Will Americans ever feel free to criticise Israel and not worry they are being anti-American?
This is the week of the annual AIPAC conference in Washington. (AIPAC, America Israel Public Affairs Committee, the leading pro-Israel lobbying group in the US) Every member of Congress will be there. They have to be, their campaign funds depend upon it. This is the gathering that demonstrates all too clearly – for those who care to look - the power of the Israeli lobby and the total grip that it has on the US Congress. This is the week when the President of the most powerful country in the world kowtows to its ungrateful ally in the Middle East, and is made to look feeble and foolish by Benjamin Netanyahu, son of a militant Zionist, Arab hater, right wing bully boy, and the man most likely to plunge the world into chaos and economic catastrophe should he attack Iran, which he appears increasingly likely to do. What is it with Americans? Why do they allow a foreign country to … [Read More...]
Fuel prices – mass protest it is then George!
On Friday the price of oil closed at $123 a barrel and the price of petrol on forecourts across Britain reached a record high. With petrol prices on their way too £1.50 a litre, we’ll soon be paying nearly £1 in tax and duty on a litre of petrol. This is absolutely ridiculous. Britain is now the fuel tax capital of Europe. Nobody else pays as much tax and duty as we do, and if the Chancellor has his way, we’ll be paying even more, an extra 3p a litre in September. If we had a booming economy, the cost of fuel wouldn’t be quite so critical. As it is, our economy is on its knees. Britain has a road based economy. The cost of fuel affects practically everything. What on earth is the sense in increasing the cost of this critical commodity at a time when we should be doing everything to reduce costs, encourage demand and generate growth? High energy prices hammer growth … [Read More...]
Is our democracy suffering because of feral lobbying?
David Cameron promised to “shine the light of transparency on lobbying” and later declared that lobbying in this country was “out of control”. Strong words from a former PR man, but so far only words from the Prime Minister, no action. Lobbying reform appears to be stuck on Cameron’s crowded back burner. Why the delay? Maybe it’s been labelled ‘too difficult – put off for as long as possible’ or perhaps he’s been overwhelmed by lobbyists trying to convince him that self-regulation is working just fine. Whether we like it or not, lobbying has become a part of politics. Lobbyists are paid huge sums to influence politicians’ decisions on behalf of their clients. The ‘industry’ has developed under our noses and yet we have little idea about the activities of lobbyists and absolutely no idea about who is lobbying who and for what reason – or how much money … [Read More...]
Free speech, is this a concept the LibDems have forgotten?
Baroness Tonge is a brave lady. For years she’s had the courage to speak out against Israel’s treatment of the people of Gaza and the Occupied Territories. She is a great supporter of the Palestinian cause. Yesterday she said that “Israel would not last forever in its present form.” She’s almost certainly right. She went on to say, "One day, the American people are going to say to the Israel lobby in the USA: enough is enough. Israel will lose support and then they will reap what they have sown." The American people are indeed beginning to wake up to the bully boy tactics of the Israeli lobby – currently doing everything it can to take America into a new Middle East war over Iran – and unless some sense can be made of the current contrived impasse in the peace process, Israel will most certainly reap what they have sown, as will the Americans. Enter the mighty … [Read More...]
The Tappin Predicament: careless handling of flawed legislation
Christopher Tappin has been stuck in an El Paso gaol since he was extradited to the US a week ago. Tomorrow he’ll learn if he gets bail or not. Whatever the case, he will probably be unaware of his wife’s brave testimony in front of a House of Commons Select Committee this week. He would have been very proud of her. Christopher Tappin has been let down by the careless handling of flawed legislation. Whether he is guilty or not, he has not been fairly or properly treated. It all goes back to 2003 when the Blair government, eager to do all it could to assist George Bush’s ‘war on terror’, amended the extradition legislation. Up until 2003, any country requesting the extradition of a British citizen had to produce prima facie evidence to accompany any request for extradition. This requirement was abolished by the new legislation. The US made no change to its extradition … [Read More...]
