"Historically...... security zones that included civilian
populations have turned into targets for bombings
and assaults on our soldiers. We will not permit
that to occur again," he claimed.
Regarding Israel's demolition activities in southern Lebanon,
Katz said, "The infrastructure has been devastated, and the
houses are compromised - unsafe. We are not withdrawing."
Israeli officials have been explicit and belligerent in their
rejection of the agreement, leaving no doubt that Israel
is doing everything in its power to wreck the MOU.
So-called security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir declared that
"Trump's agreement does not bind us. Israel is not
subject to the United States."
Terrorist finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, whose party
holds the balance of power in Netanyahu's coalition,
flatly stated that "Israel is not part of the US-Iran
negotiations ---- and will continue operations in
Lebanon, until Hezbollah is fully dismantled."
The statements come as Israeli forces stationed in southern
Lebanon are experiencing.... "frustration, stagnation, and
operational paralysis" as they find themselves "hostage
to extensive diplomatic maneuvers," according to a
report by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz on
Wednesday, which referenced
military commanders.
In light of the ongoing negotiations between the US and Iran,
which also include Israel's offensive against Lebanon,
military leaders contend that the Israeli army has
become entangled in the diplomatic progress.
The Haaretz report noted that "the army has almost
completely refrained in recent days from carrying
out proactive field operations, contrary to public
pledges by the political leadership."
Washington's response to Israel's defiance has been one of
paralysis. While Vice President JD Vance criticized Israeli attacks on Beirut that disrupted the peace talks, the
administration has taken no concrete action
to enforce the MOU's Lebanon clause.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Katz persist
in issuing strong declarations regarding the necessity of
maintaining "absolute freedom of action" in Lebanon.
"However, the actual situation on the ground, as disclosed in
discussions with various senior officers, indicates a starkly
different reality," the newspaper noted.
"Field commanders and officers within the army's Northern
Command express a profound sense of frustration,
experiencing a condition of stagnation and
operational paralysis due to the
uncertainty stemming from
actions.... taken by the
political leadership,"
the 'paper reports.
Iran has already demonstrated its resolve, striking Israel
when it crossed Tehran's red lines by bombing Beirut
and continuing its airstrikes despite the ceasefire.
On June 20, just two days after the MOU took effect, Iran
reclosed the Strait of Hormuz, citing "the US's clear
violation of the principle of good faith and breach
of promises, including non-compliance with
Article 1 of the peace MOU, and to the
Israeli regime's persistent violations
of agreements .......and its failure to
withdraw from southern Lebanon."
As of March 2, 2026, Israel has been conducting an
invasion against Lebanon, resulting in the deaths
of 4,192 individuals, injuries to 12,171, and the
displacement of over 1 million people, based
on figures from Lebanon.
Image: João Cândido Felisberto's Birth Day
Today, June the 24th, in 1880,
João CândidoFelisberto,
sailor --- best known as
the leader of the 1910
"Revolt of the Lash",
is born.
A son of slaves, João Cândido Felisberto was born on a farm in
Encruzilhada do Sul (RS), 170 km from Porto Alegre. At the age
of 14, he joined the Navy, as a cabin boy (recruit). As a sailor,
João Cândido sailed through three continents — Europe,
America and Africa — and learned to operate almost all the instruments on board, from the rudder to the cannons.
"From a very poor background, João Cândido did not study. But
he had a wisdom and a spirit of leadership that allowed him to
excel in the Navy. He learned everything ---- by looking," says
journalist Fernando Granato, author of the books O Negro da
Chibata (2000) and João Cândido (2010), from the collection
Retratos do Brasil Negro.
Among other expeditions, João Cândido participated in the
mission that, in 1903, disputed the territory of Acre with
Bolivia. At the time, he contracted tuberculosis and
was hospitalized for three months.... in Rio.
Recovered, he was sent to England in
July 1909 to learn how to operate
the battleship Minas Gerais,
made in Britain.
Upon returning from Europe, after talking to English sailors,
the most politicized in the world, he tried to negotiate the
end of the whip with the then president Nilo Peçanha.
He was unsuccessful.
In November 1910, the flogging of a sailor, against Navy
regulations (250 strokes instead of the allowed 25
strokes), was a contributing factor to the revolt,
known in Brazil as "Revolta da Chibata"
("Revolt of the Lash").
The sailors then had many secret meetings in Rio de
Janeiro, planning a strategy --- to stop the extreme
corporal punishment still being imposed.
