Mood:  down

Mark Day By rowboat or at light speed, news is no free for all June 21, 2007

and these words direct quote, bold added:

"The net has not only changed the nature of news, but it has also provided a two-way conversation. The rise and rise of blogs has contributed to a great rise in interaction between newspapers and their consumers.

Around the world editors are seeking to increase reader involvement with their mastheads as a way of extending their reach.

This has brought growing pains, as highlighted this week on the ABC's Media Watch.

If Blair deplores the kind of "impactful" language used by newspapers, what does he make of some of the public reaction?

Media Watch highlighted a problem for all newspaper bloggers: how far does the notion of free speech extend?

Most newspaper bloggers moderate their reader responses and remove any material that is defamatory, abusive, vilifying, discriminatory or racist.

When confronted by borderline material I find myself often yielding to the temptation to let it through, because to do otherwise is to invite rancid criticism.

It's a no-win situation: if you allow such material through, chances are you'll be in court sooner rather than later; if you edit the posts those who find their remarks modified frequently complain that they have been censored. Well, maybe, but the criticism of an aggrieved blogger is preferable to a million-dollar lawsuit in my book.

Media Watch singled out the Sydney Daily Telegraph for special attention because of what it claimed was a large number of racist or otherwise offensive online comments.

In response, editor David Penberthy declared he was in favour of free speech, and what Media Watch was advocating was censorship.

He also pointed out that in the online argy-bargy, excess on either extremity of a debate was usually leavened by plenty of sensible balance in the middle.

Like Penberthy, I am in favour of free speech, but it does come with a price. We have laws that define the limits of our freedoms - like you're free to drive your car, as long as you keep it on the left side of the road.

Defamatory online comments can be just as dangerous and costly for a media owner as libels in print. Racist commentary online can breach anti-vilification laws which are designed to establish community standards.

Like them or not, these laws are enforceable, and are ignored at your peril. "

O foolish, proud Daily Telegraph here in their editorial bully pit today. Guilty as charged, now dissembling and trying to cover its tracks with a counter attack on the credentials and performance of Media Watch as the messenger. The Telegraph is proud of being the biggest and the most influential which means it has higher standards of responsibility with that power. It's as simple as that. Lift your game and pay for the blog moderation time of your staff. It's as simple as that. God forbid we ever have the cult of extreme free (read hate) speech in a civil society.

Sad to see the grubby, dopey Telegraph seeking to leverage their lower standards to chip at Media Watch with the ABC setting the standards, whether they also slipped or not (highly debatable). Certainly they will care, while the Telegraph hypocritically flout legal standards. Shame David, shame. This is not the USA, and we believe in cricket still to some degree. If you want to play Big Media that way then move to North America, land of bizarre constitutionally guaranteed hate speech and Rupert Murdoch citizenship. We can manage quite okay without, thanks, here in little old Galilee to their modern Rome under the perverse Republican heel.

On the other hand we do appreciate this from the Sydney Daily Telegraph today:

Warren the cartoonist at the Sydney Telegraph has an inspired cartoon about the gruesome nature of high level adversarial contest over the very serious "above politics" issue involving the life abuse and death of our young Indigenous citizens: Leveraging another evocative picture story on page 7 "Like bats out of hell - Endangered creature swoops on park land" (offline for now), combined with the fact of end of Parliamentary sessions in Canberra for the next 6 weeks or more, Warren offers this:

Postscript #1 we posted a similar sentiment here on this message board.

Postscript #2 This came through on the lists today with one of many reactions in the last 3 days to the Howard law and order agenda:

Posted by editor at 9:58 AM NZT

Updated: Wednesday, 27 June 2007 8:26 AM NZT

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Mood:  caffeinated

Author’s general introductory note (skip this 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:

Gittins in business smh takes spin out of productivity debate. Productivity should be a spin-free zone - Business - Business ...

Marcus Padly instructive – China's boom too good to last - Business - Business - smh.com.au

Refer our traverse on SAM re Brendan Keilar high public awareness of rights of children and criminal violence. With one omission: the killer Hudson was quietly noted in the coverage out of Melbourne as being “a blue collar worker from a building family”.

The law and order theme rolls out direct, and indirect, in the Sunday papers at the expense of the ALP (fed and state) governments, eg Sun Telegraph in Sydney, leavened with general culture of complaint about ALP governance

-         page 2 union blues embarrass Rudd again

-         Eddie Murphy immorality claim in story page 3

-         These mask much bigger scandal of Lib MPs facing fraud charges p2 also quite big on the tv last night

-         Rape test scandal victim story p4 blames NSW Health p4 and 5

-         Another law order story Howard with family cabbie victim shocker p7

-         Another lousy rail service price rise NSW Railcorp p7

-         Derisory postage stamp bottom left p11 on federal health story.

-     Drunk driver crashes through home p13

-         Sunken wharf NSW Ferry joke p20-21

-         Vic minister misuse claim p20

-         Oil leaks on high voltage wires p23

-         Parking metres by local councils p27

-         Air pollution Sydney road p31

-         Hacker 4 year jail term p39

-         Aboriginal kids p79, 81

-         Iemma fudging the figures, sultry Sharri Markson p83

Sun Herald in Sydney

- lead story Drug tests for all MPs - cheap headline, little substance p1, 5

- Devine promotes Howard action page 4

- sledge on bleeding heart lefty actor in Peru straight out of the Karl Rove file

- Howard with dead cabbie wife p7

- sledge of Iemma p9

- Devine again p15

- [more ...]

