I am in Tbilisi at the moment, where I spent this early morning drinking tea with some of the 2,000 strong Yazidi community. They see their religion as much more closely descended from Zoroastrianism than appears in most accounts I have read.
I very much enjoyed a visit to Tsinandali which was most useful for gaining a Russian perspective of the Great Game. I don’t have my books with me and am suffering a mental block as to whether it was Connoly, Abbott or Malcolm who visited Tsinandali. I had not realised that Griboyedov was married to a daughter of the house, Nina Chavchavadze. The murder of Griboyedov, Russian Ambassador in Tehran, by a mob rates little more than a footnote in British accounts of the Great Game, even though the British had bribed the religious authority to stir up the riots. What revisionist history there has been, has come from the Iranian side and falsely tried to obscure the fact that the refugees Griboyedov was sheltering were runaway slaves from harems.
This is a neglected recurring theme. When Shuja agreed the treaty already negotiated between Macnaghten and Ranjit Singh, the main stipulation he sought to add was that the British would return to him any runaway slave girls. The immediate motive for the ringleader of the attack on Alexander Burnes was that Burnes had refused to intervene to return a runaway slave girl who had sought the protection of another British officer. My fellow anti-imperialist historians have in general been guilty of emphasising rapaciousness by the British in these incidents and overlooking or excusing the slave status of the girls. Both aspects need to be faced squarely to write honestly the full facts of history. Tellingly, it is generally impossible to recover names of the girls involved.
Griboyedov deserves to be remembered for much more than his murder. An accomplished playwright and poet, he was a friend of Pushkin and had links to the dissident groups who attempted revolution in 1825. His murder left Nina a widow at either 17 or 19 by different accounts, and pregnant. She lost the child on hearing of her husband’s death, and never remarried. It is a tragic story which came alive to me in visiting the family home.
Griboyedov had fought Napoleon in the 1812 campaign, but had helped those Napoleonic adventurers Allard and Ventura evade a British blockade and go into service with Ranjit Singh. Griboyedov’s successor as Russian Ambassador to Tehran, Simonicz, had actually fought on the Napoleonic side against Russia, presumably in the Polish Legion. Nina’s sister was to marry a Murad nephew of Napoleon. The political elites of Europe melded quickly after the convulsion.
With which clumsy segue I shall note that the battle against the entrenched political elites of the UK appears to be going extremely well without me. I cannot express without a welling up of real emotion how happy I am that all I have been saying about the stultifying neo-liberal consensus and exclusion of dissent, and appalling burgeoning wealth gap between rich and poor, has found such massive traction between Jeremy Corbyn in England and the SNP in Scotland. I may have gone AWOL for a few days, but the cause of social justice appears in extremely safe hands.
Mr Goss
“When Babar Ahmed and Talha Ahsan were imprisoned for years on end not accused of any crime I did not see Kempe coming to their rescue with a ‘basic tenet’ of British Justice. Neither was Kempe speaking up for Moazzam Begg…etc”
_______________________
Are you not one of those commenters who occasionally slates me when I ask why the Eminences do not “come to the rescue” of those persecuted by tyrants such as the Chinese govt, Mr Putin, Mr Assad, Hamas, etc?
Habbabkuk asks John Goss:
“What is the connection, in your mind, between my enjoyment of beach football and the fact that four teenagers were killed while playing football on a Gaza beach?”
Dear God …
Are you being deliberately provocative, Habbabkuk? They were not teenagers. They were four little boys, cousins, aged between 9 and 11 (some reports said between 7 and 11).
One way or another, there were four innocent lives taken. But people were appalled that the Israelis would fire on what were obviously four small boys.
“As to your 10000 and 100000 figures, they do not invalidate, either, what I said about the petition having no chance of being taken seriously never mind succeeding. The govt will respond by saying “get lost” (but more politely) and as you admit yourself, 100000 signatures makes a petition eligible for debate in the HoC but does not ipso facto automatically lead to such a debate.”
It’s true that it does not automatically lead to a debate. But I don’t know of one that did not get parliamentary attention after such overwhelming support. War-criminals like Netanyahu, Blair and Straw should be behind bars for murdering the innocents in the photograph I linked, and others in Fallujah still dying from birth defects. Or do you believe like Kempe that prime ministers and foreign secretaries should be innocent until proven guilty, while the innocent poor are incarcerated without charge?
