Millie the Aldi Cat Detained, Given Stern Talking-To, Released Without Charge

Nottinghamshire police rolled seven strong to a 1:14 a.m. alarm at an Aldi after recent break-ins, only to find Millie, a local celebrity feline, trapped at the main doors and caught red pawed. Officers issued what they called stern words about unlawful entry, then escorted the diva out like the supermarket’s tiniest shoplifter. Staff had even posted a sign asking customers not to let her in, which of course turned the place into a fan meet-and-greet. Her owner says locking Millie up would be cruel, a vet check is planned, and until then the cat appears content running loss prevention from the automatic doors while the humans pretend they are in charge.

Starmer Says Prince Andrew Should Testify to U.S. Congress in Epstein Probe

Keir Starmer said the principle is simple, accountability applies to everyone, even those with a coronet on the stationery, and suggested Prince Andrew should cooperate with U.S. lawmakers examining Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes. He declined to weigh in on specifics but made the constitutional point cleanly. We will now see if equal treatment under the law extends to the royal calendar or if it somehow fills up indefinitely.

Banks Floor the AI Accelerator, Promise Efficiency, Flirt With Fallout

From ATMs to chatbots, banking has long automated, but now it is going full throttle. Bendigo Bank is tapping Google’s Gemini Enterprise for loans and fraud checks, Commonwealth Bank’s OpenAI tie-up boasts halved scam losses and shorter call waits, JPMorgan has its own LLM suite, and BNY Mellon is testing agentic AI that decides and acts. Most use is still internal, yet pilots show AI agents handling onboarding end to end with eye-popping productivity gains. Cue the human cost rehearsal, Commonwealth Bank cut 45 call center roles after a chatbot rollout, then reversed after union blowback. Executives say AI needs to feel urgent, which it will when your 2 a.m. mortgage approval arrives five minutes after you apply and an opaque algorithm becomes your money coach. The upside is cheaper, faster, more tailored services, but the risks are familiar, bias baked in by history, privacy headaches, regulators sprinting to catch up, and accountability that cannot be outsourced to a bot even if the blame will try to be. The test is whether this rewrite serves customers transparently, not just another efficiency parade marching straight to the bottom line.

Teenager arrested after throwing drink at police officer during U.S. protest

Teenager arrested after throwing drink at police officer during U.S. protest: In Kannapolis, North Carolina, 18-year-old student Emily Cervantes Ramos allegedly smashed a large fountain drink on an officer’s head during a midday walkout against ICE, then was chased, tackled, and arrested on charges of assault on a government official and two counts of resisting. Video of the incident spread quickly online, featuring expletives, a short footrace, and the inevitable crowdfunding page—since taken down. Police Chief Kerry Spry said his department backs the First Amendment but not airborne beverages. The protest, which saw about 75 AL Brown High students leave class, unfolded as DHS’s “Operation Charlotte’s Web” reported roughly 250 arrests in the Charlotte area.

Florida Deputy Fatally Shot During Eviction; Suspect Later Dies of Injuries

A Florida deputy was fatally shot during an eviction near Vero Beach, and the suspected gunman later died of his injuries. Officials say Michael Halberstam, 37, opened fire on two Indian River County deputies and a locksmith as they served an eviction sought by his mother; deputies returned fire, striking him multiple times. Deputy Terri Sweeting-Mashkow, a 25-year veteran, was killed, and was posthumously promoted to sergeant. A second deputy suffered a shoulder wound and is recovering. The locksmith, who has not been publicly identified, was critically injured and underwent surgery at HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital. Sheriff Eric Flowers said the call appeared routine, noting seven recent calls from the home—mostly from Halberstam’s mother—and that nothing in Halberstam’s record would have barred him from owning a weapon. The case underscores the risks of so-called routine eviction and civil service calls, as the investigation continues.

