Mood:  quizzical

 By Tom McLoughlin, solicitor in NSW

When I studied the subject of Jurisprudence in 1989 at Australian National University which I greatly enjoyed, we were taught there is an institutional conspiracy in the administration of justice around the choice of judges.

That is the judges are chosen from a fairly limited group of society, who had a certain socio economic childhood, education, religious training, ethnicity, career as a lawyer and then choice as a judge.

This is the realist theory of the law, as a social contract we all sign up to to live here, where morality is not nearly as significant as maintaining order, because disorder creates confusion and that leads to conflict and social breakdown. So the law is more about keeping the peace than actually doing justice.

[Notice too the legalistic objective of keeping the peace is only one social good. If law is too strict it stifles creativity, freedom of expression, and innovation. Too much 'legalistic order' can be not only boring, it can be unhealthy to civil liberty and so fascist. As always it's a balancing act for society as a whole.]

Similarly there is a jurisprudential academic view this background influence reflects the approach of judges to court decisions on any particular matter.

In a way this is common sense, and blatantly obvious. A judge is affected by their own background personal experience. But this has to be applied professionally according to the evidence in a case and the actual law. So much for the human condition.

One presumes Judge Michael Finane is such an orthodox judicial officer.

Indeed this writer has met him socially on one occassion at his home long before these controversial cases and some of his family around the topic of permaculture gardening. This puts this writer in a delicate position. One is able properly to comment on legal decisions but not hold judges in contempt by suggesting they take note of anything in their decisions other than the evidence before them. For instance their family background should not be a factor beyond what is known as "judicial facts", that is commonly known things that everyone accepts without evidence - say the sun comes up and sets, the harbour bridge is big etc. They have to be common blatant things beyond controversy. Perhaps. Does it includes a father's concern for the well being of his own?

So from a legal theory point of view I wish to comment on the fairly widespread view amongst some critics of the 55 year very long sentence of Skaf by Finane that discrimination might be involved. No. Simply I don't believe it and here is why:

There is one thing in common between Finane and critic Mufti Hilali - they are both fathers of adult children. My intuitive belief is that subliminally or subconsciously Finane must have been influenced by this reality of his own family. Similarly if any of Hilali's daughters had been violently abused he would probably be quoting the Koran or Old Testament dictum of capital punishment, rather than 55 years.

There might be quite a few women's groups with sympathy for that too, as victims of violent sexual abuse, though the law is properly not in the business of revenge. 

So I don't buy the theory about Finane prejudice against Islam in his harsh punishment. No, I think it's an explanation around evidence and law, training and yes his own family, far closer to Hilali's own life journey perhaps than the Mufti actually realises. Not the evil of discrimination but the positive motive of a family man.

It is regretable to mention a judge's family in analysing his decision but there wouldn't be a good defence lawyer in the whole country who didn't make similar calculations of the presiding judicial officer in a case. What's he like? How many sugars in his coffee and every other personal detail. So it is with Finane and that's the burden too of a judge's family.

I write this in what I believe to be the public interest, and a small risk to my own practising certificate, as there is a gathering momentum behind the 'discrimination against Islam' theory of Skaf's sentence which calls up the need for credible alternative versions of reality of which a father's natural concerns for their own surely plays a part while properly exercising a public duty.

Posted by editor at 8:44 AM EADT

Updated: Tuesday, 16 January 2007 10:33 PM EADT

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Mood:  sharp

Jarrah Keenan doing a stint in South Korea as an English teacher forwards this amusing, disturbing satire of George W Bush  (who I must say closely resembles a 'defeated' presidential candidate Ritchie character in the West Wing tv series (4th Season, #6  "Game On" broadcast October 30 2002).

Hard to make funny of such a terrible situation, but then humour sometimes can be so profound as to the truth of the world. Over to Mr Average American here:

Dear Mr. President: Send Even MORE Troops (and you go, too!) ...from Michael
Moore

1/10/07

Dear Mr. President,

Thanks for your address to the nation. It's good to know you still want to
talk to us after how we behaved in November.

Listen, can I be frank? Sending in 20,000 more troops just ain't gonna do
the job. That will only bring the troop level back up to what it was last
year. And we were losing the war last year! We've already had over a million
troops serve some time in Iraq since 2003. Another few thousand is simply
not enough to find those weapons of mass destruction! Er, I mean... bringing
those responsible for 9/11 to justice! Um, scratch that. Try this -- BRING
DEMOCRACY TO THE MIDDLE EAST! YES!!!

You've got to show some courage, dude! You've got to win this one! C'mon,
you got Saddam! You hung 'im high! I loved watching the video of that --
just like the old wild west! The bad guy wore black! The hangmen were as
crazy as the hangee! Lynch mobs rule!!!

