The war on ISIS.

[Biggles]

Patriotism often gets muddied into National Exceptionalism and people have no idea.

Either way Nationalism is easy to push in any country as it appeals to the human desire to be part of something.

Yes. The Western European democracies learnt a bitter lesson about the dangers of nationalism in the first half of the twentieth century. I think that there was a corresponding scepticism about nationalistic jingoism after the second world war. Unfortunately, enough time has passed that some people are forgetting those lessons.

 

[TenEightyOne]

Either way Nationalism is easy to push in any country as it appeals to the human desire to be part of something.

And by that dint separatism. I see there's no love at GTP for covering the separatist terrorist bomb outside a primary school in the UK today, but then white christian terror never hits the radar as much.

 

[VolkswagenX]

And by that dint separatism. I see there's no love at GTP for covering the separatist terrorist bomb outside a primary school in the UK today, but then white christian terror never hits the radar as much.

Maybe there is not enough profit in bombing white Christian nations for it to hit the radar.

 

[novcze]

Yes. The Western European democracies learnt a bitter lesson about the dangers of nationalism in the first half of the twentieth century. I think that there was a corresponding scepticism about nationalistic jingoism after the second world war. Unfortunately, enough time has passed that some people are forgetting those lessons.

Maybe it's not much about nationalism, maybe people only feel that governments no longer do things for the best interest of its citizens and want a change.

And by that dint separatism. I see there's no love at GTP for covering the separatist terrorist bomb outside a primary school in the UK today, but then white christian terror never hits the radar as much.

What separatist? Scottish?

 

[TenEightyOne]

What separatist? Scottish?

Northern Irish.

 

[BobK]

And by that dint separatism. I see there's no love at GTP for covering the separatist terrorist bomb outside a primary school in the UK today, but then white christian terror never hits the radar as much.

Maybe that's because (partly anyway) they weren't shouting "God is Great!"

 

[Johnnypenso]

And by that dint separatism. I see there's no love at GTP for covering the separatist terrorist bomb outside a primary school in the UK today, but then white christian terror never hits the radar as much.

Perhaps you can create the thread yourself and enlighten us with this scourge of terrorism in the name of Christianity engulfing the world when the authorities actually have some evidence beyond, "we believe" and an actual suspect in mind.

 

[Biggles]

Maybe it's not much about nationalism, maybe people only feel that governments no longer do things for the best interest of its citizens and want a change.

Maybe, but unfortunately the form that this often takes is ramping up nationalist sentiment & scape-goating "foreigners", whether it's Mexicans in the US, or Eastern Europeans in the UK. It's a slippery slope to the kind of rivalries & conflict that brought devastation to Europe in the first half of the twentieth century (& as recently as the 1990's in the Balkans).

 

[prisonermonkeys]

unfortunately the form that this often takes is ramping up nationalist sentiment & scape-goating "foreigners"

It's the weaponisation of values. If you invoke "national values", then anyone who doesn't observe the same values as you is the enemy. The irony is that there is not much differencr in "national values" from country to country. Our government recently announced that they would revise the citizenship test to place a greater emphasis on "national values". One of my friends was born and lived overseas for twenty-five years before she became a citizen, and the "national values" of her home country are practically identical to our. If there are any discernable differences, it's that she has one or two more. And no, she wasn't born in a western democracy.

I have to laugh every time a politician invokes "national values" as if they have some special significance that sets the home country apart from the rest of the world because 99% of the time, those "national values" aren't special at all - if you're observing them, then you pretty much meet all of the conditions for being a decent human being.

 

[IforceV8]

And by that dint separatism. I see there's no love at GTP for covering the separatist terrorist bomb outside a primary school in the UK today, but then white christian terror never hits the radar as much.

This story? http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/n...attempt-to-kill-police-officers-35646188.html Police were quick to assign blame but did they offer evidence other than their opinion? Did anybody ask follow-up questions asking how they came to that conclusion? Was any proof provided to back up the claims is was placed by dissident republicans or was this a photo op?

 

[TenEightyOne]

This story? http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/n...attempt-to-kill-police-officers-35646188.html Police were quick to assign blame but did they offer evidence other than their opinion? Did anybody ask follow-up questions asking how they came to that conclusion? Was any proof provided to back up the claims is was placed by dissident republicans or was this a photo op?

I suspect that you don't know the history of the UK with regards to Unionist/Republican terrorism. If it walks like a duck and blows up next to police cars like a duck and all that...

 

[IforceV8]

I suspect that you don't know the history of the UK with regards to Unionist/Republican terrorism. If it walks like a duck and blows up next to police cars like a duck and all that...

So believe us and take our word for it, you cant trust those people then...

 

[TenEightyOne]

So believe us and take our word for it, you cant trust those people then...

Nope, it just fits the pattern of their activities. It's a very well-educated guess.

 

[novcze]

Maybe, but unfortunately the form that this often takes is ramping up nationalist sentiment & scape-goating "foreigners", whether it's Mexicans in the US, or Eastern Europeans in the UK. It's a slippery slope to the kind of rivalries & conflict that brought devastation to Europe in the first half of the twentieth century (& as recently as the 1990's in the Balkans).

Fearmongering much?

Unfortunately parties offering a change have often nationalistic history and support from that crowd, but I don't see any potential European conflict on the horizon other than some people have a hard time accepting democratic process in their own country. (e.g. http://www.cscmediagroupus.com/aaron-lewis/antifa-clash-police-france-election-projected)

 

[IforceV8]

Nope, it just fits the pattern of their activities. It's a very well-educated guess.

