Mood:  rushed

Author’s general introductory note  

This is not a well packaged story. It’s a contemporaneous traverse of the Sunday television free to air political talkies indicating the agenda of Establishment interests: Better to know ones rivals and allies  in Big Politics and Big Media. 

For actual transcripts and/or video feeds go to the programme web sites quoted including Riley Diary on 7. And note transcripts don’t really give you the image content value.

Other sources of pollie talkies on Sunday include SkyNews paytv Sunday Agenda, Radio National Monica Attard Sunday Profile show. And of course Sunday night shows SBS Dateline, Sixty Minutes and now Sunday Tonight on 7.  

Posted by editor at 12:54 PM NZT

Updated: Sunday, 26 July 2009 1:05 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  sharp

We have been following the Redgum conservation campaign for some months now: Here are images from our story:

Wednesday, 31 December 2008

Redgum forest decision in Victoria: Time for complementary NSW protection by Minister Ian Macdonald
Topic: nsw govt

Now we look at the record of past forest decisions to get a grasp of what we can expect from the brown ALP in NSW

Picture explanation: What's in a map? This is a secret map the Carr Govt didn't mean to release back in 1999, quite tatttered now after various relocations by the SAM editor. It was obtained from a friendly NSW Resource and Conservation Assessment Council (RACAC) staffer in early 1999 who quickly sought it back but we refused. Viewed with an informed eye it reveals just how hyperbolic Carr's oft boasted 'big national park decisions' actually is.

The final maps publicly released for the Upper, Lower and Eden forest regions don't have this colour detail as above. In the public version they merge the new reserves with the old park reservations to make them look bigger (see for example Upper NE map immediately below). 

Note in the map above carefully the purple/maroon area which shows the actual new national parks by Bob Carr in 1998-9. They are minimal compared to the light green logging areas effectively privatised for 20 years out of public land.

Don't be misled by the dark green areas above. These were parks created by other governments - decades and decades earlier in recognition of the 80 million hectare area of NSW majority cleared and degraded. 

The question has to be asked "Did Carr release more forest for destruction (private logging areas out of public forest) than he saved (new national park)?" The answer must be yes. Current premier Nathan Rees has a very low standard to improve on the record of  Bob Carr in his recent exhortations to save the redgum forests of the Murray Darling River.

Significantly Rees' current chief of staff GraemeWedderburn was also in that role for Bob Carr in 1998-99 and presumably in on the political deceit on the public interest back then.

Simon Santow ran some stories in the ABC radio news yesterday and on flagship World Today as here:

The World Today - Push to save river red gum forests 24/07/2009

The story was spinning off the article about, and opinion piece by, ex NSW premier Bob "akimbo" Carr in the Sydney Morning Herald both front page and opinion piece column:

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/logging-river-red-gums-is-environmental-vandalism-not-job-creation-20090723-duum.html

 and front page here:

A word of advice: Carr tells Rees to save Riverina red gums

And the story is evolving already suggesting an ALP set piece choreography with advance notice to the ALP Govt of the SMH profile pieces:

Rees bows to pressure to stop logging 24 Jul 2009

It's sound politics for the NSW ALP no doubt given Verity Firth MP (ALP) is looking very shaky in her inner west seat of Balmain from so called 'blue' Green Mayor Jamie Parker: A description of Parker by News Corp's Imre Salusinszky, not understanding that Parker (marketing student and promoter of Horny Goatweed in your local ColesWorth supermarket) has always been an adoptee or at the least close ally of 'red Green' Lee Rhiannon MP since his Macquarie University student politician days.

(We well remember meeting Jamie in Rhiannon's parliamentary office foyer years ago and noting a precocious, impertinent, brash and talented individual. We decided to quit the party soon after.)

But News Corp know how to kick the ALP. As the Chinese say, everyone likes to push a falling wall.

 

Being such an accomplished spruiker Carr's Herald foray almost had this writer forgetting the ex premier's real record on forests in 1998 and 1999. How Carr protected:

'only 1/4 of the scientifically assessed areas deserving protection and under threat' according to Dailan Pugh of North East Forest Alliance (see Pugh's report of his below in late 1998).

Here is a sample of green NGO reactions we collected at the time knowing the historical accuracy and significance in the face of a tax payer funded PR machine:

Pugh was also recently quoted in the Australian Weekend colour magazine profile of current federal Climate Change Minister Penny Wong, then a policy adviser on forests to Carr Govt in NSW. He repeated the lowly 1/4  protection figure of true area demanded by the science in NSW. Wong then bailed out to become a South Australian senator, perhaps also knowing the truth would eventually come out in NSW about the forest fraud?

Indeed Carr has always been a dodgy and unreliable voice on the so callled 'programmatic specificity' of government policy. Not just integrity of forest conservation decisions. Famously he banned web archiving of his government press releases.

With a web archive people soon realise how maps of forests conflate publicly owned native forests into "Native forest and hardwood plantation" as per Upper North East publicly released RFA map (above): In other words conversion of public estate to agri industry corporate profit. All in a days work for the now Macquarie Bank consultant ex premier Bob Carr: He may well be a keen bushwalker but at some point like his political recruit Peter Garrett now minister at federal level he not only sold out the green agenda but started to believe his own bullsh*t too.

This is the first time these secretly obtained maps from the government's own RACAC have been (web) published. Also note RACAC itself is a rip off of the earlier Coaliton/Fahey Govt NRAC - Natural Resource Audit Council  of 1993-4. This gives you the clue of the brown ALP agenda from the beginning.

The secret maps show, particularly via the maroon colour new conservation areas versus light green logging areas, Carr simply foreclosed on any future protections with 20 year logging guarantees. And he has the chutzpah to call that being green. Certainly his strategy harvested green votes via cunning tax payer funded advertising but it wasn't a real green policy outcome, and the maps and credible commentary prove it.

Let the reader judge just how hyperbolic those '300 new national parks I created ... no one could have done more' claims by Bob Carr on radio yesterday 24 July 2009 actually amount to. Such statistical games are only really of any sense taken in context of nationally and statewide only 20% forest landcover in 1788, down to 10% land cover now, with barely 1/10 of that which actually remains intact mature forest critical to wildlife. The highly mechanised logging and agricultural industries have been taken their toll. 

Tragically Carr only manages to parade his 300 national parks by airbrushing from history the far greater area of forest he effectively privatised. That's just another reason why he was embraced by Macquarie Bank as a consultant within months of being forced from office under pressure of devastating polls in 2005.

Ironically now the caravan has moved to west of the Great Divide Carr's and the Sydney Morning Herald's postures on saving redgum forests are indeed valid and important. The two main NGO groups associated - The Wilderness Society and NSW National Parks Association - are quite justified in leveraging the exhortations of Carr as a loyal ALP public figure.

But those of us with longer experience and more probing analysis of green and national politics well understand Carr's posture has more to do with:

• Carr papering over his own dodgy environmental record, and perhaps desire for redemption at various times;
• the flurry of attacks this last week on federal brand ALP minister Peter Garrett and his shredded green credentials - recruited by Bob Carr in the first place after green group scathing repudiations of Carr in 1998-99;
• the electoral bleeding of inner west ALP MP's like Verity Firth, and also to some degree Carmel Tebbutt.

Now this writer has the web publishing capacity much of this pre google material can now by made accessible.

Here is the remainder of the maps available at that time, indicating the relatively minor additions by Carr in maroon colour, the much more extensive dedicated logging areas in light green with repeal of iconic environmental legislation, and below that the scathing reportage of Dailan Pugh in 1998-9, important as Pugh was embraced by the Carr Govt and a green NGO appointee on RACAC itself. Groups with far more democratic base like The Wilderness Society were simply frozen out. Note too how a scathing statement of Carr as "sell out" reference by Pugh below becomes a lesser rhetorical question in lobbying document to the NSW Teachers Federation.

Picture (above): Notably absent from the line up at this icon event was one Peter Garrett because it would involve criticising ALP premier Bob Carr

In conclusion, one can safely assume that the rate of native forest destruction in NSW, including high conservation value forest has not reduced at all since Bob Carr's 'big national parks decision of 1998-99. And the additions to his national parks since - for example 65,000 ha in the 2003 election campaign - do not alter the general position. Increased intensity of logging in State Forests, and on private land, has resulted in the destruction of millions of individual rare and endangered wildlife.  When you deconstruct the spin current premier Nathan Rees could hardly do worse than Premier Bob Carr when it comes to ecologically sustainable logging policies or conservation as in the case of the redgum forests and may God have mercy on them now.

