Consortium News‘ CN Live! interviewed British journalist Richie Medhurst about his arrest last Thursday by British authorities because of his “opinions” and “beliefs” under the so-called Terrorism Act.
The British journalist discusses with CN Live! his arrest under Section 12 of the U.K.’s Terrorism Act and the meaning of the Western crackdown on dissident journalism.
Guest: Richard Medhurst. Interviewers: Cathy Vogan, Elizabeth Vos and Joe Lauria. Producer: Cathy Vogan. Time: 39 minutes.
Thank you, CN, for this interview. You are a bulwark against the propaganda project that is mass media. I see that the Democratic Party has renewed its obeisance to Israel in their party platform; no surprise there. The UK political class appears determined to follow the U.S. and Israel on the road to perdition, a dangerous and ultimately tragic and profoundly foolish path. Zionism is driving this bus and we’re headed for a cliff. Zionists have profound influence in all aspects of our economic and political lives that is quite out of proportion to their actual numbers. It is a profoundly unbalanced and undemocratic state of affairs that may ultimately destroy our freedoms and, quite possibly, our world. Zionism is a political, settler/colonial ideology, not a religion or ethnic identity. To be against the Zionist project is not to be against Judaism as a religion or ethnic identity. One needn’t have animus toward Jews (and I don’t) to condemn what the Zionist project has revealed itself to be. That the UK, U.S., Germany and other “liberal” republican democracies have aligned themselves with what our common humanity prods us to condemn–genocide, ethnic cleansing, persecution and the abrogation of civil rights and free speech–says everything about how far the train has gone off the rails. It is a dangerous time that I never thought I would see in my long life. Richard Medhurst and CN are doing the good work of keeping the light shining. We should support them in any way we can.
The fact that those in charge talk about Richie and others as “class traitors” tells you what is going on here. It is and always has been class warfare. The greatest enemies of the wealthy elites are the people who “should be” a class warrior for the wealthy, but instead speak truth to corrupt power.
Good summation. When people tell me I should “understand” all people, I have a very difficult time “understanding” people who dominate and exploit others, including the bourgeoisie who seem not to realize they are living off of dominating and exploiting others.
The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.
– George Orwell
Free speech in the U.K. is gone after a few pronouncements from authorities. U.K. subjects will play Hell trying to win back just that one inherent right.
Why can’t people just shut up and do what they’re told?
You have no rights. They can do whatever they want to you.
Mr Medhurst’s articulate, forensic, matter of fact, yet utterly damning description of how he was detained and mis-treated, was the greatest weapon that the Deep State could have inflicted upon the Deep State. It sounded like a nightmare out of Kafka or Orwell, but is a blighted example of truly dystopian Blighty.
Such heavy handed thuggery and intimidation has backfired against the oppressors.
Ordinary people are outraged against this totalitarian fascistic behaviour, everyone must be made aware of it.
Richard, we are nowhere near as brave as you, but we admire and support you for championing Free Speech, you belong in the Hall Of Heroes alongside Daniel Ellsberg, Julian Assange and Scott Ritter to name just a few.
Thank you, thank you, thank you Mr Medhurst.
I just want to add something. As Gabor Mate said not long ago on Katie Halper’s blog there’s a Hitler in all of us. This is a profound notion which would take much longer than a few words to get into, and it’s a disturbing notion. But at the very least we are seeing this mentality widely on display today, whether here with Richie Medhurst, Julian Assange, or in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. It’s a mentality of bullying supremacy and bestiality sprung from sadists and maniacs. Too often police get into this . . . power corrupts, cruelty proliferates. We must absolutely denounce it and reassert the goal to be human instead of vicious little animals. Remember Goering: “The best solution would be to shoot anybody who looked sideways.”
Never have met a vicious animal, just vicious human beings. And I do not agree with Mate. I grew up in a radical leftist household and was taught to eschew money, position, status, power, just like Albert Nolan describes in Jesus Before Christianity. I never like when people use the words “all of us,” “everyone,” etc. There is no Hitler in me, and I think that’s true of many other people. I was not raised the way Norman Finkelstein says he was raised (to believe in Jewish supremacy) and have never fallen into any trap that led me to think I am superior to others in any way whatsoever.
I think Gabor’s comment means we have the potential for this behavior with its root form fear and anger that can produce icy and reckless rage that turns us into savages. Not all give in to it, of course. I could be wrong with my interpretation here. In myself for example I’ve recognized road rage as an example of it, wherein I’ve lost control of myself very stupidly. Recognition toward control is needed, I think, for us to evolve and advance toward humane behavior and stop these primitive wars. I’m sorry to have upset you with my remark on this, which was meant to try to probe at and understand how people at large, as apparently in Israel with most of that population supporting Netanyahu, can justify such hideous barbarity with the Palestinians. Also apparently the US? How can we understand so many of us NOT coming out to say clearly what’s happening is utterly wrong and vicious victimization, including relegating this group to an “under-class” of human beings? As to animals I agree that the generalization is not fair, although unfortunately I have met some vicious animals, but they are not representative generally. What I was talking about is also familiar under the old terms of “the heart of darkness,” “irrational man,” “lord of the flies,” we used to talk about long ago.
Richie Medhurst is inspirational. Thank you all for this exposure of rank bullying and intimidation, inspired by the likes of Nazi sadists (as you say, the gestapo) of yesteryear. I am very encouraged by Richie’s strength.
What’s happening today, to Medhurst, Assange and far too many others with the courage to speak the truth, is far, far worse than what happened “yesteryear” under Hitler. You are wrong when you quote “there’s a Hitler in all of us.” Yes, there are far too many nasty schoolyard bullies, cruel, power hungry dominator types. But these types are still a relatively small psychopathic individuals, far from “all of us.”
Perhaps Gabor had in mind mostly males. The question of how apparently “normal” people can allow this sort of behavior is deeply mysterious. Most important here is to fight against new iterations of authoritarianism in supposedly “advanced” countries pretending to observe human rights. I hope we might join as partners in this.
I figured out what appears to you as “deeply mysterious” many years ago. Think of empathy and sociopathy on a spectrum, one at each end. Most people are not at the empathy end. The way we treat babies and children is foul, to put it mildly, and they learn early that so-and-so is bad (because they leave junk in their yard, don’t dress well, are getting government assistance, the list is endless) because their parents said so. I wondered why my “Christian” neighbor was so lacking in empathy, then she told me her mother had been raised in an orphanage. That told me all I needed to know.
In order for the brain to develop properly, human children need a LOT of attention and stability in their lives, and to see empathy modeled. My foster daughter had a hole in her brain where empathy (this area includes understanding consequences) was missing; she came from a violent, poly-substance-abusing home. My partner was set down in front of the TV when he was a very little baby and toddler; he too is missing this important area of the brain and managed to scramble what brain he had by his addiction.
Most people appear normal, but remember the Milgram experiment. Those who willingly went along with it — interestingly, it was women who refused and ended the experiment — were not abnormal, but their empathy was lacking and they would do what they were told. We all need to ask ourselves how far we would go if someone ordered us to harm others. I take in rescue dogs — the unadoptable sort — and it is amazing how loving and sweet they are despite horrific experiences (my most recent had half her tail chopped off and her long ear slit halfway up with no anesthetic). BUT they once had mothers who were not glued to a cellphone, a wine bottle, a violent male, etc. I don’t think most males are nurturing, which is why I did not mention the fathers.
Thank you so much, Helga.