ann arky is heading down south for a couple of weeks, a sort of working holiday. So my rants will cease for a spell, thanks for all your support, keep struggling, you know it makes sense, I'll continue ranting soon.
Tuesday 22 July 2014
Escape The Games.
Trying to find somewhere to escape "The Games"? Well you can do that and at the same time be informed on what is behind the corporate spectacle that pumps public money into the coffers of the big-business world.
Glasgow Autonomous Updates:
Glasgow Games Monitor invite you to a critical intervention into the Commonwealth Games. Free talks, film screenings and the Games Monitor Library………23rd July to 3rd August at Stereo and The Old Hairdressers
http://gamesmonitor2014.org/no-wealth-for-the-commons-glasgow-games-monitor-events/
The Protests must continue, The Genocide Must End.
It is important to keep the pressure mounting if you want to have any effect on the governments of the world, in a bid to stop the genocide that the Israeli state is carrying out in Gaza. Tonight a hospital shelled, 5 dead and at least 11 wounded, how do you claim to be trying to avoid innocent civilians when you shell a hospital? The protests must continue and most grow in numbers.
This from Stop the War Coalition:
National demonstration: Stop the Massacre in
Gaza - Free Palestine!
Gaza End the Siege As if the people of Gaza have not suffered enough, Israel has escalated its brutal assault on Gaza in the last 24 hours.Last Saturday a fantastic 100,000 marched to the Israeli embassy - this Saturday's demonstration is even more important.Over the weekend more than 150 Palestinians have been killed, 67 in one attack alone last night including 17 children and 14 women. The media continues to accept the rhetoric of 'limiting casualty levels' and 'targeting militants' and the politicians refuse to condemn Israel and call their action what it is, a massacre of innocents.Why? Because Israel remains the West's main ally in the Middle East.That is why we have called a national demonstration this Saturday starting at the Israeli Embassy and marching to Parliament. Last week 100,000 of us descended on the Israeli Embassy, this Saturday we are taking our anger to the centre of political power in Britain.National demonstrations are the best way to show the government that the majority in Britain oppose their disgraceful support for the Israeli assault.We are asking all our supporters around the country to organise transport to get the maximum numbers to London next Saturday.Check for details as they emerge on the Stop the War web site. We will email further details later in the week.National Demonstration: Saturday 26th July.Meet 12 noon at Israeli Embassy. Nearest tube: High Street Kensington. March to Parliament.Organised by Stop the War, PSC, Friends of Al-Aqsa, CND, BMI, MAB and Palestine Forum in Britain.
Please share and invite your friends to the Facebook event. Let's make it go viral!E-mail your lists and share with your organizations and unionsOrganise leafleting in your area. Call 020 7561 4830 to order flyers.Let us know your transport details by e-mailing office@stopwar.org.uk
Monday 21 July 2014
Armed Police, Stop And Search, Democracy??
Another matter that is raising the hairs on the back of my neck is the recent case of a driver being stopped for speeding in Aberdeen and it turns out that both police officers had holster guns strapped to their sides. These were later joined by another two police officers, who it appears also had holstered guns. Four armed police for a speeding offence. Some time earlier it appears that three police officers were seen walking through the streets of Inverness to a disturbance in a restaurant, all three were armed with holstered side arms. Is this Scotland, land of the supposed, unarmed police force, or the US of A? Slowly, slowly, little by little, the police in Scotland are being armed, not by parliamentary legislation, but the designs of the chief constable of Scotland. He has apparently stated that this is not a political matter, it is a policing decision, and he will make the decisions. Well so much for "democracy".
Still going on about the policing in Scotland, it seems that we are a nation of very dodgy characters. The latest figures show that we in Scotland suffer stop and search intrusions, nine times more than the citizens of New York. Obviously the police in Scotland view the people of Scotland as nine times more criminal than the NYPD view their citizens. Either we are a nation of dodgy criminals, or we are cursed with a more authoritarian police force. I know where my opinion lies.
Armed police started appearing in our cities, airports etc. under the guise of anti-terrorism, now it seems that they are needed to stop speeding offenders, and to stop disturbances in restaurants. Lets go the whole-hog and arm traffic wardens, job centre employees, security attendants in shopping malls, you know how crazy some people get during the sales. The poison seeps through every fibre of society, authoritarianism, control, intimidation and repression.
