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Iain Alexander

@iaingalexander.bsky.social
240 followers 820 following 1.5K posts

That’s actually the plot of Hotel California by the Eagles. Where have you been, Clive?

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Reposted by Iain Alexander
flyingrodent @flyingrodent.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
The thing is, the press really will get rid of Polanski eventually, just by all screaming in unison until everyone gets sick of it and just wants the hate and bullshit to end. They are exercising their veto and they know they only need to stick at it until it finally works.
Jonn Elledge • @jonnelledge.bsky.s... • 23h
All the breathless "Is it over for Zack Polanski??" stuff this morning feels like wishcasting to me. Two thirds of the membership joined under this leadership, removing him would take a super majority on the party council, and also the result was... fine? He's going nowhere. 1/5
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Jonn Elledge • @jonnelledge.bsky.s... • 23h
This is it, isn't it? It's the assumption that Questions Are Being Asked is a force in politics in itself, and that only works when parties particularly care about the views of The People Asking the Questions. 2/5
@ Atrios @eschatonblog.com • 23h
But what if a guy who would never vote green doesn't like him, but does have a newspaper column
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Jonn Elledge • @jonnelledge.bsky.s... • 23h
Your opinion isn't going to matter to someone who knows you're gonna hate them whatever they do, guys, the Greens aren't listening to you any more than the Tories listen to me. 3/5
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Emily M. Bender @emilymbender.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Anthropic is out with new nonsense about Claude (or the collection of models called Claude) deserving moral consideration and/or be able to feel distress, so my inbox is filling up with journos asking me to comment. I've also got a day job, so here is a brief set of public comments on this: >>
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Also paging @kermodeandmayo.bsky.social with this regarding @kermodemovie.bsky.social’s initial suggestion that the film isn’t really “about” anything beyond itself. Worth a read and a ponder!
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Despite loving both BARBARIAN and WEAPONS, I didn’t know (or had forgotten) about Cregger’s own history with addiction. Sometimes wary of interpretations of art that are smart, interesting, and plausible, but maybe lack basis for inferring authorial intent, explicit or otherwise. This isn’t that.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Saw Zack Cregger’s RESIDENT EVIL and really liked it in Its own right and as an evocation of the survival horror gaming experience. Then I ead Sophie Abromowitz’s essay for @defector.com on RESIDENT EVIL — and survival horror more broadly — as a metaphor for addiction. It’s incredible.
defector.com
Accept The Expanding Ball Of Infected Corpses You Cannot Change | Defector
“Here are the main things you need to know about the Resident Evil games,” I explained to my friend Liz over the nonsense of the Digger trailer. “There’s a big outbreak of some kind of mutagenic virus...
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Didn’t even mention the referee payments affair! Ha!
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Reposted by Iain Alexander
Charlotte Lydia Riley @lottelydia.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Members of fraternities are three times more likely to be rapists than male college students who aren’t members of fraternities
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John Muller @johnspacemuller.com · 29/09/2026
How can we get Nathan Fielder into a rental home with Man City execs for the next 34 days
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Interesting. I think in the UK doping is still a massive deal because none of our major sports have yet had widespread issues (that have come out). Justified suspicion around Wiggins/Froome and wider Team Sky shenanigans is the closest, but few pay attention to cycling outside the Olympics.
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flyingrodent @flyingrodent.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Thanks Lewis. At least ten years too late like, but better late than never.
Lewis Goodall • @lewis_goodall • 1h I do wonder if politicians on the right understand just how flat the "he's taking us back to the 70s" sounds.
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Much of the electorate has no memory at all of the politics of that era. They do have sharp memories of what we have had recently. And many conclude anything might be better.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Now wondering whether Ben Johnson’s doping might be the answer. The blue-riband event at the Olympics, the supposed bastion of the spirit of honest sporting endeavour, the eyes of the entire world on it… Perhaps undermined as “biggest scandal ever” by the reveal that so many others were also at it
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Well indeed!