Sailors took control of two Brazilian battleships, Minas Geraes
and São Paulo, both built in England, as well as two other
major warships. Their demands included the abolition
of torture as a form of punishment and improved
living conditions in the Brazilian Navy.
Felisberto - was the leader of the movement. The new Brazilian
president, Hermes da Fonseca, promised the end of "Chibata"
and approved an amnesty, but the government later went
back on this promise.
Under the leadership of João Cândido, 2,379 sailors — mostly black and brown — took command of four warships —
Minas Gerais, São Paulo, Bahia and Deodoro —
which were anchored in Guanabara Bay.
Shouting "Long live freedom!" and "Down with the whip!", the
sailors hoisted red flags of insurrection, pointed 80 cannons
in the direction of Rio de Janeiro --- and threatened to
bombard the then capital of the Republic --- if their
demands were not met: better wages, amnesty
for the rebels and --- above all --- the end
of such severe punishments.
For this reason, the mutiny, which lasted only five days, from
November 22 to 27, went down in history as the Revolt of
the Whip.
A warning cannon shot was even fired. It hit a tenement
..and killed two children. While part of the population
fled in terror, the other part, curious, ran to the
pier ---- to watch the ships come and go.
Pressured by opposition politicians, the newly inaugurated
president of the Republic, Marshal Hermes da Fonseca,
accepted the conditions.... to end to the rebellion.
"João Cândido and the other sailors, until then, anonymous and subordinate, made the news and forced the powerful to give in. For five days, the capital of Brazil was under their possession and, as they achieved their main objective ------ which was the end of corporal punishment, they were victorious," says historian Marco Morel ---- a professor at the University of Rio de Janeiro,
editor of the book A Revolta da
Chibata (2016), written by his
grandfather, Edmar Morel,
and author of the book
João Cândido ---- The
Struggle for Human
Rights (2008).
The truce, however, was short-lived. The next day, as soon
as the rebels began to disembark, Hermes da Fonseca
turned back on his word. And, by decree, he began to
persecute all who had taken part in the uprising.
"Physically, João Cândido was a giant, but he never abused
his physical superiority. Skilled in the use of words, he
always fulfilled what he had promised, unlike the
president who, as soon as he recovered the
ships, betrayed the commitments he had
made," says the writer Alcy Cheuiche,
author of the book João Cândido,
o Almirante Negro (2010).
Of the 2,379 rebel sailors, 1,216 were expelled from the Navy.
Another 600 were arrested and 105 forced to board the holds
of the ship Satélite, bound for the Amazon, for forced labour
in the production of rubber. 14 of them never reached their
destination. They were shot during the voyage and had
their bodies thrown overboard.
"The revolt of 1910 -- had the most infamous of outcomes,"
wrote journalist Oswald de Andrade, in Um Homem Sem
Profissão - Sob as Ordens de Mamãe (1958).
João Cândido was arrested, interrogated and, on the eve
of Christmas 1910, taken to the Fortress of São José,
on Ilha das Cobras, where the Naval Battalion
was located.
In a dungeon that only fit six prisoners, he shared solitary
confinement with 17 companions. There ---- the sailors
stayed for three days.... without having anything to
eat or drink --- and under a scorching sun. Under
the pretext of disinfecting the cell - filthy with
feces and urine, the jailers threw lime inside.
Only two of the 18 incarcerated survived:
João Cândido and João Avelino Lira,
26 years old. The rest ....died of
starvation ..or asphyxiation.
João Cândido's odyssey did not end there. In April 1911, he was
sent to the National Hospital for the Insane, where he remained
for two months. Soon, the director of the institution, Juliano
Moreira, attested that, João was not at all crazy. Released,
he was returned to prison, where he survived an
assassination attempt.
A year and a half later, on November 29, 1912, he was put on
trial. Although acquitted of the charges, he was expelled
from the Navy.
Upon leaving prison, on December 30, 1912, João Cândido
began to do odd jobs and sell fish to survive. For many
years, he left home in the evening and only returned
the next morning.
It was carrying baskets of fish in Praça 15... that, in 1937,
anonymous and poor at the age of 57, he met journalist
Edmar Morel, then a reporter for the newspaper O
Globo, who decided to write his biography,
A Revolta da Chibata (1959).
The book resurrected João Cândido, who made
the news again half a century after his feat
in the waters of Guanabara Bay.
