Wednesday, 15 August, 2007
- 15 Aug 07, 05:50 PM
From tonight's presenter :
Iraq devastation
We begin tonight with what seems to be the worst attack in Iraq since the invasion.
As I write the number of dead in the suicide bombings yesterday in Northern Iraq is reported to have risen to over 250, and there are hundreds of wounded - many with horrific injuries.
The bombers, using fuel tankers and three cars, attacked members of the Yazidi religious sect, a small group of predominantly ethnic Kurds who live in isolated communities and whose religion blends Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
The US military said it was too early to say who was responsible for the attack but the scale and apparently coordinated nature of the bombings were hallmarks of Sunni Islamist al Qaeda. The US military commander General David Petraeus is to deliver a progress report on the US "surge" next month and tonight we'll be asking whether the surge itself could have contributed to the violence in a hitherto "quieter" area, and why the Yazidi people may have been attacked now.
The legacy of partition
Sixty years ago today post colonial India was born, partitioned by the departing British Raj, and amidst today's celebrations are painful memories of the rioting and mass migration that followed. Throughout the tumultuous years that have followed, India has been a democratic secular state and has transformed from a country of extensive poverty to an economic powerhouse. But religious and cultural tensions remain, and not only for Indians in India, but also for Indians, Pakistanis, and Sikhs in the UK. We'll be debating the legacy of partition for second generation British Asians.
South Africa鈥檚 legal storm
The Truth and Reconciliation commission in South Africa left unfinished business, and the country is divided over a groundbreaking legal case. A former minister in South Africa's apartheid regime is to stand trial for the attempted murder 18 years ago of a prominent anti-apartheid clergyman. We'll be reporting from South Africa on the case, which is causing a storm 13 years after the end of white minority rule.
The Political Brain
The book that many politicians will be secreting in their beach bags this summer is a fascinating new exploration of why people vote the way they do by the American professor of psychology and psychiatry, Drew Westen.
His theory - borne out by research into American elections - is that emotion is more important that reason for the voters - and that the politician who can "connect" on an emotional level is more likely to win than the politician who can reel off statistics, policies and promises.
So how does he rate Gordon Brown and David Cameron? I'll be asking both Drew Westen and Rick Nye, the director of the political analysts, Populus. The book is a great read!
The Political Brain - read an excerpt
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More mass murder in Iraq much of them children, I wonder if nulabour or any of their supporters are concerned? The child killing policys of this labour goverment have killed more children at home and abroad than at any time since WW2. A nulabour phenomenom young children hanged by the neck untill dead in Basrha for talking to or accepting sweets from UK troops, as far as I,m aware it never happened under Saddam. Which political party lied to the UK population in order to send our children to Iraq and die for what? Has any nulabour politician gone to any of the 270 service personels funerals? Who let the people? into this country who have a JOY for suicide bombing? who let the people? into this country who honor kill their own children 2000 dead or missing in the last 10 years? Who,s policys allow child murdering perverts released from prison to kill again? Who,s policy,s of treating unmarried women in such a way that their braindead children run about killing other children amongst others? I am Bias I would like to see all our MP,s jump off beachy head. However John Major getting fruity with a curry or the hamiltons mucking about with brown paper bags rubbing against the thigh with rough familiarity pales into what? compared with the child killing going on overseen by nulabour. A question you wont be interested in will I pay the nulabour/bbc tax when my license becomes due in January or will I go to prison? at the moment its jail. Can you please start Taxing this shambles of a goverment. SICKO FANTIC isint the word
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What is the reason that your feature on the mass-murder of Yazidi Kurds is being questioned as a potential side effect of the US "surge" rather than as an almost certain side effect of the religous bigotry of a certain fandamentalist religion?
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POLITICAL BRAIN NON-SEQUITUR
Currently, at election time, a mass of woolly voters vote for rosettes (pinned to party acolytes) like monkeys pressing coloured buttons, driven on by blind allegiance or duped by devious, expensive hype.
Just suppose voters had to pass a test of competence 鈥 ability to read, ability to spot an unsuitable (lying, devious, thick) candidate; ability to resist emotional manipulation and discern real ability 鈥 what might accrue?
I suggest a whole new genre of politician 鈥 independent, and having integrity 鈥 would emerge. As we have to pass tests or examinations to drive a car, do surgery or fit gas appliances 鈥 all activities that are potentially dangerous to others 鈥 surely we should only vote if we have shown that we know what we are doing, and cannot be tricked, coerced, bribed or bedazzled? We have seen, all too graphically, where unbridled, empty charisma can take us (and the terrible damage it can do to life and limb) let鈥檚 have exams for a 鈥淐ertificate of Voting Competence鈥 and get a little bit of democracy 鈥 at last.
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Newsnight: 15.08.2007
Barrie Singleton!