Famously politicians like Bob Carr in 1994 find it easy to be green in Opposition but can't be trusted. Notice similarly with these ALP politicians pre 2007 federal election namely Garrett and Albanese, later in lock step to support a Gunns plan for a massive pulp mill of Old Growth forests in Tasmania.

Nathan Rees though premier of NSW is in effect an ALP politician in Opposition posturing on green policy too, but the implementation will need extreme levels of scrutiny.

Posted by editor at 12:51 PM NZT

Updated: Sunday, 26 July 2009 12:08 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  sad

We had cause to respond to a recent abc radio interview with police calling for any points of information 'no matter how trivial' on this horrific family murder in North Epping.

Previously we speculated quietly on a crikey.com.au string regarding street violence on whether there was a racial motive. Next day we rang crimestoppers with a speculation about this relating to an ethnic run business in the Hills district about an hour's drive away, and the unsolved fire disaster at a Glebe Budhist temple inner Sydney in early 2008.

Another variation on that might be a ruthless protection racket perhaps by Triad organised crime (?).

First the Glebe temple here:

Burnt out ... fire has damaged Sydney's oldest Chinese temple.
Photo: Andrew Meares

This image from the Sydney Morning Herald was lifted in our piece back in early 2008:

"In particular we were interested in several coincidences: One is this ugly fire attack in neighbouring Glebe of a Chinese Temple which actually is only about 1 km away and only a week before hand, as per Sydney Morning Herald Jan. 31st reportage (we know this Temple too which is a very nice serene place) in

Wednesday, 6 February 2008

Chicken shop explosion calls up range of possible motives
Mood:  quizzical
Topic: local news

We notice today a Budhist ceremony for the dead family in North Epping as reported in the Sydney Daily Telegraph today 25 July 2009. We draw no conclusions from that religous link either way. We just don't know.

Later that day senior police on ABC tv prime time news stated there is no evidence of racial motivations for this horrific murders.

Now we come to this other unsolved crime, self explanatory public poster here at an ethnic business perhaps an hour's drive from North Epping:

Posted by editor at 11:53 AM NZT

Updated: Saturday, 25 July 2009 11:59 AM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  party time!

 

 

No horizon - no borderline

Too far away to know or define

Sweet wonderland.

Empty playground - drenched in sorrow

The forest weeps last harvest tomorrow

Sweet wonderland.

 

Made in Japan

The pleasure boats are leaving

But there's nowhere to go

Into time-on, only minutes left

Hear the whistle blow

Sweet wonderland.

 

Dream of the future - forget about the past

I'll sell you something - you think it's gonna last

Sweet wonderland

Give away your riches - give away your gold

Ghost nation's soul can never be sold.

 Ghost nation by Hunters and Collectors

Author’s general introductory note  

This is not a well packaged story. It’s a contemporaneous traverse of the Sunday television free to air political talkies indicating the agenda of Establishment interests: Better to know ones rivals and allies  in Big Politics and Big Media. 

For actual transcripts and/or video feeds go to the programme web sites quoted including Riley Diary on 7. And note transcripts don’t really give you the image content value.

Other sources of pollie talkies on Sunday include SkyNews paytv Sunday Agenda, Radio National Monica Attard Sunday Profile show. And of course Sunday night shows SBS Dateline, Sixty Minutes and now Sunday Tonight on 7.  

Picture: The headlines regarding PM's spouse Therese Rein stories are the 'tell' so to speak. Can you spot them? Notice the Peter Garrett song title "power and the passion" in one, and the even more blatant reference to "burn the midnight oil" referring indirectly to Garrett's rock band Midnight Oil. Yet they are stories about Rein are they not? Or rather a banal distraction from the real topic of news being Peter Garrett's hypocrisy on uranium mining which otherwise would dominate. We here at SAM recall hearing on radio of Garrett driving a Peugeot 504 model back in the early 70ies as a surfer dude. At that time a late model European car: A man grows accustomed to a certain standard of living at an early age, even a minister's wage especially with daughters to support.

  Media backgrounders 

* Minister Garrett the rock dinosaur hits the wall over his ALP sellout on green issues revealed by general cartoon coverage more in sadness than anger. And despite such as Annabel Crabb prime Saturday Fairfax acreage trying to portray him as an endangered whale. Au contraire – dinosaur not whale, and indeed predator dinosaur as per 2006 electioneering smear on The Greens in Melbourne. Too easy to the poor guy attack she implies. No, quite painful to attack given he’s effectively rolled back the 1996 consensus of the national green movement that the ALP are bankrupt on the environment - then under Keating - and to invest in an independent Green Party.  

Garrett has in reality been sabotaging the green movement for 13 years and deserves no sympathy for his vanity. And Crabb noticeably omits the reality from her own high paid perch that the millionaire rockstar gets well paid to take ‘the knocks’. And all that access and flattery and ministerial trappings. Front man ego regardless of the facts. And Big Media allies can’t spin that. 

*  It’s not just Garrett’s uranium mining backflip. His own Sydney ACF branch activists through the 1990ies never trusted him on woodchipping of forests here in NSW or Tasmania  etc. People like life long campaigners Noel Plumb, Margaret Barnes, Bruce Dover (RIP) to name only a few. Garrett refused to attend a Big Forest Meeting attended by Senator Bob Brown at Sydney Town Hall along the theme of ‘resurgence’ (crowd of 1,500). What an insult. Fact is Garrett was an apologist for the Carr ALP and nationally over 10 years ago. All this was airbrushed by Garrett’s self serving ngo Mittagong Forums of selective naive green group invites over several years no doubt picking their brains for the harvest by the ALP mates. 

* Laurie Oakes by coincidence in Saturday column refers to the Mal Meninga option of being too honest to work for an anti green ALP. We made a similar "Mal Meninga" comment of a personal heartfelt note below (see Bernard Keane crikey backgrounder): 

* In another ripple/echo effect of blogger SAM to big media or possibly back (?), we ran a 1998 picture of Garrett talking to a man in a dress from scrurrilous NT News . Then we saw superlative David Rowe putting Rudd in dress in his AFR cartoon. Our post was on Wednesday last, here http://www.sydneyalternativemedia.com/blog/index.blog/1926532/confused-minister-garrett-captured-by-nt-news-back-in-1998/ 

Not sure which came first in the cross dressing confusion theme. Both images are as they say "highly disturbing". 

* Garrett was not the only rock star surfing the protest movement in the 1990ies and arguably not the best – see Hunters & Collectors song above transparently about the Eden chipmill 100% Japanese owned for customers in that country for their cartoon book paper industry.

Similarly Sting attended the South East Forest protests (most arrests in Australian history) from famous band The Police in the early 1990ies. We may even have a picture of that too somewhere. 

* As if the underline the insincere ALP choreography on green issues Nathan Rees gets a platform at the (Climate Institute sponsored) Youth Climate summit held at the UTS. CI itself was seed funded by ex ALP premier Bob Carr, with the Youth Summit holding a video link cross to famous Al Gore, who next day in a news conference is chaperoned by Don Henry leader of Australian Conservation Foundation, with ACF the incubator for … Peter Garrett profile build and Mittagong Forums of greenies up to a federal seat and ministerial perch in this ALP Govt. Nice work if you can get it.

Fact is the Green Party, Greenpeace, The Wilderness Society and some grassroots groups (like say Chipstop at Bega) or Botany Bay & Catchment Alliance are the only independent green groups in the south east of the country in the sense that they are unaligned to either major brown party – Liberal-National Coalition or Labor Party in Government.  

* Curiously Crikey.com.au’s Bernard Keane has a story defending Garrett http://www.crikey.com.au/2009/07/16/leave-peter-garrett-alone but what was most worring was undeclared ex PM Keating ALP staffer Simon Baulderstone on the comment string stridently trying to defend Garrett. Tsk tsk. Fact is Baulderstone worked for Keating 95-96 on environment policy when the green groups abaondoned the ALP over destruction of the best forests in the country. It takes three attempts to expose Baulderstone’s provenance on the string and only then by quoting a crikey 2004 story.

Keane responds that moderation has nothing to do with him and we of course accept him at his word. Why did it take three tries I wonder and who prevented those earlier posts?  Baulderstone replies with supreme chutzpah that so what if he didn't declare his ALP connections at the highest level, including former staffer for Garrett himself.

