Rhondda Records is with you every day bringing the news ------- that gives a view of world events different to the mainstream media or social media!
Except Sundays - our day of rest.
Newsflash !
Image: we're back!
Progressive press in the U.S.
condemns Trump's policy
towards Cuba
Washington, June 18th, 1:09pm
(Prensa Latina)
Progressive media in the United States today - questioned the
aggressive policy of the Trump administration towards Cuba,
warning that the intensified blockade constitutes a severe
humanitarian punishment against the civilian population
of the island.
The criticism comes after the statements offered yesterday by
President Donald Trump, who assured with a threatening tone
that the largest of the Antilles is "in its last moments of life"
in rhetoric ----- that progressive sectors describe as
warmongering and lacking in human empathy.
In the face of this triumphalism of the U.S. right, publications
such as The Nation magazine ....and the North American
Congress on Latin America (NACLA) published essays
and reports on Thursday that dismantle the official
narrative on the so-called Cuban crisis of 2026.
Both media outlets argue that the tightening of the economic
siege, including the cessation of operations of shipping
platforms, and the suffocating financial blockade,
functions as a form of collective violence and
humanitarian punishment --- that directly
affects the civilian population and
not the government.
Analysts at NACLA (a leading academic journal in Latin American
studies) emphasize that this policy of maximum pressure seeks
to generate internal collapse through fuel and food shortages,
in a strategy that violates international law ....and turns the
domestic economy into the main battlefield.
On the other hand, they subject to a rigorous analysis the recent
reforms announced by President Miguel Díaz-Canel, specifically
the opening of the hotel sector to private management, and
distance themselves "from simplistic interpretations that
see in this a surrender to Washington."
For its part, Jacobin, another progressive publication,
demands an immediate end to the Treasury
Department's sanctions -- and stands in
solidarity with the demands of Cuban
civil society -- which reaffirms the
growing discomfort... generated
in intellectual circles, with this
policy of the US regime.
________________________
Diaz-Canel calls for unity in the face
of the tightening of the blockade
against Cuba
Havana, June 18th, 12:08pm
(Prensa Latina)
First secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist
Party of Cuba (CCPCC), Miguel Diaz-Canel, urged his
compatriots to close ranks and stand firm in the
face of the incessant aggressiveness of the
intensified ---- economic, commercial and
financial blockade imposed by the US.
In a speech delivered at the closing of the Extraordinary
Plenary of the CCPCC, the leader remarked.. that the
current context requires: "unity, courage, popular
participation -- and full conviction in our ability
to achieve victory".
He referred to the intensification of political-ideological
subversion that seeks to damage the credibility of the
Revolution and to the financial persecution carried
out by the Washington government.. that "makes
every drop of fuel, every medicine, every food,
every piece and every technology that the
country needs ------- more expensive."
Díaz-Canel said that this reality - imposes urgent and
necessary changes in the midst of a deterioration
of the living conditions of citizens.
"A deep and agile economic agenda is required - executable in
the short term, which combines macroeconomic stabilization,
incentives --- to stimulate and promote productive openings,
legal certainty, investment attraction, & intensive use of technology and focused, effective social protection,"
he said.
He emphasized that the proposed transformations "are to
advance --- in the defense of socialism, to support and
expand social justice, to create economic wealth
and distribute it equitably."
He then explained the need to further stimulate the productive
forces, and to equalize and integrate economic actors, such
as state enterprises, MSMEs, cooperatives, agricultural
producers, and foreign and Cuban investors.
On the other hand, he said that a greater level of autonomy
should be conferred on the management of the state
enterprises, while he announced that the list of
activities prohibited to the private sector, will
be reviewed under the principle of replacing
prohibition ....with responsible regulation.
The First Secretary advocated in favour of putting each
piece of sterile land into production --- or giving it to
whoever can carry out the task.
Regarding the electro-energy situation.. he commented
that an incorporation of solar energy into the national
economy .....will be accelerated.
"We will facilitate the direct entry of foreign companies
that supply panels, batteries, inverters and associated
solutions," he said.
Díaz-Canel asserted that foreign direct investment in the
national private sector, including MSMEs, must be
authorized, with clear rules of ownership,
repatriation, reinvestment and
dispute resolution.
He assured that the country's leadership knows what the
obstacles are, "where corruption is hidden, where there
is slowness and where shame and dignity are lacking."
The leader reaffirmed, however, that nothing will be
impossible ------- if the challenge is taken as an
opportunity and history as an inspiration.
"The best tribute we can pay to the admirable work of
our two historical leaders [Fidel and Raúl Castro] is
to defend it --- and preserve its essence of social
justice," he said.
Image: People hold up a banner as they protest against Israel at the entrance of the International Criminal Court.
'US imperialist hubris damaged':
Netizens weigh in on Iran-US
war-ending MoU
June 18th, 12:29pm
(PressTV)
As the 14-point memorandum of understanding officially takes
effect between Iran and the United States, social media
users from across the political spectrum deliver a
sharp verdict on the MoU, largely echoing that
it had dealt a blow to US imperialist hubris.
The memorandum of understanding..... between Tehran and
Washington was formally signed by the presidents of both
countries early on Thursday, with the text finalized and
the agreement officially in effect. It was finalized on
Sunday, following months of intensive negotiations
mediated by Pakistan, with support from other
regional countries.
Under the MoU, the war on all fronts, including in Lebanon, has
ended immediately, and the US naval blockade against Iran
has been lifted. It also provides for the reopening of the
Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping.
