Abolishing Democracy in Europe 178


On 4 October I spoke to a meeting of the United European Left group of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. Arriving a bit early, I sat through a presentation by a Moldovan judge, Victoria Sanduta, who was formerly the President of the Association of Judges in Moldova.

She had recently been dismissed, along with other judges, after investigation by a committee set up by the President to vet judges. She said the “vetting” was openly political, and the purpose was to remove any judges who were not “Western-oriented” and who might query the process in a forthcoming EU referendum and Presidential election.

You might think that this was an operation to clear out legacy judges hanging on since the days of the Iron Curtain. It was not; Victoria Sanduta is quite young. There had been no criticism of her judicial decisions. Her fault was that she was suspected of not supporting the President and lacking “Western orientation”.

Both the EU referendum and Presidential election were remarkably close. The EU referendum was “won” by the pro-EU side with 50.34% of the vote. The Presidential election was “won” by pro-EU President Sandu with 55.35% of the vote.

In both elections, the pro-Western side lost substantially on the votes of those living in Moldova, but won with the addition of hundreds of thousands of votes from the diaspora overseas.

There were 235 overseas voting stations in countries outside of Moldova, the large majority within the EU. There were however only two voting stations in Russia – the country where the majority of the Moldovan diaspora live, over half a million of them. Those voting stations (both in Moscow) were provided with only 5,000 ballot papers each. The official justification for this is that that’s the number of Moldovans living in Moscow itself, the majority being in the south of Russia.

As a result, approximately half a million Moldovans living in Russia were disenfranchised, while hundreds of thousands living in the EU voted.

In total 328,855 Moldovans living outside Moldova voted. Only 9,998 of those were in Russia, where most of the diaspora live.

Almost 300,000 of the permitted diaspora votes were for joining the EU – won with a majority of 10,555 – and for President Sandu – majority 179,309. If votes from the diaspora in Russia had been permitted on an equal footing with votes from the diaspora in the West, the EU would certainly have lost and Sandu would very probably have lost.

It was therefore very useful that Sandu sacked any judge who might entertain a challenge to the outcome.

This naturally recurred to me when I saw that pro-Western judges had disqualified the frontrunner in the neighbouring Romanian general election on the grounds of not being a Russophobe and being popular, which is an offence.

Călin Georgescu is not a supporter of the war in Ukraine. His socially conservative views are popular in Romania but are not EU-friendly. However he is absolutely not the far-right nutter he has been portrayed as across the Western media.

In fact Georgescu is a highly regarded developmental economist and a former United Nations Special Rapporteur. His expertise is in sustainable development, and he is one of those who wishes nations to move away from use of the US dollar as the primary medium of trade.

Georgescu has some views with which I agree and some with which I do not, but that is not the point. He won the first round of the Romanian Presidential Elections with a clear lead, and the decision of the judges of the Constitutional Court to disqualify him is clearly wrong and disproportionate.

The main offence he is accused of is sending lines to take to supporters and asking them to post these on social media. But almost every election candidate in the world nowadays does exactly this. It is further claimed that some of his supporters were paid by Russia, and the Constitutional Court was given evidence which originated from “Western security services” of Russian online campaigning for him.

Note the accusation here is not vote-rigging or electoral fraud. The accusation is of people saying things online to try to persuade voters to vote.

Which is what an election is.

It is the same as the Cambridge Analytica scandal which was so hysterically hyped by the Guardian and their deranged Russophobe Carole Cadwalladr (friend of Christopher Steele, author of the famous fabricated Trump “pee dossier”). There was a scandal, which was that Facebook was selling clients’ personal data to enable better targeting of political adverts.

But Cambridge Analytica was never Russian-funded, and the notion that some Facebook posts, among the massive sea of advertising and campaigning of every kind, had swung the Brexit vote is nonsense clung to by losers who cannot get over being defeated.

Targeted advertising, and the sale of your online data, is a horrible, everyday feature of modern life. All political parties and all causes use it nowadays.

I have no doubt Russia does interfere to try to influence elections overseas. So does every major country. I did it myself for the UK – unsuccessfully in Poland when Kwaśniewski was elected and successfully in Ghana when Kufuor was elected. The EU and Western powers fund NGOs and fund journalists all over the world to sway opinion, openly, and covertly Western security services fund “agents of influence”. Let me say it again. I have done it personally.

However it becomes somehow uniquely wrong when Russia does it.

That is not even to mention the absolutely massive role of the Israeli lobby in buying political influence all over the world. That is a far greater threat to democracy than Russia ever is.

I don’t know how Romania’s judges were curated to get the right result, as they were in Moldova, or how they were forced or bribed to change their original decision not to annul the election, just four days later.

I do know that regime change propaganda is in full swing in Georgia, where again the “wrong” party, insufficiently hostile to Russia, had the temerity to win the election. The French President of Georgia is hanging on. Not even large sums of CIA money nor funds channelled through CIA NGOs, nor beautifully printed English language placards, have been able to get enough people out on the streets to make the “colour revolution” demonstrations look convincing.

Georgian opposition supporters rally to protest results of the parliamentary elections that showed a win for the ruling Georgian Dream party, outside the parliament building in central Tbilisi on October 28, 2024. (Photo by Giorgi ARJEVANIDZE / AFP)

Meanwhile back in France, Macron refuses to accept he lost the election and insists on appointing a series of right-wing ministers that cannot possibly get support in the National Assembly.

The pretence of Western Democracy is falling apart, just as the pretence of international law is falling apart, abandoned by the Zionist-bought politicians in their desire to further the genocide and annexation of Gaza.

 

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178 thoughts on “Abolishing Democracy in Europe

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  • Overlordnat

    You’re absolutely right about democracy being under threat in the West, you could have added the fact that Zelensky declared martial law, while his idiotic Russophobic supporters cheered, and mentioned your own wrongful arrests too.

  • Harry Law

    Victoria Nuland bragged about spending $5 billion dollars on NGO’s in the run up to the Ukrainian coup.
    in a December 2013 speech by Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland to the U.S.-Ukraine Foundation, a non-governmental agency that promotes democracy in the former Soviet republic.
    “Since Ukraine’s independence in 1991, the United States has supported Ukrainians as they build democratic skills and institutions, as they promote civic participation and good governance, all of which are preconditions for Ukraine to achieve its European aspirations,” she said. “We have invested over $5 billion to assist Ukraine in these and other goals that will ensure a secure and prosperous and democratic Ukraine.” https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2014/mar/19/facebook-posts/united-states-spent-5-billion-ukraine-anti-governm/

    • Stevie Boy

      The playbook is quite clear.
      Pick some disaffected groups within the target country, students, religious groups, minority groups, opposition groups;
      Infiltrate these groups and supply them with plenty of funding, via embassies;
      Send in the corrupted NGOs, Amnesty, AIPAC, BBC, to help organise dissent;
      Start to flood the MSM with stories about how the disaffected groups are being oppressed, lack of democracy;
      Fund (bribe) politicians to enact new laws to favour the disaffected groups and western agendas;
      Target elections.
      We’ve seen this multiple times and I would suggest it has, and is, being used in the UK currently by Israel and the USA.

