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Russian Politics: A Very Short Introduction coming to you very shortly (~3 mos.)

Brand needs to read Orwell’s Politics and the English language (and much else besides tbh)

Clive has been at the forefront of raising awareness of the climate emergency but hey, he didn’t want to take a fake oath and put his feet on a seat, so must be a bad dude. 🤔

Personal news: I'm delighted to say from 1 August 2024 I will be Associate Professor (senior lecturer) at the University of Southampton. Many thanks to my HoD (very supportive during the entire process), and my referees, who all generously supported my application.

Interesting piece by David Goldblatt on the many problems with the Olympics lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v46/…

I always enjoy reading intelligent commentary I don't agree with. This piece London Review of Books Tom Stevenson is half the story - more needs to be done to account for Russia's role.

The fake name “Ali Al-Shakati” has been circulating online in connection with the alleged Southport attacker. Katherine Denkinson has uncovered the source of this misinformation: a fake news website believed to be run by Russians. 📻 shorturl.at/hzlNO #TimesRadio

This stuff is just completely ahistorical. We had the British Union or Facsists in the 1930s, the National Front in the 70S, BNP winning European Parliament seats 20 years ago.... All blamed the "establishment" for their racism and hate.

Quoting this piece by Dr. Ian Garner in light of last few days. Russian disinfo has fanned tensions in GB causing riots. It isn’t about sowing confusion/true v. false but rather exploiting existing divisions until society falls apart at the seams. Understanding this is so crucial.

As someone who has worked on this in a markedly different context protest politics never draws on uniform support: crowds aren’t homogenous and contain numerous interlocking and sometimes contrasting ideas. Supporters and critics will pick and choose the bits they want to stress.

People are currently attempting to burn down a hotel housing migrants. This is not a “protest”. It’s racist thuggery on a par with what we saw in Nazi Germany in the 1930’s. We need unequivocal condemnation and forceful police intervention on a commensurate scale.

Thoughtful, historically-informed take

There are some interesting people on Twitter and there are pluses, but, in light of recent events, a case for engagement is becoming harder to sustain…

Been obvious for a long time what a divided and unhappy society the UK is. I worry it’s reaching its terminus as one that functions effectively. Why is this? It’s massively polarised with little unity. If a big riot kicked off in London I doubt the police or courts could cope.

Taking a break for a while. Will be on Instagram and via email if you want to get hold of me! Thanks for the messages about book contract and promotion, cheers.

Signing in for the first time in a while to promote an event @AndyWillimott is coming to UoS CEEES on 16 October to talk about his very innovative and interesting research. Please share to all relevant networks, we have plenty of space for online sign-ups eventbrite.com/e/andy-willimo…

Me on Twitter/X nowadays. See you in December folks!

Hello everyone. After 15.5 years, I will shortly be closing my Twitter account. It's a shame, I've mostly enjoyed using it, but I do not see a path back under the current ownership. I am on bluesky at @georgegilbert.bsky.social Please drop me a DM if you wish to stay in touch.