BTW, Mr Goss, you haven’t yet answered my question about the connection, in your “mind”, between me enjoying beach football and the killing of four boys on the beach at Gaza.
Did your teachers at Toytown College not tell you it was impolite not to answer polite questions?
Dreoilin
I stand corrected re their age.
What as provocative about my question which, if you recall, was to establish what connection Mr Goss was making in his mind between me enjoying beach football and the killing of four small boys on the beach at Gaza.
Feel free to answer for him if you like.
Mr Goss
“It’s true that it does not automatically lead to a debate.”
___________________
Thank you for that confirmation. It’s a pity you couldn’t manage to point it out yourself first time round.
////////////////
” But I don’t know of one that did not get parliamentary attention after such overwhelming support.”
_______________
34000 signature is hardly overwhelming support and is in any event well under the 100000 bar.
///////////////////
“Or do you believe like Kempe that prime ministers and foreign secretaries should be innocent until proven guilty”
______________
Certainly. And so should you (although I note you’ve already mentally put Blair and Bush behind bars).
++++++++++++++++
Gamma minus effort, I’m afraid.
Thanks for the copy and paste, Mary. The article, dated Jan ’15, was of course written before the election debates, after which it was obvious that Cameron was quite wise to stay out of some of those debates. Tory strategy was not to be liked but to offer statesmanship and steady economic growth, and be seen to be above the new breed of small parties while they tore the shit out of each other. Clegg was already dead in the water and Miliband was always a joke. It worked quite well.
That is an observation, Mary. I am not a Tory propagandist and have not voted Tory for many years. Perhaps one day you will be able to offer your own views on a matter rather than some snide little dig followed by acres of cut and paste. Whatever your reason for cutting and pasting – and I happen to believe it is because you have no original thoughts of your own, you must at least understand that a quick google search in order to find a view that supports your own and then throw it an opponent does not pass for a substantive argument.
“And not logical – being a master implies that people like you should do the heavy lifting in accordance with my directions.”
____________________
Just as I thought you ard all Matzah Meal and no backbone.
I think Mary & Gross would ban beach sports until all participants had signed a declaration that they support BDS and Palestinian rights. Clearly “beach” is a trigger word and you can’t have fun on a beach without being forced to remember the Palestinains.
Anon1
Damn!
I was wondering if it would calm them down a little if I just referred to beach volley, bat and ball and flirting with attractive bikini-clad women in future.
But you have dashed my hopes. 🙂
O/T – Assange
Anyone posted this before? Things may be moving for Julian Assange.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/julian-assange-ecuador-agrees-to-open-talks-with-sweden-on-allowing-prosecutors-to-question-the-wikileaks-founder-over-sexcrime-claims-10450833.html
It’s very curiously worded.
“A deadlock in the case of Julian Assange has broken after Ecuador agreed to open talks with Sweden on allowing prosecutors to interview the WikiLeaks founder in London about sex-crime claims.”
If Ecuador was standing in Sweden’s way on this, which is what this passage implies, I was not aware of it. I thought the “deadlock” was on Sweden’s side in refusing to interview Assange in London.
Kind regards,
John
“I think Mary & Gross would ban beach sports until all participants had signed a declaration that they support BDS and Palestinian rights. Clearly “beach” is a trigger word and you can’t have fun on a beach without being forced to remember the Palestinains.”
_________________
Ah yes Anon1, when I think of you such beautiful places spring to mind, you could say your radiant aurora is akin to a “sun of a beach.”
BTW Dreoilin
Here is the Mr Goss post that led me to ask my question:
““Around 30 degrees C in Tel Aviv this morning and Jewish and Arab Israelis are enjoying the beach in perfect harmony (you wouldn’t have seen that in aopartheid-era South Africa!) . . . off to the beach now for some swimming, lounging, flirting with the girls ad, of course, some beach footie if I can rustle up some equally energetic souls.”
When you get back from the beach here are some photographs of those who never grew old enough to play football on the beach, killed on Netanyahu’s instructions.”
A trip down to Eilat beach at any time will clear up any hostilities. You really can’t beat Israeli chicks.
And the last one for today (I musn’t hog all the space, what)
________________
It is somewhat odd that our friend Lysias has gone all quiet since I asked him whether there was any connection between his apparent animus against Sir Edward Heath and Sir Edward’s (and his govt’s) policy towards IRA terrorism and the question of Sunningdale.
