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Rhondda Records is with you every day bringing the news ------- that gives a view of world events different to the mainstream media or social media!
Except Sundays - our day of rest.
Journalist:To end war ------
prosecute UK, US officials
who wage(d) it illegally
October 22nd, 10:12pm (PressTV)
The world must finally put an end to the impunity of war
criminals, by holding US and UK officials responsible
for launching the illegal war on Iraq, done without
the approval of the UN Security Council, and
prosecuting them --- under the Nuremberg
principles, US journalist Don DeBar said.
DeBar made the remarks in an interview with Press TV while
commenting on a report which has revealed that the British
military inquiries into abuse against Iraqi nationals... have
been closed without a single prosecution being brought,
even though the credibility of many "shocking and
shameful incidents" during the war in the Middle
Eastern country, have been confirmed.
British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said in a statement
this week that the Service Police Legacy Investigations,
which was looking at claims of abuse in Iraq, had now
"officially closed its doors."
In March 2003, the US and Britain invaded Iraq in blatant
violation of international law and under the pretext of
finding WMDs; but no such weapons were ever
discovered in Iraq.
More than one million Iraqis were killed - as the result of
the US-led invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq
--- according to the California-based investigative
organization, Project Censored.
The US war in Iraq cost US taxpayers $1.7 trillion with
an additional $490 billion in benefits owed to war veterans, expenses that could grow to more than $6 trillion over the next four decades counting interest, according to a study called Costs of War Project --- by the Watson Institute for
International Studies at Brown University.
DeBar told Press TV that the Iraq war
was illegal from the very beginning.
"It is illegal for a nation to make war on another nation if it
does not have the approval of the UN Security Council, if
any of those nations are signatories to the original UN
Charter. And it’s been adopted - that happened with
the US, as a charter member of the UN -- and it was
approved by the US Senate in the 1940s.
Consequently, the US involvement in Iraq from the beginning, and the UK involvement in Iraq from the beginning, was illegal,” he said.
“And under the Nuremberg standards, which would then
apply, each and every death consequent – intentional
or not - to either US or UK military action there, or
condoning of the US action there, by the media
or public officials, or any act facilitating that,
is an individual war crime. And, by the way,
there’s a death penalty for that,” the
journalist noted.
“No one will prosecute these people. That’s why I started
with the word impunity. And we might bookend with that
because that’s the problem. And until the world puts an
end to that impunity, until the world sees the major
contradiction in all international relations, is US,
UK, and EU imperialism, then it’s going to
continue until this eats our species,”
he stated.
A damning White House memo had revealed details of the
so-called “deal in blood” forged by former British Prime
Minister Tony Blair and US President George W. Bush
over the Iraq war.
The document, titled “Secret... Memorandum for the
President”, was sent by then-US Secretary of State
Colin Powell to President Bush on March 28th, 2002, a week before Bush’s summit with Blair at his Crawford ranch in Texas.
The sensational memo, revealed that Blair had agreed to
support the war a year before the invasion even started
while publicly, the British prime minister was working to find a diplomatic solution to the crisis.
The document also disclosed that Blair agreed to act as a
spin doctor for Bush and convince a skeptical public that
Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein had Weapons of Mass
Destruction, which actually did not exist.
In response, Bush would flatter Blair and give the
impression that London was not Washington’s
poodle but an equal partner in the
“special relationship.”
Powell told Bush that Blair “will be with us” on the
Iraq war, and assured the president that “"the UK
will follow our lead in the Middle East."
Blair has always denied the claim that he and Bush
signed a deal “in blood”, at Crawford, to launch a
war against Iraq that began on March 20th, 2003,
that has killed hundreds of thousands of people.
The Powell memo, however, showed how Blair and
Bush secretly prepared the Iraq war plot behind
closed doors at Crawford.
Powell told Bush: “He will present to you the strategic,
tactical and public affairs lines, that he believes will
strengthen global support for our common cause.”
Venezuelademands ----that
the US respect its airspace
by Marfa Mamaeva
November 29th, 7:56pm
(Gazeta.ru)
Venezuela has demanded that the US respect its airspace.
The official government message was published in the
Telegram channel by the head of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs of the Republic, Ivan Hyl.
The authorities stressed that the country's rights are protected
by the norms of the International Civil Aviation Organization
(ICAO) and confirmed by the 1944 Chicago Convention.
According to the government, President Donald Trump.. is
attempting to "apply the illegitimate jurisdiction of the
United States" to the country, arrogantly issuing
orders and threatening the national airspace,
territorial integrity, aviation security ---- and
sovereignty of the South American nation.
"Venezuela will be able to respond with dignity, legality,
and all the strength that international law and the
anti-imperialist spirit of our people provide,"
the statement said.
The country's authorities called on the UN and the world's
governments to reject this "immoral act of aggression."
Prior to this, Trump announced the closure of airspace over and
around Venezuela. The announcement came amid an increase
in the U.S. military presence in the Caribbean.
The Washington Post reported... that U.S. military aircraft were
constantly patrolling the areas around Venezuela. U.S. media
outlets have repeatedly claimed that the United States
As the world marks the International Day for the Elimination
of Violence Against Women, countries light buildings in
orange and call for protection, equality, and justice.
But for Palestinian women, this day arrives under the shadow
of one of the most severe - and systematic patterns - of
violence in modern history - including bombardment,
forced displacement, imprisonment, and daily
settler assaults.
_______________________________
Israeli Attacks on Southern
Lebanon ----------- Continue
November 29th, 5:04pm
(al Manar)
Violating Lebanon’s sovereignty and the ceasefire agreement,
the Israeli enemy continued, on Saturday, its attacks on the
border villages and towns in the South.
