[A Pleasurable Headache] a bundle of sunshine, happiness and sass
We ended up losing Corky, our guinea pig referenced in the last newsletter. Between the infection and her gut not seeming to kick-start itself again I think, in the end, we were fighting a losing battle. It was a sad end to a dreary fortnight. But we all tried, including her.
She was a little bundle of sunshine, happiness and sass who never ceased to brighten our day with her constant chattering and shenanigans.
I miss her terribly.
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In happier news, it was cool to hear that Everfrost: Volume 1 has been nominated in the Comics Arts Awards of Australia (previously known as the Ledger Awards). As editor of the project, it was a joy and privilege to help shape that story and see the work from Ryan, Sami, Lauren and Jim hit my inbox. The story has some truly excellent company on the nominee list.
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Links
Morrowind 20th Anniversary
I’ve chatted many time before about Morrowind in this newsletter, touting it as perhaps the seminal gaming experience for me. This fan-made book puts together a whole bunch of stories and recollections about playing the game for the first time. Wonderful stuff.
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REVEALED: MI6 ‘MISLED’ TWO INQUIRIES INTO ARREST OF LEE RIGBY’S KILLER
https://declassifieduk.org/revealed-mi6-misled-two-inquiries-into-arrest-of-lee-rigbys-killer/
The murder of Lee Rigby is an event that still looms large in the post ‘War on Terror’ landscape here in the UK. Rigby, a British solider, was killed in broad daylight in May 2013 in Woolwich, London. His killers were promptly caught and are both serving significant prison sentences.
A Parliamentary investigation into the killing was carried out and published the year after. This investigation followed numerous claims and reports that British intelligence were fully aware of at least one of the attackers, Michael Adebolajo. The investigation found mistakes in British operations surrounding Adebolajo but that they could not have prevented the attack from happening.
However, the above story uncovers evidence that contradicts the official line. Declassified have, instead, discovered that the Kenyan counter-terrorist intelligence unit previously responsible for arresting Adenolajo in 2010 are in fact closely tied to British intelligence. An unnamed former CIA source sums it up nicely:
“That whole case was a guy who had been on the radar and they lost him prior to Lee Rigby’s killing. For whatever reason, they couldn’t take it to the next level and 6 MI6 is trying to cover their ass, no different than the FBI does and we do. We fuck up too.”
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Who owns 4Chan? (via Nothing Here)
https://www.wired.com/story/who-owns-4chan/
As if the cesspool of hate and misogyny couldn’t be any worse - it turns out its owned (at least partly) by a Japanese toy company.
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Apple’s Cement Overshoes
https://doctorow.medium.com/apples-cement-overshoes-329856288d13
This follows on somewhat from the last Doctorow story featured in this newsletter - the one featuring the lockout of John Deere tractors by the manufacturers and how it is symtomatic of a wider issues, namely the right for consumers to repair their own devices.
This blog post from Cory Doctorow details the ways in which Apple have consistently tried to supress attempts for consumers to repair Apple products, in particular the iPhone. Their latest move is to make some very surface-level moves to appear as if they are now supporting consumers to repair their devices. The reality, is very different:
“This week, The Verge’s Sean Hollister got to try out Apple’s home repair program. The company shipped him 79 pounds’ worth of gear, in two ruggedized Pelican cases. Included in the kit: “an industrial-grade heat station that looks like a piece of lab equipment,” to loosen the glue that holds the phone together (recall Apple’s aversion to “screws, not glue”).
For all the gear Hollister got from Apple, following the official Apple manual and using official Apple tools was much harder than fixing your phone with an equivalent set of tools, parts and manuals from iFixit.
For example, that “industrial-grade heat station” didn’t actually work. Hollister had to apply it twice, and use a hidden suction-increasing knob to get his phone case to separate. Once it did, he was left with goopy, melted glue that was supposed to come away with tweezers (not supplied in the 79 pound repair kit!). It didn’t.
Public service announcement: iFixit is where it’s at.
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Walking the Cotswolds, Walking Japan
https://craigmod.com/ridgeline/143/
The wonderful newsletter Ridgeline, from Craig Mod, takes the form of this glorious (picture-heavy) ode to walking in Cotswolds. Mod highlights the difference between his experiences here in the UK and his walks in Japan. Mod talks about the concept of the living past and how it seems finite in some of the aesthetics Japan presents (a country that always seems to be trying to reinvent itself) and how it seems more embedded here in Britain (a staid, unmoving thing, despite the world trying to move on).
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There’s Nothing to Celebrate About the Queen’s Jubilee
https://jacobin.com/2022/06/queen-elizabeth-royals-platinum-jubilee-monarchy-british-empire/
Terf Island. Plague Island. Last week, momentarily at least, we became flag-shagger island.
Always remember the Queen once asked for access to a poverty fund to heat her palaces.
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I’m off to find a friend for our other pig, see you in two!