The Trump tariff strategy is *extremely* confused even on its own terms – not least because it is pursuing several different goals that act in contradictory directions.

None of those goals are bad, or wrong, per se – but they do clash with one another. 🧵 Goal one: raise hundreds of billions of dollars "from foreign countries". President Trump has promised to raise revenue from tariffs so he can cut other taxes (mostly for the rich). Trade envoy Pete Navarro says they're aiming for $600 billion a year.

If there was ever any doubt as to how big tech really works, it died today – if you want to understand Meta and co, a knowledge of feudalism will serve you far better than a knowledge of capitalism. 🧵 Some of this was always obvious: Meta is publicly listed, but has a two-tier share structure that gives Mark Zuckerberg outsized control versus his shareholding, for as long as he wants it. Ultimately, Zuck gets to pick the rules for networks of 2bn+ people in 100+ countries.

Elon Musk is starting to risk getting Jess Phillips killed. She's been safeguarding minister for six months. She oversaw nothing relating to the rape gangs. As an opposition MP she was one of the most prominent campaigners for the victims.

What he's doing is a travesty. Mainstream figures laundering his attacks on her into more polite criticism need to take a long look at themselves, condemn his actions, and correct the record. This cannot be allowed to become politics-as-usual.

Export to Europe? Know anyone who does – artists, designers, small businesses? There's a new Brexit bombshell coming 13 December and no-one seems to have been warned. It's called the General Product Safety Regulations (GPSR), and I've looked into it for @TheNewEuropean 🧵 The GPSR requires manufacturers selling into the EU to do risk assessments on their products, put safety information on the packaging in the language of the destination country, and to follow existing safety rules. Complying would be a faff, but fine, but for one extra rule…

Joe Biden pardoning Hunter was absolutely inevitable from the moment Kamala Harris lost. Biden is 81, he’s done in politics, and he and his team are still furious at the party. On top of that, he’s lost other children. Of *course* he did it. There will be pearl clutching but in reality Biden’s decision won’t change what team Trump would or would not do. The president probably shouldn’t have the power, but since he does, he’s used it. Arguably it’s better to pardon your son than a campaign donor, as others have.

Elon Musk has clearly helped fan the flames of the UK’s civil unrest. Accounts he unbanned are inciting violence. Musk himself has posted “civil war is inevitable”.

The far-right is emboldened. That could *easily* blow up in their faces. 🧵 Many closed far-right groups exist – as Telegram channels, WhatsApp groups, closed Facebook groups, or similar.

Agitating in the open is much easier to track, whether it’s people inciting violence or those posting videos from on the street.

There’s a lot of effort coming from some quarters on here in trying to claim Starmer called a large group – or those aghast at the tragic events in Southport – “far-right thugs” or similar. There’s a reason these claims aren’t accompanied by links: it didn’t happen. 🧵 The easiest way to check this is to read what he actually said, which is posted in full here. It’s less than 700 words long, so it’s hardly a big job to read the actual remarks.

gov.uk/government/spe…

We keep hearing the next government is going to be grim: there's very little money, and many problems to tackle.

So to cut through the gloom @TheNewEuropean asked 15 experts for one small thing – relatively cheap, relatively simple – that would make things better. 🧵 1. @MatthewdAncona: "a warp-speed overhaul of standards in public life"
• Root and branch reform of the Electoral Commission
• Independent report on digital interference in UK elections
• A unified code of conduct for MPs and ministers with truly independent oversight

We have completely and totally screwed up prisons in the UK, to the point where the government is trying to rent prison cells overseas.

Despite everything you hear about the modern system being “soft on crime”, the opposite is true – for those who get convicted. 7 key facts 🧵: 1. In the 1940s, around 30 people in every 100,000 in England were in prison. Today, that’s around 160 – an increase of more than 500%.

Three by-elections, three parties each winning one of them. You're going to see a *lot* of efforts to spin each of them into one result. Here's what I think will be said, the problems with each narrative, and what it actually means: LIKELY TORY SPIN:
By-elections always tricky when you're 13 years into government. It's been a hard few years but we're making progress. No real enthusiasm for Labour – they missed Uxbridge despite throwing everything at it. Rishi's five point plan is working.

It is launch day for my new book – The Other Pandemic: How QAnon Contaminated The World.

It charts the history of a movement that has gone global, and is a threat to us all.

Bookshop:
Amazon: https://t.co/4p6brl84vH…
Waterstones: https://t.co/o2Qyc4U24d https://t.co/BT9nN3s4IVuk.bookshop.org/p/books/the-ot…
amazon.co.uk/Other-Pandemic…
waterstones.com/book/the-other…
It also makes for a lovely coffee table if you buy 12 or more copies and lay them out (I did not do that, these are my author copies from @BloomsburyBooks).

Here's what reviewers have said so far:

This is just vile. This implies adoptive mothers, or parents via surrogate, or all sorts of other people aren’t mothers. The issue with which Duffield has become fixated has blinded her to her own new and hateful stance towards many families.

https://twitter.com/rosieduffield1/status/1674349733484150784

This should be grounds for expulsion.

Twitter is a social network desperately reliant on keeping its content creators – who unlike every other social network have no monetisation options – here. This is as predictable as it is hilariously stupid.

https://twitter.com/ketanj0/status/1586828022195392512

Goodbye blue tick, you never made me a penny x

Twitter security chief Peiter "Mudge" Zatko has filed a whisteblower complaint! This could be big… washingtonpost.com/technology/int… Zatko: "Twitter is grossly negligent in several areas of information security. If these problems are not corrected, regulators, media and users of the platform will be shocked when they inevitably learn about Twitter’s severe lack of security basics.”

Productivity is about working efficiently (or if we must, 'smart') not about working hard. This is a very basic bit of economics that seems to be completely beyond the favourite candidate to be our next prime minister.

Here, very quickly, is how it works: Factory A has a ton of outdated, inefficient equipment that often breaks down. Its 10 workers have to include people to repair the equipment or work around its shortcomings, and have to do lots of overtime.

On a normal day it produces 1,000 widgets with a 10-hour day.

Accepting a fixed penalty notice is an admission of guilt.

The prime minister has confirmed through his spokesman that he has accepted at least one fixed penalty notice.

He *cannot* claim this now without freshly misleading Parliament.

https://twitter.com/alliehbnews/status/1515805818574233602

While I am not an expert on parliamentary rules, I would suggest that misleading Parliament while claiming you didn’t mislead Parliament is probably a bad idea.