I write this as someone who used to be in CND (Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament).
Now the Architects of the new Iron Curtain have been voted out, something that many have felt was a severe Threat to World Peace can now become known. Something that was kept from the Public as we ended up with the same sort of Media we had during the Cold War - and something which is quite paradoxical.
Those of us who remember the Cold War are familiar with the Cliches. Soviet News Agencies, Tass, Izvestia - Pravda - the Names are synonymous with an Era we were all immensely pleased to see an end to. In the new Cold War the same thing seems to have happened - except on this side of the Equation. Vladimir Putin has been trying to get the Message across to the West about just how close we have been to Nuclear Catastrophe, except this has received scant - if any - Reportage.
This shows just how much control the pre-Trump Governments had on the Media, or even shows just how stilted the 4th Estate had become - something we saw when President G.W Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair seemed to provide the Byline and the Soundbite and the Media published and broadcast it - almost verbatim.
Hopefully now we can have a Media that observes the 2nd and 3rd Amendments of the Constitution and a President that encourages it. Part of that should be coverage of Mr Putin's Comments about the parlous state of Russo-Western Relations.
Robert McNamara made his Documentary called "The Fog of War" - a very candid Account of his Life and Career at the Department of Defence. He has the Courage to admit to being wrong about the Vietnam War - or at least, his President (LBJ) was by the time McNamara resigned - or was 'retired'. (Not sure we would ever get something similar about Iraq by anyone from our Governments - past and present, while Tony Blair was unflinching in his continuing justification for the Conflict.) That - while JFK could empathise with Khrushchev - see things from his perspective (thus the Cuban Missile Crisis was resolved) - they failed completely to with the Government in Hanoi.
This applies recently with Hillary Clinton's failure to do same with Putin. That the Newspeak Media also didn't help, while both of these show that the Political Establishment of 90's-post 90's America had deteriorated since JFK (the Liberals) and Bush Senior (Republicans) - the latter having a good Rapport with Gorbachev.
The same had happened in the former Soviet Union as Mikhail Saakashvili was no Shevardnadze. That the first post-Soviet Georgian President would never have invaded South Ossetia!
While that seemed to happen (and this could be in "Real Middle Earth" - maybe other Posts too).
Andrew Wood and Gollum? Hmm, but while no-one probably has heard of the former Ambassador to Moscow (1995-2000), many know about someone who advised JFK through the Missile Crisis and was once romantically linked to one of the most famous, and beautiful Women in the World. What seems apparent too is that his Posting didn't necessarily leave a Legacy on a Par with Memories of those 13 Days in October 1962.
Either he has had no input in the deterioration of Russo-Western Relations or his advice wasn't sought. Having read his retrospective Comments about Georgia it seems he also failed to advise Tblisi against its Misadventure of 2008. That Georgia would still have semi-autonomous Control of South Ossetia - and more importantly, the Seaports of Abkhazia.
He should know that international Law applies to everyone, which includes the CFE Treaty of 1990. This was ratified after the end of the Soviet Union by every former Soviet State west of the Urals - including Georgia. That NATO failed to enforce it with Tblisi is why we are now in the current Morass.
Much has been made of the Crimean Referendum - which saw a return to Russian Control - but not as much to that of a Georgian Referendum as to whether they should join NATO. There was also a substantial re-arming Program by Tblisi (violating the CFE Treaty). Unfortunately, the Vote didn't include South Ossetians and Abkhazians - and while they might have had Separatists with leanings towards Moscow, they were still in the Georgian Orbit. What this meant for Russian passport holders in both Regions is obvious. This was concurrent to the joining of NATO and the EU by other former Soviet Countries like Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
If the Georgian Referendum had included the disputed Regions they might never have joined and thus, an already contentious Issue might not have escalated. Let's not also forget that had they been included the Separatist Cause would have diminished. Because they weren't it starts to look like a Foist by Saakashvili.
Or worse, eventual expulsion.
All of this is did nothing to assuage the Separatists who probably realised this, while the large Presence of ethnic Russians almost forced the Kremlin's hand in their eventual Annexation. It might even have prompted the Crimean Referendum for similar reasons.
