John Chuckman

COMMENT POSTED TO AN ARTICLE BY NESRINE MALIK (FROM THE GUARDIAN) IN CHECKPOINT ASIA

 

“Saudi Arabia Won’t Attack Iran. But It May Pay Someone Else To

“What do American Hessians cost these days?”

 

https://www.checkpointasia.net/saudi-arabia-wont-attack-iran-but-it-may-pay-someone-else-to/

 

“Meanwhile, Saudi looks on – as ever, the indulged and unpunished provocateur of the Middle East”

That leaves out, just as you might expect if you are aware of the extreme bias of “The Guardian,” one of the most bent newspapers on the planet, the real “unpunished provocateur,” the one behind many events involving Iran and Saudi Arabia.

Israeli influence is almost entirely responsible for Trump’s blundering stupidities in the Middle East. His pointless hostility towards Iran and his support for Saudi Arabia’s bloodletting in Yemen and other places.

And, indeed, Israel is largely responsible for the new military status of Saudi Arabia, its having become a major ranking global spender on armaments.

Before the blood-brother bond between Netanyahu and the Crown Prince we see today, Saudi Arabia would never have been allowed to buy those mountains of American weapons.

“Talk of tens of billions of dollars in new American arms! Are you crazy, you schnook?” Netanyahu would have been on the phone to the President in the middle of the night.

They used to despise Saudi Arabia in Israel. Not that many years ago.

Now, they embrace almost as the closest allies. The embrace is never greatly publicised or bragged about – that could have serious consequences for the general, very conservative population of Saudi Arabia and for the stability of the Murderer Prince’s Crown.

But there has been a profound change as these two wealthy outsiders realize how much in common they have, and as the new Saudi Tyrant works hard to earn “creds” in the right places, doing all kinds of desired dirty work in Syria and Yemen and other places.

I call them “wealthy outsiders” because relative to the hundreds of millions who inhabit the region, they are both outsiders by culture and circumstances.

The Saudi Crown is only a little older than Israel itself is. It is not an ancient kingdom, as it likes to style itself.

It was formed very close to the time of Hitler’s accession to power in Germany, just a few months before. And just three years after the end of Hitler’s reign, Israel was created. In a region of truly ancient civilizations, they are both newcomers, and they are both viewed by many as usurpers.

And they are both rich usurpers. After all, in any society, being wealthy sets you apart from most of the population, as we see now so starkly with “the one percent” versus the rest in the United States.

The relative wealth of Saudi Arabia and Israel sets them apart from most of the Middle East.

The Saudis with immense reserves of oil, and Israel with immense flows of foreign aid and resources from the private sector in America and Europe. If you count both government and private sources, Israel is likely the most heavily subsidized entity in history.

So, they do have a lot in common when compared to the great mass of the Middle East. And they both need to protect what they have.

The importance of their both being kinds of wealthy outsiders trumps all ethnic or religious differences, at least for the ruling class. Ordinary folks in both places don’t count for much, just as is the case in most places.

Especially now that Saudi Arabia has totally ceased to make the sounds it made twenty years ago. Then it tried to appeal, as something of a leader, to the region’s Muslim masses, but that has now been forgotten for the most part.

Fear over the consequences of 9/11 drove the Saudi Crown away from some its old ways even before the new Crown Prince took over, killing and kidnapping and bombing his way to favor in American and Israeli eyes.

After all, America could have invaded immensely wealthy Saudi Arabia just as easily as it did impoverished Afghanistan. There were a number of facts in those events that easily could have been bent to supporting the purpose.

So, the Saudis began changing their ways even before Prince Bone Saw took command with a wave of kidnappings and huge ransoms and hidden violence, stuff Trump swept aside with words about correcting old corruptions in the Kingdom, such is the meaninglessness of words in American politics and international affairs.

It was quite noticeable to someone like myself who occasionally read some Saudi Internet publications. The tone and approach changed dramatically. Some of my old articles critical of affairs in the Middle East used to be reposted by editors on certain Saudi sites, but that stopped completely.

