See & hear urgent Gaza humanitarian aid appeal, banned by 'top brass' BBC bums

We sincerely wish to apologise in advance for not publishing this particular piece sooner.

We also offer our apologies to any of our readers who may be offended by the above banner ...

... but unfortunately we couldn't find one using stronger language.

Arwh, whatever.

There are many mere lesser mortals (with much more humanity and honesty than those supposedly above them ), to be found among ordinary, everyday, honest, hard working Beeb employees -- including some of the fast becoming increasingly crappy BBC's real journalists.

Witness this cut & pasted taster:

(snip)

Meanwhile, the BBC is facing a growing revolt from its own journalists, with sources reporting "widespread disgust" within its newsrooms. However, BBC staff have said they have been told they face the sack if they speak out on the issue.

Sources said there was "fury" at the BBC News morning meeting today about the decision, with news editors saying they had not been consulted on the move to not show the appeal.

"Feelings are running extremely high and there is widespread disgust at the BBC's top management," one BBC News source said. "There is widespread anger and frustration at the BBC's refusal to allow people to speak out about it."

Members of the NUJ at London's Television Centre are expected to tomorrow pass a resolution condemning the BBC's decision.

(snip)

Good on you guys & gals, sez we,

Read the rest of the report, which includes the appeal video itself, in it's entirety.

And ...

Good on the United Nations' boss too, who's told the BBC big-boys straight - to effin' forget the planned interview with him.

*(Cross posted across at 'appletree')

A Bit About Old 'Beeb' Man Martin Bell - Author of "The Truth That Sticks" ... (Or Stinks?)

Remember good old Martin Bell? 'The Man in the White Suit'?

Martin Bell, the one time brilliant, brave , front line fighting BBC man? He of that uber-rapidly increasingly rarest of breeds? That certain special species now nearly, entirely extinct?

You know, real journalists and/or war correspondents.



Well, anyway ...

Yesterday, on television, we watched Anne Robinson, one of our scariest scouser sisters, presenting a special celebrity version of 'The Weakest Link'. Our man Martin was one of several 'Brit-News-Guys' contenders competing for some sorely needed cash for personally chosen charities.

It transpired that Bell was neither the (literally) weakest link nor the strongest, meaning that since he was ousted before the end we weren't ever enlightened as to which charity was his personal preference. However, we'd venture to suggest that it could well have had some sort of UNESCO connection.

But we waffle and digress. As, we quite cheerfully confess completely, we all too often tend to do. (Phew!)

Something Bell said to answer one of his sandy haired, host cum quiz mistress Anne Robinson's personal questions, seemed to us to sum up super-succinctly our own long standing, understanding of current press peoples' sickeningly sad situation(s).

Anne asked Martin how much he thought things had changed recently regarding reporting from war zones, hot-spots, such like, etc and so on.

Here's our hero's (had to be) paraphrased answer.

These days almost everybody is 'embedded'.
Even if & when one anyone somehow finds their way to a front line, they're bound to be rung on their mobile phone by "someone saying what to say."

We'd say that that says it all.

Olympics : China Caught Out Cheating?

Even through all the heavy makeup along with the absolute absence of any signs of her having hips, it should have been obvious at the outset, even to the most short sighted of us, that the cute little Chinese gymnast called He Kexin was quite clearly, merely a kid.

International Olympic Committee launches probe into He Kexin's age

The International Olympic Committee has ordered an investigation into mounting allegations that Chinese authorities covered up the true age of their gold-medal winning gymnastics star because she was too young to compete.

An IOC official told The Times that because of "discrepancies" that have come to light about the age of He Kexin, the host nation’s darling who won gold in both team and individual events, an official inquiry has been launched that could result in the gymnast being stripped of her medals.

The investigation was triggered as a US computer expert claimed yesterday to have uncovered Chinese government documents that he says prove she is only 14 - making her ineligible to compete in the Olympics - rather than 16, as officials in Beijing insist is her age.

(snip)

The IOC has been accused of deliberately ignoring the issue because it feared offending China.

Yet Giselle Davies, an IOC spokesperson, said tonight that because of troubling new developments, the committee had instructed the International Gymnastics Federation, the sport’s governing body, to investigate.

Read the rest of this sport report right here.

So, what we want to know now is whether or not both the US and the UK will soon be getting the medals they should have been given in the beginning?



(Cross posted at 'appletree')

America's Atomic Attack at Hiroshima and Nagasaki : The Terrible Truth

So you've seen the pictures. And, for years you've swallowed US lies.