Noam Chomsky: The US decline in perspective
This is the second part of Noam Chomsky’s article on the decline of American power.It is fascinating. America’s appetite for imperial domination appears to be as strong as ever, but its ability to maintain that domination is decreasing. What's frightening are the distortions that America’s appetite has caused – and continues to cause - and the disconnect that exists between policy and people. As the 21st century unfolds, how are American politicians going to react to the country’s changing circumstances? So many of them appear to live in a cocoon, unaware of the power and persistence of modern day public scrutiny. In future it’s unlikely to be so easy for America, or any other country for that matter, to dodge the searching spotlight of determined inquiry. Increasingly, people in America want to know what is being said and done in their name. Is it not the … [Read More...]
Food speculation: banksters making a killing – literally!
Banks and hedge funds are betting on food prices in financial markets, causing drastic price swings in staple foods such as wheat, maize and soy. Their actions are literally killing millions. They are gambling on starvation, yet we are slow to do anything about it. Why? Perhaps it’s because we don’t really understand exactly what’s going on. (Our politicians probably don’t have much of a clue either!) This clip explains all. Well worth watching. CLICK TO VIEW … [Read More...]
How journalists can avenge the death of Marie Colvin
Was Marie Covin deliberately targeted by Syrian artillery? There is no way of being totally certain, but the ‘media centre’ – a house some journalists were using in Homs – must have been a good source of ‘electronic activity’ which would not have been difficult to pick up and pin point. Yesterday’s events illustrate all too clearly that Assad will do whatever it takes to prevent journalists feeding the world’s media with reports and images of his atrocities. He is desperate to do whatever he can to prevent the true extent of what’s going on in towns like Homs getting out. Assad is even more concerned to limit what Syrians see, particularly members of the armed forces. Why? Because he’s only able to cling to power as long as the army remains on side. He doesn’t want his soldiers to see the true effects of their actions or more of them may be tempted to … [Read More...]
MPs and the Great Disconnect
Last week, we learnt that the banks had been taking the country for a ride over lending to business. Since 2008, they actually received £82.7 billion more than they had lent out. The Governor of the Bank of England even went as far as to highlight what he called the “harsh treatment” that small companies are still suffering at the hands of banks. But what’s been happening to small businesses up and down the country at the hands of the banks has been common knowledge to MPs for a long, long time. From reducing overdraft facilities to increasing bank charges and only offering loans at usurious rates, this has been the story since the crisis happened in 2008. So why does it take the Governor of the Bank of England to have to stand up and spell it out for government to take notice? What have our illustrious MPs been up to? Presumably they’re in regular contact with … [Read More...]
There’s no other way of saying this: banks are taking the piss!
Well, now we know. Our worst suspicions have been proved right. Having caused the financial mess we’re in, banks have not lifted a finger to help the country recover. We now have proof, straight from the lips of the Governor of the Bank of England himself. The behaviour of banks is actually working against the nation’s recovery. Yesterday Mervyn King spoke out against the “harsh treatment small companies are still suffering at the hands of banks”. And, as if to prove the point, the latest statistics show that last year banks received £10.7 billion more than they gave out in loans. Since 2008 they've received a total of £82.7 billion more. He went on to add, “It’s obvious that net lending by banks to businesses as a whole has fallen quarter-on-quarter through 2011” – and every quarter for the past three years! All this comes after the Bank of England conjured … [Read More...]
Ah, at last the ‘Confederation of Bankers’ Interests’ breaks cover!
“Cash-strapped small firms cannot rely on banks to provide them with the money they urgently need to grow”. So says John Cridland, Director General of the CBI. I think you’re missing the point here, Mr Cridland. Cash–strapped businesses are not interested in growing, they’re in the business of survival. Isn’t one of the main reasons why these businesses are so ‘cash-strapped’ because of the less than helpful behaviour of banks? I would doubt if there’s hardly an SME in the land that hasn’t had their overdraft facilities reduced, their banking charges increased and found it nigh on impossible to negotiate any new loan at anything other than a usurious rate of interest. This has been going on since the 2008 crash, Mr Cridland and you’ve hardly said a word. I wonder why? Could it be that you really have become the Confederation of Bankers’ Interests? … [Read More...]
