The Israeli occupation forces - have significantly escalated their
campaign of systematic demolitions across southern Lebanon,
blowing up scores of houses, a public school, water wells and
civilian infrastructure ——— including a massive 1,100-ton
detonation on the strategic Ali al-Taher ridge that
triggered a 4.1-magnitude seismic tremor
....felt across the region.
Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported that Israeli
forces "blew up the majority" of a public school in the town of
Mansouri, in the Tyre district, leaving only a small section
intact on Friday.
The demolition was accompanied by an Israeli airstrike on the town,
where more than 75 explosions have been recorded over the past
week alone. NNA also reported that occupation forces blew up
two artesian wells used for supplying water in Mansouri.
Large-scale controlled demolitions were carried out
in Mays al-Jabal, Bani Hayyan and other areas,
according to Al Mayadeen's correspondent.
"Since midnight last night, Mansouri and its surrounding areas
have witnessed more than 10 powerful explosions, causing
strong tremors that were felt by residents of the city of
Tyre and surrounding villages," the correspondent
has reported.
Two Israeli airstrikes hit Nabatieh al-Fawqa on Thursday afternoon
as the demolitions intensified across the south, NNA reported.
The agency also reported that the occupation forces carried out
a big explosion in the Al-Dabesh area, west of Mays al-Jabal,
destroying a waste-sorting facility plus several homes
and industrial and agricultural installations.
Explosions were also reported in Baraachit, Bani Hayyan ,and the
outskirts of Srobbine. In Meiss El Jabal, Israeli forces destroyed
a waste-sorting facility plus homes & agricultural infrastructure.
Artillery shelling targeted Kfar Tibnit in the Nabatieh district, while
warplanes struck the area between Zibqin and Shihin southeast
of Tyre. Explosions were also heard inside the Ain al-Hilweh
camp in Sidon, where a bomb detonated, although... no
casualties were reported.
NNA says Israel has been using new methods to destroy homes,
including using drones to drop explosive-filled barrels onto
rooftops - before detonating them remotely.
Retired Brig. Gen. Hassan Jouni told Asharq Al-Awsat that Israel
is "reshaping the geography" of southern Lebanon, with homes
destroyed "solely .....because of where they stand": not
because they contain Hezbollah infrastructure.
The Israeli military detonated 1,100 tons of explosives on the
Ali al-Taher ridge late Thursday, destroying what it claimed
was a Hezbollah tunnel network of over two kilometres.
The blast triggered a 4.1 magnitude tremor recorded by the US
Geological Survey, with tremors felt across southern Lebanon.
Israel’s war minister Israel Katz declared on Friday that a
"security zone" now extends from the western coast to
he Ali al-Taher ridge and the approaches to Mount
Hermon (Jabal al-Sheikh) in Syria, and vowing to
"continue the campaign" against Hezbollah.
The terrorist demolition campaign began in 2024, after a failed
ground invasion against Hezbollah and the implementation of
a disgraceful US-sponsored ceasefire.
It escalated during the latest Israeli ground invasion, particularly
after Israel's claim of establishing "operational control" over
Ali al-Taher Hill was refuted by Lebanese analysts and
Hezbollah officials.
Since March 2, tens of thousands of homes — amounting to entire
border villages — have been destroyed ......blown up, by Israel.
Tel Aviv openly states that the ethnic cleansing campaign is aimed
at displacing civilians. Israel is "destroying all the houses in the
area," Katz said last month. In June, Katz said hundreds of
thousands of Lebanese civilians "will not return" to
their homes.
Lebanese health authorities reported 19 deaths between Sunday
and Monday, bringing the total death toll since March to 4,381.
UNICEF warned that 17 children were killed or injured
in Lebanon.. over the past five days.
_________________________________________________
What we know:YAF tightens grip on
Bab al-Mandab ----amid rapid gains
September 11th, 9:26am
(PressTV)
The Ansarallah-led Yemeni Armed Forces (YAF) have advanced
rapidly along Yemen’s western coast and taken control of key
positions overlooking the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
The YAF has stormed several Red Sea islands and advanced
toward the entrance of the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait,
several reports said Thursday.