..........................................Advertisement....................................................

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10 Meet the Press 8-8.30 am

Prime Minister, long time, is on with compere Paul Bongiorno.

Warren cartoon shown, we used yesterday in our piece.

PM – “law and order is the first step” echoing our analysis headline yesterday on SAM news site.

Heffernan drug tests. It’s been discussed before and only where there is evidence of a need, in effect a cheap headline. MPs 'should be drug tested'

High level panel: Jennifer Hewitt AFR

Peter Hartcher SMH – goes back to IR economic justice, debate about rollback. Howard as if he didn’t expect this topic. Deliberate question choice away from law and order? And brave.

JH asks on work choices too. A failure?

PH asks again in quiet soft tones – age of HCA judges is 72 for retirement, what about you?

JH chips in supplementary. You will retire next term? Makes it very clear HE IS NEVER GOING TO RETIRE, refers to USA president in his LATE 70ies.

Nicholson from The Australian – Iraq Statue of Liberty blown to bits on departure of USA. Grim, very grim.

Amazing footage from April 2007 of Australian troops meeting with defence minister Nelson, strong fit looking experienced soldier, why are we being withheld compared to other Coalition troops. [The answer surely is 500K protest marchers in Hyde Park Feb 2003].

PM says always a limited role. Short q on broadband.

The subdued look on Peter Hartcher’s face says it all. Look out there is a big political law and order shark in the water.

Transcript in due course www.ten.com.au/meetthepress

7 Weekend Sunrise, 8.35-40 am Riley Diary  -

Congratulations 7 for streaming this on your website (2 week delay?)

News headlines run Heffernan cheap headline first.  

Fantastic scoop on Play School using a pretend family of John Jeanette kids Melanie and Richard.

Very amusing, well worth a watch if they stream it.

Q and A on hard fought electioneering from now. No mention of Parliament resuming.

Thinks Aboriginal child welfare will resonate, get traction, it’s time (now that’s a culture jam of sorts on the it’s time to remove John Howard vibe).

Notes they raised $200K for burns unit at charity ball – that’s admirable. [It’s good to be alive, no doubt about that, even with the hole in my tooth.]

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

Sunday 9

Ray Martin of Aboriginal Reconciliation Council in past years, with Ellen Fanning. Rife abuse.

Senator Allison Democrats with hair dye, Fred Chaney on the panel too.

Health story – shock of the new about depression?

Oakes interview with Kevin Rudd Opposition leader. Shows he’s getting busy again with the challenge into the election.

Billion dollars on health? Missed answer.

Only 3 questions on health. More to do, waste questions on Abbott not helpful – good answer, Roxon working on policy in pipeline to come.

Rudd says Stanhope wrong to say racist. Racism turns on whether positive measures under the Act terms. Wait for detail. Not opposition for opposition sake.

[echoes flip flop of Beazley for then against Tampa measures?]

Work with him. Take the politics out of it. Stabilise of law and order – agrees.

Huge deficiency in numbers of police – big numbers increase needed Police Federation of Australia. Shortfall of about 700 officers in federal police.

“our friends in the police federation”, “counter terrorism for APEC” international paedophile on the internet etc.

Robbing Peter to pay Paul in recruitments.

Sounding and looking fit relaxed focused fluid bright affable. Quite an impressive response interview to the growing political storm. A younger better looking Howard. If he doesn’t win, it will be a tragedy.

Take the politics out of this. How? If we win, war cabinet together both sides, echoes Fran Kelly call for unity. Nation is fed up. Bipartisan. Measure against real targets. NT start. Many varied stories Aboriginal and Torres Strait.

Beyond mindless partisan fight. Not what sounds cute to right or left hairy chested.

Iraq topic. Gordon Brown in days – some indications. Much nuanced talk, sounds damn good and uplifting and balanced. Refer transcript at link below. Sounds even happy. Chirpy laugh at unionism gaffes on video.

Candidate for Franklin.

Laurie is asking in soft tones perhaps because Rudd is so responsive and probative in his answers. Rudd draws his distinctions. Quick disagrees re Harkin. Has to operate on facts not passion. Very diplomatic.

Howard next 3 years. Not his age. Up front – if elected will you stay. Is he being honest who they will get.

Website question – State premiers take up PM intervention on Aboriginal Affairs.

Harry Kewell in Howard's sphere with Big Media Pic Fac. Got to hand it to Howard. He is a hard working electioneering freak (or his team is) who will appear in the sports pages today or this week.

Transcript, webcasts here http://sunday.ninemsn.com.au/sunday/default.asp

Posted by editor at 11:01 AM NZT

Updated: Monday, 25 June 2007 9:34 AM NZT

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Mood:  loud

Charles Richardson: This ain't no Tampa ,Friday, 22 June 2007

argued the Aboriginal child welfare policy announced by PM Howard late arvo on Thursday is not the new Tampa, that is an all trumping federal election strategy as per 2001. We agee. But we also disagree. It's one of the decks of the new Tampa. Read on.

We well remember the footage of Treasurer Costello shaping up fists in the air in a mock gesture of boxing it to the ALP Oppositon despite the adverse polls. A defiant image from their Liberal Party national conference, and no doubt with knowledge of the big dollars to flow in the budget he designed. And perhaps reprising the real history of colleague Tony Abbott a sporting boxer, but also a student thug who punched my friend Peter Woof and was forced to weasel out of it in the Glebe Magistrates Court in the mid 70ies.

