The claims made by Luke Harding and The Guardian that Assange met Manafort will never be proven true, and they know it. And we should never let them forget it, says Caitlin Johnstone.
Harding at the Nordic Media Festival, 2018. (Thor Brødreskift / Nordiske Mediedager/ Wikimedia Commons)
By Caitlin Johnstone
Caitlinjohnstone.com
For the first few hours after any new “bombshell” Russia-gate story comes out, my social media notifications always light up with poorly written posts by liberal establishment loyalists saying things like “HAHAHA @caitoz this proves you wrong now will you FINALLY stop denying Russian collusion???” Then, when people start actually analyzing that story and noting that it comes nowhere remotely close to proving that Donald Trump colluded with the Russian government to steal the 2016 election, those same people always forget to come back afterward and admit to me that they were wrong again.
This happens every single time, including this past Tuesday when The Guardian published a new “bombshell” report saying that former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort had had secret meetings with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. When experts all across the political spectrum began pointing out that the story contained no evidence for its nonsensical claims and was entirely anonymously sourced, nobody ever came back and said “Hey sorry for calling you a Russian propagandist, Caitlin; turns out that story wasn’t as fact-based as I’d thought!” When evidence for a single one of the article’s claims failed to turn up for a day, then two days, then three days, nobody came back and said “Gosh Caitlin, I owe you an apology for mocking you and calling you Assange’s bitch; turns out WikiLeaks and Manafort are suing that publication and its claims remain completely unproven.”
And of course they didn’t. They weren’t meant to. They were meant to absorb The Guardian’s false claims as fact, add it to their Gish gallop mountain of false evidence for Trump-Russia-WikiLeaks collusion, and then be shuffled onward by the relentless news churn of the corporate propaganda matrix like always. But I’m never going to let them forget that this happened, and neither should you.
Desperate Overreach
If it wasn’t obvious to you last week that there is an unelected power establishment which needs above all else to control the public narrative about what’s going on in the world, it should certainly be obvious to you this week. The Guardian hit piece was so spectacularly desperate in its over-reaching to advance a narrative which has been used to manufacture support for longtime CIA/MI6 agendas like arresting Julian Assange, stopping WikiLeaks, censoring the internet and subverting Russia that it completely exposed itself as the establishment psyop firm that it is.
If that wasn’t evidence enough, in the wake of the Guardian controversy, Politico took the downright shocking step of allowing an anonymous former CIA officer to publish a lie-filled article speculating, on no evidence whatsoever, that if the story proves untrue it will be because false information was fed to the Guardian by Russia-linked operatives. The article’s anonymous author claims that there are exactly two main possibilities here: (1) that the article is 100% true and will be vindicated, or (2) that the article is based on disinformation which was planted in “an attempt to make [Guardian author Luke] Harding look bad.”
This is obviously absurd for two reasons. The first reason is because no Kremlin operative could possibly make Luke Harding look worse than Luke Harding already did in his pathetic, fumbling attempts to argue his case for collusion while promoting his book Collusion to a less-than-sycophantic interviewer in December of last year, in which Harding grew frustrated and hung up on his own interview. The second reason is that there is another far more likely possibility than the two offered by Politico’s anonymous spook.
Former Guardian employee Jonathan Cook explains that from what he learned while working at the outlet, the most likely explanation is that the editors permitted the article to be published because its anonymous sources came from within an intelligence or defense agency. As we’ve seen time and time again, from the Iraq WMD narrative to the Russian hacking narrative, western mass media outlets have a ubiquitous standing policy of printing assertions by opaque, dishonest, unaccountable government agencies as objective fact. When asked why she unquestioningly printed a false assertion that real social media users who deny any connection to Russia were Russian “bots”, the Guardian’s own political editor Heather Stewart unapologetically stated, “It’s not my analysis?—?as the piece makes quite clear?—?it’s the government’s.” As long as it comes from the government, the mass media stenographers will print what they’re told to print. But tell me more about how awful RT is because it’s “state media”.
Cook writes as follows:
“I worked for The Guardian for a number of years, and know well the layers of checks that any highly sensitive story has to go through before publication. In that lengthy process, a variety of commissioning editors, lawyers, backbench editors and the editor herself, Kath Viner, would normally insist on cuts to anything that could not be rigorously defended and corroborated.
