DUFF & NONSENSE!

"So, who's a naughty boy then?" Er, me, actually!

Yes, sorry, sorry for going a.w.o.l. for the past couple of days or so but frankly what is there to write about?  Even 'The Donald' seems to have faded from the headlines and Boris appears to have put away his clown outfit and is trying his best to appear restrained and sensible - 'E for Effort', Boris!  Even so, it's all very boring even if I keep reminding myself that it is a curse to live in interesting times!

Talking of 'interesting times', there is a fictional program on the 'telly' tonight based on Singapore as war broke out.  I shall watch it because I am something of 'an old Singapore hand, don'cha know'! Happily - mega-happily! - my tour of duty was well after the Japanese invasion and the only invaders we feared was a visit by the US Far East Fleet - sheer hell, I tell you, sheer hell!  Well, just imagine several hundred 'JKs' let loose on the town!  I was amused to read that they had to film it up in Malaysia because there was no part of modern Singapore that looked the part!  Mostly, that was due to the late - and exceedingly great! -  Mr. Lee Kuan Yew who was ruler of Singapore when it was granted independence.  He is one of the exceedingly tiny group of politicians I truly admire.  I lived there during his first years in power and his intelligence was awesome!

Meanwhile, America - yet again! - demonstrates the 'stoopidity' of me moaning about English weather!  The scenes from the western side are truly horrifying.  I can hardly believe the colossal dimensions of the fires ravaging California.  On the whole Americans are a sturdy bunch of people but I do hope 'The Donald' has some imaginative and useful assistance he can offer them in this catastrophe.

 

 

Donald's really 'yuuuuuuuge' test is looming in the South China Sea

Every day the tension mounts - according to news reports.  America is determined to sail its ships where international law allows.  China is equally determined to stop anyone sailing in seas which over which it claims ownership.  With an election looming this would be the very worst time for China to test 'The Donald's' resolve!  Equally, it would be an electoral disaster for the President to be seen as weak-kneed.  China seems determined to throw its weight around in the Pacific and it is critical for the West, led by America, to stand firm and call their bluff.

Sino-Indian clash - "A Good Thing" or "A Bad Thing"?

Well, the murder of 20+ unarmed Indian soldiers is obviously an exceedingly 'Bad Thing' but, of course, this is part of the warp and woof of international power politics and thus human feelings are to be ignored!  The end result is that China now has a massive and exceedingly angry neighbour right on its frontier - and that, for the rest of us, is very definitely 'A Good Thing'.  It is also an indication that belief in the superb and subtle craft of Chinese 'real politik' is nonsense.  They are as big a bunch of stumblebums as any other so-called 'Great Power'.

They are already locked into a wrestling match with the most powerful nation in the world and one would have thought that they would have the good sense not to provoke a 'next door neighbour' whose population of 1.3 billion is equal to theirs!  I trust - I hope? -  that 'The Donald' has the good sense to make 'nicely-nicely' with the Indian government, you know, 'hands across the Himalayas' and all that sort of thing.  Even more so, I hope that he offers Australia similar support as China unleashes its ill-temper against the 'Aussies' - as should we, although quite what we have to help them I'm not sure!

Oh God, those damned 'interesting times' have returned!

 

 

You can almost hear the world straining at its bonds

It isn't just the crazy weather we are experiencing here in the UK which, I suspect, makes southern Spain feel like Iceland.  No, there are tremors reverberating around the globe and they do not augur well.  This wretched pandemic has 'upped the ante', not so much for its medical effects which, from where I am sitting, do not appear to be anything like as severe as the 'meeja' warned us!

No, there are other moves afoot around the world which make me exceedingly uneasy.  By far the biggest is the Chinese behemoth which is swaggering round the globe barging into areas likely to erupt very easily.  For example, now they are threatening India at some point on their mutual frontier, not because they have a strong case but simply to pile on the pressure.  Alas, we are no longer the power we used to be but even so we must support India in this struggle with China just as they supported us in WWII.

Similarly, we must back America to the hilt in their confrontation with China.  Yes, I do not have total confidence in Donald Trump as a President but that is not the point.  If America is threatened then we are threatened - end of!  Alas, there is not much we can do to support Africa whose crooked states are being bought and paid for by the Chinese.  However, there is one thing we can do about another critical problem - the Chinese in our country!  I do not refer to the myriad Chinese restaurants that exist in all parts of the UK and have done for over 50 years.  But I do mean the host of incoming Chinese 'students' who bought and paid for their entrance into innumerable British Universities where sections of them have taken over student unions. And, of course, there are the numerous number of universities - which we pay for! -  who have accepted enormous bribes investments from Chinese sources.  The heads of those universities should lose their heads! 

However, above and beyond all that, the critical point is that we must absolutely ally ourselves to America in facing down this menace

 

 

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The Chinese never let a disaster get in the way of a strategic advance

An interesting article in The Telegraph today reports that the Chinese are taking advantage of international consternation over the Covid-pandemic to carry out some strategic moves in the South China Sea area.  This has caused the Australian navy to join forces with the American navy to form a warning bulwark against Chinese moves.  Both Malaysia and Vietnam have offered loud complaints against this Chinese adventurism.

Further north, the Japanese, too, have been moved to complain loudly against Chinese moves on some uninhabited Islands that Japan considers to be under their control.  Needless to say, both these uninhabited Island complexes are believed to have large oil deposits.

Strong nerves and cool heads may be needed!

 

The A-bomb attacks on Japan: There was no choice!

There are still people who maintain that the American A-bomb attacks on Japan were a war crime.  I suspect that this book, if any of the dimwits ever read it, will change what passes for their minds!  The book is "Crucible of Hell: Okinawa, the Last Great Battle of the Second World War" written by Saul David which is reviewed in this week's 'Speccie'.  Apparently, Mr. David spells out in excruciating detail the sheer horror of the fight for control of Okinawa which the Japanese, soldiers and civilians, defended with implacable ferocity and fanaticism.  To be honest, I doubt I have the guts to read it:

The loss of life was horrendous. One US commander calculated that, once replacements had been taken into account, the casualty rate in his unit had been 185 per cent. [My emphasis]  A near unreadable passage describes an effort to recover the corpses of US Marines killed in the assault of Sugar Loaf Hill. One soldier recalls finding ‘bodies so decomposed they had started to turn green and were falling apart’. Another man ‘threw up after he tried to pull the body of a Marine and its arm came off at the shoulder. Eventually they put a head, torso, two arms, two legs in each poncho and left it to the Graves Registration to sort out the pieces later.’

At the same time, the US fleet around Okinawa was under constant and deadly attack by kamikaze pilots.  In one day they sank or badly damaged 26 US Navy ships.

President Roosevelt died before the battle was over but it is no wonder that his successor, President Truman, baulked at the idea of a land invasion of Japan.  Instead, he chose the 'nuclear option' - and quite right, too!

 

 

 

Pearl Harbour - 'hoonoo?' Kilsoo Haan and Pres. Roosevelt did!

That's the problem for spies, no-one quite believes them!  Thus it was for the late Kilsoo Kenneth Haan (1900-1976).  I must confess I had never heard of him before I read a review in The Spectator of his biography, "Action Likely in Pacific: Secret Agent Kilsoo Haan, Pearl Harbor and the Creation of North Korea" by John Koster.  Kilsoo Haan was an American of mixed Japanese and Korean stock who possessed a network of informants throughout South East Asia during the '30s which allowed him to build up a clear and concise forecast of Japanese actions up to an including the attack on Pearl Harbour.  He passed this on to the highest echelons of the American government including Pres. Roosevelt himself.  The President chose to ignore it!  

I apologise to my American friends but I really do think a complete review of Roosevelt's presidency is long overdue!

 

 

 

The Sunday Rumble: 5.1.20

Both here and 'over there' the Left is loony:   I have been struck by the Left-wing re-action to Trump's decision to assassinate a man whose entire career has been dedicated to ferocious and murderous campaigns against America's allies and who was planning to extend this ferocity on to Americans as well.  The plan was, er, 'executed' immaculately!  Cue: the Democratic party dissolving into mass wailing and gnashing of teeth.  How odd that when the previous President did more or less exactly the same, it was 'all hail, Obama'!  It is obviously an example of the new colour problem evolving 'over there'; Black Good/Ginger Bad!

 

Meanwhile, 'over here' we can enjoy our Labour loonies:   This morning my TV screen has been filled with 'wannabe' hopefuls desperate to be the new leader of the LMP - the Labour Marxist Party.  I almost yearned for 'Jezza' to come back because this lot were the dimmest, dumbest collection of dimwits I have seen and listened to since, er, well, the election, actually, in which the MLP were as close to annihilation as you can be in a general election.  We all make mistakes but to keep on repeating the same mistakes defies definition.

 

'Anything Republicans do, Democrats do worser'!   Yes, America has its problems and according to the Democrat party it is all the fault of the Republicans in general and Trump in particular.  And yet … and yet … even a quick glance at those 'yuuuuuuuuge' cities that have been completely controlled by the Dems for decades, like 'Noo Yawk' or Chicago or Baltimore will show utter corruption, filth, poverty and conditions which are more fourth, or fifth world than third world!  Which would you rather live in - Calcutta or Baltimore?

 

I hope Boris has plenty of axes:   Well, first of all there is the BBC who need to be decapitated immediately, or at least, have the tax-payers' teat ripped from its greedy mouth!  Then there is this ludicrous HS2 rail system which, allegedly, will get you from London to Manchester eight minutes quicker even if it cost zillions of tax-payers' money.  Apart from the obvious question in this 'whizzy-do' electronic world we live in - who the hell wants to go to Manchester in the first place? - we all know for a dead cert that whatever the budget is today, it will be a fraction of the total cost in the end.  Get chopping, Boris!

 

Aussie news is lost in the smoke and flames!   The Australian, continent-wide fire is a colossal disaster quite beyond my British imagination!  I simply can't get my head around it!  And today I hear that it is likely to go on for months!  Of course, eventually it will end and then, I hope, a full scientific enquiry needs to take place because I suspect that management of the countryside has been a major factor.  Don't let the 'Greenies' and the 'Warmers' influence matters because they will ignore the science and simply chant out their 'religious' beliefs.  In the meantime, if any of my Aussie pals know of any proper fund-raising schemes to help support the distressed and the fire-fighters please let me know.  I want to contribute something and I guess many of my readers feel the same.

 

No more Rumbles 

 

 

 

Oh, how the mightily virtuous have fallen!

I refer, of course, to that 'saint of virtuosity', Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, the holder of a Nobel Peace Prize, no less, who yesterday was hauled in front of a United Nations, er, 'court' to explain the wholesale slaughter of thousands of Rohingya Muslims executed by the Burmese army which has forced over 730,000 of them to flee their country.  She, of course, having risen to world-wide 'sainthood' as the victim of the ghastly military junta that really runs the country, eventually became the Prime Minister of it under exactly the same rule of exactly the same military thugs who once ill-treated her!

What can one say except:

The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line, Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it.

And what a pity old Bill Shakespeare isn't around to write a play on it!

 

 

A 'yuuuuuuuuuge' 'THANK YOU' to JK

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bd8_vO5zrjo

My American political/military/history correspondent and, I almost forgot, also my Chief Archivist, 'JK', sent me the above link because of my utter fascination with the Battle of Midway.  Whilst I recognise that not all of you share my fascination with matters military, this battle was utterly crucial in the war in the Pacific against Japan.  Given its, er, 'fluid' nature - well, dammit, it was a naval/air battle! - and therefor the myriad 'ifs, buts and maybes' - this computer generated illustration is superb! 

