My successor as Rector of the University of Dundee, Brian Cox, has left Labour and joined the SNP. Almost no mainstream media coverage – if it was the other way round, we would have Murphy and Cox wall to wall for weeks. I am delighted about Brian’s move as it is more evidence of genuinely radical voices coming in to the party. I was similarly happy yesterday to find that Tommy Sheppard, for whom I voted, has been selected to fight Edinburgh East, where I live. I think the SNP with its new membership is going to be a great deal more radical than it was before.
Long term readers may recall that in 2010 I stood down as Rector of Dundee University after only one term, as I did not feel I had been able to give it as much time as I would wish to do a really excellent job. Now I have moved back to Edinburgh, those problems no longer apply, and I shall be standing for election to take the post again next year, as Brian Cox completes his second (and final) term.
I cannot help but recall that on the polling day of my election as Rector in 2007, the Daily Record came out in Dundee with a full front page photo of my opponent, Andy Nicol (unionist rugby player), and a single front page headline “I was born to lead Dundee students”. The lengths to which the Establishment will go to try to ensure that whistleblowers stay down and stomped upon sometimes surprise even me.
There is a pro-Independence rally outside parliament from 11 am on Saturday. I shall be speaking. I am not sure how widely it has been publicised, but I do hope that it will show that the extraordinary spirit that has been awakened in Scotland is still alive and kicking.
Ba’al Zevul
5.50pm
Ah, I see! Thanks for explaining. I saw that movie and thought it was rubbish, too. Couldn’t understand why everyone was saying it was so good. A comedy set in a concentration camp, yeh, right. How brave.
KNOWN
Just noticed your comment at 12.16.
Ba’al pretty much explained it, here it will also explain who Dora and Joshua are.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life_Is_Beautiful
The only decent thing about it is Offenbach’s Barcarolle
—Start quote
—End quote
Before switching the question, shouldn’t the obvious answer be, “Yes, of course it damned well is!”
Then the question could be switched, and the originator asked, “Would you not also agree…” – it’s polite and furthers discussion and understanding, if one could answer a question first, before asking another in return. Otherwise we’d just be bouncing questions around all day. It’s not as if the question concerning the Jews is an imponderable, surely?
Here’s a clip of La Vita E Belle, I’m pretty sure, that the acting is so bad it could only pass as a comedy, a Dad Army type movie.
Don’t tell them your name Pike.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Y9aKqawdUQ
“Then the question could be switched, and the originator asked, “Would you not also agree…” – it’s polite and furthers discussion and understanding, if one could answer a question first, before asking another in return. Otherwise we’d just be bouncing questions around all day. It’s not as if the question concerning the Jews is an imponderable, surely?”
______________________________
Glenn.
The original question wasn’t aimed at me, I asked Habb/Guido the second question, but I still have no answer.
But to be polite as you say, the answer to the question I was never asked is yes.
Now I’m sure you wish to also be polite so I’ll ask you the same question only instead of Jews its Palestinians.
Is the answer as you say “Damned well is” yes!
Or like Habb/Guido, will you also fail to answer.
Ros: Of course it damned well is. Perhaps you don’t pay much attention to individuals around here, not enough to anticipate their positions, but I don’t believe my own could have been any clearer over the years.
Here’s a question, by way of illustration: If Hitler had included the Jews in his master-race BS, does anyone think they wouldn’t have gone along with it? Particularly considering how enthusiastically they are adopting most of the master-race philosophy, treatment of “the other”, propaganda, dehumanising and military aggression towards their own victims.
The Barrr-corolle kicks off Act Two of the Tales Of Hoffmann, but it infuses all of Offenbach’s opera, and if you can stand Joan Sutherland’s haircut…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiCfQVo2xww
Republicofscotland
You would have to do much more than just replacing “Jews” by “Palestinians” if you wanted to “switch” my question, RoS.
H
Republicofscotland
You would have to do much more than just replacing “Jews” by “Palestinians” if you wanted to “switch” my question, RoS.
Have a go at redrafting it as appropriate, including deleting the words “the Holocaust” (because there was and is no Palestinian Holocaust) and paying some attention to the numbers you’d like to advance.
If you redraft in an honest manner I’ll happily answer.
RepublicOfQuiveringHate
“Then the question could be switched, and the originator asked, “Would you not also agree…” – it’s polite and furthers discussion and understanding, if one could answer a question first, before asking another in return. Otherwise we’d just be bouncing questions around all day. It’s not as if the question concerning the Jews is an imponderable, surely?”
