Niger.

 

     
      
They keep French electricity supply flowing.

Image courtesy of Dunia.

          Western media is pumping out the usual imperialist crap about the coup in Niger. All about restoring stability, and talking up military intervention to return democracy to the people. What was in place before the coup, was a stooge of the West who allowed the French state to continue plundering Niger of its natural resources. Niger is a very rich country with a poverty induced population. Among Niger's natural resources are Gold, Silicon, oil an estimated two billion barrels, then let's not forget Uranium.
         Niger supplies the EU with 24% of its uranium requirements, necessary for its electricity and nuclear weapons. It supplies 5% of the world's uranium production, this is something that Western imperialism has no desire to lose. So you can understand why the West is in such a tizzy about what is portrayed as a poor country. The country is rich but its population is poor. Despite the fact that Niger is possibly responsible for a large slice of French electricity supplies, in Niger itself, out of a population of 27 million only a fraction of those have access to electricity, approximately 18.6% according to World Bank data. The country is and has been plundered and pillaged by Western imperialism, mainly French. for centuries France has got very rich on the backs of the people of Niger. French imperialism, backed up by other Western imperialists and their puppet governments in Niger's neighbourhood will fight tooth and nail to keep that privileged position at the expense of the people of Niger. No matter if it has to spill the blood of the people it is proclaiming to protect.

They are helping make Western nuclear weapons.

                                              Image courtesy of African Volunteer.

         Western imperialism and other world domination groupings have to be destroyed, they live and grow rich and powerful on the poverty of millions of innocent people. Their final demise and the end of the capitalist insane economics is the only road to freedom and justice for all, and that better world that sees to the needs of all our people. How do we do it, I.m sure we have the imagination, the numbers and the power, all we need is the will of the people. To get their all I can offer is the words of Guy Debord.

       

"First of all, we think the world must be changed. We want the most liberating change of the society and life in which we find ourselves confined. We know that such a change is possible through appropriate actions. Our specific concern is the use of certain means of action and the discovery of new ones." (Guy Debord, 1957)

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Imperial History.

The British state, Fighters of fascism???

       I am somewhat shocked to hear voices from the “left” refer to WW2 as our fight to defeat fascism. Surely they have some grasp of the history of this country. We didn’t go to war with Germany to defeat fascism, we went to war with that country to stop it being a rival or a threat to the resources of the British Empire, as was WW1.
     WW1 had nothing to do with the shooting of a pompous Duke, it was all about the German Empire planning to build the Berlin to Baghdad railway. This would have give Germany tremendous influence in Iraq and other countries in that region, allowing it to move resources and troops in and out of that area much quicker than the British Empire, and Iraq was an oil rich country that the British claimed as theirs. So we super-doper imperialist would have to teach the nasty German Empire a lesson. Of course we all know it didn’t turn out quite like that, the conflict turned Europe into a bloody altar where the youth of nations soaked the soil of Europe in blood. The total number of military and civilian casualties in World War1, was around 40 million. There were 20 million deaths and 21 million wounded. The total number of deaths includes 9.7 million military personnel and about 10 million civilians.

 
       This film is on Spirit of Revolt audio/video section.

     The German Empire was decimated and that suited the British Empire, allowing it to lord it over a vast section of the world, pillaging and plunder land after land. Fast forward and along comes a guy whose intention is rebuild the German Empire, this posed a threat to the arrogant imperialist that control the British Empire. So once again our lords and masters decided to teach that nasty Germany Empire a lesson, and as they say, the rest is history, or it should be, not a truth lost in an illusion of imperialists propaganda. World War 2 was the deadliest military conflict in history. An estimated total of 70–85 million people perished, which was about 3% of the 1940 world population (est. 2.3 billion).
     By now we should all know that the British state never goes to war to defeat fascism, it trades with them as long as it is beneficial to them, it goes to war to protect or enlarge its resources, power and wealth, and the people can go to hell in a hand cart.
      It’s the the weekend, have some music.

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Dystopia From The Belly Of Western Imperialism.