Noam Chomsky: ‘Losing’ the world: American decline in perspective
FEATURED ARTICLE by NOAM CHOMSKY Part 1: US foreign policy 'experts' only ever provide an echo chamber for American imperial power. A longer, broader view is necessary Significant anniversaries are solemnly commemorated – Japan's attack on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, for example. Others are ignored, and we can often learn valuable lessons from them about what is likely to lie ahead. Right now, in fact. At the moment, we are failing to commemorate the 50th anniversary of President John F Kennedy's decision to launch the most destructive and murderous act of aggression of the post-second world war period: the invasion of South Vietnam, later all of Indochina, leaving millions dead and four countries devastated, with casualties still mounting from the long-term effects of drenching South Vietnam with some of the most lethal carcinogens known, undertaken to destroy ground … [Read More...]
Rupert Murdoch and the Fire Sale of the Vanities
There are rumours that Rupert Murdoch is going to fly into London later this week. So, as he lifts his old bones into his Learjet, I wonder what’s on his mind? Is he on his way to shut down the Sun, or is he going to divest himself of all of his newspaper ‘vanities’? What’s clear is that News Corps is doing what has to be done to protect itself from the fall out of the News International scandals here in the UK. If that means the News Corps Management and Standards Committee has to ‘drain the swamp’ by trashing ‘journos’, it will be done. If it means getting rid of his British newspaper titles, it will be done. News Corp has to distance itself from News International. This has to be his number one preoccupation at the moment. What Murdoch cannot afford is for Ofcom to review his stake in BSkyB and find that he’s not a ‘fit and proper’ person to … [Read More...]
Sleepwalking into a war with Iran
The last thing the world needs now is another war, but don’t be surprised if you wake up one morning and find we’re at it again. The most likely scenario is that Israel will have bombed Iran’s nuclear plants. Much as the US is concerned about Iran’s potential nuclear capability, the last thing the White House needs is to be dragged into another war in an election year. The Israelis on the other hand, and Netanyahu in particular, see an election year as a time when they can exact maximum pressure on Obama. They want to remain the only nuclear power in the Middle East and they’re prepared to do whatever it takes to see that the status quo remains. This is not a matter of Israel’s security, it’s about the balance of power. Anything can happen, and that should be a great concern to us all. On this side of the Atlantic most people have very little idea about … [Read More...]
We should all feel lucky that Dirty Harry’s hit town
There are few in the teaching profession who don’t admire Sir Michael Wilshaw, the new Chief Inspector of Schools. As head of Mossbourne School in Hackney and Hackney Downs he proved that with the right leadership and a no nonsense, no excuses culture, schools can deliver the education our children deserve. Despite cries of ‘education, education, education’ from politicians, British education remains second rate. As if to emphasise the point, this week we learned that Bulgaria and Poland have more children achieving ‘A’ level standard than we do in Britain. Shameful, isn’t it? It really isn’t good enough. We have consistently let down our children, squandered their talent and allowed an excuse culture to thrive. Michael Wilshaw has proved that if you set high expectations and establish a no excuse culture, and have strong competent leadership in a school, miracles can be … [Read More...]
No effective demand, no credit…it’s Armageddon Mr Osborne!
If you’re still scratching your head wondering how on earth we could have got ourselves into this horrendous financial mess, David Harvey sets out his explanation in a clear and believable way in the clip below. David Harvey is a leading social theorist. He is actually an academic geographer ‘by trade’, but most recently he's been credited with restoring social class and Marxist methods as serious methodological tools in the critique of global capitalism. His most recent book “The Enigma of Capital: and the Crises of Capitalism” takes a long view of the current economic crisis. Harvey explains how capitalism came to dominate the world and why it resulted in the current financial crisis. He describes that the essence of capitalism is its amorality and lawlessness. He believes to talk of a regulated, ethical capitalism is to make a fundamental error. His book proved hugely … [Read More...]
