The cause of the tragic Druze deaths in Majdal Shams was the illegal Israeli occupation in Syria, a fact which the residents of the town are clear about. The large majority of the Druze community in the Golan Heights has always refused to accept Israeli citizenship.
That picture is from a demonstration four years ago, but it shows that the Golan Druze know where their allegiance lies, and it is not with their Israeli occupiers.
The deaths are a tragedy, and they would be a tragedy if they were Druze, Palestinian or Jewish kids. The right of occupied peoples to armed resistance against Israel is absolute, but that does not remove the personal tragedy of anybody who loses their children.
But last night the disproportion of the BBC coverage of these deaths, which the BBC blamed on Hezbollah, compared to the coverage of Palestinian deaths in Gaza, was so outrageous as to be beyond parody and almost beyond belief.
It was the lead item on the main news. It was the full treatment. Intrepid British BBC journalist visits the scene, shows the blast area and damaged football pitch, interviews eye witnesses, interviews parents, scenes of funerals. Grief piled upon grief. Bellicose self-righteous statements from Israeli ministers.
It was not just hugely more coverage than given to any of the ten times the number of kids in Gaza who have been killed on average every single day for nearly ten months; we have a direct comparator where Israel recently attacked a Palestinian children’s football game killing scores more people.
The Palestinians did not get a British BBC journalist, coverage of the funerals, interviews with relatives. That incident got about 3% of the BBC airtime.
Furthermore, while reporting the Hezbollah denial, the BBC then said that the United States regime had confirmed it was a Hezbollah missile, as though that settled it.
The notion that the United States is either a neutral or an honest arbiter is utterly ludicrous. But it passes muster in BBC la-la land.
Israel has been bombarding Syria relentlessly from long before October 2023 and has continued unabated – and unreported by western media. Israel’s attacks on civilian areas of Damascus this last few weeks have been devastating.
It is pretty obvious that any loose missile that dropped on Majdal Shams is likely to have come from Israel, which is slinging huge quantities of munitions into Syria and Lebanon with wild abandon.
Alternatively if Netanyahu wished to pull a false flag to justify escalation, it is also pretty obvious he would choose a minority community within Israel as the victims.
Of course, to paraphrase Noam Chomsky, anybody in the BBC capable of such thoughts would no longer be in the BBC.
Finally, many congratulations to Nicolas Maduro on his re-election in Venezuela.
I have to confess I got this wrong. I thought the huge amount of effort and money poured in by the CIA would be effective, particularly in undermining key officials through bribery. The collaboration of Twitter and Meta with the CIA programme also looked more effective than it evidently was.
A great day for democracy. In a few hours’ time I shall raise a glass of Lagavulin to Nicolas Maduro and the revolution in Venezuela.
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I’m really curious: what is it that you appear to know about people like Maduro and Xi (other than them not being groomed by the CIA), that the rest of us don’t, that makes you like them so much?
I can’t speak for Craig, but people like Maduro, Xi and others work for their country and their citizens. Maduro, for instance, has built a few million low-cost homes.
Now look at any ‘Western’ leader. When was the last time any of them did anything useful for their own people?
“other than not being groomed by the CIA”
Are you not answering your own question here?
“The CIA are Capitalism’s invisible army”
Inside the Company CIA Diary(1975) PhiIip Agee
Have a read of this book to get some idea what Agee did in the days weeks and years Agee worked for the Company. The book supports the above quote in great detail
Ergo, if you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem
Hi Will Moon, Buckminster-Fuller also included Capitalism’s Invisible Army, in his book `Critical Path`, 1981
If Maduro is so great and deserves a toast of Lagavulin, why have 7.7 million Venezuelan citizens left the country in the past few years?
Mmmm?
Why Craig?
Not a difficult question to answer: because the crippling sanctions imposed by the US, as well as artificial shortages created by the Venezuelan elite, have made life difficult for a lot of people.
John Bolton knows some of the reasons; John Bolton is some of the reasons
An interesting book Critical Path, written in a time when everything – all the academic disciplines – still could be known by one person
I particularly remember the maps of the world, produced using radically different views and perspectives, they amazed me and left a mark on me – a bit like Berger’s “Ways of Seeing” affects art students lol
I’d show those maps to anyone who was interested in intellectual pursuits
The world we live in today seems further away from Fuller’s visions than it was when I came across the book in the 90s or indeed the 80s when the book came out. I believe it was published in 1981. Agee’s book was published in 1975, so probably prior but it is an interesting cross-pollination
The BFI (Buckminster Fuller Institute) is still working hard to recover the future that Bucky imagined
I didn’t see anything to suggest that Craig actually likes Maduro; merely that he thinks Maduro better than the alternative. Since the alternative was esentially a CIA puppet, I think so too.
I look forward to the day when the countries of the UK break free from US control. Unfortunately, I think that day is far off.
My points are that Mr. Murray is “congratulating” him (Maduro) and regularly speaks of Xi as though he could do no wrong, whilst just because they haven’t been groomed by the CIA doesn’t mean they aren’t also guilty of horrific acts that one would normally expect Mr. Murray to deplore. To use a comment he sometimes does: “it is possible to hold two differing thoughts in one’s head at the same time”.
Furthermore, viz his recent comments about Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, it seems particularly perverse to effectively support that (by saying that it’s more complicated than just he ordered the Russian Military to invade) because “Ukraine has been shelling the Donbas since 2014” and some specious argument about US missiles and NATO provocation (which fails as an argument when you look at the Cuban/Turkish Missile Crisis), yet be completely (and correctly) against Israel’s invasion of Gaza because Hamas has been shelling Israel for decades…
Talking of Ukraine, the Labour government tells us today tell that ‘there’s no money left’, scraps winter fuel payments for all but the poorest pensioners while pledging £3bn to Ukraine EVERY year to keep the war going indefinitely (instead of supporting negotiations). Change? Yes, it is a change. They are WORSE than the Tories, Not a Tory Fanboy.
