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Tom Wilkinson

@tswilkinson.bsky.social
28 followers 107 following 34 posts
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
ryan cooper @ryanlcooper.com · 26/09/2026
great piece. man social media is a cancer themomoftheyear.substack.com/p/im-the-mom...
themomoftheyear.substack.com
I’m the Mom in That Viral Giants Clip. Let Me Tell You About My Husband.
You saw me carrying our baby and food. There was more happening in our family that night.
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
ProPublica @propublica.org · 13/09/2026
In 2017, we published a story about Fred Steese, who took a plea deal that kept him guilty of murder though prosecutors knew he was innocent. He was later pardoned and paid $1.4 million. Steese died in August, with only 13 years to enjoy his freedom.
propublica.org
I Wrote About His Wrongful Conviction. He Got Only 13 Years of Freedom Before Cancer Took His Life.
For years, I followed the case of Fred Steese, who spent 21 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit. When he died in August, it felt like the universe had dealt him yet another injustice.
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
ProPublica @propublica.org · 27/08/2026
The morning that Cmdr. Elizabeth Nakagawa was scheduled to have a D&C to remove fetal tissue after losing a very wanted pregnancy, she learned the surgery had been canceled because the military’s health insurance plan refused to pay for it. (Published Dec. 2024)
propublica.org
A Coast Guard Commander Miscarried. She Nearly Died After Being Denied Care.
U.S. service members have long faced strict limits on abortions, even when used to resolve miscarriages. Under federal law, the military will only pay for abortions in cases of rape, incest or to save...
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Joaquin Sapien @jbsapien.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
A few weeks ago, after two years of work, I published a story unlike any I’d encountered in my 18 years at ProPublica. I’ve been off social media for a while, but I felt compelled to share some of my reporting journey here. 🧵
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Ron Deibert @rondeibert.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
Canadian 🇨🇦 forensic company Magnet suing a former employee for disclosing an Apple zero-day the company was hoarding & exploiting to crack iPhones "the public disclosure...alerted Apple to the flaw and allowed it to be..fixed, reducing its value..." www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
IPhone Hacking Firm Sues Ex-Worker Over Alleged Theft of Secrets
Magnet Forensics Inc., a Canadian cybersecurity firm, accused a former contractor of sharing trade secrets about a previously unknown flaw used to hack iPhones with a rival firm.
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Conor Sewell @ccsewell.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
There are many, many things I would like to say about civil service HR and disciplinary processes which would get me into trouble, so let me just say that I am so, so heartbroken for her family and I hope (but don’t expect) that this will lead to real change.
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Trish Greenhalgh @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
Every summer I repost this article on how to spot drowning. Please read it and pass on. In the last few years I’ve had SIX messages from people who saved a kid’s life after clicking on the link from my feed. slate.com/technology/2...
slate.com
Drowning Doesn’t Look Like Drowning
Drowning is not the violent, splashing call for help that most people expect.
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 23/04/2026
RFK Jr: "A Democratic senator claimed it's mathematically impossible to have a drug drop by 600%. I said, 'Well, if the drug was $100 and it raises to $600, that would be a 600% rise. If it drops from $600 to $100, that's a 600% savings.'" Trump: "Right"
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
ProPublica @propublica.org · 24/03/2026
NEW: This Louisiana prosecutor... • Was forced to resign from the DA’s office for submitting false paperwork. • Withheld evidence in at least 3 death row cases. • Compared a Black teen to a dog & told the jury to “get rid of it.” Now he’s running for judge. With @veritenews.org
propublica.org
He Compared a Black Child to a Dog and Withheld Evidence in Death Row Cases. Now He’s Running for Judge.
Holland, who once compared a Black child to a dog, has had a career mired in controversy. That hasn’t stopped him from becoming the de facto frontrunner of his judicial race.
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
ProPublica @propublica.org · 21/03/2026
THREAD: Cherise Doyley was in her 12th hour of contractions at the hospital when a tablet was brought to her bedside. On the screen was a Zoom call with a judge and several lawyers and doctors. She was in court, a nurse told her. The reason? For failing to agree to a C-section.
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 15/03/2026
www.theverge.com/policy/89453...
theverge.com
The $100,000 fee for H-1Bs is causing all sorts of problems
The work visa is often associated with Silicon Valley, but the fee increase will hurt rural America most.
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 08/03/2026
thesecretbarrister.com/2026/03/07/k...
thesecretbarrister.com
Keir Starmer and David Lammy are taking an extraordinarily dangerous gamble with our individual liberty
This week, MPs will vote on the second reading of the Courts and Tribunals Bill. Don’t let the anodyne name fool you – this is one of the most revolutionary pieces of legislation in our…
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 03/03/2026
www.theverge.com/tech/887899/...
theverge.com
Why is SpaceX going public?
Musk in 2013:  “I am hesitant to foist being public on SpaceX, especially given the long term nature of our mission.”
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
www.theverge.com/news/885773/...
theverge.com
Anthropic refuses Pentagon’s new terms, standing firm on lethal autonomous weapons and mass surveillance
The Pentagon’s “threats do not change our position,” Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei wrote.
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
theverge.com
Anthropic doesn’t want its AI killing people. The Pentagon isn’t happy.
Remember Emil Michael?
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
dell cameron @dell.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
I don’t like this
Letter from Senator Ron Wyden:

