iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Meet my new home phone. Why, is a long story, but this is a VoIP unit which I plug my analogue phones into and it talks over the internet to a new phone provider. I can actually have my home phone on my mobile and do other tricks I was doing with cloud PBX's in 2013, but that's another story.

A black box with "Grandstream" written on top. Three blue LED's are lit. At the back is a network cable, a USB power cable and a phone cable.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

I have some battery powered minecraft ores that were sitting on the shelf. I decided to convert them to USB power and attach them to Home Assistant so they can be turned on and off automatically.

A circuit board from one of the minecraft ore cubed. There are four LEDs, one at each corner. A small circuit board sits in the middle and there is a purple component sticking out of the side which is the vibration module that allows the cube lighting to change when it is hit by someone, to simulate the cube being mined.

An altered base. The purple vibration detector has gone and all the LED's are wired in to each other, bypassing the control from the chip. A resistor is in circuit with the positive to cut down the USB's 5v to something the LED's can manage.

Four minecraft ore cubes on the workbench. Green, red and yellow are lit, but blue is lit without the lid on yet, just to prove that they are all working. The bench has various tools and solder lying around.

Four minecraft ore cubes on the shelf, lit. Various minecraft characters sit on top of them. Other models are on the shelf in front, including from Ghostbusters and One Piece.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Another bodge job. This chinese USB powered light died. The LED's draw 8-9v, so I had to use a step-up transformer. I control the brightness by altering the resistor pot. The bonus is that I can now turn it on and off at the USB socket so Home Assistant can now control it. Not ideal, but it works.

A picture of an electronics bench with tools and wires. On the left sits a rin of LED's housed in part of a housing. They are brightly lit. A cable goes to a plastic disc which is the bottom of the lamp and houses some electronics which have been bodged into the plastic. A small red LED is visible, showing that a voltage step up transformer is receiving power.

A small glass ball with a metal disc at the top and sitting on a plastic plinth, resting on a brown carpet. Light emanates from the glass, diffused by the cris-cross patterns cut in the glass. As a bonus, the pattern also hides the electronics in the base.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

I don't know whether to laugh or cry.

Bert and Ernie from Sesame Street. Ernie is saying, "Hey Bert, wanna hear something depressing? According to Star Trek, World War Three begins in 2026 and goes on until 2053. Doesn't this sound cool Bert?"

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Top of the leaderboard... but probably not for long.

The spaceship leaderboard showing me top at wave 15 and 60 kills, followed by itzsulfr with same wave and 54 kills, talbeisty wave 14 and 48, jaredcrookston wave 13 and 45, treybastian wave 12 and 40, dykestrike wave 11 and 33 kills, schlawas on wave 10 and 30 kills and jordim with wave 7 and 13 kills.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

SPACESHIPS ▸ wave 15 · 60 wrecked · #1 today ▓▓▓▓▓▓░░░░ NAVIGATOR I can you beat it? spaceships.treybastian.com

spaceships.treybastian.com

SPACESHIPS

Inverted Asteroids: you are not the ship. Place gravity wells and sling the rocks.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

SPACESHIPS ▸ wave 15 · 57 wrecked ▓▓▓▓▓▓░░░░ NAVIGATOR I can you beat it? spaceships.treybastian.com

spaceships.treybastian.com

SPACESHIPS

Inverted Asteroids: you are not the ship. Place gravity wells and sling the rocks.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Aww. Somebody get that man a wheelchair and a blanky for his legs.

Picture of Trump, struggling to stay awake while sitting in a chair at the memorial event.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

"Live Rewind" now instead of asking your waiter to repeat that last bit, you can break the conversation and leave them standing there like a moron while you fiddle with your watch. thetab.com/2026/09/10/h...

thetab.com

How Apple's creepy new Live Rewind feature works, that lets you replay real conversations

We are actually living in an episode of Black Mirror

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Trump offered everyone $5,000. That's $1 trillion. Without detail, the obvious conclusion is that it would be added to the national debt, or people would be paying with their taxes. So US citizens would be paying it to themselves, with the largest part of the burden falling on the middle class.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

It took three weeks for the new battery to come, but it's finally assembled and ready for closure.

