Tommy Cooper meets Queen Elizabeth

Tommy: ‘Do you think I was funny?’

Queen Elizabeth: ‘Yes Tommy.’

Tommy: ‘You really thought I was funny?’

Queen: ‘Yes of course I thought you were funny.’

Tommy: ‘Did the Queen-Mother think I was funny?’

Queen: ‘Yes, Tommy… we both thought you were funny.’

Tommy: ‘Do you mind if I ask you a personal question?’

Queen: ‘No… but I might not be able to give you a full answer.’

Tommy: ‘Do you like football?’

Queen: ‘Well not really.’

Tommy: ‘In that case… do you mind if I have your Cup Final tickets?

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Iran and the Bible: Podcast

The Bible seems like an unlikely place to find good advice on the conduct of a war in 2026 but nonetheless it is valuable. The David and Goliath story, 1 Samuel 17: 1-58, explains why the weak sometimes beat the strong. Goliath had over-confidence, David an asymmetric strategy.

The podcast is 3 minutes long  Iran and the Bible

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A time for brutal honesty?

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80 years of American military failure: Podcast

Since 1945 the Americans have fought a number of significant wars and either lost or drawn them all. There is no reason to believe that the war against Iran will have a different outcome.

This podcast is about 10 minutes long

80 years of American military failure – YouTube

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Why Japan became an economic superpower: Podcast

Japan was crushed in in 1945 and the Americans turned it into a colony. Douglas MacArthur became, in essence, a dictator. He wrote the Japanese constitution which included clauses enforcing pacifism. This had the unintended consequence of releasing capital for rebuilding Japan’s industrial base. This in the fullness of time meant they became an industrial superpower.

Japan: 1945 – YouTube This podcast is three minutes long

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Bombing always fails ~ Iran 2026: Podcast

This podcast discusses the attempt by Israel-USA to bomb Iran into acquiescence 

Bombing always fails

It is 3 minutes long

Addendum: Tokyo, March 1945

The ultimate example of failure was the obliteration of a major part of Tokyo. If you want to know more go to

Bombing Always Fails: Tokyo 1945 ~ No Surrender | Odeboyz’s Blog

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The Land of the Free?

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Black Lives Matter: Mississippi 1955

On April 5, 1955, four months before that petition was filed in Yazoo City, Mississippi Governor Hugh White signed the bill into law. It made it a crime for any white student to attend a public school alongside a Black student.

The penalty was a fine and up to six months in jail. The target was not white children, it was the idea that Black children had any right to be in the same room.

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Bombing Always Fails: Tokyo 1945 ~ No Surrender

In March 1945 the USA bombed Tokyo. They used incendiary bombs on a wooden city purposefully creating an inferno. The Japanese didn’t surrender. In August ‘A’ bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Pacific War ended shortly afterwards.

“Bombs dropped from 279 Boeing B-29 Superfortress heavy bombers burned out much of eastern Tokyo. More than 90,000 and possibly over 100,000 Japanese people were killed, mostly civilians, and one million were left homeless, making it the most destructive single air attack in human history.”1 (my emphasis)

The ‘A’ bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, “…killed between 150,000 and 246,000 people, most of whom were civilians…”2

Obliterating Tokyo through conventional bombing was, ‘normal’, unlike ‘A’ bombing. The Japanese didn’t understand what had happened at Hiroshima. It was incomprehensible to them that one bomb could obliterate a city. It was the ultimate terror weapon of mass destruction. The government was psychologically shattered and saw no option but to surrender. This occurred a few days later.

The novelty of ‘A’ bombs made the psychological difference. The USA’s victory wasn’t because of the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Bombing remained a strategic failure.

Addendum: Podcast ~ Iran 2026

This podcast discusses the policy of Israel-USA to bomb Iran into *regime change*

Bombing always fails It is 3 minutes long

Notes

Bombing of Tokyo (10 March 1945) – Wikipedia

Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki – Wikipedia The power figure of 150,000 is generally accepted nowadays with huge numbers injured. Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki ‑ Causes, Impact & Lives Lost | HISTORY

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Bob Dylan on politics and morality

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