An Apology 2256


I am so committed to getting my book finished I really don’t have time or energy to blog at the moment, and realise it has been very desultory the last few weeks. I am well and happy, it is just that writing a properly researched history is incredibly intensive. I realise there is much of great interest happening in the world, but I must sometimes cut myself off from it.

This is why I don’t ask for donations for the blog…


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2,256 thoughts on “An Apology

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  • Ba'al Zevul

    Breaking…..not.

    http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/british-government-suppressing-key-documents-on-allegations-of-uk-collusion-in-torture-and-rendition-a6914666.html

    Documents relating to Guantanamo abuse withheld by US specifically at UK’s request. Some unseen by Chilcot:

    Philippe Sands QC, professor of law at University College London and author of a book on post-9/11 torture told the IoS last night: “The failure to disclose the full contents of these documents, several of which seem to be newly identified, will serve only to fuel suspicion of a cover-up. Facts, rumour and allegation meld seamlessly into an unhappy story that undermines our supposed commitment to the rule of law and an end to impunity.

    “The Government should support Andrew Tyrie in his efforts, and cauterise the festering wound that is the allegation of UK complicity in torture: since the US seems to have no objection, all these documents should be published now.”

  • Ba'al Zevul

    In other news, Mr. Blair opines about Trump. He’s not frightened any more – perhaps Mrs Clinton kissed him better? But he speaks for all Europeans everywhere….ok, the EJC.

    http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/271926-tony-blair-europeans-have-anxiety-about-us-presidential-race

    Catsimatidis, whose media involvement may just presage another attempt to be NYC’s mayor, has interviewed Tony and Cherie before. His interviews rarely rise above the exchange of commonplaces.

    …I’ve got long experience now with American politics…we want to see America successful and strong, says Blair. Not exactly news from the neocon vaults.

  • Ba'al Zevul

    DIARY

    Cherie leverages her cosmic business skills (see above) and passion for transparent government (see above) to serve on the steering committee of The Global African Investment Summit, a shindig for vulture capitalists to be held at the end of this year. In London.

    http://www.tgais.com/advisory-board/steering-committee

    Sponsored by Denham Capital and PWC – Profits Without Conscience.

  • Ba'al Zevul

    Along with a flurry of apologetics written by NuLabour hacks and himself to counter the comprehensive trashing that Bowers’ book gave him (all media not yet heartily sick of him), Blair is in missionary mode again regarding the EU. R4’s Today audience was subjected to a good blairing on the subject this morning. Apparently what the Remain campaign needs is ‘political idealism’. So said the trail for the interview. There was little incentive to listen further. Cheers will be heard from Brexit: and where is Daesh when you need it?

  • Ba'al Zevul

    After the ‘political idealism’ promotion on Radio 4, and something about needing to show ‘more passion’ – Wendy Deng please note – also after pretty well admitting that his brand is so toxic that Remain would find him a liability, where do we find Tony today? In France:

    http://www.atlantico.fr/decryptage/social-liberalisme-est-condamne-meme-derive-post-politique-que-tony-blair-et-epouse-pour-qui-argent-decidement-pas-odeur-sophie-2621134.html

    Obviously. If M.Hollande would be so good as to detain Blair on that side of la manche, I will happily agree to ten assorted Somali families being released from the Jungle and permitted to make a new life in Britain. They can share South Pavilion.

  • Ba'al Zevul

    Further deathless insights from Blair at the Global Education and Skills Forum in (where else?) Dubai.
    The TBA press release* made much of his view that immigration, deplorably, had driven politics to the right, but failed to acknowledge his key role in facilitating immigration.

    But this was of more interest:

    Mr Blair was speaking as part a panel discussion at the Global Education and Skills Forum, which was held at the weekend in the United Arab Emirates by the Varkey Foundation.

    Mr Blair, and probably Mrs, have for a long time been closely associated with the Varkey Foundation, which is the charideewashing arm of a much larger private education outfit:

    TONY BLAIR FAITH FOUNDATION GEMS Education is a strategic partner with the Tony Blair Faith Foundation. Founder of GEMS Education, Sunny Varkey is on the Foundation’s Strategic Advisory Board.
    The Tony Blair Faith Foundation aims to promote respect and understanding about the world’s major religions and show how faith is a powerful force for good in the modern world.

    And who’s this with Varkey and Blair? Why, none other than probable war criminal Paul Kagame. Small world:

    https://www.flickr.com/photos/paulkagame/16823579862

    Blair’s concern for education X3 is not limited to this for-profit outfit, though. He’s close to Laureate Universities, too, mentioned further up this thread. This was very far from his only appearance on their behalf:

    http://www.laureate.net/OurNetwork/LatinAmerica/Brazil/FMU-Education-Group/Content/Public/AnnouncementContentFolder/2015/12/Tony-Blair-Remarks-on-Challenges-of-Globalization-During-Event-at-the-FMU-Education-Group-Complex

    From which we see that however difficult it is to implement educational reforms when you are Prime Minister, as his Dubai speech complained, it’s a bloody sight easier to turn a profit from the right kind of reforms when you’re not….

