Fridayeveryday

24/02/2024

'ARMING ISRAEL IS ILLEGAL': TOP U.N. BODY
STATES WHICH SUPPLY weapons or ammunition to Israel for use in Gaza are breaking international laws and treaties, a top United Nations body said on Friday—and must stop immediately.
“States must accordingly refrain from transferring any weapon or ammunition – or parts for them – if it is expected, given the facts or past patterns of behaviour, that they would be used to violate international law,” said the Special Procedures group of the Human Rights Council.
Such weapons transfers violate the 1949 Geneva Conventions, customary international law, and a number of other treaties, said the body, which consists of a large number of legal specialists from multiple countries.
PROBLEM FOR ‘GLOBAL WEST’
The UN group’s statement is a problem for the United States and Germany, both of which supply large amounts of weaponry which have been used in Gaza—and both of which have increased exports to Israel since the attack by Hamas which killed about 1,200 people on October 7 last year.
Other nations exporting arms to Israel are France, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.
CRACKS IN UNITY
Although the group of nations supplying weapons used to kill Gaza citizens closely matches the list of nations known as “the global west”, there are cracks in the unity.
Belgium, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and the Japanese have backed away from exporting weapons to Israel – which responded to the October 7 attack with a program of destruction in which close to 100,000 people are believed to have been killed or maimed.
Palestinian records say 29,313 people in Gaza have been killed and 69,333 injured, the majority being women and children.
OTHER VIOLATIONS
The US and fellow suppliers of weapons are violating other laws too. The UN group noted that states which are parties to the Arms Trade Treaty have additional treaty obligations to deny arms exports if they “know” that the arms “would” be used to commit international crimes; or if there is an “overriding risk” that the arms transferred “could” be used to commit serious violations of international humanitarian law.
European Union member states are further bound by EU arms export control law, it added.
ARMS EXPORTS ‘MUST BE HALTED’
“The need for an arms embargo on Israel is heightened by the International Court of Justice’s ruling on 26 January 2024 that there is a plausible risk of genocide in Gaza and the continuing serious harm to civilians since then,” the Special Procedures group said.
The Genocide Convention of 1948 requires States’ parties to employ all means reasonably available to them to prevent genocide in another state as far as possible. “This necessitates halting arms exports in the present circumstances,” the experts said.
'IGNORANCE' NO EXCUSE
Nations supplying weapons to Israel cannot plead ignorance of the ultimate use of the weapons, the group added.
“Such transfers are prohibited even if the exporting State does not intend the arms to be used in violation of the law – or does not know with certainty that they would be used in such a way – as long as there is a clear risk,” it said in a statement.
While the statement from the Special Procedures group of the Human Rights Council is clear and unequivocal, it is unclear how much affect it will have. The United States and its main allies routinely ignore findings that they are violating international law.

22/02/2024

Chinese engineers are digging a tunnel to the land level of the Cretaceous era, 145 million years ago.

22/02/2024

Political systems in the west don't work, Europeans complain in a new poll released last night. Curious.

21/02/2024

Chinese New Year in this country is like Christmas in the west -- family members do their best to spend time together. When one trucker couldn't take a break, his wife went with him and brought her jiaozi-making gear

21/02/2024

This is a dragon incense burner: watch the smoke flow magically downwards. How come? Smoke is heavier than air but is usually lifted by heat. If you design the burner so that the smoke cools immediately, the smoke flows down like a slow liquid. Design: Loomlair