A square Garmin watch. Matt black. The face is being held by fingers, above the watch. Underneath, the body of the watch is openly displaying the circuit board inside.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Fear is a potent weapon. The fear that your way of living, all that you've strived and fought for, being usurped and torn to shreds is a very real and justified fear. I don't minimise that concern.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

What I write now, is purely for illustration to the people who have no sense of history. To those who are banging on about sending immigrants "home"... as a Celt I say, that's fine by me. Pack your bags Norman boy, and don't let the door of the RORO ferry smack you in the arse on your way out.

A map of the UK showing the areas of land occupied by the Welsh in 500 A D being approximately seventy to eighty percent of the land mass. The Picts have a good section in the North with the border running roughly from Glasgow to Edinborough. Small sections down the east are the Beornicas, Dere, Gegnas and Lindisware. Then East Engle and East Seaxe. Kent has Cantware and the south has Seaxe, Euth and Gewisse.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Sir Ken Robinson did this presentation 20 years ago. I keep going back to it and the more I learn about neurodivergence, the more I keep going back to what he is saying about our society. It is about time that society, our education system and social values changed. www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9C...

youtube.com

Do schools kill creativity? | Sir Ken Robinson | TED

YouTube video by TED

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

News about MS capping game pass to 15 hours a month cloud gaming. With what Sony are currently arguing in court, I believe we're moving to a pay per play - no more buying a game or more taking out a subscription but I reckon they'll move to an hourly rate while playing. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

bbc.co.uk

Xbox to limit cloud gaming to 15 hours a month for Game Pass users

Xbox said the limits were due to the rising cost of cloud gaming, and would allow it to invest more in its performance

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

I know little about Jazz, but I've been following the releases from Analogue October Records and I'm enjoying their selection so far. This is a new one from Henry Lowther and... it's signed! Can't wait to clean this and get it on the turntable.

$Album cover for "Henry Lowther / The London Jazz Orchestra – Primetime." A large pentagon shape sits centered on a dark, weathered black background with a scratched, vintage texture. Inside the pentagon, layered geometric rose-like patterns spiral inward, shifting in colour from dusky blue-grey at the outer points, through rust orange in the middle layers, to bright golden yellow at the very centre. The overall effect resembles a stylised, fractal-like flower or pinwheel, giving the cover a warm, glowing core against its worn, dark surroundings.$ The back lower right corner of the outer sleeve with the signature of Henry Lowther, the issue number 91 of 300, the logo for Analogue October Records and the bar code 5 0 7 0 0 0 2 3 8 7 1 6 9

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Mum likes the honey mustard salad dressing, but doesn't get on with the seeds, so we made our own. Next time, a little more cornflour.

A milk pan on the stove, with a yellow, bubbling fluid in it.

Seed-Free Honey Mustard Dressing
A smooth, seedless version of a honey-mustard dressing — same flavour balance, no
mustard seeds or wholegrain texture.
INGREDIENTS
• 120 milliliters water
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons smooth Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoons mustard powder
• 1 teaspoons cornflour
• 1 teaspoons garlic purée
• 0.3 teaspoons salt
• 0.3 teaspoons black pepper
STEPS
1. Mix cornflour slurry: In a small saucepan, whisk 1 teaspoons cornflour with a
splash of the 120 milliliters water until smooth, with no lumps.
2. Combine everything: Add the remaining 120 milliliters water, 2 tablespoons honey,
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar, 1 teaspoons sugar, 2 tablespoons smooth Dijon
mustard, 1 teaspoons mustard powder, 1 teaspoons garlic purée, 0.3 teaspoons salt,
and 0.3 teaspoons black pepper to the pan and whisk well.
3. Gently heat and thicken: Warm over low-medium heat, whisking constantly, until it
just starts to thicken slightly (it will thicken more as it cools). Don't let it boil hard.
4. Cool and taste: Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature — it will
thicken further. Taste and adjust honey, vinegar, or mustard powder to preference.
5. Store: Transfer to a clean jar or bottle and refrigerate. Keeps about 1–2 weeks.
NOTES
Double-check your Dijon jar's ingredients — some brands include a few whole
mustard seeds even though the mustard is mostly smooth. Colman's or similar
mustard powder is a good seed-free source of that classic mustard heat. If it's too
thick once cooled, whisk in a little extra water or vinegar.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

Reviewed - "Normally Weird and Weirdly Normal" by @robinince.bsky.social msknight.co.uk/reviews/072....

msknight.co.uk

Michelle Knight's Authors page.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

