Hubris overtakes almost all so-called leaders - this lot are prime examples but the thing is that the optics work when presented without analysis (the kind of analysis you have provided here, George)! Plucky little Zelenskiy - his brave "allies" in support - having figured what they can get out of it - in the Trumpian transactional manner of speaking - more arms sales, of course, included... membership of the Class A bullies gang...and so forth.
“Starmer parrots Washington’s line on every major conflict, from Gaza to Ukraine, stripping Britain of its once-proud tradition of diplomatic independence”❓
Diplomatic independence is only possible if you have financial independence.
The uk status as the little bitch of the United States can never be overstated, and every briton needs to have his nose rubbed in this, every single day.
Great comparison, George! At least the original Rat Pack were good-looking, charming and humorous, and they could sing, all of which no one could say about this bunch. They’re more like The Three Stooges plus 2!
I used to refer to Biden, Blinken, Sullivan and Austin as the Rat Pack! Although Blinken was no crooner as he demonstrated during his rock gig in Ukraine! 🎸
You flatter them by a comparison with the Hollywood Rat Pack which contained genuine talent. Whether you loved or loathed them, they had character and style.
At least two of Zed's cabal look like they're not only off the same conveyor belt but are prised out of the same mold. Starmer looks like he's not fully cooked. Macron seems to be standing on a crate.
The German guy harbours a Thanatos wish for Germany's economy seeking EU sanctions on their own energy lifeline for ever. He may want his name in the history books but his face will be forever missing.
There are also echoes in this set-up of the classic screen power walk but they fail at projecting either humanising bonhomie or the steely Churchillian Avengers Assemble mode they are aiming for. More like a Marvel comic clown-car of Zed list villains.
This is what you get when the Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight is let loose on the levers of power.
'The Normalisation of Mass Killing in Gaza : A Devastation and Political Survival'
In the past 24 hours, the Israeli military has killed 115 Palestinians in Gaza—and before the next morning, another 100 have fallen. This is no sudden flare-up. It is a calculated, prolonged campaign to crush resistance and prepare the ground for mass displacement once the political climate allows. What we are witnessing is not counterterrorism—it is ethnic cleansing, concealed behind the rhetoric of national security.
The unrelenting bloodshed has numbed global reaction. What should ignite outrage now barely registers—a fleeting headline, quickly buried. The systematic killing of Palestinians has been normalised, as if mass death were just another feature of daily life in Gaza. This desensitisation is no accident; it is strategic. Dehumanise the victims, deaden international attention, and proceed with impunity.
The Israeli government speaks of “a difficult day in Gaza” when a single soldier is killed—an obscene distortion of reality, as dozens of Palestinian civilians, including children, are being massacred daily without recognition, remorse, or restraint. For over two months, Gaza has faced a total siege—denied food, water, electricity, and medicine. This is not an oversight; it is calculated policy. Senior Israeli officials have publicly dehumanised Palestinians, declaring them “not human” and insisting “there are no innocents” in Gaza. This is not war. It is the systematic dismantling of a people, justified through the language of security.
For the Palestinian resistance, surrender is inconceivable. The logic is brutal but clear: every day brings fresh killings, demolished homes, and mass burials. Yielding would not halt the bloodshed—it would validate it. In the face of such sustained violence, defiance becomes a form of survival. If the cost of capitulation is erasure, then resistance, however deadly, is seen as the only dignified path left.
Hubris overtakes almost all so-called leaders - this lot are prime examples but the thing is that the optics work when presented without analysis (the kind of analysis you have provided here, George)! Plucky little Zelenskiy - his brave "allies" in support - having figured what they can get out of it - in the Trumpian transactional manner of speaking - more arms sales, of course, included... membership of the Class A bullies gang...and so forth.
Of course they're a group of sociopaths. Doesn't matter, if the P.R. blitz gets the desired results.
Maybe Pope Leo can make them come to their senses?
My view on the new Pope: https://rayjc.com/2025/05/13/leo-xiv/
“Starmer parrots Washington’s line on every major conflict, from Gaza to Ukraine, stripping Britain of its once-proud tradition of diplomatic independence”❓
Diplomatic independence is only possible if you have financial independence.
UK lost that in 1660
The uk status as the little bitch of the United States can never be overstated, and every briton needs to have his nose rubbed in this, every single day.
👏👏👏👏👏Really really well put. Thank you.
Great comparison, George! At least the original Rat Pack were good-looking, charming and humorous, and they could sing, all of which no one could say about this bunch. They’re more like The Three Stooges plus 2!
Thank you Diane - I’m surprised the comparison hadn’t been made sooner. G. 😊😊
I used to refer to Biden, Blinken, Sullivan and Austin as the Rat Pack! Although Blinken was no crooner as he demonstrated during his rock gig in Ukraine! 🎸
Fabulous! Very timely and well said.
You flatter them by a comparison with the Hollywood Rat Pack which contained genuine talent. Whether you loved or loathed them, they had character and style.
At least two of Zed's cabal look like they're not only off the same conveyor belt but are prised out of the same mold. Starmer looks like he's not fully cooked. Macron seems to be standing on a crate.
The German guy harbours a Thanatos wish for Germany's economy seeking EU sanctions on their own energy lifeline for ever. He may want his name in the history books but his face will be forever missing.
There are also echoes in this set-up of the classic screen power walk but they fail at projecting either humanising bonhomie or the steely Churchillian Avengers Assemble mode they are aiming for. More like a Marvel comic clown-car of Zed list villains.
This is what you get when the Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight is let loose on the levers of power.
'The Normalisation of Mass Killing in Gaza : A Devastation and Political Survival'
In the past 24 hours, the Israeli military has killed 115 Palestinians in Gaza—and before the next morning, another 100 have fallen. This is no sudden flare-up. It is a calculated, prolonged campaign to crush resistance and prepare the ground for mass displacement once the political climate allows. What we are witnessing is not counterterrorism—it is ethnic cleansing, concealed behind the rhetoric of national security.
The unrelenting bloodshed has numbed global reaction. What should ignite outrage now barely registers—a fleeting headline, quickly buried. The systematic killing of Palestinians has been normalised, as if mass death were just another feature of daily life in Gaza. This desensitisation is no accident; it is strategic. Dehumanise the victims, deaden international attention, and proceed with impunity.
The Israeli government speaks of “a difficult day in Gaza” when a single soldier is killed—an obscene distortion of reality, as dozens of Palestinian civilians, including children, are being massacred daily without recognition, remorse, or restraint. For over two months, Gaza has faced a total siege—denied food, water, electricity, and medicine. This is not an oversight; it is calculated policy. Senior Israeli officials have publicly dehumanised Palestinians, declaring them “not human” and insisting “there are no innocents” in Gaza. This is not war. It is the systematic dismantling of a people, justified through the language of security.
For the Palestinian resistance, surrender is inconceivable. The logic is brutal but clear: every day brings fresh killings, demolished homes, and mass burials. Yielding would not halt the bloodshed—it would validate it. In the face of such sustained violence, defiance becomes a form of survival. If the cost of capitulation is erasure, then resistance, however deadly, is seen as the only dignified path left.
https://ejmagnier.com/2025/05/16/the-normalisation-of-mass-killing-in-gaza-a-devastation-and-political-survival/