Even so, for anyone coming fresh to it, I would advise reading a couple of books on the subject first!  I would recommend "MIDWAY: The Battle that doomed Japan" by Mitsuo Fuchida and Masatake Okumiya which, just like the YouTube presentation above, gives a Japanese perspective to the battle.  For an American view, try "Miracle at Midway" by Gordon Prange.  In its way, this single battle sums up the nature of warfare in which tiny incidents and factors can tip a battle this way or that.

Sorry to bore on but  . . .

 

 

 

'Midway' - refought for the third time!

I have written before, many a time and oft', on the incredible battle of Midway.  In my heading I indicate that the battle has been fought three times but what I mean, of course, is that it was, in reality, fought once, and then refought twice by Hollywood!  The latest Hollywood version has just been released 'over there' and the appropriately named, Steve Sailor, offers a crit of it at Taki's Mag.  ( He approves, in the main.)

I am totally fascinated with this battle which, in effect, and in retrospect, won the Pacific war for America!  Not the least of its fascination lies in the element of chance which played a crucial role in the eventual outcome.  Another crucial element was what I used to call, in my Army days, 'SigInt' which the Americans had mastered to a high degree of expertise.  Thus, the Japanese steamed on in blissful ignorance and boundless conceit following their devastating attack on Pearl Harbour whilst the canny Americans listened in to their wireless transmissions and planned accordingly.

Even so, as in all battles everywhere, that fickle 'Lady Luck' played her part so that the first American warplanes to spot the Jap fleet were torpedo bomber who naturally attacked at sea-level, thus dragging down the Jap fighters from on high to deal with them.  This allowed the American dive-bombers, released from a Fleet of which the Japs were unaware, to arrive overhead and then dive down unopposed - with devastating results for the Japs.

The result - Japanese disaster and the first indication that they would lose their stupid, il-conceived war!

 

 

 

Xi 'Ping-a-ling' has just lost face and may lose power

God, that democracy 'schtick' can be really, really embarrassing!  Especially when you are the self-appointed 'Leader-for-Life' of 1.42 billion Chinese people as Xí Jìnpíng is supposed to be.  Just one tiny election in a minute, single-city enclave and the 'dreaded Peeps' had the nerve to stick two fingers up at the self-important little gangster!  Saying "bollocks to the Bishop' hardly comes near it!

I can't help wondering how long the Central Committee is going to allow this 'loss of face' embarrassment to continue.  Of course, they think, because they're monumentally 'stoopid', that because they control the 'meeja' no-one else in China knows what is going on - suckers!  How long, I wonder, before 'Ping-a-ling's fellow gangsters take action to stop this threat to their own gangster fiefdoms?

Let's hear it for plucky little Hong Kong!

 

 

Tarawa - HOONOO?

That will compete with numerous other titles to my blog posts as being one of the most incomprehensible - sorry!  I will try to explain.  I have recently stumbled across the Smithsonian Channel on my TV which seems to be totally concentrated on American battles in WWII.  Thus, given the almost total crap everywhere else it has become a favourite of mine.  This afternoon I chanced upon a documentary covering the battle for the island of Tarawa which the American Marines invaded in 1943 as the beginning of their thrust northwards to Japan.

Ferocious and bloody hardly suffices to describe this action in which the Japanese had prepared well and the Americans were, for the most part, beginners.  Even so, at huge cost and with unbelievable courage the Marines eventually succeeded.  Undoubtedly, lessons were learned which will have assisted in the numerous repetitions required in this Island-hopping strategy.  Unfortunately, at this beginning it was clear that the tactical thinking and planning of the Marine Corps staff was pathetic, if not downright useless.  According to Wiki:

Writing after the war, General Holland Smith, who in his biography was highly critical of the Navy, commented:

Was Tarawa worth it? My answer is unqualified: No. From the very beginning the decision of the Joint Chiefs to seize Tarawa was a mistake and from their initial mistake grew the terrible drama of errors, errors of omission rather than commission, resulting in these needless casualties.

Thus it is with most armies and as always 'lessons are learned' but at what a huge cost!  I salute the memory of those Marines lost at Tarawa.

 

 

The Sunday Rumble: 22.9.19

Who turned the sun off and the taps on?   I don't know but when I find out he, or perhaps that should be 'He', will get a slap!  We have, or at least, I have, enjoyed two incredible weeks of delicious, non-stop Autumnal sunshine - until this morning!  Needless to say, this non-stop sunshine occurred when I was on duty as volunteer 'garden waterer' to two of my neighbours, so every evening I have been trudging the paths acting as a sort of latter-day 'Gunga Din'.  When they get back they will never know the hard labour I put in - unless I tell them, which I will, over and over!

Talking of 'Gunga Din':   I sort of 'know' of Rudyard Kipling's famous poem but I have never actually read it which is my 'bad' because it is excellent.  Here it is so you, too, can re-educate yourselves:

You may talk o’ gin and beer
When you’re quartered safe out ’ere,
An’ you’re sent to penny-fights an’ Aldershot it;
But when it comes to slaughter
You will do your work on water,
An’ you’ll lick the bloomin’ boots of ’im that’s got it.
Now in Injia’s sunny clime,
Where I used to spend my time
A-servin’ of ’Er Majesty the Queen,
Of all them blackfaced crew
The finest man I knew
Was our regimental bhisti, Gunga Din,
He was ‘Din! Din! Din!
‘You limpin’ lump o’ brick-dust, Gunga Din!
‘Hi! Slippy hitherao
‘Water, get it! Panee lao,
‘You squidgy-nosed old idol, Gunga Din.’

The uniform ’e wore
Was nothin’ much before,
An’ rather less than ’arf o’ that be’ind,
For a piece o’ twisty rag
An’ a goatskin water-bag
Was all the field-equipment ’e could find.
When the sweatin’ troop-train lay
In a sidin’ through the day,
Where the ’eat would make your bloomin’ eyebrows crawl,
We shouted ‘Harry By!’
Till our throats were bricky-dry,
Then we wopped ’im ’cause ’e couldn’t serve us all.
It was ‘Din! Din! Din!
‘You ’eathen, where the mischief ’ave you been?
‘You put some juldee in it
‘Or I’ll marrow you this minute
‘If you don’t fill up my helmet, Gunga Din!’

’E would dot an’ carry one
Till the longest day was done;
An’ ’e didn’t seem to know the use o’ fear.
If we charged or broke or cut,
You could bet your bloomin’ nut,
’E’d be waitin’ fifty paces right flank rear.
With ’is mussick on ’is back,
’E would skip with our attack,
An’ watch us till the bugles made 'Retire,’
An’ for all ’is dirty ’ide
’E was white, clear white, inside
When ’e went to tend the wounded under fire!
It was ‘Din! Din! Din!’
With the bullets kickin’ dust-spots on the green.
When the cartridges ran out,
You could hear the front-ranks shout,
‘Hi! ammunition-mules an' Gunga Din!’

I shan’t forgit the night
When I dropped be’ind the fight
With a bullet where my belt-plate should ’a’ been.
I was chokin’ mad with thirst,
An’ the man that spied me first
Was our good old grinnin’, gruntin’ Gunga Din.
’E lifted up my ’ead,
An’ he plugged me where I bled,
An’ ’e guv me ’arf-a-pint o’ water green.
It was crawlin’ and it stunk,
But of all the drinks I’ve drunk,
I’m gratefullest to one from Gunga Din.
It was 'Din! Din! Din!
‘’Ere’s a beggar with a bullet through ’is spleen;
‘’E's chawin’ up the ground,
‘An’ ’e’s kickin’ all around:
‘For Gawd’s sake git the water, Gunga Din!’

’E carried me away
To where a dooli lay,
An’ a bullet come an’ drilled the beggar clean.
’E put me safe inside,
An’ just before ’e died,
'I ’ope you liked your drink,’ sez Gunga Din.
So I’ll meet ’im later on
At the place where ’e is gone—
Where it’s always double drill and no canteen.
’E’ll be squattin’ on the coals
Givin’ drink to poor damned souls,
An’ I’ll get a swig in hell from Gunga Din!
Yes, Din! Din! Din!
You Lazarushian-leather Gunga Din!
Though I’ve belted you and flayed you,
By the livin’ Gawd that made you,
You’re a better man than I am, Gunga Din!

Dammit, now I really must read some more Kipling, he captured an era.

 

Is nothing sacred to the 'Woke' idiots?   In this case I am referring to the 'soppy sillies' who run the charity that in turn runs our National Life Boat Service.  According to The Mail, a volunteer life boat skipper has quit in disgust at the increasing stupidity of various management decisions based more on 'Political Correctness' than common-sense.

Last week The Mail on Sunday reported how the RNLI is spending millions on projects abroad, including buying burkinis for Muslim women in Africa.
Now we can reveal that the charity is slashing more than 100 jobs in the UK despite sitting on a cash pile of £126 million – and is facing claims of ‘hushing up’ the loss of one of its lifeboats following a fire on the vessel.

The disclosures follow clashes between the RNLI leadership and lifeboat crews, including the sacking in 2017 of a coxswain at a station in Arbroath, Scotland, after he failed to prevent a prank in which a crewman bared his buttocks.

Two crewmen from Whitby, North Yorkshire, were also dismissed last summer after tea mugs were found to be decorated with ‘inappropriate material of a sexual nature’.

I wonder if any of those 'PC softies' would volunteer to go out in raging seas at midnight to rescue mariners in peril?  Only, I suppose, if the victims first passed a 'woke' test!

 

Greta Thunberg is a dim, dumb, little, lying liar!   Yes, I know she's only a young gal but this grumpy, old man shows no mercy to anyone spouting, misleading rubbish!

As so often in this never-ending agit-prop concerning 'Global Warming' which the fanatics have now dropped as a key phrase mainly because it has been utterly disproven and replaced it with the utterly meaningless 'Climate Change', I rely utterly on the one man I totally admire on this subject.  Yes, of course, it is the superb Anthony Watts.

 

Dawkins well and truly thumped!   Alas, I don't have the time to summarise, suffice to say that Richard Dawkins receives a right hook, a left hook and a kick in the goolies from a man who knows where-of he writes and contradicts just about everything in Dawkins' latest book.  You read and drool over it here:

https://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2019/09/if-richard-dawkins-loves-facts-so-much-why-cant-he-get-them-right/

 

There's no justice in this world!   I have just read in The Mail that George Blake is still alive and well and living in a four-bedroom dacha outside Moscow.  This half-Dutch, half-Turkish, former MI6 agent betrayed hundreds of others to the Russians. 

 

To be fair, which I am not inclined to be, he was an exceedingly brave and resourceful operator, almost to a 'James Bond' level.  Even so, with deliberate malice and forethought his treacherous actions led to the deaths of hundreds of other men.  He should have died of agonising cancer years ago but somehow he dodged the bullet.  I can only hope he has a sad and painful old age!

 

The legal 'brown stuff' will hit the fan:  Either tomorrow or perhaps the day after when their Lordships in the Supreme Court issue a decision on the recent Parliamentary shenanigans.  Actually, I suppose, it will be more like political 'brown stuff' but either way it will smell as sweet!

 

No more rumbles today

 

 

And the Germans are not the only ones to fall in love with war

Before I swivel my, er, 'gun' in the direction of America, let me admit that we Brits too have a long and less than distinguished history of fighting unwinnable wars of which the American war of independence was merely one such example!  However, I was very impressed with an article by John C. Hulsman at the 'CAPX' site today.  In it, Mr. Hulsman points up the syndrum suffered by America in forever doubling down on "the losing gambler syndrome" when it comes to unneccessary wars.