“And yet this piece seems to have been casually waved through, given a green light even though its profound shortcomings were evident to a range of well-placed analysts and journalists from the outset.
“That at the very least hints that the Guardian thought they had ‘insurance’ on this story. And the only people who could have promised that kind of insurance are the security and intelligence services?—?presumably of Britain, the United States and / or Ecuador.
“It appears the Guardian has simply taken this story, provided by spooks, at face value.”
A Glimpse Behind the Curtain
The claims made by Luke Harding and The Guardian will never be proven true, and they know it. They knowingly printed claims that they were one hundred percent aware they’d never be able to provide proof of, and the clicks their viral story generated rewarded them with a shower of cash. Their fake story was then passed along by news outlets everywhere, including an MSNBC panel which hilariously kept informing its readers that if this Guardian report is confirmed it would be the first ever actual evidence linking Trump to WikiLeaks in a meaningful way.
We must never forget that this was done. We must keep bringing up the undeniable fact that The Guardian published false claims about a longtime target of western intelligence and defense agencies, then was backed up by a longtime insider from one of those agencies who was permitted to publish anonymously in an ostensibly unrelated outlet. This is one of those jaw-dropping glimpses behind the puppet stage we must never permit the world to forget, much like the time CNN knowingly staged a fake interview with a Syrian girl reciting scripted war propaganda. We must keep bringing this up at every opportunity in our efforts to give people glimpses behind the propaganda curtain, continuing to remind them next week, next month, next year, and ten years from now.
Forgiveness is overrated. Forgiveness is a key foundational element in most abusive relationships, wherein the abusee is manipulated or bullied into forgiving the abuser again and again, without ever holding a grudge. This is true of a battered spouse, and it is true of an oppressed populace. The ability to hold a grudge is therefore of paramount importance in fighting the propaganda machine on which our rulers have built their oppressive empire. Otherwise we will be shuffled forward in the news churn, just like the goldfish-brained Russia-gaters who are moved along from one false story to the next into the amnesia of the endlessly spewing news churn.
Don’t forget. Remember this one. Remember it, and keep bringing it up.
This article originally appeared on caitlinjohnstone.com
Caitlin Johnstone is a rogue journalist, poet, and utopia prepper who publishes regularly at Medium. Follow her work on Facebook, Twitter, or her website. She has a podcast and a new book Woke: A Field Guide for Utopia Preppers. This article was re-published with permission.
It’s obvious, dear. No worries
You are some writer and analyst Caitlin.
Something missing is the *fact* of Russian involvement. See: https://www.thedailybeast.com/exclusive-lone-dnc-hacker-guccifer-20-slipped-up-and-revealed-he-was-a-russian-intelligence-officer
Believe that and I’ve got a bridge to sell you.
This Guardian article really sums up the utter bankruptcy of the entire MSM? It’s rotten to the core & beyond redemption? If I want to watch fiction & serialised lying on a Global scale, I grab the local newspaper or sit down & watch any Mainstream Media Channel, with a bag of popcorn, for the entertainment value only, fully knowing that I will never get any real news from them, only fictitious entertainment? The Talking Heads of MSM whether that’s in print form or TV cable, who spiel out this diet of never ending, 24 hr non-stop diatribes of nonsense & illegible psychobabble garbage are the equivalent of Fast food companies getting people hooked on junk food? The MSM gets people addicted to their junk news & like junk food has a detrimental effect on your body & health, so does junk news have a detrimental effect on your mental wellbeing? My solution is have a total detox regime just as you would to wean yourself off junk food? Cancel your newspaper subscription or online ones to any MSM! Refuse to participate in any Social media platforms & remove yourself from Facebook, Twitter etc & refuse to watch Media Cable channels or to participate in any of their promotions! Only get your news from places that provide actual news that is free of state sponsored propaganda such as CN, Zerohedge & other like minded sites but avoid conspiracy type sites that just confuse & befuddle people! You will find that after having a digital detox, you will attain greater clarity, have less anxiety with less anger issues & obtain a more calmer frame of mind once you can detach yourself from the false MSM & it’s deceitful propaganda!