Want growth? Want better performance? Ban bonuses!
Why do banksters and senior executives get bonuses? Is it because they’ve delivered outstanding performance? Not really. The reality is that bonuses have become just another way of giving people money...oh, maybe a 'bonus scheme' gives shareholders the impression that there are incentives in place to encourage performance, but that's 'smoke and mirrors'. As a tool for getting better performance out of an individual, bonuses just do not work. Probably the worst feature about bonuses is that once given they’re considered to be an entitlement, a part of pay. And when they’re reduced or not given, they become a huge demotivator. People work best when they’re paid well for what they do - in other words, when money isn’t a primary issue in their working lives. Money worries and bonus jealousies cause unhappiness and demotivate people. Involving people, encouraging them to be … [Read More...]
We’ll pick up the tab if it means politicians clean up their act, Mr Cameron
After 15 months of deliberation and endless delays, the Committee on Standards in Public Life recommended that there should be a £10,000 cap on ‘political donations’. Since the committee report in November there’s been complete silence. The LibDems, who have nothing to lose and much to gain, are apparently in favour. Not so The Conservative and Labour party. The Conservatives want a cap of at least £50,000, and Labour doesn’t want to see their union ‘donations’ disappear. So where do we go from here? Well, Graham Allen who’s chairman of the Political and Constitutional Reform Committee, is urging the government to pull its socks up, take the issue out of the ‘too difficult box’, and deal with the issue without further delay. He thinks that public confidence in politics risks being undermined if some future scandal erupts before a solution is put in … [Read More...]
David Cameron, mouse or man?
Oh for heaven’s sake Mr Cameron, if you want us to believe your brave words, don’t read them out as if you were a contestant in the Slough Grammar reading competition. Go study Bill Clinton. Learn how to deliver a speech so that people believe what you’re saying. What you did yesterday in Davos was to convince us that you’re not convincing. You had every right to berate Eurozone leaders. They do need to get a grip and sort things out, but say it in a way you’ll be noticed, not ignored – as you most certainly were. Whenever David Cameron delivers a speech it’s not only his delivery that lets him down, his whole demeanour shouts insincerity and lack of confidence. He only seems to be at home at PMQs when he’s bullying the boy Miliband. Says volumes about what sort of man David Cameron really is, does it not? Leaving Cameron’s presentational skills, or … [Read More...]
The disaster of austerity and a commitment NOT to grow
The rise in retail sales over the Christmas period had some optimists, those still clutching straws, believing that maybe things are not going to be that bad after all. They’re going to be disappointed. In the months to come, the December quarter will be seen as having been a ‘last hurrah’. A last gasp before going under. And 2012? So far it’s had a very odd feel about it. Nothing has happened, nothing is happening. It’s as if all crises were put on hold over Christmas and they’ve not resurfaced yet. Is this the lull before the storm? Very possibly. But this has to be the year when the severity of the austerity programme starts to hit home. The bill is on the table and it’s going to have to be paid. The price? Unemployment. It’s going to rise steeply. More and more businesses are going to give up the unequal struggle. Inequality is going to get worse. … [Read More...]
More Current Posts
- GOP and Netanyahu corner Obama over Iran, but has he a way out?
- The danger of an unemployed middle class. David Cameron should read this
- Royal yacht? The silliest of silly ideas
- Oh, wake up England! Devo-max = Tory-max
- Cameron prepared to sacrifice the Union for Tory party self-interest?
- Is the US coming to its senses over Israel?
