The National Party has no environmental credibility whatsoever, so why do they act like they are the sole arbitrator of the process?
Author: peterimrich
The self-styled leaders of these protests are not stupid, but calculating. They do not represent the community of Melbourne and they never will. Their fleeting moment in the spotlight must end. We must have zero tolerance for those who undermine community harmony with violence and do so for personal profit. The answer to isolated street violence is better policing and more peaceful picnics.
Melbourne’s rioters honour Trump with their violence
Throwing away any notion of a social contract and that “individualism is just all me, no we” a handful of basically misinformed working-class protesters took to the streets to revolt, protest, tear down the “system” and basically any notion of their part in any social contract. Meanwhile, they were doing the work justifying the extreme right’s demands to change the government who is in their lives. Isn’t it a coincidence that Matthew Guy just became leader of the opposition and needed anti-Dan on the front pages?
More than one Trump-Pence flag was seen amid the crowd, along with a red MAGA cap or two. The disparate group of unionists, anti-vaxxers, anarchists, right wingers (including Proud Boys and neo-Nazis) and general troublemakers shut down parts of a city already crippled by COVID-19. Their agenda, apparently initially sparked by suspension of access to tea rooms and mandated vaccination due to viral spread in the construction sector, was hijacked. It morphed into a general protest against authority, targeted at lockdowns, government, police and even the construction union.
Source: Melbourne’s rioters honour Trump with their violence
As far back as Korea America abandoned peace and simply focused on redefining war and Australia and the UK have been swallowed up it that strategy ever since.
The United Sates seem to be undermining, with militarising the area with their Navy even though China is not interfering with the freedom of movement of international shipping in the South China Sea as admitted by retired US Admiral Cedric Leighton. In the 16th century we saw invasions from western powers with the Portuguese, Dutch and British saw invasions of conquest right up to the US in the Vietnam war. In these invasions was the western powers invasions of China and division on their country in the late 19th century, with a zero sum, your with us or you are against us foreign policy with Asia. Many horse gamblers bet odds on the historical track record of a horse US lead AUKUS group does not seem to have a strategy of Chess game and more like a game of Hungry Hungry Hungry Hippo zero sum win game in Asia.
Source: What Strategic Game is AUKUS playing in Asia? – » The Australian Independent Media Network
Hand count of the 2.1m ballots cast in Maricopa county found that Biden actually won 360 more votes over Trump than was reported
The so-called audit of Arizona’s 2020 presidential election results led by state Republican lawmakers was never a credible audit, and in spirit it was something for more malicious. But now it’s officially over, and you’ll never guess who the real winner of the 2020 presidential election in Arizona was. You’ll want to sit down for this. Are you sitting down? You sure? The winner was Joe Biden.
Source: Phony Arizona Election “Audit” Reveals Nothing About 2020 Electoral Votes – Mother Jones
P.S, Speaking of freedom, Clive Palmer has put out this statement: “Our position is clear and simple – Every Australian should have the right to choose what they put into their body.” Does this mean he’s supporting the legalisation of drugs?
Australian Minerals and Resources Minister Matt Canavan has been conjuring up a boogey man China comparison cop-out in not wanting to commit to clean energy targets, without any details of what he is comparing Australia to in regards to China. If Matt is attempting to hold China up as an example of not making inroads to clean energy we really need to look at in detail what China has done in regards to moving towards clean energy.
Source: Examining Matt Canavan’s clean energy China cop-out – » The Australian Independent Media Network
Grace refuses to tame the shrew Grace Tame, 2021 Australian of the Year, left the nation in awe with her profoundly eloquent, inspiring and moving acceptance speech. It shamed those of us who could have done more and didn’t. Including female politicians. No more shaming or taming of the shrew within! The end of her courageous speech when she talks of her serial rapist teacher’s command to be quiet, still echoes in my head and turns my gut: “I remember him saying, ‘Don’t make a sound… Well, hear me now! Using my voice, amongst a growing chorus of voices that will not be silenced. Let’s make some noise, Australia!”