But the polls didn't bounce after the budget. And the great 'game' of the 2007 election has increased another 100m of water pressure on the deep diving submarine aka Coalition Government already a kilometre down in the polls.

They need some "torpedoes" to borrow PM Howard's metaphor. While dodging the depth charges.

One depth charge was the precocious attack by Rudd as PM in waiting on the economics of productivity. We read closely Wayne Swan here Wayne Swan: Howard, Costello in state of denial | Opinion |

 in the conservative The Australian and rather unconvincing, at times trite, selective and sleazy riposte of Costello here:

Peter Costello: Productivity all Greek to Rudd | Opinion | The ...

[We notice Ross Gittins has a leading headline in the press today too - Productivity should be a spin-free zone which should make for an excellent read.]

This attack by the ALP on economic competency, making inroads in traditional Coalition territory had their MPs squealing and snorting with staged ridicule and indignation rearing up on their born to rule horseback last week in the Parliament. At risk of falling off backwards, we thought.

"Tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime".

This was Tony Blair's famous winning election dictum apparently.

Most victims of crime are lower and middle class folks who probably do vote Labour/Labor unless they are so alarmed about law and order they want the "Father Party" [US Republicans equivalent of Coalition here] to take over for a bit and restore control, order and presumably peace, more than they want kindness and love from Mommy [The Democrats like our ALP] meaning job creation and social welfare and environment.

We are seeing this Law and Order theme breaking out everywhere now:

1. the biggest is Iraq of course a sort geo political huge law and order policy, first v Saddam, and now versus the Insurgents, Islamofascists, USA haters and probably Iraqi economic patriots, Iranians etc;

2. Child sexual assault in Aboriginal communities - in the news everywhere since the Howard policy coup late Thursday this week eg today:

Black or white bad parents face penalties

• 'Just imagine if it was Marrickville'
• Howard took no interest last year: NT
• How Captain Decore broke the spell of inertia
• Anger simmers over Iemma's rejection of funding increase
• Non-indigenous prey on young
• Consult us and give us respect: expert's plea
• Medical checks could be assault

3. The death by criminal violence in Melbourne of my school mate from Warrnambool CBC, successful solicitor and public hero Brendan Keilar. On front of all the press this week and again today in the Sydney SMH Saturday edition in a heart wrenching tragedy including for this writer. Iindeed the SMH page 1 juxtaposes the Laura Norder topics 2 and 3 in my list. And note significantly the editorial in the Saturday Daily Telegraph in Sydney also juxtaposing topics no.s 2 and 3 here: Editorial: Action Howard had to take

But the original coverage in Melbourne early in the weak dwelled on how could this Hudson criminal bloke be roaming free to do this? How could the State Police let it happen? Why did it take Joe Public to locate his car a block away 24 hours later? That's Laura Norder pure distillation. The police and we suspect not just in Victoria but NSW and Qld were under the hammer for various prior offences by this crazy. They were lucky he gave himself in, having tried to kill himself (as we predicted actually on the SAM news site).

Brendan, a commercial lawyer married with 3 kids to a merchant banker of obvious Liberal Party leaning. Country town boy made good, saves a young woman assault victim. Shot dead for his Christian act and courage last Monday. A fellow who connects by 3 degrees of separation probably with virtually every person in south east Australia. Via Aussie rules, cricket, law, regional Victoria, CBD Melb, developer/construction industry, an exemplar of high achieving Liberal Party connections, even to this greenie.  Everyone who believes in fairness. Everyone with kids. Lawyers like Melbourne based Peter Costello, and PM John Howard here.

His mother says in the Warrnambool Standard owned by Fairfax last week, that when he got married in 1992 'everyone in Warrnambool and Denniliquin was there'. It was a huge funeral yesterday Friday 22nd (this writer's birthday in fact). The ripples just go out and out from this horror and the Coalition know it.

And here is a shocking sleeper - the gun. Was it a NSW police glock? A colleague, who spoke to a source, who presumably knows someone else told me yesterday that the LA Police had their USA military design and manufacture a 15 bullet rapid fire glock, and then 10 bullet version  for the NSW police. They are dangerous rapid fire things apparently that even the cops had trouble preventing accidents. The story goes a crate of these went missing on the docks and turned up in Lakemba. The sinister version I was told involved corrupt police inserting these weapons into the drug cartels they didn't control (unlike Kings Cross) implying it was to promote intercine violence for some racist agenda. Sounds incredulous. But where did the gun come from that killed Brendan and was it a stolen NSW police glock?

4. Union alleged thuggery, like the NUW v TWU conflict in Sydney, but also the bad language and melodrama of Joe McDonald and lesser degree Kevin Reynolds. Never mind

- fascist $20K individual fines for striking.

- tax rorting by developers.

- OH&S shocking risk levels. Indeed we still shake our head recalling one Saturday this year in Sydney CBD a crane on a site in George St CBD lowering and flipping a dumpster filled with scaffolding which duly bounced and spun missing a worker by 12 inches maximum. We were slowly driving by in traffic, jaw dropping in amazement. That's got to be illegal I thought to myself.

5. The multi billion dollar security industry and their political proxies shadow boxing with civil society groups over feral protests or worse at APEC come Sept 2007. Never mind the real threats of missing rocket launchers as a result of corruption involving

Guns and the military ,

and corrupt airport security problems

Copping out on airport security | The Australian Gotcha with Gary Hughes 

and failed intel in the bombing in Bali 2002 

Two face ASIO Act charges | National Security | The Australian

6. Posture and counter posture over the acquittal of policeman Hurley on a Black death in custody case, on Palm Island infamous for seriously dangerous domestic violence and alcohol abuse, gving momentum to the extraordinarily political police union back lash, in sensitive election state of Qld. Those radio attack adverts of the police union may not be a return to Bjelke's corrupt days but we think they are an electioneering agenda.

