no contact politics

Poppies and heroes...

2011-11-12T17:13:00.001+00:00

So it's all poppies and heroes here on the home front, as our death squads spread out across Libya. Which has evaporated from our screens, as our 'journalists' focus on boosting war in Syria and Iran.

http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/11/11/terror-and-revenge-engulfs-nato%E2%80%99s-libya/

Occupy Wall Street

2011-10-16T13:27:00.000+00:00

My main concern is that I don't this movement going far without providing an economic analysis, not just comments about greed and croneyism.

And therein lies the problem, the only viable analysis is hedged by vast walls of propaganda ensuring it can't be heard. Even the terminology of objective economic analysis will draw down lightning and much fulmination by pundits, media and politicians. And a well-indoctrinated audience, schooled during the the great 'end of history' and nourished by the mythologies of the Cold War, and Second World War before it, will not easily open its ears.

Not least because they are also the product of generations of aspirational propagandas, ensuring they see their aims and interests as aligned with those of the oligarchy. They will not easily come to a new class consciousness.

In other words, how can you discuss any of this without drawing on Marx, who has proved such reliable guide to recent events? And saying his name.

G20: Protest divorced from politics

2009-04-01T16:48:00.005+00:00

It does warm my heart to see people prepared to get out there and protest, but it's so formalised, so ritualised. And worse, there's no political programme at all.

What exactly do they expect? That our owners and operators will look down from their comfy eyries and take pity? "Oh look, they're so cute and well-meaning. Let's give them what they want". Reverse the habits of generations, put common good ahead of personal and family wealth? Yeah, right.

It's interesting to see all the middle class and corporate organisational techniques deployed in fine-grained fashion, the details of protest, bullet points, the distribution of information. But to what end? There's no equivalent organised investigation of the processes of political change, of leverage and influence, of the history of resistance and insurrection. So centuries (if not millenia) of thought and experience is discarded.

I suspect the middle class influence at work in the reluctance to look at certain examples, fearing for their respectability. They don't want to threaten the fluffy media image. They seem to think a bit of media coverage is of any value, in and of itself. "We're getting the message out," they might say, "winning hearts and minds". What goddam message? We've gone backwards in the last 35 years by most measures, including climate change. (Except on identity politics issues, and therein hangs a tale...)

So what's left? Insignificant 'violence', shouty emotional people. And cops playing the old propaganda games, and trying out the new toys.

Change you can believe in: rendition

2009-03-08T09:05:00.005+00:00

Obama's new CIA Director Leon Panetta... said that Obama was keeping rendition as an option in the fight against terrorism.
Reuters

Israel: boycott, disinvestment, sanctions

2009-01-11T11:46:00.004+00:00

The practical initiatives are summed up in three letters - BDS - boycott, disinvestment, sanctions. Counterpunch.

Also worth a look, a Naomi Klein article on boycotting Israel.

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Obama and Gaza

2009-01-11T09:21:00.003+00:00

Obama clearly hopes Israel can 'resolve' the Gaza before he comes to power. The lives of how ever many hundreds or thousands (which, we wait to see) of Palestinian women and children clearly for him, a price well worth paying.

The 'audacity of hope', don't make me laugh, don't make me cry...

Anyway, he's wrong in that particular audacious hope. Israel will lose, again, just like in Lebanon, and just like its big stupid sponsor in Afghanistan and Iraq.

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Here we go again, US/Israeli war crimes and a hurricane of lies

2009-01-11T08:50:00.002+00:00

For those inclined to fall for the lie that the Gaza 'operation' is about Hamas rockets and 'terror' - some little truths by Michel Chossudovsky in a short piece entitled The Invasion of Gaza: "Operation Cast Lead", Part of a Broader Israeli Military-Intelligence Agenda.

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Quote: Stalin

2008-10-26T07:41:00.002+00:00

The people who cast the votes don't decide an election, the people who count the votes do.
Joseph Stalin

Quote: Year Zero in Afghanistan

2008-06-05T07:30:00.002+00:00

"Our goal is to rebuild the government and society from the ground up in our model."

An effusive US officer in Naray, from Princess Patricia and the Taliban by Eric Walberg. Every dead Pashtun a 'taliban'.

The audacity of hope? Don't make me laugh/cry....