Fox with Plastic Pipe Stuck Around Neck Captured in Broomall

Fox with Plastic Pipe Stuck Around Neck Captured in Broomall: In Delaware County’s Broomall, the fox seen roaming with a length of plastic piping cinched around its neck has finally been captured—an unfortunate animal and a very on-brand reminder that our plastic never misses a chance to choke something it shouldn’t.

Pope Urges Immediate Release After 50 Nigerian Students Escape Kidnappers

Pope Urges Immediate Release After 50 Nigerian Students Escape Kidnappers: Fifty of the 303 children abducted Friday from St. Mary’s School in the Papiri community of Niger state have slipped away and returned to their families, authorities said, leaving 253 students and 12 teachers still in captivity. The students, ages 10 to 18, escaped individually between Friday and Saturday, according to Most Rev. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, who urged continued prayers for the remaining hostages. The perpetrators have not been identified, and officials have released no updates on rescue efforts; the school sits near the Yelwa–Mokwa road, a corridor exploited by armed gangs. From St. Peter’s Square, Pope Leo XIV voiced deep sorrow and demanded the hostages’ immediate release, urging swift action from authorities. The abductions underscore Nigeria’s worsening security crisis: 38 worshippers recently kidnapped in Kwara were freed, while five police officers were killed in a Bauchi ambush amid a farmer-herder conflict. With more than 1,500 children abducted since Chibok and a similar school raid in neighboring Kebbi days earlier, President Bola Tinubu vowed relentless efforts to free every hostage and reaffirmed Nigerians’ right to safety.

Five Generations of the Wente Family Shaped California Wine

Five Generations of the Wente Family Shaped California Wine, and not by accident. Over five generations, Wente Family Vineyards has steadily refined its craft and helped define what the state’s wine industry is today—a rare case where legacy beats hype, and patience actually improves the product.

Nebraska: Motel assault leaves two hospitalized, suspect arrested

Deputies in York County say a 49-year-old man allegedly attacked a 53-year-old outside the Sun Motel in Henderson late on Nov. 14, striking him multiple times with a hammer until it broke, then continuing with a fire extinguisher. A 78-year-old man was also injured. Both victims were hospitalized. Investigators recovered a broken hammer and a fire extinguisher from a pickup. The suspect was arrested on charges including second-degree assault and terroristic threats, is held on 200,000 dollars bond, and has a court date Wednesday. No motive has been disclosed.

Royal Navy shadows Russian ships through the Dover Strait, with a side of laser etiquette

HMS Severn escorted the corvette Stoikiy and tanker Yelnya through the Dover Strait before handing them off to a NATO partner near Brittany, part of a reported 30 percent rise in Russian naval snooping near UK waters over two years. Meanwhile, the Russian research ship Yantar, known for mapping undersea cables, reportedly used a laser device against a British P-8 crew. No injuries or damage, just Moscow’s idea of charm school. Yantar is currently north of Scotland and under watch by HMS Somerset and RAF P-8s. London’s message is simple: enjoy the scenery, do not touch the cables.

Europe raises eyebrows at U.S. Russia-Ukraine peace push, Washington stays upbeat

European leaders are questioning the U.S. approach to talks on a Russia-Ukraine settlement, while Senator Marco Rubio called recent discussions in Switzerland the most productive and meaningful so far. Translation: the U.S. supplied the adjectives, Europe supplied the skepticism. Optimism and caution continue to share a conference table, and for once the coffee is neutral.

Stage: Matthew Rhys in Playing Burton delivers a sober stunner in Cardiff

Returning to the stage after 16 years, Matthew Rhys gives a blistering one-man performance as Richard Burton in Mark Jenkins’ 1994 play at the Reardon Smith, directed with elegant restraint by Bartlett Sher. With little more than a table, a chair, a phone, and a battered Shakespeare, Rhys channels a gallery of voices and a lifetime of bravado lacquered over self-doubt. It doubles as a fundraiser for the budding Welsh National Theatre, which Rhys and Michael Sheen champion. Verdict: mesmerizing, one Welsh titan saluting another, and for once the hype does the drinking while the performance stays sober.

