DJ360
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Posts posted by DJ360
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Cont'd..
On 5/12/2024 at 11:09 PM, Brew said:You clearly have sympathy for the Palestinians and their cause and I've not heard you agree Israel has a right to defend itself.
I amazed you say that. I have never, at any point said that Israel doesn't have the right to defend itself. Of course it does. The issue here is how far Israel has the right to go in the name of such defence.
The final defeat of Hamas is in my view..and others.. a forlorn objective. Hamas is ultimately an idea, no more nor less than Scottish Independence, Irish Republicanism, A Free Kurdish State, etc. Hamas will and should be rendered ineffective, but you can't kill an idea.
Of course I have sympathy for the Palestinians... but I'm not sure what you mean by their 'cause'?
As I see it the 'cause' of the vast bulk of Palestinian men, women and children.. is a peaceful and prosperous life... just like the rest of us.
As I see it, the only 'crime' committed by the vast bulk of Palestinians, is to be pawns in a supranational conflict being played out by proxy.
As far as I'm concerned I have sympathy for a captive population of mostly innocent Palestinian civilians who have been coralled for decades and are now being systematically bombed out of house and home. I do hope your aren't implying that I see Hamas and Palestinians as interchangeable, as you claimed many do with Jews and Israel. I don't. That is entirely the point.
QuoteAsked to identify the amount of trust they had in the Hamas authorities, 44% said they had no trust at all, while 23% said they had little trust. Significantly this lack of trust was roughly uniform across age groups with those between the ages of 18-29 and those over 30 giving similar answers.
An earlier poll taken by the Washington Institute in July 2023, moreover, found that 62% of people in Gaza supported Hamas maintaining a ceasefire with Israel and 50% agreed that: “Hamas should stop calling for Israel’s destruction, and instead accept a permanent two-state solution based on the 1967 borders.”
So, given the gulf between Hamas’s aims and style of governance, how has it kept control of the enclave of 2.2 million people for so long? It’s important to remember that there have been no elections since 2006 and the average age of people in Gaza is about 18, meaning most people have not had the chance to vote for any other leadership.
Hamas has also reportedly ruled with an iron fist. Hamas has used strict and authoritarian methods of control, applying its own interpretations of strict sharia law, enforcing gender segregation in public, controlling the media, repressing any political opposition and eliminating all mechanisms of transparency and accountability.
Numerous reports have detailed human rights abuses conducted by Hamas against Palestinian civilians, including arbitrary detention, torture, punishment beatings and the death penalty. To be fair, a report in 2018 from Human Rights Watch found that similar human rights abuse was just as common in the West Bank under the Fatah-led PA. Hamas also stands accused of harassing journalists who criticise its government.
On 5/12/2024 at 11:09 PM, Brew said:I really hope I've got this wrong and you're not really suggesting (for the second time), that a peaceful kibbutz with only token security is somehow to blame when it is attacked by tanks, armoured cars and thousands of troops.
You have most emphatically got it wrong. Nowhere have I blamed the victims of the Oct 7th attack for what happened and I find that suggestion offensive.
What I have pointed to is complacency and the failures by Netanyahu's Government, which, at least partially, allowed the attack to succeed.
I'm certain that many Israelis feel the same.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/10/27/hamas-attack-israel-october-7-hostages/
From which.
QuoteIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had boasted for years of multimillion-dollar investments in an expansive “smart wall,” running the length of the enclave above ground and extending deep into the ground.
Claiming in recent years that Hamas had been successfully contained in Gaza, Netanyahu oversaw the gradual withdrawal of troops from the south. Forces left behind at the military and intelligence bases were trained to rely on sophisticated cameras and sensors to monitor for border infiltrations, and to alert forces on the ground in case of unusual events.
But in the early hours of Oct. 7, at least 1,500 Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants broke through some 30 points along the border barrier. They overran some bases so rapidly that soldiers were killed in their bunks, and the militants took out communication networks so efficiently that the area became a blind spot for the military.
