Here I only share the story published by the Associated Press news agency – link below; truly exhausting to keep up with the mess on both sides of the Atlantic particularly in the U.S. where it represents a typical case of, well…a Nut (or a fruitcake if you have a […]
Read More I know I know charm is not the first thing that comes to mind when one looks at old Mitchy but I am talking about the gesture itself. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Putin for facilitating the process; I suspect/suggest that the GOP for […]
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In the face of a dramatic spike in COVID-19 cases in Germany I watched this passionate speech by Chancellor Merkel – a true leader that I deeply admire/respect – amazed by this truly Iron Lady with a Purple Heart in her strong sense of duty/responsibility to country, and all I could […]
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No-Deal Brexit: UK threatens to send in gunboats to protect fishing waters BREXIT Britain is really shaping up, ain’t it? With childish morons in charge of the country and its dangerous adult gadgets there cannot be a better/safer Britain (or some would say a “Crackers Britain” prepared to hold arms […]
Read More EU rejected Boris Johnson request for Brexit call with Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron Let me start by saying that the disgusting negotiating tactics of Boris Johnson based on the above news link is an insult to this country further undermining our reputation by treating negotiations as if it were […]
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While our wise leaders enjoy their dinners, continental breakfast with croissant and/or English breakfast we all hold our breaths for the latest developments in the negotiations. However now we’re getting slowly used to the template for the storyline coming out of the official ongoing chatter which goes something like this; […]
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Take Care, Stay Safe & Respect Others Safety
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The clip below speaks for itself in demonstrating not just the ignorance of a man in top job but the utter lack of experience / decorum particularly at a moment when we’re in crunch negotiations with the EU for a BREXIT deal. In fact what experience/track record does this charming […]
Read More Prime Minister “Odd Ball” formerly known as “Pint Pale” approves a vaccine to be used as of next week (period)!?…. It is certainly great news for all that we finally have a vaccine but if the performance of the so-called government is anything to go by we are in for […]
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What we hear from EU leaders is plenty of talk of values and the rule of law. But it seems that these “traditions” are only applicable on certain ad hoc basis; in other words baseless. Now I am a big supporter of the EU project but I see many weaknesses […]
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"Support American Greatness"! Where have you been these last 4 years you naughty boy? Can you tell us – will keep it a secret, really? https://t.co/425kbIC70W — Fidelito (@F_Galal) November 27, 2020
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Ever gone on a hot air balloon ride? It’s fun; that is I suspect so as I haven’t tried it myself 🙁 What is NOT so fun is watching Democracies crumble in the face extremist politics of the far right. Whether in the U.S, the U.K the signs are unmistakable; […]
Read More Expecting the Watergate Moment Many seem to expecting/encouraging the Watergate Moment when Republicans legislatures finally broke ranks with President Nixon but even then this took quite a while to happen and Republicans support remained mostly strong even in the face of a scandal that consumed his second term. So the […]
Read More This will be short/sweet – maybe not so sweet. What’s happening in America right now is tragic at so many levels and will be impossible to recover from for decades; who runs the country is only relevant to the extent of when the recovery starts but when it does it […]
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President Elect Joe Biden is not one to be envied with the tremendous task at hand not only taking on the reign from a disastrous administration that’s been a disaster for America and the world on so many levels, but also in dealing smartly with the potential political landmines laid […]
Read More For once I will talk of the U.S. elections while not talking about trump & inc. because we know them all by now – a family devoid of any form of basic decency/value base; so they are in every sense of the word quite irrelevant not only to the conversation […]
Read More We’ve seen it all before but the shocking fact is that it was in the Middle East where corruption & authoritarianism thrive; once upon a time there was an Arab spring that went south trying to take dictators down so now is this the U.S. spring following the same trajectory? […]
Read More Here’s my final take on the U.S. election results and I leave you in the capable hands of the brilliant John Oliver in unpacking this whole soap opera as it continues to unfold. As I mentioned in my first post about the election here where early indications did not look […]
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Let the Healing Begin For the healing to start the first objective is actually quite simple; let’s NOT repeat this mess ever again. So here are a few pointers that I hope could be relevant/make sense; 1- We all know about the necessary national healing that needs to take place […]
Read More Let the Healing Begin Take Care, Stay Safe/Positive & Respect Others Safety
Read More I hope I’m wrong but I think NOT at this point. That said even if Biden does win, having a close call election is extremely disappointing at one level to the point that the U.S continues to be the Boogie Man in the room for a long time – or […]
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Plenty has been going on in the past few decades that have a profound impact on our future; a future – if you care to examine close enough – that knows no borders. From political turmoils/conflicts driven in by fundamentalism (religious and/or racial) to economic meltdowns and critical environmental indicators […]
Read More Everyone understands – or at least should understand – that religious beliefs are for many an important aspect of their being/value system. But in secular states with its multicultural/ethnic compositions where religious freedoms are guaranteed/protected and where religious beliefs/orientations do not infect/influence social and/or political structures – this phenomenon is […]
Read More A brilliant speech by former President Barack Obama about the state of play in American politics – sort of the unpacking this conundrum we all face today, not just in the U.S; he certainly unpacked the GOP and the current “dis-adminstration”. More importantly it is an inclusive/pragmatic vision forward one […]
Read More I call on the British government and all political parties to reaffirm our commitment as a nation to equal rights/protections to all groups irrespective of colour, religion, ethnicity or sexual orientation; it is a reaffirmation that ensures equal treatment to all under the law. It follows from this foundational principle […]
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Liberal Democrats leader Vince Cable denies plotting new anti-Brexit centrist party after missing an important vote on BREXIT in the House of Commons. Not sure what sort of “Party” he’s been up to but it is clear the precarious situation Liberal parties are facing in this country particularly at a time […]
