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Dr John Coulter ✍ June is traditionally the month for commemorations for the famous D-Day landings in Normandy in 1944 which heralded the end of Hitler’s Nazi Third Reich.

But another political D-Day will take place next month with the high profile Makerfield Westminster by-election, which could eventually decide the future, not just of current PM Keir Starmer, but also of the entire Labour Government.

Flying the red flag for Labour is the popular Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, with many pundits suggesting winning Makerfield would be a convenient stepping stone to get Red Andy back into the House of Commons so that he can launch a leadership bid against Starmer.

But why the nickname Red Andy? His campaign team are branding him as being on the so-called Soft Left of Labour. Right-wing political commentators like myself view Burnham as being on the Hard Left of the party; he’s just very clever - unlike a former Labour boss Jeremy Corbyn - at hiding his extreme socialist beliefs.

However, all this talk of leadership plots and coups may be a tad premature. Red Andy is not 100 per cent guaranteed of winning the Makerfield seat!

The constituency - as we approach the 10th anniversary of the Brexit referendum - is viewed as a solidly ‘Leave’ region, as demonstrated by the surge in the anti-EU Reform UK vote in the local government elections earlier this month.

If Red Andy wants to ‘do a King Canute’ and hold back the Reform party tide, he will have to distance himself from the political gossip that Labour wants to renegotiate a closer post-Brexit relationship with the EU at the least; at worst, wants to hold another referendum aimed at getting the UK to rejoin the EU.

That sort of political chit-chat will not sit well with the pro-Brexit voters in Makerfield and could hand the Commons seat to Reform on a silver platter. Like the fallers at the first fence at the famous Grand National horse race, Red Andy could potentially face the embarrassment of not becoming an MP and being pipped at the post by a buoyant Nigel Farage party.

Likewise, we should not assume that a Red Andy victory in Makerfield will automatically signal the end of the Starter regime in 10 Downing Street. Labour, like the Ulster Unionist Party in 1998 in the wake of the Good Friday Agreement, is a party at war with itself.

Given the almost apocalyptic results in mainland Britain in May’s elections, many Labour MPs could be looking over their shoulders at what a potential General Election could hold for them.

Would a change of PM followed by a snap General Election be enough to hold their seats rather than waiting a couple of years until the present mandate ends?

Would there be those in the Starmer camp, who when facing the prospect of certain defeat in a leadership election, could trigger a situation where the country is instead sent back to the polls in the General Election rather than a simple transition of power within Labour in Downing Street?

If May’s election results were replicated in a General Election within the next 12 months, for example, the impressive current Labour majority would politically evaporate and Nigel Farage would be handed the keys of 10 Downing Street.

Is the present Labour civil war so bitter that some would rather see Farage in power rather than allow Red Andy to succeed Starmer? And as for Northern Ireland, how would unionism, nationalism and others react to a Red Andy-led Labour Government?

Unlike the Conservatives, Labour has consistently refused to contest elections in Northern Ireland, preferring instead to see the moderate nationalist SDLP as its sister party. But how many working class Unionist socialists would actually vote for the SDLP?

With some predictions saying the next General Election could throw up a hung parliament, and with 18 seats up for grabs in Northern Ireland, could a Red Andy administration be tempted to cast aside Labour’s refusal to run candidates and decide to go head to head with Ulster-based parties?

After all, Sinn Fein refuses to take its seats in Westminster, so potentially there’s half a dozen seats up for grabs for Labour.

And with Northern Ireland being left behind the rest of the UK in the Brexit outcome, could a more pro-EU Red Andy Government get a better deal from Brussels for the Province, given that Northern Ireland voted ‘Remain’ in the 2016 referendum?

The Burnham camp will also have to deal with how it sees off the threat from the Green Party, which also made significant gains in the mainland Britain elections. The Greens’ decision to portray themselves as the protest party of the Left worked tactically with many voters.

At the moment, Makerfield is shaping up to be a political two-horse race between Red Andy and Reform UK. But there can only be one winner. And that winner could ultimately decide who becomes, or remains, PM.

If Sir Keir had a vote in Makerfield, I wonder in the privacy of the voting booth, who he could cast his vote tactically for? If I was a Starmerite, the last person I’d want in the Commons is Red Andy!
 
