Nick Clegg punishing "Anti Zionist" whip as "Anti Semite" BBC News - MP David Ward has Lib Dem whip withdrawn over Israel comment
Quote:
MP David Ward has Lib Dem whip withdrawn over Israel commentBy Gary O'Donoghue
Chief political correspondent, BBC Radio 4
David Ward David Ward apologised after comments he made in January Continue reading the main story
Related Stories
MP Ward denies 'language classes'
MP faces action over 'Jews' comments
MP censured over Israel criticism
Lib Dem MP David Ward has had the party whip withdrawn over comments he made about Israel.
He posted a tweet at the weekend calling the country an "apartheid state" and saying that "Zionists" were "losing the battle".
It comes after a long-running dispute with the party's leadership over his use of language and comments he made about "the Jews".
Mr Ward said he would not apologise for his tweet.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews said his suspension from the Lib Dem parliamentary party, which lasts until 13 September, was "too little, too late" and "an empty gesture".
'Strength of feeling'
Mr Ward, MP for Bradford East, wrote on his website in January that he was "saddened that the Jews, who suffered unbelievable levels of persecution during the Holocaust, could within a few years of liberation from the death camps, be inflicting atrocities on Palestinians in the new State of Israel and continue to do so on a daily basis in the West Bank and Gaza".
This led to a complaint to the Lib Dems from the Holocaust Educational Trust.
At the weekend, Mr Ward posted a tweet, asking: "Am I wrong or are am I right? At long last the #Zionists are losing the battle - how long can the #apartheid State of #Israel last?"
Following a meeting on Wednesday with Mr Clegg and chief whip Alistair Carmichael, the party whip was withdrawn until 13 September.
This means he has been expelled from the parliamentary party, although the Commons will rise later on Thursday for the MPs' summer break, which ends on 2 September.
In a letter to Mr Ward, Mr Carmichael wrote that he had felt "immense disappointment" at the latest comments.
He said: "We were in unanimous agreement that questioning the continued existence of the state of Israel fails the test of language that is 'proportionate and precise'.
"We want to be clear with you that in this process we are not concerned about your views and opinions on the policies of present or previous Israeli governments, nor the situation in the Israeli-occupied territories, nor the strength of feeling with which your views are held.
"As we have sought to impress upon you repeatedly, we are having to decide on whether language you chose to use in January and February, and now this month, is language which brings the party into disrepute or harms the interests of the party."
'Regrettable'
Mr Carmichael continued: "It is also immensely frustrating for us to find ourselves constantly responding to questions about disproportionate and imprecise language from you.
"These interventions cause considerable offence rather than addressing questions of political substance about the plight of the Palestinian people and the right of Israel's citizens to live a life free of violence."
But, questioned about his tweet at the weekend, Mr Ward said: "I will not apologise for describing Israel as an 'apartheid state'. I don't know how you can describe it as anything else.
"I am genuinely quite shocked at the reaction to the kind of thing many people say."
Mr Ward initially defended the comments he made in January, saying the party's response - reprimanding him - had been "regrettable", but later apologised for the "unintended offence" which his words had caused.
He also insisted that neither he nor his comments had been anti-Semitic.
Mr Ward, who visited the West Bank in December last year, denied in March that he had been ordered by the party leadership to attend "language classes".
Following the withdrawal of the whip, Jonathan Arkush, vice-president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, said: "We note that the Liberal Democrats have at last taken some action to address the completely inappropriate and offensive comments that he has made.
"However, suspension of the whip for just two months when Parliament is not sitting is too little, too late. It is a token and frankly an empty gesture."
Karen Pollock, chief executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust, said: "David Ward has never fully apologised for his comments, which deliberately abused the memory of the Holocaust and caused deep pain and offence.
"It is about time the whip was withdrawn, but the timing allows Mr Ward to repeat his unacceptable views when Parliament returns in the autumn."
However, not all Jews would agree that denouncing Zionist policies as "Apartheid" is anti-Semitism.
