Mood:  rushed

The concept of the water hose 'deluge technique' to assist capping rogue oil wells at risk of ignition (for example sparking from drilling machinery) is shown in this 36 minute IMAX documentary movie (also available at a local DVD store):

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

This remarkable movie was nominated for an Academy award and relates to a 9 month, 10,000 strong workforce, project. Initial estimates were 5 to 10 year schedule.

There are many differences between the West Atlas oil leak situation and the Kuwait situation in that the oil leak has not ignited here, and no doubt that's the way it's intended to stay; The Atlas leak is a few hundreds metres under the ocean while in Kuwait there were some 700 burning land based oil wells.

However the movie does indicate the high drama involved. When initially extinguished by various means including ventura pipe, jet engine blast or explosive charge, this intervention was accompanied by a deluge of sea water via high pressure hoses to keep temperatures low enough for machines to approach. And secondly to prevent re-ignition with super heated surroundings just prior to extinguishment.

Posted by editor at 2:00 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  irritated

Gerard Henderson is an ideological dolt speaking as a lawyer with a bit of community media experience.

His column back in lead place on the opinion pages today  is all square wrong on the issue of legal reportage of a big controversial terrorism trial. We commented just now on the Sydney Morning Herald page and await moderation:

This slur is sly and wrong, indeed a cheap shot.

Cameron like all real journalists, not slick opinion writers, has an obligation to not bias a jury or a court, or be seen to be pressuring same in the big media. For her to load her language one way or the other would be wrong. To say "so called" evidences due agnosticism appropriate to the ABC prior to the jury decision.

In this sense GH is simply projecting his own jaundiced view of the ABC given his side's long known view that the ABC 'is our enemies talking to our friends'. In other words projecting his own prejudice against the national broadcaster.

The World Today reporter does not have that same logic given the timeline. But legal reporting is notoriously challenging: Will it go on appeal? What was the evidence actually led by both parties. Why did it take the jury weeks to decide?

This is all consistent with 'the golden thread' as Rumpole/Mortimer states being 'innocent until proven guilty'.

What Henderson and the Sydney Morning Herald need to address is this: What is the funding source for "Gerard Henderson ..executive director of The Sydney Institute". Because famously the SI refuse to reveal their corporate and political donors.

Now that's circumstantial evidence of bias.

Posted by editor at 11:44 AM NZT

Updated: Tuesday, 20 October 2009 11:54 AM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  lazy

We hear this last 24 hour news cycle Peter Cosier - sincere earnest scientist of the Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists - urging inclusion in any government scheme the opportunity for carbon sequestration via soil and other biomass fixation by big agriculture. He wants to leverage our natural advantage of large land mass while sanitising our real land use history:

Here he is quoted on ABC World Today show yesterday: Scientists cite soil as significant at http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2009/s2717777.htm

ELEANOR HALL: The Coalition may want agriculture excluded from the ETS but the nation's top climate scientists are calling on the Federal Government to include soil and vegetation in Australia's emissions trading scheme.

A report released by the Wentworth Group of Scientists says that unless this is done, it will be "next to impossible" to achieve the emissions cuts needed to avoid the worst effects of climate change.

The ABC's environment reporter Sarah Clarke has been speaking to Wentworth Group scientist, Peter Cosier.

PETER COSIER: Well, our analysis shows that if we increase the amount of carbon stored in vegetation and soils across our landscape, it has the potential not only to make a profound contribution to meeting our carbon pollution reduction targets but it also presents a unique opportunity to address a raft of other seemingly intractable environmental problems.

In other words we can use soil and vegetation carbon to help address climate change but we can get win-win outcomes if we design our institutional structures properly.

SARAH CLARKE: Is that the problem - that there are no institutional structures in place now?

PETER COSIER: Well at this stage we don't have those structures in place because we don't have a terrestrial carbon market but if we do introduce a CPRS and if the Government does extend the ability for polluters to offset their pollution by storing carbon in soil and vegetation then we will create a very large terrestrial carbon market.

SARAH CLARKE: How effective is soil and vegetation? How effective are they in storing carbon?

PETER COSIER: Well the analysis that we have looked at which follows on some work by CSIRO for the Queensland Government is that if Australia were to capture just 15 per cent of the biophysical capacity of our landscape to store carbon, you would offset the equivalent of 25 per cent of Australia's greenhouse gas emissions every year for the next 40 years.

SARAH CLARKE: Are other governments recognising soil and vegetation as an effective way of storing carbon?

PETER COSIER: Some governments have recognised it. In the United States for example the legislation going through the United States does recognise soil and vegetation offsets as part of their legislation but Australia is rather uniquely placed because, because we are relatively small economy with a large landscape the contribution that terrestrial carbon can make to our carbon pollution reduction targets is actually far greater relative to other nations.

SARAH CLARKE: What is the market worth then?

PETER COSIER: Well, if we were to achieve, capture 15 per cent of the potential that CSIRO estimate is possible, we could potentially create a terrestrial carbon market in Australia of between $3 billion and $6 billion per annum as I said, every year for the next 40 years.

The actual market created would depend of course, on the size of the reduction target the Government commits to.

SARAH CLARKE: How would farmers do this though? Would they have to put land aside to simply use that soil to store carbon or could they continue farming and producing fruit and vegetables and their produce?

PETER COSIER: Well, at the moment the CPRS does allow offsets into carbon forestry as it is called, Kyoto-compliant forestry. If farmers chose to, they would be able to use some of those opportunities to plant carbon forests or biodiversity plantings if they chose to on parts of their property and that would give them a new income stream.

