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sydney alternative media - non-profit community independent trustworthy
Monday, 24 March 2008
Civil society disgust at Chinese dictatorship iron fist in Tibet
Mood:  irritated

 

Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, left, and U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi walk after a lunch meeting in Dharamsala, India, Friday, March 21, 2008. Pelosi, called on the world community Friday to denounce China in the wake of its crackdown in Tibet, calling the crisis "a challenge to the conscience of the world." (AP Photo/Gurinder Osan) 

 

............................

PRESS RELEASE

Contacts:       
Chhime R. Chhoekyapa, Secretary            Mobile + 91 (09816021879)
Tenzin Taklha, Joint Secretary                   Mobile + 91 (09816021813)
PRESS RELEASE
I am deeply concerned over the situation that has been developing in Tibet following peaceful protests in many parts of Tibet, including Lhasa, in recent days.  These protests are a manifestation of the deep-rooted resentment of the Tibetan people under the present governance. 
As I have always said, unity and stability under brute force is at best a temporary solution.  It is unrealistic to expect unity and stability under such a rule and would therefore not be conducive to finding a peaceful and lasting solution. 
I therefore appeal to the Chinese leadership to stop using force and address the long-simmering resentment of the Tibetan people through dialogue with the Tibetan people.  I also urge my fellow Tibetans not to resort to violence.
THE DALAI LAMA

 Dated: March 14, 2008

................................. 

Meanwhile the global partner to local cyber group Get Up here, called Avaaz also write:

Dear friends,

In just 36 hours, 253,553 of us have supported the Dalai Lama's call for dialogue and human rights in Tibet. This is an incredible response--if each of us can get 4 more of our friends to sign the petition, we'll hit 1 million this week! Just quickly forward the email below to your friends and family with a personal note from you-

---------------------------

Dear friends,

After decades of suffering, the Tibetan people have burst onto the streets in protests and riots. The spotlight of the upcoming Olympic Games is now on China, and Tibetan Nobel peace prize winner the Dalai Lama is calling to end all violence through restraint and dialogue--he urgently needs the world's people to support him.

China's leaders are lashing out publicly at the Dalai Lama--but we're told many Chinese officials believe dialogue is the best hope for stability in Tibet. China's leadership is right now considering a crucial choice between crackdown and dialogue that could determine Tibet's--and China's--future.

We can affect this historic choice--China does care about its international reputation, and we can help them choose the right path. China's President Hu Jintao needs to hear that the 'Made in China' brand and the upcoming Olympics in Beijing will succeed only if he makes the right choice. But it will take an avalanche of global people power to get his attention. Click below now to join 250,000 others and sign the petition--and tell absolutely everyone you can right away--our goal is 1 million voices united for Tibet:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/tibet_end_the_violence/19.php

China's economy is dependent on 'Made in China' exports that we all buy, and the government is keen to make the Olympics in Beijing this summer a celebration of a new and respected China. China is also a sprawling, diverse country with much brutality in its past. And it has good reasons to be concerned about stability -- some of Tibet's rioters killed innocent people. But President Hu must recognize that the greatest danger to Chinese stability and development today comes from hardliners who advocate escalating repression, not from those Tibetans seeking dialogue and reform.

We will deliver our petition directly to Chinese officials in New York, London and Beijing, but it must be a massive number before we deliver the petition. Please forward this email to your address book with a note explaining to your friends why this is important, or use our tell-a-friend tool to email your address book--it will come up after you sign.

The Tibetan people have suffered quietly for decades. It is finally their moment to speak--we must help them be heard.

With hope and respect,

Ricken, Iain, Graziela, Paul, Galit, Pascal, Milena, Ben and the whole Avaaz team

Here are some links with more information on the Tibetan protests and the Chinese response:

Crackdown in Tibet, but protests spreading:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar/19/tibet.china
http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/crackdown-on-protests-widens/2008/03/17/1205602289349.html

Dalai Lama calling for dialogue and restraint, and an end to violence:
http://www.dalailama.com/news.216.htm
http://www.agi.it/world/news/200803191258-pol-ren0032-art.html

Leaders across Europe and Asia starting to back dialogue as the way forward:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7300157.stm

Chinese Prime Minister attacks 'Dalai clique', leaves door open for talks:
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/18/content_7813194.htm

Other Chinese signals:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/China_looks_at_India_to_talk_to_Dalai_Lama/articleshow/2875142.cms
---------------------------------------------------



ABOUT AVAAZ
Avaaz.org is an independent, not-for-profit global campaigning organization that works to ensure that the views and values of the world's people inform global decision-making. (Avaaz means 'voice' in many languages.) Avaaz receives no money from governments or corporations, and is staffed by a global team based in London, Rio de Janeiro, New York, Paris, Washington DC, and Geneva.