Mozilla debuts TABS API, a polite robot intern for your browser

Mozilla launched a web automation toolkit that lets AI agents click, scroll, search, and submit forms with real-time feedback and adaptive behavior. Bring your own model, since it ships without a Mozilla LLM. Early access includes a free tier of 1,000 requests per month, with tentative pricing of about 5 dollars per additional 1,000 and paid tiers promising lower latency and, in a delicious twist of irony, CAPTCHA solving so bots can prove they are not bots. Mozilla is late to a party hosted by Google and OpenAI, but is betting on privacy, touting data minimization and ephemeral handling of scraped content, plus integration with its AI browsing mode groundwork in Firefox 145.

Valve generates nearly $50 million per employee, outpacing Google, Amazon, and Microsoft; 350 staff projected to produce $17 billion this year

Valve is on pace to generate nearly $50 million per employee—outpacing Google, Amazon, and Microsoft—with roughly 350 staff projected to produce about $17 billion this year. Most of that haul comes from Steam, estimated to bring in $16.2 billion in 2025, a reminder that a digital tollbooth can outperform entire skyscrapers of middle managers. Efficiency so sharp it makes Big Tech’s org charts look like performance art.

Crockett reacts to Greene’s resignation: ‘You’ve got to be kidding me’

Crockett reacts to Greene’s resignation: ‘You’ve got to be kidding me’—Rep. Jasmine Crockett said on CNN’s State of the Union she was stunned by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s weekend announcement, quipping that Greene spent barely a week on the other side of the president before bailing. Washington melodrama: now with a shorter shelf life than a campaign promise.

Experimental Welsh project fuses violin and electronics on new release

Experimental Welsh project fuses violin and electronics on new release, as Cysgodion (Shadows) pairs renowned Irish violinist Darragh Morgan with emerging Welsh, Japanese, Irish, French and American composers to stretch the instrument from concert hall to control room. Out December 3, 2025 on Sionci, Tŷ Cerdd’s artist-led label, the album—recorded at Tŷ Cerdd’s Studio in the Wales Millennium Centre and developed through the Ffidil Plws/CoDI program—features works by Angharad Davies, Delyth Maiya Field, Joseph Graydon, Joshua Lascar, Richard McReynolds, Sara Evelyn and Natalie Roe. Each composer produced their own track, blending live violin with electronics via improvisation, live processing, modular synths, field recordings, tape and sampling—proof the fiddle can do far more than audition for period dramas.

Ukraine hits Shatura power plant in Moscow region

Ukraine hits Shatura power plant in Moscow region, igniting a fire, as Russia’s overnight barrage of 98 drones left at least six people dead across Ukraine in the past 24 hours. The war’s tit-for-tat now targets energy infrastructure on both sides, a grim reminder that in this conflict, the grid is as contested as the ground.

New theory on why student test scores have hit a 20-year low

New theory on why student test scores have hit a 20-year low: it might not be AI—it’s the laptops. Psychology professor Jean M. Twenge argues that while schools ban phones with the zeal of a TSA agent eyeing a shampoo bottle, they’ve mandated an even better distraction machine: the laptop. Scores in the U.S. hit a two-decade low in 2023–24, and globally 15-year-olds tanked in 2022—right as classrooms became device depots. The evidence isn’t subtle: a 2016 study found college students spent 40% of class time off-task on their computers; a 2018 meta-analysis linked typed notes to a 75% higher chance of failing compared to handwriting. Twenge’s recent research ties bigger score drops to more in-school leisure device use—Finland’s students admit to nearly 90 minutes of school-day screen goofing and saw steep declines, while Japan’s sub-30 minutes coincided with steady performance. The “one device per child” revolution may have delivered one attention span per classroom—collectively missing.