    *We assume that this is how selected blairings from Dubai appeared identically in several papers.

  • Ba'al Zevul

    The Guardian has to date faithfully published any and all blairings submitted to it by the guys ‘n gals at TBA. However, today’s front page lead is perhaps more to the theoretically egalitarian taste of its core readership, and consists of a double feature on (a) the housing crisis and (b) Tony and Cherie’s £27M property portfolio.

    This reminds us that Cherie, who is even now professionally engaged in litigation against the government on behalf of buy-to-let landlords, and her son Euan, co-own the property business – read ‘buy-to-let landlord’ – called Oldbury Residential Limited.

    Income: £162K estimated pa.

    http://www.theguardian.com/money/2016/mar/14/tony-cherie-blair-property-empire-worth-estimated-27m-pounds

    None of this is new, and both the Mail and the Telegraph have publicised the Blair property empire before. But this is intriguing:

    The ownership documents for some of the properties state that they will not automatically fall into one owner’s name should the other owner die, so those that are jointly owned will still be, in part, subject to inheritance tax. However, the properties that have been gifted will be tax-free seven years after the transfer date. There would have been capital gains tax liabilities at the time of transfer if the share of property being given was worth more than was paid for it.

    Accordingly:

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3492511/Blairs-daughter-handed-2m-share-property-empire-Deeds-1-4m-mews-house-760-000-country-cottage-rewritten-Kathryn.html

    No need for the dear girl to bother with the Lottery, then.

  • Ba'al Zevul

    M-LWSA from Stansted to Dubai early on the 13th, and back again on Monday morning. Nice, those Bombardier Global Expresses. I guess the UAE were paying for climate change* pioneer Tony this time.

    *Remember this?

    http://www.tonyblairoffice.org/climatechange/

    This?

    http://www.theclimategroup.org/what-we-do/news-and-blogs/Tony-Blair-launches-The-Climate-Groups-new-program-supporting-low-carbon-corporate-action-in-China/

    Very effective Tony, even though you dropped it like a poisoned hot potato wrapped in acid, in 2011:

    http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/03/february-shatters-global-temperature-records-160315101906985.html

  • Ba'al Zevul

    Yet another overnighter in Cairo for Tony. Given the flurry of bad publicity he’s been getting in Blighty, he’s gonna, you know, solve the Middle East and go down in history as an overall, well, pretty straight kinda guy, dudes. This will be accomplished by long confabulations with people who hate the Shi’a.

    http://www.el-balad.com/2065622

    Details of the bizjet he used may follow.

  • Ba'al Zevul

    This could be him now, on finals for Northolt aboard M-USIK, Sawiris’ latest toy, from Cairo.

  • Ba'al Zevul

    Amply illustrating Blair’s passionate commitment to neoconservatism, comes the news that the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, parent of Blair and Leon Panetta’s paranoid creation, the CSIS Commission on Countering Violent Extremism, has invited a Dr. Liam Fox to address it on the subject of the EU referendum as it affects the UK.

    As Liam is well known to us as a neocon arms salesman, we may not feel this to be strange. Until we recall that Dr Fox is very definitely for Brexit, and the warm embrace of corporate America, while Tony has been blairing incessantly in favour of remaining. Just as well that the CSISCoVE has its eye on this potential conflict?

    http://csis.org/events

  • Ba'al Zevul

    Ah. A Global Express, I think. A chartered one. Flying the peoples’ flag, no doubt.

  • mods@cm-org

    Ba’al Zevul, would you like this thread linked under the “Still Discussing” category near the the top-right of each page? And if so what title would you like for the link?

  • Ba'al Zevul

    Thanks for the offer, Mods. Congratulations on the new, much-improved site. Yes, I would like tto be linked to the ongoing discussions list. ‘Blairmiles’ might be a good title, if that is acceptable. Keep up the good work!
    Best regards,
    BZ

  • Ba'al Zevul

    We have to admit an error by BZIntel Inc. According to an Albanian press report, Mr Tony has not after all shed the light of His presence on His worshippers at the Albanian Socialist Party congress in Tirana today. He cannot be present. Her indoors needs a shelf put up in the Caligula Suite.

    http://www.rrokum.tv/lajme/tony-blair-duem-me-pa-shqipnine-ne-be/

    Which leaves the question of who yesterday took a Netjets charter from Luton to Tirana open…perhaps it was some other socialist.

  • Ba\'al Zevul

    Error compounded by error, it seems. Somehow the Dear Peoples’ Leader manifested in Tirana after all. Another Albanian source reproduces the template speech for agreeable gatherings of financial vultures:

    http://lajmifundit.al/2016/03/blair-kongresi/

    Xia can look forward to a future within the European family. We want to see Xia into the EU*. (Xia) Is diversified as regards religion, most are Muslim but (it) is a country that boasts religious harmony and coexistence. Xia has (had)many dark times, but its future is bright and deserves to be so, “said Blair

    where x= “Alban” in this instance. Bracketed interpolations for clarity – Google translation.