(Comment 3 "POLITICAL BRAIN NON-SEQUITUR").
This seems a novel (as is in 'new' - I think) and most fascinating idea. Would that we could achieve this.
Practical question: Who shall decide/ pass judgement on our competence? How would we 'elect' those to deem us fit-for-purpose?......I wish I knew the answer. I'd sign up to this idea forthwith. I'm heartened that you've proposed the idea, because even if impracticable as presented, it urges a 'burden of consciousness ' on each and every one of us.
Thanks!
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Dear Newsnight
theres a lot of talk about Political brains at the moment
re'His theory - borne out by research into American elections - is that emotion is more important that reason for the voters - and that the politician who can "connect" on an emotional level is more likely to win than the politician who can reel off statistics, policies and promises'.
another perhaps reason against e-voting and the possiblity of a flaming e-votes swinging an election which might be provoked by some Political Parties for example deliberately manipulating the news on the day by planting contentious and emotional stories,
If people do vote emotionally it could be argued that our voting system should slow the process of casting a vote down to build in time for people think more about what they are doing? I think the current method of voting does acomplish this already to some degree by at least requiring people to walk to the polling station and perhaps burn off some adrenaline and emotion along the way, allowing them to think about the issues rationally rather than emotionally?
perhaps if we did have e-voting the journey from the armchair to the PC after being enraged by some story planted by unscruplous parties is too short for rational voting and perhaps if this book is right might make our politics more extreme?
Just a thought
best wishes
Bob
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT M Lin
My posting 鈥 as you so kindly acknowledge 鈥 throws light on the madness of universal suffrage; there only to be manipulated by the political charlatans and to defeat democracy. A much more viable suggestion, to be found on my website, is to raise the competence of children (in terms of awareness of self-function and interaction with others) so that they have a greater chance of being effective as members of society, parents and 鈥 yes 鈥 voters. Clearly, it is not in the interest of politician-turkeys to raise the awareness of GNP-laying battery hens. Fortunately however, politicians are not bright enough to spot this so, with a lot of luck, my idea might come to fruition.
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ITN NEWS 2230 hrs 500 possibly killed in Northern Iraq NULABOUR NUHORRER some friends of yours I believe 大象传媒, BROWNNOSE all you like BLAIR and BROWN have their stamp all over this caper. YOU LUV THEM U DO CANT OR WONT SEE THE WOOD FROM THE TREES? MP's Voteing for our children going to war YOU ARE HAVING A LARf. MP'S Voting on when I flush the toilet MMMMM NO NO NO
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"indians, pakistainis and sikhs" - mutually exclusive?
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We are conditioned to see the world through a certain perspective but there are other perspectives which may be equally valid. For instance, in many if not most mass deaths whether due to a crime which is an atrocity or a natural disaster, there are inevitably some victims who got exactly what they deserved. This may be the case in the Yazidi bombing, apparantly retribution for the stoning to death of a Yazidi woman by her community for wanting to convert to Islam and marry a Sunni. It's only too bad that this form of tribal justice isn't more universally practiced and uniformly administered among those who do not have the sophisticated western system of justice we enjoy. I'm sure many Sunnis and Shiites deserve the same.
In fact, the war in Iraq is going very well, something you will never hear anyone say because we are conditioned to not think about it that way. What was a perceived threat by Iraq 4 1/2 years ago is a forgotten memory, mission accomplished. The middle east is in utter chaos, the Sunni "moderate" states lining up hoping for some sort of rapproachment with Israel and help from the US in the looming mega-war with Iran. Pakistan and Afghanistan are also in turmoil the Taleban and Al Qaeda openly in conflict with both governments. India clearly has joined in the battle. Europe hides under the covers while Russia rattles its oil and gas sabers threatening to cut off supplies if Europe doesn't comply to its whims and genuflect. Pakistan will soon have to chose, give up Islamic extremism or face catastrophic war with the outside world, inevitably the United States. Iran has already made that decision.
And what has this cost us over the last 5 years? In the US the number of deaths experienced in motor vehicle accidents in one month, and wounded casualties equal to the number injured in motor vehicle accidents in 4 days, and in GDP less than one percent. In the UK, about the number of casualties you'd expect if one commuter plane crashed, a small price to pay indeed. The media and politicians have blown the cost far beyond all proportion and the public has bought into it. Heaven help us if the voters choose elected officials who pull out of one or both countries, in the end it will get far far worse for us. And we are positioned on the ground on both sides of Iran for a major land attack should that become necessary. As for the suffering of the locals in the area, that can't be helped, it is the nature of all wars.
