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Justdaveastated

@davechallen.bsky.social

Poet, biker, cynical leftie git. Just a social media tourist wandering through the wasteland trying to work out what the hell is going on.

493 Followers  |  978 Following  |  19 Posts  |  Joined: 25.11.2023  |  1.8737

Latest posts by davechallen.bsky.social on Bluesky

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This stateโ€™s power prices are plummeting as it nears 100% renewables South Australia is proving to the world that relying largely on wind and solar energy with battery back-up is incredibly cheap, with electricity prices tumbling by 30 per cent in a year and sometimes ...

South #Australia power prices plummeting as it nears 100% renewables, proving to the world relying largely on wind and solar energy with battery back-up is incredibly cheap, with electricity prices tumbling by 30 % in a year and sometimes going negative.
www.newscientist.com/article/2514...

12.02.2026 10:22 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 91    ๐Ÿ” 53    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 7    ๐Ÿ“Œ 5
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If you thought the UK's pro-superrich
two-tier justice system was bad
and considered Israel a vibrant democracy
rather than apartheid terrorist state ...

"But they still claim history started on Oct 7th"
via Nas Ali

07.02.2026 08:51 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 51    ๐Ÿ” 38    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 2
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Israel has murdered more than 500 Palestinians in Gaza since it signed the so called ceasefire. One of the latest is a 3 year old child.

02.02.2026 08:27 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 360    ๐Ÿ” 282    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 21    ๐Ÿ“Œ 16
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This number DOES NOT include those starved, crushed, missing or killed by disease resulting from the attack.

29.01.2026 17:36 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 868    ๐Ÿ” 531    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 76    ๐Ÿ“Œ 41
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UK Free Zones: The Most Under-Reported Scandal in Britain's History This post lays out one of the most under-reported but structurally dangerous trends in global governance: the proliferation of corporate-controlled arbitration mechanisms embedded in Freeports, Specia...

My article UK Free Zones: The Most Under-Reported Scandal in Britain's History, is free to read on my Substack.
Please share it.
open.substack.com/pub/european...

31.07.2025 05:53 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 88    ๐Ÿ” 76    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 3    ๐Ÿ“Œ 3
Post image 23.01.2026 09:10 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3523    ๐Ÿ” 1647    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 93    ๐Ÿ“Œ 139
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Thanks to Brexit, we no longer have to put up with unelected bureaucrats.
In other news, the new leader of Reform in Scotland is Lord Malcolm Offord, totally unelected in any capacity whatsoever and appointed as leader by me alone. Still, it's only Scotland.

16.01.2026 18:57 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 644    ๐Ÿ” 210    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 24    ๐Ÿ“Œ 7
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This from @vizcomic.bsky.social will never get old.

30.12.2025 09:19 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 629    ๐Ÿ” 193    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 6    ๐Ÿ“Œ 7
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Arsenal faces backlash over Israel-linked Deel partnership

Arsenal has announced a multi-year partnership with HR platform Deel, naming it the clubโ€™s Official HR Platform Partner, with branding set to appear at the Emirates Stadium.

The Israeli-American company operates

22.12.2025 18:44 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 4    ๐Ÿ” 3    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Chavez in 2009, while being labelled as paranoid, outlines exactly what is happening today.

17.12.2025 22:09 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 7136    ๐Ÿ” 3100    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 16    ๐Ÿ“Œ 107
This is the saddest day of my professional life.
Today is not only the final recording of the latest series of The Infinite Monkey Cage, it is my last ever Monkey Cage.
I never thought that I would have to leave the show. I always imagined going on until | dropped dead under the studio lights due to a brain aneurysm caused by my final attempt to understand notions of quantum gravity or the shock of being told about fly maggot infestations in the sacks of macaque monkeys.
I resigned in September, after sixteen years of dedication to the show,
A show that I named and helped develop over all those years.
Unfortunately, my opinions outside the BBC have been considered problematic for sometime, whether it has been voicing support for the trans community, criticism of Donald Trump, numerous other outlandish opinions, including once gently criticising Stephen Fry.
These things were considered to conflict with being a freelance BBC science presenter