Look, I have to admit I feel very sorry for the predicament you're in. As
Ricky Bobby said, "If you're not first, you're last." And you being
humiliated in front of the whole world does NONE of us Americans any good.

Sir, listen to me. You have to send in MILLIONS of troops to Iraq, not
thousands! The only way to lick this thing now is to flood Iraq with
millions of us! I know that you're out of combat-ready soldiers -- so you
have to look elsewhere! The only way you are going to beat a nation of 27
million -- Iraq -- is to send in at least 28 million! Here's how it would
work:

The first 27 million Americans go in and kill one Iraqi each. That will
quickly take care of any insurgency. The other one million of us will stay
and rebuild the country. Simple.

Now, I know you're saying, where will I find 28 million Americans to go to
Iraq? Here are some suggestions:

1. More than 62,000,000 Americans voted for you in the last election (the
one that took place a year and half into a war we already knew we were
losing). I am confident that at least a third of them would want to put
their body where there vote was and sign up to volunteer. I know many of
these people and, while we may disagree politically, I know that they don't
believe someone else should have to go and fight their fight for them --
while they hide here in America.

2. Start a "Kill an Iraqi" Meet-Up group in cities across the country. I
know this idea is so early-21st century, but I once went to a Lou Dobbs
Meet-Up and, I swear, some of the best ideas happen after the third mojito.
I'm sure you'll get another five million or so enlistees from this effort.

3. Send over all members of the mainstream media. After all, they were your
collaborators in bringing us this war -- and many of them are already
trained from having been "embedded!" If that doesn't bring the total to 28
million, then draft all viewers of the FOX News channel.

Mr. Bush, do not give up! Now is not the time to pull your punch! Don't be a
weenie by sending in a few over-tired troops. Get your people behind you and
YOU lead them in like a true commander in chief! Leave no conservative
behind! Full speed ahead!

We promise to write. Go get 'em W!

Yours,

Michael Moore
http://www.michaelmoore.com/

Posted by editor at 9:05 AM EADT

Updated: Sunday, 14 January 2007 9:17 AM EADT

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Mood:  cool

If this version of history is true it appears current federal Defence Minister Brendan Nelson is not quite the "detail man" that PM John Howard would all like us to believe. Read on!

It is interesting talking to diverse folks at Addison Rd Community Centre. I am a humble gardener one day a week there and chat to tenants and neighbours alike. I like to think of myself as honouring alternatively Eddie Mabo gardener in solidarity with Black Radio Skidrow folks, or Che Guevara agricultural worker vis a vis the Casa Latin American Spanish speakers club. But mostly I just do bins gutters and weeding.

This inspiring conversation is well worth recording: A talk with one retired gent Alf Rankin last Friday 12^th January neighbour to the ARC (just near the north west composter actually) which still has army buildings from when it was a Vietnam War barracks.

(It’s a bloody good parallel to a radio talk by author Peter Fitzsimons on literary luncheons on ABC radio a day or two before about the revered Rats of Tobruk who stopped Rommel for the first time ever. The talk is a little hard to locate on the web but notice this promo: http://shop.abc.net.au/browse/product.asp?productid=521445 )

There I was weeding in front of YogaTrack and Alf pauses, as he does:

Me: This is the music I like [playing on my van stereo], it’s the soundtrack to the movie Thin Red Line, do you know it? The film’s on the Pope’s top 20 list apparently.

Alf: no can’t say I have.

Me: There are two versions but the recent one is the best. It’s about the very violent campaign in WW2 in Guadalcanal but it’s actually about democracy, how a middle ranking officer defies an order higher up so his men aren’t cannon fodder. Great actors. Nolte, Penn, Clooney, Travolta. They all wanted to be in it. The director only makes one every 15 years so they wanted in. Great stuff.

Alf: funny you should talk about defiance.

Me: Yeah Australian soldiers are said to be casual and rebellious aren’t they.

Alf: Australians like to think they are.

Me: Yeah. Actually we are a very docile submissive lot compared to say the French.

Alf:  I met a Scottish fellow who was in WW1 who came here. Said if he survived this he wanted to live in Australia. But when he got here he didn’t find it.

Me: Reality didn’t live up to the ideal, eh?

Alf: What he saw in the happy go lucky Australians abroad wasn’t what he saw here. I’ll tell you a story about Kirkpatrick. You might know him as Simpson. He was from a village called [Shields End?]. They were seafaring people. So was my grandfather. They were seafaring people when they came out here too. Ships carpenters and various other jobs. They knew Kirkpatrick and he was always visiting their place. They believed in the same things. There was a lot of support at that time for something called the IWW, international [or did he say “industrial”] workers of the world. They were part of that. Seafarers used to carry the message to ports across the world.

