At 9pm on channel 5 tonight you will have another chance to watch Michael Palin's visit to the DPRK (or North Korea as it's noscriptd).
This so-called travel documentary series is littered with atrocious moments and none more so than this little man's massive ego in the great socialist state of Korea.

Here's our critique on Palin's programme. If you do decide to watch them make sure you read this too.

https://classconsciousnessproject.blog/2023/06/19/western-exceptionalism/

Translation of above:
🗳 The year 2024 will be the "daddy of elections" around the world - such a number of elections in one year has never been recorded in world history: more than three dozen countries with a total population of four billion people will undergo to the popular voting procedure .

🇷🇺 First of all, Russia must be mentioned: the entire world will undoubtedly pay attention to the presidential elections on March 17. And although it is clear that there is no alternative to Vladimir Putin, with his percentage above 72%, as the winner, this is not what worries the world, but how and to what extent he can change Russia's foreign and domestic policy.

🇺🇸 But let's move on to other countries. At the top of the list is the US presidential election on November 5. The presidential race will be a repeat of 2020, with Joe Biden battling Donald Trump. Interest is greater, not because it will involve a wave of partisan reckoning, but because of the fear that it will lead to a decline in American hegemony in the world.

🇪🇺 The elections to the European Parliament are held from June 6 to 9. Citizens of the 27 EU countries will elect 720 parliamentarians who will serve from 2024 to 2029. More than 400 million Europeans have the right to vote, making the EU parliamentary elections the second largest in the world after those of India. Ursula von der Leyen has not yet announced whether she will run for a second five-year term.

🇮🇳 National elections in India, April-May 2024 The country of 1.4 billion people will elect members of the 18th national Parliament. Eight out of 10 Indians approve of Modi's management. And more importantly, the Indian economy is growing at 7%. On the other hand, Modi's government is harshly repressing opponents, imprisoning them while limiting the space for political debate.

🇲🇽 Mexican presidential elections, June 2. Mexico is likely to have its first female president next year. To replace President Manuel López Obrador, with a constitutionally limited approval rating of 66%, the ruling Morena party proposes Claudia Sheinbaum, former mayor of Mexico City and former ally of the President.

🇮🇩 General elections in Indonesia, February 14. The most ambitious logistical feat of the Indonesian CEC to date: the elections will be held in a single day in a country of 275 million inhabitants spread over 17,000 islands.

🇧🇪 Belgian elections, June 9. The slowest in the world. Belgium appears in the Guinness Book of Records as the country that has gone the longest without forming a government. Following the national elections in June 2010, it took Belgium 541 days, or almost eighteen months, to form a government due to fighting between Flemish and Walloons.

🇿🇦 General elections in South Africa, date yet to be determined. For the first time, independent candidates can run. The Democratic Alliance, the largest South African opposition party, hopes to seize power from the African National Union, led by President Cyril Ramaphosa with a rating of less than 50%. If that happens, there could be significant changes in South Africa's relationship with Russia and the BRICS.

🇵🇰 General elections in Pakistan, February 8. Pakistan has been mired in political instability for almost two years. This nuclear country of 230 million people narrowly avoided a catastrophic default on its foreign debt at the beginning of the year, with inflation reaching 30% and regular power outages.

🇹🇼 Presidential elections in Taiwan, January 13. The fight between three former mayors of the capital for the presidency could have enormous geopolitical implications. The acting vice president, Lai Ching-dae, of the Democratic Progressive Party, is the favorite of China, which prefers to support Kuomintang members Hou Yu and Ko Wen-je, founder of the Taiwan People's Party (TPP).

🇧🇩 General elections in Bangladesh, January 7. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the ruling Awami League have vigorously crushed any opposition, but the very fact that Bangladesh held elections is another testament that countries can hold elections without necessarily adhering to accepted democratic norms.

Ready to defend the glorious socialist homeland of Juche against US and world imperialism

A displaced woman from Gaza writes: "Here in this tent, we spend our entire day — my three siblings, my mother, my aunt, and her little son. This is our home, our kitchen, the place where we welcome guests, and the sleeping area for my siblings late into the night. Life here is the worst; it's filled with injustice, oppression, hunger, and psychological pressure. I would trade my life for a meal just to return to a corner of my warm home, to sit atop its wreckage and what remains of it."
#GazaVoice

Mass graves, grave questions: Britain’s secret Srebrenica role - The Grayzone
https://thegrayzone.com/2023/12/27/mass-graves-britains-srebrenica/

"Happy holidays!"
Soviet Union - 1946

Another Christmas in Liverpool marred by violence. It only feels like the other day we were mourning the death of Eva White, the 14 year old girl who was stabbed through the heart in the city centre and now another young person has suffered the same fate. A 21 year old male was attacked in Liverpool town centre at 5.30am on the 27th after a boxing day night out.