From which:
QuoteThe vast majority of Israelis believe Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should publicly accept responsibility for the staggering failures that led to Hamas’s devastating onslaught on October 7, according to an opinion poll by the Maariv newspaper published Friday.
Of course Hamas were the villains, but their 'success' was at least in part enabled by Netanyahu's arrogance and complacency.
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On 5/12/2024 at 11:09 PM, Brew said:
Wrong, you missed my point. I'm referring, as stated, in this instance to the fact the term genocide is not and has not been levelled at Hamas - despite it being their avowed and declared intent to totally eradicate Israel.
As I have repeatedly said, I do not in any way support Hamas, it's aims, objectives, or tactics. It's just another extreme Islamist terror group, founded by just another lunatic Immam. And yes Hamas' objective of the complete eradication of the State of Israel would indeed constitute Genocide were it enacted. But, whilst the October 7th attack was appalling mass murder, it did not continue to qualify as Genocide.
QuoteThe' Israeli state' and 'the Jews' are to most interchangeable,
That is a massive and incorrect assumption. They certainly aren't to me, or to many I know.
As an aside, it's a little understood fact that the population of Israel, according to the 'Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics' is approximately 80% Jewish and 20 Muslim, with a smattering of Christians, Druze etc.
QuoteThe links in your post only serve to prove my point that in the global media only Israel is having the charge of genocide levelled against them.
Only Israel has killed 30,000+ mostly innocent civilians. Whatever Hamas' declared intention, it has not succeeded. Also, It is frequently reported by all media that Hamas' objective is to 'Eradicate Israel'. I take your point that Hamas' Genocidal intent has not been spelled out as such.
QuoteAre we playing a number game? does the fact the IDF is killing more people than Hamas make them the bad guys? Are the innocents at Beeri you somehow forgot to acknowledge, acceptable losses and 35000 is not?
Neither are acceptable and nowhere have I said different. I am at a loss as to how many times I have to condemn Hamas before you accept that I am not on their side.
QuoteNowhere have I seen reference to the 1988 Hamas declaration.
News channels I watch have repeatedly stated that Hamas is designated by many inc. the UK as a 'Terrorist Organisation'. Furthermore it is often stated that Hamas' has a 'declared objective of obliterating Israel.
However..not just me, but numerous individuals, commentators, diplomats, inter state organisations and sovereign states have queried, or actively condemned the Israeli Govt. action in Gaza, because they are making little more than token efforts to protect the Civilian Population. More than once, they have ordered people to move, only to then attack the area they have told people to move to.
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On 5/11/2024 at 3:17 PM, Brew said:
Genocide, such an emotive word, and only used in this instance by pro-Palestinian factions and protestors to raise connotations of mass extermination in order to condemn Israel and the Jews.
And 35000+ dead, mostly innocent civilians, including thousands of Children..is an emotive phrase.
First of all, whilst I and many others condemn the actions of the Israeli State, not only with reference to the current genocide, but also in areas such as illegal settlements, Israeli 'militia' attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank etc.. that categorically does not make us Anti Semitic. Does condemning the actions if Isis, the Taliban or Al Quaeda make us Islamophobic? Does condemning Irish Republican Terrorism make us 'anti Catholic'? You know it doesn't.
Quoteonly used in this instance by pro-Palestinian factions and protestors to raise connotations of mass extermination in order to condemn Israel and the Jews.
That statement is completely inccurate. Firstly, I have heard many people condemn the actions of the Israeli State without condemning 'the Jews'. To say it is only Palestinian factions and supporters is also completely inaccurate. Many individuals and states from around the World have condemned Israeli tactics . Even Biden has had to pause arms supplies to Israel and the UN is watching closely, though as ever..slow to act.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-68667556
https://duckduckgo.com/?q=UN+Position+of+Gaza+Genocide&t=newext&atb=v356-1&ia=web
Furthermore, I have heard several representatives of the Israeli Govt and the IDF make clear statements to the effect that they will 'remove the Palestinians from Gaza'. That may not be quite the 'Official' Israeli Govt. line, but I've not heard anyone from Israel 'rowing back' on what some of their overt extremists have said. What does 'remove' mean.. when the Israelis will not allow Palestinians to leave?
