Nick Rijke
@nick-rijke.bsky.social
Anglo-Dutch, internationalist, liberal, concerned about many forms of justice. Means matter as much as ends.
Views expressed are my own, not any organisation I work for or with.
Views expressed are my own, not any organisation I work for or with.
I know Andy Burnham's mantra for his modest initiatives is "it's a start", which sometimes is fair enough, but £30 million for community power schemes to tackle climate change? Just derisory. If you made it £30 billion then it would be at least serious.
September 17, 2026 at 12:37 PM
I know Andy Burnham's mantra for his modest initiatives is "it's a start", which sometimes is fair enough, but £30 million for community power schemes to tackle climate change? Just derisory. If you made it £30 billion then it would be at least serious.
Trump is right about one thing, America does need a President with a high IQ. It's a shame then that the incumbent is such a dunce.
September 14, 2026 at 9:09 PM
Trump is right about one thing, America does need a President with a high IQ. It's a shame then that the incumbent is such a dunce.
The old political parties failed to stop big money from buying politics, so £72 million in two days to a far right party is at least partly on them. But, in the mid '90s, the Lib Dems had the courage and moral standing to reject a £10 million attempted donation, from Mohammed Al Fayed.
September 12, 2026 at 12:25 PM
The old political parties failed to stop big money from buying politics, so £72 million in two days to a far right party is at least partly on them. But, in the mid '90s, the Lib Dems had the courage and moral standing to reject a £10 million attempted donation, from Mohammed Al Fayed.
The UK government is right to take a tougher stance & tougher action against Israel's brutal & illegal occupation of the West Bank. We should go further. The activities in the West Bank, now officially labelled as terrorism, are frequently government sponsored. Security for all needs peace for all.
September 8, 2026 at 3:27 PM
The UK government is right to take a tougher stance & tougher action against Israel's brutal & illegal occupation of the West Bank. We should go further. The activities in the West Bank, now officially labelled as terrorism, are frequently government sponsored. Security for all needs peace for all.
Once again our political class, including BBC interviewers, assert that the only way to reduce Government debt is via welfare & pension cuts, to avoid the obvious answer of fairly taxing wealth and high income. While the demand for economic justice is getting greater by the day. #LiberalLeft
September 7, 2026 at 12:24 PM
Once again our political class, including BBC interviewers, assert that the only way to reduce Government debt is via welfare & pension cuts, to avoid the obvious answer of fairly taxing wealth and high income. While the demand for economic justice is getting greater by the day. #LiberalLeft
When will incompetent #BBC interviewers point out to politicians saying they will cut Personal Independence Payments by making people with disabilities work... that PIP is NOT AN UNEMPLOYMENT OR WORK RELATED BENEFIT.
September 5, 2026 at 2:01 PM
When will incompetent #BBC interviewers point out to politicians saying they will cut Personal Independence Payments by making people with disabilities work... that PIP is NOT AN UNEMPLOYMENT OR WORK RELATED BENEFIT.
My 96 year old father has paid UK tax and National Insurance for longer than Robert Jenrick has been alive. Yet Jenrick would take away his Carer's Allowance because he never claimed a British passport. Which apart from anything else would be a blatant breach of contract.
September 5, 2026 at 1:59 PM
My 96 year old father has paid UK tax and National Insurance for longer than Robert Jenrick has been alive. Yet Jenrick would take away his Carer's Allowance because he never claimed a British passport. Which apart from anything else would be a blatant breach of contract.
Nice graphic showing a truer representation of the world map, in orange, over the distorted map so popular in Europe and North America. Apart from the large size of Africa, notice the small size of Greenland...
September 4, 2026 at 5:03 PM
Nice graphic showing a truer representation of the world map, in orange, over the distorted map so popular in Europe and North America. Apart from the large size of Africa, notice the small size of Greenland...
It's interesting how the Western politicians who trot out Putin's messaging are both far right and far left. The right love his authoritarian, ultra-conservative, nationalism; the left think of him as their old KGB friend. But then both have a history of supporting nasty dictators, the world over.
September 3, 2026 at 12:05 PM
It's interesting how the Western politicians who trot out Putin's messaging are both far right and far left. The right love his authoritarian, ultra-conservative, nationalism; the left think of him as their old KGB friend. But then both have a history of supporting nasty dictators, the world over.
Data centres are a threat to our way of life, not because of the awesome capabilities of AI, most of which are exaggerated, but because of the huge environmental impact.
August 27, 2026 at 4:52 PM
Data centres are a threat to our way of life, not because of the awesome capabilities of AI, most of which are exaggerated, but because of the huge environmental impact.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Giving big planning decisions to one person is a recipe for corruption. It's certainly not about local communities having power over their own villages, towns, cities or lives.
