Highgate

Apologies if this has already been posted, but I watched this a couple of weeks back and whilst it's a harrowing watch, it's also a quite incredible piece of documentary filmmaking.
The story focusses on team of Ukrainian journos stuck in a besieged Mariupol try to continue getting their reports and videos out of the city to the outside world, moving from building to building to evade the oncoming Russian forces as they do so. Not an easy watch, something I seem to say a lot these days, but it feels like a very important film and it certainly left its mark on me.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt24082438/
Charlie George / 10
@Amazon Prime Video

This above image imo is genocidal talk. And there's plenty more where these come from. These aren't even the worst. Smotrich has plenty of gems and Netenyahu referenced Amalek which is bizarre 
All far more prejudice than anything I imagine Lineker saying. But I can't be sure because I don't pay any attention to him to be honest. 
As for genocide, I read this earlier https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/10/opinion/israel-gaza-genocide-war.html
Interesting it mentions the Rome Statute which Israel didn't sign off on. Along with America, Russia and Sudan. 
Now that article concludes that technically, no, this isn't genocide. 
If the greatest offence in all this to anybody is that it's wrongly being called a genocide when it's more just crimes against humanity, maybe a touch of ethnic cleansing, then I think they need to fix their moral compass. 
Also, I saw a comparison between the civilian death rate of this war and other horrific wars. 1% of Gaza population is dead. It isn't a comparison Israel would want to be seen but I've not actually got the data and I'm at work so not got time to search it out 

Unlikely, Ukraine has been there and done that with Minsk agreements.
It slowed Russia down for a few years, but didn’t stop them.
Ukraine know they are in an existential fight for their existence. You can’t negotiate peace with people who refuse to accept your country’s existence.
Thats not to say the path isn’t going to be easy. The supply of arms and funding that Ukraine depends on, looks to be hitting a sticky patch. F16’s should be coming online soon, but continued US support beyond that is looking iffy now with the GOP putting as many roadblocks in as possible.  
On the ground we seem to be hitting a stalemate/war of attrition. Ukraines counter offensive pretty much ground to a halt, as Russia launched their own counter offensives across the front line. The hottest part of the front is still Avdiivka with Russia launching waves of meat assaults like they did in Bakhmut. They are losing a staggering amount of men and equipment, yet they seem to keep finding more to throw at Ukraine’s defensive lines. 
One bright spot for Ukraine is on the banks of the Dnipro, Ukraine has been expanding a bridgehead there against all odds, which will attract Russia away from Avdiivka should they choose to stop Ukraines advances, if they don’t Ukraine could progress toward the coast, which would be very problematic for Russian supply lines.
On Colonel MacGregor @Highgate has covered a lot of it.
From what I do know, I’ve always found him a bizarre character, he was a big advocate of the war in Iraq and was given a big role in the planning by Rumsfeld. When it all fell apart he threw his colleagues under the bus, claimed it had little to do with him and tried to reinvent himself as an anti imperialism advocate, which is where his dalliance with Russia started. 
It amazes me that someone with such links to Russia was allowed to be appointed by Trump in a national security role.
Trump had previously tried to appointment him as ambassador to Germany, but his derogatory outbursts about Muslims, the Holocaust and his desire to see Mexicans gunned down if they tried to cross the border to claim asylum in the US, put an end to that potential position. Yet he was somehow fine to be appointed as a senior Pentagon advisor.
His final act was to have a big part in the planning of the c*** up that was the withdrawal from Afghanistan. Biden was the one that had to wear it, but the Trump administration had made a big mess of the decision.
Other than all that, Im sure he’s a lovely chap 😳

Despite his high profile military and government background MacGregor seems to be completely unreliable source for any information regarding Ukraine.  His previous predictions have been proven wrong repeatedly, yet he continues undeterred.  
He had 48 appearances on the Tucker Carlson show (according to Wiki) and he has appeared on RT (the Russian propaganda TV station, which did produce some reasonable reporting alongside other material that was clearly state sponsored messaging). All his opinions would appear to the that of some one in the pay of the Russian state.  I don't know that he is, but if they are paying him he certainly seems to be doing his best to give them value for money.
In my opinion, anything he says on the subject of Ukraine can be disregarded. 