Source: Scott Morrison’s coercive control of women (part 3) – » The Australian Independent Media Network
How is it Scott Morrison sacked by both the NZ and Australian Governments for shady tourist deals was allowed to bring that dept hand to a job with the LNP and become PM? In one foul swoop, Morrison has managed to fuck over France, even piss off his bestie ally America, upset the Indonesians, and stand naked with no contract in hand in front of us and the world,hoping the media will save him. He’s the magician whose performance never really works yet leaves everyone flabbergasted mouths agape by his ineptitude.
Watch this space, though, because Biden and Macron could conceivably come to an arrangement to share the Indo-Pacific marketplace, with the French supplying a small number of subs to Australia, after all. Remember that in Morrison’s rush to announcement last week he actually left Australia without a contract. The AUKUS deal still has 12 to 18 months of haggling and review ahead of it before it is signed.
Source: His sights on domestic navel-gazing, Morrison’s all at sea on the world stage
If you are waiting for an American general to resign or be fired over the drone strike that killed seven children and three men in Kabul last month, you will likely experience the meaning of infinity.
The close relationship between actors in Australian and US intelligence of course goes back prior to the Prime Ministership of Whitlam, as evidenced by Australia’s secret role in the overthrowal of the Allende Government in Chile and the Sukarno Government in Indonesia.
As the war hawks today swirl at the spectre of a Chinese paper tiger, it seems we are locked into a more offensive UK-US alliance structure and a government determined to undermine our rights and welfare at every turn. What a betrayal those days of Hawke now seem to those who long for a country that supports social justice and an independent foreign policy. Surely this is the task of a new Labor Government.
Source: The Hawke Files and the Birth of the 51st State – » The Australian Independent Media Network
After President Biden rang President Macron this week to soothe hurt French feelings about AUKUS, a joint statement was issued. It said in part, “The two leaders agreed that the situation would have benefited from open consultations among allies on matters of strategic interest to France and our European partners.” Morrison refused to take this as any reflection on Australia’s diplomatic blundering in the way it handled the cancellation of its French submarines contract.
Source: Grattan on Friday: After the deal on security, Scott Morrison turns to the shift on climate
Australia is languishing through lack of leadership. Christian Porter, Scott Morrison and the LNP have forgotten that they are servants to the people. Instead, they are trying to enslave us to a decrepit legacy system that is reliant on coercive control, and social infrastructure drip fed by political bullies.
Source: Scott Morrison’s coercive control of women (part 2) – » The Australian Independent Media Network
The list of current LNP members whose conduct in the office that they represent has been overshadowed by underhanded dealings is through the roof. Insult to injury is that they all manage to resurface as the government merry-go-round of ‘how quickly we forget’ spins on its merry way.
Source: What does it take? – » The Australian Independent Media Network
LNP’s Mining Welfare scheme rolls on. His announcement is as genuine as the Phillip Morris announcement to “Unsmoke the Planet” with an investment in new technologies.
“Australia has a lot at stake,” he will say. “We cannot run the risk that markets falsely assume we are not transitioning in line with the rest of the world.” He argues the government is making progress on meeting emissions reduction targets and investing in new technologies.
Source: Treasurer urges protection of mining industry on road to net zero
“Almost comical”. Experts lambast Scott Morrison’s “crazy” AUKUS deal to buy nuclear submarine tech from parlous UK and US programs. Marcus Reubenstein finds a real prospect Australia will be used to “underwrite” the foundering foreign submarine industry.
He has been at pains to stress, the deal — which has him firmly in the freezer with the French — was a decision made in Australia’s national interest, that the conventional submarines, offered up by the French, no longer cut it against threats in Australia’s region.
Problem it’s a lie the French subs are the most advanced and latest nuclear powered subs in the world. The LNP insisted they be refitted with conventional engines.
Remember Boomgate and Morrison’s posture having been caught with Abbott an Dutton in a lie. It’s the same here. His “tell, his posture” gives him away. Our PM is a liar on the International stage and the world knows.
Frozen out in Europe, feted in Washington, alarming some of its south-east Asian neighbours: questions are being raised about whether Australia has the right diplomatic skills and resources to perform on the world stage.