Let's get together and insist that the guns get off our streets. You can't trust a person who could get angry and has a gun, whether they have a fancy uniform or not.
The Establishment's Weaving Of Lies.
That babbling brook of bullshit,the mainstream media, always gets it wrong. At the moment it is pouring out lots of hate rhetoric against Russia, but precious little against the murderous onslaught by the Israeli state against the people of Gaza.
Also on the WW1 "celebrations", they throw their weight behind the establishment view, of it being a heroic and glorious battle for democracy, which we, being the democratic half of the contest, won of course. I wonder what the German people think about that?
What we should never forget is that the blood letting that goes by the name of WW1 wasn't won, it was an armistice. It was stopped because the imperialist psychopaths were faced with mutinies, rebellion and spontaneous out breaks of truces between the ordinary soldiers on the front line, some of these young men paid with their lives in front of a firing squad for the act of humanity. At home, the imperialists were faced with another battle, strikes and civil unrest across the continent of Europe. Another factor that brought the war warmongering nut-cases to call a halt, to the greed driven slaughter, was the fact that the death toll continued to soar and the maimed continued to be carried home, they were simply running out of canon-fodder. WW1 was an unimaginable spilling of mainly young blood, to further the aims of greed driven imperialist ambitions, in other words, greed and nothing more.
Up to the start of that unnecessary blood letting of WW1, Europe had no democracy to defend. After the bloody event, Europe had no democracy anywhere. 100 years after that imperialist blood letting, we the ordinary people are still fighting for democracy in Europe.
Part of an email I recently received:
As the UK commences four years of commemorations of the centenary of World War 1, the Northumbria and Newcastle Universities Martin Luther King Peace Committee has released a set of resources to help schoolteachers mark the December 1914 Christmas Truces as part of their World War 1 teaching. They are designed as a corrective to the government-sponsored commemorations of the slaughter in the trenches as a heroic and necessary war.The December 1914 Christmas Truces, when British, French and German soldiers stopped fighting to celebrate Christmas, exchange gifts, sing carols, and even play football, are one of the most extraordinary episodes in modern military history. These were not isolated incidents. Following weeks of spasmodic fraternisation by men unconvinced by war propaganda, the Christmas Truces occurred right down the front from the North Sea to Switzerland. Made possible by shared traditions of Christian celebration, they were a hopeful moment of recognition of common humanity and a (brief) rejection of the terrible violence of industrialised war pursued by rulers in a deadly game of global imperial competition for territories and resources. They were quashed by orders backed by threats, and by replacing troops with men 'untainted' by the Truces.The truces are worth teaching about because they are simply so remarkable and evocative in themselves. Ordinary men recognising their common humanity infuriated high commands by temporarily stopping the industrialised slaughter of the trenches. However at a time when revisionist historians and politicians are offering retro-chic defences of the First World War as somehow necessary or even heroic, the truces can also teach an important message that may otherwise be overlooked in the centennial commemorations.
Sunday 20 July 2014
Follow Chile, Boycott Israeli Goods.
Saturday's protest in Glasgow, calling for an end to the murderous actions of the Israeli state against the people of Gaza, saw the number of protesters swell considerably from the previous week. Despite the continuous rain, well over a thousand people filled the top of Buchanan Street with banners, placards and plenty of noise. This was repeated in cities and towns across the world, and still the Western governments mumble and mutter platitudes, and look the other way.
Chile is the first government to ban trading with the state of Israel, we should all put pressure on our own government to follow suit. We can of course carry out our own boycott of Israeli goods they are easily recognisable. A bar code starting with “729″ indicates that the product is produced in Israel. This is a relatively simple and effective way to support Palestinian struggle against Israeli occupation and their ethnic crimes. If it starts with that 729, dump it. Hit them where it hurts, in their pockets. Goods produced in the occupied territories are more difficult as they can vary. This from Boycott Israeli News:
The Israeli bar code story is not so simple. I purchased several food items from Israel to investigate which could be from the occupied territories. The Achdut Tahini from Industrial Zone Barkan (Occupied Territories) starts out: 7 219.... Pri-Vayerek Olives from Industrial Zone Har Tov starts: 7 922... (Barbet (Jam) imported from Israel by Supreme Foods of Concord Ont.: 6 507...)The bar code might not be completely accurate, but it is an excellent tool and used with reading the label, should help to put pressure on the Israeli state.
