Katherine Lawlor🌻

formerly @TheStudyOfWar. I write about modern warfare, disinfo, & the Russian occupation of #Ukraine. All opinions my own & not that of any employer

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

One fun thing about doing analysis is when you’re very wrong you have to reevaluate your entire mental model, but when you’re very right it’s almost universally bad news for the world.

I wish @Mason_R_Clark and I were reevaluating.

https://t.co/OguCr4GQtf

[@eliothiggins.bsky.social @EliotHiggins]

As part of our work at Bellingcat we've written guides about dealing with traumatic imagery. The first is How to Prevent, Identify and Address Vicarious Trauma — While Conducting Open Source Investigations in the Middle East by @h_e_ellis https://t.co/OEUdB7QAOd

[Critical Threats @criticalthreats]

NEW REPORT | #Iran has embraced an offensive regional strategy to adapt for modern conflict and pursue external objectives more effectively. Read @NicholasACarl’s @criticalthreats and @aei report here: https://t.co/LiRU4ZewGT

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

@johnson4b06 @bourgeoisbantu Would I prefer not to be asked? Sure, since my dog’s harness reads SEEING EYE in big letters. But better to be asked legal questions than for fake ID. This is the compromise we made to avoid some kind of required federal registry and allow folks to train their own service dogs.

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

@johnson4b06 @bourgeoisbantu Except it’s the law, per the ADA. If it’s obvious what service the dog is providing, they aren’t supposed to ask at all. But if it’s unclear, there are two questions legitimate service dog handlers expect and appreciate.

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

@BarredinDC Judge service dogs based on their behavior and the two legally allowed questions, not fake paperwork assholes buy on Amazon. Even a legitimate service dog can and should be kicked out of a business if they are misbehaving (barking, growling, peeing, out of control in any way).

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

@BarredinDC Last Call is 100% in the right. There is no federal registry/paperwork for service dogs. My guide dog’s school provided ID but asked that we not use it unless we have to—it makes other service dog handlers’ lives much harder if businesses think they can expect fake “paperwork.”

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

@BarredinDC I try to treat those interactions like an educational opportunity, but you know the “paperwork” question is from all the people who pretend that their pets are service dogs, then fail to control them when they’re a nuisance to the business & threaten my exquisitely trained guide.

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

@BarredinDC Thanks for this! DC businesses often have no idea about the two questions they are legally allowed to ask, and usually want to see “paperwork” or “ID” for my Seeing Eye dog. I (and every handler I know) *love* to be asked the two questions. It shows they train their staff.

[Dmytro Kuleba @DmytroKuleba]

Wheels of Justice are turning: I applaud the ICC decision to issue arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova over forcible transfer of Ukrainian children. International criminals will be held accountable for stealing children and other international crimes.

[Institute for the Study of War @TheStudyofWar]

NEW: Russian forces have regained the initiative in #Ukraine and have begun their next major offensive in #Luhansk Oblast. 🧵(1/8)

https://t.co/RJk789ogNT

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

@JonathanLordDC As a bright-eyed hilltern from non-coastal Washington, I made a bad joke about Chinese geoduck import bans in front of @SenatorCantwell. Turns out she takes geoducks VERY seriously, and her interns should, too. The WA delegation does not mess around with Pacific seafood.

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

@MaggieCaroline1 incredible news 💕

[Jonathan Lord @JonathanLordDC]

Iraq should throw a real curve ball and just start calling it the Gulf of Basra.

[Mike Nelson @mikenelson586]

"I want to give credit here to one particular source of information on the war. I read a lot on this issue, but by far the thing that I find most informative and most useful to be the daily report on the war that's put out by the @TheStudyofWar ."

-@MichaelJMorell

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

@AnneKirstineR Not a book, and from 2021, but I always recommend @renadmansour’s Networks of Power to those aiming to deepen their understanding of Iraqi politics.
https://t.co/Ba8eltztBu

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

Second grade me got it.

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

I didn’t expect to be charmed by an email entitled “[First Name] Q1 2023”

But I also didn’t know that he was married, or had a cat. I’m also not sure I’d admit in a professional context that my wife’s cat didn’t like me.

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

A friend from undergrad sends out a quarterly networking / life update email newsletter, including personal news & any professional asks he may have. I was initially appalled, but w/ the death of Facebook, this actually seems like a good way to create opportunities for engagement

[Katherine Lawlor🌻 @Kat_Lawlor]

It’s well-written and structured. It’s like a professional Christmas letter, complete with cute cat pics. Is this A Thing now? Do others send such newsletters? And where does it fall on the spectrum of cringeworthy to useful?

[Simon Carne @simon_carne]

⁦@FT⁩ letter from retired defence attaché. Early lesson for historians out there