Today (31/5/12) I went to the gym and caught up on some reading before going to the supermarket. That was enough to wipe me out for the day so I'm starting my long weekend early. The only possible thing of interest was while at the supermarket I brought some latex gloves like those commonly used in crime. Sadly my need was much more prosaic. As I've mentioned I've still got quite a nasty cut on my finger. Tonight I was cooking with chilli peppers. Those are two things that really do not mix.
Also today the Syrian government released their preliminary report into the al-Houla massacre. I haven't read it but I gather it's had it's credibility questioned by the western powers because it claims the SIA have access to heavy weapons. So let's just quickly check my notes specifically "Operation Ostrava: Month 15, Week 2 Day 1" paragraph 2 sentence 3;
"According to SIA sources SIA positions came under light shell fire from
a group of 5 Syrian BRDM-type APC's. SIA fighters counter-attacked
capturing 2 of the APC's and destroying the other 3 killing 23 Syrian
soldiers in the process."
Thursday 31 May 2012
Wednesday 30 May 2012
The UNSC Briefed on al-Houla Massacre.
Today (30/5/12) the Joint Special Envoy to Syria Kofi Annan gave the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) an update on his investigations into the al-Houla massacre. However that was pretty much all that happened in a very short (less then 2hrs) meeting. This was because funnily enough on the day that Charles Taylor was sentenced UNSC members such as Britain and the United States were in no mood to have a serious discussion about bringing those responsible for the massacre to justice. They were though forced to admit that the Syrian government has been telling the truth all this time because there are heavily armed terrorist groups actively waging war against the Syrian government.
As for the briefing the Joint Special Envoy laid responsibility for the al-Houla massacre on the Shabiha militia. This is interesting because roughly translated from Arabic "Shabiha" means "Ghost." Another English word for "Ghost" is "Spook" which is also used to describe members of the western intelligence community or spies. So the Joint Special Envoy is blaming the al-Houla massacre on the Spook militia. To me that sounds like a man who is trying to tell the truth but is afraid to say it directly in case Britain and the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) put a stop to his funding. Mind you at this point that might not be a bad thing because the sooner the Joint Special Envoy's six point plan is out of the way the sooner we can start work on bringing a peaceful political transition to Syria.
As for the briefing the Joint Special Envoy laid responsibility for the al-Houla massacre on the Shabiha militia. This is interesting because roughly translated from Arabic "Shabiha" means "Ghost." Another English word for "Ghost" is "Spook" which is also used to describe members of the western intelligence community or spies. So the Joint Special Envoy is blaming the al-Houla massacre on the Spook militia. To me that sounds like a man who is trying to tell the truth but is afraid to say it directly in case Britain and the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) put a stop to his funding. Mind you at this point that might not be a bad thing because the sooner the Joint Special Envoy's six point plan is out of the way the sooner we can start work on bringing a peaceful political transition to Syria.
Eurovision 2012: Sorry For the Delay.
On Saturday May 26th the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest was held in Baku, Azerbaijan. The voting system used in Eurovision is notoriously complicated. All the participating nations (42 this year) award a total of 58 votes to their chosen songs/countries (obviously they can't vote for themselves). These votes are awarded in 10 blocks with 12 votes going to the first most popular song, 10 votes going to the second most popular song, 8 votes going to the third most popular song, 7 votes going to the fourth most popular song and so on all the way down to 1 vote for the tenth most popular song. 50% of which songs these votes go to comes from a public telephone/smstext poll with the other 50% being awarded by a secretive panel of judges appointed by the national government. Therefore simply having a good song that is popular with the public is not usually enough to win Eurovision on it's own. Personally I'm happy with that because it's not like we're picking the next President of Europe.
The 2012 contest was won by the Swedish entry "Euphoria" by Loreen. This slightly avant-garde dance track is actually top of the sales charts in five Eurovision countries so while it's not exactly to my taste it is really popular with large sections of the public so was always going to place in the top five. What drove it all the way to victory with by a 113 vote landslide was the host nation Azerbaijan's appalling human rights record which some international observers have described as non-existent. The way Azerbaijan treats homosexuals is a particular problem as they represent a large constituency among Eurovision participants and viewers. During the week building up to the grand final the Swedish entry Loreen gave a press interview in which she was very critical of Azerbaijan's government - something that normally carries a prison sentence in the country. Therefore there was something of a conspiracy amongst Eurovision participants to make sure that Loreen won so she could use her acceptance speech and victory performance to further criticise Azerbaijan's government. In the end the host ensured that this didn't happen by making sure that Loreen was manhandled by sound engineers and floor managers during her speech and terminating the broadcast before she was able to finished her victory performance. All in all quite an ugly end to Eurovision 2012.
Second place went to the Russia's delightfully surreal entry "Party for Everybody" by Buranovskyie Babushki. This featured six Russian grandmothers in traditional dress baking disco cakes on stage while singing along to a high-tempo dance track. The fact that this type of music is really popular especially in eastern Europe coupled with the fact it was impossible to watch without cracking a smile meant that Russia's entry was the public's favourite. The Babushki's back-story about how they'd survived the hardships of Stalin's rule was meant to counter Britain's appeal to eastern European grandmothers and show the European Union (EU) that they have nothing to fear from a Russia that has moved on from Soviet-era thinking. This seems to have worked with Russia attracting a lot of votes from established EU members by way of an apology for the pressure they've put on Russia over EU expansion and Syria. Of course Russia also attracted big votes from nations in their near abroad trying to convince their big enemy that they're actually friends.
The Serbian entry "Nije Ljubav Stvar" by Zeljko Joksimovic came third. As I explained on the night a large part of this was due to the fact was a slow love ballad which always do well at Eurovision. Beyond that there was a large sympathy vote for the way that the whole of Serbia has been treated - particularly by NATO - following the Bosnian war. Established EU members also gave Serbia a lot of votes to congratulate new President Tomislav Nikolic's new found pro-EU stance. Finally some of Serbia's traditional regional rivals like Croatia gave Serbia lots of votes in order to pretend they're friends.
Then there were the six automatic qualifiers for the grand final; Azerbaijan, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK.
I think I've covered the UK entry Englebert Humperdinck in enough detail already in a post bearing his name. Of the rest Spain's entry "Quedate Comingo (Stay With Me)" by Pastor Soler was a simple love ballad designed to act as an appeal to the Eurozone not to forget the country during it's financial troubles. According to the latest news about Bankia this didn't work. Germany's entry "Standing Still" by Roman Lobb was a reminder to the Eurozone that the Europact is not up for re-negotiation. As in "I'm still standing by my earlier statement." France's entry "Echo (You & I) by Anggun was a totally non-political attempt to appeal to the gay constituency. The promo video featured handsome male dancers in military style uniforms that could be mistaken for both 1960's USSR army and 1960's French police uniforms which were a significant feature of 1968's Paris Spring. This created a sort of "echoes of history" theme that could be interpreted as France seconding Israel's warning to those promoting and participating in the Arab Spring. However in the stage act the uniforms were dropped in favour of topless male dancers so it's looks like France changed their mind at the last minute to avoid causing controversy while the new President finds his feet.
The Italian entry "La Amore E' Femmina (Out of Love)" by Nina Zilli looked like a desperate attempt to win at any cost in order to restore pride to a political class that has seen it's colourful Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi replaced at the insistence at pretty much everyone in the EU. The use of an established gay icon as a singer was designed to check the gay constituency off the list. The soft, easy-listening song was designed to check the Eurovision traditionalists off the list. The swing/big band touch to the song was meant to check the youngsters who listen to the likes of Amy Winehouse, Mark Ronson and British X-Factor finalist Marcus Collins off the list. The fact that Nina Zilli looks like one of the very attractive women that Berlusconi like to pack his Parliament with coupled with the out of love theme seemed to me to be a section of Italian society having a swipe at me and stating that they still support the Bristol Abuse Case. It didn't do them any good though, they finished 9th.
Azerbaijan's entry "When the Music Dies" by Sabina Babayeva seemed to be an open threat to their population. The message being that they shouldn't get used to the small freedoms they'd been granted during Eurovision because they'll be disappearing just as soon as the spotlight moves elsewhere. Therefore I think the effort to get Loreen to win bordered on the irresponsible. However I am glad that the politics are back because without them Eurovision is just a parade of 42 technically proficient but rather bland pop songs. In a country without the real and serious political problems that Azerbaijan faces there should be more then enough room for both.
The 2012 contest was won by the Swedish entry "Euphoria" by Loreen. This slightly avant-garde dance track is actually top of the sales charts in five Eurovision countries so while it's not exactly to my taste it is really popular with large sections of the public so was always going to place in the top five. What drove it all the way to victory with by a 113 vote landslide was the host nation Azerbaijan's appalling human rights record which some international observers have described as non-existent. The way Azerbaijan treats homosexuals is a particular problem as they represent a large constituency among Eurovision participants and viewers. During the week building up to the grand final the Swedish entry Loreen gave a press interview in which she was very critical of Azerbaijan's government - something that normally carries a prison sentence in the country. Therefore there was something of a conspiracy amongst Eurovision participants to make sure that Loreen won so she could use her acceptance speech and victory performance to further criticise Azerbaijan's government. In the end the host ensured that this didn't happen by making sure that Loreen was manhandled by sound engineers and floor managers during her speech and terminating the broadcast before she was able to finished her victory performance. All in all quite an ugly end to Eurovision 2012.
Second place went to the Russia's delightfully surreal entry "Party for Everybody" by Buranovskyie Babushki. This featured six Russian grandmothers in traditional dress baking disco cakes on stage while singing along to a high-tempo dance track. The fact that this type of music is really popular especially in eastern Europe coupled with the fact it was impossible to watch without cracking a smile meant that Russia's entry was the public's favourite. The Babushki's back-story about how they'd survived the hardships of Stalin's rule was meant to counter Britain's appeal to eastern European grandmothers and show the European Union (EU) that they have nothing to fear from a Russia that has moved on from Soviet-era thinking. This seems to have worked with Russia attracting a lot of votes from established EU members by way of an apology for the pressure they've put on Russia over EU expansion and Syria. Of course Russia also attracted big votes from nations in their near abroad trying to convince their big enemy that they're actually friends.
The Serbian entry "Nije Ljubav Stvar" by Zeljko Joksimovic came third. As I explained on the night a large part of this was due to the fact was a slow love ballad which always do well at Eurovision. Beyond that there was a large sympathy vote for the way that the whole of Serbia has been treated - particularly by NATO - following the Bosnian war. Established EU members also gave Serbia a lot of votes to congratulate new President Tomislav Nikolic's new found pro-EU stance. Finally some of Serbia's traditional regional rivals like Croatia gave Serbia lots of votes in order to pretend they're friends.
Then there were the six automatic qualifiers for the grand final; Azerbaijan, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK.
I think I've covered the UK entry Englebert Humperdinck in enough detail already in a post bearing his name. Of the rest Spain's entry "Quedate Comingo (Stay With Me)" by Pastor Soler was a simple love ballad designed to act as an appeal to the Eurozone not to forget the country during it's financial troubles. According to the latest news about Bankia this didn't work. Germany's entry "Standing Still" by Roman Lobb was a reminder to the Eurozone that the Europact is not up for re-negotiation. As in "I'm still standing by my earlier statement." France's entry "Echo (You & I) by Anggun was a totally non-political attempt to appeal to the gay constituency. The promo video featured handsome male dancers in military style uniforms that could be mistaken for both 1960's USSR army and 1960's French police uniforms which were a significant feature of 1968's Paris Spring. This created a sort of "echoes of history" theme that could be interpreted as France seconding Israel's warning to those promoting and participating in the Arab Spring. However in the stage act the uniforms were dropped in favour of topless male dancers so it's looks like France changed their mind at the last minute to avoid causing controversy while the new President finds his feet.
The Italian entry "La Amore E' Femmina (Out of Love)" by Nina Zilli looked like a desperate attempt to win at any cost in order to restore pride to a political class that has seen it's colourful Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi replaced at the insistence at pretty much everyone in the EU. The use of an established gay icon as a singer was designed to check the gay constituency off the list. The soft, easy-listening song was designed to check the Eurovision traditionalists off the list. The swing/big band touch to the song was meant to check the youngsters who listen to the likes of Amy Winehouse, Mark Ronson and British X-Factor finalist Marcus Collins off the list. The fact that Nina Zilli looks like one of the very attractive women that Berlusconi like to pack his Parliament with coupled with the out of love theme seemed to me to be a section of Italian society having a swipe at me and stating that they still support the Bristol Abuse Case. It didn't do them any good though, they finished 9th.
Azerbaijan's entry "When the Music Dies" by Sabina Babayeva seemed to be an open threat to their population. The message being that they shouldn't get used to the small freedoms they'd been granted during Eurovision because they'll be disappearing just as soon as the spotlight moves elsewhere. Therefore I think the effort to get Loreen to win bordered on the irresponsible. However I am glad that the politics are back because without them Eurovision is just a parade of 42 technically proficient but rather bland pop songs. In a country without the real and serious political problems that Azerbaijan faces there should be more then enough room for both.
Vince Cable a Leveson.
Today (30/5/12) UK Business Secretary Vince Cable has been giving evidence to the Leveson Inquiry into media standards. Meanwhile while Britain was watching that everyone else was watching the sentencing of former Liberian President Charles Taylor following his conviction for planning, aiding and abetting war crimes and crimes against humanity in Sierra Leone.
He was sentenced to 50 years in prison with 6 years taken off that sentence for time served in pre-trial detention. This sentence seems low but you have to remember that everything done at the Charles Taylor is new and sets a precedent. So if the Taylor was given a higher sentence the next person convicted of a similar crime would be forced to take a similar sentence even if it wasn't appropriate for that case. Either way though at 64 years old Charles Taylor won't be eligible for parole until he's 108 years old so I think it's fair to assume that he's going to die in prison.
He was sentenced to 50 years in prison with 6 years taken off that sentence for time served in pre-trial detention. This sentence seems low but you have to remember that everything done at the Charles Taylor is new and sets a precedent. So if the Taylor was given a higher sentence the next person convicted of a similar crime would be forced to take a similar sentence even if it wasn't appropriate for that case. Either way though at 64 years old Charles Taylor won't be eligible for parole until he's 108 years old so I think it's fair to assume that he's going to die in prison.
Tuesday 29 May 2012
I Have Returned From the Hostilery.
Yes that's right at around 19:15 on Tuesday May 29th 2012 I'm back from the pub. I'm a little bit late because after I earlier posted on my blog about how the Whitgift Estate's attempts to force my grandmother into selling her home might be met with a stiff legal challenge my little brother decided he was going to join my father.
As it happens the topic never came up in conversation as we sat there comparing smartphones and sharing photographs of fox cubs. It turns out they're at the stage where they're old enough to start going out hunting alone and they've decided to use this opportunity to work their way into my father and I's affections by bringing us gifts they think we might like. Sadly that seems to mean beer cans and empty cigarette packets which probably tells you more about my father and I then the foxes. However I you think a fox cub's cute you'll find a drunk fox cub hilarious.
Anyway I think I should explain further: The two arrested on suspicion of murder by way of arson following the Derby house fire are Mick and Mairead Philpott. The father Mick of course looks a bit like John Mcalees one of the Special Air Service (SAS) troopers who ended the 1980 siege at the Iranian Embassy in London. Therefore the new narrative is that British Special Forces are perfectly happy to kill their own children. Of course the original narrative was that the 'mistress' "Sam" would be blamed for the murders while Philpott's raked in the cash from well wishers and enjoyed their celebrity status. Seriously I'm not seeing much need for the police to waste too much cash on protection.
Also while I'm here I should point out that Emma Winnall died of her injuries overnight. If you're not familiar with this British story it's about a 93 year old Birmingham woman who was savagely beaten in her own home but not sexually assaulted by an intruder who curiously stole nothing. As Mrs Winnall looked quite a bit like my own grandmother this story has been discussed by my father and I. The best that we could come up with is that someone in the community definitely knows what happens. However you should understand that when my father and I discuss "The Community" we're not necessarily talking about the people that live in her local area.
Finally with the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting on the al-Houla massacre taking place tomorrow (30/5/12) I should probably get around to giving my Eurovision2012 round-up. After all Russia's second place was only about 60% because they're entry was delightfully bonkers. Also how gutted are Berlusconi's tail that Italy didn't win? After all with a bland song sung by a gay icon in the Amy Winehouse/Mark Ronson style you would have thought they'd ticked every box. Sadly though no matter how much Berlusconi hated me he's just not the Prime Minister anymore. At least with 16 dead you'd hope the Northern League (fascists) would be getting the message
As it happens the topic never came up in conversation as we sat there comparing smartphones and sharing photographs of fox cubs. It turns out they're at the stage where they're old enough to start going out hunting alone and they've decided to use this opportunity to work their way into my father and I's affections by bringing us gifts they think we might like. Sadly that seems to mean beer cans and empty cigarette packets which probably tells you more about my father and I then the foxes. However I you think a fox cub's cute you'll find a drunk fox cub hilarious.
Anyway I think I should explain further: The two arrested on suspicion of murder by way of arson following the Derby house fire are Mick and Mairead Philpott. The father Mick of course looks a bit like John Mcalees one of the Special Air Service (SAS) troopers who ended the 1980 siege at the Iranian Embassy in London. Therefore the new narrative is that British Special Forces are perfectly happy to kill their own children. Of course the original narrative was that the 'mistress' "Sam" would be blamed for the murders while Philpott's raked in the cash from well wishers and enjoyed their celebrity status. Seriously I'm not seeing much need for the police to waste too much cash on protection.
Also while I'm here I should point out that Emma Winnall died of her injuries overnight. If you're not familiar with this British story it's about a 93 year old Birmingham woman who was savagely beaten in her own home but not sexually assaulted by an intruder who curiously stole nothing. As Mrs Winnall looked quite a bit like my own grandmother this story has been discussed by my father and I. The best that we could come up with is that someone in the community definitely knows what happens. However you should understand that when my father and I discuss "The Community" we're not necessarily talking about the people that live in her local area.
