Normally we wouldn’t bother with a ’socialite’–who calls themself a ’socialite’ these days anyway?–allegedly involved in a ‘royal’ blackmail scandal, even if he has engaged the services of the lawyer who defended Harold Shipman, Slobodan Milošević, Saddam Hussein and Gary Glitter–now there’s a progression for you, not to mention precious column inches in the gutter press*–but then you see the photo, and think open goal.

A prime candidate to top a Charlie Brooker list of the TEN BIGGEST COCKS and SHE-COCKS in SOCIAL-CLIMBING. Considered individually, it’s not the hair, the chest, the shirt, or the tan which elevate him into this exalted category–although the glasses and the pose are both worth 100 points by themselves.

But there’s good news–he may be able to share a cell with his good mate, the posh twat otherwise known as Harry, who has attracted the attention of the constabulary over the wee matter of the untimely demise of 5% of Britain’s nesting pairs of hen harriers. Save the republican hen harriers! Give the parasite an ASBO!

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* The Torygraph reported that ’society insiders’ have ‘never heard of him’. That must sting.

I find little to disagree with in this Robert Fisk article (apart from the point that he lazily blames the US for supplying Saddam with gas, when evidence suggests Europe and others were the bigger culprits) .

I am going to find somewhere to lie down.

Reuters:

Iraqi authorities have set up more checkpoints to restrict the movement of Kurdish rebel fighters and cut supply lines to their mountain hideouts, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari said on Wednesday.

Zebari also said Iraq was making “intensive efforts” to free eight Turkish soldiers captured by guerrillas from the rebel Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in fighting in southern Turkey.

Down with reactionary terrorists and Turkish military cliques which endanger the Kurdish people and all they have fought for. Up with democratic Iraq and its diverse peoples working to create a secure nation!

With talk among UK academics of an academic boycott of Israel – or rather the obsession of a vocal group of lumpen pseudo-leftists and their supporters in the University and College Union – it’s good to see that German researchers are to consolidate their cooperation with Israeli scientists.

As of the beginning of next year, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Council) will assume responsibility from the education ministry for the German-Israeli Project Cooperation Programme (Deutsch-Israelische Projektkooperation). Under the programme, a number of collaborations are selected each year to receive funding for a five-year period. Thirty eight projects have been supported since the project’s inception in 1997.

Let’s have more of this please, and also increased European support for Palestinian academics.