Bliman

Boosting UK trade in one simple step Rejoining the European Customs Union would boost UK public finances by £25bn, say Westminster LibDems

Rejoining the European Customs Union would boost UK public finances by £25bn, say Westminster LibDems | Sir Graham Watson and Martin Roche

Some of the words that have made me smile this year.

Which words have given you happiness this year? I’d love to hear them.

(And if you fancy some distraction over the holidays, do give my word game Two Words a try.

twowords2.page.link/play)

Imagine knowing your platform was a playground for predators, fueling teen depression, eating disorders, and suicide and deciding the best course of action was… absolutely nothing. Meta didn’t just “miss” anything.

Is AI driving productivity in aggregate?

New figures from McKinsey suggest not:

1. Deployment is still fairly early stages - and in limited parts of companies - most commonly marketing, IT, knowledge management.

The 1,287,923 defects in the Comey case ... so far Welcome to the Rocket Docket, Lindsey Halligan!

New in PN: The 1,287,923 defects in the Comey case ... so far

"Dismissal is probably the best result for the government, since it would spare the DOJ having its dirty laundry aired in court before getting spanked for having brought such a garbage case. But even so, it'd be very, very funny."

Congratulations to Dawn Logan on another stunning Lib Dem by-election win, taking the seat of the former Conservative council leader!

Across the country, the Liberal Democrats are the ones winning against Reform. Our community politics is the best antidote to Nigel Farage.

Baby Marcelle Roulin - December 1888 #artbots #vangogh
https://botfrens.com/collections/46/contents/3109368

One-Step No-Churn Coffee Ice Cream I'm almost embarrassed at how easy this is but, as you will find out, simple though it is to make, its flavour is deep, complex and utterly compelling. So, here's how it goes: you don't make a custar...

Midweek Treat: #RecipeOfTheDay is one of my favourite ice creams, and the one I make more often than any other, due to popular demand! Here it is, my No-Churn Coffee Ice Cream. The flavour is sensational, and it’s just ridiculously easy to make. 1/2 (see next post) www.nigella.com/recipes/one-...

Daniel Hannan celebrates his chronicle of Brexit idiocy foretold | John Crace Back in 2016, Dan prophesied about what the post-EU sunlit uplands would be like on this very day – no spoiler alert needed

www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Shanna 2 (5819)

**Richard Burton narration intensifies**

The Secret Rules of the Terminal, by Julia Evans - The cover illustration depicts three people doing arcane terminal magic in a temple with a smoking censer in the background. Each of the three people has curly brown hair and light brown skin. They are all wearing dresses, billowing cloaks, and utility belts with keyboard symbols on them. The one on the left holds a palette of paints and a brush. The one on the right has a staff with a $ symbol on it and a starfish at the top. The one in the centre has a sword and is reading from a book whose cover says “>_” and “./”, which rests on a lectern with a smiling snake wrapped around it.

delighted to announce that my new zine "The Secret Rules of the Terminal" is out today!!

You can get it for $12 USD here: wizardzines.com/zines/terminal

Screenshot of BBC Breakfast news report with reporter Phil McCann live from Stockport outside a BP petrol station, with his name captioned on screen

Not greatest ever, but chuckled when the BBC sent Phil McCann to report on fuel issues

DEAN: What's the tariff on bananas?

LUTNICK: Generally 10%

DEAN: Walmart has already increased the cost of bananas by 8%

LUTNICK: If you build in America, there is no tariff

DEAN: We cannot build bananas in America

Politicians shouldn't rage-bait chart geeks. on.ft.com/4jrlz8h

The cruelty is intolerable.

There is one place, however, where Musk, with the help of his minions, achieved his goals. He did indeed shred U.S.A.I.D. Though a rump operation is now operating inside the State Department, the administration says that it has terminated more than 80 percent of U.S.A.I.D. grants. Brooke Nichols, an associate professor of global health at Boston University, has estimated that these cuts have already resulted in about 300,000 deaths, most of them of children, and will most likely lead to significantly more by the end of the year. That is what Musk’s foray into politics accomplished.

Musk should be asked about this in every interview he does now and forever. To ignore it is a dereliction of duty.

www.nytimes.com/2025/05/30/o...

A row of three cartoon iceberg lettuces with googly eyes. The third lettuce is missing a chunk representing 35% of it's total area so there are 2.65 lettuces shown in total.

All you need to know about Elon Musk’s stunning success is that he lasted 2.65 Liz Trusses and lost 150 billion dollars.

The report Kamal doesn't like, which you 🚫 absolutely 🚫 shouldn't read, and certainly shouldn't share, is here: taxpolicy.org.uk/2025/02/26/t...

Setu Kamal is a tax barrister who makes £1m+ a year facilitating abusive tax avoidance schemes.

We reported on one dodgy scheme he backs. His response is amazing…

He doesn't just want me to take our report down. He's demanding I say he's the UK's leading tax barrister:

Playable now: archive.org/details/Numb...

The Scottish government has chosen to discriminate against non-religious pupils with its new religious observance bill - Humanist Society Scotland Scottish government's new religious observance bill creates bizarre inequality, allowing pupils to opt into religious worship but not out.

Completely outrageous new Bill on compulsory religious observance in schools by the Scottish Government! www.humanism.scot/2025/05/06/t...

Laugh of the Day

Dear Sir, We act for Mr Arkell who is Retail Credit Manager of Granada TV Rental Ltd. His attention has been drawn to an article appearing in the issue of Private Eye dated 9th April 1971 on page 4. The statements made about Mr Arkell are entirely untrue and clearly highly defamatory. We are therefore instructed to require from you immediately your proposals for dealing with the matter. Mr Arkell's first concern is that there should be a full retraction at the earliest possible date in Private Eye and he will also want his costs paid. His attitude to damages will be governed by the nature of your reply. Yours etc.

It is, today, the 54th anniversary of a gift to satire: James Arkell’s solicitors writing to Private Eye, prompting everyone’s favourite reply. First, though, the initial letter:

A veteran colleague emails: "At last, an indisputable achievement that only Trump could have pulled off. Instant success in Ukraine didn't quite work, nor did his promise for Gaza, but surely only he could have brought about the Canadian result."

Sad news about the Happy Heat Pump Podcast.

Sorry to say, that after about 20 episodes, we’re drawing it to a close at the request of the BBC which worries it may be seen as steering into areas of public controversy.

1/2

youtu.be/RJPKgngqoX0?...

A ladybird / stubby red cow resting on a purple flower

The Vietnamese word for a ladybird, bọ rùa, means “turtle bug.” The Ukrainian word, сонечко (sonechko), means “little sun.” And the Norwegian word, marihøne, means “Mary’s chicken.” But my favourite word for a ladybird will always be the Welsh buwch goch gota, which I’d translate as “stubby red cow”

Beaker in The Scream by Edvard Munch.

the muppets in famous works of art: thread

🚨Some major errors & misleading claims from experienced presenter Nick Robinson on BBC Radio 4 Today, when discussing British Steel with Treasury Minister James Murray

I hope these are corrected on tomorrow's programme, and Robinson sticks to the facts in future.

Here's what he got wrong... 🧵