Of course there is a risk that if we don't properly regulate the market we could also see large areas of agricultural land taken out of food production and converted into these carbon forests so we need a balance but if we get the balance right, the potential benefits to agriculture in terms of new income streams, the benefits for restoring degraded landscapes and biodiversity conservation are enormous.

ELEANOR HALL: That is Peter Cosier from the Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists speaking to our environment reporter Sarah Clarke.

Here he is for instance quoted 3rd of August:

According to Peter Cosier, executive director for the Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists, terrestrial carbon must be taken into account if Australia is to meet its carbon reduction targets.

"If we increased sequestered carbon stock in terrestrial landscapes by 15%, it would offset emissions emitted during the entire industrial revolution," he said.

Cosier pointed out while Australia was best placed to take advantage of terrestrial carbon offsets, we were still suffering under a "perverse rule" from the Kyoto Protocol to counter all emissions from soils, not just human use.

"Australia is unique; we have a massive advantage with terrestrial carbon. We have 20 million people on a continent of 7.5 million square kilometres. The proportion of the potential for offsetting carbon is vastly greater than any other developed country in the world," he said.

"What's stopping us is that if we have a drought and soil carbon is lost, we have to pay for it."

at http://www.fromthesoilup.com.au/news/australia-s-massive-advantage-in-bio-sequestration

Cosier is so right in theory but the political economic history is way against him.

What he is not facing up to is that the famous PR programme called Landcare alliance between the National Farmers Association and Australian Conservation Foundation pioneered by former ALP Prime Minister Bob Hawke in the late 1980ies involved just 10% of farmers as members. Only 10% nationally at best supported environmentally friendly farming by that measure, though this report suggests as high as 1/3 in Victoria:

[PDF] LOCAL REALITIES VERSUS NATIONAL INTEREST: CAN LANDCARE BRIDGE THE GAP?

The good farmers are in the stark minority. The bad farmers are proceeding with record land clearing to the tune of millions of hectares in Queensland and New South Wales. In other words as the good book says - know them by their actions.

Cosier at best is speaking wishfully for 10% of farmers, maybe more given the greater awareness up to 2009. Or even with a doubling to 20% is still an 80% dinosaur cohort majority: See these credible figures 1991 to 2000:

The findings clearly show more favourable environmental attitudes with increasing level of involvement in landcare, although among all rural landholders with income from agriculture and/or properties larger than 50ha, those who rated themselves as ‘actively involved’ amounted to eight per cent of landholders. The marked difference between the eight per cent figure and the membership levels of 28 per cent and 43 per cent mentioned above highlights the sensitivity of estimates of landcare group membership to both the definition of the base population and of participation in landcare.

in  Australian Farmers' Attitudes to Rural Environmental Issues.

Reeve, I. 2001 Australian Farmers' Attitudes to Rural Environmental Issues. 1991-2001. Final Report to Land and Water Australia.

at

 http://www.ruralfutures.une.edu.au/publications/3.php?nav=IRF%20Report&publication=1

That's why farmer traditional political representation in the National Party state constantly they won't vote for an Emissions Trading Scheme under any circumstances.

This is the real record of those carbon storage champions in big agri in Australia:

Queensland land clearing ban inadequate, could worsen clearing ... 21 Apr 2009

The World Today Archive - Land clearing in Australia 20 Nov 2001

ACF - Land Clearing Versus Bushland Re-planting in Australia ... 

ACF - Facts About Land Clearing in Australia Australia has the fifth highest rate of land clearing in the world. We clear more bush each year than poverty-stricken countries like Burma, Mexico

The Wilderness Society — New data on Australian landclearing rates ...New research from NSW and Queensland has found that Australia's landclearing rates are much higher than reviously estimated. The independent research ....

Posted by editor at 8:33 AM NZT

Updated: Tuesday, 20 October 2009 8:52 AM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  sharp

The Sydney ABC public broadcaster compere Deborah Cameron, previously stationed in Japan, and with the Sydney Morning Herald broadsheet captured a mood of dismay, saying yesterday of PM Rudd 'you can be strong and wrong' and 'Is he just a populist?'. Yes and yes.

A now famous phrase is often quoted in this policy area, namely John Howard PM in 2001 who famously bought full page adverts in the final week of the federal election stating something like 'We will decide who comes to Australia and the manner in which they come here'. All stirring nationalistic tub thump.

Only it's stupid. We already decided as a nation who we would accept and how they might come to be here by reference to their refugee status, when we ratified the Refugee Treaty: That is we will accept refugees however they arrive because we are a freedom loving human rights type country. It doesn't say we will take 'em by plane but not boat, or economic student overstayers yes, but darkies via Indonesia no.

So Howard then, and Rudd now are simply saying we want to selectively repeal the treaty we signed. To weasel out of our promise to the world. And alert people know this including within Rudd's own ALP. If PM Rudd and Howard before him were honest they would say we want to repeal the refugee treaty. But they know that will have global diplomatic consequences. Hence the weasel words.

MARK COLVIN: So far the Labor movement has been broadly uncritical of the Prime Minister's approach on the Sri Lankan asylum seekers.

But now the head of the Australian Workers' Union and vice president of the ACTU, Paul Howes, has broken ranks.

Mr Howes says the Government should put out the welcome mat to the asylum seekers now docked in west Java.

He's urged the Government to seize the moral high ground and ensure there's no return to the divisive debate of 2001.

At the same time the fate of another 78 asylum seekers rescued by the Australian Navy remains in limbo as the Australian and Indonesian Governments decide where they should be sent.

From Canberra, Alexandra Kirk reports.

ALEXANDRA KIRK: Kevin Rudd runs a tight ship. But not everyone on the good ship Labor is happy with his stance on asylum seekers; more particularly the 250 Sri Lankans sent to Indonesia courtesy of the Indonesian Navy's interception.