2008-06-05T07:05:00.003+00:00

Obama scenarios:

1. Used to knock Hilary out; now media reverts to type, election gets stolen again.

2. Corporate shill - proven - takes lobby money through lawyers, says he doesn't take lobby money. True in only the most legalistic/dishonest sense. See Pam Marten's articles on Counterpunch. So you get a Wall Street lackey, more public money to bail out banks etc.

3. Hope & despair machine for the US people - get 'em hopeful, drop 'em low, have 'em well-primed for more global evil. Worst scenario for the rest of the world. And the most likely.

4. No matter what, no matter who. it's more treasure, blood and war for Israel.

Think that covers it.

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P.S. Can't believe I'm back. Didn't mean to. I just wrote this as a comment somewhere and thought, hell, let's post it, get a marker down for the latest propaganda tidal wave...

Quote: James Petras

2007-05-27T15:13:00.000+00:00

"The failure of Washington's will to a world empire has led to the shrinking of power relative to its global situation prior to 2001. And in large part that is due to the fighting capacity and organized resistance in Iraq and Afghanistan: both have demonstrated that despite the great store of modern technological warfare and monopolies of media propaganda, wars are decided on the ground, by the popular majorities directly affected."

James Petras, Imperial Rot: Are the Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq the Beginning of the End of the American Empire?

Israel, Lebanon, Palestine: more of the same

2007-05-27T13:56:00.000+00:00

Amazing how little changes. Well, not really surprising, just dispiriting.

In the running dog media, Israel 'detains' and 'strikes' it's enemies with the usual care for civilians. Two dead Israelis, at least 50 Palestinians. At least 50 more will die to maintain Israel's parity formula.

Looks like good ol' kidnapping and murder to me. Still, they got away with it with Arafat, and always ones to exploit their advantages and set precedents, why not hit an entire government this time.

A democratically elected government.

Meanwhile the U.N., jollied along by the States, bangs on about an investigation into Syrian involvement in the Hariri assassination. How do they keep a straight face?

Well, I guess Bush, Cheney and company don't. Some degree of honesty there.

Oh yeah, and the U.S. pours in weapons, ostensibly to fight a group actually set up by the Hariri faction.

Don't be surprised if there's another 'accidental' massacre of Palestinian civilians.

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U.K. Bin Wars: more disguised surveillance

2007-05-27T13:47:00.000+00:00

[Well, I might be back. We'll see.]

Beyond the obvious fact that it's more taxation, and burdens laid on the peasantry that industry and government continue to avoid, I have only one comment.

Who normally searches rubbish bins? Spies, burglars, fraudsters ('indentity thieves' in the new scarier formulation), that's who. People searching out the details of our lives.

So more disguised surveillance, paid for from the public purse, of course. And justified with some green veneer.

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End of the road?

2006-08-23T15:32:00.000+00:00

As I've mentioned before, I'm having trouble posting anything but the simplest item (like this) to blogger and don't really have time to sort it out out, since I've just started a new job.

So that may be it. There will, at the very least be an extended hiatus (as they say).

Lebanon disappears (update)

2006-08-11T06:38:00.000+00:00

'British security sources said that all the main targets had been arrested.

The huge international surveillance operation to monitor the meetings, movements, travel, spending and the aspirations of a large group of people, began in December last year but senior officials only decided to make the raids in the last 24 hours.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke, the Metropolitan Police's head of anti-terrorism, said: "Last night the investigation reached a critical point when the decision was taken to take urgent action to disrupt what we believed was being planned" said Mr Clarke.

It is believed that the raids were triggered by intelligence received from abroad.' (link)

From America, more than likely.

So an unexpected, urgent, last minute intervention, triggered by intel from the states. Around the time Bush and Blair had been in extended discussion.

So why the urgency? The suspects are all under surveillance, were easily picked up, except some lower ranking targets. Why such a high profile operation and so much disruption.

Lebanon. The propaganda war's not going Israel's way, so they shunted it right off the news agenda.

Lebanon disappears

2006-08-10T18:00:00.000+00:00

Literally no mention on UK TV news channels of Lebanon all day, that I've seen, and I've had it on much of the day. Wall to wall terror plot.

And now the Israelis are threatening the rest of Beirut with painful measures. I saw it on Fox News, nowhere else.

A bit of healthy scepticiam is in order regarding the UK security forces' timing with this alleged terrorist plot. I've seen nothing that explains why they moved from long-term surveillance to arrests today.

The latest: "Suspected British suicide bombers were just days away from simultaneous attacks on transatlantic airliners..." (link). Still doesn't do it for me. Why that day in that way?