21/02/2024

US GREENLIGHTS CONTINUATION OF MASSACRE
THE U.S. LAST NIGHT GREENLIT the extension of the Gaza carnage by again vetoing a global call for a halt to the massacre that has seen 100,000 people dead or injured.
There was worldwide condemnation of the US move, with Zhang Jun, the Chinese ambassador to the United Nations, saying: “The continued passive avoidance of an immediate ceasefire is no different from giving a green light to the continued slaughter.”
THIS ONE’S DIFFERENT
Although this is the third time the US has blocked a global call for a ceasefire in the war which has seen two million people displaced and facing famine, last night’s veto was different for three reasons.
First, the US was abandoned by its usual allies in Europe, who voted or called for a ceasefire. Of the “big five”, China, France and Russia backed the call for a halt. Only the UK abstained, as it has done regularly.
Second, the veto came the same week the WSJ revealed that America has already sent enough missiles to the Israeli army to cover another 19 weeks of airstrikes in Gaza.
Third, the worldwide condemnation came on the eve of the US calling for international support for its UN motion against Russia, already sparking complaints of “double standards”.
That part of the debate is particularly contentious, since it is now widely known that Russia offered to end the war in Ukraine at least twice, but peace talks were rejected by the US.
HOSTAGE RELEASE
Chinese ambassador Zhang said that the world should work to prevent conflicts, because it was only by “extinguishing the fires of war in Gaza we can prevent the fires of hell from engulfing the entire region”.
When Israel brought up the issue of kidnapped hostages, other speakers pointed out that the US-vetoed resolution specifically included a demand for the release of all hostages.
Zhang responded to Israel by saying that the mother of one of the detained Israeli citizens, Noa, was once a China national. Recently, his country’s diplomats — at the request of Israel — met with Noa’s friends, he said, expressing hope that she would return home soon.
From the Chinese point of view, he added, collective punishment was wrong.

20/02/2024

This morning, I got two pieces of data, both about infrastructure, and was genuinely stunned.
Neither the US nor China are all good or all bad.
But the US must stop enabling the destruction of infrastructure in Gaza. And China must find a way to teach the world that building infrastructure to build friendships is a better path.

19/02/2024

Western countries are asking: "Why haven't all the Chinese tourists come back?" It's because they've found lots of other fabulous places to go--many of which are in their own country, says greatcn520, a popular TikTok voice.

19/02/2024

By David Sacks
The war in Ukraine is based on lies — lies about how it started, how it’s going, and how it will end.
We are told that Ukraine is winning when in fact it is losing.
We are told that the war makes NATO stronger when in fact it is depleting it.
We are told that Ukraine’s biggest problem is a lack of funds from the U.S. Congress when in fact the West can’t produce enough ammunition — a problem that will take years to fix.
We are told that Russia is suffering greater casualties when in fact Ukraine is running out of soldiers — another problem money can’t fix.
We are told that the world is with us when in fact the Global Majority believes U.S. policy is the height of folly.
We are told that there is no opportunity to make peace when in fact we have rejected multiple opportunities for a negotiated settlement.
We are told that if Ukraine keeps fighting, it will improve its negotiating position when in fact the terms will only get much worse than what was already available and rejected.
Nevertheless the lies will succeed in dragging out the war.
Congress will appropriate more funds.
Russia will take more territory.
Ukraine will mobilize more young men and women to feed into the meat grinder.
Discontent will mount.
Eventually there will be a crisis in Kiev and the Zelensky government will be toppled.
And then, when the war is finally lost, when the whole country lays in smoldering ruins on a funeral pyre of their own making, the liars will say “well, we tried.”
Having prevented any alternative, having smeared anyone who told the truth as puppets for the enemy, the liars will say: “We did our best. We stood up to Putin.”
In fact, they will claim, we would have succeeded but for the fifth column of Putin apologists who stabbed the Ukrainians in the back.
Then, having shifted blame and patted themselves on the back, they will blithely move on to the next war, as they moved onto Ukraine after their disasters in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The lies are comprehensive — but they will work.
David Sacks
The essay above was written by a well-known US venture capitalist. David Sacks wrote it yesterday and it has been viewed 1.8 million times. It started spreading even faster after billionaire Elon Musk added a one-word comment: “accurate”.
Others were inspired to look at the wider picture. Here’s US commentator Will Schryver: “We were also told that Russia is despised by most of the world, when the reality is that most of the world is now in open defiance against US global hegemony.”

