π΄'The Justification for the War against Iran Has Changed from Day to Day, with No Clear End Goal or Exit Strategy'
Former diplomat @alexhh.bsky.social describes the chaos in Washington
bylinetimes.com/2026/03/05/i...
@lesleybruce.bsky.social
Wife, mother, grandma to 3 girls and a baby boy. Horrified by the consequences of austerity, Brexit and the previous Tory government. Wanting a better country for my grandchildren.
π΄'The Justification for the War against Iran Has Changed from Day to Day, with No Clear End Goal or Exit Strategy'
Former diplomat @alexhh.bsky.social describes the chaos in Washington
bylinetimes.com/2026/03/05/i...
Oh.
05.03.2026 17:15 β π 610 π 175 π¬ 42 π 7
"Every bullet and air defense asset we give Ukraine is one that we can't use to defend Taiwan."
-proceeds to drop 2,500 kinetic strike packages on Iran in four days for no apparent reason triggering a response that drains every Patriot Missile on two continents-
Bigger. Problem. Than. Anticipated.
The first verified Shahed Drone attack on Ukraine was 1,270 days ago.
Ukrainian numbers put the number of Shahed strike UAVs launched at them last year alone at over 32,000.
Your brain, is it... not good? Do you have the bad brain? Sir? Sir?
Iβve spent years, decades, obsessing over the Bush Administrationβs Iraq WMD lies, writing about them, debunking them.
I can think of no lie about Iraq WMDs told by Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld et al that comes even close to the enormity and absurdity of this lie from Donald Trump.
I had no idea until this all started that the UAE licences and pays many influencers to live there and write positively about the regime.
That puts a whole new spin on things.
Propagandists in pocket of regime.
It's why all the messaging is the same.
www.lbc.co.uk/article/duba...
Iβm not a political strategist but what is rhe logic of Labour not owning the falling migration numbers and saying βweβre controlling our bordersβ rather than ever time repeating far right talking points
Seems a very odd approachβ¦.
www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...
From FT comments
05.03.2026 13:47 β π 3798 π 1306 π¬ 179 π 93
Again, Farage, Badenoch and their fellow travellers on X are wildly out of touch with the public on Iran.
Even the majority of Reform supporters oppose their position.
βThereβs no Somali folks in the Epstein Filesβ
Welp
The chaos in Iran is dominating the news, but do not let it overshadow what is happening right now.
Ukraine is still relentlessly striking deep inside Russia.
We need to help them fund more missiles to make this campaign even more devastating.
Keep the pressure on!
Who the hell is this guy? And what does he want as a return on his Β£millions invested in Reform? Because it sure as shit isnβt a fairer, more progressive, equal and prosperous UK with good public services and well-regulated consumer protections.
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Kemi giving a truly abysmal performance on Today, deeply out of her depth, insisting she's opposed to escalation whilst arguing for escalation, unable to actually articulate what she thinks should happen next. Just reflexively oppositional.
05.03.2026 08:44 β π 197 π 39 π¬ 14 π 2
The Brexit tendency seem to be absolutely losing their minds over the government's refusal to get bullied by America into an illegal war.
Quite something from the people who wanted "independence" and to "take back control."
It's almost like she hasn't been briefed and doesn't know what she's talking about and doesn't have google
04.03.2026 22:27 β π 482 π 95 π¬ 36 π 2
Remember the implausible story about a pub giving such a large discount for customers paying by cash that it sounded larger than any card transaction fees?
BBC has now responded to my complaint: "You may already be aware that we have removed this article as it did not meet our editorial standards."
Big money has bought British politics
75% of Reformβs money has come from three rich white men
democracyforsale.substack.com/p/75-of-refo...
Hegseth: "We are only four days into this and the results have been incredible."
- Middle East engulfed in regional war
- 11 countries attacked by Iran
- Oil & gas prices skyrocketing
- Strait of Hormuz now a conflict zone
- Terrorism threat raised across the world
- No sign of Iran regime collapse
Mine earlier today with @mrjamesob.bsky.social on @lbc.co.uk as we continue to track the Trump administration's inability to keep its own story straight about why it attacked Iran, and what it hopes to achieve.
π§: audioboom.com/posts/886933...
Iβll have some of that.
04.03.2026 17:13 β π 1125 π 119 π¬ 61 π 3
Jansen Ganesh is on fire in this column on the UKβs role in the Iran conflict
www.ft.com/content/eaee...
Reform fury as someone else wins by Our By-election Editor Tim Shipsink The losing candidate in the Gorton and Denton by-election, Matt Goodwhinge, has demanded an immediate re-run of the election on the grounds that he lost comprehensively to someone else. "It's totally unfair and rigged," said Goodwhinge. "I shouldn't be required to sit there and suck it up, just because I lost." Mr Goodwhine continued, *I can't believe that all those voters I demonised failed to back me. Especially after I was endorsed by Tommy Robinson and ten million Russian bots on X. "We have clear evidence of family voting, where people voted in order for me to stop deporting their families." Mr Badloser concluded. "I'm the victim of colour prejudice. They didn't vote for me simply because I'm not green." Reform leader Mr Farage, speaking from a sun lounger on a rock near the Chagos Islands said, "It's a tragedy that the people of Manchester won't see Matt in Westminster, but my constituents don't see me in Clacton either." PLUMBER DEFEATS MATT GOODWIN Photo of Hannah Spencer with speech bubble saying⦠I've stopped the cock
Beautiful from Private Eye on the massive toddler-tantrum that Matt Goodwin and Reform are having, because they got whooped in Gorton and Denton.
05.03.2026 07:35 β π 4089 π 1371 π¬ 87 π 72If Trump really canβt control Netanyahu, it seems at least feasible that Iran becomes Gaza 2.0, up to & including the hideous pretence that they bomb a land to smithereens to somehow help the people living there.
05.03.2026 07:44 β π 899 π 178 π¬ 87 π 4
Quietly, calmly and forensically, BBC just dismantled the Trump communications shitshow on Iran.
No hyperbole, just laying out an unprecedented military, diplomatic and reputational shambles.
Worth a watch.
(π₯ BBC News/BBC Verify)
The Tories' YT channel, meanwhile, think SHE SMASHED IT.π
It is embarrassing. She is embarrassing. Suggesting welfare is why we don't have more missiles is embarrassing. Philp jeering while PM is trying to list evacuation flights is embarrassing. They are embarrassing, yet somehow NOT embarrassED.
Incredibly telling Kemi Badenoch interview on Today:
- canβt say what sheβd actually want UK forces to do
- no idea what objective her proposed military action is to achieve
- hides from reality that single biggest constraint on British military = her govtβs defence cuts
As another military conflict shakes global fossil fuel markets, phasing gas and oil out of heating has never been more urgent. Surely this time common sense will prevail?
ehpa.org/news-and-res...
FT comments section this morning - saying what everyone else is thinking, right?
05.03.2026 07:15 β π 16100 π 5675 π¬ 497 π 474
Starmer might not float everyone's boat but thank God he's Prime Minister not Kemi Badenoch.
Badenoch as PM would be catastrophic for the country. Overwhelming self confidence is irrelevant if you have the judgement of a house brick.
#PMQs