      • Pyewacket

        Stevie, with respect to your final line about US/Israeli influence over UK political outcomes. Iirc, several years ago, around the time Shai Masot was running around bragging about having a million-dollar fund to buy the electoral results they wanted, Mike Pompeo addressed the Jewish Board of Deputies assuring them that Jeremy Corbyn would never become Prime Minister, and that, to that end, he would “have to run the Gauntlet”, and so it came to pass. Despite Corbyn’s huge popularity and surge in Labour Party membership, he lost, by means fair or foul, depending on one’s opinion. We may also consider the decades-long influences exerted by the respective parties Friends of Israel cliques; in fact it seems to me, pretty hard to find an MP who isn’t a member. Kind regards.

        • Stevie Boy

          Tatyana. It’s not clear from your link that Greenpeace were actually commissioned to make a report for NATO – it seems to be in-house/independent. However, I agree that they are, and have been for quite a while, getting too involved in dirty biased western politics.

          • Madison

            Anyone who says that Nato is better than Russia is obviously wrong. Goes without saying. But it’s good to see that the vigilante is here, 24/7

          • Tatyana

            Madison, I’m not sure if you mean me by ‘vigilante’ 🙂 Still I’ll answer as if you did.
            My point was that Greenpeace is the least expected organisation to make comparison on military power. I can’t think of anyone less likely to do so. Stray dog ​​rescuers? Tibetan monks?
            Well, regarding 24/7 – I’m thinking of installing an online camera in my workshop so that everyone can see me working and commenting on this site during breaks. It would be both fun and useful if you’re interested in jeweller’s work.
            Do you craft, by chance?

        • AG

          re: GREENPEACE study – so far no indication the 3 or 4 authors of that study are NATO-assets.

          It is opposed to higher NATO expenditure and AGAINST getting into a new arms race with RU.

          This is why this study has been extensively quoted and used by all those who are in favour of talking to RU, opting for peace etc. i.e. the peace movement in Germany.

          So on that level it is antiwar.

          My personal contention with this study is however: I have the impression the authors lack serious military expertise. The kind which would take into account that – and I am sorry to reference Andrei Martyanov here, but on certain strictly military issues he better shouldn´t be ignored – RU has in fact overtaken NATO and the US in many areas.

          Nothing of that kind of info can be found in this study. Amazingly. Or not? I sense the usual hubris toward all things Russian here which has resulted in a very biased piece which deserves not the term scholarly work. But what is it then? PR?

          So in a rather twisted kind of way Tatyana´s suspicion is not entirely wrong…

          I have more substance to my criticism of the GREENPEACE study strictly in military categories in a commentary in the Ukraine forum which I have put together quickly:
          https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/forums/topic/ukraine-date-nov-2023/page/37/#post-102250

  • Greg Park

    Do not forget Germany, the weirdest and most ridiculous of all European “democracies.”

    The Germans allowed Genocide Joe to follow through on his threat to destroy their critical infrastructure, their industrial economy and their standard of living, without a peep of protest from any political party or media outlet, whether of the left, right or centre.

    What have ordinary Germans gained from this bargain between close allies? Answers on a postcard to the Guardian newspaper, York Way, London N1.

    • Pyewacket

      Too true Greg. I can quite easily understand why there hasn’t been a peep out of Germany’s bought and paid for media (hat tip to the now deceased Udo Uttofke), but what about the German people? Millions have had their lives and livelihoods damaged, hurt or destroyed but we hear nothing of their collective reaction, or, perhaps I’ve missed it. Meanwhile; war mongering, tree-hugger Annalena 360 states that supporting the Ukrainian fascists is far more important that the lives of her electorate. Madness abounds.

  • Stevie Boy

    Yes, and on a similar theme:
    ‘Give me the child and I’ll give you the man …’
    “Congress has just passed a new bill that will see the U.S. spend huge sums of money redesigning much of the public school system around the ideology of anti-communism.”
    https://www.mintpressnews.com/congress-revives-cold-war-tactics-with-new-anti-communism-school-curriculum/288830/
    Similarly:
    https://dailysceptic.org/2024/12/14/2025-is-the-un-deadline-for-all-countries-to-integrate-climate-propaganda-into-their-school-curriculum/
    The west is brainwashing the young to prevent independent thought and to push approved narratives. In future, citizens will come pre-loaded with the correct newspeak.

    • Pyewacket

      My seven year old Granddaughter proudly informed me t’other week that Thomas Farriner’s bakery was responsible for starting the Great Fire of London in 1666, and last month, around November 5th, that Guy Fawkes had tried to blow up Parliament because he didn’t like some things the King had said. My 34 year old son, who, as an infant had attended the same school, tells me they were told exactly the same when he was there. But, somehow, they’re never told about the English civil war or the Glorious Revolution or the founding of the Bank of England, in fact they’re never mentioned. KISS I suppose “Keep it simple, stupid” !

  • Tom74

    And let’s not forget close to home: Johnson’s hard Brexit, the covid lockdowns and the British support for Zelenskiyy’s Ukraine never had any democratic mandate, or even meaningful debates and votes in Parliament. The ruling elite seem to do what they want to; pressure or smear political leaders who are not on board; then peddle their propaganda and threats via the mainstream media and industrial-scale trolling. The public are only ‘allowed’ to debate relatively insignificant or else very divisive matters, while important issues are presented as closed (Labour’s Brexit stance is the classic example, where half the voters, who supported Remain, have no voice in Parliament).

      • Nota Tory Fanboy

        You must be joking! Starmer’s position is worse than the official campaign position of Vote Leave, BeLeave and Leave.EU: they all said that there was no question of leaving the Single Market or Customs Union but Starmer has point blank stated that he won’t ever entertain the idea of returning to them. Now, you could say that neither the Leave campaigns, nor Starmer can be trusted – and you’d be correct. However, this is a stance on which Starmer has not flipped since coming to power (both as Labour leader and then as PM) so it’s one of his few leadership policies in which he has been consistent (as opposed to what he and Emily Thornberry declared to over a million people marching for a confirmatory referendum).

        • Stevie Boy

          Absolutely. Here’s the joke, democracy takes a step backwards …
          “A team of over 100 civil servants is being assembled to run the UK’s negotiations with Brussels, with insiders saying its purpose is to invalidate the 2016 vote to leave the EU. … Everyone in this Government really wants to rejoin the EU one day. Only public opinion is stopping them.”
          https://www.gbnews.com/politics/keir-starmer-brexit-betrayal-surrender-squad-eu-reset-plan

          • Nota Tory Fanboy

            Wow you really are out of date; public opinion has been consistently against Brexit and pro-Rejoining for the overwhelming majority of opinion polls (from a wide variety of pollsters) since 2016. Demographics alone would account for that.

            Oh, you mean like when the Tories diverted civil servant resource away from pandemic preparedness to preparing for Brexit instead, all whilst knowingly lying to Parliament that their individual sector impact assessments didn’t exist?

            You really need better sources than Garbage Bastard “News”…

          • glenn_nl

            SB: “Only public opinion is stopping them.”

            Utter tosh. The Sun, Express, Mail and other non-dom billionaire owned media owners might not like it, but public opinion is in favour of rejoining the EU.

            Do you watch GB news much, SB? It would go some way to explaining some of your curiously reactionary (not to say bigoted) viewpoints.

  • A - Lister

    Take the UK, where you have no choice between parties with policies that are identical. When there was a real choice, a progressive one, it was monstered out of existence by the antisemitism scam and undermined by its own party infiltrated with zionists. By 2024 there was no real choice left. In Romania and Georgia they had enough of a democracy left to actually offer a choice to the electorate. The electorate chose and their choice was then undermined after the election, rather than before. Democracy is dead. Oligarchies presently rule in all of the USA’s “allies”.

