Friday 29th of March 2024

Here We Go Again

Saw a social media post which posed something along the lines that those who are uninformed shouldn't be discussing what's happened today as such discussions were promoting the spread of racism. It's a well-meant train of thought, but I have a couple of disagreements in that

(a) The racism was always there- such events make it feel socially permissable for those folks to spout it, and I for one am happy to see them "out themselves"

(b) It's healthy for people to talk about what's happening, and to question possible inconsistencies. Right-wingers love to try to silence that sort of thinking, Did so after Sept 11 2001, the imprisonment of Hicks, the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. What when wrong back then is finally just starting to emerge, and I for one am proud that I questioned and objected at those times.

I do not like the way that during today the actions of a lone gunman are being used to reinforce the meme of Terrorism Globalisation into Australia. The Libs of all people should know from their propaganda cock-up with Dr Mahomed Haneef what a strain to international relationships false vilification can bring.

 

I agree .....

Hi Richard.

I agree entirely.

My letter to the Canberra Times today is below ....

Well, Man Haron Monis might have been a lot of things, many of them not very nice, but he certainly wasn’t the only person to take issue with Prime Minister Tony Abbot’s use of the ‘Team Australia’ metaphor to promote anti-Muslim sentiment amongst Australians (‘Sydney siege gunman had long history of hatred of politicians’, Canberra Times, December 16th).

And in spite of the hysterical headline, I couldn’t find anything in the Canberra Times’ report to indicate that Monis ‘hated politicians’, even though that is an emotion commonly found in Australian politics.

Cheers.

the meaning of guilty .....

the meaning of guilty .....