Liarbour have been Tory filth for a century; this comes as no surprise.
To be clear, I’m no fan of war or Labour either.
In Gaza Hamas is part of a population resisting occupation as is the population of Donbass.
” just because they haven’t been groomed by the CIA doesn’t mean they aren’t also guilty of horrific acts that one would normally expect Mr. Murray to deplore.”
They don’t look guilty to me.
A quick browse of their Wikipedia profiles is enough to start with…
(We support Wikileaks here, I assume similar is true of Wikipedia?)
You mean you don’t know? Or is it that you actually believe what the newspapers and tv tell you; you never wonder why UK and USA have attacked more countries around the world than the rest added together; you don’t understand why russia attacked ukraine to stop ukraine having usa missiles on its border with russia – just 400 miles from moscow; you don’t understand that if for example france allowed china to put missiles on the french coast facing london the uk would declare war on france; you don’t understand that uk and usa protect israel whilst israel bombs and kills peoples in surrounding countries?
Gee, wake up, read more, learn more. Any country that doesn’t bow down to usa is attacked either with weapons, sanctions or trade, and uk and australia help out. BRICS is challenging usa world domination, so usa told uk to brexit. uk did what it was told; brexit had to happen before usa bribed zelensky to join nato, so that when russia stepped in the usa could blow up russia’s gas pipeline to europe, resulting in europe having to buy its gas from usa – which is largely why we in uk pay an astronomical price for it. China never attacks anyone but usa, and uk demonise China because it is becoming world trade leader.
https://thecradle.co/articles/one-third-of-the-world-under-us-sanctions-report
The Cradle reports that a third of the world is under US sanctions…. not to mention bent terms of trade where it’s allowed.
No, those things are already perfectly clear. The West sure has a lot to answer for. That doesn’t mean that “West bad” = “East good”. What I meant is that Mr. Murray very much seems to be presenting loathsome individuals and the governments they control as saints simply because they aren’t The West, when they carry out many of the same crimes and should be equally deplored. I can’t understand why Mr. Murray presents them as such, unless he knows something about them that the rest of us (who would deplore them as equally as we would The West) don’t?
I quite agree about Majdal Shams. It is not at all clear whose missile it was. An off-course Iron Dome interceptor is perhaps the most likely. However it is clear that the Netanyahu government want to to use the event as a casus belli. Whether they will succeed I remain uncertain. I’ve seen several reports suggesting the Israeli military is against such an adventure. And again, is the US really in favour? Either candidate (or not-yet-candidate) is not going to be keen on an uncontrollable war on their hands, with uncertain effects on their electorate, in the runup to the November vote. Whatever is said in public, private discouragement must have been the order of the day.
Anyone not blinded by the propaganda can see that this is a false flag attack to “justify” Israel’s right “to defend itself” by attacking Lebanon. I would recommend caution though because the last time they tried this they were repulsed and soundly whipped.
“I quite agree about Majdal Shams. It is not at all clear whose missile it was”
========
“Eleven dead in rocket attack on Israeli-occupied Golan.”-original BBC headline.
This neutral, accurate, original statement was altered after Zionist intervention, including by comedian Sacha Baron Cohen [Source -Jerusalem Post].
https://m.jpost.com/j-spot/article-812224
Israel has a long history of provocative attacks and fake ‘terrorism’. Plus the unhinged mobster Netanyahu is desperate to avoid jail and for years has sought to draw the US into his perpetual wars, particularly against Iran. He is an utter madman whose disregard for human life, including Israelis by the way, is staggering. But as long as the pathetic US protects and arms him, he considers himself invulnerable and able to commit atrocity after atrocity. His appetite for more seems unbounded, as if he wants to destroy everything around him – and has the outrageous conceited ego to pretend that this is a war for ‘civilisation’. Sure, what kind of fascistic culling of the cradle of civilisation would that be? Put him in jail where he belongs. He is a monster.
“The Palestinians did not get a British BBC journalist, coverage of the funerals, interviews with relatives.”
To be fair to BBC journalists, the IDF would have no qualms targetting and killing them, just as they have murdered hundreds of journalists so far in the Gaza genocide. But that does not excuse the BBC lapping up and gushingly regurgatating Israeli propaganda by the bucket load.
The corp-0-rat media and CommercialPrivateEquitybbc have been squealing with excitement over this incident and deafeningly silent over the rest of the zionazi atrocities. It’s a bit obvious.
The western media and political class manage to summon more grief and compassion for 10+ kids killed “in” Israel in 1 day, meanwhile they justify and scoff at at some 20000 murdered palestinian kids past 9 months! And they do it so easy and so unabashedly like they are totally devoid of any understanding how morally corrupt, how hypocritcal they look to the outside world. But it proves how inherently racist the western mindset are, and I am not even talking about the right-wingers here, I am talking about the liberal class of westerners.
But to get back at Chomsky, this is a clear example of “Worthy vs Unworthy victim”. Or put it more bluntly: “One million Arabs are not worth a Jewish fingernail” said by israeli Rabbi Yaacov Perrin.
Meanwhile, why are not media claiming Israel used these children as “human shields”? Why are Israel letting kids play on open fields while Israel engage in wars with both northern neighbours Lebanon and Syria?
Note also that the kids were not jews but druze. Like Israel really care for these kids anyway, sigh, the perfect victims.
