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Gilles Pittoors

@gillespittoors.bsky.social
3K followers 1.5K following 53 posts

Lecturer @ KU Leuven | Research Fellow @ GASPAR UGent | formerly EPRS, RUG & ULB | working on multi-level & transnational politics in the EU | history enthusiast | active in teaching politics & qualitative methods | 🇪🇺🏳️‍🌈

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Reposted by Gilles Pittoors
Irregular Galaxy Doods @igdoods.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
gimme some of your controversial opinions 🐦
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The Life of Sharks @thelifeofsharks.com · 21/09/2026
For Americans saying, “What do you expect us to do?”. This. This is what the world expects from you. Except A LOT MORE of you. Looking at the video it’s obvious to see that it’s mostly people from immigrant backgrounds protesting. Immigrants doing all the hard work again.
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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Of course the US would be the only country to vote against it.
bbc.com
UN votes to adopt new world map to reflect Africa's true size
The Togo-sponsored resolution was backed by 164 nations - the US the only nation to vote against it.
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Nicolai von Ondarza @nvondarza.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
The ripple effect of Viktor Orbán's attempts to 'occupy Brussels' unravelling:
politico.eu
Boss of Orbán-backed MCC Brussels quits, saying staff have not been paid
Executive Director Frank Füredi resigned Monday alleging salaries were going unpaid following the change of government in Budapest.
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vrtnws @vrtnws.be · 31/08/2026
Moeder van journalist Bart Eeckhout stierf aan gevolgen van hittegolf: "Ik ben boos over het politieke stilzwijgen" vrtnws.be/p.Ray8QBBBM?t=178... @vrtnws.be
vrtnws.be
Moeder van journalist Bart Eeckhout stierf aan gevolgen van hittegolf: "Ik ben boos over het politieke stilzwijgen"
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Scott L Greer @scottlgreer.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
That first line is worth consideration
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Tommy Siegel @tommysiegel.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
skeptical of our AI future?
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Pensioenspook @pensioenspook666.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Het is altijd grappig hoe dezelfde mensen die hysterisch reageren op een jointje en pleiten voor een hardere aanpak drugsproblematiek (die niet werkt) aan goedkope profilering doen inzake consumptie van alcohol. Enfin. Rode draad is demagogie en populisme. Niet de wetenschap of de feiten.
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Bart Eeckhout @barteeckhout.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Denkt Georges-Louis Bouchez echt dat onze klimaatuitdagingen opgelost zijn als we brandstichters opsporen? www.demorgen.be/meningen/den...
demorgen.be
Denkt Georges-Louis Bouchez echt dat onze klimaatuitdagingen opgelost zijn als we brandstichters opsporen?
Bart Eeckhout is hoofdcommentator van De Morgen. Hij staat stil bij de reacties van politici op de bosbranden in de Hoge Venen.
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Wim Van Lancker @wimvanlancker.be · 17/08/2026
Dit. 👇 De aanwerving van Jason Arday was geen teken dat DEI universiteiten verblindt in hun aanwervingspolitiek, hij was een symbool om het gebrék aan diversiteit te maskeren.
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Roland Pierik @roleo.eurosky.social · 17/08/2026
An explanation of the latest row on Bluesky...
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Jeff Berardelli @weatherprof.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Curious why so much of #Europe is on fire 🔥 right now? NASA GRACE Soil moisture is in the bottom 1% across the vast majority of the Continent. This is what happens when the climate warms at 2X the Global rate, with 5 #heatwaves so far this summer.
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Andy Kerkhofs @andykerkhofs.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Like clockwork:
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Anthony Zacharzewski @anthonyzach.be · 17/08/2026
If you don’t have an FT sub the summary is: because MAGA is race-obsessed, they are trying to impose their white nationalist vision on our continent, and they are supporting quislings in our own politics to help make that happen.
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Daniel Laurison @daniellaurison.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
A part of the "hidden curriculum" of academia that was entirely unknown to me until fairly late in my career is the thing where people cold-email each other about meeting up at conferences. So here's general advice to junior scholars, and an offer: (1/n)
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Anton Gerashchenko @antongerashchenko.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
Russia has found a source of near-slave labor and “cannon fodder” in North Korea. For Pyongyang, this is a way to earn foreign currency, gain access to Russian resources and technology, while maintaining complete control over its citizens abroad⤵️
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T. Ryan Gregory 🇨🇦 @tryangregory.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
Headlines: Such-and-such technology may someday be as smart as human brains! Reminder: *We already have human brains.* Billions of them. Most of them living in poverty and being exploited for the obscene benefit of a tiny number of the worst people in the world.
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Kate from Kharkiv @kateinkharkiv.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Calling North Korea "unthreatening and respectful" when they send missiles, shells, and troops to kill Ukrainians is a special kind of lunacy.
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Grumpy-ish Brian🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🇪🇺🇮🇪 @brian770.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
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Alberto Alemanno @alemanno.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
For seventy years, the European project has rested on a radical idea: member states would settle disputes through common rules, not retaliation. In less than 2 weeks, that principle has been breached twice. Read my latest albertoalemanno.substack.com/p/after-ceut...
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Nicholas Grossman @nicholasgrossman.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