Source: How the AUKUS nuclear submarine deal affected Australia’s standing on the national stage
The hacktivist collective Anonymous leaked over 150 gigabytes of private data after hacking the web registration company Epik, a popular domain host for far-right groups.
They had been depending on the anonymity of the internet to protect their day jobs as they went about promoting racist rioting and the, um, overthrow of the US government. Turns out their passwords (middle name plus current house number, really?) have been exposed in a major hack of their chosen right-wing service provider, a company called Epik. According to The Washington Post, “Epik long has been the favorite Internet company of the far-right, providing domain services to QAnon theorists, Proud Boys and other instigators of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol — allowing them to broadcast hateful messages from behind a veil of anonymity.” Anonymous no more!
Source: ‘Epik Hack’ Is Right Wing’s Worst Nightmare | Crooks and Liars
Revelations of rampant cheating at KPMG echo the broader decay in culture at the top of business in Australia; at the Big Four firms which advise both our largest corporations and government, indeed the firms to which government itself is being outsourced. Michael West speaks with Jeffrey Knapp.
Source: Uppercut: KPMG cheating scandal mirrors Big Four rot, business leadership – Michael West Media
The OECD argues, correctly, that Australia’s tax system is too reliant on personal income tax. This ‘leaves public finances vulnerable to an ageing population’. A major part of the suggested solution is to increase GST and address the regressive impact of the increase by a compensation package. The latter would include tax reductions for low and middle-income earners and an increase in the unemployment benefit. The OECD also recommends reducing the discount rate on capital gains, reducing the superannuation concessions available to wealthy Australians and getting rid of the two-tier company tax rate.
Much has been written about the taxpayer-funded windfalls to some companies provided by the A$90 billion JobKeeper scheme. Their gains have come from grants given to them to offset projected COVID-19 losses — with no obligation to pay that money back when the losses didn’t eventuate. Australia banks may have reaped a similar (albeit much smaller) windfall via the Reserve Bank’s Term Funding Facility (TFF). This loan scheme handed banks A$188 billion at extraordinarily cheap interest rates to help them “support their customers and help the economy through a difficult period”. But it appears this cheap money may have given the three biggest banks — Commonwealth Bank, National Australia Bank and ANZ Bank — the opportunity to enrich their shareholders through funding share buybacks rather than repaying the cheap loans.
Source: Australia’s banks got $188 billion in cheap loans from the RBA. Now they’re funding share buybacks
Tess Lawrence is not known for holding back when holding forth. In this first excerpt from a longer treatise she calls out Prime Minister Scott Morrison, accusing him of both implicit and complicit coercive control over women in Australia, including female cabinet ministers as well as complainants of alleged rape and other forms of sexual assault and harassment. Content warning: This article discusses rape and institutional political psychosexual violence. Scott Morrison’s coercive control of women
Source: Scott Morrison’s coercive control of women (part 1) – » The Australian Independent Media Network
Just imagine for one moment that the identity of Christian Porter was transformed into that of a Labor Minister. How do you think the Murdoch media would react? Well, let me tell you. The Australian, Sky News, The Herald Sun and other news outlets (where the truth goes to die) are completely ignoring the issue of where the money come from to pay Porter’s bills, and that parliamentary standards are worsening under this Government. It is like they take delight in the destruction of those things necessary to make our democracy work.
dumping France, thereby pi–ing off the whole EU, was a gesture of fealty to the United States, and it is not just about getting nuclear-powered submarines. After all, the French subs are nuclear-powered and were having diesel engines installed for the Australian contract. France offered to keep them as nuclear-powered, but was met with silence from Australia because we were secretly negotiating with the US and UK at the time.
Source: Alan Kohler: What the nuclear submarines deal is really all about
Morrison fled to Murdoch’s and the US Lap
Morrison’s de facto declaration of cold war on China can only further damage the nation’s relationship with its biggest trading partner, while his break-up by press announcement with France over the epic absurdity of its romance of the retro-fitted diesel nuclear submarine can only help destroy his credibility and that of his government even further. Above all, AWKUS sees an alarming retreat in Australia’s foreign policy from an independent nation with pretensions to being a middle power, to a vassal of the United States, not a deputy sheriff but an indentured servant.