One only of our comments there re Garrett: 

I’ve been mulling over what’s different between crome dome and myself after all we both went to Ursula College at ANU, though I doubt he’s on a gluten free diet.I’ve thought a bit about this recently: It was 1997 or 98 in the teeth of the first Howard Govt. I still had leverage with the peak green groups in NSW after the close election victory back in 1995. I drafted a statement attacking Howard’s woodchipping policies for the state greens network NEFA, SEFA, all the peak groups including [TWS] TEC, NPA, NSW NCC, FOE, ACF etc. I still have a copy somewhere.

[here it is

 

It was delivered in front of Howard’s electorate office, when Gunns was not even a glint in Paul Lennon’s eye, with a briefcase of woodchips for the occasion. The assembled media pack was quite big, press, electronic, some tv too. And it struck me in front of that crowd like a blinding light - that the only benefactors of this stunt was the ALP with an equally open slather pro woodchipping policy courtesy of Paul Keating (verus Deferred Forest Areas debacle 1995-96 monstering Minister John Faulkner).

I chucked it right there in front of the Big Media. Cleaned up the woodchips and walked away - the plan was an ostentatious arrest in front of the media throng with senior coppers on hand. No problem arrested many times before. Matthew Moore current FoI editor at Fairfax wrote back then an icily contemptuous comment piece about pity the trees for such ineffectual protest action. But he didn’t understand in his reptilian way that like Mal Meninga I just couldn’t do it - that is effectively be a political sl*t for the ALP.

Too good a memory of Paul Keating killing forests and too many principles.That’s the difference.  

* As if fully aware of Garrett’s credibility gap, as a figleaf for an anti green government as they expand coal mining nationally, the ALP Machine seemingly rolls out Therese Rein choreography as distraction. Trouble is PM Rudd/spouse Rein only have one roll of that spin dice and its expended, and the story isn't very interesting or appealing. Comes across more like her ruthless political husband than not. References to her family culture of a Forgettery are profound given prissy Christians ability to be selective. Like the eye of the needle/camel instruction of Jesus Christ. How to be a Christian and forget you are a multi millionaire. Oh please.

Also reveals Rudd only sleeps 3 or 4 hours a night and has always been like that. Which suggests the guy is a psychological timebomb and no wonder he had heart problems at only mid 30ies. 

* As written several times now recently, the only mitigation in the Garrett green movement sabotage story is that ex PM Howard was very likely to pursue dual use nuke power and weaponry either indirectly via US base say at Christmas Island (after Garcia Del Fuego handback?) or directly (eg report of navy lobby want nuke subs here now).  Also that the ALP were the only likely removal mechanism of Howard. On the other hand if Garrett was a NSW Greens senator today he would have balance of power in place of redneck Steve Fielding of the creationist Assembly of God demographics. 

* Bob Carr opinion piece against writers cultural/copyright protections in News Corp The Australian – with no declaration that he represents big corporate Dymock booksellers. That’s corrupt news presentation and dishonesty (again?) of Carr too not to declare?? 

* Dual broadsheet coverage and glossy mag coverage of millionaire spouse to PM Rudd Therese Rein. Preferred access to Annabel Crabb Fairfax, and Kate Legge News Corporation. She appears as just another ALP gap filler in the 24 hour news cycle. Which itself has been made redundant by the bombing in Jakarta on Friday and blown her (bad pun) off the news cycle anyway. Squandered political capital.  

* Environmental politics has always had a sleazy underbelly in NSW. At one point Ian Cohen MLC (Green Party) said to this writer about 7 years back along the lines of 'What's going on at NCC? [NSW Nature Conservation Council umbrella body for their registered green groups about 140 or so, not Greenpeace and some others though]. I just won't work with them anymore. That's it.'

On another occasion a former Herald journalist mid 90ies said the NCC 'has always been corrupt'.

Our first real wake up call about that body - which to be fair has new personnel and probably values today - was a breakfast meeting with Premier John Fahey and Cabinet colleagues prefacing an announcement weeks later of a measly 113K out of possible 750K endangered wilderness (in context of 80M ha statewide) in 1994. We represented The Wilderness Society. There was NCC leadership at the breakfast too who had not raised a finger on wilderness protection unlike The Wilderness Society, or Keith Muir at Colong Foundation. We had no notice they would be there. Even National Parks Association had done very little. After 3 years on the job I was asking myself who are these people [from NCC]?

During this period it seemed quite simple to campaign against the redneck Lib-Nat Coalition and in effect give defacto support to the Carr ALP Opposition.

However the late 90ies just how sleazy the ALP could be became apparent. The Carr Govt instituted a 400K grant scheme to winnow out the friendlies from the independent minded critics in the green movement. What Milo Dunphy called duchessing. This writer decidedly in the latter critical camp. All our grim policy predictions came true but NCC were happy to take the $50K cheque every 6 months regardless. There just was no political penalty to Carr for bad policy.

In the beginning late 80ies it was all so idealistic and probably quite honest:

Some pressers later on in the 90ies showed Carr claiming in effect Mission Accomplished on forests but this was woefully premature. We were one of the first to predict the failings and insincerity of the ALP as forests were attacked in 1995 and 1996. And the alarm of scolded green groups were heard more generally by 1998 realising how their ship was about to go down - too late, too late (and no wonder Carr didn't want to have his policy decisions recorded and cross referenced on web archives):

As the truth of this period of environmental decade became more apparent the ALP has been in desperate need in NSW of a green champion for Australia's high population centres. Enter Peter Garrett - aging, fading rock star well past his prime. The role of the NCC earlier should have been the warning to the public. The process of duchessing meant all kinds of dirty policy would go forward duly greenwashed or sanitised by some green figleaf type figure or organisation.

As we deconstructed the detail of policy we too came under severe personal and professional attack: Here is a rebuttal of a sleazy complaint from Dr Judy Messer head of the NCC to Friends of the Earth national (a group in itself way too close to the logging union in Melbourne):

Looks bad doesn't it? If you can be bothered taking the time to read the tripe.

Have a look at the rebuttal when we finally got a copy of the covert complaint, with witness backup and by the way the said public servant Rex Bowen 'retired' soon after presumably (?) under pressure from the FoI application we made to expose financial duress by the Carr Govt to manipulate appointees to a committee using grant money to NCC as the leverage. A scandal that has never been properly reported in NSW:

What has all this got to do with Peter Garrett's recently condemned policy backflip?

Only that it's part of a more general paradigm of NSW ALP management of environmental policy applying all kinds of sleazy influence. By contrast remember the Lib-Nat breakfast meeting back in 1994 - they just shafted us without any tricks or dishonesty. We opposed them and beat them at the March 1995 election. That was flower show compared to the smell these days.

10 Meet the Press:  8- 8-30 am 

Lead in is fanatic murders of rich westerners including Australians in Jakarta. [In a country of tens of millions of impoverished, as Hillary Clinton symbolically stays at similar target in Mumbai. Suggestions punishment of voters for SBY re-election, and resultant urban gridlock for big popular soccer game Man United.???] 

Talent is Opp shadow foreign minister Julie Bishop.  

Humour out take Peter Garrett over ‘Fresh Thinking’ slogan ALP national conference “proud” of anti uranium mining principles. [More than that, built his whole careeer and social reach on that via songwriters and band behind him, now joins the enemy. Totally untenable. All the major press as pictured here don’t buy his excuses.] 

Panel is Milne News Corp, Hewitt News Corp. Stern Hu et al scandal. Bishop runs her lines. Bishop looks confident about Govt dithering and lack of top leadership contact to China. Various analyses with Bishop in the groove, enjoying herself and even sparkling. That’s a worry for the Govt. 

Get Up runs anti web censorship advert. It’s very interesting and professional actors and sets. Footage of Rudd travel warning.  Professor Clive Williams. Speculation Nordin Top behind this attack. Marriot twice, last one vehicle this one personal. Top almost caught twice in the last 12 months. “Is that right” Milne asks gormlessly. 

Meet The Press - Watch Political Video Online - Channel TEN.

Riley Diary 7, from 8.30am

 No show – perhaps due to the gravity of Jakarta murders a flippant package might be inappropriate. Sadly missed. Garrett’s hypocrisy was fertile material.  http://www.seven.com.au/sunrise/weekend   

9 Sunday newshour Laurie Oakes interview 8.40 am 

Nicola Roxon Health Minister, somewhat out of sync with the news. Not the right person but LO has to make do. Get’s to emergency attack scenario capacity.  Says well prepared but unpredictable, investing in the system. Gets onto Swine Flu capacity in the system. Elective surgery disrupted badly? Denies this.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/oakes

Insiders 2: 9- 10am

Panel news round up Fran Kelly, Piers Akerman re business meeting aspect.