Eyewitness: Tomb protest | World news | The Guardian
MOD says civilians more prone to PTSD and suicide than frontline troops Bit of a cheek bearing in mind they don't even record suicides of veterans.
BBC News - UK soldier and veteran suicides 'outstrip Afghan deaths'
Quote:
[h=1]Afghan deaths'[/h]After serving in Afghanistan, L/Sgt Dan Collins was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder
Continue reading the main story[h=2]Related Stories[/h]
UK military deaths in Afghanistan
Roadside bombs - 'the deadliest weapon' in Afghan war
More young veterans treated for PTSD
More British soldiers and veterans took their own lives in 2012 than died fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan over the same period.
BBC Panorama learned that 21 serving soldiers killed themselves last year, along with 29 veterans.
The Afghanistan death toll was 44, of whom 40 died in action.
Some of the soldiers' families say the men did not get enough support. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said every suicide was a "tragedy".
The Panorama programme obtained the figure of 21 through a Freedom of Information request to the MoD.
The MoD said that rates of suicide and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) within the serving military were lower than comparative rates in the civilian population.
Seven serving soldiers have been confirmed as having killed themselves last year, and inquests are pending for a further 14 deaths where suicide is suspected.
The British government, unlike its American counterpart, does not record the suicide rate among ex-soldiers.
But Panorama has independently established that at least 29 veterans took their own lives in 2012.
It wrote to every coroner in the country to ask for the names of soldiers and veterans who killed themselves last year and also analysed newspaper reports of coroners' inquests.
'Hell on earth'One serving soldier who killed himself was L/Sgt Dan Collins, who had fought in Operation Panther's Claw in Helmand province, Afghanistan, in the summer of 2009.
Deana Collins, the mother of L/Sgt Collins, said her son was a "victim of war"
L/Sgt Collins, a Welsh Guardsman, twice survived being shot and was blown off his feet by a roadside bomb.
His friend, L/Cpl Dane Elson, was blown to pieces just yards away from him.
L/Sgt Collins's mother Deana had noticed a difference in her son during his time in Afghanistan.
Continue reading the main story[h=2]Number of suicides, open verdicts and suspected suicides awaiting inquests among serving soldiers[/h]
2010 - 7
2011 - 15
2012 - 21
Source: Ministry of Defence
"The phone calls changed and I remember him telling me, 'Mum, this place is hell on earth and I just want to get out of here'," she said.
After a six-month tour, L/Sgt Collins came home, returning to his girlfriend Vicky Roach's house.
Miss Roach said: "Obviously then I started noticing things. Nightmares were the main thing. It was pretty clear he was back there reliving everything."
Return to dutyThe Army diagnosed L/Sgt Collins with PTSD.
L/Sgt Dan Collins's name is not engraved on the wall at the National Memorial Arboretum
After 10 months of intermittent treatment, the Army told L/Sgt Collins he had recovered and would soon be ready to return to duty.
Over the next three months, he twice tried to kill himself.
He started missing his weekly NHS appointments and told his girlfriend his flashbacks were getting worse.
"I wanted to help him but I didn't know what to do," said Miss Roach. "It takes a toll on your relationship and I just asked him to leave."
On New Year's Eve in 2011, L/Sgt Collins left her house, put on his Army uniform, and drove into the Preseli mountains in Pembrokeshire.
He recorded a farewell video on his phone and then hanged himself. He was 29. The inquest into his death is still to be held.
A 'natural response'Clinical psychologist Dr Claudia Herbert said PTSD is the body's "natural response" to distressing events.
It can take years to emerge but is treatable if caught early. Symptoms include flashbacks, severe anxiety and depression.
Continue reading the main story[h=2]Darren's story[/h]Darren Booker, a Welsh Guardsman, was disturbed by what he had experienced in Afghanistan.
He said: "I went into camp one morning and I just broke down. So they took me to the doctor's and he said you might have PTSD."
