Why Rupert Murdoch considers it worth his while to pay David Aaronovitch a large six figure sum for such puerile antics as tweeting that I am insane, is a conjecture I find difficult to resolve. Today this exchange occurred on twitter:
David Aaronovitch: This suggestion that if elected Corbyn could be quickly ousted is utter bollocks. Democracy allows Labour to commit Hara Kiri.
Mark Doran: @DAaronovitch I hope everyone is watching how these servants of the micro-elite try to paint “attracting popular support” as “committing suicide.”
Mark Doran: @DAaronovitch Craig finds the elite-serving contortions every bit as funny as I do
David Aaronovitch: @MarkJDoran I tend to find Craig Murray unpersuasive on the grounds of him being unhinged. I can see why you like him, though.
Mark Doran: Says the man who managed to find Bush and Blair credible. I can see why you liked them, though.
It is remarkably ironic that on being referred to an article which argues that views outside a very narrow neoliberal establishment narrative are marginalised and ridiculed by the media, the Murdoch hack’s response is that the author is unhinged. Aaronovitch could not have more neatly proved my point.
But something else struck me about the twitter record. Aaronovitch’ twitter account claims to have 78,000 followers. Yet of the 78,000 people who allegedly received his tweet about my insanity, only 1 retweeted and 2 favourited. That is an astonishingly low proportion – 1 in 26,000 reacted. To give context, Mark Doran has only 582 followers and yet had more retweets and favourites for his riposte. 1 in 146 to be precise, a 200 times greater response rate.
Please keep reading, I promise you this gets a great deal less boring.
Eighteen months ago I wrote an article about Aaronovitch’s confession that he solicits fake reviews of his books to boost their score on Amazon. In response a reader emailed me with an analysis of Aaronovitch’s twitter followers. He argued with the aid of graphs that the way they accrued indicated that they were not arising naturally, but being purchased in blocks. He claimed this was common practice in the Murdoch organisation to promote their hacks through false apparent popularity.
I studied his graphs at some length, and engaged in email correspondence on them. I concluded that the evidence was not absolutely conclusive, and in fairness to Aaronovitch I declined to publish, to the annoyance of my correspondent.
Naturally this came to mind again today when I noted that Aaronovitch’ tweets to his alleged legion of followers in fact tumble into a well of silence. I do not even tweet. The entire limit of my tweeting is that this blog automatically tweets the titles of articles I write. They are not aphorisms so not geared to retweet. Yet even the simple tweet “Going Mainstream” which marked the article Aaronovitch derided, obtained 20 times the reactions of Aaronovitch’s snappy denunciation of my mental health. This despite the fact he has apparently 10 times more followers than me. An initial survey seems to show this is not atypical.
In logic, I can only see two possible explanations. The first is that my correspondent was right and Aaronovitch fakes twitter followers like he does book reviews. The second is that he has a vast army of followers, nearly all of whom find him dull and uninspiring, and who heartily disapproved en masse of his slur on my sanity. I opt for the second explanation, that he is just extremely dull, on the grounds that Mr Aaronovitch’s honesty and probity were never questioned, m’Lud.
Sorry, Euromaidan link should be:
http://euromaidanpress.com/author/gordonua/
Still, the one I gave is educational.
Here’s some shrapnel holes….
http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/624/media/images/77470000/jpg/_77470832_97ee9a9d-de2d-48ec-b15a-1346fad4b0fe.jpg
Now, as to the Sukhoi and its 30mm rounds, which Russian
propagandastrictly objective reporting alleges to have been fired at the cockpit with considerable accuracy from a Ukrainian Su-25. Over to someone with some information on this:https://scottlocklin.wordpress.com/2014/07/21/can-the-su-25-intercept-and-shoot-down-a-777/
And while we’re at it, note that the Russian-sourced accounts very heavily stress the BUK as the culprit. Little or no mention of other SAM’s available in the area, probably including the 2K12Kub, which is interoperable with BUK guidance systems. Also covered in the link.
