Undergroundnetwork

The next time someone claims that Fox news is a legitimate source of news, refer them to today. Whilst the BBC and CNN went live to the breaking story about the Israeli bulldozer rampage, Fox persisted with a story about cool advertisements during the 1980’s and something about Barack Obama being so right wing that his election could be considered an extension of George Bush’s presidency. Unless of course different countries get different Fox broadcasts, Fox’s credibility and quality have once again been shown to be lacking. Come to think of it, does Fox have news?

Of course the Jeruselum bulldozer rampage was a great tragedy and hopefully the death toll of the incident does not rise any further. At the time of writing three (including driver) are understood to be dead, with dozen injured, seven critically.

However, I did find it disconcerting that both CNN and BBC said the Israeli police are considering the attack to be a an act of “terrorism”. The term is of course so manipulated in its usage rendering it meaningless, but I can only see their decision to use the term as political and irresponcible. Firstly, on what grounds was the attack by definition terrorism? If it is because the perpetrator was an Arab or Palestinian, than this is clearly racist. If the perpetrator was of another race would it be terrorism? Was it the weapon he choose to use? Considering the Israelis devastating use of bulldozers against the Palestinian people, it is hypocritical for the Israelis to deem this attack as terrorism, regardless of the perpetrators actions, which I of course do not condone. Even foreign peace activists have been the victims of the Israeli bulldozer attacks. Was that terrorism? As of yet no one can clearly ascertain as to whether the perpetrators motives were political, or whether he was aligned to particular Palestinian group. Can it really not be ruled out that the attack was non-political (hard to imagine I know and understandably unlikely, yet still plausible)?

To me it appears that the haste in which the Israelis have used this term is politically motivated. As talks resume and cease fires are discussed, diplomacy could be potentially derailed by violence by either side. As it stands, Israeli “security” operations are still taking place in the Gaza strip. It appears each side is eager to resume full on conflict. The will of the civilians are, as always, ignored.

Finally! No more waivers from the Secretary of State to into the United States for Nelsen Mandela. Now the former South African president can go to Disney World or see the Lakers play and not even have to get Condoleezza Rice’s permission to so. Nelsen Mandela is a free man! With the ANC scrapped from the US’s terror list, Nelsen Mandela is no longer a terrorist!

With all the sensational rhetorical from US leaders over the years, one must ask what the reality is. For all the grand speeches and claims of freedom, America has been time and time again to be shown on the side of oppressive regimes. This is not America bashing or “anti-Americanism”, this is the reality. America supported Suharto in Indonesia, Fulgencio Batista in Cuba and Saddam Hussein in Iraq. And they supported apartheid in South Africa. (more…)

An advertisement for the Green Party in today’s Herald (near a great story about an incredible woman!) highlighted the party’s efforts on behalf of workers. With Labour not representing the worker masses as well as they historically having as they fight to claim some of the middle ground, the Greens threaten to possibly claim much of Labour’s core vote. Sue Kedgely’s Flexible Working Arrangements bill, which was passed in Parliament last year, will come into effect tomorrow (Tuesday 1 July) and give workers the right to request hours that fit in with their commitments. This law will be massive for families and for workers who are constrained by their jobs, opening up the possibility that people can work to live, not work to live.

Sue Bradford warned Labour not to take the workers vote for granted in 2006. She pointed out that paid parental leave and four weeks annual leave, both important pieces of legislation for workers, were both forced onto Labour’s agenda by coalition partners. Green’s have long since added social concern to their environmental agenda, but with the Flexible Working Arrangements bill, have they now well and truly taken the labour title of Labour? Is Green the new Red? (more…)

Coming from the country that gave us George W Bush and his colour coded scare chart, news such as this CNN story should no longer come as a surprise. It is an excellent example of politics at its worst. I’ll give you a snippet from the story:

During a contentious House hearing on harsh interrogation techniques for terror suspects Thursday, Rep. Bill Delahunt, D-Massachusetts, was pressing David Addington, the vice president’s chief of staff, about meetings he attended while serving as Cheney’s chief counsel.

Delahunt asked repeatedly whether the topic of waterboarding, a controversial interrogation technique that simulates drowning, ever came up.

Addington replied that he could not discuss that because “al Qaeda may watch C-SPAN.”

“Right,” Delahunt responded. “Well, I’m sure they are watching, and I’m glad they finally have the chance to see you, Mr. Addington.”

“Yeah, I’m sure you’re pleased,” Addington shot back.

“Given your penchant for being unobtrusive,” Delahunt said of Addington’s ability to stay behind the scene.”

Apparently there is some political mileage to be gained here. The Republican’s believe Delahunt wished to make Addington a target for al Qaeda. (more…)

In the Western corner, nestled between the Mediterranean and half a dozen hostile neighbours, with a population of over 7 million, now 60 years young, with a nuclear arsenal believed to number 150 warheads, defender of Zionism…. ISRAEL!!!

In the Eastern corner, wedged between terrorist havens of Iraq and Afghanistan, with a population of over 65 million, with controversial nuclear programme claimed peaceful, defender of Theocracy… The Islamic Republic of IRAN!!!

Let’s get ready to RUMBLE!!!