Lebanese journalist Rania Khalek, took a swipe at all of the
people who've expressed their anger at the concessions
that Washington was forced to make in the MoU ---
emphasizing that the US lost the war against
Iran and sustained a defeat.
“All of the people angry at the concessions the U.S. was forced
to make in the Iran-US MOU don’t seem to realize that the
Americans lost this war,” she writes on her X account.
“Losing is of course a humiliating experience, but these
warmongers are in serious denial,” she said.
In a post on his X account, Director of the Electronic Intifada Ali
Abunimah pointed to the release of the MoU text by the United
States as evidence of Washington's retreat, saying President
Donald Trump had made massive concessions to Tehran.
“Trump made massive concessions to Iran, which reflects the
actual balance of power after the US-Israeli defeat,” he said.
English broadcaster and journalist Piers Morgan said the Iran
deal is the furthest thing from "unconditional surrender"
in the history of Planet Earth.
He, however, welcomed Trump's exit from the "fiasco" he had
created and said, “I bet if he had his time again, he’d have
never got into it or believed Netanyahu’s bullsh*t.”
Vice President of Centre for International Policy Matt Duss
described Trump's war as a “strategic defeat.”
He noted that the MoU could be a positive step if it “puts
the US and Iran on path to a more normal relationship”.
US influencer HasanAbi, argued that Iran won the war - the
moment it closed the Strait of Hormuz in response to the
US attack - something it had refused to do throughout
decades of US and Israeli pressure and the
US sanctions.
He reminded critics ------- that Tehran was
“willing to do diplomacy the entire time.”
He urged the warmongers to
“stop demanding more war.”
Setareh Sadeqi, assistant professor at the University of
Tehran, said the MoU clearly demonstrates Iran's
victories - on the battlefield and in diplomacy.
“Iran also knows the U.S. and its regional military outpost
do not respect agreements and can return to war at any
moment,” she wrote.
She, however, asserted that the deal showed that US
imperialist hubris - has been dealt a damaging blow.
Breaking Points host Saagar Enjeti drew attention to the
economic disparity between the two arch-foes, noting
that Israel's total GDP stands at $540 billion while
Iran's heavily sanctioned rump economy sits
at $437 billion.
“An unsanctioned and reconstructed Iran will be many
times more economically & strategically important
to the world - than Israel,” he argued.
He explained that this is the reason
that “Israel finds a deal intolerable.”
US far-right political commentator Nicholas J. Fuentes
declared that..... with the MoU signed on Friday, the
United States has officially lost the war on Iran.
He said the US is paying Iran “hundreds of billions of
dollars to open the Strait of Hormuz” which is now
under Iran's ‘permanent control”.
“The only silver lining is if this defeat decouples
the US from Israel forever,” he emphasized.
Drop Site reporter Ryan Grim drew attention to Trump's
"common-sense" yet shocking remarks --- including
questioning why Iran should be denied ballistic
missiles while everybody else has them.
He admitted that the US president had no choice but to
end the war ....with oil depletion and market collapse
looming -- or he would have become Herbert Hoover
in a few weeks, referring to the 31st US president,
who many blamed for the Great Depression and
criticized for his ''efforts'' to solve the crisis.
_______________________________________________
US public - welcomes end
of unpopular war on Iran
June 18th, 5:46am
(PressTV)
There is widespread relief in the United States as its war
on Iran, the most unpopular war in the nation's modern
history, appears to be coming to an end.
A short-term memorandum of understanding was signed
by the presidents of the two countries, ending what is
universally considered to be a military and
geopolitical disaster for the US.
US public welcomes end to their most unpopular war ever
Even more than the Vietnam War, the war on Iran is the
most unpopular war ever in the United States.
It's a war that just shouldn't have existed in the first place.
I can very easily understand why people look at that... in
the state of a defeat.
For me, I tend to look at anything where we have US soldiers
injured or killed, that's an immediate defeat to me.
Member of Public 01
President Donald Trump said he hopes to put the war in
the rear view mirror, but the US public isn't likely to let him off that easily.
The odds of the Republican Party keeping control of Congress
in the mid-term elections this autumn have plummeted, as
has his personal approval rating.
After 108 days of barbaric bluster, outright lies, and cover-ups
of the war's actual progress, Trump's esteem at home and
abroad will probably never recover.
I mean, every time I check, it seems like his approval rating
drops, and that there's no real world consequences. ... it
doesn't matter, he's playing by his own set of rules, and
I just think it doesn't really matter.
At this point I'm optimistic he'll leave at the end of his term,
and I'm not sure he will, to be totally honest with you.
Member of Public 02
Polls show that a majority of US citizens understood that
there was no credible justification for the war, and ----
that it benefited Israel more than the United States.
But there is widespread anger over the way the war caused
inflation to resume climbing in a nation where the dollar
has lost a stunning 30% of purchasing power in just
the last six years.
US-Israel war against Iran exposed
the weakness of the dollar: Report
The US weaponization of the dollar - has backfired, with sanctioned countries such as Iran, finding alternatives
to the US-controlled financial system, & implementing
a new status in the Strait of Hormuz.... in the wake of
US-Israeli aggression.... the Financial Times writes.
It's been much more difficult than what it could have been. Whenever Trump ran, he ran on no new wars.
That is just a known fact.
But once again, whenever you run for something and you vote
for somebody who runs for it, you have to acknowledge that
there's going to be things that come up.