(Not covered in the link: the S-400 (SA21 Growler) 40N6, operated by Russia in the Black Sea region, with a range of 400Km…)
Kempe – thanks for the unphotoshopped pic of the seat, btw.
And while we’re at it, note that the Russian-sourced accounts very heavily stress the BUK as the culprit. (mine at 0913)
I should have said: ‘And while we’re at it, note that the Russian-sourced accounts very heavily stress the assumption by the West that BUK was the culprit.’ They’re happier with that narrative, because it may, stress may, be easier to, er, shoot down.
This gives a better indication of what angles the bullets went in.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/podpolkovnikvvs/15385671578/in/album-72157648843749181/
As to sources being Russian Ba’al, well of course they are. Little in the west at all that contradicts the narrative that it was shot down by a BUK missile. This report however is fairly balanced published directly after the safety board interim report and shows the trajectory of one of the bullets.
http://ukrainetoday.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/mh17-preliminary-report.html
There are two major questions.
1. Why has Ukraine not released air-traffic control data for 17th July 2014?
2. Why is Ukraine prohibiting the release of the Dutch Safety Board report?
Other questions, and there are many, are supplementary, like why has the US not released satellite images it claims to possess? Why did the BBC put up a report from an eye-witness who saw a fighter plane accompanying MH17 and then take it down? Many more.
I’m off for a cycle-ride in preparation for my charity ride for Palestinian children starting tomorrow and won’t be back on the blog for some time
Meet the Hedge Funders and Billionaires Who Pillage Under the Shield of Philanthropy
5 August 2015
Steven Cohen, the chief of the hedge fund SAC Capital Advisors. SAC Capital Advisors has agreed to plead guilty to insider trading violations and pay a record $1.2 billion penalty, becoming the first large Wall Street firm in a generation to confess to criminal conduct. (Photo: Elizabeth Lippman/The New York Times) Photo
America’s parasitical oligarchs are masters of public relations. One of their favorite tactics is to masquerade as defenders of the common folk while neatly arranging things behind the scenes so that they can continue to plunder unimpeded. Perhaps nowhere is this sleight of hand displayed so artfully as it is at a particular high-profile charity with the nerve to bill itself as itself as “New York’s largest poverty-fighting organization.”
/..
http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/32227-meet-the-hedge-funders-and-billionaires-who-pillage-under-the-shield-of-philanthropy
Naming a Steven Cohen, Ken Langone, Stanley Druckenmiller and others in the ‘Robin Hood Foundation’. There are 19 billionaires in this outfit.
https://www.robinhood.org/about
Its board https://www.robinhood.org/governance#section-1
Another YCNMIU.
Happy cycling, John! Good on you.
This gives a better indication of what angles the bullets went in.
And Kempe’s gives a better indication of the shape of the holes. A much better indication.
The Ukrainian source draws no conclusions, however it supports what was I believe your statement that a BUK attack is from above. I note you don’t address the problem with an aircraft whose operational, unladen, ceiling is 7000 m, bringing down MH17, which was flying at 10,000 feet, and attacking from above?
I think you’re going to have to go with the onboard bomb, John.
Dutch Safety Board initial report here:
http://www.onderzoeksraad.nl/en/onderzoek/2049/investigation-crash-mh17-17-july-2014/preliminary-report/1562/preliminary-report-points-towards-external-cause-of-mh17-crash
The a/c broke up in flight. 30mm cannon fire? From something a mile below it? Penetrating from above?
More DSB:
The draft final reports on the investigation into the crash and the investigation pertaining to flight routes were made available to the accredited representatives of the participating States on Tuesday, 2 June. In accordance with ICAO Annex 13, they have sixty days to submit comments on the reports. The Dutch Safety Board will then assess the submitted comments and draw up the definitive final reports. The consultation period the investigation into the availability of passenger information has ended. The Board expects to publish the final reports in the first half of October 2015.
http://www.onderzoeksraad.nl/en/onderzoek/2049/investigation-crash-mh17-17-july-2014/inzage/1643/progress-of-the-mh17-investigation#fasen
Less relevantly to anything:
1. Why has Ukraine not released air-traffic control data for 17th July 2014?
To whom? You? The Russians, with whom Ukraine is effectively at war? Oh, come on.