Why all the chaos and panic when they've watched these guys for months? And after all, the mixed liquid technique they were allegedly going to use has been known to the authorities for a decade.

Blair, Bush & today's alleged terror plot

2006-08-10T13:11:00.000+00:00

What do we know? Not a lot, but one gem has emerged - Blair and Bush have been discussing this for several weeks.

About the same length of time as Israel's assault on Lebanon, then.

What might they have discussed over these days and weeks? Perhaps, when to release the information for the best propaganda effect. Maybe whether the economic fallout was worth the propaganda cover.

Lebanon has completely disappeared from UK TV news media, and there's not much on the US satellite news channels. Although that process began here yesterday, oddly enough (newspapers too).

Perhaps they discussed what ongoing enquiries were likely candidates for promotion to imminent threat. Certainly, it's not yet clear what triggered this. And this investigation has been ongoing for several months.

Certainly Blair could use some cover right now, what with resignations and discontent amongst backbenchers; as could Israel, which has expanded its bombing into West Beirut today.

Notable is the fact most 'information' about this on the media is coming from the other side of the Atlantic... as are US Air Marshals apparently (according to US media), although what we'd do with a bunch of unqualified, jumped-up security guards, I have no idea.

As for the "mass murder on an unimaginable scale" quote, perhaps we could let Afghans, Palestinians, Iraqis and Lebanese comment on that...

And given the proclivities of the Bush regime and its hangers-on, someone should start looking out for unusual share and option trades today and last night.

Blogger Trouble

2006-08-06T15:26:00.000+00:00

Sorry, I haven't been able to post for a week and haven't had time to work out what's going on. Big backlog of posts; hopefully I'll resolve it.

Oddly, it let me post this, but none of my actual posts have been accepted.

Update: apparently I can post if I put no links, tags or complex formatting in the posts. We'll try that.

Quote: Yesha Rabbinical Council

2006-08-03T07:44:00.000+00:00

"according to Jewish law, during a time of battle and war, there is no such term as 'innocents' of the enemy... All of the discussions on Christian morality are weakening the spirit of the army and the nation and are costing us in the blood of our soldiers and civilians" YNET NEWS
Yesha Rabbinical Council announcement in response to the IDF attack in Qana

Previously
The purity of weapons (cont.)
The purity of weapons
Judaism, Zionism and Israel (cont.)
Judaism, Zionism and Israel
A child's garden of Zionism

Welcome to the Arab Street

2006-08-01T09:31:00.000+00:00

When the latest Israel-American war crime outrages international and Arab opinion, we're constantly informed of the dichotomy between 'the Arab Street', seen demonstrating its anger, and their leadership, who we are assured are more rational, more considered, more able to understand the broader arguments - i.e. they are corrupt enough to sacrifice their people's aspirations and wealth to Israel-American and corporate interests.

Leaving aside the obvious condescending racism in this world view, it should be obvious that this is not a purely Arab phenomenon.

We here in the UK are overwhelmingly opposed to Israel's crimes in Palestine and Lebanon, and to American and UK crimes in Iraq (and Afghanistan and elsewhere). Much good it does us. Our dear leader, the poodle Blair, is as obviously bought and paid for as the most venally corrupt 'third world' leader.

And the tame UK media protects him with the pretence he is a committment politican, braving unpopularity for what he believes to be 'right'.

He is clearly not; every aspect of his career screams opportunist and liar - from the early adventures in glam rock to his clearly shallow religiosity, completely immune to moral guidance from those he claims to recognise as spiritual and moral leaders - including the two Popes he's ignored, while pestering them with his boyish aspirations to join the Catholic Church.

But the depths of the evil he's prepared to accommodate stand against all this - the illegal assaults on civilians, civilian infrastructure and the environment in Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq; false flag terrorism in Iran (and probably Syria); support for Israel-American war crimes in Lebanon and Palestine, and implicating the British people in these crimes; domestically, the selling of the UK's health service to American clients of the Bush regime, the transparent military drivers behind his 'discovery' of the 'need' for nuclear power, the sacrifice of an entire generation of children to alcohol addiction... the list is dispiriting long.

So, like other American clients in the Arab world, our leaders, enslaved by fear, greed and ambition, do not represent us.