U.S. seeks to advance Ukraine deal amid criticism and confusion

As the U.S. seeks to advance a Ukraine deal amid criticism and confusion, top officials flew to Geneva on Sunday to pitch a 28-point, Washington-backed plan already blasted for leaning toward Moscow. The rollout devolved into a turf war over who actually wrote it, with one diplomat saying allies now feel they’re dealing with rival U.S. factions keeping policy secrets from each other as the 2028 succession scramble spills into foreign affairs. President Donald Trump has pressed Kyiv to accept the deal by Thanksgiving, but the terms remain “flexible,” which in diplomatic parlance means “we’ll tell you what you agreed to later.” For Ukraine, an agonizing choice looms.

Crowborough Protesters Rally Again Against Plan To House 600 Asylum Seekers At Army Camp

In Crowborough, organizers say roughly 3,000 residents marched for a third rain-soaked Sunday to oppose a Home Office plan to move 600 asylum seekers into the local military site by the end of December. Two processions merged in the town center before a rally, with 600 marchers wearing numbered badges to mirror the proposed headcount. Protesters cite public safety fears, pressure on local services, and the displacement of four cadet units. The Ministry of Defence says it is working with the Home Office and takes cadet safety very seriously, even as preparations now include high fencing and patrol-dog security. Nothing says joined-up government like promising wellbeing while installing kennels. Wealden District Council has formally opposed the proposal, parents and instructors are staging informal patrols at cadet pickup times, organizers have booked next weekend’s march, and the site is one of two earmarked for people who arrived via small boats.

How Rich Is Rich In Europe, Depends Where Your Euros Live

Luxembourg’s velvet rope starts around €175,000 net for a three-person household, while in Turkey it is under €20,000. Germany sits in the upper middle, predictably sensible and slightly self-satisfied. Adjust for cost of living and the gulf narrows, a reminder that wealth is not just how high you stack the bills, it is how far they march before collapsing. In short, the continent’s definition of rich is a moving target, and the bulls-eye is painted by local prices and a nation’s taste for smugness.

The Internet Rewired Work, AI Looks Set To Remix It

The web did not vaporize jobs, it seeped into almost all of them. Single-task roles shrank, new ecosystems bloomed, and today only about 10 percent of workers use the internet minimally. That is the tell for AI. It will carve off routine tasks, speed the technical layer, and push humans toward supervision, complex judgment, relationships, and exception handling, while spawning new hiring around data, safety, and infrastructure. Expect a messy, uneven reshuffle, not a clean robot coup. Cancel the apocalyptic keynote, watch the backbone being built, and maybe hire someone who actually knows where the cables go.

Microsoft's Copilot Actions gets a safety label longer than the feature list

Microsoft has switched on Copilot Actions in Windows 11 Insider build 26220.7262, off by default and admin-only, because it can poke installed apps and read and write in your Documents, Downloads, Desktop, Pictures, Videos, and Music folders. In a support doc the company warns of cross prompt injection that could hijack instructions and cause data exfiltration or malware installs, while also reminding users that models may hallucinate. Safeguards include user approved data requests, isolated workspaces, and audit logs, plus a warning dialog that amounts to proceed at your own risk. Asked what users should actually do to stay safe, Microsoft declined to offer specifics, which is quite a vibe for a feature that can rummage through your files.

Velindre NHS Trust boss exits without a why, controversy refuses to

David Donegan has abruptly left as CEO of Velindre University NHS Trust in Cardiff, with Carl James named interim chief executive and Medical Director Dr Jacinta Abraham as deputy. No reason was offered, just the customary thanks and talk of transformation. The timing raises eyebrows, given Donegan was touting progress on 10 November and was billed as the steady hand for a near £1 billion new cancer centre, a project already dogged by its stand-alone location away from ICU and surgical units, the loss of the Northern Meadows green space, and a construction consortium featuring firms with bid-rigging convictions abroad. Campaign group Save the Northern Meadows wants a full explanation, asks whether a payout or NDA is in play, questions senior management judgment, and urges ministers to fold Velindre into Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, a call that lands as a new chair hits the three month mark.

