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swimmingducks.bsky.social

@swimmingducks.bsky.social
75 followers 117 following 13 posts
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Micah @rincewind.run · 16/08/2025
Discworld QOTD, from Unseen Academicals “The Librarian was not familiar with love, which had always struck him as a bit ethereal and soppy, but kindness, on the other hand, was practical. You knew where you were with kindness, especially if you were holding a pie it had just given you.”
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Ella Baron @ellabaron.bsky.social · 01/07/2025
Wednesday's @theguardian.com cartoon #WelfareReformBill theguardian.com/commentisfre...
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Micah @rincewind.run · 14/06/2025
Bonus Discworld QOTD, from The Wee Free Men “Nac Mac Feegle! The Wee Free Men! Nae king! Nae quin! Nae laird! Nae master! We willna' be fooled again!”
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Mags Campbell @magscampbell.bsky.social · 08/06/2025
"He asked you to shoot at people who weren’t shooting back,” growled Vimes, striding forward, “That makes him insane, wouldn’t you say?” “They are throwing stones, Sarge,” said Colon. “So? Stay out of range. They’ll get tired before we do." Terry Pratchett, Night Watch
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Scottish Book Trust @scottishbooktrust.bsky.social · 03/06/2025
Why does your library matter to you? ❤️📚 We asked 2,000 Scots that question and this is what they told us: www.scottishbooktrust.com/our-research...
Poster with map of Scotland that reads 'Why libraries matter. Final report: The value and impact of Scotland's public libraries.'Text on orange poster reads: We surveyed 2,000 library users across Scotland. You told us about:
 
How invaluable library staff are
 
The financial relief libraries afford
 
An endless variety in community activity within your libraries
 
A safe and welcoming space for marginalised identitiesPoster with a closed sign at the top. It reads: 'Our research indicates that 1 in 8 of Scotland's public libraries have closed between 2008 and 2024. That's 97 libraries. The copy of this poster is a list of recommendations based on the research Scottish Book Trust has produced. The copy reads: 'Our recommendations:
 
1. Scottish Government publishes a legal definition of what an 'adequate' public library service is
 
2. Scottish Government empowers local authorities with sufficient funding and resources
 
3. Local authorities train and support their librarians
 
4. Local authorities publish annual reports that detail their library provision
 
5. Public libraries are supported to develop a service improvement culture
 
6. More members of the public engage with their local library'
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Touretteshero @touretteshero.bsky.social · 23/05/2025
Keir_Starmer you say Labour is the party of work, why then is it, that for the first time in 15 yrs I’m being forced out of a job I love because of a DWP decision made on your watch? I desperately want to concentrate on my job but I can only work with the right support 4/4
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Micah @rincewind.run · 25/04/2025
Discworld QOTD, from Moving Pictures "If the abnormal goes on long enough it becomes the normal. It was just that, when you came to explain it to a third party, it sounded odd."
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Frances Ryan @francesryan.bsky.social · 27/03/2025
I’m seeing even well-meaning accounts criticise disability cuts as hitting “the most vulnerable.” Reminder: disabled people are not inherently vulnerable. We are vulnerable when governments choose to withhold the resources disabled people need to live dignified and secure lives.
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Cats of Yore @catsofyore.bsky.social · 21/03/2025
It's the time of year when I see articles telling folks to put pet fur out for bird nesting. The Cornell ornithology lab does not recommend this! Flea/tick treatments & shampoos can be toxic, long fur can entangle chicks, etc. There are much better alternatives: www.allaboutbirds.org/news/providi...
allaboutbirds.org
Providing Nest Material for Birds: Dos & Don'ts
Rufous Hummingbird by Penny Hall/Birdshare. Most birds build some kind of structure to contain their eggs and nestlings. A bird's nest may be as simple as a nighthawk's or Killdeer's depression on ...
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Frances Ryan @francesryan.bsky.social · 14/03/2025
One more time for ministers at the back: it’s entirely possible to be a taxpayer and to receive benefits. As someone currently in the mid-tax band and on PIP, I’m more than happy for my earnings to help people who can’t work - and to pick up the state support I’m entitled to.
But Reeves herself seems in no mood to back down. In an interview on BBC Breakfast this morning, where she was responding to the growth figures, Reeves was asked about the plans for welfare cuts. She replied:

We will set out our plans for welfare reform, but it is absolutely clear that the current system is not working for anyone.
It is not working for people who need support, it’s not working to get people into work so that more people can fulfil their potential, and it’s not working for the taxpayer when the bill for welfare is going up by billions of pounds in the next few years.
So, we do need to get a grip. We need to spend more on national defence, but we need to reform our public services, and we need to reform our broken welfare system.
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swimmingducks.bsky.social @swimmingducks.bsky.social · 25/01/2025
Have just learned that birds have tongues! #Winterwatch
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