Showing posts with label autocratic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label autocratic. Show all posts

Sunday, October 30, 2005

Preventive Detention: A Shield or A Sword?

There is a consensus among educated Australians that Preventive Detention is inimical to the democratic evolution of our country. Many are those who argue that given the standards of our time preventive detention is an unnecessary evil.

This group is made up mostly of community groups, academics and lawyers who sincerely subscribe to the belief that to resort to such a draconian law to safeguard not only their person but also, the country at large is itself dangerous. They argue passionately that the exigencies do not warrant such offensive and repressive Act. To this school of thought the Act would be a sword in the hand of a budding autocrat who wielded it ruthlessly and indiscriminately to stifle all genuine opposition.

In Australia there is freedom of expression and freedom of association. There are many media outlets and the government and the media giants have the morning, mid-day and evening news, as the governments mouth piece.

The media giants though not officially part of the government machinery; unabashedly and blatantly champion the cause of the government funded by government advertising. Given these attributes of democracy, one would not need to ask why the media giants never asked questions in relation to the illegality of the war on sovereign nations like Afghanistan and Iraq.

Or who was responsible, and or what that inference would lead to down the track in terms of our national security. Especially if they could not win that illegal and degrading war or it could take years. Now those questions have been left unanswered. So to keep the terrible lie alive they need to restrict our liberty to combat their fear of reprisal which undermines the communities common laws, human rights, civil rights, democratic rights and their liberties at home or abroad.

The proposition that certitude leads to violence has its easy application in such dynamic environment and in a landscape swarming with political parties and some who are intent on justifying illegal and degrading war whilst living in a multicultural freer society. The easy application is ideologies, dogmatists and bullies--people who think that their rightness justified them in imposing on anyone who does not happen to subscribe to their particular ideology, dogma or notion of turf. Because their conviction of rightness is powerful enough and any resistance to it will be met sooner by force. When one gets profiled then persecution comes easy. Mamdouh Habib was kidnapped, persecution inexorably followed.

If Preventive Detention or Control Orders are enacted for dissent or suspected people the law will empower the government to detain anybody without trial. The law is renewable and represents indefinite detention and other waves of detention will follow unabated.

Yet there are no bombs being thrown any where in the country. If anything, it was only the 'smoking gun memo' and troops off to wage war that occasionally pervaded the atmosphere in Australia.

The opposition party has been bought and dissolved into extinction or used merely to sustain the notion of a liberal democracy. Well-paid losers!

In conclusion, there has been no bomb thrown thus, we don't need a shield to protect us. As a matter of fact, the government were culprits in the war and the opposition was complicit in not preventing the war and one needs to look there for the real answer in preventing violence in our community down the track.

In my opinion the sole objective of the governments Anti-Terrorism legislation is a diabolic weapon to stifle and strangulate the budding opposition because of the mounting frustration of the opponents to illegal and degrading war which, they declare is an adequate justification for engaging in bomb throwing and on that basis then one can be sure Howard is not a visionary but a nationalistic autocrat and it goes without saying.

Like all autocrats, Howard cannot tolerate any opposition.

By: Just Us 30 October 05

Related:

What's the Difference Between CHINA and AUSTRALIA?
If John Howard's terror law comes into effect, what is the difference between China, and Australia? No rifle executions? I think it is time to approach the Governor General, to dissolve Parliament on the basis that the present Government is attempting to achieve Dictatorial Powers.

Cracks in terror solidarity
In remarks that are at odds with the Premier, Morris Iemma's determined support for the legislation, Mr Debus said yesterday: "I think I share the concern about the legislation with plenty of other people. I don't query that we need to have very tough responses to the threat of terrorism [actually though, the community do query it because the actual threat of terrorism is coming from the Government] and I don't query that the premiers have signed off on a framework last month.

Australian Prime Meanster 'tells' States?
Prime meanster john hoWARd's original pact with the states seems to have fallen into disarray because his new anti-liberty laws breach human rights obligations and the commonwealth constitution.

Anti-Terrorism Bill details draconian police-state plans
First and foremost, the legislation provides for extensive detention without charge or trial, on the flimsiest of pretexts. With no notice or legal hearing, any person can be thrown into secret "preventative detention" or placed, by a "control order," in isolation under house arrest.

Shoot to kill on the belief of reasonable grounds is a problem
Provisions in relation to use of force in s105.23 raise serious concerns. In particular subsection 105.23(2) specifically contemplates the use of lethal force against a detainee where an AFP member believes on reasonable grounds that this is necessary to protect life or to prevent serious injury to another person.

ASIO laws: Don't be silenced
The secrecy surrounding the proposed national anti-``terror'' legislation stands in stark contrast to previous ASIO and "anti-terror'' laws that have been subject to scrutiny by parliamentary committees and public hearings.

Brisbane Peace Convergence calls on Beattie to reject terror legislation changes The Brisbane Peace Convergence (BPC) are calling on Premier Peter Beattie to reject the Federal governments proposed amendments to anti-terror laws. The BPC consider the changes to pose a threat to fundamental rights in a democratic society, including life, liberty and democratic action.

How's this for sedition?
Edmund Burke, who declared the tyranny of bad laws, was a deep political thinker and a ferocious polemicist. In 1777, he wrote to the Sheriffs of Bristol that the true danger to freedom was when liberty was nibbled away, for expedience, and by parts.

Sydney Morning Herald Poll flawed
Sydney Morning Herald: "According to the latest Herald Poll, about three-quarters of voters think it is OK to lock up suspected terrorists [scapegoats for the Coalition of the Killings resource wars in the Middle East] without charge, put them under house arrest or shackle them with tracking devices."

SHOOT TO KILL MADNESS AND DRACONIAN LAWS
The Howard Government wants to give police executing preventative detention orders the power to shoot to kill. This is shoot to kill madness.

New anti-terror laws and the Muslim community
On 8 September the Prime Minister introduced a 12-point plan outlining new anti-terror laws [draconian laws to bolster support for John Howard's resource wars in the Middle East] in a press release. Two weeks later he went to the Council of Australian Governments meeting with the proposals. They approved the measures by and large.

Secret agents brief Bracks on 'seditious' protest
Australia: Melbourne: Thursday 20 October, 2005: A phalanx of "secret agents" delivered a written briefing to Premier Steve Bracks at Parliament House today to tip him off to potential "seditious activities" at a planned demonstration for civil liberties on Saturday.

Shoot-to-kill bluff
AUSTRALIA: federal labor leader kim sleazley has predicted the federal dictatorship will fail in its push for a shoot-to-kill policy to be included in its counter-terrorism laws.

