Putin is thought to be testing how isolated Britain is after Brexit and he won't like the results

[Denzil_DC]

9. Unfortunately, the partisan point-scoring isn't confined to Labour supporters.

Last edited Mon Mar 19, 2018, 12:25 AM - Edit history (1)

You'll know well that I couldn't be classed as a Corbyn fan (and you should certainly know that I'm no Russia apologist), but this is the backdrop chosen for the BBC's flagship nightly news magazine earlier last week:



In response to widespread anger at what has been perceived as a blatant visual smear (and quite a sinister one at that) against the leader of the opposition simply for urging caution and waiting for evidence, the BBC's social media team has been on the defensive:

Link to tweet

BBC News Press Team
✔
@BBCNewsPR

This. And the programme didn’t ‘photoshop’ the hat either. …

Link to tweet

Salman Anwar @_SalmanAnwar

The Corbyn Moscow background is a standard background used by Newsnight. They used it a couple of months ago with Gavin Williamson. The claims of BBC Bias are absurd.

Oh, really?

Link to tweet

BBC News Press Team
✔
@BBCNewsPR
Replying to @ToryFibs

The photo was not altered. We often recycle backdrops when covering stories of a similar theme, in this case Russia, and will include an image of an individual if they are the focus of the story. Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson has also appeared over this backdrop previously.

Anti-Gamm❄️n @morelikewater

It's been photoshopped pic.twitter.com/Njo55kpf54

Did somebody say "conspiracy theory?

Link to tweet

Jo Maugham QC
✔
@JolyonMaugham

Just remembered I have a written message from a senior BBC bod explaining (unambiguously) that the BBC does code negative messages about Corbyn into its imagery.

Meanwhile, north of the border, despite Nicola Sturgeon quickly coming out firmly in support of May's actions, the Tories have been trying to make hay about the fact that Alec Salmond has an independently produced show that airs on Russia Today:



Other media are also experiencing "glitches":

Link to tweet

OffGuardian @OffGuardian0

LOL - @guardian opened comments on @jeremycorbyn’ s piece calling for sanity over Russia for about 10 mins, then slammed them shut when people began overwhelmingly endorsing him.

“Comments opened in error” they say. Yes, we can believe that. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/mar/15/salisbury-attack-conflict-britain-cold-war …

Link to tweet

OffGuardian @OffGuardian0

curious update here - even tho @guardian claimed comments were originally opened “in error” they actually RE-opened them several hours after our Tweet went out.

Only THIS time there was an army of anti-Corbynites ready to attack him....

Link to tweet

…

So far, as alleged vectors for delivery of the poison agent, we've had powder, liquid, something in a restaurant, car door handles, a suitcase, car air vents, their clothing, and yesterday's accepted narratives are today's debunked stories:



Much as I respect Lucas and agree with a lot of what she's written above, she's somewhat uncritical of May's response. On the basis of "Qui bono?", I'd say there's one winner out of the current situation:





The Tories would have sold your granny and mine (RIP) for photo ops like that during the last election.

To be clear, I'm not unhappy with sanctions against the mafia that the Tories have allowed/invited to take over swathes of the country, and I'd have liked to see them happen even without this attack, but I can't forget or excuse May's initial response, which was to threaten "a cyberattack", which is the sort of war where we'd be very quickly likely to come off worse.

And having ignored the accepted protocols for an incident like this, the administration was rather slow to enlist the procedures of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and supply the required samples. And their conduct is still inexplicable:

Tories block draft UN Security Council statement calling for ‘urgent and civilized’ investigation into Skripal poisoning attack

Following Theresa May’s statement in the House of Commons yesterday which explicitly apportioned blame onto Russia for the poisoning of Double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury last week, the British government have reportedly blocked a UN Security Council (UNSC) statement drafted by Russia which called for an "urgent and civilized" investigation "in line with OPCW standards" into the incident.

https://evolvepolitics.com/tories-block-draft-un-security-council-statement-calling-for-urgent-and-civilized-investigation-into-skripal-poisoning-attack/

Even if they mistrust UN procedures in this case, it's hard to see the problem in holding parallel investigations.

Meanwhile, in the fog of war, few are covering this aspect (which Lucas does clearly touch on above), though it has bubbled up in the media numerous times in the past:

Why does Putin treat Britain with disdain? He thinks he’s bought it.

“Londongrad” is the nickname, not entirely affectionate, that wealthy Russians have bestowed upon Britain’s capital. The term doesn’t just designate a physical place, though many Russians do indeed live here. Londongrad is more properly a state of mind — encompassing not only the nonresident owners of large houses in Kensington, but also the British institutions, banks, law firms, accountants, private schools, art galleries, and even the Conservative Party fundraisers that have gone out of their way to accommodate them.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/why-does-putin-treat-britain-with-disdain-he-thinks-hes-bought-it/2018/03/16/9f66a720-2951-11e8-874b-d517e912f125_story.html