Well, we've got news for you.

This is the terrible truth - and it hurts - at least, it should do.

(snip)

The most enduring lie is that the atomic bomb was dropped to end the war in the Pacific and save lives.

"Even without the atomic bombing attacks," concluded the United States Strategic Bombing Survey of 1946, "air supremacy over Japan could have exerted sufficient pressure to bring about unconditional surrender and obviate the need for invasion. Based on a detailed investigation of all the facts, and supported by the testimony of the surviving Japanese leaders involved, it is the Survey's opinion that ... Japan would have surrendered even if the atomic bombs had not been dropped, even if Russia had not entered the war and even if no invasion had been planned or contemplated."

The National Archives in Washington contain US government documents that chart Japanese peace overtures as early as 1943. None was pursued. A cable sent on May 5, 1945 by the German ambassador in Tokyo and intercepted by the US dispels any doubt that the Japanese were desperate to sue for peace, including "capitulation even if the terms were hard". Instead, the US secretary of war, Henry Stimson, told President Truman he was "fearful" that the US air force would have Japan so "bombed out" that the new weapon would not be able "to show its strength".

He later admitted that "no effort was made, and none was seriously considered, to achieve surrender merely in order not to have to use the bomb". His foreign policy colleagues were eager "to browbeat the Russians with the bomb held rather ostentatiously on our hip". General Leslie Groves, director of the Manhattan Project that made the bomb, testified: "There was never any illusion on my part that Russia was our enemy, and that the project was conducted on that basis."

The day after Hiroshima was obliterated, President Truman voiced his satisfaction with the "overwhelming success" of "the experiment".

Read the revolting rest, right here.

(Cross posted at 'appletree')

Bush: We Lost the Iraq War

Have a look at this story, and see if you can determine what it means for the US mission in Iraq:
Read more »

Raving Religious Nutter War Criminal And Tall Story Teller, Tony Blair, And His Horrific Heights Of Hypocrisy ...

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If any Brits believed George W. Bush's blood brother and partner in (war) crime, Tony Blair had finally effed off out of it, for good ... oh boy, have we got bloomin' bad blinkin' news for them.



First off, Tone isn't permanently relocating to Rome's Vatican City to reside with his most recently discovered best bosom buddy, Roman Catholic Pope Ratzi the Papal poxy Nazi.



Nor, it hurts us to have to tell you, will he be spending most of his time strutting about the States - amongst, of course, his crazy, extremist, fundamentalist, kindred spirits. Be they belonging to a bona fide or completely counterfeit, cracked cultist crew of so-called Christians.

Nor will he be making magic in the Middle East while spending most of his self proclaimed precious time strutting his shitty stuff and showing off - trying to come across as some sort of fantastically supernaturally-successful, special ecumenical peace envoy for the people. Particularly, some poor, seemingly serially put-upon and persecuted, innocent Palestinians.



Holy tea & toasted teacakes on the lawn with the vicar!!

Crumby fresh crumpets covered with butter!

Jesus H. Christ. Good God. Heaven help us. Saints sodding preserve us. Father flamin' forgive us. And may (any one's), Lord almighty show us some sort of so & so mercy.

Oy, vey. Hear our prayer. Holy mother. Sacred heart. Amen. Assorted similar expletives. And several etceteras too.

Eh?

Blair to urge key role for faith

Former prime minister Tony Blair is to call for faith to be given a central role in tackling the world's problems.

In a speech at Westminster Cathedral, Mr Blair will say failure to engage with religious groups will drive believers to apathy or fundamentalism.

Mr Blair, who recently converted to Catholicism, will outline the role of his Faith Foundation for young people.

Anti-war protesters from Stop The War Coalition have pledged to drown out the speech with a "wall of sound".

Catholic peace group Pax Christi also plan a silent protest before the speech.

Two things, Tony.

A big pat on the back to 'The Stop The War Coalition' - and may perfect peace permanently be upon 'Pax Christi'.

Read the rest of this ridiculous religion related report, right here.



Listen, mister bloody Blair, if you're even an average example of your particular religion's faithful effing followers -- we strongly suggest you just take it and shove it.

So help us.

*(Cross posted at appletree)

McCain Adviser: The Brits Let Us Down in Iraq

Fred Kagan helped cook up the occupation of Iraq, and was a chief architect of the 'surge'

Fred Kagan, one of John W. McCain's top foreign policy advisers, blamed our British allies for the outbreak of violence in Basra:
Read more »

An Auld Irish Fairy Tale : As Told By Hillary Clinton ...

