Introduction The British press is pretty feeble, and much of the problem begins with its cosy relationship with the British state. At the heart of that relationship is the ‘lobby system’, that peculiar British institution formed to allow the state and its political mouthpieces to lie to the media off the record. The document reproduced … Read more
Paddy the spook Since the last issue I have skimmed Paddy Ashdown’s two volumes of diaries. While dominated by his attempt to do a deal with the Blair-led Labour Party, there are some other interesting snippets; and, through Ashdown’s eyes, there is a detailed portrait of Tony Blair which suggests that Rory Bremner’s impersonation of … Read more
Parish Notices Thanks to Robin Whittaker (in particular), Peter Watson, Solomon Hughes, Phil Chamberlain, Terry Hanstock, Jane Affleck, Sukarai Haruhiko, Peter Watson, David Lee, John Burnes and Harry Irwin for information, material and advice. Correction In footnote 1 on page 28 of Lobster 35 I referred to Labour MP Tony Lloyd as a ‘moderniser’. My … Read more
1. Getting closer… Despite the recent publicity about Bill Clinton, the impact made on him by Carroll Quigley, and the Rhodes Scholars’ network (see Lobster 27 p. 19, for examples), the academic world remains almost wholly unaware of Quigley’s work. In their essay ‘The Limits of Influence: foreign policy think tanks in Britain and the … Read more
Covert Action: The Roots of Terrorism Edited by Ellen Ray and William H. Schaap Melbourne and New York: Ocean Press, 2003, £14.95 The Politics of Anti-Semitism Edited by Alexander Cockburn and Jeffrey St Clair Oakland (US) and Edinburgh: AK Press, 2003, £9.00/$12.95 The Betrayal of Dissent: Beyond Orwell, Hitchens and the New American Century Scott … Read more
Notes From the Borderland Larry O’Hara now has his own journal, Notes from the Borderland, the first issue of which appeared in November last year. Like his previous pamphlets, this is full of fascinating information on the far right – the guts of the lead article on a charity scam being run in the UK … Read more
Olivier Schmidt Atlanta (USA): Clarity Press, 2005, $14.95, p/b www.bookmasters.com/clarity/currenttitles.htm Here’s a new name to me, the publisher Clarity; and a familiar one, Olivier Schmidt. In the 1980s Schmidt was producing a very good newsletter in Paris, Intelligence and Parapolitics. This got expensive, professionalised and eventually went on-line for subscribers as Intelligence.(1) This is … Read more
Snitch Culture: How the citizens are turned into the eyes and ears of the state Jim Redden, Feral House, U.S., 2000, $16.95 (pb) Earth Rising: The Revolution, Toward a Thousand Years of Peace Dr Nick Begich and James Roderick Earthpulse Press, Ancorage, Alaska $17.95, 2000 (pb) (available through Flatland) ‘We live in a society driven … Read more
Thinking about the Falklands Paul Johnson recently sneered in The Times at the ‘conspiracy theories’ about the Falklands War held by the likes of Tam Dalyell MP. Reading this, what struck me was just how few conspiracy theories about that war have emerged in the past 3 years. So, here are a couple. Mine is … Read more
Blowback: the cost and consequences of American Empire Chalmers Johnson London, Little, Brown and Company, 2000, £18.99 (hb) Unholy Wars: Afghanistan, America and International Terrorism John Cooley London, Pluto Press, London, 2000, £12.99 (pb) It has recently been revealed that the CIA inadvertently helped to create Soviet chemical and biological weapons by convincing the Soviets … Read more