Sedition Laws Target Peaceful Civil Disobedience
The new Sedition Laws in the anti-terror bills clearly target people who call for acts of non-violent civil disobedience. Under the laws there is no defence for calling for change to any law by anything other than lawful means. Penalty is up to seven years jail.

Stanhope flags doubts on 'hasty' terrorism bill
ACT Chief Minister Jon Stanhope says he may refuse to sign off on parts of the Federal Government's hasty terrorism bill. Mr Stanhope published a draft of the controversial laws [draconian laws] on his website on Friday and has refused to take it down despite a directive from the Federal Government.

Despoja: Stanhope hero of the hour
Natasha Stott Despoja has described Mr Stanhope as the "hero of the hour". Senator Despoja says there is meant to be a vote on the draft legislation in the week beginning November 7.

Stanhope stands his ground
Stanhope: It is bizarre to think legislation of this significance can be rushed into Parliament without consulting a single Australian.

Anti-terrorism laws inquiry 'too short'
Australia: The Opposition says the inquiry effectively gives senators just one day to examine the bills. Labor's homeland security spokesman, Arch Bevis, says the inquiry will be unable to scrutinise whether the legislation provides a balance between security and civil rights.

Australia: Draconian laws draw rights watchdog's ire
Human Rights Watch has condemned Australia's proposed anti-terrorism laws as a "shocking departure" from its historical championing of the rights of the individual.

Dissent Isn't Taken Lightly Down Under
Historian Michael Foley said during times of war pacifists often get mugged. As a nonviolent activist working to end the war in Iraq and the corporate war profiteering that comes with it, September 2005 has been the most surreal time of my life and I definitely feel like I got mugged by Australian Attorney General Phillip Ruddock and the Australian government.

Australia: Rattling the cage
Recently, the federal government announced a controversial new 'counter-terrorism' package. Civil libertarians were quick to raise the spectre of a police state . Yet Muslim groups argued that the new security regime is already having an impact on the democratic freedoms and everyday safety of their communities.

AUSTRALIA: MUSLIMS SOLD OUT!
Hand picked alleged Australian Muslim leaders are being used to cut their own throats the same as the hand picked Indigenous mob have been used by the John HoWARd Government to screw ATSIC.

Anti-terrorism laws put rights at risk: Fraser
Former prime minister Malcolm Fraser says Australians could be treated unfairly under the Government's anti-terrorism [draconian] laws unless a human rights act is introduced.

Stop the war on civil liberties!
Prime Minister John Howard is using the "war on terror" to promote widespread fear about "terrorists" and "terrorism" in Australia. This is despite the fact that the biggest act of terror being committed today is being carried out by foreign troops, including Australia's, in occupied Iraq.

Spots and Stripes
It is well known that John Howard, infamous lackey and liar, is devoid of anything that could be remotely regarded as masculine or manly; the draconian measures he has implemented to 'secure' Australia against the terrorist bogeyman are astounding.

They know where you live
Twenty-four hours after the country's leaders agreed to draconian counter-terrorism laws this week, the Attorney-General, Philip Ruddock, was playing down media claims that ASIO believed there were 800 would-be suicide bombers living in Australia.

When Terrorism Outlaws Democracy
On September 27, 2005, Australian democracy surrendered to terrorism. On that day, a coalition of willing federal and state leaders agreed to anti-terrorism legislation that will enable police persecution of the Muslim community and threaten dissidents with imprisonment. In a country without a Bill of Rights, the prospect of more draconian Terror Laws delivers ultimate control through fear. Australia, with its history of penal colonies, racism and detention centers, is now set to become a police state.

Evans: moderate threat
Evans doubts reports that 800 potential terrorists are living in Australia.

No! Your Rights Australia
You have the right to not remain silent.

800 people deemed a potential security risk?
As reported in the Australian today, ASIO has apparently identified up to 800 people deemed a potential security risk. Ruddock says the draconian COAG measures "deal with people who pose a risk to the safety and security of the Australian community." Hmmm, like detained and deported US peace activist Scott Parkin perhaps? What is this broad definition of a "Terrorist"?

Democrat Will Oppose Anti-Terrorism Laws
NSW Democrat MLC, Dr Arthur Chesterfield-Evans, has accused the Premier, Mr Morris Iemma, of selling out to John Howard after agreeing to new 'Anti-Terrorism' laws yesterday. Dr Chesterfield-Evans said the proposed laws agreed to by Morris Iemma will not work.

Mein Kampf by John Howard
Months before Bali Au warships were seen invading Iraqi territorial waters in deliberate provocations under American protection. It was obvious that Howard had decided before Bali to join in an illegal and aggressive invasion of Iraq and in fact , when that happened, it was led by Au stormtroopers BEFORE the ultimatum given Baghdad had even run out!

Collection of Terrorists Meet to Take Away Our Rights
Tomorrow (27th of September) the State Premiers and the Federal Government are meeting to conspire to strip Australians of their rights. Welcome to the brave new world of electronic tagging and "preventative" detention.

Tell Your State Premier: Don't Do Ruddock's Dirty Work
Over the past several years, the Howard government has passed a series of dangerous new laws. These laws have undermined our basic legal and democratic rights.

Australian government unveils legal framework for police state
In the lead-up to his September 27 "counter-terrorism summit" with the eight Australian state and territory leaders, Prime Minister John Howard last week unveiled a package of legislation that goes well beyond the already deep inroads made into essential civil liberties under the fraudulent banner of the "war on terrorism..."

Australia: Counter-liberty plans unveiled
AUSTRALIA: VIC: BLACK Hawk helicopters and fighter jets will patrol Melbourne's skies during the Commonwealth Games next March, as part of counter-terror measures outlined today.

John H.o.W.A.R.d line roars at Fascism Week
AUSTRALIA: Parody: (Rooters) - While Attorney General Phillip Duddock helped wrap up a US protester for Prime Meanster, John HoWARd during Australia's Fascism Week after a 5 day detention debut and the removal of Mr Scott Parkin a peace activist who was deported back to Houston, Texas. The h.o.W.A.R.d fascism line, adding a dash of despotism to a week of largely draconian styles.

Parkin charged $11,700 for detention and removal
Los Angeles Friday, 16 September, 2005 : American peace activist Scott Parkin arrived back in the US today, escorted by 2 Australian immigration officials. He is expected to arrive in Houson, Texas on a Continental Airlines flight at around 3pm AEST.