Me: Strong mateship eh? What was your grandfather’s name?

Alf: Whalton. W-H-A-L-T-O-N.

Me: That’s an unusual spelling. [I’m thinking ‘John Boy’ in the Waltons tv series.]

Alf: I have his death certificate at home. So anyway Kirkpatrick hated guns, didn’t want anything to do with them. He thought he would join up here and get a trip back to the UK and disappear as Simpson and start living as Kirkpatrick again. But the ship never got that far, it stopped in a place called Gallipoli.

Me: He was the famous Simpson with the donkey? He did that for about a month or two didn’t he?

Alf: Yeah. He wouldn’t fight you see. Refused to work for the Australian army. He got involved with the Indians. They loved him for helping their wounded. It went to an Australian General they reckon who said just let him be.

Me: He probably knew what would happen to him soon enough.

Alf: Maybe. Some say he was killed by the enemy, some even say it was an Australian bullet. No one knows really.

Me: Where would that latter story come from? The Indians?

Alf: Not sure.

Me: You know this is a pretty embarrassing version of history for Defence Minister Nelson. He holds Simpson up as a model of Australian values. He’s put it in an education pack to all Australian schools. Can I quote you on this? I do a bit of web publishing.

Alf: Okay.

Me: What’s your name?

Alf: Alf Rankin.

Me: What a stupid war WW1 was. Such a waste.

Postscript #1: I don’t know how accurate this is or possible to corroborate regarding the history of Simpson’s demise as a martyr on the Gallipoli battle field. Here are some references that provide a comparison

http://www.awm.gov.au/encyclopedia/simpson.htm

and yes it does look very close to the official Australia War Memorial version of reality, but no mention of Industrial Workers of the World:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrial_Workers_of_the_World

Also no mention of the highly inflammatory suggestion he was shot by an Australian bullet seeking revenge for his desertion at Gallipoli.

But the reference to working with the Indian soldiers, and the merchant navy history are all there. Whacko. I think Alf has got a nugget of information for Australian history here.

Postscript #2: This is what Howard's "detail man" said to the media of record ABC PM show [direct quote]:

http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2005/s1445262.htm

 

"Teach Australian values or 'clear off', says Nelson
 
PM - Wednesday, 24 August , 2005  18:18:00

Reporter: Samantha Hawley

 

MARK COLVIN: Teach Australian values or "clear off". That's the message to Islamic schools in Australia from the Federal Education Minister, Brendan Nelson.

Dr Nelson gives the World War One story of Simpson and his donkey as an example of the values he means. It's the story of the unarmed soldier with a donkey who rescued wounded men on Gallipoli.

 

Dr Nelson says if we lose sight of what Simpson and his donkey represented, Australia as a nation will lose its direction. ...."

and on and on it goes.

Not Simpson, Kirkpatrick. Not Australian, British. Not a military patriot but a peacenik deserter saintly martyr. Not a righteous soldier but anti war.

And these people are in charge of the blood and life of our citizenry, of vouchsafing the best interest of our allies, and global security.

'Don't take the low road' indeed to quote a soliliquy by the prodigy in West Wing tv series Josh Lyman character. Take the high road.

Seems The Age editorialist has been here before me in any case. They cover most of this shallow 'wrap me in a uniform' prompous right wing fantasy at the time August 2005:

http://www.theage.com.au/news/editorial/chasing-the-donkey-vote-on-values/2005/08/25/1124562979605.html

Nelson was seeing Liberal Party blue tinted fairies at the bottom of the garden it seems. Next to the glow of non existent Iraqi WMD I suppose. Meanwhile Libya really did have nuke/nuke technology via AQ Khan working from Pakistan. Incredulous really.

Posted by editor at 8:39 AM EADT

Updated: Monday, 19 May 2008 6:28 PM NZT

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Mood:  caffeinated

Stay tuned for the usual foetid hysteria over a talk show interview last night in Egypt by the Mufti of Lakemba Mosque in Sydney while on holidays there, the night of George W Bush's big Iraq war speech.

He is ‘a fool, mad, divisive, intolerant, a bad representative of Muslim Australians, and should be encouraged to stay overseas’. This last one from the Premier of NSW no less who well knows he is a citizen of Australia based in his own electorate of … Lakemba. How's that for so called free speech, constructive deportation.