Very bizzare event on the publication of the article. A number of people showed some skepticism prompted by rationality. Before this, every stenographed claim by government anon sources was believed as a matter of faith, just as one believes in a god or a story of a virgin birth. But in our video and visual driven world, somewhere in the back of waters of the brain of some pundits, there was the question, where is the video? We got video for everything like the so-called Russian assassins doing about their day. Were Harding and his “sources” so sure of themselves that they thought that nobody would ask about visual or pictorial evidence? I can see the arrogance of the assumption given that the so-called Resistance believes without proof every other claim.
One might hope that this farce might give pause to even small amounts of skepticism on further claims. On second thought, never mind.
Thanks Caitlin, I have intelligent friend’s who believe in the Russian collusion story with all their heart as they run around with ripped jeans, tattoos and nose rings. If you can convince people to dress as such it’s pretty easy to convince them of anything. You/we are fighting a losing cause unless the media is controlled, they do we don’t
Great article. Thank you so much. Don’t know how I would live without Consortium News.
The one who can prove Russiagate and the Guardian story lies is Julian Assange who is being slowly driven mad and into severe health danger. (He was without food for three days…bank holiday, you know) and is allowed no outside contact whatsoever.
He can’t be allowed to speak publically any more from his balcony, and is treated so badly he will be forced to leave, at which time he will be sent to the US for trial. The indictment was issued under Obama (who allowed Hillary Clinton to destroy three countries, with Iran and Russia on her hit list when she became president. She’s the culprit who began Russiagate, wanting to conclude hacking of the DNC by Russians which didn’t happen).
But here’s the interesting thing, if a desperate Julian Assange walks out of the Ecuadoran embassy and is taken to the US, he will never be brought to trial because to do so will force the courts to bring both the New York Times and the Washington Post under indictment, too. That can’t be allowed, hence Assange will be sent to prison, perhaps Guantanamo and be kept there with out ever being charged (as is the current prisoners’ fates).
When someone says he/she is proud to be an American, I can’t believe my ears.
It’s very honestly hard to believe that the POLITICO smear piece ever ran with that anonymous CIA byline, it seems like a parody of what left wing/alternative media have been saying about RussiaGate coverage, too good be true.
The people running the Guardian, Luke Harding and those in the shadows responsible for devising this media propaganda scheme thought they could get away it and drop the equivalent of a nuclear bomb on Mr. Assange and WikiLeaks. They failed to such an extent and so profoundly that their self-destruction might be described as launching the nuclear weapon straight up in the sky, whereupon the bomb falls, following the same upward path, – straight downward, and directly onto Guardian and Associates headquarters.
In closing her excellent writing, the wise, well-meaning, understandable suggestion by Ms. Johnstone for people to “remember this one” is surely important, appreciated and welcome. Alternatively, – for any man or woman on Earth familiar with the continuing, unjust, life-threatening situation into which the warmongers have placed Julian Assange – the immense, unprecedented Guardian-Harding propaganda scandal is but one more instance of visible intensified desperation exhibited by the war criminals, combined with dangerous unforgettable.
Free Julian Assange. Peace.
Stay at home mom Kelly Richards from New York after resigning from her full time job managed to average from $6000-$8000 a month from freelancing at home… This is how she done it
……. fgdfgdfg
???USA~JOB-START
Well said Caitlin but let us not forget the contribution to the Russiagate smear campaign authored by Mother Jones editor and MSNBC regular, David Corn who was the initial conduit through which news of the Steel dossier was leaked. The 2017 July/August issue of MJ should be added to the list of the shameful so called progressive and liberal journalists referred to in your article who spouted on about Russia and Putin election tampering while the real story was and is an aggressive and well coordinated, Republican led, campaign of racial disenfranchising and gerrymandering.
Luke Harding’s reputation was already festering, long before the absurd Manafort claims. While still based here in Moscow, he stole an entire story from theExile editor and writer Mark Ames. The Guardian has never bothered to censure him for egregious plagiarism. He then claimed his visa for Russia was stymied by the Russian authorities?? No, he just overstayed his old visa, and thought he could somehow wing it, despite having commited an immigration offence.
Now based in London, he is the pet spider for Guardian russophobe Simon Tizwoz Tisdall – a Russia-hating bigot who’s worked for the Guardian for over 40 years. He used to run a regular USSR-hating column every Tuesday, back in the 1980s. Today he feeds his bile to Harding, who adds a byline to them. This week, the Tisdall/Harding duo produced a series of outrageous nonsense about Kerch – claiming that Russia had ‘invaded’ Crimea in 2014. Yet mysteriously that happened during Harding’s watch on the Moscow desk – and he hadn’t filed a single report or photo of this ‘invasion’ whatsoever. REALITY – Crimea voted overwhelmingly to rejoin Russia, and power changed peacefully overnight, without so much as misplaced dogturd to show for the transfer of power.