Follow Dr John Coulter on Twitter @JohnAHCoulter
John is a Director for Belfast’s Christian radio station, Sunshine 1049 FM. 

Can Red Andy Really Stop The Reform Surge?

Lynx By Ten To The Power Of One Thousand Nine Hundred And Eighty Two

 

A Morning Thought @ 3156

Cam Ogie ✍ Britain and the EU frequently portray Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping as symbols of authoritarianism, aggression and contempt for democratic values. 

There is substantial evidence supporting many criticisms directed at those leaders. Russia has imprisoned opposition figures, restricted independent journalism and invaded Ukraine in violation of international law. Russian teams were rapidly suspended from international sport following the invasion.

Yet the moral certainty projected by Britain and the EU begins to fracture when their own actions — and those of their allies — are judged by the same standards. The issue is not whether Putin, Xi or Trump deserve criticism. The issue is whether Britain and Europe apply their proclaimed principles consistently. Increasingly, the evidence suggests they do not.

The treatment of journalists Trevor Birney and Barry McCaffrey exposed this contradiction within Britain itself. The two Northern Irish investigative journalists were arrested after producing No Stone Unturned, a documentary examining alleged collusion surrounding the Loughinisland massacre. Their homes and offices were raided by police. An Investigatory Powers Tribunal later ruled that police surveillance of the journalists had been unlawful.

Britain cannot convincingly condemn Russia or China for suppressing dissent while elements of its own state apparatus have targeted journalists investigating alleged state wrongdoing.

That perception of selective enforcement deepened further with the British government’s treatment of Palestine Action. In 2025, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper moved to proscribe the organisation under terrorism legislation, arguing that its activities justified designation as a terrorist group. Critics, including civil-liberties organisations and legal experts, warned that the move blurred the distinction between violent terrorism and political direct action.

In 2026, the UK High Court ruled that the proscription of Palestine Action had been unlawful and disproportionate, concluding that the government had failed to apply legal standards consistently and that the ban represented a serious interference with freedom of speech and assembly.

For critics, the ruling reinforced the perception that Britain increasingly applies the language of extremism and counterterrorism selectively and politically. Governments that condemn authoritarian states for suppressing dissent were themselves attempting to criminalise support for a domestic protest movement opposing British arms sales and Israeli military actions in Gaza. The contradiction was difficult to ignore. Britain condemned Russia and China for restricting political expression yet attempted to use some of the most severe powers available under British law against activists challenging Britain’s strategic relationship with Israel.

Britain’s moral authority is weakened further by its long resistance to accountability for historic abuses in Kenya and Northern Ireland. In Kenya, the British government spent decades resisting compensation claims relating to torture and abuse during the Mau Mau uprising before eventually settling with victims after previously undisclosed colonial files emerged.

In Northern Ireland, investigations and court rulings repeatedly identified evidence of collusion between loyalist paramilitaries and British security forces alongside obstruction and investigative failures. Critics argue that the British state continues to prioritise institutional protection over accountability. That criticism intensified with the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023, which sought to restrict prosecutions and inquests linked to Troubles-era killings while offering conditional immunity to participants in the conflict. Parts of the legislation were later ruled incompatible with human-rights law.

The same selective morality is evident in Britain and Europe’s relationship with Saudi Arabia and Mohammed bin Salman. A declassified United States intelligence assessment concluded that the Crown Prince approved an operation to capture or kill journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.

Yet despite the global outrage surrounding Khashoggi’s murder, Britain and many European governments continued arms sales, defence cooperation and strategic partnerships with Saudi Arabia. The same governments that speak passionately about press freedom and human rights when condemning Russia or China adopted a far more restrained tone when dealing with an allied state central to Western security and economic interests. Critics argue that this demonstrated that geopolitical alliances and arms contracts outweighed proclaimed moral principles.

The same selective morality is evident in Britain and Europe’s relationship with Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli government. Western leaders routinely condemn aggressive nationalism, inflammatory rhetoric and collective punishment when associated with rival powers, yet many continue to support Netanyahu’s government despite repeated warnings from human-rights organisations, UN experts and international courts regarding Israeli conduct in Gaza and the West Bank.