That's ignited an immigration debate union leader Paul Howes doesn't like the look of.

PAUL HOWES: I mean the 2001 election was a real dark blight on our nation's history. You know, I would expect rhetoric and crass racism to come from the Coalition.

But I expect that Labor should and must take the moral high ground on this matter because this about social justice, this about upholding the rule of law, this about doing the right thing as a first world developed nation and it's about doing the right thing for our communities.

ALEXANDRA KIRK: And what in your view is doing the right thing?

PAUL HOWES: Well, bringing these people in.

ALEXANDRA KIRK: Paul Howes heads the powerful Australian Workers' Union. He says Australia should roll out the red carpet and welcome the Sri Lankans with open arms.

He's urging the Labor Government take a leaf out of former Liberal prime minister Malcolm Fraser's book.

PAUL HOWES: In the same way that Malcolm Fraser did several decades ago in dealing with the boat people crisis after the fallout of the Vietnam War. There was much community resentment and opposition to Vietnamese refugees being brought into our country.

But now several decades later no-one could dispute the fact that it has been a positive thing for our nation, a positive thing for those individuals and the Vietnamese boat people of the '70s have made a lasting and incredibly valuable contribution to the development of our nation.

And we need to make sure that with future waves of migration that we don't make those same mistakes time and time and time again.

ALEXANDRA KIRK: The Government argues not allowing boatpeople to land on Australia's mainland deters people smugglers. Paul Howes sees it differently.

PAUL HOWES: Of course we don't want to see illegal syndicates profiting from the smuggling of people. I mean that is an abhorrent issue, but the fundamental point is is that what message is this sending to the Australian community about those individuals who are on the boats?

Not the men driving the boats but the individuals on the boats: those children, those women, those men fleeing circumstances of which most Australians couldn't even imagine.

ALEXANDRA KIRK: The Sri Lankan asylum seekers, who are docked in West Java, ended their hunger strike at the weekend, saying they'd agree to leave the boat if a representative from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees agreed to meet them.

It's the job of the UNHCR to assess asylum seekers' claims for refugee protection. PM asked the UNHCR in Canberra if any of their officers in Indonesia had spoken to the asylum seekers. The UNHCR says it's ready to register and asses the Sri Lankan's international protection needs if asked by the Indonesian Government. But the UN agency hasn't received such a request.

Immigration lawyer David Mann says that's the problem.

DAVID MANN: What's clear is that the Sri Lankans on the boat want to meet with the UN refugee agency so that they have a fair chance and a fair process to have their claims assessed against the refugee's convention.

And that hasn't happened yet, despite persistent requests.

ALEXANDRA KIRK: David Mann says all those involved should ensure the UNHCR is asked to act.

DAVID MANN: Well look, Australia simply can't wash its hands of this situation when it's having such a big say in relation to the fate of people who are warehoused in Indonesia and so significantly bankrolling the warehousing and processing of asylum seekers there and where Australia is really one of the only small amount of options for resettlement in the future.

ALEXANDRA KIRK: Paul Howes says Australia shouldn't ship asylum seekers back to countries that aren't signatories to the UN refugee convention, such as Indonesia - urging Australia accept the 78 asylum seekers now aboard the Australian customs vessel, the Oceanic Viking.

The asylum seekers' boat got into difficulty in international waters off Indonesia. The patrol boat, HMAS Armidale, asked the Oceanic Viking to pick them up. And that's where they remain - in Indonesia's search and rescue zone, while the Federal Government decides where they should be sent.

PM's been told that sending them to Indonesia would set a precedent and could breach Australia's international obligations, all the government will say is it's not a straightforward matter.

MARK COLVIN: Alexandra Kirk.

Posted by editor at 8:00 AM NZT

Updated: Tuesday, 20 October 2009 12:03 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  sad

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. Perhaps the greatest utility is the headline synthesis above of the 3 or 4 shows followed in this session.

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. (this section under construction)

 1. Federal govt are rolling out soft face of the govt like Wong and Gillard given ruthless denial of refugee obligations via interference in governance in Indonesia. Which will all feed into Rudd reach at CopeH for being an international laggard and unprincipled wanker. 

2. John Mangos on 9 year old Brinda on Thursday arvo journo forum ABC Sydney 702 to the effect of 'I saw my 9 year old mother from Greece after WW2. She was a refugee.'  Meanwhile in the big media generally it’s the bonfire of the wedges, Coalition on ALP (refugees), and ALP on Coalition (on climate change policy). Leigh Sales on Friday Lateline referred to 'Tony Abbott MP on the refugee issue in the Sydney Daily Telegraph earlier today'. Only it wasn't in the paper copy. Ah, new media actually!

Here it is to quote:

Tony Abbott, Thursday, October 15, 2009 at 4.43 pm

Prime Minister Rudd said this week that the Government’s policy towards boat people was both “hardline and humane”. His difficulty is that it’s next-to-impossible to be hardline and humane at the same time. A hardline policy will seem inhumane to refugee advocates. A humane policy will seem like a welcome mat to people smugglers and their clients.

There’s no doubt that the Rudd Government has watered down John Howard’s border protection policies. In particular, it has replaced temporary protection visas with permanent residency; provided people on offshore islands with additional appeal mechanisms; and stopped sending would-be arrivals to places such as Nauru and PNG. Last year, the Government wanted to stress how different it was from its despised predecessor. The message might have been intended for voters in inner city electorates but it was also picked up by people in troubled third world countries. With boat people arrivals ten times greater than in 2007, Mr Rudd now wants to stress how tough the Government will be. Unfortunately for him and for the integrity of Australia’s borders, desperate people are more interested in the Government’s actions than its words.