Yes John and good luck from me too. Thank you for doing it for Palestinian children.
Good Luck John . I look forward to hearing about it when you get back.
Another brainfart – ‘10,000 feet’, above should read ‘10,000 metres‘, I hope obviously.
Don’t get inside any lorries turning left, John. And please don’t mix it with the traffic if there’s a clearly marked cycle path alongside…
“Aree you calling ISIS terrorists? Do they carry out military attacks against civilians without warning and with the aim of causing terror? I’m not very knowledgeable about them; I’m just asking.”
__________________
Oh I don’t know N, your link shows you know more than you profess.
If you’re really interested in Britain’s involvement with Islam, then you must read.
“Britain’s Collusion with Radical Islam”
By Mark Curtis.
The first step towards British empire in the Muslim world came in 1765 when the Mughal emperor in the rich province of Bengal granted the British East India company the right to raise revenue and administer justice there.
Britain subsequently took control of the Indian subcontinent, defeating Tipu Sultan, the last significant Muslim power in India in 1799.
Since then Britain has been in collusion or division of the Muslim world in one form or another.
“Fred’s grip on reality is far better than Spivey’s”
_________________
Is that so Clark, have you been following Spivey’s trial?
Did you know Clark that Spivey’s lawyer was denied the right to question his accusers at his trial.
Or did you know that the image that Spivey was charge with having on his computer, is widely and freely available in Google search, and was once owned or still is, by a world famous English musician and song writer.
That was the reason Spivey included the image in a article to show who the owner is/was.
The world famous musician has never been charged with owning the image.
Yet remarkably Spivey has.
Off topic but informative assuming all conflicts are related
The quagmire of Syria, which is a redux of the destruction of Libya, explained by Thierry Meysann. THe usual suspects stirring the pot, UK, France, Saudi,Turkey ,USA.
http://www.voltairenet.org/article188337.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLPuRhGGPDM
Su25 using its cannon at 4.01: note the size of the spread. The Su25 carries 250 rounds – that’s five 1-second bursts and goodbye. A one-second burst. 50 rounds. Let’s assume that the one allegedly attacking MH17 was operating without other ordnance, and could get to its unladen service ceiling of 7000m. Let us further assume that the unicorn powder in its fuel tank could get it up a further 3000 metres.
Then let us put three rounds through the pilot’s seat. If we’re close enough to do that, there should be a lot more round holes than we’re seeing (even in the pilot’s seat, unless you’re squinting from a certain angle) And as most of the load will be AP, it will go straight through the plane and produce round exit holes on the other side. Hmmm?
Here’s some shrapnel damage for comparison. From MH17, as it happens.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2701920/Does-MH17-wreckage-prove-shot-sky-warhead-Experts-say-damage-consistent-missile-damage.html
The latest from the Underground. Scotlands American billionaire landgrabber.
Trumped he could be the next president of America.
Each week we highlight an Occupy group or offshoot that is doing something unique and winning. This week, we feature a film that shines light onto one of America’s most ego-maniacal billionaires before he becomes the next president…
It’s a crisis! Donald Trump is way ahead in the polls! The film Donald Trump does not want you to see.
The Film Trumped sign up to watch it.See the trailer first.
http://trumpemergency.com/?mc_cid=2f8d091ff6&mc_eid=%5BUNIQID%5D
RoS: What you say about Spivey might be true, but that’s doesn’t mean he’s not a lying, sensationalist Alex Jones-type huckster who wants to manufacture scare stories and hype supposed conspiracy theories, to distract the easily deluded. And does so for personal gain.
Sorry about the link try this on for trumped.Trump is trying to trump us.
http://internationaltimes.it/the-film-donald-trump-doesnt-want-you-to-see/
There may not be as much to worry about re. Trump as Trump would like us to think:
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/aug/06/donald-trump-win-republican-debate
(I love Hadley Freeman, btw. There are all sorts of reasons why I might not, but I do. It’s probably the sense of humour.)