Stephen Smith Foreign Minister on Jakarta murders/bombing. Moves on eventually to Stern Hu et al arbitrary detention.

Roller skates vox pop on Garrett hypocrisy. Stay with singing complete backflip says youth versus older guy.

News conference cross re death of Australian soldier in Afghanistan . Panel discusses.

Stern Hu et al re China panel discussion. Fran Kelly nails it – GFC economic disruptions mean China re asserting centralized economic controls and rollbacking western market style checks and balances, “end of story”

‘Prof’ Paul Kelly echoes our analysis (SAM editor contributions on crikey strings) – Hu matter echoes “our future”, “naïve” polity here, “not our values”. China want 40% cut in iron ore prices, assertion of Chinese authority. Good news is separate from bilateral relation, bad news ongoing “saw”. Prof has been reading SAM contributions methinks. And tending to agree with same. Gratifying.

Peter Garrett slick apologia for ALP footage. Panel debates, Akerman says he’s a jerk and in effect dishonest, Kelly says should be in different portfolio and Rudd as PM is a sadist to keep him there, Farr says evolved his beliefs not hypocritical.

Antony Green says Greens Party will get balance of power in a half or double dissolution in the Senate.

Panel predicts election sooner rather than later. Therese Rein articles – read through them, Akerman and Farr says coverage has been banal. Didn’t convey any real life. Kelly very impressive person in her own right.  Too much choreography. Conduct an interview without any stuff ups.

Akerman says its ALP Rudd asset. Agrees lack of sleep is a problem for most psychologists (Alan Jones only 4 it is said).

Talking pictures theme of Peter Garrett. Note also of David Rowe cartoon as per backgrounders above.

Note Get Up censorship of web advert and show it in full. As per Meet The Press adbreak.

Panel says exaggerating given real problem of internet porn especially for children.

Kelly predicts ALP talking to coal industry on CPRS again. Farr not one top rank academic will attack China due to duchessing [except Paul Monk]. Akerman says wehere is the utegate email??? [good question]

http://www.abc.net.au/insiders

Inside Business with Alan Kohler 

Lead in on Stern Hu scandal of arbitrary arrest. Interviews says China shooting selves in foot given economic expansion ramping up imports. Anger over prices.  Risky, damage relationship and prices in agenda to get steel industry under control.

Rio Tinto lead negotiating team now in jail. A lot of confusion, commercial terms and supply and demand, but Govt as political issue and that works against their negotiating position. Economic growth in China at 8% [but ignores rubbery June quarter figures for country of 1 billion in only 2 weeks mid July as per Stephen Long abc chief economic reporter]

Refer http://www.abc.net.au/insidebusiness/

Posted by editor at 12:59 PM NZT

Updated: Sunday, 19 July 2009 5:58 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  incredulous

And while we are being gratuitous some other sledges of environmental opportunist Peter Garrett from our file first from Crikey.com.au and Fairfax Sydney Morning Herald respectively.

Posted by editor at 9:40 PM NZT

Updated: Wednesday, 15 July 2009 10:42 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  sharp

Picture: Lifted from thinly veiled anti GW Bush political movie Silver City (2005) about let 'em rip resource developer ideology, with gifted actor Chris Cooper as stumbling honky flattening all civil society democratic norms via PR and big money. Oh how the pendulum has swung post GFC, or has it? Certainly US President Obama is an opposite man on the world stage. Locally in Australia arguably different names (Rudd for Howard) same vested corporate (eg coal) interests.

Author’s general introductory note

This is not a well packaged story. It’s a contemporaneous traverse of the Sunday television free to air political talkies indicating the agenda of Establishment interests: Better to know ones rivals and allies  in Big Politics and Big Media. 

For actual transcripts and/or video feeds go to the programme web sites quoted including Riley Diary on 7. And note transcripts don’t really give you the image content value.

Other sources of pollie talkies on Sunday include SkyNews paytv Sunday Agenda, Radio National Monica Attard Sunday Profile show. And of course Sunday night shows SBS Dateline, Sixty Minutes and now Sunday Tonight on 7.  

  Media backgrounders  

* ABC’s Ann Barker spat on by ‘rain of spittle’ by Orthodox Jew fanatics in Israel for ‘working as a journalist’ on a Saturday in Jerusalem. Runs AM flagship programme but no images or coverage on prime time tv news story that night. Why not? One assumes the Jewish lobby will have to 'pay' with access or other quid pro quo media currency for this, as they should:

“As a journalist I've covered more than my share of protests. Political protests in Canberra. Unions protesting for better conditions. Angry, loud protests against governments, or against perceived abuses of human rights.I've been at violent rallies in East Timor. I've had rocks and metal darts thrown my way. I've come up against riot police.But I have to admit no protest - indeed no story in my career - has distressed me in the way I was distressed at a protest in Jerusalem on Saturday involving several hundred ultra-Orthodox Jews. ……

Spit like rain

I found myself herded against a brick wall as they kept on spitting - on my face, my hair, my clothes, my arms. It was like rain, coming at me from all directions - hitting my recorder, my bag, my shoes, even my glasses. Big gobs of spit landed on me like heavy raindrops. I could even smell it as it fell on my face.Somewhere behind me - I didn't see him - a man on a stairway either kicked me in the head or knocked something heavy against me. I wasn't even sure why the mob was angry with me. Was it because I was a journalist? Or a woman? Because I wasn't Jewish in an Orthodox area? Was I not dressed conservatively enough? In fact, I was later told, it was because using a tape-recorder is itself a desecration of the Shabbat even though I'm not Jewish and don't observe the Sabbath.It was lucky that I don't speak Yiddish. At least I was spared the knowledge of whatever filth they were screaming at me. As I tried to get away I found myself up against the line of riot police blocking the crowd from going any further.

Reassurance

Israeli police in their flak jackets and helmets, with rifles and shields, were yelling just as loudly back at the protesting crowd. I found them something of a reassurance against the angry, spitting mob. …..”

 in Reporter feels mob's hate in the Holy City - ABC News (Australian ... 6 Jul 2009 And here at AM show 08:15 06/07/2009 Israelis divided over work on the Sabbath

 * Just as this happens New Matilda ezine 7 July 2009 calls time out on directing traffic on it’s comment strings on the Israel Middle East saga and tragedy with a rare editorial rejecting “holocaust deniers” etc. She is bound to be reflecting an organizational concern: 

  “Regular readers will notice that we have turned off all comments on articles about Israel/Palestine. This is not a permanent state of affairs but a stopgap while we develop the technical ability to pre-moderate comments on the site. We do this reluctantly, and in response to a handful of comment "trolls" who continue to abuse our open comments facility.”

In ·  Editorial: This Debate Needs To Take A Look In The Mirror 7 July 2009.  

* Lee Rhiannon MP in recent Salusinzsky profile variously described as a “steamroller” and “harmlessly daffy”. Wins preselection for next federal NSW senate election. The revealing profile combined with SAM editor’s knowledge of her ngo history (Aidwatch) indicates she is a catspaw for the socialist left union movement within the Green Party. Whether this leads to better environmental outcomes is arguable. For instance at a recent rally against the Eden Chipmill Rhiannon ran on the platform of wasted public finances that is corporate welfare.

Fair enough, only a few weeks earlier 600 year old tree(s) were logged by her union mates at Brown Mountain East Gippsland for the same chipper. Not a word of criticism about that. LR has a degree in botany apparently so for her information the species was Eucalyptus fastigata. 600 years old. True enough the Greens have a very catholic 4 fold guiding principle – ecology, peace, social/economic justice, grassroots democracy. Rhiannon’s character calls up which grassroots?: which principle? And how much apologia for parental sympathy for murderous Stalinism is she “proud” of, to quote the Salusinsky profile?  

* As if to underline the battle of values post GFC Crabb and Hartcher in same Saturday Sydney Morning Herald run stories on the value set of federal political leaders – the old conviction politician debate. Crabb has the edge if not the premium press acreage with marks for “Babelfish” references you would never see from old boy Alan Ramsey. Hartcher misconception about comparing apples of incumbent PM Rudd with unlike oranges of Turnbull in terms of ‘both lacking conviction scoring zero’ was a bit lame. An incumbent by definition has already made the sale to the electorate and has the option of (risky) renegotiation while Opposition leader doesn't have quite that luxury.