Tough talk at doorstop media conferences and phone calls to the president of Indonesia won’t stop boat people from risking their lives at sea. The only way to stop the flow is to make it clear that the chances of staying in Australia aren’t worth the dangers and expense of making the trip. Giving permanent residency to the Afghan men who blew up their boat in April sends precisely the wrong message. Funding street theatre in Sri Lanka and providing handouts to potential boat people likewise could send the message that Australia is a soft touch.

Mr Rudd looks ridiculous trying to be Mr Nice Guy and Mr Tough Guy in the same breath. A humane policy towards boat people means that more will come. Life in Australia could look pretty good to millions of people with potential access to a boat that might survive the trip. On the other hand, if boat people are to be deterred it has to be crystal clear that getting here doesn’t mean staying here. Keeping people in detention, turning around boats, holding people overseas and denying refugees permanent residency are hardly high-minded polices but they might be necessary to prevent a form of peaceful invasion.

* * *

The Daily Telegraph says that the Rudd Government is about to change the law to help loved ones to track missing persons. This sounds suspiciously like Centrelink’s programme to allow people who have lost track of each other to get in touch. This was suspended a few weeks ago after a paedophile used it to renew contact with an accomplice. On boat people, the Government wills the end but not the means. On this issue, the Government wills the means but not the end. To the public, or at least those who are paying attention, it must seem like a government with a radical disconnect between what it says and what it does.

Join Tony in his live blog at 3pm. Send questions below

Abbott makes commentary throughout the 21 comments posted. And no we haven't read it all, nor do we support or oppose. But it should be kept close for the record.

3. Talk about cop out – if your brand is being exploited by a sleazy politician, that’s okay then? Not.  

Caroline ShepherdPosted Wednesday, 14 October 2009 at 1:51 pm | Permalink

On behalf of Amnesty International, I’d like to clarify a few points mentioned in this forum. Amnesty International Australia has never revoked the membership of any member, or requested that anyone return their badge.As it is for anybody, Phillip Ruddock’s choice to wear the AI badge is his to make. Amnesty International Australia calls on anyone representing Amnesty International in this way to live up to the values enshrined in that badge – of promoting and defending all human rights, for all people in the world.Amnesty International has many thousands of members in Australia. Our focus continues to be on our human rights work and not on any particular individual’s membership of AIA.

Regards,
Caroline Shepherd
Media and Public Affairs Coordinator

5.  Vale Fred Bell champion with Milo Dunphy and others of the foundation of Total Environment Centre in Sydney in 1972, and a guiding light for this writer. Reportage here recently A sustained passion for survival Fred Bell, 1932-2009

A life dedicated to saving the planet ... Fred and Joan Bell with their seven grandchildren.

 

6. We would hear from Fred every now and then, and though we have cleared out old emails we notice these, one of which gave us a real jolt lately, being an automated reply from his relatives:

7. This follows another moving obituary for a pioneer of animals rights issues here Marjorie Wilson who we also knew from various annual conferences of Nature Conservation Council and launch of such stirring books as The Kangaroo Betrayed at NSW Parliament House.

Animal protector put roos on a pedestal

July 18, 2009

"We are opposed to any kangaroo products whatsoever'' ... Marjorie Wilson at her home in 1981 with a sculptured friend. Photo: Briony Davidson

Marjorie Wilson, 1918-2009

8. Refugee numbers mean we are 'harvesting the world wind' says bogus ex minister Ruddock. What about the real issue of harvesting the record economic immigration levels and the record predictions of a population boom? The real taboo and displacement by the major parties, audience and big media, is that simply substituting refugees for economic immigration would be an easy solution. But they won't go there because they know economic immigration is a public policy racket for big shopping mall and high rise residential builders. Big Party developer mates.

9. Stateline NSW continues to be an abc tv show of import and record on planning controversy every Friday night and now is webcast from the following Monday. In the capable hands of Quentin Dempster.

10. Regarding the $2 Billion blowout in projections for Sydney Metro, in story broken by News Corp tabloid this week located close to Central Station, one recalls PM Rudd having a secret tete a tete with the Fairfax Board at Darling Island about the time the metro was launched ... to expensively cross the harbour to .... Fairfax at Darling Island.

11. On Crikey ezine strings we have taken to calling PM Rudd 'Science' as an ironic term indicating his lack of solid principle or conviction about anything including latest topic humane refugee policy. Indeed as a news grab in search of a conviction. Similarly climate policy with King Coal lately. And before that Tasmanian forest policy where the tag originally arises as explained here:

12. Brinda of refugee fame, an articulate 9 year old innocent, was only upstaged briefly in big media stakes here by Falcon, 6 year old intrepid balloonist (not). Actually he was just a naughty boy hiding in the attic, because it seems he knew the baloon in his childish mind was 'for a show' and there he had gone and released it, or an unscheduled showing. That's our take out, no hoax, just show off kid with the made for tv name wanting to 'help'. What the poor kid exhibiting significant hybrid vigour will no doubt reflect on as his very own 'oh sh*t' moment.We know of another mixed race marriage here in Sydney which a 5 year old named Tiger also of significant hybrid vigour.

13. What can you say about the Hawkesbury Nepean Community Legal Centre in their new office at Windsor? We applied with other droves no doubt for a solicitor job there lately but also that we wanted to volunteer regardless because we need 12 months service to fully recommence practice. Seems they don't have space for volunteers, not from a home office using web databases for research, not via the huge public library complex 100 metres away. The last time we attended to loan our CLE papers to them (defamation, data base work) we were pursued by a desperate local wanting legal advice.