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Awh, bejabuz and begorrah, a top a de mornin' to yiz all.

'Tis nice t'see yiz all again. Honest t'God, so it is.



And as our own dearly beloved departed, sainted auld mother Riley granny - God rest her soul - used t'say t'we wee childer: "Now sit yizselves down an' behave yizselves while I tell yiz all a story. Tiz a special true auld Irish fairy tale. An' before I go any further, Richard me laddo, if yer don't shurrup, sit still and stop fidgetin' - y'll get d'back a me hand.

But Holy mother a' Mary, who ever'da tought dat posh snooty American woman, Mrs whatzername Clinton - good God in heaven forgive her - could spin 'em as good as d'rest of us? Don't yiz tink, now?

Okay, don't worry, we've not finally flipped our lids altogether. And profuse sincere apologies to our Irish readers - of whom we know for sure, there are several - but as only second generation British scousers with our roots firmly set somewhere on the Southwest coast of the old emerald isle, we're sure you'll take our well meant attempts at good humour in the good natured spirit they're intended.

Anyway, for those without a clue as to what the hell we're waffling on like eejuts about, here IS a clue. (And incidentally, isn't it amazing how far flung Hillary's fame as a flipping big fibber is already?)

A misrepresented meeting

Clinton also makes major claims to have helped broker the Northern Ireland peace process.

Actually, I was in Belfast when the Clintons came calling in December 1995. Hillary had tea with some very nice women from groups helping single mothers and deprived young people.

She so admired the ordinary British cafe stainless steel teapot that one of the ladies gave it to her as a gift.

It was not a significant event; I cannot even remember whether I included it in my report on the presidential visit.

But 14 years later, out on the campaign trail, Clinton grossly misrepresented the meeting as a pivotal moment in the peace process, in which she "brought together for the first time" people from Protestant and Catholic communities who agreed to work for peace.

The actual participants in the peace process, including John Hume and David Trimble, say Hillary had no input in their negotiations.

Now, if yiz don't want us tell yer mams, dads, teachers, and Father O'Thingee, then y'all better behave yizselves and read the rest right here.



Sorry, we've suddenly got to sod off straight away and get ourselves to the air raid shelter as soon as poss, since the sirens have started, the barrage balloons are up and the searchlights are switched back on.

We kid you not. Really and truly. Honest t'God. The ak-ak guns are going.

Jesus, Mary and Joseph! The Germans are coming again.

*(Cross posted at appletree)

War, Peace, Illegal Invasions, Ensuing Occupations, Poxy Politicians, Suffering Soldiers, Innocent Civilians, Lies, Lives, Deaths, Bloody Body Bags...

Honesty is the best policy. Hand on heart and hope to die. Honest to God. Unto thine own self be true. Tell the truth and shame the devil. Cheats never prosper.

Right? Remember?

Well, we don't know about you but they're just a few examples of the things we, when we were kids, regularly had hammered home to us by our 'elders and betters'.

Ha. Father Christmas climbing down our chimney, the Tooth Fairy peekin' under our pillow, Jesus wanting us to be one of his personal sunbeams.

Scoffing stale bread crusts, so as to best try sprouting some Shirley Temple type curls. Pick your nose and you won't be taken to the Sunday School 'Treat'. If you're squinting your eyes when the wind changes suddenly, your cheeky little freckled face will flippin' well stay that way - for certain - for ever.

Clouds with siver sodding linings, raining perishing pennies from heaven, ruddy great gargantuan rainbows - resting on our skinny shoulders? With bleedin' big pots of gold at the end of 'em, to boot?

Etc, etc, etc.



Oy, vey. O.M.G. 'Strewth! And, W.T.F?

Sheesh. The stupid stuff we swallow when we're bright eyed, bushy-tailed simpletons innocent youngsters.

By the way, before anybody begins berating us for our serial sarcasm, we strongly suggest first sussing out how a certain other old Brit blogging buddy, sees barefaced shameless bullshit.

But (even if it was for the very first time in his low-life), Dick Cheney wasn't lying when showing his (sincere) complete contempt for 4,000 slain US soldiers -- by almost sneeringly saying - So? They all volunteered!

And don't ever forget Barbara Bush, both wife and mother to US presidents. She was being honest when she made no attempt to stop herself saying (totally truthfully), how she sees things -- when, very early on in her braindead brat's illegal war, she came straight out with this sickening shocker ...