    *Assuming Xia isn’t in Southeast Asia. Researchers please check this -TB

  • Ba'al Zevul

    Sooo…. Blair appeared on a video link in Tirana. No ectoplasm was injured. Glad that’s cleared up. The Netjet under suspicion was today seen travelling from Athens to Singapore. Apologies to anyone who was mistakenly jeered at the terminal.

  • Ba'al Zevul

    Though we can’t help wondering. The University of Singapore has been blessed with the Dear Redeemer’s imprimatur…

    http://tonyblairfaithfoundation.org/projects/supporting-leaders/supporting-leaders-national-university-singapore

    And it’s very nearly a year since he blaired there (an event whose earthshaking importance we seem to have missed at the time) –

    http://www.tonyblairoffice.org/news/entry/tony-blair-pays-tribute-to-lee-kuan-yew/

    Must be due a blairing soon.

  • Ba'al Zevul

    Currently prominent (Telegraph and Mail, singing from the same hymnsheet) is the collapse of Cherie’s private healthcare project – and see above – following which legal action is threatened by its shareholders to recover the millions blued on the scheme. Cannily, Cherie, although prominently featured as the figurehead of the enterprise when launched, was not a director of Mee, its also-defunct holding company, Worldwide Healthcare and Wellness Centres Limited (note, not ‘centers’), or the Allele group, the ultimate owner. However, with 3.5% of WHWC’s stock, Cherie is the fourth largest shareholder, after Gail Lese, and two of Lese’s companies, one of which is an LP, and hence opaque, based in Cayman. The question arises, is Cherie now going to sue herself?

    While Cherie’s probable function was to open her Rolodex, full of useful contacts, it may be that she didn’t actually pay a penny for her shares, and that these were just a payment in kind. However, WHWC was founded in 2010, and Mee in 2013, so Cherie’s utility predated the healthcare venture.

    Not mentioned, ever, by either the Telegraph or the Mail, is another company, ‘Healthy Smiles One Smile at a Time Limited’ which the CQC cite as being the operator of the UK Mee outlets. Its only director is Gail Bronwyn Lese . It has a subsidiary, Aquerrem Ltd, whose initial directors were a Mr. Dixon, and Gail Lese. Both these are apparently still trading, although their total capital appears to be £2. It seems an awfully complicated way to run a chain of healthcare stalls in someone else’s stores. Perhaps Tony advised them?

  • Ba'al Zevul

    Doh. It’s staring us in the face, isn’t it? Mee Healthcare was set up as a franchise operating in Sainsbury’s stores, on the grand principle of using someone else’s capital (and economies of scale as regards overheads). And Lord Sainsbury has been a very good, if not always wholly legitimate friend to New Labour and the Blair Tendency, hasn’t he? Never mind the Rolodex, Cherie has him on speed dial. That’s worth 3.5% of anyone’s shares, I’d guess.

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-26170777

    (Sainsbury caught doing a mate a favour)

  • Ba'al Zevul

    An assertion we have confidently made before is that when Blair says, as he often does, or when the government hanging on his every vapid word says, that Blair is providing his services at no charge to the government, international donors are footing the bill. This is now confirmed from the horse’s arse:

    “We will cover a variety of costs for the project and will actually be covered by the international donor community. I am willing to cover infrastructure time, but of course if you pick a person that will work for your office will certainly cater to assure the necessary funds from the donor community to and we do so in different ways, In different places. In this case we will use the funds from various donors, “said Tony Blair during an interview for Albanian television. (Google Translate)

    http://asi2-studio.com/rilindjademokratike/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=23645:2016-03-19-23-05-03&catid=58:lajme-kyce&Itemid=115

    The Blair ‘charity’ nexus is thus explained as being essential to the Blair financial and lobbying operations. But the advice is only the start of the process in which hungry and often corrupt governments are introduced to Blair’s far from philanthropic paymasters. Though we acknowledge that humanitarian aid budgets may also figure in the secret accounts.

  • Ba'al Zevul

    Q. Who does Cherie’s laundry?
    A. Here:
    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3503690/In-fear-life-fixer-admits-sent-Cherie-210-000-stolen-money-Mail-s-exposed-Cherie-Blair-s-ethical-law-firm-took-fat-fee-burnish-image-corrupt-despot-comes-damning-new-twist.html

    Mrs Blair, who has spent her career trumpeting her human rights work, was nonetheless prepared to devote her time to burnishing the image of the notorious dictator for £70,000 a month, or just over £2,000 per day.

    Intriguingly, the Mail then also obtained bank records showing that Omnia’s tainted fee was paid not by the Maldives government’s Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC), the quango which it had actually invoiced for the controversial work, but instead by a local textiles company called MC Private Ltd.

    That is where Latheef came in. He arranged this highly dubious transaction, which Omnia accepted in apparent breach of numerous money laundering regulations.

    He also happens to be the subject of an international arrest warrant (which we shall look at later) accusing him of helping to embezzle £30 million from the government department which Mrs Blair had originally billed.

    Should this woman really be allowed to run a charitable foundation promoting womens’ business schemes?

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