Government out of control on security: Wilkie
Australia: Canberra Thursday, 15 September, 2005 : Former intelligence analyst Andrew Wilkie today staunchly defended US peace activist and teacher, Scott Parkin, saying that the government's national security agenda is out of control.

Australia, USA, Iraq: Scott Parkin
The rapid and widespread response to the detention of US peace and global justice activist, Scott Parkin, has been heartening and effective on many levels. Actions have taken place in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Cairns and outside several Australian Consulates in the United States.

Peace Activist Agrees to be removed but challenges security review
ATTENTION: CHIEFS OF STAFF - IMMIGRATION REPORTERS - LEGAL REPORTERS

Australia's fascist ideal: Proof
Philip Ruddock, Federal Attorney General to Australian, hopes to eclipse the neo-cons of the US in the race toward the fascist ideal of social uniformity and control (oppression).

Anti-War Extremists Loyal to Scott
What can I say to someone like Scott Parkin? Sorry mate, to get a PEACE prize in this country you need to be drop dead sexy, go-tees are out - you gotta go. Peace Prize.

US Peace Activist to be Deported
Scott Parkin, a Texas based peace activist was detained by Federal police at approximately midday Saturday. He was en route to give a workshop about the progress and success of the peace movement in the US and companies profiting from the Iraq war.

Howard government threatens academic freedom
As Peter McGregor noted in GLW #639, I recently resigned in protest from a committee of the federal government's National Health and Medical Research Committee (NHMRC) and called for a boycott by academics of government committees generally.

'Different times' call for bill of rights, says QC'
To ensure no future government can erode basic human rights. Lex Lasry, QC, gave last night's key note address at the University of Western Australia's annual Day of Ideas.

Australia: a little dab will do ya .....
Reflections on the phoney, hypocritical "values" debate being promoted by the federal government, as part of its proscriptive program to emasculate our democracy.

Government warned Terror Laws "inherently dangerous, draconian and open to misuse" John North, Law Council of Australia: "In times of fear, it is easy for governments to impose ever (more) draconian laws."

Fishing expedition pays off
A man whose home was targeted by ASIO in fishing raids this year is facing fraud charges along with a co-accused who is linked to firearms offences.

The Terrorism of ASIO Laws
Wanda Fish asks Australian Senators to reject Howard's proposal to strengthen laws that already erode our basic legal rights. This legislation has the potential to turn ASIO agents into terrorists who can kidnap and detain innocent Australians simply because they "might know something".

Terrorgraph not quiet on 'Aussie militant' probe
AFP refuses to comment on investigation into militant video: hoWARd's abc.

Phillip Duddock's 'accent' heard in militant broadcast
Australian/Arab television has broadcast a video showing a masked militant with an apparent Australian accent criticising British Prime Minister tony bliar over Iraq.

HICKS: Not a Happy Birthday!
AUSTRALIA/CUBA/US :David Hicks, the Australian imprisoned at the US Base of Guantanamo Bay, will be 30 years old this coming Monday August 7, 2005.

GetUp! Stand Up! Stand Up For Your Rights!
Because of you, something exciting happened in our democracy last week. From every corner of the country, more than 20,000 emails were sent to the Coalition Senators. Our message was simple: now you have control of the Senate, we will be holding you to account. Thousands of you added personal messages to your representatives about the issues you care about.

Australia: We're Living In A War Zone
Prime Minister john hoWARd and his cronies have now placed us in a war-zone moving defence capabilities to Australia's south-east coast.

All the alleged terrorists are Muslims
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) commissioner mick keelty, a well know propagandist and liar, now claims that 60 Islamic extremists are operating in Australia and they are not news to the police and intelligence agencies.

All the wicked witches in Pakistan?
Pakistani authorities say 800 suspected militants [scapegoates and patsies] have been arrested in raids following the deadly London [false flag operation] bombings, as Islamic groups protest a move to expel 1,400 foreign students.

It's just not cricket: Khan
The perception in the West remained that somehow Islam was connected to militarism and terrorism, that all Muslims believe that all suicide bombers go straight to heaven. No one mentioned that before [false flag operations of] 9/11 70 per cent of suicide bombings in the world were committed by the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka, who were Hindus.

Lawyer dismisses ASIO fishing raids as PR stunt
Fascist federal Police (AFP) and ASIO officers conducted more raids in Melbourne and Sydney yesterday but the publicity surrounding the raids has been dismissed as a public relations exercise by the Melbourne lawyer for an accused terrorist.

Howard off to US, UK - part 5
PART-5- PRIME minister john hoWARd will meet US president george w buSHIT, British prime minister tony blair and queen 'imperialism' herself during a 10-day visit to the United States and the UK next month.

hoWARd, ruddock, ellison, keelty and news ltd plotted chaos
AUSTRALIA/CUBA: Government and corporate propaganda agencies 'believe' they have foiled an attack on the Melbourne Stock Exchange by a radical Islamic network linked to a covert group, which has carried out surveillance on key Sydney sites.

Houses raided over 'possible' political attack plans?
ASIO have raided a number of properties in Melbourne on a 'fishing expedition' in relation to a 'possible' political scare campaign by the hoWARd government, playing on the fears of all Australians... again!

Is this our most dangerous Newspaper?
The Daily Terrorist should be managed with manacles and flown into Siberia via a jumbo jet tomorrow amid fears government fascists may attempt to use them again on someone else.

HOSTAGES OF THE WAR ON TERROR
This forum will bring together legal representatives and victims of counter-terror, along with justice campaigners and organisations in order to share strategies for achieving justice for these men and the many other like them.

WAR ON TERROR, WAR ON HUMAN RIGHTS: AMNESTY
The Canterbury-Bankstown Peace Group & the Justice for Hicks & Habib Campaign welcome the statement by Amnesty International Secretary General Irene Khan, condemning the US Administration for condoning torture and the suppression of 'human rights' in their 'war on terror'.

Murdoch's war on truth in war reporting
People who remain to be convinced that cross-media laws are important to maintaining the fabric of our democracy need look no further than today's page one of The Daily Telegraph.

Chomsky signs on for justice
Noam Chomsky has signed the Justice for Jack campaign petition which calls on the Australian Attorney General Philip Ruddock and Director of Public Prosecutions to "drop any charges reliant on records of interviews conducted under duress without the presence of a lawyer."

If he'd been given his passport he'd be a free man
A Sydney man [scapegoat in the Coalition of the Killings resource wars in the Middle East] has been found not guilty of preparing for a terrorist attack on a Commonwealth building [ruling class propaganda.]

Trial by unrelated video clips
Should alleged terrorist suspects [scapegoats for the resource wars in the Middle East] be shown on television side-by side-'terrorist training camp film clips' gathered by the government and media archives to give the wrong impression of accused people facing trial?

