The Respectability of Torture
St Mary’s University College, Thurs 1st August, 7.30pm
Craig Murray, former British ambassador to Uzbekistan, was a whistleblower who was removed from his ambassadorial post by Tony Blair for exposing the Tashkent regime‟s use of rape and systematic torture, including the boiling to death of political opponents. He has also spoken out against Central Asia‟s appalling dictatorships, regimes which are allies of the West, involved in torture and rendition, and was accused of threatening MI6‟s relationship with the CIA. Now a human rights activist, author and broadcaster, he outlines the dynamics of torture and the hypocrisy of incriminated Western governments.
My first public appearance for a while will be in Belfast on 1 August where I shall be giving a talk. Long term readers of this blog will recall that, while my focus is largely on international affairs, the domestic political achievements I most hope to see are a united Ireland and an independent Scotland.
“… he only posts between 22:34 & 00:21 hours.” Glenn.
Perhaps then, he is an elegant but demonic vampire, Louis Jourdain-style? But then, surely he would have called himself, ‘Louis Jourdain’.
Interesting background on Biljmeer Brian. Insight from Herbie scores a bulls-eye as usual. Brian – compelling statement from Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson on yr Washblog link which implicates Israel in another false-flag deception. Yahalom I believe are ‘spotting’ in Syria and laser designators have been placed by them according to my source. Interestingly there is no evidence to suggest Israel has supplied chemical weapons to the rebels. No, their best people(Sayeret Yahalom 911 planners) are working some ‘black magic’ to implicate Syrian forces.
Nevermind – no clue at all on a ‘yinye missile’ can you expand on that for me?
John Goss
Yes I got it wrong – in the post to which I was referring about UK immigration you didn’t call the UK Govt fascist – what you actaully said was that that for the last 20 years had been blatantly pro-racist and had taken away habeas corpus.
“Somebody may wish to raise a similar FOI on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on racist immigration measures. I feel I have been fighting racism for much of my life but only in the last twenty years has the British government in power itself been blatantly pro-racist. I believe it all boils down to these Acts which have taken away the basic tenet of English law habeas corpus.” John Goss 26 June.
I apologise, but in mitigation I can only point out how the fascist label is rather thrown around in this blog so that it can apply to even those who support the Royal family and sport within the UK. I would also point out that being blatant pro racist and suspending habeas corpus are pretty much necessary if not sufficient conditions for being a fascist regime but that is bye the bye.
Since I have answered your question – perhaps you can now answer my rephrased question – given the treatment of immgrants by the Russian Government as reported in the Guardian would you assign the blatantly rascist label to the Russian Government as well?
The hypothetical question was genuine. And not based on a current policy dilemma or a personal grievance.
The posts about the Middle East, specifically around US policy regarding Israel/Palestine remind me of a decent paper written a few years ago. I think it was called Shooting the Rapids and offered suggesting pre US Presidential election about what should take centre stage in US foreign policy. The paper was an easy read and relatively well argued. The central point was around how a US inspired or supported solution to the ME situation would impact positively on US foreign policy when it came to solving four or five other prescribed policy aims. Apologies – have not worked out how to post links yet.
I see there has been some speculation about my entry, and timing of, to this forum. I’m not going to get into battles over credibility. Take my contribution as you like. I rather liked Richard Burton as an actor. My namesake too. JM
Excellent, glad to see you back JM. Don’t take any suspicion personally, there’s plenty to go around. You can insert links just as they are, and one can copy&paste them, or use the format shown immediately below the “submit comment” button, where you replace “http://example.com/link” with your own link.
JM; Can find nothing wrt Israel and ‘shooting the rapids”. Sorry about the speculation. I think part of the issue is; you ask a lot of questions without really responding to efforts to answer, and that’s the MO of some here who have a disruptive agenda. Again, I’m not accusing you of being disingenuous. Just an fyi.
@Rouge
Please leave off the libellous innuendo and the usual reversion to conspiracy theory. I just commented on what I had seen on the tread over the last few weeks – after a break from commenting to preserve my sanity more than anything else and to spend my time on reading some good books instead. Remembering Mary’s comment about not being a jew hater I was just googling for some previous comments where she linked attacks on the Israeli Govt to Jewish festivals on two occaisions (and never gave a satisfactory explanation as why her language did not amount to anti-semitism – at least in my opinion) and up popped the offending Stormfront post. Just Google “flaming mary” jews “craig murray” if you don’t believe me and see what comes up.
As for the avatar – as I’ve mentioned before I have no idea why it comes up black, although it apparently used to do the same for Clark – what I’d really like is a picture of a skewered supporter of totalitarian regimes.
Nevermind – China has a cruise type missile according to Lt. Gen. James Kowalski which can carry a nuclear warhead. The puzzle is all cruise missiles can carry a conventional warhead.
This dual role, small size and speed creates uncertainty and low yield devices are to some extent ‘clean’ in that release of harmful radioisotopes are minimal while temperatures exceed 3000 deg F easily enough to powder concrete and melt steel.