      The authors of yesteryear or today, could not replicate the horrors of our present reality. While the Caesars of the imperial world pontificate in palatial halls, bloated bodies of men, women and children float on the beautiful Mediterranean Sea, small boats bob about, their holds filled with cargoes of dead families, decomposing bodies lie in lorries, sitting by the roadside, and still they come. An army of ordinary people fleeing death and destruction, but they have lost their label "people", they have a new label, "migrant", this is meant to dehumanise them, to somehow magically turn them in to, "the other", not one of us.

         The horror, death, mutilation, destruction and trauma from which they flee, is beyond our imagination. They flee a reality that is a modern dystopia spawned from the belly of Western imperialism. Before the Western imperialists' with their insatiable greed for the black liquid gold, unleashed their military might on those lands with that black liquid gold, the "migrants" were, school teachers, shop assistants, bus drivers, plumbers, students, school children, retired office workers, parents, lovers, children. Now thrown together in an inhumane and desperate bid for survival, their brothers and sisters across that beautiful Mediterranean turn their backs on them. They are to herded like cattle, labelled and bar-coded like merchandise, or worse still, to be sent back from whence they came. 

        The present economic system gave birth to this inhumane nightmare, and as the wealth from this dystopia flows ever upwards to the coffers of the corporate world of oil giants and the arms industry, its progress is oiled by the blood of the ordinary people.

        There is no such thing as "migrants", a term of derision and division, there are only people, travelling to seek safety, shelter and a better life, people just like you and I, they are indeed, one of us, they are not the problem, the problem is the corporate worlds insatiable greed, backed up by its military might. When we finally end that power that is wielded over us, and the people take control of their own lives, put an end to nation states, and wipe away borders, seeking shelter and safety will be met with open arms. We should start now.

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The History Of Oil.

       Oil, the sea on which imperial bloody wars float, oil the weapon of imperial domination, Oil the ecological disaster. Not a new video, but informative and still relevant.

And on the same theme, from the Freedom Socialist:

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Get Out And Let Them Sort Things Themselves.

     After the brutal murder of the young Scots aid worker by the fundamentalists ISIS, Cameron comes on TV with his serious war leader face, and announces how we are going to get involved in another war in the Middle East. ISIS is a brutal regime and murders hundreds, if not thousands, of innocent people, but our involvement will also kill thousands of innocent people, modern war does not just target combatants, our smart bombs are not that smart.

 Their history.

      I have said it before, if the West's aim is to destroy ISIS, then it should get out of the entire area of the Middle East. We fund and support a ragtag bunch of fundamentalists, The Syrian Free Army, in a civil war in Syria, tying that government up in knots, while the friends of the of that ragtag bunch of fundamentalists, ISIS, with the aid of American armoury, ravages part of Syria and Iraq. At the same time we push Iran in to a corner, stopping it from taking on ISIS. If we stopped funding the civil war in Syria and left Iran to support its neighbour, Iraq, together the three could wipe ISIS off the face of the earth. All three have that wish in common. It is our interference in that area that has given birth to the rapid rise of ISIS and other nut-case fundamentalists. The people of the Middle East, like the people all over the world, are very capable of sorting out their own affairs, if allowed to do so. 

 Before Western aid.

     The only reason for our continued interference in that area is their oil, it has nothing to do with democracy, nothing to do with protecting innocents, nothing to do with despot regimes, after all we helped form, and continue to support, most of those. It is oil, wealth and power, and the unfortunate people of that area have to bear the brunt of our continuing greed for their resources. This will continue until we wake up and destroy the greed and profit drive capitalist system that blights and jeopardises our very existence.

After Western aid.

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SMILING FASCISTS IN EXPENSIVE SUITS.

     The corporate beast is working hard at cementing its grip over our lives, it already holds tremendous sway over most elected governments with its financial clout. But they want to go even further and create what would be one massive corporate fascist regime, they want to over rule any legislation they deem hinders their plunder and rape of the planet. Legislation might be for the benefit and welfare of the people, but if it gets in the way of their sacred profits, then it will be over-ridden. New fascism doesn't come marching down the streets in jackboots, it sits in plush offices dressed in expensive suits, but it is just as brutal and ruthless. We ignore it at our peril. 