Saturday 19 July 2014
World's People Against Israeli State, Worlds States Support It.
Anger against the Israeli policy of genocide in Gaza is growing, today protests against this Zionist brutality, are taking place in cities across the world, there is no possible rationale that can claim this slaughter of innocent elderly, women and children as justifiable. The Israeli state could not do this without the backing of the powerful Western states, especially the US. The US is the Israeli banker, they fund the Zionist state's weaponry, and turn a blind eye to its brutality. The vested interests of the West need Israel to keep the oil rich Middle East in turmoil, allowing the West to exploit its resources unhindered by powerful governments. If any Middle Eastern government shows signs of controlling its own rich resources, the West will step in and bring chaos, as in Iraq and Libya, allowing the Western exploitation to go on unhindered.
Melbourne today.
This from The Freedom Socialist party in US:
Read the full article HERE:Israel plays a pivotal role for Western capitalists as a watchdog in the Middle East. Its job is to prevent revolution and keep this oil rich, strategic region safe for imperialist investors. The political support and foreign aid the U.S. gives apartheid Israel allows it to continue this role which involves ethnic cleansing—with total impunity. U.S. taxes fund foreign aid to Israel to the tune of $3 billion dollars a year. Much of this money returns to the enormous U.S. arms industry because the Zionist state’s police and military buy weaponry from U.S. producers. And so, the Israelis have free rein in Palestine.
For this reason, it is important to strengthen the Boycott, Divestment, Sanction movement against Israel and to educate about the economic interests at work behind the murderous Israeli/U.S alliance. In solidarity with the Palestinians, the U.S. public can pressure our government and Israeli leaders to end the carnage.Stop the bombing now!
Cut off U.S. foreign aid to Israel!
End Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza!
Secure the Palestinians’ right of return to their homeland!Issued by Freedom Socialist Party
Thursday 17 July 2014
Anti-ATOS Protester Arrested At Queen's Baton Parade..
http://gamesmonitor2014.org
Police accompanying the Queen’s Baton near Barrhead, East
Renfrewshire arrest protesting disability activists, pinning one to
the ground. The group, Glasgow Against Atos, has staged a series of
increasingly high-profile direct actions demanding the removal of IT
giant Atos as a sponsor.
The firm has sought to boost its public profile by sponsoring
database software for international sporting events, but campaigners
have fought to expose its role in deadly cuts to disability benefits.
The firm has seen a string of scandals and wrongful sanctions
arising from its contracts quizzing sickness benefit claimants with
“work capability assessments” for the Department of Work and
Pensions.
The affair has even seen silent protest from Paralympic athletes
who hid their branded lanyards from cameras at London’s 2012
opening ceremony, while Sport Disability Scotland told MSPs in April
of athletes who could no longer afford to continue their sporting
careers after losing out to a work capability assessment.
Games organisers insist they are “very proud” of Atos’
involvement, while press officers have refused to comment on whether
they are contractually obliged to offer public shows of support.
This is the latest in a series of protests and occupations from
the Glasgow Against ATOS group including two occupations of the
Commonwealth Games Gift shop in Central Station and an occupation of
the main CG store in George Square.
Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk
Why Must Gaza Weep Alone?
Saturday July 12th saw hundreds of people turn up at Buchanan Street in Glasgow to vent their anger and disgust at the Israeli genocide that is taking place under the noses and closed eyes, of the so called Western democracies. The brutal killing and maiming is still going on, our anger and disgust is now greater than ever. The pressure must be kept up, demonstrations are organised across the country for this Saturday, 19thy. July.
If you are in or around Glasgow this Saturday please turn up, bring your friends and family, show your support for the families in Gaza who are at the receiving end of the force of one of the most powerful military powers in the world. The killing and maiming must stop, Palestinian people have a right to peace and self determination. The Palestinian People must not weep alone.
Saturday 19 July 1pm
Buchanan Street
at the steps to the Royal Concert Hall
Scottish National Demonstration for Palestine to coincide with the national demonstration in London. Let the world know loud and clear, Scotland supports Palestine. Stop Bombing Gaza! End the Occupation! Free Palestine! All Welcome. Sponsored by Scottish Friends of Palestine, Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Stop the War Coalition Scotland, Scottish Jews for a Just Peace, Glasgow Palestine Human Rights Campaign, Ahl al Bayt Society, Friends of Al Aqsa and more supporters of Palestine.