Take also the fact that israel themselves admit that they have struck Syria thousands of times
Israel Has Hit ‘Thousands of Iranian Targets in Syria’ Since 2017, Says Defense Chief
https://en.radiofarda.com/a/israel-defense-minister-says-has-hit-thousands-of-iran-targets-in-syria/29707256.html
But when states like Syria, Lebanon return fire, oh the self-victimization kicks for the israelis and the western media.
Note also that it could be Hezbollah that fired that rocket but that does not mean they targeted these kids, compared to Israel that do target palestinian kids in Gaza.
Hezbollah obviously are racist too, and islamo-supremacist over ‘their’ land, backed by a regime over a thousand km away.
Seems like both sides have been slinging missiles across that border. Evacuated their citizens from nearby. Hezbollah now using Iranian-built Falaq unguided rockets fired from jeeps…
Hizbullah are not racist like the Israelis; Israelis are some of the most racist people on the face of the earth. You’re just trying to excuse the horrors of Israeli savagery. In fact I don’t think Hizbullah are exceptionally racist at all. They’re defending their country against racist colonial invaders.
To be accused of Racism by a Zionist is a badge of pride, an apologist for Zionism has no moral standing to criticize anybody.
There are no “Both Sides”, the US backed Zionist State Terrorist group recognised as perpetrating a Genocide while the Party of God, is a Lebanese nationalist organisation, part of the Government of Lebanon, with Shia roots, supported by a complete cross section of society who like all decent people oppose Zionism.
First and foremost a political party which happens to have a military wing influenced by US Gun Ownership statistics, which exists to defend Lebanon.
The Party of God have their own manufacturing capability and access to a stockpile which is estimated at well over 200,000 guided systems which can reach all of occupied Palestine.
The need to defend Lebanon and Syria against the Zionist State Terrorist group Apartheid regime backed by the US Regime “over a thousand km away”, was demonstrated in 1982 when the American Armed Aggressors attacked Lebanon leading to massive support for the removal of the Zionist State Terrorist group from Occupied Lebanon , Occupied Palestine, Occupied Syria and from Existence.
The Zionist State Terrorist group increasingly rusty sieve has been dismantled and now the missile interceptor systems are going haywire. There is plenty of footage available of the Party of God at work, and they don’t miss. The Zionist State Terror group have imprisoned Syrians in a cage which is visible on the footer of the Ukrainian Usurper being told to leave.
Hizbullah has the support of most of the Christians of Lebanon.
Israel didn’t exist in the middle east until the UN allowed the UK, who were occupying Palestine in the first half of the last century, to gift part of Palestine to jewish people who didn’t even live there at the time. It was just after WWII that this gift became a massive problem, because jewish people from all over the world were invited to come live in Palestine – and no, it wasn’t guilt, after what the nazis did to jewish people in WWII: it was a long-term plan to control oil in the middle east (a cheap option), create a new country bang in the middle, then arm it to the hilt. And that is what USA and UK have been doing for decades. A handy stop-off when attacking Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Libya, Egypt, etc. etc.
I once had the pleasure to talk with one of Chavez´s advisors. He told me how he had suggested to Chavez to invest into an SSBN for deterrence. Chavez wisely disagreed. Apparently it´s possible to keep them Yankees out without resorting to WMDs, so far.
Venezuela has signed and ratified the 1967 Treaty of Tlatelolco which prohibits nuclear weapons.
Yes and fortunately so.
If I remember correctly that was one reason for Chavez to not engage in this.
p.s. The guy I spoke to was a civilian unlike Chavez.
“You murderer, get out of here!”
“Syrian Druze residents of the town of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights expel Israeli Finance Minister and other members of the Likud (Netanyahu’s party) from the funeral of the 12 youths who were killed after a missile fell on a soccer field.
The Israeli media and army have described the victims as Israeli civilians, but the residents of Majdal Shams are Syrian Druze living under occupation since the Israeli army occupied the Golan Heights in 1967.
Residents of the town have refused Israeli citizenship and continue to view themselves as Syrians.”
https://x.com/TheCradleMedia/status/1817528485667074227
Israelis are shameless, turning up at these funerals for some PR, as if they care about the indigenous people they occupy.
I’ve read that no Israeli or Jew was killed in the attack on the Golan-reading a summary of the incident from Aaron Mate, tends to lead me toward the assumption that it was Israel that caused the devastation- intentional or not.
As for President Maduro’s re-election to office – well done I say, the US threw its full weight and force against President Maduro’s re-election hopes – and they failed to oust him and install a Washington puppet into office.
The BBC’s pro-Israel bias was exposed almost two weeks ago in leaked internal emails published by Jadaliyya. Aggrieved staff presented “evidence of a collapse in the application of basic standards and norms of journalism [in order to] promote narratives favourable to Israel”. From sanitised and misleading headlines to outright double standards, the state broadcaster has consistently aligned with Israel’s propaganda strategy.
https://www.mintpressnews.com/bbc-pro-israel-bias-exposed-leaked-emails-internal-studies/287965/
Why has that embarrassment not caused the BBC to reign in the pro-Israeli propaganda even a little? A large part of the answer is that there has been no call to by the uniparty or its press. Another is that the kingpin on the BBC Board is one Robbie Gibb, sole owner of the pro-genocide Jewish Chronicle. Gibb was identified by another hard Zionist Emily Maitliss as the man who calls all the shots on BBC news output. That was back when she was complaining about his influence on Brexit coverage. The apartheid state is much closer to Sir Robbie’s heart than the Brexit project, so it is very unlikely he will ever say it’s time to curtail the BBC’s pro-genocide propaganda.
@frankywiggles CommercialPrivateEquitybbc is doing its job, being a regime stooge posing as a public broadcaster. That some employees have objected is commendable but what were they doing taking the dirty money in the first place?