 * Joe Trippi in ABC RN Future Tense ½ hour was prime value listening on role of internet - more like the printing press than radio to tv - for political campaigning with a shift in power, but cautions force for good or evil like every tool depending on who holds it.  

* Doogue guest abc RN Saturday extra says green shoots will be burned off by rate of SME insolvencies to hit with a vengeance. Echoes with prominent economists calling for new people’s bank as big 4 banks post year after year obscene profits.  

* SMH sufficiently emboldened by ascendancy of coffee coloured President Obama runs multiple reports of the far right white supremacist fringe promising to electioneer like the devastating One Nation previously.   

* Joe Hildebrand finds his natural level in News Corps Sydney Daily Telegraph – political gossip column “Confidential” running shallow gibes. While colleague TB (an illness) runs interference on any action on global warming. A bit like the denial in Singapore WW2 that the war would ever arrive in the form of the Japanese invasion and massive loss of life in prisoner of war camps. In this case read 100M refugees on the march from Bangladesh to Shanghai.  

* Peter Andrews natural sequence farming about controlling water flows in “grass dams” on Australian Story x 2. Very interesting. Almost of as if Big Agri meets permaculture regarding swales and other local hydrology. As founder Bill Mollison says – water limits everything.   

* Noticed a new (?) website (actually 2006) cross referencing a story by Tim Blair about this SAM editor. Site is called Sydney Conservative with similar livery of orange and white background. http://conservativeweasel.blogspot.com/ The story we noticed was cross referencing Tim Blair (or TB – an illness) on our eviction in April 2009 from our home office 60 days notice, no grounds. Blair delights in our speculation of foul play political victimization. Certainly the new owner went around the real estate agent, advertised for a contractor who almost threw out shed stuff and cut down 95% of every tree and shrub on the site.  

10 Meet the Press:  8- 8-30 am 

No Bonge compere, Bill is the man. Lead in footage of Obama re climate threat, contrasted Sunday Telegraph (Sydney) headline ‘Rudd roadblock’ on same topic.  

Talent is Minister Chris Bowen. Stern Hu case features re Chinese dictatorship sour grapes on iron ore negotiations. 

Get Up in first adbreack on internet censorship in the first adbreak. Very slick [and appealing echo with the Youth Climate Conference crowd this weekend (ALP hidden funding via Climate Institute)] potentially though they are possibly in transit and not watching. Panel is John Stanley 2UE, Jessica Irvine SMH. Bowen is slick talker, too slick for a failed minister. [Grocery Watch, Fuel Watch, etc – talk about lack of conviction being rewarded]. 

Humour out take is Kudelka on Rudd PM as ‘holier than (thou) Pope’ fat head.  

Meet The Press - Watch Political Video Online - Channel TEN.

Riley Diary 7, from 8.30am

 PM Rudd globe trotting theme. Blue collar language descends to Ruddish bureaucratise. “Detailed programmatic specificity”. Bruno sneaks in re language. “Big on photo opportunities” sharing stage with President Obama with UK PM and others “back up” says Riley Diary. Notes Rudd admission re Copenhagen failing us all ‘local national global’ [my words paraphrasing a Rudd grab]. Does show Obama has annexed Rudd in global politics. 

http://www.seven.com.au/sunrise/weekend 

9 Sunday newshour Laurie Oakes interview 8.40 am 

Senator/Minister Arbib is the talent – looking like a teenager and walking skull at the same time. Pleads methodical consular agreement to manage Rio Tinto’s Stern Hu case [‘thrown to the wolves’ of Chinese legal thuggery alleged in press here].  LO sounds unconvinced because it is totally unconvincing re junior level of contact over head of multinational arrested. Australian citizenship worth? Arbib runs stimulus mantra but GFC “not over”. Runs youth compassion rhetoric re unemployed [while a cynic would say Govt is more concerned about social disruption of angry youth in crime, bad PR for govt etc] Arbib blathers on in a twee and shallow way. 

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/oakes

Insiders 2: 9- 10am

Stern Hu case lead in, with footage of Turnbull and Joyce “opportunistic point scorers”, then compromises that spin by stated it’s a “major” feature of the show today.

Press roundup Panel is Michael Stutchbury News Corp national, Milne News corp Sydney and national, KAWalsh Fairfax national/Sydney (obviously not sacked or redundant as expected).

Microphone stuff up for Julie Bishop Shadow Foreign Minister, go to Your shout segement agri industry cattleyards on economics of country.

Bishop on Stern Hu ‘taken by Chinese secret police’. Austalian Ministers not picked up the phone to their ministerial counterparts. [which sort of misconceives a 20M and a 1.1 billion size country]. Argues profile ie “sunlight” is crucial [contrary to Govt line of “methodical” consular matter.

Why is it different to tourist?  Escalated due to high level business between countries, secret police. Took her own initiative and spoke to deputy ambassador to China. Argues a range of issues for Beijing including visit to Tibetans in India enclave.

Panel discusses. Milne notes it’s a [fascist] dictatorship. Notes Defence White Paper also aggravates the situation.

Paul Kelly – vagued out on him.

Obama image of ‘the perv’ is given the benefit of the doubt with footage on American big media tv actually watching his step and helping another woman. Deceptive sleazy  picture.

KAW predicts ALP will push for double dissolution on climate threat to avoid economics of 2010.

Inside Business with Alan Kohler

Feature interview on CCS via True Energy bloke Richard MacIndoe, 10% Australian energy, ¼ of Victoria at Yallourn in Latrobe Valley. Concern to manner of transition to 80% reduction by 2050.  Says CCS important in medium to long term. But no proven technology to 2020 or really 2025.

Has to be gas fired technology and companies with financial strength to do that. Joint Venture with Ignite [oil from brown coal]. Quotes California as "very instructive" under investment causing bankruptcy. [Totally airbrushes politics of Enron corruption destroying political economy of energy in California under GW Bush.]

Says CPRS will cause underinvestment which leads to outages. [The voice of the forces of darkness on global warming, literally and several senses.]

Refer http://www.abc.net.au/insidebusiness/

Posted by editor at 12:21 PM NZT

Updated: Sunday, 12 July 2009 12:37 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  d'oh

Author’s general introductory note

This is not a well packaged story. It’s a contemporaneous traverse of the Sunday television free to air political talkies indicating the agenda of Establishment interests: Better to know ones rivals and allies  in Big Politics and Big Media. 

For actual transcripts and/or video feeds go to the programme web sites quoted including Riley Diary on 7. And note transcripts don’t really give you the image content value.

Other sources of pollie talkies on Sunday include SkyNews paytv Sunday Agenda, Radio National Monica Attard Sunday Profile show. And of course Sunday night shows SBS Dateline, Sixty Minutes and now Sunday Tonight on 7.  

  Media backgrounders  

* Centrist icon Grattan backs Steve Lewis (News Corp) central to 'fake Treasury email' affair on abc RN with Doogue stand in for Fran Kelly. Lewis runs staunch largish article in prime Saturday SD Telegraph; in the protective wake of staunch editorial same pape, same day, probably written by John Hartigan who also ran his tough guy stance last Tuesday Press Club.

* Take note Australian Federal Police investigators.

What is the Karl Rove reverse smear? It involves a deliberately clumsy fake smear of a friendly/allied candidate/figure (who presumably is in on the gambit, but may not be too to preserve plausible deniability).  Think say ALP clumsy smear on Kevin Rudd, or vice versa Liberals on Malcolm Turnbull.

So already from the outset it is counter intuitive - but stay with us, this was Karl Rove's brilliance. Why would you put out a smear document on your own side? Here’s how it works …..

Intrinsic to the tactic is that the smear is fairly easily rebutted by allied candidate, after initial minor damage. It's all about harvesting the public's outrage at a demonstrably and well understood political dirty trick (often referred to by wonks as “rat f*cking” and see below at ***) as this 'expose' of  the fake or fraud or smear spreads exponentially through the electorate and beyond the beltway itself. People don’t like other people being smeared in a demonstrably unfair way. And they take revenge by punishing the side most identified with the 'fault' either in terms of votes or polling.

So the public turn on the most obvious or logical perpetrator of the smear being the direct rival of the target of the now flimsy discredited smear. Even it wasn't their fault as such, because that subtle nuance is too complex over a short time period.