You have to trust the person to make the best
possible decision for everybody, right.
And in this case, I guess that's the real question that
we have to ask, was this worth it in the end?
I mean, right now gas is a little bit atrocious to buy,
but now that it's over, let's see how it goes.
Member of Public 03
Most agree that the biggest loser has been Israel.
The pro-Zionist lobby in the United States has also come
under unprecedented criticism for its obvious control
over Washington's foreign policy --- even under a
president who campaigned on a so-called
America First platform.
It took the Vietnam War two decades to reach a 60%
disapproval rating. It took the war against Iran
just weeks.
The average US citizen is clearly hopeful that the
60-day ceasefire and negotiating period will
avoid the resumption of what has been a
very costly conflict.
Image: Édouard Daladier's Birth Day
Today June 18th, in 1884,
Édouard Daladier,
tragic politician,
is born.
He was the Prime Minister of France.... in
1933, 1934 and again from 1938 to 1940.
Daladier was born in Carpentras and began his political career
before World War I. During the war, he fought on the Western
Front and was decorated for his service.
After the war, he became a leading figure in the Radical Party
and Prime Minister in 1933 and 1934. Daladier was Minister
of Defence from 1936 to 1940 and Prime Minister again
in 1938. As head of government, he expanded the
French welfare state... in 1939.
But Daladier wanted to prepare for war while its economy was in debt ...and the left wanted to organise for peace. He fell between the two stools.
France had defaulted on its World War I debts in 1932 and so fell
foul of the 1934 Johnson Act, which banned US loans to nations
that had defaulted on their World War I debts. In February 1939,
the French offered to cede their possessions in the Caribbean
and the Pacific, together with a lump sum payment of
10 billion francs, in exchange for the unlimited
right to buy US aircraft on credit.
After tortuous negotiations, an arrangement was worked out in
the spring of 1939 to allow the French to place huge orders
with the US aircraft industry, but as most of the aircraft
ordered had not arrived in France by 1940, the US
diverted the French orders.... to the British.
At a rally in Marseille in October 1938, Daladier announced a
new policy: J'ai choisi mon chemin: la France en avant!
("I have chosen my path; forward with France!").
He stated that his government's domestic and foreign policies
were to be based on "firmness". What that meant, in practice,
was the end of the social reforms of the left's Popular Front
government --- to raise French productivity, especially by
ending the 40-hour work week. In a series of decrees
issued on 1 November in 1938, which bypassed the
National Assembly, the 40-hour work week was
ended, taxes were sharply increased; social
spending was slashed --- defence spending
was increased, the power of unions was
restricted --- and Saturday was, once
again, declared to be a workday.
To put the French economy on a war footing,
the military budget was increased from
29 billion francs to 93 billion francs.
In response, the French Communist Party called for a
general strike ---- to protest the decrees that ended
almost all the reforms of the Popular Front.
It was backed by solidarity ... for one day.
Unlike Chamberlain, Daladier had no illusions about Hitler's
ultimate goals. He told the British in an April 1938 meeting
that Hitler's real aim was to secure "a domination of the
Continent in comparison with which the ambitions of
Napoleon... were feeble."
Daladier went on to say, "Today, it is the turn of Czechoslovakia.
Tomorrow ---- it will be the turn of Poland and Romania. When
Germany has obtained the oil and wheat it needs... she will
turn on the West. Certainly --- we must multiply our efforts
to avoid war. But that will not be obtained unless Great
Britain and France stick together... intervening in
Prague for new concessions--- but declaring at
the same time, that they will safeguard the
independence --- of Czechoslovakia.
If - on the contrary - the Western
Powers capitulate again, they
will only precipitate the war
they wish to avoid."
The Munich Agreement was a compromise... since Hitler
abandoned his more extreme demands such as settling
the Polish and Hungarian claims by 1 October, but the
conference concluded - that Czechoslovakia was to
turn over the Sudetenland to Germany within ten
days in October and would be supervised by an
Anglo-Franco-Italo-German commission.
Daladier was happy to have avoided war but felt that the
agreement he had signed on 30 September in Munich
was shameful and had betrayed Czechoslovakia,
France's most loyal ally in Eastern Europe.
Although Daladier feared public hostility to the Munich
Agreement, on his return to Paris, he was acclaimed
by the crowd, which cheered the fact..... that there
would not be another war. Most famously, when
he saw the enthusiastic crowds waving at his
plane as it landed at Le Bourget Airfield
before landing, he turned to his aide
Alexis Léger and commented:
"Ah! les cons! s'ils savaient..."
("Ah! The fools! If only they knew...")
For Daladier, the possibility that the Soviet Union might
join the "peace front" was a "lifeline" and the best
way --- of stopping another world war. He was
frustrated.. by the Polish refusal to permit
transit rights for the Red Army to fight
Hitler, but Poland - was encouraged to act in this way, by Britain.
When the nazis invaded West Poland,
the soviets, therefore, took the East.
After the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact was signed,
Daladier outlawed France's Communist Party.
On 29 January 1940, in a radio address delivered to the
people of France, 'The Nazi's Aim is Slavery', Daladier
explicitly stated his opinion of the Germans:
"For us, there is more to do..... than merely win the war. We
shall win it --- but we must also win a victory far greater
than that of arms. In this world of masters and slaves,
which the madmen who rule in Berlin are seeking to forge, we must also save liberty & human dignity."
