My father told me that when he was young several of his friends went to fight in the Spanish Civil War (1936 -1939) and that some of them never came back. They weren’t the only ones, there were about 40,000 people in the International Brigades with about 4,000 from the UK. George Orwell and Laurie Lee fought there. The returnees were met at Victoria Station by Stafford Cripps and Clement Attlee. These were the days before the government thought that it owned your body and mind so nobody thought it was anyone else’s business if a person went abroad to fight.
The French Foreign Legion was founded in 1831 and has always had British fighters, though our endemic national obesity and unfitness is reducing numbers in recent times. They have fought a lot in colonial wars, the two world wars and all the modern interventionist wars. And our political classes don’t give a damn.
Since the foundation of Israel Jews from Britain have gone and fought in its immoral army. Enforcing apartheid, ethnically cleansing Palestinians and engaging in terrorism against Israel’s neighbours. Once again the politicians don’t care.
British Mercenaries have always fought, all over the world, for anyone who will pay them. They played a major role in recent years in suppressing Somali piracy and have worked in Iraq and Afghanistan. There are mercenary companies, such as Control Risks (2,000? employees) and Aegis Defence Services, based in London to organise this. And our politicians aren’t bothered.
In the Middle East just now Sunnis are trying to create a new Salafist state (much like Saudi Arabia, our ally) and are carving it out by taking land from the post Ottoman Sykes Picot countries. Just like the USA took their land from the native Americans and Israel took their land from the Palestinians. They are calling it the Islamic State (formerly ISIS or ISIL) and fighters from around the world are joining the cause, much like the Spanish Civil war. Hundreds have gone from Great Britain and for some unbelievable reason the British Government has made this a criminal offence and our security services are giving them maximum harassment.
So it is OK for British people to go and fight for anyone they want anywhere in the world, so long as it is not our Muslims who go. A law that is as highly prejudiced as you can get. It is even OK to go and fight in the Middle East as long as it is against Islamic State, with Brits now fighting for the Kurds. The hypocrisy and double standards are amazing.
Some may say that we are engaging in this stupidity because the Islamic State killed hostages. But they only started doing this after we started bombing them. (James Wright Foley, 19 August 2014, bombing started 8 August 2014).
Our Government is utterly and totally out of order. Our bodies and our minds belong to us, not to them. We should have our fundamental rights and freedoms, but these have been progressively stolen from us. If any British person wants to go and fight abroad that should be their business and their business alone, unless they act against Great Britain or one of our treaty partners (EU, NATO).
I really am amazed that all our civil rights activists are not up in arms against the Government over the Islamic State fighters issue. Perhaps they too are also prejudiced against Muslims. Everyone in Britain should be worried about this, because what the Government can get away with doing to the Muslims today it can get away with doing to the rest of us later. Any removal of anyone’s rights is something that should have us very worried.
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No you ignorant fuck… Over 3 million innocent Kurds, Yazidis, Assyrians, Shias, regular Muslims, Jews, Christains and non believers have been displaced and are living from day to day in appalling camps! More than 70 000 of the above including children and babies have been raped, beheaded, sold into slavery, stoned to death, burnt alive, mass executed and worse and there are no signs of this abating! And you still say it is OK? That is fucking rethorical!
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Jason,
You are in Australia, so you do not know the real facts. Much of what you see, hear and read about ISIS is manufactured by the CIA. Their propaganda is inside your head.
Also Saudi Arabia (Our ally) are just as bad: http://www.bruceonpolitics.com/2015/03/06/islamic-state-and-saudi-arabia-are-the-same/
Then there are the Shia Militia. You don’t seem to know about these guys. They have a long history of being WORSE than ISIS.
And you say nothing about this all being started by Bush and Blair and that they are responsible for a million deaths: http://www.bruceonpolitics.com/2015/03/21/bush-and-blair-killed-a-million-people/
I suggest you study these matter more WITH AN OPEN MIND before making any more silly comments. Start here: http://www.bruceonpolitics.com/2015/03/09/why-we-should-be-talking-to-the-islamic-state/
But mostly you completely miss the whole point of the article. It is about human rights here in the UK and the excessive and often abused power of government.
Also I suggest that in future you are less abusive towards people who you disagree with. Attack the argument, not the man. Otherwise you will not be listened to.
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I agree with Jason…you are an ignorant Fuck! The common theme in ISIS and terror and the Middle East is ISLAM and the example of that bastard Muhammad…Pull your head out of your ass and face the facts…ISLAM is the reason behind all the terror in the ME and Israel is presently the only safe place for many Muslims, Jews, Christians and Bahai’s to live…
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Craig, You seem to have several educational problems. I thought the NZ schools were better than this.
Being abusive towards me does not make you right.
Also you seem to forget that there was ZERO militant Salafism in the Middle East before Bush and Blair invaded Iraq. The blame lies entirely with them.
You use the word “terror” but you don’t know what terrorism is. Read and learn: http://www.bruceonpolitics.com/2014/11/20/terrorism-word-massively-misused-abused/
Finally you completely miss the whole point of the article. It is about human rights here in the UK and the excessive and often abused power of government.
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Bruce I totally agree with you it’s bizarre how the British government have been allowed to get away with this.
Double standards..
A left over from the socialist nanny state.
I for one would like all Muslims in the UK to go and fight each other.
I’d be happy to pay for them to go…. bye bye ,,,,
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So, let me see if I’ve got this straight. ISIS are not unpleasant militant Salafists at all, because that’s all evil propaganda. But there *is* lots of militant Salafism now, because of Bush and Blair. So who are these militant Salafists? And, even if it was all Bush and Blair’s fault, how is that useful when deciding what to do now?
My suggestion: why don’t you book a flight to Amman, rent a Toyota, drive out to Raqqa, and send us a postcard?
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The Israelis retake land that was theres in the first fucking place.The only democracy in a sea of shit.
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flickhead
Turkey is more democratic than Israel.
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First there has to be Oil, Precious metals , gas, food supply routes, threatened.
Second we all supply these country’s indirectly with weapons.
Revenge is bought by the Richest country Supplers of Oil it’s said if we do not act the prices of Oil doubles and even trebles untill the revenge has Been done by USA, UK, USSR.
But these country’s are not to interfere with the way these people deal with there people this includes China, Vietnam, Arabia.
NOW TAKE GREECE THEY GOT BUGGER ALL TO TRADE SO THEY WILL DROWN AND MAYBE ITALY GERMANY OR UK MAY TRY TO BUY IT FOR A POUND.