[7. to this list we belatedly add the last political synergy: 'Leadership' symbolism in this first week of the Parliamentry Break helps shore up his own situation vis a vis the depresssed polling for the Coalition under his guidance, and vis a vis in particular any wandering loyalties to Peter Costello pre election.]

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

Who would have thought we were heading to a Laura Norder federal election? As another famous politician said: "Events dear boy, events" seem to be informing John Howard's political strategising and we are in the grip of real time adversarial engagement with each party shifting and parrying. And Howard has just crystalised a serious counter multi pronged synergistic political if not sustainable policy strategy for the 'next 6 months'. We know now that he made his move with the latest rabbit from hat policy after a cabinet meeting only this Thursday last 21st June 07.

It doesn't seem a coincidence to this writer that Vic Attorney General Hulls is moving on a micro law and order issue in the radio news this morning about digital perverts filming women, and Minister Linda Burney in NSW is moving on a fair trading issue of some kind, also being a prominent Aboriginal lady in politics here.

Nor that Rudd has taken the advice echoed in crikey.com recently to stay above the fray but have attack dogs bite back on the govt from the centre left: Stanhope, Iemma, Beattie and others are all fully engaged in public rhetoric on their aspect of the list above.

A cunning precious is our PM Howard and a profound adversary he proves to be. The ALP get it as per the advert on SBS tonight for the child with basketball waiting for their dad to get home safely from work paid for by the NSW Govt. That's Brendan Keilar's murder merging into federal political atmospherics.

Indeed the apologist for all things Right, Tim Blair (a $2 version of Will Bailey character in West Wing?) has an amusing but still perverse attack on climate change science again today Holy climate change, Mr Blair  in the Sydney Daily Telegraph, showing the Right and no doubt Howard will stubbornly fight tooth and nail to keep power, flying in the face of this sober expert warning:

Posted by editor at 10:10 AM NZT

Updated: Tuesday, 26 June 2007 7:30 PM NZT

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Mood:  hug me

I keep coming back to the Brendan Keilar picture as a child in another story here on SAM news blog, his gorgeous children with their silent accusation - why didn't you help save our dad from violence, and now this story about beautiful Aboriginal children at risk.

This is why: Those healthy loved children beaming out of their class photo year 6, 1975 we pictured in an earlier story including Brendan Kielar and  this writer aged 11 or so) shows child raising done right. We were the social echo 30 years ago of the healthy kids of Brendan, the next generation, he raised well and strong till his outrageous death Monday this week when evil trespassed on this natural cycle. Brendan, a perfect exemplar of the Liberal Party faithful philosophy of life cut short by foul murder.

What power all those innocents, including front and centre of the major Fairfax press here in Sydney 20th June 07 and many other places in Australia?

The Keilar family can believe the anger and frustration will be huge. Indeed we posed the question here "Where does the evil come from?" noting the cyclical nature of violence and the instinctive urge for revenge. We suggested a better Christian way somehow not the same old base aggression.  Today page 3 the Daily Telegraph today 22nd June in a comment by veteran Mal Farr, that paper states "PM leads the way against evil".

Not the evil that struck the Keilar family exactly causing their desperate searing loss, especially those kids well caught from falling into a crack by State Govt public intervention. (Bravo Victorian ALP Govt.) No, the PM is moving to catch the beautiful Aboriginal children falling in the cracks now, also victims of criminal violence. Will it work? We can only hope so.

See what I'm saying? The public awareness of duty to children is high. The challenge is very great on Black kids, and the reports are in again.

And to top it off the ALP federal Opposition have performed strongly on the federal govt's territory of the economics of productivity. Democracy really engaged, a real adversarial contest as here Wayne Swan: Howard, Costello in state of denial | Opinion | A moral victory for the Opposition in the conservative The Australian.

So the federal govt in this hard fought election year contest have moved in turn in reaction to poach the traditional territory of the traditional ALP being social welfare and support for Black Australia.

It may not be the most pure political motivation to shift the focus off the economics of productivity, or climate change debates the govt is surely losing, but the bipartisan general support to save child victims (demonstrated in Brendan Keilar's case above), must happen, for them but  for our own society's sake too. These damaged Aboriginal kids are the prison population of 5 and 10 years from now. The suicides. The petrol sniffers. The bank robbers.  It's as simple as that. The Howard govt want's to break the cycle the Left traditionally worry about too.

We feel all this is facilitated by the huge communication impact in the Big Media around Brendan's white kids as victims in a ripple effect from criminal violence, and the terrifying conundrum "Where does the evil come from?". The answer to that, we submit, is that it's all around us like benign bacteria and viruses that only become really dangerous in unhealthy environments turning toxic like the common cold into pneumonia this winter, we notice sending people in the political community to their sick bed.

It's the healthy social and general environment that we all as citizens have to work so hard at to nurture Australia's children. The kind of incredible endeavour and discipline demonstrated in Brendan Keilar's life for his kids.

You just keep achieving stuff don't you Brendan by your example and death. A life's work which is still travelling, and how.