I suppose I'll have to repeat again that I do not in any way support HAMAS or its actions.. but then I think it is entirely reasonable to query what the hell the Israeli Govt. and the IDF, were doing which allowed the October 'incursion' to take place with such ease?
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Apparently a Cat 5 Solar Storm last night and a mere Cat 3 forecast tonight. As I said I saw nothing from the field at the bottom of the street, but numerous locals published pics of it from the top of the hill. I'll be up there from sunset tonight..
@Cliff Ton. You'll need to be looking towards the Northern Horizon, which I suppose means you'll have the city in between. Maybe if you have a run out towards Tollerton, Cotgrave or even Cropwell..you'll have less light pollution between?
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44 minutes ago, Brew said:
BUT, not so long ago, the Equality and Human Rights Commission found Labour committed unlawful acts in regard to antisemitism within the party during Corbyn’s leadership, highlighting the problem of antisemitism on the left.
I cannot say other than i believe Corbyn to be an antisemite.
The EHRC mostly found fault with the Labour Party's handling of allegations of AS. It DID NOT, as Letsav keeps hinting, find the Labour Party to be AS.
You believe Corbyn is AS. I don't. He's many things, but not AS.
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35 minutes ago, Brew said:
Because of the link to the rise of the Fascists, antisemitism has been assumed to be a right-wing trait. However, it has always existed across both sides of the political spectrum and through all strata of society.
Yes, there's truth in that, but I'd argue that the Nazi approach was initially a classic 'bogeyman' tactic of the sort still used by the likes of Trump and Putin to 'create enemies', which only they can defeat. Where AS exists on the left, it's more about a perception of a so called 'conspiracy' of wealth. Both expressions of AS are nonsense, but they are subtly different.
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34 minutes ago, Brew said:
to claim they are only anti-war is clearly nonsense
And yet they only started since the Genocide in Gaza began. Who'd have thought...?
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Quote
Excellent article from George Monbiot which references a report revealing how we in the UK have declining mental health issues to the point that we are at the bottom of comparisons with other countries
“There was a time when almost everyone in the UK believed that a rising economic tide would lift all boats. That everybody would have a good home. That drudge work would diminish and jobs would become more interesting. That we would enjoy greater economic security and more leisure time. That educational attainment would keep rising across all social classes. That our healthcare and health would inexorably improve. That the UK would become ever cleaner and greener. That governance and democratic engagement would get better by the year.We could easily have had all of these things. A vast amount of money has flushed through this country. Science has advanced by leaps and bounds; health and labour-saving technologies have greatly improved; we know exactly how to build good homes, treat sewage and improve democracy.Instead (literally, in the case of our rivers) almost everything has gone to shit”80 years ago Beveridge set out to tackle the 5 evil giants of “want, disease, ignorance, squalor and idleness”. They are now back with a vengeance.
In his new book Monboit says
“We live under an ideology that preys on every aspect of our lives: our education and our jobs; our healthcare and our leisure; our relationships and our mental wellbeing; the planet we inhabit – the very air we breathe. So pervasive has it become that, for most people, it has no name. It seems unavoidable, like a natural law.”There is a reason for these broken promises and dysfunctions, which explains why the UK suffers more from them than most comparable nations.It’s called neoliberalism.And it is precisely why it it imperative to get rid of the Tories, who are totally imbued in such thinking.Whilst we are arguing about AS, Gaza, Migration, etc.. etc.., the dark 'neoliberal' forces continue their march towards a time when very few will actually own anything. We will all rent whatever housing, transport, access to music, digital storage, and everything else they allow us to afford..from the cash/asset rich, who continue to increase their wealth exponentially to the detriment of the majority and with the complicity and encouragement of the Tories.The supposed 5th richest country in the World, being systematically and deliberately impoverished by Right Wing totally amoral actors. -
I still remember catching the 28 bus from Trinity Square when Trinity Church was still there. I have rather vague memories of the temporary stuff, then other memories of a cafe, a guitar/music shop, a travel agents and a jeweller. In either Trinity Row, or Burton St. Long time ago.