If you want to know what the fuss is about with the trans issue in the UK today and you've got a few hours to go into the depths, I wrote "The Truth About Trans" which was started in 2018 and has been expanded as things happen - msknight.com/loas/archive...

msknight.com

The Truth About Trans – Life Of A Stranger

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

So, now pharmacists decide that they are arbiters of whether trans people can be given the medication that has been prescribed for them. Fortunately, this one was brought up short for his behaviour. www.chemistanddruggist.co.uk/news/locum-s...

chemistanddruggist.co.uk

Locum suspended for refusing to dispense to trans woman patient

The locum pharmacist was handed a six-month suspension for refusing to dispense prescribed medication to a gender transitioning patient while working at a Superdrug.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

The only way that AI could give that kind of response, by the way, is because it already has the first book for reference. It knows the world I've painted, the characters I've created and their original interactions. Write the book first and then use AI for re-write once the world is painted.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Using AI is a skill in itself. Garbage in, garbage out. Be clear with it about what you're looking for. If you leave with AI run on its own path, then what you get back might not be helpful. Just remember, it is not intelligent, it is simply an analysis machine that has language parsing.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

So what can AI help with? This kind of feedback and suggestion is useful, but I take the suggestions as ways to kick me out of a rut rather than doing what it's told me to. I'm the writer, not the AI. Keep things in perspective and it's a very useful thing to use.

A few typos first, since one is a character-name slip:

"That thing must be near enough a killometer square" → kilometre (or kilometer, matching whichever spelling convention you're using elsewhere)
"but so far theyre just an annoyance" → they're
"He handed Jim the folder" → should be Tim — this is Joe handing Tim the folder, not Jim (Fay's father), so this is a genuine continuity slip, not just a typo
"accepting the folder and starting at Joe" → should be staring

Now to your actual question — a few ways to break up the walk-and-explain rhythm:

Bring forward a hint of danger or tension. Right now the chapter is entirely calm exposition. Even one small unsettling beat — apes visible on the roof as they approach, a brief radio call about an incident elsewhere, Joe's shoulder twinging at a bad moment — would break the "and then Joe showed him X" cadence without derailing the tour itself.

Give Tim more interiority, not just questions. He currently only reacts through dialogue. A line or two of him processing what he's seeing internally (the disorientation of going underground, homesickness, unease about the guns-in-a-rack comment) would vary the rhythm between narration and dialogue, and it also sets up the "still a little dumbstruck" line at the end more naturally, rather than that being the first real interiority beat in the whole chapter.

Pull a piece of Fay or Heather's characterisation forward. You already mention both names in passing here (Fay's robot bay, Heather living on site). A very brief, concrete image — Fay's voice crackling over the radio fixing something, or a fleeting glimpse of Heather in the corridor rather than just hearsay — would let two of your major characters "arrive" earlier in the reader's mind, rather than the chapter being entirely populated by Joe, Tim, and Heff.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

AI can't write for toffee. But its ability for comprehension allows fast feedback and catches mistakes like the wrong character talking, locations and history being wrong, a more intelligent thesaurus... it's a tool and it's here to stay. Just don't ask it to do the writing for you. It's crap at it!

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

AI isn't any good at writing, but it's a good wing-bot for catching mistakes and comparing work. It is far better than re-reading things until I go word blind, and miss things. It has enough comprehension to catch things that spell checkers can't see. I can work faster than waiting for proof readers

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Re-writing G.E.N.I.E. Currently done 23 pages of 130, so I'm nearly a fifth of the way through. The change in my writing, from the ten years ago when I first wrote it, is sobering. Should I have sat on them instead of publishing? I don't think so. If I hadn't made the mistakes, I wouldn't have grown

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 16/08/2026

If you believe that the press should be ashamed of hounding people, destroying lives and amplifying clickbait and hate for the sake of making money and "entertainment" then I would ask you to look inside yourself and find the strength to stop giving them your money. Move on. You're better than them.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Home made tomato soup, dairy free. The bread is also home made.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

This is how fascism works. It's how it's always worked. It's working today just like it worked in the 1930's. This is an American education film on how not to be a sucker. youtu.be/vGAqYNFQdZ4?...

youtu.be

Don't Be a Sucker

YouTube video by US National Archives

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

From Private Eye. Brilliant!