For them office is just a small part of a career in global exploitation and domination. They look forward to corporate Directorships, lucrative lecture tours, prominent roles in criminal think tanks and NGOs, a shining reputation as statesmen and men of peace delivered by the likes of American academics and NewsCorp - and all the other diverse ways corporate, American and Israeli interests repay their loyal servants.

From the Arab Street, London, UK.

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Quote: William Blackstone

2006-08-01T08:45:00.000+00:00

"Those rights, then, which God and nature have established, and are therefore called natural rights, such as life and liberty, need not the aid of human laws to be more effectually invested in every man than they are; neither do they receive any additional strength when declared by the municipal laws to be inviolate. On the contrary, no human legislature has power to abridge or destroy them, unless the owner shall himself commit some act that amounts to a forfeiture."
Sir William Blackstone (1723 - 1780) English jurist, author of 'Commentaries on the Laws of England'

A child's garden of Zionism

2006-08-01T07:55:00.000+00:00

A little florilegium of Zionist delights.

"We have to kill all the Palestinians unless they are resigned to live here as slaves." Chairman Heilbrun of the Committee for the Re-election of General Shlomo Lahat, the mayor of Tel Aviv, October 1983.

"We must use terror, assassination, intimidation, land confiscation, and the cutting of all social services to rid the Galilee of its Arab population." David Ben-Gurion, May 1948, to the General Staff. (From Ben-Gurion, A Biography, by Michael Ben-Zohar, Delacorte, New York 1978.)

"We should prepare to go over to the offensive. Our aim is to smash Lebanon, Trans-Jordan, and Syria. The weak point is Lebanon, for the Moslem regime is artificial and easy for us to undermine. We shall establish a Christian state there, and then we will smash the Arab Legion, eliminate Trans-Jordan; Syria will fall to us. We then bomb and move on and take Port Said, Alexandria and Sinai." David Ben-Gurion, May 1948, to the General Staff. From Ben-Gurion, A Biography, by Michael Ben-Zohar, Delacorte, New York 1978.

"It is the duty of Israeli leaders to explain to public opinion, clearly and courageously, a certain number of facts that are forgotten with time. The first of these is that there is no Zionism, colonialization or Jewish State without the eviction of the Arabs and the expropriation of their lands." Yoram Bar Porath, Yediot Aahronot, of 14 July 1972.

"Everybody has to move, run and grab as many hilltops as they can to enlarge the settlements because everything we take now will stay ours... Everything we don't grab will go to them." Ariel Sharon, Israeli Foreign Minister, addressing a meeting of militants from the extreme right-wing Tsomet Party, Agence France Presse, November 15, 1998.

"Every time we do something you tell me America will do this and will do that . . . I want to tell you something very clear: Don't worry about American pressure on Israel. We, the Jewish people, control America, and the Americans know it." Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, October 3, 2001, to Shimon Peres, as reported on Kol Yisrael radio.

"Israel may have the right to put others on trial, but certainly no one has the right to put the Jewish people and the State of Israel on trial." Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, 25 March, 2001 quoted in BBC News Online

Previously
Judaism, Zionism & Israel (cont)
Judaism, Zionism & Israel
The Purity of Weapons
Creative destruction
Heartless in Gaza; thoughtless in America
How many Hitlers is that now?

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The Purity of Weapons (cont)

2006-08-01T07:43:00.000+00:00

Does the Israel military even recognise the existence of civilan non-combatants as understood in international law? I began to explore this in my recent The Purity of Weapons post, and found quite a bit of evidence suggesting that they do not.

And in the Lebanese case, we now have government statements confirming that interpretation, notably: "Everyone in southern Lebanon is a terrorist and is connected in some way to Hezbollah... In order to prevent casualties among Israeli soldiers battling Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon, villages should be flattened by the Israeli air force before ground troops move in." Israeli Justice Minister Haim Ramon, July 27, Army Radio

Previously
The Purity of Weapons
Creative destruction
Heartless in Gaza; thoughtless in America
How many Hitlers is that now?

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Qana: American & UK complicity (update)

2006-08-01T07:20:00.000+00:00

"And there was no doubt of the missile which killed all those children yesterday. It came from the United States, and upon a fragment of it was written: 'For use on MK-84 Guided Bomb BSU-37-B'". (link)

Quote: Mrs McGrath

2006-07-30T18:03:00.000+00:00

"All foreign wars I do proclaim,
Live on blood and a mother’s pain
I’d rather have my son as he used to be
Than the King of America
And his whole Navy!"

Mrs McGrath, traditional Irish war lament.