Neil

Movie posts last, everything else is ephemeral nonsense and disappears. Pinned post is the latest movie watched.

[Neil @ofjmx]

The Silencers (1966) dir. Phil Karlson 2.5/5

Swinging sixties spy movie, if it was set in suburban California. Lots of beautiful ladies, and it tries for spills and thrills along with the comedy, but while it's friendly fun, it's misfiring along the way.

[Neil @ofjmx]

@Zacnaloen I made a pretty passable version of game I used to play for endlessly in my teens in just a few hours. It's quite amazing what can be achieved.

Send the novel to an agent at least. If they still read them... Never know.

[Neil @ofjmx]

@Zacnaloen Nice. I'm thinking of taking it on seriously after having some very productive fun with Grok.

[Neil @ofjmx]

All those tins and candles add up.

[Faisal Islam @faisalislam]

So… rather interesting UK Q3 GDP tomorrow morning.

Average consensus forecast in June for this quarter was 0.13%.

OBR forecast at Budget time suggests 0.3% (but it closed in September).

Economists scrambled to upgrade to 0.6-0.7%, including the Bank of England, which would break pattern of cruel summers since Budget. Could be highest figure for 2 years, possibly 9 years if you strip out pandemic period. Heading for second fastest in G7 behind US in 2026 so far.

Depends on September and any revisions, but could point to better news about UK AI capital expenditure, and resilient consumer (at least until summer) to Iran War pressures.

Every quarter this year has rather considerably outperformed consensus and OBR (below is from its march forecast).

[Neil @ofjmx]

Only if their parents are entirely negligent.

[Nick @nicksterwixter]

It’s wild to me that Gen Z is really the first generation who could easily grow up having never really been exposed to media/entertainment created before they were born. There’s just so much content now.
I used to watch Looney Tunes as a kid without really understanding that most of these cartoons were made like 40-50 years before I was born. They were just part of the lineup alongside the brand new cartoons I was watching.

[Neil @ofjmx]

You may have read some sensible stuff from Aaron Bastani occasionally over the years, but landing on the "North Korea is, by any measure, thriving" snake means you go all the way back to square one.

[Aaron Bastani @AaronBastani]

One of the big surprises of the 2020s: autarchy seems to work better than in the recent past. Russia, and Iran, survived sanctions that should have ended them. North Korea is, by any measure, thriving.

[Neil @ofjmx]

@fharris2011 Confucius he say, "Wounded bear may lose grip on Outer Manchuria".

[Neil @ofjmx]

@TombArchitect Underrated solution to complex problems.

[Neil @ofjmx]

AI doesn't have hammers. Check mate.

[Andy Masley @AndyMasley]

I am pretty confused about how people can look at the pace at which machines are becoming more intelligent and not draw some basic inferences from the simple facts that:

1) Humans don't have plot armor.
2) Human intelligence has transformed the world so much.
3) Intelligence isn't magic.

to conclude that truly insane things could happen relatively soon. I don't think this relates at all to how quickly companies adopt or find uses for AI as it currently exists.

[Neil @ofjmx]

Why is that? Because we never used to have to worry.

Now you've got 40,000+ on terror watchlists, and importing more threats week after week after week.

[Mike Martin MP 🔸 @ThreshedThought]

I understand why the US would withdraw assets from British airfields in light of ongoing threats.

Our airfields are totally exposed to attack and lack basic defensive infrastructure, including hardened shelters, the ability to repair and regenerate damaged runways and anti-drone systems.

The APPG for Rearmament recently heard from defence experts that Britain’s airfield resilience is stretched thin or non-existent in some cases.

There is no point in the MoD investing in new jets if we can’t confidently protect them from low-level arson or drone attacks, let alone missiles. A lot of our kit is sat in the open like sitting ducks.

[Neil @ofjmx]

They should rename this the Are They Dead or A Sex Pest? panel.

[Neil @ofjmx]

Many a true word said in jest, eh...

[Matt Casey 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 🇬🇧 @MattCas04807118]

Wow!😳

Was Natalie Imbruglia right?

[Neil @ofjmx]

I like politicians who just say things.

None of it might necessarily be true, but they're saying things.

[Dr. Jeevun Sandher MP @JeevunSandher]

The NWF gets that money back.

And the electricity price you call “high”, is far cheaper than natural gas.

Clean power is cheaper power.

[Neil @ofjmx]

@MadelaineLucyH You don't have to be rich to be entitled. I first heard the "Do you know who I am?" line used on a girl who rejected a guy's advances from a 15 year old who thought his gangster family name and being on the football team meant girls couldn't say no to him.