For the record here is my view after a long slog gardening and just checking the major daily press and ABC tv news/7.30 Report. Speaking of which 7.30 failed miserably in their duty to report the serious news being more fallout on Iraq war speech by George Bush, preferring to go with the Hilali confected outrage.

First Hilali is no fool. He surely knew his talk show interview would play back home in Oz.

Second the docile indeed submissive presentation of Walid Ali  (e.g. on 7.30 Report, a favoured media spokersperson for Muslims based in Melbourne) and similar suggested a proverbial Uncle Tom response to Hilali. Walid Ali having already 'sold out' to the big western corporate law firm down there (speaking as an ex sell out corporate lawyer myself) Walid is at risk of appearing a careerist appeaser of white supremacist status quo in Australia.

Not that I blame this eloquent very bright fellow for cringing at the swingeing comments of Hilali which make life so much more difficult for Islamic loyalists: He’s not here to make your life any more comfortable Mr Walid Ali, of that you can be sure. On the other hand Muslim leaders should also keep in mind that it was in Sydney in February 2003, and not Melbourne for a change, that between 250 and 500K peace marchers confronted Howard's thinly disguised white supremacist foreign (and domestic) policy.

This was the peace and anti war march Howard infamously referred to as "a mob" including this writer at a peace and environment info stall under the banner "The Bush worth saving".

Third there is no doubt Hilali’s uncompromising views will cause trouble for younger generations of more assimilated Muslim Australians who want diplomacy, harmony and cooperation. But that still doesn’t negate what Hilali has to say as awkward as it is.

What we are seeing is a highly political man who rejects USA imperial foreign policy, who is old and doesn’t care about who he offends amongst his enemies, especially as he is getting too tired for his demanding job now.

But what he does care about is growing the Muslim pie here in Australia. He is not going to lose any votes within Islam from the existing believers no matter how troubled they feel about his style, they are rusted on faithful,  but he will get some new fans.

Those getting hysterical don’t give Hilali near enough credit for his PR cunning.

14 days out from Sovereignty Day, err sorry, Australia Day 26^th January 2007 roughly 500,000 original Australians, our Indigenous, Aboriginal Australia

http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/indg_overview.html

will be asking themselves which tradition is worth pursuing? Anglo Saxon Christian dogma, or Muslim Australia?

And Hilali wants to be in that equation. He wants his message to be transmitted, for free if at all possible, to all those coloured folk who are losers in the Western anglo saxon white supremacist culture.

How easy for an Egyptian with thousands of years of history over the British to scorn the convict story as trivial or even embarrassing. It has the added benefit too of appealing to those Aboriginal Aussies whose land was stolen and People slaughtered or sickened.

And then there are those coloured folk whose relatives are hurt by Bush, Blair and Howard’s ‘surge’ in Iraq. The Palestinians as well. They think white western governments and their people are ‘liars’ to some degree. We did re elect John Howard after all in 2004. Is it really any accident Hilali made his interview soon after Bush’s speech when the Mufti has been to Iraq and knows the suffering of those people in depressing detail? The Bush speech alarming and depressing the Middle East and the world generally.

But what is most galling for the dominant Euro Australian culture is that Hilali is fighting stereotypical intolerant fire with fire, as truly divisive as that is. It would be unwise to assume the Mufti's reverse stereotyping of western society does not have some resonance, and some evidence to his case. Take for instance his reported claim 'there is no freedom or democracy for Muslims in Australia'. On one level it looks hopelessly inaccurate and vexatious.

But on another level consider the following evidence exactly on 1. denial of freedom (to Muslim alleged terrorists pending trial), and 2. unequal legal administration as regards sub judice evidence which is a hallmark of democracy:

Today I noticed a paragraph in the Sydney Morning Herald notable for its outrageous breach of legal reporting standards: Where the evidence in a case is sub judice and not for general press reporting when charges have been laid, especially in a case so very very serious. Here it is by the otherwise affable journo Tom Allard. [I met Allard on the media stakeout of Costello Howard leadership Cabinet standoff mid 2006 in Sydney CBD, so he obviously does federal political stories.]. 

The fact the media breach has not been a subject of controversy in the general media or legal media for compromising a long and expensive trial process including no bail, says a lot about how far our society’s checks and balances regarding non Christian coffee coloured folks has slipped:

“Indeed, when police and ASIO agents swooped on 19 alleged terrorists in Sydney and Melbourne last year, they found an astounding array of violent material on their computers. Their electronic library was as voluminous as it was disturbing, including recipes for homemade explosives, poems in praise of jihad and grisly videos and audio files of beheadings and terrorist attacks.”

