It is tempting to treat the jailing of fake bomb detector salesman James McCormick as comedy, so risible were his completely bogus detectors. Indeed, one day I have no doubt we shall be seeing a television film treating him as a lovable rogue; the con-man figure is the staple of many movie plots. He will probably be played by Alfred Molina.
But the seriousness of the case goes much wider than the fact that people have probably died as a result of the non-protection of his fake bomb detectors. This case speaks volumes about the Iraq the western armies have created. We are continually told the media that the war, justified on weapons of mass destruction – a much bigger con, killing far, far more people than Mr McCormick – is post hoc justified because at least we brought democracy to Iraq. What we brought, in both Iraq and Afghanistan, are the world’s most corrupt governments. According to the widely respected Transparency International, Iraq is the 169th most corrupt country in the world and Afghanistan the 174th. Out of 174.
It does not take a great deal of acuity to work out that McCormick’s bomb detectors – which contain no working electronics – are fakes. He did not succeed by persuading buyers they really worked. He succeeded by persuading Iraqi officers, officials and ministers to accept cash in return for buying rubbish with state funds – most of which funds were supplied by the American taxpayer.
But McCormick was just small beer. He was the unauthorised con. The authorised con involved more money by a factor of twenty million; it was a multi trillion dollar con involving entirely fake and planted evidence as a justification for a war in which millions were killed or maimed, the infrastructure of a modern country bombed back to the Middle Ages, and vast personal fortunes made in the arms, mercenary, military support, banking and oil industries.
Yes McCormick should be in jail. But those much, much more guilty are walking around, opening libraries and giving lecture tours.
“If you ever lived in the country run by dictatorship (I lived in 2 such countries) you would understand, perhaps.”
More relevant point should surely be that you have lived amongst ordinary men, women & children; basic empathy for fellow humans, forced to pay the price that (duped) others think that they should pay.
Macky: was about to say that perhaps you need to live under a brutal dictatorship to understand it. I was entirely, emotionally and factually, against the attacks on Afghanistan and Iraq from the outset but it’s not beyond my imagination to understand that if you had had family or friends killed or tortured an intervention might initially seem appealing – until you faced the reality of war and reflected on the killing of hundreds of thousands of civilians and the chaos and devastation which would inevitably follow. Fedup; “However, there are those wankers who will always try and side with the warmongers, and upon the failure of the said warmongers then change trenches and start singing another tune” – well, possibly, but this is clearly not the case with UzbekUK.
For the record I do NOT hate my country or the US or Americans, just very angry about the psychopathic leaders who conned the people into giving them power and then waged war on people with different skin colours to kill and maim them.
In fact the incidents of skin cancer and skin ailments in Iraq, and surrounding areas are staggering. The use of DU ought to be classified as a war crime, because as you know the half life of uranium is around four and one half of billion years, therefore Iraq is a no go area for the next few billion years.
The simple facts about DU rounds; upon striking their targets become vaporised and due to the high temperatures are effectively transformed into nano particles of ceramics nature that cannot be destroyed and are fine enough to breach the body defences, this makes these particles extra deadly.
April Showers,
You let the tosspot get under your skin, who cares, about the musings of any ziofuckwit?
Ziofuckwits ought to be ignored, for these are animals (actually it is not fair on animals really) in the guise of human being, as you well know, ignore the crap out of it.
Enough with the didactic posts. As and when your counsel was required, I will call upon you.
Not really Fedup. Sometimes I correct the lies put out to sully my name.
“Enough with the didactic posts. As and when your counsel was required, I will call upon you.”
Very funny, Fedup! Keep them coming!
You seem to have misconstrued the point, it was not meant to be a joke.
Upon any needs arising for any explanations, education, or counsel, I will call upon you. Until then enough of teaching through didactic posts.
I don’t see the need for slamming someone who depicts RT as a Putin fish-wrapper. Press bias and collusion is not merely a Western tradition.
(rolls on floor with appreciative laughter)
“We don’t take anyone seriously, not even ourselves. Because whoever takes themselves seriously has stopped with the thought that their truth should be the truth for everyone and forever. And, sooner or later, they dedicate their force not so that their truth will be born, grow, be fruitful and die (because no earthly truth is absolute and eternal) rather they use it to kill everything that doesn’t agree with this truth.”
Subcommandante Marcos
Macky,
As I said earlier you first need to experience life in the country run by brutal dictatorship (not just come and go there with shiny red/blue passport and run to the embassy at sign of first trouble) and it will then become obvious what is “more relevant point should be surely”.
Problems with such type of dictatorships is outside of scope of Iraq and Afghanistan. This is the problem of international system with its unconditional support for soverignity without conditioning it to respect of human rights. Until then people will die either in sectarian war or from the hands of brutal dictators. And again the thin line could only be understood by those who were oppressed, and not by Conservatives who cut public spending but by the government with police force 5 times the size of the army.
This is a tautology, right?
Fact is it gets a bit tiring to read through oodles of shite, with a highly biased and slanted view that is promoting the corporate media diet. A better source of that kind of bullshit would be Daily Mail, Telegraph, etc.
To be subject to a myopic and narrow interpretation of the world events is akin to having to tolerate a dentist drilling one’s tooth without any anaesthesia.
There are those around here, whom verily believe they are the only fonts of knowledge and holders of the truth, and frankly that just will not wash with this commenter.
