The shocking death of Lee Rigby quite naturally appals us all. The intention of the crazed little group who conceived this killing was to make it as horrible as possible in order to scare people.
Horrible, sociopathic violence happens to people from time to time. They have done since Cain killed Abel, metaphorically or literally as you choose. Here is another headline today, just as horrific:
A British soldier has been jailed for stabbing a 10-year-old boy after getting drunk on vodka while serving in Afghanistan.
Both that obscene attack and Michael Adebolajo’s appalling actions are borne out of the same conflict. But it is reasonable to suppose that both these incidents involved people with, for whatever reason, a pre-disposition to murderous violence.
Such people have always been with us and will always be with us, but fortunately they are very, very few. In a nation of 60 million, involvement in violent crime is very low. If you are the victim of criminal violence, the odds over the last decade are about one in twenty thousand that the violence inflicted on you will have any linkage to political or terrorist causation. And the odds that you will suffer any kind of violent attack are thankfully pretty remote.
We should not panic from theatrical violence, just deplore and take sober stock. Sadly if a lunatic on the bus decides to strangle you tomorrow, there are no pre-emptive laws that can stop that. We should stop pretending that the state can always prevent.
“16% unemployment”
Terror alert
In Paris a French soldier has been stabbed in the neck by ‘a man with a beard! of N African appearance’. The soldier is not fatally injured. The assailant ran off. Sky News
http://news.sky.com/story/1095605/french-soldier-stabbed-in-neck-in-paris
Nevermind.
I had called on Habbabkuk (La vita è bella!) to be banned when he was purely hounding Mary. But now he’s relented, I think otherwise. Actually, a fair bit of what he says has some benefit as he does have his moments when he does pick up on a weak point/s in/of our arguement/s. A dissenting voice or two is beneficial. At least unlike Larry from St. Louis who just babbled zionist tosh.
@Villager: the original site was taken down earlier this year. archive.org holds copies
Each blue spot is a snapshot in time of the original site’s content, is a link to the content as it was at that point in time. Ditto for subsequent newsletters, 93 thru to 112.
It is a lot of reading but might open your eyes about some of these 60s icons and the counter-culture. As for having broken through to the other side (another piece of lyric) the well-supported contention of the site’s author is that they never did, that they weren’t autonomous actors but mind-controlled since childhood guinea-pigs and lab-rats, ‘drafted’ to serve in the perilous jungles of the music industry, and serve they did, wittingly or not.
“Though almost all of you hail from (or spent a substantial portion of your childhood in) the Washington, D.C. area, you now find yourselves on the opposite side of the country, in an isolated canyon high above the city of Los Angeles, where you are all clustered around a secret military installation.” (nwsltr96.html).
The Mirror appears to vindicate my comment of 24 hours ago,namely, that the Woolwich killers’ nonchalance after the event was motivated by a longing for death a la suicide bomber, and the delights supposedly given to the Shahids in the hereafter-
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/woolwich-attack-suspect-michael-adebolajo-1910069
Macky Ref that link to John Andrews. I had read it on Medialens and agree.
He writes well and thoughtfully. He has written a book entitled The People’s Constitution.
This is his blog.
http://www.freedemocrats.co.uk/pages/wayahead.asp
Dissident Voice put up his articles.
http://dissidentvoice.org/search/?cx=004699754223191941067%3Adjkep-0myaa&cof=FORID%3A11&ie=UTF-8&q=john+andrews&sa=Search
Ben Franklin. Could you say why you wanted to know whether Lincolnshire was poor or affluent? I don’t know the answer btw.
Lwtc247 ‘But now he’s relented,…’ That’s not quite true.
Yeah racism going main stream; racist fuckwits ought to be creaming themselves, aye?
French soldier
“the suspected attacker was a bearded man, about 30-years-old and was wearing an Arab-style garment under his jacket”!!
(After what the French got up to in Algeria, it’s only a wonder that there haven’t been many more such attacks.)
~~~~~~~~~~
I agree with lwtc247 at 6:36 pm. In particular that a dissenting voice or two is beneficial.
Thank you very much for the John Andrew links April, I didn’t realise that he did more than just post on Medialens; I relate to his decision to quit his job because of the attack on Iraq, I did something very similar.