19/02/2024

THE UK HAS THE WORST 5G service in the European region, a new survey revealed—thanks to the country’s decision to kick out their Chinese partners.
At a city level, London now has the worst 5G coverage of major cities in the region, said a study by internet and quality testing company MedUX. It has a sluggish download of just 143 Mbps, compared to 528 Mbps in Lisbon.
British carriers are also inferior at 5G to European operators in terms of network quality, the researchers added.
London has “the worst overall experience” and “the worst speed performance score in Europe,” the MedUX report said.
COSTLY POLITICAL GAMES

The downgrade in quality is traced back to 2020, when the British followed US orders to remove the world’s top-selling 5G equipment because it was made by Huawei, a company in Shenzhen, China.
The move has struck a heavy and long-lasting blow to UK tech users, not to mention the country’s taxpayers.
The UK public continues to be told that it was a security issue. “The UK began removing Huawei devices from its phone network in 2020 to defend national security,” Euroreporter said last week, echoing British mainstream media.
But this is not correct. UK scientists and spy agencies gave Huawei a clean bill of health, with no security issues—but were coerced into promising to remove it by the United States.
GERMANS STOOD UP

Vince Cable, a former British business secretary, revealed the truth in December 2021. “The reason we have disengaged from China and Huawei and 5G has got nothing to do with British national security,” Cable told a meeting. “It’s because we were told by the Americans that we had to.”
In contrast, other countries stood up for their people’s rights. The German leadership “took a view in their national interest” and “kept with 5G”, Cable said. “And if Britain had, we would now be at the forefront of countries using the most advanced telecommunications technology.”
Instead, the UK followed US orders, and the sad result is now clear.
COSTS ARE IN THE BILLIONS

The cost of removing and replacing the equipment is measured in billions of pounds sterling—but the cost of the delay caused by the operation is even greater.
A 2020 study by Martin Tripp Associates said that pushing back on Chinese technology would mean “a total loss to the UK economy of between £19bn and £36bn over the next five years”.

19/02/2024

For years, we've been told that China makes fentanyl, a deadly drug that is killing huge numbers of people in America. But it's not true. China was the first place to ban production. Opioids are now made in the Americas -- and increasingly exported to Asia-Pacific.

14/02/2024

"GO BACK TO HONG KONG"
Tensions over a Canadian drug addiction facility boiled over into racial tension on Monday. Many people opposing the move were from an Asian background—and were wrongly characterized as the source of Canada's drug problem.
“You’re what’s wrong with Canada. Go back to where you came from,” a woman can be heard in a video of the dispute, “Go back to Hong Kong.”
The scene was Richmond, a city in British Columbia, directly south of Vancouver, where people were meeting to discuss the opening of a supervised drug consumption site.
NOT FROM HONG KONG OR MAINLAND CHINA
The irony, of course, is that Hong Kong was taken from by western colonizers as "spoils of war", after a battle triggered by western insistence on being able to sell dangerous, addictive drugs in China.
But the really astounding fact is this: fentanyl is not from China. That’s a myth, although lots of people believe it.
The world’s biggest producer, distributor and consumer of fentanyl is the United States.
Gangs make it in the US (and in Canada) using precursor chemicals from various places around the world, a few of which sometimes come from mainland China--against China's own rules.
Hong Kong plays no part in the industry--except as a victim. In November last year, three kilos of fentanyl were smuggled from the US into Hong Kong, but the shipment was intercepted by Hong Kong authorities.
Gangs in Canada are also exporting fentanyl, particularly to Australia and New Zealand.