The forces earlier captured the city of Mokha from Saudi-backed
forces. Reports said they also reached the Hanish Islands and
seized Zuqar Island.
Local sources told Al-Araby TV ...that Ansarallah-led forces took
control of Mayun, a strategic island in the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
The UAE.... has established military and intelligence sites on
Mayun and other Yemeni islands in cooperation with Israel,
according to the reports.
Tasnim news agency, citing its correspondent in Sana’a,
reported that the Yemeni Armed Forces ------- had taken
control of the key al-Ardhi port area on Bab al-Mandab.
The move gives the YAF control of Yemen’s coastline overlooking
the strategic waterway ...and could allow forces fighting Saudi
mercenaries to exert greater influence over maritime traffic
between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
The reported capture of Bab al-Mandab, whose name means
the “Gate of Tears,” would give the Sana’a government
major leverage over maritime traffic entering and
leaving the Red Sea.
“Maritime navigation is safe, and the security of navigation has
nothing to do with the skirmishes that were extinguished in
the western coast districts,” Deputy Foreign Minister of
the Sana’a government Abdul Wahid Abu Ras was
quoted as saying by SABA news agency...
on Thursday.
Top Yemeni negotiator and spokesman Mohammad Abdul Salam
also said, “Red Sea navigation is safe” and that “operations
will cease ---- when the aggression ends.”
“What the YAF has carried out in certain coastal areas is a national
operation within the framework of asserting Yemeni sovereignty
and addressing the challenges and ambitions that threaten
civil peace,” he added.
Saudi-backed forces suffer losses
The latest advances came after days of intense clashes between
the Yemeni Armed Forces and Saudi-backed forces belonging to
the Aden-based so-called Presidential Leadership Council.
The YAF has also targeted what remains
of Emirati-backed militias in Yemen.
“The western coast fronts have witnessed intense fighting amid
movements by Saudi enemy-backed forces, prompting the YAF
to target these formations in the area with drones and
ballistic missiles,” Al-Masirah TV said ...on
Thursday evening.
Yemen’s Supreme Political Council later announced an end
to fighting on the western coast and said Saudi-backed
troops had been “expelled” from the region.
Meanwhile, Yemeni military spokesman Brigadier General Yahya
Saree --- announced that the country’s air defense units shot
down a Saudi-operated Vestel Karayel surveillance drone.
The unmanned aerial vehicle was struck and destroyed with a
surface-to-air missile while conducting “hostile operations”
over the Hajjah province.
Yemen's Armed Forces released footage capturing the wreckage
of a Saudi‑operated Karayel armed reconnaissance drone
that was downed over Hajjah Governorate earlier today.
Al-Masirah TV also reported that Yemeni forces stormed PLC
prisons on the coast where Yemeni soldiers and resistance
fighters were being held.
Abdul Qader al-Murtadha, head of the National Committee for
Prisoners' Affairs, said the YAF “succeeded in liberating all
army prisoners from Saudi enemy detention facilities on
the western coast.”
The latest gains followed a series of advances in western Yemen,
including the capture of Hays and al-Khawkhah, the seizure of
Yakhtul and the advance toward Mokha port.
Activists have also circulated reports that Saudi-backed forces
withdrew from several positions along the western coast,
including Khalid Camp at the Al-Mokha junction in
western Taiz province.
Mokha port resumes operations
The Sana’a government announced the resumption of
operations at the strategic Mokha port hours after its
forces took control of the Red Sea port city.
In a joint statement, the ministries of finance, economy
and transport said incentives would be offered in the
coming days.... to container ships and cargoes at
Red Sea ports, including Mokha.
The measures include reductions of up to 50 percent
in vessel and container fees, taxes, customs duties
and other charges.
The government said the move is aimed at encouraging
shipping companies to use the ports ...and avoid
excessive and illegal costs in areas controlled
by Saudi-backed groups. It called on
merchants, traders and shipping
companies to take advantage
of the incentives.
