"knowing what should not be known"

posted by k

This is a very brief book review.
I have interrupted my summer holiday to urge anyone reading this blog to read Murder in Samarkand by Craig Murray.
Buy it, read it and, when you have read it, pass it on to a friend.

I thought I knew all I needed to know about the tortures and murders that go under the rather restrained title of "human rights violations". I didn't know the details - I still don't as some things were beyond the ability of Craig Murray to write.

I thought I knew enough about the hypocrisy of the British and American governments. I knew we connived at and colluded in torture but the cynicism with which the "guardians of freedom and democracy" have put their own interest above the desperate need for freedom, democracy and justice elsewhere remains a shock.

I thought I knew all I needed to know about the operations of international finance, the diplomatic service, the secret service and the British electoral system.
I didn't know nearly enough.

I didn't know that Bush, Blair and their supporters have been willing to encourage Stalinist state monopolies in exchange for unreliable information gained by raping children.

I didn't know about sophisticated bugs used on British dissidents, their families and friends.

I didn't know that a British minister got away with flagrant breaches of electoral law at the last election.

The book is easy to read. Its contents are unforgettable.

Craig Murray presents himself as a fallible human being - slightly pompous at times, eccentric and often careless of others' well-being. He wasn't a wild left-winger but a mildly liberal, hard-working civil servant who enjoyed his life of privilege.

He insists he isn't a hero. He's something far more important - a human being who saw a dreadful evil and tried to do what was right.

The world needs him - and many more like him.

Murder in Samarkand by Craig Murray - read it now!

(posted in an internet cafe, in great haste)