@Lwtc247, people of course will differ on their opinions about the Habbu-Clown, each according to their perception, interaction with & tolerance thresholds, but I say two things iro your comments; trust your initial instincts, not all “zionist tosh” appears as zionist tosh.
@Dreoilin, if is was an honest dissenting voice then I would agree, alas that is not the case.
****We (Macky,Sofia Zablotna-Habbercake, nevermind) nominate the Poster “Habbabkuk (La vita è bella!)” for expulsion from this Blog.”****
“What was it like in their country of origin? I suspect it was as bad if not worse. The question I’m asking has more to do with the WAY people deal with hardship.”
Ben, dealing with hardship when everyone around you is dealing with hardship is one thing.
Suffering a much higher level of umemployment than the rest of the population, increasing austerity, discrimination in employment and otherwise, combined with police “profiling” and brutality, is another altogether.
‘umemployment’?
s/be unemployment
An improved statement: “But now he’s relented – compared to before”
“not all “zionist tosh” appears as zionist tosh.” – Understood, but at least Habba makes it (a touch)more ‘stimulating/challenging’ finding it; A cat amongst the pigeons at least gives a demonstration of the wonders of flight.
Larry just laid it bare very boring indeed.
Why don’t you ask that from those busy plotting away, to sew divisions and create enemies?
In his farewell speech president Eisenhower warned of the undue power of the military industrial complex, full text of speech here, full televised speech here. Eisenhower could foresee the “Barbarians at the gate” narrative and the dangers it posed to the limited democracy, and freedoms.
Therefore, not rising above “isms”, is not the fault of the plebeians; they have little influence on the direction of foreign policy and or any other general policy, and don’t own any Media Conglomerates.
full text of speech here
Sorry about the link.
“Why don’t you ask that from those busy plotting away, to sew divisions and create enemies?”
Because they have vested interests. Why can’t i ask you?
“Therefore, not rising above “isms”, is not the fault of the plebeians; they have little influence on the direction of foreign policy and or any other general policy, and don’t own any Media Conglomerates.”
Fedup, i am not talking ‘faults’ — i am talking about the process of change. As is said the only one that likes a change is a wet baby. Now, does begin with one’s self or does it begin with our politicians?
April @ 7:07
Michael Adebolajo’s parents were Christian, and moved to Lincolnshire to get him away from bad influence.
It seemed like an affluent neighborhood, that’s why I was asking.
I have now been put right that the UK is safe from Islamisation over the course of this century because of an inexplicably static 5% demographic which, puzzlingly, I can find no evidence for
on the intergoogle. One website boldly claims that the figure will be 10% by 2021 – the year of the next census. I suppose some people do not understand basic maths and growth rates.
Also, despite reassurances that Muslims are not intent on eventually dominating British society, I keep finding statements that strongly imply that they might be. Perhaps I have misunderstood something. For example, the effervescent Muslim cleric and associate of the Woolwich killer, Anjem Choudary, was recorded as saying “We are going to take England — the Muslims are coming.” It’s not hard to find similar statements by other Muslim clerics. How should statements like these be interpreted by non-Muslims?
Anjem Choudary opens up, a little –
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/9875954/Muslim-preacher-urges-followers-to-claim-Jihad-Seekers-Allowance.html
Choudary was spokesman for Islamist group, Islam4UK, which appeared to have some ideas about converting Britain –
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam4UK
Is the Muslim population doubling every ten years?
http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/3500/islam-growing-religion-britain
The Islamic State (a book that describes how to create it)
http://www.hizb-ut-tahrir.org/PDF/EN/en_books_pdf/IslamicState.pdf
You can ask me all you want, don’t misconstrue the point. Trouble is “ism”s are the inventions of the said vested interests, and rising above these are verboten!
Clearly you see that the vested interests are at work, and don’t you find it strange how the videos of the Woolwich incident have suddenly dried up? As well as some of the earlier stories are getting cleaned up.
However the following also highlights the criminal past of one of the “terrorists”
I have now been put right that the UK is safe from Islamisation over the course of this century because of an inexplicably static 5% demographic which, puzzlingly, I can find no evidence for on the intergoogle. One website boldly claims that the figure will be 10% by 2021 – the year of the next census. I suppose some people do not understand basic maths and growth rates.