This is the saddest day of my professional life. Today is not only the final recording of the latest series of The Infinite Monkey Cage, it is my last ever Monkey Cage. I never thought that I would have to leave the show. I always imagined going on until | dropped dead under the studio lights due to a brain aneurysm caused by my final attempt to understand notions of quantum gravity or the shock of being told about fly maggot infestations in the sacks of macaque monkeys. I resigned in September, after sixteen years of dedication to the show, A show that I named and helped develop over all those years. Unfortunately, my opinions outside the BBC have been considered problematic for sometime, whether it has been voicing support for the trans community, criticism of Donald Trump, numerous other outlandish opinions, including once gently criticising Stephen Fry. These things were considered to conflict with being a freelance BBC science presenter

In a recent meeting where BBC Studio executives again voiced problems with me, I realised my choices.
Obedience and being quieter to remain making Monkey Cage, or 'Resign and have the freedom to speak out against what I believe are injustices'.
โ€ข
I chose the latter.
It broke my heart.
I love this show and I love the audience, and it is because of the audience in particular, that this decision was so difficult to make.
I kept thinking about all the extremist voices promoting hate and division. They are being given so many platforms, while voices that represent kindness, open mindedness, empathy seem to be scarcer and scarcer.
I felt I couldn't pamper myself with the luxury of silence.
One of my many privileges is that I am able to resign and I can speak out even if it is to the detriment of my career.

In a recent meeting where BBC Studio executives again voiced problems with me, I realised my choices. Obedience and being quieter to remain making Monkey Cage, or 'Resign and have the freedom to speak out against what I believe are injustices'. โ€ข I chose the latter. It broke my heart. I love this show and I love the audience, and it is because of the audience in particular, that this decision was so difficult to make. I kept thinking about all the extremist voices promoting hate and division. They are being given so many platforms, while voices that represent kindness, open mindedness, empathy seem to be scarcer and scarcer. I felt I couldn't pamper myself with the luxury of silence. One of my many privileges is that I am able to resign and I can speak out even if it is to the detriment of my career.

I have thought a lot about my heroes, Sinead O Connor, James Baldwin, Audre Lorde, and so many more.
I think of Sinead's words, "the job of an artist is to be themselves at any cost".
James Baldwin said prejudice was really just a word for cowardice.
Audre Lorde, viewing her life, wrote that her only regrets were her silences.
I think of my father as I resign, he brought me up to believe in fairness , justice and kindness.
Though my heart is broken, it is also full of fire.
I apologise to our incredible listeners for my departure, your love of the show means a great deal.
I am so sorry to let you down.
I hope that you can understand my reasoning.
I have to accept that I am not what the current
BBC expects of their freelance presenters.

I have thought a lot about my heroes, Sinead O Connor, James Baldwin, Audre Lorde, and so many more. I think of Sinead's words, "the job of an artist is to be themselves at any cost". James Baldwin said prejudice was really just a word for cowardice. Audre Lorde, viewing her life, wrote that her only regrets were her silences. I think of my father as I resign, he brought me up to believe in fairness , justice and kindness. Though my heart is broken, it is also full of fire. I apologise to our incredible listeners for my departure, your love of the show means a great deal. I am so sorry to let you down. I hope that you can understand my reasoning. I have to accept that I am not what the current BBC expects of their freelance presenters.

Despite this I should add that I have always worked far more than my contracted hours to try and ensure the show was always the best it could be, as well as making myself accessible and responsive to the audience wherever and whenever I met them. Every night, we have recorded, I have been filled with determination to make the best show possible. This was not
"just a job"
I hope that with my departure I can be a better ally to the LGBTQ community, to the neurodivergent community, to activists fighting against those who aim to brutalise society, to those currently in prison on hunger strike, and to all those who fight for a more inclusive world.
From many conversations, I know there are many Monkey Cage listeners who support these communities and activists too.
The strawberry is dead.
Long live the strawberry. B

Despite this I should add that I have always worked far more than my contracted hours to try and ensure the show was always the best it could be, as well as making myself accessible and responsive to the audience wherever and whenever I met them. Every night, we have recorded, I have been filled with determination to make the best show possible. This was not "just a job" I hope that with my departure I can be a better ally to the LGBTQ community, to the neurodivergent community, to activists fighting against those who aim to brutalise society, to those currently in prison on hunger strike, and to all those who fight for a more inclusive world. From many conversations, I know there are many Monkey Cage listeners who support these communities and activists too. The strawberry is dead. Long live the strawberry. B

Very sad that I felt I had no choice but to resign from The Infinite Monkey Cage - a victory for the transphobes and other bigots - I did it because so much of the media has chosen to believe the kind and empathetic people are a fiction - they are real and so often unrepresented.