The losing gambler syndrome, better known in economic circles as the sunk costs fallacy, is a fact of human nature that casino magnates well understand. When someone losses big at the tables, invariably they have an overwhelming urge to invest ever more resources to make good on their catastrophic losses. Dad cannot go back to Mom telling her he has lost the kids’ college fund. So he keeps playing…and keeps losing. The reason for his demise—the terrible odds—is never analytically addressed.

I saw this doleful process up close and personal in Washington. From Vietnam, through Iraq, to the endless war in Afghanistan, the propensity to keep strategically gambling even as the losses pile up is perhaps the single greatest intellectual error the United States has made in the past 50 years, and it largely explains all three debacles. Yet, tragically, in the increasingly lame excuses the military has presently made to stay in Afghanistan, the US seems to have learnt almost nothing from their trio of calamities.

It is a doleful read, and for me, as a former supporter of American efforts in Vietnam and in Iraq, especially embarrassing.  To be fair, I was doubtful about Afghanistan but that was based on our own less than successful efforts in previous centuries!

Anyway, I must take the 'Memsahib' to her weekly 'keep fit' class whilst I do some shopping.

 

 

 

Arguably, the greatest and dumbest double-cross in history

I refer to the 'German/Soviet Non-Aggression Pact' of 80 years ago, on which subject, Mr. Victor Davis Hanson writes, succinctly and shrewdly, at the National Review.  It is perhaps the greatest example of a duplicitous double-cross that at the time was considered to be a total world disaster but which turned out in the end to be a world saviour!  It all seemed like a Grand Strategic master-stroke to the two villains concerned, Hitler and Stalin but, alas for them, it turned out to be the sort of "cunning plan" that Laurel and Hardy might have dreamt up!

Yes, it set Hitler free to concentrate all his efforts in swallowing western Europe and providing a free run for him to take out the British once and for all, helped, of course, by massive supplies sent to him by his "new best friend", Joe Stalin!  At the time, the only grit in the deal was that the Japs, who had been attacking Russia confident that Stalin would have to keep his army facing West, suddenly realised that Hitler had dropped them in it and that their assaults on Eastern Russia would have to be scaled back as the massive Russian army was left free to manouvre.  As 'VDH' puts it:

Japan quickly withdrew from its losing Russian war. In time it signed its own non-aggression pact with the Soviet Union, in April 1941 — ironically, just months before Hitler’s planned Operation Barbarossa, the massive invasion of Russia.

Simply too, too delicious!  Instead, the silly 'Ninjas' went south and attacked America - BIG MISTAKE!

The only lesson to be learned, I suppose, is that these rough, tough, allegedly crafty dictators steeped in the arts of real-politik, are actually just as dim, if not dimmer, than the democratic dimwits we elect to office!

 

 

In which my thievery reaches epic proportions

As regular readers will know, I am prone to the habit of filching the occasional commentary of wiser men than me - and that is a fairly 'yuuuuuuuuge' number of people!  I had intended to tap out a few thoughts and observations on the current India vs. Pakistan match which is very definitely not a cricket match!  Alas, in thinking about it I realised that I know next to sweet F.A. about the history and the current situation in Kashmir except that, I suspect, 'there will be blood'!  At a loss, I clicked on to an article at The Coffee House written by Mr. Dominic Green who is Life & Arts Editor of Spectator USA.  It is on the subject of President Trump and it provides, for a change, a rather different view of the man.  I will not attempt to paraphrase it, instead I will 'nick' the whole damn thing and you can read it at leisure.  It is headed:

Donald Trump is the best prime minister Britain never had
The orange man succeeds where the mandarins failed

["Oh very witty, Wilde!"]

Britain has never had a better friend in the White House than Donald Trump. FDR may have bailed out Britain in its struggle against German imperialism, but the bailout carried the highest possible price: the surrender of Britain’s empire, and loans that weren’t paid off until 2006. By contrast, Trump asks for nothing that Britain isn’t already asking for: economic and political support as it escapes from the latter-day German imperialism of the European Union. And Trump is giving Britain much more.

By omission as much as commission, Trump is cleaning up the messes that Britain left behind as it lost its empire. The British tell themselves that they had no choice to drop their imperial obligations after 1945, that they were bankrupt in victory and the Americans didn’t like empires. This isn’t the full story. In truth, the British had been behaving shabbily in the Three I’s — Ireland, India and Israel — long before they were bankrupt, and with bloody consequences for the locals.

At the imperial apogee of late nineteenth century, British governments were incapable of managing Irish nationalism. In the 1920s and 1930s, British governments carved up Ireland, promised the Promised Land to both Jews and Arabs, and offset Hindu nationalists in India by supporting Muslim ones. In 1947, Britain’s Labour government, committed to what we now call ‘nation-building at home’, ditched India and the Palestine Mandate in shameful and cynical haste.

The partition of India caused the biggest refugee crisis in history, a death toll estimated between several hundred thousand and two million and, in time, a nuclear stand-off over Jammu and Kashmir. The failed partition of the Palestine Mandate caused the destruction of much of Arab society in the Mandate, the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Arabs from Jewish territory and Jews from their ancient homes in Arab states, and a series of wars that culminated in the Yom Kippur War of 1973 with threats of nuclear war from the Arabs’ patron, the Soviet Union. As for Ireland, that too came home to roost in the form of Irish nationalist terrorism in the UK and, more recently, Theresa May’s minority government being held hostage over Brexit by its Irish Protestant partners.

For more than seven decades, British prime ministers and the suave mediocrities of the Foreign & Commonwealth Office — the heirs to the perpetrators of this blood-soaked diplomatic folly — have inserted themselves into these postcolonial disaster zones but failed to alleviate tensions between India and Pakistan or Israel and the Arabs. Worse, they have exacerbated these situations, by pandering to the Arabs for oil and defence sales and to Pakistan as a cheap way of keeping a toehold in Central Asia, and by sneering at the Israelis for being pushy Jews. The mandarins did no better in Ireland, either: the Troubles ended because Bill Clinton told the parties to stop fighting.

The solution that Britain’s clever civil servants and cunning politicians offered as the answer to their post-imperial poverty was to merge Britain into the floundering undemocratic monstrosity that became the European Union. This has turned out to be the sourest of cherries on the bitter cake of strategic failure, because it turned out that the British public doesn’t want to subordinate Britain to the EU.

Compare this record of failure by British politicians and administrators to what Donald Trump has done for Britain, and is willing to do. By the simple expedient of not wishing to be taken for a fool, and by recognising reality over dogma, he has unknotted the frozen politics of the Three I’s, and made it possible for each to move towards the resolutions that the Foreign & Commonwealth Office or, for that matter, the State Department, have failed to obtain. The orange man is succeeding where the mandarin men failed.

Instead of being played for a fool by the failed state of Pakistan and failed non-state of Palestine — both of them foully hostile to Western interests — Trump has stepped back, and allowed the successful and pro-Western states of India and Israel to begin the work of resolving the unfinished business of the Palestine Mandate and the Partition of India. The Indians are never going to relinquish Kashmir, and the Israelis are never going to leave Jerusalem or Beit El or, given the way the neighbourhood is going, the Golan Heights or the Jordan Valley. Instead of meddling and giving money to terrorists, Trump is allowing the political gravity of the last seven decades to work itself out.

Trump supports Brexit, and is apparently still offering a temporary free-trade deal despite the insult of Theresa May rejecting it the first time he offered it. Once the outlines of Brexit are clear, Northern Ireland, which voted against Brexit, can hold the referendum on its future status that was included in the Good Friday Agreement of 1998. The Catholics and Protestants of Northern Ireland can finally decide whether they want to stay in the UK, which is a major economy with nuclear weapons, a seat on the UN Security Council, and unparalleled post-imperial links to the economies of Asia; or to join the Irish republic, a feeble and distant province of the EU whose economic future is as a kind of Cayman Islands, a tax haven and back office for American corporations. Trump, by pushing for Brexit, is pushing for resolution in Ireland, one way or the other.

All over the world, Trump is doing for Britain almost overnight what Britain’s leaders have failed to do for decades. He’s finally clearing up the shameful mess that Britain left when it welched on its imperial responsibilities, and he’s doing it for free. Instead of snobbishly deriding him, the British should thank the orange man for freeing them from their destructive relationships with the Orangemen in Northern Ireland, and the police-state Islamists of Pakistan and the Palestinian Authority.

The obvious way to thank Trump won’t cost Britain much either. The City of London is already full of crass monuments to greed. One more won’t hurt. Let him build a nice golden Trump Tower in central London, and a Trump Hotel too. If Brexit works out, the government should consider putting a statue of Trump onto the empty plinth in Trafalgar Square, so that the heroes of empire will be joined by the man who cleared up after them. It’s the least Britain can do to thank the best prime minister the British have never had.

Dominic Green is Life & Arts Editor of Spectator USA.

Whither India?

You will be much relieved to learn that this post of mine will be brief and to the point.  The reason is simple - I know next to nothing about India!  For me, if dear old 'Winnie' will forgive me, it remains "a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma".  Not, I hasten to add, because it represents the sort of ominous, evil menace that was Soviet Russia and to which 'Winnie' was referring.  In fact, India is as open to inspection as any country on earth.  It is truly 'yuuuuuuuuge' and constantly bubbling with activities although I am not sure exactly what they are and where they are going.  What is important to me is India's sheer size not least because, situated as it is fairly close to China, I can't help feeling that "there may be troubles ahead"!

Of course, it lacks the disciplined power of the Chinese state but history indicates that the Indian people, 'zillions of them', are exceedingly proud and more than willing to fight for what they see as their rights.  An over-bearing China puffed with ambition might find India hard to swallow.  We, by which I mean 'the West', should do all we can to bolster India's strength.  I do hope 'The Donald' will recognise that and take a "softly, softly, catchee monkey" approach even though the Indian political caste are fairly reprehensible!  Dammit, they're no worse than the crooks in Chicago!

 

 

In politics, never work for a 'nutter'!

I am still progressing through a biography of Thomas Cromwell, the, er, 'bagman' for Henry VIII.  I am enjoying it immensely not least because it is opening my eyes to yet another era of English history about which I am woefully ignorant.  For a start, I had not realised how enormously influential Thomas Cromwell was in laying the foundations of English Protestantism, or to be precise, 'Lutherism'.  He, more than anyone, assisted in the birth of a different Christian Church in England which was able, eventually, to shrug off the corrupt, cloying cloak of Catholicism and Popery which had seeped into every nook and cranny of the Kingdom.  More to the point, he did it carefully and intelligently so that it lasted despite the inevitable setbacks.  Alas, however, this highly intelligent man worked for a 'nutter', Henry VIII, who, in the end, chopped his head off!  Ah well, some you win, some you lose!

I was reminded of all this when news broke that the current 'nutter' running North Korea, let it be known that he had executed not one but four members of his Foreign Affairs Ministry because, allegedly, the talks with President Trump had ended in failure.  Bit harsh, one thinks, but on the other hand, were I to be made Prime Minister this month, I can't help thinking that one or two - oh alright then, dozens! - of executions of top-ranking civil servants might work wonders in the sclerotic, moribund world of Whitehall.

In a sense, of course, Thomas Cromwell was the first Brexiteer!

 

 

The times, they really are a-changin'!

I still remember vividly learning via the BBC that Everest had finally been conquered by Edmond Hillary and Sherpa Tensing Norgay.  The news broke, happily, on the morning of Queen Elizabeth's coronation at which, as a 14 year-old Air Cadet, I was privileged to be a spectator just outside Buckingham Palace.  I am quite certain that 'Her Maj' spotted me in the crowd and offered a gracious wave in my direction!  It was 66 years ago, a different time and a very different world.  It was an amazing feat by two extra-ordinary men but, oh dear, how things have changed!

