It’s so very blatant. Instead of saying the true thing, say this manipulative lie.

The email goes on to advise MPs to avoid saying they accept the SC ruling. Here is what they advise LD MPs to say: pic.twitter.com/RZKgafCAzg

— Liberal Voice for Women (@LibVoice4Women) June 18, 2025

I especially like the ones where they just delete “women” and substitute something completely different. Yes we know, thanks for documenting.… Read the rest

If you’re a sleb you have to stand up in public and tell abusive lies about JK Rowling or you won’t be a luvvie any more. Stephen Fry energetically complies.

Speaking on the Show People podcast, Sir Stephen said: “She has been radicalised, I fear, and it may be she has been radicalised by terfs, but also by the vitriol that is thrown at her. It is unhelpful and only hardens her and will only continue to harden her, I am afraid. I am not saying that she [should] not be called out when she says things that are really cruel, wrong and mocking. She seems to be a lost cause for us.”

Yo, Sir Stephen, take a … Read the rest

Cool cool. Something for women for a change.

We are delighted to launch the first West Cheshire Women in Leadership programme, in partnership with women leaders at Chester Racecourse, Cheshire West and Chester Council, the Countess of Chester Hospital, Lloyds Banking Group and the University of Chester.

The programme grew out of a panel discussion at the 2024 Storyhouse Women festival, entitled The Future of Chester is Female. With so many of Chester’s key organisations now run by women, we asked ourselves ‘how can we use this to benefit other women?’

That question led to the development of this programme. We are not representative of all women, but we have come together to share our lived experience with others,

Rolling Stone on The Ugly:

Among the weighty roles and responsibilities placed on the American president’s shoulders, the least controversial is the practice of calling other politicians, in the face of personal or public tragedy, to make sure that they have everything they need. If a president wants to go above and beyond that lowest of bars, they offer condolences, and act like a human instead of a partisan hack. 

This week, after a spree shooter killed former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman [and] her husband, and severely injured state Senator John Hoffman and his wife, President Donald Trump hasn’t bothered to pick up the phone to speak with Minnesota’s head of state. 

…

By Tuesday morning, it appeared

This is disgusting. You have to lean in to hear what he says – and what he says is nausea-inducing.

Days after a Minnesota state lawmaker was killed and another was injured in a “politically motivated assassination,” President Donald Trump said Tuesday he would not call the state’s governor, eschewing a traditional presidential response to tragedies.

“Why would I call him? I could call and say, ‘Hi, how you doing?’ The guy doesn’t have a clue,” Trump said, referring to Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, who was the vice presidential contender facing off against Trump’s ticket last year. “He’s a mess. So I could be nice and call, but why waste time?”

He does actually say that.… Read the rest

The Associated Press is staffed by teenagers.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors, a stunning setback to transgender rights.

Stunning shmunning. There is no “right” to be mutilated or prescribed harmful drugs or both. The whole idea of “gender-affirming care” is both absurd and malign.

Imagine if people started claiming to idennify as trees, and doctors rushed to provide transarborial rights. Yes, certainly, we will encase you in bark and replace your head with foliage, and behold, you are affirmed as a tree.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for a conservative majority that the law does not violate the Constitution’s equal protection clause, which requires the government to treat similarly situated

Brilliant work, Bob.

In 13 years at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Fiona Havers crafted guidance for contending with Zika virus, helped China respond to outbreaks of bird flu and guided safe burial practices for Ebola deaths in Liberia.

More recently, she was a senior adviser on vaccine policy, leading a team that produced data on hospitalizations related to Covid-19 and respiratory syncytial virus. To the select group of scientists, federal officials and advocates who study who should get immunizations and when, Dr. Havers is well known, an embodiment of the C.D.C.’s intensive data-gathering operations.

On Monday, Dr. Havers resigned, saying she could no longer continue while the health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., dismantled the

Originally a comment by Nullius in Verba on Veering.

I recently joined the local YMCA because it’s the only gym within anything like reasonable driving distance. When filling out the application online, there was a gender identity field that was marked mandatory. Since I don’t play that game, I went the next day to ask about it in person. My mother went with me, as she was also incensed about it. The girls at the front desk weren’t even aware of the field, since it isn’t on the paper app. (They also were clearly unaware of the significance of the language.) In any case, they said they’d contact their CEO about the issue and have him get back to … Read the rest

Feminism? Meh. Anti-racism? Bleh. Internationalism/multiculturalism? Yawn.

The Green Party=The Trans Party.

The Green party is veering away from its founding culture towards a more leftwing authoritarianism, its former health spokesperson has claimed.

Dr Pallavi Devulapalli said trans rights had become an obvious totem in the new climate, and accused the party of trying to purge anyone with gender-critical views.

Devulapalli, a GP and member of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk council, was expelled from the party for a rules breach that she has said was due to her beliefs on gender. Her expulsion this month, she said, has exposed a rift in the party’s leadership on transgender issues that threatens to widen during this summer’s leadership election.

But the … Read the rest

More Nazi-style takeover theater:

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander was handcuffed and detained by federal agents Tuesday afternoon while escorting migrants from immigration hearings in Lower Manhattan — with video of the incident packing a politically potent punch for his suddenly energetic mayoral campaign.