    • Anthony

      Has any politician, other than George Galloway, ever acknowledged that the “Labour anti-semitism crisis” was an unscrupulous establishment scam?

      Can it ever be acknowledged?

        • Anthony

          McDonnell was one of the main promoters of the anti-semitism psyop on the left. His role in legitimating a crude establishment scam will never be forgotten or forgiven.

          • Nota Tory Fanboy

            Really?! News to me… At the very least I think during the last GE campaign he was saying that the anti-Semitism stuff was a nonsense campaign against Corbyn?

        • Anthony

          Yes, two in total; and look how Wilkinson and Galloway are portrayed by all the respectable scammers. They are even more demonized than Corbyn himself. That’s why it’s impossible to believe the politicians and the media will ever acknowledge the Labour anti-semitism crisis was an antidemocratic scam, much less the greatest one in British political history. (Along with the 2nd ref/PV psyop, also implemented to destroy Corbyn/meaningful democracy in the UK).

  • Harry Law

    Abolishing democracy is only the half of it, International law has been replaced by the ‘Rules based order’ i.e, might makes right or so the Neocons think, the US makes the rules, others must follow the orders. The rules change whenever some geopolitical event occurs, like the following….
    Israel better get moving it seems Turkey is going to compete with Israel for a bigger share of the pie.
    Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, at a rally in Sakarya on the evening of December 13, 2024, announced his intention to include a number of Syrian cities, such as Aleppo, Idlib, Damascus and Raqqa, into Turkey.
    “Aleppo, Idlib, Damascus and Raqqa will become our provinces, like Antep, Hatay and Urfa,” – Erdoğan said, drawing thunderous applause from the crowd.
    This statement immediately caused a wide international resonance. The words of the Turkish leader were called a gross violation of Syria’s sovereignty and a contradiction to international law.
    Подробнее на: https://avia-pro.net/news/prezident-turcii-redzhep-erdogan-zayavil-o-namereniyah-okkupirovat-siriyu

      • SA

        The head choppers in Syria are a convenient intermediate way of softening up the process of takover by others, including Turkey and Israel. It seems to me that there will be no conflict between the two. Both are going to be protected by the west. Erdoğan has learnt that the US and vassals are unlikely to react to their allies as witnessed by the carte blanche given to Israel. In fact what we have now is a situation where Israel can assasinate anyone in the world without any comeback. This is horrifying to contemplate.
        So now that the head choppers are in charge and Israel has completely destroyed Syria’s army and air force, the west can easily now send NATO to save the defenseless Syrians from the head choppers, but of course not Israel. The script has already been written, what Al Jolani doesn’t know yet is that he is a mere cat’s paw who will be disposed of very soon in order to save democracy in Syria and allow Israel more lebenraum.

    • Pyewacket

      Harry, I too saw that, including the accompanying Map, in which the greatly expanded Türkiye was coloured in Red. Also of note, Cyprus was too! Perhaps it was just an error of cartography.

  • SA

    The placards in neat English say it all. The demonstrations are not aimed at Georgian ordinary voters but at EU and Western press and politicians. But the reason why western democracy has died is that western press is now owned by establishment figures. There is absolute concurrence of views on major subjects. There are no dissenting voices in the press. There is no one to hold power to account and there is even collusion in electing those that the establishment favours because of direction by the oligarch owned press. Without independent press and journalism there is no democracy. At least in Russia they still have the Moscow time, a dissident publisher, who is allowed to criticise.

    • Crispa

      “The placards in neat English say it all”. I think you are right and I would stress “neat”. I have been following the Georgian media for several months using Google translate. I have to say that Google Georgian – English machine translation does not do the Georgian language justice as much of it comes out as incomprehensible. The placards are certainly not Georgian in design, written from any Georgian angle or reflect any Georgian line of thought.

    • glenn_nl

      SA: “The placards in neat English say it all. “

      Indeed they do – a duo of Three-Word-Slogans, so beloved by advertising agencies employed by our governments for decades now.

    • Tatyana

      Mamuka Mdinaradze, secretary of the ruling Georgian Dream party, made a statement – 30% of those detained and identified at the protests in Tbilisi are foreign citizens. These people come from Russia, the USA, Great Britain, and the Netherlands.
      I wonder if those Russians are the Bicycle Stormtroopers of Verkhniy Lars?

      • Republicofscotland

        Pears Morgaine

        When the Wests terrorists outfits, are finished turning Syria – into a mad, religious zealots, war torn failed state – the Eye of Sauron will then focus on Africa.

        “Syria is set to go through a prolonged period of chaos now that Bashar Assad’s government has fallen, John Mearsheimer, a professor of political science at the University of Chicago, has predicted.”

        • Pears Morgaine

          ” Syria is set to go through a prolonged period of chaos.. ”

          Gosh that Mearsheimer chap must be a real genius, nobody else could have predicted that. It’s no wonder they made him a Professor. It’s what happens after that period of chaos that will tell us if this revolt has been a real success or not, as it is they’ve rid themselves of a brutal, oppressive dictator and deserve a brief period of celebration. Somebody just has to stop Turkey and Israel carving the place up.

          • SA

            PM
            You seem to ignore that the main reason why Syria has gone through a period of turmoil was exactly due to interference from Türkiye and Israel under the umbrella of the great hegemon. So more of the same, only worse, then.
            I do understand that Assad was a dictator but that is part of the makeup of the region but it seems that some dictators are more equal than others. Also I have yet to find evidence that the benign interference by the great hegemon has shown much evidence of prosperity and democracy in the target nations but has left a trail of failed states rather curiously related to a shopping list of a certain ME ruler of European origin.

          • Pears Morgaine

            People had finally had enough of Assad and the SAA decided he wasn’t worth dying for.

          • Laguerre

            PM
            It was the sanctions and the stealing by the US of Syria’s oil and economic resources that did it, not some fictional disillusionment with Asad. Syrians thought Asad was better than the Jihadi alternative being pushed by the West, which was necessarily going to lead to chaos, as indeed it will now. They weren’t living under some sort of illusion.

          • MR MARK CUTTS

            Pears Morgaine

            Would you care to have a stab who might stop Turkey and Israel carving the place up?

            The US? Nope.

            Russia? Het.

            The dear old oil/land grabbing USA again: No way Jose!

            The UN? Ho! Ho! Ho! said Santa.

            Like the Palestinians they are on their own. Never forget – that we are ruled by cowards – not heroes.

            Donald will do a deal – no doubt. The media is full of ‘hope’.

            Dead easy for Middle Class Liberals to say from a safe distance. Whereas, all the Syrians at Friday Prayers were probably praying for themselves out of fear.

            Frying Pan and Fire – that’s what happening here.

          • Johnny Conspiranoid

            ” Somebody just has to stop Turkey and Israel carving the place up.”
            That could only be Iran or Russia.
            “as it is they’ve rid themselves of a brutal, oppressive dictator and deserve a brief period of celebration.”
            They have acquired a far more brutal and oppressive regime. This is always the case with Western-sponsored regime change.

          • Coldish

            Thanks, Yuri K (18 Dec, 02.55). I know nothing at first hand about Syria, but having lived and worked in Libya I had to watch with horror the wanton and sadistic destruction by western powers of a functioning secular state, where education to university level and a comprehensive health service had been free to all, where women could choose how they dressed and where poverty had been unknown. So I was not surprised when the the same western powers moved on to repeat the process in Syria.