Dear CIA Director Ratcliffe,
I write to alert you to a classified letter I sent you earlier today in which I express deep concerns about CIA activities.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
Sincerely,
Ron Wyden
U.S. Senator
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Dimitri Drekonja, MD, MS @dimitridrekonja.bsky.social · 24/01/2026
Alex Pretti was a colleague at the VA. We hired him to recruit for our trial. He became an ICU nurse- I lover working with him. He was a good kind person who lived to help and these fuckers executed him. White. Hot. Rage.
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 03/01/2026
www.theverge.com/features/611... Free to read until 5pm GMT
theverge.com
The women who made America’s microchips and the children who paid for it
The US wants to manufacture chips again — but there’s a dark, overlooked history.
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 01/12/2025
@simonoxfphys.com You haven't included the games bundle on your Jingle Jam fundraising page. See the Jingle Jam FAQs info.tiltify.com/support/solu...
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Anoosh Chakelian @anooshc.bsky.social · 19/11/2025
Excellent cover story by @willdunn.bsky.social who has the inside track on the bond markets influencing the Budget - feat. the incredible bit of an analysis by one investor who found each welfare rebel MP equals a *£1bn* debt premium over the Parliament...
newstatesman.com
Meet the bond market vigilantes
Governments are now at the mercy of unseen investors
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Matthew Yglesias @mattyglesias.bsky.social · 13/11/2025
I don’t know what’s really in Jared Golden’s heart as he steps away from congress but you have to think he’d have more zest for the job of his accomplishments were properly acknowledged. www.slowboring.com/p/the-candid...
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 02/11/2025
www.theargumentmag.com/p/an-abortio...
theargumentmag.com
An abortion ban pushed me toward abortion
Is this what the pro-life movement intended?
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Elizabeth N. Saunders @profsaunders.bsky.social · 19/10/2025
This story is extraordinary even by 2025 standards. Marco Rubio, the nation's top diplomat, made a deal with Bukele and agreed to renege on informant agreements in a years-long DOJ investigation into MS-13, totally undercutting credibility of such agreements. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
washingtonpost.com
Rubio promised to betray U.S. informants to get Trump’s El Salvador prison deal
To secure U.S. access to President Nayib Bukele’s notorious CECOT prison, Rubio agreed to turn over several MS-13 leaders central to a long-running Justice Department investigation.
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 18/10/2025
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/u...
nytimes.com
U.S. to Repatriate Survivors of Its Strike on Suspected Drug Vessel
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
David Corn @davidcorn.bsky.social · 16/10/2025
It's going up to $40 billion. USAID's budget last year was $28 billion.
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Sam Learner @samlearner.bsky.social · 13/10/2025
NEW: How mega batteries are unlocking an energy revolution Our story today on how storage is changing grids and extending the use of clean power ig.ft.com/mega-batteri...
ig.ft.com
How mega batteries are unlocking an energy revolution
Vast battery units are shoring up grids and extending the use of clean power
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Meredith Whittaker @meredithmeredith.bsky.social · 09/09/2025
📣 NEW -- In The Economist, discussing the privacy perils of AI agents and what AI companies and operating systems need to do--NOW--to protect Signal and much else! www.economist.com/by-invitatio...
An illustration of me, and the headline: "AI agents are coming for your privacy, warns Meredith Whittaker
The Signal Foundation’s president worries they will also blunt competition and undermine cyber-security"To put it bluntly, the path currently being taken towards agentic AI leads to an elimination of privacy and security at the application layer. It will not be possible for apps like Signal—the messaging app whose foundation I run—to continue to provide strong privacy guarantees, built on robust and openly validated encryption, if device-makers and OS developers insist on puncturing the metaphoric blood-brain barrier between apps and the OS. Feeding your sensitive Signal messages into an undifferentiated data slurry connected to cloud servers in service of their AI-agent aspirations is a dangerous abdication of responsibility.Happily, it’s not too late. There is much that can still be done, particularly when it comes to protecting the sanctity of private data. What’s needed is a fundamental shift in how we approach the development and deployment of AI agents. First, privacy must be the default, and control must remain in the hands of application developers exercising agency on behalf of their users. Developers need the ability to designate applications as “sensitive” and mark them as off-limits to agents, at the OS level and otherwise. This cannot be a convoluted workaround buried in settings; it must be a straightforward, well-documented mechanism (similar to Global Privacy Control) that blocks an agent from accessing our data or taking actions within an app.