Giving big planning decisions to one person is a recipe for corruption. It's certainly not about local communities having power over their own villages, towns, cities or lives.
Mayors to get powers to overrule local councils on planning decisions
Housing minister Matthew Pennycook said the change was "essential" for helping mayors "effectively deliver new homes".
www.bbc.co.uk
August 23, 2026 at 1:33 PM
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Giving big planning decisions to one person is a recipe for corruption. It's certainly not about local communities having power over their own villages, towns, cities or lives.
Giving big planning decisions to one person is a recipe for corruption. It's certainly not about local communities having power over their own villages, towns, cities or lives.
The best way to pay tribute to Jason Arday is to ignore the utter drivel in the media and read at least one of his more than 30 publications on the sociology of education, in particular the barriers that still exist for people from disadvantaged backgrounds, especially, but not only black people.
August 15, 2026 at 12:56 PM
The best way to pay tribute to Jason Arday is to ignore the utter drivel in the media and read at least one of his more than 30 publications on the sociology of education, in particular the barriers that still exist for people from disadvantaged backgrounds, especially, but not only black people.
Very good article on comparative crime rates, using data and analysis from UCL. It's complex, but cities are probably safer than you think, depending if course on what you think!
www.economist.com/graphic-deta...
www.economist.com/graphic-deta...
Is Europe safer than America?
A novel dataset provides some surprising answers
www.economist.com
August 15, 2026 at 12:12 PM
Very good article on comparative crime rates, using data and analysis from UCL. It's complex, but cities are probably safer than you think, depending if course on what you think!
www.economist.com/graphic-deta...
www.economist.com/graphic-deta...
I think Farage might just be more orange than Trump. Two grifters cut from the same cloth, manipulating and conning ordinary folk.
August 14, 2026 at 1:35 PM
I think Farage might just be more orange than Trump. Two grifters cut from the same cloth, manipulating and conning ordinary folk.
Reposted by Nick Rijke
Come on Clacton! Bin him!
August 13, 2026 at 12:45 PM
Come on Clacton! Bin him!
Reposted by Nick Rijke
The gap between corporate profits and worker wages is the largest it's ever been.
Wondering why people are fed up with the system? [Source: KPMG]
Wondering why people are fed up with the system? [Source: KPMG]
August 13, 2026 at 4:15 PM
The gap between corporate profits and worker wages is the largest it's ever been.
Wondering why people are fed up with the system? [Source: KPMG]
Wondering why people are fed up with the system? [Source: KPMG]
Trump's #TruthAPI is unlawful insider trading, plain as day. When people say Trump is the most blatantly corrupt US President in history, they aren't exaggerating.
August 12, 2026 at 12:07 PM
Trump's #TruthAPI is unlawful insider trading, plain as day. When people say Trump is the most blatantly corrupt US President in history, they aren't exaggerating.
When billionaires are spending many millions of dollars, pounds etc to buy politics we know for sure the time has come for wealth taxes.
August 12, 2026 at 10:13 AM
When billionaires are spending many millions of dollars, pounds etc to buy politics we know for sure the time has come for wealth taxes.
Reposted by Nick Rijke
From 2020-2025 Congressional Republicans told constituents that Democrats were saying and trying to "defund the police" more than 200x the amount of times Democrats actually said the phrase in official congressional e-newsletters.
August 11, 2026 at 2:21 PM
From 2020-2025 Congressional Republicans told constituents that Democrats were saying and trying to "defund the police" more than 200x the amount of times Democrats actually said the phrase in official congressional e-newsletters.
It is fascism, and not for the first time, substantially sponsored by American billionaires. For a decade I've labelled it modern international fascism. It is what it says on the tin.
August 11, 2026 at 8:01 AM
It is fascism, and not for the first time, substantially sponsored by American billionaires. For a decade I've labelled it modern international fascism. It is what it says on the tin.
Great article by davidsonofaaron.bsky.social
Worth using a free Substack article to read.
Worth using a free Substack article to read.
August 10, 2026 at 3:19 PM
Great article by davidsonofaaron.bsky.social
Worth using a free Substack article to read.
Worth using a free Substack article to read.
Lammy made a mess of reducing the #prison population. The obvious change to make is to prioritise for release the many people imprisoned for non-violent offences, such as hundreds of folk whose crime was to raise a placard. And prioritise for incarceration those who have committed acts of violence.
August 10, 2026 at 7:01 AM
Lammy made a mess of reducing the #prison population. The obvious change to make is to prioritise for release the many people imprisoned for non-violent offences, such as hundreds of folk whose crime was to raise a placard. And prioritise for incarceration those who have committed acts of violence.