Ben, I don’t mind responding if there is something I’ve left hanging by way of response.
The link to the paper is here. I may have seen a longer version (which I cannot find on the internet) which does argue a clear link between US credibility in terms of solving the thematic issues in this paper with a US inspired or supported solution to the ME situation. You don’t need to see the paper to understand the point: if you look bad at A then you will suffer trying to argue B. I don’t personally agree that the premise is right, in that it assumes US responsibility/action as a prerequisite. That glosses over the fundamentals and displaces the main responsibilities which must lie with the protagonists.
http://www.globaldashboard.org/2008/04/05/shooting-the-rapids-multilateralism-and-global-risks/
@Guano
“Secular means separating the religious from the rest of life.”
But I only want governments to be secular – whether people want to follow a particular religion in their own private life really is a matter for them. I have no problem with people seeking to apply what they see as religous principles at a high level or voting for parties that espouse those principles – especially since most of those principles are common to most of the world’s great religions and shared by many humanists, agnostics and atheists. But using religous texts that are often over a 1000 years old and usually written in totally different circumstances, and which various factions of the same religion have differeing versions/interpretations would seem to be a recipe for disaster in my view – and is certainly supported by historical precedent (although the non religous doctrinaire often make the same mistake. Might I suggest that until the Almighty (should he/she/it exist) has found a way of getting a consistent and workable message across to all those who believe in all the many religions and their schisms – that life will be a lot easier with a secular government that respects religous and political freedom and doesn’t believe in enforcement of particular political or religous views.
@ Resident Dissident
Actually, I was tempted to ask you how you came across that post on Stormfront but then thought that you’d probably tell us yourself. Anyway, thanks for that – I’ve just followed your instructions and you’re right; the post comes up (as a citation) as about the fifth item on the Google list.
Now, two comments and then a question :
1/. as you know, I’m a dab hand at stylistic/linguistic analysis (you’ll remember that I identified April Showers as the former Mary within a day and also identified a more recent sock puppet, who, after confessing, is still posting away merrily) and having had a close look at the “Flaming June” post on Stormfront am pretty sure that “it” is not the Craig Murray “Flaming June” (independently of her own assurance)
2/. the moniker is obviously not just a coincidence because the spoof poster specifically mentioned me and Craig’s blog; this suggests familiarity with this blog.
My question is : do you have any view on what the spoof poster’s purpose/aim was? What might he or she have been trying to achieve?
Best!
JM; Stevens has fairly explicit methodologies for navigating around the rocks and currents, which are fluid and changing by the minute. It sounds like a form of asymmetric strategy, but he does seem to place an awful lot of faith in the UN, after basically saying the League of Nations was a success.
“We should start by noting some successes. Armed conflicts around the world have fallen by more than 40% since the early 1990s. More wars have stopped than started since 1988. Conflict between states, and average deaths per war, have been falling for much longer.8 The UN deserves huge credit for these successes, although terrible blunders like Rwanda and Darfur still happen. The EU, meanwhile, has succeeded in its primary goal of achieving lasting peace in Europe, and has become a model for international integration.”
I can think of many more blunders under their metrics and bureaucratic excesses (Balkans) but let me ask you what was the specific point you seek to express (If more than one, ok) because he seems to be operating within a petri dish, without specific examples. Very hard to assess with few reality touchstones.
“I rather liked Richard Burton as an actor. My namesake too. JM” James Mason.
I congratulate you on your excellent taste, Mr Mason. Welcome back.
@ James Mason
I think you (or rather the paper) is saying that a ME solution is key to resolving a number of other ‘problems’?
I’d probably agree with that and I’d certainly agree with your last sentence (I’m in two minds about the penultimate one as a little teasing out from you would be helpful). To which I’d add, though, that it’s not unknown in life for people to be reluctant to face up to their responsibilities without – let us say – some ‘encouragement.
Comparing the UN and the League of Nations does not really hold up – i would agree with criticism of the arguments there. The League of Nations suffered the omission of critical country power, and operated by consensus. But it did achieve some notable successes around the then Turkish, Hungarian and Romanian borders over potential disputes involving minorities’ interests. The UN is a work in progress but irreplaceable politically. And it resolved some of the League issues around consensus while importing modern problems around the use of veto power. Parts of the UN inevitably have lowest common denominator outcomes. But citing what is lower is hard to defend publicly when it has collective weight – the latter being the UN’s major advantage. JM
@ Suhayl
Given the general thumbs-up for Richard Burton and the fact that some posters appear to have ‘established’ (to their own satisfaction, at least) that I’m female, do you think I could worm my way into favour by changing my moniker to Elizabeth Taylor?