Finally with the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting on the al-Houla massacre taking place tomorrow (30/5/12) I should probably get around to giving my Eurovision2012 round-up. After all Russia's second place was only about 60% because they're entry was delightfully bonkers. Also how gutted are Berlusconi's tail that Italy didn't win? After all with a bland song sung by a gay icon in the Amy Winehouse/Mark Ronson style you would have thought they'd ticked every box. Sadly though no matter how much Berlusconi hated me he's just not the Prime Minister anymore. At least with 16 dead you'd hope the Northern League (fascists) would be getting the message
Egypt's Presidential Election: The Results.
The official verified and certified results of the first round of the Egyptian Presidential Election were published a day early on Monday May 28th 2012. They show that the Muslim Brotherhood candidate Mohammed Morsy came first with 5,764,952 votes (24.78%) while the Ahmed Shafik, Mubarak's former Prime Minister came second with 5,505,327 votes (23.66%). With no single candidate securing more then 50% of the vote these two candidates will now go on to a run-off vote.
Unfortunately due to events in Syria I have only had the opportunity to check these results today (29/5/12). Therefore it will be tomorrow before I've had time to process all that information and produce a comprehensive round-up. In the meantime though I will say that it was a free and fair election. Only 406,720 (1.72%) ballots were excluded which is a small number by the standards of any election and was less then the difference between the second and third place candidate meaning that they would not have affected the result.
The Egyptian Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) Monitors Without Borders found 146 alleged violations but these were mainly technical violations that would not have affected the election result. For example the ban on campaigning outside polling stations is mainly there to prevent members of opposing campaigns getting into fights outside polling stations making it unsafe for people to vote.
Monitors from the US NGO the Carter Centre's main complaint was that they weren't given as much access as they would like to the election process only receiving accreditation 7 days before the vote. The Carter Centre's patron is former US President Jimmy Carter. You may remember that there has been long running tension between Egypt and the US over access for NGO's so the Carter Centre's objections seem to be the latest round of that argument rather then concerns about the election itself.
The third place candidate Hamdeen Sabahi who received 4,820,273 votes (20.72%) has alleged that 900,000 ID cards were handed out to soldiers allowing them to vote for Ahmed Shafik multiple times. However he only started making those allegations after exit polls started to show that he would miss out on the run-off. Therefore rather then being credible allegations these seem to be Sabahi trying to either force himself into the run-off or get a second try at the first round.
Today (29/5/12) a mob attacked and set fire to the campaign HQ of Ahmed Shafik. This seems to be a deliberate strategy by the Muslim Brotherhood to reduce Shafik's ability to contest the run-off in order to guarantee that the Muslim Brotherhood win the Presidency. Along with their attempts to form a formal coalition in Parliament this leaves me convinced that the Brotherhood are now attempting seize absolute power in Egypt. Therefore I will be perfectly happy to see Ahmed Shafik win the Presidency.
Unfortunately due to events in Syria I have only had the opportunity to check these results today (29/5/12). Therefore it will be tomorrow before I've had time to process all that information and produce a comprehensive round-up. In the meantime though I will say that it was a free and fair election. Only 406,720 (1.72%) ballots were excluded which is a small number by the standards of any election and was less then the difference between the second and third place candidate meaning that they would not have affected the result.
The Egyptian Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) Monitors Without Borders found 146 alleged violations but these were mainly technical violations that would not have affected the election result. For example the ban on campaigning outside polling stations is mainly there to prevent members of opposing campaigns getting into fights outside polling stations making it unsafe for people to vote.
Monitors from the US NGO the Carter Centre's main complaint was that they weren't given as much access as they would like to the election process only receiving accreditation 7 days before the vote. The Carter Centre's patron is former US President Jimmy Carter. You may remember that there has been long running tension between Egypt and the US over access for NGO's so the Carter Centre's objections seem to be the latest round of that argument rather then concerns about the election itself.
The third place candidate Hamdeen Sabahi who received 4,820,273 votes (20.72%) has alleged that 900,000 ID cards were handed out to soldiers allowing them to vote for Ahmed Shafik multiple times. However he only started making those allegations after exit polls started to show that he would miss out on the run-off. Therefore rather then being credible allegations these seem to be Sabahi trying to either force himself into the run-off or get a second try at the first round.
Today (29/5/12) a mob attacked and set fire to the campaign HQ of Ahmed Shafik. This seems to be a deliberate strategy by the Muslim Brotherhood to reduce Shafik's ability to contest the run-off in order to guarantee that the Muslim Brotherhood win the Presidency. Along with their attempts to form a formal coalition in Parliament this leaves me convinced that the Brotherhood are now attempting seize absolute power in Egypt. Therefore I will be perfectly happy to see Ahmed Shafik win the Presidency.
Qatari Shoppin Mall Fire.
This is something I touched on yesterday but have decided could do with explaining in more detail.
Yesterday (28/5/12) a large fire tore through the Villaggio shopping mall in Doha the capital of Qatar. Amid rumours of a faulty sprinkler system and a poor provision of fire exits 19 people have so far been confirmed killed including 13 children who were in the mall's Gympanzee nursery/creche.
I think that this is Qatar trying to distance itself for the al-Houla massacre that took place in Syria last Friday (25/5/12). Although I use the catch all term "Saudi Irregular Army (SIA)" to describe the insurgents in Syria the situation is much more like it is in Libya. That is to say there are disparate, heavily armed groups running around doing what they like with little expertise in warfare and no coherent tactical plan and differing relationships with a host of foreign intelligence agencies led by Saudi Arabia and Qatar. So by setting the fire in the nursery Qatar is trying to present the insurgents who committed the al-Houla massacre as a bunch of immature youngsters over which Qatar has little control. I don't believe this because the co-ordination with the Euro2012 warm-up games, the Eurovision Song Contest and Britain's meeting with the Russians means that they're very well connected insurgents. Besides I had two days prior notice that the massacre was going to take place and I'm not as well connected to the insurgents as the Qataris.
The use of a shopping mall is a reference to me and my problems over my grandmother. These problems are primarily with the estate of the Bishop of Whitgift (Whitgift Estate) which owns lots of things in Croydon including the Whitgift Shopping mall. These problems are expected to come to a head in October/November 2012 when my grandmother's cash reserves are spent and she will be forced to sell her home to the Whitgift Estate after what I suspect will be a lengthy legal battle. Also yesterday a British Court rejected a bail application from Muslim hate cleric Abu Qatada and set the date for his extradition to Jordan hearing for October/November 2012. On a day when I was actively de-railing Britain's plan for Syria this could be viewed as them assuring their allies that they'll be putting me out of business in October/November 2012. It is also Britain stating that they intend to keep their back-channel negotiations with Jordan over Syria running for at least the next six months.
The fact that they majority of the children who died in the fire are French is Qatar forcing France into a discussion over it's passport holders in light of the election of a new French President Francois Hollande who although didn't specifically run on a anti-war ticket is certainly less gung-ho then Nicolas Sarkozy.
Edited at around 13:50 on 29/5/12 to add:
Since writing the above I discovered that the Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamid bin Jasmin bin Jabir al-Thani had a pre-arranged meeting with the Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao yesterday.
Also today there have been developments in Britain's Derby house fire story. It turns out the police have dropped charges against the 'mistress' who looks a bit like my old Brighton cohort "Sam" and arrested the parents of the six dead children on suspicion of starting the fatal house fire. The implication being that they killed their own children in a publicity stunt.
Therefore even Qatar and Britain are admitting that the SIA carried out the al-Houla massacre as an example of black propaganda. The reason for this sudden openness is that tomorrow the UN Special Envoy is set to brief the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) over the massacre. The early whispers suggest that they will follow the script and blame the massacre on the Syrian government. The only problem is that at this point no-one in the business will believe that so the Special Envoy's credibility will be completely destroyed. Therefore Britain is putting pressure on the Special Envoy to give a more accurate account of events.
Yesterday (28/5/12) a large fire tore through the Villaggio shopping mall in Doha the capital of Qatar. Amid rumours of a faulty sprinkler system and a poor provision of fire exits 19 people have so far been confirmed killed including 13 children who were in the mall's Gympanzee nursery/creche.
I think that this is Qatar trying to distance itself for the al-Houla massacre that took place in Syria last Friday (25/5/12). Although I use the catch all term "Saudi Irregular Army (SIA)" to describe the insurgents in Syria the situation is much more like it is in Libya. That is to say there are disparate, heavily armed groups running around doing what they like with little expertise in warfare and no coherent tactical plan and differing relationships with a host of foreign intelligence agencies led by Saudi Arabia and Qatar. So by setting the fire in the nursery Qatar is trying to present the insurgents who committed the al-Houla massacre as a bunch of immature youngsters over which Qatar has little control. I don't believe this because the co-ordination with the Euro2012 warm-up games, the Eurovision Song Contest and Britain's meeting with the Russians means that they're very well connected insurgents. Besides I had two days prior notice that the massacre was going to take place and I'm not as well connected to the insurgents as the Qataris.
The use of a shopping mall is a reference to me and my problems over my grandmother. These problems are primarily with the estate of the Bishop of Whitgift (Whitgift Estate) which owns lots of things in Croydon including the Whitgift Shopping mall. These problems are expected to come to a head in October/November 2012 when my grandmother's cash reserves are spent and she will be forced to sell her home to the Whitgift Estate after what I suspect will be a lengthy legal battle. Also yesterday a British Court rejected a bail application from Muslim hate cleric Abu Qatada and set the date for his extradition to Jordan hearing for October/November 2012. On a day when I was actively de-railing Britain's plan for Syria this could be viewed as them assuring their allies that they'll be putting me out of business in October/November 2012. It is also Britain stating that they intend to keep their back-channel negotiations with Jordan over Syria running for at least the next six months.
The fact that they majority of the children who died in the fire are French is Qatar forcing France into a discussion over it's passport holders in light of the election of a new French President Francois Hollande who although didn't specifically run on a anti-war ticket is certainly less gung-ho then Nicolas Sarkozy.
Edited at around 13:50 on 29/5/12 to add:
Since writing the above I discovered that the Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamid bin Jasmin bin Jabir al-Thani had a pre-arranged meeting with the Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao yesterday.
Also today there have been developments in Britain's Derby house fire story. It turns out the police have dropped charges against the 'mistress' who looks a bit like my old Brighton cohort "Sam" and arrested the parents of the six dead children on suspicion of starting the fatal house fire. The implication being that they killed their own children in a publicity stunt.
Therefore even Qatar and Britain are admitting that the SIA carried out the al-Houla massacre as an example of black propaganda. The reason for this sudden openness is that tomorrow the UN Special Envoy is set to brief the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) over the massacre. The early whispers suggest that they will follow the script and blame the massacre on the Syrian government. The only problem is that at this point no-one in the business will believe that so the Special Envoy's credibility will be completely destroyed. Therefore Britain is putting pressure on the Special Envoy to give a more accurate account of events.
Monday 28 May 2012
Operation Ostrava: Month 15, Week 3, Day 7.
The closed session of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) convened to discuss the al-Houla massacre in Syria broke up at around the time I made the edit to my post yesterday (27/5/12). Although the exact testimony the head of the United Nations Supervision Mission In Syria (UNSMIS) gave to that closed session has still not been made public. According to consistent reports though the death toll was revised upwards to 108 people made up of 49 children, 34 women and 25 men. Of that the majority of the men were killed by so-called indirect fire (shrapnel/blast injuries from artillery/mortar fire) while the majority of the women and children were killed at close range by gunshot or stabbing/slashing wounds.
The figure of 116 dead and 300 injured that the BBC have been using has not been corroborated by any other source. It appears to be a figure that the Saudi Irregular Army (SIA) simply made up for propaganda purposes and the BBC have repeated without question.
The UNSC meeting also heard testimony from the Syrian government which obviously needs to be treated with some scepticism. They stated that Syrian forces were occupying defensive positions (vehicle checkpoints etc) on the outskirts of al-Houla when they came under attack from SIA fighters armed with vehicle-borne heavy machine guns, assault rifles and rocket propelled grenades (RPG'S). The SIA do not dispute this but claim that the attackers were actually unarmed, peaceful protesters. Having come under attack Syrian forces then returned fire in self-defence and stopped when the fighters/protesters stopped attacking their positions and instead headed into the village. It was at this point that the massacre took place.
Having considered the submissions from the head of UNSMIS and the Syrian government along with other testimony the UNSC produced a non-binding press statement that can be read here; http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2012/sc10658.doc.htm
This statement is actually a lot more balanced and impartial then we've come to expect from UNSC statements on Syria. For example it acknowledges that the use of indiscriminate, heavy weapons by Syrian forces is separate from the massacre. However it is more focused on blaming the Syrian government for the use of indiscriminate, heavy weapons then apportion blame for the massacre which is clearly the greater crime. Also if you are inexperienced in reading this sort of UN document the wording might cause you to wrongly infer that the UNSC holds the Syrian government responsible for the massacre which it most certainly does not. The statement ends by re-affirming the UNSC's commitment to the Joint Special Envoy, Kofi Annan and his six point plan. This was a sentiment echoed at a meeting today (28/5/12) between the Russian and UK Foreign Ministers in Moscow which Britain had arranged prior to events in al-Houla.
This is commitment to the Annan plan is a massive problem for anyone who is trying to protect Syrian civilians or bring about political change in the country. The Joint Special Envoy and his six point plan are funded entirely by Britain and the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) part of the Arab League. It's entire purpose is to overthrown the Syrian government and failing that push the country into civil war. Therefore it is the problem rather then the solution and should be dropped immediately. However in order to achieve this there needs to be strong leadership by the permanent members of the UNSC and unfortunately the US President is still cowering in fear at the feet of the Saudi King.
Edited at around 22:05 on 28/5/12 to add:
Today a large fire at a shopping centre in the Qatari capital Doha has killed 19 people - predominately children who were in the centre's nursery. This seems to be both an attempt by the Qataris to distance themselves from the al-Houla massacre and a response to the news that a British Court has today refused bail to Abu Qatada who will face an extradition hearing in October 2012 with a verdict expected November 2012. The inference being that people who own the Whitgift shopping centre in Croydon could soon be finding themselves in a lot of trouble.
The figure of 116 dead and 300 injured that the BBC have been using has not been corroborated by any other source. It appears to be a figure that the Saudi Irregular Army (SIA) simply made up for propaganda purposes and the BBC have repeated without question.
The UNSC meeting also heard testimony from the Syrian government which obviously needs to be treated with some scepticism. They stated that Syrian forces were occupying defensive positions (vehicle checkpoints etc) on the outskirts of al-Houla when they came under attack from SIA fighters armed with vehicle-borne heavy machine guns, assault rifles and rocket propelled grenades (RPG'S). The SIA do not dispute this but claim that the attackers were actually unarmed, peaceful protesters. Having come under attack Syrian forces then returned fire in self-defence and stopped when the fighters/protesters stopped attacking their positions and instead headed into the village. It was at this point that the massacre took place.
Having considered the submissions from the head of UNSMIS and the Syrian government along with other testimony the UNSC produced a non-binding press statement that can be read here; http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2012/sc10658.doc.htm
This statement is actually a lot more balanced and impartial then we've come to expect from UNSC statements on Syria. For example it acknowledges that the use of indiscriminate, heavy weapons by Syrian forces is separate from the massacre. However it is more focused on blaming the Syrian government for the use of indiscriminate, heavy weapons then apportion blame for the massacre which is clearly the greater crime. Also if you are inexperienced in reading this sort of UN document the wording might cause you to wrongly infer that the UNSC holds the Syrian government responsible for the massacre which it most certainly does not. The statement ends by re-affirming the UNSC's commitment to the Joint Special Envoy, Kofi Annan and his six point plan. This was a sentiment echoed at a meeting today (28/5/12) between the Russian and UK Foreign Ministers in Moscow which Britain had arranged prior to events in al-Houla.
This is commitment to the Annan plan is a massive problem for anyone who is trying to protect Syrian civilians or bring about political change in the country. The Joint Special Envoy and his six point plan are funded entirely by Britain and the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) part of the Arab League. It's entire purpose is to overthrown the Syrian government and failing that push the country into civil war. Therefore it is the problem rather then the solution and should be dropped immediately. However in order to achieve this there needs to be strong leadership by the permanent members of the UNSC and unfortunately the US President is still cowering in fear at the feet of the Saudi King.
Edited at around 22:05 on 28/5/12 to add:
Today a large fire at a shopping centre in the Qatari capital Doha has killed 19 people - predominately children who were in the centre's nursery. This seems to be both an attempt by the Qataris to distance themselves from the al-Houla massacre and a response to the news that a British Court has today refused bail to Abu Qatada who will face an extradition hearing in October 2012 with a verdict expected November 2012. The inference being that people who own the Whitgift shopping centre in Croydon could soon be finding themselves in a lot of trouble.
Well I'm Converted.
To the idea of smartphones that is. While I'm writing this on a full sized computer with a full sized keyboard earlier I was having a light gym session and discovered that at the same time I could look up the news on my Blackberry including the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) statement. So while it's costing me money it's actually making my life a lot easier.
Anyway while I was doing that former British Prime Minister Tony Blair was giving evidence to the Leveson Inquiry into media standards. His testimony was disrupted when a protester burst in and started spouting some conspiracy theory idiocy about how Blair should be arrested for war crimes because the Jews who control the world's banks paid him to invade Iraq. Having been to the Royal Courts of Justice while the Leveson Inquiry is in session I can assure you that this is not something that just happens by accident. I can only assume then that this was a pre-arranged publicity stunt because Britain was worried that the growing controversy over the al-Houla massacre might cause the Arab world to miss out on the spectacle of the new British regime making life tough for the previous British regime. Still not rushing to publish the results of the Chilcot Inquiry though are they.