In Fighting jihad in cyberspace page 27 Sydney Morning Herald December 2-3 2006:

Full article here at:

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/fighting-jihad-in-cyberspace/2006/12/01/1164777791383.html?page=fullpage

The only difference with the web and paper version is that the journalist’s name is missing.

Get it? Allard is spilling the prosecution case in the Big Media to prime the public preconceptions. This is actually blatantly illegal reporting of sub judice evidence.

Sure I’m a rusty junior lawyer here in NSW, but let me take a wild guess and say this prejudices the whole case by the authorities for a fair trial.

Who is Allard’s source for that incriminating evidence? Was it the police prosecution? Was it the Attorney General Ruddock or his officers? Was it ASIO? Can the accused get a fair trial still after all 19 are tarred with this indiscriminate brush? All orthodox questions in exactly same situation for the proverbial ‘white western alleged violent criminal' whose case is compromised by Big Media reportage.

Trials are aborted for this kind of reportage in my memory.

What was that about equal democracy and freedom in Australia Hilali suspects as flaky, indeed what of equality before the law? Allard is no slouch journalist, and this was a big feature story, not some throw away piece. The Herald obviously was happy with it under an image of the Osama Bin Laden bogey man.

Won’t defence barrister Rob Starry be interested to read this article here on independent media. It was Starry who said in a Channel 31 tv programme in Sydney last year that there is a consistent pattern of abuse of legal norms by the authorities regarding prejudicial media choreography of his defendants. That from a lawyer of 25 years experience.

So go ahead and rail against Hilali for prodding sacred cows about desperate convicts stealing, err sorry settling a whole continent from Blackfellas. The trouble is there is a grain of truth, not the whole truth mind you, in what Hilali is saying. But then he is not playing the whole truth game one presumes having long given that away, as neither are Australian institutions of power being completely honest either, as the Fairfax press quite blatantly evidences above. 

Posted by editor at 10:20 PM EADT

Updated: Thursday, 8 February 2007 8:29 AM EADT

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Mood:  lazy

As I walked to Bondi Beach yesterday in a severe effort of exercise vanity (roughly a 40km round trip and boy do the hips feel it today) I listened to the ABC quality radio live feed of the Bush tv speech (evening time USA).

I mused about this image from 2003 and the courage of Greenpeace against this war:

The Bush speech is here apparently at pro war News Ltd The Australian broadsheet (of relatively low circulation):

Video: The speech in full

I notice Murdoch's cronies also ask their readers: "Your Say: Is it enough? " Meaning enough dead Iraqi? Or perhaps enough Abu Graib style torture? Enough hatred of the occupation? Enough imperial agenda against Iran/pro Israel? Enough pro puppet govt death squads?

As I marched still fresh at 1.15 pm to this historic speech, the public in the height of the holiday summer season, on King St Newtown were oblivious. Later the beach was crowded still at 5 till 7 pm or so when most tv news services were broadcasting their reports last night. Perhaps people in the biggest city here of 4 million didn't want to know? Nor did I for awhile there fully 100m offshore with flippers body surfing the 4 footer.

I will go soon and check the morning press (paper version) at the corner shop (run by minority Lebanese folks) to see the editorial decision of the high circulation press here regarding front page coverge.  

The electronic version of the Sydney Morning Herald have it low on their web world section, unlike low circulation 'The Oz' above. [The paper version SMH has it front page top left as a serious paper of record should.]

Similarly News Ltd sister paper, the high circulation web version of the Sydney Daily Telegraph, have run a classic diversion story Sex fiends' job scandal . I know it's a relegaton tactic because they publish their paper version page 1 on the web [paper version has Bush speech p2]: Shock horror but not a candle to roughly 500,000 dead Iraqis in arguably the biggest foreign policy stuff up in the history of the USA.

The SDT has always been a cartoon book 'mind f*ck' in common Murdoch tradition. In true manipulative form they run an image of charming innocent child Bindi Irwin next to the 'sex fiend' headline. Significantly the SDT is also PM John Howard's "favourite" newspaper with open access for their chief spinner/hack Piers Ackerman many in Sydney regard as a thinly disguised white supremacist.

The truth is the SDT have buried the Bush speech, running second on their web page and paper.  Howard will want it buried too this election year to put distance between him and loser Bush.

The serious news people here know Bush's speech is the most important of the day, week and likely the month: ABC tv to a minimal audience ran this first last night:

"TRACY BOWDEN: In what is considered one of the most important speeches of his Presidency, George W. Bush made it clear he may have steered away from the term "stay the course", but he's still focussed on victory in Iraq.