  • Republicofscotland

    “The pretence of Western Democracy is falling apart”

    That’s exactly what it is pretence – take Scotland for example its people have absolutely no route to organising any form of indyref – other than asking a foreign country England if it can hold one – add in that not one party at Holyrood supports Scottish independence – and that half of the parties, are just branch offices of their London HQ’s and are NOT registered with the Electoral Commission as Scottish political parties.

  • Andrew Ingram

    The forces that had your European Court case dismissed without a hearing are the curators you asked about.
    Nobody outside of the judicial gene pool of any country has a chance. Nepotism writ large.

  • El Dee

    There’s no such thing as ‘true democracy’ It’s always somehow managed. But there are better and worse cases of it. I think the worst cases are where it is less obvious because it is so polished, the other countries being more amateurish in their attempts. Of course I could be completely wrong about that as my view of many countries is through the prism of the news media I consume.

    The truth is a movable feast so the closest I get is that I should ‘accept nothing, question everything’ and remember that everyone is both lying and telling the truth at the same time, it is disheartening..

  • Pears Morgaine

    Calin Georgescu has publicly stated hero worship for Ion Antonescu, Romania’s Nazi dictator who led Romania into WW2 alongside Nazi Germany and presided over Romania’s Holocaust, sending over 400,000 mainly Jews and Roma to their deaths. Although his love of conspiracy theories regarding COVID, climate change, moon landings and so on might find resonance amongst some posters here most people see them as the ravings of a yes, far right nutter; not someone fit for high office.

    His campaign benefitted from €1,000,000 from an unknown source which he didn’t declare and can’t account for. Even then he only pulled in 23% of the vote.

    What was somebody saying about democracy?

    • Lysias

      Georgescu had come in first in the first round of the election. Opinion polls indicated he was going to win decisively in the runoff. The excuse for removing him from the ballot was pathetic. So, yes, removing him from the ballot was antidemocratic.

      And he was removed for supremely undemocratic reasons. He wanted to get out of the war for Ukraine, which is very unpopular among Romanians.

      • Pears Morgaine

        Disapproval of the Russian leadership shown in a poll in Romania rose from 37% in 2021 to 79% in 2022.

        If you have any more recent evidence that this has changed please share it otherwise I’m a bit mystified as to how he only got 23% of the vote.

        • Lysias

          Romanians are nationalists. Whatever they may think of Putin, I am sure they.disapprove of this attempt to interfere with their right to vote as they choose.

          As it happens, I was taught Romanian by émigrés in the Defense Language Institute in 1969! So I know their thinking.

    • Yuri K

      Oh wow, how about worshiping of Bandera and Shukhevych in Ukraine? It was under Stepan Bandera’s leadership in April 1941 when OUN declared that they will “combat Jews as supporters of the Muscovite-Bolshevik regime…Ukraine for the Ukrainians! . . . Death to the Muscovite-Jewish commune! Beat the commune, save Ukraine!’ Yet there are about 25 Bandera’s monuments in Ukraine and an avenue in Kiev bears his name. Roman Shukhevych was the guy who on Feb 25th 1943 ordered mass killing of Poles in Volhynia: “In view of the success of the Soviet forces [at Stalingrad] it is necessary to speed up the liquidation of the Poles, they must be totally wiped out, their villages burned… only the Polish population must be destroyed”. Yet they named an avenue in Kiev after him. Or what about Dmytro Dontsov, who loathed democracy and was a big fan of Hitler? He translated Mein Kampf and Hitler’s, Goebbels’ and Rosenberg’s speeches and articles into Ukrainian and claimed that “only political eunuchs and philistines can condemn wars”? But they named a street after Dontsov in Odessa. Or maybe you’ve heard of Yaroslav Stets’ko, who’s role in Holocaust is well documented? The guy who endorsed “the destruction of the Jews and the expedience of bringing German methods of exterminating Jewry to Ukraine, barring their assimilation and the like”? Never heard of him? But they named streets in Lviv and Kiev after him, and In 2010, at the initiative of Viktor Yushchenko, a plaque for Stetsko was mounted at his home in Zeppelinstrasse 67 in Munich.

      Antonescu was a boyscout compared to these guys. He actually offered to save the Romanian Jews by taking them to neutral ports in the Black Sea but the Britts and the Yankees did not respond.

      What was somebody saying about democracy?

  • Kacper

    Well, you’re absolutely spot on. But I hope you will agree that politics has little to do with what is good, moral, right or legal. Being the art of winning, politics is about using law, morality, and various other types of leverage as a tool to weaken the opponent(s) as push own interests. The Moldovan judge had to go not because she did something wrong, but because she wouldn’t guarantee the win to those in power. Much like Boris Johnson or Theresa May had to go not because they did something wrong or illegal (well, they did but that was irrelevant) but because they became a political liability to the group that they were to represent.

    Country borders in Europe get redrawn every few decades. Yet it happens hardly if ever because of nations’ aspirations and political prowess. Rather, it’s because certain groups or interests became so powerful as to be able to decide countries’ fate. The land currently known as Moldova did not get annexed by the USSR in 1940 because its people loved the Soviets; the annexation was decided in the Ribbentrop–Molotov Pact.

    Today, we have to maintain a veneer of democracy, and so a people’s vote is a must. But do we *really* want the masses to decide on countries’ fate when we all know perfectly well that most people are incapable of seeing more than a few months into the future, and elections more often than not turn into referenda on government policies?

    Personally, I see why some people believe that Moldova – it’s population – will be better off as an EU Member State than as a CSTO country, irrespective of the number of Moldovans currently working in Russia. I have seen, and lived in, both blocks, and security considerations aside (Moldova will be a frontline country either way), I’m still convinced that despite its shortcomings, Europe (including the UK) offers a better standard of life, better wages, better social support, better safety and and more personal freedoms than any CSTO country.

    To me, the idea that politicians must follow the “will of the people” and that mass media should describe objective truths, sounds a tad idealistic.

    But it’s a valid discussion, and thank you for your excellent post.

    • SA

      You may well believe that Moldova might be better off in the EU than the CTSO in a current superficial way but the future may be different.. the west has reached its high point and will be declining. At present it is holding on to this position through economic superiority based on the dollar and a monetary system but with declining manufacturing ability and reliance on immigrants for cheap and unpopular service labour which is causing a lot of political upheaval. Moldova joining the EU will be a tiny state with mere geopolitical value to the EU but no real interest otherwise.

      • Kacper

        Barring a discovery of oil or gas reserves (and assumming they won’t be looted), I see virtually zero probability that Moldova would be better off in 20 years if remaining outside of the EU than when being its member for that time.

        If you disagree, can you share what makes you think that an impoverished, small peripheral country, with its economy and governance as they are, will be able, within these two decades, to catch up even with the poorest EU state Bulgaria – all on its own?

        I’ve been hearing about “moral and economic decline of the West” for nearly all my life. Actually, much of the Soviet propaganda was about how poor and degenerate the capitalist West is compared to rich and happy Communist states. I never came to believe it. I suggest to compare the following between CSTO and EU: GDP (PPP) per capita, Human Development Index (or Inequality Adjusted Human Development Index if you prefer), and Happiness Index.

        Conclusions are obvious to me.

