Honoured to give the keynote speech at Amnesty’s conference on torture in London yesterday. Then dashed back to Edinburgh for a very romantic evening with Nadira – and Cameron!
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@Habby: Latest on George Galloway v Tony Blair:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/22595538/the-killing-of-tony-blair/posts/1010741
They are raising more money… wanna contribute?
@Peacewisher – Thanks for Huffpo link. Litvinenko’s widow is doing well: this is exactly the angle she should focus on if she wants more truth to come out. Good luck to her.
I see the barrister who’s representing her, Ben Emmerson, was a founder member of Matrix Chambers, as is Cherie Blair. He gobs off at Chatham House too 🙂 and is a “UN Special Rapporteur on Counter Terrorism and Human Rights”. I wonder why she chose him 🙂
NATO IS DEAD – it’s official
Confirmation today from the commentators on Craig Murray blog that NATO has finally snuffed it.
“I found it floating upside down in my bath” explained international analyst _o. “In my eyes NATO had it coming” said someone else “what with their non-stop killing everyone everywhere all the time.”
Foul play is suspected. Anyone not in a cult is suspected.
“It’s clealry a false flag” was not actually said. Some people celebrated NATO’s demise by singing Bob Marley songs. Others are gathering on a hill in middle Terry and June land waiting for the Starship Oligarch.
“Your time is now! Overlord Putin, no more shall these heathens malign thee! Flare your barrel chest you man of the people!”
LOL, Phil. “Life is Beautiful”.
@Peacewisher – They have got an ever-stupider home market, both on civvy street and in the armed forces – witness the “Arrse” website aimed at service personnel. I’m not sure I could usefully speculate on to what extent they’re pushing for Brits going into the Ukraine and to what extent they’re just ‘looking keen’ for the never-to-be-upset weapons manufacturers. They know they’re behind in cyber, and these days you’ve got to test such weapons in the field or you’re fucked. I reckon they’re fucked anyway. It’s difficult to see how they could actually get their guys into the Ukraine. There’s no way Turkey or Hungary would help. We will have to see what happens with Mariupol. My guess is the fash will be left on their own to defend it. (But then I thought it wouldn’t fall, and have now changed my mind.) We’re the ones who need a bloody regime change!! 🙂
““Call to Action: Protest Waitrose ‘Taste of Israel’ travel and food guide from the Boycott Israel Network”
Thanks Mary, I’ll make sure I pick up a copy this afternoon.”
_____________
I’d also like to thank Mary.
I’m going to email Waitrose at the address Mary kindly supplied and encourage it to st
…stand firm with its Taste of Israel and to pay no attention to any emails it gets from the Israel-haters, who are a small minority in the general population.
The Truth Hurts
Every year the American historian William Blum publishes his “updated summary of the record of US foreign policy” which shows that, since 1945, the US has tried to overthrow more than 50 governments, many of them democratically elected; grossly interfered in elections in 30 countries; bombed the civilian populations of 30 countries; used chemical and biological weapons; and attempted to assassinate foreign leaders.
In many cases Britain has been a collaborator. The degree of human suffering, let alone criminality, is little acknowledged in the west, despite the presence of the world’s most advanced communications and nominally most free journalism. That the most numerous victims of terrorism – “our” terrorism – are Muslims, is unsayable. That extreme jihadism, which led to 9/11, was nurtured as a weapon of Anglo-American policy (Operation Cyclone in Afghanistan) is suppressed. In April the US state department noted that, following Nato’s campaign in 2011, “Libya has become a terrorist safe haven”.
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/may/13/ukraine-us-war-russia-john-pilger
Yes, of course, N_. If you missed last week’s question time (not recommended!) it is available on i-player. Even Nicola Sturgeon promoting Russiophobia, although not cheerleading like lib/lab/ballantyne.
Michael Heseltine dared to say that Russia was actually close to Europe, and we should be seeking to work more closely with them, rather than raising the ante. His remarks got a hostile reception from commentators and audience alike. The hate-mongers have clearly achieved something.
N_
“Russia is ahead of the west in their propaganda capability as well as their cyberwarfare and certain other capabilities.”
Well, you’ve told us all that before and you’ve also told us how Russia continually outfoxes the US and how Putin is infinitely more cunning and intelligent than Obama and other things like that.
What you haven’t told is though – assuming it’s all true – is why you’re so obviously pleased about it.
So why don’t you tell us? 🙂
Latest Poll Shock – People Are Mugs!
A sensational new conclusion is suggested by a revealing survey run by this comment. New data drawn from a scientifically unchallengable poll of commentators on the Craig Murray blog suggests – people are mugs.
People were asked:
Which is your favourite psycopathic killer elite?
Breaking down the datasets the divisions are incontrovertible.
Conformists with a pension are all for Team West. “Starving Africans, perpetual war and economic insecurity don’t really worry me” was a common sentiment. “I’m watching Terry and June.”
Younger lefties and fans of Bob Marley were all for the Starship Oligarch, “I love Overlord Putin. He’s sending a craft to save us” was the cry on Biggins Hill.
