Rod Alence
@ralence.bsky.social
Politics and political economy of Africa, based at Wits University in Johannesburg. Sometimes also posts about music, tennis, and basketball.
Warren Smith - "Uranium Rock" Lyric Video
YouTube video by Sun Records
youtu.be
September 4, 2026 at 6:10 PM
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 31
Song with a name in the title
Thanks @lagrume.bsky.social
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 31
Song with a name in the title
Thanks @lagrume.bsky.social
Bob Dylan - Bob Dylan's 115th Dream (Official Audio)
YouTube video by BobDylanVEVO
youtu.be
August 30, 2026 at 8:20 PM
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 31
Song with a name in the title
Thanks @lagrume.bsky.social
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 31
Song with a name in the title
Thanks @lagrume.bsky.social
the MODERN LOVERS "Pablo Picasso" 1972
YouTube video by warren loft
youtu.be
August 29, 2026 at 8:01 PM
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 30
Song with a name in the title
Indie supergroup philosophizes about That Ground Ball.
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 30
Song with a name in the title
Indie supergroup philosophizes about That Ground Ball.
Buckner's Bolero
YouTube video by The Baseball Project - Topic
youtu.be
August 28, 2026 at 8:04 PM
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 30
Song with a name in the title
Indie supergroup philosophizes about That Ground Ball.
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 30
Song with a name in the title
Indie supergroup philosophizes about That Ground Ball.
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 28
Song with a name in the title
Barnard shout-out this time (Vega not Dietrich)
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 28
Song with a name in the title
Barnard shout-out this time (Vega not Dietrich)
Suzanne Vega - Marlene on the Wall (1986)
YouTube video by musick2138
youtu.be
August 27, 2026 at 8:17 PM
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 28
Song with a name in the title
Barnard shout-out this time (Vega not Dietrich)
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 28
Song with a name in the title
Barnard shout-out this time (Vega not Dietrich)
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 27
Song with a name in the title.
Nice Columbia football shout-out!
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 27
Song with a name in the title.
Nice Columbia football shout-out!
10,000 Maniacs - Hey Jack Kerouac
YouTube video by Natalie Merchant
youtu.be
August 26, 2026 at 8:27 PM
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 27
Song with a name in the title.
Nice Columbia football shout-out!
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 27
Song with a name in the title.
Nice Columbia football shout-out!
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 26
A song with a name in the title
The video of this (more) Africanized cover version starts with Manu Dibango impersonating the African continent and includes backing vocals from Peter Gabriel.
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 26
A song with a name in the title
The video of this (more) Africanized cover version starts with Manu Dibango impersonating the African continent and includes backing vocals from Peter Gabriel.
Manu Dibango - Biko (Clip officiel)
YouTube video by Wagram+
youtu.be
August 25, 2026 at 8:27 PM
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 26
A song with a name in the title
The video of this (more) Africanized cover version starts with Manu Dibango impersonating the African continent and includes backing vocals from Peter Gabriel.
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 26
A song with a name in the title
The video of this (more) Africanized cover version starts with Manu Dibango impersonating the African continent and includes backing vocals from Peter Gabriel.
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 25
A song with a name in the title.
"They say that afterlife’s an afterglow.
I’m gonna wait ‘til John Lee Hooker says so."
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 25
A song with a name in the title.
"They say that afterlife’s an afterglow.
I’m gonna wait ‘til John Lee Hooker says so."
Garland Jeffreys - Till John Lee Hooker Calls Me
YouTube video by Kolja Schwarten
youtu.be
August 24, 2026 at 8:17 PM
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 25
A song with a name in the title.
"They say that afterlife’s an afterglow.
I’m gonna wait ‘til John Lee Hooker says so."
#MusicChallenge
#MusicSky
Day 25
A song with a name in the title.
"They say that afterlife’s an afterglow.
I’m gonna wait ‘til John Lee Hooker says so."
Streaming Michigan-Lithuania hoops. Wonder if the Euro stepping Michigan guys realize they are playing against the son of the originator, Sarunas Marciulionis?
August 23, 2026 at 5:52 PM
Streaming Michigan-Lithuania hoops. Wonder if the Euro stepping Michigan guys realize they are playing against the son of the originator, Sarunas Marciulionis?