Imagine the impact of BBC reporting this here on O level or A level results day, as it appears on the Telegram channel, Resistance News Network. This is what the British public and politicians should be focusing on.
“As the results of the tawjihi secondary school examination come out today, youth in Jenin distribute sweets dedicated to the souls of the martyred students of Gaza deprived from taking the test this year.
It is the first time since 1948 that students in Gaza were not able to take the exam, affecting 800,000 students in general and 40,000 students eligible to take it. Thousands of displaced Gazans took the test from outside Palestine.
At least 450 eligible students have ascended to martyrdom, including 20 in the West Bank. 5,000 students from all educational stages have been martyred since October 7th, as well as 240 of their teachers”.
Israel thinks that because it Owns the US and the UK.. They own the World.. Wrong.
and anyone who thinks China can be defeated needs their head examined.
George G. was Talking about the Druze deaths in Majdal Shams –
https://youtu.be/w1120hiONGA?t=517
The Israeli regime has attacked Lebanon today with rocket strikes – there is no proof that Hezbollah attacked the Golan Heights on Saturday – however the Zionist led regime of Israel struck today in Lebanon in response to Saturday’s strike.
The strikes took place against the southern Lebanese towns of Houla, Markaba, Aita al-Shaab, Khiam, Shaheen, Yaroun, Mays al-Jabal, Kfarkela, and Bourj al-Shamali on Monday – Lebanese media outlets reported.
I take with a pinch of salt those Israeli politicians who threaten the terrors of the earth to Lebanon, Hezbollah are biding their time and can wreak havoc on all parts of Israel when the time is right, the Israelis know this so are going to be very reluctant to tangle [in a big way] with Hezbollah.
‘I’ll be imprisoned if I’m filmed saying this but missile that killed 12 Druze civilians at football pitch was Israeli’, says medic – and funeral-goers drive away far-right Israeli politicians attempting to co-opt deaths of occupied people
Witnesses, including an Israeli emergency responder, have said that the missile that struck a football pitch and killed twelve civilians in the occupied Golan Heights was an Israeli rocket. https://skwawkbox.org/2024/07/28/golan-missile-strike-was-israeli-rocket-say-witnesses-mourners-drive-out-israeli-pols/
Harry Law.
Harry there’s a similarity I think between the missile strike on the Golan, and the missile that hit Kyiv a few weeks back – the latter of course turned out to be a Ukrainian anti-missiles that broke up and landed on a hospital – was there an intention in that event? which conveniently took place on the eve of Nato’s 75th Summit and was widely broadcast by the usual MSM suspects – I wonder.
Now this missile strike on Saturday – which also conveniently managed to strike an area of the Golan with no Israeli’s or Jews present – but it killed at least twelve people, including children (media reports) – and to which not one single group has claimed responsibility for the attack, could this be suspect as well? I personally think it could be.
I reported this on the previous thread, but I’ll repeat it here because I think it’s kinda important !
““We must be very strong so that Israel can’t do these ridiculous things to Palestine. Just like we entered Karabakh, just like we entered Libya, we might do similar to them,” Erdogan told a meeting of his ruling AK Party in his hometown of Rize.”
How can Scottish nationalists end up supporting Turkey who empired over Palestine, and its own Kurdish highlanders (if that’s a partly apt comparison)?
Many Scots were in the service of empire.
I hope it’s clear from context but that reply was directed at the Specious arguments of the Sophist Simian, not at your references of Scots in empire, which our host’s excellent book on the subject, “Sikunder Burnes: Master of the Great Game” discusses at length.
I’ve lost count of the number of my Irish friends who’ve been intrigued by the Catholic Orangemen, so perhaps so more Irish publicity might shift a few copies. A very nice chap from Cork called Tadhg Hickey seems to have quite the confluence of Interests with our host, and might welcome a conversation.
Zionism is simple racism, and it really attracts the simple minded. Every time you write, you expose yourself . Of course that’s a suitable comparison, what with the ethnic; idealogical; economic; temporal; cultural; geographical and linguistic factors, being so similar that one could indeed form useful conclusions by making comparisons.
Zionists, everyday in every way making it more imperative to dismantle Zionism.
What comparison did you think I was making?
The Lidice massacre was the complete destruction of the village of Lidice in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, which is now a part of the Czech Republic, in June 1942 on orders from Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and acting Reichsprotektor Kurt Daluege, successor to Reinhard Heydrich. It has gained historical attention as one of the most documented instances of German war crimes during the Second World War, particularly given the deliberate killing of children.
In reprisal for the assassination of Reich Protector Heydrich in the late spring of 1942, all 173 men from the village who were over 15 years of age were executed on 10 June 1942.
Fast forward 82 years and the political establishments in Europe and the US are cheering on the deaths of nearly 200,000 men, women and children in a televised Genocide in a similarly occupied territory, Gaza. Disgusting.
Unsurprisingly the avid Zionist supporter – millionaire knight of the realm – and leader of the Labour party Sir Keir Starmer who is now the UK’s PM, is rewarding Israel’s war crimes by opening fresh and strong new trade deal talks with them.
“Tim Bierley from Global Justice Now said: “The government is effectively rewarding Israel for its war crimes, pursuing deeper trade ties even while the country is committing grave human rights abuses in Gaza.”
https://archive.is/n2Oi2#selection-1797.3-1797.211
Philippe Sands, who is a professor of law at University College London and a visiting professor at Harvard law school, said the ICJ ruling also affected the legality of imports from Israeli settlements to the UK and other countries.
“Anything that is produced in the occupied territories, such as food, or that is sold there over the internet, is in principle subject to the international prohibition, if it can be said to aid or assist in the maintenance of the unlawful occupation,” he said.
