This is my last comment for the year as we are off to spend Hogmanay as the guests of an Ambassador in Paris. Out of deference to my family, who have had the brunt of it these last few days, I am definitely not taking the laptop, so I will no longer be able to take part in the popular new bloodsport of proving your loyalty to the SNP by being nasty to Craig Murray.
My parting thought is that, as every year of my entire life, it has been a disastrous one for the Palestinians. Yet more land occupied, settlements built, homes destroyed, olive trees uprooted, shipping vessels sunk and yet another murderous onslaught on Gaza.
I warmly recommend this rare public appearance by Col. Larry Wilkerson, ex-Chief of Staff to Colin Powell and a fellow recipient of the Sam Adams Award for Integrity. His brief musings here on Israel and Syria come from a deep store of knowledge and a razor-sharp intellect.
Do have a wonderful celebration. The future will be good. We are closer to a transformational change in society than you may realise.
Technicolour, if you’re around: I’m sure you’re aware that the ‘admissions’ of Hoess were made under the severest torture by British and Soviet ‘investigators’, he was several times beaten nearly to death and his family (wife and young child) threatened with deportation to Siberia. Most of his testimony, probably all of it, then, and even more so in later years were proved to be preposterous fabrications of his interrogators. His ‘memoirs’ clumsy post-war Soviet fabrications.
Clark
“Habbabkuk, 4:44 pm, of course oil has been of benefit to ordinary people,..”
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So we agree that the easy availability of oil has been of benefit not only to big corporations but also to you, me and the man on the Clapham Omnibus.
Splendid!
The point having been made and accepted, there is nothing else which needs to be discussed.
Clark
“Habbabkuk, you’re good with legalese; could you help me evaluate the Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill 2014-15 please?
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/bills/cbill/2014-2015/0142/15142.pdf”
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What are your specific, precise questions? Please indicate, together with the clause/schedule, etc, numbers for easy reference.
Herbie: thanks for that wiki, Bauman looks interesting. Erich Fromm also concluded that this was not an isolated German issue, but could happen anywhere. What I’m now looking at is: what could/should the Germans have done to stop the Nazis and, following that, what relevance does this have to the UK? What could/should we be doing in order to stop the rise of people who are intent on demonising one or more vulnerable groups/religions in order to get and maintain power?
The wider lessons – obeying orders is destructive, performing to rules and standards is dehumanising, bureaucracy stifles and destroys – are sadly not ones the government have been encouraging in our schools.
Herbie
““If you mention it for an eleventh time, do you think you could bring yourself to spell it properly?”
Hey habby
Seeing as you’re on typo patrol this evening, how many times was it incorrectly spelt?”
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I guess you wouldn’t have issued that apology for a challenge unless you’d already checked back yourself, eh? You old fox!
Seriously though, I’ve noticed you often attempt to adopt a lofty, quasi-“academic” tone on the occasions you intend to post seriously; accordingly, it is important both for your general credibility and as a token that you’re posting with due care and attention that you should get right any name you’ree using frequently.
Clark “Habbabkuk, 4:44 pm, of course oil has been of benefit to ordinary people, but the ten trillion dollars has spent on warfare – and the oil still had to be bought from the companies that extracted it.
My opinion is that imperialism is not only immoral, but also yields poor value for (taxpayers) money.”
Quite. Meanwhile the instant ‘benefits’ of the oil itself entirely fail to compensate for the crimes, the shame, the effect on the climate and health, the necessity of propping up appalling regimes, the pollution…Far better to a) trade peacefully b) continue developing local and sustainable alternatives.
re Prince Andrew and the US revelations:
Having noticed that BBC Radio 4 has just given this item prority billing on its “5pm” programme I trust we shall now see some praise for the BBC on here and a recognition that the BBC is not part of some vast, sinster, Establishment cover-up mechanism.
Since it was RepublicOfWildImaginings who brought the Prince Andrew story to our attention on here, and since he is a rabid critic of the BBC, I think he should be the first to egg humble pie.
If it was Mary who first raised the question, then it should be for her to do so.
That’s fair enough, isn’t it.
I realise you’ve only been promoted to Typo Patrol, habby. You were previously in full stops, I believe.
But anyway, the old hands down typo patrol usually ignore the occasional lapse, especially when the poster gets it right 9 times out of 10.
I know you’re keen for your first scalp, but this one won’t count I’m afraid.
Better luck next time.
But yes, it would be very churlish of me not to congratulate you on your promotion.
Congratulations.
Technicolour
Far better to a) trade peacefully b) continue developing local and sustainable alternatives.
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Ah yes! …… by developing alternatives, we can all get by without oil.
So simple.