GEORGE W BUSH, US PRESIDENT: The new strategy I outline tonight will change America's course in Iraq and help us succeed in the fight against terror." http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2006/s1825434.htm

Indeed there were some shockers in the speech:

- 'Joe Lieberman' the pro war Democrat turncoat,

- 'bipartisanship' after the mid term election rout,

- no mention of the death toll, 

- sanitised mention of the huge credibility gap with the USA electorate starved of social budget into the military industrial complex.

This was a very hard ball, recalcitrant, very polished speech I thought. It was surprisingly humble in style but deeply arrogant in content. Not so much a State of the Union, rather State of the War speech and every bit as critical after the mid term elections: A president's response from the imperative of the negative vote and in this sense a conversation with those voters direct.

Indeed the ABC govt broadcaster radio this morning in Australia has led the 7 am and 7.45 am main bulletins with the earlier one of senior Democrat opposition to Bush's 'surge' of 20k plus USA soldiers, and UK govt sympathetic reaction.

As I write AM's Peter Cave

(a gutsy gifted journalist who I recall once sent me an email from Baghdad calling me "a loon" for suggesting he blended into the 'Arabic' population)

announces their lead story 'is this about attacking Iran?'

 http://www.abc.net.au/am/

similar to the UK The Times comment recently. We carry the Times report in full on SAM here at:

UK The Times online weighs 'Middle Eastern War' plan by White House

at the 10 January 2007 button top right, with original link there:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/printFriendly/0,,1-162-2530313-162,00.html 

 All very worrying.

This ostensible 'she'll be right' reaction in Sydney to the pivotal Bush speech has one big problem as exemplified by the earlier blanket press coverage of home grown rocket terrorism this last several weeks: It won't be right, and no one really believes it. Kevin Rudd, Opposition Leader, like senior Democrats is on AM now referring indeed to this war "folly".

This email came through from the USA peace movement late last night:

Date: Wed, 10 Jan 2007 22:57:27 -0800

Dear friends,

Just when we thought the war in Iraq couldn't get any worse - it has. Last
night, President Bush rejected reality, spurned the American people's
verdict, and announced his new policy: MILITARY ESCALATION IN IRAQ.

The good news is that the newly elected United States Congress can stop
this madness. We're launching an immediate campaign to let the Congress
hear from global voices - placing an ad with the number of signatures to
our petition in "Roll Call", an influential political paper sent to every
member of the US Congress. Click below to visit our new campaign site at
Avaaz.org, see the ad, and sign the petition:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/iraq_campaign_jan_2007/

The US-led coalition forces and the Iraqi government are part of the
problem, and sending tens of thousands more American troops will only fan
the flames of this war. But the US Congress can demand a real diplomatic
plan to end the war - if they feel enough pressure to do it.

This new Congress has real power to stop Bush in his tracks. The Democrats
were elected to end the war. If enough people speak up now, they might just
have the guts to do it.

http://www.avaaz.org/en/iraq_campaign_jan_2007/

The vast majority of Americans oppose escalation, and opposition is
growing. They need our help before the week is out.

Add your name to the petition. Spread the word to your friends. The Iraq
crisis is a global problem - and it will take global pressure to change its
course.

With hope,

Ricken, Paul, Tom, Rachel, Galit, Lee-Sean and the rest of the Ceasefire
Campaign (now Avaaz.org!) Team.
_________________

PS - In an online poll last year, nearly a thousand of you helped choose a
compelling new name for our global campaigning effort - www.Avaaz.org.
Avaaz means "voice" or "song" in many Asian languages. The new site is up,
so check it out! www.Avaaz.org.

Posted by editor at 7:19 AM EADT

Updated: Saturday, 13 January 2007 8:04 AM EADT

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Mood:  accident prone

When an MP and a former Deputy Premier of an Australian State is in court on “serious criminal charges” as explained by The Australian here yesterday Jan 10^th

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21038117-2702,00.html

one starts to wonder if governance has gone totally off the rails in that place.

SAM’s editor admits to a special interest. Being of an environmental activist leaning we were concerned about the integrity of our publishing on various web outlets (including to Federal and NSW MP’s) regarding the infamous woodchippers at Gunns Ltd down there in Tasmania. This wariness was particularly in light of the aggressive legal approach Gunns Ltd were pursuing against public interest groups like The Wilderness Society and fellow travellers.

Gunns Ltd is financially perhaps the biggest fish in the state economy down there via corrupt logging practices, with ex politician allies and board members.

