Terrorists robbing for retirement?

Remember the Red Army Faction in the seventies? They're back apparently and according to a report in today's Times are believed to be robbing for their retirement fund:

Three former Baader-Meinhof gang terrorists are suspected of coming out of hiding to carry out armed robberies that have netted them 380,000 Euros towards a "revolutionary retirement plan"

...it is now believed that the three suspects have emerged after 23 years not to bring down capitalism but to fund a nest egg for their retirement. Investigators in Lower Saxony believe that Ernst-Volker Staub, 61, Daniela Klette, 57, and Burkhard Garweg have stolen from security vans and supermarkets in northern Germany over the past seven months.

An ignominious end for a revolutionary group that caught the imagination of a generation of radicals. The RAF were often described as "anarchists" and received support from that milieu despite the fact they actually represented a very brutal strain of Marxism-Leninism and were believed to be sponsored by East Germany during the "Cold War " that dominated political outlooks in the seventies.

The RAF had been founded in 1970 by Andreas Baader, Gudrun Ensslin, Horst Mahler and Ulrike Meinhof , the latter being a well known German journalist which led to the use of her name in the popular description of the group as the Baader-Meinhoff Gang".

 
Photo:By Website                                     

They were responsible for a number of attacks which led to 34 deaths. In essence their philosophy was to force the state to become so oppressive the workers would rise up against capitalism. However German democracy proved strong enough to prevent that along with the fact German Workers were actually amongst the most prosperous in Europe.

Eventually of course they were caught and during their incarceration in Stammheim Prison were found to have "committed suicide". There are a lot of people who think they were actually murdered given the high level of scrutiny they had been kept under.

Conspiracy theorists have had a field day ever since.

Whatever these misguided individuals had fought for their legacy today is simply one of common criminality. 

Nothing more.

Bank Holiday Interlude: Eighties Retro

All over sarf London posters have been appearing for a retro eighties pop festival featuring some of the bands and stars from the era. Sounds like good fun and since it's sponsored by Absolute Radio there's maybe a chance we can hear this on wireless? I'll check the schedules closer to the time!

Meanwhile I thought it might be fun to listen to some of those bands on a less than sunny Bank Holiday afternoon.

If you want to go, tickets can be obtained from here: www.letsrocklondon.com

First up: Then Jericho:



Then there's Belinda Carlisle:



And my personal favourite Altered Images with the ever delightful Clare Grogan:

Corbyn's Labour cannot be trusted on anti-Semitism

The news yesterday that Jackie walker the Momentum activist who blamed the Jews for the slave trade had been re-instated by the Labour Party was a shock to those fighting back against the rise of anti-Semitism. The slave trade had many participants including those Africans themselves who helped round up slaves. These included Christians and Muslims as well as others simply motivated by profit.

And frankly since slavery still exists in this world Ms Walker and her defenders should take note of where this is a particular problem across swathes of Muslim controlled Africa and the Middle East. However lets not get facts in the way shall we comrades.

Ken Livingstone remains suspended and has lost his LBC radio programme, though I'm sure the Iranian Clerics Press TV will find him a job....

But one thing more than any other caught my attention today. Readers may remember that the Israeli Labour Party wrote to "comrade" Corbyn about their concerns with regards to anti-Semitism in the ranks of his party. He never replied. The Guardian reports:

Jeremy Corbyn faced fresh criticism over his handling of antisemitism allegations after Labour’s sister party in Israel said it had had no reply to a letter its leader sent to him a month ago expressing dismay and inviting him to Jerusalem to see the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum.

Labour MPs said they were shocked that no response had apparently been sent and added that it was further evidence of the party leadership’s slow and inadequate response to the crisis....

.. Isaac Herzog, leader of the Israeli Labour party, wrote to Corbyn, saying he was “appalled and outraged by the recent instances of anti-semitism by senior Labour party officials in the United Kingdom”.

Yet this man quite happily invites his "friends" in Hamas and Hezbollah to the House of Commons because he says it is necessary for peace. So why no reply or talks with the other side of the conflict Jeremy.