Al-Manar correspondent reported that an Israeli enemy drone targeted Al-Dabbakeh neighbourhood in the town of Mais Al-Jabal in southern Lebanon, dropping a bomb while workers were collecting iron in the area.
In a related development, our correspondent reported that the
enemy’s site in Ruweisat Al-Alam fired bursts of gunshots
towards the outskirts of the town of Kfar Shuba, in a
new breach of the withdrawal line and international
laws that are supposed to protect civilians and
residential areas.
These attacks are part of the daily violations committed by
the enemy against the south and its people, amid blatant
international disregard for Israel’s repeated violations
of Lebanese sovereignty and its ongoing threat
to citizens’ lives.
Source: Al-Manar English Website
____________________________________
Hamas: Israel’s killing of Gaza children
shows its 'genocidal war' -continues
November 29th, 2:22pm
(PressTV)
Hamas has condemned the killing of two Palestinian children
in an Israeli drone attack on Bani Suheila, east of Khan
Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, saying it shows the
"genocidal war" continues - despite the ceasefire
agreement that took effect last month.
Hazem Qassem, spokesman for the Palestinian resistance
movement, emphasized in a statement on Saturday, that
“the incident underscores yet again that the genocidal
war against the Gaza people is still ongoing, but its
intensity has changed.”
He urged Qatar, Turkey, Egypt, and the US, as guarantors
of the ceasefire to take meaningful action to halt Israeli
violations and ensure compliance with the agreement.
Local media outlets said Israeli drones dropped a bomb on
a group of civilians near al-Farabi School on Saturday
morning, killing two brothers, identified as Juma
and Fadi Tamer Abu Assi.
Earlier on Saturday, the Israeli military launched ground,
naval, and air attacks on several parts of Gaza.
Medical sources reported that 3 Palestinians were
injured as a result of Israeli artillery and air
bombardment in the town of al-Qarara,
northeast of Khan Younis.
Israeli aircraft also launched strikes in the Tuffah
neighbourhood, in the east of Gaza City, on
Saturday morning. There were no
reports of casualties.
Additionally, attacks hit the eastern areas
of Rafah city in southern Gaza.
Since October 2023, the Israeli army -- has killed
at least 69,799 people, most of them women
and children, and injured 170,972 others in
a two-year war in Gaza that has reduced
much of the coastal sliver to rubble.
The onslaught has also led to the widespread
destruction of homes and civilian
infrastructure, creating a dire
situation for the territory's
surviving inhabitants.
International bodies ------- including the UN Independent
International Commission of Inquiry, the International
Association of Genocide Scholars, Amnesty
International, Human Rights Watch,
B’Tselem and other rights groups,
have concluded: that the Israeli
offensive in Gaza - amounts
to genocide.
_______________________________
Gaza: Two Children Martyred as
Israeli Occupation Proceeds
with Ceasefire Violations
November 29th, 1:30pm
(al Manar)
Two Palestinian children have been martyred and others
have been injured in the Gaza Strip on Saturday as the
Israeli occupation goes ahead with attacks ------- in
violation of the ceasefire last October.
Two children were martyred in an Israeli drone attack
on the town of Bani Suheila, east of Khan Younis in
the southern Gaza Strip, according to medics.
Al Jazeera quoted witnesses as saying that Israeli drones
dropped a bomb on a group of civilians near al-Farabi
School on Saturday morning, killing two brothers,
Juma and Fadi Tamer Abu Assi.
The two boys were taken to the Nasser Medical Complex in
Khan Younis with critical injuries, where they were later
pronounced dead, medical sources said.
The area targeted by the attack lies beyond the so-called
Yellow Line marking the Israeli occupation forces’
redeployment boundary agreed under the
ceasefire agreement, which took
effect on October 10,
sources said.
Earlier on Saturday, the Israeli military launched
ground, naval, and air attacks on several parts
of Gaza.
Medical sources reported that three Palestinians were injured
as a result of Israeli artillery and air bombardments, in the
town of al-Qarara, northeast of Khan Younis.
Israeli aircraft also launched raids in the Tuffah
neighbourhood, in the east of Gaza City, on
Saturday morning.
Additionally, attacks --- hit the eastern
areas of Rafah city in southern Gaza.
The Israeli occupation has killed nearly 70,000 people,
mostly women and children, and injured more than
170,000 in attacks on Gaza since October 2023.
Since October 10, at least 250 Palestinians
have been martyred in the Israeli attacks
-------- in violation of the ceasefire.
Source: Websites (edited by Al-Manar)
___________________________________________
Russia - observes International Day of
Solidarity with the Palestinian people
by Marina Kortunova
November 29th, 1pm
Press TV, Moscow
The Palestinian embassy in Moscow has hosted a ceremony in
honour of the Day of Solidarity with the People of Palestine.
Dozens of people came to the diplomatic mission’s building
to commemorate the occasion and show their support for
the Palestinian cause.
_______________________________________________
Hezbollah MP: “We will Neither Sell
Lebanon, Nor Allow Its Surrender”
November 29th, 10:45am
(al Manar)
Member of Hezbollah’s Loyalty to Resistance parliamentary bloc
MP Hasan Fadlallah stressed that the resistance group will
“neither sell Lebanon, nor allow its surrender.”
In a memorial service of martyr Mohammad Youssef Salah
on Friday, MP Fadlallah said: “We are not warmongers,
nor do we seek or desire war.”
“However, we will not accept any surrender to the enemy,
and we will not allow the surrender of Lebanon under
any pretext, slogan, or initiative.”
In this context, the Hezbollah lawmaker wondered: “Should we sell
our country to the Israeli enemy, or offer them our sovereignty,
freedom, dignity, and wealth when we are going through a
difficult period of great challenges and pain?”.