In May 1940, days after the Germans began
the Battle of France, under the impression
that a free French government would
continue in North Africa.. Daladier
fled ...with other members of the
government to French Morocco,
but was arrested, and tried for
treason by the Vichy regime!
Daladier was interned in Fort du Portalet, in the Pyrenees.
He was kept in prison from 1940 to April 1943, when he
was handed over to the Germans ---- and deported to
Buchenwald concentration camp, in Germany.
In May 1943, he was transported to the Itter Castle, in North
Tyrol, with other French dignitaries, where he remained
until the end of the war. He was freed ...after the
Battle for Castle Itter.
After the war ended... Daladier was re-elected to the Chamber of
Deputies in 1946 and acted as a patron to the Radical-Socialist
Party's young reforming leader, Pierre Mendès-France. He also
was elected as the Mayor of Avignon in 1953. He opposed the
transferral of powers to Charles de Gaulle after a May 1958
crisis but, in subsequent legislative elections of that year,
failed to secure re-election. He withdrew from politics
after a career of almost 50 years... at the age of 74.
Daladier died in Paris on 10 October 1970, at the age of 86.
He was buried at the Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris.
"Two hundred families are masters of the French economy
and, in fact, of French politics. They constitute a force
which a democratic state should not tolerate, which
Richelieu would not have tolerated in the kingdom
of France."
Iran --- hails Ireland’s move
to ban --- imports from the
illegal Israeli settlements
May 27th 11:34am
(PressTV)
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs
Kazem Gharibabadi hails Ireland’s decision to ban imports from
illegal Israeli settlements, describing the move as a practical
step toward holding the Israeli regime accountable for its
violations of international law.
“Ireland’s decision to ban imports from the illegal settlements
of the Israeli regime is a commendable step toward turning
international law from rhetoric into action,” Gharibabadi
wrote in a post published on social media platform X
on Wednesday.
He pointed to a 2004 advisory opinion by the International Court
of Justice (ICJ), which stated that the settlements had been
“established in breach of international law” and said the
ruling obliges states not to recognize the illegal status
created by the settlements or support their
continuation in any form.
“Therefore, buying and selling settlement products is not normal
trade, but economic complicity in sustaining occupation and
whitewashing an unlawful situation," he further wrote.
He added that Western governments that present themselves
as defenders of international law must now match words
with action instead of backing down under pressure
from the Israeli regime, certain US lawmakers,
and powerful business lobbies.
The remarks came as several European countries are moving
toward tougher measures against Israeli settlements built
on occupied Palestinian land.
Dutch Prime Minister Rob Arnoldus Adrianus Jetten said
on Friday that Amsterdam would suspend all economic
transactions linked to settlements in the occupied
West Bank and the Golan Heights.
The measure is intended to “prevent Dutch society from
contributing, through our economic activities, to illegal
occupation & the maintenance of illegal settlements,”
Jetten explained.
Meanwhile, a report by Palestine’s Colonization and Wall
Resistance Commission (CWRC) --- has described 2025
as a “year of bloodshed” in the occupied West Bank,
documenting over 23,800 attacks by Israeli forces
and settlers ---- against Palestinians.
In early 2026, Israel's so-called internal security service, Shin
Bet downgraded the classification of settler violence against
Palestinians in the occupied West Bank from “terror attacks”
to “serious incidents,” narrowing the definition of terrorism
to cases involving explicit intent to kill and reducing the
priority of investigations.
Since October 7th, 2023, when the Israeli regime launched its genocidal assault on Gaza --- Israeli forces and settlers have
killed at least 1,155 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank
--- wounded nearly 11,750 others, and abducted around
22,000 people, according to official figures.
Image: No thanks to Israeli goods App
The world and her daughter are calling for a boycott of the genocidal colonial apartheid state of Israel.
Place yourself on the right side of joy and sorrow by joining the world's boycott - say ''no'' to evil!
Keir Hardie - Britain's first Labour MP - opposedWorld War One.
His namesake is stammering his way in the opposite direction.
VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
ROGER WATERS TO MUSICIANS:- "BOYCOTT ISRAEL"
Roger Waters formerly of Pink Floyd, in an open letter, calls on his fellow musicians --- to boycott the Zionist Israeli regime and follow the example of the cultural boycott against the ex S. African Apartheid regime.
“Given the inability or unwillingness of our governments [to act] …. I write to you now, my brothers and sisters … to ask you to join with me, & thousands of other artists around the world, to declare a cultural boycott on Israel,” Roger Waters says in his letter.
Waters says the Zionist regime has been found guilty of major breaches of human rights and international law by international organizations, UN officials and the International Court of Justice.
He touches on two such cases, saying the regime has been identified as perpetrating the “crime of Apartheid”, including in a statement on March 9th, 2012 by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, and the “crime of ethnic cleansing” including in East Jerusalem (al-Quds).
Waters adds that he has been a member of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against the Israeli regime’s occupation of the Palestinian lands and Tel Aviv’s violations of Palestinian human rights for 7 years, and now wants other musicians to also join the anti-Israeli front.
“Please join me and all our brothers and sisters in global civil society in proclaiming our rejection of Apartheid in Israel & occupied Palestine, by pledging not to perform or exhibit in Israel or accept any award or funding from any institution linked to the government of Israel, until such time as Israel complies with international law and universal principles of human rights.”
The former Pink Floyd Musician also says he has recently faced a boycott by the US media after his November 29th, 2012 address at the UN on behalf of the Russell Tribunal.
