O Come All Ye Jew Haters - says Pat Condell - and promptly gets censored.

I have made a screenshot of the "offensive" three minutes clip page:

Click to enlarge for better viewing. I can't embed the clip itself, since the sharing option was disabled by YouTube owners. So you can only use the link above to get there.

And if you find what was so offensive in the contents of Condell's short speech - do me a favor and explain it to me.

Donald Trump is literally Hitler

When Akaky Akakievich talks, we, the other bloggers, can't do better than just listen.

This essay is one to listen to. So do it.

Returning by Yael Shahar

We know now where grief untold goes; it goes on to haunt future generations. It gets left behind on the grating; it passes unscathed through temperatures that can melt iron and reduce human bone to ash. And somewhere far removed in space and decades into the future, a stranger wakes out of a sound sleep with an inexplicable nightmare and a despair so deep as to negate life itself.

Somehow, and don't ask me how, I knew immediately that the quote above, taken from the middle of the book, will be the one for the post that I'll write. The book, Returning, appeared to have a special significance for me, and this is what is this post about. That and the need to tell you to read this book.

This is in no way a review, I am not a literary critic (an ugly combo of two words if there ever was one). It is also not a spoiler, I know y'all hate spoilers and I am not going there. So, unfortunately, it will have to be more about me and how I got to read the book than about the book itself.

Strangely, Soviet Union, an almost perfect implementation of a party dictatorship and the ideal of a Big Brother's bailiwick, was inexplicably generous where the literature about the Nazi concentration/mass murder camps and, by extension, about Holocaust, were concerned. There were several books in our home, and there was no problem whatsoever to get more from the local library. My parents, not being very much into censorship, allowed my reading material to be my own choice (and my own problem), and for some reason, the books about Holocaust took a significant part of my adolescent attention.

After a while, though, I just couldn't continue reading. Something bad was taking over me. The mix of pain, sorrow and, not the least, hate, became so intense that it impacted me on a physical level. Thankfully, there were no Germans in the vicinity, nor implements of revenge or knowledge necessary to operate these, but the mental scars left by the acquired knowledge remained forever. It took me a special effort to agree to visit Germany many years after that period (on business) and I have never been in Poland. The visit to Yad Vashem cost me more - on several levels - than I care to recall. And so it rolled with me. I wasn't able to read more about the Holocaust, or to see the movies, or to view interviews with survivors - all this was just too much for me.

But when I have seen the first notice about the book going to be published and about it subject matter, e.g. a member of sonderkommando*, my acquired resistance weakened. The subject was new to me. Not that I didn't know about sonderkommandos, but I have never seen one talking or writing about the experience, although I heard about survivors... So the ebook was duly purchased and downloaded.

Now about the book. Actually, it is again about me - reading the book this time.  I don't know whether many of you have undergone a musical ability test. Part of it is when the musician sits at the piano and plays a musical piece, where the melody passes from the lower octaves (left hand) to the higher octaves (right hand) and back. You are supposed to point to the correct hand when the melody jumps over, without delay if possible. When I started to read the book, for a short while I thought that I keep following the melody switching hands. But then - it very quickly appeared to be not a relatively simple fugue but a whole complex symphony that kept me on the edge of my chair for the whole time.

This book is a tough read.

This book is also a rewarding read.

This book is a mandatory read.

And many thanks to Yael.

P.S. And I had my own vision too, here in Israel - but it is another story.

(*) The only spoiler you are going to get from me.

Something is rotten in the Elders' HQ

I am taking a serious risk here, posting this inter-departmental memo from the Elders' HQ. So please don't tell anyone, OK?

To: [redacted], Field agents training dept., Elders' HQ
From: [redacted], European operations dept., Elders' HQ

Date: [redacted]

Subject: Operational readiness of the agents and the British fiasco.

Dear [redacted],

I am sorry to raise the subject, but the recent developments in the Albion are extremely disturbing. On one hand, our operation aimed at destabilizing the Labo(u)r party and discrediting that golem Corbyn was very successful, our fellow Jooz now believe that he is totally antisemitic. Which is good.