Don't forget to check out our Facebook and Myspace pages!


You are getting this message because you signed '
Stand with Tibet - Support the Dalai Lama' on 2008-03-18 using the email address anndelaey@yahoo.com.
To ensure that Avaaz messages reach your inbox, please add avaaz@avaaz.org to your address book. To change your email address, language settings, or other personal information, https://secure.avaaz.org/act/index.php?r=profile&user=44ab3187887f2ccad356bba82ef40ce2&lang=en. , or simply go here to unsubscribe.

To contact Avaaz, please do not reply to this email. Instead, write to info@avaaz.org. You can also send postal mail to our New York office: 260 Fifth Avenue, 9th floor, New York, NY 10001 U.S.A.

If you have technical problems, please go to
http://www.avaaz.org.


Posted by editor at 5:13 PM NZT
Updated: Tuesday, 25 March 2008 11:27 AM NZT
Photo of Lake Cowal cyanide gold mine pit wall collapse
Mood:  blue
Topic: ecology

This photo shows the collapsed wall at Barrick's gold mine at Lake Cowal 20 March 2008. Photo: Damian Baker

[Media release]

WIRADJURI ELDER EXPOSES MINE PIT COLLAPSE
AT LAKE COWAL

20 March 2008

Wiradjuri Traditional Owner exposes a massive collapse at Barrick's Cowal Gold Project in Lake Cowal, 45 km north-west of West Wyalong, central western NSW.

After a flight with Friends of the Earth Australia yesterday Neville 'Chappy' Williams stated, " It is hard to bear the pain of the destruction of our sacred site. Barrick has ignored our demands to protect cultural objects and the ecological significance of the lake."

nevillewilliamstraditioinalownerlakecowal.jpg

Lake Cowal is an ephemeral lake lying in the Lachlan River plain within the Murray-Darling Basin.

"We are deeply concerned about the mine's impact on local aboriginal and farming communities particularly the mines massive consumption of water", says Natalie Lowrey, National Liaison Officer, Friends of the Earth Australia. "The pit wall collapse also creates a major concern for workers at the mine site."

Up to 100 Wiradjuri and their supporters will be converging at Lake Cowal to voice their opposition to the mine over the Easter weekend.

More info:
Neville 'Chappy' Williams,
Mooka/Kalara Traditional Owner
0447 841 560

Natalie Lowrey,
Friends of the Earth Australia
0421 226 200

 

Lake Cowal viewed from Wamboyne Mountain, showing lignum beds.

Lake Cowal viewed from Wamboyne Mountain, showing lignum beds.  

 

 

................................

We have reported on the Lake Cowal scandal previously here:

 

6 Jan 2008 Here comes the rain again ..... to a cyanide filled Lake Cowal?

Sunday, 6 January 2008

 

1998-2008 Lake Cowal scandal in Central NSW,$6M slush fund for select green groups, cyanide leaching for gold, pit as deep as Centrepoint Tower is high. Globally on average 79 tonnes of waste is produced for every ounce of gold. More info and links here

and notice this too:

Friday, 4 January 2008

lakecowaloutreachjan-feb05.jpg


Posted by editor at 1:19 PM NZT
Updated: Monday, 24 March 2008 2:54 PM NZT
Iemma metro spin amplified in SMH due to Pyrmont station proximity?
Mood:  quizzical
Topic: big media


We notice a substantive journalistic aspect of the big big splash last week on the 'public transport friendly' metro announcement. It seems to us that the big metro train line announcement at least initially got alot bigger and friendlier coverage in the Herald before the doubts settled in over contrary transport expert advice and then the joker card trumping all namely double booked water storage tunnel (below).

The front page reportage was leavened with some analysis the same day by the ever sharp (and haughty) Andrew Clennel:

 19 March 08 'Public transport premier' eyes history

But no mention of something even closer to home at Fairfax - namely the first station out of the CBD would service their own staff in the traffic peninsula known as the new Fairfax offices at one Darling Island Pyrmont. Clennel omitted that particular govt service to their door, and likely along time before the greater North West?

Click here to close this window

We feel a nostalgia for this sector where the rebirthed City Hub found a home in about 2003, before moving to nearby Ultimo, with chronic congestion on Harris St, and around the Fish Market ramp to Anzac Bridge. Fairfax would have good reason to be grateful.

Indeed it took AC's equivalent over at Sydney Daily Telegraph Joe Hildebrand to spoil the Iemma Govt party with a fairly humble Friday column which took off in the nightly tv news same day virtually cancelling  the PR benefit of the Herald go big front pager:

21 March 08 Iemma's tunnel vision goes to water | The Daily Telegraph

 Related Links

PREMIER Morris Iemma and Palnning Ministter spruik the tunnel that deputy premier John Watkins earlier promised to use as a water reservoir.