In the address, he sought accountability for the Zionist regime’s violations of the international law and the lack of United Nations resolve that prevents the Palestinian people from achieving their inalienable rights, especially the right of self-determination.
____________________
AT THE FACTORY
Tickets from
www.wegottickets.com/thefactory
www.ticketweb.co.uk
browse venues in Wales
www.ticketlineuk.com
02920 230130
Cash tickets from:
The Factory, Porth Instrumental Music, Penygraig Spillers Records, Cardiff
Indulge in a delicious cake and a cup of tea while enjoying music and sing-along songs from fantastic Welsh musicians.
Ticket information:
The Cultural Services Booking & Information Line:
08000 147 111 or book online at
www.rct-arts.co.ukÂÂ
*************************************************
Mid Rhondda Modelling Club...
7pm - 9pm
Tonyrefail Comprehensive School Mid Rhondda Modelling Club
has been running for over 30 years.
We meet on a regular basis
& enjoy making models for display.
We encourage both Gentlemen
and Ladies to attend, and also young people aged 12+.
However, Young people under 16, must be accompanied by an adult.
Ticket information
£1 contribution every week. Under 16's free
Telephone Mr. Davies on 01443 686658
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Comedy In The Laughter Lounge
The Park & Dare Theatre, Treorchy.
COMEDY IN THE LAUGHTER LOUNGE
Join us once a month in the intimate setting of the Laughter Lounge for some top notch comedy with some of the biggest and brightest rising comedians on the circuit.
Laugh? You'll snort like a pig!
Hilarious - TimeOut.
www.rct-arts.co.uk
Rhondda Records exists to express the Rhondda's vision --- when it was confident, powerful, caring, and socialist.
A Rhondda very aware of the media's poisonous tricks -- how they con working class people into attacking each other, or racial groups, or, often, even their best allies and friends... instead of seeing their real enemies:--- an elite who hate the very idea that working people can think, create, or achieve a fairer society.
Thatcher said her proudest achievement was Blair and New Labour - who parachuted in careerists and expenses fiddlers - to stop local Labour members having a say, and who made genuine socialist MPs leave the Labour party in disgust and many members and voters to despair... and the young to stop voting.
Jeremy Corbyn was always attacked because he was trying to reverse all that New Labour corruption --- that's why membership was flooding in all over the UK.
______________________________________
Get Involved!
– If you feel you’ve been ‘purged’, take this online survey:
– Request all your own data that the Labour Party holds on you:
http://www.labour.org.uk/pages/privacy
_______________________________________
IF - YOU THINK you HAVE BEEN UNFAIRLY BARRED:
“Any member who is suspended & intends to appeal the decision should throw in a ‘Subject Access Request in accordance with the Data Protection Act’ --- for ALL data that the Labour Party hold on them.
The Labour Party are Data Controllers and therefore have to, by law, provide you with all material/information they hold on you.”
If anyone is in contact with anyone who was barred from voting --- please can you pass this info on:
The Labour leadership election was under the jurisdiction of the electoral reform services.
If you were unfairly deprived of your vote you can call them on 0208 365 8909 and lodge your complaint, and inform them of your Data Protection request.
https://www.electoralreform.co.uk
The notification letters barring new members did not give a clear reason, or information on how to appeal, so Vox Political suggests that anyone in this situation, could also contact Liz Davies here: http://www.whycantivote.com
She is a barrister --- who can advise members on what to do.
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PONCY LABOUR MPS PROBLEM?
A huge drop in working-class Labour MPs, caused a massive drop in support among voters with similar backgrounds, reveals research seeking to explain why support has dwindled in the party’s heartlands.
The study says past leaders like Kinnock and Blair made a concerted effort to pick “more and more middle-class candidates to run for office, during the 80s and 90s, as part of an effort to rebrand” -- which had initial successes at the ballot box.
But this “conscious electoral strategy” stored up problems, as working-class voters who initially, just didn’t vote in response, now seek an alternative.
The solution?Trust each constituency to put forward its own candidates, and don't impose ‘party-approved’ choices who can't do the job.
Now, unfortunately, there are "entryist" MPs who, for decades, have been groomed by CIA cold war relic organisations -- like the Atlantic Council -- and are now trying to misdirect the Labour Party towards cuts, a militarised police, and a US war agenda... - and their anti-Corbyn slant is hobbling Labour.
‘How Can I Deselect My Labour MP?’ A Short Guide to Reselection and Democratic Accountability by Eric Sim, excellent free advice here:
http://novaramedia.com/2016/07/13/how-can-i- deselect-my-labour-mp-a-short-guide-to- reselection-and-democratic-accountability/ CHRIS BRYANT - SUPPORT THE MEMBERS' LEADERSHIP CHOICE & POLICIES - OR GO!
Chris Bryant, the Rhondda's dodgy MP, was on TV -- as soon as the PLP coup started -- telling us that Jeremy MUST go, because it was the ONLY way to act in the Labour Party's interest...
Chris Bryant's voting record: from TheyWorkForYou.com
On Tuition Fees:
On 27 Jan 2004: Chris Bryant voted in favour of university tuition fees increasing from £1,125 per year, to up to £3,000 per year.
On 31 Mar 2004: Chris Bryant voted to allow university tuition fees to increase from £1,125 per year, to up to £3,000 per year.
On 31 Mar 2004: Chris Bryant voted for the introduction of variable university tuition fees (top-up fees) of up to £3,000 per year in place of the previous fixed fee of £1,250 per year.