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3 minutes ago, letsavagoo said:
You’ve not really given a clear answer have you.
Yes, I have.
17 minutes ago, letsavagoo said:I was trying to establish if you believed the claims that Labour was a antisemitic party and the accusations were false or whether Starmer, the individual had been falsely accused of being AS.
No. I didn't and I still don't. Labour is the least likely party to be Anti Semitic.
The whole point of Labour is that it is inclusive, internationalist, etc., etc.
Did some people allow their opinions on Israeli State Policy to spill over into comments which could qualify as AS? Probably.
Are there actual anti semites in the Labour Party? I'd be surprised if there weren't for the reasons I've already given. There are both overt AND 'closet' anti semites everywhere..just as there are similar 'grades' of Islamophobes everywhere.
Does it follow that Labour is an Anti-Semitic Party? Of course not.. and you know this.
Re: Starmer. Whatever criticisms might be levelled against him, he clearly isn't AS.
But.. I don't expect any of that to placate a predominantly right wing UK press which is grasping desperately at anything to try to prevent a Labour election win.
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Yesterday I FINALLY got a fully functioning bathroom after sorting a couple of last minute plumbing hitches.. hooray! Just a bit of minor 'snagging' to do and two mirror cabinets to mount. But not today. I'm having a day off.
Local Billingers have put up fab photos of last night's Aurora Borealis seen from the hill. I was too knackered to get up there, but did have a look from the field at the bottom of the street. No joy. Far too much light pollution.
Later today we're going over to our eldest daughters place in Manchester for a barbeque come birthday celebration for the youngest, who lives in the same street. But, older daughter has declared that we must all be gone by 6:00 pm as she wants to watch the Eurovision final. She's always loved anything 'kitsch and tacky'... Dunno where she gets that from..
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23 minutes ago, Oztalgian said:
When we came to OZ in the mid-seventies we lived in Sydney and many well dressed businessmen wore "walk shorts", dress shoes, long knee length socks, business shirt and a tie. This fashion was popular in NZ too.
Possibly the most horrific image I've seen this week.....
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You'd get on well with my Bro. He sunbathes on cruise ship decks with trainers, socks, knee length shorts, polo shirt and hat on. Very expensive way of getting a 'farmer's' tan.
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15 hours ago, benjamin1945 said:
.think ive got me legs brown.today......to say nowt of me 'Bald head'..........
But not 'yer feet?
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You should have asked...! You could have had some of ours...
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13 hours ago, Jill Sparrow said:
Pleased to see you've put the new poster out of his misery @Cliff Ton. He seemed to be suffering from unbearable itching. I was about to suggest Germoloids...
What did I miss?
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On 5/6/2024 at 12:53 PM, philmayfield said:
I’ve just been reading up on him. A divorcee who had an affair with a married woman. He describes himself as ‘a man of deep Christian faith’. I like to see a bit of hypocrisy amongst politicians!
Many of the World's political problems are caused by people who use their claimed 'religious faith', or alleged attributes of others' religious faith..to justify their actions.
Without getting into a complex debate about it, I'll just throw in a few words. Uygurs, China, Rohyngia, Myanmar, Iran, Boko Haram, Nigeria, Al Quaeda, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Northern Ireland, India, 'Bulldozer Politics', Afghanistan, Taliban, ISIS, Russian Orthodox Army, Orbán Hungary "illiberal Christian democracy", Lehava, Israel, Hamas,Palestine etc, etc, etc.
Even those who aren't actually embarked upon religious wars, are very fond of using religion in attempts to bolster their 'acceptability'. See: Putin, Russian Orthodox Church, Trump..selling Bibles.. etc...
Just as life cannot be divorced from politics..it seems that politics cannot be divorced from religion.
