Good grief!! This is absolutely beyond parody!! There is yet another terrible puff piece in the Guardian – the fifteenth in the last month now I think – about how Gordon Brown will save the union and what a great and respected sage Brown is. This one claims that Brown is the only man to have perceived that the independence referendum must be about the future of Scotland.
No, really, it does, read it through.
I think Rusbridger must be on heroin. Of course I realised something is seriously wrong for anybody to wear that bad a wig in public, but I really had not quite understood just how bad things actually are at the Guardian. I do now.
Freedland is at his most execrable in this piece in the absolute lie that Brown is speaking to packed out halls up and down Scotland. Completely untrue. Actually they might be less empty were it not for the fact that these meetings are strictly no entry except by invite. Not to mention that – and the fact no questions are allowed – shows as if we did not know that Freedland has no claims at all to journalistic integrity, and is just writing pure propaganda.
I would very much doubt that “Mr. Rusbridger must be on heroin.” It’s just that we don’t have a free press in Britain, and he has to operate accordingly. One suspects that Mr. Rusbridger, like other editors, has to be careful not to offend the establishment and particularly not their security / intelligence services at home, MI5 and MI6, and perhaps those foreign ones abroad as well. Last year I published an article on the subject.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/01/28/1182880/-The-Guardian-in-America-Icon-of-the-left-or-too-close-to-British-Intelligence
And there were two further incidents not mentioned in the above article!
On March 4th 2011, I had corresponded by email with Jeff Stein of the Washington Post about my experiences with “The Guardian” as are outlined in the above article. The following day two hoods, here in Calgary, Canada, skidded a truck across the across the road deliberately and dangerously just as I walked past them. The hoods got out of the truck and told me in a threatening manner that it was because I “don’t know my place”. And there was yet another incident a year later.
On August 17 2012, I wrote a comment in Media Lens entitled “Guardian is too close to MI5 / MI6”. Later that same day a car nearly drove my eldest son and his fiancé off the road when they were travelling back from work to their home.
It certainly seems to me that the security services are very protective of the Guardian and possibly other papers. It was Rupert Murdoch who tweeted “No such thing as free press in UK” and my experiences would certainly confirm Mr. Murdoch on this
@Fred – “The right of the people in Scotland to determine for themselves that they want to remain part of Britain?”
Yes,of course – if that’s what the majority choose.
Don’t you understand “self determination”?
In a proper national democracy,it’s the idea that individual “selfs” in a nation agree to follow the majority decision…which then becomes the “self determination” of that nation as a whole.
However,outside “selfs” in other nations have no legitimate reason to interfere.
Westminster has no business interfering in a decision making process which by definition applies only to the people of Scotland.
Gordon Brown is of course entitled to have his say,being a resident of Scotland.
But for Westminster to interfere “on behalf of the Union”,and to use the BBC and the (English owned) MSM to do so, is a subversion of the fundamental principle.
Fandanfan
What do you mean by interfere – I take the point that others in the UK should not take part in the Referendum, but as to not expressing an opinion on a matter that affects us all then that would be an abuse of free speech which even a certain resident of Ramsgate might think goes too far. This blog would also be a pretty quiet place if the same rule was applied universally. As for the BBC and the MSM can we presume that you would like the UK Govt to interfere to control what they say about the matter?
@Fandanfan
Yes I know exactly what self determination means.
It means everyone in Scotland gets to vote for a representative to go along to Westminster and decide on what people in England do while having our own government in Scotland to decdide on what people in Scotland do.
Sounds good to me.
Fred
I have 100 shekels which say that if the separatists do win the referendum, they will nevertheless try to negotiate some kind of residual representation at Westminster.
@ Mr Scorgie and all
I think that the following exchange, between Jemand and Mr Scorgie, is so important that it needs to be reproduced here lest it gets lost in this rapid succession of new threads.
““I am a secularist Jemand and I stated that in the post you refer to.”
