Timing is All 251

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Meryl Streep took best actress award at the Golden Globes for The Iron Lady. There has been much media speculation about the motivation for Alex Salmond choosing Autumn 2014 for the independence referendum, largely centring around Bannockburn. Personally I can see the referendum coinciding brilliantly with Margaret Thatcher’s state funeral in London. That really would clinch it.

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251 thoughts on “Timing is All”

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  • Passerby

    Uzbek in the UK
    You are back pedalling, you have always advocated war with Iran, oodles of your comments indicate thus.
    ,
    Further, you are down playing the dangers of WWIII to facilitate your advocacy for war on Iran.

  • Uzbek in the UK

    Passerby
    .
    Yet again you are ‘salivating’ an argument. Where and when exactly I advocated war with Iran or any war on this matter?
    .
    My Iran related arguments were that contradictory to your (and some others) arguments Iran is neither democracy nor Iranians have better standards of life that people in the UK. I have never argued that either Israel or US have any right to attack Iran but it is also true that at present Iran has no real allies with whom it can establish common defence union and this is not least due to the theocratical nature of Iranian government.
    .
    As for WWIII, in this interconnected and interrelated world it is hard to imagine conflict like this. China for example is as much dependent on US as much US dependent on China and the same applied to the rest of the world. World economies today (at least economies of world’s major players) are divided onto few categories, natural resources exporters, major goods producers, major intellectual developers, major money borrowers and the rest (poorest 2 billion). All of them including the last category are dependent on each other. Some are stronger in one area and weaker in other. With conditions like this and with at least 9 nuclear nations it is hard to imagine scenario of WWIII.

  • ingo

    Gentlemen, please. Off course Russia will not respond in kind or go into a fullscale reprisal, but it will have made certain arrangements with China. Russia is only now throwing money at the problem of a deteriorating naval standard, many of its ships are old. I have not much knowledge of the state its intercontinetal capabilities are in, but this does not mean Russia will support a protracted war near its sore underbelly, an already war torn Caucasus.
    If there is an escalation with China annexing Taiwan, then we do have a melee and a problem of a mobilising China.

  • Uzbek in the UK

    Ingo
    .
    Well Russians own behaviour in Caucasus makes one think twice whether or not Russia is seriously concerned about peace in that region. My referrals are mainly about Russian militarily, technical, economic and political assistance to Armenia with which Azerbaijan has serious border problems. To this one can add Russian assault on Georgia as well as general Russian policy in mainly Muslim populated Northern Caucasus. Some (even Russians) suggest that Russian behavior in Northern Caucasus at present is much worse (or cruel) than 2 centuries ago who when Russia was first colonising the region.
    .
    As for China, Taiwan of course remains Chinese major target that will probably be first one when China is ready for the superpower challenging role but at present it also seems that China is less concerned with it than with some other inter-China issues and not at least with disproportionate economic development that despite skyscrapers rise in Shanghai western provinces in China remain economically underdeveloped, factor that is contributing to the inter-ethnic tensions among others.

  • ingo

    Uzbek, Russia has fought wars in the Caucasus for 400 years and it will not change until these regions govern themselves proper. It is Russia’s sore underbelly and it will erupt, most likely, if Turkey and Iran are involved in a war, would you not agree?
    As Craig said its all about timing. Clarke’s scrapping of the Gibson inquiery will save us some money which would only be spent for yawning at each other, its in the long gras and this Govwernment has failed to dismiss the claims of Torture, whether its by association or hands on, it is on the receiving end and stepping backwards, more perfidious obscurrance and cover ups.

  • Passerby

    Ingo,
    Russia time and again has stated that she will not sit idle and watch Iran get attacked. Also Russia has indicated an attack on Iran is a threat to Russia’s national security.
    ,
    Further, as the events in Pakistan have shown, China is already at the lugger heads with US, and given the fact that Pakistanis have blocked the routes for NATO supplies, and US cannot retaliate and the situation is dragging on, is a validation of this line of thought.
    ,
    In addition, there is an over whelming false confidence that US “superior” military equipment will prevail. History however stands witness to the contrary; Korea 1950, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, all are indicative of US initiating war and getting the hell out of Dodge, once the going gets tough.
    ,
    Iranians are not the push over Uzbek and co would like to make, fact that Israeli US manoeuvres have been postponed, and Barak is talking about; any attacks on Iran are “far away”, etc. shows that US is not prepared to engage Iran militarily.
    ,
    However, as Craig on this blog, and others elsewhere have published, there is a core body of hired lobbyists and propagandists who are bent on creating tensions and war, with the aim of furtherance of the zionist project. This line of argument is corroborated by the panic besetting Maj.-Gen. Amir Eshel as set out in my earlier comments in this thread.
    ,
    Fact that we already are aware of the murky and filthy process that belies the foreign policy of UK that is echoed in the words of the BICOM director Lorna Fitzsimons; “public opinion does not influence foreign policy in Britain. Foreign policy is an elite issue. To find the unconscious drivel in support of war on Iran, and or the plethora of nuanced; “regime change”,”sanctions” etc. which mean the same as initiating war on Iran, is to say the least annoying to the nth degree.
    ,
    Fact is US is an untethered bully that cannot stop going to war, given that approximately 94 percent of its expenditure of it budget is on wars and military, which brings about a heightened danger of WWIII, especially in the light of the latest developments in the Missile Defence Shield program.
    ,
    This latest development in effect makes sure US remains immune from any potential missiles strikes which means bye bye Russia, and China too. This policy can only have one conclusion, strike the US before she manages to complete the program, in this climate any war on Iran is the trigger for WWIII.

