Mike McAndrew
@mikemca.bsky.social
Pain is but the occasional episode in a general drama of Happiness.
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
I’m off to Edinburgh today ahead of my seven shows at this year’s Fringe. As ever, my train ‘journey’ has got off to a spectacular start.
August 23, 2026 at 8:56 AM
I’m off to Edinburgh today ahead of my seven shows at this year’s Fringe. As ever, my train ‘journey’ has got off to a spectacular start.
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
SCOOP: 404 Media placed a tracking device in a shipment of rare books to see which AI company was buying it. What did we find? It ended up at an Amazon facility where Amazon scans and destroys books.
Yes. This is literally the logo outside the Amazon warehouse door. Read now:
Yes. This is literally the logo outside the Amazon warehouse door. Read now:
We Tracked a Shipment of Rare Books. It Ended at an Amazon AI Training Facility
We placed a tracking device in a shipment of rare books to see which AI company was buying it, and found an Amazon facility where Amazon scans and destroys books.
www.404media.co
August 17, 2026 at 1:23 PM
SCOOP: 404 Media placed a tracking device in a shipment of rare books to see which AI company was buying it. What did we find? It ended up at an Amazon facility where Amazon scans and destroys books.
Yes. This is literally the logo outside the Amazon warehouse door. Read now:
Yes. This is literally the logo outside the Amazon warehouse door. Read now:
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
Why pick on Chris Packham? www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2026/08... The Times has mounted an attack on Chris Packham, saying he is not autistic. Why? What do they hope to gain? And is this quite sinister?
Why pick on Chris Packham?
As I have already noted today, The Times has chosen to question whether Chris Packham is really autistic, despite the fact that he has a diagnosis saying that he is. I have already discussed some aspe...
www.taxresearch.org.uk
August 12, 2026 at 6:42 AM
Why pick on Chris Packham? www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2026/08... The Times has mounted an attack on Chris Packham, saying he is not autistic. Why? What do they hope to gain? And is this quite sinister?
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
If true, we get 3 things. None good.
1. The direct negative growth/fiscal impacts of cutting immigration.
2. A Chancellor who prioritises their own personal/ideological obsessions over the UK economy.
3. A PM who through myopia or weakness chooses 1 and 2.
1. The direct negative growth/fiscal impacts of cutting immigration.
2. A Chancellor who prioritises their own personal/ideological obsessions over the UK economy.
3. A PM who through myopia or weakness chooses 1 and 2.
The Times reporting that Andy Burnham succeeded in persuading Shabana Mahmood to become Chancellor because it would give her more control over cutting immigration
July 18, 2026 at 8:58 AM
If true, we get 3 things. None good.
1. The direct negative growth/fiscal impacts of cutting immigration.
2. A Chancellor who prioritises their own personal/ideological obsessions over the UK economy.
3. A PM who through myopia or weakness chooses 1 and 2.
1. The direct negative growth/fiscal impacts of cutting immigration.
2. A Chancellor who prioritises their own personal/ideological obsessions over the UK economy.
3. A PM who through myopia or weakness chooses 1 and 2.
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
There's a bar chart, courtesy of: www.facebook.com/share/14hP4M...
July 7, 2026 at 10:29 PM
There's a bar chart, courtesy of: www.facebook.com/share/14hP4M...
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
Are...are they going to change this law via use of a Henry VIII clause
OK, so Helen Whately and the Express are doubling down and going all out hysterical at this point...🙄
They've actually "calculated" the state benefits a man with ELEVEN WIVES could claim!!
And this time, they've done it behind a paywalled article🤷♀️
But don't worry, I got behind it!🤓
🧵1/20
They've actually "calculated" the state benefits a man with ELEVEN WIVES could claim!!
And this time, they've done it behind a paywalled article🤷♀️
But don't worry, I got behind it!🤓
🧵1/20
May 28, 2026 at 6:34 PM
Are...are they going to change this law via use of a Henry VIII clause
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
March 22, 2026 at 10:23 AM
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
FIFA's idea of disciplining the Israeli FA.
March 19, 2026 at 8:01 PM
FIFA's idea of disciplining the Israeli FA.
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
Tomorrow's front page 📰
Poll finds majority oppose use of Scottish airports by US to wage war on Iran
Poll finds majority oppose use of Scottish airports by US to wage war on Iran
March 12, 2026 at 10:00 PM
Tomorrow's front page 📰
Poll finds majority oppose use of Scottish airports by US to wage war on Iran
Poll finds majority oppose use of Scottish airports by US to wage war on Iran
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
We also need to know whether AI was used to select the target. WaPo is reporting Anthropic and Palantir tech were used to identify 1000 targets in Iran 24 hours. Who vetted those targets? Who pays for errors? It's possible they weren't involved in this strike but this we need to know.
