I owe an apology to all those who are kind enough to subscribe to my blog. I was determined that I would not let my impending trial affect my output, but have been unable to see that through. It is partly because preparation does take up much more time than I had imagined. But it is mostly because I find it hard to put my mind to anything else and really concentrate.
I do not want to give you the impression that I am very worried, or depressed. I am rather angry; a deep, seething anger that keeps breaking into my thoughts. I am rather worried about this. I can with fairness claim to have devoted much of my life to fighting against injustice. I was prepared to sacrifice an extremely prestigious and lucrative career to take a stand against UK complicity in torture, driven largely by empathy for the victims. I have assisted with numerous individual human rights cases and particularly asylum claims, including representing people, without fee, before immigration courts. But I am nonetheless alarmed by how much more viscerally angry I am when the injustice is against myself than when it is against another. I am aware that is very unattractive. This fury at being personally mistreated is disproportionate and quite wrong, and ought not to stop me working. I feel guilty about it.
Among the results is a very annoying writers’ block. I have been intending this last five days to write an article on Barack Obama’s failure while President to tackle institutional racism and societal inequalities in the USA, and relate that to the remarkable fact he paid much less attention to aid to Africa than George W Bush. I enjoy writing most when I am running counter to the prevailing narrative and pointing to inconvenient fact. But the lines of logic refuse to flow, the fascinating asides do not pop up, and then I remember something else I must tell my lawyers.
Please do not worry. I am not sad, and my anger does not manifest itself by being horrible to others; on the contrary, for once I seem to be particularly considerate to my family and appreciative of how fortunate I am. The purpose of this post is to apologise to you, and thank you for your patience. It is not a signal of giving up – I do not intend to wait until after the trial before getting back to normal. Please bear with me.
We love you Craig
Given the insight you have given us into various subjects this post made me quite sad to think of you worrying about
anything other than you and your family.
You owe your readers nothing, we collectively understand the huge amount of stress you are under.
Wishing you all the best,
Dave
Craig,
Having read the comments on your blog over the past few months it is clear that many of us here have had our own moments of adversity and can sincerely empathise with you. It is also clear that many who do not agree wholeheartedly with your views, never the less wholeheartedly support you.
You have to fight and ferociously too. To start, take courage from your support, chill, let the slings and arrows flow over, through and past you, let their energy dissipate. They can’t harm you, only the end result might be inconvenient. Look beyond the present and concentrate on getting through to the last laugh. Then make the most of it.
You owe no apology , and I , for one , don’t require one . You would have to be superhuman to not be intensely angry, sad, or depressed.
My support does not depend on how many words you write in a given time-frame , but on the quality and accuracy of your research and recollections .
I wish you and yours good fortune and good health . Take care , stay safe .
Mr. Murray, I believe that you are a valuable instance for modern mankind.
You have a set of precious qualities – honesty, integrity, decency, humanity, and especially the courage to demonstrate and uphold these humanistic values in circumstances, in which others would be confused.
I am very touched by your appeal to visitors to the blog, thank you for thinking about us! “Apology” is a bit wrong wording, I suppose 🙂
We understand that your blog is not an entertainment channel where new content is scheduled. We also understand that you are going through a stressful situation. We love and support you.
Please take care of yourself, we need you!
I feel exactly the same as Tatyana and the other commentators. We all value you much too highly to expect you to do anything other than focus on the fight that lies ahead. You have every right to be angry. So many of us are angry too on your behalf, and hope and pray that everything goes well for you when you face the court. I’m sure we all would much rather you put all your energies into that.
Not to worry Craig, no apology needed! Your reaction is that of any normal person subjected to persecution.
Good Luck and more power to your elbow.. and keyboard!
In Fact… Get right into their mince!!… metaphorically of course.
They were bound to come after you Craig. They’re vindictive bastards and sore losers. But they won’t win.
You are showing a natural human emotion of self blame/guilt and it is that which separates Craig Murray from the psychopaths he tries to expose.
They do not have a conscience!
Thanks for all you are doing.
Craig, kind of you to think of us. No worries at all though. The space has made me realise how much I value your perspective, thoughts and voice. I visit here regularly and it is like the quickening of a good forage find when something new is up. Health to your hands (and mind!). Take all the time you need. Much appreciation- Simon
The best you can do for all of us is preparing for and winning your case and then exposing the ‘witch hunters’. arw’ra’verry’best
You have no need to apologise Mr Murray.