Scottish National Demonstration for Palestine to coincide with the national demonstration in London. Let the world know loud and clear, Scotland supports Palestine. Stop Bombing Gaza! End the Occupation! Free Palestine! All Welcome. Sponsored by Scottish Friends of Palestine, Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Stop the War Coalition Scotland, Scottish Jews for a Just Peace, Glasgow Palestine Human Rights Campaign, Ahl al Bayt Society, Friends of Al Aqsa and more supporters of Palestine.
Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk
Legalising Beatings And Killings.
Now legal in Peru!!
"The Peruvian government passed a law stating that members of the armed
forces or National Police are "exempt from criminal responsibility" if
they hurt or kill people while on duty." Bloody hell, seems to be the only rational response to this latest piece of Peruvian legislation. To pass a law exempting armed thugs from any criminal responsibility, is giving carte blanche to them to do what the hell they want, in beating and killing of protesters. No problems about responsibility, minimum force, restraint, or any of that crap, that ties the hands of psychopaths, in Peru they now have the stamp of legitimacy to run amok.
Now legal in Peru!!
Of course if one state uses that approach, and it works "to their advantage", and I have no doubt it will, others may follow suit. States learn from one and other, they are all looking for the same thing, total control over their population.
Now legal in Peru!!
This from Care2:
Five years ago, violence exploded between police forces and indigenous protesters trying to protect their homes from huge mining companies. More than 30 people, both civilians and officers, were killed in the clash; 200 more were injured. And while more than 50 protesters were put on trial for the injuries and death, no police officer has thus far been held accountable.
This sets a terrifying precedent for police officers and soldiers to abuse their power in Peru, and it's only going to get worse. The country recently passed a law that explicitly allows on-duty officers to injure or kill protesters without being held criminally responsible.
Considering that Peru is one of the world's largest producers of silver, copper and minerals -- and that the country has previously allowed mining giants to run roughshod over indigenous communities in order to make a profit -- this is truly frightening news for environmental protesters. What is to stop an officer of the military or the law from shooting at protesters, even nonviolent ones, for the "crime" of standing up for their culture and their land?
This is no way to ensure justice in the country; it only helps stoke a state of reactionary aggression. Ask Peru to revoke its new law giving police and soldiers a "license to kill!"
Wednesday 16 July 2014
Our Silence Is Complicity In Genocide.
The story that isn't being told, the world's silence is complicity in genocide. Murder can be indiscriminate, but genocide is specific, it is a political aim to eliminate a people and take their land, if anybody can't see this is what is happening in Gaza and to the Palestinian people, they are obviously and deliberately, looking the other way. The country of Palestine is slowly disappearing from the maps of the world, its people are being killed year in year out, they are under a vicious military occupation, in what can only be described as the world's largest and most brutal open air prison. Look at the situation from any angle and by any moral or ethical standard, and what is happening to the Palestinian people is both unacceptable and indefensible. Why the world's silence?
This from SCGNEWS:
This from SCGNEWS:
Tuesday 15 July 2014
Charlie Is The Man.
I have posted this before, but it is always worth another airing, it brings a wee glow to the heart.
Privatisied War
"WASHINGTON — Just weeks before
Blackwater guards fatally shot 17 civilians at Baghdad's Nisour Square
in 2007, the State Department began investigating the security
contractor's operations in Iraq. But the inquiry was abandoned after
Blackwater's top manager there issued a threat: "that he could kill" the
government's chief investigator and "no one could or would do anything
about it as we were in Iraq," according to department reports.
American
Embassy officials in Baghdad sided with Blackwater rather than the
State Department investigators as a dispute over the probe escalated in
August 2007, the previously undisclosed documents show. The officials
told the investigators that they had disrupted the embassy's
relationship with the security contractor and ordered them to leave the
country, according to the reports."* The Young Turks host Cenk Uygur
breaks it down.
*Read more here from James Risen / NY Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/30/us/...
Dark Curtain Of Establishment Secrecy And Protection.