Apparently Rove did this to gather centre swinging voters to the conservative GW Bush side by harvesting a backlash of anger from centre, and centre left voters over flimsy smears he himself put out against his own side. But it can be done by Left on Right which arguably appears to be happening in Australia with Rudd (nominally Left) harvesting voters against Turnbull (nominally Right) in the recent polls, and against Hamilton Smith.

And we hasten to add, this is the effect even if the Labor or ALP have no official or unofficial role in the recent 'fake Treasury email' (we decline to call it 'the Grech email')

A template in Australia was indirectly via the Lindsay electorate fake Muslim Extremist leaflet affair at the final week of the federal election in Nov 2007 (see picture above). In that case the Coalition activist (Right) were definitely promoting a false smear, and the backlash after it was demonstrated as false by Labour (Left) activists in quick time, front pager in News Corp tabloid, caused a crushing backlash against the Howard Govt.

All of the above whether intended or accidental is standard Karl Rove dirty tricks and rat f*cking. And time enough for the Labor activists to learn the method well. Take note AFP investigators.

*** About 6 months ago Fairfax Naked Eye recounted how PM Rudd was overhead referring to “rat f*ckers” in private conversation. Rudd and his team know all about Karl Rove and rat f*cking. As do their mates in the Democrats in the USA who were the prime victims at first, as of course do Rove’s home party the US Republicans.

* Crikey direct readership and circulation rival old media The Australian in tit for tat attacks on eachother’s credibility all week. Story is old versus new. More similar than different market and role? True enough that upon death of dame Elizabeth Murdoch that The Australian will go the way of the dodo, and Crikey ‘with added source’ time will come. True enough that hyperbole of The Oz exaggerates

* ex PM Keating runs open door policy for China engagement. Trouble is Keating almost certainly has business interests there? Undeclared business interests? Conflict of interest issues? Another complaint to the ACCC for breach of s.52 of the Trade Practices Act?

* Gillard’s prime ministerial grooming to the Jewish lobby, industry re Fair Work and standing up to violent unionism continues apace. A few weeks back our colleague Carol with the chronic disability had a chat to La Gilliotine at Prince of Wales Hospital apparently assuming Carol was on the level (?) – what the hell was that all about?

* SAM gets a 3 m USB extension doing wonders for our web connectivity. Woohoo. Gluten free diet seems to be doing us a lot of good too after barely 3 days. Next challenge to bake our own bread. Woolworths has bought out Macro Wholefoods, - note their gluten free and health food section, compared to Coles which has kids trolleys instead.

* Re big tax on cigarettes: At recent small social event of various Vietnam vets, and their family/friends – not one smoker. Wood heater seemed to suffice.

Stand in for compere Bonge, workmanlike talent too. Dep PM Gillard looking radiant and super groomed, how expensive are those clothes [Sarah Pallin?] after (serious) Middle East tour.

Sexism/misconduct comment re front pager Sydney SunHerald story Navy.

Utegate re AFP footage Mick Keelty re Turnbull is a witness and otherwise his role over.

Gillard runs Turnbull damned credibility. Humour out take of PM Rudd at school event singing Treasuere Swan happy birthday.

Panel is talent – Peter Hartcher, Michelle Grattan both serious people and worthy match. Gillard attacks reporter ‘errors’ in Education stimulus sloppy spends as per press today Sunday Telegraph.

Hartcher re ‘rediculous’ law in NSW re illegal to publish school league tables. [big debate about apples with apples comparisons re similar socio economic demographics].

2^nd guest is youngish wonk Van Onselen for the Liberal side of things. Wonks interviewing eachother. Shocking week, not dead, looked dead previously in Wentworth electoral fights but this is much bigger scale. ‘Twin Tonys’ idea more about machinations of shadow cabinet reshuffle. References A Crabb class 1996 reaching their end, lack ideological/intellectual capital. MT faced with dilemma of essential moderate going disingenuously more conservative or … something.

Meet The Press - Watch Political Video Online - Channel TEN.

Riley Diary 7, from 8.30am

Utegate seens as traincrash for Malcolm Turnbull. MASH parallels. Awful pollie singing. Rudd sings Seekers ‘KTel’ Special.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/oakes

Insiders 2: 9- 10am

Chris Uhlmann for Barry Cassidy (or replacing?) runs his intellectual style intro, with footage of Gillard on Fair Work,

Panel is A Crabb Fairfax, Meglo News Corp national, Bolt News Corp Melbourne.

Two Tony’s (Abbott, Smith) as conservative aspiring leadership.

Big cigarette’s tax.

Arbib palaver about ‘nit picking’ over education stimulus rollout involving a million here and there. [Like West Wing a billion here and there, what does it matter?].

Bolt lays out why we have a Govt we didn’t elect but ignores we did get a ‘mummy party’, but true not Howard Lite, and the reason is the GFC game changer no one predicted, so stupid to hypothecate 2007 and 2009, a grand non sequitur.

Unionism on the march again. Bolt talks up Gillard performance cut through in parliament etc [seems to be pushing a Melbourne torch?]. ACrabb similar wax soliloquy.

Panel talk over health issue. Pledge being made of federal takeover [ pre GFC] was driven by Howard opportunism politics, ACrabb/Bolt. Journalists were suckered. Bolt says same re climate change. “Never going to happen.”

‘Prof Paul Kelly, News Corp soliloquy on the Rudd Machine Success, Opposition only three problems Unity, Leadership and Belief. Only? Major blunder if Coalition treats climate as an ideology not a policy, if does then “finished”.

Big poll disasters history, Aug 93 Keating 20 points down, Downer late 1994, Latham April 04 31 points, the all time record down Turnbull 40 points June 2009. Discussing whether leadership is finished. ACrabb says Party is built like a Howard body suit. Lacks ideological heft says Bolt and could/should be grassroots.

Bill Leak getting up to speed in Talking Pictures.

Inside Business with Alan Kohler

Refer http://www.abc.net.au/insidebusiness/

Posted by editor at 12:16 PM NZT

Updated: Sunday, 5 July 2009 12:28 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  not sure

Author’s general introductory note

This is not a well packaged story. It’s a contemporaneous traverse of the Sunday television free to air political talkies indicating the agenda of Establishment interests: Better to know ones rivals and allies  in Big Politics and Big Media. 

For actual transcripts and/or video feeds go to the programme web sites quoted including Riley Diary on 7. And note transcripts don’t really give you the image content value.

Other sources of pollie talkies on Sunday include SkyNews paytv Sunday Agenda, Radio National Monica Attard Sunday Profile show. And of course Sunday night shows SBS Dateline, Sixty Minutes and now Sunday Tonight on 7.  

Media backgrounders

* Our Harry Potter/Grech reference on crikey strings takes off in all Big Media. We used Dobby the House Elf, but others prefer the Bank gnomes, or Harry himself.

Turnbull as guest lead in backgrounder on “fake” email/Grech evidence. Suffering raspy throat several times.

Senate privileges inquiry repudiated first time in a century looks bad. MT says would be a witch hunt ‘you know that’. Refers to the “fake” email. But below says “so called fake”.

Tony Burke footage re rain project $10M says favouritism is a smear. 1/5 of the UQ proposal, more than $2M desktop option.

Humour out take Albanese re Latham/Turnbull jibe.

Panel reptiles Hewitt News Corp (national), Steve Lewis News Corp (national).

Time wasting non scandal? Says been attacked viciously with smears himself by the ALP.

Lewis runs reverse attack after running big on Grech email that MT leadership is diminished. MT says Opposition very unified.

On climate change – aiming for August timeline and extra elements.

Meet The Press - Watch Political Video Online - Channel TEN.

Riley Diary 7, from 8.30am

Riley Diary – Harry Potter theme. Choice movie grabs. Does the chronology. Hockey as Hagrid resonates. Exploding cigar visual metaphor on Turnbull.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/oakes

Insiders 2: 9- 10am

Grech Riley style package with Bourne theme music.

51 club in Brisbane press links PM Rudd with used car and developer business social club.

Footage of Tanner on Ch9, BC calls it Today show.

Panel is KWalsh Fairfax, Atkins News Corp Bris, TBlair News Corp Sydney.

Obvious point about dumping Grocery Watch leveraging press coverage of Michael Jackson death. Deeply cynical.

Tony Abbott guest - ferocious spin is the lesson, BC challenges on coaching of Grech evidence, denied. Some strong points about Swan in hiding and then embarrassing AM interview. Claims “real” ruthless PM Rudd revealed this week.

Circus players vox pop, very good comics too.

Panel general chat nothing new.