In other news last night (27/5/12) I very foolishly almost sliced the top of my left index finger off. So today (28/5/12) typing is going to be slow and one handed.
Anyway while I was doing that former British Prime Minister Tony Blair was giving evidence to the Leveson Inquiry into media standards. His testimony was disrupted when a protester burst in and started spouting some conspiracy theory idiocy about how Blair should be arrested for war crimes because the Jews who control the world's banks paid him to invade Iraq. Having been to the Royal Courts of Justice while the Leveson Inquiry is in session I can assure you that this is not something that just happens by accident. I can only assume then that this was a pre-arranged publicity stunt because Britain was worried that the growing controversy over the al-Houla massacre might cause the Arab world to miss out on the spectacle of the new British regime making life tough for the previous British regime. Still not rushing to publish the results of the Chilcot Inquiry though are they.
In other news last night (27/5/12) I very foolishly almost sliced the top of my left index finger off. So today (28/5/12) typing is going to be slow and one handed.
Sunday 27 May 2012
Operation Ostrava: Month 15, Week 3, Day 6.
For reasons that are not yet clear on Friday (25/5/12) in the afternoon Syrian government forces shelled the town of al-Houla where Saudi Irregular Army (SIA) fighters were believed to be hiding following the fall of Homs. Once the shelling had stopped non-uniformed and unidentified armed men suddenly appeared on the streets in the evening. They proceeded to go from house to house seemingly randomly rounding up men, women and children who they then either shot or stabbed to death. According to the United Nations Support Mission In Syria (UNSMIS) observers who visited the scene the attack left 92 people dead made up of 60 adults and 32 children under the age of 10.
As it has done with most rational people this massacre has provoked outrage across the international community. The Syrian government immediately opened an investigation into this and two similar but smaller massacres that occurred recently in SIA strongholds in Taldo and al-Shumariyeh. The United States has said that those responsible should be identified and brought to justice while imply that the Syrian government was responsible. Britain is pushing for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in order to use the massacre to; "galvanise the international community in it's efforts [to overthrow the Syrian government]." France is convening a meeting of the stalled Syria Contact Group and has summed up the general mood perfectly by saying that something has to be done.
I couldn't agree with that sentiment more and right now I think that something should involve tracking down exactly who is responsible and doing them great harm. The only problem is that because no-one will trust the Syrian investigation the only independent group available to carry out an investigation are the UNSMIS observers. These are military specialists sent in to monitor a ceasefire. Therefore while they are experts in telling if something was artillery, mortar or grenade fire or how long it should take to move a group of soldiers between two fixed points they have neither the experience or equipment needed to forensically examine a crime scene in order to identify the perpetrators. For that task the only solution I can think of is for the International Criminal Court (ICC) to send in a team of investigators specifically to investigate the events at al-Houla.
The problem is that once the ICC have assembled and mobilised a team they will need either permission from the Syrian government or a UNSC mandate before they can start work. This will take at least a week by which time al-Houla will have been thoroughly sanitised meaning that the results of the ICC investigation will at best be inconclusive. At worst the ICC investigation will find evidence that the SIA were responsible for the massacre. In light of the Charles Taylor verdict this obligates the ICC to issue arrest warrants for the Heads Of Government/State (HOGS) of members of the Syria Contact Group including people like the Queen of England, the King of Saudi Arabia, the US President Barack Obama and the former French President Nicolas Sarkozy. These people and their allies are hugely influential within the ICC and simply won't stand for it issuing arrest warrants against them. Therefore the resulting confrontation will likely cause the ICC to break apart setting the course of human civilisation back at least a hundred years.
A much better international response to the al-Houla massacre then would be for the UNSC to revoke resolution 2042(2012) which it had no authority to pass in the first place and replace it with a resolution calling on all nations to stop the supply of weapons and equipment to the SIA and help equip the Syrian government to bring the insurgency to an end while minimising civilian casualties.
Edited at around 21:20 on 27/5/12 to add: Wow BBCNews are properly in fantasy land tonight.
The UNSC is currently in a closed emergency session convened by Russia to discuss the al-Houla massacre. In their main bulletin tonight the BBC have reported that in that meeting the head of the UNSMIS observer team blamed the Syrian government entirely for the massacre. Now obviously I haven't seen the report that the head of UNSMIS gave to the closed session but I did see the interview he gave moments before hand. In that interview he stated that a small number (around 20) of mainly young men of combat age were killed by indirect (artillery) fire which was the responsibility of the Syrian government but a much larger number (the 92) were killed by small arms fire and stab wounds caused by persons unknown in a seperate incident.
Now I know that the BBC's editorial standards have gone off the edge of a cliff recently but I don't think I've ever seen a news report that is that far detached from reality in my life.
As it has done with most rational people this massacre has provoked outrage across the international community. The Syrian government immediately opened an investigation into this and two similar but smaller massacres that occurred recently in SIA strongholds in Taldo and al-Shumariyeh. The United States has said that those responsible should be identified and brought to justice while imply that the Syrian government was responsible. Britain is pushing for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in order to use the massacre to; "galvanise the international community in it's efforts [to overthrow the Syrian government]." France is convening a meeting of the stalled Syria Contact Group and has summed up the general mood perfectly by saying that something has to be done.
I couldn't agree with that sentiment more and right now I think that something should involve tracking down exactly who is responsible and doing them great harm. The only problem is that because no-one will trust the Syrian investigation the only independent group available to carry out an investigation are the UNSMIS observers. These are military specialists sent in to monitor a ceasefire. Therefore while they are experts in telling if something was artillery, mortar or grenade fire or how long it should take to move a group of soldiers between two fixed points they have neither the experience or equipment needed to forensically examine a crime scene in order to identify the perpetrators. For that task the only solution I can think of is for the International Criminal Court (ICC) to send in a team of investigators specifically to investigate the events at al-Houla.
The problem is that once the ICC have assembled and mobilised a team they will need either permission from the Syrian government or a UNSC mandate before they can start work. This will take at least a week by which time al-Houla will have been thoroughly sanitised meaning that the results of the ICC investigation will at best be inconclusive. At worst the ICC investigation will find evidence that the SIA were responsible for the massacre. In light of the Charles Taylor verdict this obligates the ICC to issue arrest warrants for the Heads Of Government/State (HOGS) of members of the Syria Contact Group including people like the Queen of England, the King of Saudi Arabia, the US President Barack Obama and the former French President Nicolas Sarkozy. These people and their allies are hugely influential within the ICC and simply won't stand for it issuing arrest warrants against them. Therefore the resulting confrontation will likely cause the ICC to break apart setting the course of human civilisation back at least a hundred years.
A much better international response to the al-Houla massacre then would be for the UNSC to revoke resolution 2042(2012) which it had no authority to pass in the first place and replace it with a resolution calling on all nations to stop the supply of weapons and equipment to the SIA and help equip the Syrian government to bring the insurgency to an end while minimising civilian casualties.
Edited at around 21:20 on 27/5/12 to add: Wow BBCNews are properly in fantasy land tonight.
The UNSC is currently in a closed emergency session convened by Russia to discuss the al-Houla massacre. In their main bulletin tonight the BBC have reported that in that meeting the head of the UNSMIS observer team blamed the Syrian government entirely for the massacre. Now obviously I haven't seen the report that the head of UNSMIS gave to the closed session but I did see the interview he gave moments before hand. In that interview he stated that a small number (around 20) of mainly young men of combat age were killed by indirect (artillery) fire which was the responsibility of the Syrian government but a much larger number (the 92) were killed by small arms fire and stab wounds caused by persons unknown in a seperate incident.
Now I know that the BBC's editorial standards have gone off the edge of a cliff recently but I don't think I've ever seen a news report that is that far detached from reality in my life.
Saturday 26 May 2012
Sweden Wins Eurovision.
Sweden's entry "Euphoria" by Loreen has won the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest by a landslide 113 votes. However with no major international summits taking place I see no reason to John Terry myself into the celebrations so I'll leave the full round up until tomorrow (27/5/12). Possibly because I've been on the wine.
Being serious for a moment though the United Nations Support Mission In Syria (UNSMIS) has confirmed that 32 children under the age of ten and 60 adults were killed by unidentified attackers in the town of Houla on Friday (25/5/12) evening local time. This is significantly less then the 7000 men and boys who were killed in a week at Srebrenica. Therefore the comparison was both inaccurate and tasteless considering that Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia & Herzegovina are still not exactly BFF's. However the sympathy vote along with the European Union's (EU) big guns support for new Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic's new found pro-EU stance, some people keeping their enemies close and a very Eurovision friendly ballad helped propel Serbia into third place.
So yeah the politics are back big time.
Edited at around 23:35 on 26/5/12 to add:
BBCNews had better pull their neck in on Syria because I've actually read the United Nations (UN) statement on Houla. While it they blame the Syrian government for using heavy weapons they stop short of blaming them for the massacre which was a separate event carried out with guns and knives. Now I'm going to have a beer and go to bed before I get so angry I say something I regret.
Being serious for a moment though the United Nations Support Mission In Syria (UNSMIS) has confirmed that 32 children under the age of ten and 60 adults were killed by unidentified attackers in the town of Houla on Friday (25/5/12) evening local time. This is significantly less then the 7000 men and boys who were killed in a week at Srebrenica. Therefore the comparison was both inaccurate and tasteless considering that Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia & Herzegovina are still not exactly BFF's. However the sympathy vote along with the European Union's (EU) big guns support for new Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic's new found pro-EU stance, some people keeping their enemies close and a very Eurovision friendly ballad helped propel Serbia into third place.
So yeah the politics are back big time.
Edited at around 23:35 on 26/5/12 to add:
BBCNews had better pull their neck in on Syria because I've actually read the United Nations (UN) statement on Houla. While it they blame the Syrian government for using heavy weapons they stop short of blaming them for the massacre which was a separate event carried out with guns and knives. Now I'm going to have a beer and go to bed before I get so angry I say something I regret.
Great I'm Working On Saturday Again.
Today (26/5/12) the Saudi Irregular Army (SIA) are claiming that Syrian forces committed a Srebrenica style massacre in the town of Houla overnight. The only problem is that on Wednesday (23/5/12) I heard a very specific rumour that the SIA would try and fake a large atrocity to co-incide with the warm-up games for the Euro2012 football championships and the Eurovision song contest (which Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Lebanon and Israel can compete in). The purpose being to re-energise diplomatic efforts against the Syrian government that have all but stopped. So you'll excuse me if I wait for the United Nations Support Mission in Syria (UNSMIS) observers to complete their investigations before I jump to conclusions.
I should also point out that following my lead yesterday (25/5/12) my father connected his smartphone to the Three network on Pay&Go. Unfortunately he also brought a cable to allow him to transfer data from his smartphone to the PC. As a result we've been spending a lot of time yesterday and today trying to get everything to work without much success.
Now I'm just debating whether to watch the automatic qualifiers for the Eurovision song contest online so I can watch the football instead of the performance part of the show. Although there's a lot of international football going on tonight the game I may be watching is Norway V England. With no prize at stake this match is what's described as a friendly although since the Breivik incident "friendly" isn't the first word you'd think of to describe relations between Norway and Britain. Obviously this will be a very tense game so I don't want to say too much. However I think in agreeing to the match Norway was using that old expression; "Keep you friends close and your enemies closer." although they may want to re-think that. Norway of course are in charge of the UNSMIS observer mission.
I should also point out that following my lead yesterday (25/5/12) my father connected his smartphone to the Three network on Pay&Go. Unfortunately he also brought a cable to allow him to transfer data from his smartphone to the PC. As a result we've been spending a lot of time yesterday and today trying to get everything to work without much success.
Now I'm just debating whether to watch the automatic qualifiers for the Eurovision song contest online so I can watch the football instead of the performance part of the show. Although there's a lot of international football going on tonight the game I may be watching is Norway V England. With no prize at stake this match is what's described as a friendly although since the Breivik incident "friendly" isn't the first word you'd think of to describe relations between Norway and Britain. Obviously this will be a very tense game so I don't want to say too much. However I think in agreeing to the match Norway was using that old expression; "Keep you friends close and your enemies closer." although they may want to re-think that. Norway of course are in charge of the UNSMIS observer mission.
Friday 25 May 2012
Damn You Eurovision.
With 36 nations split across two semi-finals and 6 nations qualifying automatically for Saturday's (26/5/12) grand final it is simply not possible for me to comment on all the entries in the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest in detail. So here are some of the ones that have caught my eye so far;
Greece's song "Aphrodisiac" is sung by an attractive young Cheryl Cole lookalike in a short skirt so it's pretty obviously a Greek plea for stimulation - economic or otherwise. What's less obvious though is while I'm not accusing anyone of plagiarism Greece's entry sounds similar to the 2002 Holly Valance hit "Kiss Kiss" which started out life as the Turkish song "Simank." Therefore the Greek entry seems to be something of a peace offering to Turkey. Greek Cyprus' entry "La La Love" is similar in style to the Greek entry in a Cypriot effort to show the Turks how close Cyprus feels to Greece however it is not clear if the Cypriots understand that the Greek effort is taking an unusually friendly stance towards Greece. Although considered one of the favourites the last thing the Greeks want is to win because they simply can't afford to host the 2013 competition. The battle of influence between the European Union (EU) and Russia following the Eurzone's recent troubles is a major theme of many of the entries from the Balkan/former USSR states.
Israel's entry is the 1960's themed "Time" by Izabo. This is a nod towards the 1968 "Paris Spring" that became the "Summer of Love." Driven by student protests this was a hugely exciting time in western-European politics with the cauldron of radical ideas going on to form the basis for much of liberal, left political thinking over the next half-century. Although it ended violently with many of the 1960's radicals going on to become the terrorists of the 1970's (Red Army Faction etc) it is this spirit of revolution that many in the west have been trying to impose on the middle-east by dubbing 2011's revolutions "The Arab Spring." The Israeli stage set was dominated by images of clocks. This is both a reference to my apparent obsession with time (I'm a big theme in Eurovision 2012) and to the old Afghan Taliban expression. "They [the occupiers] may have the watches but we [the terrorists] have the time." Israel's baby-brained keyboard player looks a bit like British comedy actress Rebecca Front who although not Jewish plays a north-London Jewish mother in the Simon Amstell sit-com "Grandma's House" shown on BBC2. Combined all these things mean that their 2012 Eurovision entry is Israel trying to tell the world that the proposed NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan along with all the revolutions/civil wars in Israel's backyard has got them really stressed at the moment.
By way of light relief Austria's entry "Woki mit dem Popo" by Trackshittaz is built around the central idea that lots of everyday German words sound like English swear words. See also the Austrian village of Fucking. To emphasise the coarseness the Austrian entry was backed on stage by three pole-dancers who although stayed fully clothed had special lights on their costumes to draw attention to their lady-parts. One of those dancers looked a bit like ex-Pussycat Doll Kimberly Wyatt who has gone on to become a favourite guest of live(ish) British lifestyle TV shows like "The One Show", "Sunday Brunch" and "Loose Women" because she's got a fun personality and always says yes. This interest in British lifestyle TV shows is something of a theme of this years Eurovision (see Latvia and Moldova) because if Eurovision acts want to sell records in the UK market they will need to get on this type of show in order to promote themselves. Kimberly Wyatt though is a special case because as a US citizen Britain has been encouraging people to ask questions about her work visa status in the run-up to the 2012 London Olympics. This is because in the run-up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics the Pussycat Dolls had a worldwide hit called "When I grow up" the video for which was hard to avoid and featured Ms Wyatt doing her signature dance move the vertical splits. At the time I was hugely interested in the limits of mobility of the human hip joint because my grandmother was undergoing hip-replacement surgery. Therefore I developed a bit of a weird fascination with Kimberly Wyatt and "weird" was also the conclusion of every orthopaedic surgeon, nurse, physiotherapist and occupational therapist that saw the music video.
As for the hosts Azerbaijan's rather repressive government and strong British ally is using the event to discourage it's citizens from smoking tobacco. Having dubbed Azerbaijan "The Nation Of Fire" they've made the slogan for Eurovision 2012 "Light Your Fire!" It is this message that is flashed up on screen every time the TV presentation goes to commercial break not so subtly mocking any smokers who had waiting until that point to go outside and have a cigarette. They have though got all the performances including the automatic qualifiers up on their website so I might get away with watching the football tomorrow before switching over in time for the results.
Greece's song "Aphrodisiac" is sung by an attractive young Cheryl Cole lookalike in a short skirt so it's pretty obviously a Greek plea for stimulation - economic or otherwise. What's less obvious though is while I'm not accusing anyone of plagiarism Greece's entry sounds similar to the 2002 Holly Valance hit "Kiss Kiss" which started out life as the Turkish song "Simank." Therefore the Greek entry seems to be something of a peace offering to Turkey. Greek Cyprus' entry "La La Love" is similar in style to the Greek entry in a Cypriot effort to show the Turks how close Cyprus feels to Greece however it is not clear if the Cypriots understand that the Greek effort is taking an unusually friendly stance towards Greece. Although considered one of the favourites the last thing the Greeks want is to win because they simply can't afford to host the 2013 competition. The battle of influence between the European Union (EU) and Russia following the Eurzone's recent troubles is a major theme of many of the entries from the Balkan/former USSR states.