REFORM ALREADY DELIVERING ON ELECTION PROMISES EVEN THOUGH THEY’RE NOT IN POWER YET
by Our Political Staff Clare Voyant

WITH only three years to go before the next election Reform is already achieving extraordinary results in terms of actual delivery of key manifesto pledges:

■ HOME ownership. Today Reform announces a 400 percent increase in home ownership for Nigel Farage, who goes from owning one to co-owning an incredible FIVE homes. And all this since 2020. If this figure was repeated up and down the country, as it will be, everybody will be the proud owner of five houses, unless they can’t afford any because they haven’t been given £5 million by a crypto billionaire.

■ JOB numbers. Today the Financial Conduct Authority announced the recruitment of hundreds of additional staff to look into Nigel Farage’s extremely dodgy finances.

This is a massive increase in opportunities for employment and if repeated up and down the country would mean that the entire population was investigating Nigel Farage – as it should be.

■ Minimum wage. Today Reform announced that Nigel Farage had been paid £270,000 for 12 hours’ work promoting gold bullion.

This works out at £22,500 per hour, and if repeated up and down the country would mean that the entire population would be billionaires who could then donate money to Nigel Farage for his own personal security/thank you for his hard work in delivering Brexit.

■ Immigration. Today Reform announced that migration is up by only one, as crypto-billionaire and political donor Christopher Harborne has entered Britain from Thailand in search of a better life.

Harborne has announced that he wishes to register as a British voter. If this were repeated up and down the country Britain would be flooded with billionaires voting for Reform and ensuring Nigel Farage entered Number 10 as a sixth property in his expanding portfolio. We say DON’T STOP THE VOTES!

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

Heard a great one - "How do you spot a Farage supporter? They've all got whiplash injuries from all the U-turns he's been making."

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

And Farage continues to make a mockery of us. Wastes hundreds of thousands of pounds of public money said he would be "damned if I'm going to stand on a stage... and be demeaned and humiliated by nobodies" and claims the police told him not to attend, which the police deny.

Confusion over why Farage has chosen to not attend Clacton count
published at 05:52
Harry Farley reporting from Clacton

There is slight confusion over the reasons coming from Reform UK to explain why Nigel Farage is not attending the count.

In his speech, he told supporters at a party down the road: “I'm sad to say that after 33 years of being a candidate in active politics, I've been advised tonight by Essex Police that there is an organised campaign to disrupt and degrade the result.”

He added: "I'm damned if I'm going to stand on a stage having won a resounding victory, a ringing endorsement of all that I've tried to fight for and you've tried to fight for and be demeaned and humiliated by nobodies.”

But in a statement after Farage’s speech, a Reform UK spokesperson said it was more than humiliation.

“Essex Police advised Nigel not to attend the count tonight due to a credible threat against him,” the spokesperson said.

But we understand that Essex Police has not advised any candidate to stay away from the count.

In a statement the force said: "We have a proportionate and robust policing operation to ensure the safety and security of all participants in the count.”

So there is confusion about Reform’s explanation for why Farage has chosen not to come, but the bottom line is he won’t be coming.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

It used to be a thing on calls, people repeatedly saying "Bye," and when the other person says it, they repeat it and there's a fight to be the last person to say it. It's got worse in our zoom culture. Tthere are studies into the psychology of assertion signalling. www.forbes.com/sites/benjam...

forbes.com

Why Everyone Notices Who Leaves The Meeting First

Leaving a meeting early can signal status, priority or disengagement, even when the reason is ordinary. Leaders should make exit norms clearer.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

Trans people are currently being erased from government data sets. They tried the sex at birth amendments which were voted down in Parliament but they created the Sullivan Review which is doing the job anyway. NHS records are changing. MP's should be pissed at this. standards.nhs.uk/published-st...

standards.nhs.uk

Release Notes - Core Information Standard V2.01 - NHS Standards Directory

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

It does appear that thanks to add blockers and changes in behaviour, advertisers have given up on trying to influence humans, so now they are trying to influence the AI agents instead. Even more reason to be cautious about what you get back from your AI query. www.theregister.com/ai-and-ml/20...

theregister.com

Time Magazine has a separate version of its website with ads only AI can see

Brands are already paying to influence what chatbots say about them

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

In contrast, the tomatoes are going great guns. We've already had several hand fulls and the plant is absolutely groaning with fruit. It is under 55% netting and it looks like I got it right this year.