That's a competitive free press. 

Certainly Premier Iemma is Mr Available this last 5 days filling the air waves with wholesome personal schmooze via Emma Griffiths ABC tv news last night kicking the footy in the park, Clennell in the features on Saturday, and anyone else presumably. Similarly Jones on 2GB, and Glover on afternoon Drive show mid week.  Anything is better by way of contra distinction than bleeding out in PR terms after Orkopoulos child predator conviction/Scimone-Gong in ICAC/Costanomics on energy/fatal health system/construction incompetence in Bathurst/bus on the rail line (a one off but oh what a metaphor).

We also notice in the Herald graphic that a station will be in Rozelle which I think we can assume leverages the Sydney University developer stalking (led by Prof Richmond Jeremy!) of the public's Callan Park with the help of new Environment Minister Verity Firth, also on the Senate of the Uni (along with 702 announcer Adam Spencer):

More background here:
Tuesday, 18 December 2007
...................

These images above show the business section for the same dated weekend business sections "Easter Weekend Edition March 21-23, 2008 [page] 35".

But the bottom one (if memory serves) was circulated on Friday 21st, and the top one on Saturday 22nd March 2008. The front sections of both editions were different. The Good Weekend and Spectrum (and presumably advertising sections like Domain and Drive etc we didn't bother to check) were all the same.

We only ask because, though we support the Earth Hour initiative also sponsored by Fairfax publishers of the Herald, it's been a long running question in Sydney about the wasteful nature of the bumper weekend edition. The long weekend duplications just rub salt into the wound.

We notice the Weekend Australian did not publish on Friday 21st or indeed Monday 24th March of this Easter Weekend. At least as best we can tell (via our local corner shop). We think this is a more responsible course, or just one edition for the 4 days.


Posted by editor at 10:44 AM NZT
Updated: Monday, 24 March 2008 3:38 PM NZT
Clean air in Sydney on Easter Sunday
Mood:  lazy
Topic: local news


 


 


 

 

 


Posted by editor at 10:33 AM NZT
Sunday, 23 March 2008
Sunday talky shows - Assistant Treasurer Bowen reveals ALP virtue & hypocrisy on redneck pandering, and petrol
Mood:  caffeinated
Topic: aust govt

 

Picture: Will the ALP get away with their own sins of commission trawling for the old 5-10% One Nation vote? Front page Fairfax press and website today with caption: Lib charges over leaflet Exclusive: Five men will be charged over the Lindsay leaflet scandal which sent the Liberal Party into crisis. 

Preface

Back in Sept- Nov. 2007 the ALP were pandering to redneck voters too in Pat Farmer's seat of Macarthur only next door to Lindsay above, if our research is not mistaken, though not nearly as deliberate or dishonest the fraud leaflet  undertaken while Howard was at the helm allegedly by the ultra right in the Liberals now charged. With the ALP 'whatever it takes' racialised tactics evidenced here, where "planning issues" is coded to take on a whole new meaning?:

and

Gavin Hillier: Crown Employees Division
Gavin Hillier: Crown Employees Division, current AWU website

in

12 March 2007 Gavin Hillier, prominent retired logging unionist on Stateline footage as protester no.5?
Mood:  caffeinated

and more background here too on 'absent' MP for Lindsay's neighbouring colonial heartland seat of Macarthur:

Tuesday, 15 January 2008
Author’s general introductory note (skip this bit if you know this regular weekly column):

 

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.

 

Indeed it’s the tv version monitoring task similar to what Nelson Mandela refers to here in his book Long Walk to Freedom (1994, Abacus) written in Robben Island prison (where he was meant to die like other African resister chiefs of history in the 19C), at page 208

 

“..newspapers are only a shadow of reality; their information is important to a freedom fighter not because it reveals the truth, but because it discloses the biases and perceptions of both those who produce the paper and those who read it.”

 

Just substitute ‘Sunday tv political talkie shows’ for "newspapers" in the quote above.

For actual transcripts go to web sites quoted below except with Riley Diary on 7. And note transcripts don’t really give you the image content value.

 

 

Media backgrounder – this section under construction till later Sunday/Monday

 

- SunHerald continues to be the K Walsk LCarty show in terms of political commentary

 

- lead story is Lindsay outrage legal prosecutions damaging to Liberal Party but never forget federal ALP (Rudd in Camden Advertiser edition 23rd Nov 07, Gavin Hillier AWU, ex logger national/nsw union secretary etc, as reported here on SAM too) were also trawling the racist vote in neighbour Pat Farmer MHR seat re Muslim school – so we say bring it all out  for both sides are grubs pandering to white supremacism bereft of moral credibility, winner takes all tactics.

