Tag: michael shrimpton

- Turkey may steal the factories, ISIS may cut of a few heads but who controls the media?

- "This week, Sec. of Defense Chuck Hagel is expected to announce the entire restructure of America’s nuclear weapons force based on two studies."

- Poor James Foley will not be the last hostage to be murdered. The way I read it, NSA and the DIA boys did their stuff, and Delta Force attacked the location where Jim Foley and other high-value hostages were being held 24 hours before.

- We need to get boots back onto the ground in Iraq, and fast.

- Were the Su-25s trying to shoot down Flight MH17? Analysis of the shootdown still points towards a Chinese HQ-16 having been used, with a specially trained Chinese crew.

At 0130 hours local time last Saturday, March 8th (this is being written on the 15th) a Chinese SSK, believed to be a 636 Kilo class, shot down a Malaysian airliner, Boeing 777-2H6ER, 9M-MRO, Captain Zaharie Shah in command, off the coast of South Vietnam.

On his recent visit to meet with that nice chap William Hague in London the ‘Jerry’ Foreign Minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier adopted the language and style of his, with respect, rather more intelligent and charming predecessor Joachim von Ribbentrop.

A very happy New Year to all VT staff and readers. I hope you all had lots of mince pies and mulled wine, etc., over Christmas. In the case of our Australian readers, for “mulled wine” read “tinnies of XXXX” of course.

Firstly, I hope everybody had a lovely Christmas. Some of the comments on last week’s article were a bit puzzling, with respect. I can see why some could mistakenly think I am anti-German, but anti-American?

This is kind of eating into the substantive article on the Kennedy assassination, but here goes. Thanks to JS for his/her comments on the DVD. Yes, there are other writers out there who have commented on the DVD. Before he was murdered, one was Christopher Story FRSA.

I hope that you all had a happy and pleasant Thanksgiving, ideally with your families. I am aware, having been invited into an American home for the holiday and shared a Thanksgiving meal with an American family, how symbolic a day it is for Americans.

A couple of weeks back I promised a review of this fine movie, starring Tom Hanks, which I saw last week at our local Odeon, but firstly allow me to deal with some of the comments on last week’s article. I still cannot log on directly, for some odd technical reason, so I stopped posting comments some time ago.

This week’s article is a bit of a round-up – sorry to disappoint those who expect only a single theme for each week!

Well done to JS (was it not?) who referred to these three incidents of sabotage, each carried out of course by the DVD.

Somebody saw that one coming. It is now being said that Kenyan National Intelligence Service officers were telling family members not to go Nairobi’s Westgate Mall on the day of the attack.

No Syria this week! For the tiny number anxiously looking forward to my weekly article and disappointed it didn’t appear yesterday (!) I should explain that I try to write my article on Friday.

- As Gordon knows I am a great believer in professional courtesy. Spying is, or should be, a game for gentlemen.

Congratulations to the Egyptian Military Government on its success in maintaining order in Egypt.

I make no apology for staying with this topic. It’s not just to see what misspelling of ‘Woolwich’ the guys can come up with this time! The rest of the media have almost stopped talking about the attack, for PC reasons.

The shockwaves from this terrorist outrage continue to reverberate around Britain, if not the world. Forget conspiracy theories about it being staged.

This has been a week of personnel change. The DVD asset Boris Berezovsky very sensibly decided to commit suicide (no offense intended), MI5 Chief Sir Jonathan Evans has announced he’s stepping down and David Miliband is quitting Britain.

As I may have observed in a posted comment, before an IT snafu made uploading comments problematic, Hugo Chavez was already dead. Precisely when he did snuff it is a matter for informed speculation within INTELCOM

This week has seen one of the more monumental diplomatic gaffes of recent years. Argentina’s crass Foreign Minister Hector Timerman stated on a visit to London (of all places) that “The Falkland Islanders do not exist.”

A most interesting article in the London Daily Telegraph this week by Alex Spillius.

The Arab Spring is over. Perhaps we should now be talking about the Arab Fall, in more senses than one. I do not believe that Hillary Clinton knew about the coup in advance.

Not much to be thankful for in the Middle East, sadly. Like turkeys voting for Christmas the Israeli Government have let southern Israel in for further rocket bombardment from Gaza Strip, a lot less fun place than the Vegas Strip.

Apparently the Department of Justice were surprised when British Home Secretary Theresa May very properly refused to extradite the computer hacker Gary McKinnon. I don’t know why. The decision was clearly correct and Blind Freddy could see it coming.

A significant event occurred this week in Britain. There were significant events elsewhere of course, including in Danville Kentucky, where Vice-President Biden cheered up the troops at the cost of alienating independents with his rudeness and smirking.

- Frankly, more than a few members of America's congress are terrified their cut from the Afghan heroin trade would end if the killing stopped.

It’s good to see the US media asking questions the tremulous British media dare not ask. Why did HRH Prince Harry’s police protection officers permit those photographs to be taken and who is covering their backs?

For once I am in complete agreement with Piers Morgan. Straussy, Giles Clarke and Hugh Morris at ECB and the selectors have bungled this badly. Clarke and Morris need to resign for the sake of English cricket and Strauss should step down as captain.

- Being out in public means taking flak. That's what I'm here for.

We should have a safe Games in London and as presently advised there is no reason for teams, visitors or dignitaries to follow the example of President Peres and withdraw.

Very sad news indeed about poor old Ernest Borgnine, one of the greats, who has gone to the great PT-boat base in the sky.

Key to the recent planned DVD operation (code-named Vulcan by the unofficial UK team which I led) against Japan was their possession of at least three Type XXI U-Boats.

- Japan's top secret Plutonium production and storage facility facing attack, a radiation catastrophe for North America planned.