By continuing to use the site, you agree to our use of cookies and to abide by our Terms and Conditions. We in turn value your personal details in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
Please log in or register. Registered visitors get fewer ads.
I've been listening to Radio 4, Radio 5 and the World Service today, and the tone of various interviews on the Palestine issue seems somehow different.
There have been some extraordinarily desperate (in my opinion) and awful rants from apologists for Israel's regime (Angela Epstein, West Bank settlers etc.) and on the other hand similarly extraordinary declarations from the likes of Erhud Olmert and other Jewish people who come across as so frustrated and angry with the misuse of the term 'antisemitism'. Notable that one or two BBC presenters have shown real frustration with some of the pro-Israel rants too.
Not sure what effect the UK, France, Canada et al will have on the actors who are really in control of the outcomes, but something certainly seems to have shifted in our media as a result of Labour's shift in stance. About fkn time.
Good work by Philogene...... GREAT WORK BY PHILOGENE!!!
I have had a feeling for the longest time that we are generally effed as humans but it's difficult to not ignore that it really has switched now. I try my hardest now to just zone out because of how much hate and derision that is being created and a good amount of the public are just lapping it all up. Not enough kindness in this world and just live in my own little bubble. I'm pleased something has been done and said but same with all governments, it's too late and never enough. Not enough good eggs in politics.
2
Today feels somehow different, at least in the UK media on 08:16 - Sep 10 with 446 views
Today feels somehow different, at least in the UK media on 23:00 - Sep 9 by Reus30
I have had a feeling for the longest time that we are generally effed as humans but it's difficult to not ignore that it really has switched now. I try my hardest now to just zone out because of how much hate and derision that is being created and a good amount of the public are just lapping it all up. Not enough kindness in this world and just live in my own little bubble. I'm pleased something has been done and said but same with all governments, it's too late and never enough. Not enough good eggs in politics.
I try to be positive but there isn't much to be positive about.
This cracking song from Bob Marley perhaps best sums things up.
[Post edited 10 Sep 8:19]
1
Today feels somehow different, at least in the UK media on 10:05 - Sep 10 with 372 views
Today feels somehow different, at least in the UK media on 23:00 - Sep 9 by Reus30
I have had a feeling for the longest time that we are generally effed as humans but it's difficult to not ignore that it really has switched now. I try my hardest now to just zone out because of how much hate and derision that is being created and a good amount of the public are just lapping it all up. Not enough kindness in this world and just live in my own little bubble. I'm pleased something has been done and said but same with all governments, it's too late and never enough. Not enough good eggs in politics.
From the 1980s onwards, we had several decades of promises that the world was getting better. Emerging from the crises of the 1970s, the rapid advance of new technology, rising standards of living, then the fall of the Iron Curtain and a new era of a seemingly safer world. The forced positivity all got a bit overheated.
Then it all started to turn sour. New global threats (some the results of old issues), the economic hits they brought, the rising cost of living, wealth inequality, damaging financial crashes (the dot.com boom and bust, the sub-prime and banking crisis), climate change, mass migration caused by all those. But, above all, alienation from governments who made wonderful promises, but were unable to deliver even basic improvements, often not seeming to care much.
With the world getting darker, as is so often the case, people turned inward and nationalism gained force, xenophobia, verging into racism. The have-nots were induced to jealous hatred of other have-nots. Frustrated rage at unfulfilled promises stoked up by people pretending they wanted to break the system to benefit the self-diagnosed downtrodden, but really intent on plunder.
The constant erosion of good education has not left people equipped to avoid the danger. The media has consistently raised expectations and stoked dissatisfaction, chasing sales/clicks. Our leaders have done little to set standards or reflect reality.
It's taken four decades of rise and fall to get here. It will take time to get out of this. We're better at doing it without major wars nowadays, but the risk of strife is there.