And he's not the only one. So here we are with practicising certificate and goodwill to offer and high local need but restrained from legal work by NSW Law Society red tape, closed shops at least to us, having qualified over 19 years ago with years of experience. As we said to their principal - this situation 'is not OK'. Should we organise a volunteer legal advice service in parallel to the official bureaucracy? That would be sure to attract attention but also would be illegal without a supervising solicitor with an unrestricted certificate. Unions don't just run building sites.

Footage of coalition re ETS and Tamil refugees (lose the long beard ‘Alex’)

Wong is the talent to shore up credentials of Govt as ethnic despite stance against refugees before Copenhagen. She bats off claim causing 25 refugee deaths. Says Tuckey doesn’t want action on climate (probably right, given heat in Kalgoolie, wants us all to cook like him).

Humour out take is Bob Brown grace in face of name calling Steve Fielding. A real hoot. Panel is Wilkinson smh, Farr Telegraph, both centrist types. Confusing grab Joe Hockey re USA scheduling.

Q re timing rush. Strong response – not new, 12 years, business groups, more countries gives momentum, public do want. (not one mention of science imperative – dumb aussies don’t care about that?). Boilerplate about targets at Copenhagen – increase the costs to delay – stronger point.

Grab about coal and power industries – Vic premier wants energy security. Skips question of MW re scare campaign about blackouts. Boilerplate. Q re China how serious? Sings their praises re level of investment, level of access, Pres Hu, Willing to extend parliament.  Discordant tough and choir – jarring re Rudd. This PM is given to moralizing. Failed to hurdle it this week. Fantastic quote from the strongest of gospels St John re lukewarm.

Panel re press re coalition Lenore Taylor, Stuchbury ended refugee hunger strike,

Outstanding GetUP satire advert iCoal 2.0 out take.

2^nd break swine flu Mummy Govt advert. Expect more of these in fed govt profile build.

Last third, greenpeace action stunt, John Connor in ALP spiv suit mode as “CEO” of “Climate Institute”. [Garrett clone, when’s he going to shave his head too?.] At home with the beltway is our “John”. His line re rear vision here last of G20 in energy efficiency, need policy changes for that. Talks about CopeH re purpose financial framework etc. Regarding polling only 7% don’t want any action. “Dinosaurs” in big business.

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

Riley Diary 7, from 8.40am 

Ute advert pre segment with brown natives acting goofy. The blackface scandal all over again? Racism in advertising? 

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

Satire game show on Rudd interviewing himself. Real element of disrespect in the tone.  Lights out moment for Rudd. Turnbull on climate still serious and always be contention. Wilson grab. 

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

9 Sunday newshour Laurie Oakes interview 8.44 am 

Totally weird Barbie camper advert pre segment. Non stop glamour whaaa?

……………..

Picture: Former shining light of the Rudd federal Govt is reduced to hand signals postage stamp split screen, as if for deaf viewers on the occasion of aspiring round the world yachtie 15 year old girl/woman. And see images above at intro.

Late start clash with Riley, yacht girl question, refugee boat in distress. Tub thump about Warren Truss accusing loss of 25 lives – no evidence via google, irresponsible. Fake email affair and still at it. Wants to be deputy prime minister. [strong rebuttal but is she right or not?] 

Q. each boat a policy failure? Dodges the question, shows flummoxed, ill prepared or uncertain. An important lapse. Dated Gillard presser 2003 – looking really nonplussed and dismayed by that ambush but cops it on the chin indicating her steel with hardly a second lapse. This is a brutal real politik exchange.  Looking cooked both in makeup and crease on forehead.

Much happier on climate policy wedge in reverse direction. 

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

Insiders 2: 9- 10am

Riley style package of Coalition ramping refugee wedge. Rudd “balance tough fair”. Turnbull both sides of the street re door wide open and did see heart breaking Brinda 9 year old plea.

Guest is shadow Sharman Stone.

Chris Uhlmann – Turnbull to get restricted hunting licence on climate. Doesn’t believe DD, noted Wong on MTP give more ground, go to grab, extend parliament if necessary.

Sharman Stone rams home the wedge on refugee issues – refer transcript.

Vox pop on refugee status with word games.

Panel chat gets excitable but within reason. Footage of NT mp running off at the mouth, let loose by PM Rudd.  Fran Kelly says not so much organized crime behind boats, rather desperate fisherman.

Paul Kelly encyclical – Indonesia solution for refugees. Panel chat.

Grab of Ross Garnaut on 7.30 Report re economics, observed also by Stutch ETS policy ‘worse big issue conduct’ quoting RG. Doyen says winding stimulus back necessary. Taylor depends on forecasts ‘above trend growth’. [Trouble with that is forecasts are crap proven regularly.]

Panel has growl, good tv. Fast pace, a bit Westy too (meaning West Wing).

Hilarious grab of Alan Jones interview with Joe Hockey, with AJ apparently on uppers in last week or two [also on front page of Daily Telegraph].

Talking pics – very amusing, Downer talking up to Obama etc. Rudd attacks “Right”wing The Australian.

Essential transcript of Stutch re The Australian and Rudd Govt. Taylor on panel ignored being centre left, Stutch centre right.

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

Inside Business with Alan Kohler  

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

Posted by editor at 12:00 PM NZT

Updated: Sunday, 18 October 2009 1:50 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  quizzical

Now we have the big Ben Lexcen winged keel story, and claims of Dutch involvement first page of the Sydney Morning Herald:

The 'lie' that captured the America's Cup

Dutchman claims he created Ben Lexcen's winged keel that led Australia II to historic 1983 triumph. 

Callers to Sydney abc radio are contradicting the Herald angle with strong information of their own in support of Lexcen. One presumes the truth is somewhere in between.