From comments on this offering:
http://aviationweek.com/blog/how-su-25-can-shoot-down-faster-higher-flying-aircraft
The strongest evidence that the SU-25 theory can be turned down has been presented by the Russian military themselves. During a poorly prepared press conference bringing forward the SU-25 theory, actual radar images of the shoot-down were shown. These images show that there are no other aircraft near the MH17 BEFORE the aircraft was hit. (20 min into the clip.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrhEzecCdTI
Directly AFTER the MH17 had been hit, another radar echo pops up from nowhere on the radar screen, however. The Russians refer to this as an aircraft believed to be a SU-25 flying at 200 km/h. Since we know that MH17 broke up in the air and assuming that the radar images are genuine the most natural explanation is that the new echo is nothing but a big part of the disintegrating aircraft.
Click on that link, and, heh, it’s been removed. Infringements of copyright my arse.
Here’s what may be the original. Both the other a/c are commercial flights. 3416 is Air India 113 and the other is Singapore Airways. What’s probably happening is the missile burst, ca 2.16, followed by the non-aerodynamic descent of a big bit of MH17:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0zUbc67mj4
It turns out the “vandals” were none other than the “anti terrorist” squad, raiding the van for merely carrying the sign; “Iran is great”. How is that for fucking in your face democracy? Kids Company is forced into closure just because its director was advertising against the “austerity” policy, and now she is to be forced to pay back the government grants, because she had dared to pay the staff wages! Would you fucking believe it? Paying wages!!! How dare she, do they not work for free? What is wrong with people, why don’t they realize for the rich to stay richer the poor have to work for free, what is wrong with these numbsculls?
At least Stalin used to set up courts and pretend he followed rule of law, this lot just send their pisssant civil servant to start their whispering campaigns, and send their goons to smash up the place and terrorize the dickens out of the unruly and wayward thinkers.
A lorry with the words Iran Is Great parks on Exhibition Road. Police react by blocking off the street.
Now lets hear you rep[eat after me;
Deutschland deutschlandEngerrrland Enggeerrrland uber ……..Now the next item about some pissy refugee stock in Callais I mean oooooodddeellls and millions and hoards of refugees intent on invading our lands!!
McCarthy would be spinning in his grave eating his heart out!
RoS: What you say about Spivey might be true, but that’s doesn’t mean he’s not a lying, sensationalist Alex Jones-type huckster who wants to manufacture scare stories and hype supposed conspiracy theories, to distract the easily deluded. And does so for personal gain.
____________________________________
Glenn
Sure Spivey can be a tad eccentric, but he was exposing politicians with paedophile tendencies when others didn’t have a clue.
Those who knock conspiracy theorists are infact reality deniers, and I’ll tell you why.
For any sane person to believe that governments or judicial bodies or powerful individuals or companies, with influence over political institutions, arent constantly trying to, either undermine society or control it or create huge wealth from, are naive.
Anything in this day and age can be staged and broadcast as propaganda, and the majority of the people will buy into it, why? Well they still believe what the press and media tell them.
Tell me Glenn do you believe the media?
It turns out the “vandals” were none other than the “anti terrorist” squad, raiding the van for merely carrying the sign; “Iran is great”.
_______________________________
So much for the Great British democracy Fedup, we’re another step closer to Airstrip One.
Of course the USA is one step ahead of us, with Philadelphia buses allowed to carry anti-Islam ads.
http://www.i24news.tv/en/news/international/americas/65934-150329-philadelphia-buses-to-carry-anti-islamic-ads
@Nevermind
quoting me:
“There were restrictive covenants on Winchester College’s (unregistered) titles to some of the land. This meant that the price the DTP paid included a large sum for paying off the owners of those covenants.”
“Sorry had to run off this morn, had stuff to do.
Hmm, that is news to me, so Winchester college actually benefited twice from the bypass, and we thought that the developers had screwed the DTP.”