Israel's entry is the 1960's themed "Time" by Izabo. This is a nod towards the 1968 "Paris Spring" that became the "Summer of Love." Driven by student protests this was a hugely exciting time in western-European politics with the cauldron of radical ideas going on to form the basis for much of liberal, left political thinking over the next half-century. Although it ended violently with many of the 1960's radicals going on to become the terrorists of the 1970's (Red Army Faction etc) it is this spirit of revolution that many in the west have been trying to impose on the middle-east by dubbing 2011's revolutions "The Arab Spring." The Israeli stage set was dominated by images of clocks. This is both a reference to my apparent obsession with time (I'm a big theme in Eurovision 2012) and to the old Afghan Taliban expression. "They [the occupiers] may have the watches but we [the terrorists] have the time." Israel's baby-brained keyboard player looks a bit like British comedy actress Rebecca Front who although not Jewish plays a north-London Jewish mother in the Simon Amstell sit-com "Grandma's House" shown on BBC2. Combined all these things mean that their 2012 Eurovision entry is Israel trying to tell the world that the proposed NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan along with all the revolutions/civil wars in Israel's backyard has got them really stressed at the moment.
By way of light relief Austria's entry "Woki mit dem Popo" by Trackshittaz is built around the central idea that lots of everyday German words sound like English swear words. See also the Austrian village of Fucking. To emphasise the coarseness the Austrian entry was backed on stage by three pole-dancers who although stayed fully clothed had special lights on their costumes to draw attention to their lady-parts. One of those dancers looked a bit like ex-Pussycat Doll Kimberly Wyatt who has gone on to become a favourite guest of live(ish) British lifestyle TV shows like "The One Show", "Sunday Brunch" and "Loose Women" because she's got a fun personality and always says yes. This interest in British lifestyle TV shows is something of a theme of this years Eurovision (see Latvia and Moldova) because if Eurovision acts want to sell records in the UK market they will need to get on this type of show in order to promote themselves. Kimberly Wyatt though is a special case because as a US citizen Britain has been encouraging people to ask questions about her work visa status in the run-up to the 2012 London Olympics. This is because in the run-up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics the Pussycat Dolls had a worldwide hit called "When I grow up" the video for which was hard to avoid and featured Ms Wyatt doing her signature dance move the vertical splits. At the time I was hugely interested in the limits of mobility of the human hip joint because my grandmother was undergoing hip-replacement surgery. Therefore I developed a bit of a weird fascination with Kimberly Wyatt and "weird" was also the conclusion of every orthopaedic surgeon, nurse, physiotherapist and occupational therapist that saw the music video.
As for the hosts Azerbaijan's rather repressive government and strong British ally is using the event to discourage it's citizens from smoking tobacco. Having dubbed Azerbaijan "The Nation Of Fire" they've made the slogan for Eurovision 2012 "Light Your Fire!" It is this message that is flashed up on screen every time the TV presentation goes to commercial break not so subtly mocking any smokers who had waiting until that point to go outside and have a cigarette. They have though got all the performances including the automatic qualifiers up on their website so I might get away with watching the football tomorrow before switching over in time for the results.
Update on the Egyptian Election.
Official verified and certified results in the Egypt Presidential Election are not expected to be released until Tuesday (29/5/12). At present (around 10:00GMT 25/5/12) fewer then half of the votes have been counted.
However based on it's own exit polling the Muslim Brotherhood is claiming that their candidate Muhammed Morsi will come first but will fall short of the 50% of the vote required for outright victory. Although the liberal, secular vote has been diluted somewhat between five candidates it's worth noting that because they've never done an election before exit polling in Egypt is nowhere near as accurate as it is in more mature democracies. Therefore the Brotherhood's early claims of victory seems to me to be more of a sharp propaganda move. By claiming victory now the Brotherhood are laying the groundwork to accuse the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces of rigging the election if they actually end up being defeated.
However based on it's own exit polling the Muslim Brotherhood is claiming that their candidate Muhammed Morsi will come first but will fall short of the 50% of the vote required for outright victory. Although the liberal, secular vote has been diluted somewhat between five candidates it's worth noting that because they've never done an election before exit polling in Egypt is nowhere near as accurate as it is in more mature democracies. Therefore the Brotherhood's early claims of victory seems to me to be more of a sharp propaganda move. By claiming victory now the Brotherhood are laying the groundwork to accuse the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces of rigging the election if they actually end up being defeated.
Thursday 24 May 2012
Oh Yeah The UK Economy's F*cked.
Today (24/5/12) Britain's Office for National Statistics (ONS) has released the revised economic figures for Quarter 1 (January, February, March) 2012. The figures have been revised down from (-0.2%) to (-0.3%). Officially this worsening of the double dip recession is being blamed on a cut in government spending (austerity) causing a contraction in the construction sector.
So you know Europe take your lesson about stopping austerity because at around 22:15 I'm going to bed.
Edited at around 12:35 on 25/5/12 to add:
Of course yesterday and today news journalism in the UK has been suspended because Adam Smith has been giving evidence to the Leveson Inquiry into media ethics. Adam Smith was the Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt MP's special adviser until he was forced to resign after allegations made at the Leveson Inquiry. Obviously Mr Smith also shares his name with with famous British economist Adam Smith who was a favourite of former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his work was much referenced during Brown's effort to "Save the banks. Save the world" following the 2008 credit crunch. One of Smith's most famous theories was "The Paradox of Thrift." Basically this argued that people saving rather then spending their money has an overall negative effect on the economy. Getting the banks to save rather then spend is central to building the Eurozone's "firewall" against bad Sovereign debt.
So by drawing attention to the other Adam Smith by forcing him to resign Britain is both trying to the damage the reputation of one the central figures in the Eurozone's response to the credit crunch while at the same time trying to get the Eurozone leaders to pursue his strategy. This level of confusion and contradiction leads me to believe that when it comes to the Eurozone crisis Britain doesn't even understand the question let alone know the answer.
Also today (25/5/12) shares in Spain's fourth largest bank Bankia have been suspended from the country's stock exchange. I would go further and suspend the entire Spanish index until Greece holds it's election. That's because Spain is going to get thumped as the financial markets try to intimidate the Eurozone leaders into providing an economic stimulus.
So you know Europe take your lesson about stopping austerity because at around 22:15 I'm going to bed.
Edited at around 12:35 on 25/5/12 to add:
Of course yesterday and today news journalism in the UK has been suspended because Adam Smith has been giving evidence to the Leveson Inquiry into media ethics. Adam Smith was the Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt MP's special adviser until he was forced to resign after allegations made at the Leveson Inquiry. Obviously Mr Smith also shares his name with with famous British economist Adam Smith who was a favourite of former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his work was much referenced during Brown's effort to "Save the banks. Save the world" following the 2008 credit crunch. One of Smith's most famous theories was "The Paradox of Thrift." Basically this argued that people saving rather then spending their money has an overall negative effect on the economy. Getting the banks to save rather then spend is central to building the Eurozone's "firewall" against bad Sovereign debt.
So by drawing attention to the other Adam Smith by forcing him to resign Britain is both trying to the damage the reputation of one the central figures in the Eurozone's response to the credit crunch while at the same time trying to get the Eurozone leaders to pursue his strategy. This level of confusion and contradiction leads me to believe that when it comes to the Eurozone crisis Britain doesn't even understand the question let alone know the answer.
Also today (25/5/12) shares in Spain's fourth largest bank Bankia have been suspended from the country's stock exchange. I would go further and suspend the entire Spanish index until Greece holds it's election. That's because Spain is going to get thumped as the financial markets try to intimidate the Eurozone leaders into providing an economic stimulus.
Yep The Dutch Are Having a Pop.
At me. Lilly Allen. Laura Marling. Mr Mumford and all his Sons. Really it should be viewed in conjunction with Jedward. <- And there's a sentence that really didn't need to be written.
That's right at around 21:10 on 24/5/12 I've just finished watching the second semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest. Unfortunately on Tuesday (22/5/12) I decided that the Egyptian Presidential election was slightly more important so I've still not caught up on the first semi-final. So in the interests of fairness and participant safety I shall be concentrating on the non-qualifiers in a full update I promise to write tomorrow (25/5/12) providing that the Egyptian election won't produce a result and I don't get caught up with waking up late, cooking dinner, going to the gym and smoking weed.
So until then I'm not allowed to say things like Ukraine is sending out a warning to any Euro2012 visitors that they have a small HIV/AIDS problem that they're blaming on the gays. Personally I blame the pressure.
That's right at around 21:10 on 24/5/12 I've just finished watching the second semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest. Unfortunately on Tuesday (22/5/12) I decided that the Egyptian Presidential election was slightly more important so I've still not caught up on the first semi-final. So in the interests of fairness and participant safety I shall be concentrating on the non-qualifiers in a full update I promise to write tomorrow (25/5/12) providing that the Egyptian election won't produce a result and I don't get caught up with waking up late, cooking dinner, going to the gym and smoking weed.
So until then I'm not allowed to say things like Ukraine is sending out a warning to any Euro2012 visitors that they have a small HIV/AIDS problem that they're blaming on the gays. Personally I blame the pressure.
The BlackBerry Lives!
Today (24/5/12) I went into the O2 shop in Croydon to pick up a pay&go SIM card for my BlackBerry handheld. I know this is more brand loyalty then I consider healthy but they gave me the best deal and hey they're half Spanish these days. Obviously this meant I had to spend the next three pints of Strongbow cider sitting in the pub playing with it while showing off my rather snug khakis to an adoring public.
If nothing else at least with the 8x500ml cans of Scrumpy Jack cider I picked this means I should be in the right mindset for the second semi-final of the Eurovision song contest just as soon as I've cleaned the bathroom and made dinner.
If nothing else at least with the 8x500ml cans of Scrumpy Jack cider I picked this means I should be in the right mindset for the second semi-final of the Eurovision song contest just as soon as I've cleaned the bathroom and made dinner.
Wednesday 23 May 2012
An Interesting Bit of Local Colour.
Today (23/5/12) I picked up a copy of the local newspaper to check out the reporting on that fire in Langdale Road, Thornton Heath last Tuesday (15/5/12). Reading between the lines it seems the property was owned by a landlord who'd filed several complaints of harassment and intimidation against Croydon Council. At the time of the fire the property had been rented out to a Chinese/Thai gang who were using it as a cannabis farm. In the same street where there was that shooting happened at around this time last year the fire seems a good way for the local firm to settle a score and put police pressure on competitors.
Although an exact cause of the fire has yet to be determined the local police are said to be not treating it as suspicious.
Although an exact cause of the fire has yet to be determined the local police are said to be not treating it as suspicious.
Tuesday 22 May 2012
Egypt's Presidential Election.
On Wednesday May 23rd (23/5/12) Egyptians will go to the polls to select their first President since the fall of Hosni Mubarak with a run-off taking place on June 16th & 17th. Although there are 13 candidates standing there are only 5 who stand a realistic chance of winning;
Of these five Amr Moussa and Abdel Moniem Abdolfotoh are the two widely tipped to make it through to the run-off. However one big problem Egyptians face in choosing who to vote for is that no-one really knows what role the President will play in Egyptian politics. Obviously they won't be as powerful as they were before the revolution but the Presidents role won't be properly defined until the specially appointed constituents assembly re-writes the nation's constitution. That assembly has yet to begin it's work because since securing a Parliamentary majority the Muslim Brotherhood seem to have gone back on their promise to respect the spirit of the revolution by trying to pack the assembly with Islamists. This has outraged the military, the 30% of Egyptians who voted for secular parties and those Egyptians who only voted from the Brotherhood because of their commitment to secularism. As a result many Egyptians are talking about the importance of voting for a secular President in order to prevent the Muslim Brotherhood gaining absolute power.
I agree with them and think that non-Brotherhood Islamists should unite behind Amr Moussa while secularists should unite behind Hisham Bastawisy in order to propel those two candidates into the run-off and guarantee a secular President to counter-balance the Muslim Brotherhood's Parliamentary majority.
Controversially I would also like to see the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces go back on their pledge to stand down once the President is elected. That is because if an Islamist President is elected alongside an Islamist Parliament Egypt is likely to leap further towards Islamism then the majority of it's citizens would like. However if a secular President is elected alongside an Islamist Parliament it is like to lead to a sort of political gridlock as the President and Parliament spend a long time trying to work out their differences. This would leave the military with the essential job of keeping day to day life in Egypt running. Also I believe that the military are the one single organisation in Egypt that best understands democratic values and the reforms that are needed to create a democratic society. This is why they've so far failed to make any significant changes to Egyptian society. Once the Egyptian people have elected representatives in the form of Parliament and a President to protect their interests I think the military will be overjoyed to work with them to improve the Egyptian economy by tackling food and fuel subsidies and improve security by setting up a fair and functioning justice system.
- Adbel Moniem Abdolfotoh - This 60 year old doctor and former Muslim Brotherhood activist is standing as an independent and is best described as a moderate Islamist. That is to say that while he believes that Islam should be at the centre of all aspects of Egyptian life he accepts that his beliefs should not overwhelm the rights of Egypt's Christians and non-religious citizens. Bizarrely he is supported by the extreme Islamist (Salafist) al-Nour Party who see him as the most Islamist candidate who isn't representing the Muslim Brotherhood.
- Hisham Bastawisy - This 60 year old Judge is standing on behalf of the secular and mildly socialist National Progressive Unionist Party (Tagamoa). A leader of the opposition to Mubarak during the revolution he is well equipped both ideologically and intellectually to keep the spirit of that revolution going.
- Muhammed Morsi - This 61 year old is representing the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom & Justice Party but is very much seen as the second choice after Khairat al-Shater was disqualified. Therefore he is unlikely to enjoy much support beyond the Brotherhood's powerful base.
- Amr Moussa - This 75 year old career politician and diplomat is standing as an independent after serving as Foreign Minister under Mubarak and head of the Arab League. He is best described as a moderate secularist. That is to say while he believes that Egyptian political and public life should not be dominated by Islam Islamic values should be the guiding inspiration within those spheres.
- Ahmed Shafiq - This 70 year old former air-force general served as Prime Minister under Mubarak. Although officially standing as an independent Shafiq gets most of his support from the rural poor who didn't really understand or participate in the revolution and the civil servants, military and police personnel and business leaders that make up the so-called "Deep State" which did so well under Mubarak. A Mubarak style secularist Shafiq is very much the candidate for people who want things to go back to the way they were.
Of these five Amr Moussa and Abdel Moniem Abdolfotoh are the two widely tipped to make it through to the run-off. However one big problem Egyptians face in choosing who to vote for is that no-one really knows what role the President will play in Egyptian politics. Obviously they won't be as powerful as they were before the revolution but the Presidents role won't be properly defined until the specially appointed constituents assembly re-writes the nation's constitution. That assembly has yet to begin it's work because since securing a Parliamentary majority the Muslim Brotherhood seem to have gone back on their promise to respect the spirit of the revolution by trying to pack the assembly with Islamists. This has outraged the military, the 30% of Egyptians who voted for secular parties and those Egyptians who only voted from the Brotherhood because of their commitment to secularism. As a result many Egyptians are talking about the importance of voting for a secular President in order to prevent the Muslim Brotherhood gaining absolute power.
I agree with them and think that non-Brotherhood Islamists should unite behind Amr Moussa while secularists should unite behind Hisham Bastawisy in order to propel those two candidates into the run-off and guarantee a secular President to counter-balance the Muslim Brotherhood's Parliamentary majority.
Controversially I would also like to see the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces go back on their pledge to stand down once the President is elected. That is because if an Islamist President is elected alongside an Islamist Parliament Egypt is likely to leap further towards Islamism then the majority of it's citizens would like. However if a secular President is elected alongside an Islamist Parliament it is like to lead to a sort of political gridlock as the President and Parliament spend a long time trying to work out their differences. This would leave the military with the essential job of keeping day to day life in Egypt running. Also I believe that the military are the one single organisation in Egypt that best understands democratic values and the reforms that are needed to create a democratic society. This is why they've so far failed to make any significant changes to Egyptian society. Once the Egyptian people have elected representatives in the form of Parliament and a President to protect their interests I think the military will be overjoyed to work with them to improve the Egyptian economy by tackling food and fuel subsidies and improve security by setting up a fair and functioning justice system.
Englebert Humperdinck.
Later today (22/5/12) the Crystal Hall in Azerbaijan's captial Baku will host the first semi-final in the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest. This will be followed by a second semi-final on Thursday (24/5/12) before the grand final on Saturday (26/5/12).
Britain's surprise entry is the 75 year old Englebert Humperdinck. Of course his song "Love Will Set You Free" is reminiscent of his his greatest hit, 1967's "Please Release Me (Set Me Free)" and should act as a rallying cry for anyone in the Eurovision area who is as concerned as Britain at further European Union (EU) expansion/intergration. However the thing a lot of people forget about Humperdinck is that he still sells really well especially amongst older women in the Balkans and former USSR states. For a large part these are predominately matriachial societies where the older female or grandmother runs the family. Therefore Humperdinck's entry should help Britain open a conversation with and gain influence over influential people in the EU satellite states in the Balkans and the former USSR. Russia are not pleased about this hence their entry.
Beyond that Britain's entry is having a little dig at US President Barack Obama because a critic could say he's doing doing a far better job of being a cabaret act then a President recentely.
Britain's surprise entry is the 75 year old Englebert Humperdinck. Of course his song "Love Will Set You Free" is reminiscent of his his greatest hit, 1967's "Please Release Me (Set Me Free)" and should act as a rallying cry for anyone in the Eurovision area who is as concerned as Britain at further European Union (EU) expansion/intergration. However the thing a lot of people forget about Humperdinck is that he still sells really well especially amongst older women in the Balkans and former USSR states. For a large part these are predominately matriachial societies where the older female or grandmother runs the family. Therefore Humperdinck's entry should help Britain open a conversation with and gain influence over influential people in the EU satellite states in the Balkans and the former USSR. Russia are not pleased about this hence their entry.
Beyond that Britain's entry is having a little dig at US President Barack Obama because a critic could say he's doing doing a far better job of being a cabaret act then a President recentely.
Monday 21 May 2012
My Achilles Heel.
At around 12:00 on 21/5/12 I have discovered my Achilles heel. Is the Achilles tendon in my right leg that somehow yesterday I strained and blew out the ligaments in my ankle. Despite the Saudi Irregular Army (SIA) trying their hardest to force Syria onto the agenda of the NATO Summit there seems little else going on. Therefore the ankle injury kind of insists that I spend the rest of today sitting down in front of the TV with my feet up.