That’s not really an answer, Doug. You might have also said you are a stamp collector with equal evasiveness.
Do you have any objections to Iran being a theocracy? I’m sure you would prefer that it were a liberal secular state, but given that it is not, can we count on you to criticise the ongoing retention of Iran’s theological foundations for its government and the inevitable intolerance of minority religions that goes with state-sanctioned primacy of one religion over all others?”
________________________
Jemand’s question echoes a similar one I put to Mr Scorgie. The point of the question was to see if Mr Scorgie opposes the theological regime in Iran with the same vigour and passion as he opposes what he claims is a future theological regime in Israel (Israel as a “Jewish state”).
This is your chance to clarify in just a minute,, Doug, without hesitation, deviation or your favorite evasion!
******************
Habbabkuk says down with racism, sexism and hate-speech.
“Habbabkuk says down with racism, sexism and hate-speech.”
Except when it comes to calling Mary a bitch and general offensiveness,lies and hypocrisy that sounds absolutely spot on Habba.
Tit.
F off and stop acting as if you own this blog. You pick on people in turn here. Bullying by remote control.
Just like Iraqi troops who run at the first sign of trouble, so too Havasack.
The Troll bund, if they were a soccer team, would depart the field at half-time while declaring victory.
http://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2014/06/rusbridger-the-worlds-worst-editor/#comment-463128
Jives I hope you realize that comment was not for you!
Here’s one for the trolls to put in their collective pipes and smoke.
Surveillance. Latin America. Drones. Border Surveillance. Apartheid Wall……….
Elbit: Exporting Oppression from Palestine to Latin America
by Scott Campbell / June 27th, 2014
http://dissidentvoice.org/2014/06/elbit-exporting-oppression-from-palestine-to-latin-america/
https://www.elbitsystems.com/elbitmain/
What on earth is Rabin’s daughter doing with this bunch of gangsters?
http://ir.elbitsystems.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=61849&p=irol-govBoard
Note that Elbit’s experience with the Apartheid Wall in Palestine allowed them to produce the technology for the Mexican US border. The Palestinians have been treated as guinea pigs by the Israelis yet again.
Hi, I want to clear up a few things that people outside of Scotland might not know. The ‘packed’ Old Fruit Market was a Labour Party rally which was invite only, other senior Labour Party members were in attendance namely Johann Lamont MSP and Anas Sarwar MP (both Glasgow politicians). This was United with Labour’s second relaunch since its formation last year. Gordon Brown has not been packing out halls up and down the country, he has held intimate meetings of less than 100 people which are invite only, not advertised to the public, not even on his own website. It has already been indentified that many in attendance are Labour Party activists. There is no Q&A session afterwards but Gordon does sign and sell his latest book at these meetings. Currently United with Labour doesn’t have a website or contact details although there is a Facebook page which seems to be run by YES camapigners.
It is also noteworthy that the Guardian’s circulation in Scotland has fallen to 10,500 daily.
I agree. Couldn’t think of a worse , more unbalanced newspaper relying on its dusty laurels. Most of the others don’t count, making the guardian so dangerous. As with everything these days, it’s about the bottom line at the guardian, meaning more trashy stories about relationships written by desperate housewives with no experience and lots of bias. Surely that could all be replaced with more exposure of corruption in all government sectors.
Wasn’t that exciting! Feel sorry for Chile. Well done Brazil.
This must be the book Richard G.
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/apr/28/gordon-brown-radical-reform-union-scotland
I had not realized that he has written so many. 21 in total. Where did he find the time? Who buys them?
~~
Is that a photo of Caerlaverock Castle in your avatar?
So the British state tried to upstage the Bannockburn Live event today by holding British Armed Forces day in the same place, at the same time and giving free admission.
Reports suggest around 2000 folk turned up at the £250,000 taxpayer funded Britfest, yet the Bannockburn Live event was a 20,000 sell out.