 

- JF Defense Minister is paying for Latham’s AFR article embarrassing Treasurer Swan, having to find $10B after endorsing $6B super hornets purchase (backflip), entre Sunday 9 story below – been pushing the no case for a while now.

 

- Christine Keneally MP PR counter ‘dirty man NSW’ stench on Iemma Govt as telegenic MP with some social welfare for aged religious benefit -  not revealing the rumour (via Lawrence Gibbons editor City Hub if memory serves that she is Opus Dei – if true quite a conflict of interest undeclared that. Also raised question is the World Youth Day a giant PR exercise of innocent Yoof to sanitise political state mafia style govt hand in glove with developers?

 

- similarly Chelsea Clinton wheeled out this weekend press to sanitise the unlovely Clintons as Ms savvy clean skin, which reminds why Obama referred to his own “Ashley” 23 year old white girl campaign vollie in his 35 min tour de force speech without notes. Got to admit the Yankees have an amazing public speaking facility that most others in the world don’t train up near as much – right or wrong, often wrong.

 

- devastating report on true cost of civilian lives lost up to 1M via violence disruption disease compared to pre invasion mortality rates. What an outrage.

 

- AOC wheels out Grant Hacket as political commentator on China/Tibet/global human rights record. As if. Talk about cynical big $port business. $33M in sponsors in fact says SunTele p9 today. Been leveraging Lisa Forrest book too one assumes behind the scenes. It’s all big business to them, couldn’t care less about human rights raison detre for China Inc getting the gig in the first place. China flexing muscle by canceling everest access – to pinch adventure sports folks.

 

- Nancy Pelosi massive slap to Chinese PR machine on tv last night, and to impertinent Grant Hacket.

 

- Max Walsh on Doogue around 7.35 am yesterday RN 576 abc radio re our share market linked to US while most rest of the economy is decoupled from them. Warning of run on superannuation, not a reality here as yet. Hesta advert and super adverts on commercial tv a lot now.]

 

- Milne runs a story about MUA seeking pattern bargaining, perhaps the balancer for Bastard Boys experience of Howard first term in office.

 

- Garnaut ‘green man’ full pager in SMH tension with NSW Govt sell off agenda hitting the rocks.

 

 

 

Sunday 9, 7.30am- 9.30am

 

- Tim Lester story on Hornets (nest).

- footage of Chinese brutality in Tibet.

- Iraq ‘improvements’ [feeding into McCain electioneering] with Iraqi guy with obvious American accent. But other stuff about rubbish workers central role, won’t help to publicise. PR with child with flower like 60ies flower in gun barrel image. Pretty shallow stuff.

- Ch 9 has dead air moment of 15 sec?

- Ross Greenwood on US market meltdowns [echoes max Walsh/Doogue piece]

- what she we do about Chinese human rights? Bill Crews taking up the

 

- adbreak with classifications warning, curious timing Free TV Australia. Volunteers Australia advert. Like Ch31 advert choice. Not payers for the network. But important info too so well done Ch9. RSPCA too with John Laws voice over – aint that grand? 9 may be reacting to potty mouth cook bad PR by Gordon Nobody.

- interesting do it yourself adventure tourism.Wild Women lady looks like a champ mid life story. Super mums 4000-8000 steps training nights. Addressing risk averse society. Brigitte Muir is one hell of a straight talker.

 

- talent is (prof) Hugh White, Lowy Institute with the big money, re $1 billion.

 

Olympic medals have blood of 1.2M Tibetans. Strong youngish spokesperson. Great footage of strong identity culture.  Strong points about dumping nuke waste, 47% of world popln depend on water from Tibet. Bill Crews on morality, Judas taking the coins to sell goods to China for trade. Terrible, terrible. Film maker Lara Damiani release later this year. Diaspora cultural ‘don’t carry your Olympic medals home with Tibetan blood, leave them there’ repeated by Ellen Fanning as “powerful.

 

- lead story re super hornets – missed a bit – footage of Minister JF with Aust Defense Assoc Neil James in front row.  JF hangs hat on “secret briefings on capability” which is midly scoffed at by ex air commander. Nick Minchin stodge defending the ex govt.  Agt between Coalition/Govt re flying pig f1-11, says ignored the real status of the jets.  Lib Jensen MP (Defense science background) disagrees with F1-11 cancellation numbers.

 

- Raptor sought F-22, US not going to release, pipe dream by Nick Minchin. Max Smart advert seems quite appropriate as Ellen says “clear as mud”.

 

- Laurie Oakes (LO) on petrol pricing with assisant treasurer - great public interest - mostly about regulatory transparency by ACCC  but really at the margins of peak oil trend. Cunning ratty more than mousy.