Today feels somehow different, at least in the UK media on 10:05 - Sep 10 by Guthrum
From the 1980s onwards, we had several decades of promises that the world was getting better. Emerging from the crises of the 1970s, the rapid advance of new technology, rising standards of living, then the fall of the Iron Curtain and a new era of a seemingly safer world. The forced positivity all got a bit overheated.
Then it all started to turn sour. New global threats (some the results of old issues), the economic hits they brought, the rising cost of living, wealth inequality, damaging financial crashes (the dot.com boom and bust, the sub-prime and banking crisis), climate change, mass migration caused by all those. But, above all, alienation from governments who made wonderful promises, but were unable to deliver even basic improvements, often not seeming to care much.
With the world getting darker, as is so often the case, people turned inward and nationalism gained force, xenophobia, verging into racism. The have-nots were induced to jealous hatred of other have-nots. Frustrated rage at unfulfilled promises stoked up by people pretending they wanted to break the system to benefit the self-diagnosed downtrodden, but really intent on plunder.
The constant erosion of good education has not left people equipped to avoid the danger. The media has consistently raised expectations and stoked dissatisfaction, chasing sales/clicks. Our leaders have done little to set standards or reflect reality.
It's taken four decades of rise and fall to get here. It will take time to get out of this. We're better at doing it without major wars nowadays, but the risk of strife is there.
Interesting and accurate analysis as usual Guthers
1
Today feels somehow different, at least in the UK media on 11:42 - Sep 10 with 284 views
Today feels somehow different, at least in the UK media on 10:05 - Sep 10 by Guthrum
From the 1980s onwards, we had several decades of promises that the world was getting better. Emerging from the crises of the 1970s, the rapid advance of new technology, rising standards of living, then the fall of the Iron Curtain and a new era of a seemingly safer world. The forced positivity all got a bit overheated.
Then it all started to turn sour. New global threats (some the results of old issues), the economic hits they brought, the rising cost of living, wealth inequality, damaging financial crashes (the dot.com boom and bust, the sub-prime and banking crisis), climate change, mass migration caused by all those. But, above all, alienation from governments who made wonderful promises, but were unable to deliver even basic improvements, often not seeming to care much.
With the world getting darker, as is so often the case, people turned inward and nationalism gained force, xenophobia, verging into racism. The have-nots were induced to jealous hatred of other have-nots. Frustrated rage at unfulfilled promises stoked up by people pretending they wanted to break the system to benefit the self-diagnosed downtrodden, but really intent on plunder.
The constant erosion of good education has not left people equipped to avoid the danger. The media has consistently raised expectations and stoked dissatisfaction, chasing sales/clicks. Our leaders have done little to set standards or reflect reality.
It's taken four decades of rise and fall to get here. It will take time to get out of this. We're better at doing it without major wars nowadays, but the risk of strife is there.
That's a really good compact summary of what's happened to the human race in my lifetime.
'Frustrated rage at unfulfilled promises stoked up by people pretending they wanted to break the system to benefit the self-diagnosed downtrodden, but really intent on plunder. ' really sums up the modus operandi of the populist conmen Tr*mp and F*ra*ge.
But we've lost touch with reality - we were scared sh!tless when I was kid at the end of the Cold War, but by all accounts even more so during the 60s and 70s. Now we face the same risks, plus arguably worse ones in CC, AI, and bio-weapons, and yet we seem to treat things like a movie that will have a heroic happy ending in a couple of hours, at which point we can go home and get a pizza and a new pair of trainers delivered.
Good work by Philogene...... GREAT WORK BY PHILOGENE!!!
Today feels somehow different, at least in the UK media on 10:05 - Sep 10 by Guthrum
From the 1980s onwards, we had several decades of promises that the world was getting better. Emerging from the crises of the 1970s, the rapid advance of new technology, rising standards of living, then the fall of the Iron Curtain and a new era of a seemingly safer world. The forced positivity all got a bit overheated.
Then it all started to turn sour. New global threats (some the results of old issues), the economic hits they brought, the rising cost of living, wealth inequality, damaging financial crashes (the dot.com boom and bust, the sub-prime and banking crisis), climate change, mass migration caused by all those. But, above all, alienation from governments who made wonderful promises, but were unable to deliver even basic improvements, often not seeming to care much.
