Iraq - the things warmongers said

Now that Iraq is back in the western news headlines again, with calls for 'intervention' to counter ISIS, it's worth bearing in mind what the architects of the Iraq war and the cheerleaders for it said in the lead up and during the invasion about the 'threat' from Saddam's WMDs and how toppling a secular dictator would help the so-called 'war on terror' and bring peace and security to the region.

Do we really want to take these people's advice on what 'we' should do now in Iraq? Up to a million people have been killed since the illegal invasion and as critics predicted at the time, the war led to enormous chaos and instability and boosted radical Islamic extremism. By their own words, let the warmongers be damned.

You can read the whole of my piece from RT.com on the things that the warmongers said, here.

The Intelligent Punter's Guide to Wimbledon 2014

Last year it was game, set and match to our Intelligent Punter’s Guide to Wimbledon when we recommended bets on the men’s singles winner Andy Murray at 4-1 and identified Sabine Lisicki, the 80-1 shot who reached the women’s final, as one of the best outsiders in the tournament.

Who are the ace tips this year?

You can read the whole of my Intelligent Punter's Guide to Wimbledon 2014, here. 

'Ukrainian President is acting from position of weakness'

Above you can watch the latest interview with me on RT.
More here.

Tony Blair: How to be a serial warmonger

Being a warmongering NeoCon, and in particular being a warmongering NeoCon called Tony Blair, means never having to accept responsibility for the consequences of your actions.

What it does mean is shifting the blame on to others and trying to rewrite history.

You can read the whole of my new RT OpEdge comment piece on Tony Blair's serial warmongering and his attempts to rewrite history, here.

The Intelligent Punter's Guide to Royal Ascot 2014

Off to a flying start on the first day- you can read the latest IP Guide on how to beat the bookies here.
On the subject of horse racing, my piece on the 'mating game'- the lucrative business of breeding racehorses, is in today's Daily Express. You can read it here.  

The World Cup and a world of changes

My new piece for RT.com OpEdge

The 20th World Cup is upon us. The football World Cup is not only a great festival of sport – it also provides us with a snapshot of the world at the time the tournament takes place, and tells us much about the global political situation.

We can't – even if we’d like to – take politics out of sport, as sport does not exist in a vacuum.

Forty years ago for instance, in 1974, 16 countries participated in the World Cup held in a country (West Germany) which today doesn't officially exist. Two other competing countries – Yugoslavia and East Germany – don't exist either. And the only African country taking part, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, was Zaire not too long ago.

You can read the whole of the article here.

The Intelligent Punter's Guide to the 2014 World Cup

The World Cup finally kicks off at 9pm UK time on Thursday 12 June when the hosts, Brazil, take on Croatia. So, who should you be putting your money on to win the final on Sunday 13 July?

You can read my team-by-team guide to the 2014 World Cup here.

Crown and out? European monarchies change faces to fight for relevance

My new piece over at RT.com OpEdge on the future of Europe's monarchies.

The news that King Juan Carlos of Spain is to abdicate brings the subject of Europe’s hereditary monarchies and their survival in the 21st century once more into debate.

You can read the whole piece here.

The Intelligent Punter's Guide to the 2014 Epsom Derby

The Epsom Derby, the most famous race in the British flat racing calendar, worth £782,314 to the winner, takes place at 4pm on Saturday.

The annual contest for three-year-olds, run over one mile and four furlongs, has been won down the years by such illustrious names as Hyperion, Mill Reef and the ill-fated wonder-horse Shergar, who trounced his rivals by a record ten lengths back in 1981.

There are 16 runners to choose from. What should the intelligent punter be looking for?

You can read the whole of my IP Guide to the 2014 Epsom Derby here:

Ten lessons we've learnt from the European elections

There are many lessons to be learnt from the European election results. But whether Europe's spectacularly out-of-touch political and media elite do learn from them is a different thing altogether....

You can read the whole of my new piece for RT.com OpEdge on the European elections, here.