Birthdays, Nov 23

Robin Roberts turns 65, proving morning-show poise is apparently a renewable resource. Vincent Cassel hits 59, still wearing cool so effortlessly the rest of us look like we dressed under fluorescent lights.

This day in history, Nov 23

In 1940, Romania signed the Tripartite Pact and formally joined the Axis with Germany, Italy, and Japan. A stark reminder of how quickly nations can slide into catastrophic alliances, and of the cost paid after.

Verstappen rules the Strip, title chase still favors Norris

Max Verstappen won the Las Vegas Grand Prix by nearly 20 seconds after Lando Norris botched Turn 1 from pole with an overzealous chop and late brake, then recovered to second by repassing George Russell on lap 34 along Las Vegas Boulevard. Russell finished third for Mercedes, and Oscar Piastri took fourth after Kimi Antonelli's five second false start penalty dropped the rookie to fifth. The standings tighten with Norris on 408 points, Piastri on 378, and Verstappen on 366, 42 off the lead with 58 available across Qatar, including a sprint, and Abu Dhabi. Translation, the math favors Norris, but Verstappen and Piastri still have a gambler's chance, and in Vegas the house usually wins, today the house wore Red Bull colors.

Mercury Climbs in UK Porpoises, Promises Do Not

Eight years after the Minamata Convention vowed to rein in mercury, a study of 738 stranded UK harbor porpoises finds concentrations climbed about 1 percent per year over three decades, nearly doubling by 2021. Higher mercury levels were linked to a greater risk of dying from infectious disease. Mercury in shallower ocean waters has tripled since the industrial revolution, and warming seas plus shifting food webs are accelerating its buildup in the marine food chain. About one in ten porpoises in the past decade carried mercury at levels where serious health effects are expected. The one bright spot, other metals like lead, cadmium, chromium, and nickel declined, proof that bans work when they are actually enforced. Mercury, however, still tracks smokestacks and warming seas, not podiums or press releases.

Three Men Charged Over Anti-Muslim Harassment During USF Prayers

Police say Christopher Svochak, Richard Penskoski, and Ricardo Yepez climbed the roof of the University of South Florida’s Collins Boulevard Parking Garage during fajr prayers, shouted anti-Muslim slurs at students, waved bacon, and displayed messages including a thobe reading Jesus is God and a cardboard sign declaring Kaaba 2.0 Jesus is Lord. None are affiliated with USF. They face a felony count of disturbing schools and religious assemblies under Florida’s hate-crime enhancement, plus misdemeanors for disorderly conduct and disrupting a lawful assembly. Students reported the men demanded they bow down to Lord Jesus Christ and made a bomb insinuation, then kept filming and jeering after prayers. Campus police issued trespass warnings and said they acted swiftly, and local Islamic leaders condemned the incident as intolerable. Intimidation dressed up as conviction is still intimidation, and now it is criminally charged.

Greene Exits, Trump Grip Still Squeezes the Faithful

Marjorie Taylor Greene abruptly resigned, a timely reminder that even as a lame duck, Donald Trump can still exact a price from apostates. Her nearly 11-minute, defiant exit video went viral and doubled as a Rorschach test for the movement, where loyalty looks less like unity and more like a forced march. The brand remains potent, the coalition less so.

Rubio Disowns Leaked Ukraine Plan, Calls It Moscow’s Not Washington’s

After days of confusion, Senator Marco Rubio told lawmakers the leaked Ukraine proposal does not reflect administration policy and is essentially a Russian plan, not a U.S. initiative. The distancing followed a barrage of criticism from Kyiv, European governments, and some Republicans who said the terms leaned hard toward Moscow. President Trump, seeing the blowback, said he is open to changes to the administration’s 28-point framework. The cleanup continues, the policy compass still spinning.