All right, enough hype. Let us be serious for a moment. Iran versus Israel. Both are religious states, both have substantial military capabilities, and both are guilty of crimes against minorities in their population. Yet both are viewed very differently in the eyes of the Western media and politicians. Let us look at both countries, and how the media depicts them. (more…)

I’ve added political parties’ websites to the side of this blog. This is to make it easier for readers to refer to the political parties’ websites I have just skewered, to get their side of the debate. As much as I despise many of the ideas some of these parties have (in fact I find only a handful at all savoury), I believe it is important in a democracy to have their voice heard. And it is important for us all to listen, no matter how pathetic their reasoning is. And it is also important for us to critique their policies, pointing out weaknesses and strengths. It is also important we debate the issues with those we disagree with, keeping discussion as civil as possible. That is the beauty of the blogosphere I suppose.

I encourage everyone to have a look at all the websites. It is fascinating to look at the ideas of parties that you did not know existed. Obviously someone believes in the ideas, otherwise there would be no party! Some parties haven’t yet got websites, so will be put up when available. I could not find ones for New World Order Party, which sounds interesting, and Taito Field’s Pacific Party.

Is it worth noting that when I had thought I had finished putting down all the parties, even some of the most obscure, I realised I had forgotten United Future! Is Peter Dunne’s Party doomed to be forgotten come election time? Time will tell.

Here’s a list of all the parties currently registered for the 2008 election. (more…)

Well-publicised recent murders have again re-ignited the public calls for greater punishment for perpetrators of violent offences. The usual cries come out, life without parole, harsher prison conditions and zero tolerance for offenders. The Sensible Sentencing Trust are, like usual, at the forefront of these calls, as are Bob McCoskrie’s Family First lobby group. Typically, such calls are emotive, usually from someone who has been directly affected by violent crime. Although we should not dismiss their opinions because often they are emotive and vengeful, their opinions usually do not focus on the root of the problem. All too often people’s ideas are not solutions to the problem at all, merely ambulances at the bottom of the hill. This is a complex problem, not one that is going to be solved by a simple answer. There are many factors and solutions to these factors are being all too often dismissed as “PC bullshit” as people lean towards discredited hardnosed solutions. The reactionaries always get their head above the crowd and scream the loudest, calling for blood. (more…)

War, Propaganda and the Media

How can the media be used to peddle propaganda in a liberal democracy?

The notorious Nazi Party Minister of Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels, once said, “it is the absolute right of the State to supervise the formation of public opinion” (1948). He also likened the press to a “great keyboard on which the government can play.” Goebbels was a master of manipulation and is largely credited with selling the Nazi cause to the German populace.

In her 2007 book A Russian Diary, Anna Politkovskaya wrote of the overwhelming influence President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin had over all aspects of Russian society, from business, to individual lives, to the media. A journalist writing for the Russian newspaper Novaya gazeta, Politkovskaya described the pro-Putin stance of the media: “As election day approaches, the television news bulletins increasingly resemble heartening dispatches on Putin’s achievements”(2007, p. 67). She recalls occasions of press censorship, threats from political leaders and an occasion where journalists were even detained for filming an anti-Putin demonstration. Those in the media that do not apply self-censorship and question the Kremlin risk losing their jobs. “Where freedom is, there is low pay, irregularly paid. The big time is the mass media that play ball with the Kremlin”(2007 p.154). Politkovskaya made a name for herself as a journalist who would tell the truth no matter what, reporting on the situation in Chechnya and the Caucasus, and the truth behind scandals such as the Dubrovka theatre siege in 2002 and the Beslan school siege in 2005 (2007, p. 44-45). Refusing to be silenced ultimately took her life; Politkovskaya was murdered outside her Moscow apartment in October 2006.

However, in liberal democracies the overt propaganda of the sort Goebbels used to great effect in Germany, or the political pressure placed on journalists like Politkovskaya in Russia would not be possible. But it would naïve to believe democratic governments are unable to use the media to sell their policies to the voting masses. And as we have seen in recent years with the “War on Terror” and the Iraq War, the media can be as complicit as their governments in deceiving the public. (more…)

The Democratic Primaries are over! No more ridiculous media coverage of every minute detail of two Democratic senators lives. No more caucuses, no more front pages, no more political experts. No more trying to explain Americas warped political system to people, when I don’t even fully understand it. No more Rocky analogies, no more Martin Luther King comparisons.

Well it’s not really over, because now we get the John McCain v Barack Obama show until November. It just never stops, does it?

Oh well. Not long left. Bush is almost gone. Now we just have to wait and see which charismatic black senator from Illinois will be the next President of the United States of America! (Paraphrased from Jon Stewart!)

Congratulations are in order for Mr Obama and commiserations for Hillary Clinton. Let us all collectively forget the past six or so months.

Garth George’s columns often get me fired up, and not in a good way. To put it simply, almost everything he has to say runs completely contrary to my own view. Often I find myself wondering why the Herald would even print his rants, as I find them either misinformed or needlessly offensive. It seems to me many commentators revel in causing offense, as if to them it is confirmation they are telling the cold hard truth. Garth and I likely sit on the poles of most issues, from religion to politics. If he were to read my blog I assume he may feel similar to the way I feel about his column, although he may note I do try not to cause offense.

So imagine my initial shock when I read a column that I actually agreed with. (more…)