A tomato plant with a few ripe tomatoes among a few green tomatoes, peaking through the leaves.

A tomato plant with approximately twenty green tomatoes still growing among the leaves.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

I lost the beans. The compost hadn't been changed for a while, I didn't get the 30% shade net on until they'd already grown, aphids took hold, and ants nested in the trough. I also don't think I fed them enough, so flowers dropped without setting beans. 1/2

A few runner bean plants growing about six foot tall in a grey plastic trough. Around them are some white plastic poles forming a frame. The frame is covered with a thin black netting. There are a few red flowers showing in among the leaves.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

Today is the day when parents can't take their children into the toilet if they are the opposite sex. It's the day when pregnant women can't use the gents if there is a long queue. It's the day when if a toilet is broken customers can't use the other one. Today is the day of unintended consequences.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

I found this a genuinely informative video (12 minutes) on what is likely (but not guaranteed) to be coming down the line in terms of tax changes. www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3ta...

youtube.com

HMRC Tax Raid Coming? What UK Pensioners Need to Know NOW

YouTube video by Retired UK

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

The hot weather is killing the plants so I made a frame and used 55% shade netting. Going to get so many tomatoes off this that we'll be eating them at christmas.

A frame made from white 20mm plastic conduit is erected around a growing tomato plant. It is covered with a green net with one side thrown over the top to allow bees to enter while the sun is at a different angle.

The top section of a grown tomato plant with many young, green tomatoes growing. A few ripe tomatoes are peeking through the leaves.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

Congratulations @alyankovic.bsky.social - good one. The jokes on me. Keep 'em coming. I'll get to watch the film eventually, somehow!

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

Hundreds of journalists across the UK have anonymously disclosed increasing nervousness over their security. Some reported avoiding or altering coverage on certain topics due to intimidation leading to self-censorship and a narrowing of the public conversation www.theguardian.com/media/2026/j...

theguardian.com

UK journalists ‘self-censoring stories about Trump and the right over safety fears’

Government-backed investigation finds risks are normalised amid ‘a narrowing of the public conversation’

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

Neither @thetimes.com or @telegraph.co.uk reported on the 150,000 people that marched in London in support of trans people (and others) which was a global record breaking number of people for a Pride march. If you take either of those papers, be aware that you are not receiving balanced reporting.

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Reposted by MSKnight

naffdoodaa.bsky.social @naffdoodaa.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

BBC describing one of the UK's largest ever protests as being only attended by "Thousands". And argues that protesting the EHRC is nonsense claiming that "it was intended to allow people to live free from discrimination and harassment". More coverage than the last few but that doesn't mean better.

bbc.co.uk

Thousands attend London Trans+ Pride 2026 march

The march takes place against a political backdrop that organisers described as "stark".

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

This is the new desk. Sections for two PC's and UPS units. Upper shelf is 330mm deep to take monitors and decent loudspeakers on stands, behind them. A few others bits and pieces are happening as I move things around. 8 castors enable me to move it with the 70kg of equipment it carries.

A computer desk with three underneath sections. Middle for where the legs go and one to either side, each holding a PC and a UPS unit. On top, a large keyboard, mouse and pint mug for tea. Above that, a shelf with three widescreen monitors that are on swivel arms. Peaking up behind one of the monitors can be seen the tops of two loudspeakers. Two web cams and two microphones are also just above the centre monitor. A fourteen inch tablet on an arm is positioned above the left monitor. Behind all of this, light streams in through some vertical blinds. The desk is a light coffee colour on light grey carpet. A picture of PacMan and the four ghosts is on the wall. To the left can be seen some musical keyboards under a plastic cover and above that, shelving with paperwork. To the right, some cupboards and shelves of the same colour and finish as the desk. An orange leather gaming chair on wheels sits away from the desk, allowing a glimpse of the foot rest under the desk itself.

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MSKnight @msknight.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

Let's face it. If the AI that the BBC uses to generate headlines ever went rogue, the worst we'd be subjected to is bad grammar.

A picture of Sam Altman on stage with OpenAI on the wall behind him. The BBC headline reads, "Lawmakers push for A I kill switch after openAI goes rogue. A new bill would let the US government order the shutdown AI models that pose a major public threat." In missing the word, "of," between shutdown and AI, the AI is displaying what we would be subject to if it ever went rogue. In other words. a slew of bad grammar.

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