On 31 Mar 2004: Chris Bryant voted to allow university tuition fees to increase from £1,125 per year to up to £3,000 per year, and to make other changes to higher education funding and regulation arrangements.
On 14 Sep 2004: Chris Bryant voted against: the immediate abolition of all tuition fees, the re-introduction of maintenance grants of up to £2,000 for students from low-income homes, and changes to the country's higher education system.
On 14 Sep 2004: Chris Bryant voted to reject the Liberal Democrat policy of abolition of tuition fees.
On 25 May 2016: Chris Bryant was absent for a vote on Queen's Speech - Forcing Schools to Become Academies - Further Rises in University Tuition Fees
On Human Rights:
Consistently voted for introducing ID cards
Almost always voted for requiring the mass retention of information about communications
Generally voted for mass surveillance of people’s communications and activities
On the Environment:
Generally voted against greater regulation of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to extract shale gas
On Special Interests:
Almost always voted against limits on success fees paid to lawyers in no-win no fee cases
Generally voted against a statutory register of lobbyists
On War or Peace:
Generally voted for use of UK military forces in combat operations overseas
Consistently voted for the Iraq war
Consistently voted against an investigation into the Iraq war
Generally voted for replacing Trident with a new nuclear weapons system
On 2 Dec 2015: Voted to support UK airstrikes in Syria [without UN authorisation]
On 2 Dec 2015: Voted to support UK airstrikes in Syria [without UN authorisation]
On Independence:
Generally voted for more EU integration
____________________________
Chris Bryant Labour MP From Wikipedia
(aka 1962-1986: Mr Christopher John Bryant 1986-1991: The Reverend Christopher John Bryant, 1991-2001: Mr Christopher John Bryant, 2001-: Mr Christopher John Bryant MP.)
Born in Cardiff, to a Scottish mother & a Welsh father, Bryant grew up in Cardiff, Wales (where his father worked for 5 years), and Cheltenham.
He was educated at Cheltenham College, an independent school for boys in the spa town of Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, where he was captain of the school swimming team, and Mansfield College at the University of Oxford, where he graduated in 1983, with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in English. This was later promoted to a Master of Arts degree (MA (Oxon)), as per tradition.
After completing his first degree, Bryant began training to be a priest in the Church of England at Ripon College, Cuddesdon, in Oxfordshire. There, he obtained a degree in theology.
Although a member of the Conservative Party, and an elected office-holder in the Oxford University Conservative Association, he joined the Labour Party in 1986, after leaving Oxford.
He was ordained deacon in 1986 and priest in 1987. He served as a Curate at the Church of All Saints, High Wycombe, from 1986 to 1989; then as a Youth Chaplain in Peterborough, as well as travelling in Latin America.
In 1991 Bryant left the ordained ministry, after deciding that being gay and being a priest, were incompatible. Statements made by Richard Harries, then Bishop of Oxford, also influenced his decision.
After leaving the priesthood in 1991, Bryant worked as the election agent to the Holborn and St Pancras Constituency Labour Party, where he helped Frank Dobson hold his seat in the 1992 general election.
From 1993, he was Local Government officer for the Labour Party; he lived in Hackney and was elected to Hackney Borough Council in 1993, serving until 1998. He became Chair of the Christian Socialist Movement.
He is both a member of the Labour Friends of Israel and Labour Friends of Palestine & the Middle East. From 1994 to 1996 he was London manager of the leader-grooming "charity", Common Purpose.
He was Labour candidate for Wycombe, in the 1997 general election (he lost by 2,370 votes), and Head of European Affairs for the BBC, from 1998.
His selection for the very safe Labour seat of Rhondda, South Wales in 2000, shocked many people given Bryant's background – gay, an ex- Anglican vicar, and someone who was a Tory, while studying at Oxford, and a member now, of the Henry Jackson Society 'think tank' --- described by The Guardian newspaper as 'neoconservative'. It is pro-US, pro-NATO and pro-military intervention, as well as being fundamentally anti-socialist.
Fifty-two people applied for the candidature and a local councillor was hot favourite to win, before Bryant was parachuted in.
In 2004, a photograph of Mr Bryant in his underpants, which he had posted to a gay dating website, was published in 'papers.
When an interviewer suggested he was a 'disgrace to the Rhondda', he replied: "They can't get rid of me."
His pay, allowances and some expenses:
The basic annual salary for an MP, from April 1st, 2016 is £74,962. MPs also get expenses: to cover the costs of running an office, employing staff, having some- where to live in London, plus, in their constituency and travelling between Parliament and their constituency.
His MP's expenses story:
Chris Bryant changed second home twice to claim £20,000: the deputy leader of the House of Commons, "flipped" his second home twice, in 2 years, allowing him to claim almost £20,000 for renovations and fees.
Chris Bryant, MP for the Rhondda, split over £92,000 of expenses between 3 properties in Wales and London --- within five years.
In 2004, he attempted to claim £58,000 to overhaul his second home in Wales, after allegedly complaining that properties in his constituency were "terrace or mine owners' houses".
Mr Bryant, a former Church of England clergyman, wanted the money for a new bathroom & kitchen, and to demolish his conservatory. He'd bought the detached house for £97,500, under a year earlier.
He submitted a claim to the Commons fees office for £58,493.26 --- almost 3 times the annual maximum. He noted that the claim exceeded his allowance.