14/02/2024

FEARMONGERING ABOUT CHINA is having less effect on western populations than it was a year ago, said a new study released yesterday.
Instead, people in the west have become anxious about mass migration, Islam, and the environment.
China was seen more favorably this year than 12 months ago by all G-7 countries except for Canada and Japan. Russia, also, was less feared by the western public.
PUBLIC-GOVT SPLIT
There’s a sharp divergence between governments and public, according to the newly published Munich Security Index 2024.
Western governments want the public focused on external issues, particularly countries painted as “adversaries” by the United States, specifically China, Russia, Iran and North Korea.
But many people in the west have instead become concerned about internal problems such as immigration, cultural tensions, and climate change.
These are far more difficult to handle and divert attention from military spending and other methods of solidifying the power of the authorities in the face of an increasingly fractious citizenry.
MUSLIMS, CLIMATE CHANGE
There was a clear rise in negative attitudes towards radical Islam in Europe and North America, the authors of the study said. They attributed this to coverage of Gaza.
But one issue united every country except one. Respondents in almost all nations polled said the importance of working against an environmental crisis was a top three concern. The exception was the United States.
WESTERN SECURITY CONFERNECE
Organizers of the major annual Munich Security Conference, which starts this Friday, February 16, and lasts for two days, have put the two main headline-making conflicts at the top of the agenda – the fight between Russia and Ukraine, and the fighting in Gaza.
Efforts to further expand NATO, which increases weapons spending, is also a top line discussion topic.
But the organizers’ own survey shows that the western public is more concerned with borders, immigration, and cultural issues.
DECLINE OF THE WEST
In terms of governance and economy, the survey data shows that western public opinion is generally in agreement on certain topics, such as the decline in the power of the west, 13% of the world’s population, and the rise of power in the rest of humanity, particularly China.
These findings are stark, considering the built-in biases of the study. The 12,000-person survey focused on G-7 nations (the western countries and western ally Japan), plus China, India, Brazil and South Africa.
"ASIA FOR ASIANS"
The survey data was released with a summary which bizarrely presents the Chinese point of view, “Asia for Asians”, as a bad thing, interpreting this as Chinese leadership, and arguing that Asians themselves much prefer western protection in their region.
The report also paints the long string of US moves to stir up tension in the Taiwan Straits as a “response” to mainland China aggression, diametrically reversing the timeline.
THINGS WON’T GET BETTER
Western respondents generally believed that their country would be less secure and less wealthy in 10 years’ time (see graphic).
In contrast, residents of China and India were confident their governments would improve their lives in terms of finance and security in a decade.
The report notes that there exists a clear western movement away from global co-operation towards protectionist policies: a reference to steps defined by new US-generated terms such as “de-coupling”, “de-risking”, “friendshoring” and so on.
WATCH OUT FOR MORE FIGHTING
Things will not get better this year, the researchers said. On the contrary, more conflict, internal and external, will be triggered by the US election.
The election will boost the risks of “democratic backsliding, growing societal polarization, and rising right-wing populism”. This will cause further harm to the global cooperation that the world needs right now.
But despite the negative findings for world peace, participants at the annual security conference are expected to be upbeat. Weapons spending across the world is at an all-time high.
The full report can be downloaded from the Munich Security Conference website.

13/02/2024

The first TikTok post from Joe Biden, 81, said: "lol hey guys". I AM NOT MAKING THIS UP

10/02/2024

The hi-tech "drone dragons" in the sky these days are amazing to watch, says Friday's Nury Vittachi--but the ancient Chinese kites are even more stunning, as this video shows.

10/02/2024

A choreographer set out to recreate the appearance of koi fish in a Chinese garden lake last night. China's annual "Spring Festival Gala", which some statistics suggest is the most watched TV show in the world in terms of viewer numbers, featured an amazing dance.

08/02/2024

Most Asians know that Scots eat Haggis and Americans eat Turkey at their annual festivals, but few people around the world know the range of foods that Chinese to celebrate Chinese New Year

08/02/2024

08/02/2024

REBELS' THANK CHINA FOR STANDING WITH GAZA
International insurers are giving fat discounts to ships from Hong Kong and Mainland China as they take the Red Sea short cut to transit between east and west, Bloomberg reported yesterday.
But US and UK ships are being refused insurance completely, or have to get it from secondary sources at much higher rates.
Many captains say they have to take a long journey around Africa to reach their destinations, missing their delivery deadlines.
SLAUGHTER OF INNOCENTS
Insurers’ decisions strongly confirm the assertion that Houthi rebels, standing against the slaughter of innocents in Gaza, are genuinely targeting the countries supplying cash and weapons to the Israeli military—and giving a free pass to those who don’t.
Rebel leaders said Chinese vessels could pass freely, to reflect the country’s opposition to the killing of Palestinians – which now stand at 27,500, mostly women and children, according to sources accepted by the United Nations.
‘WE ARE CHINESE’
China, alongside the vast majority of the world’s population, has consistently voted at the United Nations for a halt to the massacre, in opposition to the US and the UK.
“The discounts would translate into savings of US$150,000 and US$400,000 for a transit of a vessel with a hull-and-machinery value of US$100 million,” said the Bloomberg report.
Ironically, the global ship insurance industry is headquartered in London.
At least 27 vessels are providing internet-available public identification data clearly promoting the fact that they have Chinese ownership and/ or crew.
[From Fridayeveryday]