        • SA

          Kacper
          Sorry not to give links but from memory, I can quote three issues that reflect this decline of the West, which is gradual but currently is manifesting itself in challenging the unipolar world order. First is depopulation in East European countries that joined the EU. This is quite well documented and has affected some more than others, with a reduction of population in some of over 20%. The depopulations is in a major part due to emigration, mainly to other more prosperous countries in the EU. Particularly badly affected are Bulgaria and the Baltic states I think. The second issue is that I believe using other measures than the GDP that now China has outstripped the USA as the major economy and that Russia is now above Germany;- again this needs verification. However the undoubted fact is that the exponential growth in BRICS which now represents about 40% of world economy and more than 50% of world population, and increasing – also means loss to Europe and the West.
          Another factor to consider is that Europe itself and the EU are now no longer able to act independently, even for their own economic interests against those of the USA, as we can see with the major economic upheavals created by trying to reduce dependence on Russian Gas and Oil and other resources. Given also the more self-sufficient nature of Russia, the prospects of prosperity or increased industrialisation or independence of the EU is diminishing.
          I agree that currently it seems to be all rosy and sweetness and light for small countries in Europe to join the EU, but the future looks bleak.

          • Kacper

            SA:

            1. Population movements indeed are there in the EU (I’d avoid the term “depopulation”!), however they are not per se an indicator of economic or developmental decline. Statistical data for Bulgaria do not show a declining country – population decrease correlates with gradual improvements on most other factors. Moreover, migration East-West tends to reverse – here is a good overview using the example of Poland. Interestingly, Russia and China are experiencing an even higher population decline – birth rate in Russia has now fallen below nearly every other Western country (link).

            China’s population decline is even more alarming. In 2022, fertility rate in China stood at 1.18 (births per woman) which is half of what’s needed for population replacement. It is now 5th lowest in the world – the situation is worse than virtually in every other country except South Korea, San Marino, Singapore and Malta. Yes, the population of China is shrinking dramatically (read more here). That said, as I wrote, population decrease does not usually correlate with a country’s development or GDP, so while population-wise China is losing, economy-wise it might be winning long term.

            2. GDP is a poor measure of the wealth or wellbeing of a country’s population (that’s why I mentioned other indices), unless you admire living in UEA or Saudi Arabia which boast high nominal GDP and terrible wealth inequalities. In all cases I prefer even the fairly crude Human Development Index. But even for GDP, in 2023 Russia’s GDP (USD 2.02 trillion) was less than half of that of Germany (USD 4.46 trillion). PPP-adjusted GDP in Germany was USD 52,745 versus USD 13,817 in Russia: a statistical German produced four times as much value than a statistical Russian. Given the fact that a significant proportion of Russia’s budget revenues (up to 4% of GDP) are being put aside in so-called National Wealth Fund (used to fund large infrastructure projects and now the war machine) while Germany reinvests all budget revenues into the society, average life quality in Germany is much higher than in Russia.

            3. EU was never able to act independently. I dare to say that no country in the world can afford operating in vacuum; countries always have to prioritise what’s good for them – economically or from security perspective, and both are always tied to the wider regional or global situation. I can only regret that Europe has somewhat moved away from its foundations, initially based on rights and freedoms, in exchange for short term petty political gains.

            Of course there’re also tensions within the EU, debates, differing powers, lobbies, perspectives. That’s normal and expected, and that’s something that I, conversely, believe will foster Europe’s survival. Russia, on the other hand, has been historically ruled by a single unelected tsar with little democratic legitimacy, while the society was controlled with an iron fist. This model has proliferated across the Russian world, and unfortunately it doesn’t appear conducive to building a just and equal society (look at the famia-style Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, impoverished Armenia and Tajikistan, wild Georgia pre-Saakashwili, the dictatorships of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, and barely stable Kyrgyzstan; Moldova on top).

            Today, not a single former Soviet Union country that has stayed outside the European project can claim high human development and a decent standard of life for the majority of its population. Nothing in the economic factors you mentioned convinces me that the civilisational model offered by Russia has improved.

          • SA

            Kacpar
            I thank you for your answer. I do not disagree with what you say. The problem is that the current world model is all rosy for just the US, which wishes to remain a hegemon, and this is being done at the expense of Europe and even more so the rest of the soy. Europe is a protectorate and not a sovereign entity anymore and what you describe is not happening. Politically Europe is a very serious decline with loss of proper democracy as macron holds on undemocratically and Scholz is being booted out. Both may be replaced by far right opposition.
            Moreover you described what is happening in Russia as an extension of the model of autocratic tsar-like figurehead ruling as an autocrat. Sometimes transitions may require this, especially given outside pressure – as what happened in the Soviet Union and also what happened in Russia after the Yeltsin years.
            Remember the West had their chance with Russia, but instead of helping a true democracy encouraged the proliferation of corruption and the rise of oligarchs.
            Incidentally under Stalin and under Putin, the USSR and the Russian federation respectively showed a much stronger economic and industrial growth than would have happened. Stalin with all his faults elevated Russia from an agrarian society to a world power with an advanced space program.
            Sorry to ramble, but what I am saying is the one model of pseudo-democracy under a hegemony of a uniparty based on billionaires’ support is not necessarily the viable alternative for individual small nations.

      • Kacper

        Re. Georgia, it’s a bit more complex. It’s unclear to me whether they’d be better off in an alignment with Russia or not. Their economy is based on remittances, mostly from émigrés to Greece and Italy; on exports to Russia; and on imports from Turkey. EU isn’t playing a big role in all that. Obviously, various standards tend to be higher in Europe than in Russia or Turkey (wages, social safety net, employee rights, freedom from arbitrary detention, etc.), but again, economy is key.

  • M.J.

    When I contemplate what looks like vote-rigging in Moldova, I cannot help but go ‘Tut tut’, and regret it just a bit. Not for too long, mind you, with people fighting for national survival against Russian invaders and bombs not far away in Ukraine, not to mention a whole province of fifth columnists (Transnistria) as well.
    If Western democracy is so bad, why not move to Russia and join the Snowdens?
    Because Western democracy works and Russia is a dictatorship, where saying ‘war’ will get you behind bars, that’s why. Remember Navalny!

  • Kaiama

    I am amazed and heartened that you have picked up on this monstrous injustice. If you had any doubt that the EU was seeking not to persuade but to force EU enlargement then I hope you are now on the right track.

    • Laguerre

      I don’t think there’s any EU ambition for enlargement, what interest is there for the EU in that. However the Americans want the EU to pay for these countries.

  • Crispa

    I agree with this and it is not because of the different voting systems which are used to suggest some countries might be more or less democratic than others, it is because western governments on the whole are not acting in the interests of their people any longer but are pursuing agendas of their own and imposing them on their populations. The above examples show this pretty clearly but many more can be easily found.

    • Stevie Boy

      I’d suggest the agendas these people are following are not their own but are the agendas of the people who control and own them. In the majority of cases that is the USA.
      And, the tools the hegemon uses to control the west include: the world bank, IMF, MIC/NATO, UN, MSM, Multinationals, Yankee dollar.

  • Mike T

    https://www.jonathan-cook.net/2024-12-11/syria-assad-pentagon-plan/

    Another ‘hole in one’ from the estimable Jonathan Cook. Mapping out the board of the present great game, it explains the role of Syria and its change of hands as a small element in the campaign to neutralise Iran; this in turn: “The ultimate concern, … was stopping China from developing closer ties to key oil states such as Iran.”

    The USA is entirely self sufficient in energy, indeed it is an energy exporter. This is about denying China access to the energy markets and destroying its economy. Not coincidentally this is precisely the same strategy deployed by the USA against Japan in the 30’s which led to the desperate failed attack on Pearl Harbour and the deaths of – conservatively – 25m people.