Accused Australian Citizen 'denied passport in 2002'?
AN AUSTRALIAN CITIZEN who was refused a passport by DFAT in mid-2002 became frustrated at the government for treating him differently.

Court should be told Gov't using 'Jack'!
A Melbourne court should have been told a man accused of working for Al Qaeda is being used by the fascist Australian Government as a pawn in their leverage to win support for their illegal and degrading activities.

Noble Cause Torture?
AUSTRALIA: The Labor Party has decided not to support a Senate inquiry into new allegations made by Mamdouh Habib that the Australian Government cooperated with Egyptian intelligence authorities who he insists tortured him.

New account adds weight to interrogation claims
Australia/Cuba/Iraq: The fascist Federal Government is under further pressure today because Australians were involved in the interrogation of tortured Iraqi prisoners.

Australian senate accused govt of war crimes
Did you hear the one about David Hicks and Mamdouh Habib having a Barbeque in Afghanistan with Bin Laden? Yeah it was reported on Channel Seven's Sunrise this morning! But they don't know if it was a sheep or a goat, but sources say it was most likely a goat.

DPP to appeal innocent man's bail
The Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) will seek to have an innocent Melbourne man Joseph 'Jack' Thomas, returned to isolation in custody?

Fascist Australian Govt torture exposed
The fascist Federal Government has been exposed for the torture of Australian Mamdouh Habib and the US Government's allegations against him (if they were true) would have been made under duress.

Innocent witch verballed by federal fascists!
Shame on the federal fascists. The wicked old witch is dead! A Melbourne Magistrates Court has heard that a 31-year-old innocent Victorian man was facing terrorism charges?

Lawyer blames police for Habib break-in
John HoWARd, Alexander Downer, Phillip Ruddock, Robert Hill, to name just a few....HOW DO YOU PLEAD?

No reason for Habib to sell story: Beazley?
Federal Agreement Leader Kim Beazley is a well-paid loser. A loser who supposed to be defending our democratic rights by standing up to the HoWARd Government's fascism.

Australia: a presumption of guilt......
KAREN PERCY: Two of Australia's leading barristers have seized on the return of Guantanamo Bay detainee, Mamdouh Habib, to launch an unprecedented attack on the Federal Attorney General, Philip Ruddock.

Aust Community criticises Govt for 'crimes'!
Australia: The Law Council of Australia is warning that the Federal Government must learn from its mistakes over Guantanamo Bay? Now that's a mistake!

Australian Govt Guilty of Crimes: Community
Australia: The community says federal fascists who allowed the torture of its citizenry including Mamdouh Habib may be arrested when the United Nations War Crimes Tribunal address the War Crimes Indictment set out by the community.

What they did to Habib
Mamdouh Habib was the victim of atrocities fit for a concentration camp, including being tied to the ground while a prostitute menstruated on him, his lawyer said yesterday.

Innocent witch verballed by federal fascists!
Shame on the federal fascists. The wicked old witch is dead! A Melbourne Magistrates Court has heard that a 31-year-old innocent Victorian man was facing terrorism charges?

Innocent Victorian man held in custody for Xmas?!
Lawyers have argued the case against Mr Thomas was weak and based on a statement he made in Pakistan without a lawyer present and therefore unlawful.

Innocent Melbourne man makes second bail bid
Rubish, just plain propaganda, fear-mongering, draconian nonsence from the HoWARd goverment's war agenda stink tank.

MPs to review spy agency powers
Australian spy agency ASIO'S controversial powers to detain and question suspected terrorists [scapegoats for HoWARd's resource wars] will be re-examined by a parliamentary committee. Parliament passed the new counter-terrorism powers in July last year.

Goulburn Jail breaches UN standards
NSW: Greens MP Lee Rhiannon has called on Justice Minister John Hatzistergos to bring Goulburn Jail's Maximum Security Wing into line with United Nations standards, after a prison inmate's covert survey of his fellow inmates revealed problems with rehabilitation programs and basic amenities.

Lodhi toilet paper: crap!
He is facing nine charges and is accused of planning a major terrorist attack on Sydney defence sites and the electricity grid using downloads off the internet and having 100 rolls of toilet paper to wipe his arse after low level bombs and farts.

Community seeks more power to interrogate ASIO suspects
Greens Senator Bob Brown does not think increased police powers are necessary. "We have enormous powers for surveillance, apprehension or punishment of people who are engaged in or intending to engage in or thinking about being engaged in terrorist acts in this country," he said.

Greens warn of 'politicised' terror trials
AUSTRALIA/CUBA?: The Australian Greens say they are concerned that new anti-terrorism laws being debated in the Senate allow for the "political black-banning" of defence lawyers at terrorism trials.

Melbourne man charged over ASIO links
ASIO a know Australian terrorist organization is verballing the community again...about allegations that a man, while living overseas, received funds from Al Qaeda and had close association with the members of the terrorist group.

DING DONG! THE WITCH IS DEAD
A court has been told Joseph Thomas is a sleeper? ZZZ! Melbourne Australia: A court has been told that Osama bin Laden asked a Melbourne man to become a "sleeper" in Australia before undertaking activities for the Al Qaeda network? Munchkins: "Ding Dong! The Witch is dead. Which old Witch? The Wicked Witch! Ding Dong! The Wicked Witch is dead."

AFP: The unlikely CRIMINAL
It was born of a bombing and it made its name after a far more devastating act of terrorism. But for most of the 25 years in between, little was known about the Australian Federal Police force or the work it did.

Australian Federal Government complicity in war crimes
Complaint to Australian law officers about Australian Federal Government complicity in war crimes.

There is no justification for torture
In the weeks since the abuses at Abu Ghraib prison were revealed, evidence continues to seep out of similar mistreatment of prisoners in other US military detention centers in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Guantanamo Bay.

Howard rejects spy agency overhaul
Prime Minister John Howard has played down the need for a major overhaul of Australia's spy agencies as a result of an inquiry by former intelligence officer Phillip Flood.

Mamdouh Habib: Taunted and Tortured!
Four Corners [Walls]: Terrorist - or Taunted by the Australian Defence Force who sacked him as a cleaning contractor? Who is Mamdouh Habib? And why was he harassed by the Australian Federal Police? Then tagged and labelled as a spy? Why was he vilified by the community? When he fled to Pakistan how did he end up being tortured in Egypt? And how did he end up at Guantanamo prison camp reserved for the men America calls "the worst of the worst.