Many Israeli products originate in the OPT, including wine from the Golan Heights the UK government must ban all these products.
Harry Law
Harry.
I think Israeli products used to have/use the barcode numbers (729) – however the EU and other pro-Israeli markets have aided Israel by shall we say disguising the origins of some of their goods – which makes it more difficult to boycott them.
The number refers to the country of origin of the barcode not the product.
https://www.ipsc.ie/press-releases/a-note-on-barcodes-israel-has-not-changed-its-barcode-to-defeat-bds
My default position is that on every score Israel lies, and until or unless sound evidence can be brought to show it is not lying, the lie remains. I have read now several accounts of the Majdal Shams tragic incident (although not from the BBC except from the above) and nothing I have read suggests to me that Israel is doing anything other than continue to lie.
We can make known evidence of the lying. For example, I’m reading Susan Nathan’s The Other Side of Israel, a good expose of Israeli apartheid – of the unfair discrimination experienced by Palestinians daily and throughout their lives. This book needs to be made known to people who believe Israel’s claims not to practice racist discrimination (Netanyahu took non-European poster boys with him to Congress, as well as Noa Argamani). Just as the books and videos of Ilan Pappe and Miko Peled need to be made known to anyone who believes other Zionist myths, such as Israel having a land without a people before the Zionists arrived, or that Zionists made the desert bloom where it was barren before.
“A great day for democracy. In a few hours time I shall raise a glass of Lagavulin to Nicolas Maduro and the revolution in Venezuela.”
Of course, Craig has never been to Venezuela, does not read or speak Spanish and is not a historian of the region. But never fear, he’s still an expert! Never let ignorance interfere with aplomb and don’t be deterred by the misery of others, including the millions of Venezuelans who have left the country, because they can’t share Craig’s joy…..
Hugo Chavez greatly improved the lives of working people in Venezuela — for a time. But democratic norms had already begun to unravel before he left office, and Maduro is an out and out authoritarian, with the usual caudillo features — outlaw and imprison the opposition, administrative torture, state censorship, sham elections, etc. etc. etc.
It’s true that U.S. sanctions, which took their worst form under Craig’s hero, Donald J. Trump, have decimated the economy. But this downward spiral began long before…
11 years of Maduro and now 6 more! What’s a mere 17 years of misrule? As enjoyed from Scotland, anyway….
A little bit of advice (unsolicited but evidently much-needed): when you post something like “Craig’s hero, Donald J. Trump”, which is easily exposed as brainless nonsense by just a few seconds spent searching for the word “Trump” on this blog, you dispose readers to think that everything else you write is probably brainless nonsense as well. Pity, because up to that point you were doing quite well. A poor ignorant fool like me might easily imagine that you knew what you were talking about!
Thanks for the advice, but Craig a few days ago praised Trump’s “heroism” and was nothing if not admiring of the man and his supposed excellent qualities on display (perhaps unaware that Trump now claims his life was spared because he’s God’s divine tool and who is now selling $300 sneakers which celebrate the event?). The most generous interpretation for these enthusiasms is an excess of reactive despite directed against U.S. government institutions which (say what you like) have at least some dedicated and principled civil servants working in them.
These are government employees Trump wants to replace with Trump-loving “loyalists” so the “deep state” doesn’t conflict with his personal desires, which was a great source of frustration during his first term (in some quarters the “deep state” is called the “rule of law”).
Google “Section F” if you think this is fantasy or calumny.
So you fantasise that Trump is my hero, as well? Please yourself! I fear that you’re beyond help. But do use that search facility, if you seriously wish to avoid making a fool of yourself here. (For me, alas, I fear that that boat has already sailed. But perhaps, unlike me, you can still be saved. Repent now, before it’s too late!) 🙂
Who said anything about *your* enthusiasms? Of course, calling someone stupid is a convenient way to avoid refuting his arguments. But even that offense I declined to comment on. Your views are of no interest in this discussion.
That aside, you can place your worries and fears for my soul in the rubbish bin (did I get that Britishism right? probably not). But speaking of salvation, think of your own. Excessively creative readings of internet posts, to attack positions no one actually holds, may be a sign of serious trouble.
Reply (final – this has gone on long enough) to Detrop:
“Excessively creative readings of internet posts, to attack positions no one actually holds, may be a sign of serious trouble.”
Exactly my point, which seems to have been wasted on you, in relation to Craig’s position on Trump.
And if you really didn’t understand my last comment (and aren’t just spoiling for a fight): I was responding to your baseless and (yes) downright stupid insinuation that I would regard a critique of Trump as “fantasy or calumny”. (For the record, I despise the man.)
oh jesus, another ‘lesser of two evils’ fool. Biden is as bad as Trump at least – see the useful Caitlin Johnstone post on the subject. those dedicated government employees for the most part have remained silent on the genocide and the shameful neglect of US citizens as the US continues to support wars all over the world.
[ Mod: This commenter has used a variety of names:
Detrop, Deptrop, dewitt, delaneyw, jake winslow, James Dickenson, Postkey, James Charles
and email addresses:
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Long-term ban recommended, unless a single identity is used from now on. ]
—
Strange, how the ad hominen prevails here (that, and censored posts). But that aside:
Being deeply interested in governance and well-informed in the matter, you’ve reviewed Biden’s legislative history, agency appointments and regulatory issuings, and compared them to Trump’s and before him, Obama’s. Yes?
And of course you’ve examined public spending, social welfare programs, environmental regulation, government interventions, etc. etc. etc., and compared them with earlier administrations, notably Trump’s, since he’s the one at issue?