Members of Netanyahu’s cabinet have used extreme language about Palestinians that would provoke outrage if spoken by officials from Russia, Iran or China. Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stated in 2023 that the Palestinian town of Huwara should be “wiped out.” National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has repeatedly advocated hardline measures against Palestinians and was previously convicted in Israel for incitement to racism and support for a terrorist organisation.

Meanwhile, violence and displacement in the West Bank have intensified. The United Nations and major human-rights organisations have documented repeated killings of Palestinians, settler violence, expansion of settlements considered illegal under international law, and the demolition or seizure of Palestinian homes and land.

Critics argue that if another state engaged in comparable settlement expansion, population displacement and demographic engineering, Britain and the EU would likely describe it as annexation, ethnic persecution or even ethnic cleansing. When Myanmar carried out military operations against the Rohingya people involving village destruction, forced displacement and mass expulsions, Western governments condemned the actions as ethnic cleansing and imposed sanctions. When China was accused of mass detention, cultural repression and coercive assimilation policies against the Uyghurs, Britain, the EU and the United States described the actions as crimes against humanity, with some governments and legislatures referring to genocide.

Similar moral language was used regarding the violence in East Timor following the Indonesian occupation and the destruction carried out by pro-Indonesian militias after the 1999 independence referendum. Western governments condemned the killings, displacement and devastation, eventually supporting international intervention and accountability measures. Yet critics note that Britain and other Western states maintained diplomatic and military relations with Indonesia for years during the occupation, including periods of arms exports and defence cooperation despite longstanding allegations of abuses in East Timor.

Likewise, during the final stages of the Sri Lankan civil war in 2009, the large-scale killing of Tamil people civilians prompted allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity from the United Nations and human-rights organisations, leading Britain and European states to demand investigations and accountability from Sri Lanka. However, critics argue that Western governments largely maintained normal diplomatic relations with Sri Lanka after the war and that international pressure never approached the scale of sanctions and isolation imposed on states viewed as strategic adversaries.

Despite this, Britain has maintained diplomatic, military and economic cooperation with Israel. Senior Israeli figures continued to be welcomed in London even amid growing allegations of war crimes in Gaza. Critics pointed particularly to the reception given to Israeli President Isaac Herzog by Downing Street while Gaza was under sustained bombardment and humanitarian catastrophe deepened. Opponents argued that officials associated with policies under international investigation should have faced diplomatic isolation rather than ceremonial welcomes.

The genocide issue must be stated carefully. The International Court of Justice has not issued a final ruling determining that Israel has committed genocide. However, the Court found South Africa’s case plausible enough to impose provisional measures requiring Israel to prevent genocidal acts and improve humanitarian conditions in Gaza. Israel strongly denies genocide allegations and argues that its operations are acts of self-defence following the Hamas attacks of October 7.

Yet despite the severity of the allegations and mounting civilian casualties, the EU refused to suspend its Association Agreement with Israel despite calls from some member states and human-rights groups to review the agreement under its human-rights clauses. Economic and diplomatic ties remained largely intact.

Germany in particular maintained some of the strongest support for Israel throughout the conflict. Chancellor Olaf Scholz repeatedly reaffirmed that Israel’s security formed part of Germany’s “Staatsräson” — a core national responsibility rooted in the legacy of the Holocaust. Critics argue that Germany therefore applies a very different standard to Israel than it applies to Russia in Ukraine.

Britain’s position regarding Israel, Gaza and the broader confrontation involving Iran further illustrates this contradiction. British governments frequently portray themselves as restrained or neutral actors seeking de-escalation in the Middle East, yet Britain remains deeply integrated into American and Israeli military strategy in the region.

Britain allows the United States to operate from British-controlled bases such as RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus and has historically provided logistical and operational support for American military actions in the Middle East. During the 2003 Iraq War — regarded by many legal scholars, diplomats and critics as illegal because of the absence of explicit UN Security Council authorisation — Britain presented itself as acting in defence of international security while simultaneously participating directly in regime-change warfare. The Chilcot Inquiry later heavily criticised the basis upon which Britain entered the Iraq War.