    I suppose Empire has its price.

    • Stevie Boy

      IMO. The difference between the USA and China is historic. Yes the USA may be self sufficient in energy but it’s technology is now dated and creaking at the seams. Most of the power stations are 1960s vintage, and the transport infrastructure is the same, maintenance has been sacrificed on the alter of quick profits. The nation that put a man on the moon, apparently, has outsourced it’s capabilities to the capitalists and consequently cannot even retrieve astronauts it placed in space. The USA is on a downward spiral with war it’s only viable export.
      China on the other hand is on the way up. From the disasters of WW2 and the cultural revolutions it is moving forward at an amazing pace. New powerstations, new infrastructure, government and society built on the foundations of higher education and technological skills. Plus, the Chinese mindset which is based on mutual respect and cooperation rather than domination.
      The future, barring WW3, is likely to be more BRICS than USA hegemon.

    • Alyson

      Excellent summary of events of the last 30 years. I recall discussion in the FT about Libya, at the time, stating that Gaddafi’s plan to introduce a pan Arab, pan African currency to enable independent countries to develop and sell their natural resources was a potential problem. He was building a state of the art megalopolis on the Mediterranean coast, to house his new global banking system to rival the World Bank, he said, which would be run along Islamic lines, with no interest charges for loans, just a single fee to be repaid up front. Our Tony was sent to tell him, sorry old friend but we won’t allow this. Gaddafi allegedly laughed at the impudence of little Tony…..

      • Stevie Boy

        Yes, Gaddafi really did have some great plans that would have improved the lot of Africa: Africa-wide Railways, Highways, water purification plants, power infrastructure. All gone, all turned to sh*t by the west.

        • Terence Callachan

          Gadaffi was killed by USA and UK just two years after his meeting with other leaders from African nations at which they decided to form a method for using a currency other than the US dollar in oil trade.

      • Mike T

        Thanks Jeremy, thats very helpful. Whilst a net energy exporter, the USA chooses to leave its oil reserves ‘in the ground’ (presumably on the ‘rainy day’ principle) and import someone else’s crude oils. I included the observation to buttress the main point about control of the international energy market, and it seems I should have qualified it.

        OK.

        Cook’s point was that the control of the ME oilfields gave immense geostrategic power to the US – not least through its securing the USDollar as the primary international exchange denomination, although that isn’t a point he articulates. The ability to blockade China, through an energy embargo, rests on control of the oilfields, and the transmission routes, and the exchange currency. Such an embargo would ultimately immobilise the Chinese military as well as driving production and transport costs skywards.

        Whilst accepting the limited qualification you propose, that doesn’t actually undermine the principal point, I hope you would agree.

        • JeremyT

          The US has no choice about its own crude – not enough and expensive.
          As Chomsky points out, NATO is ‘defending’ its members, but also the ‘energy system’, which has ended up with most of the world’s cheaper conventional crude under the control of Saudi, Iran and Russia. Funny that, eh?

  • Nota Tory Fanboy

    Mr. Murray, you’re an Historian so you know full well that context, evidence and details matter for a valid understanding.
    Given how much of a self-admitted careless technophobe you have been recently (German rail trips come to mind – unless that was some sort of espionage-style planted ploy/decoy on your part), I really do believe that you owe a detailed explanation to your readers who have followed the minutiae of Cambridge Analytica/SCL why you dismiss it so out of hand when the minutiae strongly indicate that your dismissal is woefully ignorant or deliberately misleading, at the same time pro-Putin and pro-American vulture capitalist/oligarchic influence, not to mention hypocritical when you do decide to actually pay attention to – and acknowledge – the details such as the Indy Ref, Assange and Salmond.

    • craig Post author

      I have written articles about it in the past on here. Feel free to set out why I am wrong – I may well be, I am human. But that anything that combines Cadwalladr and Russophobia is likely to be nonsense is a good working hypothesis.

    • Brianfujisan

      Listen to you… NTF… All arrogance, just like a Tory / Labour genocide supporter Eh… You Know nothing… I know nothing… Well I know more than… But Craig Knows more than most.

  • Crispa

    Western media portray Georgescu as right wing, authoritarian, nationalist, pro Russian etc. His declared programme is almost the opposite, which is evidently why he is being treated as a threat to EU and USA hegemonic ant – democratic interests. (Google translate)
    “WHAT I’M PROPOSING, EXACTLY?
    SUVERANISM – DISTRIBUTISMUL, CONCISE, AND CLEAR
    Suveranism-distributismul is a model of social and economic freedom and the common good (the frățietății), which is based on the production of the local and participatory democracy , and that it may not be a real solution to any of these countries, and not just for (Romania) .
    The economy of the suveranist-distributistă is the economy of the worker-owners of the traditional family, the communities, the Romanian producer’s authentic. An economy that is fair, secure, and morals, of which testifies to the tradition.
    Participatory democracy is a continuing source of strength for the people who will be directly involved in the legislative process, rather than waiting passively to be called to the polls every four years.
    In Romania, the transition to representative democracy and the market economy, the system of suveranist-distributist it marks the beginning of the Great Revival of the National”.
    https://calingeorgescu.ro/program/

  • nevermind

    And then there is us, the ancient unreformed regime with a winner-takes-all, bugger-the-rest system that should not even be described as democratic, especially not after Kid Starver’s U-turn on his promise to install a proportional voting system.

    What would Engeland do if Scotland and Wales declare UDI and then have a referendum on whatever electoral system the people desire?
    Suppress the colonies? Use all their belligerent cowtowing mouthpieces to malign the declared Independent states?
    Or hastily return their peace-keeping tanks from Ukraine and send them to ‘pacify’ the Welsh and Scottish people?

  • JK redux

    Craig
    Your denunciation of Western democracy is excessive imo.

    Yes it has faults and is manipulated by powerful interests.

    But you risk throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

    The alternatives to Western democracies; Russia, China, Iran and N Korea in particular, range from despotism through theocracy to tyranny. India is perhaps an exception but is increasingly authoritarian and unkind to it’s religious minorities.

    So perhaps we should try to make our imperfect democracy better. Not nod approval at the attempts by despots to undermine it.

    • zoot

      John, you very openly praised Joe Biden as ‘a decent man’ while he was genociding women and kids.

      that is not indicative of somebody greatly concerned about our democracies’ faults.

        • zoot

          ‘his unrelenting support for Israel has changed my opinion of him for the worse’

          now John .. it was late July when you praised his decency. by then there had been more than eight months of crimes the like of which few people alive had ever seen.

          day after day after day after day of them.

          and from day one you knew that Biden was supplying the weapons.

          that isn’t ad hominem, it’s simply fact. and vital context for your contributions here.

          • JK redux

            Bill

            I think that Biden is an innately decent man who (like most US politicians) is morally blind to the consequences of his unblinking support for Israel.

            I am genuinely puzzled by the almost universal unconditional support for Israel in the US.

            But I think that we are straying OT.

          • zoot

            *innately* decent?

            that’s going even further.

            even if you can somehow glibly forgive an ongoing racist genocide, what innate decency is shining out for you from Biden’s previous half a century of fanatical warmongering, shameless corruption (professional and personal) and longstanding racism? Joe Biden only came to prominence for mercilessly banging up poor black drug addicts, with half the rap sheet of the son he just pardoned, and then for leading Democrat support for the Iraq invasion, deploying a pack of lies. moreover he could not possibly be more unrepentant for any of these crimes.

            if Joe Biden was ever your standard for decency then you were already very lost. but to announce such a thing in late 2024? that is just boldly announcing a profound anti-Palestinian racism and just lack of basic humanity. how the feck do you think you are somebody who can morally scold and chide other people on the Craig Murray site?

