Notices by d a t green (davidallengreen@mastodon.green)

NEW

Looking critically at Trump's flurry of Executive Orders

Why we should watch what is done, and not to be distracted by what is said

On Substack
https://emptycity.substack.com/p/looking-critically-at-trumps-flurry

Personal blog
https://davidallengreen.com/2025/01/looking-critically-at-trumps-flurry-of-executive-orders-why-we-should-watch-what-is-done-and-not-to-be-distracted-by-what-is-said/

In 2016-19, the Brexiteers obtained Brexit, and then didn’t know what to do.

In 2024, the Labour Party obtained power, and then didn’t know what to do.

In both cases they were the proverbial dogs that caught the car.

New, by me at FT

The coming battle between social media and the state

Behind the alignment of X and Meta with Trump is a cold business logic — and a position of weakness rather than strength

https://www.ft.com/content/917c9535-1cdb-4f6a-9a15-1a0c83663bfd

See also: East India Company, the then most powerful corporation the world had ever seen, summarily dissolved by a simple Act of Parliament.

Delighted to say that, after a period away, I am writing again for the Financial Times.

In tomorrow’s print edition is a long piece on Elon Musk’s and Mark Zuckerberg’s regulatory strategies.

And why recent events show that X and Meta are weak, not strong, when faced with determined state action.

From my FT article tomorrow:

“This corporate weakness in the face of determined state action should not be surprising. In any ultimate battle, the state will prevail over a corporation for the simple reason that a corporation as a legal person only has legal existence and entitlements to the extent set out by legislation. Those who control the law can, if they want, control and tame any corporate in their jurisdiction.”

Remembering David Lodge, whose death has just been announced.

The great storyteller of Rummidge, which occupied “the space where Birmingham is to be found on maps of the so-called real world”.

Everyone on that book cover - Lodge, Haydn Gwynne and Warren Clarke - now no longer with us.

But what smashing book - and a smashing TV mini-series.

All very much missed.

@goatsarah

He was the very chap I had to correct.

That special day of the year when you get to point out that the cheetah is not the fastest mammal, but a dinky little bat instead.

A neighbourhood has three cafes: Threads cafe, BlueSky cafe and Mastodon cafe.

Some people prefer one, while others go from one to another to say hello.

A few like all three.

All good: no reason for there just to be one.

But we all avoid the once-popular place that went bad under new management.

“…the only thing that went through the mind of the bowl of petunias as it fell was ‘Oh no, not again’.”

NEW

A postcard from the day after an election

Capturing a further political-constitutional moment

By me

Substack
https://emptycity.substack.com/p/a-postcard-from-the-day-after-an

Personal Blog
https://davidallengreen.com/2024/11/a-postcard-from-the-day-after-an-election-capturing-a-further-political-constitutional-moment/

As there is nothing we in UK can do to affect the outcome, and as polls are unreliable, may be sensible to avoid looking at US news until the election.

“The very worst poetry of all perished along with its creator, Elon Musk of Greenbridge, South Africa, in the destruction of the planet Earth.”

A wonderful piece of prose.

Look carefully at how long she waits before starting a sentence with “I”. And then wham.

@BethanyBlack

Which decent app is that?

@BethanyBlack Delighted to see you back on here. You have been missed.

Supporting Donald Trump is too much for Richard Cheney

The significance of the illiberal former Vice President now opposing the undemocratic former President

A new post by me

https://emptycity.substack.com/p/supporting-donald-trump-is-too-much (Substack)

https://davidallengreen.com/2024/09/supporting-donald-trump-is-too-much-for-richard-cheney/ (personal blog)

@goatsarah Future tense, quilt?

Yes, local newspapers are essential in so many ways.

But it is getting so that life is too short to ever click onto a local news website.

Avoiding the onslaught of adverts is like playing Space Invaders. And working out where the next paragraph of a news item is like Where's Wally.

There must be a more balanced way of supporting local news sites.

The sheer un-usability of so many of the sites now means that the advertisers cannot be benefitting, and so the journalists cannot be benefitting.