We got some of our email checked out prior to Christmas and can now publish this statutory declaration by our technical adviser:

STATUTORY DECLARATION NSW OATHS ACT 1990

Schedule 9

I, Robert Farquharson of Sydney in the state of New South Wales

Do hereby solemnly declare and affirm that: -

1. I am an expert in internet and computer security field including repair of hardware and software and protection from computer viruses, parasites. I have worked in the field for  [27]  years.  My qualifications include

Ph.D (Computer Engineering); MCS; GradDipCompSc

The MCS is an abbreviation for Master of Computer Science. I have a few other minor degrees but I use these three on all my official letterheads and statements as they are the more important ones - The first two are from central Queensland University and the third one is from Griffiths University at Mt. Gravatt in Brisbane.

2.  My contact details as per my letterhead are as follows:

PO Box xxxxxxxx NSW                                                                         

Mob: xxxxxxxx

E-mail: xxxxxx

For professional reasons I do not publicise my residential address.

3. I have provided internet security support to Tom McLoughlin who is the principal of a small network of ecology idealists for 3 years now. Tom is a solicitor in NSW and a friend and he also pays me for internet security work when he can afford to. I understand ‘ecology action’ is a non profit private foundation and is unincorporated. It is a basically a little social club that supports environmental causes. I have allowed him to include his website on my portal at:

http://cpppcltrust.com/ecologyactionsydney

I am aware that since February 2005 the ecology action website has gradually increased in reader viewing as demonstrated by the counter at the bottom left of the page. Currently it is at 15,387 views by the public.

4. I sent an email recently, as follows:

----- Original Message -----

From: "Robert Farquharson" xxxxxx

To: "ecology action sydney" xxxxxx

Sent: Thursday, December 21, 2006 12:30 AM

Subject: An unsuccessful attempt

>A person attempted to hijack the website, all 5 links meant to access the
> CPPPCLTRUST website have been permanently removed, click onto any of the
> links that were sent and it will say  The requested page was removed for
> terms violation
>
> He breached a serious part of the terms of the CPPPCLTRUST usage of the site
> and that is for all visitors to the site to "Refrain from using the services
> provided on the Site to invade the privacy of others, or to collect and use
> an individual's personal and private information or to gain or attempt to
> gain unauthorized access to other computer systems via the Site
>
> He sent his details as john_epa without any details on Tuesday, December 19,
> 2006
>
> Keeping you safe in the background
>
> Rob
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Tripod Mailer" xxxxxx>

To: ************> Sent: Tuesday, December 19, 2006 10:28 PM
> Subject: Letters to CPPPCLTRUST
>
>
> Full_Name: john_epa
>
> Contact_Nos: Unknown
>
> Comments: I have to say your site is great
>
> http://7387.4.1u05648d.info .
> http://8987.4.qjo9ca.info .
> http://8757.4.qjo9ca.info .
> http://6996.4.v32ee09q.info .
> http://2389.4.35k31ypm1.info .
>
> Initials_only:
>
> Anonymous:
>

5. The meaning of the email to Tom McLoughlin’s personal/work email address at paragraph 4 above can be summarised as follows:

The portal, which is a facility for hosting a combination of websites, which includes the ecology action website, has been attacked by a malicious hacker to take the portal and all dependent websites down off the internet. Each of the links listed indicate the hacker’s work to redirect readers from my portal to a page which reads:

“The requested page was removed for terms violation.”

This was a very dangerous hacking attempt because not only did it threaten the ecology action website, and my portal of other websites, which carries a solicitor Alex Tees and my own publications, but it also threatened the very reputable hosting website provider Tripod.com, a USA based company that provides user friendly website templates for consumers, and their customers. Tripod.com have corresponded with me to express their gratitude in fighting off the virus that threatened our situation collectively.

6. I found it very hard to define the source of the hacker’s computer via by what is known as their identifying “IP address”. Clearly the IP address is being hidden. However I can conclusively advise that it came from Tasmania. I also recall seeing something to do with “Gunns Ltd” in the electronic traces.

7. The hacking attempt was of a very advanced technological capacity involving a sophisticated multi pronged virus that first reads the defences, learns the website defences, and re attacks, up to 5 times or more. Although hackers are quite common, a hacker with that ability is very rare and invariably well paid and expensive to employ.

8. Yesterday Tom McLoughlin advised me that the very first item of information on his web page, which I don’t usually read and haven’t read for ages, has for a few weeks now been carrying this paper:

6th Dec 2006 - New paper: Logger terrorism under the Howard federal government

I am advised by Tom the ecology action paper relates to both political violence in Tasmania by loggers sympathetic to Gunns Ltd at the Weld Valley on December 2^nd 2006, which Tom says was similar to violence experienced at Wandella State Forest on the NSW South Coast in 2005.

