Pawel Swidlicki

Got you. I don't even necessarily disagree as to supporting the mujaheddin, just making the point that blowback can manifest itself relatively quickly and that was first example that came to mind.

You might need to break down your Soviet example a bit more because I'm not sure I get it.

I mean long term in this context doesn't have to mean decades, e.g. the transmutation of the mujahadeen into Al-Queda

I understand that calculus and it's probably true in the short term, but in the longer term who knows?

Gas prices soar as Iranian attacks shut down Qatari production Retaliatory strikes also hit Saudi Arabia refinery

The one good thing about Kemi Badenoch's Iran position is that it does at least raise a smile whenever I see a bleak headline about the consequences of it. Why else could Keir Starmer be equivocal on it, other than the pernicious hand of British Moslems?

Reminds me of this

Yeah, you do get these glimpses of his character which certainly track with the allegations of the things he'd say and do in school years

Potentially, though the question is what comes after. Lots of historical precedents for 'bad thing being replaced by another bad/even worse thing'.

In fairness, I'm not convinced Kemi is all that bothered about democratising Iran, the regime's treatment of its own people is just a useful rhetorical stick to beat it with. The 'logic' here begins and ends with 'the Iranian regime is bad so it deserves to be bombed'.

I was out there (briefly) for work and i disliked it so much I felt disdain towards myself for the duration.

I am honestly very surprised that votes at 16 is one of the relatively few policies to make it unscathed from Starmer's leadership campaign through to government policy.

UK politicians will obviously blame the usual scapegoats because they aren't able/willing to confront the reality that in its current guise the US is a profoundly hostile actor

Has this strain of opinion always been there? Yes, I mean Kate Hoey wasn't even forced out ultimately, she left of her own accord. But even if the signs were there that Labour was adopting a more restrictive set of policies and rhetorical packaging, the 'island of strangers' approach wasn't obvious.

Labour has always had its internal flare-ups on social issues (party wasn't always on same page on abortion, equal marriage, more recently trans issues) and of course immigration has been genuine bone of contention, but the extent and severity of these measures has come as a real surprise

Yeah but in her mind the British national interest is inherently pro-US and pro-Israel under all circumstances so the question of 'dual loyalty' in this case just doesn't arise.

I think it does make sense according to its own logic, i.e. he initially dithered because he was in the pocket of Big Muslim but ultimately the gravity of the 'British National Interest' (as conceptualised by her) won out.

Israel and the US bombing Iran, i.e. she supports this on its own merits

Think there was also an episode where there was a trade conference where they were on the cusp of agreeing comprehensive pan-global free trade?

I like the algorithm analogy, but I do also think that in case at least its not just her generally belligerent nature, she does also care about the underlying issue

She seemingly cannot process the fact that on issues like Iran, UK Muslims and non-Muslims might hold similar views for similar reasons

You also just know that in Kemi's brain if UK Muslim opinion is broadly proximate with overall UK opinion that's suspect, the result of sinister forces, and not you know, the thing she claims to care about, namely integration

Its obviously rancid, but it's also an amusing projection because Kemi herself clearly cares more conflicts in the Middle East than the 'British national interest' (there is no absolute thing as BNI because it is depends on one's own politics, but majority view in this case is anti-Trump/Bibi)

Not least the likely wave of refugees in the event of protracted internal conflicts

Trump has told four different journalists completely contradictory things about his aims.

It's going to be over in three days or four weeks... it's about regime change but he also wants to start talks again with the current regime...he's killed all the possible replacement leaders...

Total chaos.

Yeah I'd guess a mix of HO institutional capture, intra-party factionalism, absorption of decade plus of 'Labour keep losing because seen as soft on migration' reinforced by 'if it's hurting it's working'

There’s a pretty robust case to make that the Iran Hostage crisis of 1979, the revolution itself, and the policies of the Iranian government towards the US
since, was all blowback from the CIA’s decision to overthrow Mossadegh in 1953. www.cnn.com/2013/08/19/p...

I was shocked when I visited my sister in NY and experienced the quality/range to cost ratio in shops compared to the UK. Lots of good restaurants though.

Yeah Trump's concern for the freedom and well being of the Iranian people is up there with Paul Nuttall's opposition to migration from Bulgaria and Romania on the basis of his sincere concern that this was detrimental to their local economies (which it wasn't anyway but that's another matter)

Also 'riding high' in this case is being on 22% in the polls, down from 27.5% at the last election which would constitute the SDs lowest level of support in a national election since 1903.