“If countries go through difficult times, it does not mean they
should surrender or accept submission. Rather, we can
overcome this stage through internal cohesion and a
unified national stance, with greater endurance
and patience.”
He also underlined importance of “exerting all possible pressure
on the parties sponsoring the ceasefire agreement, so that this
agreement is implemented.”
MP Fadlallah affirmed, meanwhile, that imbalance of power resulted
by some local and regional circumstances, doesn’t mean stripping
Lebanon of its points of strength, referring to the resistance.
Israeli Threats
On the other hand, the lawmaker commented on Israeli
threats of launching a new aggression on Lebanon.
“There have been reports.. on potential Israeli aggression on
Lebanon, as if there isn’t already an aggression happening!
There are daily attacks on our country.”
“The enemy - won’t be able to break our will and choice. It won’t be
able to force us to concede and surrender. No matter the level of
sacrifice and defiance, we cannot fall before the enemy.”
MP Fadlallah reiterated that no political option or initiative has yet
been presented to Lebanon ...that could stop this aggression.
“Rather, what is being offered to Lebanon is either complete
surrender to the enemy or the continuation of attacks.”
The lawmaker pointed to the responsibility the Lebanese State
has to shoulder in terms of defending the country against the
Israeli attacks.
“Despite all the hateful rhetoric we hear, far removed from
any commitment to national principles, we insist on
maintaining our position: that the state has to
assume its responsibilities.”
Source: Al-Manar English Website
_______________________________________
UN Chief Calls for End to Unlawful
Israeli Occupation of Palestinian
Territory, Progress towards
“Two-State Solution”
November 29th, 8:46am
(al Manar)
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Saturday
reiterated his calls --- for an end to the unlawful
occupation of the Palestinian Territory and
for irreversible progress towards the
so-called “two-State solution.”
In remarks marking the International Day of Solidarity
with the Palestinian People, the UN chief said the
Palestinian people have a right to dignity,
justice and self-determination.
“Yet over the last two years, these rights have been violated
beyond comprehension. Gaza -- lies in ruins, hunger, disease
and trauma run rampant. The people in the occupied West
Bank --- including East Jerusalem --- have also endured
unspeakable hardship -- amidst the Israeli military
operations, the settler violence, the settlement
expansions, the evictions.. and demolitions,”
Guterres stated.
In this context, the UN S.G. said he repeated his call
“for an end to the unlawful occupation of the
Palestinian Territory.”
“I also reiterate my call - for irreversible progress towards
a two-State solution, with Israel and Palestine living
side by side in peace and security.”
Source: UN Website
(edited by Al-Manar)
___________________________________
New panel with pro-Israel ties
------- to oversee UK case on
Palestine Action: Report
November 27th, 7:28pm
(PressTV)
Police officers address demonstrators at a protest against
the ban on Palestine Action outside the UK Home Office in London, November 24, 2025. (Photo by Shutterstock)
A new report says a British judge set to decide whether the UK’s
proscription of Palestine Action is lawful has been abruptly
replaced by a panel ---- that includes a judge with long-
standing ties to Israel, leading to accusations
of a “stitch-up.”
The Electronic Intifada reported on Thursday --- that High Court
Judge Victoria Sharp, who has well-documented connections
to pro-Israel lobbying networks in Britain, will now lead the
newly appointed panel overseeing the case.
Before the change, High Court Justice Martin Chamberlain, an
expert on free speech law.... had been scheduled to rule on
whether to overturn the British government’s designation:
of Palestine Action as a “terrorist” organization. But last
Wednesday ----- he was abruptly replaced by a 3-judge
panel, comprised of Victoria Sharp, Karen Steyn and Jonathan Swift.
Victoria Sharp’s appointment to the panel is drawing
particular scrutiny ------- due to her family and
professional links to pro-Israel networks.
Her twin brother, Richard Sharp, sits on the board of trustees
of the charity One Million Mentors, alongside Trevor Chinn,
a major British funder of pro-Israel groups.
Richard Sharp is also a former chair of the BBC. When he
was appointed in 2021, the broadcaster noted: that
“Sharp’s heritage is Jewish and he is considered
by those who know him, broadly pro-Israel. He
has a twin sister, Victoria, who is a
senior judge.”
He resigned from the BBC in 2023 ------ after breaching
public appointments rules by failing to disclose his
involvement in facilitating a £1 million loan to
then prime minister Boris Johnson.
Victoria Sharp’s own professional background has also come
under the spotlight. As a barrister in the 1980s, she was
instructed by the law firm, Mischon de Reya --- which
later represented the Israeli regime - and a number
of pro-Israel groups, in legal efforts to challenge
boycotts of Israel in the UK.
She has also been reported to have served as one of the
“principal advisers” to media tycoon Robert Maxwell,
later revealed to have acted as a spy for Israel.
Chinn, a longtime figure in pro-Israel advocacy, has
backed groups such as Labour Friends of Israel.
After the Labour Party took office last year, an analysis
by Declassified UK, found that half of Prime Minister
Keir Starmer’s cabinet had received funding from
Israel-aligned donors - with Chinn - among the
most prominent.
“I’ve spent my entire life --- working for Israel,” Chinn said
during a meeting in 2013. In January, he was awarded
the Medal of Honour by the Israeli president for his
“contribution to Israel and the Jewish people.”
Although the last-minute replacement of Chamberlain
was unusual within the British legal system, it was
not without precedent.
A similar switch occurred earlier this year - in the case
brought by the Palestinian human rights organisation
al-Haq, which challenged the British government
--------- over its role in exporting F-35 bomber
components to Israel.