This photo from The Daily Telegraph illustrates the difference better than any words:

A photo taken on 22 May 2019 shows heavy traffic of mountain climbers lining up to stand at the summit of Mount Everest Credit: AFP 

Today there are actually queues of people waiting to reach the summit.  All they need are some wily 'char-wallas' working the crowds in order to earn a ruppee or three!  I can't explain it but somehow I found this news deeply depressing.  For me, a truly magical moment from the past is ruined.

 

 

'Sahib' Chaplin still makes 'em laugh!

As y'all do know, I have a great fondness for genuine eccentricity and the sillier it is the more I like it.  Well, they don't come much sillier and eccentric than in the Gujurati town of Adipur somewhere in the middle of India.  According to The Telegraph, every year on April 16th the people of Adipur dress up as Charlie Chaplin and have a parade and a party.

Young residents enjoy the celebration   Credit: GETTY

You will need to read the original article to find out how all this arose but as so often with these sorts of eccentricities it all began years ago by some Indian 'nutter' with an obsession for Charlie Chaplin.  Good for him and I hope the people of Adipur continue to enjoy their eccentricity for many a year.

 

 

Farewell, Lt. Col. Cole, the last of 'the intrepids'

This blog is in danger of looking like The Times obituary column!  Sorry and all that but there are some peoples' deaths that touch me in one way or another.  To be honest, until today I had never heard of Lt. Col. Richard Cole USAAF but I certainly do recall reading and admiring his wartime exploit in the Doolittle raid that took place in December 1941.

Richard Cole, second right, with James Doolittle, second left, and other 'Doolittle Raiders' Credit: NYT/USAF

Just two weeks after America had been slammed by the Japanese at Pearl Harbour there was a determination on the part of the High Command that 'something must be done'!  Frequently in military history this can result in a tragic farrago that achieves nothing.  However, in the case of the Doolittle raid, whilst the military damage inflicted was minimal, the shock to the Japanese authorities was immense and a warning of things to come.  In addition, the morale of the American people was instantly galvanised.

The Raiders' Mitchell planes on board the 'Hornet' carrier Credit: Aviation History Collection/Alamy

This was the first time that bombers had ever been deployed from aircraft carriers and none of the crews had attempted it before.  It was realised that a return to the carrier was impossible so the plan was for the aircraft to fly on to air strips in China controlled by the Nationalists.  Some made it, some did not.

Richard Cole at a Doolittle Raider reunion in 2013 Credit: Nick Tomecek/Northwest Florida Daily News

Happily, Lt. Col. Cole did make it and lived to the ripe old age of 103.  We salute your memory, Colonel!

 

 

First, let's count the bodies!

There has been much made of the anniversary of the 1919 Amritsar massacre in which British troops opened fire on a crowd of protesters.  It was an act of gross stupidity and wickedness but, as some of my more knowledgeable readers pointed out in the comments, anything we Brits can do in that line, the Indians can do better!

In this week's 'Speccie' there is a letter-writer who does the sums:

Sir: In acknowledging post-colonial guilt, William Dalrymple asks us to perceive how others see us. If only those critics could ever see themselves (Books, 6 April). The Amritsar massacre of 1919 was a failure, but how many more families were affected by the Amritsar massacre of 1984? More people were killed by the Indian republic in ‘Operation Blue Star’ than by Dyer in 1919 — and thousands more Sikhs were killed in pogroms perpetrated with the connivance of the Indian National Congress in 1984.

India has its own record of imperialist crimes. Modern India was scarcely months old when it invaded the independent principality of Hyderabad: 200,000 people were killed in a naked act of territorial aggression. In 1975, India also subjected the principality of Sikkim to military occupation and annexation, and from Khalistan to Assam has suppressed multiple regional independence movements with a bloodiness that makes the Troubles look like a playground scuffle. Apologies from Britain for crimes caused during the Raj should only be forthcoming when modern India is forced to make amends for its own neocolonial atrocities.

None of that reduces Gen. Dyer's guilt by an iota but it is always good to keep things in perspective.

 

Talking of India - and Pakistan

Well, you know me, I have little hesitation in raising complicated subjects about which I know next to nothing and then pontificating on them.  So, writing about India, just below, made me think about the Indo-Pakistani problem which might - just might! - have 'yuuuuuuuge' ramifications for the world.  Both these nations share a mutual detestation of each other mostly arising from their religious differences.  So far, so normal, but when you realise that they are both nuclear nations the possibilities are grim!

We saw a recent example of how quickly tensions can escalate when a spat resulted in rival air forces being deployed.  Fortunately, both sides seemed to realise the implications quite quickly and the fracas was squashed.  Even so, both countries are, in effect, run by their armed forces and Generals are rarely endowed with much intelligence.  Mind you, the prospect of nuclear warfare 'concentrates the mind like a hanging in the morning'!  The leaderships on both sides will have wondered what the point is in being the ruler of a nuclear waste ground - especially if you, yourself, have been incinerated?

However, matters are further complicated by Chinese ambitions.  As has been noted by various observers, the Chinese are busy buying their way into positions of power and influence via various corrupt governments around the world.  It is a sign of the corruption in Pakistan that they somehow manage to set aside their religious sensitivities, even as China sets about slaughtering Muslims in China, and take the back-handers that allow increasing Chinese influence inside Pakistan!

There is an interesting article in The American Spectator which serves as an excellent primer to an exceedingly complicated problem.

 

 

'Shooting civilians, the sort of thing we Brits are awfully good at!'

I apologise instantly for my crass heading to this post.  It is meant to be ironic but, "as any fule do no", irony rarely works.  As we approach the 13th of April, the 100th anniversary of the Amritsa massacre is looming large and several books on the subject have been published on the, literally, bloody subject.  For my non-Brit and/or non-Indian readers, this was the event in April 1919 in which British troops, under orders from a particularly dim British general, opened fire on a crowd of un-armed protesters.  They kept firing for ten minutes and expended 1,650 rounds of ammunition killing 379 men, women and children and injuring thousands more.

Whilst it is true to say that in the bloody history of states murdering people Amritsar is relatively small, nevertheless, it was a monstrous act and on this centenary occasion it deserves some study.  I gather that some 'Leftie' film director has just released a film on the subject but I think reading one of the recent book releases will provide a better view of the subject.  Over at The Coffee House there is an excellent essay by Hardeep Singh which is a good place to start.

 

 

The ten most evil people of all time

I take my title from an article at The American Spectator by Larry Alex Taunton.  His choice, in reverse order, is as follows:

10. (tie) The Kims: Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Il, and Kim Jong-un

9. The Sanhedrin of Jesus’ Day

8. Ivan Grozny (ie: the Terrible)

7. Vladimir Lenin

6. Muhammad

5. Adolf Hitler

4. Josef Stalin

3. Mao Zedong

2. Margaret Sanger

1. Karl Marx

I can't say that I go along with all of his list although he certainly nets a few culprits.  For example, Karl Marx never killed anyone, all he did was write an exceedingly stupid book which sundry mass murderers then took up and used an excuse for their inhuman behaviour.  Also, I'm not too sure about the Sanhedrin of Jesus' day, not least because I have never heard of them!  Alas, bible studies were not high on my list.

Mind you, I am pleased that he put Mao higher on his list than Joe Stalin.  When it came to the killing game, Mao outscored Joe all the way!  Equally, I congratulate him on his decision to place the late - and I hope she is rotting in hell - Margaret Sanger, the founder of another murderous organisation, Planned Parenthood. 

Of course, having crossed two off his list, I suppose I am duty bound to add a new pair and that is not easy.  I suppose Lord Edward Lytton, the Viceroy of India in 1876 'deserves' his place having governed over a famine that killed millions but then again, there's always Lord George Curzon, British Viceroy of India in 1899, who did much the same.  Equally, Winston Churchill deserves a mention for refusing point-blank in 1943 to divert at least some ships to India to help alleviate a famine that killed 3 million - despite the fact that Indian soldiers were fighting and dying for Britain!  And talking of Churchill, he also deserves castigation for encouraging Air Marshal Arthur 'Bomber' Harris to even greater efforts in his massive, and mostly useless, bombing campaign against German cities.

And those 'candidates' are just from Britian, so God only knows how many more 'candidates' exist in other countries!

 

 

The fascination of spies

Yes, I know, I went on 'the missing list' again yesterday.  No excuses, I was just a bit 'knacked' and also, to be honest, I really did not have anything to say.  Happily, today being Saturday means that I have enjoyed what I call my 'reading morning' in which I tootle round to the newsagent and buy The Mail and The Telegraph, plus my neighbour brings round the 'Arts' section of The Times, and I settle into my armchair with a cup of coffee and only an absolute minimum of chocolate biscuits - honestly!  A few hours later, I am totally 'knacked' again but at least I am armed with some fresh ammo to fire at you lot - hang on, where are you going  . . ?  

As you may have gathered, following my enthusiastic review of "The Spy and the Traitor" by Ben McIntyre, I am endlessly fascinated by spies.  Yet another biography of a major spy has been reviewed across the papers, this time, the brilliant but ultimately tragic story of Richard Sorge.  He was the half German/half Russian who swallowed communism whole as a young man and who went on to be recruited by the Russian intelligence service when he he was living in Tokyo during the '30s.  He duped the German embassy into believing that he could provide information for them whilst he actually passed on everything he picked up from the Germans straight to Moscow.  He also ran an espionage operation inside the Japanese government.

There are some delicious ironies in this tale.  Sorge constantly warned Moscow that Hitler intended to attack Russia and offered up good evidence to support it.  Stalin simply refused to believe it - until the panzers crossed the border!  However, Sorge was believed when he told Moscow that the Japanese had no intention of attacking Russia and thus Stalin was able to shift armies from East to West to help defend 'Mother Russia'.  In the end, Sorge was found out by the Japs and, on November 7th 1943, the 26th anniversary of the Bolshevik revolution, they hung him!

A brilliant operator but doomed! 

 

The Sunday Rumble: 3.3.19

How long, oh Lord, how long?   I defy anyone to claim that they guessed, back in the day, that the Brexit imbroglio would descend into the utter and complete shambles that it has.  There are many contributing factors but the main one stands clear - Mrs. May.  As an example of a total lack of leadership qualities, she stands supreme and will deserve that place in our history books.

 

Have a care, Mr. MacCulloch!  You are beginning, nay, you have begun, to irritate me!  I bought your 'yuuuuuuuuuge' biography of Thomas Cromwell who was, from my very slight knowledge, a fascinating 'ducker and diver of the first order' but in the first few chapters of your book all I read is an endless list of the scores, nay, hundreds, of individuals and organisations  with whom he was connected in one way or another.  Please, just get back to the man himself before I really lose my temper - given the price I paid for the book!

 

Oh no, Mr. Dershowitz, say it ain't so!   As regular readers will know, I am a great admirer of Mr. Alan Dershowitz, the American lawyer and political commentator.  Now there are 'tales' (I use the word deliberately) linking him to some multi-zillionaire, American businessman who is accused of organising sex parties - where was my invite? - and that one of the girls was offered to Mr. Dershowitz.  Actually, Dershowitz defended the businessman in court and it was the opposition lawyers who made the accusation.  Dershowitz was able to produce travel document evidence that proved the accusation wrong.  I would never have believed it anyway because Dershowitz is just too damned intelligent!

 

The Trump-Kim waltz:   Various commentators, pro and con, have had their say on Trump's North Korean diplomacy.  Needless to say, most of it is concerned with Trump because, of course, they haven't a clue what is going on in Pyongyang - is it Kim who rules or all those ridiculous Generals with their 'yuuuuuge' hats and acres of decorations?  There was a time when the North Korean antics were becoming exceedingly dangerous and so Trump was right to seek meetings and try and 'sus out' what was going on.  Whether he knows any more now than he did before, no-one can know, as so often, we must wait for the history books to be written!