With the world getting darker, as is so often the case, people turned inward and nationalism gained force, xenophobia, verging into racism. The have-nots were induced to jealous hatred of other have-nots. Frustrated rage at unfulfilled promises stoked up by people pretending they wanted to break the system to benefit the self-diagnosed downtrodden, but really intent on plunder.
The constant erosion of good education has not left people equipped to avoid the danger. The media has consistently raised expectations and stoked dissatisfaction, chasing sales/clicks. Our leaders have done little to set standards or reflect reality.
It's taken four decades of rise and fall to get here. It will take time to get out of this. We're better at doing it without major wars nowadays, but the risk of strife is there.
The digital world generally has been a massive double-edged sword, which I think will eventually become thoroughly destructive - social media disinformation (an odd example being that few people trust cute animal videos any more because so many are AI generated - ie a basis of mistrust in everyone and everything has developed).
We used to go outside and do stuff. Now so many (including me!) spend increasing amounts of that time looking at screens on our sofas. It’s an addiction that impacts on health, politics, climate change.
I’m no expert, but always instinctively felt AI would destroy the human race. When humans have been too stupid to prevent wars, and ensure shelter, water & food are adequately available for every person on earth, then they’re also stupid enough not to be able to control other monsters they create.
Abraham and Szor were two of the four co-directors of No Other Land, which won the Oscar for best documentary in 2025.
Drawing a connection between the two films, the directors said: “In the film No Other Land, we spent five years, together with [Palestinian co-directors] Basel Adra and Hamdan Ballal, documenting the army destroying Palestinian homes in order to paint a larger picture of a system of occupation and ethnic supremacy aimed at the removal of Palestinians from the West Bank.
“In NAZA, we are similarly connecting the dots of a system, gathering the testimonies of two dozen intelligence officers and soldiers and depicting the military systems used to perpetrate what a UN commission and the world’s leading human rights groups have described as a genocide.”
Today feels somehow different, at least in the UK media on 16:40 - Sep 9 by SuperKieranMcKenna
Yeah the UK imports over a trillion USD of goods every year, that’s chicken feed. And the sanctions largely only target the illegal settlements, not wider exports.
UK retailers can and do apply their own individual sanctions though - I remember about 10 years ago asking Fodder, a large farm shop & craft sales type store & cafe in Harrogate, when they’d have fresh figs back in stock, and them saying they’d banned all Israeli goods.
Would add also a big well done to Milliband - that was a great speech. Also shows another dimension of the value of diversity of backgrounds of people in government.
Today feels somehow different, at least in the UK media on 13:18 - Sep 10 by Ryorry
UK retailers can and do apply their own individual sanctions though - I remember about 10 years ago asking Fodder, a large farm shop & craft sales type store & cafe in Harrogate, when they’d have fresh figs back in stock, and them saying they’d banned all Israeli goods.
Would add also a big well done to Milliband - that was a great speech. Also shows another dimension of the value of diversity of backgrounds of people in government.
They can do. But as I said earlier this is only a mild extension of existing (very narrow Sanctions). A few bits of fruit aren’t going to bother a country who’ve been in perpetual war for over two years and seen their economy shrink by 20pc.
By contrast, the comprehensive Russian oil and Gas Sanctions are thought to have cost them half a trillion dollars (almost the entire economy of Petro-state Norway). This is very much tokenistic, and interesting to see the reaction versus when Sanctions were implemented by Starmer (who I don’t even have a lot of time for).
Would note also that Starmers’s govt ceased weapons export licenses for any that could be used offensively in Gaza. That is a far more significant development, but clearly he didn’t his personal brand on par with Milliband.
By continuing to use the site, you agree to our use of cookies and to abide by our Terms and Conditions.
) that sanctions are completely off the table when it comes to what Israel has done in Gaza. 