In that case, Karen Steyn --- was one of two judges who
stepped in to replace Chamberlain, and she ultimately
ruled in Israel’s favour.
On 10 June 2022, Swift ruled in favour of the UK Government
that the deportation flights of unsuccessful asylum seekers
in the UK to Rwanda ----- should be allowed to proceed, as there was ''material public interest'' in doing so.
He added in his ruling, that the risk posed to
refugees was "in the realms of speculation".
On 8 June 2023, Swift ruled in favour of the UK Government ------ and rejected the appeal of Julian Assange's legal team.
Meanwhile, campaigners were once again arrested
this week.. for holding signs expressing support
for Palestine Action.
Palestine Action has focused much of its campaign
on Elbit Systems UK --- Israel’s largest weapons
manufacturer, which it accuses of supplying
weapons to the Israeli military during the
regime’s genocidal war on Gaza.
In July, the UN human rights chief sharply criticized
Britain’s ban on the activist group, calling it a
“disturbing” misuse of the UK’s counter
terrorism laws ---- and urging the
government ---- to reverse
the decision.
Today, November the 29th,
is the International Day of Solidarity
with the Palestinian People --- 2025.
The question of Palestine --- was brought before the United Nations
shortly after the end of the Second World War. The origins of the
Palestine problem as an international issue, however, lie in
events occurring towards the end of the First World War.
In 1947 the United Nations accepted the responsibility of
finding a just solution for the Palestine issue, and still
grapples with this task today.
“I repeat my call ---- for an end to the unlawful occupation
of the Palestinian Territory and for irreversible progress
towards a two-State solution, in line with international
law and relevant UN resolutions.”
- United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres
2025 Observance
Despite ongoing efforts over more than seventy years a lasting
peace in the Middle East remains elusive, highlighting the
urgent need for a sustainable resolution.
This year’s observance takes place amid a fragile ceasefire in Gaza ----- following severe violence and a humanitarian crisis - that has claimed the lives of tens of thousands and forcibly displaced hundreds of thousands more.
In resolution 60/37 of 1 December 2005, the General Assembly
requested the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable
Rights of the Palestinian People, as part of the observance
of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian
People to continue to organize an annual exhibit, on
Palestinian rights ---- or to hold a cultural event,
in cooperation with the Permanent Observer
Mission of Palestine to the United Nations.
The resolution on this observance also encourages
Member States to continue to give the widest
support and publicity to the observance.
Join the global conversation on social media
platforms by using hashtag#PalestineDay
Israeli universities -------- face
growing academic isolation
despite Gaza ceasefire,
report says
November 25th, 8:39am (PressTV)
The academic boycott of Israeli universities in Europe has
doubled, even after the Gaza ceasefire aimed at ending
the occupying regime’s genocidal war against the
besieged Gaza Strip.... a move that further
isolates Tel Aviv --- in global higher
education, a new report says.
The Academic Boycott of Israel Monitoring Team, created by
the Committee of University Presidents in Tel Aviv, said in a
report on Monday that academic boycotts targeting the
regime have surged, with around 1,000 cases
reported in Europe by November.
It stressed that Israel’s negative image, which has persisted even
after the ceasefire over the genocidal war against Gaza -- is “so
deeply entrenched that political moves alone are not enough
to shift public perception.”
Contrary to expectations that the boycott would ease following the
ceasefire, the report notes that “the opposite occurred,” with
institutions and individual academics more frequently
filing boycott cases.
The monitoring team, whose report was published by The Marker,
the economic version of the Hebrew newspaper Haaretz ---- also
warned that this expanding boycott could isolate Israeli higher
education significantly and pose a long-term strategic threat
to its international standing.
The report further identified concrete consequences for the move,
including a drop in EU Horizon Europe research grants for Israeli
scholars, exclusion from international cooperation projects,
and a breakdown in collaborative programs.
The Association of University Heads in Israel has reportedly
recorded over 1,000 incidents of academic boycotts over
the last two years, three times the total as of a year ago.
According to the report, 57 percent of cases involve individual
researchers (mainly being excluded from research groups),
22 percent are institutional severances, seven percent
are from professional associations, and 14 percent
relate to halted student exchanges or
postdoctoral partnerships.
It also said that this crippling boycott trend --- is unlikely to reverse
soon without “major regional and geopolitical changes,” warning
that sustained isolation of Israeli academia may continue.
The boycott movement “will accompany Israeli academia for
a long time and will not ease without major regional and
geopolitical changes,” the report noted.
Israel has killed nearly 70,000 Palestinians, most of them women
and children, and injured over 170,900 others in Gaza since
October 7, 2023, according to Gaza's Health Ministry,
when it launched a brutal war against the
Palestinian territory.
Despite a ceasefire announced in October,
Israel continues to target Gaza -------
in violation of the agreement.
Hamas has urged the guarantors of the ceasefire, namely Qatar,
Turkey, Egypt, and the United States, to press Israel to abide
by the deal ---- and stop its attacks on Gaza.
The world and her daughter are calling for a boycott of the genocidal colonial apartheid state of Israel.
Place yourself on the right side of joy and sorrow by joining the world's boycott - say ''no'' to evil!
Keir Hardie - Britain's first Labour MP - opposedWorld War One.
His namesake is stammering his way in the opposite direction.
VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
ROGER WATERS TO MUSICIANS:- "BOYCOTT ISRAEL"
Roger Waters formerly of Pink Floyd, in an open letter, calls on his fellow musicians --- to boycott the Zionist Israeli regime and follow the example of the cultural boycott against the ex S. African Apartheid regime.