Remember?

Which reminds us. There's something we've been meaning to mention to big bad Babs for ages.

Hey, you, witch!

Here's why you/we/everyone should hear about body bags -- and here's how and why body bags most definitely are bloody relevant.



See what we're saying, you stupid sick old sow?

So sodding often, for so many sad souls, body bags are the only bloody thing that is relevant.

Understand what we're saying, you cretinous old crow? Comprendo, cow?

Those remains are American. And, thanks to your lying, sleazeball, scumbag, sociopathic son's entirely inexcusable and completely uncalled for illegal war -what we see above is all that was left of some other US mother's, far less fortunate, son - after dying while fighting your fat-cat family's filthy-lucre inspired, fucking war for you.

Beautiful mind? Barf!

Listen missus, you'd be better if you blew it away.

As most of the rest of us would be ... if you did ... we dare say ... if we were honest ... and telling the truth

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Abu Ghraib's Infamous Lynndie England : Unmissable 'Stern' Interview ...

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Remember the whole wide world's revulsion regarding a certain candid-camera kind of compilation?



Remember Lynndie England?

An American soldier who - by her contemptable complicity in the torturing at Abu Ghraib prison - shamed, disgraced and disgusted so many members of the human race? You know, one of the (so called), Christian soldiers sent by George Bush & Co from the United States -- supposedly to set the poor Iraqi people free from their sufferings under Saddam?



Well... if you thought that by now, especially since she became a mother, she must have become seriously and sincerely contrite... well, judge for yourselves.



The snips which follow below are from an amazing (recent), interview with the German magazine 'Stern' - and while we like to believe that any article we highlight here is well worth reading - we genuinely believe this particular one is, in a word, brilliant.

One might, in all honesty, even say "unmissable"

Thousands of Americans?
Both. I guess after the picture came out the insurgency picked up and Iraqis attacked the Americans and the British and they attacked in return and they were just killing each other. I felt bad about it, ... no, I felt pissed off.

If the media hadn't exposed the pictures to that extent then thousands of lives would have been saved.

(snip)

But you took the photos.
Yeah, I took the photos but I didn't make it worldwide. Yes, I was in five or six pictures and I took some pictures, and those pictures were shameful and degrading to the Iraqis and to our government. And I feel sorry and wrong about what I did. But it would not have escalated to what it did all over the world if it wouldn't have been for someone leaking it to the media. Hell, I was at Fort Bragg when the pictures came out and I had no idea.

Can you tell us about the day you heard the pictures had been made public?
The pictures came out on a Thursday, April 27 or 28. I called my Mom on Saturday. I was pregnant at the time, I didn't have a car, I didn't get the newspaper, I didn't have a TV, I didn't have a radio. I called my Mom from a payphone and she said, "There's a hundred reporters out in the front yard. You're all over the news, your face is in the papers, on CNN." I just said, "What are you talking about?" I didn't believe it. She started talking about the pictures and describing them. And I'm like, "Oh shit, how did they get out?"

Were you scared when you realized the pictures were out there?
I didn't really believe it. It was kind of like I was still in shock. I was like "No, me?"

But you knew at that stage that the investigation had been underway since January?
Yeah, but I didn't know it was so public with America, or even the world. So I went to this buddy I knew in the barracks, and I looked it up on the Internet and thought, "Oh my God." I couldn't believe it. And then I started getting paranoid. I was really getting scared at that point and thinking somebody's gonna beat the shit out of me. And I was only three months pregnant and I wasn't showing so they could beat the hell out of me and I could have lost the baby.

See 'STERN's amazing (seven page), Lynndie England interview in it's riveting entirety.

And discover some (special), others she says she blames.

*(Cross posted at Appletree)

Video Tapes and Lies: CIA Continues Coincidence/Conspiracy/Carelessness Crap ...

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Cor blimey, Charlie. Can you Adam & Eve it?

(For the none intelligent intelligence types (lagging behind) among us, that's Cockney rhyming slang.

Take all the time you need to try to figure it out for yourself if you can't comprehend all that quickly. Since from here on in, we're staying schtum on said subject. After all, who ever said we were here to educate enemies? Especially, enemies within.

(Sarcastic British black humour ends.)



Unfortunately, much as we'd cherish the chance to show certain special things, we can't.

But we can show you - and speak shout out about - what follows below, since it's now in the public domain.