Habba
My first thought on the post was also that it wasn’t Mary – she does blur the lines between anti-semitism and anti-zionism from time to time but I don’t believe that she is that daft or bad. Given that I suspect that the intention was to divert fellow anti semites to this blog – with the view of supporting Mary and attacking yourself – my guess is that it is one of the more blatant anti-semites that visit this blog from time to time in various forms. That said given the Stormfront post was of a higher literary standard than we normally see from such types here, I am still not sure – but perhaps they raise their standards when they are among friends. So my other theory might be that it would be one of more staid contributors – just giving rip to their anti semite alter ego which they know has to be kept caged in more normal society (the problem is that however smart they are they usually leave a few tells that give away the game).
‘collective weight’ Yes, that is the goal, JM but it seems the 500# gorillas throw their weight around, and the smaller players seem more intent on scoring points with peers by bashing anything with a Western bent, so the ‘collectivity’ seems just as partisan and divided as local politics.
Further hampering effectiveness is the distilled bureaucracy of triangulations many times more complex than those same local politics. They really do have their heads up their arses.
Habbabkuk, I hereby drape a boa over your comely frame, present you with a fur coat and diamond tiara and re-name you after the great actress. Henecforth, you shall be known to all and sundry as, ‘Elizabeth Taylor’. But Elizabeth Taylor as the scarab-festooneed, femme fatale, ‘Cleopatra of the Nile’ and not the wondrous shrieking Renaissance harridan of ‘The Taming of The Shrew’. Though of course, she was magnificent in both roles, as well as in the later, highbrow films with Burton. Now, where on earth has Montgomery Clift gone…? We need some of that dark-eyed, guilty intensity.
@ Resident Dissident, Suhayl
Thanks to the both of you! Interesting and persuasive posts in their different ways!
LOL!
Thank you for that funny but disturbing picture. I just got the perfect image of a miserly old headmaster in drag doing a very poor liz impression.
Come on habba show us you have a sense of humour and let your hair down – change your avatar for a night?
@ nevermind 24 Aug, 2013 – 11:13 am
Thx for correction on distinction between gender and sexuality and further info.
@ BrianFujisan 24 Aug, 2013 – 1:16 pm
“a thought had occurred to me, that being, if Chelsea has always regarded herself as being female, and not male, would she be in prison today, i wonder.”
Good point. Perhaps enlisting was a final attempt to test the male, macho side of Manning’s persona, if there was any doubt at that time.
@ Jon 24 Aug, 2013 – 12:33 pm
@ glenn_uk 24 Aug, 2013 – 6:45 pm
Thx for tips re StormFront. I was aware of some; not all. I suspected it was more commercial on Twitter’s part.
Off topic — a true-crime story on secret compartments in vehicles.
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/03/alfred-anaya/
Of interest to auto-enthusiasts plus the article shows the absurdity of current US justice and what happens to a small-time, peripheral player who refuses to become an informant, for fear of his and his family’s life, and later refuses to take a plea deal, since he thinks he’s committed a minor offense, whereupon he’s sentenced to a far longer time than the major operators.
Final paragraphs speculate on implications of, for example, software or app writers [or encrypted email providers?], who create something they believe is totally innocent but is later used by terrorists, copyright violators or porn providers, and suddenly they’re charged as criminal masterminds and instigators of the whole enterprise, on the basis that without their services the crime would not have been possible.
Relates to the current fashion of drug cartels forcing mules to transport drugs under threat of death to them and their families. There are two high-profile cases in the UK — the two teen girls arrested in Peru and the mother sentenced to death in a South-East Asian country. On the US Mexican border there’s an increase of mules driving such vehicles who are unwilling participants working under death threats.
OK OK for one night only.
I do actually feel better… more open. I might even fully consider others POV and even answer questions – please fire away.
Does this mean we’re all misogynists now? I was more comfortable with my misandry.
Habba is female? – now there is something interesting on this blog and I missed it. I always thought of him as the younger brother of Professor Habbabkuk the economic history professor who had some theory about population growth in the Industrial Revolution which was expounded way back in time during a university lecture – the name stuck but not the theory.
“– change your avatar for a night?”
_________________
Wouldn’t mind, but someone would have to tell me how to do it 🙂
Getting the specs was simple, but I was admiring Dreoilin’s red hair recently and wondering how it’s done. I also mentioned a debonair trilby once, that’s another possibility.
Instructions on how are welcome (but pls keep it simple!)
Gosh you have to be careful what you wish for….
Anyway you have done it before – you had the shades.
Hold on – has there been a shift change?
@ Resident Dissident
No, no, I admit nothing. Some people on here claim to have ‘found out’ that I’m female but since they have not submitted their methodology and analysis I’m not in a position to pronounce 🙂
BTW, did you know that there’s a Habbakuk Room at Jesus in the fair city of the perspiring dreams? That bit of info came from Mary (as was) in one of her posts quite a while ago.
G’night, all!
Ben, when I’m not busy on here I often relax at http://www.dreamindemon.com a misanthropes dream
Really the last one for today – I could manage the specs because someone was kind enough to tell me all I had to do was to write “[email protected]”, but that’s as far as I’ve got, I’m afraid.