Bias showing again is it?

Meanwhile Jewish party members are hitting back. The website Politics Home reports:

The Jewish Labour Movement (JLM), a formal affiliate, hit out after Jackie Walker was reinstated to the party after saying Jews were the “chief financiers of the slave trade”.

The JLM told Politics Home: “Walker repeated an anti-Semitic slur. She showed no contrition.

The outcome of this process shows, once again, that the political rhetoric of zero tolerance on anti-Semitism is not matched by action. This is why we are proposing changes to party rules."

The group is seeking to change Labour’s rules to make it easier to expel and ban members for life if they are found guilty of anti-Semitism.

Remember Corbyn was once involved in an attempt to throw the JLM (then known as Poale Zion) out of the Labour Party.

Corbyn has shown how shallow his words were at the May Day march.

I do not trust Corbyn or his wing of the Labour Party.

No wonder so many Jews are deserting Labour.

Meanwhile Rod Liddle, the Sunday Times journalist remains suspended for daring to raise the widespread presence of anti-Semitism in the Muslim community.

Which it is by the way. The only anti-Semitism I tend to come across these days is from a section of the Muslim community.

And their anti-Zionist allies I should add.

Nubia: A forgotten people under threat

Photo: By Sailko - Own work,

For far too long the world has acquiesced to the idea that the Middle East and North Africa are "Muslim lands". The focus of the anti-imperialists began with Arab nationalism and today focuses almost exclusively on the "Palestinian" cause.

The problem is that everyone has forgotten that these lands were inhabited by other peoples long before the warlord Mohammad and his followers broke out of the Arabian peninsula and colonised these lands. The fact is that these lands were also the birthplaces and strongholds of not just the other two "Abrahamic" faiths, Judaism and Christianity but were also homes to other groups of people who still exist today.

Many will be aware of the  historical Turkish/Ottoman genocide committed against the Armenians and Greeks of Anatolia or the continuing struggles of both the Kurds and Yazidis against not just the Islamists of ISIS, but also the modern Turkish state as it too heads towards a full unbridled Islamic agenda.

There are many others, one of which to my shame I was not aware of, that of the Nubians.

There are references to the ancient Nubian civilisation in most books about both ancient Egypt and the Roman Empire but how many are aware not just of their continuing existence but the struggle of the Nubian community to survive in the face of what they themselves describe as "Islamism and Arabisation".

Today there are estimated to  be 1.7 million Nubians primarily living in Sudan but also found in Egypt. These ancient people are under threat from the regimes of both countries neither of which (particularly the Sudan) have due regard for basic human rights, especially when it comes to protecting their "minorities".

There is a website devoted to their cause which contains the following mission statement:

Our mission is to save Nubia from destruction by dams, Arabization, cultural cleansing, marginalization and isolation. We want to educate the people and spread the word around to come and help Nubians to preserve their culture and heritage and draw the world's attention to the dangers facing Nubia and urge the international community to rush to protect the Nubian archaeology and antiquities from damming, looting and smuggling. Nubian heritage is an important part of the international heritage and preserving it is an international obligation. 

Nubian communities in Sudan and Egypt are known as one of the safest communities in the world according to the international records, accordingly the preservation of the Nubian antiquities and heritage will help in the development of Nubia which will contribute to the stability of the area and the troubled region. Nubia, one of the oldest civilizations in the world is facing systematic destruction by the fanatic Islamist and radical Arabs. Their lands are sold to wealthy Arabs and Islamists to change the demographic structure and displace Nubians while the world is not paying any attention to their plight. UNESCO Director, Ambassador Irina Bokova was invited by Nubian organizations in 2009 to visit Nubia or send a fact finding delegation to see the situation on the ground but she apologized and ever since she never responded to the Nubians who are facing now real danger after Kingdom of Saudi Arabia agreed in November 2015 to finance three dams which which will submerge the whole Nubian land.

For more information go to their power point presentation at: www.slideshare.net

Homepage: www.nubiaproject.org

Further reading: nationalgeographic/black-pharaohs/robert-draper

Saudi Cleric says taking pictures with cats is forbidden

There are times when it's probably better that religious leaders just keep their idiotic mouths shut.