 

- on climate change, disjunction issue re price down on petrol, says no contradiction re oligopoly profits. LO accept emissions trading scheme will put petrol up, hedges about this unarguable fact compared to Garnaut on MTP 10. Big change says CB as big as trade liberalisation and deregulation.

 

- CB line about keeping as low as possible avoiding corporate profit taking is fair enough. [talk about nationalising the sector is fair enough too, though this govt would never, though NRMA  chief is calling it a natural monopoly like water and power, which does resonate].

 

- CB "ALP said at the time what we thought about demonising one sector of society" .

 

[Well yes in the seat of Lindsay, but in Pat Farmer's neighbouring seat in Camden that's not what the ALP said at all. They pandered to the racist redneck vote on the subtext of "planning issues" as per this:

 

23 November 2007 Rudd opposed to Islamic school - Local - General - Camden Advertiser

 

and notice this guy who looks very much like AWU's Gavin Hillier at Camden pre election, like some southern good ol white boy, as "protester no.5" on NSW stateline recently:

 

Gavin Hillier, prominent retired logging unionist on Stateline footage as protester no.5?
Mood:  caffeinated

 Hillier in 1995 NSW Govt RACAC panel

 

- Advert Dalai Lama in Australia June 11-15? 2008.

 

 

http://sunday.ninemsn.com.au/sunday/default.asp

 

 

 

 

10 Meet the Press:  8- 8-30 am

 

Health funding theme. Footage of Ruddster re fresh ideas. Nelson press club re $20B surplus.

 

Press roundup leans into Lindsay fake pamphlet. Also leverages Obama speech on reflection. Missed 2nd one. Qld hosp beds. Serial candidates. Publishers in bidding war for Howard (?) biog.

 

Nicola Roxon Health minister. Proverbial mousy MP, very articulate lawyer type. Recently married apparently, under boring jacket pink top works, discreet lipstick lacks contrast. Cut down welding goggle glasses. Mmm, could be a bit more Amanda Vanstone as undoubtedly solid thinker (despite fat food PR issue pre election) should be cautious about becoming stolid.

 

Emily Rice 10, Peter Martin Canberra Times.

 

2nd talent is Prof Ross Garnaut.

 

Out take is Moir on Rudd squeak on China abuse of human rights.Adventist Church blood bank advert.

 

G – least cost to the economy as a whole not least cost to producers of energy. PB – already screaming for free permits. G – a lot of claims [rent seekers] legitimate lower income, regions, innovators, new networks, job will be to establish clear priorities. G – no case generators free permits, don’t stack up

 

[clash with human rights story on 9]

 

PM – asks charging for permits going to rise prices. G – will anyway raise prices what the market will allow [he is soooo right, and why he is an Aussie JK Galbraith after all, with a major bullshit detector re captains of industry].

 

PB – price of petrol? G – yes price will go up … missed the rest.

 

 

 

 

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

 

 

 

Riley Diary 7

 

- whistle rock song theme. ‘Angry’ Nelson press club speech, deathly imagery. Work Choices anger parliamentary.  Great footage of barney in question time, bit misleading re narrow slice of Parliamentary life. Dead parrot humour is great Monty Python re ALP tree of knowledge,

 

 

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

 

 

 

Insiders 2: 9- 10am

 

No broadcast for Easter Sunday

 

Home page is http://www.abc.net.au/insiders/


Posted by editor at 9:43 AM NZT
Updated: Monday, 24 March 2008 3:24 PM NZT
Saturday, 22 March 2008
Mystery of the missing greens in the Aldi frozen mixed veg
Mood:  quizzical
Topic: corporates

 

Mmm. A consumer puzzle.

Easter is a good time to cook. So we took the ColesWorth's special on Vietnamese sourced basa fish. Add soy, sweet chili sauce, can of chopped tomato and frozen mixed veg in the fast cooking electric pan with heavy glass lid.

Should be good. But what happend to the green veg, absent in both bags of mixed veg? Plenty of corn, carrot, cauliflower. Actually we had a third bag from Aldi the other day which was abundant with beans and brocoli so we think they are trying. We can honestly say we have never before seen a bag of mixed veg with absolutely no greens at all. Did NZ run out of them?

It's a mystery.


Posted by editor at 2:37 PM NZT
Updated: Saturday, 22 March 2008 4:06 PM NZT
ANZ financing for Gunns Ltd pulp mill exploited by financial rivals?
Mood:  bright
Topic: corporates


We are detecting a concerted attempt by big financial organisations Westpac, HESTA industry super fund, and even Colonial First State Bank to promote their environmental responsibility in contrast to their competitors. We hope and trust it works too.

 

HESTA for instance in their latest brochure in our mail have signed up to the United Nation’s Principles for Responsible Investing (PRI), and something called the Investor Group for Climate Change (IGCC) and Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP 5).