We've seen this before - the transmutation of one semi related concern to another big concern in Big Politics: The angst and disgust at the hanging of a reformed Van Ngyuen in Singapore, resulting in huge public awareness and this Federal Govt reaction with hundreds of million$ in aid for other victims of circumstance in Asia - the Pakistan Earthquake in that case, and other initiatives. To prove to the voters our Govt does have a heart. They do of sorts, in a political context at least.

Those in the Big Media without these insights of the synergistic nature of morality with self interest in Big Politics are displaying understandable cynicism at the Howard Govt 'ambush' of the States and Territory Governemnts and 11 years of delay. Sure all reasoned suspicion but a bit narrow.

Last night on ABC PM Mark Colvin tested Minister Brough what had changed between an interview last Friday and yesterday afternoon only 6 days?  A Cabinet meeting was the response. A Cabinet meeting this week. Was it on Wednesday 20th June when those white children stared out of the front pages in silent accusation as victims one step removed from ultra criminal violence? Because if you care for them you must care for all children the victims of criminal violence regardless of race colour or creed.

Did those childish eyes one way or another bring the killer Hudson in to surrender? We suspect so. They certainly closed doorways to escape.

The key to understanding this big announcement is the PM's choice of rhetoric - 'what if it was in Dickson (a suburb of Canberra) or Melbourne or Sydney?' he asks. That's the picture of Brendan's kids articulated by the Prime Minister on my radio today. Howard's a father and he knows the power of those innocents with just a look or a word or a picture above. Indeed Howard was a city lawyer like Brendan with kids like him and he might well have recognised himself.

Claire Martin the NT First Minister for the ALP knows this is a road train sized political juggernaut of huge moral and legal proportions and she is right to say time to act bigger. The federal opposition leader too. If it's a legacy pride thing as one talk back caller says well I don't care a jot one way or another.

Let's see how the detail and cross cultural cooperation pans out including existing expertise in the sector. Maybe we Australians can make it better for a change?

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

Postscript #1 25th June 2005

Warren the cartoonist at the Sydney Telegraph has an inspired cartoon about the nature of high level politiking over this serious "above politics" issuem involving the life and death of our young Indigenous citizens. Leveraging another story evocative picture story on page 7 "Like bats out of hell - Endangered creature swoops on park land" (offline for now), combined with the fact of end of Parliamentary sessions in Canberra for the next 6 weeks or more, Warren offers this:

Posted by editor at 10:08 AM NZT

Updated: Monday, 25 June 2007 11:09 AM NZT

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Mood:  don't ask

The best world scientists way ahead of the UN politically constrained IPCC report are formally giving us fair warning as per this quality report on ABC World Today programme:

UN accused of underestimating sea change

The World Today - Wednesday, 20 June , 2007  12:34:00

Reporter: Karen Barlow

Posted by editor at 5:58 PM NZT

Updated: Monday, 25 June 2007 12:12 PM NZT

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Mood:  energetic

Picture: Question time today 20th June 2007 in federal parliament with the PM and Costello looking and sounding just too sure of themselves on the economic issue of productivity?

First they laugh at you. Then they hate you. Then you win?

We are certainly in the first stage in the last 2 days of question time in Federal Parliament with the Govt full of scorn for the Opposition Leader Rudd on the issue of downward long term trend in productivity. 

And two monkeys of Coalition tradition in the commentariat seem to have bought the govt line like naive cheering schoolboys at a playground punch up.

We heard some howlers today which tell us things aren't quite as the Govt would have the electorate and the Big Media believe:

1. In the big productivity debate (read punch up) I heard Peter Costello, once a practicing lawyer, that "a lost" document wasn't stolen from the Opposition Leader Rudd. Trouble is as every policeman in the country knows there is actually an offense of "steal by find". Well I do anyway as a solicitor. Think about it. If you find the neighbours wallet - you can't just honestly keep it. Nor their house deeds.

Nor if you are a politician, your rival's confidential document, particularly if it is not a public or public service funded document as such: A journo could have read the document but had no legal right to take them or copy them. They should have been returned. And the fact no one admits who took it shows the truth it was indeed stolen.

The exactly same situation of exploiting documents stolen by finding them was covered in that pseudo gospel of modern politics - The West Wing tv series # 146 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_Weeks_Out

"With the election two weeks out and both candidates polling even in California, both the Santos and Vinick campaigns scramble to the state to try and gain free media from public events. Vinick, whose hand is broken by constant handshakes, catches a break when Bruno discovers Santos' briefcase in a holding room. Vinick and Bruno must make a difficult decision; Do they open the case and use its contents against the owner or take the high road and give it back to Santos? In the briefcase: evidence which suggests that the Congressman may be supporting an illegitimate child. Vinick asks to meet with Santos where the Congressman denies the allegation, stating that he was making up for the mistakes of his brother. "

So it wasn't Santos's illegitimate child. The Republican side [like Coalition here] didn't use it, and the briefcase was returned. That would have been ethical.

Nor do we think the Australian govt are actually comfortable talking about long term trend of productivity despite the bluster. Could it be they are playing catch up? We think so.

In any case a lost document can be stolen. Funny that a Rodent Coalition doesn't understand that, prosecuting an ASIO officer for leaking a document (allegedly) and a Mr Kessing on leaking (convicted) an airport security report. More credit to Rudd for not insisting on the legalistic approach.

 2. On the substance of the productivity debate itself what we seem to be seeing is a govt that has never experienced an ALP daring to really challenge the govt on their so called superiority on economics. No wonder the govt are so filled with confected outrage. They know if they lose their last great advantage on economics they are really "dead in the water".