13.12.2025 00:00 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 10738    ๐Ÿ” 2847    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1026    ๐Ÿ“Œ 684
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Weโ€™re constantly focussed on symptoms! The welfare state is, partly, a symptom of a broken housing market + board level capitalism & greed. Immigrationโ€™s a symptom of countries being exploited for their resources & war.
We need to tackle the causes and stop demonising the resultant victims.

10.12.2025 08:54 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 15    ๐Ÿ” 4    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 1

The hands of the damned pulling earth into hell award

05.12.2025 17:56 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 329    ๐Ÿ” 69    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 7    ๐Ÿ“Œ 2
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What an obsequious, toadying, servile, brown-nosing, corrupt little cunt Gianni Infantino is.

The FIFA 'peace prize' is the most cringe-worthy, pathetic thing I've ever seen in my life.

Football deserves better than this travesty of a ceremony and ruling body.

05.12.2025 17:43 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 1943    ๐Ÿ” 433    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 154    ๐Ÿ“Œ 60
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Sorry If This Is Antisemitic But I Think It's Wrong To Train Dogs To Rape Prisoners Listen to a reading of this article (reading by Tim Foley):

Sorry If This Is Antisemitic But I Think It's Wrong To Train Dogs To Rape Prisoners

One thing I try not to think about is how many reports weโ€™ve been seeing about Israeli prison guards training dogs to rape Palestinian captives in torture camps like Sde Teiman.
www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/sorry-if-t...

04.12.2025 01:12 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 210    ๐Ÿ” 92    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 8    ๐Ÿ“Œ 8

Here is my peace plan for Ukraine/Russia.

1. Russia gets the fuck out of Ukraine.

2. Putin goes on trial in the Hague.

3. Russia pays everyone for everything.

4. Trump gets impeached, convicted, and sent to jail.

Thanks for your attention to this matter.

24.11.2025 16:12 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 7233    ๐Ÿ” 1496    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 304    ๐Ÿ“Œ 118

Child benefit for the average person:

First child: ยฃ1354 per year
Each additional ยฃ 897

What MPs can claim:

ยฃ5,500 per child per year max ยฃ16,500 per year

28.11.2025 10:19 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 89    ๐Ÿ” 54    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 10    ๐Ÿ“Œ 2
screenshot of a tumblr post from user โ€œwildmanstersโ€

The thing that really boils my potatoes about Al in general is that I have been a creative professional for over a decade now and the devil has ALWAYS been in the details. Big and small, I've had single-person businesses rip me to shreds over how their colors turned out on newsprint, and have worked with huge companies with THICK brand guidelines with every detail of their brand identity laid out and enforced with an iron fist.

But I guess all of that stuff doesn't matter anymore? Who gives a fuck if this Al generated baby has six fingers, that mom-and-pop shop is still going to use it. That rug from Temu says Happy Thanksgivirg? Oh well haha it's just a silly funny thing now (nevermind that you never would have given a B-grade item from a craft show the same consideration). I don't actually care that the Al Coca-cola ad has a truck that changes size every scene, but I can't help but think about how, if it had been some poor underpaid artist, they would have been laughed out of the building.

I don't really know how to put it in a succint way but it just feels all the more obvious how much more grace and flexibility has always been possible but never offered.

screenshot of a tumblr post from user โ€œwildmanstersโ€ The thing that really boils my potatoes about Al in general is that I have been a creative professional for over a decade now and the devil has ALWAYS been in the details. Big and small, I've had single-person businesses rip me to shreds over how their colors turned out on newsprint, and have worked with huge companies with THICK brand guidelines with every detail of their brand identity laid out and enforced with an iron fist. But I guess all of that stuff doesn't matter anymore? Who gives a fuck if this Al generated baby has six fingers, that mom-and-pop shop is still going to use it. That rug from Temu says Happy Thanksgivirg? Oh well haha it's just a silly funny thing now (nevermind that you never would have given a B-grade item from a craft show the same consideration). I don't actually care that the Al Coca-cola ad has a truck that changes size every scene, but I can't help but think about how, if it had been some poor underpaid artist, they would have been laughed out of the building. I don't really know how to put it in a succint way but it just feels all the more obvious how much more grace and flexibility has always been possible but never offered.