Westpac have a suggestive picture of upstanding Old Growth native forest as part of their full page advert recently 19 March 08 and a reference to www.westpac.com.au/corporateresponsibility


Colonial First State Bank similarly are moving on the Herald sponsored Earth Hour energy reduction exercise to train up business and society generally on “turning off” where possible. As a global education strategy it’s got resonance, and the statistics on reduced energy use seem to bear out the activity despite the initial scepticism.


It’s all good “natural capitalism” financial housekeeping against waste including energy waste, a concept pioneered by secular saint and renewable energy guru Amory Lovins who founded the Rocky Mountains Institute in the USA: There is no waste in nature.


Meanwhile ANZ are being asked to finance the dinosaur environmental vandalism of Gunns Ltd pulp mill to destroy natural forests, with a deal of pollution involved, not least CO2 equivalence from land use change.

 [PDF] ANZ and Gunns

The Wilderness Society - Make the Banks Accountable

It’s a bad look Mr ANZ, very bad, and morally wrong according to recent advice of the Pope on the modern mortal sins.

List of mortal sins gets longer under Vatican overhaul - World ...


Posted by editor at 11:33 AM NZT
Updated: Saturday, 22 March 2008 2:20 PM NZT
Tanner's attack on Nelson reveals a deeper truth of Lib-Lab Tweedle-Dum, Tweedle-Dee
Mood:  accident prone
Topic: aust govt
 

 

Opposition Leader Nelson attempted an Obama (speak for 30 minutes without notes) at the National Press Club last Tuesday 18 March 08. His talk had a(nother) whiff of faux conviction politician, and over reaching, with personal anecdotes regarding tragedy in medical practise, especially by comparison with sincere alpha aggressive rivals like Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull and departed John Howard MP - all feared for their capacity for ‘wet work’ – that is capacity to damage the ALP yet now in Govt despite all that: The confidence and clarity of these anti ALP types are presumably based on their deeply held convictions and life experience, right or wrong. Does Nelson have that conviction, right or wrong?

The credibility gap, that Annabel Crabb's article in the Herald 21-23 March 08 above is reinforcing, builds on the dangerous satire of strongly performing Lindsay Tanner in Parliament question time last week: Framing Nelson as a barracker for ‘two AFL teams in the one competition, both St Kilda, and Sydney Swans’ (previously South Melbourne). It's superficially pursuasive line by tough guy Tanner.

This in turn seeks to resonate with Nelson famously having been a member of the ALP who then became a member of the Liberal Party, and now it's leader. That might look like a guy who is confused, which can be a fatal reputation for ‘a leader’. But is it? An equally likely explanation is that it looks like two parties who have converged.

 

Tanner himself is under severe pressure in his own seat of Melbourne from the burgeoning (left and yet environmentally conservative) Green Party. The times suit the Greens message and up until now the ALP’s tactic has simply been to steal their rivals clothes with such as Peter Garrett (former president of the Australian Conservation Foundation) as double agent out of the green movement in Victoria, but also such as Jeff Angel in NSW (director of the Total Environment Centre and ACF satellite ).


Rudd has won the election for being in many ways the ALP Christian conservative version of John Howard, newer model, which is always nice for greater reliability and extended product life span. A little different, but a lot the same.


Starts to look alot like the accusation against Brendan Nelson’s reputation for “sliding around” and “question of character” (to borrow veteran analyst Laurie Oakes terminology from a recent crunching Sunday 9 interview) is actually the same pragmatic political 'washing powder' whichever the Party packaging.


Yes Nelson does slide, yes he does present like a Jim Hacker, Yes Minister type compromise candidate between Abbott (hard right social and economic policy) and Turnbull (open minded, moderate on social policy, dry on economics) the short term non descript ‘interim’ leader standing for everything and nothing. The same accusation made against Rudd in early 2007 with some resonance.


Is there really any difference between the modern spiv poll driven developer/special interest funded opportunistic ALP, and the modern opportunistic poll driven developer/special interest funded Liberal Party? To ask the question is to answer it.


And here’s another reason why we take Tanner’s prima facie attack on Nelson with a grain of salt – we are having a post VFL/tragic/religious sporting life experience with anterior cruciate ligament injury to prove it. And 4 best & fairest trophies too.

 


We remember St Kilda as a pretty dirty thuggish team in the 1970ies. We started out barracking for Essendon like Tanner does, as a young bloke, but got so disgusted with their thuggery we moved on to Fitzroy aka Roy Boys, who are now the Brisbane Bears. The metaphor doesn't bear too much deconstruction does it? Both dirty, both unlovable, different colours but essentially the same. Just like the ALP and Liberal Party. So Nelson embodies that duplicitous duality, as does Rudd, as does Tanner.