On Tuesday morning, Lander was at 26 Federal Plaza in downtown Manhattan to observe an immigration hearing when he walked out of the courtroom locking arms with a Yoruba-speaking immigrant, according to Lander’s wife, Meg Barnette, who spoke to reporters at a press conference.

When federal agents moved to detain the immigrant in the hallway outside the courtroom, Lander asked for them to show a judicial warrant. The agents did not and put him

Worst possible time to have a pinhead in That Office.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday warned Iranian leader Ali Khamenei that he is an “easy target” and that “our patience is wearing thin,” before demanding Tehran surrender in its conflict against Israel.

“We know exactly where the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Yeah great, war by social media, that will work out well.

“He is an easy target, but is safe there – We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now,” he wrote. “But we don’t want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin.”

Trump added in a subsequent post: “UNCONDITIONAL

He what now?

Donald Trump slammed his “publicity seeking” French counterpart Emmanuel Macron in an excoriating social media post overnight, saying “whether purposely or not, Emmanuel always gets it wrong.”

Trump called someone else “publicity seeking”???… Read the rest

Sarah Ditum on the decline in sanctimony:

When actors in the new [Harry Potter] production are challenged about Rowling’s views, they tend to respond in robustly live-and-let-live style.

Asked whether criticism of Rowling had put him off accepting the role of Dumbledore, John Lithgow offered a genial: “Heavens, no.” Nick Frost, the new Hagrid, shrugged: “She’s allowed her opinion and I’m allowed mine.”

Frost’s comment might be the lowest possible bar of support for free speech imaginable, and part of me unkindly wants to demand a point-by-point explanation of exactly how he disagrees with Rowling. But it’s a million miles from the thoughtless acceptance of five years ago that, by demurring from activist talking points, Rowling was maliciously endangering

How interesting. Deep religious convictions are compatible with mass murder. Deep religious convictions even inspire and motivate mass murder.

The man accused of assassinating the top Democrat in the Minnesota House held deeply religious and politically conservative views, telling a congregation in Africa two years ago that the U.S. was in a “bad place” where most churches didn’t oppose abortion.

How deeply deeply deeply religious of him to draw up a list of legislators to murder for the crime of not wanting to force women to bear children against their will. Many deeply religious people see men as people and women as tools. Apparently murder-guy is of that clan.

Friends and former colleagues interviewed by AP described Boelter as

Originally a comment by Nullius in Verba on “I don’t think there is an issue”.

An intractable problem (as I see it) is that the formation of stereotypes and norms is a natural and automatic process. Linguistic innovation, for example, spreads because people tend to mimic each other. As mimicry spreads, behavior becomes (statistically) normal. When things are normal for long enough, which really isn’t very long at all, they become (normatively) normal as people begin to see deviation as wrong or indicative of potential danger. A pet example of this is how quickly it became a red flag for potential employers and romantic interests that someone didn’t have a social media presence. Another is how using punctuation and … Read the rest

He had a list.

The man suspected of shooting and killing a Minnesota lawmaker and her husband as well as shooting and wounding a second lawmaker and his wife “stalked his victims like prey” and “shot them in cold blood,” acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota Joseph Thompson said.

“His crimes are the stuff of nightmares,” Thompson said at a news conference as he outlined the “chilling” details.

…

Boelter, who was arrested overnight near his farm in Green Isle, Minnesota, is facing federal charges including stalking and firearms charges and state charges including first-degree murder, officials said.

Boelter allegedly surveilled his victims’ homes and took notes, Thompson said. He allegedly had firearms and a list of

There’s a UK organization called ELECT HER.

What do they do?

We work to motivate, support and equip women in all their diversity to stand for political office in Britain.

Good stuff.

Do you include trans women in your work?

Yes. We are a fully inclusive organisation. All women are welcome to register to access our activities. We acknowledge that non-binary people do not fit into the binary categories of women and men, but we recognise that some non-binary people’s experiences or identities intersect with women’s and if you feel you would benefit from accessing a women-centred space, we want to welcome you.

Oh. So it’s not for women in all their diversity, it’s for women and men who … Read the rest

Guest post by Mike Haubrich.

I’m really only an “Out” atheist because religious people keep on assuming that they are the only ones who matter in the public square. (Not all religious people.) I don’t care about other people’s religions, they “neither pick my pocket nor break my leg.”

I realize that there are atheists who are insulting towards the religious, so no need to point that out, either.

In a thread from a state party google group, a religous person related his grief about the assassinations and attempted assassination in Minnesota yesterday. It was a heartfelt post, but he ended it by telling people to pray for the State Senator’s recovery, and then added “even my hardcore atheist … Read the rest

Yup uhuh that’s not a deranged thing to say at all. Keep it up Jonathan: show everyone how batshit you are.

The moral high ground?

The right to be left alone by a rich bored bully! https://t.co/vTNdexD9Uk

— Boy George (@BoyGeorge) June 14, 2025

Hmm. Remind us who and what Boy George is?

JK Rowling has highlighted Boy George’s conviction for beating a male escort with a chain after the singer criticised her campaign to protect women-only spaces such as prisons.

It’s a tough one. On the one hand a guy who handcuffs a male escort to a bed and then beats him with a chain, on the other hand a woman who says men are not women and should not invade women’s spaces. Which to choose, which to choose.

The author of the Harry Potter books was called a