Yet even this writer knows that there are real problems in our economy:

A. long term trend in productivity is down no doubt over the 10 years of this govt. Chris Uhlmann oft referenced in this debate noted specifically this reality when Costello tried to bluster his way through with confected ridicule here on AM ABC radio yesterday:

"CHRIS UHLMANN: Now, to another issue, Labor has consistently criticised the Government over one aspect of its economic performance, and that's productivity growth. Isn't the core of Labor's argument unassailable that there has been a clear down trend in productivity since the late 1990s?

PETER COSTELLO: Here's the interesting fact, Chris, .....[bluster for 7 lines]

That appears on page four, as you can see. Continue using false figures ?

CHRIS UHLMANN: All right.

PETER COSTELLO: ? even though they are now inaccurate, because they suit your argument, because to use the right figures would not actually help your argument.

CHRIS UHLMANN: But you know, Treasurer, that these figures are volatile and that's what this paper says, that if you use year-to-year figures or quarter-to-quarter figures, you're going to get a lot of bouncing around.

People who look at these figures look over five-year averages, and it does show that there's been a clear downward trend, doesn't it, since the 1990s in productivity, and that does matter to the Australian economy.

Federal Treasurer jumps on Labor leak            TRANSCRIPT 19th June 2007 http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2007/s1955095.htm

Costello seems to be arguing that productivity can only peak and trough, and that it's limited to narrow sectors of a broadly based economy across sectors. That does seem pretty strange line of argument, or very self serving. Maybe lazy even.

B. We distinctly remember reading about the lack of improved volumes of minerals mined. Prices have jumped yes, but quantity has not:

Australia riding high on resources hog cycle - Business - www.smh ... If world demand for resources has been strong and the prices we can get have shot up so far, why has the volume of our resource exports shown no growth ...

C. The record levels of casualisation/stripping of conditions in the workforce, and big jump in UNDER employment as well as lack of skills training, undermining both loyalty and morale, seems to us just as likely a mechanism of depressing productivity over the last 10 years, as the drought for causing the same. No doubt all these factors are involved and only the last one is an act of God.

Costello's answer that mining capital investment and high employment has a time lag rings quite hollow to this listener observing question time on the tv and now webcast after 3pm. Especially when all these high status Reserver Bank Governors and OECD reports agree with Rudd's point on the five-year averages as Uhlmann puts it.

3. There is some weird barracking going on in the commentariat. Christian Kerr gets top spot in Crikey.com ezine today mis interpreting we suspect the debate in Costello's favour and not realising I think that Rudd is actually grasping the economics nettle as he must while he has extra time to get up to speed.

Similarly Dennis Shanahan here with a shocking record on biased observation and application of real polling data results is quoted by Kerr in eager terms. You would think Kerr would be a little more circumspect and realistic based at least on his own critique of such as Shanahan in the past. Seems Coalition traditionalists fall in together here after all when the grind gets a bit tougher.

We simply think Kerr and Shanahan are wrong, or overly generous to the Coalition/Costello spin on conservative record on productivity.

We notice other main papers and Michelle Grattan on Radio National this morning are exactly that. Far more circumspect of the Govt line, and even a bit dismissive in Grattan's case on how it plays to the average Joe and Mary referring to the debate as "arcane" 7:35: Michelle Grattan - Wednesday. But what is very real is the territoriality of the Coalition on the issue after 10 years in power. 

Fairfax today for instance reports instead another major political economic news being the favourable NSW state budget broadly helpful to the ALP reputation on financial management, allowing for signficant increased public debt financing:

20th June 2007 Michael Costa rides his luck for federal Labor http://www.smh.com.au/editorial/index.html

and Ross Gittins here also Strike me lucky, this one is different

Ross Gittins: MICHAEL COSTA is either a miracle worker or he's very lucky. I'd say the latter. Sometimes lucky is the most you can hope for in a politician.

Posted by editor at 4:24 PM NZT

Updated: Wednesday, 20 June 2007 5:59 PM NZT

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Mood:  sad

Brendan now cruelly murdered is pictured above at left as a bright eyed young lad in his last year of junior school.We last saw him in the late 80ies for inter varsity Aussie Rules competition in the ANU, he from Melbourne Uni if memory serves, in an awesome team streets ahead of the others. He got a uni blue we recall playing rover. I missed out on selection to the all Australian team and he was kind about that patting me on the back commiserating. Funny how you remember such things.

God bless you Brendan in an absurd and oh too real version of the children's buddy movie:

We shared a good 6 or more years of school in the same cohort in hokey, quiet, sport obsessed Warrnambool, south west Victoria.

He sat at the front of the class, with that piercing laugh and sharp wit. Me in the back lacking confidence hiding a lamp. He was ambitious and talented. He didn't follow most of us to then daggy, losing Old Collegians footy club in the old home town, he went on to another at that time winning local club called Russel's Creek if memory serves. He always performed above his weight with a big torpedo when he got onto it.

[OC  turned around, this writer was captain, becoming U/18 Premiers and Champions.]

[His friends correctly note he was very gutsy in the press today. How true.]

We saw him at Lewis Atkinson's 18th birthday if memory serves and let's say he was having a wow of a time, as a young man at university in the prime of his young life. I was slogging it out for a year of work. Lew had gone on to Deakin and is now with a Melbourne University group.

We were not so close to Brendan as school kids but his death is very shocking, and there will be many Warrnambool folks past and present hurting over this at former Christian Brothers College now Emmanuel College Warrnambool (link may be down). God bless BK for the heroic attitude before the shooter pulled the trigger.