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Yeah, I was thinking about that (albeit without bothering to do any research!) — would it have been the undisputed biggest sport in the world, though? (I don’t know, maybe its US-only numbers would make it so, but then how do you define “in the world”? And what else would have been?)
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Yeah, I see where you’re coming from, and it’s an interesting debate. I guess my position is that while the Sox scandal is undoubtedly massive in terms of explicitly fixing the outcome of the biggest games, there’s a hard cap on how big a baseball scandal can be in a global context.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
It’s an interesting question, where City’s malfeasance ranks. I’d put it above both — especially the Sox, which, while massive in baseball and the US consciousness, is ultimately a fairly niche concern, whereas City have fundamentally undermined the biggest league in the world’s number one sport.
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The Empty City @davidallengreen.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Have now slowly re-read the ruling, and it is even more damning than at first reading. The ruling pretty much sets out Manchester City was fraudulent on a systemic long-term basis. Not just mere non-compliance, but ‘concealments’ and ‘disguises’. Also some MCFC witnesses were ‘dishonest’.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Gets a free pass from many on a lot because he was a hipster favourite as a player, the teams he’s managed have largely played excellent football, and he’s spoken out on Palestine (while happily working for a different set of grotesque human rights abusers)
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
* Doping ban as a player * Close association with the doctor at the heart of the Spanish multi-sport blood-doping scandal while managing Barcelona * Managing City through a period of unprecedented sporting financial fraud Guardiola sure is “unlucky” in who he hitches his wagon to, isn’t he…?
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
I get it, glory is seductive. And yes, my window into City fandom is narrow — social media and a handful of contributors popping up on podcasts. But I don’t have a sense of a fanbase at large grappling with this obvious massive fraud and grimacing their way through the success it bought. Do you?
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
They *should* be furious. But it would be be easier to feel sorry for them facing down the potential dissolution of their club, if sanctions go way they should, if they had in numbers looked out of the window and described the very obvious rain we all saw, rather than telling us it was sunny.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Let them run the gauntlet of finding the highest tier of the EFL, National League, or beyond that is willing to take them into their own house. Don’t give them the security blanket of a relegation-guaranteeing points deduction that removes the EFL’s right to reject them.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
In a member-governed organisation, individual members acting in the utmost good faith towards each other is fundamental; it’s a key tenet of the Premier League’s founding charter. The scale of City’s disregard for that principle means surely any sanction short of expulsion is insufficient.
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flyingrodent @flyingrodent.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Yeah, some good stuff here and some frankly dubious bits. I’d wait and see what happens, because if you generally assume you are being cynically bullshat in Britain, then you are seldom pleasantly surprised.
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@iandunt.bsky.social • 30m
Burnham speech: An astonishing moment of radicalism and commitment
iandunt.substack.com/p/burnham-sp...
Burnham speech: An astonishing moment of radicalism and commitment
It's easy to be cynical, but it would be false.
Something extraordinary is happening here.
• iandunt.substack.com
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lan DuntO @iandunt.bsky.social • 28m
No ifs and no buts, no caveats or provisos.
Things are happening here which we haven't ever really seen before. Burnham is saying the things that are considered unsayable and doing the things which are considered undoable.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Surely some part of the inspiration for Jenny Hesselbo, The Woman Who Can’t Be Ignored?
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
#SNLUK Emma Sidi as Shirley Ballas when?
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
…but it’s also potentially problematic if/when people start to see him failing to muster anything like the same level of genuine care and fluency on key policy matters. “You can do it for this, why not for *this*?”, as he evades, triangulates, and equivocates.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
An idle thought I had while catching up on @jamesomalley.co.uk’s most recent Odds and Ends email just now — Andy Burnham’s ability to show up on podcasts or No 10 social clips talking with authentic passion about stuff he cares about (music, football) *is* great…
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Gregk Foley @gregk.co.uk · 09/09/2026
I'm of the view that if stuff like this weren't a big deal, then the Israelis wouldn't be throwing an apoplectic fit about it, but it is funny that the substance of Andy Burnham's Guardian oped is effectively, "My government is taking bold steps: Recognising international law and following it."