His alleged justification was disclosed... in correspondence between Commons officials. By email, an official wrote: "He had problems finding a suitable property because in the Rhondda there is a choice mainly of terraced property or mine owners' houses." When approached by the Daily Telegraph, Mr Bryant said: "I have never said or thought anything of the sort".
In all, he successfully claimed over £13,000 for renovations, repairs & appliances, in 2004. Along with other bills, his annual claim was £20,902.
In April 2005, he flipped his expenses to his flat in west London, which he bought for £400,000 in April 2002. He also claimed £630 a month for mortgage interest, along with other bills. After claiming over £3,600 over 3 months, he sold the flat in July 2005 for £477,000.
Mr Bryant used his profits to buy a more expensive flat in west London, which was valued at £670,000. He immediately flipped his second home expenses there, claiming almost £6,400 in stamp duty, legal fees and mortgage fees, incurred in the purchase.
He then began claiming interest of £1,000 a month on the mortgage. He also claimed a further £6,000 a year for the flat's service charge and ground rent.
In all, he claimed £92, 415 in second home expenses, from 2004 to 2009.
Mr Bryant said at the time: "I moved flat in London, so as to be closer to Parliament."
Research by Channel 4 News in 2015 found that at least 46 MPs had this kind of system in place – a move one Labour backbencher described as “a new fiddle”. Channel 4 reported then:
“Our investigation found that many of the MPs bought their London properties with the help of the taxpayer, when a previous expenses system allowed them to claim back mortgage payments. But when those claims were banned, following the expenses scandal, they switched to letting out their properties, in some cases for up to £3,000 a month. They then started claiming expenses for rent and hotels in the capital.”
Among those identified was Chris Bryant, shadow leader of the House of Commons. He had already bought a penthouse in London back in 2005 and claimed around £1,000 a month in mortgage claims under the old system.
But after the expenses scandal, he started renting the property out. It’s since been advertised by estate agents as having a private lift and a porter, with rent at about £3,000 a month. Meanwhile, Bryant moved into a new flat;- claiming his own rent on expenses.
Image: Russian scientists and Scottish ones
Russian/Scottish scientists hail long-range secure quantum communication system.
A group of scientists from ITMO University in Saint Petersburg, Russia, has developed a new approach to constructing quantum communication systems for secure data exchange.
The experimental device based on the results of the research is capable of transmitting single-photon quantum signals across distances of 250 klmtrs or more, which is on par with its cutting edge analogues, the ITMO press-service says.
"Now researchers are on a mission -- to create a fully-fledged quantum cryptographic system, that will generate & distribute quantum keys and transmit useful data simultaneously", ITMO says.
Information security is becoming more and more of a critical issue not only for large companies, banks and defense enterprises but even for small businesses and individual users.
But the data encryption algorithms we currently use for protecting our data are imperfect - in the long-term, their logic can be cracked. Regardless of how complex and intricate the algorithm is, getting around it, is just a matter of time.
Unlike algorithm-based encryption, systems that protect information, by making use of fundamental laws of quantum physics, can make data transmission totally immune to hacker attacks, in the future.
Information in a quantum channel is carried by single photons that change irreversibly if an eavesdropper tries to intercept them. The legitimate users will instantly know about any kind of intervention.
Researchers at the Quantum Information Centre of the International Institute of Photonics and Optical Information Technology at ITMO Uni., Russia, along with their colleagues from the Heriot-Watt University, in Edinburgh, have devised a new way to generate and distribute, quantum bits.
This makes it possible to share quantum signals --- via optical fibres --- 250 kilometres in distance.
"To transmit quantum signals, we use the so- called side frequencies," says Artur Gleim, head of the Quantum Information Centre, at ITMO University,
"This unique approach gives us a number of advantages -- such as a considerable simplification of the device architecture and the large pass-through capacity of the quantum channel. In terms of bit rate and operating distances, our system is comparable to absolute champions in the field of quantum communications."
According to Robert Collins, research associate at the Institute of Photonics & Quantum Sciences at Heriot-Watt University, and one of the authors of the study, this may become a pivotal point for the whole field of quantum communication and cryptography:
"Down the track, this new approach can enable smooth coexistence of numerous data streams with different wavelengths in one single optical cable. On top of it, these quantum streams can be fed into the already existing fibre optic lines --- along with conventional communications."
The research paper is published in the Optics Express journal.
Scottish universities are to be congratulated for their strong & growing links with Chinese and Russian universities....
What a shame, that Wales is lying low --- with academics too scared to break from US military research.
Image: BRICS
Image: March 26 London anti cuts demo
KILLING THE ELDERLY BY CLOSING CARE HOMES
Did you know that each time a local authority
closes a care home for the elderly, within 8
months, around half the residents are dead?
Campaigners liken the cuts and their effect to euthanasia of the UK's elderly. What to do?
We can start by urging our MPs to sign EDM 2251:
EDM 2251: The contents
This House notes with deep concern the worsening crisis for elderly care as growing numbers of local authority and private care homes face closure
Acknowledges concerns that the loss of elderly people's care homes causes fear, anxiety and, in many cases, a higher mortality rate, when vulnerable, elderly people are forced to leave their homes
Further notes that the Southern Cross crisis will increase needs for local authority care
And therefore calls on the government to hold a public inquiry into the deaths after closures, of local authority care homes, and impose a moratorium on the closure of local authority care homes, until that inquiry publishes its results, to ensure that vulnerable, elderly people's lives are not put at further risk.