The city that has long been called left wing and/or socialist leaning suffers with extreme violence far too regularly. Tit for tat retaliations and drug related gang violence is prevalent throughout the city.

As communities and industries die, so does social morality. Capitalism breeds individualism and profiteering continues to rip the soul out of working class cities these killings will only get worse.

Here is a local scouser talking honestly about local feelings about these stabbings.

https://youtu.be/U8XbmZeuS4c?si=DZit-h1vi0J2LQ60

A Ukrainian teenager, draped in Nazi symbols, supports the installation of a menorah in the center of Kiev with the words “Israel is with us.”

Hundreds of Indonesian university students stormed a refugee shelter, forcefully evicting Rohingya refugees and demanding their immediate deportation. Footage showed Rohingya women and children being forced to sit on the ground in tears. At the same time, the mob trampled over their belongings and attempted to attack them. The students forced the 137 Rohingya refugees out of the temporary shelter and onto trucks ready to be deported.

The storming of the refugee shelter in the city of Banda Aceh marks just the latest incident in a string of attacks against the persecuted minority from Myanmar seeking refuge in Indonesia. The UN said that the attack was the result of a coordinated online campaign of misinformation and hate speech, as many residents claim the refugees take scarce resources and come into conflict with locals. More than 1,500 Rohingya refugees have arrived on the shores of Aceh since mid-November in what the UN says is their most significant influx in eight years.

Anti-Rohingya sentiment escalated in 2017 when the Muslim Rohingya population in Myanmar was the target of a genocide by the Myanmar military. The military killed more than 25,000 Rohingyas and forced over 700,000 to flee their homeland, with many seeking refuge in neighboring countries such as Bangladesh and India. With anti-Rohingya violence intensifying in those countries, many attempt deadly sea journeys to Malaysia and Indonesia, where they’re frequently met with the same discrimination.

As a result of ongoing persecution in Myanmar and anti-Rohingya sentiment growing across the region, many remain terrified and traumatized. The dire situation for the stateless Rohingya people leaves one to ask if they are the most persecuted minority in the world, as they are often described.

🟡 Join @theredstream

Israeli settlers attack Armenian protesters in the Armenian Quarter in the Old City of occupied Jerusalem.

🇫🇷🔥🇳🇪Niger Continues Process of Shaking off Chains of Colonialism🇳🇪🔥🇫🇷

Niger's military leaders have halted all collaboration with the International Organization of Francophone Nations (OIF), alleging its utilization as a tool to protect French interests.

As disclosed in a statement on Sunday, this choice arrives as the coup leaders persist in cutting connections with the ex-colonial power, which has consistently stated its non-recognition of them as Niamey's rightful authority.

The recent leaders of Niger have implemented various measures to sever connections with Paris following their assumption of power. These actions include the expulsion of French troops from Niamey, previously collaborating in combatting an Islamic insurgency in the Sahel.

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Syria to UN: Israeli assassination of Iranian advisor risks engulfing entire region

🔹Syria has condemned Israel's assassination of a senior member of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), who was serving as a military advisor in Damascus at the official invitation of the Arab government.

@PressTV - #Syria

🚨 Occupation forces launch tear gas at Palestinian worshippers in Wadi Al-Joz, #AlQuds, after preventing them from reaching Al-Aqsa Mosque to perform Friday prayers.

🇾🇪🇵🇸⚔🏴‍☠🇪🇺 Maersk Sea Shipping Company: Additional fees will be applied to goods imported from "Israel" for reservations starting January 8, 2024.

@stayfreeworld

🇮🇶🇨🇳 Iraq is considering increasing crude oil supplies to China by 50% to 150,000 bpd as part of its historic oil-for-project agreement

In 2019, Iraq signed a 20-year agreement to provide Chinese companies with 100,000 barrels of crude oil per day in exchange for support for projects in Iraq.

@stayfreeworld

"Global capitalism undoubtedly won a battle against the working class of the ex-socialist countries, but they were a defenseless people whom a deceitful leadership stripped of their weapons. Marxism-Leninism was not defeated in the “velvet revolutions” for the simple reason that it was not engaged in these fights."

Ludo Martens - The Velvet Counter Revolution