Newsweek reports:

On a televised broadcast, Sheikh Saleh Bin Fawzan Al-Fazwan, a member of the Saudi Council of Senior Scholars, was told about “a new trend of taking pictures with cats has been spreading among people who want to be like Westerners.”

He replied: “What?! What do you mean pictures with cats? Taking pictures is prohibited. The cats don’t matter here.”

The sheikh continued: “Taking pictures is prohibited if not for a necessity. Not with cats, not with dogs, not with wolves, not with anything.”

MEMRI has published a translated version here: www.memritv.org.

This miserable old git seems to forget that their Prophet had a cat:

Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was so attached to his cat that when he gave sermons he let Muezza rest on his lap and he also drank from water previously drunk by his cat. He also did his ablutions from the same water that was drunk by a cat. He seemed to treat his cat in the same way as cat lovers do today but even cat lovers might think twice about drinking the same water that had been drunk by a cat for fear of transmission of disease from the cats saliva.

Islam teaches Muslims to treat cats well and that the cat is a creature to be cherished and loved. Mistreating a cat is regarded as a severe sin in Islam

Meanwhile Saudi Arabia remains one of the worst offenders against human rights in the world along with it's competitors for "gods" franchise the mad mullahs in Iran.

A religion dominated by idiots and violent old men. 

Comedy Interlude: Stanley Baxter

The comedian Stanley Baxter is 90 years old today and to celebrate that here's a sketch from one of his wonderful shows that we all used to enjoy.

The world of comedy has changed (for the worse at the moment) in part because of changing tastes but also because of this damned thing called "political correctness" which has taken away a good measure of old British humour.

I was a big fan of not just Stanley but also Dick Emery, Benny Hill, Eric Sykes and of course the Carry On team to name a few. They're looking to re-launch The Carry On films. Not so sure we have the right actors and comedians these day. The last attempt with Julian Cleary was a dreary flop.

But enough of my musings here's Stanley Baxter taking the mickey out of period drama!

Socialist sectarianism becomes anti-Semitism

The sectarian shenanigans of the far left (mainly Trotskyist, but sometimes Stalinist) have a habit of of becoming both farcical and downright dangerous at times. The establishment of Momentum has already seen a fair number of squabbles accusations and fall-outs but the latest attack on the Alliance for Workers Liberty (AWL) has very sinister overtones.

A post to the Socialist Leaves Europe Facebook page from someone called "Siobhan O'Malley" contains the following:

While Momentum continues the excellent legacy of the Corbyn campaign in many areas, it is important to note that it faces a variety of difficulties. The main issue is infiltration by the notorious anti-Labour sect the Alliance for Workers' Liberty (AWL).

The AWL is a wrecking operation designed to undermine the political Left in Britain and there are well-established rumours that they receive funds from Israeli lobbyists. They present themselves as "Trotskyists", yet support Israel, supported the Iraq war and oppose multiculturalism. In reality, they have been planted in the labour movement to disrupt and divide. It is noteworthy that the key figure in Another Europe is Possible is an AWL member, Michael Chessum.

These are well-funded individuals who receive money for steering the Labour Party away from its central socialist mission.

This is yet another example of where the lefts so-called anti-Zionism crosses the line into clear anti-Semitic territory. There's conspiracy theory, nation hate and spite towards anyone or any group that even dares to think differently to the "established" anti-imperialist agenda the left indulges itself in.

I also have to say that despite the posters "observation" that the AWL receives "funds from Israeli lobbyists" this is the first I have heard such errant nonsense.

The AWL is and always been a rather small group with just over 100 members. It's "operations" are somewhat limited. 

I'm no friend of the AWL (having had serious clashes with them when in the PCS union) and have many insurmountable difference with their Marxist politics, but this accusation is well, just hateful crap.

It says more about the proponents of this new conspiracy theory than those that it is aimed at.

Anti-Zionism is the new anti-Semitism.