          • Republicofscotland

            “I think that Biden is an innately decent man who (like most US politicians) is morally blind to the consequences of his unblinking support for Israel.”

            JK redux. (11.16).

            The above is sarcasm right? it must be – for no normal person would intentionally type that and believe it – unless of course they are being paid to do so.

        • Madison

          Lucky ducks, who can read through the avatars and call commenters by their names.
          But then, your remarks, here, don’t have to stand or fall. They just have to be approved or dismissed, and more often the latter. As long as you’re not banned, you play the role of the ‘useful idiot’ and all regimes need a few, if I may be frank.
          Beyond the obsolete antagonism between so-called democracy and its supposed challengers that call themselves Brics for lack of any common ethos. That fallacious argument is only supported today by journalists, both independent and “mainstream”. But it’s just an hoax. There’s no real opposition. Only self-serving leaders and submissive populations.
          Trump and Putin are really good friends, under the banners of the US and Russia. They know each other too well. They’re 2 sides of a coin.

      • Stevie Boy

        Absolutely agree, let’s make our failing democracy fit for purpose. However, you realise that that would involve sitting down and talking diplomacy with Russia, China, Iran and N Korea and anyone else rather than threatening them. You also realise that it would involve the government helping its own people rather than dictators and giving the people a real democratic voice through changing the outdated and corrupt voting system. And, it would also involve closing the gap between rich and poor and returning our strategic industries back into ‘british’ hands.
        Is that what you mean Kinsella, or is it all vacuous bluster ?

        • JK redux

          Stevie Boy

          In my reply to Craig this morning I said: “So perhaps we should try to make our imperfect democracy better. Not nod approval at the attempts by despots to undermine it.”.

          • MR MARK CUTTS

            JK Redux.

            Your comment reminds me of a tee shirt slogan from The New Musical Express in one of the adverts sweatshirts and T-shirt:

            ‘And the Meek Shall Inherit the Earth…………….’
            ‘As long as that’s alright with the Strong?’

            My simple view is that Democracy and the electoral bribes that used to accompany it are no longer on offer due to allowing the insanely rich to take more and more of the economic output.

            Once HTS realise this then, whatever little spoils remain after the big players have gone on the rob, they will all fall out over the crumbs.

            The West is becoming exactly the same, except the people are not poor enough to realise it yet.

    • glenn_nl

      Curious that you think the examples you listed are a complete set of alternatives. Sounds a bit like some poor woman, self justifying staying with her abuser, on account of other men being even more violent and abusive.

      • JK redux

        glenn_nl

        The logic of your analogy is that the West is irredeemable? And that the alternatives (Russia, China, Iran, N Korea. And of course India, Brazil and S Africa.) are better for the people who live there.

        I beg to differ.

        And I bet that you have no plans to move to any of the countries that I listed.

        • glenn_nl

          Sorry, JD (hope it’s OK to call you that?), but those aren’t the _only_ alternatives.

          That was the entire point, and you completely missed it – like the simplistic “Go to Russia then” retort of mindless patriots, if they hear any criticism.

          An alternative that I would like to see is a UK run for all its people, not for the half million or so parasites that live off the rest of us, caring nothing for humanity, the environment or social justice. Or the good functioning of the economy, for that matter, since we are governed only with the aim of funnelling money upwards.

          Wouldn’t you agree that this really is a genuine alternative, yet is not North Korea and whatever else was in your list? Are you incapable of understanding that our own system can change for the better?

          • JK redux

            Glenn_nl

            In my reply to Craig this morning I said: “So perhaps we should try to make our imperfect democracy better. Not nod approval at the attempts by despots to undermine it.”.

            PS JK is fine, was JD a typo?

          • glenn_nl

            JK: “PS JK is fine, was JD a typo?

            Yes it was, sorry. I’d heard JD Vance mentioned at the very same moment as I was writing, and it came out of my fingers like that.

            But to the point, still – I don’t think CM was approving of attempts to undermine our civilisation, if it can be called that. His post was specifically about booting any judges who might want things to be any different from the currently approved path.

        • Brian Red

          @JK redux – Your logic is rubbish. If A is in X and B is in Y, that doesn’t mean not-A must be in Y.

          Wait, there’s a Tory across on the other side of the road. It’s shouting at me to get back to Russia, or North Korea, or somewhere. I think it’s scared it might lose the “value” it thinks is stored up in its house and its bank account.

          • David Warriston

            For much of my adult life in Scotland I was told, when criticising western capitalism, to ‘F*** Off to Moscow.’

            Now that I live in Moscow and comment on matters relating to Russia I am told that I am a victim, or useful idiot, of Putin propaganda. If this is true it does not explain why I remained impervious to western propaganda for half a century. If I’d been a useful idiot for western imperialism I’m sure it would have paid better.

    • Johnny Conspiranoid

      “Not nod approval at the attempts by despots to undermine it.”
      The despots who undermine it are homegrown. To give them the benefit of the (non-existent) doubt is to nod approval.

  • Madison

    This conversation is certainly fascinating, and it’s really interesting to see how the usual suspects are pretending to be debating about the abolishment of democracy and its outcome. Please give us a tissue, so sad…
    Meanwhile, the situation seems to be daily worsening in Syria, the West Bank, not to mention Gaza.
    It’s a little unclear for a candid reader to understand whether Craig Murray is still in Beirut while discussing fundamental concepts, or whether he’s back in the unpalatable West. In either case, I personally think democracy debates can wait, and current issues should be given first attention. FWIW

    • zoot

      how much responsibility do you think the US Democrat party bears for the genocide, Madison? do you think it would still be going on without them?

      • Madison

        Stating that the US Democrats are not democratic is just like beating a dead horse. But they’re not the only ones. And what difference does it make to the victims?

        • Brian Red

          See the National Endowment for Democracy, a CIA front and supposed “NGO” in which the Democratic and Republican parties have cooperated for several decades in spreading USA corporate-state influence around the world.

          When the issue is “western” “democracy”, the difference between the two major US parties is a big red herring, staple food for sealions and trolls.

    • zoot

      no need to wait, just switch on BBC or Sky news or read a newspaper. any mass media outlet will deliver what you are waiting to hear.