Sana’a pledges security and services
Sana’a government on Thursday congratulated Yemeni leaders
and people and YAF fighters and over an “historic victory”
following the expulsion of Saudi mercenary forces.
It said measures to restore security and public services began
immediately after the withdrawal of the Saudi-backed forces.
The measures include assistance for affected and displaced
residents, treatment for the wounded and the restoration of
water, electricity, healthcare and other essential services.
The government also said its presidential amnesty remained
in effect for those who lay down their arms and stopped
following the orders of Saudi-backed proxies.
It rejected reports of reprisals and pursuits as “lies and
fabrications,” saying such actions had no basis and
contradicted Yemen’s values.
The government reaffirmed its commitment to the safety of
international navigation through Bab al-Mandab and the
Gulf of Aden. It dismissed Saudi and mercenary
claims about maritime security, as false
propaganda -- aimed at creating fear
and pressuring the international
community against Yemen.
A team from the Taiz Governorate Executive Office
also visited Mokha on Thursday to assess the
conditions - and work on restoring stability
and public services, according to Saba
News Agency.
Officials from several sectors joined the visit, which
focused on urgent needs, public services and
coordination with local authorities.
Residents welcomed the move and expressed hope
that it would help restore normal conditions.
MBS presses Trump for military action: Report
The developments.. reportedly prompted Saudi Crown
Prince Mohammed bin Salman to call Trump twice
on Thursday and urge him to launch strikes
against the Yemeni Armed Forces,
according to two US officials
cited by Axios.
Trump declined, while US officials said the
administration currently has no plans
to intervene directly in Yemen.
Oil prices surged Thursday after the YAF
seized Mokha, the strategic coastal city.
The latest escalation follows renewed
fighting after years of war between
Saudi Arabia and Yemen.
Sana’a has intensified retaliatory operations
after Saudi Arabia’s July attack - on Sana’a
International Airport, which has remained
under blockade for more than a decade.
Saudi Arabia - launched its war on Yemen in 2015
at the head of an Arab coalition. A Saudi-Yemeni
peace process in 2023 came close to an
agreement but later.... stalled.
The talks helped prevent a major escalation, while
attacks and the blockade of Yemeni ports and
airports - continued.
Sana’a, has since been heavily mobilizing ----
and has vowed to fully expel the Saudi-led
coalition from Yemen.
_______________________________________________
Iran ‘blew the hell’out of US Fifth Fleet HQ
in Bahrain, admits the US Navy Secretary
September 10th, 11:20pm
(PressTV)
Acting US Navy Secretary Hung Cao has admitted that Iranian forces
“blew the hell” ------ out of the headquarters of the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, a rare on-the-record concession that the Pentagon’s
flagship naval hub in West Asia ------ was shattered by the Islamic Republic’s retaliatory strikes.
Cao made the remarks in an exclusive interview with The Epoch Times reporter Ryan Morgan, who published the comments on Thursday.
Morgan wrote that while open-source analyses had long shown
extensive damage to Naval Support Activity Bahrain, the
acting secretary’s language --- was the first direct high
-level US acknowledgment of the scale of the blow.
Fox News Pentagon correspondent Jennifer Griffin called it a
“pretty stunning admission,” noting that... no senior US
official had previously said as much, on the record.
Cao’s nomination......... to become the full-time
Navy secretary remains stalled in the Senate.
The acting secretary said the destruction left the crew of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, with “no place for them to pull in.”
Asked whether the US Navy would have to return to Bahrain
to sustain high-intensity deployments of that kind, Cao
replied only that “I have a task force that’s looking
at that.”
The US Navy’s top uniformed officer, Adm. Daryl Caudle, said
earlier this month that the service would not go back to the
Bahrain base “anytime soon.”