And yet meanwhile, I guess the bulk of those of who have a faith in some or other God(s) simply get on with it. True Faith cannot be anything other than personal.
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On 5/6/2024 at 8:16 AM, letsavagoo said:
We’re you referring to Labour in general being falsely accused or of Starmer himself.
‘In October 2020, a report by the UK's human rights watchdog found Labourto be responsible for "unlawful" acts of harassment and discrimination during Jeremy Corbyn's four-and a-half years as party leader.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) investigation identified serious failings in leadership and an inadequate process of handling anti-Semitism complaints.
Its report said the party was responsible for three breaches of the Equality Act: political interference in anti-Semitism complaints, failure to provide adequate training to those handling anti-Semitism complaints and harassment.’
Full article here.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-45030552
I’ll concede that Starmer has taken steps to change his party
in this aspect.
I maintain that it would be difficult to find any political party or other sizeable grouping in the World which does not demonstrate pockets of AS, as well as Islamophobia and other forms of stereotyping and prejudice. Whether is is always overt, is another matter.
There is no doubt in my mind that much of the furore surrounding Corbyn's brief tenure was exaggerated and hyped by a hostile media, representing a deeply self-interested Establishment which was terrified of an actual socialist, even a democratic one.. gaining power.
I also fully understand the Labour Party's difficulties over accepting all of the IHRA's definition of AS, including the notorious '11 examples', as they did appear to sail very close to barring ALL criticism of Israeli Govt. Policy by deeming it Anti-Semitic.
It seems to me that the major head on religious conflict in the World at the moment is between Islam and Judaeism. On both sides, there are moderates and those seeking peaceful co-existence, but equally, there are those on both sides who will not give an inch, and who claim the sole right to define what is offensive to them.
And yet oddly, in other spheres of society, 'being offended' is often seen as a basis for accusations of ''wokery', or 'snowflakery'.
In the final analysis, 'definitions' will not stop people from developing or expressing their own prejudices.
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On 5/7/2024 at 11:23 PM, Oztalgian said:
Sad news from Malmo this morning, the Australian entry One Blood by Electric Fields did not make the final ten songs to go through to the final. Australia in the Eurovision Song Contest, what a bl**dy joke. Who cares anyway?
Thing is Oz, whether you like Eurovision or not..and I don't much..the Liverpool event, standing in for Ukraine last year..was judged a huge success by all.
If I recall correctly, the first non European Country to participate in the contest, was Israel. Last time I looked..Israel was in North Africa..bordering Egypt, or in West Asia, bordering several other countries..non of which is in Europe. All somewhat odd.
It's a bit more complex than that and seems to be based on membership of the European Broadcasting Union, which has members from way beyond anything most would consider to be in Europe and which seems to have encountered increasing problems maintaining its 'non political' stance in recent years.
That there politics gets everywhere...
Fill yer boots: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Broadcasting_Union
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So..the Local Elections are over.
I'm not getting deeply into Mayoral Elections etc. We've had Rotheram and Burnham here in Liverpool/Manchester for a good while and Burnham in particular is pretty effective. That said it seems to me that the whole 'Local Mayors' thing is about the Tories trying to further distance themselves from the local effects of their basic National policy of starving Local Authorities of funding.
It's interesting to me the the bloke in the North East .. Ben Houchen is it?..seems to be well liked..and 'delivering'. Nothing at all to do with him being a Tory under a Tory Govt.. obviously.. And he's hardly 'Ben'.. At 37 he's already 'Baron Houchen of High Leven'[ Oooh.. Get him!!
And this is worth a look...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Houchen,_Baron_Houchen_of_High_Leven
Especially..
QuoteIn 2023, Houchen was criticised after it emerged that a 90 per cent stake in the company that operates the vacant Redcar Steelworks site, teesworks, was transferred to two local developers, Chris Musgrave and Martin Corney, without any public tender process.[36] It also emerged that the private developers have received at least £45m in dividends and hold £63m cash from the project despite not having invested any direct cash in the project themselves.[36][37][38]
A subsequent investigation found that the Tees Valley Combined Authority and South Tees Development Corporation did not meet standards expected when managing public funds, and raised questions about transparency and oversight across the system to evidence value for money.[38][37]
Obviously nothing to see there....