Second, radical transparency must be the norm. Vague assurances and marketing-speak are no longer acceptable. OS vendors have an obligation to be clear and precise about their architecture and what data their AI agents are accessing, how it is being used and the measures in place to protect it.
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 08/08/2025
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
nytimes.com
How Your Phone Gets the Weather (Gift Article)
The more weather observations meteorologists can rely on, the more precise their forecasts will be. Here's what goes into an accurate forecast.
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Katie Martin @katie0martin.ft.com · 06/07/2025
😬😬😬
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 06/07/2025
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
How MI5 piled falsehood on falsehood in court in the case of a spy who abused women
Security Service continued to provide misleading evidence even after its lie was exposed, BBC can reveal.
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 09/06/2025
wapo.st/4jIrK86
wapo.st
American students in China face a barrage of questions about Trump
The number of U.S. students in China has plummeted, but those who are there now say it’s more important than ever for Americans to understand the country.
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Taniel @taniel.bsky.social · 09/06/2025
Federal law specifies that members of Congress can access any DHS facility, including ICE detention centers, but two US representatives were denied entry today: www.nytimes.com/2025/06/08/n...
nytimes.com
2 New York Representatives Are Denied Access to ICE Facility
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Rachel Cohen Booth @rcobooth.bsky.social · 30/05/2025
A new bipartisan bill would require private insurers to fully cover the cost of childbirth with no co-pays or deductibles. Average out-of-pocket costs today is ~$3,000. It’s a big deal, with an unusual origin story, and backed by an even more unusual alliance of orgs 🧵 www.vox.com/policy/41491...
vox.com
America might finally make childbirth free
An unlikely alliance is supporting a new bipartisan bill in Congress.
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 27/04/2025
www.theguardian.com/media/2025/a...
theguardian.com
Gordon Brown makes criminal complaint against Rupert Murdoch’s media empire
Exclusive: Former British PM urges police to reopen inquiry – and claims media executive Will Lewis attempted to incriminate him
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Stephen Collins @stephencollins.bsky.social · 20/04/2025
Happy Easter
Scene is WAITROSE CUSTOMER SERVICES DESK. Behind it is a staff member, whose name we will soon learn is BECKY. She is dealing with a customer, for now out of shot, while talking to her manager on the phone.

BECKY [on phone]: 
Yeah, hiya...


2
BECKY:
Yes I have a customer here who wants to complain about the Easter eggs.

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BECKY [putting hand over receiver while addressing the customer stood at the desk in front of her]:
Sorry what was your name again?

4
[Pull back to show the customer is a very tall, green-skinned, PAGAN GODDESS, festooned with flowers. Stood next to her is her son, a normal human teenager in a hoodie, who looks mortified by his mum.]

PAGAN GODDESS:
Eostre the Pagan Goddess of Fertility

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BECKY
Sorry -
Your name is Easter…?

PAGAN GODDESS:
Eostre.

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VICKY:
Your name is Easter and you want to complain about the Easter eggs.

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PAGAN GODDESS:
Sorry love, what’s your name?

BECKY:
Becky

PAGAN GODDESS:
Well, Vicky -

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PAGAN GODDESS:
If it was you who’d shagged the solar god of the Equinox to give birth to an actual living god - my son Darren here -

TEENAGE BOY:
Muuum…

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PAGAN GODDESS:
….only to have all your efforts totally forgotten by history, you’d have a complaint too!

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PAGAN GODDESS:
Aisle four is full of products, with no hint of the true meaning of the festival!

