Dear President Ahtisaari,
I had the pleasure of meeting you on a number of occasions over the years, including when I was British Ambassador to Uzbekistan, and I recall your genuine concern for democracy and human rights in a region where they are sadly neglected.
Like a great many people in Scotland I was shocked that CMI is employing Jim Murphy. Of course, in a democracy there are always losers as well as winners in elections, and both are genuine and valid participants in public life. It is not the fact that CMI employs a politician who has been so recently, comprehensively and humiliatingly rejected by his national electorate that will do any damage to CMI. In a sense I think it does you credit.
What shocks many people here is that Mr Murphy is by any standards a dedicated warmonger. He was a major and important proponent of the invasion of Iraq, and is the strongest of supporters of the massive increase of Britain’s nuclear arsenal, in breach of the Non Proliferation Treaty.
Mr Murphy is a member of the Henry Jackson Society, which as you know is a body which exists to promote United States neo-conservative foreign policy in its most aggressive sense, and openly and actively supports and condones extraordinary rendition and the use of torture by the CIA. It has supported every single military action by the USA since its formation, and defends United States exceptionalism in international law, including US non-membership of the International Criminal Court.
Mr Murphy’s belief set is therefore fundamentally at odds with the stated aims of CMI. Indeed, his employment by you can only lead to the suspicion that CMI’s stated objectives are not its real objectives, and that like Mr Murphy and the Henry Jackson Society your overriding goal in the regions where you operate is to promote the interests of the United States.
As you are funded by charitable donations and by governments, I think some explanation of your employment of Mr Murphy is in order, particularly when you have employed him as a conflict resolution expert in the Caucasus and Central Asia when he has no relevant experience of conflict resolution at all, virtually none of the Caucasus, and absolutely none of Central Asia.
I was the Head of the UK Delegation that negotiated the Sierra Leone Peace Treaty, and certainly under no circumstances would I let Jim Murphy anywhere near that kind of negotiation.
With All Best Wishes,
Amb (rtd.) Craig Murray
MIC stocks soaring:
https://theintercept.com/2015/11/16/stock-prices-of-weapons-manufacturers-soaring-since-paris-attack/
Anyhow its high time Blair was enobled, as is automatic for ex-PMs. Baron Blair of Kelloe?
I’m glad we’ve moved on from the conspiracy theories, but they appear to have been replaced with a lot of whinging. Whinging that there’s too much security on the streets, whinging that we don’t try negotiating with ISIS (lol), whinging that it’s all our fault anyway.
Still, I suppose it’s progress of sorts. At least they are accepting the reality of what happened.
“We won’t be safe till we’ve blasted Brussels back into the stone age.”
Never had you down as a Kipper, Node.
“Be in no doubt too, when Cameron/Osborne/May talk of a ‘cyber threat’, it’s you and I they mean, bloggers and commenters, even passive readers if the material is deemed a threat, and a threat to them is mere criticism or exposure of the scope of financial elite’s and ‘blue-blood’ families depravity and lust for ever more wealth at ever greater human and environmental cost.”
_________________
Very good observation Tony M, that’s exactly what they mean, as I’ve mentioned before intellectual terrorism, is the order of the day, to demonise or ridicule anyone that questions the narrative.
The web poses a problem for the establishment, bloggers and commentors can take an alternative and often inspiring view of certain events.
Information can and is leaked by the likes of Manning and Snowden, and of course Assange, who’s currently paying a price for his heroic efforts, where is Assange’s solidarity, or Snowden’s or Manning’s.
As long as the web is up and running and liberte as Hollande and Obama, are keen to repeat, then bloggers and commentors, will question everything.
“The IRA was a completely different threat”
Indeed. Its activities were not preceded by identical security drills. It was unable to disable surveillance cameras. It did not scatter the crime scene with ID. A different kettle of fish altogether.
SHOCK POLL: Third of Syrian Refugees ISIS Sympathizers, 13 Percent Support
Kristinn Taylor Nov 17th, 2015 7:40 am —19 Comments
A poll released in November but ignored by the mainstream media shows a third of Syrian refugees do not want the Muslim terrorist group ISIS defeated. The survey results buttress concerns by the dozens of U.S. governors who have announced opposition to President Barack Obama’s plan to import 10,000 Syrian refugees over the next year.