CIA destroyed interrogation tapes

The CIA destroyed the tapes when being scrutinised over secret prisons The CIA has confirmed that it destroyed at least two video tapes showing the interrogation of terror suspects.

According to the intelligence agency, the tapes were destroyed to protect the identity of CIA agents and because they no longer had intelligence value.

But civil liberties lawyers have refused to accept this, saying the CIA previously denied such tapes existed.

They say the move appears to be an attempt to destroy evidence that could have brought CIA agents to account.

The New York Times, which broke the story, quotes current and former government officials as saying the CIA destroyed the tapes in 2005 as it faced Congressional and legal scrutiny about its secret detention program.

Officials feared the tapes could have raised doubts about the legality of the CIA's techniques, the newspaper says.

Well now, slap us in the kisser with wet flat fish and flatten us all with that fabled feather duster! Surprise, surprise. NOT.

They can recognise a vehicle registration plate from satellites circling in space. They can examine at will every single one of everyone's emails with ease. They can continually listen in to (and tape), all of our telephone talks.

Yet they can't (like even the most unsophisticated civilian TV techies do daily), simply blank or fuzz out faces?

Yeah, sure. And the band played 'Believe me if you like'.

Call this continual load of lying crap what you want to - coincidence, conspiracy, careless - or perhaps to put it more politely, a clear cut (and dried) case of economy of truth.

Whatever you care to call it, remember the famous literary line, "A Rose by any other name" ?

There are also questions over whether CIA agents withheld information from the courts and a presidential commission.

The CIA's failure to make the tapes available to a federal court hearing the case of the terror suspect Zacarias Moussaoui or to the 9/11 Commission could amount to obstruction of justice, according to the New York Times.

Well, we say the CIA are shower of shitty serial liars. What's more, we challenge absolutely anyone to prove us wrong.



Read the rest of this report.

*(Cross posted at Appletree)

US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales Condemns Bush Presidency By Omission

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was back in a familiar place Tuesday, on Capitol Hill testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Alberto Gonzales is the Attorney General of The United States of America.

He's the official appointee to the office of the Chief Law Enforcement Officer of the current American administration.

President George W. Bush still insists on not firing him.

In God's name -- why?

Watch this and weep; for the whole wide world.



How can anyone either in America or indeed the whole wide world trust anything that comes out of any member of this current criminal maladminitration's mouth?

Including any of the reasons given for invasions, wars and occupations of other sovereign nations.

Including any reasons given for asking young Americans to go abroad and give their lives. And, to take the lives of innocent others.

Talk about tissues of lies.

Quite clearly, Lewis Carroll's Alice was much more believable.

And while the American people themselves continue to sit idly by and not (by fair means or foul), bring a halt to this ongoing criminal venture - can they honestly claim to be innocent of high crimes themselves?

Aren't they all accessories?

At the very least, should they be at all suprised if that's how they're viewed across much of the planet?

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Bush 'Upbeat On Iraq' Bullshit; His Latest Load Of Lies ...

Here's how one BBC piece began today.

Bush upbeat on Iraq security plan

There are now almost 80,000 US and Iraqi troops in Baghdad

US President George W Bush has said early indications suggest a security operation begun in Iraq more than two months ago was "meeting expectations".

You can read the rest of this puff-piece, right here.

Now, here's how another BBC piece began today.

Despair stalks Baghdad as plan falters

By Andrew North BBC News, Baghdad

The US surge involves intelligence-led raids to track down militants

Trying to get into the centre of Baghdad earlier this week offered one view of how far away the Americans and Iraqi authorities are from gaining control here.

We were at the airport. Just before we were due to leave, the entrance car park was hit by a car bomb.

US troops and private security forces who guard the perimeter locked the whole area down for the next four hours. No traffic was allowed in or out.

While we waited with scores of other vehicles, mortars were fired at the airport. Fortunately for us they landed on the other side of the runway, plumes of smoke shooting into the air.

You won't have heard about any of this because at the same time a series of other far more serious attacks was taking place.

One was at the Sadriya market in the city centre, where a massive car bomb killed more than 140 people.

And here's how that piece ended.

An average of 80-90 Americans die each month. And US personnel have just had their tours extended by another three months.

But, as it has always been since the 2003 invasion, it is the Iraqis who suffer most.

No-one knows the exact figures, but at the end of another week of unspeakable, random carnage, hundreds more Iraqi families are grieving.

Exhaustion and despair hang over the country.

And there are no signs of change.

Hit this link to read the rest of this report.

Any questions?

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