- As the dawn of 2012 approaches, the sound of war drums from across the Atlantic is getting louder
- SoR’s Christmas ‘Stockings’. Thursday – David Cameron
- SoR’s Christmas ‘Stockings’. Wednesday – Benjamin Netanyahu
- SoR’s Christmas ‘Stockings’. Tuesday – Bob Crow
- SoR’s Christmas ‘Stockings’. Monday – Bob Diamond
- Christopher Hitchens – A life lived. The Paxman interview
- High street? High five! Mary’s recommendations on the money!
- Sharon Bowles reveals Cameron as Perfidious Albion personified
- Postscript to the ‘Cameron Calamity’ blog
- ‘The Cameron Calamity’
World Focus
How journalists can avenge the death of Marie Colvin
Was Marie Covin deliberately targeted by Syrian artillery? There is no way of being totally certain, but the ‘media centre’ – a house some journalists were using in Homs – must have been a good source of ‘electronic activity’ which would not have been difficult to pick up and pin … [Read More...]
The Euro crisis? It’s now become a game of chicken
Now here’s a lady who should be listened to. Conatanze Stelzenmuller of the German Marshall Fund. If you wanted a commonsense perspective on the Eurozone crisis, this is it. She’s so refreshingly direct, and talks a whole lot of common sense. What a change from the diet of virtuous political … [Read More...]
The mouse roared – the lion and the bear blushed
Radek Sikorski's widely published comments asking for Germany to use its power 72 years after its invasion of Poland have caused an uproar in his home country, forcing the prime minister to step into the fray to back him. Here’s what he had to say: "I will probably be the first Polish foreign … [Read More...]
“Noam Chomsky: The Iranian Threat”
The US is not taking any practical steps to ensure a nuclear-free Middle East, says Noam Chomsky. "9/11 Was there an alternative?" an updated version of his classic account, just being published this week with a major new essay - from which this post was adapted - considering the 10 years since … [Read More...]
Palestine: Hague bottles it. An opportunity lost
Here is the full text of William Hague’s statement to the House of Commons on Palestine’s request for UN membership. As predicted, Britain will abstain if the vote goes before the Security Council, which is very disappointing and extremely short-sighted. An opportunity has been lost. The most … [Read More...]
No poodle politics please. Britain needs to stand up and be counted over Palestine
Tomorrow William Hague will stand up in the House of Commons and declare Britain is going to abstain in the UN vote on Palestinian statehood. Britain’s abstention is shameful, an act of betrayal and a lost opportunity. It really doesn’t matter if the US is going to veto the application - … [Read More...]
Papandreou move over – make way for Liana!
VIDEO: Oh what a find! Liana Kanelli, bold and beautiful, a communist member of the Greek parliament says how it is - and how! There's no messing with this lady. The referendum question? Her suggestion is probably pretty close to the truth. Let's hope we hear more from Liana in the weeks to come! … [Read More...]
For Palestinians not to see Europe as an enemy, it’s a ‘no’ to America’s dangerous game
FEATURED ARTICLE by JOHN V WHITBECK The number of UN member states extending diplomatic recognition to the State of Palestine has now risen to 131, leaving only 62 UN member states on the wrong side of history and humanity. If one ignores small island states in the Caribbean and the Pacific, … [Read More...]
The two state solution is dead – the funeral is today
FEATURED ARTICLE by BEN WHITE Voting on full membership for the PLO in the UN marks the end of the Oslo accords This week should be the end of the so-called peace process - and the ‘two state solution’. Whatever happens at the United Nations, the game is finished, and a transition to … [Read More...]
Goodbye to Wadah Khanfar, the man who switched on the spotlight
“Honesty is the best policy. If I lose mine honor, I lose myself.” Wadah Khanfar Director General of Al Jazeera has resigned. An Al Jazeera spokesman said: "Wadah Khanfar had made outstanding contributions to Al Jazeera and journalism worldwide”. Wadah Khanfar did much more than that. He … [Read More...]
- Palestine: Time for the world to part company with the US
- Israel to bomb Iran…it might just happen – this month!