Met Office issues yellow fog warning across parts of England

A nine hour yellow alert is in place until 7 a.m. Sunday, with dense fog expected across the East and West Midlands, North East and North West England, and Yorkshire and the Humber. Visibility should improve west to east overnight. Road, rail, ferry, and air travel may see delays or cancellations, with Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds Bradford, Humberside, and East Midlands airports on watch. Check updates, leave extra time, and make sure those fog lights actually work. Early Sunday stays overcast and chilly at roughly 5 to 7 C before milder air nudges in from the west. Mostly dry after the warning lifts, with a few showers possible later. Yes, the forecast may change, because British weather loves a plot twist.

Trump calls Ukraine proposal negotiable, allies wince

At the White House, Donald Trump said the U.S. plan to end the Ukraine war is not a final offer to Kyiv and is open to negotiation, a line unlikely to soothe already jittery partners. He said the conflict should never have happened and framed ending it as the priority. Translation for the cheap seats, policy by vibes is back, and the fine print is apparently to be discussed in the hallway.

From eczema to entrepreneur, a 22 year old builds R12 Botanicals

Reece Collins, frustrated by severe eczema at 17, taught himself plant based formulation and eventually launched R12 Botanicals, now trading at nine markets a week. A legal nudge from Boots forced a costly name tweak, because nothing says consumer safety like a fight over a suffix. Early online sales sputtered, so he pivoted to pop ups and face to face pitches, built a five person team that includes his mum and a customer turned staffer, and plans to reinvest holiday takings into ads. His advice to young founders, take risks, stay disciplined, persist. In other words, no miracle cure, just graft and a lot of labeling.

DIY TENS build shows smart compassion in hardware

A maker created a custom PCB based TENS device to help a relative manage hand pain, focusing on controlled current limiting and microcontroller tuned pulse rates to deliver targeted relief. It is a tidy reminder that thoughtful engineering can cut through medical gadget sticker shock without cutting corners. Sensible warning, consult a medical professional and do not treat healthcare hardware like a weekend cosplay project.

Chicago honors 9 year old after attack near school

A 9 year old and his mother were attacked by students near a local school, and the child was formally honored afterward. He described the aftermath plainly, I cried every night, every day. A stark reminder that community support matters most after the cameras leave.

101 year old South Jersey veteran named Living Legend

Ruth Roque Herbolsheimer, who joined the U.S. Army eight decades ago, has been recognized by the Military Women’s Memorial as a Living Legend. A well deserved, long overdue salute to service and staying power that outlasted several eras of leadership fashions.

Starmer to Prince Andrew: if you know something, say it

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer urged Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor to voluntarily cooperate with U.S. House Oversight investigators examining Jeffrey Epstein, noting 16 Democratic members requested a transcribed interview by November 20 and say he did not respond. Lawmakers cannot compel testimony from a foreign national, but they have thousands of Epstein estate emails and records and want high-profile associates to help identify enablers and institutional failures. Andrew denies wrongdoing, was photographed with Epstein in 2010, appears in flight logs and related documents, and settled a civil case with Virginia Giuffre in 2022 without admitting liability. Starmer’s principle is simple, titles and technicalities do not excuse silence.

Tatiana Schlossberg shares terminal cancer diagnosis

Tatiana Schlossberg, granddaughter of President John F. Kennedy, disclosed she has terminal cancer and was told she may have less than a year to live. A difficult and deeply personal announcement, and one that warrants compassion rather than commentary.