Would a Palestinian civilian see Israel's atrocities any different than an Israeli civilian sees Hamas' atrocities? Its a big statement to say the actions of Israel are not comparable to those of Hamas Pete. Just on scale alone many would think the opposite tbh.

Really curious to understand how this 'process' in any way damages Hamas. We're repeatedly told the aim is to wipe out the terrorist group, but how does levelling huge swathes of Gaza actually achieve this aim?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-67565872

Oh come on, in this day and age.
 
 
 
 
There are far better makes available now.

It seems obvious tbh, I'm really not sure how anyone could make the case the other way.

The death toll from 2008-2023 seems to be roughly 20 Palestinians killed for every 1 Israeli. We'll be reaching that ratio again in this recent outburst of violence in a couple of weeks if the bombing continues.  It seems a very odd thing to overlook when making an assessment of the crimes of both sides. There can be no doubt about which side has more blood on their hands. 
 

The death toll from 2008-2023 seems to be roughly 20 Palestinians killed for every 1 Israeli. We'll be reaching that ratio again in this recent outburst of violence in a couple of weeks if the bombing continues.  It seems a very odd thing to overlook when making an assessment of the crimes of both sides. There can be no doubt about which side has more blood on their hands. 
 

The death toll from 2008-2023 seems to be roughly 20 Palestinians killed for every 1 Israeli. We'll be reaching that ratio again in this recent outburst of violence in a couple of weeks if the bombing continues.  It seems a very odd thing to overlook when making an assessment of the crimes of both sides. There can be no doubt about which side has more blood on their hands. 
 

No, I didn't say that. And you know I didn't. 
But it's easier to gaslight me like that rather than answer the many questions I have about Israel. 
So I repeat. Again and again hoping at some point it will get through to you. 
I have seen the videos from October 7th. I can't put into words how disturbing they are. The very nastiest stuff you could imagine. A beheading with what looks like a trowel is a particularly detailed part. I condemn Hamas. Feck Hamas. How many times do I have to say it. I said it on page 1 and I've been saying it ever since. I don't support Hamas. 
But Palestinians are not Hamas. I'm not interested in whether it's Palestinians being burned alive in West Bank/bombed in Gaza or whether it's Jews being handed live grenades. I'm not measuring terror against terror. That was my entire issue with the article 
I'm simply accusing IDF of terrorising Palestinians in Gaza and in West Bank. Of torture, of murder, of brutality, of humiliation, of stealing etc etc. 
And I'm asking the logic of their current military campaign. Because it's severely severely flawed. And you will say 'time will tell'. And I'm saying by the time we can tell if Israel were justified or not it will be too late for thousands and thousands and thousands of innocent Palestinians. We don't know how many but we do know Netenyahu said he will destroy Hamas and "nothing will stand in our way". So there's no limits for Netenyahu. Are there any for you?

If memory serves me Jeff Steeling was a major instigator, Every Saturday he'd be hammering home the values of a TV replay, Most Saturdays he'd be howling when seeing an injustice on one of his TV screens..."we have the technology use it" he'd shout.
Well we have it and now it's fixed into the football laws with FIFA, Watching the game on Monday night Spurs Vs Chelsea...christ on a bike when's this game going to end, Newcastle Vs Arsenal...3 decisions...did the ball go out, Was there a push on the defender, Was there an offside...how long did this take? It's not a case of "clear and obvious" anymore...it's forensically examined.
Penalty's given for being touched by a Butterfly's wing, Offside when a finger nail is where the red line is drawn, Play being brought back where a foul was deemed to have happened and disallow the goal, It's never ending 🙄      

Problem: <add your rant, point of view here>
Solution:bin it
Simple as that. Football was fine for many years, a few mistakes along the way and all well remembered, Maradona hand of god, Henry light touch, Lampard ghost goal.  We watch howlers by players in L1 week in week out, some defying the laws of physics, it’s football and refereeing is an integral part of it, it should have been kept that way. It wasn’t really broken so no need to fix it.
 

The problem with the system is that once VAR has referred the ref to the monitor, they are saying, in effect, 'we think you have made a mistake - you should reassess it.' So the onfield ref feels under pressure to change the decision. There are several (I don't know the exact number) of people looking at the incident in the little booth - against 1 ref on the pitch. It's the tyranny of the majority.