The good Prince wasn’t really first in line for succession, but the half-senile old King went along, undoubtedly having had words put into his ear about how favorably the fresh and progressive new Prince would be received in Washington and Tel Aviv.

So, established succession practices were dumped, and the Crown Prince started shedding a bright new light over the Middle East. It included a big PR build-up in the “Western” press, the good old Guardian, for example, being rather lavish with favorable articles about a man who would prove a mass killer.

There was also a big PR tour arranged in the United States in which the Crown Prince washed the blood from his hands long enough to shake hands and banquet with many American politicians and notables.

We observe now only a little gesture or word, here or there, about some event in the region made to appeal to the locals, something Israel completely understands, having itself a leader who has done nothing but lie for his entire career, thirteen years as Prime Minister, lying ceaselessly to his own people and to the leaders of other countries and international organizations.

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Response to another comment:

You have that wrong, as do many Americans.

The Saudi government intensely disliked Osama bin Laden, even though his family was a rich and influential one in the country. They did not like his opposition to American influence in the Kingdom. Being a rather devout Muslim, he viewed the American influence and presence at the very center of Islam almost as blasphemy or apostasy.

The government secretly paid Osama to stay out of the country. The Afghanistan Taliban government gave him refuge because he was viewed both as a hero in the fight against Soviet occupation and as a devout Muslim.

The Saudi government did not pay him to attack the United States. If you know anything, it’s a preposterous notion. And had there been even a grain of truth to it, how much more attractive and rewarding it would have been for Washington to invade Saudi Arabia rather than bleak Afghanistan.

The Saudi elites were totally in bed with influential Americans. For example, money for George Bush’s poorly performing little oil company came from Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Princelings regularly went to showplaces like Las Vegas, and they made many American investments. By the way, a little later, the Crown Prince himself was a friend and frequent visitor to Jeffrey Epstein’s establishment.

Your suggestion is one that a number of rather questionable American politicians have put out there, notably New York Senator Chuck Schumer.

Perhaps to divert attention away from certain serious facts, pretty much kept buried, like the two squads of Israeli spies who tracked the airplane gang travelling around the United States for a while and completely anticipated what happened, some of them even photographing the event from the roof of a truck they rented under the name of a non-existent moving company, something never explained.

The Israelis, so far as we know gave no notice to American authorities, although American authorities may well have already known. Whatever the case, 9/11 has never been explained.

https://chuckmanwordsincomments.wordpress.com/2016/09/11/john-chuckman-comment-a-survivor-says-even-the-simplest-questions-around-911-have-not-been-answered-by-government-yes-and-some-disturbing-truths-around-those-events-the-saudi-arabian-nonsense/

The Saudi payments, when discovered by investigators, were kept secret because people wouldn’t understand, and now that the payments are known, they were right, people do not understand. They have even become a basis for trying to instigate unwarranted lawsuits, something Senator Schumer may well have been trying to encourage constituents to do.

Investigators were only trying to protect the Saudis, something completely in keeping with all past close elite relationships and having nothing to do with suspected guilt.

JOHN CHUCKMAN

A SERIES OF RESPONSES TO A COLUMN IN TORONTO’S GLOBE AND MAIL

Why on earth would anyone think John Baird knows what he is talking about?

Apart from the fact that Mr. Baird has proven himself in public numerous times a dishonest and patronizing and unethical politician, Canada in fact has no equivalent of MI6 or the CIA, so we have absolutely no information sources of our own (CSIS being limited to domestic efforts).

Baird is merely echoing the words of Israeli and American sources, both of which not only have their own special interests for what they say but are proved liars in countless instances.

We have the blunt testimony, made public through error, from the presidents of France and the United States as to what a complete liar Mr. Netanyahu is, an unprecedented and unimpeachable testimony into secret affairs.

Israel endlessly plots to gain advantage and position throughout the Middle East. Its plots have nothing to with genuine security but with a desire to sit as arbiter of all affairs within a thousand miles of its borders (whatever those are).

