Mitchell Lennan

Literally everyone I know with indefinite leave to remain is either in the NHS or education - so I’m not sure how they can prove they’ve contributed more to society than they’ve always done. They’ve certainly done more than any no mark Labour politician whose sat on their lazy arse their entire life

Why recognize the State of Palestine?

Isn't it pointless?

Mere symbolism?

Isn't the two-state solution an illusion?

Or even a trap?

Whatever your view, take a minute to read this speech by Palestine's Deputy Ambassador to the UN from June 30.

digitallibrary.un.org/record/40861...

Defining Away Palestine

A must-read piece by @ntinatzouvala.bsky.social

voelkerrechtsblog.org/defining-awa...

“As academic and other institutions in the Global North closed ranks in support of a nuclear state unleashing unspeakable violence against an intentionally starved population, /1

Turns out it’s very easy to entertain a law of the sea academic in Belfast @mitchlennan.bsky.social

I used to go at enormous lengths debating my fellow Ukrainians (especially pro-Israel ones) telling them that if we lose the war, our situation will be very much like that of Palestine. People laughed at me.

"We cannot afford to despair. Plastics producers know that change is possible and that the case for it grows stronger by the day. They have fought it off for now, but they must not prevail."
Read more in @theguardian.com bit.ly/4lB2CBl

People posting about how they’ve never seen em dashes used before the rise of ChatGPT are really great at telling folks they’ve never read a book before.

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UNTVlLivestream constantly cutting out is not doing wonders for my nerves right now.

Two key #ClimateChange & #HumanRights developments from last week's #HRC59

‼️ The Marshall Islands proposed an amendment on #FossilFuels to the resolution on human rights and climate change - being negotiated this week

🌐 Dominican Republic & Malta announced resolution on #SeaLevelRise at #HRC60

I have had death threats for my work on trans rights. I have been stalked. I have had people try and have me thrown out of my University. I am by no means alone, and lots of trans-inclusive academics have spoken publicly about the violence and harassment they face. But no mention of that here.

For those who are interested in human rights and climate change this Advisory Opinion is one to watch, so please mark Thursday 3 July 5pm UK time in your diaries.

Keeping fingers crossed for a really strong opinion.

Section 28: Death threats and Holyrood's 'first culture war' Wendy Alexander recalls being at the centre of the bitter fight over the controversial law, 25 years on.

I missed this really good piece yesterday about the repeal of Section 28 in Scotland, one of the very first acts of the then-new Scottish Parliament. Moments like this are always worth looking back on to remember how legislation can and should change before opinion does www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Labour "We are committed to defending the ECHR, so long as we can ignore and circumvent it. It needs to change to suit what we want"
Leave the ECHR or "cause it to evolve", the outcome is you deliberately deny human rights to certain groups based on your priorities, nullifying them being universal.

Our latest on the seasonal worker visa.

What jumped out at me when reading this government-commissioned report is that farm-owners will quite openly say that they prefer migrant workers to accrue huge levels of debt, because this pushes them to work harder so that they can pay it off.

Over 200 lawyers, academic and practising, signed the following letter to the UK Govt and parliamentary committees (Westminster and devolved) expressing our concerns over the FWS decision, its implications for trans rights in the UK, and the EHRC approach to it:

www.parliament.scot/-/media/file...

⚡️ ⚖️ Precedent-setting #climatelitigation victory this morning in #SaulvsRWE
🙌 🎉 A victory for #climatejustice and corporate accountability
🧵🧑‍⚖️ A short thread to unpack the key legal principles reaffirmed by the judges of the Higher Court of Hamm 🇩🇪 ⬇️ 1/8

Given that we’re a nation of nature lovers, whose conservation charities are among the world's biggest membership organisations, Keir Starmer’s repeated attacks on voters who want to protect the living planet, calling us “time-wasting nimbys”, “blockers” and “zealots”, is frankly idiotic.

After Two SpaceX Explosions, U.K. Officials Ask FAA to Change Starship Flight Plans Facing a significant increase in the number of SpaceX launches, British officials detailed their concerns about the safety of Turks and Caicos and other Caribbean territories after debris from an earl...

NEW: Facing a significant increase in the number of SpaceX launches, British officials detailed their concerns about the safety of Turks and Caicos and other Caribbean territories after debris from an earlier failed launch littered beaches and roads.

By @heathervogell.bsky.social

a guy playing bagpipes to a penguin

TIL there was a Scottish National Antarctic Expedition and it produced this image

you do not actually need to debate fascists what's more you should not debate fascists & you should definitely definitely definitely not think that debating fascists online is a form of activism or organising because it is not

the right will not be defeated in the marketplace of ideas mostly because like the marketplace of ideas is very much a *market* and like all markets it's not actually particularly meritocratic or democratic hope that helps

In retrospect we should have reacted much more strongly to people being like “you’re just virtue signaling, you’re just saying you have virtue, you’re just treating virtue like it’s a good thing for an adult human being to have, you just want to run around everywhere having morality and being good”

Over 1,000 EPA Workers on Climate Change and More Could Be Fired ‘Immediately’ A spokeswoman for Lee Zeldin, the new head of the agency, said the goal was to create an “effective and efficient” federal work force.

Seems fine: “The Trump administration has warned more than 1,100 Environmental Protection Agency employees who work on climate change, reducing air pollution, enforcing environmental laws and other programs that they could be fired at any time.”

Record-low Antarctic sea ice in 2023 increased ocean heat loss and storms - Nature The record-low Antarctic sea-ice decline in 2023 substantially altered Southern Ocean–atmosphere interaction leading to unprecedented wintertime turbulent ocean heat loss to the atmosphere, ...

As sea ice around Antarctica disappears, the Southern Ocean releases more heat into the atmosphere and fuels more storms. This has got to increase air-sea CO₂ exchange as well. 🌊

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

An utterly damning and horrific image.

UN Secretary General requests AO from the ICJ on the obligations of Israel in relation to the presence and activities of the United Nations, other international organizations and third States in OPT icj-cij.org/sites/defaul...

Biodiversity is declining at every level and in every region.

The @ipbes.bsky.social #NexusAssessment highlights critical links between biodiversity, water, food, health, and climate, and shares solutions to tackle these environmental crises.

#IPBES11 info: www.ipbes.net/node/85582

Me in 2004, teaching 10th graders: For the love of god don't cite Wikipedia, it's not a reliable source

Me in 2024, to literally anyone in earshot: Good ol' Wikipedia, the only thing the internet hasn't fucked up yet

Colleague surprised me with a new fish mug today 🥰