07/02/2024

By Myra Adams
REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES often warn that America is declining, and that only they can stop its demise. Former President Donald Trump believes that the national decline halted during his term in office and will stop again when he is re-elected.
But five unmistakable signs of American decline have been gathering momentum for decades, through both Republican and Democratic administrations.
No president or party can solve these chronically intertwined, deep-rooted, systemic economic, political, societal and cultural problems.
Officials can only manage the decline and mitigate the impact.
1. UNCONTROLLABLE U.S. DEBT:
The U.S. Debt Clock displays the inevitability of American decline — a “ticking time bomb” of data and financial evidence — especially the following three:
i) The U.S. government’s total unfunded liabilities — the combined amount of payments promised without funds to recipients of Social Security, Medicare, federal employee pensions, veterans’ benefits and federal debt held by the public — stand at $212 trillion, and are rapidly increasing. For context, that number was just $122 trillion as recently as 2019 and is projected by the Debt Clock to reach $288.9 trillion by 2028.
That is an unimaginable amount of money — more than A QUARTER OF A QUADRILLION DOLLARS. When or if the government is forced to reduce payments, pensions or services to hold things together, or to default on its debt, the consequences will be brutal.
ii) The second ticking bomb is the U.S. debt. At $34 trillion, it has increased more than six-fold from $5.6 trillion in 2000. Of that $34 trillion, $731 billion has been accumulated through interest payments — the fourth-highest annual U.S. budget item. (If you are keeping score, the third-highest is $851 billion for Defense, exceeded by Social Security at $1.39 trillion and topped by Medicare-Medicaid at $1.72 trillion.)
Like an irresponsible credit card user, the federal government is perpetually borrowing more money to make the interest payments as they come due. And the interest payments on the newly refinanced debt will be much higher due to recent and significant rate-hikes.
iii) Finally, the $34 trillion national debt, as a percentage of the nation’s $27.8 trillion economy entails a debt-to-GDP ratio of 122.30 percent, headed to 150 percent by 2028. That’s up from 56 percent in 2000 and 36 percent in 1980. Don’t expect any meaningful discussions or solutions from either party about these three “bombs” as their timers tick away.
2. LOW STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT:
If our nation is to dig itself out of that harrowing debt trap, it will need successive generations of superstar students, armed with skills and creativity. Someday, they will invent and harness technologies to manufacture state-of-the-art products and related services, fueling an economic boom that boosts the GDP.
Unfortunately, the “Nation’s Report Card” does not hint at such an optimistic future. The National Assessment of Educational Progress, a congressionally mandated Education Department program that has assessed students since 1969, finds that only 29 percent of fourth graders and 20 percent of eighth graders are even proficient in math. Only 8 percent and 7 percent, respectively, are “advanced” at those levels.
Overall achievement had decreased in both reading and math compared to the already-disappointing numbers of 2019. So both before and after COVID, our education system appears to be losing the fight against national decline.
3. INCREASING INCOME AND WEALTH INEQUALITY:
Sub-par educational achievement will probably only increase the gap between the rich and poor. Moreover, it will shrink the once-vibrant middle class — the pride of post-war America.
Pew Research, conflating the ideas of “middle class” and “middle income,” recently found this vital group to have shrunk from 61 percent of households in 1971 to just 50 percent in 2021. Although a net increase in upper-income households accounted for most of this net decline of the middle class, the latter are still bringing in a disproportionately reduced percentage of the nation’s total income — down from 62 percent in 1971 to just 42 percent in 2021.
A clearer warning sign is the decrease in homeownership, long a benchmark of middle-class status, financial stability, and wealth-building. That is another reason the gap between rich and poor could keep widening as the government spends extra billions to fight poverty, contributing further to out-of-control debt and inevitable national decline.
4. LOSS OF AMERICAN IDENTITY AND PATRIOTISM:
The once-great American “melting pot” is an outdated concept for many Americans. Traditionally, immigrants with different languages and cultures assimilated and became distinctly American. The current trend is toward a heterogeneous culture.
Meanwhile, among non-white youth, adopting an American identity and even saluting the flag is considered “nationalistic,” representing an “old America” — predominately white, Christian, and inherently unequal.
Patriotism has declined, especially among more ethnically diverse 18 to 34-year-olds. That brings us to our rapidly changing population. No modern nation has ever experienced such dramatic demographic change, and already-increasing racial tensions could vastly accelerate, hastening national decline.
5. WIDESPREAD BELIEF THAT OUR POLITICAL SYSTEM IS BROKEN:
Americans’ disdain for the political system has been captured in numerous polls, showing voters are dissatisfied with a potential Biden-Trump rematch — “a uniquely horrible choice,” as the headline quote from one voter put it.
Team Trump is certain that only the former president can preserve democracy, save the nation from the southern border “invasion,” and stop President Biden’s “corruption,” along with the “weaponization” of his Justice Department.
Conversely, Democrats believe Biden will save democracy and the country from Trump, who will otherwise be an authoritarian ruler, shredding the Constitution.
So the political system is at least broken enough to lock in two flawed, unpopular candidates well past their prime and — along with all of the above — set America on a declining glide-path.
Let’s hope that whatever remains of American exceptionalism will triumph over and reverse the forces of decline.
Myra Adams served on the creative team of two presidential campaigns. This article was printed in The Hill on January 19, 2024

