Wikileaks truth surge

 

Never before has the world has so much news. But we are still denied the truth.

John Pilger quotes Lloyd George in the First World War, ‘If people really knew the truth,’ he said, ‘the war would be stopped tomorrow.'  The reporting of Afghanistan is through a distorting mirror of state censorship through embedded journalists and doctored reports. Pilger continues.

"The last British war completely free of state censorship was the Crimea,William Howard Russell’s exposé of the disaster of the charge of the Light Brigade. He was almost charged with treason for telling the truth. This changed completely during the First World War, when journalists saw their job, wrote Philip Gibbs of the Daily Chronicle, as telling ‘only tales of gallantry’. The 700 embedded journalist in the Iraq War  passed over the brutal conquest and plunder of a defenceless country. That said, the reporting on the worldwide web was an important antidote; Contrast that with Dahr Jamail’s powerful, independent reporting from Fallujah and the independent filmmaking that gave civilians a voice'. 

On Wednesday this week I had the pleasure of giving evidence to the Commons Procedure Committee of Commons Statements. The two worst examples of news suppression were the statements made in May and June by Hague and Cameron on their visits to Afghanistan. They oozed manic optimism. Neither mentioned that the growing strength of the Taliban forced the cancellation of visits planned to their main destinations. Sins of omission. The committee appeared sympathetic when the frustration of  Government's attempts  to dumb down the announcements of UK Afghan deaths. The House is not prepared to have the announcements of the names of the fallen to be made when the Chamber is half empty.

The  Wikileaks Truth Surge is exposing the depth of the corruption of the Karzai regime. The deepening crisis cannot be hidden much longer. If the majority of the public understood that our soldiers lions are being betrayed by our political donkeys, support for the UK Afghan's calamity would collapse.

Comments

[Ad]

It is a sad state of affairs etc. But if anyone finds it in the least bit amazing at this point well you are naive.

[Kay Tie]

"Kay Tie, your manners are clearly linked to the extreme inner beauty of your soul."

Why thank you. I take it you have no insights to offer on why Mr. Assange is being held in solitary confinement an incommunicado like a terrorist?

[Richard T]

Kay Tie, your manners are clearly linked to the extreme inner beauty of your soul.

[Kay Tie]

"he was remanded quite properly, no matter what any of us thinks of WikiLeaks."

Thank you for answering a question I DIDN'T ASK.

[Richard T]

He's remanded in custody because the Swedish authorities have sought his extradition on rape allegations and as he was of no fixed abode in the UK - meaning he could not produce an address, he was remanded quite properly, no matter what any of us thinks of WikiLeaks.

[Kay Tie]

I still want to know why Assange is being treated in prison like he's a terrorist, not someone merely wanted for questioning.

Is there no rule of law in this country? The courts have spine to stand up the Government over control orders, why are they so compliant here?

[Richard T]

For me the WikiLeaks saga has exposed the British Government's connivance with the Americans in such areas as allowing the storage of cluster bombs on UK territory, agreeing not to cause any embarassment to them from the Chilocott enquiry and the rest. The cherry on the cake is of course the Americans' reaction to little Messers Fox and Willie Hague falling over themselves to be the bestest friends to the USA regardless of this country's interests. Wee dogs sniffing their nether quarters indeed - if it wasn't so pathetic it would be funny.

[Kay Tie]

Why is Julian Assange being held in solitary? Why is he being denied access to a phone? Why is he being denied access to his lawyer?

Is this normal for a remand prisoner? If this is about being arrested for questioning, why is he being held like a virtual Gitmo prisoner?