Edited at around 12:30 on 21/5/12 to add: I have rather painfully walked to the corner shop to buy a newspaper and now I've returned I have no need to leave the house again until tomorrow.
Slightly more importantly a suicide bomber has attacked a military parade dress rehearsal in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa killing at least 63. According to some sources Al Qaeda in Arab Peninsula (AQAP) have claimed responsibility for the attack. Although I have my doubts that AQAP are a legitimate Al Qaeda group the purpose of the attack seems to be to convince the NATO Summit that the Al Qaeda threat has shifted away from Afghanistan. Therefore NATO should speed up their withdrawal from Afghanistan in order to chase Al Qaeda around the globe.
Edited at around 12:30 on 21/5/12 to add: I have rather painfully walked to the corner shop to buy a newspaper and now I've returned I have no need to leave the house again until tomorrow.
Slightly more importantly a suicide bomber has attacked a military parade dress rehearsal in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa killing at least 63. According to some sources Al Qaeda in Arab Peninsula (AQAP) have claimed responsibility for the attack. Although I have my doubts that AQAP are a legitimate Al Qaeda group the purpose of the attack seems to be to convince the NATO Summit that the Al Qaeda threat has shifted away from Afghanistan. Therefore NATO should speed up their withdrawal from Afghanistan in order to chase Al Qaeda around the globe.
Sunday 20 May 2012
OK It's Official
Fox cubs are the cutest thing in the world!
Seriously now the runt of the litter has shown themselves we have three. So far the mayhem they have caused includes tearing down a wire fence, damaging brick work and killing everything shiny or brush like within a 500 mile radius including the oil filter from a Nissan Micra. However they're boundless innocence and enthusiasm makes it impossible for me to be angry at them. Instead all I want to do is send the mother flowers and give her a big hug to congratulate her on her wonderful offspring no matter how stupid and a little bit gay that sounds. So instead I've hidden all the pesticides and given them a trough of water which is probably even worse.
For my father's part he has at least stopped referring to the vixen as a "he." Seriously you would think someone who spent a lot of his early life on a farm and kept horses would have a greater understanding of the animal kingdom.
Seriously now the runt of the litter has shown themselves we have three. So far the mayhem they have caused includes tearing down a wire fence, damaging brick work and killing everything shiny or brush like within a 500 mile radius including the oil filter from a Nissan Micra. However they're boundless innocence and enthusiasm makes it impossible for me to be angry at them. Instead all I want to do is send the mother flowers and give her a big hug to congratulate her on her wonderful offspring no matter how stupid and a little bit gay that sounds. So instead I've hidden all the pesticides and given them a trough of water which is probably even worse.
For my father's part he has at least stopped referring to the vixen as a "he." Seriously you would think someone who spent a lot of his early life on a farm and kept horses would have a greater understanding of the animal kingdom.
Anti-War Protesters on US Streets.
So it seems as good a time (23:00 20/5/12) as any to tell this story;
In the run up to the election the US federal government has been cracking down on medicinal marijuana use amid allegations that the system is being abused by drug traffickers. At the same time - in the run up to the election - the Mexican federal government has been putting pressure on the US to legalise marijuana in order to stop the current system being abused by drug traffickers. This is relevant to the NATO Summit because I've heard that one of the big problems with the Afghan National Army (ANA) is that their soldiers do like the herb even when they really should be doing sentry duty and Al Jazeera are particularly interested.
So I will just say this; Cannabis makes you more clever while alcohol makes you more stupid. Guess which one the US government makes illegal. So at around 23:05 on 20/5/12 I'm going to dumb myself up in an attempt to go to bed because you really don't want to know what time I went to sleep earlier today.
In the run up to the election the US federal government has been cracking down on medicinal marijuana use amid allegations that the system is being abused by drug traffickers. At the same time - in the run up to the election - the Mexican federal government has been putting pressure on the US to legalise marijuana in order to stop the current system being abused by drug traffickers. This is relevant to the NATO Summit because I've heard that one of the big problems with the Afghan National Army (ANA) is that their soldiers do like the herb even when they really should be doing sentry duty and Al Jazeera are particularly interested.
So I will just say this; Cannabis makes you more clever while alcohol makes you more stupid. Guess which one the US government makes illegal. So at around 23:05 on 20/5/12 I'm going to dumb myself up in an attempt to go to bed because you really don't want to know what time I went to sleep earlier today.
What Still No Sarkozy?
That's a shame because if he was there and this entire NATO Summit was televised I'm sure it could all end with us going in to get Saif al-Islam. Well at least it could of done until I said that at 20:25 on 20/5/12 and they stepped up security.
Damn I Was Hungry.
At around 19:00 on 15/5/12 I've just had dinner of chicken korma ready/microwave meal. So fortified by beer, wine and Guinness I'm about to sit down and watch "Once Upon a Time." Alternatively I might finish my laundry because the important thing is CSI:NY's on at 20:00 and the Channel4's "Comedy Gala in aid of Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital" starts just after on GMT.
Ah There's the Taste.
At around 16:00 on 20/5/12 I'm watching Chelsea's victory parade through west-London, UK to celebrate their success in the English Football Association (FA) Cup and the UEFA Champions League. Despite finishing fourth in the English Premier League Chelsea's victory means that Tottenham Hotspur will now lose out on the millions of Euros of investment that comes will entry to the Champions League. Instead they will have to play in the poorer Europa League.
Still it's not the worst result the Jews have had in Munich.
Still it's not the worst result the Jews have had in Munich.
Now That's Timing.
Today (20/5/12) the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) Summit will open in Chicago, USA. This is the first such summit since NATO's controversial intervention in Libya in 2011 that overthrew Muammer Qaddafi. In preparation Britain has been trying to draw attention to the Qaddafi funded terrorist group the Irish Republican Army (IRA) by arresting four dissident Republicans on terror related charges in Northern Ireland yesterday (19/5/12). Also yesterday Italian elements tried to draw attention to two other terrorist groups the Qaddafi government supposedly supported - the Red Army Faction (RAF) and Black September. The show though has been stolen by Abdelbaset al-Megrahi - the only man convicted of the worst terror attack linked to the Qaddafi government, the 1988 bombing of a PanAm jet over Lockerbie Scotland.
At around 10:00GMT (12:00local) today (20/5/12) al-Megrahi took the opportunity to lose his long battle against cancer and die. This of course will draw attention to the 2009 decision by Britain's then Labour Party government to release him from prison on compassionate grounds. Since coming to power in 2010 Britain's new regime have used this as an example of the weakness of the previous government. However the real reason for al-Megrahi's release was that he was in the process of appealing against his conviction and every informed opinion was that he would win that appeal, be acquitted of the Lockerbie bombing and released. The prosecution's case was built entirely around the testimony of one witness who'd been paid around USD2million for his evidence and had been given of copies of photographs identifying al-Megrahi as the bomber before he was picked out of a line-up of suspects. The defence team have since been able to prove that the witness could not have seen al-Megrahi in the place he said he did at the time he said he did. So even though the Lockerbie bombing was not a legitimate justification for NATO's involvement in Libya even that looks to be baseless
So obviously Britain is now trying to blame the Lockerbie bombing on Syria.
At around 10:00GMT (12:00local) today (20/5/12) al-Megrahi took the opportunity to lose his long battle against cancer and die. This of course will draw attention to the 2009 decision by Britain's then Labour Party government to release him from prison on compassionate grounds. Since coming to power in 2010 Britain's new regime have used this as an example of the weakness of the previous government. However the real reason for al-Megrahi's release was that he was in the process of appealing against his conviction and every informed opinion was that he would win that appeal, be acquitted of the Lockerbie bombing and released. The prosecution's case was built entirely around the testimony of one witness who'd been paid around USD2million for his evidence and had been given of copies of photographs identifying al-Megrahi as the bomber before he was picked out of a line-up of suspects. The defence team have since been able to prove that the witness could not have seen al-Megrahi in the place he said he did at the time he said he did. So even though the Lockerbie bombing was not a legitimate justification for NATO's involvement in Libya even that looks to be baseless
So obviously Britain is now trying to blame the Lockerbie bombing on Syria.
Cheeky.
Moments after the US' first commercial rocket "Falcon 9" failed to launch at the last second and at around the time I was making the first part of my first post yesterday (19/5/12) China put blind, self-taught human rights lawyer Chen Guangcheng on a plane to the USA. As a result he arrived in very tense US airspace just as the G8 Summit was breaking up and the UEFA Champions League final was coming to a conclusion. So I think it's fair to say that the Chinese have registered their disapproval of recent US foreign policy.
The G8 did produce a single page communique which I may or may not get around to reading today. After all while the voting public have a right to know broadly what was discussed and a little bit of structure helps get conversation going producing communiques isn't really what the G8 Summit is about.
Today (20/5/12) focus shifts from Camp David, Maryland to Chicago, Illinois for the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) Summit. Here large protests are predicted driven mainly by opposition to US involvement in Afghanistan. However the original plan was for the G8 Summit to be held at the same venue so traffic congestion aside the security operation should be more then able to cope. In fact considering that a large part of the NATO Summit will be deciding who pays for security in Afghanistan following the NATO withdrawal showcasing just how good the US is at that sort of thing could well back-fire.
Also at around 02:00GMT today (20/5/12) a 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck at a shallow(ish) depth of 10km below the surface of Bologna in northern Italy. Six people are reported killed so at the risk of sounding both tasteless and a bit crazy I would say the message was something along the lines of "If the Northern League want explosions in Italy...."
The G8 did produce a single page communique which I may or may not get around to reading today. After all while the voting public have a right to know broadly what was discussed and a little bit of structure helps get conversation going producing communiques isn't really what the G8 Summit is about.
Today (20/5/12) focus shifts from Camp David, Maryland to Chicago, Illinois for the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) Summit. Here large protests are predicted driven mainly by opposition to US involvement in Afghanistan. However the original plan was for the G8 Summit to be held at the same venue so traffic congestion aside the security operation should be more then able to cope. In fact considering that a large part of the NATO Summit will be deciding who pays for security in Afghanistan following the NATO withdrawal showcasing just how good the US is at that sort of thing could well back-fire.
Also at around 02:00GMT today (20/5/12) a 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck at a shallow(ish) depth of 10km below the surface of Bologna in northern Italy. Six people are reported killed so at the risk of sounding both tasteless and a bit crazy I would say the message was something along the lines of "If the Northern League want explosions in Italy...."
Saturday 19 May 2012
Drogba Beats Bayern.
Following what seemed to me to be a fair and genuine match Chelsea have beaten Bayern Munich 4-3 on penalties following a 1-1 draw to win the UEFA Champions League for the first time and in the process qualified for next year's competition at the expense of Tottenham Hotspur who will now go into the Europa League.
Things looked all over in the 83rd minute when Muller put Bayern ahead. Then in the 88th minute who else but Didier Drogba levelled it for Chelsea sending the game into extra-time. Two minutes (92nd minute) into extra-time Drogba almost undid his hardwork by bringing down Ribery in the penalty area. Chelsea's goalkeeper Peter Cech managed to save Robben's penalty though so the game had to go to a penalty shootout. Chelsea missed their first kick while Bayern missed their third and fifth leaving Didier Drogba to step up and score Chelsea's fifth winning the game and the trophy for the west London club. I know it's probably unfair on the rest of the Chelsea team but for large periods of the match it looked like Drogba was going to win it all on his own through shear force of will.
Speaking impartially thoughI think that Bayern were probably the better of the two teams on the night but couldn't find the luck. But that's football.
Things looked all over in the 83rd minute when Muller put Bayern ahead. Then in the 88th minute who else but Didier Drogba levelled it for Chelsea sending the game into extra-time. Two minutes (92nd minute) into extra-time Drogba almost undid his hardwork by bringing down Ribery in the penalty area. Chelsea's goalkeeper Peter Cech managed to save Robben's penalty though so the game had to go to a penalty shootout. Chelsea missed their first kick while Bayern missed their third and fifth leaving Didier Drogba to step up and score Chelsea's fifth winning the game and the trophy for the west London club. I know it's probably unfair on the rest of the Chelsea team but for large periods of the match it looked like Drogba was going to win it all on his own through shear force of will.
Speaking impartially thoughI think that Bayern were probably the better of the two teams on the night but couldn't find the luck. But that's football.
Bombing in Italy.
At around 06:00 today (19/5/12) two blasts - believed to be IED's - exploded outside a school close to a Court House in the Italian city of Brindisi. So far one person has been reported killed and six injured.
At first glance this looks like the work of the Informal Anarchist Federation (FAI) or "Cells of Fire." This is a prototype anarchist terrorist group that is reminiscent of the Red Army Faction (RAF) or Baader-Meinhof gang. The RAF was a pan-European left-wing terrorist group that originated in West Germany in the late-1960's and was active throughout the 1960's/70's/80's. They may also have had loose links to the Black September Palestinian terrorist group that carried out the attacks on the 1972 Munich Olympics. Therefore I think today's attack was the work of the Italian state to put pressure on Germany to soften Eurozone austerity measures. The argument being that austerity must be loosened or Europe will face serious violent disorder. I say Italian state because I am not convinced that the Italian representative at the G8, Mario Monti had prior knowledge of the attack let alone gave permission.
Elsewhere in Munich, Germany there is the small matter of a football match. This evening Bayern Munich will play Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League Final. Now I'm undoubtedly Chelsea but this match is being billed a Germany versus Chelsea's Russian owner Roman Abramovich. The idea being to put pressure on Germany by accusing it of putting unnecessary pressure on Russia by providing support to Yulia Tymoshenko in her wranglings with the pro-Russia Ukrainian government. The real reason for the tie though is that if Chelsea (me) doesn't win they don't play European football next season because Britain rigged the English Premier League to send Manchester City (Libya rebels/Abu Dhabi), Manchester United (Britain), Arsenal (Lesbians), Tottenham Hotspur (Jews) and Newcastle (Tony Blair) to be their talking points in Europe next season. The big question though is will Dider Drogba play for Chelsea? If you're not a fan of football you may know Drogba as the man who single handedly ended the Cote D' Ivorie civil war. Actually thinking about it it would have been helpful to have Sarkozy still around to discuss that issue further. After all Germany's support for Tymoshenko was simply an attempt to draw US attention to the pressure they're putting on Russia over Syria.
As for the actual football I've got no idea. Try and win is my best advice because I'm not even sure I going to watch what will be a very tense match.
Edited at around 16:30 on 19/5/12 to add: West Ham United have won the Championship play-off and therefore will play in the English Premier League next season. West Ham are known by the nickname "The Iron Hammers or Irons." "Iron & Steer" is rhyming slang for "Queer." Therefore in the football code West Ham United represent gay men much to the amusement of Millwall fans.
At first glance this looks like the work of the Informal Anarchist Federation (FAI) or "Cells of Fire." This is a prototype anarchist terrorist group that is reminiscent of the Red Army Faction (RAF) or Baader-Meinhof gang. The RAF was a pan-European left-wing terrorist group that originated in West Germany in the late-1960's and was active throughout the 1960's/70's/80's. They may also have had loose links to the Black September Palestinian terrorist group that carried out the attacks on the 1972 Munich Olympics. Therefore I think today's attack was the work of the Italian state to put pressure on Germany to soften Eurozone austerity measures. The argument being that austerity must be loosened or Europe will face serious violent disorder. I say Italian state because I am not convinced that the Italian representative at the G8, Mario Monti had prior knowledge of the attack let alone gave permission.
Elsewhere in Munich, Germany there is the small matter of a football match. This evening Bayern Munich will play Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League Final. Now I'm undoubtedly Chelsea but this match is being billed a Germany versus Chelsea's Russian owner Roman Abramovich. The idea being to put pressure on Germany by accusing it of putting unnecessary pressure on Russia by providing support to Yulia Tymoshenko in her wranglings with the pro-Russia Ukrainian government. The real reason for the tie though is that if Chelsea (me) doesn't win they don't play European football next season because Britain rigged the English Premier League to send Manchester City (Libya rebels/Abu Dhabi), Manchester United (Britain), Arsenal (Lesbians), Tottenham Hotspur (Jews) and Newcastle (Tony Blair) to be their talking points in Europe next season. The big question though is will Dider Drogba play for Chelsea? If you're not a fan of football you may know Drogba as the man who single handedly ended the Cote D' Ivorie civil war. Actually thinking about it it would have been helpful to have Sarkozy still around to discuss that issue further. After all Germany's support for Tymoshenko was simply an attempt to draw US attention to the pressure they're putting on Russia over Syria.
As for the actual football I've got no idea. Try and win is my best advice because I'm not even sure I going to watch what will be a very tense match.
Edited at around 16:30 on 19/5/12 to add: West Ham United have won the Championship play-off and therefore will play in the English Premier League next season. West Ham are known by the nickname "The Iron Hammers or Irons." "Iron & Steer" is rhyming slang for "Queer." Therefore in the football code West Ham United represent gay men much to the amusement of Millwall fans.
Friday 18 May 2012
Ameteurs
In the TV show "Firefly" the spaceship was a Firefly Class Spaceship named "Serenity." Therefore naming the British Airways flight BA2012 which brought the Olympic flame to a Royal Naval airbase in Cornwall, UK at around 18:30 on 18/5/12 "The Firefly" kind of makes you look stupid. Or does it?
Yep four months of this. That's what we've got to look forward to. I suppose at least we got it on the ground before all those Crowned Heads of State stating leaving the Queen of England's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Or did we?
Anyway at around 18:55 I've finished a dinner of a tomato based lamb stew and intend to return to my original plan.
Yep four months of this. That's what we've got to look forward to. I suppose at least we got it on the ground before all those Crowned Heads of State stating leaving the Queen of England's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Or did we?