Also, the Court of St James shouldn't need reminding of what I call the Masaryck Scenario....
27 years ago we represented a Myriad of People - British, Anglo-Irish, American, French and yes - 4 Iranians - who had all disappeared in Lebanon in the 1980's. This was at that Period of Transition Iran went through - from the ultra-Theocracy of Khomeini to the liberalisation of Rafsanjani. The recommencement of Diplomatic Relations with the West and what many thought to be an end to a very dark Period of Iranian-World History.
In 1947-8 Masaryck was responsible for the Support of the new State of Israel via the Jewish Agency - who later formed the first Israeli Government. This probably wasn't forgotten in some Circles - while the symbolism of something extending the proverbial Olive Branch to Iran at a very pivotal time probably wasn't on others.
1968 was the year of the Prague Spring, 1989 its eventual Realisation. Combine both of these and you have a very rare period where Iranian Moderates and Zionists sing from the same Hymn Sheet. But the Masaryck Scenario meant it all had to be given away, like things were in 1938 - and forcibly and fatally in 1948. !989 was described as a Period when the Darkness crumbled - and set against the Backdrop of other Events - from Tehran to Cape Town - all of that ought to have been made right.
War might have raged in the Levant, the Ukraine, and the Caucasus - it also did on Cinema Screens a few years ago. A War that might also have been avoided.
What wasn't was what can only be described as a subsequent Culture by default. Le Carre commented on how global Perestroika seemed lost in the Feebleness of anyone who ought to have ensured it. The Cold War didn't just end for the Warsaw Pact, it ended for us too - but while that Culture - what I call 90's Retrograd - was the result of a 'couldn't - or wouldn't' Attitude amongst some People (a question for them) we ended up with "Back in the USSR" 2.
There has been considerable Antipathy towards some of our Culture in the earlier years of this Century - not surprisingly when there might be others who saw it as a Cop-out, or even a Con, while recent Events in the US have also shown that towards Politicians synonymous with that Decade.
There's no such thing as an inert Peace, be it in Diplomacy or even small Towns.
While that Decade has been described by some as dysfunctional and ugly - I hope that that Culture is as dismantled as those Politicians.
Now it seems the continuing Shake-up of the Political Establishment extends to Donald Trump suggesting Nigel Farage should be our Ambassador in Washington. Considering the above, and the Inertia or Feebleness 27 years ago - this is quite astonishing. On retrospect what didn't happen then is the cause of many Problems now, and that default Culture the inevitable result. Maybe it's about time someone not part of that Establishment did the Job, as those who are seem incapable of getting with the Program (as they were then). Where was the Support - while I could say that Prestige and Snobbery might have played a part. Not only was the disappointing 90's unforgivable in this context, so was the Neglect then that is quite apparent now. Hopeless!!!!
Meanwhile, here's an Historical Diagram for everyone from former Archbishop Envoys to anyone in the Yippieocracy who tries lumping us in with any Islamic Extremists......
I decided to post this in all these Threads for those who haven't read it.
And while everyone was "deviated" in Iraq after 2003 what was happening in China? Should we research Hansard, looking for all those Parliamentary Speeches about the consolidation of the Xi Jinping Government, their Activities in other Countries, what they might have been up to here, what those Scientists might have been doing? Compare Column Inches given to it and those of useless Celebrities and the War in Iraq. Those archived Reports by TV and Radio about Beijing,
All that Money spent on killing Iraqis, the supposed Intel, while no-one watched China (or at least never mentioned that they might).
A bit less time listening to those Beatles Records and appropriating Human Rights Projects and a bit more on what is happening in China!
Yeah, Tiannenmen Square was terrible Mr Simpson - but why was everyone "Back in the USSR" when there was no USSR, however many times Solman reads the News outside Waitrose?
I refer to an Interview I did with the BBC Foreign Affairs Editor in 1992 about the collapse of the Warsaw Pact and the end of the Cold War. Elsewhere, a TV Company laments how China's ancient Culture has been hijacked by Thugs and Gangsters. What makes them think that might be exclusive to China?