The USS Abraham Lincoln .....spent nearly nine months at sea,
including about 200 days in a combat zone, before making its
first port call in Thailand this month amid reports of poor
conditions and low morale on board. Supply lines have
been stretched as far as Diego Garcia because the
Fifth Fleet’s home port --- is no longer usable.
The admission cuts against months of official US messaging.
Washington had claimed that Iranian strikes on the base...
did not “significantly impact operations.”
Satellite imagery and later reporting told a different story that
the Fifth Fleet headquarters building was rendered unusable,
at least a dozen other structures and two satellite
communications terminals were hit, and repair
estimates ran into the hundreds of millions
of dollars. Families --- were evacuated.
Some 1,500 sailors .....were pulled
out of Bahrain after the opening
days of the war.
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) announced repeated
missile and drone attacks on the Fifth Fleet compound at Mina
Salman and related facilities, saying command buildings,
air-defense systems, drone storage, support equipment
and fuel tanks were among the targets. Tehran - has
insisted throughout that bases used to attack the
Islamic Republic ---- are not sanctuaries.
The contrast with White House claims that Iran’s attack
capabilities had been all but destroyed.... is now being
drawn --- even in the US media.
Heavy Iranian retaliation ---- spurs US
plans for West Asia pullback: Report
The US military is considering reducing its presence across West
Asia after months of Iranian missile and drone strikes inflicted
heavy damage on US bases, according to a report.
Analysts have pointed to a pattern in which Iranian strategic hits
are first denied in Washington and only conceded weeks or
months later, leaving a prolonged false impression that
the war is going Washington’s way. Cao’s remark is the latest example.
The Fifth Fleet headquarters in Manama has, for decades,
been the nerve centre of US naval operations..... across
the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea and surrounding waters.
Image: Vinayak Narahar Bhave's Birth Day
Today, September 11th, in 1895,
Vinayak Narahar Bhave,
philosopher, writer - and worker for
nonviolence and human liberation,
is born.
Often called Acharya (teacher in Sanskrit), he is best known
for the Bhoodan land reform movement, in 1951... where he
persuaded large landowners to give their land to the poor.
He also founded the Brahma Vidya Mandir in 1959, promoting
self-sufficiency, non-violence, and sustainable agriculture,
as well as 15 other ashrams, and is considered as the
spiritual successor of Mahatma Gandhi, who was
greatly impressed...... by his strict celibacy.
He was often imprisoned for his non-violent
acts on behalf of independence for India.
"All revolutions are spiritual at the source."
"If we could only snap the fetters of the
body - that bind the feet ofthe soul.... we shall experience a great joy."
"The river flows...... at its own sweet will,
but the flood is bound in the two banks."
"Peace is not merely the absence of war,
but the presence of justice, and the
active cultivation of harmony
within the human heart."
‘War criminal promotion tactics’: Adidas
faces boycott calls ---- over campaign
featuring an Israeli trooper
September 4th, 9:45pm
(PressTV)
Calls for a boycott of Adidas are growing after the sportswear
company featured an Israeli trooper in a global campaign.
The campaign has prompted criticism from pro-Palestine
organizations and activists --- because of the trooper
Shaliv Biton’s participation in the Israeli regime’s
bloodletting in Gaza.
The campaign has been rolled out in Adidas stores,
including its outlets in the occupied territories.
Biton took part in an Israeli assault in Gaza in 2021 that
claimed the lives of more than 200 Palestinians and
destroyed numerous buildings.
Critics have reminded Biton’s military background and his
social media activity. He has shared photographs and
videos of himself and other Israeli forces in Gaza,
including footage of troops singing and dancing,
while his profile also contains images of him
carrying weapons.
Sports journalist Leyla Hamed criticized Adidas’ choice of
campaign representative, arguing that the company
chose to bank on Biton’s having lost a leg, while
it should have considered the wider context
of limb loss in Gaza.
“Gaza has the highest per capita rate of child amputees in the world.
More than 5,000 traumatic limb amputations have been estimated
since October 2023, as a result of Israeli attacks carried out by
soldiers like the one Adidas chose to model for them,”
she wrote on X.