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BECKY:
You mean… Jesus…?

PAGAN GODDESS:
I mean shagging, Vicky.

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PAGAN GODDESS:
Is it too much to see  just a little bit of pre-Christian sex in Aisle 4?

TEENAGE BOY:
MUUUUM
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 14/04/2025
on.ft.com/4id4U7R
on.ft.com
EU issues US-bound staff with burner phones over spying fears
European Commission officials heading to IMF and World Bank spring meetings advised to travel with basic devices
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 13/04/2025
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/13/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | The Supreme Court Ruled. Trump and the A.C.L.U. Both Claimed Victory. Huh? (Gift Article)
The administration won a narrow procedural victory, but it took a substantial constitutional loss.
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 12/04/2025
www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
theguardian.com
A Dartmoor village is paying Prince William £1.5m-a-year for an abandoned prison - and former inmates say it gave them cancer
As ex-prisoners sue over claims that high levels of radon gas have led to serious illnesses, taxpayers continue to foot the rental bill
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 08/04/2025
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Labour MPs launch campaign to introduce digital IDs
Backbench groups revive controversial issue to tackle threat of Reform and crack down on illegal migration
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 06/04/2025
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
theguardian.com
Exclusive: how the Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg got added to the White House Signal group chat
Internal investigation cleared the national security adviser Mike Waltz, but the mistake was months in the making
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 06/04/2025
on.ft.com/4lhMQw8
on.ft.com
Unite divided: British trade union grapples with twin scandals
Scrutiny of business ventures has led to allegations of conflicts of interest
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 26/03/2025
wapo.st/4c2BMPr
wapo.st
Vaccine skeptic hired to head federal study of immunizations and autism
A long-discredited researcher and vaccine skeptic will conduct a government study on whether vaccines cause autism.
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Taniel @taniel.bsky.social · 26/03/2025
The Democrat who just flipped a very Trumpy seat in Pennsylvania’s Senate made opposition to Elon Musk front and center in his campaign. (lancasteronline.com/news/politic...)
Malone said Saturday that his campaign volunteers have heard concerns from thousands of voters over Musk’s work with the Trump administration to reshape the federal government, which he said has led to “benefits for veterans, retirees and students” being cut “so Elon Musk can get a tax cut.”

“Josh Parsons might be OK with that but I’m not,” Malone said. “On Tuesday, you’ll get to make the choice between more Musk, or Lancaster values.”
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 25/03/2025
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
theguardian.com
Online gangs of teenage boys sharing extreme material are ‘emerging threat’ in UK
National Crime Agency says such groups are fuelling crimes including fraud, violence and child sexual abuse
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 25/03/2025
wapo.st/4ix4VEJ
washingtonpost.com
Trump’s Washington runs on secret chat app Signal
The encrypted chat app beloved by Elon Musk and foreign dissidents has been embraced by federal government workers, DOGE and military planners.
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Pete Buttigieg @petebuttigieg.bsky.social · 24/03/2025
From an operational security perspective, this is the highest level of fuckup imaginable. These people cannot keep America safe.
theatlantic.com
The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans
U.S. national-security leaders included me in a group chat about upcoming military strikes in Yemen. I didn’t think it could be real. Then the bombs started falling.
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 24/03/2025
on.ft.com/4iUDzZ1
on.ft.com
Can Cambridge be a model for kick-starting the British economy?
An ambitious plan aims to double the size of the city and make it a hub for growth and innovation. But will its infrastructure cope?
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 09/03/2025
www.theguardian.com/education/20...
theguardian.com
‘I’ve lost my work and been ostracised’: Oxford University accused of failing to act after ruling on ‘sham’ contracts
Despite winning a landmark legal battle, academic Alice Jolly believes it won’t benefit others
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Tom Wilkinson @tswilkinson.bsky.social · 02/03/2025
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
theguardian.com
Revealed: at least 25 UK ‘spy cops’ had sex with deceived members of public
Total shows scale of dishonesty in undercover operations over more than three decades
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Reposted by Tom Wilkinson
Jeremy Konyndyk @jeremykonyndyk.bsky.social · 26/02/2025
So - I've actually led Ebola outbreak response at USAID. This is bunk from Elon. They have laid off most of the experts, they're bankrupting most of the partner orgs, have withdrawn from WHO, and muzzled CDC. What's left is a fig-leaf effort to cover their asses politically.
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