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Sir, The latest outrage in northern Iraq is the most grotesque to date. On Newsnight the American general blamed a 'faction' when it was his government that created all this mayhem, aided and abetted by the spineless new 'Labour' MP's who helped bring it about. Politicians have reached the low of all lows, blatant lies, cocked-up dossiers, information sexed up amything to suit their own agendas...and for what? To see little girls rushed into make-do hospitals with limbs hanging off and dead bodies just dumped on to trucks is our nightly fare on the six o'clock news, we are all used to it now so how insensitive will we become in the months ahead? Still no movement from Brown on the risk to our soldiers when some of them are in open revolt, thank God for blogs. Not a word of contrition or remorse from Des Browne (how does that guy sleep) the answer is very well because he is of this almost fascist tendency of New Labour that denies all responsibility, the 'not me guv' faction. The daily body count will make me resist voting Labour again whilst these 'neocons' rule the roost....that is why Brown won't go in the spring. There are too many guys like me out there. Sincerely, Steven Calrow
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trust the Newsnight sisterhood to zero in on anything with the word emotion or feelings in it :)
Our guardians are not philosopher kings and the government is not a monarchy [in the sense of a class of philosopher kings not in the corrupted sense of the monopolisation of power by a family].
Instead we have democracy whereby we say wisdom does not reside in those people educated to be wise but in the wisdom of many people who have been given little education in wisdom or the ways of reason ie us the mob. The position of guardian is filled by those who can appeal to the mob. Clearly one can only use reason with reasonable people. So how does one appeal to those uneducated in the ways of reason. Bread and circuses?
In a democracy those seeking to occupy the position of guardian should employ story writers and give the mob stories. Stories are emotional [look at which stories are chosen by the media to sell their papers] The one who has the best stories will win. [TB advice to think only of 'next days Headline' is the right one in a democracy that is the rule of the mob].
Clearly the policies in a democracy, which is the politics of storytelling, will differ from the necessary wise policies that will promote the good of society and its members.
TB and AC gave us stories. Iraq was a good story. WOT is a good story. The Dome was a good story. The olympics is a good story. PPP is a good sounding story ie the belief we get something for nothing. etc
Once elected these guardians must then implement policies that perpetuate these stories. It doesn't matter if they are right or true or wise or even responsible. We want stories...and stories not based on reality are fictions and fictions will always fail in the end.
Thus if a democracy ruled by stories [emotion] results in any good it will only be by accident.
This was all identified in the ancient greek era so its not new or original.
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First of all, Ms Wark, you should check your facts. Tony Blair coined the phrase "The People's Princess", NOT Alastair Campbell.
As to the murder of 250 civilians - people who automatically assume that western politicians are causing it are falling into the (press) trap of believing that the whole thing is a sham anyway.
It isn't. It's a battle for free western democracy, (and if you'd rather have Sharia Law, go please and revel in it).
Getting the bigger picture is not what we're good at, as simple voters. We only see death and destruction, although they are going on when we're NOT looking anyway. And then, of course, we don't see the other parts of the jigsaw.
If you really think international terrorism has been dreamed up by western politicians as an excuse for Iraq, you have limited historical perspective.
The year Blair was born - so he didn't have much to do with it - Hizb ut-Tahrir was formed. 54 years ago! It is banned almost everywhere apart from the UK and Australia.
Their aim is to unite all Muslim countries in a unitary Islamic state or caliphate, ruled by Islamic law and headed by an elected head of state. That 'state' is not landbound. It's here, there and everywhere.
Perhaps when Sharia Law replaces English/Scottish law, you can ask them if we can have our democracy and our religions back, PLEASE!
I'm sure they and the other 40 plus outlawed Islamist groups will listen.
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Give the masses what they want: any political beast who gains power, knows well to pander to the herd. Apparently 70 percent are easily manipulated because of general disinterest in anything other than whats happening in Eastenders or Emmerdale but will vote on mass when their wants and desires are tickled, in the case of labour, emotional button pushing, they send out a multipal text message informing the potential voter that if they vote labour, 24 hr drinking will be the prize, yeah, that will pull the piss head vote in for sure, what about the health and social consequences?..that does not appear to matter to our governing elite, as long as they cling on to power. Solid rational debate on party policies are difficult for the uneducated, unsophisticated and general moron to get his head around and this suits the socialist perfectly well as they know a smart electorate is a danger to their powerful position( hence the terrible education system we have) 'keep them stupid and play on their emotions' will be the motto of our glorious leaders.
How long will it be before we all receive a text message from new labour telling us, if we vote for them we can have free sex on the national health.... where do i sign?.... is it a tick or a cross?
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As a member of the 'vile multitude' I appreciate having access to a variety of perspectives - probably the best school-for-voters I'll ever attend. Tonight's Newsnight won't make me clever nor will it make me wise, but it certainly rattled the rust on a number of taken-for-granted positions. That's valuable.
"Makes you think, doesn't it?"
Thanks.
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