The poll shows thirteen percent of Syrian refugees have a completely positive opinion of ISIS with another ten percent having mixed feelings on the terror group, suggesting that nearly one quarter are open to recruitment by ISIS.
http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2015/11/shock-poll-third-of-syrian-refugees-isis-sympathizers-13-percent-support/
Speaking of Spain, the city council of the city of Santiago de Compostela has declared its support for BDS. Spain: City Council Announces Support for BDS, Warrant Issued for Netanyahu’s Arrest:
The same People’s Party (Partido Popular), originally founded by leading figures in Franco’s government, that Judge Garzon was going after, just as he had gone after the crimes of the Franquistas during the Spanish Civil War.
Kelloe is just a random place in ‘his’ constituency. I’m sure someone can think of a better title though, perhaps using the name of his favourite London public convenience.
There’s no reason why he shouldn’t be Leader of the House of Lords, in no time, with his talents. Maybe even after that go on to become Queen Tony.
Habba
Thankyou for your considered reply.
1) re for or against us: I am reminded of how the Bush regime criticised out news agency (for it still was ours then) after 9/11 for their ‘one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter’ objective journalist standard. Also, I am then reminded how journalists (who have not succumbed to PR disguised as journalism) bear in mind rule no 1 namely always assume you are being lied to, which does not mean dive for the neatest conspiracy theory, but which does require scepticism. Of course in a genuine crisis it is expected that we might suspend some of our resistance and risk life for country without profit, but what fool (I use the word unwisely) wants to be bounced into this. I don’t dispute that security should be fluid and adapt.
2)Swiss: I expressed myself carelessly. Switzerland would appear to have a healthy not a cowardly approach. I like the idea of no general in peace time and people taking responsibility.
MJ
It has already been demonstrated to you why it makes sense for a terrorist to carry ID. The last thing you would want if you were on the way to or from carrying out an attack is to arouse suspicion by being unable to produce ID.
Re CCTV, it regularly fails due to having not been set properly, or it has not been set at all. There is nothing unusual about it, as any victim of crime will attest.
Terror drills are a regular occurrence in major cities. There was one in London today.
Your attempts at false-flagging are failing, MJ. It would be better for you to proceed to your fallback of “it’s all our fault anyway”.
http://972mag.com/prominent-israeli-journalist-tweets-opportunism-at-pariss-pain/113899/
When it comes to really bad taste , hey presto there’s always an Israeli journalist to bring us to the bottom of the barrel .
“SHOCK POLL: Third of Syrian Refugees ISIS Sympathizers”
Should read:
“SHOCK POLL: Just a third of Syrian Refugees ISIS Sympathisers”
Still obsessing about Israel, Monteverdi?
It may make sense for a terrorist to carry ID, but what sense does it make to leave it lying around? If the ID at the Stade de France ended up where it was because the terrorist had blown himself up, why wasn’t it blown to smithereens? Just as one wonders why the (alleged) Charlie Hebdo shooters left ID in one of their getaway cars (who would do that, and why?), and just as the passport of one of the 9/11 hijackers appeared mysteriously on the ground outside the World Trade Center.
Now that the discussion has settled down to trollish acceptability, the conservative lardons wish to infuse more fat into the goose.
Many are seduced by temporary hard-ons for the hope there can be common ground. Wait around and watch the weather change.
Re Troll 8.32pm
I work on this principle :
‘ Never argue with an idiot they will bring you down to their level , and beat you with experience ‘
[ attributed to George Carlin ]
Reflect and digest .
Lysias
Who says drugs make you sensible?
Lysias (20h34)
I wonder why you don’t just muse away quietly in a corner somewhere and only take to the airwaves here when you’ve reached some conclusion or another.
But I have no objection to reading you on the three subjects in which I am happy to accept you have some expertise, viz 5th century BC Athens (by way of your studies), the USS Ronald Reagan (by way of your time as a “US Navy officer”) and paedophilia in the UK.
And now, carry on.
Ben
“Many are seduced by temporary hard-ons..”
_____________________
Did you get one when you used the expression “bull-dyke”?