What we believe is that the shocking fraud of Rex Crane, exposed a week earlier, is sending shock waves through the whole Establishment and people are questioning all kinds of sacred cows in this "topsy turvy" world to quote radio jock Adam Spencer.

For this Alternative Media website, we enjoy this grist, and it might even be our very own raison d'etre they seem to be getting their teeth into lately. We wonder if these latest big media stories can be bracketed with the shocking Rex Crane case where a so called 'POW survivor' and 'veteran' has been found to have defrauded the taxpayer of some $1/2 million in benefits. Real veterans (eg on Australia All Over Sunday morning abc radio) are shaking their head how the formidable federal govt bureaucracy was fooled for over 20 years.

Here is one story about Crane recently:

Police move against fake survivor of Burma rail

LINTON BESSER

October 4, 2009

‘‘It’s me living a lie, isn’t it?’’ ... Mr Crane in Brisbane last week. Photo: Paul Harris

THE Australian Federal Police are investigating the president of the Ex-Prisoners of War Association of Australia, Rex Crane, after he was exposed as a fake.

Veterans' Affairs Minister Alan Griffin said he was disgusted by the revelations.

"I know these allegations will be distressing for the veteran community and I fully understand why. Those who have sacrificed so much for our country are rightly outraged when fraud of this nature occurs," Mr Griffin said.

Lynette Silver, one of the three women who uncovered Mr Crane's true past, yesterday said former POWs were disturbed by the revelations.

''The POWs I have spoken to, they are appalled, shocked and disgusted, and they feel betrayed," she said.

Mr Crane has received $405,000 in Commonwealth payments since 1988, when he applied for the highest level of war pension, which is designated for totally and permanently incapacitated veterans.

Yet he was never a prisoner of war and never served in any military force.

For almost 30 years he had told his family, friends and the federal government that he had been forced to enlist in 1941 in Malaya after he was abandoned there at age 15 by his parents.

He had claimed that he served as a member of a behind-enemy-lines unit before being captured, imprisoned in Singapore's Outram Road Jail and sent to the Burma-Thai railway, where he said he had endured crucifixion and other forms of torture at the hands of the Japanese.

Mr Crane was instead attending Adelaide High School in 1941 before taking up a boiler-making apprenticeship not far from where he was living in Prospect, South Australia.

Confronted by The Sydney Morning Herald on Wednesday, Mr Crane confessed, saying: "It's me living a lie, isn't it? I can see me doing 15 to 20 years here."

Mr Griffin said he had alerted the federal police on Thursday, after the Herald contacted his office.

"Personally, I think for anyone to impersonate a prisoner of war is disgusting,'' he said. ''It is a betrayal of all the values our veterans stand for.

"Should these allegations be proven, it will illustrate to what lengths some individuals will go to to defraud our system and the large amounts of money that can be involved."

Ms Silver said: "This matter should be pursued to the fullest extent of the law and I am confident that the AFP will do so. I am gratified that the minister thinks this is as serious a matter as the three of us always thought, and that Mr Crane will be made to answer to a court of law for his disgraceful action."

Ms Silver was convinced the man was lying. ''I also knew that he definitely could not have been in Outram Road Jail. We have got the complete list of people that went into that jail. I knew that Rex Crane was definitely not on the list.''

investigations@smh.com.au

Posted by editor at 10:11 AM NZT

Updated: Wednesday, 14 October 2009 10:16 AM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  down

Following our post yesterday, a source at Addison Rd Centre - biggest community centre in Sydney if not Australia - suggests the 40th Anniversary of Che Guevara's death (and recent film?) was behind the fire bombing by extreme right wingers. Actually Guevara is quoted by wikipedia as having died 42 years ago as here not 40.

Here are the images we took yesterday Tuesday 13th October, 48 hours later.

We also notice this event earlier that Saturday night:

We have another view of all this. A certain feature by Greg Bearup in The Sydney Morning Herald about 3 weeks ago featuring a certain Far Right political campaigner and ex convict based not so far away in Tempe. Are they connected, described by a political colleague as a 'voyeur of violence'? We wonder. It was a devastatingly good write up. Enough to create a motive for backlash?

Posted by editor at 8:35 AM NZT

Updated: Wednesday, 14 October 2009 8:47 AM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  incredulous

Our spanish interpreter colleague advised last night this icon of 2 decades or more, favourite social point of diverse Sydney based South Americans, has burnt down 2 am yesterday Sunday 11 October 2009. The Casalatino as it's known is a social gathering point for Latin Australians from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay etc and this fire will be a big loss for them.

Casalatino is located within Addison Rd Centre in Marrickville as per this web page:

We are concerned here given the unsolved fire at the Chinese Budhist temple a year or so back in Glebe. Another icon of multiculturalism is the Marrickville Library which was flooded out and closed for a month, also about a year ago.

We made pictures of the Latin House a few years ago here in our work as a web page builder:

Posted by editor at 1:17 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink

Mood:  hug me

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. Perhaps the greatest utility is the headline synthesis above of the 3 or 4 shows followed in this session.

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.  

1. Turnbull 3 strikes trying to buck the Big Media discipline via the ABC? Shown on abc website talking to Jon Faine in the ABC. Follows whining about Kerry Obrien 7.30, and spelling bee on Fran Kelly abc RN. Talk about ‘everyone can learn, no one is perfect’ as per Abbott on 7.30 last Friday. 