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MAKING THE CONNECTION IN WALES
Households across three more English areas will be able to access superfast broadband in the latest phase of a Government scheme to connect rural homes and businesses.
The £50 million funding package for Devon and Somerset (£30 million), Norfolk (£15 million) and Wiltshire (£4 million) will aid the roll- out of superfast broadband services unable to be reached by the market alone.
Areas will also receive financial support from their local authorities and private investors, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport says.
So it's Broadband Heaven for England...
and crapola for Wales' broadband - the
slowest, worst Broadband in the UK !!!
Lib Dems in Scotland might have received a pummeling for Clegg and his betrayals, yet, in Scotland, their campaign centred on it becoming the "most connected country in Europe," to massively boost their economy.
In Wales, which political party is now willing to put into practice scientists' recommendations: that Wales' hilly topography requires establishing
free 'wireless' broadband?
It could connect the people of Rhondda and the world, boosting Wales' economic regeneration, like no other move.Wireless technology is now supplying free broadband to an entire island off New Zealand's coast.
Come on; if New Zealand can do it - so can we !!!
Image: China's rapeseed blossoms this Spring.
Western China has embraced "green-mode development" - with painful changes from which, Wales could well learn.
Eastern China has seen fast growth and urban mess. The West, a mining and agricultural area, has not.
Xi'an Chan-ba Ecological District, is a model for reclaiming old mining areas.
It took six hard years, but now Xi'an is showing the world how best to change, by turning a badly polluted rubbish landfill site, into an all new environment-friendly development.
As China's economic focus moves from east to west, it's using the lessons learned during 30 or more years of rapid industrial development.
The green way for China's west, is to combine green industrialization & green urbanization.
The western region's strategy is to adopt effective energy-saving and environmental protection technologies... AND to extend its industry through science and products unique to China's West, together with strong vertical growth in agriculture and all its ancilliary economic & professional spin-offs.
In undertaking this industrial revolution, the western region will keep a sharp eye out - to avoid all polluting non-sustainable industries.
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A BIG DROP OF HONEY !!!
Spring is beekeeping and honey-processing season in Yunnan province, in China.
Waves of bees flit across vast fields of flowers.
Local beekeepers and many from other places, such as Sichuan and Fujian provinces - set up their base in tents among the rapeseed farms.
The 430,000 hectares of rapeseed blooms in Luoping attract myriads of bees, which produce 15 - 20 million tons of honey a year.
Local people now look to brand their county as a honey production base & increase sales to outside markets.
Luoping Tianyuanmiyu Bee Industry Co Chair, Zhu Hongkun, founded his enterprise in 2009.
It mainly produces honey, propolis and propolis powder.
His company works with 270 plus beekeepers, who each earn 80,000 yuan a year on average.
Some earn 200,000 yuan annually, Zhu says.
Who says beauty endowed by nature isn't worth a fortune?
The whole of the uplands of south Wales could be as beautiful & productive, if used wisely!
Image: retirement China style
CHINA's PREMIER POINTS WAY FORWARD
As the Tories threaten a "bonfire of the Quangos", perhaps Wales should take note. Now extracting all our mineral wealth has been stopped (apart from sand and rock) we find ourselves "in" the 1st World of the UK, but with a 3rd World economy, only just kept going by quangos which promise much... but deliver little... and rely on weak public support.
We could WAKE UP & understand that we either do something, or stay as begging bowl cases.
China's premier points the way forward for Wales:
"Industrial restructuring is the key... only by developing energy-efficient, indigenous innovative and high value added products can our companies and economy, achieve sustainable development."
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WHILE FRANCE, GREECE, IRELAND, ETC, STRUGGLE TO STOP THE PENSION AGE RISING HIGHER AND HIGHER...
An online survey on qq.com, a popular Chinese news portal, finds that 91% of its over 800,000 respondents, are against raising the current official Chinese retirement age.
745,123 of those surveyed say they oppose raising retirement ages -- 72,456 support it.
China's scholars & the public have been debating whether to raise the retirement age, for the past few years, but the issue rose to prominence after remarks by an official.
Wang Xiaochu, the official vice minister of the Ministry of Human Resources & Social Security, said at a press conference that the government was "studying the matter"...
The retirement age in China is generally set at 60 for men and 50-55 for women.
Wow! Bet you didn't know that !!!
Image: unemployment in Wales
FARMING AND SCIENCE COULD REGENERATE WALES
A new UN General Assembly report warns "vast areas" of cultivated land are lost each year, and that this could lead to unrest.
The report says up to 30 million hectares, an area the size of Italy, is lost each year to environmental degradation, industry & urbanization - the growth of cities - and all because of speculative building and greed.
The UN special rapporteur Olivier De Schutter, gives the example of eastern Africa, where the amount of cultivated land has declined by half --- in just one generation! "
As rural populations grow and competition with large industrial units increases, plots cultivated by smallholders are shrinking year after year," says De Schutter.
"Farmers are often relegated to soils that are arid, hilly or without irrigation."
The UN officer also mentions India as another example, where the average landholding fell from 2.6 hectares in 1960 to 1.4 hectares in 2000. A cut of nearly half in 40 years!
He says 500 million small farmers suffer from hunger, partly because their right to land is being violated. The expert warns of the devastating consequences, as foreign investors compete for larger and larger areas of the world's land for "their" agriculture.
Rhondda Records says Wales could rebuild its new economy by basing it on a fresh approach to high-value added products, using science and agriculture... such as the Altzeim project in Gwent.