Gordon Brown's Surprise Visit To Afghanistan

Is a clear indication that the country is still very dangerous.

I've probably said something like that before.

Unfairly Maligning The Eurofighter

There's a lot of discussion over British equipment in Afghanistan and a lot of criticism of the Eurofighter Typhoon, with critics describing it as an "interceptor" and a "Cold War relic".

Yet again, people don't bother to check their facts.

1. The Tranche 2 and Tranche 3 Typhoons are capable of doing air-to-ground operations just as well as the Tornado GR.4.
2. The Eurofighter is a Cold War design, true. So is the A-10, F-16, F-15 and the Harrier.
3. We're not going to be fighting Taliban-style enemies (i.e. air defence borderline non-existent) for the next 50 years. At some point we will be against someone with fighter aircraft and decent SAMs. In fact, we did that only a decade ago.
   
4. The Eurofighter is a highly capable air-to-air fighter, perhaps second only to the F-22. It can also self-escort.
   
5. We're not buying the original 232 planned anyway.
   

Daily Mail Headline Generator

Fun for all the left.

US Torture

I'll say one thing about this.

This isn't even in the top ten of human rights abuses committed by the US government.

89-3!

That's more like it!

The Fifth Test

Not doing too well are we?

Let's hope Flintoff is in form...

VJ Day

Today is the 64th anniversary of the Japanese surrender that ended World War Two.

May we never forget the sacrifice of US, British and Commonwealth soldiers in defeating another form of fascism in Asia.

New Layout

I've changed the layout, mostly because I like to do it every now and again.

What do you think?

France and Germany exit recession

France and Germany grew economically last quarter.

That said, a double-dip recession there and elsewhere is a real possibility.

Twenty Years On: The Cold War and Its Legacy, Introduction

Twenty years ago last month, Solidarity won a landslide victory in Polish elections that the Communists had tried to rig. The result was the collapse of communism across Eastern Europe and ultimately the fall of the USSR.

I've had a long interest in the Cold War, as those who play Covert-81 can clearly see. The period is hugely interesting.

I'd like to start this series by making something very clear to certain members of the left. The Cold War was not a time of peace by any means and having a challenger to the United States actually made things worse.

The Cold War was a time of war by proxy, most notably in Vietnam and Afghanistan, but also in Central America and Africa. Human rights mattered far less to either side than retaining or gaining allies.

I would not want to go back to that period, that's for sure

The Fourth Test

Not playing too well at the moment...

What's up with the wickets in this series anyway?

Hiroshima - 64 Years On

Today is the 64th anniversary of the single largest act of destruction of humans by their fellow humans.

As someone with a large knowledge of nuclear weapons and their effects, I have no desire to see any more nuclear weapons used in anger.

I hope that we can actually see some further reductions in global stockpiles in this coming year. Much of the US and Russian stockpile is storage and it is time to start destroying these weapons- along with all other nuclear weapons.