Friday 30 August 2013
Intervention in Syria
Yesterday, British Parliament voted against intervening in Syria. An interesting decision. I have mixed feelings; first of all, I support intervention to protect innocent victims of Assad's brutal dictatorship but on the other hand, this could mean a change in direction of our foreign policy and becoming more independent from the USA. It also means that the likelihood of any conflict between the UK and Iran over Syria or any future conflict between the two countries over Iran's nuclear programme is now highly unlikely. Excellent news for an English-Persian. It also means that Britain will cease automatically joining the USA in foreign conflicts in the future. As far as the Syrians are concerned, the victims and potential victims of Assad's slaughter have my moral support. Even if the UK does not get involved, it looks like the USA will carry out a limited military strike against Assad's forces. Assad's regime will eventually fall. He cannot possibly survive. Distancing ourselves from the USA will do the UK a lot of good.
Tuesday 27 August 2013
Sunday 4 August 2013
Why I contribute to the NSPCC.
This week parents of a young boy were sentenced to life for the cruel murder of their child. For many years, I have made a regular monthly contribution to the NSPCC whose aim is to prevent cruelty to children. We should all make a contribution, no matter how small, to empower these organisations. Sadly, in recent times, there have been several of these cases of extreme cruelty leading to the deaths of young children here in the UK. We must all be more vigilant in the future and social services and the police should not accept the excuses of any parent when there is the slightest suspicion of abuse.
Saturday 3 August 2013
My List of Greatest Leaders of the last 100 Years (1914-2013)
1. Churchill - Defeated Hitler. WW2 would not have been won without Winston Churchill. Without doubt, the most charismatic Western political leader of the last 100 years. Voted the most popular Briton in history and rightly so. No British PM since has come anywhere near him. When he led Britain, we knew we would never be defeated. He also had a way with words and inspired President Kennedy.
2. Khomeini - Opposed the USA (was the David to america's Goliath). Promoted his religion the way a religious leader should. I'm a Catholic but he could have persuaded me to become a Muslim. Khomeini is the reason why Islam has now become the most powerful and most followed religion in the world. He is mis-understood by the West. He had extraordinary personal charisma and survived an 8 year war with Saddam Hussein, counter-revolution, the Shah, Carter, Reagan and the Soviet Union. His legacy lives on. He did all this when he was in his 80s. Like Gandhi, he ignored the trappings of wealth & greed.
3. Gorbachev - Ended the Cold War. Thatcher & Reagan will claim this for themselves but this is nonsense. His significance is far greater than he is now being given credit for. Yeltsin stole some of his thunder but Gorbachev started the whole process. When he came to power the world got very excited. Like Kennedy he had charisma but unlike Kennedy he backed up his words with action. He made a real difference.
4. Mandela - like Khomeini a great revolutionary but unlike Khomeini popular in the West. The most popular black leader in history. Without Mandela, apartheid could not have ended in the relatively peaceful way that it did. A leader of white people as well as the black majority. Mandela exceeded the myth he had when he was in prison.
5. Blair - Best British PM (ignoring Churchill's post WW2 government) since Attlee. Took the right but unpopular decision to bring down the evil Saddam Hussein. Introduced New Labour. Unfortunately, the stupid people inside and outside the Labour Party don't understand that this was the winning formula. It made our Party the natural Party of government. The left within our Party still don't understand that "their" Party is unelectable. Blair is still the most popular Labour PM for over 50 years and would win power today if he returned as leader of the Party. The media incorrectly suggest that the Gulf War destroyed Blair's image. This is untrue. His reputation was damaged but he is still the most popular British politician over the last 50 years.
6. Wilson - Labour PM who was smeared by the CIA because he refused to back the USA over Vietnam. Britain's last truly independent Prime Minister.
7. Castro - Survived Kennedy and every US President since. Not sure about his politics but he refused to bow to the bullying superpower on his doorstep.
8. Pope John Paul 11 - the best leader of the Catholic church in modern times and helped bring down the Soviet Union. Popular because he opposed the liberalisation of the Catholic Church.
9. Mossadegh - Like Khomeini, he opposed interference of the superpowers in Iran's internal affairs. He was Iran's Gandhi.
10. Obama - A good US President (which is a rarity) but nevertheless over-rated. Under-achieved so far but unlike his predecessors he is not a warmongerer. He needs to deliver big in his second term. Being the first black US President is not enough.
2. Khomeini - Opposed the USA (was the David to america's Goliath). Promoted his religion the way a religious leader should. I'm a Catholic but he could have persuaded me to become a Muslim. Khomeini is the reason why Islam has now become the most powerful and most followed religion in the world. He is mis-understood by the West. He had extraordinary personal charisma and survived an 8 year war with Saddam Hussein, counter-revolution, the Shah, Carter, Reagan and the Soviet Union. His legacy lives on. He did all this when he was in his 80s. Like Gandhi, he ignored the trappings of wealth & greed.
3. Gorbachev - Ended the Cold War. Thatcher & Reagan will claim this for themselves but this is nonsense. His significance is far greater than he is now being given credit for. Yeltsin stole some of his thunder but Gorbachev started the whole process. When he came to power the world got very excited. Like Kennedy he had charisma but unlike Kennedy he backed up his words with action. He made a real difference.
4. Mandela - like Khomeini a great revolutionary but unlike Khomeini popular in the West. The most popular black leader in history. Without Mandela, apartheid could not have ended in the relatively peaceful way that it did. A leader of white people as well as the black majority. Mandela exceeded the myth he had when he was in prison.
5. Blair - Best British PM (ignoring Churchill's post WW2 government) since Attlee. Took the right but unpopular decision to bring down the evil Saddam Hussein. Introduced New Labour. Unfortunately, the stupid people inside and outside the Labour Party don't understand that this was the winning formula. It made our Party the natural Party of government. The left within our Party still don't understand that "their" Party is unelectable. Blair is still the most popular Labour PM for over 50 years and would win power today if he returned as leader of the Party. The media incorrectly suggest that the Gulf War destroyed Blair's image. This is untrue. His reputation was damaged but he is still the most popular British politician over the last 50 years.
6. Wilson - Labour PM who was smeared by the CIA because he refused to back the USA over Vietnam. Britain's last truly independent Prime Minister.
7. Castro - Survived Kennedy and every US President since. Not sure about his politics but he refused to bow to the bullying superpower on his doorstep.
8. Pope John Paul 11 - the best leader of the Catholic church in modern times and helped bring down the Soviet Union. Popular because he opposed the liberalisation of the Catholic Church.
9. Mossadegh - Like Khomeini, he opposed interference of the superpowers in Iran's internal affairs. He was Iran's Gandhi.
10. Obama - A good US President (which is a rarity) but nevertheless over-rated. Under-achieved so far but unlike his predecessors he is not a warmongerer. He needs to deliver big in his second term. Being the first black US President is not enough.
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