🚨 Right in the middle of the strike map US War Sec. Pete Hegseth proudly displayed at a Pentagon briefing today sits Minab — the site of a school in southern Iran where a US–Israeli strike killed 165 children this weekend.
BBC’s Tom Bateman asked Hegseth whether the Pentagon knows whose munition...
BBC’s Tom Bateman asked Hegseth whether the Pentagon knows whose munition...
March 5, 2026 at 7:05 PM
We also need to know whether AI was used to select the target. WaPo is reporting Anthropic and Palantir tech were used to identify 1000 targets in Iran 24 hours. Who vetted those targets? Who pays for errors? It's possible they weren't involved in this strike but this we need to know.
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
I've also been struck by this. The Trump regime is normalising the decapitation of governments it dislikes by assassinating or abducting their leaders. There are good reasons why states have tended not to make this a norm.
It tells you something about the disorientating rate of change underway that nobody is particularly shocked that a head of state has been assassinated by other states, something which has *never happened* in the modern era. Which is illegal under US law. Shed no tears for Khamanei, but still.
1/3
1/3
March 1, 2026 at 3:01 PM
I've also been struck by this. The Trump regime is normalising the decapitation of governments it dislikes by assassinating or abducting their leaders. There are good reasons why states have tended not to make this a norm.
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
The real threat to democracy doesn't come from 'family voting'. It comes from the losing side refusing go accept they've lost
February 28, 2026 at 11:03 AM
The real threat to democracy doesn't come from 'family voting'. It comes from the losing side refusing go accept they've lost
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
One of the best things I’ve read in a while:
January 25, 2026 at 10:39 PM
One of the best things I’ve read in a while:
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
The events of the last 24 hours show why it's important to build functional verification structures in public and counterpublic spaces to resist the authoritarian erosion of our democratic systems, as described in this thread.
🧵 @jburnmurdoch.ft.com is spot on about the conditions in his FT piece. Liberal democracy held it together thanks to growth, good demographics, and the promise of a better future. Those days are gone, and that’s the "why" behind the erosion. However...
Democratic politicians have, though, pursued growth in GDP at the expense of other values. One response to @jburnmurdoch.ft.com pessimistic scenario is refocus on those values, combined with egalitarianism, sufficiency and quality of life. Not "it's the economy, stupid" but "it's the the society"
January 25, 2026 at 9:24 AM
The events of the last 24 hours show why it's important to build functional verification structures in public and counterpublic spaces to resist the authoritarian erosion of our democratic systems, as described in this thread.
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
Annual reminder of how many days there are in each month.
January 23, 2026 at 10:08 AM
Annual reminder of how many days there are in each month.
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
BREAKING: Explosive new poll for ITV Cymru Wales puts Plaid Cymru surging ahead of Reform UK in May’s Welsh elections.
Plaid 37%
Reform 23%
Greens 13%
Labour 10%
Tories 10%
Lib Dems 5%
Plaid could form majority with Greens on this basis, with Labour out of govt for first time since devolution.
Plaid 37%
Reform 23%
Greens 13%
Labour 10%
Tories 10%
Lib Dems 5%
Plaid could form majority with Greens on this basis, with Labour out of govt for first time since devolution.
January 13, 2026 at 7:12 PM
BREAKING: Explosive new poll for ITV Cymru Wales puts Plaid Cymru surging ahead of Reform UK in May’s Welsh elections.
Plaid 37%
Reform 23%
Greens 13%
Labour 10%
Tories 10%
Lib Dems 5%
Plaid could form majority with Greens on this basis, with Labour out of govt for first time since devolution.
Plaid 37%
Reform 23%
Greens 13%
Labour 10%
Tories 10%
Lib Dems 5%
Plaid could form majority with Greens on this basis, with Labour out of govt for first time since devolution.
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
So long as Labour hold firm on Brexit, all their bleating about having been dealt an atrocious hand by the Tories is so much hot air.
Support for "Make Brexit Works" holes that argument below the waterline.
It is ludicrous to be contemplating tax rises, but not trying to undo Brexit.
Support for "Make Brexit Works" holes that argument below the waterline.
It is ludicrous to be contemplating tax rises, but not trying to undo Brexit.
November 10, 2025 at 8:26 AM
So long as Labour hold firm on Brexit, all their bleating about having been dealt an atrocious hand by the Tories is so much hot air.
Support for "Make Brexit Works" holes that argument below the waterline.
It is ludicrous to be contemplating tax rises, but not trying to undo Brexit.
Support for "Make Brexit Works" holes that argument below the waterline.