- The disaster known as Netanyahu
- Manipulating social networks
- Palestine needs a political solution, not aid
- A revolution abandoned and a people betrayed
- The Palestinians have some very powerful options
- In Syria, the government is the real rebel
- Israel to attack Iran in the Autumn?
- Murdoch on the rack?
America
Will Americans ever feel free to criticise Israel and not worry they are being anti-American?
This is the week of the annual AIPAC conference in Washington. (AIPAC, America Israel Public Affairs Committee, the leading pro-Israel lobbying group in the US) Every member of Congress will be there. They have to be, their campaign funds depend upon it. This is the gathering that demonstrates … [Read More...]
Fuel prices – mass protest it is then George!
On Friday the price of oil closed at $123 a barrel and the price of petrol on forecourts across Britain reached a record high. With petrol prices on their way too £1.50 a litre, we’ll soon be paying nearly £1 in tax and duty on a litre of petrol. This is absolutely ridiculous. Britain is now … [Read More...]
The Tappin Predicament: careless handling of flawed legislation
Christopher Tappin has been stuck in an El Paso gaol since he was extradited to the US a week ago. Tomorrow he’ll learn if he gets bail or not. Whatever the case, he will probably be unaware of his wife’s brave testimony in front of a House of Commons Select Committee this week. He would have … [Read More...]
Noam Chomsky: The US decline in perspective
This is the second part of Noam Chomsky’s article on the decline of American power.It is fascinating. America’s appetite for imperial domination appears to be as strong as ever, but its ability to maintain that domination is decreasing. What's frightening are the distortions that … [Read More...]
Noam Chomsky: ‘Losing’ the world: American decline in perspective
FEATURED ARTICLE by NOAM CHOMSKY Part 1: US foreign policy 'experts' only ever provide an echo chamber for American imperial power. A longer, broader view is necessary Significant anniversaries are solemnly commemorated – Japan's attack on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, for example. … [Read More...]
Rupert Murdoch and the Fire Sale of the Vanities
There are rumours that Rupert Murdoch is going to fly into London later this week. So, as he lifts his old bones into his Learjet, I wonder what’s on his mind? Is he on his way to shut down the Sun, or is he going to divest himself of all of his newspaper ‘vanities’? What’s … [Read More...]
Sleepwalking into a war with Iran
The last thing the world needs now is another war, but don’t be surprised if you wake up one morning and find we’re at it again. The most likely scenario is that Israel will have bombed Iran’s nuclear plants. Much as the US is concerned about Iran’s potential nuclear capability, … [Read More...]
GOP and Netanyahu corner Obama over Iran, but has he a way out?
Slowly but surely the Iran crisis is moving up the agenda. This is no accident. Why? Because Israel, or to be more precise Netanyahu, and the Republican party are in the process of manipulating Obama into a lose-lose situation over Iran in this crucial election year. Netanyahu believes … [Read More...]
The danger of an unemployed middle class. David Cameron should read this
Here is a link to a recent article in The New York Times entitled “How the US lost out to iPhone work”. This is an article every politician should read – especially David Cameron. It may be about America, but it has lessons for Britain too. At a dinner in California last February, … [Read More...]
Is the US coming to its senses over Israel?
Maybe at long last the Israeli lobby’s stranglehold over Congress is starting to get up the noses of ‘thinking Americans’ – and Jewish thinking Americans at that. No less a person than Thomas Friedman, the New York Times foreign affairs correspondent has accused American leaders of … [Read More...]
- As the dawn of 2012 approaches, the sound of war drums from across the Atlantic is getting louder
- Are you happy we’re supporting the US move towards a war with Iran?
- Bloomberg forever…and ever…and ever!
- “Your country…does not need you – any of you!”
- Britain should distance itself from the US position on Palestine
- Netanyahu, the madcap menace of the Middle East
- The US has lost its right to lead in resolving the Israel-Palestine conflict
- The underlying cause of the financial collapse is growing inequality
- The fool who lives on the hill – Barak Obama
- Media mogul mugs media mogul. Go! Ted Turner tells Rupie
