Ian Walsh

Jason White on US-Israeli strikes on Iran – cartoon Donald Trump’s decision to join Israel in attacking Iran will be an acid test for his core support – and his falling ratings at home

Jason White on US-Israeli strikes on Iran – cartoon

Helsinki just went a full year without a single traffic death The capital city is Finnish’ed with car-related fatalities.

“Helsinki hasn’t registered a single traffic-related fatality in the past year…Citing data that shows the risk of pedestrian fatality is cut in half by reducing a car’s speed from 40 to 30km/hr, city officials imposed the lower limit in most of Helsinki’s residential areas and city center in 2021.”

I think about this Tony Benn speech much more than I used to

Never forget who you’re fighting for.

"The Peace President." [Cartoon by Benjamin Slyngstad]

Cat smoking pipe perched on a rock, thought bubble says: I am tired of earth. These people. I am tired of being caught in the tangle of their lives.

Canada rightly condemns the Iran regime but then says it supports the US-led war in Iran, despite it violating international law, a topic on which PM Carney is silent.

Is abandoning international law what Carney meant by principled realism in his Davos speech?

Louisiana schools can display Ten Commandments, appeals court rules Court lifted injunction on law requiring display of religious text in every public school classroom

Why the Commandments, and not the Beatitudes?

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

Can a FIFA World Peace Prize winner forfeit that award on scoring an own goal?

Note to everyone outside the US: stay tf away from Chat GTP … and any other US AI product.

I think Trump is such a narcissist that he resents weekends for diverting even a little attention away from him, so we’re not allowed those either.

Firefighters in Sicily rescue 400 rare books from library after landslide Landslide in Niscemi in January tore away entire slope of town and carved 4km chasm Firefighters in Sicily have rescued about 400 rare books from a library in Niscemi that hangs on the edge of a mudflow, after a devastating landslide in January tore away an entire slope of the town and carved a 4km chasm. The library stands on the lip of the precipice gouged out by the landslide, with part of the building in effect hanging in mid-air. The recovery operation, which began on Monday, was preceded by a detailed study of floor plans and interior photographs to map the position of the books. Continue reading...

Firefighters in Sicily rescue 400 rare books from library after landslide

i’m tired of every paper (even critical ones) on societal impact of AI starting by both-siding the “benefits” and risks/harms of AI

in academia, i would like us to arrive at a collective reckoning that we don’t need to play both sides. it's totally legit to clearly state just the harms. period

‘We’re losing accessibility’: America says goodbye to the mass-market paperback The so-called ‘pocket book’ sold in supermarkets is being phased out across the US, the latest sign of an ongoing shift in how people are choosing to read

‘We’re losing accessibility’: America says goodbye to the mass-market paperback

Leave big tech behind! How to replace Amazon, Google, X, Meta, Apple – and more A handful of companies monopolise the web, with unprecedented access to our data. But there are many more ethical – and often distinctively European – alternatives

Leave big tech behind! How to replace Amazon, Google, X, Meta, Apple – and more

Read History Workshop Journal's 100th Issue.

History Workshop Journal just published its 100th issue—a landmark celebration of critical, community-driven history!

From archival recoveries to new interpretations of protest, gender, & empire, HWJ reshapes how we think about the past: oxford.ly/46iUcd2 @historyworkshop.org.uk

History: who the fuck?

Historiography: who asked "who the fuck" and why the fuck did they?

Rare Roman lead ingots found by metal detectorists in Ceredigion The objects, which were used to produce tools and weapons, were found on grazing land in west Wales.

'Exceptionally rare' Roman lead blocks found on farmland in west Wales. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Proving Genocide: Genocidal Intent and Other Aims Genocidal intent coexists with other aims, and evidence from conduct and statements helps establish true purpose in Gambia v. Myanmar.

The ICJ recently concluded public hearings in The Gambia v. Myanmar. Here, @adhaque.bsky.social examines how the Court should address the issue of proving when a State acted with genocidal intent alongside other political or military aims:

#Rohingya #Myanmar #Genocide

Some years back, there was a really interesting conference in Madrid on that very point.

The stranger secret: how to talk to anyone – and why you should Forget fear of public speaking. A lot of people now shy away completely from speaking to anyone in public. But if we learn to do this it’s enriching, for ourselves and society

"Forget fear of public speaking. A lot of people now shy away completely from speaking to anyone in public. But if we learn to do this it’s enriching, for ourselves and society"
www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...

Trump’s vicious attacks on judges fuel his bid for unchecked power | Steven Greenhouse The president and his aides vilify the judiciary with brutal rhetoric, hoping to delegitimize a co-equal branch of government

Trump’s vicious attacks on judges fuel his bid for unchecked power | Steven Greenhouse

So Epstein buddies Andrew and Mandelson have been arrested in the UK. And in the US? Zero, zip, nada | Marina Hyde At least the British gave us the perp-walk shots. But I fear that any Americans seeking real justice will have to wait, and wait, and wait, says Guardian columnist Marina Hyde

So Epstein buddies Andrew and Mandelson have been arrested in the UK. And in the US? Zero, zip, nada | Marina Hyde

Lovejoy episode helps antiques dealer identify stolen Napoleon III artefacts Repeat of BBC series gave clue to Paul Gostelow about 19th-century altar cards taken from crypt in Hampshire Two priceless artefacts stolen more than a decade ago from the crypt of Napoleon III in England have been recovered after an antiques dealer realised he had them while watching a repeat of the comedy drama Lovejoy. The wooden 19th-century altar cards were taken in a burglary at St Michael’s Abbey in Farnborough, Hampshire in February 2014 and were feared lost for ever. Continue reading...

Lovejoy episode helps antiques dealer identify stolen Napoleon III artefacts

They look great.

OUP have published the first chapter of my Runes book (on the earliest period of runic writing) open access until 19 Feb. Do have a look if you're interested! academic.oup.com/book/61598/c...

What are you reading at the moment? Is it good?

HMS Saldanha: Wooden structure believed to be 214-year-old shipwreck Strong winds have revealed what some locals believe to be the remains of HMS Saldanha, which sank in 1811.

County Donegal: could this be wreckage from a 214-year-old maritime disaster? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Only 10% of boys aged 14-16 read daily for pleasure, UK study finds National Literacy Trust survey says time for books is being crowded out by schoolwork, screens and sports Fewer than one in 10 boys aged 14 to 16 read daily, according to research, which found reading for pleasure was being crowded out of teenage lives by schoolwork, screens and sports. While reading declines for both boys and girls in early adolescence, there are “signs of recovery” among girls in later teenage years, but boys’ engagement remains persistently low, according to the National Literacy Trust (NLT). Continue reading...

Only 10% of boys aged 14-16 read daily for pleasure, UK study finds

Add it to the top of your TBR pile!