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
Day 23
Song with a name in the title
LKJ's searing tribute to Walter Rodney ("blown to smithereens in the miggle of a dream")
#MusicChallenge
Day 23
Song with a name in the title
LKJ's searing tribute to Walter Rodney ("blown to smithereens in the miggle of a dream")
Linton Kwesi Johnson - Reggae fi Radni (Live 2001)
YouTube video by Dread Moon
youtu.be
August 22, 2026 at 8:04 PM
#JackNicholsong
#MusicChallenge
Day 23
Song with a name in the title
LKJ's searing tribute to Walter Rodney ("blown to smithereens in the miggle of a dream")
#MusicChallenge
Day 23
Song with a name in the title
LKJ's searing tribute to Walter Rodney ("blown to smithereens in the miggle of a dream")
Billy Bragg - Levi Stubbs Tears (Official Video)
YouTube video by Billy Bragg
youtu.be
August 21, 2026 at 10:12 PM
Warsh's next proposal: smoke signals on the solstices.
August 1, 2026 at 7:53 AM
Warsh's next proposal: smoke signals on the solstices.
A tennis hypothetical: Your serving and returning stats are around pro tour averages, as are your opponent's. Before a match, you are offered a 5% (pp) increase either in your first-serve pct or in the pct of points you win off your opponent's second serve. Which should you choose? 🎾
🧵1/4
🧵1/4
July 30, 2026 at 6:35 AM
A tennis hypothetical: Your serving and returning stats are around pro tour averages, as are your opponent's. Before a match, you are offered a 5% (pp) increase either in your first-serve pct or in the pct of points you win off your opponent's second serve. Which should you choose? 🎾
🧵1/4
🧵1/4
A tennis hypothetical: Your serving and returning stats are around pro tour averages, as are your opponent's. Before a match, you are offered a 5% (pp) increase either in your first-serve pct or in the pct of points you win off your opponent's second serve. Which should you choose? 🎾
A hypothesis on who wins: Dominance = 0.75 (relative return rating) + 0.25 (relative serve rating)
Explanation: You win by getting breaks, which requires mobility and mental toughness. This is also partly already explained by weakness in your opponent’s serve. Still, serve is not enough.
Explanation: You win by getting breaks, which requires mobility and mental toughness. This is also partly already explained by weakness in your opponent’s serve. Still, serve is not enough.
July 29, 2026 at 8:00 PM
A tennis hypothetical: Your serving and returning stats are around pro tour averages, as are your opponent's. Before a match, you are offered a 5% (pp) increase either in your first-serve pct or in the pct of points you win off your opponent's second serve. Which should you choose? 🎾
Rubio may be a closet Poulantzian: "Markets are crashing because markets are based on the stock value of companies who today are embedded in modes of production that are bad for the United States." -- Remarks at NATO headquarters, 4 April 2025
Miliband set to meet Rubio amid Trump fury at his Foreign Secretary appointment
Miliband also called for calm in the conflict between Iran and the US, as Trump threatened to ‘bomb and destroy’ bridges and power stations
www.independent.co.uk
July 22, 2026 at 6:27 PM
Rubio may be a closet Poulantzian: "Markets are crashing because markets are based on the stock value of companies who today are embedded in modes of production that are bad for the United States." -- Remarks at NATO headquarters, 4 April 2025
Burnham anthem to-be:"Break a Circuit with Me".
Make a circuit with me - The Polecats
YouTube video by NewWaveAlternative
youtu.be
July 20, 2026 at 4:58 PM
Burnham anthem to-be:"Break a Circuit with Me".
July 18, 2026 at 8:42 PM
Limited Texas experience (besides black ice on the I-40 in Amarillo in January 1995, one of the scariest moments of my life), but this monologue is classic.
July 18, 2026 at 6:42 PM
Limited Texas experience (besides black ice on the I-40 in Amarillo in January 1995, one of the scariest moments of my life), but this monologue is classic.
Generalissimo Mitch McConnell...
July 17, 2026 at 7:03 PM
Generalissimo Mitch McConnell...
Man, that Moby Dick quotation bot really jumps in quick with the commentary.
July 14, 2026 at 6:35 PM
Man, that Moby Dick quotation bot really jumps in quick with the commentary.
One thing I like about all the Czech players, women and men, is that they seem to be products of a coaching system where ridiculous grips are simply not tolerated. 🎾 #wimbledon
July 11, 2026 at 4:34 PM
One thing I like about all the Czech players, women and men, is that they seem to be products of a coaching system where ridiculous grips are simply not tolerated. 🎾 #wimbledon
Infantino later today: Belgium's appeal accepted retrospectively. Game must be replayed without Balogun.
July 7, 2026 at 5:54 AM
Infantino later today: Belgium's appeal accepted retrospectively. Game must be replayed without Balogun.