Your blog shines a bright light through the murky world of political ill-doing and the machinations of those who would wield power over us.
Save your energy for the hearing, we`ve got your back.
Much love from South West France.
It is a trying time for you Craig, Just remember we are all behind you. Take care stay safe.
Craig Murray – actually, this `contempt of court’ charge takes on a much darker quality than anything else you mention and is much more sinister.
I had somehow always made the assumptions that the basic principles and institutions of government, police, judiciary were fundamentally sound, even if from time to time there were some sinister and shady characters involved.
The fact that the politicians, police and courts are engaged in such blatant corruption is something that I never thought I would see.
At least when MI6 pulled the Novichok stunt on the Skripals, they had done their homework sufficiently so that they could try and make it look as if the Russians had done it. In this situation, Humza Yousaf is quite blatantly saying, `yes, we’re corrupt – what are you going to do about it? If you complain about it, we’ll stick you with a `contempt of court’ charge and put you in jail.’ At least that’s what they told Rev Stuart Campbell.
I’m not sure that anger is the emotion here – it’s something else.
Focus your energy on righting the wrong being done to you, we will still be here when you return victorious
Don’t know your name, but I’m sure as hell going to look you up now. I wish you the best in your fight against the corrupt govt of the U.K.
Dear Craig Murray, this is so considerate of you and shows us again the person that you are.
But there is no need for this apology, I believe.
And I am happy that you are feeling angry. I hope many others will do too. It is a much more constructive feeling than sadness.
You have been one of the not so many who actively voice their unhappiness about injustice and lack of integrity of those who are now trying to get you. They won’t!!
I wish you all the energy so you become the Bruce Lee of the court!:)
Remember to take some rest sometimes.
Keep the gas pedal to the floor board while many consciously and soberly choose to come along for the ride, with humanity’s evolutionary destination becoming shaped and determined as each day passes.. With any good luck humanity’s destiny includes rapidly achieving its most worthy #1 goal: the establishment of true peace on Earth.
Peace.
Sorry, Craig– I’m afraid that I must insist that you thrust your niggling legal problems completely out of your mind and promptly return to producing your usual informative and insightful reporting, analysis, and opinion on major current events.
There! I said it and I’m glad!
_______________________________________________
I don’t mean a word of it, but I thought you might like a nice change of pace from the vast preponderance of the sympathy and good will expressed in the thread. Hang in there, friend; this too shall pass, etc.
Oh, and as we say here in the USA:
Keep Calm and Carry On!
Dear Ort, please let me disagree about “keep calm”.
Mr. Murray has a clear idea of what is “universally right or wrong”. When the idea of the Right is abused, then the last thing he needs to do is to keep calm.
The normal reaction is to get angry. And the best way to deal with anger is
to get a bottle of vodkato discuss what is actually right and wrong, with the people.On receiving support and approval from the people around, only then we, humans, gain true confidence and calmness. That’s our normal way to cope with anxious situations.
—
I don’t advocate alcohol, it’s just that I know they make great lag a’mhuilin there, yet Friday evenings are common relaxation time 🙂
Stay true to yourself Craig and your readers, supporters and subscribers, like me, will stay true to you. You have a massive reservoir of support willing you to to succeed in defeating this action and the blogging is immaterial next to winning in court.
Craig, I feel sure that most of your subscribers are backing your over-all struggle for the truth, rather than your story output. But your transparency is welcome and an example to us all. Love, empathy and congruence.
By coincidence I am experiencing writers block for similar reasons. I am stressed about contradictory and confusing messages coming from my child’s school, about how to do home schooling. A blizzard of links to a variety of social media platforms, contradictory advice about what online learning programmes to follow. Endless documents to read, and videos of teachers talking about themselves and how fantastic it everyone is doing ,without offering any evidence of this. And that’s before doing the algebra exercises, which are by comparison straight forward.
Meantime, I am trying to write a sci-fi novel about the gap between the elite and the masses, and the Christian Fundamentalist vision of the Rapture resulting from Armageddon. Its great fun and fascinating to write as I watch events in the novel manifest in the news, but I can’t concentrate on it because I worry about my child falling behind, and I get angry when I realise that my job (night support worker for homeless people) means I cant offer my child as much support as my managers who work from home during the lockdown.