“Given the inability or unwillingness of our governments [to act] …. I write to you now, my brothers and sisters … to ask you to join with me, & thousands of other artists around the world, to declare a cultural boycott on Israel,” Roger Waters says in his letter.
Waters says the Zionist regime has been found guilty of major breaches of human rights and international law by international organizations, UN officials and the International Court of Justice.
He touches on two such cases, saying the regime has been identified as perpetrating the “crime of Apartheid”, including in a statement on March 9th, 2012 by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, and the “crime of ethnic cleansing” including in East Jerusalem (al-Quds).
Waters adds that he has been a member of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against the Israeli regime’s occupation of the Palestinian lands and Tel Aviv’s violations of Palestinian human rights for 7 years, and now wants other musicians to also join the anti-Israeli front.
“Please join me and all our brothers and sisters in global civil society in proclaiming our rejection of Apartheid in Israel & occupied Palestine, by pledging not to perform or exhibit in Israel or accept any award or funding from any institution linked to the government of Israel, until such time as Israel complies with international law and universal principles of human rights.”
The former Pink Floyd Musician also says he has recently faced a boycott by the US media after his November 29th, 2012 address at the UN on behalf of the Russell Tribunal.
In the address, he sought accountability for the Zionist regime’s violations of the international law and the lack of United Nations resolve that prevents the Palestinian people from achieving their inalienable rights, especially the right of self-determination.
____________________
AT THE FACTORY
Tickets from
www.wegottickets.com/thefactory
www.ticketweb.co.uk
browse venues in Wales
www.ticketlineuk.com
02920 230130
Cash tickets from:
The Factory, Porth Instrumental Music, Penygraig Spillers Records, Cardiff
Indulge in a delicious cake and a cup of tea while enjoying music and sing-along songs from fantastic Welsh musicians.
Ticket information:
The Cultural Services Booking & Information Line:
08000 147 111 or book online at
www.rct-arts.co.ukÂÂ
*************************************************
Mid Rhondda Modelling Club...
7pm - 9pm
Tonyrefail Comprehensive School Mid Rhondda Modelling Club
has been running for over 30 years.
We meet on a regular basis
& enjoy making models for display.
We encourage both Gentlemen
and Ladies to attend, and also young people aged 12+.
However, Young people under 16, must be accompanied by an adult.
Ticket information
£1 contribution every week. Under 16's free
Telephone Mr. Davies on 01443 686658
************************************************
Comedy In The Laughter Lounge
The Park & Dare Theatre, Treorchy.
COMEDY IN THE LAUGHTER LOUNGE
Join us once a month in the intimate setting of the Laughter Lounge for some top notch comedy with some of the biggest and brightest rising comedians on the circuit.
Laugh? You'll snort like a pig!
Hilarious - TimeOut.
www.rct-arts.co.uk
Rhondda Records exists to express the Rhondda's vision --- when it was confident, powerful, caring, and socialist.
A Rhondda very aware of the media's poisonous tricks -- how they con working class people into attacking each other, or racial groups, or, often, even their best allies and friends... instead of seeing their real enemies:--- an elite who hate the very idea that working people can think, create, or achieve a fairer society.
Thatcher said her proudest achievement was Blair and New Labour - who parachuted in careerists and expenses fiddlers - to stop local Labour members having a say, and who made genuine socialist MPs leave the Labour party in disgust and many members and voters to despair... and the young to stop voting.
Jeremy Corbyn was always attacked because he was trying to reverse all that New Labour corruption --- that's why membership was flooding in all over the UK.
______________________________________
Get Involved!
– If you feel you’ve been ‘purged’, take this online survey:
– Request all your own data that the Labour Party holds on you:
http://www.labour.org.uk/pages/privacy
_______________________________________
IF - YOU THINK you HAVE BEEN UNFAIRLY BARRED:
“Any member who is suspended & intends to appeal the decision should throw in a ‘Subject Access Request in accordance with the Data Protection Act’ --- for ALL data that the Labour Party hold on them.
The Labour Party are Data Controllers and therefore have to, by law, provide you with all material/information they hold on you.”
If anyone is in contact with anyone who was barred from voting --- please can you pass this info on:
The Labour leadership election was under the jurisdiction of the electoral reform services.
If you were unfairly deprived of your vote you can call them on 0208 365 8909 and lodge your complaint, and inform them of your Data Protection request.
https://www.electoralreform.co.uk
The notification letters barring new members did not give a clear reason, or information on how to appeal, so Vox Political suggests that anyone in this situation, could also contact Liz Davies here: http://www.whycantivote.com
She is a barrister --- who can advise members on what to do.
**************************************
PONCY LABOUR MPS PROBLEM?
A huge drop in working-class Labour MPs, caused a massive drop in support among voters with similar backgrounds, reveals research seeking to explain why support has dwindled in the party’s heartlands.
The study says past leaders like Kinnock and Blair made a concerted effort to pick “more and more middle-class candidates to run for office, during the 80s and 90s, as part of an effort to rebrand” -- which had initial successes at the ballot box.
But this “conscious electoral strategy” stored up problems, as working-class voters who initially, just didn’t vote in response, now seek an alternative.
The solution?Trust each constituency to put forward its own candidates, and don't impose ‘party-approved’ choices who can't do the job.
Now, unfortunately, there are "entryist" MPs who, for decades, have been groomed by CIA cold war relic organisations -- like the Atlantic Council -- and are now trying to misdirect the Labour Party towards cuts, a militarised police, and a US war agenda... - and their anti-Corbyn slant is hobbling Labour.
‘How Can I Deselect My Labour MP?’ A Short Guide to Reselection and Democratic Accountability by Eric Sim, excellent free advice here:
http://novaramedia.com/2016/07/13/how-can-i- deselect-my-labour-mp-a-short-guide-to- reselection-and-democratic-accountability/ CHRIS BRYANT - SUPPORT THE MEMBERS' LEADERSHIP CHOICE & POLICIES - OR GO!