An appointment was arranged but he missed it because he was on paternity leave. When he left the Army in January 2011, he had not been formally diagnosed with PTSD and then became chronically depressed.
"I'd feel suicidal every day," he said. "I probably didn't leave the house properly for about a year."
He applied for compensation from the Army but it was refused because he had never been formally diagnosed with PTSD.
He has been unable to work since so his partner must support him and their three children.
The MoD said 2.9% of serving soldiers developed PTSD, which is lower than the general population.
The number of soldiers with PTSD has more than doubled in the past three years among those who served in Afghanistan, according to MoD figures obtained via Panorama's FOI request.
But Dr Herbert said: "Post-traumatic stress disorder in itself should not lead to suicide."
"PTSD is a condition that indicates something has deeply disturbed the system and is a warning that the system needs help and needs to regulate again."
Nobody can be sure how many of the 21 soldiers and 29 veterans who took their own lives in 2012 were suffering from PTSD as the reasons for suicide are complex.
"The evidence suggests there's more of a problem than the government and the MoD are admitting to," said Colonel Stuart Tootal, a former commander of 3 Para.
The former head of the British army, General Sir Richard Dannatt, wants the suicide rate among veterans to be monitored.
"It's pretty clear to me that it should be happening because once you have some statistics you can start to do something about it," he said.
'Victims of war'The MoD said it was not prepared to talk about individual cases but has committed £7.4m to ensure there is extensive mental health support in place for everyone who needs it.
It said 134,780 soldiers have been deployed to Afghanistan since 2001.
Continue reading the main story[h=2]Number of soldiers with initial diagnosis of PTSD who served in Afghanistan[/h]
2009 - 108
2010 - 180
2011 - 183
2012 - 231
Source: Ministry of Defence
The National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire honours the military casualties of every conflict since WWII.
The names of soldiers who killed themselves in Afghanistan are engraved on the wall but those who took their own lives after returning home are not mentioned.
L/Sgt Collins was a serving soldier at the time of his death on 1 January 2012 but his name will not be on the memorial.
"It's heartbreaking because Daniel would have been so proud to have his name carved somewhere," said Mrs Collins.
"Soldiers with PTSD are exactly the same. They're victims of war and they should be treated exactly the same."
Ex Boss Cop defends political spying as "national security" BBC News - Police use of dead children's identities 'justified'
Quote:
[h=1]Police use of dead children's identities 'justified'[/h] The Metropolitan Police's Special Demonstration Squad specialised in undercover operations
Continue reading the main story [h=2]Related Stories[/h]
Labour urges undercover police curbs
Police use of child IDs 'was common'
Inquiry call over dead children IDs
A former commander of the Metropolitan Police's Special Branch has said that the use of dead children's identities by the Special Demonstration Squad (SDS) "was justified".
Roger Pearce told BBC Radio 4 that undercover officers used the names of dead children "for protection of national security".
But he admitted that it was "distasteful in many ways".
MPs have called the practice "ghoulish" and said police should apologise.
An inquiry into undercover policing at the Met is investigating the use of children's identities.
Now a novelist, Roger Pearce was commander of Special Branch between 1999 and 2003.
It was his job to sign off almost every undercover operation carried out by the SDS during that time.
'False life' "The objective was to gather secret political intelligence. Many in the Met as a whole wouldn't have known about it and even within the branch it was kept very, very secret for 40 years," Mr Pearce told Radio 4's The Report.
One thing SDS officers did before going undercover was decide on a new name. They often adopted the identities of dead children because they needed a real persona so they could apply for documents like a driving licence and National Insurance card.
Earlier this year, the Guardian reported that undercover police stole the identities of about 80 children who had died at an early age.
"If you were inviting people to lead a false life, they had to have a true identity. They had to be able to feel secure throughout the deployment, that their identity and legend would stand scrutiny," said Mr Pearce.