So.. onto the wider Election Results.
Clearly the Tories have taken a well deserved 'hammering' and for me the best part of that is watching the seemingly endless parade of Tory Ministers nobody has ever heard of.. being eviscerated on the telly. I've been interested in politics for decades, but cannot recall a time when so many deluded nobodies presented themselves on the telly for ritual humiliation.
That said, I have to admit that Labour could have done better against an Open Goal. I fully understand Starmer's caution, but he's lost a significant, though probably not 'fatal' number of votes in Muslim areas,..just by not calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Probably scared of yet more false accusations of Anti Semitism.
The Tories are undoubtedly 'screwed' whenever the election finally comes. God knows they deserve it after 14 years of anti -democratic sleaze, arrogance and mismanagement.
I would almost welcome a scenario where Labour needed both the Greens and the Lib dems to form a Govt... It might finally point to Proportional Representation and sanity in UK Politics.. but firstly.. these Godawful Tories have to go..
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Hear Cuckoo's here occasionally. Used to hear them calling from the woods over towards Bestwood Lodge every year when 'aahh wur a lad'.
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2 hours ago, PeverilPeril said:
Morning Mary
I've been up for an hour too.
Preparing for the re opening of Izaac Walton's Cottage museum this morning.
Our club are invited to the preview where we will demonstrate the art of fly tying and I'll give a little talk about the history of angling since Izaac Walton's time in the mid 17thC.
Where is that PP?
I'm no angler.. 'Compleat' or otherwise.. but I can thoroughly recommend a visit to the Ford over the river Dove in Beresford Dale. It's a beautiful spot and of course important to me as it's where my family surname originated. Just upstream towards Hartington is 'Pike Pool', named, not after the fish but the limestone pillar, and also nearby the 'Fishing House' built by James Cotton, an 18th C friend of Walton. Sadly the house more like a minor stately home, is private, though I believe the Beresford Family Society do get access during their annual gathering in the area. Must join some day.
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Greetings all.
Looking like a lovely day here too, but after a long and extremely tiring couple of weeks my bathroom refurb is close to completion, so I can't stop now.
That said I do have a few tiny 'plug' plants from Sutton's which need potting up.
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Logically, smooth side up for 'floating' flooring such as I'm using. If overlaying with something which needs glueing down, then the rough side makes more sense.
Wetting is meant to make the boards expand slightly, so that when laid and nailed they shrink back and pull taut. A bit moot.in small installs maybe.
As for nailing.. I see the idea of 'pyramid nailing'. It's meant to have the same effect as, for e.g.smoothing wallpaper from the centre to the edges. To eliminate bubbles. That said, whether it makes much difference in the few aquare metres I'm doing is again a bit moot. I'm concentrating more on nailing to high spots, which still exist where floorboards meet,rather than forcing the board down into the low spots caused bu slight concave bowing of many of the boards. The hardboard should then 'bridge' those little lows at least to a degree and the pretty rigid click vinyl should do the rest.
Anything Political
in + Av Yer Say +
Posted
Possibly not an actual conspiracy.. but.. The current Tory Party is shot through with Neoliberalism and its central planks... Small State, Low Taxation, minimal public spending, Privatisation etc. You can add in attacks on Civil Liberties, Human Rights etc. These objectives are clearly incompatible with a progressive, free and prosperous Democracy, hence the current mess in which we have almost daily revelations of yet more failures in 'the system', always traceable back to NeoLib policies and the toll they take.
The 'conspiracy' element is the way in which international organisations and collaborative groups,
E.g. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_conservatism
and the nefarious activities of the likes of Steve Bannon are used to illegally influence our Democracy.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Bannon
It's also strongly associated with a worldwide shift to the political right, which is dangerous on many levels.
All above said, the UK Labour Party is currently far from free of such thinking.