Mickey Z
Cool Observer
Tuesday, August 02, 2005
Jude Law's nanny missing in Aruba?
“i do not understand this squeamishness about the use of gas. i am in strongly in favour of using poison gas against uncivilised tribes”
who do you think said that then? Saddam?no it was actually winston churchill who, contrary to reports, many people in britain were very glad to see dead. instead of greatest ever britain i would prefer “fattest ever bastard”. he was secretary for war at the time.
the UK and the US have a shocking histroy in Iraq going back the best part of a century with the UK becoming the first to employ systematic aerial bombing of civilians - another british gift to a grateful world!
then as now, certain others in the government machine tried to warn the leaders…
“if the arab population realise that the peaceful control of mesopotamia ultimately depends on our intention of bombing women and children, i am very doubtful if we shall gain that acqueiscence of the fathers and husbands of mesopotamia [former name for iraq] to which the secretary of state for the colonies looks forward”
if you have time and want to know more about all this then look on this link http://www.thedossier.ukonline.co.uk/video_iraqwar.htm
for two things. firstly “between iraq and a hard place” and the n"beyond iraq and a hard place.”
both are well researched and the comedy in bits is good too.Posted by michael on from scotland 08/02 at 07:22 AMI don’t remember hearing much about this back at the time, which isn’t surprising for two reasons...the media sucks and I was in my first year of college “experimenting,” but here’s an interesting excerpt from the third presidential debate in 1992 between (or is it among?) Perot, Bush and Clinton. I didn’t include it, but Clinton changes the subject right before it could have gotten interesting.:
PEROT: And the rest of my minute, I want to make a very brief comment here in terms of Saddam Hussein. We told him that we wouldn’t get involved with his border dispute, and we’ve never revealed those papers that were given to Ambassador Glaspie on July the 25th. I suggest, in the sense of taking responsibility for your actions, we lay those papers on the table. They’re not the secrets to the nuclear bomb.
Secondly, we got upset when he took the whole thing, but to the ordinary American out there who doesn’t know where the oil fields are in Kuwait, they’re near the border. We told him he could take the northern part of Kuwait, and when he took the whole thing, we went nuts. And if we didn’t tell him that, why won’t we even let the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Senate Intelligence Committee see the written instructions for Ambassador Glaspie?
BUSH: I’ve got reply on that. That gets to the national honor. We did not say to Saddam Hussein, Ross, you can take the northern part of Kuwait.
PEROT: Well, where are the papers?
BUSH: That is absolutely absurd.
PEROT: Where are the papers?
BUSH: Glaspie has testified --
(APPLAUSE)
-- and Glaspie’s papers have been presented to the US Senate. Please, let’s be factual.
PEROT: If you have time, go through Nexis and Lexis, pull all the old news articles, look at what Ambassador Glaspie said all through the fall and what-have-you, and then look at what she and Kelly and all the others in State said at the end when they were trying to clean it up. And talk to any head of any of those key committees in the Senate. They will not let them see the written instructions given to Ambassador Glaspie. And I suggest that in a free society owned by the people, the American people ought to know what we told Ambassador Glaspie to tell Saddam Hussein, because we spent a lot of money and risked lives and lost lives in that effort, and did not accomplish most of our objectives.
We got Kuwait back to the emir but he’s still not his nuclear, his chemical, his bacteriological and he’s still over there, right? I’d like to see those written instructions.
Posted by James on from Puerto Rico 08/02 at 08:26 AMI first read about the infamous Glaspie meeting in the run up to March ‘03. Nice to see it brought up again.
Hey, is it any wonder? In addition to being hugely rich, terribly infuential, and vastly powerful, the Bush family is a family of cheats going back at least to the 1940’s.
From grandaddy Prescott Bush trading with the Nazis in wartime, to Poppy Bush lying through his teeth again and again and again and “cheating” Iraq into “antagonizing” the free world in 1990, right up to yesterday, when 43 appointed Mr. Controversy himself, the one and only John Bolton, ambassador to the UN, these guys only play with loaded decks.
Posted by Keir on from New York, momentarily 08/02 at 09:17 AMI’LL REMEEMBER APRIL
This lovely day will lengthen into evening, we’ll sigh goodbye to all we ever had.
Alone where we have walked together, I’ll remember april and be glad.
I’ll be content you loved me once in april.
Your lips were warm and love and spring were new.
I’m not afraid of autumn and her sorrow, for I’ll remember april and you.
THE FIRE WILL DWINDLE INTO GLOWING ASHES,
For flames live such a little while.
I won’t forget but I won’t be lonely, I’ll remember april and smile.WHERE IS APRIL? SHE HAS A LOT TO EXPLAIN.
Posted by rosemarie jackowski on from 08/02 at 09:22 AMOff topic:
Mickey, have you seen this site yet?:
http://www.undercity.org/intro.htm
Posted by James on from Puerto Rico 08/02 at 09:54 AMMore on Sir Winston: http://www.counterpunch.org/mickey02072005.html
Love to hear Rosemarie sing…
And James, thanks for the interesting link.
More soon…
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 08/02 at 10:32 AMI believe that the sentence you quote from Lord Churchill, Michael, actually contains one additional phrase, at its end: “...it should spread a lively terror.” No wonder American history has so completely embraced this man. He fully embodies and manifests those qualities we hold most dear: Property and power shall forever be enshrined above all else - especially above the miracle that is a human life.