US-based political commentator and activist Guy Christensen also
condemned the campaign, writing, “Actually disgusting when you
know kids in Gaza who might not ever get to walk again.” He
subsequently called for a boycott of Adidas.
Another activist denounced the company for
associating itself with the Israeli military.
“The German sportswear brand Adidas is using Zionist war
criminals from the "Israel" army, who lost a foot while
invading Gaza..... to promote their new single-foot
sneakers. More than 4,000 Palestinian children
have been amputated by "Israel's" bombs,
but Adidas and other millionaire
multinationals ignore them,”
the activist wrote on X.
Other critics similarly condemned Adidas
for associating itself with genocide
and apartheid.
Earlier this year, the NGO Humanity & Inclusion reported that
between 70 and 80 percent of patients admitted to the 12
hospitals that were still partially functioning in Gaza...
had lost limbs or suffered spinal cord injuries.
UNICEF estimated in January 2024 that about 1,000 children
in Gaza had lost one or both legs, equivalent at the time to
approximately 10 children losing a limb each day during
Israeli bombardments. The figure is believed to have
risen since then.
The shortage of medical supplies and the continuing blockade of
Gaza have also complicated the treatment and rehabilitation of
amputees. Healthcare workers have resorted to producing
homemade prosthetics as temporary aids for people
who have lost limbs.... while waiting for access
to appropriate prosthetic devices.
______________________________________
UK legislators call for comprehensive
arms embargo, settlement trade ban
on Israel
July 27th, 6:06am
(PressTV)
A coalition of 80 British lawmakers and peers has called on
newly appointed British Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, to
impose sanctions on Israel -- including a comprehensive
arms embargo and a ban on trade that supports illegal
settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.
In a letter, spearheaded by MP Kim Johnson, they urged the
government to “decisively change its stance to uphold the
rights of the Palestinian people and to prevent Israel’s
continued violation of international law.”
It also called on the government to acknowledge the UN
Independent Commission of Inquiry report, which
validated Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza.
Alongside recognition of the UN finding, the lawmakers urged
the government to fully enforce the International Court of
Justice' advisory opinion, delivered on July 19, 2024.
It holds that Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories
is unlawful, that Israel should put an end to that occupation,
desist from creating new settlements, and evacuate those
already established.
“The previous administration ---- has willfully ignored the rulings of
international courts. It has still failed to issue a formal response
to the July 2024 International Court of Justice judgment
- which requires Britain to cease all actions that aid or
assist [Israel’s] grave violations of international law,”
the letter read.
It added, “Now is the opportunity for this government and for you,
as the new Prime Minister, to truly turn a new page.”
The letter bore the signatures of prominent legislators,
including Diane Abbott, Jeremy Corbyn, Baroness
Jenny Jones, and Baroness Warsi.
In an op-ed for Labour Outlook, Johnson stated that Palestine
has emerged as the “defining test” of the Labour Party’s
commitment to the notion --- that international law
applies to all.
“If we condemn violations in one part of the world while excusing
or ignoring them elsewhere, we undermine the very rules-based
international order that Britain claims to defend,” she said.
“Burnham tells us --- he has a plan to renew confidence in Labour. If
that renewal is to mean anything, it must begin by making a clean
break with the failures of Starmerism on Palestine. If we are truly
serious about turning the page, there could be no clearer place
to begin,” Johnson noted.
The letter is supported by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, which
has been advocating for Burnham to distance himself from former
Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s disgraceful legacy by implementing
extensive sanctions against Israel - comprising a complete arms
embargo, a cessation - of all military collaboration & diplomatic support - and a total ban on all trade.
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!
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 or 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 at: 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... - their anti-Corbyn slant is still 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 & 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 the Queen's Speech - Forcing Schools to Become Academies - and 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), & 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 & 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 said: "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 & 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 taxpayers, when a previous expenses system let them claim back the mortgage payments. But when those claims were banned, after 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 porter, with rent at about £3,000 a month. Meantime, 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.
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.