  • Uzbek in the UK

    Ingo
    .
    I indeed agree with you and unfortunately nation building problems in Caucasus is yet another argument supporting the case of those who argue that decolonisation has produced even more severe problems than colonisation itself. Another reason is also that Caucasus as well as Central Asia and Afghanistan served as buffer zones between Russia and other empires (Caucasus even for longer than the last two). Self-government and nation building in such circumstances had been and will be opposed by Russia until Russia is ever capable of projecting any sort of influence over these regions (and Caucasus in particular). Whether there is a peace or war certainly contributes to the developments in Caucasus but for Russia the major objective in this is not allowing Caucasus to be self-governed and it case of peace and positive developments towards self-government in Caucasus, Russia itself will most certainly contribute to a conflict or conflicts thanks to some frozen and potential problems in the region.
    .
    And here is another counter argument, in case if both Iran and Turkey are involved in large scale and long lasting conflict Russia will also benefit from this. As this will leave only Russia and its energy distribution line sole provider of energy to Europe. Is not what Mr Putin and his cronies dream about?

  • Uzbek in the UK

    Passerby
    .
    Sometimes I wonder where have you been for the last 60 years? There have been much more serious conflicts and militarily involvements of both US and USSR and even China that could have BUT have not resulted to WWIII. From 1945 until 1949 US has been sole holder of nuclear weapon and USSR has been US’s most vital enemy BUT no whole scale nuclear war. In 1950th US was able to deliver nuclear warheads by ballistic missiles while USSR was only developing its ballistic missile programme and yet again NO whole scale nuclear war. In 1960th US had twice more nuclear warheads than all other 4 nuclear powers and yet again NO nuclear war.
    .
    In the circumstances where others have nuclear warheads capable to kill 5 billion people in few seconds it is very hard to imagine someone pushing nuclear button even when all odds are that your own nation is protected by super advanced shield. Unlike many failed and contradictory theories nuclear deterrence despite its low moral standing has proven to be working in practise.

  • Passerby

    Uzbek in the UK,
    You are in denial, and have no idea.
    ,
    Iran has no real allies with whom it can establish common defence union and this is not least due to the theocratical nature of Iranian government.
    What does this suppose to mean? Isreal is a theocracy, why do you support it?
    ,
    ….. this interconnected and interrelated world it is hard to imagine conflict like this
    Do you think Chinese and Russians are stupid? Buying into this kind of drivel?
    Take a look at the map and see why US is fighting the world over.
    ,
    Finally for a provincial pots, your outlook is rooted at ye Olde World, and nowhere near the 21st century. Hence, always look on the bright side of life, de dum, dum dee…..

  • Uzbek in the UK

    Passerby
    .
    I presume that you have at least some amount of ‘grey substance’ in your skull as you are capable of typing, reading and somewhat arguing. Can you please just realise that I DO NOT support Israel or even US and particularly their militarily policy. Have I ever stated my support to Israel? Why did you come up with this conclusion?
    .
    Well, the world is certainly much more interconnected and interrelated than it has been ever before. There are no extreme idealogical contradictions, all major players are engaged in profit making and robbing those who are not capable of securing their wealth. China produces goods for US and EU for a cheap price so that Americans and Europeans could afford expensive mortgages to make greedy bankers richer, then China buys US dollars and Euros as their major reserve currency lending US money for further wars and robbery, Russia sells Europe gas and oil and Russian elite invest laundered billions to European Hedge Funds.
    .
    This and many other factors make me believe that YES world is much more interconnected and interrelated than ever before.

  • Azra

    Uzbek in UK : Have you lived in Iran, or you are just repeating what is in the western media. Do you know that state pension in Iran is higher than that of UK? (and the prices a lot lower). Iranian do enjoy a good standard of living, many of universities are almost free, (there are many many private but well afforded universities as well). As for the democracy , can you tell me where in the world we have democracy? you do not call what we have in the west is democracy?? difference is we have acceptable corruption here, let’s not kid ourselves. Iran is much more democratic that any of the Middle Eastern country, as much as I dislike the present government of Iran, give me that to any of the European one any day.

  • Azra

    I think the big problem here is that you get this negative propaganda in the west and you choose to believe it. Believe me only a fraction of it is true.

