Iran

[Resurrection Man]

its a comment about the world we are living in...dominated by interests who want (YET ANOTHER) was, and who have the media in their pockets.

We need to do what little we can to stop this nonsense.

I am assuming you mean 'war'. If you are referring to the annual 12-day exercise then perhaps that is exactly what it is. If you are saying that the timing is to coincide with a possible pre-emptive strike by Israel then a different viewpoint would say that the increased presence of warships in the Straits of Hormuz is nothing more than commonsense. The Straits are a choke-point for a very large percentage of the oil that keeps your house warm and your car on the road. So strengthening our presence there should deter Iran from attempting to block the Straits.

I'm not sure that the phrase 'media in their pockets' is valid.

[teamsaint]

I am assuming you mean 'war'. If you are referring to the annual 12-day exercise then perhaps that is exactly what it is. If you are saying that the timing is to coincide with a possible pre-emptive strike by Israel then a different viewpoint would say that the increased presence of warships in the Straits of Hormuz is nothing more than commonsense. The Straits are a choke-point for a very large percentage of the oil that keeps your house warm and your car on the road. So strengthening our presence there should deter Iran from attempting to block the Straits.

I'm not sure that the phrase 'media in their pockets' is valid.

Ok..well we can wait and see on the military tactics, RM.
How are the media not in the pockets of the politicians and the Military Industrial complex and their banker bosses?
Open and shut case, surely?!
Just watch the news programmes.
See if they mention falling living standards,pensions being stolen, and abroad, world poverty, disease, etc etc etc.
Money makes their world go round.

[Resurrection Man]

......
Just watch the news programmes.
See if they mention falling living standards,pensions being stolen, and abroad, world poverty, disease, etc etc etc.
Money makes their world go round.

Have you actually watched Channel 4 News ? They have a very balanced perspective and frequently cover in-depth those topics that you claim the media ignore. I don't have such a jaundiced view as you.

[teamsaint]

Have you actually watched Channel 4 News ? They have a very balanced perspective and frequently cover in-depth those topics that you claim the media ignore. I don't have such a jaundiced view as you.

call my views what you want. I can play that game too.
I try see what I see, not what they want me to see. They want a war(wholly unjustified) on Iran. They will get it (or get their way) .They always do.

Most people don't watch the C4 news. They hear what the BBC pump out on the quarter hour, every quarter hour.Much of this is straight from Westminster press releases.

[Resurrection Man]

call my views what you want. I can play that game too.
I try see what I see, not what they want me to see. They want a war(wholly unjustified) on Iran. They will get it (or get their way) .They always do.

Most people don't watch the C4 news. They hear what the BBC pump out on the quarter hour, every quarter hour.Much of this is straight from Westminster press releases.

So are you agreeing with me that Channel 4 offers a much more balanced viewpoint of the news?

[teamsaint]

So are you agreeing with me that Channel 4 offers a much more balanced viewpoint of the news?

Its a while since I watched it in any depth , or with any regularity, but it may well be true that they present a less "establishment" biased view of the world. But I couldn't in truth say. I hope you are are right.
One thing that matters at this point is getting the "right " stories covered...If they cover a more honest selection of news items , then that is to the good.

[Simon]

They want a war (wholly unjustified) on Iran.

I'm interested in who you mean by "they", TS. I've my own views, but I wonder if they coincide with yours in this instance.

Having spent quite a lot of time in the Arab world this year, I can assure you that most Arab countries don't. Nor does HMG, for that matter.

I'd also be interested to know under what circumstances you might consider an assault on Iran to be justified, if ever.

[Resurrection Man]

I'm interested in who you mean by "they", TS. ....

The Illuminatus.

[teamsaint]

"They"..the Americans(led by their money men and arms oil interests) ...and our government and the Israelis following behind. Like they did in Iraq, when the WMD's didn't really exist.

The sabre rattling is all from our side..Iraq doesn't have nukes , or the ability to deliver them We, the americans and Israel have huge Arsenals of nukes.
We should work hard, very hard, to stop nuclear proliferation, and to reduce or abolish our own...but attacking Iran at this stage would be utterly inexcuseable.

I can't envisage a situation where we could justify attacking Iran. Maybe there is a potential situation where it could be justified, but we sure as anything aren't there now.
They, western governments, lied about Iraq, and they are doing it again. it's very, very sad.

[Resurrection Man]

.....
They, western governments, lied about Iraq, and they are doing it again. it's very, very sad.

Blair and Bush lied about Iraq.

[LHC]

1. It really is madness to rely for your news sources on supposedly unbiased and reputable sources like the BBC. They do a good job of looking unbiased, but in truth, they report the stories that government want reported...because those are the stories they are fed.
for clarification watch out for the lead story on BBC news each day. Usually based on a press briefing or report that the government want out there, usually to scare us with.

I suspect the main reason that reports on the BBC and other news media are in the main copied directly from press releases from government and multinationals is that doing so is much easier than actually investigating the news. Journalists are all under pressure to produce stories at minimum cost, and parroting press releases is the easiest and cheapest way of filling the pages of their newspapers (or indeed the airwaves).

As Humbert Wolfe said: "You cannot hope to bribe or twist - thank God! - the British journalist. But, seeing what the man will do unbribed, there's no occasion to."

[teamsaint]

LHC...I agree in general. journos have been given increasing workloads...you can't always blame them for doing what they have to do to get the job done.

[Serial_Apologist]

LHC...I agree in general. journos have been given increasing workloads...you can't always blame them for doing what they have to do to get the job done.

Shame you write that TS - kind of detracts from what you've posted previously...

[teamsaint]

Shame you write that TS - kind of detracts from what you've posted previously...

I did take care to say " wouldn't always". There are plenty of bad, lazy, or "embedded" journalists. But people have often been given huge workoads in recent years. I just wouldn't always blame them.....they have mortgages to pay, and have their own fears. I accept that, and blame the owners .
That is NOT to let hem off the hook for swallowing the government or establishment line time after time.

[Resurrection Man]

I am really struggling to buy into this 'swallowing the government or establishment line'. The Today programme frequently gives MPs a good grilling. That isn't exactly toeing the Govt line, is it? In your post above, TS, you said How are the media not in the pockets of the politicians and the Military Industrial complex and their banker bosses?. Do you include the Guardian and the Mirror in this statement?

Looking at the online BBC News I cannot see any article that could be said to be 'toeing the Govt's line'. Perhaps you can point me in the direction of one and where in it you think this to be the case?