Some long time ago now, Ooooo, back when the Murrah building suffered it’s partial destruction by a physics-defying low pressure wave event triggered ‘outside’ the buildings frontage, I realised that MSM was gone, dead, controlled, zombified, compliant … was biddable to the hands that worked the levers behind the curtain. I grew up in the UK; people sniggered at the Guardian due to it’s earnest socialist bones – now it has mutated into a script mill that is educated beyond it’s ethical ability. They all are, I think. Choose. Choose between a rabid, wildly distorted, anarchic Internet news environment, OR the legacy outlets all with deeply compromised relationships to Deep State. The European press are exactly the same. Most of the garbage is just the bread and butter newspaper through-put, but when THEY call and guide a story, there is no refusal. Prostitutes have more integrity and dignity than the current media houses. I won’t go to the Murdoch example, since we all know what’s behind 99% of press control. To find out who rules you, simply find out who it is you cannot criticize.
Nice article Caitlin. I would like to thank the good people of Russia for funding RT with their tax payer dollars. Americans would do well to watch RT on a daily basis. I find myself visiting the many fine alternative media sites available on line more so than wasting my time looking at the mindless drivel on offer from the MSM. Lies wrapped around lies and then papered over with more lies. It is a propaganda shit storm with no end in sight. The truth is out there and sites like CN are an excellent example of where to go to find it. People are going to have to question more. Keep up the good work Caitlin.
It is pretty hilarious that to get the nationalised broadcast system we deserve we have to turn to Russia. BBC and CNN are world wide jokes. Just think, Russians give to George Galloway and Slavoj Žižek, the US taxpayer pays Israeli military to kill children with teargas drones and fund fossil fool “oiligarchy” with subsidies to giants like EXXON. Not to mention CIA money for Washington Post. Brits have to deal with paying for “Integrity Initiative,” Westminster disinfo op to smear anti-neoliberals, and “Prevent” which criminalises anti-capitalism and anti-fracking.
Let us not forget that the BBC – both in its radio and television forms – has to be paid for by the British taxpayer through the purchase of licences.
Whenever I hear the likes of the BBC or NPR (let us not forget that they too receive money through the government, that is, the taxpayers as well as from “sponsors,” foundations and subscribers) deprecate such as RT or Sputnik as “Russian state media” and thus, obviously, simply relayers of “Putin speak” I want to scream. The BBC and NPR are nothing more than mouthpieces of the corporate-capitalist-imperialist ruling elites, those in government and their funding cronies, and we pay for them. State media indeed.
I remember reading on Wikipedia (not the most reliable, I know) that the Soviet Union abandoned mandatory licensing of TV sets in 1961, and no such fee exists in the Russian Federation. If anyone who’s ever owned a TV set in Russia can confirm of dispute this, I’d be grateful.
Some countries like Britain, as you point out, have public radio and TV funded by Joe Sixpack via a monthly/annual fee. Other countries like the US instead have public radio and TV funded by the government via tax money.
I remember reading on Wikipedia (not the most reliable, I know) that the Soviet Union abandoned (British-style) mandatory licensing of TV sets in 1961, and no such fee exists in the Russian Federation, thus relying on tax money (American-style). If anyone who’s ever owned a TV set in Russia can confirm of dispute this, I’d be grateful.
I find it both funny and sad at the same time. It’s times like these that make me more desperate to travel (and possibly move) to Russia soon despite the possible setbacks (higher rates of crime, alcoholism, pollution and abortion, and lower lifespan than in the US). If I could (I can’t as of this writing), I’d go there in a heartbeat.
Side note: I wouldn’t be surprised if ABC (Australian), RTÉ (Irish) or CBC (Canadian) are just as guilty as BBC and NPR. However, I’d be surprised if NHK (Japanese) were just as bad.
…and Al Jazeera (who we have to thank for their excellent documentary on the Israel Lobby), Press TV. Stations that give us a different perspective than the one pushed by our western media, as well as middle-east news which seldom get’s covered here.