Chris Bryant, the Rhondda's dodgy MP, was on TV -- as soon as the PLP coup started -- telling us that Jeremy MUST go, because it was the ONLY way to act in the Labour Party's interest...
Chris Bryant's voting record: from TheyWorkForYou.com
On Tuition Fees:
On 27 Jan 2004: Chris Bryant voted in favour of university tuition fees increasing from £1,125 per year, to up to £3,000 per year.
On 31 Mar 2004: Chris Bryant voted to allow university tuition fees to increase from £1,125 per year, to up to £3,000 per year.
On 31 Mar 2004: Chris Bryant voted for the introduction of variable university tuition fees (top-up fees) of up to £3,000 per year in place of the previous fixed fee of £1,250 per year.
On 31 Mar 2004: Chris Bryant voted to allow university tuition fees to increase from £1,125 per year to up to £3,000 per year, and to make other changes to higher education funding and regulation arrangements.
On 14 Sep 2004: Chris Bryant voted against: the immediate abolition of all tuition fees, the re-introduction of maintenance grants of up to £2,000 for students from low-income homes, and changes to the country's higher education system.
On 14 Sep 2004: Chris Bryant voted to reject the Liberal Democrat policy of abolition of tuition fees.
On 25 May 2016: Chris Bryant was absent for a vote on Queen's Speech - Forcing Schools to Become Academies - Further Rises in University Tuition Fees
On Human Rights:
Consistently voted for introducing ID cards
Almost always voted for requiring the mass retention of information about communications
Generally voted for mass surveillance of people’s communications and activities
On the Environment:
Generally voted against greater regulation of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to extract shale gas
On Special Interests:
Almost always voted against limits on success fees paid to lawyers in no-win no fee cases
Generally voted against a statutory register of lobbyists
On War or Peace:
Generally voted for use of UK military forces in combat operations overseas
Consistently voted for the Iraq war
Consistently voted against an investigation into the Iraq war
Generally voted for replacing Trident with a new nuclear weapons system
On 2 Dec 2015: Voted to support UK airstrikes in Syria [without UN authorisation]
On 2 Dec 2015: Voted to support UK airstrikes in Syria [without UN authorisation]
On Independence:
Generally voted for more EU integration
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Chris Bryant Labour MP From Wikipedia
(aka 1962-1986: Mr Christopher John Bryant 1986-1991: The Reverend Christopher John Bryant, 1991-2001: Mr Christopher John Bryant, 2001-: Mr Christopher John Bryant MP.)
Born in Cardiff, to a Scottish mother & a Welsh father, Bryant grew up in Cardiff, Wales (where his father worked for 5 years), and Cheltenham.
He was educated at Cheltenham College, an independent school for boys in the spa town of Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, where he was captain of the school swimming team, and Mansfield College at the University of Oxford, where he graduated in 1983, with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in English. This was later promoted to a Master of Arts degree (MA (Oxon)), as per tradition.
After completing his first degree, Bryant began training to be a priest in the Church of England at Ripon College, Cuddesdon, in Oxfordshire. There, he obtained a degree in theology.
Although a member of the Conservative Party, and an elected office-holder in the Oxford University Conservative Association, he joined the Labour Party in 1986, after leaving Oxford.
He was ordained deacon in 1986 and priest in 1987. He served as a Curate at the Church of All Saints, High Wycombe, from 1986 to 1989; then as a Youth Chaplain in Peterborough, as well as travelling in Latin America.
In 1991 Bryant left the ordained ministry, after deciding that being gay and being a priest, were incompatible. Statements made by Richard Harries, then Bishop of Oxford, also influenced his decision.
After leaving the priesthood in 1991, Bryant worked as the election agent to the Holborn and St Pancras Constituency Labour Party, where he helped Frank Dobson hold his seat in the 1992 general election.
From 1993, he was Local Government officer for the Labour Party; he lived in Hackney and was elected to Hackney Borough Council in 1993, serving until 1998. He became Chair of the Christian Socialist Movement.
He is both a member of the Labour Friends of Israel and Labour Friends of Palestine & the Middle East. From 1994 to 1996 he was London manager of the leader-grooming "charity", Common Purpose.
He was Labour candidate for Wycombe, in the 1997 general election (he lost by 2,370 votes), and Head of European Affairs for the BBC, from 1998.
His selection for the very safe Labour seat of Rhondda, South Wales in 2000, shocked many people given Bryant's background – gay, an ex- Anglican vicar, and someone who was a Tory, while studying at Oxford, and a member now, of the Henry Jackson Society 'think tank' --- described by The Guardian newspaper as 'neoconservative'. It is pro-US, pro-NATO and pro-military intervention, as well as being fundamentally anti-socialist.
Fifty-two people applied for the candidature and a local councillor was hot favourite to win, before Bryant was parachuted in.
In 2004, a photograph of Mr Bryant in his underpants, which he had posted to a gay dating website, was published in 'papers.
When an interviewer suggested he was a 'disgrace to the Rhondda', he replied: "They can't get rid of me."
His pay, allowances and some expenses:
The basic annual salary for an MP, from April 1st, 2016 is £74,962. MPs also get expenses: to cover the costs of running an office, employing staff, having some- where to live in London, plus, in their constituency and travelling between Parliament and their constituency.
His MP's expenses story:
Chris Bryant changed second home twice to claim £20,000: the deputy leader of the House of Commons, "flipped" his second home twice, in 2 years, allowing him to claim almost £20,000 for renovations and fees.
