace Lia Smith.
You deserved a whole, full, beautiful life.
You deserved a whole, full, beautiful life.
Transgender Student-Athlete Lia Smith Remembered as a Friend and Fierce Advocate — Assigned
Lia Smith, a 21-year-old trans student-athlete in Vermont, took her own life last week. Her friends, family and community mourn, and remember her as a bright young woman who spoke on behalf of her com...
www.assignedmedia.org
October 29, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Rest In Peace Lia Smith.
You deserved a whole, full, beautiful life.
You deserved a whole, full, beautiful life.
Yes. Imagine what George Osborne would do to enable middle class tax cuts, then do it in reverse.
Increasingly I think the point of a wealth tax is not to raise money but to create space for raising income tax. The lethal thing in politics is when the compliant middle class feels like they have been taken for mugs; if you want to get money out of them, someone else needs to pay more too.
October 29, 2025 at 11:04 AM
Yes. Imagine what George Osborne would do to enable middle class tax cuts, then do it in reverse.
A lot of people asking whether the US's dictator will run for a third term are asking questions already answered by the US's dictator
Trump on running for a third term: "I would love to do it."
Q: "You're not ruling out a third term?"
Trump: "Am I not ruling it out? You'll have to tell me."
Q: "You're not ruling out a third term?"
Trump: "Am I not ruling it out? You'll have to tell me."
October 27, 2025 at 12:34 PM
A lot of people asking whether the US's dictator will run for a third term are asking questions already answered by the US's dictator
"Don't let MPs buy good office chairs!"
"Don't let people claim sickness disability for injuries incurred in the workplace!"
"Don't let the fact that £30bn represents 150 million office chairs get in the way of a shit headline!"
"Don't let people claim sickness disability for injuries incurred in the workplace!"
"Don't let the fact that £30bn represents 150 million office chairs get in the way of a shit headline!"
October 27, 2025 at 11:17 AM
"Don't let MPs buy good office chairs!"
"Don't let people claim sickness disability for injuries incurred in the workplace!"
"Don't let the fact that £30bn represents 150 million office chairs get in the way of a shit headline!"
"Don't let people claim sickness disability for injuries incurred in the workplace!"
"Don't let the fact that £30bn represents 150 million office chairs get in the way of a shit headline!"
Reposted by Tom King
In the UK, we have a government who will complain about peaceful protests taking up valuable police resources while simultaneously complaining that the police shouldn't ban far right football hooligans with a history of violence and disruption from attending a match.
October 17, 2025 at 2:41 PM
In the UK, we have a government who will complain about peaceful protests taking up valuable police resources while simultaneously complaining that the police shouldn't ban far right football hooligans with a history of violence and disruption from attending a match.
Reposted by Tom King
How has the government got itself into the position of standing up for Israeli football hooligans, while criminalising peaceful supporters of Palestine Action?
October 17, 2025 at 2:38 PM
How has the government got itself into the position of standing up for Israeli football hooligans, while criminalising peaceful supporters of Palestine Action?
Reposted by Tom King
BY THE WAY
If you've updated to Windows 11 recently, you're probably on version 25H2.
There's a new setting in Settings: Privacy & Security.
Scroll aaaaaaaalll the way to the bottom and you'll see "Text and Image Generation."
TURN IT OFF.
If you've updated to Windows 11 recently, you're probably on version 25H2.
There's a new setting in Settings: Privacy & Security.
Scroll aaaaaaaalll the way to the bottom and you'll see "Text and Image Generation."
TURN IT OFF.
October 17, 2025 at 12:58 AM
BY THE WAY
If you've updated to Windows 11 recently, you're probably on version 25H2.
There's a new setting in Settings: Privacy & Security.
Scroll aaaaaaaalll the way to the bottom and you'll see "Text and Image Generation."
TURN IT OFF.
If you've updated to Windows 11 recently, you're probably on version 25H2.
There's a new setting in Settings: Privacy & Security.
Scroll aaaaaaaalll the way to the bottom and you'll see "Text and Image Generation."
TURN IT OFF.
Many people are saying the BBC's news values are a bit skew-whiff.
October 16, 2025 at 10:40 AM
Many people are saying the BBC's news values are a bit skew-whiff.
High-level 'reckons' breach
Not really the main point for these witnesses statements but this is unbelievably low grade stuff to be passing on.
Tugendhat did not in fact get a cabinet job and Jeremy Hunt endorsed Rishi Sunak. Did the Chinese realise how crap all this intelligence was?
Tugendhat did not in fact get a cabinet job and Jeremy Hunt endorsed Rishi Sunak. Did the Chinese realise how crap all this intelligence was?
October 16, 2025 at 8:04 AM
High-level 'reckons' breach
Reposted by Tom King
It's really telling that mainstream journalists are doing stuff about the *possibility* of the ADF or the Heritage Foundation starting to influence UK politics, when the reality is that they have been here for years, spending huge quantities of cash and succeeding in areas like trans rights.
"The ADF has chosen Nigel Farage to focus on, building up this ally who has the potential to be a JD Vance-like figure in the future."
Can the Christian group that influenced the overturning of Roe v. Wade bring its extreme views to the UK?
www.thenewsagents.co.uk/article/is-n...
Can the Christian group that influenced the overturning of Roe v. Wade bring its extreme views to the UK?
www.thenewsagents.co.uk/article/is-n...
Is Nigel Farage being used as a pawn by US Christian extremists? | The News Agents
A New York Times report suggests Nigel Farage is being backed by Alliance Defending Freedom – a conservative Christian group dedicated to rolling back rights of many groups in the US. What does this…
www.thenewsagents.co.uk
October 16, 2025 at 6:02 AM
It's really telling that mainstream journalists are doing stuff about the *possibility* of the ADF or the Heritage Foundation starting to influence UK politics, when the reality is that they have been here for years, spending huge quantities of cash and succeeding in areas like trans rights.