“I thought we were talking about nationalising trains.”
___________________
Forget the choo choos, I want to know why the DWP have blocked the release of information on the amount of deaths after people have the benefits removed.
200,000 people signed a petition asking for the info to be released but the cowardly b*stards in government at Westminster still refuse.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/the-dwp-wont-tell-anyone-how-many-people-have-died-after-having-their-benefits-sanctioned-10332573.html
Staying on spineless people, Habb have you e mailed Brian yet?
My pleasure Anon. Plenty more where that came from and you could have my own observations of the spiv’s performances in the ‘House’ but you would not be interested.
You are not a Tory supporter or voter? Is that so? Then why say what you said? You are contradicting yourself.
‘Quite aside from principles, Cameron, for all his faults, and I am certainly no admirer of his, is supremely articulate and confident. He would make mincemeat of Corbyn and win hands down in a straight contest between the two.’
There is very little truth or justice left in this world, and certainly little in the UKUSIsNATO axis.
However, the wide support Jeremy Corbyn is getting from young people gives some hope. And this in spite of the vilification of him by the pro-Zionist media, especially the BBC/ZBC. I have been at demonstrations in London and have heard Jeremy speak against the Iraq ‘war’ as it referred to. He stood up for values of justice and peace when 90% of the parliamentary Labour party had slunk away.
Finally – see this in the Torygraph smear today. Words being put into his mouth.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/labour/11796562/Russia-backs-Jeremy-Corbyn-in-Labour-leadership-contest.html –
‘Mr Corbyn, who takes 53 per cent of support in the latest YouGov polling, told Russia Today that Britain should treat international opponents with more respect.
Mr Corbyn told the channel: “What is security? Is security the ability to bomb, maim, kill, destroy, or is security the ability to get on with other people and have some kind of respectful existence with them?”‘
I agree with him and he did NOT say ‘opponents’, It was the Torygraph’s word.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/labour/11795420/Jeremy-Corbyn-surges-ahead-in-Labour-leadership.html
Reminder – 26 million Russian people died in the major part they played in defeating the Nazis.
The trolls are making so many irrelevant and petty remarks and Madame le Correcteur too, I have had enough and it’s time to say goodnight.
Meanwhile Broken Britain goes on showing more cracks in the edifice.
More stereotyping (as I said after the last comment). I shall refrain from similar stereotyping of the Invigilator’s group.
“Arab Israelis” is Israeli-speak for Palestinian Israelis, as they prefer to be called. Normally, it is considered good manners to call a group by the term that they prefer.
John, there’s all kinds of stuff going on with Ecuador at the moment, and here’s one example:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/08/05/chevron-ecuador-idUSL1N10F1KP20150805
With regard to the coup attempt by the Americans, as far as I’m aware only the real left wing press are reporting it:
http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/a-4ca1-Ecuador-Minister-takes-time-off-to-fight-destabilisation#.VcpqsbUWGmV
Here’s more (left wing) stuff on it:
http://www.telesurtv.net/english/telesuragenda/Right-Wing-Attack-on-Ecuadors-Democracy-20150614-0011.html
I don’t have enough info at the moment to be able to say how all this relates to Julian Assange.
Yes, Palestinian citizens of Israel can use the beaches, but what do they hear when they do? New York Times: Minority Life in Israel:
Mary
Yes i has been a Very Cold Summer up here. when i first arrived oot on the Atlantic Coast for Holiday. I had all my Mountain Gear on, and still could not hang round it was so cold, n windy, Early June.
There was Snow actually falling on the Hills this summer, and maybe patches from winter as usual on some North facing Slopes…It’s been very wet too, which makes things Grow, and the place is Plenty Lush…Sheep are doing just Fine Hereaboots.
ROS… Fk Glasgow City Council, We are Gonna do it Anyway, ill be there – Hope Over Fear Rally, Cheers for highlighting this
A short clip of Corbyn speaking about immigrants this evening in Cardiff (where once again there were packed out crowds)…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22BqPcRNAts
And the last one for today:
It is somewhat odd that our friend Habbabkuk has gone all quiet since I asked him whether the context of media bias should be taken into account when (repeatedly) making statements about democratic choice.