And yet knowing all this, you say there’s no difference between Biden and Trump. Strange….. That, or you’re simply not interested in, or informed about, government?
Of course, the all of nothing approach is great — from the peanut gallery. Biden is a horror on Israel, therefore who cares, especially if you don’t even live in the U.S.?
The real world operates somewhat different, however. Even when Craig’s ideals aren’t met, you tend not to give up, unless you’re not involved in the first place.
There’s this guy Chomsky — you may have heard of him, he may even be better informed that you are — who definitely sees a life and death difference between the parties. But the peanut gallery doesn’t. Pretty funny, if it had no consequences.
(Replying again, against my better judgement, to another comment so gratuitously irritating that it counts as a word that we are not allowed to use here …)
What’s really strange is that this is a page of comments on a blog post that is primarily about Majdal Shams, briefly also mentions Venezuela – and doesn’t mention Trump at all, even in passing, yet you see fit to march in with hobnail boots on making the ridiculously false allegation that Craig hero-worships Trump, then ignore advice to check your facts before smearing the forum host in this way, repeat the same insinuation about me, and then smear the entire forum as a “peanut gallery”!
To put it mildly, you’re not making a good impression! (I write that as someone who also tends not to make a good impression on people, and therefore has been straining to give you the benefit of the doubt.) I can only suggest that you take a deep breath, pause for a good long time, and then start again from the beginning, with less irrelevance, and a great deal more respect.
I’m being as polite as I can, other than by completely ignoring you, which is the advice usually given for dealing with such posters, and which is what I shall try a bit harder to do from now on.
It’s because despite all their hardships the Venezuelan people have consistently looked at your preferred candidates and thought, “Yes, we remember you guys… We know you very well indeed.”
The starting point for any discussion on Venezuela must always be the injustice of the 930 sanctions levelled against it over the last 10 years and the 642 billion dollars worth stolen from the Venezuelan people as a result. In fact there is no point in any discussion without their being factored in.
Aim the bullets of criticism at those bastions of “democracy and freedom” that have inflicted so much harm on the Venezuelan people. As I have read it, working people voted for Maduro, rich people for USA stooge Gonzales and his cheerleader the female Guaidó, Machado, who treasonably supports sanctions against her own people and who would be happy for a USA invasion.
Yes, and who stole the Venezuelan gold ?
“Hugo Chavez greatly improved the lives of working people in Venezuela — for a time. But democratic norms had already begun to unravel before he left office, and Maduro is an out and out authoritarian, with the usual caudillo features — outlaw and imprison the opposition, administrative torture, state censorship, sham elections, etc. etc. etc.”
I never knew that.
It’s the liberal-imperialist propaganda pushed by everyone from Macron to Bernie Sanders and AOC.
In the heyday of the UK Empire we brought Christianity to savage countries – or so we said. Plenty of commentators could see that invasion, slavery and looting were not exactly Christian values but their voices were drowned out until that religious fig leaf was exposed by two world wars.
In its place the US Empire has used the pretext of bringing Democracy to ‘failed states.’ That falsehood is now being exposed to such a degree that the Empire itself has effectively jettisoned the notion of counting people’s votes reliably, as we see today in Venezuela and will see in the US come November.
Christianity was certainly used as justification by the British and other colonizers, but the British also used liberalism as the Americans do today. They did not fool many. Visiting Africa and Asia in the 1960s, Conor Cruise O’Brien, a liberal fundamentalist, discovered that many people in former colonies were ‘sickened by the word “liberalism”’. They saw it as an ‘ingratiating moral mask which a toughly acquisitive society wears before the world it robs’. Pankaj Mishra has written some excellent stuff on how British liberalism was received and understood in the lands that it stripped clean.
I noticed earlier today that Avasarala in The Expanse (a TV sci-fi) likes Lagavulin too. Nice to see that normal Venezuelans are showing Cuban fortitude.
I fear that I don’t merit that honour. ;O)
Thanks Mods,,,
and Squeeth…
I miss Him
One just need to look how differently the west/media spoke, when the rabid, pro-israel, neo-liberal fascist-light nutter in Argentine, Javier Milei won the election in Argentine last year. But as a soon as there is a left-wing candidate the western media all of a sudden claim that this candidate is illegitimate. Maduro, Corbyn, Sanders, Chavez, the list could go on.
Since Milei was elected in Argentina, the argentinian economy has been crashing down to record-low levels and people are out protesting in the streets, but of course, the western media, politicians is then nowhere to be found with condemnations, sanctions etc.
Under President Milei, the worst economic crisis in decades puts Argentine ingenuity to the test
https://apnews.com/article/argentina-economy-crisis-javier-milei-president-peronist-crisis-8a8ac450fa5f7942f61ab092fdd4ed15
Jack
There are some differences between the election in Argentina and that in Venezuela.
One is that Milei was an outsider, a smarter version of Trump. He didn’t have the support of the Argentine State. And every alternative offering was just kicking the can down the road.
Maduro on the other hand controls the State power in Venezuela. The opposition, however flawed, do not.
It is likely that Maduro’s militias ensured his victory.
Venezuela perhaps offers a vision of what is left for Argentina if populist corruption and extreme economic liberalism both fail?
Read the link below, US/west have a long history of targeting left-wing candidates in Latin America.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_involvement_in_regime_change_in_Latin_America
You never see the US/west arming, funding violent left-wing oppositonal groups trying to unseat neo-liberal, right-wingers, only the other way around…
Democrats wouldn’t dream of supporting right-wing coups against socialist governments. They would leave such dirty work to Republicans. Disapproving, of course. So Republican Eisenhower helped the coup in Iran, and Republican Nixon in Chile. Maduro’s a bit tricky, he might get away with it, because there won’t be another Republican President around for quite some time, I hope 🙂
The 1964 coup in Brazil against Goulart and the 1965 coup in Indonesia against Sukarno both happened while LBJ was president. The 2009 coup in Honduras against Zelaya happened under Obama (and Secretary of State Hillary).