Only the other day the United States quietly cancelled a large joint military exercise with Israel, having become quite fearful that Israel would exploit it for engaging the United States in war with Iran.

Top level American military and intelligence men expressed their deep concerns to Obama that Israel’s series of black operations in Iran, including the assassinations of several scientists were aimed at triggering just such an event.

It would not be the first time for Israel: both the Six Day War and the two-hour attempt to sink the American electronic spy ship USS Liberty in 1967 were black operations, the second intended both to blind the United States as to what was happening in the war and as an effort to draw the United States into it.

And you cannot get much blacker than Israel’s now-known sharing of nuclear technology with apartheid South Africa.

Baird serves Harper’s interests as a faithful junk-yard dog, and we all know Harper has bent over backwards to express views on Israel and Israel’s interests which have no basis in Canada’s traditional foreign policy.

Harper is motivated in at least two ways in this dark effort: one, he is a fundamentalist Christian full of biblical nonsense about Israel and the end of time from the nightmare lunacy of the Book of Revelations.

And two, Harper is miming American Republicans in being totally solicitous of all things Israeli because it brings in a steady flow of campaign donations, and we know Harper has as a goal for personal achievement to destroy and replace the Liberal Party, with campaign financing games being a major tool towards the goal.

Baird only demonstrates he is one more shabby new-Conservative politician ready to put short-term goals of party political success ahead of Canada’s genuine long-term interests, which absolutely do not include ugly business like starting another Iraq-style war with Iran, a country guilty of nothing, and perhaps convulsing the world into a major crisis.
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“I recently watched a documentary about the rise of Adolph Hitler. Seeing all those cheering, delighted ‘fans’ at every event as he gave his speeches made me wonder what kind of people could applaud that sort of bile and hate. Reading the comments in the Globe, though, I can easily see we still have that same sort around today in Canada. I think half the regular comment posters here would cheer another Hitler if he promised to rid the world of Jews.”

The comment is ignorant beyond telling.

I have studied the rise of Hitler in serious and scholarly books. The rise of such people provides important historical lessons needed to protect democratic and human values.

Most Germans never wanted Hitler.

Despite the most strenuous efforts, he was never able to get a bit more than 37% of the vote.

Hitler took over in an elaborate coup d’état after having been appointed as Chancellor by President Hindenburg, an old man desperate for peace in the streets and a man who previously was quite contemptuous of Hitler.

And most Germans never wanted war, but they were trapped by a vicious and ruthless government. Just read the works of the great American journalist of Hitler’s time, William L. Shirer. He was there, and he was an intelligent and perceptive witness to events.

It is not just a coincidence that the popular vote for Harper is close in percentage (39.6%) to that of Hitler’s highest achievement: every society has malcontents, ideologues and savages as part of its fabric, just as a certain percentage of every human population is mentally unbalanced.

And when people – politicians or ordinary people making grossly dishonest comments – tell lies, over and over, louder and louder, we should all be acutely aware we have entered a danger zone in human affairs.

Baird has nothing but prejudice and no genuine information whatsoever to support his yelling and chest-beating.

How would we distinguish that mode of behavior from a small-time Joseph Goebbels type?

We cannot.
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“A very good reply by Mr. Baird.

“The difference between Iran and other dangerous countries like Pakistan is that Iran actively funds, trains and directs terrorist organizations that target the likes of Israel and the US and now Saudi Arabia. Iran is also very bellicose about annihilating Israel or the Zionist regime like they call it (as if there is a difference?) and this is before anyone was talking about attacking Iran.

“In the end, people here who ignore the facts at all costs will never be convinced until a bomb falls on their head.”

It ain’t our heads on which bombs will fall.

It’s 70 million completely innocent Iranians.

Just as the Iraq invasion – again, a product of Israel’s tireless efforts on a very weak American president – killed hundreds of thousands of innocents and destroyed a society for a generation.

It is only the genuine ideologues and haters pushing for extreme measures against Iran.

And surely we all know by now where policy driven by ideologues and haters takes us.