Talking pictures – our Harry Potter Dobby reference is picked up clearly as spreading on the web (SAM’s fault probably).

Inside Business with Alan Kohler

Acciona and Pacific Hydro discussed regarding so called sustainable business in renewable energies.

Refer http://www.abc.net.au/insidebusiness/

Posted by editor at 1:03 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  incredulous

Author’s general introductory note

This is not a well packaged story. It’s a contemporaneous traverse of the Sunday television free to air political talkies indicating the agenda of Establishment interests: Better to know ones rivals and allies  in Big Politics and Big Media. 

For actual transcripts and/or video feeds go to the programme web sites quoted including Riley Diary on 7. And note transcripts don’t really give you the image content value.

Other sources of pollie talkies on Sunday include SkyNews paytv Sunday Agenda, Radio National Monica Attard Sunday Profile show. And of course Sunday night shows SBS Dateline, Sixty Minutes and now Sunday Tonight on 7.  

  Media backgrounders  

* PM Rudd’s voice in parliament last week was loud and full of righteous indignation, too loud and too full one feels, of outrage over the Turnbull “politics of fear” and “politics of smear” over the Grant ute GFC finance affair. As we write Laurie Oakes is grilling Swan and it’s a fierce debate over ministerial favouritism for Mr Grant.  

Then Rudd’s voice on 8.30 pm ABC TV footage last Friday of late that day  press conference shows him quavering, nervous, in shock, long pauses and stumbles. Yet the abc radio news bulletins next morning, and from memory AM show have an edited version of smooth confident rejection of the allegations by PM Rudd.   Yet just as Godwin Gretch tone and manner is striking probative of honesty, so is Rudd’s quaver and stumble indicative of the opposite. Yet the ABC either had different audio from late evening to early morning or they edited Rudd’s audio in a case of political bias??? 

 Certainly whoever survives or dies politically this next few days, the beltway have seen Rudd’s political mortality starkly revealed. Rudd seems to be as much shocked at his natural human limitations to control all things and every detail including in the backyard of his own electorate.  

* PM looks to be relying on procedural rules to prevent his staffer Andrew Charlton from attending and answering estimate committee questions or even general media questions. So even if he did email Godwin Gretch or contact him in another way he will never have to answer questions directly. But Gretch will.  

* Turnbull revealed as very effectively setting the scene with admissions about Kerry Packer death threat and protection of public interest regarding Fairfax from political interfering Packer ownership. And using that to contrast allegations of favouritism to ALP political donor Mr Grant.  

* Annabel Crabb in Saturday column well off the pace with this greatly ironic comment: “ Andrew Charlton, an unnervingly brilliant young pup who is marked for greatness in Labor circles”. Charlton being the alleged emailer from the PMO’s office contrary, it’s claimed, to PM’s statement to parliament of no such contact.  One thing is for sure Charlton will never have to front the big press or an estimates committee as he is a staffer of the PM Rudd and Rudd will enforce that cone of silence.

* Similarly Lenore Taylor this weekend Oz newspaper refers in a soft piece on the scandal to post Costello period as being “Turnbull unplugged” trying to say unrestrained/louder/stronger/clear air which is a different metaphor given unplugged is less not more electrical amplification. Is she also losing perspective about federal ALP politics. Too soft?  

* Deputy Prime Minister Gillard talking Middle East role for Australia in peace negotiations with VP Biden?

  * Albanese as Left faction infrastructure minister supports doubling of aircraft movements over the next 20 years despite home seat Marrickville area copping it badly in terms of noise but also air pollution. Albanese says a 2^nd airport is critical. Richmond RAAF base is now under control of Albanese’s factional ally inner westie Defence Minister John Faulkner. But look at this picture from the Hawkesbury taken this morning. The RAAF base is on higher ground 10 km from Windsor/Hawkesbury River true but still very fog affected??? 

 * Last month as a political blogger I had a computer security problem, which caused me to confront a possible suspect, with copy to well known media analyst Margarent Simons as an honest broker.  What happened was that a very selective 3 months of email correspondence, and one email file archive called "SAMtech" was deleted. SAM is an acronym.  So my point is - emails can be deleted – as per the Godwin Gretch testimony.  

Secondly, a well known programme called TracksEraserPro can be used to delete hard drive copies of anything off a computer. You can download it for free off a trustworthy site called MajorGeeks.  SAM’s editor uses it every day to keep clutter off my hard drive.  Having said all this - emails sent via an Internet Service Provider will probably have a record of the IP no. of the computer source (DNA of the machine) and receiver - speaking as a non geek amateur. Also I suspect the geeks can insert false IP numbers or proxies to avoid detection.  Welcome to the cyber wild west..  

* Senator Brown didn't say he would be bankrupt, he said he was threatened with bankrupty by Forestry Tasmania doing the dirty work of the ALP and Coalition.  So Abetz is being deceptive and cynical. Also another false trail is that Brown already had $600K in legal funds so he was rich. Actually what he said was that he'd already paid that amount in legal costs.  What scares the majors is that Brown has such massive social capital just like Jimmy Stewart in It's a Wonderful Life, only this is real life, not a movie.  

*  Nasty misogyny, and blind prejudice, including sisterhood in ugly condescension and patronizing critique, implicit in attacks on Greens Party Senator Sarah Hanson-Young. Some of it in official commentary from political rivals and censorious older women (‘Deb’ Cameron, Pru Goward) jealous (?) of both her political reach into mainstream press and her superior success at a much younger age? Some other nastiness in redneck letters pages.

Fact is HY had the whole thing under control in the senate chamber, and it was old boy Senate Speaker who claimed he had no discretion to allow “strangers” in the house during a tedious mechanical vote on a division. Since when did experienced mothers not know how to do 2 things at once? This issue has revealed the critics as moral frauds and bullies infused with blind prejudice against The Greens.  

*  Fallout from NSW State budget was unusually mild criticism except on free trade purity which the Left wing govt won’t worry too much about. Interesting that Penberthy managed to sideline literally both Simon Benson and Piers Akerman in their Sydney Daily Telegraph comment pieces, Penbo picking up the cudgels for free trade, many will see as an arid line of debate after the GFC has blown the credibility of orthodox economics out the window. Ironically the AAA rating in NSW was consolidated and seen as smart politics when Standard & Poors helped cause the GFC in the first place with faulty ratings. Talk about flawed paradigm.  

* Peter Costello quoted “you have to know when to hold ‘em and know when to fold ‘em” is quite clear evidence that the timing of his effective resignation from future leadership role(s) in politics was highly calculated and probably self interested. The polls had turned for Turnbull, the coalition were about to split using Costello as a focus for the redneck conservatives and Nats on climate etc. And there were green shoots in the economy suggesting Rudd’s stimulus strategy may well work.

 Costello is thus revealed as a supreme chancer. We always suspected counsel for Woodside, Lisa Hamilton, was the brains behind his IR Dollar Sweets IR legal victories. A student politician by definition doesn’t have time to do the real hard legal research work.   

* Amazing synchrony of SAM feature headline and or picture this last 2 Sunday talkies and real politik following: A fortnight ago we used a title about ‘props and pollie crunch’ only to see Defence Minister Fitzgibbon walk the plank unexpectedly later that week. Then last week we used a picture of car crash in the local area into the trees to symbolise ETS hitting the wall of the Green Party/Coalition opposition. Nicholson grabbed the same visual metaphor here in the The Australian this weekend (as per image above)

  * Mark Arbib is under constant attack in the Senate these last several days. Most interesting is Arbib’s shrill, teenager style voice protesting his certainty of fact and purpose over massive education fund cash splash. Arbib is starting to realize (?) that the arrogance of NSW Right ALP doesn’t play on the national stage of federal parliament. Comes across as a spiv out of his moral depth.  

* Back to sleaze of NSW ALP politics and their “junkyard dogs”, in the agri politics bible here in NSW: The images are MPs for the Shooters Party gun nuts and right wing religous nut Fred Nile MP propping up the NSW ALP Govt in the upper house here.

1. embarrasses NSW Govt after fairly successful state budget including grudgingly by SMH itself earlier in the week. Content of story shows water supply not at threat at all, but Cox's river tributary certainly is at risk and damaged by heavy metals due to leaching via arsenic. 

2. reinforces the agenda for sell off of the public energy assets, a long running crusade of both major newspapers in Sydney 

3. Story is important but normally would have run at page 3, 4 or 5. The placement indicated the big media real politik malice. 

