Scott Laing

I’m in Istanbul for the night. Took a layover because I didn’t want to risk a 1 hour-odd connection time. I think I’d have made it if I’d tried. But nice to have the rest in between flights anyway.

Fine

@HJS_Org Paging @afneil

Muslim sectarian politics have become increasingly prominent in British politics. We identified over 100 Muslim sectarian candidates standing in the May local elections in England alone. Ahead of the local elections next week, we used the results of the 2024 locals to identify the drivers of Muslim sectarian success.

@theRealEnzoMac My dad also today.

Hard day today but beautiful send off for my mum 💔

Came back to my flat to find a pile of flyers from the various parties. Flicking through them, they had one thing in common - not one gave any biographical information on their candidate. A few had pictures but no life story. Almost like the individual didn’t matter 🤔

@Rab_Dickson1 A mystery 🤔

What could possibly have caused this?

@afneil Well, in 2024 four ‘independent’ (read: Islamic) MPs were elected in constituencies with significant enough Muslim populations to make an impact. And that’s with your 6.5%. How many will there be then at 20%? Something to be concerned about, no?

UK 20% Muslim by 2050 is highly unlikely. Only 6.5% at the moment. But even if it reached 20% in 25 years time, how would that make UK ‘Muslim-controlled’. I appreciate you probably have no better grasp of simple arithmetic than your President (ie none) but, come on, how does even an unlikely 20% = control?

I’m in London and just saw a man cycle a penny farthing down the road unironically.

Just having lunch in an Indian restaurant. The hand dryer is at head height in the admittedly compact toilet.

Weird how despite no longer having a passport, Mark Bullen is still British

@PaulReadGB Something similar happened to me a couple of months ago. The venue ignored my requests. Luckily I had used an Amex so they reversed the charge with one quick phone call.

It was August, 2025. I booked a room for myself, Mrs R and Himself. At the Coach House Inn near Rutland. The bill for bar meals and drinks was £177.30 Unfortunately, due to an error with their card machine, I got charged for the same amount four times. Two of these were refunded promptly, one remains outstanding. Im sure both the Coach House Inn and @NatWest_Help will want to correct this rapidly. The Natwest reference is 00021293124. This conversation will continue only in public.

Scanning my boarding pass through to the departure area at Wroclaw airport, the guy in front of me was denied with a message saying “Wrong Airport” which would be a cock up if that was the case.

This is another excellent Polish product. A man-sized pot of fruit yogurt with plenty of granola to mix in. Makes for a very satisfying breakfast. It’s the size that makes it. I haven’t seen a comparable product in the UK.

@happyhappyhenri You were quick if you started on release day. Or did you get a cheeky wee head start? 😉

Finished this. An incredible book from an incredible author. 5 stars and all the hype is richly deserved. Goes 2nd on my list of PRK work. 1. Empire of Pain 2. London Falling 3. Say Nothing 4. The Snakehead 5. Rogues

@slstrm_dsgn Thinking of you David, stay strong 💪

I spoke with my Doctor earlier this morning, regarding the results of my CT scan etc. He used two words that begin with the letter 'c', one of which was 'concerns'. Yep, the other word was the one you never want to hear from your Doctor... Next step is a colonoscopy and biopsy next Monday. I'm obviously terrified. Please pray for me. 🙏 Thanks ♥️

Currently in an Airbnb in Wroclaw, Poland. Boring in the best way. Clean, mellow, quiet. A few tourists but very sparse. Some nice architecture but not eye-catching enough to draw big crowds. There are worse places to spend a few days quietly.

I feel like I’m sitting around waiting for an email from half a dozen different parties at the moment. None of which are appearing.

Has Lee Anderson had Botox or a facelift? He looks completely different.

@AdamKoffler I have lots of ads on instagram for beautiful new homes in Texas priced around $350-400k.

Let’s say you have a married couple both making $100,000 per year, so together, $200,000 Depending on where, a nice, single-family home in a decent area might be $700K Again, you have not one, but TWO people making six figures To start, they need to have $140K for down payment

Here’s Dave Ramsey’s advice on buying a house in the year 2026: - Have 20% for a down payment to avoid private mortgage insurance (PMI) - Do a 15-year fixed rate loan - Make sure your monthly payment isn’t more than 1/4th of your take home pay Let’s put that math to the test 👇🏼

When I was in Irving, TX between 2001-03, I rented a 1 bedroom apartment in a lower middle class development for $684 per month. The algorithm is now showing me very nice looking developments in downtown Dallas with studios starting at $950 or so. Doesn’t seem too bad.