Yesterday we mulled over a startling incident in around 1999 when we confronted 2 guys manhandling a woman in Goulbourn St opposite Chinatown here in Sydney, walking to a meeting with Chloe then of FoE Melbourne group. We held a bunch of keys between fingers and promised to blind the attacker if he wanted to take it further, and shouted for security. The street froze for that moment. The victim jumped in a taxi quick smart and was off. A drug deal gone wrong. A pimp? Who knows. No knife and no gun thankfully. It didn't even occur to me.

Chloe said I should have used non violence techniques.

Would I do it today? Truth be told I would probably be a coward knowing what I do about hand guns swamping the criminal underworld, and the influence of gun culture from the USA.

Brendan proved how good he really was in that second and that fateful decision to save a 24 year old woman in dire trouble. For that I am filled with admiration and awe. All lawyer jokes have just gone totally stale for this writer today. Maybe I'm shedding tears for him and selfishly for myself? Death is like that, scrambling one's sense of truth and nonsense.

BK, somehow I think I missed the best of you.

Condolences to his parents, family and friends.

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

Postscript #1:

Big media here echo our sporting experience of Brendan Keilar, shooting victim

Braveheart to the end | Herald Sun

Champion player in the field of bravery | News | The Australian

We gave a few words similar to the above on Brendan's death on Warrnambool 3YB radio just now, and commiserated with some of the school staff who know his mother.

The link in the story above to Emmanuel College which was previously known as Christian Brothers College now merged with St Ann's, is correct but doesn't seem to be active at the moment.

I'm told a link to another related website will be up in the next few days if not today: http://www.emmanuelalumni.com/ (it's up now)

Postscript #2

 Picture: Front page Sydney press 20th June 2007.

Well Brendan, you've got me shedding tears again today. The picture of you with your 3 kids. Of course you are gone and it's a good 20 years distance but your spirit and the media coverage is still amongst us and how. We thought you were brash as a kid but in fact you were simply reaching high for the best you could be. And it worked right to the end.

There is alot of real Christian love in this situation from growing up good in that school to making your way, marrying well, growing your own crop of 3 fine children, proud as a man can ever be. Your greatest achievement. Just getting better your whole life.

What makes a child grow up so well and another so wrong? Noel Pearson who was a lawyer in Melbourne once is on tv on 7.30 last night wrestling with this same terrifying conundrum. "Where does the evil come from?" to quote the modern remake of Thin Red Line opening soliliquy about death laden WW2. The parents of Brendan and now of Chris Hudson are all grieving. Both know their child is lost forever. One on a path of Love, the other down a path of Hate.

Hudson's father calls for his killer son to give himself up to police, prison and decades of misery to avoid an early death. It's hard not to wish for revenge. I can feel it welling up in me wishing the police to shoot him dead or for him to kill himself. My sense of this situation is he will kill again if he can too.

It's the urge for revenge that keeps the cycle of violence turning. What's actually needed is the utmost professional detachment and clinical excellence in legal process. If he can be caught and rehabilitated, drug free etc after a long long stretch then so be it -not for him, but for society's best future. If he must rot in a cell forever till his youth fades to dust then so be it also.

My guess this younger cruel Hudson is already in a gaol of his own crazed psychology. A hell that floats around him everywhere he goes with inescapable bars. Where it actually comes from I can't conceive. Or only guess at  - a confused post traumatic psychosis from his own two gun shot wounds to chin and back in a riot last year? A drug induced insanity? A massive inferiority/misogyny complex?

He presents like a broken washing machine spinning and lurching making a God awful racket, crashing around the laundry of life breaking anything in it's path. And inevitably itself.

The second shot into Brendan on the ground says it all really. The killer has become a gyre spitting fatal venom at society, the hate so deep Jesus would have trouble rooting it out. Mere mortals have to deal with it as safely as possible.

Postscript #3 Thursday 21st June 2007

We wrote postscript #2 above before seeing the front page of the Sydney press pictured above now too. But for those based in Melbourne it's perhaps good to know how this foul murder is viewed up here. It was great to see somewhere yesterday a witness confirming he didn't die alone or in pain. It is important. The prominent press coverage we can see has played its role flushing this Hudson criminal out.

BK quite likely has lived a blue ribbon Liberal Party kind of life, commercial lawyer and all. Even so there is no doubting the wide social feeling about this horrific murder. As we said onto tape for 3YB from up here Brendan was a big personality making the shock of his death greater, that we are all going to this same place one day. The Premier of Victoria obviously gets it and has promised $250K for his kids and the legal fraternity will kick in for sure down there. We expressed a similar concern off the tape to the reporter with the local radio station to generate exactly this kind of public support. He will likely have life insurance as lawyers with kids do.

Other victims of crime may wonder why the special treatment but it's not about that really. It's a combination of factors making this such a public importance - against violence to women, the good samaritan aspect, the bizarre cruelty, the life well led, the everyman tastes of Brendan's life, the weaknesses in our public security system, the grim culture of organised crime. Here BK is still providing for his loved ones even after death.

His wife will wake up today more cold and alone than ever in her life before but at least she will have that financial anxiety lifted from her shoulders. His 8 year old son too no doubt will have that sorrow loss and chill in his soul at the brutality in this world.

The killer has surrendered and legal satisfaction is only just beginning and not just for this sad excuse of a man Hudson. We trust the police have everything they need now to do their job ethically and professionally too. There is a long way to go in this matter yet.