Critics argue that Britain continues the same pattern today regarding Israel and Iran: publicly presenting itself as cautious and balanced while privately enabling military operations through intelligence sharing, arms exports, logistical cooperation and diplomatic cover. Britain has continued approving military export licences to Israel and maintaining close security cooperation even while publicly calling for restraint and humanitarian protection.

This allows Britain to occupy two contradictory positions simultaneously. Domestically and diplomatically, it presents itself as a neutral actor seeking peace. In practice, however, it continues to facilitate and support one side militarily and strategically. Critics argue that neutrality becomes meaningless when one continues supplying intelligence, military components, diplomatic protection and access to strategic bases.

The contrast with Russia is impossible to ignore. Russia was subjected to sweeping sanctions, sporting exclusion, cultural boycotts and near-total diplomatic isolation within weeks of invading Ukraine. Israel, despite ongoing investigations, allegations of war crimes, mounting civilian casualties and immense destruction in Gaza, continues to receive diplomatic protection, military cooperation and preferential trade arrangements from many of the same governments presenting themselves as defenders of a rules-based international order.

When Russia bombs civilian areas, it is described as barbarism, collective punishment and possible war crimes. Western leaders rightly condemn attacks on civilian infrastructure and the deaths of non-combatants in Ukraine. Yet when Israel devastates Gaza, destroys civilian neighbourhoods and causes mass civilian casualties, many of those same leaders retreat into the language of “Israel’s right to defend itself.”

The inconsistency is not confined to Israel. Russia has repeatedly been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity for attacks on civilian targets in Ukraine. Yet when Ukrainian strikes hit civilian areas inside Russia — including attacks reported on apartment buildings, border towns or civilian infrastructure — Western reaction is often muted, qualified or framed as part of Ukraine’s legitimate military resistance rather than through the same moral and legal language applied to Russia. Critics argue that civilian deaths are either unacceptable in principle or they are not; their moral status should not depend solely upon which side carried out the strike or whether the government responsible is allied with the West.

That selective outrage creates the perception that international law is being applied politically rather than universally. Civilian suffering committed by adversaries is elevated into evidence of barbarism, while similar suffering caused by allies is softened through language, context and strategic justification.

This is the central hypocrisy of modern Western foreign policy. Britain and the EU do not consistently oppose repression, unlawful killings, collective punishment or attacks on civilians as universal principles. Rather, those principles are applied selectively depending upon whether the state committing the act is an ally or an adversary.

When China suppresses dissent, it is authoritarianism. When Britain obstructs investigations into abuses committed by its own forces in Northern Ireland or Kenya, it becomes “reconciliation” or “drawing a line under the past.”

When Putin uses nationalism and militarised rhetoric, he is condemned as dangerous. When members of Netanyahu’s cabinet use dehumanising language about Palestinians while settlements expand across occupied territory, Britain and Europe largely continue diplomatic business as usual.

When adversaries violate international law, sanctions and isolation quickly follow. When allies are accused of comparable violations, strategic interests, military alliances and trade relationships suddenly override moral principle.

None of this absolves Putin, Xi or Trump of criticism. But it does expose the fiction that Britain and the EU occupy a uniquely virtuous moral position. Their foreign policy, like that of every major power, is shaped less by universal principles than by strategic interests, alliances and selective morality.

⏩ Cam Ogie is a Gaelic games enthusiast.

The Hypocrisy of Western Moral Superiority 🪶 The Hague for Thee, Handshakes for Me

Ukraine Solidarity Group ✊ A Digest of News from Ukrainian Sources ⚔ 17-May-2026.

In this week’s bulletin

⬤ More evidence of Russian torture and war crimes.
⬤ New report on the criminalisation of life under Russia’s occupation.
⬤ New UN report on forcible transfer and forced displacement.
⬤ The plight of Russian prisoners.