It’s heartening to watch the imperialist narrative pushers and their loyal followers slowly come unglued. How much longer can they keep this game going before the whole charade collapses? What they don’t comprehend is they are helping Trump secure a second term with this nonsense. Way to go liberal establishment.
Agreed.
Pushing an obvious lie as truth is unforgivable and we who love truth should never let those who abuse us repeatedly with their lies forget it.
Such mendacity is an assault on the human soul.
Be well.
My earlier comment appears to have been voided.
I put links to a dozen of the most recent articles on the Assange/ Guardian story at the end of this piece for anyone who wants to get up to speed on this subject.
https://opensociet.org/2018/11/29/growing-calls-for-the-guardians-editor-in-chief-to-resign-as-the-paper-faces-accusations-of-publishing-a-magical-thinking-story-about-wikileaks-julian-assange-and-paul-manafort-meeting/
Just want to say thanks, especially for having to take all the crap dolled out by the beltway minions of Russia-gate. When I read books like “The Devil’s Chessboard” by David Talbot or “Overthrow” by Stephan Kinzer, I realize that many of the talking heads inside the beltway bubble don’t really believe the nonsense they spread, they know they are lying, and they know their stories are entirely fictional. It is all pretty much the same old story of the US acting like an organized crime syndicate, and then the talking heads back in DC lying and smearing to obscure the misdeeds and distract attention. So don’t take the criticism seriously, it is coming from a bunch of paid hacks whose job it is to smear anyone who dares to challenge the false narrative. Keep the articles coming Caitlin! Honest Americans really do want to know what is going on.
Thanks to Caitlin. How anyone could believe one word of Luke Harding with his history astounds me. He and David Leigh used the Wikileaks revelations in the Guardian( or the Sycophant, I saw someone suggest as a new name), then wrote a disgustingly offensive “biography” of Julian Assange, sold then by the Guardian. I did not bother with “Collusion” but saw the interview with Aaron Maté, then read Harding’s incredible Guardian “explanation” of the two Russian stooges’ alleged adventures in Salisbury and how they proved their guilt. It is desperately sad that so many people seem to accept stories not even remotely related to observable facts.
Russian collusion = 2018 version of Saddam’s WMD. And the sheeple keep on drinking the cool aide…
Interesting and important article.
However, it is worth remembering that in Christian theology, forgiveness is always associated with repentance – and in the words of the 16th century German theologian, Martin Luther, “To do so no more is the truest repentance.”
There is no point in forgiving the Guardian if they don’t apologise and mend their ways – but if they do, then forgiveness is completely appropriate.
As long as they promise never to do it again!!
Forgiveness for allowing a shill like Harding to spout lies is one thing.
What if those lies, ala MSM’s Iraq lies, lead to nuclear war and the near extinction of humans? If the Guardian somehow still exists and says “oops, forgive us”, we should?
If that’s all it takes there doesn’t seem to be much disincentive (even in the mythological/religious sort) to not rape and pillage most of the time. Then an apologies and promise to mend ways and all is good, apparently.
But I guess to not be as much of a jerk–I’d forgive such people if they actually suffer themselves–in prison, or can’t get a job as a reporter, etc. And if they were truly repentant they’d demand such themselves. If Bush or Obama become truly repentant for example, they should get a one-way ticket to the Hague and demand to be prosecuted for war crimes. “We tortured some folks” is not repentance. “look forward, not backward [except for prosecuting whistle-blowers]” isn’t repentance.
Excellent point on the extinction. These media (BBC, Murdoch, NYTimes/Post, Guardian etc) do not report adequately on the climate catastrophe and openly stoke nuclear war and conflict with China (see NYTimes multi-day anti-China barrage). In addition, they support crackdowns on those who do voice these concerns. At what point are the news editors going to realise their complicity in a potential wipeout of all life?
Luke Harding has the gaul to say he was fed false information by the Russians and failed to verify it. He’s either a liar or totally incompetent.
> Luke Harding has the gaul to say he was fed false information by the Russians and failed to verify it.
> He’s either a liar or totally incompetent.
“…I’m a story-teller…” – Luke Harding in his interview on The Real News
Trusting anything that comes out of MSM or ANY Western government source at this point, is essentially to assume the mind-set of the past faith-based evidence-free belief systems of a European peasant during the Middle Ages. Once my ancestors gullibly believed in the “infallibility” of the Pope, and in the “divine right” of kings to rule us because they were told to do so by the collective mythologies enforced by the authorities of the day. Fear of hell, damnation and/or being tortured and burned alive in the fires of the Holy Inquisition kept critical thinking at bay for many centuries.