The College benefited, but only for a time, from selling the land, the covenants pushing the price far higher than it would otherwise have been. Certain individuals connected with the College benefited from being paid off in respect of the covenants. And some.
That was part of the background to a) the hiring of Nick Tate, a grammar-school educated civil servant (former head of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority), as headmaster, in 2000, and b) his resignation 3 years later.
Whereas the leading protestors had tried to find out the details of the covenants before hitting a brick wall, those ‘certain individuals’ at the College thought it was payday. It was, and the end result was actually a hole in the College’s finances.
Tate tried to cover the gap by doing things like 1) making senior teachers teach more than 12 hours a week, so that staff numbers could be reduced by a small number, 2) selling off a very few residential houses in the College’s large portfolio (they own more than 100 houses in the vicinity of the school; this doesn’t count all the farmland and other property), and 3) introducing a central dining hall, which in itself would have saved millions of pounds, rather than having separate catering for each of the boarding houses.
Tate was hired so that the insiders could say, “Winchester College? Run by a closely-knit group of money-grabbing insiders? What rubbish! Look at the oik we’ve just hired as headmaster! We’re not biased against chavs and oiks, you know!”
The financial bad smell was made worse by the exposure of the criminal fee-fixing, which had been in the air for some time.
Needless to say, the insiders wound Tate up from the moment he arrived. Some even went on record as saying they’d never expected him to last long in the job, but no journalist had the sense or guts to ask why.
The other reason Tate resigned is far more serious than financial fiddling. It’s what I said – he was OK with committing child sexual abuse, but only up to a point, and he refused to go as far as they wanted.
(For any ‘naive innocents’ reading this:
– all of the housemasters at Winchester are involved in child abuse to some extent or other;
– they are part of a network which includes not just housemasters and some of the permanent and temporary teaching and non-teaching staff, but also abusers in high echelons of Winchester-connected English society – in the judiciary, the church and the City of London – who do not work at the school; and
– abuse does not only occur directed at the more vulnerable boys at the College, but also, and in far more disgusting ways, at vulnerable working class children and lads roped into the Crown and Manor Club in Hoxton in the East End of London – basically owned by the College, a supposed “safe haven for boys and young men” – and those from care homes in Hampshire, Wiltshire and on the Isle of Wight, some have whom have died or disappeared.)
Bits have reached the public arena, but only bits.
In 1996, a pupil, Richard Metcalf, was found dead in the library at Winchester College, having been given a drug overdose which was falsely said to have been self-administered. (“`Overdose’ kills public schoolboy.” Daily Mail, 31 Jan 1996.) There was no suicide note.
(Note, this pupil was not related to the similarly-named Peter Metcalfe, the housemaster exposed as having ‘taken showers with boys’, physically and emotionally abused boys, etc., who eventually resigned after parents complained about him several years later.)
In 2004, news got out that some pupils at the College had been made to watch extremely violent internet pornography by three teachers and some senior boys.
In 2009, Robert Smith, a senior OFSTED inspector supposedly “hanged himself”. The inquest was told that he thought he had “blundered” during the inspection of the College’s staff vetting and child protection systems. (Source: “‘Blunder’ schools inspector in suicide.” The Sun, 2 Oct 2009; see also this article in the Daily Mail.)
Six OFSTED staff had spent several days inspecting the school. The verdict was suicide. The coroner didn’t think to ask what Mr Smith’s “blunder” had actually been. In fact, far from blundering, Smith started looking behind veils and got a glimpse of the sheer scale of the abuse that was taking place. He was warned to shut the fuck up, couldn’t stomach doing so, and ended up dead.
OK I think that’s enough to be going with for now!
My long comment about Winchester College is “awaiting moderation”. I think this is because I messed up one or more of the links. Apologies for this, but whilst it’s nobody’s fault other than mine, it wouldn’t have happened if there was a preview function here!