DHS reverses itself on missing texts, orders records preserved

After calling it a misunderstanding, the Trump administration has directed DHS staff to preserve records in litigation over missing texts tied to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and other matters. In a joint status report with American Oversight, DHS says officials have been ordered to keep documents and electronic records, devices have been imaged, and copies stored on a secure server. That follows an earlier claim, blamed on technology changes, that business texts after April 9, 2025 were not maintained. The records sought include messages about National Guard deployments to Los Angeles, the so-called Alligator Alcatraz detention site, cases involving Kilmar Abrego Garcia, and texts tied to Pentagon liaison Philip Hegseth. DHS will brief the National Archives on its Federal Records Act compliance. Watchdog groups call the preservation orders progress, then point to the agency’s screenshot-and-self-archive habit, which is about as searchable as a filing cabinet at sea.

Kazakhstan backs Armenia’s corridor plan, branding included

Astana endorsed Armenia’s peace and transport corridor initiatives, including the so-called Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity during Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s visit. The pitch is to diversify regional routes and boost connectivity, because nothing says diplomacy like slapping a logo on a logistics map and calling it statesmanship.

Report: most video game workers now favor unions

A new report finds a majority of industry workers support unionizing, which gets a lot less surprising when you learn roughly a quarter of them have been laid off in the last two years. When one in four players gets booted mid-level, collective bargaining stops being optional DLC and becomes the main campaign. Executives may soon discover that restart level applies to them too.

North Carolina tree-lighting shooting labeled senseless, three charged

Police condemned the gunfire that broke out at a city-operated tree-lighting along Church Street and Cabarrus Avenue as senseless violence. Three people have been charged. At a community event meant for celebration, families got chaos instead, a grim reminder that public safety is still playing catch-up to easy anger.

70,000 voices, no backing track, all goosebumps in Cardiff

On the 120th anniversary of Wales first singing Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau before a rugby international, the Principality Stadium cut the soundtrack and let the crowd take it. The a cappella anthem against the All Blacks rattled the roof and the spine, and made a convincing argument that the best stadium music is the nation itself. Someone tell the PA system to enjoy a nice quiet retirement.

Tatiana Schlossberg, JFK’s granddaughter, announces cancer diagnosis

Tatiana Schlossberg, daughter of Caroline Kennedy and granddaughter of President John F. Kennedy, said she was recently diagnosed with cancer. Wishing her strength, privacy, and a smooth path to recovery.

Teach Welsh history in England, say campaigners who are tired of the sanitised syllabus

Calls are growing for England to teach Welsh history properly, not as a footnote in a tidy British narrative. Tryweryn gets forgotten, the Cofiwch Dryweryn memorial gets defaced, and too many students get the Romans to Kings conveyor belt with Wales cast as England With Mountains. Wales has made its own history mandatory at home, with a new GCSE due in 2026 after a workload delay. In England there is no requirement at all. The plea is simple, embed Welsh history with pride so the United Kingdom actually understands itself, starting west of Offa’s Dyke. Curriculum gatekeepers, sharpen your pencils.

Storm Claudia flooding spurs fresh investment plea in Rhondda Cynon Taf

After record River Monnow levels left Monmouth under a major incident with multi-agency rescues, Rhondda Cynon Taf said it avoided major damage thanks to nonstop work clearing 138 high-risk culverts, gully operations, sandbags, and resident prep. The council has spent over £100 million since Storm Dennis and is pushing for more projects based on NRW modeling of the Cynon, Rhondda, and Taff. Monmouthshire, just 22 miles away, was the cautionary tale. Funding soon would be sensible, preferably before the next deluge.

Bolsonaro detained amid suspected asylum gambit

Brazilian authorities in Brasília detained former president Jair Bolsonaro amid fears he would bolt for an embassy to claim asylum rather than begin his prison sentence. The only thing he managed to escape was the lobby. For once, the accountability clock ran faster than the getaway plan.

Trump lights up Marjorie Taylor Greene after her retirement announcement

Hours after Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said she will resign in January, Donald Trump declared online that “Marjorie went BAD,” claiming she is quitting because he pulled his endorsement. Another day, another GOP family food fight where the tableware is mostly thrown on social media and the menu is grudges with a side of donor fatigue.