Society taken over by grown adults still bitter about college. I didn't get into my first choice! I was assigned a reading I didn't like! Something I said got criticism and dirty looks instead of praise! I'm still annoyed about that argument we had! That is now the basis of institutional policies.
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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
Being on X fucks up your worldview in a way that even smart people who understand what Musk is trying to do refuse to admit. You can't sit in the sewer all day and still be disgusted by shit. Worse yet, it encourages people to feel righteous when shame might be a more appropriate emotion.
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Jeroen Baert @jbaert.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
En "maar het kan helpen want hier zijn er lange wachtlijsten": Als een for-profit chatbot uit de VS het enige (brakke!) alternatief is voor je psychische gezondheidszorg, dan is dat een gigantische alarmbel over hoe je JE MEER IN JE GEZONDHEIDSZORG MOET INVESTEREN
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Jeroen Baert @jbaert.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
In godsnaam, lees die gesprekken die ChatGPT voerde met Adam Raine en kom dan opnieuw vertellen hoe je een LLM als therapeut kan gebruiken. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raine_v...
nytimes.com
A Teen Was Suicidal. ChatGPT Was the Friend He Confided In.
More people are turning to general-purpose chatbots for emotional support. At first, Adam Raine, 16, used ChatGPT for schoolwork, but then he started discussing plans to end his life.
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Nadia Ezzeroili 🇳🇱 @nadiaezzeroili.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
‘We hebben hier sowieso teveel mensen die hier niets te zoeken hebben.’ VVD maakt een voorzichtig beginnetje met het omarmen van remigratie. Want ze bedoelt natuurlijk gewoon: Marokkaanse Nederlanders.
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Mark Hamill @markhamillofficial.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
They openly admit their election crimes & are actively doing everything they can to undermine & outright steal the Midterm Elections. Any surprise he fired the remaining members of the Election Assistance Commission? He knows if he loses he's headed for a 3rd Impeachment & an orange jumpsuit. 🤞 👍
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Liz Climo @lizclimo.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
A mother otter says to her baby otter “I’m so proud of you.” In the second panel, the baby otter is grown and saying to its own reflection “I’m so proud of you”
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Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
Nigel Farage just took a question from a 'journalist' at his press conference, who turned out to be his former chief adviser Raheem Kassam, who asks him why the media are being so unfair to him
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Dr. Jeroen W.P. Wijnendaele @drdragases.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Good grief, this hits home.
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Joshua Livestro @joshualivestro.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
It was a complete farce. Nobody on the European side took control of the messaging, so every rightwing troll/government official seized the opportunity to hurl abuse at a fellow member state government that was facing a crisis. A terrible day for European foreign policy and for the Union as a whole.
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Federica Genovese @fgenovese.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
🚨New paper Like most things in democracies, achieving climate action in the form of sustainable policy needs a significant amount of political mobilization. We investigate when & where this is more likely to happen across places on the climate frontline: the Global South🧵 📌 osf.io/preprints/so...
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Pensioenspook @pensioenspook666.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
Spanje is net één van de weinige landen die zich niet liet chanteren. Het zijn net de andere landen die Spanje aanvielen die de deur openzetten voor chantage. Waarom val je Spanje aan en niet Marokko? Omdat de Marokkanen uw ballen vast hebben.
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War and Peas 🧿 @warandpeas.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
"People crave storytelling, but they live in a world that clouds their ability to enjoy those stories. People are empathetic, but they are persuaded to believe that societal trust is dying." Jaskaran (The Social Juice)
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Sciencepo ULB @sciencepoulb.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
[OUT] 'Volt Europa: A Transnational Model of Representation in the EU Multilevel Party Field?', new paper by @alvarooleart.bsky.social, researcher at SciencePo ULB (Cevipol), with @gillespittoors.bsky.social, in Politics and Governance www.cogitatiopress.com/politicsandg...
cogitatiopress.com
Volt Europa: A Transnational Model of Representation in the EU Multilevel Party Field? | Article | Politics and Governance
Alvaro Oleart, Gilles Pittoors
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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 27/07/2026
Every country is feeling some effect of climate change but Spain is a very notable case. This year's fires, the terrible Valencia flood of 2024, huge climate impacts in recent years on key crops such as olives, etc.
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Stephen Collins @stephencollins.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Voxpops
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laurentfranckx.bsky.social @laurentfranckx.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
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SMBC Comics @smbccomics.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
Actually, things were at their best during the last year of my life when I had no responsibilities. COMIC ◆ www.smbc-comics.com/comic/poof PATREON ◆ www.patreon.com/ZachWeinersm... STORE ◆ smbc-store.myshopify.com
5-panel SMBC comic update. A man is stating intensely "things are bad. Probably there was some time when they were good. Yesss, yesssss, the past was so much better because—" A little green haired fairy poofs into existence next to him, and says she is the history fairy. She happily says "I’m here to tell you the past was EVEN WORSE!" The man disagrees, explaining "but work was better and people had freedom and–" The fairy hugs his face, shushing him "shh. Shh honey. Things were never good."
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Smooth Dunk @smoothdunk2.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
Harry Potter fan who fell into a coma shortly after reading The Deathly Hallows wakes up in 2026
5 panel comic