  • Harry Law

    What we need is all money for social services Pensions and Health care etc. should be vastly reduced and redirected into NATO, don’t you bl—– heart Liberals understand we are going to be attacked by the Ruskies in our homes. /S So said Mark Rutte at a peace conference…
    General Jack D. Ripper: said war was too important to be left to the generals. When he said that, 50 years ago, he might have been right. But today, war is too important to be left to politicians. They have neither the time, the training, nor the inclination for strategic thought. I can no longer sit back and allow Communist infiltration, Communist indoctrination, Communist subversion and the international Communist conspiracy to sap and impurify all of our precious bodily fluids. It appears that quote from Dr Strangelove has been taken over by NATO’s top honchos who themselves hardly believe in democracy.
    Mark Rutte new NATO sec Gen made these remarks at a meeting of The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Brussels, declaring that Russia is trying to “crush our freedom and way of life.”
    “I know spending more on defence means spending less on other priorities. But it is only a little less,” he continued, adding that “On average, European countries easily spend up to a quarter of their national income on pensions, health and social security systems.”
    “We need a small fraction of that money to make our defences much stronger, and to preserve our way of life,” he proclaimed, reasoning that “freedom does not come for free.”
    Rutte’s call to institute a wartime mindset among Europeans was also recently echoed by Admiral Rob Bauer, the most senior military officer at NATO who said that “luxuries” will have to be sacrificed for freedom.
    “If you ramp up your deterrence and if you ramp up support to Ukraine, there will be less money to spend on other things. It will take away some of our luxuries, it will require sacrifice,” Bauer stated.
    https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/nato-head-says-wartime-mindset-needed-redirect-pensions-health-social-security

    • Madison

      I think you’ve seen Dr. Strangelove quite a few times, and I can’t blame you. But don’t forget that it’s basically a FUNNY movie, meant to be, even if you can take it seriously. Hear, hear, the End is nigh…
      By the way, it seems that Craig Murray is ready to pack his bags and come back to the West for the Holiday Season. I can understand. These 6 weeks in Beirut must have been extremely stressful. And he still managed to provide us with an abundance of live reports from the scene. Things you’ll never see on Al Jazeera !

    • Brian Red

      Rutte is saying the weapons companies should get more state money.

      Think of his comments as akin to a mission statement by someone heading up a government agency, who says the way forward is “joined-up government” or whatever the latest buzzword is, meaning a big hardware or software contract with Google or Dell or whoever.

      Don’t get me wrong – I think the rulers will soon up the slaughter rate to an unprecedented level, and Rutte’s statement is as good a confirmer of this as anything. But he himself, son of a car dealer, doesn’t take decisions on shee-yit.

  • pilpul

    Madison: ” I personally think democracy debates can wait, and current issues should be given first attention. FWIW “.

    An honourable position; unfortunately your, mine, Craig’s, nor the probable hundreds of millions worldwide that are aghast at the Israeli government’s punitive response in Gaza after Oct 7 attack, attention to Gaza/Syria/West Bank is unlikely to have one iota of effect to what will happen there… and this is tied to the ineffectiveness of ‘democracy’ (people power).

    Look no further than the UK ‘whips’ in parliament, or the front of Jewish/zionist power in the USA to see how negligible and easily perverted and manipulated ‘democracies’ are.

    Trump was elected by 31.5% of the electorate. Starmer was elected by 20.2% of the electorate, but gained 211 seats, Thatcher had 33.4% of electorate in 1979 with a gain of 62 seats, in 1983 she got 30.8% electorate and gained 58 seats, in 1987 she got 31.8% electorate and lost 21 seats.
    Netanyahu was elected in 2022 by 16.5% of electorate, in 2021 by 16.3%, in 2020 by 21.1%, in 2019 by 18.1%, in 2015 by 16.9%, in 2013 15.8%, in 2009 – when he did not get the majority of votes – 14.0% of electorate.
    (Israel has had a closed-list method of party-list proportional representation since 1948.)

    • Madison

      It’s also a vicious circle: since so many honest people no longer believe in ‘democracies’, they tend to abstain from voting. So turnout is eventually getting lower and lower, and votes end up being cast by conservatives and xenophobes. To the delight of the ruling elite. Big brother likes it…

      • Brian Red

        @Madison – “ So turnout is eventually getting lower and lower, and votes end up being cast by conservatives and xenophobes. To the delight of the ruling elite. Big brother likes it…

        Are you sure about that? Much of the population has been conditioned into frequently expressing “likes” and “dislikes” by button pushing, which is not dissimilar from the upright citizen’s expected behaviour on election day, except they do it several times a day rather than once every few years. I abstain from it, but I don’t feel Big Brother likes me for that.

        The Nazi regime in Germany held plebiscites with huge turnouts.

        @everyone – A main point about democracy (дерьмократия) is that it’s a product of mass media. This is quite clear if you look at the extensions of the franchise. They essentially follow the pattern of the growth in the reach of the media – e.g. in Britain the gentry, then the bourgeoisie, then the more secure workers, then bye-bye to the property qualification and votes go to the less secure workers and lodgers. (The extension of the franchise to women has other factors involved.) In South Africa, look at the growth of television. Of course the growth of the reach of the media went hand-in-hand with the growth of mass consumption – and advertising, or to put it more generally, organised behavioural influence.

        Parliamentary democracy, consumerism, advertising, and debt – from a bird’s eye historical view they’re all part and parcel of the same thing.

        Now the reigning society is moving on to something else, for sure – far more schizo, with far more extensive and intensive obedience, right down into micro behaviours, with population reduction on a huge scale coming soon, because quite simply they aren’t going to let unproductive proletarians survive – they’re going to have somewhat of a shakedown, some spring cleaning.

        PS But I would agree with the assertion that when you get a chance to vote against fascism it’s best to take it. I would have voted for H Clinton, Biden, and Harris against Trump. But there are limits. I would never vote for the “emmerdeur” Macron against anyone.

        • Madison

          Your obsession with Macron is so funny. You should let him know – apparently he likes to receive hate letters!
          Needless to say, I would never vote for him either. Whenever there’s an opportunity to vote AGAINST fascism, let’s grab it…

  • Brian Red

    The EU and Western powers fund NGOs and fund journalists all over the world to sway opinion, openly

    Got any examples of the British state, say, funding journalists in another country openly?

    If it’s done openly, some examples must be easy to cite – examples of here is the British state, and here is the foreign journalist in another country, and here is the open record of the money passing from the British state to the journalist.

    • Brianfujisan

      Brian… You’re at it, Right… I mean you here to support lies – BBC, Sky, NYT, Guardian etc… Meanwhile our host is in danger to tell the truth… Not Funny.

      • Brian Red

        @Brianfujisan – No. But if the assertion is that something is often done openly, then it should be easy to give examples of it having been done openly. I know damned well that the British state exerts influence abroad, and that what’s in the media is paid for. It’s the “openly” bit that I am questioning. I am questioning the notion that the British state openly pays foreign journalists abroad – unless of course you mean those who work openly for the BBC, but that is obvious and not in dispute.

      • Brian Red

        @Stevie Boy – Ah, that kind of thing, yes. I thought the assertion was that the British state says in public here you go, foreign scribe chappie who doesn’t work for the BBC or anything, either as a staffer or as a stringer, here’s some money if you write that Dick Hedde the Politician is on the take and has five mistresses, and that foreign johnnies in the coming election should all vote for his opponent, Honest John the People’s Favourite – what in many places would be called committing treason. Stuff like that happens a lot, but it’s never open.

        Meanwhile I don’t buy into the notion of the honest ruler-undermining people’s journalist, committed to upholding humanitarian causes everywhere, whose main activity is posting stuff to sites run by Google, Meta, and Musk.

  • Brian Red

    In fact Georgescu is a highly regarded developmental economist (…) Georgescu has some views with which I agree and some with which I do not, but that is not the point.

    🙂

    Sorry but I have read that kind of thing so many times.

    It’s similar to saying that whatever faults Donald Trump has got – the highly regarded reality TV figure, some of whose views one cannot agree with – there is a huge issue with Hillary’s emails, Hunter’s laptop, and Kamala’s dreadful attachment to using the word “unburdened”.

    What some don’t yet realise is that much of the internet is dead as a place for successfully agitating in anti-exploitative causes. Fascism is already here.

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