______________________________
Glenn.
The original question wasn’t aimed at me….”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well, actually it was. It was asked by me a day or so ago and specifically addressed to two named commenters and to “others”.
I’m afraid you were part of the “others” to whom the question was addressed because I felt you did not merit an individual mention (hope you don’t mind!).
O note that you did not answer until today, when the question was repeated and you were specifically challenged to do so by Glenn.
You’re very dishonest in your evasiveness, aren’t you.
There is also a quiz show on BBC called ‘Pointless’.
Republicofscotland
Just watched the La Vita E Belle clip. It’s worse than I remember. Just ghastly. Some things just ain’t funny.
OT, but who isn’t?
Re Rupert getting stuck into Blair, more evidence today for the hypothesis:
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/politics/article4340225.ece
(Paywall, but direction clear)
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/features/6312592/Tony-Blairs-office-and-cash-from-nations-with-dodgy-human-rights-records.html
(Paywall again, ditto)
“You would have to do much more than just replacing “Jews” by “Palestinians” if you wanted to “switch” my question, RoS.”
________________________________
Guido/Habb
Just as I thought an evasive cowards reply, no question like the one you asked Nevermind, at 3.45pm was specifically directed at me.
In hindsight although I guessed it all along its you who’s the Nazi, by failing to answer, yes, to the Palestinian question I posed to you at 3.53pm.
Your refusal to answer yes to the question only confirms your guilt as Palestinian genocide supporter.
No amount of twisting or contorting the question to suit your goals will change that fact.
Desperately seeking kewl, dudez….aka pretty digital sorta guy. If it’s really him, pmsl.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClaKXNmjPqSo1F9GQhCF09w
KNOWN.
I must say I admire your tenacity to actually sit through that, Laurel and Hardy-esque type movie.
I do profess to seeing several clips of the B movie,(and I’m being very generous) and half expecting Captain Mannering to make an appearance.
RepublicOfMurderousDesires
““You would have to do much more than just replacing “Jews” by “Palestinians” if you wanted to “switch” my question, RoS.”
________________________________
Guido/Habb
Just as I thought an evasive cowards reply, no question like the one you asked Nevermind, at 3.45pm was specifically directed at me.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hardly a coward’s reply, RoMD, surely. Just a sensible one.
You see, if you simply “switch” the question without doing some redrafting along the lines I suggested, your question to me would read as follows:
““Whether 6, 4.5, 3 or 2.5 millions innocent Palestinians were killed in the Holocaust, that was 6,4.5, 3 or 2.5 million too many – do you agree?”
And that would be very silly, wouldn’t it, because the numbers would be meaningless and because bot a single serious commentator or historian calilms that there was or is a Palestinian “Holocaust”.
Conclusion : get re-drafting so that your question makes sense and I’ll happily answer. You’ll need to exert yourself a little, but surely it’s worth it?
“claims”
Re “La vita è bella”
Lovely song:
“Life is beautiful that way(Colonna sonora “La vita è bella”)”
Listen on YouTube, its catchiness might even cheer some of you grim buggers up! 🙂
“Hardly a coward’s reply, RoMD, surely. Just a sensible one.”
______________________________________
Guido/Habb.
Nope.
You really are deluded, you’re most definitely a Palestinian genocide supporter, and the Israeli’s (who you could in all fairness liken to Nazi’s, in their murderous treatment of Palestinians) have been slaughtering and butchering Palestinians since 1947 or there abouts.
Yet you can’t bring yourself to answer yes when asked.
“Whether 6, 4.5, 3 or 2.5 millions innocent Jews were killed in the Holocaust, that was 6,4.5, 3 or 2.5 million too many – do you agree?”
Switch the above question, and replace the Jews with innocent Palestinians do YOU agree?
You failed to answer YES.
You area Palestinian Genocide supporter ARE YOU NOT?
Nope, Habbakuk’s point still shiningly clear. Commas all over the place now, I see.
Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah: –
Quote:
Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah
Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah: –
Quote:
Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah
Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blahblah –
Strange, people who attempt to belittle/sideline any discussion of the realities of the Nazi Holocaust. Not so far away from people attempting to downplay/ignore the effects of Israeli government policy towards/attacks on the Palestinians.
Gawd, I shouldn’t have posted that. My eyes are hurting.
Did you say something, Technicolour?
La vita è bella won three Oscars (best actor, best original dramatic score, and best foreign language movie). The Hollywood establishment must have like it. For what that’s worth.