 

The next India/Pakistan Test March should be fun!    So was that the beginning of war a few days ago or just an Indo-Paki hissy fit?  I very much hope it was the latter because 'the real thing' could be exceedingly messy given that both nations have nuclear capabilities!   Again, rather like North Korea, there are military chiefs in the background whose influence is probably far in excess of their strategic abilities!

 

In which I receive excellent good news:   Yes, indeed, the 'Memsahib' has just informed me that she is about to make a blackberry and apple crumble for supper - and, NO, you can't have any!

 

Better watch out, Donald, 'the Bern' is coming!   I keep reading reports that the American version of 'Jezza', that is Bernie Sanders, is pulling in zillions and zillions of dollars well ahead of his fight for the Democrat nomination.  Remarkably, somewhat like 'Jezza', despite being an old coot the juveniles 'jes' lurve him!'  I suppose he reminds them of their favourite, old 'Gramps'.  Maybe I should run for Parliament - oh alright then, not exactly "run" but shuffle!

 

'Fauxcahontas' scalps herself:   Well, Sen. Warren has gone from lying about her Cherokee ancestry which helped her grab a job at Harvard, to defending her claim for years, to taking a gene test which she failed, to, finally, owning up and, at last, apologising for her trickery.  Good job none of us held our breath waiting!

 

No more rumbles 

 

 

The Sunday Rumble: 25.11.18

It's a mad world:   This morning I thought I would treat myself to a good, old-fashioned lie-in.  So, after dashing downstairs to serve all those bloody birds their morning rations in the garden - well, they make such a squabbling racket if there's no grub I wouldn't have been able to sleep anyway!  So, I dashed back upstairs and jumped into a still warm bed.  Instant oblivion!  But then the other 'bird' in my life nudged me and demanded breakfast.  Naturally, I obeyed orders but I was duly grateful for an extra couple of hours 'kip' and assumed that I would be bursting with energy for the rest of the day.  Nah!  I feel absolutely knackered now.  I think I may go back to bed!

 

So now we must depend on Parliament:   "Oh, the horror, the horror!"  All the fake deal-making is over and only the 'honourable' - who sniggered? - Members of Parliament stand between us and a slow but inexorable descent into the sludge and slime of the EU swamp.  Will they have the courage, the honour, the decency to follow the democratic decision of the people of Britain and tip this "mess of pottage" down the sewer swiftly followed by Mrs. May and 'Oily' Robbins?  Put simply, I do not know. 

 

Yes, that about sums it up:   The incorrigible owner of 'IHTM' sums it up in a sentence:  

"In France they riot over gas tax increases. In California the morons vote to keep it." 

What can I say except 'Vive la France!'

 

Now, about that Pacific problem . . .   A few days ago I mentioned that I might write about an interesting aspect of Pacific affairs - about which, of course, I know next to nothing!  Also, to add to my difficulties, I only heard it very vaguely through my bedside radio ear-piece which I have jammed in my ear during the night.  With all those warnings duly posted let me explain what I thought I heard.  "As any fule do no", the Chinese are pushing and shoving and corrupting their way into the governments of just about every nation in the Pacific as they seek to extend and solidify their influence.  However, in one instance, I think in Papua New Guinea (PNG), they went too far and upset the locals who became exceedingly stroppy.  Well, if the Chinese studied the history of the British empire, this is virtually a foregone conclusion,  Nobody did bullying and corrupting better than us!  Even so, I sense that Chinese arrogance is on a scale of its own.  If anyone has any info on this story, please let me know.  In the meantime, Australia, watch out!

 

Why I 'lurve' Victoria Beckham:   She never, ever smiles!  Night after night I slump in front of my TV and at every commercial break I am confronted by scores of 'lay-dees' and they do nothing but smile and smile and smile and then smile some more!  I loathe and detest them all but I love dearest Victoria who, when-ever and where-ever remains bravely po-faced.  Well done, Vicky, darling!

 

(Sir) Lewis ended the season with another win:   Quite right, fitting and proper!  However, next season will be interesting.  I cannot see Ferrari quietly accepting Mercedes dominance and Vettel will be 'spitting zee blood' to put (Sir) Lewis in his place.  Meanwhile, that ace boy-racer, Verstappen, will be driving the Red Bull team to produce a winning car.  Can't wait for next year!

 

No more rumbles today

 

 

Do NOT read this if you are of a nervous disposition!

No, I am not, as 'that woman' once put it, "frit" but I am becoming distinctly uneasy.  All around the globe the political tectonic plates are shifting and no-one has a clue where they will eventually end up and how much damage will be wrought as they crunch and crash against each other.

At home, here in 'dear old Blighty', our less than distinguished Prime Minister fumbles and stumbles her way through the morass of Brexit and her party appears to be in complete disarray.  I fear an election is imminent and, though I can hardly believe it, there is a very real chance that Corbyn and his 'praesidium' of ultra-Marxist maniacs might seize control.  If they do, I may well emigrate to St. Helena!  

Europe continues to be nothing more than "a mess of pottage"!  Quite apart from their arrogant stupidity in trying to humiliate us as we seek a reasonable Brexit, they are laying into the newly elected and highly passionate Italian government which is teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. At the same time they are, unbelievably, trying to bully one of the biggest bullies in Europe, Viktor Orbán, the Prime Minister of Hungary.  The chances of him, a 'wannabe' dictator, bending the knee to Brussels is less than that of an ice cube in hell!  Other East Europeans are already looking East rather than West preferring 'Vlad the Impaler' to EU fanatics like 'Junck the Drunk'.

Meanwhile, 'over there', the tensions mount and when our 'Yankee-doodle' friends lose their tempers, so to speak, you had better take cover!  The 'deserving' Dems, by which I mean that the Dems always believe they deserve everything all of the time, have found it impossible to reconcile their loss of the Presidency in 2016.  Their fires are now being stoked by the woman who really and truly thought she deserved to win because, well, it was her turn.  As the old saying has it, always beware a woman scorned!  Of course, 'The Donald' is not exactly a man to accept his victory quietly and to extend the gentlemanly hand of friendship to the woman who lost.  On the contrary, he struts his stuff across the headlines and the internet of the world, never losing an opportunity to rub it in.  Where will it end?  I do not know but the imminent result of the mid-term election will be critical.  If the Dems lose 'big time', or even if they only achieve a 'no-score' draw, their fires will be stoked even higher and the more extreme elements will indulge in even greater and more dangerous stupidity.

Needless to say, this is the worst of times for America to be obsessed with internal warfare as, what I call 'the Chinese creep' slowly but inexorably extends around the globe backed up by an increasingly powerful military.  There was a time when I had some hopes for Chairman Xi Jinping, the 'Mr. Smiley', or should that be the 'Mr. Smirky', of China.  Alas, no more!  It is obvious that he is just another wannabe ruler of the universe with the sort of insane ambitions that nearly always end in tragedy.  Whatever one might think about 'The Donald' I am totally glad that he is leading the push back against Chinese ambitions and not that utter drip 'Obamarama'!

In the meantime, the South American 'hacienda' is crumbling to dust, including, I am sorry to say, the once mighty Brazil which, you may remember, was the leading initials in the collective noun 'BRICS'.  According to a report I read today, the Brazilian people are having to choose between two utterly useless and extremist politicians of the worst type to be their next 'el Presidente'.  The rest of South America seems to be collapsing into financial disaster.  Across the oceans, Africa is now an A1, prize basket-case from top to bottom and from east to west.  Anything useful in that continent has already been bought up by the Chinese so the impoverished Africans will not even get a smell of it!  Finally, there is India, a country of truly enormous possibilities which, God help it, is now seeking friendship with Russia - yeeeees, well, good luck with that one!  In the meantime, their big - no ENORMOUS - cities are stinking cesspits in which, quite literally, the air you breathe will kill you!

So there you have it, my friends, 'Doomster Duff' strikes again!  My only advice is that if you have been saving up a rare bottle of Scotland's finest tipple for Christmas, fageddaboutit, knock the top off and drink it now!  Er, have a nice day!

 

 

Oh God, yet more books!

I'm getting to the age where I am wondering if I'll live long enough to read them all!  I am still progressing gradually through 'The Story of Britain' by Sir Roy Strong, superb book but there's awful lot of it!  Waiting for me in my super-duper Kindle, the greatest invention since sliced bread, is the 'LA Quartet' by James Ellroy who is, I suspect 'a very naughty boy'!  But this week the bloody Spectator - which I urge you to subscribe to - has a couple of book reviews which I am quite unable to resist.  All I wonder is whether or not my titchy, skinny, little Kindle will be able to squeeze them in?

The first is a 'must have' - and if SoD is reading this he should buy a copy quick!  It is called "Our Boys: The Story of a Paratrooper" by a lady, Ms. Helen Parr, who is the niece of the late Dave Parr, a 19-year old private in 2 Para who was killed in the Falklands in 1982 by incoming artillery fire.  I gather that the book is part biography of Pte. Parr but also part history of the Parachute Regiment and it's development, including the 'naughty bits'! There is one particularly galling fact that Pte. Parr's eventual funeral in England, attended by many of his comrades who knew the secret that he had been killed by 'friendly fire' but the family did not!

Then, I'm afraid, it's 'more war' in the form of the latest book by one of the very best modern historians, Max Hastings.  It is on the subject of arguably the most devastating war since the end of WWII - "Vietnam: An Epic Tragedy".  Well, any war is a tragedy but it is amazing how the Vietnam war, which absolutely dominated the world when it was raging, has sort of sunk into oblivion.  Possibly, or probably, because no-one came out of it with much credit!  Anyway, I don't know that much about it so I will have to buy it.  You can read Saul David's review at The Spectator.

 

 

So that should have those scallywags trembling!

I have mentioned before the doubts I have concerning our brand new, shiny, young Secretary of Defence who, I suspect, might not be absolutely sure which arm to use in saluting!

Mind you, he seems to know how to cut a dash in the media wars as can be seen from his efforts to catch a few headlines with his proud announcement that Britain will despatch 440 soldiers to Afghanistan to sort out all those 'Hairies' who are threatening to bomb us even harder than old 'fatty' Goering managed in WWII.

By Jove, I bet all those 'Hairies' are trembling inside their caves at the prospect of 440 Brit 'squaddies' coming after them.  They probably remember what a terrific biffing we gave them a few years back, er, before we withdrew!  However, Mr. Williamson MP, the young lad above, tells us that our 'Toms' will be training thousands more 'Hairies', those in what passes for the Afghan army, how to operate their weaponry more efficiently. 

Yeeeees, well, that should work, er, shouldn't it?

 

 

Dear Lord, I hereby request an extra ten years to my life span!

Well, I need those extra years if I am ever going to get through the mounting pile (or perhaps that should be 'mountain'!) of waiting-to-be-read books!  No sooner do I finish reading the interesting details of John Lilburne's life (see below) than I came across another book review in 'The Speccie' on a subject that has long fascinated me but which I have neve quite got around to studying in any sort of detail - and yes, that is the story of my life!  I refer to the history of Britain and 'the Jewel of the East' - India, as told this time by David Gilmour in his book "The British in India: Three Centuries of Ambition and Experience".

Needless to say, to begin with it was all about money and loot but gradually it evolved into something rather different.  According to the review, it's possible that had it remained a relationship based on good (or bad!) old-fashioned greed it might have gone better.  But alas and alack, it wasn't too long before the 'memsahibs' came and then after them came the evangelical Christians.  It was, apparently, all downhill after that!  But what a story!  And what a truly remarkable collection of people they were who mostly volunteered to make that incredibly long and hugely dangerous sea journey round Africa and up to India.