He was an undercover agent for the blues
He was my journalist, he was working undercover. The fellow knew all of the moves.... He really had me romping, bare footing stomping. He just kept igniting my fuse....

Up there Khasali: Innocent man new bail laws
The New South Wales Supreme Court has asked innocent man Bilal Khazal to increase to amount of surety offered, before the bail is formally continued.

HEY! BIG BROTHER? LET INNOCENT PEOPLE GO!
Young men terrorised, tortured, and threatened with charges for no crime by Australia mate the lucky country. Lucky if you're not used for Howard's FEDERAL ELECTION and George Dubya's WAR ON LIBERTY! Who shot liberty? IGNORANCE!

Ul-Haque 'the man who wants to become a doctor'
The taskforce is investigating French man Willie Brigitte, who was tipped back home for a visa breach. Allegedly the Un-Australian Newspaper claimed he also attended training camps before his six-month stay in Sydney. Police have not alleged Mr Ul-Haque knew Brigitte. The Un-Australian just mentioned it because they are 'you guessed it' up John Howard's butt and they like the USA want 'you guessed it' our Federal Government. Well Yankee go home!

Brain injury for suspicion 'inhumane'
Faheem Khalid Lodhi refused bail by a Sydney court and remanded until June in hell at the (HARM-U) High Risk Management Unit at Goulburn. While he is in there he will receive a brain injury and is likely to self-harm due to the gross violation of living standards.

Keelty foresees more terrorism
Australian Federal Police (AFP) Commissioner Mick Keelty says terrorist groups will continue to find new ways to threaten countries.

Daily Terror rolled-over for Howard's war games
The DAILY TERROR is suspected of being the source of the news this morning that Willie Brigitte is a terrorist and that Sydney faces a bomb attack.

Lawyer claims Al Qaeda suspect's evidence tainted!
Before returning to Australia last year, Thomas was arrested and held in custody for five months by Pakistani authorities before being released without charge.

Man terrorised by ASIO remanded in 'AA' isolation!
A Victorian man has been remanded in custody after being charged with terrorism offences, including having links to Al Qaeda?

Ruddock foreshadows new terrorism laws
The new laws will allow police to access emails and mobile phone SMS messages, enable wider use of surveillance devices, and protect sensitive national security information during terrorism trials.

Islamic movement denies links to Al Qaeda
The Islamic Youth Movement has denied having any links to Al Qaeda and says it is considering legal action against the Four Corners program. In a statement released early this morning, the group rejects allegations it is helping coordinate any kind of terrorist network inside Australia and says it is being unfairly targeted.

2nd Renaissance -10 The War on Witches [150]
In 1484, Pope Innocent VIII issued a Papal Bull that became the rationale for establishing the Inquisition in Germany. The following excerpt from the Bull sets out the official view of the danger of witches to the community. The Bull and this this passage provided the sole excuse for the torture and cruel executions that were, ultimately, to be the fate of up to fifty percent of the population of some villages.

Tuesday, August 17, 2004

Not happy, John

The slogan borrowed from the new book of the same name by journalist Margo Kingston.

John Valder's alarm whistle effort 'let love be thy weapon' indeed, [war criminal], Prime Minister John Howard is also the subject of a stinging attack in a Sunday feature this week, from the man who first engineered his ascent to the Liberal leadership in the mid-1980s former party president John Valder.

Valder accuses Howard of being 'the principal villain' in damaging the Liberal Party by taking it progressively to the far right over his years in power. He describes him as autocratic to the point of being a tyrant and says he has destroyed the tradition of democracy in the Liberal Party. Graham Davis reports on the man who's launched a 'Not happy, John' campaign in a bid to unseat the PM ...

Transcript

JOHN VALDER (IN STREET): My name is John Valder, I've been around a long time.

GRAHAM DAVIS: He's the grand, old man of the Liberal Party, its former federal president, someone who engineered John Howard's rise to power. Yet now, John Valder has turned on the Prime Minister and is doing all he can to remove him not just from the Lodge, but from the Sydney seat he's held for 30 years.

JOHN VALDER (IN STREET): In the parliamentary party, if Howard lost his seat, I think there'd be a big sigh of relief 'cause they've all been under his thumb.

GRAHAM DAVIS: Valder is conducting a 'Not happy, John' campaign in Howard's electorate of Bennelong - the slogan borrowed from the new book of the same name by journalist Margo Kingston. Today, he's in Eastwood Mall in the most vulnerable part of the Prime Minister's seat, now significantly Asian, and which returns a Labor member to the NSW Parliament in the form of Police Minister John Watkins.

WOMAN: Life is difficult.

GRAHAM DAVIS: The message here from this old-fashioned Tory grandee is to put Howard last on the ballot paper come election day and bring his long reign to a grinding halt.

JOHN VALDER (IN STREET): We're critical of John Howard, so we're on your side, we're on your side. My view has been the Government looks like it'd be returned. The only way of getting rid of Howard is in his own seat.

GRAHAM DAVIS: In Bennelong?

JOHN VALDER: In Bennelong, so we're focusing all our attention and all our resources on Bennelong. Now I know ...

GRAHAM DAVIS: So the ship sails on, but if you get your way, without the captain.

JOHN VALDER: That's exactly it.

GRAHAM DAVIS: Why on earth would a former president of the Liberal Party do something that's so damaging to the Party's prospects at the next election?

JOHN VALDER: For the very simple reason that we think John Howard has done something very damaging to the Liberal Party over the last 10 years. He has just steadily and progressively moved the party further and further to the right and a lot of us feel he has stolen the party from us.

GRAHAM DAVIS: Any way you look at this, because you were federal president of the Liberal Party, you're a turncoat, you're a traitor.

JOHN VALDER: No, no, John Howard is the turncoat and the traitor. He has taken the party away from people.

GRAHAM DAVIS: But this is a movement that's also spreading, for flanking Valder are two other Liberal defectors - Barrister Neil Francey, who's standing against Health Minister Tony Abbott in Manly Warringah, and teacher Ross Slade, who's tackling Attorney-General Philip Ruddock in Berowra.

GRAHAM DAVIS: Are we going to have Not Happy Phil, Not Happy Tony?

JOHN VALDER: I think we are, and not happy Alexander in Adelaide.

GRAHAM DAVIS: It will be, he says, a concerted campaign against the Gang of Four he accuses of having seized control of the Liberal Party and wrenched it to the far right.

GRAHAM DAVIS: So we're talking here about not only the Prime Minister, but his Foreign Minister, his Health Minister and his Attorney-General?