This from AVAAZ: 

Dear friends,

We have four days to stop a top-secret global corporate power grab that attacks everything from a free Internet to environmental protections. This agreement is being negotiated right now by bureaucrats backed by corporate lobbyists. Click below to crash their secret meeting with our global call to kill the TPP deal:

    Details are leaking of a top-secret, global corporate power grab of breathtaking scope -- attacking everything from a free Internet to health and environmental regulations, and we have just 4 days to stop it. 
     Big business has a new plan to fatten their pockets: a giant global pact, with an international tribunal to enforce it, that is kept top secret for years (even from our lawmakers!) and then brought down like a Death Star on our democracies. Big Tobacco, Big Oil, Big Pharma, Walmart and almost 600 other corporate lobbyists are all in on the draft -- including limits on smoking laws, affordable medicines and free speech on the Net.

    The latest round of negotiations ends in just 4 days -- but outcries in each of our countries could shake the confidence of negotiators and scuttle the talks forever. Let's get to a million against the global corporate takeover. Sign below and forward widely. Avaaz will project our petition counter on the walls of the conference so negotiators can see the opposition to their plan exploding in real time:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_the_corporate_death_star/?bwqhjab&v=17858

    The deal, called the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), is written to protect investors from government regulation, even if that regulation is passed in the public interest. Leaked versions suggest the TPP would undermine protections for air and water safety and reintroduce measures from the US Internet freedom attack as well as steamrolling efforts to produce generic affordable medicines. Worse still, lawmakers who fail to conform to the TPP’s rules face sanctions in an international tribunal -- a place where corporations can sue us for deals previous governments signed in secret!   Negotiators say this is just a trade agreement, written to facilitate investment and profit for all. But the leaked draft imposes so many limits on citizen protections, it's clear this "trade" agreement is skewed to put corporate profit above people's needs -- that's not surprising since it's been drafted in secret with almost 600 corporate lobbyists.

   But there is hope: Australia is bucking against the international tribunal system, and New Zealand is objecting to the takeover of its medicine-pricing protections that keep drugs affordable. Massive public opposition, casting doubt over each country's ability to sell TPP at home, could derail the talks for good. Sign the petition now, and forward widely -- the delegates and lobbyists are watching the wave of opposition grow in real time:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_the_corporate_death_star/?bwqhjab&v=17858

    US Candidate for Senate, Elizabeth Warren in a recent speech said: “Corporations are not people. People have hearts, they have kids, they get jobs, they get sick, they cry, they dance. They live, they love, and they die. And that matters, because we don't run this country for corporations, we run it for people." Let’s reach one million to stop the corporate takeover of our governments.

With hope,

Iain, Pedro, Laura, Ari, Emma, Lisa, Luca, Ricken and the whole Avaaz team

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NATO, TRIBAL WARRIORS, AND OIL.

          After 7 months of NATO blasting the infrastructure of Libya so that a mixed bag of rival tribal groups and religious fundamentalists could take over, Libya is not a peaceful place. Over the last 4 days or so there have been clashes in and around Tripoli with armed groups firing all manner of weapons at each other. To the west of Tripoli there has been fierce fighting between the city of Zawiya and the tribal lands of Warshefana which was still continuing today Sunday. The residents of Tripoli are complaining that armed groups have taken over many “desirable” locations in the city, including a gated seaside resort.

        This is the bunch of self interested groups, now armed to the teeth, that we have unleashed on the Libyan people. We spent billions of our tax payers money destroying many of the Libyan towns and cities, then handed the rubble to tribal warriors and religious fundamentalists, but we did get our hands on the oil. The oil that gave the Libyan people free health care, free education, a lump sum on the birth of their first child, a deposit for newly weds to help to purchase their first house, cheap fuel and free clean drinking water. Now that the West controls the oil, and now that Libya has joined the “free democratic capitalist West” how much of the oil money will the Libyan people see, and how much will go towards their “free” infrastructure and social services,? Oh, and bye-bye 19p a gallon petrol. That's capitalism for you.