Anyway at around 18:55 I've finished a dinner of a tomato based lamb stew and intend to return to my original plan.
It's Time For Me to Lie Low.
Today (18/5/12) and tomorrow (19/5/12) the Heads of Government/State (HOGS) of the Group of 8 (G8) allegedly largest economies in the World along with the European Union (EU) will be meeting at Camp David, Maryland, USA for the G8 Summit. On Sunday (20/5/12) and Monday (21/5/12) 6 of the 8 will travel to Chicago, US and be joined by others for the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) Summit. Meanwhile today the World's Crowned Heads of State (Monarchs) will be assembling in Windsor, UK for the Queen of England's Diamond Jubilee lunch. I have absolutely no idea how to respond to all of these events so major incidents permitting I will be spending the next four days almost glued to the sofa in my front room watching trash TV. In fact if things go well I won't need to go near a computer or cellphone until Sunday at the earliest.
However if I was forced to guess at the agenda for the meetings I would say that the NATO Summit will be dominated by one word; Afghanistan. Delegates will be discussing who'll be leaving when and how the remaining tasks will be divided up and paid for. If there is time they will also discuss the changing situation in the middle-east following the so-called Arab Spring, the overthrow of Qaddafi in Libya and the continuing situation in Syria. This is not because NATO intends to take further military action in the middle-east but because NATO is in the security business and the changes in the middle-east change the security picture.
The G8 Summit will be more complicated because traditionally there is no fixed agenda with the purpose of the Summit being to get all these World leaders in the same place at the same time so they can talk in person - something HOGS rarely get to do. Therefore the main business will be introducing the new arrivals such as Francois Hollande and Mario Monti to the existing inmates. However I'm sure they will find time to discuss the situation in the middle-east, Iran's nuclear program and all gang up on Angela Merkel over the Eurozone specifically the issues of Eurobonds and a "growth" stimulus.
Edited at around 14:40 on 18/5/12 to add: Ah yes sitting glued to the sofa watching trash TV. If only there was a green plant-like substance that could aid with that endeavour. So after going for a full gym session in the Black Lion that's exactly what I've been getting on with before taking a long bath and going to the corner shop to by a newspaper, some peanuts in their shells and two 330ml bottles of Budweiser. I will now be dedicating myself to sitting glued to the sofa in possibly the front room or possibly the Black Lion. After all at least Britain's got a light or they will have once the plane carrying the Olympic flame arrives this evening from Greece following a tense flight.
However if I was forced to guess at the agenda for the meetings I would say that the NATO Summit will be dominated by one word; Afghanistan. Delegates will be discussing who'll be leaving when and how the remaining tasks will be divided up and paid for. If there is time they will also discuss the changing situation in the middle-east following the so-called Arab Spring, the overthrow of Qaddafi in Libya and the continuing situation in Syria. This is not because NATO intends to take further military action in the middle-east but because NATO is in the security business and the changes in the middle-east change the security picture.
The G8 Summit will be more complicated because traditionally there is no fixed agenda with the purpose of the Summit being to get all these World leaders in the same place at the same time so they can talk in person - something HOGS rarely get to do. Therefore the main business will be introducing the new arrivals such as Francois Hollande and Mario Monti to the existing inmates. However I'm sure they will find time to discuss the situation in the middle-east, Iran's nuclear program and all gang up on Angela Merkel over the Eurozone specifically the issues of Eurobonds and a "growth" stimulus.
Edited at around 14:40 on 18/5/12 to add: Ah yes sitting glued to the sofa watching trash TV. If only there was a green plant-like substance that could aid with that endeavour. So after going for a full gym session in the Black Lion that's exactly what I've been getting on with before taking a long bath and going to the corner shop to by a newspaper, some peanuts in their shells and two 330ml bottles of Budweiser. I will now be dedicating myself to sitting glued to the sofa in possibly the front room or possibly the Black Lion. After all at least Britain's got a light or they will have once the plane carrying the Olympic flame arrives this evening from Greece following a tense flight.
Thursday 17 May 2012
Piece of Cr*p
Today (17/5/12) I realised that wouldn't be able to run all my niggly little errands and do all my annoying little chores and still have time to do an update on Libya. So I decided to dust down my piece of cr*p android wi-fi tablet. The idea being I could use that to read the odd article every time I had a spare five minutes. Turns out while it will let me connect to all my neighbours very weak networks it won't let me connect to my home Internet connection. Then my home Internet connection failed so clearly the firewall can't cope with both me and my father using the Internet at the same time.
Elsewhere there's been more turmoil in the Eurozone with shares tumbling and banks having their credit rating's cut. I wouldn't worry too much though because this is just the banks trying to blackmail the Eurozone's political leaders into turning on the tap of free stimulus cash in the name of creating growth. Britain's done this three times already and still our economy's in worse shape then the Eurozone. So Mr Tsipras might want to check his cards before going all in on that bluff.
Elsewhere there's been more turmoil in the Eurozone with shares tumbling and banks having their credit rating's cut. I wouldn't worry too much though because this is just the banks trying to blackmail the Eurozone's political leaders into turning on the tap of free stimulus cash in the name of creating growth. Britain's done this three times already and still our economy's in worse shape then the Eurozone. So Mr Tsipras might want to check his cards before going all in on that bluff.
Wednesday 16 May 2012
The Ratko Mladic Trial
Today (16/5/12) the trial of former Serbian military commander Ratko Mladic opened at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague, Netherlands. Mladic faces 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity specifically; genocide, ethnic persecution, extermination, deportation and inflicting terror/committing inhumane acts. The charges relate to the Bosnian war between April 1992 and July 1995. The trial is currently at it's technical stages with the prosecution scheduled to begin laying out their case on May 29th (29/5/12). The entire trial is expected to last for months if not years.
While I appreciate that there is no such thing as a routine ICC trial the Mladic trial seems very poorly timed and will be hugely controversial. It was the revulsion at the atrocities committed during the collapse of the former Yugoslavia - many of which were comparable to the Nazi holocaust - that prompted the international community to set up the ICC as a permanent international body to prevent further atrocities being committed by bringing those who committed them to justice. The Mladic trial will examine many of the worst of these atrocities in great detail. If it is found that these events didn't occur in quite the way they were reported at the time it will undermine the justification for setting up the ICC and therefore undermine the credibility of the court which has since gone on to be involved in some of the most controversial areas of international relations including Libya and Sudan. This could not happen at a worse time because in June the ICC's Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo will step down to be replaced by Fatou Bensouda who as a Gambian will be the first African to ever hold the post. Any controversy over the formation and function of the ICC will undoubtedly influence the way the office of Chief Prosecutor operates in the future especially as Bensouda takes over difficult active cases such Saif al-Islam Qaddafi in Libya while trying to put her own stamp on the role.
The second element of the Mladic trial that will be hugely contentious are the charges relating to events at the town of Srebrenica. Here Serb forces moved in to take control of the town forcing many of the town's Muslim residents to flee on foot into the woods where many of them were killed in what became known as the Death March. Serb forces then went on to systematically round up all the Muslim men and boys in the surrounding area and force them into Nazi-style concentration camps. At this point United Nations (UN) peacekeepers from the Netherlands summoned Mladic to Srebrenica to explain what would happen to the prisoners. Mladic personally assured the then commander of UN forces in Bosnia and now British Conservative Party MP Bob Stewart that the prisoners would be well cared for and humanely treated. After both Stewart and Mladic had left Srebrenica Serb forces proceeded to slaughter every last man and boy in the camps killing at least 8000 while the Dutch peacekeepers stood by and watched. Since then accusations has persisted that rather then keeping the peace the Dutch troops actively collaborated with the Serb forces in the killing of Muslims even going so far as supplying them with weapons and ammunition. Although Sovereign the ICC is located within the Netherlands and one of the Judges in the Mladic trial - Alphons Orie - is Dutch. As many think the Dutch should be on trial themselves rather then presiding over them this sort of conflict of interest seriously begins to undermine the ICC's claim that proceedings will be fair and impartial.
It was also the events at Srebrencia particularly the way that Mladic was perceived to have lied in the face of the UN that has fuelled much of western Europe's hatred of the Serbs throughout the 1990's and 2000's. This has pushed Serbia and Russia closer together and has fuelled Serb nationalism to the point where the big winner in Serbia's May 6th (6/5/12) elections was Ivica Dacic who served in a political role alongside both Slobodan Milosevic and Ratko Mladic during the Bosnian war, is nicknamed "Little Slobo" due to his similarity in attitude to Milosevic and was himself acquitted of crimes against humanity relating to the Bosnian war by the ICC. The west's animosity towards Serbia also led to the Kosovo war and the further break up of the former Yugoslavia into tiny states like Macedonia and Montenegro. These small states along with other members of the former USSR have been gobbled up one by one by an ever expanding European Union (EU). This has worried Russia which sees itself losing influence of it's near abroad and led to it supporting some highly questionable governments in places like Belarus, Hungary and Ukraine. International negotiations over Syria have made these differences of opinion between the EU and Russia more pronounced and they will be inflamed further by the Eurovision Song Contest and the Euro2012 football finals. If the Russians become too irritated they may responded by increasing their influence in that other Balkan member of the EU - Greece - making the already complex Eurozone crisis that little bit more complicated.
So while I appreciate that in order to grow into a credible international body the ICC needs to be seen to deliver justice in a timely fashion surely the Mladic trial can wait until at least autumn 2012. After all the Charles Taylor trial lasted for seven years and other defendants on trial over the Bosnian war such as Milosevic have died of old age before their trials completed. Besides allowing the British and Dutch Monarchies to turn proceedings into a circus in order to destabilise the Euro most certainly doesn't convince me that the ICC view Mladic's right to a fair trial to be a priority.
Edited at around 12:50 on 17/5/12: Today the Mladic trial has been adjourned after the US prosecutors failed to disclose large amounts of evidence to the defence. No date for the resumption of the trial has been set but the defence estimate it will take until October/November 2012 for them to work through the extra evidence. This sounds reasonable. After all if Mladic is acquitted or convicted the most important things is that there is no doubt that the court has made the right decision.
While I appreciate that there is no such thing as a routine ICC trial the Mladic trial seems very poorly timed and will be hugely controversial. It was the revulsion at the atrocities committed during the collapse of the former Yugoslavia - many of which were comparable to the Nazi holocaust - that prompted the international community to set up the ICC as a permanent international body to prevent further atrocities being committed by bringing those who committed them to justice. The Mladic trial will examine many of the worst of these atrocities in great detail. If it is found that these events didn't occur in quite the way they were reported at the time it will undermine the justification for setting up the ICC and therefore undermine the credibility of the court which has since gone on to be involved in some of the most controversial areas of international relations including Libya and Sudan. This could not happen at a worse time because in June the ICC's Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo will step down to be replaced by Fatou Bensouda who as a Gambian will be the first African to ever hold the post. Any controversy over the formation and function of the ICC will undoubtedly influence the way the office of Chief Prosecutor operates in the future especially as Bensouda takes over difficult active cases such Saif al-Islam Qaddafi in Libya while trying to put her own stamp on the role.
The second element of the Mladic trial that will be hugely contentious are the charges relating to events at the town of Srebrenica. Here Serb forces moved in to take control of the town forcing many of the town's Muslim residents to flee on foot into the woods where many of them were killed in what became known as the Death March. Serb forces then went on to systematically round up all the Muslim men and boys in the surrounding area and force them into Nazi-style concentration camps. At this point United Nations (UN) peacekeepers from the Netherlands summoned Mladic to Srebrenica to explain what would happen to the prisoners. Mladic personally assured the then commander of UN forces in Bosnia and now British Conservative Party MP Bob Stewart that the prisoners would be well cared for and humanely treated. After both Stewart and Mladic had left Srebrenica Serb forces proceeded to slaughter every last man and boy in the camps killing at least 8000 while the Dutch peacekeepers stood by and watched. Since then accusations has persisted that rather then keeping the peace the Dutch troops actively collaborated with the Serb forces in the killing of Muslims even going so far as supplying them with weapons and ammunition. Although Sovereign the ICC is located within the Netherlands and one of the Judges in the Mladic trial - Alphons Orie - is Dutch. As many think the Dutch should be on trial themselves rather then presiding over them this sort of conflict of interest seriously begins to undermine the ICC's claim that proceedings will be fair and impartial.
It was also the events at Srebrencia particularly the way that Mladic was perceived to have lied in the face of the UN that has fuelled much of western Europe's hatred of the Serbs throughout the 1990's and 2000's. This has pushed Serbia and Russia closer together and has fuelled Serb nationalism to the point where the big winner in Serbia's May 6th (6/5/12) elections was Ivica Dacic who served in a political role alongside both Slobodan Milosevic and Ratko Mladic during the Bosnian war, is nicknamed "Little Slobo" due to his similarity in attitude to Milosevic and was himself acquitted of crimes against humanity relating to the Bosnian war by the ICC. The west's animosity towards Serbia also led to the Kosovo war and the further break up of the former Yugoslavia into tiny states like Macedonia and Montenegro. These small states along with other members of the former USSR have been gobbled up one by one by an ever expanding European Union (EU). This has worried Russia which sees itself losing influence of it's near abroad and led to it supporting some highly questionable governments in places like Belarus, Hungary and Ukraine. International negotiations over Syria have made these differences of opinion between the EU and Russia more pronounced and they will be inflamed further by the Eurovision Song Contest and the Euro2012 football finals. If the Russians become too irritated they may responded by increasing their influence in that other Balkan member of the EU - Greece - making the already complex Eurozone crisis that little bit more complicated.
So while I appreciate that in order to grow into a credible international body the ICC needs to be seen to deliver justice in a timely fashion surely the Mladic trial can wait until at least autumn 2012. After all the Charles Taylor trial lasted for seven years and other defendants on trial over the Bosnian war such as Milosevic have died of old age before their trials completed. Besides allowing the British and Dutch Monarchies to turn proceedings into a circus in order to destabilise the Euro most certainly doesn't convince me that the ICC view Mladic's right to a fair trial to be a priority.
Edited at around 12:50 on 17/5/12: Today the Mladic trial has been adjourned after the US prosecutors failed to disclose large amounts of evidence to the defence. No date for the resumption of the trial has been set but the defence estimate it will take until October/November 2012 for them to work through the extra evidence. This sounds reasonable. After all if Mladic is acquitted or convicted the most important things is that there is no doubt that the court has made the right decision.
Tuesday 15 May 2012
Awww the Foxes are Married Now. How Sweet.
I'm sorry but at around 00:55 on 16/5/12 I've been to bed and got up again and still I'm a bit worried that the following might be my last trip to Brighton filtered back to me via a research lab at Brighton University.
Anyway a while ago (summer 2011ish) a young male fox cub was artificially inseminated into my garden. After running around like an idiot for a while he got a young female fox pregnant and then promptly disappeared leaving the female the territory. Then the vixen suddenly vanished for a short while only to return without cubs but with a sudden and strange distrust of humans. Over the weekend (12-13/5/12) the foxy father returned so now the happy couple are negotiating their new domestic arrangement with lots of howling, barking, crashing, banging and digging. To be fair though they've actually been pretty quite tonight which is more then can be said for the police helicopter.
And at around 01:05 I'm going to give this whole going to bed thing another try.
Edited at around 14:30 on 16/5/12 to add: The foxes were so pleased with themselves this that morning they were happy to pose while my father took photographs on his new smartphone. It actually turns out we've got the original female fox along with a new vixen and her two cubs. So it looks like the two females will be teaming up together to raise the children. Like I said filtered through a research lab at Brighton University.
Anyway a while ago (summer 2011ish) a young male fox cub was artificially inseminated into my garden. After running around like an idiot for a while he got a young female fox pregnant and then promptly disappeared leaving the female the territory. Then the vixen suddenly vanished for a short while only to return without cubs but with a sudden and strange distrust of humans. Over the weekend (12-13/5/12) the foxy father returned so now the happy couple are negotiating their new domestic arrangement with lots of howling, barking, crashing, banging and digging. To be fair though they've actually been pretty quite tonight which is more then can be said for the police helicopter.
And at around 01:05 I'm going to give this whole going to bed thing another try.
Edited at around 14:30 on 16/5/12 to add: The foxes were so pleased with themselves this that morning they were happy to pose while my father took photographs on his new smartphone. It actually turns out we've got the original female fox along with a new vixen and her two cubs. So it looks like the two females will be teaming up together to raise the children. Like I said filtered through a research lab at Brighton University.
And Of Course May Carries another Sad Anniversary
It was on May 1st 2011 (2/5/11) that some dirty Jews forced UK Indymedia to split between Indymedia and the "Bethemedia" social networking shambles. Now I know it's around 23:36 on 15/5/12 and I've smoked a lot of weed so you may wish to call be an old paranoid but I'm pretty sure the whole point of social NETWORKing is to make it much easier for those who watch to identify your NETWORK. Surely then it's better to have a central clearing house where everyone reads everything and no-one's got a clue whats going on.
So at around 23:39 I'm going to bed. Good luck on the Facebook IPO. Edited, spellcheck and composed front and centre 23:40.
So at around 23:39 I'm going to bed. Good luck on the Facebook IPO. Edited, spellcheck and composed front and centre 23:40.
Yep the ICC's Bent.
It's around 23:05 on 15/5/12 and I've just learnt that the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague, Netherlands will opening the trial of "Ratko Mladic" tomorrow. Of course "Ratko Mladic" could be compared to my neighbour at #52 whose recently being forced by his ex-wife to sell up cheap to that nice Pakistani couple. I can only presume the timing of the trial has been sold on the basis of talking Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC) into allowing ICC involvement in Libya's trial of Saif al-Islam Qaddafi. While it would be nice to have him out of "Zintan Brigade" militia custody I can only assume that assumption was false.