07/02/2024

Here's how to respond when people say Hong Kong's freedoms are gone

07/02/2024

CHINA SCIENTISTS ON TRACK FOR NEW CHIPS
Chinese scientists are on track to create their own advanced semiconductors before the end of this year, it was confirmed today.
The news follows the admission that the Taiwanese chipmaker that the US transplanted to Arizona in 2022 won’t be able to start making chips until 2025.
China’s national chip champions expect to make next-generation smartphone processors as early as this year, the Financial Times reported this morning.
The advances come from Huawei’s HiSilicon unit, but other Chinese firms are making progress too. The Academy of Military Sciences has been using an open-source standard known as RISC-V to reduce malfunctions in chips, Reuters reported on Monday.
Meanwhile, US attempts to use chipmakers from Vietnam, plus Taiwanese and South Korea firms transplanted to America, are running very slowly, popular Chinese media outlet Guancha reported last week.

IMMORAL POLICY
The US ordered companies worldwide to stop selling advanced chipmaking machines to China in 2022. It argued that the chips were for the Chinese military, but this was clearly untrue.
Specialists at US-based MIT indicated that more than 99 per cent of them were for ordinary, non-military development.
China still has hundreds of millions of poor people, and the country needs to continue developing for their sake. But the US is willing to sacrifice them to try to retain its place as sole global superpower.
USE IN MOBILE PHONES
The new Huawei chips have been sent to Chinese chipmaker SMIC, which hopes to produce them on new semiconductor production lines in Shanghai, according to two sources quoted by the Financial Times.
SMIC still has some imported equipment which will allow its scientists to make 5-nanometre chips. They will be sent back to Huawei for use in mobile phones.