It’s weird to read the exchange between Bush and Perot - I can actually “hear” these guys as I read. However, I think I’m actually hearing Dana Carvy “doing” each of them… ( Why, I’m not trapped in the culture at all! The culture is trapped in me! I’ve got to get this stuff out of here. Hand me that wrench!)
This is a wonderful, cosmopolitan exchange, today. Hello to all. -joe
Posted by joe on from Oregon 08/02 at 12:48 PMI’m not totally convinced that Rpss Perot actually existed. Did we all imagine him? Was he a CIA-manufactured hologram? A character created by Dana Carvey? Guy Debord in disguise?
Whatever happened to the little billionaire populist and his Reform Party?
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 08/02 at 01:02 PMI understand that Mr. Perot now works full time as the Energizer Bunny.
He sure added a spark or two to the debates, tho, didn’t he? Imagine all those hot-shots at the Bilderburger Conferences, reviewing the TV tapes.Rosemarie - you are just a delight.
Oh, hey - off topic. Just read a piece about some ongoing studies a group of Marine Biologists have been doing along the Oregon, Calif., and Washington coasts. All up and down the West Coast, throughout this spring and summer, they’ve been finding unusually high water temperatures, lots of dead birds scattered around on the beaches, much diminished fish populations, and - VERY little plankton!
I read an interview with a scientist recently who said that he is not aware of a single seriouc scientist anywhere in the world who does not take global warming seriously.
I guess all of the “Less than Serious” scientists are gainfully employed by the US Government.
-joePosted by joe on from Oregon 08/02 at 01:34 PMMickey, I sound just like Louie Armstrong. (I always wanted to say that. I waited 50 years. You made my day. It is a real, honest to goodness quote of Erroll Garner.) ..........Thanks Joe and all. April Glaspie has been one of my favorite topics since that meeting with Saddam. Back when the war started in 1991, I ran a campaign to have her brought before the madia. I used her photo to make “WANTED” posters, tried to interest the media, etc. At every public meeting I talked about April. I referred to the war as the “Bait and Switch” war for a long time. My efforts were wasted. I still think that the Glaspie story is right up there with the “babies being thrown out of the incubators” story. It is amazing that someone who has played such a significant role in history is silenced and ignored by the media.
Posted by rosemarie jackowski on from 08/02 at 02:22 PMThere’s a book or documentary in this. Someone could search for April the way Moore tracked down Roger Smith of GM. Of course, it would be a musical...right, Rosemarie?
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 08/02 at 02:35 PMWell, Rosemarie -
In “Cukoo’s Nest,” Jack Nicholson says to his fellow inmates: I’m going to pick up this fountain here and toss it thru the window, and just walk right out.
So he struggles and strains and fumbles about and changes his grip and struggles further, till his face turns bright red and it looks like his veins will explode, but the fountain doesn’t budge at all. Finally, in typical “Jack” fashion, he turns toward the group and says: “Well, at least I tried, Goddamnit! At least I done that!”Jack - and the rest of us, are grateful…
Mickey - great quote from Churchill. I saw some movie about him last year, a dramatization of some sort, in which Albert Finney played the great Lord. At one point, Churchill was berating his bright, thoughtful, incredibly hard working, loyal, and remarkably patient butler of 40+ years or so. The butler calmly told him that he had served him better than most royals had a right to expect. He added, then, that he (Churchill) was an arrogant, rude, totally self-occupied, condescending fellow who tended to trample on everyone in his world. To which Churchill replied:
“I know, Smithers, you’re right! But I’m a great man!”
Posted by joe on from Oregon 08/02 at 04:06 PMOK, Joe...now you really did it. I will have to tell my Jack Nicholson story. In the late 50’s I lived on the Jersey shore, in Jack’s home town...Point Pleasant and Manasquan. He had already left to seek fame and fortune but he left behind a group of buddies. Somehow, their paths crossed mine. What a unique group...Anyone who remembers the 50’s and 60’s at the Jersey Shore will understand this. Let me just say that when Jack is acting and showing a dark side of his personality, it is not all acting. I got to know that group pretty well and eventually married one of them....enough said.... My favorite Nicholson line is, “The truth, you can’t handle the truth”.
Posted by rosemarie on from 08/02 at 05:55 PMHere’s Jack being a little more aggressive: “I am the motherfucking shore patrol, motherfucker!” in The Last Detail (1973)
Personally, I’ll take Groucho: http://www.filmsite.org/wavfiles/ducksoup.wav
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 08/02 at 06:29 PMRosemarie - I’ve always thought of Jack as being a multiple personality guy: The delighted, youthful, kinda goofy kid he played in Easy Rider; the frightening psychopath in The Overlook Hotel, in The Shining; and Jake, from Chinatown.
I love to watch him work, but I don’t think I’d want to hang out with him. My favorite line from a Jack movie is actually a line directed to him, from his partner: “Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown.”
He’s become one of those legendary people who can be identified simply by using his first name. Another was, simply - Frank.
(I bet you have many interesting tales from your time on the Jersey Shore, Rosemarie...)Thanks, Mickey. 4 Seconds with Groucho and the cows really shifted my mood!
Posted by joe on from Oregon 08/02 at 07:41 PMExcellent post, Mickey! thanks for reminding your readers of April Glaspie, among other things.
And I hope everything goes well with your Mum!Posted by Helga Fremlin on from Daylesford, Australia 08/03 at 07:10 PM
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