John Spencer-Davis, 11 Aug, 2015 – 9:55 pm
Unfortunately it’s The Independent, founded by among others, Andreas Whittham-Smith, who I have met and found to be a gentleman. In its early days it looked like being the newspaper of the future and I used to take it daily. It is now owned by Putin-hater Lededev (a favourite of Resident Dissident) and God knows what the rationale behind the article is since it carries nothing new. I can well understand why Julian, with nowhere to go, ensconced in the Embassy of Ecuador, was unavailable for comment.
There is some good news regarding those oligarchs like Lebedev, who through his former Russian newspaper Novaya Gazetta, which served the needs of the diminishing dissenters from Putin’s government, published a full front-page apology for Russia shooting down MH17 directly after the incident. People like Lebedev, and Berezovsky, come here bending so low their arses are in the air, and what jumps on their backs? That’s right, the biggest flea the world has ever seen – the city: the square mile. It sucks, and sucks, and even sucks where the bee sucks. Most oligarchs avoid this flea.
George Soros was not one of those. Though by birth Hungarian he is the oligarch who climbed on the back of the sucking city flea.
Big fleas have little fleas,
Upon their backs to bite ’em,
And little fleas have lesser fleas,
and so, ad infinitum.
And the great fleas, themselves, in turn
Have greater fleas to go on;
While these again have greater still,
And greater still, and so on.
Soros, correct in his predictions that there is a super-bubble financial crash approaching, has, like Julian Assange, an arrest warrant filed by Russia for rogue-trading. He will not be flying openly to Russia soon. And Russia is also taking steps to ensure that any individual or company not displaying the true contents of GM produce (badly labelled) will be fined. Putin does not want Russians poisoned.
Soros, a very major shareholder in Monsanta, must be shitting himself. According to MSM he is already considering shutting down his concerns in Russia. So the sanctions have gone full circle. They are hurting those who wanted to hurt Putin. The bigger fleas are starting to suck the lifeblood from Count Dracul. Shame. Yes, shame they did not do it earlier.
“A short clip of Corbyn speaking about immigrants this evening in Cardiff (where once again there were packed out crowds)…”
RT filmed the whole thing plus a pre-rally press conference. It’s available on youtube.
By the Way.. Robert And Mary.. I think BIG drums Can Help oot… go to one of these concerts…i have been many times…
Minds meld…. Nagasaki, is Fresh on the Mind
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsKqBy2uJ34
Interesting thread insofar as posting some home truths iro of various people; firstly after years of shaking my head in disbelief that some could possibly mistake Habbabkuk*s troll questioning tactic as some sort of clever “Devil”s Advocate” genuine debate enhancing approach, N & Bal finally provided us with the technical definition of what Habbabkuk is all, about, namely “Sealioning” ; indeed as Jon has only just apparently noticed, Habbabkuk is, & has always been, only superficially interested in genuine & honest debate, and on the rare occasions when cornered into a debate, he normally reveals his shallow grasp of the issues involved, or goes quite, or both in that sequence, (but these days mostly goes straight into quite mood as his ego can’t take the repeated exposures of intellectual fraud).
Then Mr “I only post the Truth” Fred, again thanks to Bal, is totally exposed as the fantasist perfect poster that only exists in his head. His excuse for his trade mark foul abuse, as responding to a perceived personal attack, is more than likely his self-defense mechanism for coping with the discrepancy & fear of being revealed as not being the perfect poster that he likes to believe himself to be.
Followed by Giyane finally stating some long overdue home-truths about our Host here.
So in this spirit, I add my contribution, as on reading this comment about Nick Cohen, I realized that it was a perfect true nature description of Resident Dissident, and his modus operandi of sly smearing;
http://members5.boardhost.com/medialens/msg/1439237804.html
The horror hole known as Yarls Wood (a detention centre for mainly female foreign nationals awaiting ‘removal’) is in the news again for the same reasons as before.
Yarl’s Wood removal centre of ‘national concern’
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-33871283
Run by Serco, with health services run by G4S Another YCNMIU
A Medialens contributor reports on last night’s review of the papers on Sky News. I watched it and concur. The slander of Corbyn and Assange was truly appalling. I felt it was pre-arranged.
Sky Press Preview hits a new low with attacks on Corbyn and Assange tonight on Sky news with Stig Abell, Managing editor of the Sun, and Elizabeth Day journalist with the Observer
http://members5.boardhost.com/medialens/msg/1439349163.html