Look at Thug90's UK, and how those 90's People are now middle aged, middle class People catered to by Theme Park Towns like Portishead.
As it looks like Australia is all but dead, mortgaged to Beijing, how many People now wish they could go back to 30 years ago when there was a Chance of global Reform?
People just got fat and rich, and while Australia is now a Province of China that Culture of Greed and Corruption has spawned a Generation of Thugs in our own Country.
But heck eh, Mr Christiansen, as long as Kylie and Natalie keep selling them the Records!
So, while People might be critical of how China's ancient Culture has been appropriated by Thugs and Gangsters how about the slimy odious Thugs in our Country who were allowed to ascend in the years after 89-91? People who have redefined Insincerity as they wrap themselves in Layers of Irony.
Years ago, in that Period of Possibilities - 89-91 - there might have been those of us who did Human Rights Projects and did "splendid Interviews" in Bookshops - but when did any of that turn into the sort of Socials those slimy odious Thugs always seem to have?
It's like how "Now" never seems to, even in several Years before Covid19.
The Game is rigged in favour of the slimy odious Thugs whether it's in Beijing or Britain!
The Protestors at Tiannenmen Square are no nearer running China now than they were in 1989.
So while they have to continue their Dissidence I write this.
Maybe I'll sell Drugs or run some Drug Pub instead. Get covered in Tattoos and pump Steroids. Have pretentions of Sophistication as I approach middle age, and put "Dummy" on the Stereo.
Heck, I could be like Frank Lucas in "American Gangster" and some posh spoken English Realtor could sell me a smart Gaff in Manhattan!
I write this as someone who used to be in CND (Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament).
ReplyDeleteNow the Architects of the new Iron Curtain have been voted out, something that many have felt was a severe Threat to World Peace can now become known. Something that was kept from the Public as we ended up with the same sort of Media we had during the Cold War - and something which is quite paradoxical.
Those of us who remember the Cold War are familiar with the Cliches. Soviet News Agencies, Tass, Izvestia - Pravda - the Names are synonymous with an Era we were all immensely pleased to see an end to. In the new Cold War the same thing seems to have happened - except on this side of the Equation. Vladimir Putin has been trying to get the Message across to the West about just how close we have been to Nuclear Catastrophe, except this has received scant - if any - Reportage.
This shows just how much control the pre-Trump Governments had on the Media, or even shows just how stilted the 4th Estate had become - something we saw when President G.W Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair seemed to provide the Byline and the Soundbite and the Media published and broadcast it - almost verbatim.
Hopefully now we can have a Media that observes the 2nd and 3rd Amendments of the Constitution and a President that encourages it. Part of that should be coverage of Mr Putin's Comments about the parlous state of Russo-Western Relations.
Robert McNamara made his Documentary called "The Fog of War" - a very candid Account of his Life and Career at the Department of Defence. He has the Courage to admit to being wrong about the Vietnam War - or at least, his President (LBJ) was by the time McNamara resigned - or was 'retired'. (Not sure we would ever get something similar about Iraq by anyone from our Governments - past and present, while Tony Blair was unflinching in his continuing justification for the Conflict.) That - while JFK could empathise with Khrushchev - see things from his perspective (thus the Cuban Missile Crisis was resolved) - they failed completely to with the Government in Hanoi.
This applies recently with Hillary Clinton's failure to do same with Putin. That the Newspeak Media also didn't help, while both of these show that the Political Establishment of 90's-post 90's America had deteriorated since JFK (the Liberals) and Bush Senior (Republicans) - the latter having a good Rapport with Gorbachev.
The same had happened in the former Soviet Union as Mikhail Saakashvili was no Shevardnadze. That the first post-Soviet Georgian President would never have invaded South Ossetia!
While that seemed to happen (and this could be in "Real Middle Earth" - maybe other Posts too).