Here are the links I tried to include
– the criminal fee-fixing by Winchester College and other top private schools – a very sanitised article at Wikipedia, that practically paints the guilty parties as smelling of roses, but a good enough place to start if someone’s new to the affair
– the Crown and Manor boys’ club in Hoxton in the East End of London (basically owned by Winchester College, a supposed “safe haven” for vulnerable boys, including many from care homes, which for several decades has in reality for many boys been the exact opposite of a “haven”)
I don’t think any reports of the 1996 “suicide without a note” by Winchester College pupil Richard Metcalf are online unless you’ve got a subscription to newspaper archives.
The 2009 death by hanging of the senior OFSTED inspector Robert Smith was reported in the Daily Mail (here)(“The 55-year-old, described as one of the UK’s top schools inspectors, killed himself after telling colleagues he needed to do more work, an inquest was told.“) and Daily Telegraph (here)(“Ofsted schools inspector found hanged after visiting Winchester College“).
– a 2003 article in the Independent about how Winchester College was suspended from the Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference – that’s the association of about the top 250 private secondary schools in Britain. Note that only Winchester College was suspended, not the other schools that were guilty of fee-fixing. The suspension wasn’t principally to do with fee-fixing. Sadly, no journalists at the time thought to probe what the real reason was for this extraordinary event.
Daniel, 8:38 pm, I could as easily argue that Monbiot sounded glib and superior, that he, too, interrupted a lot, that he denied known facts such as the Red Forest and that he repeated the lines most favourable to the nuclear establishment…
Dr Caldicott is a medical doctor and an activist against contamination of living bodies by radioactive pollutants – that’s one of the things within a doctor’s remit; to raise awareness of dangers to health, even if that means opposing nuclear power. Science is an adversarial process and it’s entirely right that the scientific community should include such characters making such cases; other scientists will work against such a worst-case stance. But Monbiot’s position is more problematic. He’s not a scientist but a journalist; professionally, he’s meant to provide a balanced view to the public, and Dr Caldicot’s position is one of the valid ends of that scientific spectrum.
Monbiot and Caldicott both displayed ignorance of the relationships between the WHO, the UNSCEAR and the IAEA, though I feel that Dr Caldicott’s position was more one of honest confusion, whereas Monbiot seemed to be exploiting her confusion, since after her mistakes he revealed greater understanding that he had seemed to withhold earlier. I’m not surprised that Caldicott got upset; she may well have felt that Monbiot was deliberately attempting to discredit her message, about which she is rightly passionate.
Enough about these two public figures; next I’d like to consider some of the political facts, but I’ll come back to that because I’m busy right now.
Has my long post about Winchester College in response to @Nevermind’s about the restrictive covenants on the title to Twyford Down been ‘moderated’ for being too long or because I messed up the links?
I hope not, because I didn’t keep a copy of all of it!
A glossy postcard just came showing a palm tree on a tropical island. Not from a friend but from Surrey CC asking for completion of this questionnaire. 33 questions on 6 pages!
https://www.surreysays.co.uk/asc-enterprise-business-and-assurance-project-team/planningforcare
It says ‘ A postcard from……’ and on the reverse it continues –
‘Dear Resident
At this time of year, we are often thinking of far off places but are we thinking about our own future.
Your views are important to us.
The county council and its partners are working closely together in Surrey on delivering quality health and social care services. Understanding how you use care services or are planning to use care services in the future is important to us. etc etc.’
How invasive and patronizing. Also worrying for some old folk without means or savings as several questions refer to costs.
This is from the same council who have shut their care homes for the elderly and the one that let down this poor lady who died alone after 7 days without food and without any carer calling.’
Social care director at centre of Gloria Foster controversy resigns
6 January 2014
http://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/local-news/social-care-director-centre-gloria-6472534
I am not complying.
PS Their children’s services have also had the thumbs down from Ofsted.
Serious failures put children at risk, reveals Ofsted report
4 June 2015
Surrey County Council’s children’s services have been labelled ‘inadequate’ in the latest report from Ofsted
http://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/serious-failures-put-children-risk-9390086
PPS They are really good at organizing cycle races for the Limp Ics and for the annual Boris’s Prudential Ride London nonsense.
Now add Gloucestershire Police to the list of forces investigating the Heath allegations.