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THE MARCH OF WESTERN IMPERIALISM.

This video is perhaps a little out of date, but the opinion is most certainly not. I don't think it can be said too often that NATO is not a humanitatian organisation. Nor should anyone hold any illusions that the West will put itself out for the benfit of any Middle Eastern people. The Libyan episode cost those involved billions of pounds, at a time of a financial crisis in those countries,why? Why the Libyans, why not the Syrians, Bahrainians, and how about the Saudi regime, probably one of the most repressive regimes in the area. Can't we step in to protect Palestinian civilians from the Israeli onslaught? It is all about resources and oil is a mighty big resource in today's world.

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FUNDAMENTALIST UPRISING.

      Now that the Libyan regime has been replace to the satisfaction of the Western oil companies, the truth is starting to come out. At first we were lead to believe that it was a people's “uprising” against the regime and our heroic peace loving NATO stepped in to save civilian deaths. However it now seems to be that it was a fundamentalist engineered uprising and Qatar and Sudan have now stated that they sent in forces to help the “uprising”. It is also stated that Libyan al-Qaeda groups fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq return to Libya to help the “rebels”. What kind of “people's” uprising is it if it is supported by troops from at least two different countries and the force of NATO plus war hardened religious fundamentalist al-Qaeda groups and takes more than six months to overthrow the regime?  It is obvious that if NATO hadn't stepped in with its, over 10,000 strikes, the "uprising" would have fizzled out. This is in no way to condone the Gadaffi regime, but does show the lies behind the West's talk of protecting civilians in a people's uprising. The last thing the West would do is send in NATO to support is a people's uprising, especially if it was somewhere in the West.

      Already the citizens of Sirte are beginning to vent their anger at the violence that has been heaped upon them, no doubt other divisions will make themselves clear as NATO, Sudan and Qatar all withdraw and the Libyan people start to make their real voice heard.

     What the West can look forward to is profit from all that oil and all that re-construction that needs to be done after we blow the place to bits.

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GADAFFI'S DEATH ANOTHER TURNING POINT???

       

       Every death from the Western war on teror is another "turning point", there has been so many that it is obvious that the West is running round in circles.

       This from STOP THE WAR COALITION.

       The killing of Muammar Gadaffi in Sirte has been marked by a round of celebration by western governments over their intervention in Libya. As with the capture of Saddam Hussein in Iraq and the killing of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan, it will be described as a turning point and a further victory in the seemingly endless 'war on
terror'.

      There is little reason for the triumphalism. Nato's war on Libya was not a 'humanitarian intervention' but a war for regime change -- illegal under international law. It was about the western powers attempting to regain control of the region in the face of the Arab uprisings across the Middle East. Yet despite its overthrow of the regime in Libya imperialism faces many problems in the region.

       In Libya itself it is already clear that there are many divisions between the different elements in the new government, and not at all clear that a stable regime will emerge. Even if it does, the ordinary people of Libya will see their interests subjugated to the oil companies and other western business, backed up by Nato, which has no intention of vacating the scene.

       The consequences of the war on terror elsewhere are not outbreaks of peace and democracy but rather a spreading of the war. Afghanistan, ten years on, has just experienced its bloodiest two years of war. Iraq remains a society destroyed by war and occupation. Somalia remains war torn with Kenyan troops recently crossing the border. Pakistan suffers drone attacks which have killed thousands. The Israeli oppression of the Palestinians continues. There are threats of intervention over Syria.

        The recent alleged plot against the Saudi ambassador to Washington was blamed on sections of the Iranian government and Saudi and Israel are both urging attacks on Iran. Far from the west conquering all, it is deep in the mire of war. The gloating over Gadaffi should not become an excuse for further interventions that will only spread the carnage further.

SEE ALSO: JOHN PILGER -

With Libya, secured an American invasion of Africa is under way.

 http://bit.ly/qJ6PhP

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BLOOD ON HIS HANDS.