The Brit event has had wall to wall coverage on the BBC, and the Bannockburn event hasn’t even been mentioned.
OMG serious spelling error in my last post where no should read YES!
“Reports suggest around 2000 folk turned up at the £250,000 taxpayer funded Britfest, yet the Bannockburn Live event was a 20,000 sell out.”
http://www.thecourier.co.uk/news/politics/35-000-brave-rain-to-salute-forces-1.445272
““Habbabkuk says down with racism, sexism and hate-speech.”
Except when it comes to calling Mary a bitch and general offensiveness,lies and hypocrisy that sounds absolutely spot on Habba.”
________________________
Good to hear from you again, Jives. How are you – is the treatment working? Persevere!
Anyway:
1/. “Bitch” is how I refer to Mary everytime she refers to me as “troll”. That’s the rule of the game. But only then.
2/. I challenge you to find an example of lies or hypocrisy. If you do, I promise not to retaliate by finding an example of your general idiocy and vulgarity.
3/ General offensiveness: diddums! Grow a thicker skin, Jonathan, you badly need one.
Johnstone your serious spelling error made me laugh. Not for the first time today reading this blog.
“F off and stop acting as if you own this blog.”
___________________
Funny you should say that, Mary, I’ve always had the impression you thought you did.
I realise that we are all guests on here – do you?
California Ben
“The Troll bund, if they were a soccer team, would depart the field at half-time while declaring victory.”
_______________
You’re beginning to repeat yourself, Ben.
You know what that signifies, don’t you….?
From Roderick Russell:
“On March 4th 2011, I had corresponded by email with Jeff Stein of the Washington Post about my experiences with “The Guardian” as are outlined in the above article. The following day two hoods, here in Calgary, Canada, skidded a truck across the across the road deliberately and dangerously just as I walked past them. The hoods got out of the truck and told me in a threatening manner that it was because I “don’t know my place”. And there was yet another incident a year later.
On August 17 2012, I wrote a comment in Media Lens entitled “Guardian is too close to MI5 / MI6”. Later that same day a car nearly drove my eldest son and his fiancé off the road when they were travelling back from work to their home.”
____________________
Are you related to Trowbridge Ford by any chance, Roderick?
Good, John we all need to have a little laugh now and again for a break from the crying (where are the sad & happy faced icons Craig?)
@Mary …
Yes, it is Caerlaverock. I think Brown finds the time to write books by not turning up at Westminster. The Guardian certainly has given him an extraordinary amount of publicity over the past few months.
@Mary: Fantastic! Reminded me of the protest of Linus Percy when George Bush came to London Town:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/humber/3279449.stm
Notice that in those (pre-Hutton) days the BBC did cover matters which ran counter to the wishes of the state. How could we allow a single retired judge working for Blair to take away our democracy?
Lindus, sorry. Retired nurse. I heard her talk once… truly inspiring!
Mary — Harrods was snapped up in 2010 by the al-Thani family, which owns and runs Qatar in the Persian Gulf. Qatar is rich thanks to natural gas. The al-Thanis have bought many other properties and companies around the world (including 25% of Sainsburys) and allowed the US to build a major military base on their territory which enables Washington to maintain control of the Middle East and its resources.
Sarah Brown joined Harrods Group (holding) Limited as non-executive director “in charge of corporate social responsibility” in September 2012.
http://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/director/1021575/sarah-brown
Meanwhile, her husband is swanning around the world at other people’s expense, pretending to be somebody important. He claims the money he’s paid isn’t “received personally” — “It is being held… to support my ongoing involvement in public life.”
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmregmem/140106/brown_gordon.htm
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmregmem/130507/brown_gordon.htm
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/12/world/middleeast/hagel-lifts-veil-on-major-military-center-in-qatar.html?_r=0
Mary,
Relaaaax,i got that…:.)
Keep on keepin’ on sista…;.) x
No Habbakuk, I know my place. Pity you don’t.