Outsider minority elements who asked “why support any crazed mass murderers?” were simply ignored.
<a href="http://www.kovamanufacturing.co.uk/promotional_mugs/ceramic_mugs.html"
Shucks, didn’t work…
If all available politicians are psychopathic mass-killers… support Bob Marley.
Another:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFGgbT_VasI
And there’s always this guy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFGgbT_VasI
Breaking News – GROZNY NEVER EXISTED
Rumours are spreading about the certainty that cannot be a lie – Grozny was never actually real. RT are expected to soon confirm this absolute truth just broken by Cardinal Vinecrapper.
“It’s astonishing” said one reader of this comment “to think Grozny is no different from Narnia. I’m going to check I haven’t got Donetsk under my bed. Whatever next!”
“I knew it all along” said Mrs Macky of comments page 3. “The relentless, non-stop, never ending propaganda of misinformation doesn’t fool me. The relentless, non-stop, never ending propaganda of misinformation doesn’t fool me. The relentless, non-stop, never ending propaganda of misinformation doesn’t fool me.”
The Starship Oligarch is currently flying over Biggins Hill broadcasting the honest to goodness truth: “Now NATO is dead and Overlord Putin is here to save you. Nothing changes except for one thing: the words “Butcher” and “Grozny” and “of” are forbidden. That was so long ago. Think about the olympics instead! Now back to your pathetic little workplaces to make your new oligarchs more oligarchy you cocksuckers.”
LOL, Phil. “Life is Beautiful”.
300 Billion years of mutations made our bodies, our minds, our mass, our lives. Yet even with the incongruities of time and mass we humans still insist on bringing to an end that which the cosmos cradles and envelopes- the eternity of life – so beautiful, so fragile, yet we continue to transpose mass to energy in order to destroy, consume and lay waste. What is the purpose, the raison d’être in that?
Ukraine death toll rises to more than 4,300 despite ceasefire: U.N.
Around 1 million refugees fled to Russia: 560 Ukraine children age under 13yrs departed, lost, passed on:
http://www.refworld.org/country,,,,UKR,,54da0ef04,0.html
Grozny was terrible… but isn’t what Poroshenko has done to East Ukraine even worse?
Phil, I’m so glad you’ve proved the non-existence of Grozny. I no longer need to feel ashamed to support Russia, and after all, I have to support one side or the other, don’t I?
“Team Vest! Team Vest!” said the German Finance Minister.
It’s full of holes shouted the clown.
@ Goss 4:22pm 20 Feb
1st para
“I’ll dismiss the USSR-Russian Federation arguments because I don’t think they are any longer comparable”
4th para
“As to the Ukraine I am inclined to agree that there will be a separation of Eastern Ukraine which will fall again under the Soviet umbrella.”
I’m not sure what is the Stalinist equivalent of a Freudian slip. Let them tanks roll!
“Grozny was terrible… but isn’t what Poroshenko has done to East Ukraine even worse?”
No not even close
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_Second_Chechen_War
Ultimately, I have to have a leader, some leader, ANY leader. Preferable a strong leaded; someone who can really Lead, you know what I mean? The only alternative is Anarchism!
Don’t want to get into body count arguments, RD, but how many Ukrainian soldiers do you think have lost their lives in the Donbass since Poloshenko declared war?
Poroshenko
It must be really hard to run a country; I mean, it’s not like there are millions of people going out nearly every day to make sure all the important stuff gets done. Someone has to make the difficult decisions, like, which brutal dictatorships should be supported? Which less powerful countries should have their governments toppled and all their infrastructure smashed? What proportion of the population should get stinking rich just by owning the places other people have to live? I’m glad I don’t have to work out all that shit. I’m glad there’s loads of telly so I can watch actors and talk-show hosts getting hungry and dirty for two weeks in some obscure rain forest that’s in dire need of economic development. Anything rather than having to take any interest in the world around me.
Resident Dissident, what do you think should happen in East Ukraine? Should NATO countries send in a load of weapons?
Hmmmm, Clark. I was enjoying all that humour, and now… seriousness
ell, have we ever seen proper governance exercised at the level of the nation state? The first thing that is needed is trust. The government trusts the people, so the people can trust their government.
Which government trusts its citizens? Don’t they all use surveillance to so extent? The only surveillance needed in my opinion is by the police to support and uphold the law of that country. The rest is intrusion of privacy, brought about because the people are not trusted.
Peacewisher, I feel safer with Big Brother watching me. They are very clever, and like Habbabkuk says, I shouldn’t take any notice of foreign policy. Finance looks too complicated for me, too; all those funny words that use! I’m glad the authorities are watching me, protecting you from my stupidity and mindless violence, aren’t you?
Resident Dissident, if NATO are going to send in weapons, shouldn’t we write to our MPs and tell them to get on with it? If we leave it too long, Russia might WIN, and then all out telly and T-shirt slogans might be dictated by John Goss! Arrgh!