[Neil @ofjmx]

A ten year plan consisting of buses, blah and biscuits.

[Pippa Crerar @PippaCrerar]

NEW: Andy Burnham tells MPs he will unveil his 10-year plan *before* Christmas - after speculation it could be pushed into next year.

(My understanding is that scale of what he announces depends on how much detail officials can get over the line before then… )

#PMQs

[Neil @ofjmx]

Social media is toast.

[World of Statistics @stats_feed]

Population in 2100:

🇮🇳 India: 1,505 million
🇨🇳 China: 633 million
🇵🇰 Pakistan: 511 million
🇳🇬 Nigeria: 477 million
🇨🇩 Congo (DRC): 431 million
🇺🇸 United States: 421 million
🇪🇹 Ethiopia: 367 million
🇮🇩 Indonesia: 296 million
🇹🇿 Tanzania: 263 million
🇧🇩 Bangladesh: 209 million
🇪🇬 Egypt: 202 million
🇧🇷 Brazil: 163 million
🇦🇴 Angola: 150 million
🇸🇩 Sudan: 137 million
🇲🇽 Mexico: 130 million
🇦🇫 Afghanistan: 130 million
🇷🇺 Russia: 126 million
🇺🇬 Uganda: 121 million
🇵🇭 Philippines: 114 million
🇾🇪 Yemen: 110 million
🇲🇿 Mozambique: 104 million
🇰🇪 Kenya: 104 million
🇨🇮 Côte d’Ivoire: 104 million
🇮🇶 Iraq: 101 million
🇿🇦 South Africa: 94 million
🇻🇳 Vietnam: 92 million
🇳🇪 Niger: 91 million
🇨🇲 Cameroon: 89 million
🇲🇬 Madagascar: 85 million
🇮🇷 Iran: 80 million
🇲🇱 Mali: 79 million
🇯🇵 Japan: 77 million
🇬🇧 United Kingdom: 74 million
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia: 71 million
🇩🇪 Germany: 71 million
🇫🇷 France: 68 million
🇹🇷 Turkey: 65 million
🇨🇦 Canada: 54 million
🇦🇺 Australia: 43 million
🇦🇷 Argentina: 38 million
🇮🇹 Italy: 35 million
🇪🇸 Spain: 33 million
🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates: 26 million
🇰🇷 South Korea: 22 million
🇳🇱 Netherlands: 18 million
🇸🇪 Sweden: 11 million
🇨🇭 Switzerland: 9 million
🇦🇹 Austria: 7 million
🇳🇴 Norway: 5 million

Source: United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2024). World Population Prospects 2024.

Figures rounded to nearest million. Medium variant is the central projection.

[Neil @ofjmx]

So you’re saying increasing our population by millions without increasing secure energy and food supply is absolutely mental? Agreed.

[Ed Miliband @Ed_Miliband]

National security is the next frontier of the fight for climate action. The scenarios once of science fiction are now regular occurrences across the world.

We should be clear that climate breakdown is one of the greatest national security threats we face: food security, threats to infrastructure and population movements.

Those who seek to stick their hands in the sand when it comes to climate action are putting our national security at risk.

Alongside this, a new era of global insecurity means fossil fuel shocks are now the norm. The fossil fuel rollercoaster is here to stay.

Countries, first Russia, now Iran, next others, have identified global chokepoints and systemic over-reliance and the vulnerability in countries around the world that they expose.

The only answer to these challenges is to double down on the global fight for climate action.

2027 will be the year of climate fightback, as governments, movements, and communities across the world step up to defend our shared home.

[Neil @ofjmx]

It won't be before 2073 you bigots!

[Fraser Nelson @FraserNelson]

I am no fan of the racial politics being pushed by Reform UK. But the nonsensical claim that White Brits will be a minority by 2063 could have been debunked as such in debate, not censorship.

[Neil @ofjmx]

Treb-u-fucking-chet

[LBC News @LBCNews]

Palestinian asylum seeker Mohammed Abbas, 29, who arrived in the UK in March has been sentenced to six years in prison at Cardiff Crown Court after breaking into a home in the city and exposing himself to three sisters, two of whom were underage.

[Neil @ofjmx]

@PeruvianMagnum @Zacnaloen There has been some truly daft archaeology based on objects. The whole Celtic guff.

Imagine watching the spread of TV’s in the mid-20th century or worse Nokia phones at the end of the century and assuming this meant Scandinavians had spread across the world.