News from the territories occupied by Russia

Mystery ‘treason’ charges against abducted 63-year-old Oleksandr Osadchy for supporting Ukraine in occupied Crimea (Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, May 15th)

Russia passes effective life sentence against 61-year-old Crimean for a video of zero interest (Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, May 14th)

Valeriy Vakulenko sentenced to 18 years for destroying a Russian invaders' tank in March 2022 (Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, May 12th)

Weekly update on the situation in occupied Crimea (Crimea Platform, May 12th)

News from the front

Putin launches massive attacks after signalling war’s end (Counteroffensive, May 14th)

Ukrainian drones crashing in Lativia trigger a government crisis as the nation’s defense minister resigns (Meduza, May 12th)

News from Ukraine

The Ukrainian Parliament Adopts an Appeal on the International Recognition of the Crimean Tatar Genocide (Crimea Platform, May 14th)

300 people protested against the draft of the new Ukrainian Civil Code (Facebook, May 11th)

Report: Ukraine proposes splitting military recruitment offices, setting fixed service terms (Meduza, May 11th)

Boy versus Russian drone (Washington Post, May 2026)

War-related news from Russia

Russia’s Antiwar Prisoners Are Outcasts in Their Own Land (Jacobin, May 16th)

Russia’s biggest nationalist group is funded by a pro-Kremlin analyst and a billionaire linked to the son of a former FSB chief, BBC investigation finds (Meduza, May 15th)

Brutal raid on woman's birthday party highlights rise of Russian vigilante group (BBC, May 15th)

“Day and night I am tormented by my own powerlessness”. Human rights activist Nina Litvinova, 80, has taken her own life over the war and the plight of political prisoners (Mediazona, May 15th)

The conservative turn of Russian rap (Posle Media, May 13th)

Russian director Alexander Sokurov withdraws from Venice Biennale after activists’ open letter calls his participation a staged performance (Meduza, May 11th)

Analysis and comment

The tale of Yermak: how Zelensky’s former right-hand man ended up under arrest on corruption charges (The Insider, May 16th)

The Cards (Russian Reader, May 16th)

How the “methane” reform could help Ukraine move closer to EU and generate revenue (Razom We Stand, May 15th)

Kremlin-style colonialism: Russian propaganda is actively preparing Africans for military service in Ukraine (The Insider, May 15th)

Taxes, costly credit, and labor shortages: Why private businesses in Russia are shutting down en masse (The Insider, May 14th)

Improving the Social Protection Reform Implementation in Hromadas of Ukraine: Cedos Launches a New Project (Cedos, May 14th)

Digital threats and Russian disinformation: ZMINA highlighted challenges facing civil society within the OSCE framework in Vienna (Zmina, May 13th)

Russia remains the greatest threat: ZMINA highlighted Ukrainian civil society at the OSCE SHDM in Vienna ((Zmina, May 12th)

Strait to stagnation: Why not even soaring oil prices can offset the decline of the Russian economy (The Insider, May 11th)

Anatomy of a purge: Cleanup at the Ministry of Defense and the future of Putinism (Russian election Monitor, May 11th)

Mindich, Denmark, nationalisation – and US$7 billion: we unpack the main controversies surrounding Fire Point (Ukrainska Pravda, May 7th)

The main problem with Ukraine's corruption prevention watchdog (Kyiv Independent, May 4th)

Four years of “prevention”. What problems remain in the practice of holding individuals accountable for collaborative activity in 2025? (Zmina, April 2026)

Research of human rights abuses

France arrests pro-Russian militant for war crimes over torture of Ukrainian hostages at Izolyatsia prison in occupied Donetsk (Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, May 15th)

In Brussels, the Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children presented new mechanisms reflecting the civil society statement (Zmina, May 14th)

Help to #FreeIrynaHorobtsova - seized by the Russians on her birthday, sentenced to 10.5 years for Ukrainian patriotism (Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, May 13th)

Yevhen Zakharov: ‘In no country have I seen such an awareness and vocal support for Ukraine as in Sweden’ (Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, May 12th)

Handing over lists of political prisoners, meetings with officials and the Crimean Tatar diaspora: outcomes of ZMINA’s visit to Türkiye (Zmina, May 11th)

ECHR orders Russia to pay compensation to Crimean Tatars arrested and prosecuted for peaceful protest (Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, May 11th)

Only one Mother’s Day wish after almost 9 years of torture – Free my son, Victor Dzytsiuk! (Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, May 11th)

Documenting war crimes and supporting victims: human rights defenders meet with British official Alex Davies-Jones (Zmina, May 11th)

ZMINA at United for Justice: the accountability system for international crimes requires a comprehensive policy approach (Zmina, May 8th)