9. I am advised by Tom that the source information of the logger terrorist attack on the Weld Valley conservationist camp in Tasmania, being a media release of December 2^nd 2006 has similarly been interfered with on their website at:

http://www.huon.org/weldvalley/

I am advised by Tom that late last week the link to this release of 2^nd Dec 2006 regarding firebombing attempt by 3 ute loads of loggers in the early hours of the morning was diverted to another document of 27^th November 2006 far less damaging to the reputation of the logging industry.

10. I am advised by Tom that the web master for the relevant Huon Valley Environment Centre that maintains the Weld Valley website, by the name of Lilia has had her phone line cut at the work station at the place she maintains the site. Tom has referred me to this email correspondence regarding his advice about repair of phone lines so their website can be repaired:

----- Original Message -----

From: "Lilia L." xxxxxx

To xxxxxxxx

Sent: Wednesday, December 20, 2006 9:53 AM

Subject: Re: on copper lines Re: your link is broken for press 2nd of Dec presser firebomb logger terrorists

> Hi Tom,
> thanks so much for your advice, and the stories - they're great! I didn't get to fix my phone line yesterday, but I'll go home and try what you suggested tonight. There's nowhere in Huonville where I can get a phone cord! I'll have to go up to Hobart if it doesn't work.
> Cheers!
> Lilia
> P.S. Just this second we've got the news that the tree-sit camp has been busted by cops. We'll put stuff up on Melbourne Indymedia a.s.a.p.

11. In my opinion it is quite likely the hacking attempts on my website portal do relate to the ecology action Sydney section of the site because the hacking always seems to relate in time to any increase in activity by ecology action. Indeed over the years I have found providing internet security for Tom McLoughlin has taken more of my time than any other client. Also it is my opinion that it is quite likely this latest hacking attempt was to prevent the public or mainstream media practitioners or members of the political community from reading the new paper mentioned at paragraph 7. In my opinion as a expert on internet security the details in the paragraphs above are highly consistent with a campaign of deliberate and well resourced hacking of internet based information to censor news from Tasmania of a nasty and politically damaging event of political violence in the Weld Valley in Tasmania recently.

And I make this solemn declaration, in accordance with the Oaths Act, 1900, and subject to the punishment by law provided for the making of any wilfully false statement in any such declaration.

Signed

Declared at Sydney

This Sunday, 24^th December 2006

Before me:

Thomas Joseph McLoughlin, solicitor in NSW

Posted by editor at 8:42 AM EADT

Updated: Thursday, 11 January 2007 10:53 AM EADT

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Mood:  incredulous

Back on 8th January 2006 we published a story called:

Why did student activist now minister Tony Abbott punch Peter Woof?

 (to find the full story go to the top right corner and click on the date)

It raised questions of a matter in the late 1970's where activist and qualified engineer Peter Woof took a civil suit for assault against the 'punching machine' (based on oft published images of young Tony) which only got to first base at the Glebe Magistrates Court. According to Woof he was intimidated out of it by the high priced lawyers who might claim costs against him. That is he withdrew under duress.

Now a covert source within Big Media writes to say: 

"There is a hell of a lot more on this sort of thing that Kerry-Ann Walsh tried to get up in the Sun-Herald back in 2004.

Fairfax's legal department got very nervous, but the story stacked up. Abbot got wind of it, and played off on Fairfax politics with a spectacular spoiler. The Friday before the yarn was due to appear, he went to Michelle Grattan with a preview of the material on his wild days in Michael Duffy's book.

Michelle outpunches KAW, Fairfax thinks. They used her yarn in the Sun-Herald and the Sunday Age. Kerry-Ann only got a meaningless few pars in Sydney."

Not so surprisingly the source prefers to stay anonymous. SAM's editor recalls the PM Howard having his own moments of exasparation being quoted early on that the Fairfax journos 'are out of control'. Quite a curious comment in a democracy with a free press that is supposed to keep all and sundry honest (including themselves) without fear or favour.

If the above quote is true, seems the PM's loyalist Abbott has used some quite orthodox tools of 'control' namely rivalry and competition within Fairfax itself, Grattan over Walsh. Certainly these are favoured dark arts in Big Politics the world over. An aging Grattan would be grateful one imagines to ward off spritely competition.

However this all leaves open the original question of character: Why did Tony Abbott punch Peter Woof? And are there any other Peter Woofs out there, so to speak?

Posted by editor at 3:23 PM EADT

Updated: Wednesday, 10 January 2007 3:41 PM EADT

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Mood:  chillin'

Extreme weather images of ice storm in USA, related to climate change?

http://www.extremeinstability.com/06-12-31b.htm

here is one sample, phwoa!

Posted by editor at 12:59 PM EADT

Updated: Wednesday, 10 January 2007 1:12 PM EADT

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