Everybody is aware and accepts, that those who walk the corridors in the Westminster Houses of Hypocrisy and Corruption, are wading through a swamp of double dealing and deception, fiddles and old boys' networks. We know that the state is corrupt, however, sexual abuse of minors is a whole different type of corruption, and abuse of power. The murmurings of a paedophile ring in "high places" have been going on for years, and recently a few heads have rolled, but not those with the real power. The accepted perception is that they still lurk behind the dark curtains of establishment secrecy and protection. That has to end, paedophilia is an abuse, whether committed by a friend of the family, a plumber, a priest, a teacher, or an Oxbridge member of parliament. The truth must be lead bare for all to see, and victims must be protected and see justice.
In the 1980s, at least one senior minister was accused of paying underage boys to "entertain" officials at cocaine-fueled parties. At least one informant has referred to the behaviour as a "sex ring." Yet the government at the time took no action -- in fact, Margaret Thatcher herself allegedly tried to cover up the incident.
As a result of this interference, many of the men said to have participated in this paedophilia are now dead. That doesn't mean that we shouldn't demand answers about the nature of their crimes.
It's disgusting enough that the minister in question supposedly used to sexually abuse teenage boys. But if the government really did engage in a conspiracy to try to protect an abuser from the consequences of his crime, how many other similar offenses have been hidden? And how many children and adolescents have been suffering in sil ence since their assaults?
David Cameron has stepped to launch a full-scale investigation into the historical allegations. The British people -- including the survivors of this paedophilia -- deserve transparency and justice in this disturbing case of government corruption. Tell David Cameron to publicly release the results of the Westminster sex abuse scandal and punish everyone involved!
Monday 14 July 2014
Free And Open Internet.
The Internet is very important in our lives today, from entertainment to quick circulation of news and information, to just keeping in touch, but powerful corporate bodies are attempting to shut it down and transform it to a two, or three tier system, pricing the ordinary people into the SSLOWW lane, leaving the higher priced fast lane for the corporate greed merchants. This affects all of us and it is very important that we keep the internet open to all, on a level playing field.
An appeal from Open Media:
The thing we love the most about the Internet is that it's a level playing field for free expression, economic opportunity, and innovation.But Big Telecom can’t stand this – and now they're trying to squeeze more money from Internet users by destroying the free and open Internet that people everywhere built together.These telecom giants are pushing rules that would force everybody who can’t afford the outrageous new fees into an Internet slow lane.1 But we have one more chance to stop this.Tomorrow, the U.S. FCC will be reviewing their slow lane proposal. And we need you to support a powerful legal challenge that could help save the Internet.John, you have been a key part of this since the beginning.In May, you joined with over 125,000 Internet users from around the world to say no to the Internet slow lane2. Now we need you to take this crucial next step at this key stage in the FCC’s decision-making.At OpenMedia, one of the things we’re best at is collaborating with others in the fight for the open Internet. That’s why we’re supporting the Free Press challenge, and adding the full weight of our growing international pro-Internet community to push back against Internet slow lanes.These experts will be submitting their challenge to the U.S. FCC about rules that – if passed – would create an Internet dominated by deep-pocketed telecom giants, and affect users in countries around the world.3 We must stand with the experts to save the Internet as we know it.If it comes to slow lanes on the Internet, nothing will be safe.4 Your favorite online comedy troupe, indie shopping site,5 or the next big social media network are all at risk. We must stop this.We know that when we work together nothing can stand in our way. The next 24 hours are critical to the future of the open Internet. Please call on the FCC to reject Internet slow lanes while you still can.For the future of innovation and creativity online,–Josh and Steve, on behalf of OpenMediaP.S. OpenMedia is a small team that gets big results. We’re up against some powerful, well funded interests, and it’s your support that enables us to take them on. Please, help us stop the FCC’s Slow Lane and stand up to Big Telecom’s lobbyists by chipping in with a donation today.Footnotes
[1] Net Neutrality, Monopoly, and the Death of the Democratic Internet. Source: Motherboard.
[2] Over 125,000 Internet freedom advocates have said no to an Internet slow lane. Source.
[3] Internet traffic from around the globe passes through US servers, peering, and content delivery networks. As a result, it’s likely that web traffic from outside the U.S. could get caught in the slow lane. Source: Motherboard.
[4] The Internet you know is about to look a whole lot different. And you might not like what you see. Source.
[5] Etsy Weighs In on Net Neutrality as FCC Comment Deadline Looms. Source: re/code.
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