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Phil McDuff @mcduff.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
The way Miliband and Polanski are treated should put to bed any idea that this is about the secret controlling power of Jews. Jewishness is sacrosanct to the British establishment only inasmuch it can be instrumentalised to their ends, and not a single millimetre further than that.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
One of the worst ever to do it
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
Discovered from @cricinfo.com that Josh Blake is out of contract at Surrey at the end of the season. Would fully understand if he wanted to go somewhere he’d get more of a consistent run in Championship cricket as well as the white ball stuff, but his career so far is a great story, stay or go.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
*Metro Bank, not Blast!
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Blake has quietly compiled a nice little List A career out of pitching up in the middle of every summer to post good Blast numbers for a Hundred-ravaged side, has looked capable in the scraps of first-class cricket he’s had, and now has a vital, perhaps season-saving, defining red ball performance.
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David Stafford @djstaffs1.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Liverpool are a work in progress and it's going to take a lot of hard work and signings yes signings to get us looking like a functional side. It was rubbish today in all honesty. Iraola has a big job on his hands. Some of these guys are coasting, some not good enough. I wish him all the best #lfc
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Yeah, have been saying all summer that Dom should be seen as primarily a RW if we’re determined to play Wirtz central in front of a double pivot in 4231.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
…without further signings he will need to start plenty of games, including important/hostile ones, so why not try, with the “security” of, say, Gravenberch on the bench? Easy to say sitting on my sofa, of course…
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Possibly. But Nyoni has been quite obviously the standout midfielder of pre-season, and shown vastly more positioning discipline and ability to progress the ball from deep through passing. I will hear the arguments about not throwing a 19yo into this atmosphere, but
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Just putting the best lads in rather than picking for tactical fit would be weak management, for me, and an uncomfortable echo of Slot continuing to pick the “first choice” players last season long past the point where there was any justification to do so in their form or system fit.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Yeah completely fair re: Kerkez. If Iraola is picking them just because they’re the best individual players, even if just out of some desire for early stability or whatever, I’d be concerned, to be honest — because the defects of that combination actively and significantly *undermine* solidity.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
A completely dysfunctional double pivot will hurt us more consistently than a fullback who can’t keep pace with the quickest wingers.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Yeah, I thought he was quicker as well. Might just be that he was slightly overcommitted in support of the attack and/or not quite in peak condition yet. Do think the midfield issue is the bigger one, even if Neville is trying to pin it on the CBs needing to have closed up higher.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
That was *a* problem, but largely unavoidable — Kerkez is supporting the attack and can’t legislate for a shit pass or make himself any quicker. I’m more concerned with the total lack of central cover for the counter. Where was Szoboszlai? Obvious issues with that double pivot exploited early.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Where was Szoboszlai while Gravenberch made that run into the box and lost the ball with a poor pass to spark an easy counterattack? Chalk a big one up early for “this double pivot doesn’t work”.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Convinced since his first first-team appearances that Danns has got *it*. Proper striker’s instincts, finishing skills, great link-up, strength on the ball and in duels, and seemingly more pace in this latest return than I remember from before. Still only 20. Hope he gets a good loan and soars.
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Some calling this i/v groundwork for a return. Don’t see it for sporting reasons — miles on the clock, injuries, attitude — but also can’t see him being accepted when he seemingly *still* doesn’t understand, or won’t say, that it wasn’t just *that* he left, but *how*, that turned people against him
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Once again paging @beefanddairy.bsky.social
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
THE REHEARSAL is astonishing, and has got me thinking a lot about the very good novel REMAINDER by Tom McCarthy, and wondering whether I should explore the rest of his work. Am I followed by any Tom McCarthy heads on here?
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
The obvious answer was, of course, to start watching THE REHEARSAL and bring another awkward nerdy genius into my life
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Okay so now I’ve watched all the HOW TO WITH JOHN WILSON that there is to watch, and frankly what am I supposed to do now? Watch it again, I guess?
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Iain Alexander @iaingalexander.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Honestly, fucking save me from the doom-mongers
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