Endless fear, fear-mongering and war mongering today are used to the narcotize critical thinking faculties of modern Western populations. Fear of “Russia,” fear of “China,” fear of “Iran,” fear of “Venezuela,” fear of being called “Putin’s useful idiot” (and thus a ‘heretic’) leave many essentially accepting a mindless fact-free belief in the “infallibility” of the media and State.
Today many accept the endless lies from corporate media and “government sources” because to actually question those lies and sources would be to shatter the fragile myth systems of Western global power we have collectively been inculcated in since birth. Mercifully these myth systems are quite clearly and rapidly disintegrating around us in real time of their own accord. As in the Middle Ages, the modern version of “heresy” is simply to be able and willing to think for oneself. Long live heresy!
Great comment Gary. Good historical perspective. I hope we have enough time for “heresy” to win the day. I fear that many people who realize they’re being conned feel powerless, become too discouraged to engage, and resort to mind-numbing entertainment. Neil Postman wrote a book about it years ago called “Amusing Ourselves to Death”.
Excellent comments, as always.
I have often said that when you hear the US government complaining about something that someone else is doing, you can be pretty certain that the US government is doing that very thing or worse and they are trying to deflect your attention from them and onto the mark that they have chosen to be the fall guy. When they started accusing RT/Sputnik/Al Jazeera of being propaganda outlets, I knew that the government feared that they were losing control over the narrative. They sought to regain control by poisoning the atmosphere around those alternative websites that weren’t apparatchiks for government propaganda. This can and does work. The whole Russiagate bullshit is a prime example. Three Names, who was probably one of the more incompetent nominees we’ve seen (other than the cheeto-in-chief hisself), claimed that hordes of Russian agents were at fault for her loss. Much later after most had moved on, somebody crunching numbers noted that if she had only gotten another 80,000 votes in addition to the 3,000,000 vote lead she had on the cheeto-in-chief but crucially these extra votes had to come from Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio. All states that have a strong Republican voter suppression effort going on. So which is it? Hordes of Russian operatives or Republican voter suppression. Apply Occam’s razor.
Yes. I learned recently about this tactic. The politician will call out their opponents for doing whatever it is he/ she is up to themselves. Blame it on the other side. It is like projection. Mom catches me with chocolate all over my face. I say my brother ate all the cookies.
What I did not get about the tactic is by blaming whatever it is on the other side first, the guilty politician puts the crime out there in the news first. So… let’s say I robbed a bank. I accuse you of doing it. Then when credible evidence shows up I am actually robbing banks, I simply claim it is fake news manufactured by the other side to get back at me for exposing their wrongdoing in the first place. Their attempt to smear me with lies discredits them, instead of me. The bank robber.
This entire game of blaming the other side is an incestuous strategy designed to keep the public from really concentrating on anything of importance or expecting things to get done. It is amazing how stupid and childish it all is, yet how well it works on the masses. No one in America really expect their rights not to be eroded or the politicians who “represent” us to actually represent our interests by doing anything to benefit the people any longer.
The goal is slander and smear and discredit the other side with bullshit so your side is WINNING!!!
It’s bonkers.
Mass media “informing” the public with various stories crafted by manipulative sociopathic elements in various western governments, for various unclear at the time purposes, some of which in the past have led to hundreds of thousands, millions, of innocent deaths.
Nothing new in this except that the mask has slipped a lot.
eh…who cares if those two met when Don Jr. had Assange on speed dial?
Caitlin at her very best!! and that is saying a lot right there!!
Once again Caitlin just “nails it”. She is a great addition to the CN line-up. Thank you Joe Lauria for publishing her stuff.
Excellent article.
Harding is a charlatan.
I protest at that unwarranted slur on goldfish, who are in reality intelligent and sensitive animals with keen memory, unlike the liberal twits Johnstone is talking about here.
> Biswapriya Purkayastha
> December 1, 2018 at 5:51 am
> I protest at that unwarranted slur on goldfish, who are in reality intelligent and sensitive animals
> with keen memory, unlike the liberal twits Johnstone is talking about here.
LOL!