Golf, no broadcast.

Meet The Press - Watch Political Video Online - Channel TEN.

Riley Diary 7, from 8.30am

LO grills Treasuer Wayne Swan on the intricacies of the $500M line to Ford Credit to sustain car dealership industry during the intensity of the GFC. And Mr Grant was to be looked after within that umbrella.

LO: ‘enormous pressure’ to look after Grant. ‘Emails show Swan was being kept up to date at home fax.]

[Calls up the whole ALP Qld political culture of Mike Kaiser cooking the electoral paperwork years ago forced to resign ministerial position, here again cooking the paperwork.]

Auditor General inquiry doesn’t include Wayne Swan in the narrow terms of reference only PMO, implying a fix. ‘Won’t resign.’

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/oakes

Insiders 2: 9- 10am

 Great opening line from compere Cassidy about a lot more than mere “car trouble” with footage of Rudd strenuous denials about the ‘politics of smear’.

Footage of Swan denials.  Gretch package in Riley Diary style.

Estimates committee David Martine cover for Gretch, profound footage of honest evidence. “Put in a position a public servant should never be put in”.

Panel is Schubert of The Age, Meglo The Oz, Toohey AFR/Fairfax.

Cross to New York for Deputy Prime Minister Gillard [talking Middle East role for Australia in peace negotiations with VP Biden?]. Email smokescreen to Godwin Gretch evidence of favouritism to car dealer Mr Grant, defending Govt reputation.

Your shout about Costello retiring.

Panel much discussion about Godwin Gretch with much footage of questioning by ALP senator Doug Cameron including journo Lewis contact with Godwin Gretch and special attention for Mr Grant but not Kay Hulls electorate related car dealership.

Talking Pictures with Peter Costello: ‘I’ve enjoyed the banter with the press over the years’ but that’s not what he said attacking the glasses of Michelle Grattan, or grump over answering questions post election defeat intentions.

Profound footage of Obama swatting fly by his own hand in front of the cameras during an interview.

Toohey sledges Costello 11 years – bloated middle class welfare and structural deficit in a boom. Hard talk indeed.

http://www.abc.net.au/insiders/

Inside Business with Alan Kohler

Chief at Morgan Stanly discusses over leveraging causing GFC.

Refer http://www.abc.net.au/insidebusiness/

Posted by editor at 12:30 PM NZT

Updated: Sunday, 21 June 2009 12:48 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  chatty

Author’s general introductory note

This is not a well packaged story. It’s a contemporaneous traverse of the Sunday television free to air political talkies indicating the agenda of Establishment interests: Better to know ones rivals and allies  in Big Politics and Big Media. 

For actual transcripts and/or video feeds go to the programme web sites quoted including Riley Diary on 7. And note transcripts don’t really give you the image content value.

Other sources of pollie talkies on Sunday include SkyNews paytv Sunday Agenda, Radio National Monica Attard Sunday Profile show. And of course Sunday night shows SBS Dateline, Sixty Minutes and now Sunday Tonight on 7.  

Media backgrounders

* Rudd language style change to quasi 50ies labour working class seems to suggest identity confusion in the man, as does the 25kg diet of his wealthy spouse. Reminds of West Wing script of Jed Bartlett insomnia and nostalgia of the child future president and cold hearted even cruel father. These things seems to relate to increased pressure forcing out flaws in the ego/id in a PM – like his climate Bill hitting the wall of Green Party no compromise. But if he is in electoral mode he will want the blue collar vote no doubt.

* Tough commentary in Fairfax back business section last week condemning The Australian News Corp rival over sellout editorial choices about global warming skepticism/denialism. Same writer again this weekend Paddy Manning in Sustainable Investing column at top banner spot on the page too. Related to Peter Manning senior journalist?

* Sixty Minutes lead story last week (7 days back) was shocking and powerful of the fatal damage to those people cruelly killed in the Victorian Central Highland bushfires. God have mercy. The subtext was unsaid but a hammer blow really – the Royal Commission must take no prisoners and go to the brazen truth of the disaster. (And the landlord here reckons a dam rather than a bushfire bunker is safe enough. Noooo, noooo, noooo. I don’t think so.)

* Reportage of Gunns Ltd moving to both annexe assets of Timbercorp and Great Southern agricultural ‘managed’ investment schemes at least as far as timber wood(chip?) products, and of a willing financier from Sweden The Oz June 11 p7, ‘Gunns set for mill deal with Swedes’

* Andrew Clennall at Fairfax may know of NSW Right agitation against faction Left premiership of Nathan Rees but the stories written so far have been flimsy and unconvincing. He knows all the players but he’s not got any probative leaks or change in the power relations: Sartor has always been a pragmatic egomaniacal grasper for more power. But does he have anything more than tyre tracks of ALP head office fundraising machine over his reputation? Damaged goods was the innuendo behind the SMH banner front pager about ‘illegal’ billion dollar land developments requiring retrospective legislation. Sartor is relying on the corporate greed of the ALP machine but would appear even less electable especially with the Coalition under OFarrell promising to rollback the developer friendly Part 3A junking of the 1979 planning regime.

OFarrell was staunch on opposing a fire sale of the public energy assets.

* Stephanie Peatling SMH runs a story about the grasping for power in the NSW Greens Party. From slippery tactics pioneered by Ian Cohen MLC, to effective branch stacking of the Eastern Suburbs Group by Lee Rhiannon MP with her office volunteers and the like (conflict of interest a la Victorian scandal recently?). A big obituary for Lee’s mother Freda Brown in the SMH a few weeks ago (memorial to be held today at the Bondi Pavillion same day as 150^th anniversary of Waverley Council woohoo, Sunday Too Far Away). Freda Brown pictured with Gorby appears to have been an avowed cold war warrior – for the other side until at least 1972 when she resigned from the Australian Communist Party. If only Stalin’s 20 million victims could speak.

Hard hats lead in, employment thrust featuring Arbib, Rudd.

Minister Macklin, Social Security. Unemployment question.

Background story on Alice Springs town camp ‘special report’ by police reporter re “smell” of poverty (Ester Lindstrom).

Panel is Mark Kenny Adelaide News Corp, Macklin “I have a responsibility to act [compulsory acquire town camps with $125M package.] “I have a lot of money to spend [for sick and elderly] and I want to get on with it.” Sounding actually emotional and idealistic with it over the nasal drone.

Panel also Natasha Robinson, News Corp national. Macklin praises Julia Gillard as potential PM successor.

Tom Calma re underlying racism in society and ethnic conflict over Indian students etc.

Meet The Press - Watch Political Video Online - Channel TEN.

Riley Diary 7, from 8.30am

Use of language theme, with Mandarin, and strine. Great imagery from Barry McKenzie [time one caught a view of it], implies it’s a potentially contrived political strategy. [But we have another psychobabble explanation leveraging the West Wing episodes on Jed Bartlett’s insomnia and a disapproving dad, as above in backgrounders.]

http://www.seven.com.au/sunrise/weekend

Various IR serious questions about timetable and content relations with the unions, then on PM, living up to the trust gracious response, loving deputy PM position. Elephant reference of the comperes meaning Peter Costello.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/oakes

Insiders 2: 9- 10am

Intro about PM Ruddish language and style.

Panel is KAK Fairfax Canberra, Milnes News Corp, G Henderson Sydney Institute.

Kooyong preselection formerly Petro Georgiou. Hendo says Frydenberg friendly to asylum seekers.

Christine Milne gets the coverage on climate change. BC notes NP and Greens oppose Govt Bill outright for different reasons. Sound problems with BC question but recovered.

On Bob Brown potential bankruptcy debt to avoid removal from the Senate. Milne calls BC a cynical view that mere fundraising. [Ignores $600K previous legal costs perhaps.]

Senator Fielding argues no temperature increase despite increase in carbon emissions. Deliberately disingenuously dodges/ignores fossil fuel funding of Heartland Institute.

[Fielding correct there is a real question but ignores parallel Global Dimming from escalating particulate pollution from China and India over the same period, ramp up of dirty economics. Trouble is air pollution is an unreliable brake on carbon/ghg driven global warming.

The guy is an Assembly of God creationist anti science type beyond mechano sets.]

Panel notes Ruddish strine. Paul Kelly soliloquy states Rudd no real history of Labor culture explains his change of language style [after touring hard hat pic facs across the land]

http://www.abc.net.au/insiders/

Refer http://www.abc.net.au/insidebusiness/

Posted by editor at 1:13 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink