Colin Sinclair

Author of Midnight in the Garden Centre of Good and Evil, and some other things and stuff. I also write comics.
He/him

[Colin Sinclair @devilsjunkshop]

Six-year-old son: What is it you do at work all day?

Me: I write reports on a computer to give people information.

Six-year-old son: And is that enjoyable for you?

[Big Green Bookshop @Biggreenbooks]

OLLIE'S BIG CLEAR OUT!

Here are 3 shelves of HUGELY popular kids books

You can have any FOUR for £10 (free P+P).

Deals can be negotiated.

Please share (and buy).

UK only.

[Tayab Ali @tayab_ali_]

🚨 In more than 25 years of working on terrorism cases, I never thought I would see terrorism legislation used in a way that blurs the line between genuine national security concerns and the policing of political expression and protest.

The sentencing of the Filton 4 raises profound questions about the direction of our justice system. Counter-terrorism laws exist to protect the public from serious threats, not to chill political dissent, including direct action protest.

If we are not careful, we risk setting a dangerous precedent, one that many will view as driven not by principle, but by a desire to shield Israel from criticism.

I strongly oppose what happened in this case today.

[Richard Sanders @PulaRJS]

This is barbaric. They were not permitted to explain to the jury why they carried out the attack on the Elbit factory - which makes the weapons that kill Palestinian children. And the jury was never told they would be sentenced as terrorists. /1

[derek guy @dieworkwear]

It's the opposite. During the mid- to late-19th century, suits were the uniform of clerks and administrators. Those higher on the social and economic ladder — such as lawyers, doctors, and politicians — wore the more "gentlemanly" frock coat with a silk top hat. In fact, Labour Party founder Keir Hardie caused quite a stir when he showed up to work on his first day as a Member of Parliament while wearing a tweed suit to show his allegiance to his working-class constituents. The press was shocked, noting that he wore a "cloth cap in Parliament" (a tweed deerstalking cap, rather than the silk top hat).

With time, everyone wore the suit. By the early 20th century, those who owned the means of production wore the same uniform as those who managed them. Blurring this distinction can seem meaningless today, but it was quite a big deal in the early 20th century. Even manual laborers who wore more utilitarian clothing to work — chambray shirts, blue jeans, chore coats, etc — had a suit for religious services on Sunday. Thus, the suit was not a symbol of domination, but rather hid class markers.

To be sure, there were distinctions in how people wore suits and where they bought them. In London, businessmen could be distinguished by whether they bought their clothes from a "City tailor" or a "West End tailor" (the West End being the higher-grade option reserved for those with money). But these were relatively minor and only for the trained eye. Relatively speaking, class symbols today are significantly more obvious not only through the different grades of quality, but also logos and general aesthetics. Hence, to some degree, why fashion changes so rapidly today — people are constantly shifting their social position.

[Diane Abbott @HackneyAbbott]

These are not 'anti-migrant protestors'. They went house to house looking for foreigners and Black people to burn them out of their homes.
They are racist thugs carrying out a pogrom.

Police use water cannon against anti-migrant protestors
https://t.co/7XmzmlsKoX

[Diane Abbott @HackneyAbbott]

Lammy has documented the racism in the justice system himself. Now he wants to remove one of the few checks against it.
Limiting juries would lead to greater injustice.

Lammy's cuts to jury trials could have far-reaching impact on race relations, MPs say
https://t.co/VUqeONZF0s

[Celtic Collectibles @CollectCelticFC]

When 4 Jewish Ambulances were burnt out. Starmer & every MP was all over the Media. Cobra Meetings called, visited site etc. Monies given to Jeiwsh Commuinty
Last night families were burnt out of their homes and attacked by racists. Where is the same response
😏

[Joseph Mallozzi 🏴‍☠️ @BaronDestructo]

Today, I'm recommending four works by Hal Clement, the dean of hard SF whose fiction was typified by scientific rigor and uncompromising world building.

Mission of Gravity (1954): On the crushing, high-gravity world Mesklin, a human scientist enlists the help of a native, centipede-like ship captain to retrieve a lost probe.

Needle (1950): A symbiotic alien detective merges with a teenage boy to hunt down a fugitive of his own species hiding amongst the members of a small island community.

Iceworld (1953): An alien from a high temperature planet is enlisted to investigate a drug-smuggling operation on a frozen world.

"Uncommon Sense" (1945): Clement's most famous short story is a hard SF puzzle in which an explorer, marooned by his mutinous crew, deduces the alien biology of a hostile world and turns it against them to reclaim the ship.

Check out the quoted thread for the recommended works of Theodore Sturgeon, Alfred Bester, Bob Shaw, Clifford D. Simak, Algis Budrys, A.E. van Vogt, C.L. Moore, Cordwainer Smith, C.M. Kornbluth, D.G. Compton, Thomas M. Disch, Alice Bradley Sheldon (James Tiptree, Jr.), John Brunner, and Judith Merril.

[isaacs @izs]

New ai psychosis just dropped: return of the pre Bronze Age bicameral mind

[enter shakira𓅮 @BARFJAMiN]

“why waste expensive teachers on povvy kids when we can just stick them in front of the machine that gets everything wrong, completely fuck their education up then force them into workfare for the rest of their lives”

[Hookland @HooklandGuide]

While she has become commonly known to many as 'Ghost Girl', the recurring image is better known among artists and those terrified of her folklore as 'The Girl with the Mirrored Eyes'. – Sophie Morley of Woden College's Graffiti Research and Formalisation Team (GRAFT), 1981

[Peter Stefanovic @PeterStefanovi2]

FOR MILLIONS OF PEOPLE NHS DENTISTRY HAS SIMPLY CEASED TO EXIST

On Monday 15 June a debate will take place in the House of Commons on the shocking state of NHS Dentistry.

CONTACT YOUR MP NOW and ask them to attend

https://t.co/ml016xzJ7s

[Larry the Cat @Number10cat]

Anthony Head was an Ambassador for Battersea Dogs and Cats home for more than two decades. Thanks for everything Tony x

[Defund Sex Matters @DefundSexM]

The Government's Office for Equality and Opportunities has published their impact assessment on the new EHRC code of practice.

They say the new codes is detrimental for those with protected characteristics of gender reassignment, disability and sex

[𝑴𝒐 𝑴𝒐𝒉𝒍𝒆𝒓 @MoMohler]

The fact that a dog took this photo makes it even more impressive.

[Sesame Street @sesamestreet]

Happy #PrideMonth from Sesame Street! Join us in celebrating and uplifting the LGBTQIA+ members of our community. ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

[James McDonald @IrishFilmCritic]

🚨GIVEAWAY🚨

Win a copy of the upcoming 4K Ultra HD™ release of the “Steven Spielberg: The Spotlight Collection - Limited Edition Steelbook Library Case.”

To Enter:

✍️ Like and Retweet this post!
🫵 Follow @IrishFilmCritic!

Ends: Friday, June 5th

[Clive Lewis MP @labourlewis]

Phew.

For a moment there I thought we might take a structural approach & understand these problems as symptoms of an extractive economy, shaped by deep cultural & technological forces.

Thank the lord we’ve opted instead to bring in a multi-millionaire to sort it all.

[Snowleopardess 💚 @snowleopardess]

Again and again this false narrative is pushed by politicians and the media.
PIP is NOT an "out of work" benefit. It is paid regardless of whether a disabled person is able to work or not. It helps with the extra costs disability involves..and that can include the cost TO work.

[Philip Proudfoot @PhilipProudfoot]

Beaufort Castle, which the Israelis have bombed from the air and now occupied enjoys UNESCO enhanced protection.

This makes it directly illegal for it to be targeted and used for military purposes.

It is now occupied.

There is no equivocation that this is completely illegal