Alison Strange

Crofter, ecologist, ex-researcher, passionate about self sufficiency, textiles, re-peopling, fairness and equality and I love to listen

[Sama Hoole @SamaHoole]

REWILD THE HILLS!

Here's why:

If we cleared every cow and sheep off the British uplands to save the planet, we would liberate two-thirds of the nation's farmland for a brighter, greener future.

Experts have calculated that within just 5 years, that reclaimed land could deliver:

- Millions of acres of premium bracken (toxic, but very photogenic)
- A booming tick population, up several thousand percent
- The total departure of every ground-nesting bird, freeing them at last from the terrible burden of nesting
- One (1) consultant's report recommending we put the animals back

And best of all, the beef and lamb those animals used to produce will simply be shipped in from Brazil instead, so we get the exact same meat, now with the bonus of a 6,000-mile voyage and a freshly cleared rainforest thrown in at no extra charge.

A hollower countryside for a healthier planet.

That's why we must remove the livestock.

NOW.

[Olena Rohoza @OlenaRohoza]

🧐🤔YOU WANTED A WALL, TRUMP? YOU’LL HAVE ONE.
Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, responded to Trump’s threats:
“So you voted to build a wall.
Well then, dear Americans — even if geography isn’t your strong suit, and you see America as a country rather than a continent — you should know that on the other side of that wall stand 7 billion people.
And if the word ‘people’ doesn’t resonate with you, let’s call them ‘consumers.’
Those 7 billion consumers can switch from iPhone to Samsung or Huawei in less than two days.
They can trade Levi’s for Zara or Massimo Dutti, and within six months replace Ford and Chevrolet with Toyota, KIA, Mazda, Honda, Hyundai, Volvo, Subaru, Renault, or BMW — brands that are already more popular in many places.
They can cancel DirecTV.
And even if they choose not to, they can stop watching Hollywood films and turn instead to higher-quality productions from Latin America or Europe — with richer storytelling and better filmmaking.
Believe it or not, people can skip Disney and visit the Xcaret resort in Cancún instead — or explore destinations across Mexico, Canada, or South America.
Even in Mexico, you can find better burgers than McDonald’s — with higher nutritional value.
Have you ever seen pyramids in the United States?
Egypt, Mexico, Peru, Guatemala, and Sudan have ancient wonders — none of them in the U.S.
If they were, Trump would probably have bought and resold them by now.
We know Nike isn’t the only sneaker brand. There’s Adidas — and even Mexican brands like Panama.
We understand economics better than you think.
And we also know that when those 7 billion consumers stop buying American products, unemployment will rise, and your economy — trapped behind its own self-imposed wall — will begin to collapse to the point where you’ll be begging for help.
We didn’t want to do this.
But you wanted a wall?
Well.
You’ve got one.”
Her approval rating has reached a historic level — according to a recent poll, it stands at 85%.

[Voices of WW2 @VoicesofWW2]

Everyone knows Dunkirk. 338,000 men rescued from the beaches, the "miracle" that saved Britain.

Almost nobody knows what happened 8 days later, 100 miles down the coast. This story was buried for years, and once you hear it you will understand why.

While Dunkirk was being evacuated, the 51st Highland Division was deliberately kept in France. Churchill wanted to prove to the French that Britain would not abandon them. So 10,000 Scotsmen kept fighting along the Somme while everyone else went home.

They fought well. Too well to retreat in time.

By June 10, Rommel's 7th Panzer Division, moving so fast the Germans called it the Ghost Division, had cut them off from every port. The Highlanders fell back to a tiny fishing town called Saint-Valery-en-Caux, with cliffs at their backs and the Royal Navy on the way.

A second Dunkirk. That was the plan. Operation Cycle, ships waiting offshore.

Then the fog rolled in.

The ships could not reach the beaches in the dark and mist. And by morning, Rommel had artillery on the cliffs above the town, firing down on anything that floated. Men climbed down cliff faces on ropes made of rifle slings trying to reach boats. Some fell. The rescue never came.

On June 12, 1940, Major General Victor Fortune surrendered the 51st Highland Division to Rommel. There is a famous photo of the two men standing together, Rommel grinning, Fortune staring into the distance like he is somewhere else.

10,000 men marched east into 5 years of captivity. In parts of the Highlands, nearly every family knew someone in the bag. They called it the lost division, and for decades many Scots quietly believed they had been sacrificed.

Two details worth knowing.

Fortune was offered better treatment as a general. He refused privileges and stayed with his men for the entire war, organizing care for the sick and keeping discipline in the camps. He was knighted from a hospital bed after liberation.

And in September 1944, the rebuilt 51st Highland Division was given one specific assignment, at the request of its commander. They liberated Saint-Valery-en-Caux. The pipers played in the same square where their brothers had surrendered four years earlier.

Dunkirk got the movie. These men got the long war.

Worth remembering them today.

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

@BlackIslePMD @AbrazoHouse Think it's Sorbus vilmorinii

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

Any idea what this is? I've drawn a blank, would be grateful for any help. Thanks🙏

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

@overlandertheb1 😂😵‍💫

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

@AbrazoHouse Another picture

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

@AbrazoHouse Trouble is the leaves aren't quite right.....

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

@alastairmci Tsk 🫣

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

Ahh the wonderful hills
Please excuse the veg garden ☺️

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

@alastairmci Sigh....., no broccoli for you then 😋

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

Oh, but, but..... oh
https://t.co/QmukJnod4s

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

@alastairmci Ohhh Alastair, are you calling my impressive seedlings .... gasp.... mulch??😉

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

@overlandertheb1 @BertDalziel @cligeey @HairyAngus Dirt cheap!

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

@MDMorrison82 Brilliant!

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

@overlandertheb1 @iratesheep Shhhh 😉

[Alastair McIntosh @alastairmci]

@chris_tufer To me, it’s vital that people be aware of how fascism starts and grips the mind. It’s happened before in Britain. That’s why I’ve posted this about Mosley’s fascist blackshirts: https://t.co/TUHdo9ERP2

On some folks’ justification for the aggro, this woman puts it very well.

[Alison Strange @AlisonStrange5]

@overlandertheb1 @iratesheep I'll see if I can find some for you 😉as an aside my 1st MiL used to put baking powder in her sprouts to keep them green as they boiled ....... sometimes being polite is a real struggle