That’s why Tanner’s attack has the unintended consequence of saying as much about himself as it does about Nelson. How ironic.

But there is actually another valid disjunction between the ALP and Coalition thanks to the former leadership of Simon Crean (and even Mark Latham) as per this shocker in the Sydney Morning Herald sourced to the UK Guardian:

21 March 2008 Iraq's civilian dead: why US won't do the maths

The last several paragraphs relate largely to the good Dr Nelson's time as Howard Government Defence Minister, with the hypocratic oath worth how much exactly?:

The first survey found at least 98,000 such deaths up to October 2004. The second survey, in the summer of 2006, interviewed a separate but also randomly chosen sample of 1849 households and found an excess of 655,000 deaths up to June 2006, of which 601,027 were said to be from violence rather than natural causes. This amounts to 2.5 per cent of Iraq's population, or more than 500 deaths a day since the invasion.

The estimates were explosive and were widely reported around the world. They met instant dismissal from the White House and London. "I don't consider it a credible report," Mr Bush said. Mr Blair's spokesman said the study's result "was not one we believe to be anywhere near accurate".

The editor of The Lancet, Richard Horton, admits the figure "seems crazy". "But the second study validated the first one. The pre-invasion mortality rate is the same in both, and the upward lines of the post-invasion rate are exactly the same."

He is particularly pleased by information unearthed last year by a freedom-of-information request by the BBC's Owen Bennett-Jones. This found that the chief scientific adviser to the British Ministry of Defence described the methods used by the second survey as "close to best practice". The adviser warned the Government to be "cautious" about criticising the findings .

The most detailed criticism of the Baltimore study appeared in the January issue of the National Journal, a right-of-centre magazine aimed at US policy-makers. It described the study's Iraqi field director, Riyadh Lafta, as "a child-health official in Saddam Hussein's ministry of health when the ministry was trying to end international sanctions against Iraq". It said he claimed high rates of child malnutrition during the sanctions period without giving data from the pre-sanctions period by which they could be measured. It alleged he and his interviewers for the study worked "under brutal political pressure" at a time when the ministry was controlled by Moqtada al-Sadr, the anti-occupation Shia religious leader.

The Johns Hopkins School of Public Health defends Dr Lafta, saying he was one of few doctors who never joined Saddam's Baath party. He has often worked with international groups since 2003 and "asked that he not be contacted by the media out of concern for his safety and that of his family".

Finally, it points out that more recent data suggests an even higher figure. The British polling firm Opinion Research Business asked 1720 Iraqi adults last summer if they had lost family members by violence since 2003; 16 per cent had lost one, and 5 per cent two. Using the 2005 census total of 4,050,597 households in Iraq, this suggests 1,220,580 deaths since the invasion.


Posted by editor at 11:20 AM NZT
Updated: Monday, 24 March 2008 3:28 PM NZT
Friday, 21 March 2008
ALP dead weight in Burgmann's run for City Hall
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: nsw govt

That little #3 at bottom left of the article pictured means third edition, and likely country readers and websites may not get the late,  impacting story?

It tells of the repercussions of this similar post by SAM here

14 March 2008 

How could ex MP Burgmann have supported Joh style Part 3A repeal of green laws in NSW Planning Act?
Mood:  down
Topic: nsw govt

and

Thursday, 13 March 2008

In that last post we write:

Nor is Burgman flattered by the poor governance of her feminist co author and former staffer Yvette Andrews at the very large community space at Addison Rd Centre:

Saturday, 16 February 2008

Who has presided over the destruction of the cyber gateway for over 8 months (work this writer did in good faith, non aligned, equal prominence to all tenancies):

addison road centre "Come back soon. We are just getting it better. This Website is still under construction."

Talk about cynical. This writer was moved to publish this satirical job advert

Addison Rd Centre General Manager Job Vacancy closing date 1st April...

Nor is Burgmann free herself of the Addison Rd taint of poor governance as mate Andrews is well known to protect Gallery director Cutcliffe, an ALP aligned grifter who has enjoyed 4 years rent free 2003-7 despite $30K paintings on private sale. Cutcliffe's lease has been sanitised with highly discounted lease from 2007 under Andrews management via a new 'non profit entity' created for the purpose with guess who reputed to be on that company directorships? It's unconfirmed but the claim by one tenant is that it is in fact Meredith Burgman who has given presentations at same gallery.

