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.
@Anon: why should they give their money away. Would you?
Clark
Do keep up – it was the original post from Macky which talked about Georgia being “reincorporated into the Russian Federation” – which is of course a logical impossibility since Georgia was never incorporated into the Russian Federation but the USSR.
Peacewisher
If the sentences you pointed to were just standalone statements on their own then they would of course just be standalone opinions – but you of course ignore the other stated facts that support those opinions i.e. the secret meetings, the funding of projects by banks close to the Kremlin. Some of us have seen at close quarters how Gazprom operate – believe me it is not a pretty sight.
I see Wall Street is having fun trying to bust the rouble again. Four-and-half-hours to go.
Peacewisher
The article does not make out that Putin is a fascist – it just points out his link with certain far right wing European parties – do you wish to deny the existence of these links?
I also think you are wrong about the readership of the New York Times – which is somewhat atypical of the US as a whole when it comes to foreign affairs.
I haven’t called Putin a fascist either – although he does use his muscle to bully Russia’s neighbours. Not all bullies are fascists.
Update to my 2:22pm comment:
More than 11,000 people have now signed a petition calling for Katie Hopkins to be arrested.
That is just detail, RD, and it isn’t substantiated anyway. It was a business deal… and Bulgaria lost it due to EU meddling. That’s the story. That’s the way in should be written in history but no doubt someone is rewriting the appropriate Wikipedia entry now, using NYT as a source.
This is what I mean about truth, distorting the truth, and war.
“I see Wall Street is having fun trying to bust the rouble again. Four-and-half-hours to go.”
No doubt ably assisted by all those Russian oligarchs moving their ill-gotten gains out of Russia – perhaps you don’t remember the last time Russia defaulted.
Good going, Anon! Do you have a URL for the petition?
Honestly it’s not worth the bother. You’re clearly a complete imbecile. Go away and have a think about it.
“That is just detail, RD, and it isn’t substantiated anyway.”
I’m afraid it is the details that are important. If the EU stops business deals which are achieved through corruption and coercion, and which on past evidence would be used as the basis for further coercion, going ahead then that can only be a good thing. I don’t wish to deny that the US and perhaps even more so Germany use improper techniques in business deals to get their way – but I’m afraid two wrongs don’t make a right.
I’m no supporter of oligarchs, RD. Putin’s biggest mistake of recent years was not encouraging small businesses at an earlier stage.
RD and Anon must be worn out. Isn’t Habbabkuk ready to come on as the sub?
@RD: If Bulgaria didn’t like the deal they would have said “No!” Not coercion, but negotiation, like all business deals. EU came in very late and claimed there wasn’t any competition to Gazprom, and that was their main objection. Yet the deal had already gone through a 3 year cycle. Not surprising Putin blew his top!
Peacewisher
http://www.runandcrytothepoliceeverytimeifeeloffended.com
Brilliantly chilling, chillingly brilliant: Adam Curtis’ short section in Charlie Brooker’s Screenwipe 2014 (contains some Putin)
http://www.filmsforaction.org/watch/nonlinear-warfare-a-new-system-of-political-control-2014/
Britain’s most senior female police officer, Cressida Dick, who is to leave the Metropolitan Police after 31 years, becomes a CBE.
RIP Jean Charles
~~
A funny take on the ‘honours’ nonsense.
Where’s my bleedin’ knighthood?
http://members5.boardhost.com/medialens/thread/1419986617.html
Rouble bouncing up and down like a yoyo!
They’ll get a bit of a rest now, Mary. I need to get showered etc… for NYE. Said it once, but will say it again…. Happy New Year! I’m sure it’ll be an awesome one.
Mary
Yes I’m beginning to realise how tiring it all is. And to think you’ve kept it up all these years without achieving anything.
Respect to these fellow UK citizens.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Declining_a_British_honour
“Putin’s biggest mistake of recent years was not encouraging small businesses at an earlier stage.”
Goes rather against the ethos of Team KGB I’m afraid – given that most of Putin’s efforts have been aimed at reasserting the role of Russian bureaucracy rather than diminishing it I think you will find that he has done precious little to improve the life of small businessmen.
I’m sure everyone here is well aware of Camerons forked tongue. When at the well attended Con.FoI annual bash he said that’ it would be a good idea to look at a stop to more land being occupied’.
Well, Yesterdays abstention by the two empire countries was a vote for more land grab, more violence, harassment of children and more murders by a non Jewish criminal Zionist gang that is holding Israel, the Golan Bersheeba Farms, East Jerusalem and many settlements in the West bank under occupation.
But I’m also aware that there are Judaic organisation who are made of sterner, more peaceful stuff, who’s brave activism should be promoted.
They are off course Neturei Karta
http://nkusa.org/activities/Demonstrations/20141001dc.cfm
Well respect to nearly all of them. Excluding the old lizard and his spawn plus two other hangers on, the Dukes of Gloucester and Kent.
As a part of the House of Lords reform in 1999, relevant members of the Royal Family were offered Life Peerages, which would have given them the automatic right to sit in the House of Lords, but all declined.[23] These included:
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh KG KT OM GBE AC QSO CD PC
Charles, Prince of Wales
Prince Andrew, Duke of York
Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex
Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester
Prince Edward, Duke of Kent
“Not coercion, but negotiation,”
I said coercion and corruption
“RD and Anon must be worn out. Isn’t Habbabkuk ready to come on as the sub?”
Perhaps what we need is a non playing captain to encourage the team to greater efforts?
Our non dom Anon is getting cheeky again, picking on Mary for nothing but spite.
What have you achieved in your petty miserable life licking backsides for a living? You got nothing to moralise about Brand, he IS paying his taxes here, douche-bag.
May your new years prospects mirror the hatred you pour on others!
Mary @ 5:55pm
A case of dammed if they do, dammed if they don’t.
“Rouble bouncing up and down like a yoyo!”
That is what happens in thin markets with little trading volume – Russians tend to have better things to do on New Years Eve even the greedy oligarchy ones! My advice join the parties late if you want to know what is really happening.
Perhaps Mary and others could spare a breath of support for the Russian political prisoners I highlighted earlier today.
http://imrussia.org/en/special-projects/2113-russia’s-political-prisoners-the-updated-list
http://imrussia.org/en/special-projects/2111-russia’s-political-prisoners-alexei-polikhovich
https://twitter.com/thomas_corrigan/status/550330514121707520
RD 6.13pm Et tu Brute.
What about the parts played by HMG in the arrest, unlawful imprisonment and torture of humans who ended up in Bagram, Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo and other unknown torture centres?
We know that UK forces were involved in the arrests (Ben Griffin ex-SAS) and in the torture, whatever the recent Al Sweady ‘inquiry’ determined.
~~
If I were you I would give it a rest for today or are you trying to outdo Habbabkuk on the numbers game. Score 26/118
PS Mine is 12, mostly factual and informative!