09.22 Dominic Kelly
Libertarianism is marginal in Australian politics. But the governing coalition’s failings and the rise in support for right-wing anti-lockdown protests have given the dangerous Liberal Democratic Party an opportunity to make gains.
Source: Jacobin
So Iran, a country with which we were enjoying warming relations until Donald Trump poisoned them, is up there with China and Russia as a threat to Australia in the opinion of the National Security Committee. Barnaby Joyce reminded the media the ‘‘reason we have a National Security Committee is because it’s secret’’. Photo: AAP The possible insight is that such a perception betrays the entirely American-centric nature of our security and defence outlook. It underlines our client state status that Iran-Saudi and Iran-Israel tensions were a consideration in signing open cheques for nuclear-powered submarines. After our participation in the Iraq and Afghanistan debacles, the Morrison government apparently maintains an interest in Australian military involvement in the Middle East.
Source: Michael Pascoe: And now Iran is threatening us, claims Acting PM
As the Trumpist movement escalates its assault on American democracy and society, the country’s political and leadership class cannot reasonably claim the defense of ignorance, or protest that this was all so “unprecedented” and came as a total surprise.
I was absolutely dumbfounded at how fondly he looks back on January 6th. He thinks it was a great day. He thinks it was one of the greatest days of his time in politics.
Source: Trump Quietly Unleashes His Mob | The Smirking Chimp
It is early days for these entirely Chinese-designed cars to take on the establishment, and there is always the possibility that geopolitics upsets progress, but it finally seems that all the ingredients are there. The next revolution in automotive is replacing petrol and diesel vehicles with electric. With all of China’s advantages, it could yet lead this shift, and finally become the home of the best cars in the world.
Source: China Emerging as Competitor to Tesla: Will it build the best Cars in the World?
A man who eats a pastry sack filled with ground up pig snouts and cow tongues each day, says he’s not taking the vaccine because he is unsure about its ingredients.
Some in the crowd certainly appeared to have far-right sympathies. There was one who identified as a Proud Boy, someone who complained about the New World Order while wearing a Donald Trump hat, two Trump flags were waved by people in hi-vis, and a former member of the United Patriots Front was spotted in the crowd on the West Gate Bridge. But for the most part, the thousands who gathered were not identifiably aligned with any political group or message, save for being anti-Daniel Andrews and anti-mandatory vaccination. Some said they had been CFMEU members for decades, others were clearly young tradies. Some hi-vis gear had cement stains, others looked as they were wearing it for the first time. Many were keen to stress they had no connection to the far right. Quick Guide How to get the latest news from Guardian Australia Show Tanuki said it was much too simple to label those attending the protests as neo-Nazis or far-right agitators. “I don’t agree with Setka saying they’re all ‘neo-Nazis’, this is dumb or sloppy or inaccurate. But they’re sent out by anti-vaxxers; that’s what they are. And their immersion in the anti-lockdown scene makes them predisposed to the manipulations
It’s massive. It may be the biggest domain-style leak I’ve seen and, as an extremism researcher, it’s certainly the most interesting,” said Megan Squire, a computer science professor at Elon University who studies right-wing extremism. “It’s an embarrassment of riches – stress on the embarrassment.”
Source: Huge hack reveals embarrassing details of Proud Boys, QAnon and other hate groups
Email Twitter62 Facebook8.6k LinkedIn Print Scenes of protesters clad in hi-vis jackets and shouting anti-vaccination slogans have dominated the news this week.
As the ABC reported: Some of those gathered held a banner reading ‘freedom’, while others sang the national anthem and chanted ‘f*** the jab’. Some attacked union offices, drawing criticism from officials such as ACTU chief Sally McManus, who described the protests as being orchestrated “by violent right-wing extremists and anti-vaccination activists.” These images may shock some but for researchers like me — who research far-right nationalist and conspiracy movements, and explore the online spaces where these people organise — these scenes came as no real surprise.
Premier Daniel Andrews has urged Victorians to stay the course, saying “there is no other way” and vaccinations are “the only ticket out of the pandemic” as Melbourne teeters on the edge.