2. On the other hand the Big Media paradigm is about ‘the leadership problem’ but that is also just as revealing of a lazy and worse, captured big media, in the revolving door sense with big govt jobs and sinecures. The government has the treasury and big media won’t attack the King Coal, anti renewable energy reality as distinct from rhetoric of the ALP. King Coal is both Govt and Opposition, ignore The Greens as much as possible and talk about Sienfeld style leadership squabbles. As we said lazy, craven, compromised big media. And Uncle Rupert thinks Old Media are victims of Google. Hard to feel sympathy. 

 2A. We received this invite to a phone briefing recently:

Sent: Thursday, October 08, 2009 5:36 PM

Subject: Register for a personal briefing on the Safe Climate Bill

Dear friend, I'm very excited to tell you that on Monday Bob Brown and I will be launching the Greens' Safe Climate Bill at Parliament House in Canberra. Be among the first to find out all about it with a phone briefing from me With Labor and Liberal playing political games, Australia has lost sight of the goal. This is not just to pass a bill about climate change. It is certainly not to compete over who can hand over more billions to polluters. It is not even simply to reduce carbon emissions. Our true goal must be to deliver to our children, and our children's children, the safe climate that has nurtured us and made human civilisation possible. From the 100% renewable energy vision to a national very fast train link; from comprehensive energy efficiency upgrades to forest protection; from sustainable infrastruct ure planning to a real polluter-pays emissions trading scheme, the Greens' Safe Climate Bill package is the first time anyone has set out what we need to do in Australia if we are to achieve that goal. I'd love to tell you all about the bill right now, but we have to wait until Monday for everything to be ready for the launch, for the bills to be printed and all the documentation finalised. Straight after Monday's launch, I'll head back to my office and pick up the phone to brief as many people as I can to tell them what we're doing. Register for our national phone briefing at 12.45 pm on Monday Spots are strictly limited to 50 people, so do register now. You'll want to hear about this bill! While we can't take questions over the phone, you'll be able to post questions on the comments page of our website and I'll do my best to answer as many as I can. All the best, Christine PS: If you are as fed up as I am with the political theatre of Kevin and Malcolm, neither of whom have policies that will actually deal with the climate crisis, I'll be giving a few tips in the phone briefing about helping us get our message out through letters to the editor and talkback calls. Click here to register

3. We watched State of Play last night re Old versus New Media themes. Not a bad show, though an obvious rip of many before like The Paper, West Wing a touch, Three Days of the Condor, All the Presidents Men. Not quite up to that but we liked it.  

4. Advert for CEO of WWF as “independent” global conservation group: p4 SMH 10 Oct 2009. That’s a breach of s.52 of the Trade Practices Act for misleading and deceptive advertising in our legal opinion as somewhat of an expert analyst on the green movement. They get big govt and industry grants. What is independent about that???? A simple google will show endless WWF conflicts with the real green movement globally, and here too. A google of this phrase "WWF criticised for industry grant" first hit is:

http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=WWF_Australia

It's not pretty. They may well be conservation but it's demonstrably not independent. For instance to quote the website

Corporate Funding

WWF Australia receives funding from a number of large corporations. Controversially, it received $1.2million from uranium mining company Rio Tinto, prior to publicly taking a strong pro-uranium mining stance. [10] [11]

In November 2006, WWF Australia announced a 3-year, $1.5 million alliance with ANZ Bank, under which WWF Australia will reportedly provide advice to ANZ on incorporating environmental principles into its operations [

5. Today is festival of the brrm brrm at Bathurst after the festival of the boot part 1 and 2. Slaughter, err sorry cull, of 100 plus kangaroos ‘for safety’ around the track. As if they would hang around such loud cars. Barely a drop in the ocean of 50,000 ‘cull’ per year in Australia. 

6.  Murdoch is right and wrong at the same time about Google advertising “parasites”: They also publish Google Video like Enron: Smartest guys in the room, and race justice satire as referred to here recently, after the Blackface controversy: 

·  Tom McLoughlin

Posted Friday, 9 October 2009 at 6:49 pm | Permalink

There is a pretty good piss take by Aboriginal folks in a movie called BBQ Area or something like that - about 20 years back I think.

Actually here it is: BabaKiueria, made in 1986. Just google it. You will get it on Google Video rather than YouTube as such about 30 minutes long in3 parts. All power role reversals. Pioneering conceptual stuff.

And it’s a bit rich for the billionaire to sledge Google as "kleptomaniacs". Stingey they may be (we have about $25 to show for 2 years hard slog) but far more democratic greed in a sense. What Google really need to do is pay more for quality web pages at a differential rate to shallow seinfeldism and celebrity junk which no doubt have higher ratings but lower content? Just think ABC versus Channel 10 in old media terms regarding A1 advertising value. 

7. Our word “clever” (we wish) seems to be circulating in the Oakes and maybe Carlton column yesterday in Telegraph and Herald respectively, not that they borrow from moi. The term is referring to “Machievalian Rudd” who “swallowed The Prince at 4 years old” says Alison Carabine. On the other clever is not far from “mean and tricky” despite the huge polling and a mere slip between heaven and hell.

8. Costello's departure from parliament shows the Howard years really did bend the guy out of shape permanently and suck him dry. (And there was Mark Latham calling Tony Staley "deformed". Tsk tsk.) In that sense Costello retiring is surely just being realistic. Worse Howard tainted him with the Iraq war disaster and that’s a lifelong confidence breaker surely worse than Godwin Grech could ever be: Costello’s glass jaw not so much shattering as dropping fragments slowly piece by piece in the weather ever since the 2005 report of no WMD.

9. Who is the Rex Crane of the NSW green movement? Refer penultimate SAM post for discussion of such concerns. 

10. Office of NSW AG responded to our report of dodgy LEC mining expert witness issue, and barely within 47 minutes of our email, only to ask for a street mailing address to respond. Actually it was there obscurely in the end of the document so we sent it on again.  