But the operation success was undermined by some loose tongues. Look what that Mark Serwotka character discovered:

The leader of one of Britain’s main trade unions has suggested that Israel created the antisemitism row that has engulfed Labour over the summer.

Mark Serwotka, who leads the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) and is a staunch supporter of Jeremy Corbyn, told a fringe event at the Trades Union Congress conference that the Jewish state could have “created a story that does not exist” in order to distract attention from “atrocities” he said it has committed.

Now, [redacted], please tell me that it is not your newly matriculated agents [redacted] and [redacted], that were drinking last week in London, in that [redacted] pub and talked loudly about the ways and means of our operation? It is by sheer luck that the waitress in the pub, one of our senior operatives, was able to slip [redacted] in their beer. Otherwise they might have very well been discussing our mind control technology and other ways to force the golem into his incredibly stupid slips of the tongue. Not to mention our secret way of adding truth serum to the London water supplies that made his minions to behave in the same manner.

Yes, I know that you have asked Colonel Ron Prosor, the ex-ambassador, to write that article in The Telegraph, where he, among other things, tried to discredit the (totally true) fact of him personally printing out the pro-Zionist speeches for MPs, government ministers and royal family members. But who reads The Telegraph, I ask you? It is behind a pay wall anyway. Yes, I know that he was trying to shirk that task, complaining about the sore state of his fingertips after all these years of controlling UK, but in any case the article did exactly the opposite of what it was supposed to accomplish.

So here is what I want you to do now. Open a page from the KGB (FSB it is called now) field manual and do exactly what the Russkies have done with these two hapless Novichok carriers. Prepare an interview where the two young morons, [redacted] and [redacted], will tell how they spent a vacation in GB, while most of the time under influence of a new experimental substance and were mostly concerned with all these British cultural treasures: the Big Ben, the Westminster, the Karl Marx grave - you know what I mean, from the list.

Yes, I know that you are in training dept. and not in operations, but on account of the whole being the fault of your product, I leave this part to you. And don't worry about exposing [redacted] and [redacted] to the media, we'll have to [redacted] them anyway.

Please let me know when the task is accomplished.
Elders rule!

Your [redacted].

P.S. And about this Serwotka putz: [two further paragraphs redacted]

Really, fellow Murcans?

People say lately that the Onion with its biting satire and ad absurdum (invented) situations isn't really catching up with current reality. How true is it, could be seen in this latest story about the Senate judiciary committee hearings of the Judge Kavanaugh possible appointment to the Supreme Court.

A senior Democratic senator has alerted federal investigators to a confidential letter she received regarding Brett Kavanaugh, Donald Trump’s conservative nominee for the US supreme court, in an extraordinary move that suggested she had been informed of possible wrongdoing.

And what it the wrongdoing about?

A source who said they were briefed on the contents of the letter said it described an incident involving Kavanaugh and a woman that took place when both were 17 years old and at a party. According to the source, Kavanaugh and a male friend had locked her in a room against her will, making her feel threatened, but she was able to get out of the room. The Guardian has not verified the apparent claims in the letter. It is not yet clear who wrote it.

After reading this, I have decided to make a clean breast of something in my past that might bite me on the backside if and when it suits me the least. I have already published it on FB, but who knows... so here:

When I was about 5 yrs old, my then GF persuaded me to piss from a second floor balcony. Some of the output dropped on a passerby. Hilarity ensued.

So there. Bite me.

An epitaph to Goldsmiths

Founded in 1891 in New Cross in south-east London, The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute (today known as Goldsmiths) was set up to provide an education to working class people of the area. Goldsmiths became part of the University of London in 1904 and saw a rapid rise in student numbers in the 1960s.

Goldsmiths has an excellent reputation as an academic and research institution with a famously strong arts and social sciences offering and there are several world-renowned artists among its alumni. Goldsmiths has always had a reputation for independence and free thinking both as an institution and among its student body and the university cultivates an atmosphere that is encouraging and receptive to new ideas.