As punishment the ICC will now have to find a good excuse for delaying the Mladic trial without their explanation casting aspersions on the "Rebekah Brooks" trial. 23:12
As punishment the ICC will now have to find a good excuse for delaying the Mladic trial without their explanation casting aspersions on the "Rebekah Brooks" trial. 23:12
And There it is.
At 22:04 on 15/5/12 I mean my point. My post on Monday (14/5/12) "I'm Back and So Is my Internet Connectoion" included the lengthy sentence;
"Apart from being sociable the purpose of the trip to Brighton was to blow off steam after the end of the madness with Libya, Syria and the European elections and before the start of the madness with the G8 Summit, the NATO Summit and the Egyptian Presidential election."
this should have included the much longer list;
"Apart from being sociable the purpose of the trip to Brighton was to blow off steam after the end of the European elections and the continuing carnage in Libya and Syria before the start of the G8 Summit, the NATO Summit, the Egyptian Presidential election, the continuing carnage in Libya and Syria, the Euro2012 football tournament, the Queen of England's Diamond Jubilee, the Olympics, the para-Olympics, the Olympic fallout and the continuing situation in Somalia. God! Just how sick of the sight of each other by the time the COP18/CMP8 comes round in Doha are we going to be?. I mean it's only May and already the weather hates Francois Hollande even if it is a bit chilly here in London."
Speaking of my trip to Brighton apparently at around the same time there was some nasty house fire with 6 fatalities in Derby, UK where I used to live. The police have called it arson and arrested the 'mistress' of the dole scrounging 'man' of the household. From today's (15/5/12) "The Sun" newspaper I now know the 'mistress' could look a bit like one of my former Brighton based co-conspirators known as "Sam." This comes fresh on the heels of "The Sun" newspaper being fed constant photographs of "Shannon Matthews'" mother after she'd been released from prisoner looking a lot like another one of my former Brighton co-conspirators known as "Sara."
Lord at around 22:22 all this talk of disease ridden vermin has given me a sudden urge to either watch the "Jeremy Kyle Show" or talk about foxes.
Edited at 22:36 on 15/5/12 to add: I've worked out the police's response to the Derby arson. They were ordered to arrest all suspects of suspicion of arson in order to give them all the legal protections and make a point regarding the "Trayvon Martin" case. For some reason this included putting them up in a hotel for protection so now the local police are being allowed to send photographs to "The Sun" newspaper to raise questions about the cost of these legal protections. 22:40
"Apart from being sociable the purpose of the trip to Brighton was to blow off steam after the end of the madness with Libya, Syria and the European elections and before the start of the madness with the G8 Summit, the NATO Summit and the Egyptian Presidential election."
this should have included the much longer list;
"Apart from being sociable the purpose of the trip to Brighton was to blow off steam after the end of the European elections and the continuing carnage in Libya and Syria before the start of the G8 Summit, the NATO Summit, the Egyptian Presidential election, the continuing carnage in Libya and Syria, the Euro2012 football tournament, the Queen of England's Diamond Jubilee, the Olympics, the para-Olympics, the Olympic fallout and the continuing situation in Somalia. God! Just how sick of the sight of each other by the time the COP18/CMP8 comes round in Doha are we going to be?. I mean it's only May and already the weather hates Francois Hollande even if it is a bit chilly here in London."
Speaking of my trip to Brighton apparently at around the same time there was some nasty house fire with 6 fatalities in Derby, UK where I used to live. The police have called it arson and arrested the 'mistress' of the dole scrounging 'man' of the household. From today's (15/5/12) "The Sun" newspaper I now know the 'mistress' could look a bit like one of my former Brighton based co-conspirators known as "Sam." This comes fresh on the heels of "The Sun" newspaper being fed constant photographs of "Shannon Matthews'" mother after she'd been released from prisoner looking a lot like another one of my former Brighton co-conspirators known as "Sara."
Lord at around 22:22 all this talk of disease ridden vermin has given me a sudden urge to either watch the "Jeremy Kyle Show" or talk about foxes.
Edited at 22:36 on 15/5/12 to add: I've worked out the police's response to the Derby arson. They were ordered to arrest all suspects of suspicion of arson in order to give them all the legal protections and make a point regarding the "Trayvon Martin" case. For some reason this included putting them up in a hotel for protection so now the local police are being allowed to send photographs to "The Sun" newspaper to raise questions about the cost of these legal protections. 22:40
Ooohh Sharp.
At around 21:34 on 15/5/12 I've just seen the "Guardian" newspaper's first edition and they have gone with a soft lifestyle peice on the Brooks marriage. On the frontpage. It shows the headline; Brooks Charged Over 'Cover-up' beneath a picture Rebekah Brookes and her husband (friend of David Cameron) with the husband's face above the word Brookes and the wife's face above the word Cover-up.
Really at 21:39 you should probably find a picture of it.
Really at 21:39 you should probably find a picture of it.
Dammit Just Missed Out on Silk.
"Slik" the new(ish) thing on BBC1 featuring barristers being all dramatic and barrister-y. Shown between 21:00 and 22:00 local it clashes with the usual "CSI" on Channel 5. Fortunately I've been out getting stoned so I didn't have to watch either.
Anyway at around 21:01 I'm here now and the news is on so rest assured as soon as I find by point I'll bring it straight too you. 21:02
Edited at around 21:05 on 15/5/12 to add: I'm currently watching the Rebekah Brooks story on the news and it's got me wondering if tomorrow's "Guardian" newspaper frontage is out or are they just going for a soft lifestyle peice about the state of the Brooks marriage. 22:07
Anyway at around 21:01 I'm here now and the news is on so rest assured as soon as I find by point I'll bring it straight too you. 21:02
Edited at around 21:05 on 15/5/12 to add: I'm currently watching the Rebekah Brooks story on the news and it's got me wondering if tomorrow's "Guardian" newspaper frontage is out or are they just going for a soft lifestyle peice about the state of the Brooks marriage. 22:07
Yeah Boring.
At around 20:45 on 15/5/12 Hollande and Merkel have finished their press conference.
Like I said I've been to the pub. On the way there my father and I drove past the house involved in the Langdale Road house fire. Although it had been raining all day the fire brigade were still dousing the top of burnt out shell of a building with a "Simon Snorkel" elevated platform. As a result the road was still closed from the junction with Nutfield road and there were nervous looking Police Community Support Officers (PCSO) manning the cordon. This is normally the point where I wander up to a cordon before agreeing with the police, PCSO's and forensic officers that it would be easier on everyone if there was no legitimate reason to find traces of me at the crime scene but I think it was about 3 or 4 doors down on the opposite side.
While we were in the pub the local police put on a good display with a patrol car and an area car doing a synchronised lights only approach on one of the side streets backed up with two bicycle cops before immediately turning around and leaving the scene. This could have been because there had been a report of an attempted mugging or they were making some sort of comment about my father's car that was parked on double yellow lines using my grandmother's disabled badge on that side street. Either way it was enough to clear all the young, black males out of the area.
In other news in the early hours of this morning the European Union Naval Force (EUNAVFOR) for Somalia launched their first air attack against pirate positions in Somalia using a helicopter gunship. EUNAVFOR are being very tight lipped about the operation so I'll have to guess and say that it was Britain ordering a French Tigre helicopter into operation in order to test the bounds of the UK/France military alliance now that France has a new President. The grenade attack in Kenya is someone's way of saying we need to stop and think this one through before the Somalia situation is escalated further.
Like I said I've been to the pub. On the way there my father and I drove past the house involved in the Langdale Road house fire. Although it had been raining all day the fire brigade were still dousing the top of burnt out shell of a building with a "Simon Snorkel" elevated platform. As a result the road was still closed from the junction with Nutfield road and there were nervous looking Police Community Support Officers (PCSO) manning the cordon. This is normally the point where I wander up to a cordon before agreeing with the police, PCSO's and forensic officers that it would be easier on everyone if there was no legitimate reason to find traces of me at the crime scene but I think it was about 3 or 4 doors down on the opposite side.
While we were in the pub the local police put on a good display with a patrol car and an area car doing a synchronised lights only approach on one of the side streets backed up with two bicycle cops before immediately turning around and leaving the scene. This could have been because there had been a report of an attempted mugging or they were making some sort of comment about my father's car that was parked on double yellow lines using my grandmother's disabled badge on that side street. Either way it was enough to clear all the young, black males out of the area.
In other news in the early hours of this morning the European Union Naval Force (EUNAVFOR) for Somalia launched their first air attack against pirate positions in Somalia using a helicopter gunship. EUNAVFOR are being very tight lipped about the operation so I'll have to guess and say that it was Britain ordering a French Tigre helicopter into operation in order to test the bounds of the UK/France military alliance now that France has a new President. The grenade attack in Kenya is someone's way of saying we need to stop and think this one through before the Somalia situation is escalated further.
I'm Back From the Pub.
At around 19:10 GMT on Tuesday May 15th 2012 (15/5/12) I have returned from the pub to discover no immediate problems. So Francois Hollande and Angela Merkel have my permission to start their press conference if they so wish. They should also feel no pressure to hurry up on my account. I mean it's not like I've got a mildly interesting story about the Langdale road fire house and the local police to tell.
Operation Ostrava: Month 15, Week 2, Day 1.
Despite the United Nations Support Mission In Syria (UNSMIS) having it's numbers swelled to 100 observers violence in Syria this past week has increased from the pre-deployment low. Violence specifically targeted against UNSMIS personnel has also started to emerge. Last Wednesday (9/5/12) a UNSMIS convoy was attacked by a roadside bomb in Deraa. While no UN personnel were injured 10 Syrian troops who'd been providing the convoy with security were injured in the attack. Today (15/5/12) another UNSMIS vehicle was destroyed by a roadside bomb near the village of Khan Sheikhoun. Although none of the 7 observers were injured UNSMIS has already responded to the attacks by sending 20 Armoured Personnel Carriers (APC's) to Syria in order to transport their staff around the country more safely. Therefore the attacks on UNSMIS appear to be part of a deliberate strategy by the Saudi Irregular Army (SIA) to force UNSMIS to militarise their presence in the country.
The Syrian government has continued arrest missions throughout the country and have continued to be met with armed resistance from the SIA. The most notable of these incidents occurred yesterday (14/5/12) in Rastan. According to SIA sources SIA positions came under light shell fire from a group of 5 Syrian BRDM-type APC's. SIA fighters counter-attacked capturing 2 of the APC's and destroying the other 3 killing 23 Syrian soldiers in the process. Yesterday also saw the violence spread beyond Syria's borders into the Lebanese city of Tripoli where 5 people were killed in gun battles between Sunni Muslims loyal to the SIA and Alawite Muslims loyal to the Syrian government.
The most significant event of the past week though took place in the capital Damascus on Thursday (10/5/12). Here a suicide bomber detonated his car bomb on one of the city's main highways during the morning rush-hour. Once rescue workers and onlookers had been drawn to the scene a second suicide bomber detonated his car bomb. In all 55 people were killed and 350 people wounded in what was undoubtedly a terrorist attack as defined by international law. The Jihadist group the al-Nurusa Front immediately claimed responsibility for the attack as retaliation for the killing of Syrian civilians. They have since retracted that claim of responsibility though meaning that they did it but since then SIA high-command have ordered them to deny responsibility. This is because along with the fighting in Lebanon the Damascus suicide bombings call into sharp focus the very real and serious threat that the SIA now pose to the security and stability of the entire region.
The SIA's initial strategy was to provoke and failing that fake atrocities against Syrian civilians in order to force the international community into launching a Libya-style military intervention that would sweep the Syrian government aside. When it became apparent that this was not going to happen the SIA's next priority was get a ceasefire in place to buy them time to re-group and launch an asymmetric long war fought through repeated terrorist attacks. As the SIA are receiving significant tactical support from Britain the broad model for this campaign is the Irish Republican Army's (IRA) campaign against Britain in the 1970's/80's/90's. The problem is that the available foot soldiers only experience of asymmetric warfare comes from the carnage that engulfed Iraq following the 2003 invasion. Therefore the only option now open to the international community is to withdraw UNSMIS and equip the Syrian government to end the SIA before the whole country catches fire and draws nations like Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, Egypt and Israel into the flames.
The Syrian government has continued arrest missions throughout the country and have continued to be met with armed resistance from the SIA. The most notable of these incidents occurred yesterday (14/5/12) in Rastan. According to SIA sources SIA positions came under light shell fire from a group of 5 Syrian BRDM-type APC's. SIA fighters counter-attacked capturing 2 of the APC's and destroying the other 3 killing 23 Syrian soldiers in the process. Yesterday also saw the violence spread beyond Syria's borders into the Lebanese city of Tripoli where 5 people were killed in gun battles between Sunni Muslims loyal to the SIA and Alawite Muslims loyal to the Syrian government.
The most significant event of the past week though took place in the capital Damascus on Thursday (10/5/12). Here a suicide bomber detonated his car bomb on one of the city's main highways during the morning rush-hour. Once rescue workers and onlookers had been drawn to the scene a second suicide bomber detonated his car bomb. In all 55 people were killed and 350 people wounded in what was undoubtedly a terrorist attack as defined by international law. The Jihadist group the al-Nurusa Front immediately claimed responsibility for the attack as retaliation for the killing of Syrian civilians. They have since retracted that claim of responsibility though meaning that they did it but since then SIA high-command have ordered them to deny responsibility. This is because along with the fighting in Lebanon the Damascus suicide bombings call into sharp focus the very real and serious threat that the SIA now pose to the security and stability of the entire region.
The SIA's initial strategy was to provoke and failing that fake atrocities against Syrian civilians in order to force the international community into launching a Libya-style military intervention that would sweep the Syrian government aside. When it became apparent that this was not going to happen the SIA's next priority was get a ceasefire in place to buy them time to re-group and launch an asymmetric long war fought through repeated terrorist attacks. As the SIA are receiving significant tactical support from Britain the broad model for this campaign is the Irish Republican Army's (IRA) campaign against Britain in the 1970's/80's/90's. The problem is that the available foot soldiers only experience of asymmetric warfare comes from the carnage that engulfed Iraq following the 2003 invasion. Therefore the only option now open to the international community is to withdraw UNSMIS and equip the Syrian government to end the SIA before the whole country catches fire and draws nations like Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, Egypt and Israel into the flames.
Hedge-y Wedge-y.
Today (15/5/12) in the United States of America (USA) the huge investment bank JP Morgan Chase & Co are holding their Annual General Meeting (AGM) where the board of directors have to answer to shareholders. This comes just days after the bank lost in excess of USD2billion on a failed hedging strategy. A hedging strategy is one of those complex financial instruments that math genius' are paid millions to dream up. Basically though it's betting against yourself. For example if you were to invest USD1million on the price of gold going up you may also invest USD250,000 on the price of gold going down. That way if you're wrong and the price of gold goes down you'll limit your loses to USD750,000 and if you're right your profits will exceed USD250,000.
The reason why JP Morgan's hedging strategy failed is because the US government failed to engage China in a multi-lateral solution to the Eurozone crisis. As a result the two superpowers are likely to intervene on an ad-hoc, unilateral basis if at all. So the US is desperately trying to predict what China will do if Greece leaves the Eurozone or what China will do if the Europact gets torn up and the Eurozone banking system implodes. Personally I've got no idea what China will do but I am aware that if Eurozone system implodes the Gulf Sovereign Wealth Funds are well placed to swoop in and buy up the wreckage on the cheap. So I hope this isn't all the US have got because it's giving me nasty flashbacks to Britain circa 2007/8.
The reason why JP Morgan's hedging strategy failed is because the US government failed to engage China in a multi-lateral solution to the Eurozone crisis. As a result the two superpowers are likely to intervene on an ad-hoc, unilateral basis if at all. So the US is desperately trying to predict what China will do if Greece leaves the Eurozone or what China will do if the Europact gets torn up and the Eurozone banking system implodes. Personally I've got no idea what China will do but I am aware that if Eurozone system implodes the Gulf Sovereign Wealth Funds are well placed to swoop in and buy up the wreckage on the cheap. So I hope this isn't all the US have got because it's giving me nasty flashbacks to Britain circa 2007/8.
Anything Can Happen Tuesday.
Apparently at around the time (09:40) I made my previous post today (15/5/12) a large house fire broke out in Langdale Road which is a couple of streets away from me in Thornton Heath. Although the timing is highly suspicious I cannot immediately think of any reason why this has anything to do with me. I have not visited the scene but I gather the terraced house was completely destroyed with no casualties. Therefore the presence of the low-flying police helicopter was totally unnecessary and probably helped fan the flames. I do though feel it is my duty to report that after making my previous post I broke with routine (or what's left of it) and went for a full gym session in the Black Lion.
In other news a man has apparently self-immolated (set himself on fire) outside the trial of Anders Behring Breivik in Norway. I don't have the full details so I'm hesitant to comment. However I will say this; Regardless of what you can or cannot prove if you believe that Breivik was simply a tool of Britain then Britain thought Norwegian Royal Family would be fine with it because it would put pressure on me to reveal my knowledge on dealing with the sort of psychological traumas associated with that sort of tragedy. They may have miscalculated. This is why the Belgian Royal Family took the unusual step of including psychological injuries in the casualty list for the grenade and gun attack that took place in Leige in December 2011. The depressing bit is that all my knowledge and experience has only taught that I can't deal with the psychological trauma the Norwegians have experienced. That is something they can only do for themselves.
Now at around 13:35 I'm off to completely fix the middle-east. Then I'm going to the pub.
In other news a man has apparently self-immolated (set himself on fire) outside the trial of Anders Behring Breivik in Norway. I don't have the full details so I'm hesitant to comment. However I will say this; Regardless of what you can or cannot prove if you believe that Breivik was simply a tool of Britain then Britain thought Norwegian Royal Family would be fine with it because it would put pressure on me to reveal my knowledge on dealing with the sort of psychological traumas associated with that sort of tragedy. They may have miscalculated. This is why the Belgian Royal Family took the unusual step of including psychological injuries in the casualty list for the grenade and gun attack that took place in Leige in December 2011. The depressing bit is that all my knowledge and experience has only taught that I can't deal with the psychological trauma the Norwegians have experienced. That is something they can only do for themselves.