It’s that sort of comment/”thought” which makes it impossible to take you and your coterie seriously.
Herbie
If I upset you then I apologise, Herbie. Of course you should feel free to continue to mispell Hannah Arendt’s name – perhaps you could add “Annah” or “Hanna” to the “Arrendt” next time?
I’ll let you get back to work now, you probably have a seminar to conduct.
I have a coterie! How lovely. Otherwise, was there something about the phrase ‘continue developing local and sustainable alternatives’ you particularly object to? There must be, as I can’t otherwise imagine why you, and Anon, continue to make up stuff that people haven’t actually said – and think it’s not entirely obvious.
Tony M: no, and if your source is David Irving, don’t bother, thanks.
Habbalarf
The BBC only reveals this shit when it’s been long well known and Auntie needs to face save in light of it hitting the fan.
Why would you be spinning otherwise, I wonder.
http://www.engineering.com/ElectronicsDesign/ElectronicsDesignArticles/ArticleID/6289/Can-We-Live-on-Sustainable-Energy-Alone.aspx
“Having noticed that BBC Radio 4 has just given this item prority billing on its “5pm” programme I trust we shall now see some praise for the BBC on here and a recognition that the BBC is not part of some vast, sinster, Establishment cover-up mechanism.”
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Pfft!
One swallow, does not make a summer.
BBC covers up by the dozen.
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=BBC+cover+ups&oq=BBC+cover+ups&aqs=chrome..69i57.3638j0j1&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
Incidentally, what does “Prority” means? I only ask, as I see you constantly chiding Herbie, for a similar impropriety.
Technicolour, there are many surprising footnotes to the conformist historical narrative e.g.,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl-Otto_Koch#Prosecution_and_death
Palestinians push for ICC war crimes probe
The Palestinian Authority has asked the International Criminal Court to investigate Israel for alleged war crimes.
2 January 2015
http://www.thejc.com/news/world-news/127605/palestinians-push-icc-war-crimes-probe
There was also this gem on the JC front page. On a video.
David Cameron’s Chanucah reception
By Marcus Dysch, December 22, 2014
In his speech to communal leaders at the Number Ten Chanucah reception, David Cameron addresses concerns over rising antisemitism, threats to shechita, and his recent visit to Auschwitz. The Prime Minister also told a Chanucah joke, before lighting the Downing Street menorah.
http://www.thejc.com/videos/news-videos/david-camerons-chanucah-reception
Hi Clark – To give you some help a brief summary might be useful with some thoughts:
Barring returning terrorists – What is the definition of terrorist?
Fighting campus extremism – Colleges, schools, duty to ‘prevent individuals being drawn into terrorism’.
Schools have a policy of denying a platform to ‘extremist’ speakers – Define ‘extremist’
(I have been denied access to +16yrs to debate Iraq!!!!!)
Monitoring air passengers – data, including credit card details, in advance.
Preventing travel abroad – Powers to seize passports for 30days
TPIMs – no idea
Banning insurance companies from paying ransoms – now criminal offence
Matching Internet Protocol addresses – ISP’s records of customer information:time/ip address
Creation of a Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) – no idea
Oh I forgot Clark – the 14 yrs old daughter of the Collapse Radio show presenter was reprimanded at school and called a conspiracy theorist/denier for expressing an opinion on the 7/7 London Underground attacks.
Social justice activists determined to feed the homeless have faced eviction for the second time following their attempts to open a soup kitchen in Westminster, in the heart of London. They were forcibly ousted by police Tuesday night.
Following their eviction from a listed Victorian building near Trafalgar Square they had been occupying in the run-up to Christmas, the group decided to set up a soup kitchen outside.
Since December 25, they had been distributing food, coffee and tea outside the vacant offices to people sleeping rough on the streets of London.
In a statement Tuesday afternoon, the group, who call themselves the “Love Activists,” said that the situation facing the homeless in central London has hit crisis point. Services to help the homeless in the area are woefully inadequate, they argued, with all dedicated centers due to remain closed until January 3.
“[The] Love Activists are one of the only groups protecting the homeless now,” the group warned, adding it would not “be moved on by the council.”
But on Tuesday night, police officers and council staff forcibly ousted the activists from the area and forced them to dismantle their soup kitchen.
http://rt.com/uk/219019-soup-kitchen-evicted-london/
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Bah Humbug!
There’s no place for the poor and needy in the “Square Mile” of London, ironically their motto is (Domine Dirige Nos), which means in English, “Oh Lord Direct us.”
Surely the Lord wouldn’t direct the City of London Corporation to turf those poor souls out, especially at this time of years.
The again it is London.
Clark. You don’t know what I mean, (diplomat in denial).