A few weeks ago on a quiet Saturday I was googling my school class especially the gifted kids in my class. Two reasons - mid life nostalgia, and being tea total a full year, your memories come racing back in vivid colour as the brain cells revive. Who has a presence on the net? Certainly this news blogger. David McLean (?), Paul Whiting (yes a senior MD in Canberra), Peter Walsh (yes), Brendan 'Kielor' (no?) - that's right I couldn't remember the spelling. Now his name is everywhere and we are so sorry for that.

Well played Brendan, blind sided on a Monday morning by one extremely dirty 19th on ground who had no business even being there. As brave, quick and smart as you have been your whole life. Brash as bright stars can be (inviting envy if not jealousy) you win dux in our school year yet again. You win best and fairest. You made your parents and your school proud. And if your family cannot forgive you for leaving perhaps in time they too will be glad for the time they had after the searing pain subsides.

Fame has found you sadly. What a brilliantly successful life you lived and for that we are glad despite this horrendous result. You surely felt your own very real achievements in a serious life of great endeavour.

Goodbye Brendan, my intellectual peer and superior from high school CBC Warrnambool. A country town boy with strong values who made good in the big bad city. I will never forget your great hearty laugh from the front of the room, full of vigour and a lust for life, with deep respect.

Postscript #4 22nd June 2007

It's my birthday. I keep coming back to this string 4 mornings in a row. This is why.  Those beautiful children beaming out year 6, 1975. They reflect the beauty of the children Brendan brought into this world and raised till his outrageous death. What power those innocents, front and centre of the major Fairfax press here and many other places in Australia?

Exactly this: You died a successful lawyer, and an admired one by the profession left "numb". The federal govt and many opposition are filled with lawyers that shuddered at your disgusting fate.

Your family can believe the anger and frustration will be huge. We posed the question here "Where does the evil come from?" Page 3 the Daily Telegraph today asks today "PM leads the way against evil".

Not about the Keilar family's desperate searing loss especially those kids caught from that fall by State Govt public intervention. Bravo Victorian ALP Govt. No the PM is moving to catch the beautiful Aboriginal children falling in the cracks too.

See what I'm saying? The public awareness of duty to children is high. The challenge is great on Black kids and the reports are in again.

And to top it off the ALP federal Opposition have performed very strongly on the federal govt's territory of the economics of productivity. Democracy really engaged, a real adversarial contest as here Wayne Swan: Howard, Costello in state of denial | Opinion | A devastating moral victory for the Opposition in the conservative The Australian.

So the federal govt in this election year contest have moved in turn in reaction to poach the traditional territory of the traditional ALP being social welfare and support for Black Australia.

It may not be the most admirable political motivation but the bipartisan general support to save children from a cycle of violence like we have seen with the killer of Brendan above, must happen, for them but our own society's sake. These damaged kids are the prison population of 5 and 10 years from now. It's a simple as that.

But what makes it all possible is the huge communication reach in the Big Media around Brendan's white kids and the terrifying conundrum "Where does the evil come from?". The answer of course being it's all around us like bacteria and viruses that only becomes dangerous in unhealthy environments turning virulent. It's the healthy social and general environment we have work so hard at to nurture Australia's children. The kind of incredible endeavour demonstrated in Brendan Keilar's life.

You just keep giving don't you Brendan. A life of great endeavour the effect of which is still travelling, and how.

We've seen this transmutation of political capital from one semi related concern to another before in Big Politics - the angst and disgust at the hanging of a reformed Van Ngyuen in Singapore, resulting in huge public awareness and this Federal Govt reaction with hundreds of millions in aid for other victims of circumstance in Asia - the Pakistan Earthquake in that case, and other initiatives. To prove to our people our Govt have does have a heart.

Postscript #5, 24th June 2007

This might help when words are so useless, its like hard liquor without the hangover via YouTube:

Posted by editor at 8:50 AM NZT

Updated: Sunday, 24 June 2007 11:22 PM NZT

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Mood:  loud

Pictures from top: 1 & 2 - Popular Hall St, path widening; 3 - storm damage Oxford St; 4- Hall St Gusto's; 5-Jacques Ave road resurface; 6 & 7 - evidence of surge of sand to promenade; 8 - Bondi Park playground; 9 - asymetrical cafe extension on public land, wire fence blocking public right of way at right; 10- Bondi Pavillion courtyard painted after 15 years disrepair; 11- fresh paint on Bondi Surf Club; 12- 2 foot high furrows by grader beachwide returning sand to water's edge.

Postscript #1 

Big Media follow our story here:

29th June 2007 Fighting on the beaches, and bonding in Bennelong - National - smh ...

Posted by editor at 11:06 PM NZT

Updated: Tuesday, 3 July 2007 1:29 PM NZT

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Mood:  sad

Pictures from top: 1. UTS 26 storey high building opposite the brewery site expected to be reproduced 5 times with no attempt to generate  energy, water or sewerage onsite at image 2 for the next 40 years. 3 - real estate signage. 4, 5, 6 show views of the development site from Broadway. At bottom is one potential future -massive overdevelopment with the atmosphere of crowded Paddy's market nearby.

Postscript #1 23rd June 07

Purely by coincidence the Sydney Morning Herald ran this satirical spoof about the same development site June 18th that we posted our pics taken Sunday 17th June 07 (believe it or not!):

Posted by editor at 9:28 PM NZT

Updated: Saturday, 23 June 2007 11:47 PM NZT

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