This blurb could very well be used on the tombstone for the glorious institution's remains. Because a place of learning, where students are producing the kind of tirade you shall immediately read, is practically dead. Now just read, there is no need to comment or interpret. You may click on each of the three images to enlarge them.

In a country, where a good portion of population is clamoring for a repeat performance of what once took place in the late Soviet Union, this kind of arrogant ignorance is just the ticker. This time they will do it right, though, so no worries.

Mohammad Zarif speaks - about Soros. We better listen.

To start with a disclaimer: the man (Soros) is highly distasteful to me for many reasons, not the least of those is his own confession about his years as a youth under the Nazi rule being his happiest. There are other reasons, of course, but this will suffice for now.

The recent story started (for me) with an article in Israel today:

Iran admits to having 'worked closely' with George Soros network

Iran admitted on Sunday that it had worked closely with the Open Society Foundation, a grant-making network founded by American billionaire George Soros, which has often been accused of promoting an anti-Israeli agenda through left-wing NGOs.

Israel Today, being a somewhat funky source, chiefly dedicated to promoting the current government and its glorious achievements, didn't bother to provide any substantial proof of the matter.

Another article, from David Harris JR's site, provided essentially the same information:

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Zarif commented on Sunday that his government is working closely with George Soros’ Open Society.

The article, however, supplied a link to the recording of Zarif's speech, at least the relevant part of it:

Here, @JZarif admits that he had a close relationship with the George Soros’ @OpenSociety Foundation. Now if that is not evidence that @NIACouncil is a concoction of the regime, I don’t know what is. @georgesoros
pic.twitter.com/Faw6EgrSf0

— Andi Frouzèche 👑✡️ (@Persogladiat) September 3, 2018

My Farsi being somewhat rusty, I have asked Potkin Azarmehr to translate it, and here is the result (with Potkin's kind permission):

Basically Zarif is saying that while he was Iran’s UN envoy there was already a working relationship with Open Society and [other] Soros funded bodies but what he did was to make sure the relationship was better managed and monitored so nothing against national interest would take place. He adds he didn’t like doing this but in NY you have to build a working relationship and not just a hello/goodbye with all kinds of groups there.

In short, the story checks out, at least the part of the Zarif's speech.

Now I have to add a disclaimer (another one). The Ayatollahs are nothing if not crafty, and it would be naive to dismiss the possibility of another disinformation operation by Mr Zarif, who by himself is nothing if not crafty. Just a year ago Ayatollah Ali Khamenei mentioned "a “wealthy American Zionist merchant” trying to interfere in Iran’s 2009 election in his comments, likely referring to liberal billionaire George Soros". So there is no love lost between the two sides.

But, on the other hand, it is quite possible that a common interest helped the sides to overcome the other grudges...

So there. Watch out for Uncle George.

Update: Finally from BBC (Farsi edition):

Mr. Zarif defended the relationship with the staff of the Open Society Foundation, affiliated with George Soros, an American investor, and said that through this relationship he was able to "restrict and regulate" the activities of this foundation in Iran.

And more on this Twitter thread.

Nazis on British streets - take 1

Who says political life can't be funny? Whoever said it, it is dead wrong. Here is an example:

An ‘Allo ‘Allo reunion on the streets of Gloucester has led to outrage over the 'hard right' due to their Nazi uniforms.

Waitress Yvette, bumbling German Lieutenant Gruber, SS officer Herr Flick and his smouldering sidekick Private Helga were all in town for the Gloucester Goes Retro festival on August 26.

An image of the quartet was posted on Twitter by John Player with the apparently tongue-in-cheek message: “Nazi gathering spotted on the streets of Britain TODAY. This is the 21st century for christ sake. Where is the outrage. It's all happening again.”

Whoever that John Player guy/gal is, s/he caught a big fish, and the fish performed up to specs:

Journalist Yasmin Alibhai-Brown then replied to the Tweet with the message: “Too busy accusing the UK Labour of anti-Semitism to heed the real scary threat posed by the hard right.”

For reference: Yasmin Alibhai-Brown. Say no more...