If a clever man like you does not know what I mean, I think you are being less than honest, with me and yourself.
Fireworks are exploding throughout Ramallah in celebration of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s surprise move to sign the Rome Statute along with 21 other international treaties, one day after his draft resolution seeking to end Israel’s occupation through negotiations failed to pass the United Nations Security Council.
Abbas had held off in the past on acceding to the Rome Statute, which allows the Palestinian government to present charges against Israel in the International Criminal Court (ICC). The signing tonight was unexpected.
The letters to join the conventions were inked in a meeting with Palestinian leaders at the Muqataa, the seat of the Palestinian Authority, at 6:45pm Jerusalem time. “We have a right to sign all of the international conventions and agreements,” said Abbas after a raising of hands from Palestinian leaders in favor of acceding to the Rome Statute and the other international treaties. Then Chief Palestinian Negotiator Saeb Erakat, a longtime advocate of joining the ICC, presented him with the letters and a pen.
After the vote, the Palestinian leaders and media clapped, and copies of the documents were distributed to the committee members.
http://mondoweiss.net/2014/12/fireworks-international-criminal?utm_source=Mondoweiss+List&utm_campaign=c743c716f7-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b86bace129-c743c716f7-309261654
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Oh Dear Bibi won’t like that at all, as Abbas pushes to make East Jerusalem, the capital of a Palestinian state.
Habbabkuk, 5:41 pm, no, I do not “agree that the easy availability of oil has been of benefit not only to big corporations but also to you, me and the man on the Clapham Omnibus”.
Oil extraction and use has increased far too quickly and reached dangerous levels in just over one century, endangering recent generations’ descendants through both global warming, and probable future impoverishment by enabling an unprecedented population growth rate. Humanity has become dependent upon this diminishing resource, while the break-neck acceleration of economic growth has degraded natural resources upon which we depend as a species. Do you recognise these dangers?
Regarding Bill 127, do you think this piece of legislation is necessary?
Iain has mentioned the latest spook bill.
The chap who pushes this kinda stuff is this guy:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Farr
He’s been mentioned on media occasionally as the grey suit behind the scenes flushing civil liberties down the toilet.
The thing anyway is that whilst we may hold May responsible, she’s largely run by relatively unknown suits like Mr Farr.
Who’s he working for, like ultimately like…
It certainly ain’t the British people!
A very sordid story, from the Mail link earlier, especially the part played by Robert Maxwell’s daughter, Ghislaine.
‘It is claimed that Epstein trafficked the girl to be abused by powerful men across the globe.
These included ‘numerous prominent American politicians, powerful business executives, foreign presidents, a well-known Prime Minister, and other world leaders’, the court papers say.’
Wonder who the ‘well known Prime Minister and other world leaders’ were.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2894480/Prince-Andrew-repeatedly-slept-sex-slave-controlled-underage-prostitution-ring-U-S-court-papers-claim.html
Robert Crawford, 6:52 pm; no, really; if I’m unsure, I ask. I know I’m a bit socially challenged at times, so rather than proceeding upon misapprehensions, I just ask for clarification. And I’m no diplomat, if you were applying that term to me. Are you saying I’m in denial about something? I don’t know what I’ve denied.
I didn’t understand that either, btw, Clark 🙂
U.S. President Barack Obama said in a December 30th Oval Office interview with Steve Inskeep of National Public Radio, that, “wherever we have been involved over the last several years, I think the outcome has been better because of American leadership.”
This statement from him was part of his answer when Inskeep asked whether the President had regrets about “overthrowing the Gadhafi regime” in Libya.
Obama answered:
“We are hugely influential; we’re the one indispensable nation. But when it comes to nation-building, when it comes to what is going to be a generational project in a place like Libya or a place like Syria or a place like Iraq, we can help, but we can’t do it for them.”
In other words: the Libyan people failed, and the Syrian people failed, and the Iraqi people failed, according to America’s President — but he himself and his predecessor Bush did not fail by bombing those countries under false pretenses as they did.’
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I’m absolutely speechless, Obama actually thinks he’s doing a good job, and that the USA is as he put it “A indispensable nation.”
The Whitehouse, has had its fair share of psychopathic presidents,, in the past, and Barry Soetoro, aka Barack Obama, is another, chip off the psychopathic block.
Exactly Herbie – a spook who thought it wise to plant missile launchers on roofs of residential buildings in East London – prick!
RoS Farr sounds scary and much too powerful. At least he did not get GCHQ.
Charles Farr – GCHQ’s next spymaster general?
Man at heart of UK anti-terrorism strategy who put missiles on London rooftops during Olympics set to come in from the cold
13 April 2014
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/apr/13/charles-farr-gchq-spymaster-counter-terrorism