Forced displacement from territory of Ukraine occupied by the Russian Federation: forcible transfer and deportation, barriers to return, and the rights of internally displaced persons, 24 February 2022 – 31 December 2025 20 March (UNHCHR, May 2026)

International Solidarity

Vestochka (A Way to Write Letters to Russian Political Prisoners) (Russian Reader, May 14th)

Upcoming events

USC meeting: Truth Under Siege: How Russian Disinformation Fuels the Far Right

Wednesday 20th May, 7:30pm Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/how-russian-disinformation-fuels-the-far-right-and-how-we-can-fight-back-tickets-1989210067861 Chair: John McDonnell MP. Speakers: Steve Lacey – Researcher and analyst specialising in far‑right movements, populism, and Russian disinformation. Thomas Brayford – Activist and commentator active in Ukraine solidarity campaigning and political affairs. Sian Norris – Writer and investigative journalist covering far‑right extremism, gender politics, and the war on Ukraine. Yuliia Bond – Ukrainian refugee and community campaigner advocating for displaced people and solidarity with Ukraine.

Voices Against Putin's War: An Evening in Solidarity with Ukraine

Tuesday, 26th May 2026 : 19:00 - 20:15, Lighthouse Bookshop, 43-45 West Nicolson Street, Edinburgh EH8 9DB. More information here.

Voices Against Putin's War with Dr Simon Pirani & Fellow Readers | 27th May @ 7pm More details here.

🔴This bulletin is put together by labour movement activists in solidarity with Ukrainian resistance. More information at Ukraine Information Group.

We are also on twitter. Our aim is to circulate information in English that to the best of our knowledge is reliable. If you have something you think we should include, please send it to 2U022ukrainesolidarity@gmail.com.


We are now on Facebook and Substack! Please subscribe and tell friends. Better still, people can email us at 2022ukrainesolidarity@gmail.com, and we’ll send them the bulletin direct every Monday. The full-scale Russian assault on Ukraine is going into its third year: we’ll keep information and analysis coming, for as long as it takes.

The bulletin is also stored on line here.

To receive the bulletin regularly, send your email to:
2022ukrainesolidarity@gmail.com.
To stop it, please reply with the word “STOP” in the subject field.

News From Ukraine 💣 Bulletin 196

National Independent Republican Commemoration 🎤 to be will be held this weekend.

Date: 7-June-2005

Time: 2pm.

Venue: Bodenstown.

Assembly Point: Sallins, Co Kildare.

Chair: John Crawley.

Speaker: Ruan O'Donnell.

Main Speaker: Brian Arthurs.


Wolfe Tone Commemoration 2026

The Independent ðŸ“° Written by Andrew Feinberg.

Trump has never won California’s electoral votes but nonetheless insists that his losses in the state are due to elections fraud

President Donald Trump on Wednesday repeated his easily disprovable claim to have won California’s electoral votes as he suggested that a Republican ex-reality television star running for mayor of Los Angeles could have trouble winning because of “dishonest” elections in the Golden State.

Trump made the bizarre comments to reporters before boarding Air Force One en route to Connecticut and a planned commencement address at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.

Asked about GOP mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt, Trump said he’d like to see the former The Hills star “do well” and called him “a character” and a “big MAGA person” before pivoting to unsubstantiated accusations about California’s elections.

“if you have a rigged vote out there, that's the problem. The votes are rigged. You have a really rigged vote in California. You have all the mail in ballots, everything else. Very hard to win because the elections are very dishonest,” he said.

'If we had Jesus Christ come down and count the votes, I would have won California . . . '

Continue @ The Independent.

Trump Calls On Jesus Christ To ‘Come Down And Count The Votes’ In Rigged-Election Rant Over Reality Star’s Run For Office

Right Wing Watch 👀 Written by Kyle Mantyla.

During Friday's episode of her "Jenna Ellis In The Morning" radio program, former Trump campaign attorney Jenna Ellis declared that only Christians are entitled to religious freedom in the United States.

In 2020, Ellis was plucked from obscurity to serve as an attorney for President Donald Trump as he fought to overturn the results of the presidential election. As a result of her efforts, Ellis found herself facing a variety of legal troubles and saw her law license suspended.