ReplyDeleteAndrew Wood and Gollum? Hmm, but while no-one probably has heard of the former Ambassador to Moscow (1995-2000), many know about someone who advised JFK through the Missile Crisis and was once romantically linked to one of the most famous, and beautiful Women in the World. What seems apparent too is that his Posting didn't necessarily leave a Legacy on a Par with Memories of those 13 Days in October 1962.
Either he has had no input in the deterioration of Russo-Western Relations or his advice wasn't sought. Having read his retrospective Comments about Georgia it seems he also failed to advise Tblisi against its Misadventure of 2008. That Georgia would still have semi-autonomous Control of South Ossetia - and more importantly, the Seaports of Abkhazia.
He should know that international Law applies to everyone, which includes the CFE Treaty of 1990. This was ratified after the end of the Soviet Union by every former Soviet State west of the Urals - including Georgia. That NATO failed to enforce it with Tblisi is why we are now in the current Morass.
Much has been made of the Crimean Referendum - which saw a return to Russian Control - but not as much to that of a Georgian Referendum as to whether they should join NATO. There was also a substantial re-arming Program by Tblisi (violating the CFE Treaty). Unfortunately, the Vote didn't include South Ossetians and Abkhazians - and while they might have had Separatists with leanings towards Moscow, they were still in the Georgian Orbit. What this meant for Russian passport holders in both Regions is obvious. This was concurrent to the joining of NATO and the EU by other former Soviet Countries like Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
If the Georgian Referendum had included the disputed Regions they might never have joined and thus, an already contentious Issue might not have escalated. Let's not also forget that had they been included the Separatist Cause would have diminished. Because they weren't it starts to look like a Foist by Saakashvili.
Or worse, eventual expulsion.
All of this is did nothing to assuage the Separatists who probably realised this, while the large Presence of ethnic Russians almost forced the Kremlin's hand in their eventual Annexation. It might even have prompted the Crimean Referendum for similar reasons.
Also, the Court of St James shouldn't need reminding of what I call the Masaryck Scenario....
ReplyDelete27 years ago we represented a Myriad of People - British, Anglo-Irish, American, French and yes - 4 Iranians - who had all disappeared in Lebanon in the 1980's. This was at that Period of Transition Iran went through - from the ultra-Theocracy of Khomeini to the liberalisation of Rafsanjani. The recommencement of Diplomatic Relations with the West and what many thought to be an end to a very dark Period of Iranian-World History.
In 1947-8 Masaryck was responsible for the Support of the new State of Israel via the Jewish Agency - who later formed the first Israeli Government. This probably wasn't forgotten in some Circles - while the symbolism of something extending the proverbial Olive Branch to Iran at a very pivotal time probably wasn't on others.
1968 was the year of the Prague Spring, 1989 its eventual Realisation. Combine both of these and you have a very rare period where Iranian Moderates and Zionists sing from the same Hymn Sheet. But the Masaryck Scenario meant it all had to be given away, like things were in 1938 - and forcibly and fatally in 1948. !989 was described as a Period when the Darkness crumbled - and set against the Backdrop of other Events - from Tehran to Cape Town - all of that ought to have been made right.
War might have raged in the Levant, the Ukraine, and the Caucasus - it also did on Cinema Screens a few years ago. A War that might also have been avoided.
Now that's what I call Peace making!
What wasn't was what can only be described as a subsequent Culture by default. Le Carre commented on how global Perestroika seemed lost in the Feebleness of anyone who ought to have ensured it. The Cold War didn't just end for the Warsaw Pact, it ended for us too - but while that Culture - what I call 90's Retrograd - was the result of a 'couldn't - or wouldn't' Attitude amongst some People (a question for them) we ended up with "Back in the USSR" 2.
ReplyDeleteThere has been considerable Antipathy towards some of our Culture in the earlier years of this Century - not surprisingly when there might be others who saw it as a Cop-out, or even a Con, while recent Events in the US have also shown that towards Politicians synonymous with that Decade.
There's no such thing as an inert Peace, be it in Diplomacy or even small Towns.