       Since the British troops have left Iraq our mainstream media tends to put Iraq in the after-thought category. The fact that the country is now a shattered country where violence is endemic and the infra-structure is in tatters is of little concern to our media pundits. However we should not forget that the Iraq war has resulted in over a million dead, four million refugees and left the Iraqis with a totally devastated country, while the corporate West has managed to commandeer Iraq's huge oil reserves. Probably the largest and most brutal plunder in 100 years. We can continue to look at the disaster that is Iraq but we should also be pointing fingers.

       Mogul Murdoch's media empire have supported all the US/UK wars over the last 30 years or more. From Thatcher's Falklands ego trip, 1982, through G. Bush Snr's first Gulf war 1990/91, Clinton's Yugoslavia venture1999 plus his undeclared war against Iraq 1998, The support continued through the Bush Blair twins', Iraq and Afghanistan brutal wars, and at present is still throwing his media muscle behind the present day Obama Afghanistan and Iraq wars and Obama and Cameron's Afghan and Libyan wars. That is 30 years of cheering leading 7 or more wars.

By John Hartfield.

       Murdoch doesn't hide his support for war, he more or less admitted this at the World Economic Forum in Davos when during a televised debate he said that his media empire had tried to shape public opinion in support of the Iraq war. This makes him guilty of contravening Article 20 of the UN International Covenant on Political and Civil rights which states, “Any propaganda for war shall be prohibited by law.” Without a doubt, there is blood on the moguls hands.

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THE HAND OF HYPOCRISY.

     

      As Western Cruise missiles blast holes in Libya's infrastructure, killing Libyans to save Libyans, and possibly laying the ground work for a civil war, nobody is saying where they go from here. How long will the no-fly zone last, don't know. What do we do if the Libyans killing Libyans drags on in a long stalemate, do we send in the Western cavalry to take sides and give one side a wee push, more or less guaranteeing a prolonged civil war and possible occupation. Just to keep the peace mind you. As in Iraq and Afghanistan, the moral policemen are up to the necks in shit. The idea that this will be a nice clean surgical operation with all of Libya being ever thankful to the West is an illusion. We have been “policing” Iraq since 1991 and Afghanistan since 2001. When does our involvement in Libya end and at what cost? Not counting the Libyan deaths and injured, there is already one American plane down with one pilot missing, and we have just started.

        Setting aside the human horror of what is happening in Libya and casting a glance at the financial side, there must be questions. Each time a Tornado jet runs a sortie it takes approximately £30,000 of fuel. How many have we run so far? If a Tornado is brought down there is the £50 million cost of a replacement. Each cruise missile that is fired cost £500,000. There have been more than 110 cruise missiles fired so far. A quick calculation comes up with £55 million already up in smoke and misery from cruise missiles alone, with the arms industry rubbing its hands at the thought of all those being replaced. I don't know what proportion of those cruise missiles were fire by the UK but I reckon that we would fire our fair share. Then of course we have our submarines out there in the Med. and I have no doubt our boys wanted a shot at firing their gear off, I wonder what it cost to send a sub to the Med. and then fire off a few £500,000 missiles? While this little pygmy war is being played out in Libya, let's not forget our long running and on going £4 billion a year affair in Afghanistan.

       I know you can't put a price on human life but at a time when we in the UK are being faced with draconian cuts to every fibre of the social structure of our society, wage cuts and mass unemployment, is this the right policy. Can we in the UK really afford to strut around the world bombing democracy into other countries? When we look at the figures of death and misery resulting from our efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan can Libya be justified?

       Meanwhile in nearby Yemen and Bahrain protesters are being brutally crushed but no call for a no-fly zone. Well Bahrain is really a US naval base, which is very handy to have so near all that oil, and Bahrain is also on best buddy terms with that other autocratic despot regime, Saudi Arabia. So we don't want to upset that little power structure do we? Then of course no call for a no-fly zone over Israel while it carried out its policy of genocide in Gaza 2008/09

 

      It's all hypocrisy and is really about oil, resources and power, the Western powers have proved often enough that when it comes to the people of the Middle East and Africa, they don't give a shit.

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