"At that time, before the digital age and before identities could be made up, this was the only way of finding a true alias - by going through recorded documents at St Catherine's House [where birth and deaths records were kept] and making the choice from that," he explained.
Officers did find this technique distasteful, he said. "People felt very awkward about doing it. People thought of the parents of the children who had died. But against that was the sense of mission and work for the country."
But he said that "on balance, distasteful in many ways though it was, set against the sense of mission and the sense that this was done for protection of national security, I believe it was justified".
Women suing police In an interim report on undercover policing earlier this year, the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee said it was a "ghoulish and disrespectful" practice.
"The families who have been affected by this deserve an explanation and a full and unambiguous apology from the forces concerned," said MPs.
The SDS squad was mall - only around a dozen officers going deep undercover at any one time, sometimes for up to 10 years to infiltrate groups picked out as subversive. It was disbanded in 2008.
"Most had families who had to also bear this other life they were leading at strange times of the week - weekends and evenings - so it was tough for the officers and tough for their families too. But I think what drove them on to do it was that it was seen as the pinnacle of their careers," Mr Pearce said.
Twelve women are suing the Met Police for emotional trauma claiming they had intimate relationships with undercover officers, believing they were having a relationship with a fellow activist.
The Operation Herne inquiry into undercover policing was launched in 2011 after it became known that former PC Mark Kennedy had spied on environmental protesters and had at least one sexual relationship with an activist.
Roger Pearce told the BBC there were no rules about whether undercover police could have sexual relationships with people they were infiltrating.
"Unpalatable as it is, the state... was inviting officers to live a false life for five or more years, to develop false friendships during that time and my point would be while you are living that kind of life, the false friendship can develop and escalate into a sexual relationship.
"So it's almost inevitable that these took place and I am making no moral judgements about them at all. It's the decision of the individual officer how he would conduct his time in the field."
The BBC asked Policing and Criminal Justice Minister Damian Green for an interview. He declined but said in a statement the rules for undercover work would get tougher.
"Undercover police operations are vital in the fight against terrorism and serious organised crime. However, covert powers must be used proportionately and only when necessary.
"Last month I announced law enforcement agencies will need to notify the Office of Surveillance Commissions at the outset of all undercover operations and get OSC approval for every deployment that lasts longer than 12 months."
In other words, Cops break the law, do not give a shit about breaking the law, just so long as things carry on as they are now.
The Truth about truthloader! Well I only just found out that a youtube channel I sometimes watch is funded and run by ITN productions.
Explains why they always have access to decent studio equipment and nice looking women (and men :D)
But finding this out has kinda burst the bubble for me. I never really liked them cos I always thought that if someone came along and offered them cash for the channel they would jump at it. Me and GL both agreed that they could be doing this to kick start a career in journalism or something. But now I feel they are being told what to report on by ITN, so it's not exactly citizen journalism for me anymore. :(
Oh well
Truthloader
Hooray! Let’s celebrate! Happy 4th July! The Puritans have left old England and guarantee they won't be coming back EVER...
... except possibly for a few snap shots around London and Bath, and possibly a round or two of golf in Scotland.,
Taliban complaining about being compared to Tory Party If not, they should be.
BBC News - MP Peter Bone objects to 'Tory Taliban' label
Quote:
MP Peter Bone objects to 'Tory Taliban' label Peter Bone Peter Bone's son is serving in the RAF
The Conservative MP Peter Bone has objected to Labour's description of some Tory MPs as the "Tory Taliban".
In the Commons, the Shadow Leader of the House, Angela Eagle, poked fun at the legislative proposals being put forward by Mr Bone and his colleagues.
She said ideas like a Margaret Thatcher Day showed the "Tory Taliban" was continuing to "fire on all cylinders".
Mr Bone, whose son is serving in Afghanistan, said it was "extremely offensive", and should be withdrawn.
He raised the comment as a point of order in the Commons: "At a time when the brave men and women of our armed forces are fighting these evil people... I find that to be a completely objectionable remark."