A one-way trip to nowhere.

And note what colossally dangerous prejudice the person making the comment displays: “other dangerous countries like Pakistan.”

Goebbels couldn’t have said it better.
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“The only threat a nuclear armed Iran poses is to the American ability to invade them.

“End of story.”

A brutal truth, but only a partial truth.

No country would ever use nuclear weapons in that fashion, because it would be national suicide.

And that is also precisely why the ideologues and haters who promote Israel’s twisted views do not understand reality.

We know Israel has at least 150 nuclear weapons because former President Carter told us that a couple of years ago.

The truth is that even were Iran developing nuclear weapons – and it is decidedly not doing so – all that would result is the kind of stand-off we had in Europe for decades.

And that stand-off kept the peace.

Israel does not fear Iran with nuclear weapons per se. It fears the rising influence of Iran in the region, an influence which in part stems from America’s stupid invasion of Iraq, another insane project advocated by Israel.

Israel unquestionably wants the same kind of virtually absolute authority in its region that America enjoys in the world at large.

The word for that is simple: it’s imperialism.

So here we have, once again, imperialistic and grossly selfish motives posing as desperate security fears and humanistic concerns.

It simply ain’t so.
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“a rapid[sic] left-wing Jew” liza writes in describing Mr. Gerald Caplan.

Again, Goebbels could not have said it better.

How does anyone, not mentally unbalanced or viciously hating, write such ugly things?

Were anyone other than an apologist for Israel to utter such hate-speech, he or she would be attacked savagely.

But it’s okay when you promote war and destruction on behalf of Imperial Israel.
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“It really is time for people to wake up. This is real.

“Remember 9/11.”

Ah, the ultimate stupidity has been uttered: “Remember 9/11.”

9/11 was a crime committed by 19 unstable men, each of whom paid for it with his life.

But that didn’t stop the arm-pumping, belly-over-belt crowd from murdering in blind rage at least half a million people having nothing, absolutely nothing, to do with it.

Gee, I’m glad we have writers like this to remind us of stupid human beings can be.

We’re chimpanzees with bigger brains, just big enough to cause horrific destruction.
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“Perhaps Mr. Baird and his colleagues will take the time to educate themselves”

When what you are after is propaganda and appeals to humanity’s worst instincts, you don’t educate yourself.

Why let education stand in the way of rage and irrationality?

It’s so much more fun to stomp up and down like Mr. Baird does, the very picture of an angry child, albeit a terribly ugly one.

http://chuckmancartoons.blogspot.com/2010/06/canadas-john-baird-does-lunch.html
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“Gerald Klu Klux Kaplan has the IQ of pond scum and it is to this paper’s eternal shame that it publishes his ignorant and hateful delusions. Since when does the globe publish racists like him? If Mr. Klu Klux Kaplan hates the jooz so much, maybe he should write for Stormfront or something.”

Sorry, but apart from the misspellings, isn’t it people like you who hurl ugly names, instead of cogent arguments, who demonstrate low IQs?

Although in truth, IQ has nothing to do with it.

Goebbels was a highly intelligent and educated man, but he was a hater and a believer in ugly fantasy.

And just so, this writer.
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“Baird and his staff write well, but they cannot hide their ethically indefensible support for Israel’s politics of repression, aggression, and religious superiority. I worry far more about Israel and the US than I do about Iran.”

They don’t want to hide it.

They make a very clear and public appeal to the supporters of Israel’s bloody excesses.

It’s precisely the scenario we see with America’s Republicans, all racing to outdo each other in excessive and nasty statements about whatever it is that Israel does not like.

How can anyone argue that such people are serving the national interest?
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“For those whose comments are full of anti Islamic stuff, are you aware that a proportion of the Palestinian population that was driven out after WW II was Christian?”

I’m glad you remind us of that truth.

Hanan Ashwari, for example, an able politician and academic, is Christian.

And so are tens of thousands of Palestinians.

By the way, it is illegal in Israel for Christians to preach conversion as they do in Canada or the United States every day.