11. New word from Victoria "dash" as in pep, spunk, initiative, bravery, pizzaz. Or as applied to underworld types - whatever. As we said in jaundiced disapproving tones to actor Gyton Grantley who lived in a pal's unit block in Bondi "So the fame hasn't destroyed you yet?" He was astute enough to look sheepish.

12. Crikey deleted our submission on the Rooted environmental blog, arguably the policy area we are best qualified to contribute. Go figure, discussed on SAM earlier this week, with a twist given their John Hepburn of Greenpeace was formerly with Brisbane FoE group as we were 1995 to 2002 in the Sydney branch of that family, with some messy legal laundry revealed there. No confidentiality agreement, absolutely not, we refused their big city law firm pressure point blank. There’s plenty more grist to say about that Sydney based branch of FoE, subject to the fact it was rebooted in recent years and we trust fresh idealistic honest personnel.

This was always our strategy – to quietly kill the parasites there by killing the group temporarily, in order to reboot with a clean slate. All the quality had bailed like John Denlay, Stuart White, Mim Bucchorn, David Vincent (not namesake fraudster in news recently, Dietrich Willing, ally group Stevie Bee, and finally myself.  

As the American Indians say – when a teepee gets fleas it’s time to change teepee. Job done no regrets, though the new Sydney branch is presumably under the heel of the Melbourne head office which carries it’s own ideological Left issues. Our witness of FoE Sydney dysfunction 20001-02  involving staff porn addiction and misuse of public computers, failure to advertise AGM etc, chronic abuse of resources and inequitable work practice, is gentle spirit Frances Thomson. 7 years is nearly enough time to tell the real story there.   

Grab of Shadow Treasurer Joe Hockey avowed loyalty to leader Turnbull (MT), weave in interest rate jump with Swan grab. Press round up re yacht tragedy, Turnbull in WA re ETS climate bill.

Q to talent Nick Minchin, Coalition neuter ETS no signal to polluters? Jobs answer, wait, insist to proceed with wedge, jobs focus. Leader question jibe by NM ‘didn’t get up early’ suggesting SA or WA time for him ‘to gossip about the Liberal Party. Moderate (for a change) voice of Tuckey grab. [Obviously sees his pre-selection going south]

Great question about ETS bad strategy, virtual concedes should be about excessive debt [as per Ross Garnaut p1 last Friday]. First humour out take is MT reference to JH ‘as very approachable’ which is true, gracious and deferential [more of that direct honesty might work for him, funny how career mortality increases honesty]

Panel is Van Onselan News Corp broadsheet and tabloid, Louise Dodson of …….

Grab of Ken Henry being interpreted [like Arbib and Brandis last Friday night Lateline/Leigh Sales in good form]. Ross Garnaut claimed as backup. Broadband question re scrutiny of NBN Bill, 1.4 million shareholders. NM says every super fund makes it even more millions – all have a stake.

Back on ETS, Costello grab says any global scheme will always be varied in future.

Priceless quote – we do support a ETS because a global approach and no one country can act alone on climate so have to cooperate. Humour out take is Costello leaving capt MT with leaky ship looking a lot like (a P&O cruiser).

……………………..

Jolly [meddlesome!] priest Frank Brennan sporting a bit of second chin these days but in good form and likely make a better AG than Opposition Brandis would (no slouch himself). [The line encapsulated on Lateline last Friday, human rights not Bill of rights per Arbib and Brandis].

No evidence disillusion with “unelected judges” in NZ, UK, Vic, ACT. Not elitist with 6,000 participants in consultation [and Arbib noted this serious public outreach on Lateline]. Children in gaols tester and notes this.

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

Riley Diary 7, from 8.40am Unlikely given Bathurst coverage. Dinosaurs rule OK. http://www.seven.com.au/sunrise/weekend   

9 Sunday newshour Laurie Oakes interview 8.44 am 

Talent is MT loyalist Chris Pyne MP. Says MT will be stronger from this forged in the fire. Deals with Hockey alleged rivalry – not challenge [not his time]. Abbott question also distinguished as not challenging as ‘problem is the electoral cycle not the leader’.

Reform parliament – good line, getting traction re question time.

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

Insiders 2: 9- 10am

Video package of Malcolm Turnbull as opposition leader and Emissions Trading System.

Panel is Crabb (looking holiday refreshed?), Marr, Bolt. She fluffs birthday cake line but it’s good  point – question was to John Hewson, not John Howard. Bolt notes never asked of Rudd – also a fair point. Bolt gets shirty and goes off topic re climate denialism instead of press roundup re WA coverage of Liberal conference.

Tension on couch centre left to right. Story from Marr about Rudd sly meeting with Kerry Stokes re fate of Foxtel subject to govt policy decisions.

Grab about debate in WA Lib party [strong hold , State Govt], atmospherics are respectful for MT.

Talent is Julie Bishop – strong interview as the Deputy Opposition Leader. Looks like stabilizing the ship, which is a turn around of sorts from the heartland of the WA stronghold. A lot of boilerplate in there but firm.

Vox pop about Lib leadership at ACT floriade family scene with kids on jumping castles etc.  Panel chats more. Paul Kelly on same topic. Panels chat more re ETS etc.

Talking pictures of ex leader Nelson [spinning for all he’s worth in a pathetic makeover of War for Oil ex Defense Minister. Emoting etc. All is forgotten by hopeless big media.]

Gillard, and Chaser sketch re Hey Hey dodgy blackface sketch.

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

Inside Business with Alan Kohler  

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

Posted by editor at 11:25 AM NZT

Updated: Monday, 12 October 2009 12:17 PM NZT

Share This Post

Post Comment | Permalink