While that Decade has been described by some as dysfunctional and ugly - I hope that that Culture is as dismantled as those Politicians.
Now it seems the continuing Shake-up of the Political Establishment extends to Donald Trump suggesting Nigel Farage should be our Ambassador in Washington. Considering the above, and the Inertia or Feebleness 27 years ago - this is quite astonishing. On retrospect what didn't happen then is the cause of many Problems now, and that default Culture the inevitable result. Maybe it's about time someone not part of that Establishment did the Job, as those who are seem incapable of getting with the Program (as they were then). Where was the Support - while I could say that Prestige and Snobbery might have played a part. Not only was the disappointing 90's unforgivable in this context, so was the Neglect then that is quite apparent now. Hopeless!!!!
ReplyDeleteSee "Movie Quotes....."
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, here's an Historical Diagram for everyone from former Archbishop Envoys to anyone in the Yippieocracy who tries lumping us in with any Islamic Extremists......
ReplyDeleteI decided to post this in all these Threads for those who haven't read it.
https://metrowynn.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/arthur-balfour-to-king-arthur.html
http://www.economicpopulist.org/content/news-corp-finished-senator-rockefeller-tells-feds-investigate-fox-hacking-911-victims
ReplyDeleteNo a la guerra
ReplyDeleteAnd while everyone was "deviated" in Iraq after 2003 what was happening in China? Should we research Hansard, looking for all those Parliamentary Speeches about the consolidation of the Xi Jinping Government, their Activities in other Countries, what they might have been up to here, what those Scientists might have been doing? Compare Column Inches given to it and those of useless Celebrities and the War in Iraq. Those archived Reports by TV and Radio about Beijing,
ReplyDeleteAll that Money spent on killing Iraqis, the supposed Intel, while no-one watched China (or at least never mentioned that they might).
A bit less time listening to those Beatles Records and appropriating Human Rights Projects and a bit more on what is happening in China!
Yeah, Tiannenmen Square was terrible Mr Simpson - but why was everyone "Back in the USSR" when there was no USSR, however many times Solman reads the News outside Waitrose?
ReplyDeleteI refer to an Interview I did with the BBC Foreign Affairs Editor in 1992 about the collapse of the Warsaw Pact and the end of the Cold War. Elsewhere, a TV Company laments how China's ancient Culture has been hijacked by Thugs and Gangsters. What makes them think that might be exclusive to China?
ReplyDeleteLook at Thug90's UK, and how those 90's People are now middle aged, middle class People catered to by Theme Park Towns like Portishead.
As it looks like Australia is all but dead, mortgaged to Beijing, how many People now wish they could go back to 30 years ago when there was a Chance of global Reform?
People just got fat and rich, and while Australia is now a Province of China that Culture of Greed and Corruption has spawned a Generation of Thugs in our own Country.
But heck eh, Mr Christiansen, as long as Kylie and Natalie keep selling them the Records!
So, while People might be critical of how China's ancient Culture has been appropriated by Thugs and Gangsters how about the slimy odious Thugs in our Country who were allowed to ascend in the years after 89-91? People who have redefined Insincerity as they wrap themselves in Layers of Irony.
ReplyDeleteYears ago, in that Period of Possibilities - 89-91 - there might have been those of us who did Human Rights Projects and did "splendid Interviews" in Bookshops - but when did any of that turn into the sort of Socials those slimy odious Thugs always seem to have?
ReplyDeleteIt's like how "Now" never seems to, even in several Years before Covid19.
The Game is rigged in favour of the slimy odious Thugs whether it's in Beijing or Britain!
The Protestors at Tiannenmen Square are no nearer running China now than they were in 1989.
So while they have to continue their Dissidence I write this.
ReplyDeleteMaybe I'll sell Drugs or run some Drug Pub instead. Get covered in Tattoos and pump Steroids. Have pretentions of Sophistication as I approach middle age, and put "Dummy" on the Stereo.
Heck, I could be like Frank Lucas in "American Gangster" and some posh spoken English Realtor could sell me a smart Gaff in Manhattan!
"Fabulous!"