Chris Bryant, MP for the Rhondda, split over £92,000 of expenses between 3 properties in Wales and London --- within five years.
In 2004, he attempted to claim £58,000 to overhaul his second home in Wales, after allegedly complaining that properties in his constituency were "terrace or mine owners' houses".
Mr Bryant, a former Church of England clergyman, wanted the money for a new bathroom & kitchen, and to demolish his conservatory. He'd bought the detached house for £97,500, under a year earlier.
He submitted a claim to the Commons fees office for £58,493.26 --- almost 3 times the annual maximum. He noted that the claim exceeded his allowance.
His alleged justification was disclosed... in correspondence between Commons officials. By email, an official wrote: "He had problems finding a suitable property because in the Rhondda there is a choice mainly of terraced property or mine owners' houses." When approached by the Daily Telegraph, Mr Bryant said: "I have never said or thought anything of the sort".
In all, he successfully claimed over £13,000 for renovations, repairs & appliances, in 2004. Along with other bills, his annual claim was £20,902.
In April 2005, he flipped his expenses to his flat in west London, which he bought for £400,000 in April 2002. He also claimed £630 a month for mortgage interest, along with other bills. After claiming over £3,600 over 3 months, he sold the flat in July 2005 for £477,000.
Mr Bryant used his profits to buy a more expensive flat in west London, which was valued at £670,000. He immediately flipped his second home expenses there, claiming almost £6,400 in stamp duty, legal fees and mortgage fees, incurred in the purchase.
He then began claiming interest of £1,000 a month on the mortgage. He also claimed a further £6,000 a year for the flat's service charge and ground rent.
In all, he claimed £92, 415 in second home expenses, from 2004 to 2009.
Mr Bryant said at the time: "I moved flat in London, so as to be closer to Parliament."
Research by Channel 4 News in 2015 found that at least 46 MPs had this kind of system in place – a move one Labour backbencher described as “a new fiddle”. Channel 4 reported then:
“Our investigation found that many of the MPs bought their London properties with the help of the taxpayer, when a previous expenses system allowed them to claim back mortgage payments. But when those claims were banned, following the expenses scandal, they switched to letting out their properties, in some cases for up to £3,000 a month. They then started claiming expenses for rent and hotels in the capital.”
Among those identified was Chris Bryant, shadow leader of the House of Commons. He had already bought a penthouse in London back in 2005 and claimed around £1,000 a month in mortgage claims under the old system.
But after the expenses scandal, he started renting the property out. It’s since been advertised by estate agents as having a private lift and a porter, with rent at about £3,000 a month. Meanwhile, Bryant moved into a new flat;- claiming his own rent on expenses.
Russian/Scottish scientists hail long-range secure quantum communication system.
A group of scientists from ITMO University in Saint Petersburg, Russia, has developed a new approach to constructing quantum communication systems for secure data exchange.
The experimental device based on the results of the research is capable of transmitting single-photon quantum signals across distances of 250 klmtrs or more, which is on par with its cutting edge analogues, the ITMO press-service says.
"Now researchers are on a mission -- to create a fully-fledged quantum cryptographic system, that will generate & distribute quantum keys and transmit useful data simultaneously", ITMO says.
Information security is becoming more and more of a critical issue not only for large companies, banks and defense enterprises but even for small businesses and individual users.
But the data encryption algorithms we currently use for protecting our data are imperfect - in the long-term, their logic can be cracked. Regardless of how complex and intricate the algorithm is, getting around it, is just a matter of time.
Unlike algorithm-based encryption, systems that protect information, by making use of fundamental laws of quantum physics, can make data transmission totally immune to hacker attacks, in the future.
Information in a quantum channel is carried by single photons that change irreversibly if an eavesdropper tries to intercept them. The legitimate users will instantly know about any kind of intervention.
Researchers at the Quantum Information Centre of the International Institute of Photonics and Optical Information Technology at ITMO Uni., Russia, along with their colleagues from the Heriot-Watt University, in Edinburgh, have devised a new way to generate and distribute, quantum bits.
This makes it possible to share quantum signals --- via optical fibres --- 250 kilometres in distance.
"To transmit quantum signals, we use the so- called side frequencies," says Artur Gleim, head of the Quantum Information Centre, at ITMO University,
"This unique approach gives us a number of advantages -- such as a considerable simplification of the device architecture and the large pass-through capacity of the quantum channel. In terms of bit rate and operating distances, our system is comparable to absolute champions in the field of quantum communications."
According to Robert Collins, research associate at the Institute of Photonics & Quantum Sciences at Heriot-Watt University, and one of the authors of the study, this may become a pivotal point for the whole field of quantum communication and cryptography:
"Down the track, this new approach can enable smooth coexistence of numerous data streams with different wavelengths in one single optical cable. On top of it, these quantum streams can be fed into the already existing fibre optic lines --- along with conventional communications."
The research paper is published in the Optics Express journal.
Scottish universities are to be congratulated for their strong & growing links with Chinese and Russian universities....
What a shame, that Wales is lying low --- with academics too scared to break from US military research.
KILLING THE ELDERLY BY CLOSING CARE HOMES
Did you know that each time a local authority
closes a care home for the elderly, within 8
months, around half the residents are dead?
Campaigners liken the cuts and their effect to euthanasia of the UK's elderly. What to do?
We can start by urging our MPs to sign EDM 2251:
EDM 2251: The contents
This House notes with deep concern the worsening crisis for elderly care as growing numbers of local authority and private care homes face closure
Acknowledges concerns that the loss of elderly people's care homes causes fear, anxiety and, in many cases, a higher mortality rate, when vulnerable, elderly people are forced to leave their homes
Further notes that the Southern Cross crisis will increase needs for local authority care
And therefore calls on the government to hold a public inquiry into the deaths after closures, of local authority care homes, and impose a moratorium on the closure of local authority care homes, until that inquiry publishes its results, to ensure that vulnerable, elderly people's lives are not put at further risk.