Well, truly you learn something everyday. Apparently there is an EU article 42.7, which triggers mutual defence amonst all member states, as reported in the neocon Guardian. Our French cousins have apparently just invoked this very obscure article. Neutrality is enshrined, so the Irish can avoid, thankfully.
Another reason to consider our place in Europe, though perhaps this isn’t quite the time. I’d still like further data on who it is we are actually at war with though. ISIS may be well funded, but they aren’t representative of a single nation. One suspects that everything will stay confused until Assad steps down, and considerable pressure is being put on Putin to ensure this. After which ‘ISIS’ will face a fairly brutal extermination. But, again, who knows really? I certainly don’t.
Pulcinella (20h30, 20h50)
Are you still obsessing about Israel?
Get back to your theatre, the other characters are waiting for you.
Kelloe is just a random place in ‘his’ constituency. I’m sure someone can think of a better title though, perhaps using the name of his favourite London public convenience..
While browsing a Wikipedia page titled “Largest cities of Israel,” looking for an appropriate town for Blair to be Baron of, I noticed an asterisk next to the figure for the population of Jerusalem, followed by ….
“* This number includes East Jerusalem and West Bank areas. Israeli sovereignty over East Jerusalem is internationally disputed.”
…. as though Israeli sovereignty over West Bank areas isn’t disputed. This is how Zionists create “facts” and ultimately, history.
Coming soon, “Blair, Baron of West Bank”
Text of 42.7:
I was just wondering why someone boastful enough to inform readers (unsolicitedly) that he read classics at Oxford should modestly decline to tell us at which college.
Seems a little rum to me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CLReexWLoA&feature=youtu.be
This video remembers.
After Paris remember this.
Node
“While browsing a Wikipedia page titled “Largest cities of Israel,” looking for an appropriate town for Blair to be Baron of, I noticed an asterisk next to the figure for the population of Jerusalem, followed by ….
“* This number includes East Jerusalem and West Bank areas. Israeli sovereignty over East Jerusalem is internationally disputed.”
…. as though Israeli sovereignty over West Bank areas isn’t disputed. This is how Zionists create “facts” and ultimately, history.”
______________________
As usual, you don’t know what you’re talking about. Or perhaps you and just feel like misrepresenting things. To make thing clear for you:
1/. Israel claims sovereignty over East Jerusalem. That claim is internationally disputed.
2/. The reason why “Israeli sovereignty over West Bank isn’t disputed” is because there’s nothing to dispute – Israel does not claim sovereignty over the West Bank.
All clear now?
******************
PS – ask Craig to explain the difference between sovereignty and jurisidiction to you some time.
Significantly, France is not invoking Article 5 of the NATO Treaty (on which 42.7 is based). Presumably, that is because the U.S. would oppose such a move. Why NATO probably won’t help France against ISIS.
Again!
It’s extraordinary. Every single time “Aidworker”1 posts, the post is about Israel.
Why “After Paris remember this” anyway? What does Gaza have to do with it?
“The problem around the U.S.-led coalition is that despite the fact that they declared its goal in fighting exclusively the Islamic State and other terrorists and pledged not to take any action against the Syrian army (life has proved they never went back from their words), analysis of the strikes delivered by the United States and its coalition at terrorist positions over the past year drives us to a conclusion that these were selective, I would say sparing, strikes and in the majority of cases spared those Islamic State groups that were capable of pressing the Syrian army,” he said.
“It looks like a cat that wants to eat a fish but doesn’t want to wet its feet. They want the Islamic State to weaken Assad as soon as possible to force him to step down this or that way but they don’t want to see Islamic State strong enough to take power.”
“Our opinion of the developments after the anti-terrorist operation was launched in August 2014 is based on what we see and we see next to no concrete results but for the expansion of the Islamic State over this time,” Lavrov said. “We noted tactical successes when a couple of cities were recaptured in Iraq.”
As I keep echoing US/UK/IS wants to ‘crowd out’ Russia in Syria while at the same time creating a castle in the air that is a threat to our very existence, our bare survival. Do not become apathetic as a spattering would like. SIKUSU is a false prophet in the real and imaginary worlds.
Did you see French bombs land? A map? Have you seen US bombs land? A map? Russia saw everything and is the red elephant in the room – A sore spot.