It is ludicrous to be contemplating tax rises, but not trying to undo Brexit.
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
Once every 20 years or so, the director-general of the BBC is forced to resign for being insufficiently rightwing. Alastair Milne in 1987. Greg Dyke in 2004. Tim Davie in 2025. The great irony is that the BBC was in all cases profoundly biased towards established power. But just not biased enough …
November 10, 2025 at 5:44 AM
Once every 20 years or so, the director-general of the BBC is forced to resign for being insufficiently rightwing. Alastair Milne in 1987. Greg Dyke in 2004. Tim Davie in 2025. The great irony is that the BBC was in all cases profoundly biased towards established power. But just not biased enough …
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
First we take Manhattan.
November 4, 2025 at 10:56 PM
First we take Manhattan.
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
It seems a good day to repost this rousing Michael Sheen speech for the Welsh football team ahead of the World Cup in 2022 🏴
October 24, 2025 at 11:21 AM
It seems a good day to repost this rousing Michael Sheen speech for the Welsh football team ahead of the World Cup in 2022 🏴
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
Lam believes her policy would deport all of the proportion in pink - keeping the thin group in black - of the post-2021 legal migrant arrivals. (The draft legislation proposes similar thresholds/rules for all past grants too). She says jar is 3.5m people: an astonishing scale of mass deportations
October 22, 2025 at 12:13 AM
Lam believes her policy would deport all of the proportion in pink - keeping the thin group in black - of the post-2021 legal migrant arrivals. (The draft legislation proposes similar thresholds/rules for all past grants too). She says jar is 3.5m people: an astonishing scale of mass deportations
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
More I read of this piece the more I feel how few "experts" on neurodivergent individuals ever speak to us. It's hard enough to get reasonable accommodations as it is. Rather than reducing those available we should be working to increase them, including for adults.
www.thetimes.com/article/acda...
www.thetimes.com/article/acda...
October 18, 2025 at 7:11 AM
More I read of this piece the more I feel how few "experts" on neurodivergent individuals ever speak to us. It's hard enough to get reasonable accommodations as it is. Rather than reducing those available we should be working to increase them, including for adults.
www.thetimes.com/article/acda...
www.thetimes.com/article/acda...
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
We’re being asked by half the media & politicians to swallow the idea that known racist football hooligans should be allowed to rampage through our cities for NO OTHER REASON than that they happen to be Israeli.
Fuck. That.
Fuck. That.
October 17, 2025 at 5:23 PM
We’re being asked by half the media & politicians to swallow the idea that known racist football hooligans should be allowed to rampage through our cities for NO OTHER REASON than that they happen to be Israeli.
Fuck. That.
Fuck. That.
Is it stating the obvious that as so many people know the truth about Gaza, they will simply never vote for Starmer in 2029 for him to be able to win.
Without something transformative (and ex-Starmer) like PR or rejoining SM Labour are deservedly completely fucked.
All very Biden 2021.
Without something transformative (and ex-Starmer) like PR or rejoining SM Labour are deservedly completely fucked.
All very Biden 2021.
October 16, 2025 at 10:44 PM
Is it stating the obvious that as so many people know the truth about Gaza, they will simply never vote for Starmer in 2029 for him to be able to win.
Without something transformative (and ex-Starmer) like PR or rejoining SM Labour are deservedly completely fucked.
All very Biden 2021.
Without something transformative (and ex-Starmer) like PR or rejoining SM Labour are deservedly completely fucked.
All very Biden 2021.
Reposted by Mike McAndrew
It’s a perfect storm;
1. Defunded journalism creating a vacuum that is cheaply filled by unchallenged bias.
2. Algorithms promoting anger
3. New undetectable ways of buying political control
4. Electoral politics having no resilience to cope with this.
Unchecked, it ends in fascism. Not if. When.
1. Defunded journalism creating a vacuum that is cheaply filled by unchallenged bias.
2. Algorithms promoting anger
3. New undetectable ways of buying political control
4. Electoral politics having no resilience to cope with this.
Unchecked, it ends in fascism. Not if. When.
October 12, 2025 at 8:27 PM
It’s a perfect storm;
1. Defunded journalism creating a vacuum that is cheaply filled by unchallenged bias.
2. Algorithms promoting anger
3. New undetectable ways of buying political control
4. Electoral politics having no resilience to cope with this.
Unchecked, it ends in fascism. Not if. When.
1. Defunded journalism creating a vacuum that is cheaply filled by unchallenged bias.
2. Algorithms promoting anger
3. New undetectable ways of buying political control
4. Electoral politics having no resilience to cope with this.
Unchecked, it ends in fascism. Not if. When.