Mark Barry www.southwalesmetro.org #cardiffmetro

It’s hard enough for cities in Canada to do smarter things given how often city leaders hurt their own cities. But it’s infuriating watching awful provincial premiers sabotaging cities by ripping out good things they FINALLY managed to achieve.

Premiers should not have that power, period.

Okay, I think that we all need to admit that the US has passed the point of no return. When an execution by firing squad is going to be livestreamed, you know you're no longer living in a civilized nation.

I told you so.

It’s simple to figure out at this point, he’s a Russian asset. Thank you for your attention to this treason.

In other words: Donald Trump is going to try to win back US votes with cheaper gas prices before the midterm elections by enriching Putin’s war machine, so he can keep killing 1000s of Ukrainians. Dire.

Anyone wonder how we are getting the #southwalesmetro we are getting.....
cardiffmetro.wales/6-buying-and-b…

A message to all sane Republicans:

He pardoned 1,600 violent criminals.
You said nothing.

He bulldozed the East Wing.
You said nothing.

He interfered with the release of the Epstein files.
You said nothing.

He took over the Kennedy Center and renamed it after himself.
You said nothing.

He accepted a $400 million airplane as a personal gift. You said nothing.

He threatened Canada, Cuba, Denmark, Greenland, Venezuela, Colombia, and Brazil.
You said nothing.

He tariffed just about everyone but Russia, causing inflation and instability worldwide.
You said nothing.

He attacked a nation during mediated negotiations.
You said nothing.

His ill-conceived war killed 175 children on day one.
You said nothing.

He alienated and insulted our allies.
You said nothing.

His ICE Army terrorized and murdered
U.S. citizens.
You said nothing.

He committed murder on the high seas.
You said nothing.

He co-opted the Justice Department and directed it to prosecute his political enemies.
You said nothing.

It's time to start talking!

An extremely relevant paper, given the renewed concern that wealth taxes lead to massive out-migration:

The Norwegian wealth tax "exodus", discussed in global media, never happened. At most 100 individuals left. Tax revenue increased by +71.5%. No changes in business activity.

John McCain Was TRULY A MAVERICK And An AMERICAN HERO!

Jeff Bezos owns a $500 million superyacht. It's so big it needs a second yacht just to carry its helicopter pad.

Andrew Carnegie, with his Gilded Age fortune, built over 2,500 public libraries. Most are still open today ....free, for anyone, forever.

One of these things outlives the man who paid for it.

Any journalists/broadcasters who have told us scientists are exaggerating climate change have blood on their hands

I find it quite astonishing that the leader of HM Opposition at Westminster announces that they’ll close down Scotland’s democratically elected parliament if they get back into power and it doesn’t even cause a ripple on BBC Scotland’s news and politics pages. Beyond belief.

Wonderful to see Restore lose their deposit in Holborn and St Pamcras. Gives you hope for Britain - X is not the real world.

When will politicians turn to MMT? The answer is: in a time of crisis when it is apparent that neoliberalism has failed. And when will that be? Quite soon, on the basis of current progress. youtu.be/0S5Ad4WpCCE?si…

I’ve had a lot of people asking me about the botched execution of Christa Pike in Tennessee, as well as the upcoming execution by firing squad that’s supposed to be livestreamed. Having spent nearly 20 years on death row, my thoughts and feelings about these things are so vast that I sometimes struggle to find a place to begin. I became close friends with a man who had committed murder. He was like a brother to me. I once watched him break down crying, trembling as he told me he wished he was as evil as the world believed him to be, because then he wouldn’t have to care about what he’d done. Fifteen years later, he was still having nightmares about it. I know in my soul that he would never hurt another person again. But I’ve also watched a man being stabbed to death in prison. I cried for days afterward, and something inside me was changed forever. I learned that some people are capable of extraordinary transformation, while others remain capable of terrible violence even behind prison walls. There are no simple answers here. No slogans or political arguments that can adequately address the complexity of human beings, guilt, punishment, and suffering.

But there is one thing I want to say about the upcoming execution by firing squad. Don’t watch it. Whatever you believe about the death penalty, even if you think the person being executed deserves to die, don’t watch it. You cannot witness a human being being killed and simply walk away unchanged. What you see becomes part of you. It follows you into places you never expected it to reach. There are things I witnessed in prison that I would give anything to forget, things that still cast a shadow over my life decades later. There’s a difference between understanding that terrible things happen in the world and deliberately making yourself a spectator to them. I don’t have all the answers about justice, punishment, or forgiveness. But I do know that killing another human being should never become so ordinary that we turn it into something to watch from the comfort of our living rooms.

"Ripping out these protected bike lanes against the will of Toronto city council is a colossal waste of $48 million. The province’s own experts know it will not ease traffic congestion, it will put people’s lives at risk…”

One of the stupidest things I’ve ever seen any politician do to any city.
cbc.ca/news/canada/to…

Something for the longer term re north-south rail in Wales... Calon Cymru...
swalesmetroprof.blog/2022/07/10/nor…

So @andyburnham good speech re radical UK constitutional upgrade. Needs to start ASAP with revision of GBR Bill to include devolution of rail powers/funding to @WelshGovernment fyi @markjhooper @Adamprice @RhunapIorwerth @JoStevensLabour @BBCWalesNews
swalesmetroprof.blog/2025/11/07/gbr…

Why is it 25yrs after Wales voted for devolution, that powers over rail, energy (so essential economic infrastructure) & major fiscal levers were not and still have not been....you can't change/improve an economy if you only have powers over spending depts like health?!?!

Did you not read this....>>> swalesmetroprof.blog/2026/07/03/hey…
..and the linked detailed Senedd report on rail funding in Wales. WG has had to divert over £1bn from devolved funds to invest in rail because UK Gov wouldn't. Do you think that is right?? And if so please explain...?!?