Why is it his fault though. The ref on the pitch has the final say. He could’ve over ruled the VAR. he didn’t, so he should be canned. 

I mean by definition we all feel that our own views, or those that agree with our opinions, are the correct and balanced ones. That's why those are our views in the first place.  From my perspective you've got two feet planted firmly in the Israeli camp. But again, that's just my perspective, it might be me that's the biased one.  

This is the point which it can easily dissolve back into tit for tat because I don't think there is any chance of peace without assurances from Israel. And I know you think that might be my bias but please hear me out and tell me where you disagree. 
You can't ask Hamas or Palestinians to stop fighting. Well, you can. But they will always say that until the Occupier returns what they have taken then they will stand against Israel, no? They will, whether we agree or not, point to the settlements and Gaza. 
This is where I think I'll get grief again because I'm putting the ball in Israel's court. Being the military power, being the occupier or whatever less offensive term is I think they have to offer the Palestinians something. Not Hamas. But work towards a Palestinian State and work with Palestinian Authority. 
All the while they'll come under attack. But I don't see another solution. Fatah and Israel have to be brought to the table and Israel will have to give the Palestinians more than they would like to. And the Palestinians would have to take less than they'd like. 
And then it's vital that whatever provocations, Israel deal with settler violence. They can't control Hamas but they can control that. 
Then, as I've maintained and nobody has put an argument against it, Hamas can't be destroyed by Israel. It's an ideology and will always return in one form of another. Because of angry Palestinians. Because of Iran etc. So the only way to remove Hamas is to get Palestinians to reject them. To reduce Hamas influence over Palestinians until they're such a pathetic force maybe Israel will be able to strike at. And Palestinians will feel less like Hamas is there only guard against illegal and aggressive occupation (that's how they see it)
This has been my view from the start and I've been guilty of going in hard at Israel. But genuinely just trying to get the point that they are the power here and it has to be them that make the first move. I know that's not always been the case. I know Arab nations around them, particularly one, if they were in Israel's position then Gaza would be flat packed. I know nations like America and Iran etc have their own agenda.
I hope this time I haven't come across as ranting. I'm all ears for what other avenues we could go down. I know it will take years to get through a process. I've just never heard much of an alternative. 
It breaks into "well you did this" and "you did that" and "well we offered this before" and "you've never offered anything that you didn't steal" 

There is little point trying to quantify Gazan opinion of the Oct 7th attacks, after the IDF bombardment began. Views will understandably be clouded by anger and hatred towards Israel right now, that much is obvious. The relentless bombing by Israel has hardened Palestinian opinions, even retrospectively, which is depressingly, exactly what Hamas would have wanted. So if the 'overwhelming support' you are referring to is support since the IDF bombs started falling, then that's a rather empty observation that should surprise nobody. 
What Gazans opinions were before October is what is interesting.  Polls conducted in July by the Washington Institute (admittedly a pro-Israel American 'think-tank') found that 62% of Gazans supported Hamas maintaining it's ceasefire with Israel. It also found that 50% of Gazans supported a 2-state-solution based on the 1967 borders and the polling revealed that Fatah had considerably more support in Gaza than Hamas (+12%).  
I honestly don't know how reliable the Institute's polling is but the point remains, they were at least conducted before all the recent horror occurred.  Trying to gauge public opinion right now is a pointless endeavour.  
Just seen from your recent post that those polls were taken after much of Gaza had been turned to rubble by IDF bombs and more than 10,000 Gazas killed, including thousands of children, as well as multiples of those figures injured.  Garbage reporting that, what on Earth were they expecting to find? 