Lula (Brazilian President) – no US pawn he – said according to the NYT:
“Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the president of Brazil and a longtime leader within the region’s leftist movement, released a cautious statement that did not congratulate the president on his win.
“The Brazilian government welcomes the peaceful nature of yesterday’s elections in Venezuela and is following the counting process closely,” Mr. Lula’s government said in the statement. “In this context, it awaits the publication by the National Electoral Council of data broken down by polling station, an indispensable step for the transparency, credibility and legitimacy of the election result.””
JK redux,
Fair.
If the stats will reveal electoral inconsistences – then so be it – one way or the other – to let the truth emerge.
JK redux,
And further to your point:-
” The Carter Center, which sent a team of electoral observers to Venezuela for the election, also called on the electoral authority to immediately publish the presidential voting results by polling station.”
The Carter Center work with the NDI (National Democratic Institute), an offshoot of the infamous “National Endowement for Democracy” which is somewhat of CIA-light soft-power organization. On top of it the center recieves funding from Soros, Bill Gates, EU and even UK’s Department for International Development.
Source: https://www.influencewatch.org/non-profit/the-carter-center/
Yeah the typical, the western backed oppositon do not win… and just like that it is allegedly “election fraud”.
“Without evidence, the opposition talks about electoral fraud and refuses to recognize defeat in Venezuela”
https://www.brasildefato.com.br/2024/07/29/without-evidence-the-opposition-talks-about-electoral-fraud-and-refuses-to-recognize-defeat-in-venezuela
By mere raising the topic of alleged voting fraud and that without any evidence, the ball is in motion, amplified by the western media.
Jack,
Doubts have not yet been put to rest:-
https://www.straitstimes.com/world/oas-department-says-results-announced-by-venezuela-cannot-be-recognized
OAS is a well known pro-american organisation. Even the HQ lies in Washington.
“It is likely that Maduro’s militias ensured his victory”
Why so?
Johnny Conspiranoid
By interfering in the electoral process, removing ballot boxes etc.
I interpreted the question ‘Why so?’ as asking: ‘Why is it likely that Maduro’s militias ensured his victory?’, rather than asking for details of how this alleged feat might have been carried out.
Kirth Gerson
Do bears shit in the woods?
Regimes that support armed militias tend to use them.
Eg Iran.
What does that even mean, what “militias”?
” people are out protesting in the streets, ”
Speaking of which:-
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/7/29/venezuela-election-observers-urge-transparency-as-maduro-claims-victory
Pears Morgaine.
Ah yes – the wealthy (US) backed groups who tried to force the Obama lookalike on the poorer Venezuelan public – namely Juan Guaido, are up in arms because their and the (USA’s) plan to oust President Maduro didn’t go to plan.
So what next? well the plan is to try and revive the the Gang of Obedient Thieves in the Lima Group – such is the (USA’s) desperation to remove Maduro and replace him a (US) minded capitalist puppet.
https://wikispooks.com/wiki/Document:The_Lima_Group:_International_Outlaws
It would appear though that the Venezuelan government have already made moves to protect their sovereignty.
“The Government of Venezuela ordered on Monday all its diplomatic personnel from Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Peru, Panama, the Dominican Republic and Uruguay to withdraw and demanded the immediate expulsion of representatives from these countries from Venezuela, after they refused to accept the victory of President Nicolás Maduro in the elections on July 28.”
https://www.telesurenglish.net/venezuelan-government-withdraws-the-diplomatic-personnel-from-seven-latin-american-nations/
Protests still ongoing
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/7/30/more-protests-loom-in-venezuela-as-opposition-disputes-election-results .
Of course nobody would have grounds to protest about a regime that has engaged in torture, extra-judicial killings and overseen economic collapse. Over 7 million have left the country (which also has the world’s highest crime rate); that’s more – and greater proportion of the population – than have fled Ukraine since 2022.
Hope Craig enjoyed his whisky.
I’ll take Maduro over any of the death squad leaders that America has spawned in Central and South America.
Men like Roberto D’Aubuisson who with his band of merry torturers murdered thousands in El Salvadore – long drawn out medieval barbarism leading to death. Famed himself for throwing babies in the air and shooting or stabbing them. He acquired his nickname “Blow Torch Bob” for his penchant for conducting interrogations with, of course, a blowtorch
He was trained at the School of the Americas, a US Army venue used to produce the psychokillers required by American domination of the hemisphere. The Venezuelan opposition will contain many similar rich white racists as D’Aubuisson, all eager to stop Maduro building another two million council houses to add to the millions that have been built already. America and international capital and rich Venezuelans hate him, so I guess he can’t be all bad lol
I note that the BBC article posted three hours ago ” Hezbollah, Israel and the Golan Heights: What is happening?” states that the Hezbollah movement is banned as terrorist organisation by Gulf states and the Arab league. However it was widely reported at the end of June 2024 that the Arab League no loner designates Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation (as reported in Israeli paper Haaretz).
Even more remarkable was the statement that the settlements (Golan Heights) are considered illegal under international law, though Israel disputes this.
That had me chuckling to myself (I don’t know why).
BBC News is sh!t and the quality of output has ALWAYS been sh!t.
It’s taken the internet and alternative news sources to shine the light on a thoroughly discredited organisation.