Responding in the Commons for Labour, Thomas Docherty said it was not the first time Ms Eagle had used the phrase " Tory Taliban" - he said she had seen it used on the Conservative home website and had believed it was a "self-proclaimed term".
He added that Ms Eagle "means no disrespect to the honourable gentleman, for whom she has a great deal of affection".
Deputy Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle said MPs should be mindful of using "moderate language" in the Chamber.
meanwhile in egypt there is some debate over whether it is or isn't a revolution and numbers between 20 and 33 million between news pages, but it is definitely happening whatever 'it' is
Mohamed Morsi ousted in Egypt's second revolution in two years | World news | The Guardian
Pinned
Pussy Riot Absolutely fucking horrendous how this is allowed to happen, and what with a female judge too......
Pussy Riot sentenced to two years in prison colony over anti-Putin protest
Russian leader accused of orchestrating case against trio found guilty of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred
Pussy Riot sentenced to two years in prison colony over anti-Putin protest | Music | The Guardian
Pussy Riot members jailed for two years - Europe - World - The Independent
:cry:
UK/NL/NO : A ships fender washed up on the beach. A big thing to be adrift - but thankfully its so big that everyone can see it and it poses little danger to shipping.
Experts have been called in to transport a ship's giant fender from a Norfolk beach back to its moorings in a North Sea oil field.
Inflated rubber Yokohama fenders, like the one on Thornham Beach, protect quay walls and are used in ship-to-ship transfers at sea, the coastguard said.
Warnings were sent out over the past few weeks to shipping after the fender came free during a gale off Norway.
A team now aims to refloat it and return it.
The Coastguard and Maritime Agency traced the owners of the fender, which is 30ft (9m) long and 20ft (6m) high, using a number printed on its side.
Its owner, a Dutch company, has now organised a team of experts to go to the beach in north-west Norfolk.
Swivel Eyed Loons – Still Screwing Speculation rife on the internet over who is involved in No.10 secret love affair as PM holds crisis talks over tryst | Mail Online
:weee:
Quote:
[h=1]Internet speculation rife over identity of mystery pair involved in No.10 secret love affair as PM holds crisis talks over tryst[/h]
Identities of people involved or details of relationship cannot be disclosed
They are middle-aged figures and the affair has now concluded
Mr Cameron was ‘stunned’ when told the identities of alleged lovers
He ‘immediately realised the importance of the story’, sources revealed
'None of us could believe it when we first heard it' said senior source
I don't see what the fuss is about - every single inhabitant of Downing St has fucked everybody else one way and another.
Bilderberg meeting comes to Watford this year This year we will be discussing our hostile take over of Izbekistan, and how much horse meat to put in your pig entrails this year. Anyway, should be funny, bilderberg always comes with entertaining conspiracies and great Alex Jones BS to laugh.
Anyone who doesn't know about it, I got a little history of video in my YT sub box today.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cmWlLcVQFc
anonymous ‘operation innocence’ vigilantes. (trigger warning) Have you heard of these ?
They are a group of hardcore hackers aimed at child sex abuse.
They hack into multiple pedophile forums and destroy the websites.
News article
(Just to warn you the above story is quite upsetting)
Recently a alleged child abuser has been put on a bail awaiting his trial for five months. As a response the anonymous sent a threatening letter:
Anonymous demands an immediate review of Judge Gaughan's decision to release this animal among our children. We also demand the immediate involvement of the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources to determine the safety of the child in her current surroundings. Your failure to perform these actions will result in your town becoming the next Steubenville, Ohio in the media spotlight. Do the right thing by your citizens immediately or read about your errors in every media outlet in the country. This is non-negotiable.
Operation Innocence is re-engaged.
Would be quite interesting to see how this unravels. Normally I would asume one can't take the above threats serious but these guys seem to actually have quite a head on their shoulders.
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.YesNoPrivacy policy
You can revoke your consent any time using the Revoke consent button.Revoke cookies