Of course there is bias, and it is getting worse, as Sergei Lavrov said during the little spat of Saakashvili with Russia; “we knew the propaganda apparatus in the West had evolved into a seamlessly integrated organ, but not to this extent!”. Therefore to read the usual brain farts stating the same shite as found in the corporate media is really an attempt to reinforce the message for those whom may not have been taking the time to read/listen/watch the desired messages they ought to be taking note of.
“To be subject to a myopic and narrow interpretation of the world events is akin to having to tolerate a dentist drilling one’s tooth without any anaesthesia.”
It must’ve been a tautology, if that was your point. I think Uzbek’s was RT should be taken with a grain of salt like Alex Jones.
I read RT, but with caution just as I do with NYT.
WOW, such a profundity, in defence of being didactic. “Trust me! I know best”, somehow does fall foul of the Subcommandante’s edicts, now, does it not?
PS no need for Subcommandante’s wisdom, Kurt Gödel forwards a far more elegant solution.
Precisely!
“Trust me! I know best”, somehow does fall foul of the Subcommandante’s edicts, now, does it not?
PS no need for Subcommandante’s wisdom
😉
PS Oh no. Godel starved himself to death?
It is doubtfully that the message with all the “brain fart” and “shit” goes further than it would have otherwise. If not, then why to use farting and shitting jargon?
Before the Iraq war I was vaguely aware of the forms of corruption that lead to lined pockets of those ‘in the know’ and that this country had forms of corruption which shared the same purpose and outcome, if not quite the same methods as any of the most dysfunctional countries, whether in the east, west, north or south of the planet.
But, Iraq was a strange moment for so many, when the scales fell from the eyes and it became easy to see and hear the dishonesty. Anyone who followed the story carefully was able to see into and through the whole edifice and see the main people involved for what they were.
It was breathtaking.
However we are not really any nearer resolving this matter. The main scamsters are running free and untouchable. We are not really any closer to any intellectual or philosophical resolution of the fundamental philosophical dilemmas at the heart of this process. Indeed it seems as if the position is simply getting worse, if anything and the knowledge of the deep malaise that lies at the heart of this country seems to have made little difference.
The McCormick character is just one of many of the kind of ‘entrepreneurs’ so beloved of the ‘realists’ Thatcher and Blair et al.
The opposition to all these rogues is fragmented, unable to organise, and drifts into a mixture of impotent fury and frantic ‘conspiracising’ , of which this blog comments is a perfect example, as if some more detail or extra piece digging over the calamitous actions of such people will somehow overwhelm them, and ‘reveal’ them for what they are, to those who are unmotivated and acquiesce or are too distracted, busy or stupid to act or even express disapproval. Unfortunately I dout that this approach will ever bear fruit in achieving any real redress.
I think the problems really is a higher order one.
Yes Fedup it was Kurt Gödel who became distressed when he found ‘inner contradictions’ in the American Constitution that could show how, “in a perfectly legal manner, it would be possible to become a dictator and set up a Fascist regime, never intended by those founding fathers who set-up the Constitution.
Sorry, just asking, is Jim McCormick of Scots-Irish origin like Ulsterman Paisley and Senator John McCain? Just a putative foray into arriving at a devil recognition template.
I propose from various sources it is clear that some time before the UK financial collapse, mass hysteria, looting and rioting, Serco would have established at least one
concentration campdetention center near a railway line; possibly Bletchley Park would be a viable place for future development.Anarchists and dissidents interned would ‘be altered’ to believe or do things necessary during martial law.
Calling a shovel a spade, ought to be a sufficient for an explanation.
Very true. US is a fascist system that has been in the making since 1884.
This ex SIS operative turned whistle blower has for years spilled the beans. Note the Islander he has depicted. AS you would know Islanders props and their tip speed can present a noise problem, however the systems deployed on this platform have taken full account of this facet.
As ex Soviet system was allowed to collapse, the current political arrangements are doggedly defended, going so far as setting up concentration camps here and elsewhere. There are currently 500,000 Muslim inmates in detention, on the say so of US (as per WaPo).
Fedup
I’ve not noticed your non-use of ‘the’ before. Is this native language cross-over or speed-writing, please. Pure curiosity.
Also, when you’re angry, why not modulate your name according to your mood? From little bit Fedup to Absolutely steamed-up-windows @@%$** Fedup. I will do likewise, from Goo Goo, fine; Guano,P’d off; Guantanamo, angry; to Guantananamtanguantamaslam, nearly about to explode.
Was it in this place that I heard that the Nigerians were jealous that the world’s biggest con had been done in Iraq by George Bush, instead of by them?
Caviar Vendor!
Speed writing.
Although I am a polyglot and can speak a few languages, and don’t ask what languages. Linguistics is a hobby of mine (deviancy and perversion of the highest order), The evolution of communication is a fascinating subject and is an ever fresh subject.
Fedup
Linguistics
Thanks. On his near death bed my darling dad was engaging in discussion with friends about the drip and the difference between continuously and continually. (deviancy and perversion of the highest order). An inherited family failing obviously.
In separate news
http://theneedleblog.wordpress.com/2013/05/03/ken-livingstone-on-kincora/
Wonderful.
I see the blog is back on form again.
Keep it up Mr Murray.