The Nation: "Bugged by the Brits"

[non sociopath skin]

Conservative radio and television personalities in the United States were unsettled after last week's bombings in London -- not because of the terrorist attack on a major western city, but because too few Londoners were willing to serve as props to support the right-wing ranting of the Americans. After one stoic Brit, who had blood on the side of his face, calmly described climbing out of a smoke-filled subway station, a Fox anchor exclaimed, "That man's obviously in shock."

Actually, the man appeared to be completely in control of his faculties, as did the British journalists who appeared that evening on Fox's "The O'Reilly Factor." Host Bill O'Reilly, the king of the hysterics, had a hard time with the Brits, who simply were not as feverish as he had hoped -- and who were genuinely bemused when he started ranting about how much he hated Britain's highly regarded Guardian newspaper.

O'Reilly, like too many other American radio and television commentators, expected the British attacks to provide a new opportunity to hype support for the war in Iraq, gripe about "open borders" and generally spin sorrow and fear into political gold for the conservative cause.

It didn't happen, though not for lack of trying by the folks at Fox.

Rest at:
http://www.thenation.com/blogs/thebeat?bid=1&pid=5323

[wli]

1. too inured for false flag of this form

The Brits have had the IRA going at them for 90 years. If a false flag operation is going to sway them, it's not going to be a couple of pipe bombs in their subways.

[DELUSIONAL]

2. yes the IRA

I've discussed this very topic with my British friends this past winter -- and they predicted exactly how Brits would act if there were a terrorist attack of some sort in the UK.

They also are very bitter about the role SOME Americans have played in their support of the IRA -- and that the US refused to shut down the funding of the IRA from America.

"We know about terrorism -- we've been dealing with the IRA . . ." is what one friend said. This person also said they wouldn't go silly like the Yanks.

The radical right probably expected the Brits to say -- send more troops to Iraq and let's go bomb Iran and Syria -- or kill the %$#$$^%$

They were expecting some sort of action -- and most of my UK friends blame bushie. They generally do NOT mention any of this to most Americans -- expecting them to have far too conservative a mind set to understand the IRA dynamic in the UK.

[Another Bill C.]

3. The British didn't learn.

The rise of the IRA was the natural result of the British doctrine of "manifest destiny." The British don't belong in Ireland, they never have belonged there, and they never will. While most of the Irish population chose subjection over violence, it should have been predictable that many wouldn't and those many would choose the only means they felt they had to rid themselves of the aggressor.

So it is in Iraq. Most Arabs seem to be accepting subjection by a foreign power over violence and seeing their deaths as "the will of God." However, many don't accept dominion by the "manifest destiny" group and have chosen the only means they feel they have to rid themselves of the aggressors.

[Guy_Montag]

5. Are you suggesting ethnic cleansing of Northern Ireland?`

Or if not what should happen to the c. 52% of people that live there that consider themselves British?

I'm happy to have the reunification of Ireland, but only when supported by the majority of people that live in the area which would change hands.

[ananda]

8. How about..

.. having the occupiers in Ireland move back to England!!!

Sue

[muriel_volestrangler]

10. Back? The protestants in Northern Ireland have been there

400 years (and most came from Scotland). Are you saying they should all go to a place where it's impossible to say which cities their ancestors came from?

[Another Bill C.]

14. Maybe a kinder and gentler

version of Cromwell's "To Hell or Connaught" program under which all Irish east of the River Shannon were ordered to resettle in Connaught or face summary execution (or being shipped to the West Indies as a slave). To impress this group of Irish, he conducted many massacres throughout the country. Of his massacre at Drogheda, Cromwell wrote that he didn't think more than 30 survived and they were shipped as slaves to Barbados.
The estimates of those shipped away as slaves under Cromwell and his successor in Ireland are between 50,000 and 100,000.

I'm not suggesting we treat the settlers in kind but if Cromwell could affect a large relocation in the 1600s, surely it can be done today.

[muriel_volestrangler]

16. Hmm, let me find a suitable expression for that

something with a definition of "the expulsion, imprisonment, or killing of ethnic minorities by a dominant majority group"? Ah yes, that's it, "ethnic cleansing". So, you're proposing the expulsion of the unionists from Northern Ireland?

[Dutch]

17. "kinder and gentler" ethnic cleansing...

I don't know whether to laugh or cry...

[Guy_Montag]

12. You're family has probably been in America

for less time than most "Brits" have been in NI.

Maybe you should go "home".

[GCP]

7. It seems like you're an apologist for the IRA

The same IRA who indiscriminately bombed targets in Northern Ireland and mainland UK. We learned plenty about terrorism which was mainly funded by Americans, and that was also aided by Libya in its training camps.

[TomClash]

4. Oh too bad

And the Brits have refused to shut down the funding of the UVF, UDA, RHD and LVF and the other Protestant paramlitary groups. And what ever happened to the Good Friday Accords? Who failed to implement them?

[Guy_Montag]

6. Sorry, which legitmate organisations have funded the

loyalist paramilitary groups.

And if we're talking about the Good Friday Accords - where are the guns, we are still waiting for them?

There have been big steps on the side of the British Govt, including the disbanding (or at least renaming & reducing of numbers in the RUC, with an increase in the number of Catholics in the PSNI).

[Another Bill C.]

9. The British government

supplied the UVF with bomb materials which the UVF used in the 1974 bombings in Dublin and Monaghan. Thirty-three people (mostly women) were killed and 250 injured.

[Guy_Montag]

11. Evidence? n/t

[Another Bill C.]

15. Google Dublin+bombing

or Monaghan+bombing.

You might also look up the car bombings of Pat Finucane and Rosemary Nelson. Their killers are believed to have been aided by the old RUC.

[Guy_Montag]

18. Because the internet isn't full of tin foil hats or anything

I'm not sayiing that members of the security forces were not involved, but no official enquiry has linked the British govt. & these bombings.

See the Barron Report for further details.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/3412191.stm

[TomClash]

19. When are the Loyalist paras going to give up their guns?

"Legitimate organizations" - how cute. It wasn't the IRA that shot Roy Green in the head in 2003, now was it?

[johannes1984]

13. I can only

hope one day we'll all be europeans .