In March 1953, when he learned that the Minas Gerais
would be sold as scrap to Italy, João Cândido climbed
into his modest kayak, the Três Marias, and paddled
to the anchorage. There, he kissed her rusty hull...
goodbye.... goodbye.
João Cândido married three times, to Marieta, Maria Dolores
and Ana, and had 11 children. He lived the last years of his
life in São João de Meriti, in the Baixada Fluminense, on a
street without asphalt, electricity or running water.
"Although he was never punished in the Navy -- my father did
not accept that his comrades were tortured. It was not an
act of heroism what he did. It was an act of humanity,"
says his son Adalberto Cândido, known as Candinho.
"The biggest lesson my father left was not to bow
your head to anyone. And ....assume the
consequences for what you do,"
he added.
On December 6, 1969, João Cândido, then 89 years old,
was admitted to the Getúlio Vargas Hospital in Rio,
where he died two days later.... of bowel cancer.
On the day of the burial, a group of policemen,
in plain clothes, went to the Caju cemetery
---- to photograph who was there.
"When he died in 1969, João Cândido still inspired fear in the
authorities. After 50 years, it has not had the recognition it
deserves. Although it signifies a historical milestone of
rupture against a racist and oppressive system, the
Revolt of the Whip is practically unknown to
most Brazilians," says Granato.
João Cândido was not the only one to be persecuted.
All those who, in any way, paid tribute to the Black
Admiral ....had to bear the consequences.
The comedian Apparício Torelly, the Baron of Itararé, was
one of them. In October 1934, he decided to transform
João Cândido's life into a serial, The Insurrection of
the Sailors of 1910, and publish it in series in the
newspaper Folha do Povo.
Around the 10th chapter, he was kidnapped and beaten
by hooded men. Mockingly, he began to hang a sign on
the door of his office in the newspaper's office that
read: "Enter without knocking".
Composer Aldir Blanc went through a similar struggle.
In 1970, he and his partner, João Bosco, composed
the song O Mestre-Sala dos Mares, a success in
the voice of Elis Regina. The censors took
issue with the lyrics --- and took Aldir
to testify in the old Catete Palace,
now the Museum of the Republic.
"There, a black policeman always found a way to stop
very close to me: me, sitting, and him, standing, with
the holster of his gun almost against my nose",
recalls the composer.
Aldir Blanc did the impossible - for the censorship to
release the song: "marinheiro" became "feiticeiro",
"negros" gave way to "santos" and "almirante"
was replaced by "navegante".
"The samba only went on through one trick: an employee of
the then record company RCA taught that, if we radically
changed the title, they would not read the lyrics and it
would pass with some small changes, very crazy. We
then came up with 'Mestre-Sala dos Mares' and, as
there was no word negro in the title, we put the
ball between the pens of censorship", boasts
the composer.
Since then, the Black Admiral has inspired the samba - enredo of
União da Ilha, won a statue in Praça 15, received posthumous
amnesty from President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and, since
last month, has been recognized as a hero of the State of
Rio de Janeiro.
"No matter how much they tried to overturn his history, João
Cândido was always remembered and celebrated - as the
leader of hundreds of black sailors - who put an end to
the inhumane corporal punishments," says historian
Álvaro Pereira Nascimento, a professor at the
Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro
and the author of the book Citizenship,
Colour and Discipline in the Sailors'
Revolt of 1910 (2008).
"There are still more biographies and also the financial
reparation to João Cândido's family and those of the
other sailors. They did not receive a penny, after
being illegally persecuted and expelled from
the Navy between 1910 and 1912."
The most recent tribute to João Cândido came from
playwright Vinícius Baião. He is the author and
director of the show Tourmaline 18-50 - The
Last Days of the Black Admiral on land.
The title of the play, staged by Cia. Cerne, alludes to
the sailor's last address in São João de Meriti:
Rua Turmalina, Lote 18, Quadra 50.
"João Cândido's recognition is below what it should be.
To this day, textbooks comment very superficially on
the Revolt of the Whip and, for this reason, many
Brazilians -- do not know who João Cândido is
-- and what he did. He needs to be placed in
the same pantheon, as great heroes such
as Zumbi, Tiradentes, or Dandara",
says the playwright.
"We could not admit that, in the Brazilian Navy,
a man still took off his shirt to be whipped
by another man."
"The flesh --- of a servant of the homeland
will only be cut by the weapons of the
enemies --- but never by the whip of
his brothers.The whip debases."
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
************************************************
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.
**************************************
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.