And to that sharp commentary we add this now:

To: [Clover Moore Mayoral PR flak]
Sent: Friday, March 21, 2008 12:41 PM
Subject: Fw: Cr Olive re Addison Rd Board fyi re s.20 Protected Disclosures research, ARC website down 8 months now

----- Original Message -----
To:  [Marrickville Councillors]
Sent: Friday, March 21, 2008 12:39 PM
Subject: Cr Olive re Addison Rd Board fyi re s.20 Protected Disclosures research, ARC website down 8 months now

Dear Peter
Regarding your position on the Addison Rd Board you may find it interesting that I've been researching the Protected Disclosures Act 1994 (NSW) here in relation to the Gillian Sneddon/Orkopoulos scandal at State level but there is a spinoff regarding ARC too:
This is not an exhaustive correspondence, with full cross referencing just to say that by section 20 (no need to read in full, see comments below this extract)

PROTECTED DISCLOSURES ACT 1994 - SECT 20

Protection against reprisals

20 Protection against reprisals

(1) A person who takes detrimental action against another person that is substantially in reprisal for the other person making a protected disclosure is guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units or imprisonment for 12 months, or both.
(1A) In any proceedings for an offence against this section, it lies on the defendant to prove that detrimental action shown to be taken against a person was not substantially in reprisal for the person making a protected disclosure.
(2) In this Act, "detrimental action" means action causing, comprising or involving any of the following:
(a) injury, damage or loss,
(b) intimidation or harassment,
(c) discrimination, disadvantage or adverse treatment in relation to employment,
(d) dismissal from, or prejudice in, employment,
(e) disciplinary proceeding.
(3) Proceedings for an offence against this section may be instituted at any time within 2 years after the offence is alleged to have been committed.
.................................
Notice in particular it's a serious offence (up to 12 months prison) for other Board members, say John Reynolds, Yvette Andrews to take "reprisals" action against the centre website site builder (me) for making a grievance complaint to the "principal officer" of a "public authority" which includes any body that can be investigated by for instance the "auditor general" or "NSW Ombudsman". Is ARC such a body. I will be looking into this.
This calls up the fact that Peter Talmacs told me my removal from that website work (which has been down for 8 months now it seems) was "vindictive".
My best guess so far is that the ARC is indeed subject to the Protected Disclosures Act and that within 2 years of the said reprisal the perpetrators can by prosecuted for an offence. Assuming the ARC is covered by the Protected Disclosures Act then notice also that the onus of proof of defending a charge of reprisals is on the defendant, that is Reynolds or Andrews.
I would be very interested to know if the minutes of the Board re both Andrews and Reynolds participated in my removal from the website work (around Sept 07) as punishment for making a complaint against Reynolds bullying (late July 07 from memory). I have no doubt myself. And it's up to them to prove otherwise.
I have correspondence from Laird my complaint [was] in jurisdiction for centre work on centre time (this is denied by the Board but it's a lie) and that's my direct evidence as a solicitor. It wasn't Art Resistance work.
You might want to know that Reynolds told me in April or May 2007 that to quote "I did a good job" on the centre website. Laird was over joyed with the website building too. Most every tenant was.
I can predict that current Board members will claim the work was not professional or whatever and they wanted a professional website builder. Well that's subjective and contrary to most feedback and it is after all a community centre not a corporate enterprise. But where is the centre website? It's been down 8 months. Talmacs told the truth it was "vindictive" and I'm getting quite interested in taking it further now that I've pretty much exposed Meredith Burgmann's stalking of Clover Moore for ALP dishonesty about voting for Part 3A of the Planning Act, as well as alleged ARC taints. ....
Yours truly
Tom McLoughlin, editor www.sydneyalternativemedia.com/blog, solicitor

Posted by editor at 1:22 PM NZT
Dirty man NSW stuck in a tunnel?
Mood:  sad
Topic: nsw govt

 


The headlines tell the story ....

- 19 March 08 MP owed debt to developer for renovations - National - smh.com.au

- 19 March 08 Fired staffer slates Iemma | The Australian

- 19 March 08 New Labor sex scandal/ Claim Orkopoulos given police tip-off, p9 Sydney Daily Telegraph

- 19 March 2008 City catches $12b metro

- 19 March 08 Low traffic forces Lane Cove Tunnel's backers to write off millions

- 20 March 08 Tunnel vision in NSW - Editorial - Opinion - smh.com.au

- 20 March 08 Great idea, but white elephants trumpet

- 20 March 08 'Public transport premier' eyes history

- 20 March 08 Driverless trains - how apt for the state we're in

- 20 March 08 Tunnel trouble won't hurt metro - National - smh.com.au

- 20 March 08 Crikey - Milton Orkopoulos' other victim By Alex Mitchell

- 21 March 08 Iemma's tunnel vision goes to water | The Daily Telegraph

- 21 March 08  Sex MP's staffer Gillian Sneddon to sue Labor | NEWS.com.au

- 21 March 08 p5, Clover in clover as Burgmann set to quit mayoral race

..... and so do the cartoons .....


Posted by editor at 11:01 AM NZT
Updated: Friday, 21 March 2008 11:52 AM NZT

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