Now at around 13:35 I'm off to completely fix the middle-east. Then I'm going to the pub.
Chills the Bones Doesn't it.
Today (15/5/12) Britain's war against the free press entered a sinister new phase. Former News International Chief Executive Rebekah Brookes along with her husband, her personal assistant, her driver and two members of her security staff have been charged with three counts of perverting the course of justice. Specifically the charges relate to one count of concealing documents, one count of removing/destroying documents and one count of giving false testimony to the police. Upon conviction the maximum sentence for these offences are life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
I think the only thing we can say for certain at this point is that Mrs Patricia Hodge won't be presiding over the trial. In fact it might be worth the accused running a defence that Britain has no criminal justice system to be perverted therefore the offence could not have occurred. After all there seems little point trying to deal down on a witch-hunt.
I think the only thing we can say for certain at this point is that Mrs Patricia Hodge won't be presiding over the trial. In fact it might be worth the accused running a defence that Britain has no criminal justice system to be perverted therefore the offence could not have occurred. After all there seems little point trying to deal down on a witch-hunt.
Monday 14 May 2012
Occupy Rebooted.
On Saturday (12/5/12) the global Occupy movement called a day of international action to re-invigorate a campaign that has largely died out with the majority of the original camps long since dismantled. However rather then invoking the spirit of the orginal Occupy Wall Street that began in New York, USA on October 15th 2011 (15/10/11) this new wave of protests set out to emulate the "Indignados" or "Indignants" protests that began in Spain on May 12th 2011 (12/5/11).
Although it has it's roots in the anti-precarity movement that was prevelent in EuroMayday scene during the mid-2000's the Indignados protests are predominately made up of middle-class youth in their 20's and 30's protesting against Spain's economic problems and the austerity measures needed to solve them. As a result the vast majority of the new Occupy protests have taken place in the Eurozone with 14 in Spain, 8 in France and 5 in Germany.
This shift in focus towards the Eurozone and austerity leaves me unconvinced that this fresh round of Occupy protests are a good idea. When Occupy Wall Street began the focus was very much on and the global financial system and the banks, especially ones that were profiting from the Eurozone's economic problems. As a result the protests were incredibly effective in allowing national government's to put pressure on private banks to consider issues other then their own profits in the plans for economic recovery. This resulted in the historic October 27th 2011 Europact deal which saw an unprecedented 75% of Greek debt written off and a fundamental change in attitude to the Eurozone bailouts. By contrast the Indignados are more focused on exerting pressure on national governments to change policy and stimulate consumption. This is basically giving the 1% free money paid for by inflation levied on the 99%. Therefore I think the Occupy protests have reached the point where they've stopped being part of the solution and become part of the problem.
This is because while there is little room for ethics in capitalism the Eurozone's economic problems haven't been caused by some elaborate global conspiracy. Instead they've been caused by European governments spending money they simply don't have especially on giving free money to banks. Therefore if the governments are able to implement unpopular austerity measures in the long run it will make life better for everyone especially Europe's youth who suffer the highest rates of unemployment and make up the bulk of the Occupy protests. Take Greece as an example. Although Greece is an exceptional case where the situation is much worse in the rest of the Eurozone a lot of the causes of their economic problems are common throughout the Eurozone.
In Greece the government provides all it's citizens with free education up to PHD level. It also provides all it's citizens with very strict employment protections that encourage a strict system of seniority making it hard to fire people and equally hard to hire people. Until the EU/IMF bailout the Greek government also provided all it's citizens with a full state pension at 55 years old. As a result a large proportion of Greeks stay in university until they're 25 and then spend 10 years alternating between unemployment and lowly paid, lowly taxed dead-end or "precarious" jobs while waiting for permission to join the workforce proper. They then retire at 55.
Based on an average life expectancy of 80 years and rising this means that Greeks are only economically active and paying tax for around a quarter of their lives. This forces the Greek government to make up the shortfall by borrowing money from the banks at high rates of interest. Regardless of what economic system you're using this is simply unsustainable because even if you're using a Kibbutz style anarcho-agriculturalist economy and only use 25% of the availible land to grow crops you'll soon run out of food. Also based on my experience of elderly care putting people of the scrapheap with over 20 years of their life left to go is neither healthy nor particularly good for them.
So I think that if the Occupiers and the Indignados truely want to improve their lot in life they should be protesting in favour of austerity and structural reform or at least stay at home.
Although it has it's roots in the anti-precarity movement that was prevelent in EuroMayday scene during the mid-2000's the Indignados protests are predominately made up of middle-class youth in their 20's and 30's protesting against Spain's economic problems and the austerity measures needed to solve them. As a result the vast majority of the new Occupy protests have taken place in the Eurozone with 14 in Spain, 8 in France and 5 in Germany.
This shift in focus towards the Eurozone and austerity leaves me unconvinced that this fresh round of Occupy protests are a good idea. When Occupy Wall Street began the focus was very much on and the global financial system and the banks, especially ones that were profiting from the Eurozone's economic problems. As a result the protests were incredibly effective in allowing national government's to put pressure on private banks to consider issues other then their own profits in the plans for economic recovery. This resulted in the historic October 27th 2011 Europact deal which saw an unprecedented 75% of Greek debt written off and a fundamental change in attitude to the Eurozone bailouts. By contrast the Indignados are more focused on exerting pressure on national governments to change policy and stimulate consumption. This is basically giving the 1% free money paid for by inflation levied on the 99%. Therefore I think the Occupy protests have reached the point where they've stopped being part of the solution and become part of the problem.
This is because while there is little room for ethics in capitalism the Eurozone's economic problems haven't been caused by some elaborate global conspiracy. Instead they've been caused by European governments spending money they simply don't have especially on giving free money to banks. Therefore if the governments are able to implement unpopular austerity measures in the long run it will make life better for everyone especially Europe's youth who suffer the highest rates of unemployment and make up the bulk of the Occupy protests. Take Greece as an example. Although Greece is an exceptional case where the situation is much worse in the rest of the Eurozone a lot of the causes of their economic problems are common throughout the Eurozone.
In Greece the government provides all it's citizens with free education up to PHD level. It also provides all it's citizens with very strict employment protections that encourage a strict system of seniority making it hard to fire people and equally hard to hire people. Until the EU/IMF bailout the Greek government also provided all it's citizens with a full state pension at 55 years old. As a result a large proportion of Greeks stay in university until they're 25 and then spend 10 years alternating between unemployment and lowly paid, lowly taxed dead-end or "precarious" jobs while waiting for permission to join the workforce proper. They then retire at 55.
Based on an average life expectancy of 80 years and rising this means that Greeks are only economically active and paying tax for around a quarter of their lives. This forces the Greek government to make up the shortfall by borrowing money from the banks at high rates of interest. Regardless of what economic system you're using this is simply unsustainable because even if you're using a Kibbutz style anarcho-agriculturalist economy and only use 25% of the availible land to grow crops you'll soon run out of food. Also based on my experience of elderly care putting people of the scrapheap with over 20 years of their life left to go is neither healthy nor particularly good for them.
So I think that if the Occupiers and the Indignados truely want to improve their lot in life they should be protesting in favour of austerity and structural reform or at least stay at home.
About the Phones.
The BlackBerry I got was the 9500 - the touchscreen version. It's got an O2 pay as you go SIM in it at the moment but I'll need to change that once I've tracked down a user manual.
I should also point out that there's absolutely nothing illegal about either that or the Samsung. It's just that the British police like to play a fun little game. When they stop and search you if they find any vaguely expensive electrical equipment like a camera, an iPod, an iPad or even a cheap smartphone they immediately ask you if you've go the receipt. When you answer "no" because who carries all their receipts with them the police then arrest you on suspicion of theft/handling stolen goods and confiscate your property. This normally ends up with you in a police cell for up to 36 hours before being bailed to return to the police station in anything up to six months when you prove ownership of the property and the charges are dropped. This is highly irritating because it then takes another six months to have your property returned to you and if you get arrested again whilst on police bail it massively increases your chances of being charged and remanded in custody (prison) even if you've not done anything wrong.
The police use this tactic a lot when dealing with protesters - especially left-wing ones - so it seems a timely thing to bring up because the Occupy Protesters re-launched themselves on Saturday (13/5/12). I will need to get around to writing that up properly - probably tomorrow - even though I don't expect them to last that long. On reflection I could really have done without losing a day.
I should also point out that there's absolutely nothing illegal about either that or the Samsung. It's just that the British police like to play a fun little game. When they stop and search you if they find any vaguely expensive electrical equipment like a camera, an iPod, an iPad or even a cheap smartphone they immediately ask you if you've go the receipt. When you answer "no" because who carries all their receipts with them the police then arrest you on suspicion of theft/handling stolen goods and confiscate your property. This normally ends up with you in a police cell for up to 36 hours before being bailed to return to the police station in anything up to six months when you prove ownership of the property and the charges are dropped. This is highly irritating because it then takes another six months to have your property returned to you and if you get arrested again whilst on police bail it massively increases your chances of being charged and remanded in custody (prison) even if you've not done anything wrong.
The police use this tactic a lot when dealing with protesters - especially left-wing ones - so it seems a timely thing to bring up because the Occupy Protesters re-launched themselves on Saturday (13/5/12). I will need to get around to writing that up properly - probably tomorrow - even though I don't expect them to last that long. On reflection I could really have done without losing a day.
I'm Back and So Is my Internet Connectoion.
It's around 10:30 on Monday May 14th (14/5/12).
Due to some odour issues that made a trip on the national rail network and it's police check points unattractive I unexpectedly decided to stay down in Brighton over Friday (11/5/12) night. As I didn't have my meds with me this meant that I did not sleep. So when I arrived home at around 14:45 on Saturday (12/5/12) all I wanted to do was have a shower, take a nap and eat dinner. By the time I'd finished with that we were into the big live shows on both BBC1 and ITV1 so I went to bed. When I woke up we were within two hours of race time at the Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix so I decided to keep quiet. On reflection "Home Safe" were the two words I was looking for on Twitter but at that point the fact that I was both home and safe was immediately obvious to me.
Apart from being sociable the purpose of the trip to Brighton was to blow off steam after the end of the madness with Libya, Syria and the European elections and before the start of the madness with the G8 Summit, the NATO Summit and the Egyptian Presidential election. I achieved this objective by drinking too much, being obnoxious and generally making a fool of myself. So I'm not sure exactly rumours you've heard but they're probably true. One rumour that isn't true though is about me crapping my pants in a pub. What happened is that my friend decided that it was time for me to learn how to play poker. He announced this by turning up with two strangers who were in full poker mode and full of bullsh*t to help me part with my money. So when we got back to the house I pulled out the big guns by taking my boxer shorts off and hanging them over the radiator in the bathroom to provide a disconcerting talking point as the other players went to and from the bathroom. This plan has two minor floors in it. Firstly my friends adult step-daughter was unexpectedly home with someone who may or may not be a her boyfriend. Secondly I was far to drunk the learn the complex rules of poker so instead I was sat down with a "Guess the corporate logo" game on an iPad while everyone else got on with the game.
One of the logos on app was for Spanish mobile telephone giant "Movistar" but no matter how many times I typed that in with various different spellings the iPad refused to accept that I was correct. This led to a lengthy rant about the history of Movistar and how I was right and the iPad was wrong. Despite this and all the talk of football no-one mentioned that the Movistar logo could also be the logo of etisalat which you see plastered around football stadiums across the UK. etisalat of course is Movistar's attempt to expand their business into the middle-east with help from the Abu Dhabi Sovereign wealth fund.
The other big bit of news from Brighton is that around the time the Leveson Inquiry shut down (16:00bst) I decided to act decisively on the smart phone front buying a second hand Samsung Galaxy phone for my father and a previously owned BlackBerry for myself. All I need to do now is figure out exactly what model of BlackBerry I've brought, get hold of a users manual and decide on a service provider. Although it would be difficult to top up credit I not really seeing a reason why I should be limited to a UK service provider after all surely they should be paying me to get access to my emails, text (sms) messages and phonecalls.
Anyway on Saturday morning I gathered up my belongings and my friend and I looked at the several cellphones, multiple sim cards, few receipts and some other objects of questionable legality and decided it would probably be best if he drove me home. First though he had to take his car to the garage because there was a strange knocking sound coming from the the front right wheel. My friend was convinced that this was definitely an expensive problem with either the brakes or the wheel brushes and had apparently been complaining about it all week. In the garage they took the car for a test drive, put it up on an inspection ramp and after seconds of careful examination concluded that my friend hadn't tightened the wheel nuts up. Doing a "Perez" as I believe it's now known. Anyway we left just as Q3 was starting and quickly had to stop for fuel before heading to Croydon getting stuck in a torturous traffic jam near Purley Way but like I said I arrived back around 14:45.
The reason why my Internet connection was down yesterday (13/5/12) was the Americans and the British trying to get information out of people - mainly the Chinese - while the Spanish Grand Prix, the tennis in Madrid, some golf in Florida and the final day of the English Premier League (EPL) were going on. In the EPL Manchester City (the Libyan rebels) beat Manchester United (the Brits) to the title after overcoming Queens Park Rangers QPR (the SAS/SIS/INC) with a last gasp winner in tense final game. I think this is a more or less accurate sporting metaphor because Libya has not yet collapsed into the fullscale carnage that Britain had been hoping for when it sent the SAS/SIS/INC in to fake the uprising. However Libya is far from stable yet so I'd be worried about them getting too confident about the EPL result because if you want to be wholly accurate Manchester City should be Abu Dhabi in the footballing code.
Due to some odour issues that made a trip on the national rail network and it's police check points unattractive I unexpectedly decided to stay down in Brighton over Friday (11/5/12) night. As I didn't have my meds with me this meant that I did not sleep. So when I arrived home at around 14:45 on Saturday (12/5/12) all I wanted to do was have a shower, take a nap and eat dinner. By the time I'd finished with that we were into the big live shows on both BBC1 and ITV1 so I went to bed. When I woke up we were within two hours of race time at the Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix so I decided to keep quiet. On reflection "Home Safe" were the two words I was looking for on Twitter but at that point the fact that I was both home and safe was immediately obvious to me.
Apart from being sociable the purpose of the trip to Brighton was to blow off steam after the end of the madness with Libya, Syria and the European elections and before the start of the madness with the G8 Summit, the NATO Summit and the Egyptian Presidential election. I achieved this objective by drinking too much, being obnoxious and generally making a fool of myself. So I'm not sure exactly rumours you've heard but they're probably true. One rumour that isn't true though is about me crapping my pants in a pub. What happened is that my friend decided that it was time for me to learn how to play poker. He announced this by turning up with two strangers who were in full poker mode and full of bullsh*t to help me part with my money. So when we got back to the house I pulled out the big guns by taking my boxer shorts off and hanging them over the radiator in the bathroom to provide a disconcerting talking point as the other players went to and from the bathroom. This plan has two minor floors in it. Firstly my friends adult step-daughter was unexpectedly home with someone who may or may not be a her boyfriend. Secondly I was far to drunk the learn the complex rules of poker so instead I was sat down with a "Guess the corporate logo" game on an iPad while everyone else got on with the game.
One of the logos on app was for Spanish mobile telephone giant "Movistar" but no matter how many times I typed that in with various different spellings the iPad refused to accept that I was correct. This led to a lengthy rant about the history of Movistar and how I was right and the iPad was wrong. Despite this and all the talk of football no-one mentioned that the Movistar logo could also be the logo of etisalat which you see plastered around football stadiums across the UK. etisalat of course is Movistar's attempt to expand their business into the middle-east with help from the Abu Dhabi Sovereign wealth fund.
The other big bit of news from Brighton is that around the time the Leveson Inquiry shut down (16:00bst) I decided to act decisively on the smart phone front buying a second hand Samsung Galaxy phone for my father and a previously owned BlackBerry for myself. All I need to do now is figure out exactly what model of BlackBerry I've brought, get hold of a users manual and decide on a service provider. Although it would be difficult to top up credit I not really seeing a reason why I should be limited to a UK service provider after all surely they should be paying me to get access to my emails, text (sms) messages and phonecalls.
Anyway on Saturday morning I gathered up my belongings and my friend and I looked at the several cellphones, multiple sim cards, few receipts and some other objects of questionable legality and decided it would probably be best if he drove me home. First though he had to take his car to the garage because there was a strange knocking sound coming from the the front right wheel. My friend was convinced that this was definitely an expensive problem with either the brakes or the wheel brushes and had apparently been complaining about it all week. In the garage they took the car for a test drive, put it up on an inspection ramp and after seconds of careful examination concluded that my friend hadn't tightened the wheel nuts up. Doing a "Perez" as I believe it's now known. Anyway we left just as Q3 was starting and quickly had to stop for fuel before heading to Croydon getting stuck in a torturous traffic jam near Purley Way but like I said I arrived back around 14:45.
The reason why my Internet connection was down yesterday (13/5/12) was the Americans and the British trying to get information out of people - mainly the Chinese - while the Spanish Grand Prix, the tennis in Madrid, some golf in Florida and the final day of the English Premier League (EPL) were going on. In the EPL Manchester City (the Libyan rebels) beat Manchester United (the Brits) to the title after overcoming Queens Park Rangers QPR (the SAS/SIS/INC) with a last gasp winner in tense final game. I think this is a more or less accurate sporting metaphor because Libya has not yet collapsed into the fullscale carnage that Britain had been hoping for when it sent the SAS/SIS/INC in to fake the uprising. However Libya is far from stable yet so I'd be worried about them getting too confident about the EPL result because if you want to be wholly accurate Manchester City should be Abu Dhabi in the footballing code.
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