It sounds tough, Raphael – sympathies to you.
You may find some interesting material for your novel here, directly from these crazed religious freaks themselves: https://www.raptureready.com/
You might think that site is a parody, but it is not. They are dangerously serious about this stuff. It provides much in the way of insight.
These movement restrictions certainly have provided us a good lesson in how much we really are “all in it together” – I trust that what used to be considered largely unskilled, badly paid work (not “low pay” – it’s “badly paid”), are actually the front-line that makes society function.
You’re lucky not to be under the despotic regime of our devolved government in Wales. Drunk on power, the First Minister likes to keep people guessing, and tinkers with the rules at a whim. These rules are arbitrary, make less than no sense at all in most cases, are entirely at his personal discretion and the reasons behind them (supposedly scientific) are kept secret.
I am glad you are angry, Craig. I hope you will stay angry. It would be so much worse if you had no stomach for the fight on your hands, and you were willing to submit to this patent injustice.
Oddly enough, you wouldn’t be the person you are with the character you have, if you didn’t feel the way you do at the moment. Being true to yourself is your greatest strength. That’s why you’re being attacked. Stay strong. There are loads on here who have your back.
Keep strong – we are with you
We are with you Craig! Hold those you love close and all will be well! The Empire has had it’s day and it will soon be our turn and the turn of all the others who suffer injustice! Best wishes!
I do not agree with you on Scottish independence; I am for nations coming together not Encorsgeing difference and division. However apart from that I, an Englishman, if you have to put a label on me, am 100% behind you in you fight against the ever more corrupt establishment.
We just want you to get justice Craig
As a colleague of mine used to say, it’s not just the winning that matters, it’s totally humiliating your opponents
You get out there and humiliate them !
I wonder whether they put the contract out to tender 😉 Or were they too busy protecting us all from a dreadful virus?
Who should we vote for in Scotland if we’re against this kind of in-your-face stupid lying traitorous thieving by public officials?
N_ – I think they want to know who we are. They’re in for a nasty shock – they’ll find that Craig Murray’s supporters are the sort of respectable decent people whom they would probably rather have on-side. I used my `work’ email, so they’ll easily figure out who I am if they want to – which is exactly what I want.
The other point – they talk about `dial-in’ which may well mean that they want us to use a land-line (and that Skype won’t do). This will make it hideously expensive for people calling from abroad – in other words, every trick in the book to actively discourage people from tuning in.
They could have made a lot of money out of this if they’d gone about it in a wiser way – it threatens to be the greatest comedy ever produced in Edinburgh, better than anything that ever wins a Fringe award – and they could have made a lot of money out of selling tickets for it – which would have more than covered the costs of the event.
Craig it’s only natural that you’re very angry at this injustice aimed at you, the bastards know that the stress and unease that leads up to your day in court can have a profound effect not just on you but on your family as well.
Try if you can to stay calm and focused, I’m reminded, when I’m angry and stressed of the the belt the Zoroastrians wrap around their waists three times, which equates to think good things, say good things and do good deeds.
Anyway I have a good feeling that you’ll walk out a free man on this travesty of justice, the eyes of the world will be upon you in a good way when you have your day in court.
Incidentally James Kelly’s Panelbase poll put yes at 52%
https://scotgoespop.blogspot.com/2020/06/scot-goes-pop-panelbase-poll-yes-storms.html
The most important thing for me, Craig, and I’m sure, for all your supporters, is that you remain healthy and in good spirits. We can do without blog entries for as long as is necessary; but to lose the inspiration and hope you provide would indeed be a tragedy . . .
Feel quite free to concentrate on your own fight. Your integrity and courage has led to an assault by the Crown upon you. It is of course fully understandable that your mind wants to concentrate on your own fight.
Thank you for taking on the fights of others. Thank you for the heart that feels that this is the time to speak about how Obama repaid the love of the black community with neglect. But it is fully understandable if you have writers block on topics other than your own fight.
Please don’t apologise. Put all your energy into your superb gift for finding a way through any morass, for exposing the rot in our justice system and make up sure you are still there as our best hope for bringing to light what the establishment go to such lengths to conceal in their efforts to mislead.