BBC propaganda has fewer and fewer customers…
Certainly the BBC immediate conclusion Hezbollah fired the rocket is not based on any independent evidence. At least we deserved a journalistic investigation, particularly as Hezbollah have denied responsibility and some witnesses are adamant it was an Iron Dome missile. I don’t believe false flags start from the top; however, since there exist many extreme racists down the chain in the IDF, and the fact the Olympics are on, there are enough grounds to speculate Israel was responsible.
An article in Sputnik News reports that the Hezbollah Falaq missile has a 50kg warhead which leaves a 1.5 to 3 metre crater, whilst an Israeli Tamir (Iron Dome) missile has a 15kg warhead. The evidence at the site suggests a small warhead was the culprit ! Oh, and the Israelis won’t allow an independent review !!
Fewer than 1 in 8 adults in Scotland tuned in to BBC last year. That will go lower.
btw Chris Hedges will talk to Atef Abu Saif this week Wednesday on his channel. Saif was in Gaza on Oct. 7th. And he wrote a book about his experience.
BBC Verify is also part of the operation. Hardly a revelation I know but they make it so insultingly obvious. For example Netanyahu’s lie-fest to Congress last week was exempted from their urgent, diligent “fact checking” mission.
Meanwhile BRICS grows more organised and stronger. The US deep state and Israeli government are truly fighting for their continued existence; I wish there was a way to depose them in a bloodless coup. Unless there are sane people in the professional Israeli army and the US military we could be in for nuclear war; bad for all of us. It seems like US hegemony or we all sink.
“Why is Russia banned from the Olympics but Israel isn´t?”
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/6473c70f6cc62c85db14b6327b1a0b0a69c2a62714ab226370f86f240623d6fd.jpg
[
‘Kiev after 2 years of Russian bombing’
vs
‘Gaza after 2 weeks of Israeli bombing’
]
Israel is an apartheid state, and therefore should be banned from the Olympics, as much as apartheid South Africa.
It´s rhetorical but makes sense only with the image opened. I didn´t know how to not give away its content and effect without not explaining.
Killing Nazis is a crime, killing Arabs isn’t. Simples.
Stevie Boy
Who are these Nazi’s of whom you speak?
These ones. In this case a Ukrainian Nazi banshee being killed by a disillusioned Nazi.
https://thegrayzone.com/2024/07/28/neo-nazi-maidan-assassinated/
Perhaps the same Nazis that Washington brought to power and Europe armed?
Just today in our news:
Czech Member of the European Parliament Kateřina Konečná opposed the arrival of the 3rd Assault Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Prague, because of their neo-Nazi views.
“The Azov* Regiment is the worst manifestation of Ukrainian nationalism and neo-Nazism. The regiment was founded by Andrei Biletsky nicknamed the “White Leader”, a racist, a member of the Right Sector (now the commander of the 3rd assault brigade). It’s led by a neo-Nazi and football hooligan of the Kiev “Dynamo” Denis Prokopenko,” she wrote in a letter to the Czech Foreign Minister.
She also recalled that the actions of Azov* had already raised questions among Western leaders.
“The activities of this regiment have been criticized in the past, including by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights,” the MP noted.
Earlier, German media reported that the Ukrainian nationalist association Azov* had to cancel a performance in Berlin due to protests from a number of public groups and organizations. Events in Hamburg, Rotterdam, Cologne and Brussels were also canceled.
*Every input of the name in our media gets an asterisk mark and a footnote * Terrorist organization banned in Russia
Machadoro says she has “proof” that they won 70% of the vote.
Like the IDF I would like to see this proof. But I’m sure the ‘proof’ will not be shown.
Also the IDF has “proof” that Hezbollah killed the kids in the Golan heights. Not seen that either but for the BBC and The Guardian et al and the US says it’s true.
Coming from a State broadcaster who declaimed this morning that Hamas “Invaded Israel on October the 7th” then his University hasn’t taught him about history or he really is as stupid as I thought. The latter is my opinion.
The MSM is full of these uncurious people but if you rely on X – Facebook and The New York Times for guidance then this is the result.
I have no idea who won the Venezuelan election, and I have no idea where to look for realistic reporting – certainly not the sources you list, which have become propaganda outlets.
Likewise the Ukraine situation except that it is clear Russia is advancing inexorably.
I’ve just seen the news that Anjem Choudary has been given life (minimum 28 years) for directing Al-Muhajiroun, in particular by giving online lectures that American agents infiltrated. I haven’t followed the details of the case, but assuming that he didn’t actually tell a specific person to go out and attack people with some weapon, am I unique in thinking that this sounds like punishing thoughtcrime, and so is a threat to freedom of speech, a civil liberties issue? I remember news of someone getting 7 years for holding a poster saying ‘Bomb bomb USA’ -the jury found him guilty of incitement to murder.
Incitement to murder doesn’t come any clearer than arming a country to carry on …….murdering people. For the BBC and all – this has been on their own screens so I haven’t made it up. Honestly.
No proof yet from the Opposition in Venezuela and the IDF in The Golan Heights. Still waiting.
By the way, for the difference between Biden and Trump. On the public political surface it looks different. In the economic sphere (politics being concentrated economics) they both agree with the Trickle Down Theory and its base – Neo liberal economics.
As do the ‘Democrats’ around all the Western World. It’s a difference in method and not an argument about the political/economic principle. The different ways of skinning a cat routine.
Why is the World Blind
For Rich men that are Evil
And Israel
It is pathetic to see the inaction by the arab states, Israel just bombed an arab capital and there is no reaction. Israel really have close to 500 arab muslims under their thumb, this is even humilitating to watch from afar, not being arab/muslim.
Aslong as the immediate neighbours to Israel do nothing about this sick regime, no one else will, that is tragic reality of things and the very reason Israel have an absolute free hand to do whatever it feels like for the day.