I trust the shade of Charles Dickens will forgive me my trespasses if I tear one of his most famous passages from its context and use it here:

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.

Couldn't have put it better myself!

 

 

Aussie politics imitates a boomerang!

Attempting to understand other people's domestic politics is always tricky but from 'up over here' the view to 'down under there' is even more uncertain.  Also, of course, there is the occasional language problem as exemplified by that eccentric lady PM they had a few years ago whose accent made her incomprehensible to a refined British listener such as myself - and I heard that, Andra, er, even if I didn't quite understand it!

Anyway, it appears that the new Aussie sport is changing prime ministers which they seem to do with the same enthusiasm the Italians used to enjoy! Alas, I can offer no insight and so I needs must depend on the expertise of my Aussie readers to explain the ramifications.  In essence, according to reports via the media, their equivalent of the Tory party are, just like ours, intent on political suicide and thus the advent of a 'Leftie' socialist government can be expected at the next election.

This does have some serious implications because Australia is a bulwark against the swelling ambitions of the Chinese who appear determined to turn South East Asia into 'Greater China'!

 

Old battles are so much easier to fight!

And one of the most 'popular', or at any rate, the one that regurgitates on a regular basis, is the American nuclear attack on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.  This being the month of the anniversary of the action, Victor Davis Hanson raises the subject at the NR.  Given the implications of the two attacks, political, strategic and moral, he is quite right to do so.  He is also surely right in maintaining that all of Truman's other options would have proven to be even more malignant than the decision he took.

The Americans had the hardest of hard and blood-soaked evidence to tell them what to expect if they attempted an invasion of the Japanese main islands following the ferocious campaign for Okinawa which was fought for nearly three months from the 1st of April to June 22nd 1945.  The fanatical, suicidal defence put up by the Japanese inflicted colossal casualties on the Americans which they then knew would be repeated at even more monstrous levels on the Japanese main islands. 

Then, of course, there were the geo-political considerations to be considered.  Stalin, in his usual sly, duplicitous manner had carefully kept clear of any involvement in the Japanese war which would have been useful for his allies who had been losing men and ships in their struggle to keep his armies supplied.  However, by August 1945, with Germany defeated and Japan reeling, 'Uncle Joe' was shifting armies to the East ready to join in the plunder of the Japanese empire in China.  The last thing the Allies wanted was another 'iron curtain' across South East Asia!

So, all in all, President Truman possessed all the very best reasons to proceed with the nuclear attack which, unlike a slow, steady and extremely blood-soaked approach to Tokyo, would administer a true 'shock 'n' awe' jolt to the entire Japanese ruling-class, especially the Emperor.  It did - and it worked!

ADDITIONAL:  I found an article by my old 'e-pal'/adversary, Oliver Kamm, in my records which is worth reading - as is almost anything by him!

 

 

"Twelve good men and true"

This truly is a 'must read' article from The Telegraph.  It is the reminiscences of twelve old veterans who fought in the now nearly forgotten Korean war.  Most of them were National Servicemen doing their statutory 2 years in the army as was the practice in those far off, more disciplined days.  All of them share that same quiet under-statement style that we think of as typically British.  I couldn't help noticing that Anthony Farrar-Hockley was mentioned more than once.  A truly remarkable and courageous officer whose fighting record for the British army is second to none.  (Poor chap once had me as his regimental signaller but, thank God, there wasn't a shooting war going on at the time!)  However, returning to the twelve old veterans in the article, I do urge you all to give it a read.  These men really were the epitome of the very best of the British army!

ADDITIONAL:

In my haste last night I forgot to add this intriguing photo from the album of one of the old soldiers above.  His comrade to the left later rose to international fame:

 Arthur Moulder (centre), Maurice Micklewhite aka Michael Caine (left) and Cpl Coward (right) 

 

 

Right, pay attention 'down under there'!

Yet another interesting article in 'The Speccie' this week - well, you don't expect original thinking here, do you?! - this time concentrating on far-flung Australia which, according to the author, Tom Switzer, is heading towards an exceedingly tricky decision.  Hitherto, Australia has been blessed with a 'yuuuuuge' American defence umbrella and with a burgeoning mercantile China.  The demand for commodities from the latter has helped Australia to 27 years of uninterrupted economic growth. but now, perhaps, 'the times they are a-changin''  

Under 'The Don', America is challenging China which, in turn, is challenging everyone else in the Far East as their power grows.  Given the, shall we say, idiosyncratic character of 'The Don', he is quite capable of taking away his defence umbrella if Australia is less than enthusiastically supportive.  Equally, the Chinese are demonstrating in the South China Sea and elsewhere that as, so to speak, 'the new kid on the block', they too demand support.  Of course, China is suffering, amongst other things, with the self-inflicted malignancy of an aging population which will only metastasise over the coming decades.

Even so, Australia will need to learn the trick of tip-toeing, not so much through the tulips as through the minefield!

 

 

Good News and Sad News

The tremendously 'Good News' is that all of those Thai lads and their leader who have been trapped in caves underground for what seems like forever, have been rescued and, so far, all seem well.  This freak accident was the stuff of nightmares and both the rescuers and the operational commanders who had to work out and then decide on the ways and means of deliverance deserve the very highest praises.

The 'Sad News' is the death of Lord Carrington MC.  He had, to use the old expression, a 'good war' fighting his way across northern Europe in WWII.  He then 'bimbled and bumbled' his way through the highest reaches of various British governments and, according to the Telegraph's obit, made more than his fair share of errors and misjudgements.  Even so, he saved his reputation when, as Foreign Secretary under 'that woman', the 'Argies' invaded the Falklands to everyone's 'gob-smacked' surprise including his!  However, he at least had the good grace to resign and for that I salute his memory.

 

The Sunday Rumble: 8.7.18

I may have to move:   Dammit, this searing heat wave which goes on and on and on is just so un-British!  I'm seriously thinking of trying to find my old tent on the end of runway #2 at Bahrein airport in which I spent so many happy(not) months because I think it was marginally cooler!

 

Bye-bye, Mrs. May; hello, Dear Leader Jezza:   I see that The Telegraph has an article warning that Tory voters are likely to withdraw support from the Tory party at the next election given that they can recognise a surrender document when they smell one even if Mrs. May and her cabinet cannot.  As you all do know, because I never stopped bragging about it, I walked miles up and down the highways and byways of, er, Greater Milborne Port - yes, alright, I know it's not exactly a metropolis! - dishing out my Brexit leaflets.  When the first vote was scheduled in Parliament I wrote to my MP that if he failed to support Brexit I would never vote for him again.  He trembled, I tell you, trembled!  Actually, he did support it.  Now I must write to him again, more in sorrow than in anger and tell him that I will not be voting for him at the next election - which I suspect will come a great deal quicker than most people expect!

 

Those cave kids:   I gather that the rescue of those lads trapped in an underground cave in Thailand is imminent.  For me, personally, suffering as I do with claustrophobia, I must admit that I have tried hard not to think about it but, alas, there is no avoiding it.  The cheerful courage they have displayed is simply beyond description.  I hope, and would pray if I had anyone to pray to, that their rescue is successful.  At the same time, it is worth remembering the courageous Thai diver who lost his life as part of the rescue mission.

 

As usual, Peter Hitchens writes what I think:   He's grumbling on about the assumption by the 'meeja' that we are all utterly fascinated by the football and cannot get too much of it:

It’s very similar to the equally infuriating assumption, common among weather forecasters, that everybody likes hot, sunny weather. Lots of people don’t, and I am currently longing for the western wind to blow again and the thrilling sound of rain beating on the roof at night.

'Meetoo'!  

 

Trump's SCOTUS choice rips the Dems:   Fairly shortly 'The Donald' will announce his candidate to take the empty seat on the SCOTUS and the Senate will be asked to confirm or deny the choice.  Deliciously, several Dem Senators are facing re-election in November and their electorate will be watching them like a hawk watching a scuttling mouse!  Equally, so will the increasingly fanatical Left-wing of the Democratic party.  What's a poor 'poli' to do?

 

Is 'footie' too boring?   And if so, how can it be made more exciting?  Peter Hitchens raises the subject which I have seen mentioned elsewhere.  Of course, it is absolutely true that most 'footie' is boring but then many of the most intriguing games are boring because they are complex and require concentration and some knowledge to fully appreciate them.  What must be avoided at all costs is developing a game like basketball in which the average score appears to be something like 3,762 against 3,268 - now that really is boring!

 

And the winner is - Silverstone!   Given some of the 'Micky Mouse' circuits on which the F1 circus performs (in return for 'yuuuuuuuge' amounts of money!), it is wonderful to watch the fastest race cars in the world competing on a proper race track - even if, alas, that damned Hun won.  Even so, (Sir) Lewis finished a very creditable second following an incident which put him last in the early stages of the race.

 

 

No more rumbles 

 

 

Well, at least he didn't execute them with an A-A gun!

I refer, of course, to 'Fat Boy Kim' who has just taken the world and his three leading Generals by surprise - by firing them!  No, no, not firing at them with an A-A gun as he did when he despatched his uncle a few years ago.  I remember reading one or two reports recently which suggested that he was taking an enormous risk by even considering dismantling his nuclear capabilities.  Generals, being Generals, particularly short-arse Generals with 300 medals each just luuuurve their big their 'big-bang-bangs'!

It is, after all, a justification for their perks and payments and pensions, not to say their very existence!  Of course, no-one can be sure whether or not 'Fat Boy Kim' is really prepared to give up his nuclear 'toys'.  I keep asking myself what's in it for him?  I can understand the Chinese wanting him to do it - provided there is a treaty making the Korean peninsular not just a nuclear free zone but an American forces free zone, too!  

From 'Fat Boy's' point of view, perhaps he can do a deal with the South Koreans which will allow him to divert some of their wealth 'ooooop north' to cheer up his miserable, enslaved population.  There are so many 'ifs, buts and maybes' in this scenario that it is exceedingly difficult to sort out what is going on.  My only useless advice is - watch this space!

ADDITIONAL:  No sooner written than overtaken by an excellent article by Jed Babbin at The American Spectator which lays out very clearly what a minefield President Trump is entering.  Thank God he will have Bolton and Pompeo by his side to guide him.

 

 

"Another perspective", or, you should have gone to Specsavers!

The American Spectator, like its London counterpart, is never afraid to enjoy 'another perspective' which is the title of some of its articles which approach matters  from a somewhat different direction.  Thus it is today when Mr. F. H. Buckley pens an article headed "Fire Bolton", er, that's Mr. John Bolton, the National Security Advisor to President Trump and the man who keeps all the kiddie-winkies awake at night because it is his finger that hovers over Trump's finger as they keep stroking that 'yuuuuuuuuuge' red button! 

Mr. Buckley takes a cool look at the 'clusterfuck' that is the relationship between 'Fat Boy Kim' and 'The Donald'.  I was grateful to read it because it is a tangled subject quite beyond my powers of analysis.  According to Mr. Buckley, 'Fat Boy Kim' has absolutely no intention of using his nukes against America for the very simple reason that he would be signing his own death warrant.  So, you may well ask, why does the little Korean 'podger' insist on having them?  Mr. Buckley maintains that what he is frightened of is idealistic American foreign policy which, over recent decades, seems unable to keep its nose out of other people's business.

So why does he need the nukes? Why, to protect himself from America idealism. His nukes are defensive. What he’s telling us is that he’ll attack us if we try to depose him.

As we did in Libya. It’s all about Libya. It’s always been about Libya.