Source: ‘There’s no other way’: Daniel Andrews urges Victorians to stay the course
Biden’s desire for an alliance against China in pursuit of a return to “rules-based order” — heavily slanted in favour of the West — has been oft-expressed. The south must be ruled out. But so too, it would seem, must be the EU. Germany is still dependent on exports to China for its prosperity, and the Belt and Road Initiative is increasing China-EU trade at a cracking pace.If the US doesn’t trust the EU regarding China, it would have a major interest in breaking any link between Australia and France, as the latter remains a Pacific power. It would have been ridiculous to mobilise NATO in the Indo-Pacific with the EU about to announce its own common defence plan. The US doesn’t want equals in its new alliance, but subordinates who look like equals. Australia has played that role for decades, knows it by heart. But the UK? Well, AUKUS from its end forms part of a new post-Brexit “global Britain” push. What could be more global than policing your old imperial waters? Does it actively want to do that? Maybe. Maybe not. But what it needs from the US is a free trade agreement.Biden had said that the UK was at the back of the queue, especially if Brexit wrecked the “Good Friday agree
Source: Deciphering AUKUS: it’s not really about the submarines
Australia suffers more than one virus. Racism was introduced and has been here with the coming of the Europeans 200 years ago. Covid is just recent. The LNP and it’s ideology might not be as old but it certainly had it’s roots here first along side Racism and has taken root generationally. It has spread and has taken us to war in other places. AUKUS is yet just another of it’s symptoms.
Newly declassified documents reveal that Australia helped the US overthrow Chile’s democratically elected socialist government and install the brutal Augusto Pinochet regime. Chilean exiles in Australia are demanding an apology.
Source: Australia Played a Key Role in Chile’s 1973 Coup. Chilean Exiles Are Demanding an Apology.
We saw how easy it was for right-wing thugs to organize and attack the US Capitol in Washington on 6/1 flags here even had Trump on them. The majority of union members in fact support vaccinations and mandated ones.
It’s just as easy for the organized right-wing in Victoria to create chaos in the name of a Union when that union’s organizers the CFMEU loudly deny the reality that’s being described. They aren’t the organizers of this chaos being witnessed nor are many really “workers” let alone union members. However, the media certainly weren’t looking for truth. The truth might be slower than mainstream media but it will prevail and will come out.
Protesters wore high-vis gear to look like tradies: CFMEU boss.Union secretary John Setka says “professional protesters” from the far-right were behind Monday’s violent demonstration
Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas says half of inspected construction sites failed COVID compliance checks Some of today’s protesters have identified as CFMEU members who do not want to be vaccinated Union secretary John Setka says “professional protesters” from the far-right were behind Monday’s violent demonstration
Source: Protesters march through Melbourne’s CBD in wake of construction industry shutdown – ABC News
My thought for the day Will we ever grow intellectually to the point where we can discern, understand and act on those matters that seek the good within us? ( John Lord )
Australia’s nuclear submarine deal will be of no benefit to the country in terms of environment or foreign policy, writes Dave Sweeney.
Source: Nuclear sub plan sees Australia’s reputation take a dive
Marketing and the big Fail. Doesn’t the word Murdoch spring to mind just look where Harvey Norman’s Advertises.
The government’s response was the program was designed quickly to create the most stimulus and there was no mechanism to recover the funds from those that found out after the event they didn’t meet the criteria. Sounds like the same thing they pilloried the progressive side of politics for about a decade earlier. At the same time, the same conservative government considered chasing individuals who received JobKeeper as well as JobSeeker during the 2020/2021 Financial Year. In the government’s eyes this isn’t a correct and proper use of resources. The story is pretty clear – the progressive political party really couldn’t market themselves out of a wet paper bag. The conservative political party is all about the marketing. Anyone want a black coffee mug?
Source: A tale of two ideologies – » The Australian Independent Media Network
Our current PM showing his wet spot
Acting prime minister Barnaby Joyce has endorsed Christian Porter to return to the ministry in future, just one day after the former industry minister resigned over his legal fees being paid by a trust with money from unknown donors.
olddogthoughts 
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