Read More We keep hearing about the virtues of Democracy & Liberal Progressive Values. Yes we do apply Democratic principles in the West but now mostly in form rather than in actual reality. We then make assumptions about our governance structures & Democratic credentials rather than continuing to scrutinise/assess these structures & […]
Read More When we read 2 contradicting statements from the same European government in Germany – links below – within the span of 24 hours we should understand the problem in the EU nowadays is the continued confusion about how to deal with Covfefe the Joker & Clan – and here I […]
Read More An incredible exchange in Congress between Republican Congressman Trey Gowdy and FBI agent Peter Strzok – needs to be watched till the end when agent Strzok responds to Trey Gowdy’s assertions about attempting to influence the Presidential elections. The key takeaway – in my judgement – is how politics is broken […]
Read More I know that being critical of Special Interest/Lobbyist as a threat to Democracy has been more like a theme in my recent posts. But this level of vial corruption takes us to a new level where a preacher is seeking to raise funds to buy a jet. That’s not all […]
Read More It is all well said by President Emmanuel Macron in calling for the protection of Democratic/Liberal values/traditions in Europe. In my mind however this is only one part of the equation/approach. The other integral part of this approach is for Europe to apply basic principles when dealing with rogue/authoritarian regimes […]
Read More We’ve been watching the complete travesty of politics/government Trump Style for over a year now. But beyond the shenanigans that have clouded this administration one of the most dangerous elements is when personal affairs (and/or personal judgements) start influencing policy, particularly foreign policy and particularly when this involves a super […]
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I came across a very interesting article entitled How China’s “sharp power” is muting criticism abroad (link below) about China’s increased influence/meddling in western democracies mainly to promote a positive image of the country, and distorting information to suppress dissent and debate. It’s safe to say that this behaviour is […]
Read More Now I happen to be one of those who – though a non-American myself – always believed in American leadership never questioned (effectively) the perception of strength of the American model of Democracy & Liberalism. This view however has been shattered to smithereens for a few simple reasons, and here’s the […]
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Let’s first get things straight; I identify myself as a Liberal heart/soul and subscribe to Liberal values & traditions. I also happen to believe that Liberalism is about centrist/pragmatic policies rather leaning towards the alt-left or alt-right of political ideology. I was a member of the Liberal Democrats for 10 […]
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This post is going to be short and sweet, for a change. Today came yet another glaring indication of where loyalties lie of Theresa May and I would say a big chunk of her team. When Trump made these silly retweets viewed as offensive to Muslims – related article below […]
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Democracy cannot be imposed but should be actively supported. Let’s learn some lessons from the failures of the Arab Spring and develop/apply an adaptable template to help emerging democracies find/apply a suitable/sustainable path towards democratic governance. The first steps are always the most difficult ones and many states choose the […]
Read MoreA very interesting interview – link below – with French President Emmanuel Macron and I only wish there was more of it to cover a more penetrating insight into his views on a variety of important topics six months into his Presidency. Now a couple of points right off the bat; […]
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I came across this clip on youtube and decided to post it on my site. Why? Well Jon Stewart is the one person who has the capacity/ability like no other person that I know to zero in and dissect important elements of very complex issues like racism and articulate his […]
Read MoreWhen we look at the rise of the alt-right (including Trump & BREXIT) it is sometimes helpful to look at the big picture rather than the specific political battles taking place. This big picture suggests that we’ve been complacent in taking Democracy & Liberal Values for granted for much too […]
Read MoreWe have for years been struggling in coming to terms with the effects of globalisation on our economy & national identity going from one extreme view to another. We have also for the last year been trying to come to terms with the BREXIT referendum results and with the rise […]
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Now I must say I’ve always respected Vince Cable as very experienced/ethical politician since the time I was member of the LibDems. However I was also one that suggested him leading the party was the wrong choice – though his experience was important to the party (related link below to […]
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Just learned the news of the death of Otto Warmbier the US student who has recently returned from captivity in North Korea. Very sad news indeed and my heart/deepest condolences goes to his family and friends. Let his story also serve to remind us of the many lives lost under […]
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The decision of Tim Farron to step down as party leader for the Liberal Democrats is in my view the right decision – not because any issues about his views on gay rights which seem to have been overblown; rather because of the party’s poor election results and the need […]
Read MoreA very interesting article published by Chatham House – link below – which examines the impact of a military heavy National Security Council (NSC) on conducting foreign policy, though some have called it a form of discrimination against the military. However, this approach coupled with the weakening of civilian institutions […]
Read More Recently I’ve had the opportunity to read the analysis entitled “The Kremlin Playbook”, published by Center for Strategic and International Studies–CSIS. It certainly is a very interesting read for anyone keen on researching the subject of Russia’s growing influence in Europe & within western democracies in particular. However the objective […]
Read More It seems like everyday now we’re hit by yet another disastrous outcome from the Trump administration whether in policy or in action/reaction. It then becomes easy for us, thanks to media coverage and its over-analysis & obsession with sensationalism, to focus on the detail while loosing site of the “Big […]
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This article (link below) demonstrates the mess that has become of the Business of Government-or rather the Business in Government-in the United States. It is truly shocking the level at which US government has been overtaken by Business and headed by one of the most corrupt businessmen in history. Business […]
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President Macron seems to be leading the way towards progressive politics; Women forming half of his cabinet Bringing new/young leadership to be the backbone of his party Leading a new/pragmatic vision for EU reform A new energy and approach is exactly what is called for to re-establish Liberal/Democratic values/traditions that have […]
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