RIVAL TO NVIDIA
The US restrictions have forced China to try to create replacements for top processors such as those it used to buy from Nvidia.
“Meanwhile, SMIC has increased its current 7nm production capacity to make more Kirin chips and AI GPUs, said two people familiar with the matter,” the Financial Times reported today. “Huawei’s 7nm Ascend 910b chip is considered by analysts and industry experts to be among the most promising alternatives to Nvidia’s AI processors.”
Despite this progress, the rich world is still ahead, with 3nm processors. Still, Chinese scientists are gradually closing the gap—and taking the moral high ground while they are at it.
US policies in this area have harmed numerous American companies, and analysts warn that Apple Inc is already being hit. China is Apple’s biggest market.
[Text: Fridayeveryday; image: Chip production line in Jiangsu by Xinhua]

06/02/2024

The small print of the new US$118 billion US bipartisan bill, covering wars and border security, includes cash set aside for the next war--against China

06/02/2024

WHY I THINK THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE SHOULD GO TO THE ISRAELI MILITARY
The title of this article is not a joke, nor is it clickbait. I have solid reasons with which to argue that it would be logical and fitting that the next Nobel Peace Prize should be given to the Israel Defence Force, better known as the IDF.
My argument is based on precedents, and the details are below.
1) The 2009 Nobel Peace Prize went to then U.S. President Barack Obama, who made ten times more “flying killer robot” air strikes than his predecessor to set a new record for high speed, high tech civilian deaths.
The IDF also uses air strikes to set new records for high speed, high tech civilian deaths.
2) The 2010 Nobel Peace Prize went to Liu Xiaobo, a passionate supporter of deadly American overseas interventionism, and who in particular cheered the catastrophic US wars in Vietnam, Korea, Afghanistan and Iraq.
The IDF also passionately supports deadly US overseas interventionism – particularly the delivery of literally tons of powerful wide-impact missiles for their own use.
3) The 2000 Nobel Peace Prize went to South Korean leader Kim Dae-jung for achieving peace and reconciliation with North Korea, although he achieved no such thing and his government was later revealed to have quietly paid the enemy to attend meetings.

The IDF also has no interest in peace and reconciliation, and Israel’s government has quietly provided resources to the IDF’s enemy.
4) The 2004 Nobel Peace Prize went to African activist Wangari Maathai who liked to share her view that there was plenty of evidence that HIV-AIDS was developed by scientists in order to depopulate Africa.
The IDF also makes frequent statements to the media while having a shaky grasp on evidence and truth.
5) The 2012 Nobel Peace Prize went to the European Union, a decision criticised by former awardees, as the EU was at the time promoting security based on military build-ups and the waging of wars, rather than by building positive diplomatic relationships.
The IDF also dismisses positive diplomacy in favor of military build-ups and the waging of wars.
6) The 1973 Nobel Peace Prize went jointly to Henry Kissinger and Le Duc Tho. Kissinger had arranged a secret bombing campaign of Cambodia (1969 to 1975) and several other campaigns that were clearly against any concept of morality, let alone international law. Le Duc Tho was in government in Vietnam during the Tet Offensive, when 25,000 civilians died.
The IDF has been and is currently involved with many, many acts which involve questions of morality and international law, plus massive numbers of civilian deaths.
7) Adolf Hi**er was nominated for (but not given) the 1939 Nobel Peace Prize. He was nominated by Swedish Parliamentarian Erik Christian Brandt, who later denied that he seriously wanted the prize given to man accused of being a dictator with genocidal intent.
The IDF has also been accused of being led by men who act like dictators and have repeatedly made statements that indicate genocidal intent, some of which they later denied.
A PERFECT FIT
Given the above arguments, it is clear that the IDF, or the men leading it, such as Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, or even Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, would fit very well into the list of people who have received the Noble Peace Prize.
As the above list shows (and I could have made it longer) there is plenty of evidence to show that the prize has long been bedevilled by politics to such an extent that it often cheers the opposite of what it was set up to celebrate.
Or perhaps we could make the argument the other way round. If there was one person in the twentieth century who actually did encapsulate the noble human desire to change the world for the better, while eschewing guns and bombs and disinformation, it was a man named Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi.
Mahatma Gandhi, for all he achieved, was never given the Nobel Peace Prize.
I rest my case.
[From Pearls and Irritations, Feb 6, 2024]

Not clickbait. Is it logical and fitting that the next Nobel Peace Prize should be given to the Israel Defence Force, better known as the IDF?