  • lysias

    Didn’t Norman Angell argue in his The Great Illusion of 1910 that war was impossible, because countries’ economies were so interconnected?

  • John Goss

    Mary, the way Blair just stands there dumbfounded. Nobody ever saw Blair stuck for words before or after. The journalist, good of him, asked the question whether Blair had blood on his hands over the death of David Kelly without Blair having prior knowledge. His reaction was almost the same as that of George W Bush when he was told that the World Trade Centre twin towers were under siege.
    .
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cTRg-2Zw34&feature=related

  • Mary

    I well remember John. Both of the actors were temporarily floored.
    .
    This amused. Get those printing presses rolling.
    .
    IMF seeking $500bn funding boost
    IMF head Christine Lagarde welcomed the “commitment of European members”
    .
    The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said it will seek to increase its resources by $500bn (£325bn) to help stabilise the global economy.
    .
    The extra money could be used to help countries in the eurozone struggling to pay their debts.
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    But the IMF said it may need up to $1tn “in the coming years”.
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    The $500bn includes the recent European commitment to commit 150bn euros (£125bn; $194bn) to the IMF, the 187-nation body said.
    .
    /…
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-16616829

  • Mary

    In case anyone thinks I have not offered sympathies to Clark on the death of his dog, I have e-mailed him separately. Very sad time for him.

  • Jives

    Well slightly OT i know but…i got angry reading all the “news” today so i went and listened to Billie Holliday and Jeff Beck at Ronnie Scott’s and i felt much better.Never underestimate the power of music..
    .
    Nevertheless,how predictable the Gibson enquiry has been kicked into the long grass.Most annoying.

  • Rocki

    Good morning,

    No, the Captain did not say he slipped and fell into life raft that was Clarence Mitchell PR Spin, having watched for the last, almost 5 years Dr.Death spin the McCann story in their favour I know how he ticks, only last night I said it will be the T-Shirts next and sure enough this morning a nation of Italians are wearing them with pride,ALL pointing the finger at the captain who may not have been a captain at all. Next of course will come the fund!

    I am staying close to Giorgiog ex staff member, he has a very different story to tell about Carnival the parent company and those at the top who knew this was a disaster waiting to happen. Now I understand why Dr.Death has been employed-and the question of a possible loss of $96 million dollars at the stock market.

    http://thedisclosureproject-steelmagnolia.blogspot.com/2012/01/costa-concordia-responsible-ones_18.html

  • Mary

    One of John Pilger’s very moving and powerful pieces about the Chagos Islanders. You have to wipe away tears as you read how they were carted off in a guano freighter and how the Americans rounded up and gassed their dogs. We as a nation should be very ashamed of our collusion in this atrocity and remember that the war on Iraq was carried out using the airbase that was constructed over the remains of the islanders’ property.
    .
    http://www.zcommunications.org/the-world-war-on-democracy-by-john-pilger

  • ingo

    My belated but heartfelt sorrow on the loss of your beloved mutt, Clark, please do go and see ‘the artist’, it will cheer you up somewhat. Will you have another companion to share youre time at the keyboard?

  • Uzbek in the UK

    Azra,
    .
    You are right that I have not lived in Iran, but have you and most of the commentators here lived in Israel or US? In 21 century one does not necessarily need to travel to somewhere to gain some knowledge about the place. My knowledge about Iran comes from many different sources and not just western media (as some including you suggested here) but also from Iranians themselves. Knowledge of Russian language allows me to read about Iran from very different prospective AND trust me even Russians do not go as far as calling Iranian regime a democracy.
    .
    It is second time you have stated that state pensions in Iran are higher than in the UK BUT yet again you have not provided any source supporting your claim, although I asked about it earlier. Could you please be so kind as to provide me a source supporting this claim?
    .
    Many universities in Uzbekistan are not almost BUT entirely free for some students (Uzbek government provides around 40% of university places for free). Does this make Uzbekistanis better off than for instance Kazakhstanis who pay for university, especially considering that every year 2-3 million Uzbekistanis travel to work to Kazakhstan? And for instance in USSR universities were entirely free for all students BUT at the same time corruption in academia particularly at the admissions stage was somewhat very well known fact.
    .
    As for democracy, it all depends on the perception of democracy. I am not as naive as you might think but at least here we are able to discuss issues freely (on the internet at least), we are able to organise protests without fear of being shot in the head, and at least every 5 years we can vote for whoever we want to vote for. Yes, many people limit their choice and always vote for one of two main parties but theoretically everyone can vote for anyone and what is more important election results like 95.9% voter voted for someone are not known here.
    .
    It seems to one that Iran unlike Saudi Arabia for instance is much more liberal but looking at it carefully one might realise that this all is just an illusion. Can you for instance name me few major factors which differentiate Saudi monarchy from Iranian Ayatollas? And if possible with sources?

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