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MAKING THE CONNECTION IN WALES
Households across three more English areas will be able to access superfast broadband in the latest phase of a Government scheme to connect rural homes and businesses.
The £50 million funding package for Devon and Somerset (£30 million), Norfolk (£15 million) and Wiltshire (£4 million) will aid the roll- out of superfast broadband services unable to be reached by the market alone.
Areas will also receive financial support from their local authorities and private investors, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport says.
So it's Broadband Heaven for England...
and crapola for Wales' broadband - the
slowest, worst Broadband in the UK !!!
Lib Dems in Scotland might have received a pummeling for Clegg and his betrayals, yet, in Scotland, their campaign centred on it becoming the "most connected country in Europe," to massively boost their economy.
In Wales, which political party is now willing to put into practice scientists' recommendations: that Wales' hilly topography requires establishing
free 'wireless' broadband?
It could connect the people of Rhondda and the world, boosting Wales' economic regeneration, like no other move.Wireless technology is now supplying free broadband to an entire island off New Zealand's coast.
Come on; if New Zealand can do it - so can we !!!
Western China has embraced "green-mode development" - with painful changes from which, Wales could well learn.
Eastern China has seen fast growth and urban mess. The West, a mining and agricultural area, has not.
Xi'an Chan-ba Ecological District, is a model for reclaiming old mining areas.
It took six hard years, but now Xi'an is showing the world how best to change, by turning a badly polluted rubbish landfill site, into an all new environment-friendly development.
As China's economic focus moves from east to west, it's using the lessons learned during 30 or more years of rapid industrial development.
The green way for China's west, is to combine green industrialization & green urbanization.
The western region's strategy is to adopt effective energy-saving and environmental protection technologies... AND to extend its industry through science and products unique to China's West, together with strong vertical growth in agriculture and all its ancilliary economic & professional spin-offs.
In undertaking this industrial revolution, the western region will keep a sharp eye out - to avoid all polluting non-sustainable industries.
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A BIG DROP OF HONEY !!!
Spring is beekeeping and honey-processing season in Yunnan province, in China.
Waves of bees flit across vast fields of flowers.
Local beekeepers and many from other places, such as Sichuan and Fujian provinces - set up their base in tents among the rapeseed farms.
The 430,000 hectares of rapeseed blooms in Luoping attract myriads of bees, which produce 15 - 20 million tons of honey a year.
Local people now look to brand their county as a honey production base & increase sales to outside markets.
Luoping Tianyuanmiyu Bee Industry Co Chair, Zhu Hongkun, founded his enterprise in 2009.
It mainly produces honey, propolis and propolis powder.
His company works with 270 plus beekeepers, who each earn 80,000 yuan a year on average.
Some earn 200,000 yuan annually, Zhu says.
Who says beauty endowed by nature isn't worth a fortune?
The whole of the uplands of south Wales could be as beautiful & productive, if used wisely!
CHINA's PREMIER POINTS WAY FORWARD
As the Tories threaten a "bonfire of the Quangos", perhaps Wales should take note. Now extracting all our mineral wealth has been stopped (apart from sand and rock) we find ourselves "in" the 1st World of the UK, but with a 3rd World economy, only just kept going by quangos which promise much... but deliver little... and rely on weak public support.
We could WAKE UP & understand that we either do something, or stay as begging bowl cases.
China's premier points the way forward for Wales:
"Industrial restructuring is the key... only by developing energy-efficient, indigenous innovative and high value added products can our companies and economy, achieve sustainable development."
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WHILE FRANCE, GREECE, IRELAND, ETC, STRUGGLE TO STOP THE PENSION AGE RISING HIGHER AND HIGHER...
An online survey on qq.com, a popular Chinese news portal, finds that 91% of its over 800,000 respondents, are against raising the current official Chinese retirement age.
745,123 of those surveyed say they oppose raising retirement ages -- 72,456 support it.
China's scholars & the public have been debating whether to raise the retirement age, for the past few years, but the issue rose to prominence after remarks by an official.
Wang Xiaochu, the official vice minister of the Ministry of Human Resources & Social Security, said at a press conference that the government was "studying the matter"...
The retirement age in China is generally set at 60 for men and 50-55 for women.
Wow! Bet you didn't know that !!!
FARMING AND SCIENCE COULD REGENERATE WALES
A new UN General Assembly report warns "vast areas" of cultivated land are lost each year, and that this could lead to unrest.
The report says up to 30 million hectares, an area the size of Italy, is lost each year to environmental degradation, industry & urbanization - the growth of cities - and all because of speculative building and greed.
The UN special rapporteur Olivier De Schutter, gives the example of eastern Africa, where the amount of cultivated land has declined by half --- in just one generation! "
As rural populations grow and competition with large industrial units increases, plots cultivated by smallholders are shrinking year after year," says De Schutter.
"Farmers are often relegated to soils that are arid, hilly or without irrigation."
The UN officer also mentions India as another example, where the average landholding fell from 2.6 hectares in 1960 to 1.4 hectares in 2000. A cut of nearly half in 40 years!
He says 500 million small farmers suffer from hunger, partly because their right to land is being violated. The expert warns of the devastating consequences, as foreign investors compete for larger and larger areas of the world's land for "their" agriculture.
Rhondda Records says Wales could rebuild its new economy by basing it on a fresh approach to high-value added products, using science and agriculture... such as the Altzeim project in Gwent.