JOHN VALDER: I think they're considered to be the principal villains, ah, Howard, Downer, Ruddock and Tony Abbott. We only went public two weeks ago and we've had a wonderful response.

GRAHAM DAVIS: John Valder has already made an initial campaign outlay of $20,000 from his own considerable fortune as a former broker and chairman of the Sydney Stock Exchange. His call for extra finance and manpower is already producing dividends, like Renata Kaldor, doyenne of Sydney networkers, former deputy chancellor of Sydney University, former director of SOCOG and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

RENATA KALDOR: I would ideally like to have a Liberal government without John Howard as the leader. If you're asking me the lesser of two evils, if I had my choice, I've got to say, after a lot of thought, I would prefer to have a Labor Party in power, at least for three years, and I think probably perhaps be enough. I think the damage perhaps that a Latham government would - would do to the country economically, to my mind, wouldn't be quite as harmful as the damage to the social fabric that's happened under the John Howard leadership.

GRAHAM DAVIS: And the Valder campaign is also drawing on the expertise of the man who devised Labor's celebrated "It's Time" campaign that swept Gough Whitlam to power in 1972.

GRAHAM DAVIS: OK, is it time now?

PETER SHENSTONE, FORMER MARKET RESEARCH DIRECTOR: Well, the interesting thing with the campaign slogan that we're using now, Not Happy John, is that it's another one of those phrases that allows people to project onto it whatever it is they're not happy with.

GRAHAM DAVIS: It's your recommendation that they use this, isn't it?

PETER SHENSTONE: Yes, it is.

GRAHAM DAVIS: But whatever damage John Valder inflicts on the Prime Minister come election day, he's dramatically stepping up his assault today with a series of extraordinary statements on John Howard's leadership from the man who did more than most to get him to the top.

JOHN VALDER: Who would ever have thought that this harmless, supposedly harmless, suburban solicitor would be wielding such power today, over the party, over the public service, over the intelligence organisation, over all those government bodies to which he's appointed his own mates? He is, in my opinion, the most powerful prime minister in, certainly in my day, and my day's fairly long.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
Including Menzies?

VALDER:
Including Menzies. I was a young reporter, believe it or not, during the Menzies' era.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
And Howard is more powerful than him?

JOHN VALDER:
Well, in a more subtle sort of way. He's got this grip everywhere it counts. But, I wouldn't dare use these words on your program, but other people say he's as devious and deceptive as they come.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
Devious, deceptive?

JOHN VALDER:
Yep. And ...

GRAHAM DAVIS:
A tyrant?

JOHN VALDER:
Yes, I mean I hear people using words like "dictator". Now when did the word "dictator" last get used in the Australian political vocabulary?

GRAHAM DAVIS:
Well, do you think John Howard's a dictator?

JOHN VALDER:
I would use the word autocratic - is a gentler word I think.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
Right. So he's an autocrat?

JOHN VALDER:
Who is destroying the democracy within the Liberal Party.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
It wasn't always so, for in the mid-1980s, John Valder - as president of the Liberal Party - was plotting on John Howard's behalf against the then parliamentary leader, Andrew Peacock.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
You were Howard's chief backer, weren't you?

JOHN VALDER:
Yes.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
You presumably thought at the time that John Howard would make a better PM than Andrew Peacock, correct?

JOHN VALDER:
Oh, I did, I did, yeah.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
And you helped him to beat him, didn't you?

JOHN VALDER:
And particularly after Andrew Peacock started attacking me, I certainly thought John Howard would be a better prime minister.

ANDREW PEACOCK:
He is constantly dividing our party and I'm fed up with it and I think most Liberals are. If he's got something to say to me he can call me up or come and see me but generally he hasn't got the guts to do it.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
Well, he certainly attacked you, didn't he, full frontal?

JOHN VALDER:
Well, he did attack me full frontal.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
Well, do you now regret that you backed Howard and not Peacock?

JOHN VALDER:
Yes. There's no question - Andrew Peacock will be astounded to hear me say this, but you've made me think about it for a few seconds - I think the answer is yes, he would not have damaged the party, because Peacock would have been much more moderate. But 20 years late, I might have to say Andrew Peacock, all is forgiven.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
Well, you are saying it today, aren't you?

JOHN VALDER:
Yeah.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
But that, of course, is history and even John Valder concedes John Howard's electoral record speaks for itself.

JOHN VALDER:
John Howard has been a very successful - but he's a very successful politician and that's about where it begins and ends. To call John Howard a statesman or a visionary is outrageous. I mean he's not, but he is as cleverer a politician as there's probably ever been in Australian politics. He, having basked in the "honest John" bit, is now having to live with the tarnished image of being a bit of a grubby prime minister.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
Well, do you think he's a grubby prime minister?

JOHN VALDER:
Well, I hesitate to use that word myself and yet, it's hard to - it's hard to say no. I think anybody who's behaved like that over Tampa, over his position on Iraq, all of these things put together, right through to his treatment of the detainees, the way he falls at the feet of George Bush again and again and again, I do think make a lot of people consider him to be a grubby PM.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
And there's the war in Iraq and John Valder's startling call for the Prime Minister to be tried for war crimes.

JOHN VALDER:
It is outrageous. If killing or maiming and injuring hundreds of thousands of innocent people isn't a crime, I don't know what a crime is.

GRAHAM DAVIS: But today, the former Liberal president goes further, accusing Howard of posing as a monarchist prime minister while behaving like a republican president.

JOHN VALDER:
People greatly resent that he's usurped the role of the Governor- General to the point where most of us don't even know the Governor-General's name. Those ceremonial-type things are meant to be the role of the Governor-General, but this very ambitious prime minister grabs these things for himself, thinking the photo opportunity will enhance his reputation.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
And even life after Howard, when the time comes, won't be what he's led them to believe.

JOHN VALDER:
I hear a lot of people say that, you know, he's really wanting to keep the seat warm for Tony Abbott and that he keeps Peter Costello at arm's length until the time when Peter Costello says, "I'm sick of this, I'm off, I'm going back to the law or to lead a normal life", and I suspect that's what John Howard really wants to happen, is to hold that seat long enough for Peter Costello to say, "Sorry, chaps, I'm off". I think there would be a terrible split in the Liberal Party.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
But to sink the knife in one last time himself, John Valder makes yet another extraordinary claim - that so far to the right has John Howard taken the Liberals that he now fears a violent reprisal from the Party's more ardent supporters among the Young Liberals.

JOHN VALDER:
It could take things as extreme of people like myself being roughed up, which I think is, in modern politics, the dirt units get out ...