Also, despite reassurances that Muslims are not intent on eventually dominating British society, I keep finding statements that strongly imply that they might be. Perhaps I have misunderstood something. For example, the effervescent Muslim cleric and associate of the Woolwich killer, Anjem Choudary, was recorded as saying “We are going to take England — the Muslims are coming.” It’s not hard to find similar statements by other Muslim clerics. How should statements like these be interpreted by non-Muslims?
Anjem Choudary opens up, a little –
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/9875954/Muslim-preacher-urges-followers-to-claim-Jihad-Seekers-Allowance.html
Choudary was spokesman for Islamist group, Islam4UK, which appeared to have some ideas about converting Britain –
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam4UK
Is the Muslim population doubling every ten years?
http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/3500/islam-growing-religion-britain
The Islamic State (a book that describes how to create it)
http://www.hizb-ut-tahrir.org/PDF/EN/en_books_pdf/IslamicState.pdf
Just under 3 million Muslims in UK with roughly the same in the US. The difference is in percentage. UK almost 5 percent whereas in the US, less than 1.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_by_country
Ben Franklin
Lincolnshire is rural so I presume the point being made is that his family moved away from the City and its corrupt influences to the relative quiet of a rural English town.
The police have applied for more time to question the two men arrested on the Pakistani plane.
~~
Good long piece from Glenn Greenwald on the Woolwich case and aftermath, in particular his opinion on an article written by Andrew Sullivan.
No comments are allowed on this and the Guardian have removed all comments on all articles relating to Wednesday’s events. No reasons given. Comment is not free apparently.
He concludes:
UPDATE
For reasons I’ll let the Guardian explain, all of the comments to all of the columns and articles posted on the London attack were deleted, and the comment sections then closed. I hope that won’t happen to today’s column here, as the topics discussed here are not really about the attack but the broader debate about terrorism. But it’s possible that it will happen again. Those wanting to post comments should be aware of this possibility before spending your time and energy to write one.
Andrew Sullivan, terrorism, and the art of distortion
Challenging the conventional western narrative on terrorism produces unique amounts of rage and bile. It’s worth examining why
Glenn Greenwald
guardian.co.uk, Saturday 25 May 2013 14.32 BST
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/may/25/andrew-sullivan-distortion-terrorism-woolwich
Q. Will he be parting company from the Guardian?
Gosh, well, the ‘hard to find’ statistic is a wiki away
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_in_the_United_Kingdom
But obfusticate further Jemand, because why not.
Dreoilin, thanks for excellent background on Sweden.
“How should statements like these be interpreted by non-Muslims?”
With a large pinch of salt, and a dose of humour.
Thanks for that, KingofWelshNoir.
There is a series on SHOWTIME called ‘Dexter’ which might explain some of the psychology. ( It’s available on DVD.)
It’s a fascinating study of a law enforcement type who is a blood-splatter analyst. He was witness to a horrific murder(his mother) as a child, and the policeman who found the young boy, drenched in blood, knew he would always be disfigured emotionally as an adult, so he reared the boy knowing he would always have a propensity for violence. He taught him to channel the inner rage away from the innocent, to the guilty. He becomes a kind of Dark Avenger in his spare time . He surveils serial-killers who craftily avoid capture. He by-passes the legal bureaucracy and becomes investigator/executioner of said persons. We know soldiers have suffered from PTSD for years after their trauma. Some return home to commit unexplained murders, and many commit suicide.
The younger a person is when exposed to abject violent death, the more time that person has to germinate this mental state.
I can’t imagine what obscenities civilians witness on a daily basis in many 3rd world countries, but I think this is part of what’s going on.
As per Technicolour’s link –
“Between 2000 and 2010, the number of Muslims in the United Kingdom doubled.”
And in the link I posted, It was estimated to double again by 2021. Do you understand the significance of this growth rate? Or do you think that census figures are meaningless and should be disregarded from discussions about social developments? Should we also disregard the growth rates of atmospheric CO2 and methane?
A pinch of salt and dose of humour is how I now read your comments, Technicolour.
Take a gander at the videos from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen, Libya, Pakistan, Palestine, Somalia, Congo, etc. The images of torn off limbs, busted open guts, decapitated corpses, burnt to the bone corpses; strewn around, as children go about their lives.