Panel 1: Purple Guy excitedly sits down at their laptop, saying: Boy o’ boy, I wonder what my favourite Author’s up to!

Panel 2: Close up of a J K Rowling tweet where she says “The gay rights movement is currently host to a cannibalising ideology that blames and shames homosexuals for not sleeping with members of the opposite sex. Amnesty International is on the side of the persecutors.”

Panels 3 to 5: Purple Guy slowly closes their laptop, wondering how the billionaire author they loved has become so obsessed with the lives of people who have absolutely no effect on her existence.
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Cas Mudde @casmudde.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Axel Springer is a German media giant — with Bild & Welt — which has become a major international player — with Politico & Business Insider. Its leadership is a prime example of radicalization of the mainstream right and of the enabling of the far right. Their newest award winner: Peter Thiel.
axelspringer.com
Peter Thiel erhält den Axel Springer Award 2026
Auszeichnung für einen Unternehmer, Investor und Vordenker, der die digitale Transformation maßgeblich geprägt hat
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Laura Bassett @lebassett.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Casually threatening mass rapes
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Sarah Andersen @sarahseeandersen.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
The image is of a four panel comic.
The first panel shows the face of a black cat.
The second panel shows a hand moving into the panel and pressing the black cat's ears down.
The third panel zooms out and shows the protagonist, Sarah, and the cat. She is still pressing down on the cat's ears. She says, "you have no ears."
The fourth panel shows the cat's face again. It responds, "you have no hobbies."
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galcartoons.bsky.social @galcartoons.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
#hittegolf #oversterfte #theofrancken
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Stef Ketels @stefketels.vrk.social · 13/07/2026
Misschien is dit een goed moment voor journalisten om eens uit te zoeken wat er met de 4 miljoen die Demir in 2020 vrijmaakte is gebeurd? emis.vito.be/nl/artikel/waterbeleid…
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Stephen Collins @stephencollins.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
1
[TV show titles]:
SORT YOUR LIFE OUT

2
[STACEY SOLOMON and the team are outside NIGEL FARAGE’S house with Nigel and his girlfriend LAURE FERRARI]

STACEY:
So Nigel - you're a politician aren't you?

3
FARAGE:
Yes Stacey but I also have a hobby...

4
LAURE [proudly, but slightly worried]:
Nigel collects nutters.

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[Interior - Stacey and the team entering Nigel and Laure’s house. It is crammed with weird-looking people]. 

STACEY:
Oh my goooorsh

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STACEY:
Look at all the weirdos!

7
STACEY:
Where do you sleep?

NIGEL:
Over there 
on the pile of racists 

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[Nigel is showing Stacey his collection of lunatics]

NIGEL:
This one talks a lot about UFOs in Doncaster 

[He gestures to councillor Kieran Lay standing in a display case]

STACEY:
Wowww...

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[Showing her Reform councillor Steven Lewis, standing behind a lamp]:

NIGEL:
This one thinks we are in a simulation made by Satan called ‘the Matrix’

STACEY:
So many types!

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STACEY [voice over]

But Nigel is worried his collection is affecting his electability at work.

[Nigel is starting to cry]

STACEY [putting hand on his shoulder]:
Oh babe...

11
[They are now in THE WAREHOUSE where Stacey puts all the belongings out into zones. Each zone is full of weird looking people. They are labelled: RACISTS, ANTISEMITES, PLANDEMICS, MISOGYNISTS etc]

STACEY:
So listen Nigel, 

We can't leave leave the warehouse...

12
STACEY:
Till you've donated half of these to Restore. 

NIGEL: 
I CAN'T DO IT STACEY

[ends]
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The Life of Sharks @thelifeofsharks.com · 07/07/2026
Yachts. thelifeofsharks.com/product/yach...
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Sharon 🪳🌹 @sharonk.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
Matt Walsh calling for invading Canada
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Margot @margotvds.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
Ok deze is top!
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Alessandro Nai @alessandronai.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Stupidest of all possible timelines, evidence #962534 'Trump went on to say that he didn’t know what a red card was before the penalty against Balogun was made. Once he understood that it would take Balogun out of the next match, he personally intervened because "we have to have our best players."'
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