 

[TenEightyOne]

What's your alternative guess based on the pattern of Republican terrorism in the UK since the 60s?

 

[Biggles]

Fearmongering much?

Unfortunately parties offering a change have often nationalistic history and support from that crowd, but I don't see any potential European conflict on the horizon other than some people have a hard time accepting democratic process in their own country. (e.g. http://www.cscmediagroupus.com/aaron-lewis/antifa-clash-police-france-election-projected)

Well, I'm interested to hear the perspective from the Czech Republic & I'm interested to hear why you think it's "fear-mongering". It actually happened between the factions of the former Yugoslavia very recently. And it's not a "potential conflict" - it's happening now in the Crimea & Ukraine. European international co-operation in the wake of the second world war led to an period of unprecedented peace & prosperity in Europe. It's not that hard to imagine international tensions & conflict re-emerging in the future as each nation seeks to pursue it's own nationalistic agenda.

 

[IforceV8]

What's your alternative guess based on the pattern of Republican terrorism in the UK since the 60s?

Based on the evidence given so far I dont have one, and why should I? No facts were provided and no claims were made. Show me some of those things and I will be properly outraged-or not.

 

[Johnnypenso]

What's your alternative guess based on the pattern of Republican terrorism in the UK since the 60s?

I try to limit my guessing to Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune. When it comes to life, death and terrorism I prefer to deal in facts and evidence. One wonders what your reaction would be if someone was putting forth Muslim radicals as the perpetrators of a given terrorist attack in the absence of any direct evidence. "One wonders" is rhetorical by the way.

 

[TenEightyOne]

Based on the evidence given so far I dont have one, and why should I? No facts were provided and no claims were made. Show me some of those things and I will be properly outraged-or not.

I try to limit my guessing to Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune. When it comes to life, death and terrorism I prefer to deal in facts and evidence. One wonders what your reaction would be if someone was putting forth Muslim radicals as the perpetrators of a given terrorist attack in the absence of any direct evidence.

The only direct evidence would be a claim of responsibility - that's something the dissidents rarely (if ever) do. PSNI are likely well aware of exactly who they're looking for as this isn't some distant organisation but one that lives in the very community with the inevitable moles.

It can't be lost on you that the bomb was outside Holy Cross school that sits on the edge of the border between a Catholic and Protestant area, that's exactly where such statements are made.

 

[novcze]

I'm interested to hear why you think it's "fear-mongering"

You hinted at WW events, thus Europe wide conflict, which is not going to happen, imo.

 

[Biggles]

You hinted at WW events, thus Europe wide conflict, which is not going to happen, imo.

I agree - Europe wide conflict is not likely to happen. But there are lots of underlying territorial disputes, ethnic/religious rivalries, economic clashes of interest - especially in central & eastern Europe. A lot of these have been kept under control by the pressure of conforming to "European standards". If the EU were to collapse, especially as a result of right-wing nationalist movements in a variety of different countries, I would not be surprised to see violence break out.

What I have a hard time understanding is why you would think "nationalism" is a positive impulse at all.

 

[Dotini]

What I have a hard time understanding is why you would think "nationalism" is a positive impulse at all.

Was nationalism a more "positive impulse" than feudalism, the system which it replaced?

Should we, on an impulse (who's?), throw down the system of nation states and replace it - with what? A global system that in many ways eerily resembles feudalism?

 

[prisonermonkeys]

The French say they have proof the Assad regime was behind the chemical attack:

http://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2017-04-27/france-tests-show-syria-behind-chemical-attack/8474428

According to French intelligence agencies, samples collected from the site match the chemical signature of sarin manufactured by the regime.

 

[Rage Racer]

"Chemical signature"... what? As a chemist, I'd like to know what they mean by this. The phosphorus atoms had Assad's autograph on them?..

 

[prisonermonkeys]

"Chemical signature"... what? As a chemist, I'd like to know what they mean by this. The phosphorus atoms had Assad's autograph on them?..

I assume it means that everyone who makes it makes it slightly differently to everyone else, so the exact concentration of ingredients will be unique to the laboratory that made it.

 

[DLR_Mysterion]

I see there's no love at GTP for covering the arrest of a knife wielding terrorist in Westminster today or the shooting during an anti terror raid foiling an active terror plot, but then brown muslim terror never hits the radar as much.

http://www.breitbart.com/london/201...t-down-whitehall-knives-and-suspect-rucksack/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/201...-arrest-four-counter-terror-operation-across/

 

[UKMikey]

I see there's no love at GTP for covering the arrest of a knife wielding terrorist in Westminster today or the shooting during an anti terror raid foiling an active terror plot, but then brown muslim terror never hits the radar as much.

http://www.breitbart.com/london/201...t-down-whitehall-knives-and-suspect-rucksack/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/201...-arrest-four-counter-terror-operation-across/

Hits whose radar? It made the national headlines. I kind of doubt the opinion of a motoring video game fan website'd make a great deal of difference, either way.

 

[DLR_Mysterion]

Hits whose radar? It made the national headlines. I kind of doubt the opinion of a motoring video game fan website'd make a great deal of difference, either way.

It was more a joke aimed at an earlier post

 

[Johnnypenso]

I see there's no love at GTP for covering the arrest of a knife wielding terrorist in Westminster today or the shooting during an anti terror raid foiling an active terror plot, but then brown muslim terror never hits the radar as much.

http://www.breitbart.com/london/201...t-down-whitehall-knives-and-suspect-rucksack/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/201...-arrest-four-counter-terror-operation-across/

Hurr durr it's Breitbart so I'm going to pretend it doesn't exist!