GRAHAM DAVIS:
When you say roughed up, you mean physically?

JOHN VALDER:
Physically.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
What, you're worried about being physically attacked?

JOHN VALDER:
I am now, in 2004, fearful and people have said, "Watch out, your tyre car tyres will be slashed", and "You'll get bricks through your window".

GRAHAM DAVIS:
They're quite capable of physically assaulting an old man like you?

JOHN VALDER:
Well, I sincerely hope not, but roughed up means jostled and so on.

GRAHAM DAVIS:
Young Liberals?

JOHN VALDER:
Yeah, this is all part of the Liberal Party's move to the right which is what I suppose fundamentally we're on about.

By Graham Davis posted August 17 04 


Howard's war crimes, Turnbull, at least he's honest

HIGH-profile Liberal candidate Malcolm Turnbull has told voters the Iraq invasion was "an unadulterated error".

Alexanda Downer guilty of war crimes!

The agreement for going to war on Iraq carried with it and incentive and that was free trade with the US. The Howard Government knew about it and went along with it with the US under the guise of Iraq's WMDs. In criminal law this is commonly know as collusion to commit a crime.

John Howard's war crimes blameworthy

General Peter Gration is the spokesman for a group of 43 ex-military leaders, diplomats and departmental heads who have criticised the Government, saying involvement in Iraq has put Australia at greater risk of a terrorist attack.
  
Senate passes FTA deal amid US lies

The legislation for Australia's Free Raid Agreement (FRA) with the United States has passed the Senate, along with Labor's amendments.

Related:

Aide reveals children overboard advice
A former federal ministerial adviser has revealed that he told Prime Minister John Howard before the 2001 federal election that no children had been thrown overboard from a boat carrying asylum seekers in Australian waters.

Children Overboard Affair: Howard 'unfit to lead'
The Federal Opposition says John Howard is not fit to be Prime Minister after new revelations about the children overboard affair. A former federal ministerial adviser says he told Howard in the lead-up to the 2001 election that no children had been thrown overboard from a boat carrying asylum seekers in Australian waters.

'Refugees and Indigenous People in John Howard's Australia' Politician - Senator Aden Ridgeway, the only Indigenous Federal parliamentarian, visits Villawood immigration detention centre and is a vocal critic of current refugee and Indigenous policy. Senator Ridgeway will discuss the proposed abolition of ATSIC as well as current refugee and Indigenous policy changes being fought for by the Australian Democrats. Advocate.

Howard's war crimes, Turnbull, at least he's honest
HIGH-profile Liberal candidate Malcolm Turnbull has told voters the Iraq invasion was "an unadulterated error".

Alexanda Downer guilty of war crimes!
The agreement for going to war on Iraq carried with it and incentive and that was free trade with the US. The Howard Government knew about it and went along with it with the US under the guise of Iraq's WMDs. In criminal law this is commonly know as collusion to commit a crime.

John Howard's war crimes blameworthy
General Peter Gration is the spokesman for a group of 43 ex-military leaders, diplomats and departmental heads who have criticised the Government, saying involvement in Iraq has put Australia at greater risk of a terrorist attack.

Human Rights Watch slams Iraq war attacks
Human Rights Watch has condemned the 'wanton' targeting of civilians by 'armed militants', in Iraq. Then what about the Coalition of the Killing?

Genocide and Torture in Iraq: Justice in the balance?
No one is more vulnerable than a prisoner held beyond the reach of the law. So the grim picture of life as a US detainee, [prisoner], held without charge or trial, set out in the Guardian yesterday by three Britons should come as no surprise.

Auditor Generals damning war report
The Defence Department computer system upgrade has cost Australia tens of millions of dollars in a gigantic bungle, according to the Federal Opposition. The Commonwealth auditor-general has issued a damning report into the project.

Truck drivers working for US face death: resistance
A lot has been written about Insurgents they're all over the place these days especially in Iraq and the term means "Rebel" so all the Rebel's once they've been locked up and "tortured" become "Enemy Combatants" without any "rights". Can someone explain to me what is going on?

Ancient Babylon ruined by foreign troops: Iraqi minister
Iraq: Foreign forces in Iraq have caused severe damage to the site of ancient Babylon, one of the world's most renowned archaeological treasures, and need to leave the area as soon as possible, Iraq's Culture Minister Mofeed al-Jazaeri said.

UK report propaganda
Damaged basic services, cover up of key intelligence and prisoner abuse........They got that right but they got the remedy of the report wrong. Sure as hell they're using this as serious "propaganda".

Iraqis accuse British troops of war crimes.........
British troops committed "war crimes" in post-war Iraq, unlawfully killing civilians and beating and torturing prisoners in their custody, lawyers for the victims have alleged. Soldiers played cruel "games" with prisoners, forcing them to recite lists of English or Dutch footballers and beating them if they failed, Phil Shiner, a British lawyer leading six test cases in the High Court this week, said.

Fifteen "resistance" killed in Iraq shootout
The US military said insurgents opened fire on Iraqi security forces as they provided security for the 1st Infantry Division during a raid in a nearby farming area.

US:Military Draft expected
US: There is pending legislation in the House and Senate (twin bills: S 89 and HR 163) which will time the program's initiation so the draft can begin at early as Spring 2005 -- just after the 2004 presidential election. The administration is quietly trying to get these bills passed now, while the public's attention is on the elections, so our action on this is needed immediately.

US accused of butting into Australian election
The Prime Minister, war criminal, John Howard couldn't win an election this year if he hired the cheerleaders of the US Super Bowl. Howard the coward has accused the Opposition leader of hypocrisy in his response to the, war criminal. Bush administration's criticism of Labor's Iraq policy.

Whatcha Gonna Do, When They Come For You? Bad boy!
Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was a threat and sought to possess weapons of mass destruction, United States President, [war criminal], George W Bush reaffirmed when asked why no such weapons had been discovered in Iraq.

Saddam trial US propaganda
Saddam will be handed over to Iraqi, [puppet], justice on Wednesday, two days after the country allegedly regained sovereignty from Washington, but US militants will still guard him to ensure he does not escape.

US liars warn against 'fortress Australia'
The US and Australia could lose the war on terror, [the Coalition of the Killing's resource war's in the Middle East], if they adopted a fortress mentality and failed to go after the terrorists, [scapegoats and patsies], in their global strongholds, US ambassador to Australia Tom Schieffer warned yesterday.

Fahrenheit 9/11: Cannes ends in controversy
Moore's film - about the, [war criminal], George Bush presidency and its response to, [US reichstag, call to arms, false flag], 9/11 and the subsequent, [resource], wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - pulls no punches in depicting George W. as a duplicitous buffoon.