There is little point trying to quantify Gazan opinion of the Oct 7th attacks, after the IDF bombardment began. Views will understandably be clouded by anger and hatred towards Israel right now, that much is obvious. The relentless bombing by Israel has hardened Palestinian opinions, even retrospectively, which is depressingly, exactly what Hamas would have wanted. So if the 'overwhelming support' you are referring to is support since the IDF bombs started falling, then that's a rather empty observation that should surprise nobody. 
What Gazans opinions were before October is what is interesting.  Polls conducted in July by the Washington Institute (admittedly a pro-Israel American 'think-tank') found that 62% of Gazans supported Hamas maintaining it's ceasefire with Israel. It also found that 50% of Gazans supported a 2-state-solution based on the 1967 borders and the polling revealed that Fatah had considerably more support in Gaza than Hamas (+12%).  
I honestly don't know how reliable the Institute's polling is but the point remains, they were at least conducted before all the recent horror occurred.  Trying to gauge public opinion right now is a pointless endeavour.  
Just seen from your recent post that those polls were taken after much of Gaza had been turned to rubble by IDF bombs and more than 10,000 Gazas killed, including thousands of children, as well as multiples of those figures injured.  Garbage reporting that, what on Earth were they expecting to find? 

And I merely responded to the point you made, did I not? You could have chosen to do likewise and address the points I made, but instead you've chosen to simply smear the Palestinians further. l think I'll take a rain check on further 'debate' as the whole 'the Arabs are just as bad' schtick isn't remotely compelling for me and I seriously doubt that the Palestinians are sat around completing polls right now anyway. Too busy burying their dead, I'd imagine.

I mean by definition we all feel that our own views, or those that agree with our opinions, are the correct and balanced ones. That's why those are our views in the first place.  From my perspective you've got two feet planted firmly in the Israeli camp. But again, that's just my perspective, it might be me that's the biased one.  

I mean by definition we all feel that our own views, or those that agree with our opinions, are the correct and balanced ones. That's why those are our views in the first place.  From my perspective you've got two feet planted firmly in the Israeli camp. But again, that's just my perspective, it might be me that's the biased one.  

Why? 
You're another that criticises my bias and says I'm not worthy of replying to because of my beliefs (which I laid out for you and you ignored)
But in the defence of Palestinians I've only seen you say something about Netenyahu being bad for peace? 
You've added context for Jews. You've added context for Israel's right to be fearful and skeptical of their neighbours. But what have you said on behalf of the suffering and struggling of Palestinians? 
You've rightly exposed Iran, Syria etc for supporting groups to attack Israel. But you've not really condemned America or The West for encouraging Israel. 
You've said Israel is the most democratic liberal state in the region. But again, this is only half the story. 
I've seen the videos from October 7th. They are very very nasty. Things that aren't human. Truly vile and if there is a heaven/hell then all those who took part in that slaughter should burn forever. But there are some crimes that Israel claimed that have no evidence. Some omissions about what else happened that day. You chose to post an 'independent' (it wasn't) reliable (it isn't) link to proof. Now on light of many of the lies exposed do you understand why that would appear to be spreading propaganda. Or as I've been accused of "fueling the fire". What Hamas did was evil. 
See in this thread, despite my bias I'm not afraid of talking about the suffering of Jews. I'm not afraid of admitting the threats Israel have faced, still face and will continue to face. Hamas are bad for peace. I hate Hamas. 
My problem comes that to find common ground Israel has to be called out. It's not a democracy for all its people. There are terrorist attacks on Palestinians. There's Islamophobia. There's war crimes. There's breaches of International Law. It's not just naughty Netenyahu. Why do we not speak of what ulterior motives America may have?
I understand @PistoldPetefear that hatred of Israel could spread. That saying things like they hide behind antisemetism could encourage more of the Jewish suffering we've seen. I get it. 
But, there's no balance if we can't speak against Israel. If we can't use the same language for the crimes of both. If people can't say Palestinians have a right to defend themselves. 
I fully expect some flippant comment about this thread being a cesspit, full of nonsense or somebody say they're not replying etc etc. 
You said I'm not capable of having a conversation? I am. But first, just like you, I have to feel like I'm talking to someone who can begin to understand my position. If somebody is just going to tell me this is liberal, democratic state Vs Terrorists in disputed land then I'm going to rant. I don't want to defend Hamas. I want them gone. But are we going to understand why they're able to recruit so many Palestinians? Are we going to talk about how to remove them? No. We're just going to present them as villains and continue this tit for tat. Good Vs Evil. 
I'm not as blinded by bias as I'm accused of. I'm really not. But for years and years this conflict has been presented a specific way to the West. After enduring all the American propaganda and destabilising policy I just want Palestinian voices to be heard.