Hard News: A handful of battling billionaires
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Gary Young, in reply to
Just curious as to how Juan Cole can be characterised as a warmonger. I have occasionally dipped into his blog for a casual browse and he appears to take a very dim view of the USA's overseas military adventures.
I am, of course, open to evidence to the contrary.
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Russell Brown, in reply to
Just curious as to how Juan Cole can be characterised as a warmonger.
Let's put it this way: he's not.
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alwyn, in reply to
I suggest that you make the most of reading the Guardian. It is owned and run by a non-profit trust, as you say.
Howver the paper loses money and the trust fund is running down. I understand that at the current rate of the paper losing money it will be broke in about 6 years.
You may not like him but the world actually relies on people like Murdoch, with a genuine love of papers, to keep them alive. The Times in Lindon would have died years ago without him and the best paper in Australia, the Australian would never have existed without his pouring money into it. -
Matthew Poole, in reply to
people like Murdoch, with a genuine love of political influence
FTFY
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I've for Murdoch and Fairfax papers...at least Murdoch knew what he was doing...
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The Kochs are odious elitist assholes but at least they probably believe what they are doing.
We all believe what we are doing! So they are just arseholes.
Murdoch is a mercenary; the classic example of the corporate psychopath who will do anything at all if he thinks it will make a dollar.
So a rich psychopath in a tailored suit. Is that what you are saying?
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If Murdoch genuinely loves newspapers I’m happy for him. It’s what he also genuinely loves which I would take issue with. And controlling the political process negates pretty much any kind of philanthropy I can think of.
Hell, the Times? Not the most exciting paper in Britain. The Australian? Bagging Australia’s best writers and then making them write right wing bile (mostly) is a good thing?
I take your point about the Guardian though. Imagine a news landscape without it.
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From a Wishington Post chat
Roxanne Roberts :
The amazing thing is that a six-month process remained a secret. It takes a lot to surprise a roomful of WaPo editors and reporters, and -- trust me -- everyone was stunned.Putting aside the irony of none of the journalists breaking the story at their own paper the six months certainly fits with the planning of the paywall.
Don[ald Graham] will not have any offficial role with the paper; he'll be part of the other, as-of-yet unnamed company with the remaining corporate assets.
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Er, Washington Post meant of course. Wishington is so 2012.
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Martin Brown, in reply to
Chump change for Bezos. And not much more expensive to maintain than a super yacht or say, a sports team.
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Oh OK went away for a couple days. Juan Cole as a warmonger is easy. As a democrat policy advisor it is true he was very outspoken when the rethugs led the invasion of Iraq. Not that the dems actually did much useful to block the illegal invasion of another sovereign state. Congress repeatedly wimped out on issues like Abu Ghraib. In the end the only issue democrat pols following Coles' advice did was to campaign about the medical treatment of injured american soldiers.
Yeah right! You join the army to kill people you get injured, big deal. You need a kick up the ass not sympathy.
Cole is an old school orientalist very similar to the english orientalist/arabist scholars, they favour and advocate arming the Sunni ruling elite in Shia dominated states such as Iraq. We see the upshot of that now in Iraq where Sunni elements are resourced by the US to pressure the Shia led democratically elected government in the hope of driving a wedge between Iraq & Iran.
Right now those same Sunni groups are slaughtering civilians in Syrian towns bordering Iraq.
US policymakers go all "Its terrible al Quaeda are doing this" publicly while conspiring with the people they demonise.
Juan Cole repeteadly editorialises in favour of the foreign terrorists who are destroying Syria's infrastructure in exactly the same way the same groups reduced Libya, once the leader in North Africa & the ME for health & education (yes & women's rights). These groups lynched black Libyans whose Libyan ancestry often exceeds that of many Libyan Arabs, on the specious grounds they were 'foreigners'.The old colonel who was a Berber himself, had done much to break down the racial & language divides between Libyan people. That has gone & the country is in agony, but the oil is getting out to France & england so Cole thinks its all great.
Juan Cole applauded the destruction of Libya just as he supports the armed groups in Syria.
Its kind of difficult to get a feeling for opposition to Cole if you read his blog since he censors comments heavily.
Here is a critique of Cole's take on Syria from back when Cole could have made a difference by speaking out against the arming of terrorist groups.
http://mideastreality.blogspot.co.nz/2011/12/exactly-why-barack-obama-and-juan-cole.htmlHe is a mouthpiece for liberal interventionism who cloaks his warmongering under a facade of 'reasonableness'. A thoroughly despicable human being.
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James George, in reply to
Bruce is the one in charge of the sheep dip - reputed to be in breach of rule number 1.
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