They do seem to have a thing about Holocaust movies.
Habbabkuk
Lovely song:
“Life is beautiful that way(Colonna sonora “La vita è bella”)”
_______________________
It certainly is a lovely song. I checked it out on YouTube and was quite taken aback at how often Colonna Sonora has been used in other films, Braveheart, il Postino, Last of the Mohicans, Cinema Paradiso et al.
Then I realised it was for the same reason that every town in Germany is called Ausfahrt.
Oops.
A group of Holocaust survivors and descendants of those targeted by Nazi Germany have harshly criticized Israeli actions in Gaza and called for boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS) against Israel.
Following a letter from survivors of the Holocaust printed in the New York Times on Saturday, the International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network, which helped coordinate the letter, organized a press call Monday, where some of those who signed the letter spoke out against the assault on Gaza.
Participants in the press call included Edith Bell, whose parents died in concentration camps and who was taken to four camps herself; Suzanne Weiss, whose mother was murdered in Auschwitz and who was hidden by French peasants; and Liliane Kaczerginski, whose father Schmerke was a Jewish fighter against the Nazis in Lithuania. Also joining the call were Monadel Herzallah and Hani Jamah, two Palestinians with family in Gaza who expressed appreciation at the descendants’ and survivors’ efforts.
– See more at: http://mondoweiss.net/2014/08/holocaust-survivors-palestinians#sthash.dEnTfsMx.dpuf
Lysias
La vita è bella won three Oscars (best actor, best original dramatic score, and best foreign language movie). The Hollywood establishment must have like it. For what that’s worth.
They do seem to have a thing about Holocaust movies.
___________
Yes, they sure did like it, but I felt then and do now that this was essentially phoney, posturing. They were dazzled by the audacity of making a comedy set in a Concentration Camp, but to me it just proved that you could only do that by traducing the truth.
About twenty years ago I visited the Tuol Sleng school in Phom Penh where the Khmer Rouge tortured their prisoners – now a museum with all those black and white photos on the wall. At that time it hadn’t yet been tidied up and turned into a museum, the blood stains were still visible on the floor. The school girl who acted as my guide recited a long sad litany of all her family members who had died there. ‘Pol Pot man had no pity at all.’ Below I’ve posted camp ‘rules’ that were on display there at the time. In many respects the language is pure ‘Carry On’ film, but is there anything funny about this? As far as I’m concerned at thousand years from now it won’t be funny.
1. You must answer accordingly to my question. Don’t turn them away.
2. Don’t try to hide the facts by making pretexts this and that, you are strictly prohibited to contest me.
3. Don’t be a fool for you are a chap who dare to thwart the revolution.
4. You must immediately answer my questions without wasting time to reflect.
5. Don’t tell me either about your immoralities or the essence of the revolution.
6. While getting lashes or electrification you must not cry at all.
7. Do nothing, sit still and wait for my orders. If there is no order, keep quiet. When I ask you to do something, you must do it right away without protesting.
8. Don’t make pretext about Kampuchea Krom in order to hide your secret or traitor.
9. If you don’t follow all the above rules, you shall get many lashes of electric wire.
10. If you disobey any point of my regulations you shall get either ten lashes or five shocks of electric discharge.
Politics can be pretty rough on the health of people. But I would never have imagined that it would take such a terrible toll on a once good-looking fellow. This photo was taken only a couple of weeks ago.
http://www.theengineer.co.uk/Pictures/web/i/n/k/Brian_Cox5.jpg
[craigmurray.org.uk – There is no evidence that Gaia Hepburn is the same commenter as Mary. The ‘icon’ on Gaia Hepburn’s comment is an ‘Identicon’ generated by this site’s WordPress software, based on the email address submitted with the comment, so the pattern and colours are not chosen by the commenter.]
Gaia Hepburn (aka Mary, with swastika like icon in colours of Israeli flag) — “i must admit I am tired of having to skip past so much spam from certain posters. It seems the less they have to say the longer they take to say it. Please ban the spam or I won’t be coming back. I have asked before you may recall but life is not good with certain posters here. This blog needs severe moderation!”
Google Translation : Petulance –> English
“I grudgingly admit that I am an impatient bigot with no tolerance for certain unnamed posters. It’s too hard to read comments that I don’t understand. Immediately censor these comments or I’ll get on my huffy bike and never come back. I have previously announced that I don’t like certain unnamed posters here. This blog needs North Korean style moderation!!!”