George Bush never looked into Nick's eyes
My son, Nick, was my teacher and my hero. He was the kindest, gentlest man I know; no, the kindest, gentlest human being I have ever known. He quit the Boy Scouts of America because they wanted to teach him to fire a handgun. Nick, too, poured into me the strength I needed, and still need, to tell the world about him.

IRAQ: CPT Colleagues Describe Massacre in Fallujah
What is portrayed in the US mass media as a grand and heroic firefight is,in reality, the crassest, goriest, and basest single incident of massacre of innocents by US troops in recent memory.

Lose the Occupation and Win the War on Liberty!
Friendly allies do pull militants out of illegal battles, believe it or not, under the heading, lose the battle and win the war. In this case it's lose the Occupation and Win the War on Liberty.

Spain demands 'radical change' in Iraq strategy
Spain's prime minister-elect Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has demanded a "radical change" in the post-war strategy in Iraq otherwise he would withdraw Spanish militants from the country.

'FACTOPHOBIA' HOWARD, BLAIR AND BUSH
Well think about this! Australia's intelligence agencies, [fear mongering, propaganda agencies], look set to receive a substantial funding boost in this year's Federal Budget, with the Prime Minister saying it is an obvious step to take.

US to increase Iraq border security in Iraq
Just plain rubbish, the USA are the terrorists and are dividing and conquering Iraq, by attacking the Shiite Muslims and blaming it on someone else another "A" typical false flag operation.

Halliburton's Ancient Scandals
In the world of corporate scandals, the story breaks, there is a frenzy of reportage, a culprit in the lower levels of upper management is thrown to the SEC and then, slowly, the story dies.

Missile defence program 'will lead to arms race'
A group of Australian doctors opposed to war is warning national security will be compromised by any proposed involvement in the United States' missile defence program 'Son of a bitch'..

Pope calls for sanctions on leaders who violate rights
Leader of the child molesters, Pope John Paul II has called for political leaders who violate human rights to be punished, in a World Day of Peace message released amid worldwide debate over how Saddam Hussein should be brought to justice.

War criminals should be tried: Human Rights
The UN War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague should try George Bush, Tony Blair and John Howard for their part in the coalition of the killing for crimes against humanity.

Who cares wins? Those who inflict or those who endure?
When occupation means war then who cares wins? Not those who can inflict the most, but those who can endure the most, I would have thought.

Coalition of the Killing's alliance against law 'the wrong way'
Australia and Britain [and the Coalition of the Killing], could have agreed that the [resource], wars on Afghanistan, Iraq, and liberty, the proliferation of Security Housing Units, and Detention Centres, can be addressed unilaterally - a trend in the US that is feared all over the world - but must be faced collectively.

A STRUGGLE ON TWO FRONTS: PRISONS & IMPERIALIST WAR
After a war waged by the U.S. military against Vietnam which took the lives of more than 3 million Vietnamese people and more than 58,000 GIs, the U.S. finally withdrew in 1975. It had suffered its first official major military defeat by a united people struggle led by the Vietnamese, along with a mass U.S. anti-war movement.

Police surround protesters outside US Embassy
Thousands of protesters have marched to the Lodge to protest against [war criminal], US President George W Bush's visit. The protesters had rallied outside Parliament House, booing when the president arrived this morning and chanting "go home Bush you war criminal".

David Burchell: Paradox of anti-Americanism
[War criminal] President George W. Bush's trip to our shores today has focused attention on a striking fact - the apparently irresistible rise in hostility among many Australians towards the US.

Pilger said White House knew Saddam was no threat
Australian investigative journalist John Pilger says he has evidence the war against Iraq was based on a lie which could cost George W Bush and Tony Blair their jobs and bring Prime Minister John Howard down with them.

Illegal and degrading war crimes: Society on the New World Order (OWN)! While Australia and the US are very distinctive societies war criminal, Prime Minister John Howard and war criminal, President George Bush share core values.

Thousands march for peace! But does that mean no war?
THOUSANDS of people took to the streets around the country yesterday to march against the war in Iraq and for world peace.

US disturbed over 'biased' reporting in Arab media! But the US lies to the world! How could anyone describe pre-emptive strikes on a sovereign nation, occupation, genocide, torture, and human rights abuse by the Coalition of the Killing in a positive light?

Coalition force 'surprised' by stiff resistance for food aid
About 4,000-5,000 allied forces have launched what they vowed would be an all-out blitz. "We're going straight through that city," a US Marine officer, who asked not to be named, said. "It will be a Hail Mary with guns ablazing."

Explosions rock Baghdad, jets overhead Iraq
BAGHDAD, March 20 [Rooters] A handful of explosions rocked Baghdad at dawn today as jets roared overhead, Iraqi anti-aircraft batteries opened up and air raid sirens sounded.

Bin Laden calls? CIA blind man's bluff!
A [US propaganda, fear-mongering] taped message purportedly from Osama bin Laden has warned Arab nations against supporting a war against Iraq but has branded Saddam Hussein an infidel.

U.S. AMBASSADOR WARNED TO STOP MEDDLING:
The Australian Federal Opposition and Labor Party Leader, Simon Crean, has again warned the U.S. ambassador to stop meddling in Australian politics.

War: Part one The human cost
On the road to Basra, ITV was filming wild dogs as they tore at the corpses of the Iraqi dead. Every few seconds a ravenous beast would rip off a decaying arm and make off with it over the desert in front of us, dead fingers trailing through the sand, the remains of the burned military sleeve flapping in the wind. "Just for the record,'' the cameraman said to me. Of course. Because ITV would never show such footage.

Mandela speaks out against Bush, Blair
Former South African leader Nelson Mandela has lashed out at US President George W Bush's stance on Iraq, saying the US leader has no foresight, and cannot think properly.

All the way with (LPK) Love Peace and Kindness: Dalai Lama
Communication is a two way street. Threats and punishment solve nothing and serve none. In fact it is against the law in most countries to threaten or punish a person.

Pleas for peace ring the globe
Anti-war demonstrators turned out in their hundreds of thousands around the world on Saturday to protest against United States military preparations for an invasion of Iraq.

Not too late for Iraq peace, Blix says
But we all know that's rubbish now. The Coalition of the Killing were not seeking WMD in Iraq, they were there for their resource wars. So who gave the 'UN' and Blix the wrong information back then? War criminals!

George Bush's other poodle
John Howard, Australia's PM, is the mouse that roars for America, whipping his country into war fever and paranoia about terrorism within.