Remember how the Obama administration greeted the “Arab Spring”? It brought down some American friends such as Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak, as well some deranged miscreants such as Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi. It replaced them in Egypt with the Moslem Brotherhood and in Libya with the people who killed Ambassador Chris Stevens.

Ah, Libya. It was supposed to give us a democratic Arab nation, one as firmly committed to human rights as any San Francisco Democrat. The then-Secretary of State was so gung-ho for it that the Washington Post called it “Hillary’s War.”

What it got us instead was blackest chaos. The death of our ambassador and the death of Gaddafi.

If there's one man in Washington absolutely gung-ho to, as it were, 'carry on up the Khyber', it is the militant Mr. Bolton.

Some conservatives have defended Bolton as the administration’s “bad cop.” We don’t need a bad cop, however. What is needed instead is realism, cynicism, and a recognition that both we and the Norks have a credibility problem. Bolton doesn’t help. He’s not dumb and he’s not especially sharp. He’s just a ventor cloaca.

And no, I didn't know what a "ventor cloaca" was, either.  Look it up under Wiki and you will get the general idea!

 

So it's not just us!

Hitherto, I thought it was just us that produced the likes of floating (just!), multi-zillion aircraft carriers without any aircraft, or the equivalent there-of.  Today I am cheered to read that the 'cousins', as so often in other areas, have done even better and, needless to say, even more expensively by producing a $12 billion aircraft carrier with a propulsion system that, er, doesn't propel.  Obviously, someone is to blame and personally I point the finger at 'JK' who may have been under the influence of Mr. Barney Magroo!

Of course, both these aircraft carrier mishaps raise a question in my simple, Corporal's head, are aircraft carriers worth anything at all today?  You might say in reply that of course they must be useful because the admirals say so.  However, I would remind you that the British admirals of the pre-WWI era, except one of them, Admiral Fisher, resisted the construction of behemoth battleships which  Fisher pushed through and which saved our bacon at the battle of Jutland.  Needless to say, 'yuuuuuuuge' battleships became, so to speak, 'the flavour of the month' in the approach to WWII, especially within the Japanese navy which was 'A Good Thing' because the American carriers sank most of them!

I have raised this question before without receiving any persuasive answers but I still wonder, in this age of electronic warfare, just how useful will aircraft carriers be against foes armed with the latest laser beams and electronic energy 'bombs' that will close down communications?

Jes' askin'!

 

 

The Sunday Rumble: 29.4.18

Oh no, say it ain't so!   Peter Oborne, writing in The Mail,  issues an ominous warning to the effect that Mrs. May is unlikely to survive as PM through the Autumn and that there is a very great chance of an election before the year ends.  We will be faced with the choice between the uneatable and the indigestible!

 

Trump vs. Obama:   Peter Oborne also points up the fact that that ineffable goofball, President 'Obamarama', was given the Nobel Peace Prize (the most useless and over-rated bauble of all time) within months of entering the White House despite the screamingly obvious fact that he had achieved absolutely nothing.  On the other hand, President Trump seems to have kicked some sense into 'Fat Boy Kim' who is now making 'nicely-nicely' with his hitherto sworn enemies in South Korea.  So what are those 'yerdy-durble' Norwegians waiting for?

 

HELP! I'm a TSB customer:   I never asked to be a TSB customer because I was a Lloyds Bank customer for years before and quite happy but then, following some machinations in the City, a large chunk of Lloyds' customers were hived off into TSB.  It all worked perfectly well until TSB, and its new Spanish owners, decided they did not want to keep paying Lloyds for the use of their computer platform and decided to switch the lot over to their own system - all at the flick of a switch, or, as the late great Tommy Cooper used to put it, "Jus' like that!'  Result - a monstrous cock-up which means we have not been able to access our account and presumably our standing orders are not being paid.  Such fun! 

 

As is only right, fitting and proper!   That pukka British gentleman of the first order, (Sir) Lewis Hamilton, romped home to win the Grand Prix in Azerbaijan, er, well, perhaps not quite 'romped' but as everyone else crashed, bashed and hashed their efforts, he won!  Hoorah and now he edges into the lead of the world championship.  I'm sure Her Maj will have been duly impressed - hint-hint, Ma'am - and (Sir) Lewis's reward will not be too far 'orf'!

 

Read and inwardly digest:   The proto-mother of my children (when she replies to my generous offer!), Ms. Janet Daly, applies her considerable intelligence to the mad, mad, mad, mad world that we occupy today.  I will not attempt to paraphrase her commentary, instead I will copy and paste her summary of contemporary Russia:

The collapse of the great ideological contest – which was, at least, comprehensible – has not made way for a common understanding. It seems instead to have produced a set of simultaneous nervous breakdowns. Russia, traumatised by losing, in a peculiarly ignominious fashion – no bang, just a whimper that reverberated around the globe– the most momentous battle of ideas in modern history, as well as the Soviet empire that went with it, has gone technically insane. The Kremlin now fills the terrifying void with a barrage of absurd fantasies and lies so preposterous that they would have been beneath the dignity of the old Communist regime. Like a neurotic malcontent, it occupies itself with an anarchic campaign of disruption for its own sake, designed to produce confusion and distrust among its adversaries – but with no clear idea of an outcome. Perhaps, given Russia’s historical paranoia and ever-greater isolation, this should not have come as a surprise.

Dammit, the lady writes like a dream and is laser-accurate!  She is also exceedingly scathing on the subject of Trumpian America.

 

Just for 'SoD':   File under "Ve haf veys of making you obey!"  From The Telegraph today:

EU member states that fail to live up the European Union’s democratic values could find parts of their EU subsidies being “frozen” until they mend their ways, The Telegraph understands.

This proposal will be unveiled by EU Commissar  oops, sorry, I mean Commissioner, Günther Hermann Oettinger.  Golly, I wonder where he comes from?

 

Well, ladies, you do all support 'Meetoo':   So I suppose it's only fair that when ladies, so to speak, hurl buckets of poo around they should aim a large proportion of it at each other.  In that spirit, a lady 'comedienne' attending the White House Correspondents' dinner fired a barrage of low-grade insults at the lady who is currently the White House Press Secretary nearly reducing her to tears.  You want 'Meetoo', you get 'Meetoo'!

 

No more rumbles today

 

Does anyone understand what is going on inside Korea - or America?

Writing as a man with a 'First Class Honours Degree in Ignorance', I haven't a clue, but there again, nor has The Spectator!  This distinguished magazine which is stuffed to the rafters with real 'brainiacs' who understand the ways of the world spends several hefty paragraphs attempting to explain how and why a grossly fat Korean 'nutter' has managed to execute what looks like a triple political somersault - and then there is the elderly and overweight American president who has done the same without, apparently, harming a precious hair on his head!  It is, of course, a truth universally acknowledged - well, it is by the NYT and the WaPo - that Donald Trump is an ignorant, brain-damaged oaf whose only skill is in lacquering his hair!  Even so, only six months ago we were all busy digging our nuclear shelters in our back gardens ready for the inevitable war in the Far East - but it ain't happened!  So what went wrong?  Oooops, sorry, what went right?

Alas, and sorry to let you all down (although I doubt many of you thought I had anything useful to say on the subject!), I really do not understand why 'Fat Boy Kim' has executed such a swift about turn.  Of course, his tiny little knackers were being squeezed by 'Smiley' Xi, his exceedingly powerful neighbour to the north but for him to suddenly become 'lovey-dovey' with an American-dominated South Korea is truly weird.  In addition, I wonder how that gaggle of over-decorated Generals who surround him and whose (relative) wealth and power is tied to an ambitious and aggressive North Korea are re-acting to this new 'peacenik' President?  My advice to 'Fat Boy Kim' is watch your back!

In the meantime, what can one say except, 'It's a mystery!' 

 

'Fat Boy Kim' loses weight!

So, North Korean problem solved?  Er, no, I doubt it!  One day 'Fat Boy' threatens to nuke Washington, next day he tells us that he has put his rocket toys back in the cupboard.  Of course, they have not been dismantled, merely locked away - for now!

 

Needless to say, every Far East 'expert', none of whom actually forecast this event, are busy scratching their heads and muttering, "Eh? What? Why? How?"  Meanwhile, the Japanese are spinning on the spot, according to Mr. Johnathan Fenby, my own 'Far Eastern expert' of choice because, of course, he writes for the 'Speccie'!  

According to Mr. Fenby, it was probably the fact that Mr. Li 'Smiley' Jinping of China who finally shut the mouth of 'Fat Boy' and opened his sphincter!  A few months ago China cut off supplies of petroleum, coal, steel and motor vehicles to North Korea.  Soon there-after, 'Fat Boy' leapt aboard his 'rocket train' (perhaps his limo had run out of fuel!) and hurtled up to Beijing to have his annual report read to him.  Mr. Fenby intimates that the 'headmaster' of China does not have a high opinion of 'Fat Boy' from the Fourth Form and was determined bring him under control.

Sorry, Donald, no kudos for you although you at least stood your ground which, I suspect, is far more than your sinuous predecessor would have done!

Jonathan Fenby is China Chairman at the TSLombard research service and author of The Penguin History of Modern China

 

 

The Sunday Rumble: 1.4.18

I am in Grump Mode Factor 10!   Last night I watched 4.5 minutes of the Hamlet production filmed on BBC.  It was excruciating torture!  Apart from Juliet Stevenson, I doubt that any of them could even spell the words 'iambic pentameter' let alone understand what they mean.  If I tell you that the, er, prince of Denmark was dressed in scruffy black jeans and a black T-shirt, need I say more?  But I will, I promise, later, when I have summoned up some moral courage!

 

It gets worse:   My GMF (see above) has now reached 20 because my bloody-bloody computer is playing up despite 'SoD' stitching me up with some new-fangled, high speed, fibre connection.  High speed, my arse!

 

I almost feel sorry for old Labourites:   The proto-mother of my children, Ms. Janet Daly in The Telegraph, in effect sings a lament to those old-fashioned supporters of the Labour party who, though they believed in all that socialist twaddle, never lost their greater sense of decency and patriotism.  The song she sings could not be more clear: "It's all over!"  She sums it up in her final paragraph:

To those of you in the Labour party who might hope to fight, fight, and fight again – as a previous leader of yours once put it – to save the party you love, please take a word of warning from a person who has some experience of this: you scarcely know what you’re up against. You are well-meaning amateurs fighting relentless, brutal professionals. The gang that succeeded in ousting you (much to their own surprise) may have no idea where this is all going to end or even how to cope with the day-to-day reality of mainstream political life, but they sure as hell aren’t going to let go of the levers while they decide, and they won’t take prisoners. They’ve spent a lifetime waiting for this moment. 

The vile, fanatical, anti-Semitic thugs who waltzed into the control-room of the old Labour party, partly thanks to the feeble, dim-witted non-leadership of that ineffable prat, Ed Miliband, will never relinquish their power.  There is now only one option for the decent Left to take and that is to forsake the old Labour party and form a new one.  Not easy but it can be done and great things achieved - just look at Nigel Farage and UKIP. 

 

Arnaud Beltrame R.I.P.   There is, it seems to me as someone who has never been tested (thank God!) two types of courage - hot and cold.  The first can be imagined as occurring in the heat of a dangerous moment.  Even so, it is still courage and therefor is worthy of admiration.  The second arises when the hero concerned has time, plenty of time, to consider the options and then decides to do the brave thing.  Such a man was Lt. Col. Arnaud Beltrame of the French police who chose to offer himself in exchange for a female hostage and was subsequently killed.  What can one say except 'quelle courage'!