Now, Ellis hosts a morning radio program on American Family Radio, where she interviews antisemitic figures like British cleric Calvin Robinson, who was stripped of his license to serve as a priest in the Anglican Catholic Church after he closed out his remarks at the National Pro-Life Summit in 2025 by delivering a Nazi-like salute.

Ellis interviewed Robinson about his forthcoming book "The Silent Jihad: Exposing The Islamification Of The West," which is being published by an imprint run by racist, antisemitic, and deeply misogynistic theocratic fascist Christian nationalist pastor Joel Webbon. During the conversation, Ellis insisted that the Constitution's guarantee of religious freedom only applies to Christians.

Continue @ RWW.

Jenna Ellis Says Religious Freedom Only Applies To Christians

Lynx By Ten To The Power Of One Thousand Nine Hundred And Eighty One

 

Pastords @ 45

 

A Morning Thought @ 3155

Anthony McIntyre ☠ On Monday last Development Perspectives hosted a talk in Drogheda's The Barbican, compered by Bobby McCormack.


The purpose of the event was to press for the passing of the Occupied Territories Bill which the Dublin government has dragged its feet on, in addition to the parallel tardiness the government has been culpable for in relation to substantial domestic matters of housing and health. 

The two main speakers were Senator Frances Black, who who was the first Irish parliamentarian to press for  legislation that would bring into law the Occupied Territories Bill, and Faten Alsourani, a Palestinian Lawyer who grew up in Gaza and lost family members to Israeli violence.

The government at least is consistent in both its domestic and foreign policy in that it simply fails to act or does so at such a snail's pace that the benefits trickle down very slowly.


The government go-slow approach to the Occupied Territories Bill is characterised by delaying and deferring to such an extent that there are reasonable grounds to suspect that derailment of the Bill is the real purpose. Since Frances Black first launched her bid to have legislation enacted, the government has behaved more like a committee as characterised by Fred Allen:

a group of people who individually can do nothing, but who, as a group, can meet and decide that nothing can be done. 

In addition to the two speakers Drogheda Stands With Palestine featured centrally. While Bobby McCormack chaired the event wearing his Development Perspectives hat, his keffiyeh, metaphorically, was also very much on display through his association with Drogheda Stands With Palestine. Additionally, the hall was electrified by the contributions of our very own Alan Kelly and Siobhan Newman who were both invited onto the stage to address the audience. Like Bobby, they have given both selflessly and tirelessly of their time in pursuit of a Free Palestine. The night's proceedings were concluded when yet another DSWP activist, Margaret McConnon played guitar and sang alongside Siobhan Newman. 


Disappointingly, there was only one of the Louth TDs in attendance - Ged Nash of the Labour Party who has never stopped short of typifying Israeli policy for what it is - genocide. While the Sinn Fein TD, Joanna Byrne, was not present she received huge praise for the positions she has taken up - and at cost to herself when she was ousted as co-chair of Drogheda United Football Club for calling on the Irish soccer team to boycott the upcoming match against Israel - and no one in the audience was left uncertain as to what side of the fence she is on when it comes to Palestine's Israeli problem.

At one point during the Q&A I took the opportunity to raise my concerns about the policy of the Irish Writers Union which lamentably failed at its recent AGM to support the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel,. That seemed to me to be the wholesale abdication of responsibility on the part of writers to their besieged and brutalised colleagues in the Occupied Territories. I made the point that despite very persuasive arguments presented by Kevin Doyle and Sally Rooney, the governing committee opted to side with Alan Shatter and abandon the Palestinians. It was a theme Frances Black took up when she again addressed the audience. She was aghast at how a writers union could fail so abysmally, and was wholly supportive of the efforts of those within the union to have the matter revisited. 

Since the Barbican event, Helen McEntee has announced that the government intends to make progress on the Bill within the next fortnight. While this has been given a guarded welcome by Frances Black, she made it very clear at the Barbican that government promises are plentiful, actions much less so. The one message Helen McEntee and her government colleagues needs to hear is stop waffling and just do it.  

⏩Follow on Bluesky.

Just Do it

Geordie Morrow ðŸ–Œ with a painting from his collection of art work. 

Oil on daler board 1980, inclined to believe that the elderly man, newspaper in pocket, is “Rocky Burns”

⏩Geordie Morrow is a Belfast artist.

Shankill

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