i know WHY this is but that just makes it even more of a kick in the pants lmao

28.11.2025 03:27 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 22316    ๐Ÿ” 7582    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 21    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Post image 25.11.2025 11:29 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 107    ๐Ÿ” 27    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 5
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The real BBC bias story, narrated by Anna Ford

19.11.2025 12:12 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3339    ๐Ÿ” 1967    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 117    ๐Ÿ“Œ 165
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UK inflation rate falls to 3.6% in year to October Prices have been rising more slowly in the twelve months to October.

Inflation is down! Unfortunately once again we wonโ€™t notice as food inflation rose to 4.9%

Panic not; Reeves is determined to bring prices down. However, we all know once food prices go up, they never come down.

Clueless doesnโ€™t begin to describe these people
www.bbc.com/news/article...

19.11.2025 09:03 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 30    ๐Ÿ” 10    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 4    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Well said. See also the NHS.

12.11.2025 08:58 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Labour is putting its plans for Britain in the hands of private finance. It could end badly | Daniela Gabor Handing vital infrastructure to big finance will generate windfalls for investors and leave the rest of us worse off. We need a better plan, says Daniela Gabor, a professor of economics and macrofinan...

If the UK government partnership with BlackRock becomes a model replicated elsewhere, debt-financed utility ownership could become normalised internationally.
The UK is being privatised.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

09.11.2025 08:11 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 46    ๐Ÿ” 39    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 2

Just got my 6 monthly water bill. Useage is up 8% but the bill is up 43%!! All so we can pay - again - for the work the water companies should have been doing for the last 30 years but instead paid themselves bonuses while pouring sewage into our countryside.
Thanks Ofwat you absolute bellends.

08.11.2025 14:58 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 97    ๐Ÿ” 20    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 4    ๐Ÿ“Œ 1
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What the numbers say about a failed ceasefire and the logic of zionism Israelโ€™s killings in Gaza are a reminder that every child's death isnโ€™t collateral damage. Still, rather it is the central logic of a system that cannot tolerat

Since a "ceasefire" was announced, Israel has killed 1,664 Palestinians in Gaza aloneโ€”a staggering average rate of 72.7 deaths/day.

When are you going to meet your OBLIGATIONS under int'l law in relation to this on-going GENOCIDE, @albomp.bsky.social?
goodshepherdcollective.org/posts/2025/1...

02.11.2025 02:35 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 99    ๐Ÿ” 77    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 5    ๐Ÿ“Œ 5
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Farage: epic grifter

27.10.2025 12:45 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 7873    ๐Ÿ” 4345    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 215    ๐Ÿ“Œ 436
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Wonderful stuff from @ledbydonkeys.org

#Farage
#Grifter

27.10.2025 12:26 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 136    ๐Ÿ” 78    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 6    ๐Ÿ“Œ 11
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Capitalism Is Shoving AI Down Our Throats Because It Can't Give Us What We Actually Want Listen to a reading of this article (reading by Tim Foley):

Capitalism Is Shoving AI Down Our Throats Because It Can't Give Us What We Actually Want

www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/capitalism...

26.10.2025 01:32 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 173    ๐Ÿ” 75    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 13    ๐Ÿ“Œ 2
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These iconic corals are nearly extinct due to heatwaves: can they be saved? Floridaโ€™s primary reef-building corals have been declared โ€˜functionally extinctโ€™ โ€” prompting a shift in conservation strategies.

I don't anticipate that humanity will ever seriously tackle climate change. So far we are living down to my expectations

"Floridaโ€™s primary reef-building corals have been declared โ€˜functionally extinctโ€™ โ€” prompting a shift in conservation strategies. "
www.nature.com/articles/d41...

24.10.2025 16:37 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 7    ๐Ÿ” 5    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

@davechallen is following 18 prominent accounts