 

Our Minister of Defence?  Really?   To use an old expression which, because it has a nautical reference is beyond my comprehension, when it comes to young Mr. Gavin Williamson MP, I do not like the cut of his jib!  To use another expression which I do understand, I suspect this young 'thruster' is all mouth and no trousers!  In today's Telegraph he writes an excruciatingly over-egged paean of praise for the RAF which, I suspect, will make some of their members wriggle with embarrassment.  Here's an example: "The RAF is the true face of a global, modern Britain – admired by our friends, respected and feared by our adversaries."  Yeeeees, quite!

 

Cheer up, both FIFA and the Russians are in the 'doo-doo'!   Delicious news in the Mirror today which reports that many of the 'yuuuuuge' international sponsors are showing very little enthusiasm to rush in and support the ludicrous World Cup, particularly when it is being held in a gangster fiefdom that goes around using poison nerve gas.  Both FIFA and the 'Rooskies' are likely to be hit deep in their pockets - shame (not).  If any 'footie' fans from Britain actually attend then I will take it as confirmation of my long-held suspicion that they are all brain dead!

 

Where did all these 'Peeps' come from?   For reasons unknown, my stats graph showing (allegedly!) the number of visitors to this blog, suddenly shot up almost double.  Was it something I said wrote?  I doubt it because for the last few days it has been the usual mixture of the 'same-old-same-old'.  One possibility, I suppose, is that for reasons unknown the number of people suffering from insomnia has increased and the word has gone round that D&N is a cure!

 

What is 'Fat Boy Kim' up to?  Dammit, it's impossible to know because all those Orientals are just so inscrutable!  I suspect that his rather titchy nuts have been given a fierce squeeze by the 'Mr. Smiley' who runs China.  Perhaps 'Mr. Smiley' let it be known that if there was going to be a war with America, he would be the one who began it, not 'Fat Boy Kim'!  Anyway, we now face the speculative prospect - I put it no higher - that North and South Korea might become a single entity.  The question then arises: is that "A Good Thing" or "A Bad Thing"?

ADDITIONAL:  So much for my ignorant waffle but if you are interested in an informed and intelligent analysis, then let me urge you to read Mr. Soo Kim at the NR who appears somewhat more knowledgeable than me on Korean matters which he should be given that he is a former CIA analyst specialising in North Korea! 

 

Andrew Neill explains anti-Semitism:   Apparently, a large section of the Labour party believe that accusations of anti-Semitism aimed at them have no reality and are merely an attack on 'Jezza'.  Helpfully, Mr. Neill provides an example of anti-Semitism at work - and where it all leads to in the end:

‘An evil demon we thought had been slain – anti-Semitism – pollutes society on both sides of the channel once more. I was told today that polls and focus groups show that many Brits, not just the young, don’t know what anti-Semitism is.

Well, gather round. Mireille Knoll was 85 in a wheelchair suffering from Parkinsons, she’d survived the holocaust. But not an attack last Friday in her Paris council flat. Stabbed eleven times and burnt to death because she was Jewish. That dear viewer is anti-Semitism at its deadliest and most depraved which is how it always ends up and which is why it can’t be tolerated. Those still in doubt need to educate themselves… fast.’

'Nuff said, really!

 

No more rumbles today

 

 

The anguish and the irony!

I wish that Jan Morris would stop nudging me!  Every time I open a newspaper or magazine, I keep coming across reviews of her latest book "Battleship Yamato" but, honestly, I dare not buy any more, I'm running out of space in this house to stack all of my 'waiting-to-be-read' books and there are increasing rumbles and grumbles emanating from the 'Memsahib' - not a good sign!  Anyway, in today's Telegraph, Ms. Morris herself writes a brief summary of her book and it is enough to make you weep for the pity of it, or rage at the stupidity of it, whichever, or both, perhaps.

It was back in Dec 2013 that the Yamato first featured on this blog in the comments section below a post bemoaning the insane stupidity of the Japanese ruling class to even think of attacking America.  It was the biggest and most powerfully-armed battleship of all time - it was the mega-Dreadnought of all Dreadnoughts!  It had a crew of 3,000 men and amongst a whole range of armaments it had three 18.1" guns.  Each of its nine heaviest guns could fire two tons of projectiles at the rate of 7.5 per minute to a distance of 26 miles.

The irony, of course, stems from the fact that it was the Japanese themselves only three years earlier who had demonstrated decisively at Pearl Harbour that the age of the battleship was over because air power was now supreme.  Shortly there-after, they confirmed it by sinking the British battleships Prince of Wales and Repulse.  Even so, in April 1945 Japan was trembling on the verge of defeat and it was decided to commit the Yamato to a desperate attempt to defend Okinawa.  As Ms. Morris confirms, virtually everyone on board from the captain down must have known this was the most futile of all futile gestures and, in effect, 2,278 men were sent to certain death.

When will we human beings ever learn?

 

The Sunday Rumble: 4.3.18

A final farewell to the late Michael Green:   I notice that there were one or two of you who were as saddened by the death of Michael Green as I was. Yesterday there was an obit in The Telegraph for whom, back in the day, Mike used to write.  Worth a read because it also features a filmed interview with him.

Who said that economics is "the dismal science"?   Well, of course, it was that gloomy Jock, Thomas Carlyle, but he was not entirely accurate.  'Over there' - where else? - they have an economic measure called the Vice Index in which they keep track of spending on gambling, alcohol, drugs and prostitution:

Trump's tax cuts provided a brief, er, stiffening in the spending but in the equivalent of a couple of minutes it was all over!  Typical, as your average American housewife might say!  My thanks to Zero Hedge.

 

Sorry, Sir Winston, my bad!   I owe the great man - and he was ' great man' albeit with great flaws -  an apology.  For decades I have blamed him for despatching HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse to Malayan waters where they were promptly sunk by Japanese aircraft.  I once flew over the site of their demise and you can still see the outline of the ships below the water.  Yesterday, I discovered that it was not Winston's doing but that of the naval commander concerned who went down with his ships.  Also, I was amazed to learn that the Japanese navy and air force deliberately held back from the scene so as not to interfere with rescue efforts from smaller ships which saved the lives of hundreds of British sailors.  I will have more to say on this topic when I have fought my way through to the end of Richard Lamb's book "Churchill as War Leader". 

 

Ach, 'Mutti' rules again:   You have to hand it to the little German dumpling, she has oodles of Haftkraft which, according to my German language advisor, er Google Translate, actually, mean 'sticking power'.  I pretend to no detailed knowledge of Germany's internal politics but the coalition between a Right-wing party and a Left-wing party, both of whom were given a spanking by their electorate at the last election, smacks ('geddit'?) of two people in the sea clinging to each other before the next wave sinks them!

 

Time to auction off the 'BBC - British Bullshit Company':   There was mild panic here at 'Chateau Duff' the other day when my TV lost the signal to Sky News.  This meant that I had to switch to the dreaded, and dreadful, BBC.  It helped slightly, of course, that as per usual I always have the sound off and merely glance from time to time at the ticker-tape at the bottom to ensure that none of those bloody politicians have had the infernal cheek to declare war without notice!  It is now clear beyond doubt that the BBC is totally Left-wing and anti-Brexit.  The insolent nobs don't even bother to show a bare minimum of balanced reporting.  On top of that they are paying themselves eye-wateringly huge salaries at our expense.  Sell 'em off!

 

It takes a turd to love a turd:   This irrefutable scientific theory is confirmed yet again by the mutual love and adoration and respect between, in this toilet bowl, Mr. Tom Watson MP, and in that toilet bowl, Mr. Max Mosley.

          

                          A Turd                                                                                  Another Turd 

I will leave it to the gallant Mr. Stephen Pollard, editor of The Jewish Chronicle, to explain the details but I advise you all to wash your hands afterwards!

 

A "paper dragon"?   A fascinating article at The American Thinker by Peter Skurkiss who offers a view of China and its future role in the world which is markedly different from the shivers of fear usually produced when one contemplates exactly where this gargantuan country is headed.  He summarises, thus:

[T]he Chinese still face a combination of nearly insurmountable problems, ranging from China's enormous debt to its inherent corruption and polluted environment to its unsolvable upside-down demographics.

So, good luck with all of that, self-appointed President-for-Life Xi Jinping!

 

To the deeply religious there is no compromise with heresy:   Another of the potential mothers of my children, from whom I have still not received a reply to my generous offer, offers a spot-on summary of why Mrs. May's sensible, pragmatic approach to the EU 'agitprop' will be spurned and scorned.  As the highly intelligent and attractive Ms. Janet Daly spells out in The Telegraph, the Brits are approaching our problem with Europe from a standpoint of compromise without realising that to them it is a matter of deep religious belief and conviction and any attempt to vary the details is heresy!  It is London Protestantism versus Roman Catholocism all over again!  She sums it up, thus:

But what she [Mrs. May] could not acknowledge was the most serious impediment to agreement, what everybody out there in the real world will have gathered by now: “pragmatic” and “cooperative” do not come into it. The EU project is theological and what Mrs May is proposing is heresy.

The ties that bind EU member states are moral absolutes. They are deliberately transformative: specifically designed to alter the nature of nation states and make sovereign governments less powerful. Hence, the objection to “cherry-picking”: acceptance of the whole credo is essential. If you reject the essential truths, you cannot expect to get the benefits of some of the rituals.

Exactly so!

 

No more rumbles today

 

 

Pheeew, that Ferdinand Mount saved me several weeks of reading!

I am deeply obliged to Mr. Ferdinand Mount, not just because of the many articles he used to write for The Spectator but also for one or two of his books which I have also read over the years.  Now, however, I am even further in his debt because I have just read his long - and I do mean 'looooong' - review in the LRB of several books that have appeared recently on the touchy subject of the British Raj. First, let me admit quickly that my knowledge of the history of Britain in India is minimal but then, as you all do know, I am an ignorant fellow with only a 'Third from the University of Life'.  Also, I have been hopelessly corrupted by a lifetime of 'fake news' concerning our rule over India quite a lot of which was rose-tinted by the romantic Rudyard Kipling.

However, just recently I have been bombarded with several book offers by Amazon concerning the Raj, none of which, I gather, cast us Brits in a very good light.  In particular, Inglorious Empire: What the British Did to India by Shashi Tharoo to whom, I gather, we Brits must have done quite a bit of harm because he doesn't have a good word to say about any of us!  I must say that I was not attracted to Mr. Tharoo's book, not because he was less than flattering to us but because I just know, deep down beneath the 'Kiplingest' tinge, we did execute, really and metaphorically, some truly appalling acts out there over the 250-odd years of our rule.  Even so, like most human behaviour, it was not all bad.  Dammit, we taught them cricket! 

 

'Hornblower' Williamson takes on the Chinese

I worried about the appointment of that lad, Gavin Williamson MP, as Minister of Defence and now I know why!  Apparently, 'Able Seaman' Williamson (or perhaps that should be 'not very Able Seaman'), is determined to sail one of Her Maj's warships through the South China Sea which those cheeky, cheating Chinese claim to own.  Here is the ship concerned which should reduce the Chinese navy to trembles - not! 

This is HMS Sutherland and no, it is not exactly bristling with long-range, ultra-powerful missiles and 'yuuuuuge' guns because it's, well, actually, it's  just a frigate!  So what it is supposed to do in the event of a confrontation with a Chinese battle fleet I am not too sure and I don't suppose that 'Able Seaman' Williamson is either!  Nor, to be fair to the lad, am I too sure if the crusty old Admirals, there are 41 of them who litter the Royal Navy these days, know any better than him!

I just wish that someone would get a grip of the Ministry of Defence and bang it into their heads that Britain is no longer a world power and what happens in the South China Sea is the problem of those nations who surround it, plus the USA.  Thus sayeth ex-Corporal Duff (substantive, mind!)