With climate change and global gas emissions taking the main stage as a central policy issue for governments around the world, it was curious that one of Australia's largest general insurers Suncorp was silent on the ramifications of climate-related weather events on the day it was forced to downgrade its profit forecast.

To be fair the issues that have played into a weakening outlook for Suncorp are not all about weather-related events, the falling Australian dollar has increased the insurer's costs, while bigger than anticipated large losses in commercial insurance and increased claims frequency in compulsory third party insurance have also been in the mix.

But the $75 million increase in the natural hazards allowance that has come about from last year's run of weather events – in particular a number of devastating hail storms – are taking their toll as they work through the insurer's books.

Australia's plankton population, a vital key in the human food chain, has moved 300 kilometres south in 30 years, new research has found.

Scientists attributed the shift to the warming oceans caused by climate change.

In some regions there was also a shift from cold-water to warm-water plankton species.

• Plankton produces about half the oxygen humans breathe
• Determines numbers of fish, marine mammals and turtles in a region
• Populations have moved 300km south in 30 years
• Scientists attribute move to climate change

The Plankton 2015 report from the CSIRO is based on data from the Integrated Marine Observing System (IMOS), which looks at why plankton is important to ocean health.

The report's lead author, Dr Anthony Richardson, said how much plankton there is, and where it is, determines how many fish, marine mammals and turtles are in the sea.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-12-15/shift-in-australias-plankton-population-threatens-food-chain/7027588

The Australian released a statement to Crikey saying it stood by the cartoon, which it said ridiculed climate change activists, not Indian people, which their readers would have understood.

“We stand by this cartoon and believe it is a strong example of Bill Leak and The Australian’s exercise of its commitment to freedom of speech. The cartoon does not intend to ridicule Indians but the climate change activists who would send poor people solar panels rather than give them something they need – cheap power, aid and a hand up,” the statement said.

“This has been a long-running theme throughout the Paris conference.

“Those following the debates in and around the Paris conference run in our pages would have realised the target of the cartoon was not Indians. It was quite the opposite. Our readers would have – and, in fact, have – understood this".

read more: http://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/dec/15/the-australian-defends-racist-cartoon-on-freedom-of-speech-grounds

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Fabulously spun... I am humbly mortified that I am dumber than the average readership of The Australian — mostly because I believe we need to do something about global warming, contrarily to the readers of The Australians as instructed by the Murdoch Masters.... All I wrongly saw in this glorious Bill Leak cartoon was Indians trying to do something stupid with solar panels. My apologies for not seeing the stupidity of giving them solar panels for local electricity supplies, when they deserve to have smoking chimneys coal powered steam driven turbines with 100 kilometres of poles and wires feeding the multitude with cheap discounted and stolen electricity— Oops this is denigrating. I did not mean to misrepresent the general honesty of Indians, only that of journalists who reports daily on people steeling from the grid in third world countries. 

Power could not come cheaper and cleaner than through solar panels and wind turbines since they would be given away...

“The world is being sold a lie, yet most people seem to accept the lie, even if they do not believe it,” Ricketts warned. “The UN has successfully brainwashed most of the world’s population such that scientific evidence, rational analysis, enlightened thinking and common sense no longer matter.”

“You might be relieved that the agreement is weak,” he went on. “Don’t be. The words and legal basis no longer matter. Fossil fuels are [being] portrayed by the UN as public enemy number one. We are witnessing a power bid by people who see the democratic process as part of the problem and have worked out ways to bypass it.”

Ricketts is an affable and respected figure on the Brussels lobby scene, and campaigners suggested that stress and industry desperation may have played a part in his outburst.

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/dec/15/coal-lobby-boss-says-industry-will-be-hated-like-slave-traders-after-cop21

Is this what they have in mind in order to burn more coal and make electricity (read at top)? Not even a country like Australian can afford this caper:

India has agreed to buy a high-speed bullet train from Japan, in an attempt to transform its creaking rail system. Mohan Guruswamy wonders whether it makes sense.

Last week Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's cabinet cleared a $14.7bn (£9.6bn), 650km (403 miles) long bullet train system linking the western Indian cities of Mumbai and Ahmedabad, which will cut travel time on the route from eight hours to two.

"This enterprise will launch a revolution in Indian railways and speed up India's journey into the future. It will become an engine of economic transformation in India," Mr Modi said.

But will it?

To be sure the BJP's election manifesto released in April 2014 promised a 5,846km (3632 miles) "high speed train network (bullet train)" linking Delhi, Chennai (Madras), Kolkata (Calcutta) and Mumbai. Interestingly, it didn't include Ahmedabad, the capital of Mr Modi's native state, Gujarat.

Indian Railways is the third largest railway network in the world. It has come a long way since its first passenger train service began on 16th April 1853, when 14 carriages carrying about 400 guests left Bori Bunder in Mumbai.

read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-35099426

... And we give two dollars fifty every six months to help the poor in India — with a great sense of charity...

Despite some legitimate concerns, Woodland became the subject of ridicule as some of the public’s remarks went viral on websites such as Huffington Post, Ars Technica, and Daily Kos aggregated their remarks (one headline read: “North Carolina citizenry defeat pernicious Big Solar plan to suck up the Sun”). Since the meeting, phones haven’t stopped ringing at Woodland’s city hall and, according to Woodland’s mayor, Kenneth Manuel, have turned into a distraction from the government’s daily operations.

read more: http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/dec/21/north-carolina-woodland-solar-farms

Had Gus reposted the nasty articles from some of the sensationalist press, including the Huffingpuffingpost, Gus offers his sincere apologies. A town is entitled to have green grass as well as solar panel... Woodland, you're a star.

• Launched on 11 January 2010 by then PM Manmohan Singh
• Targets ramping up India's solar power capacity to 100 GW by 2022
• Aims to reduce the cost of solar power generation in the country through long-term policy, aggressive research and development (R&D), and domestic production of critical raw materials, components and products
• Aims to make India a global leader in solar energy

But while the US was carefully reeling India into the climate talks it had simultaneously lodged a complaint with the WTO, arguing that India's solar programme created unfair barriers to the import of US-made solar panels.

Bill Leak, the cartoonist, is an idiot...

A political cartoon portraying an Aboriginal man with a beer can and not remembering his son's name is an "attack" on Indigenous Australians, a community leader says.

The cartoon by Bill Leak was published by The Australian newspaper on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children's Day.

Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency chief executive Muriel Bamblett said it depicted Aboriginal people as "not knowing about their children and not having any role in raising their children".

"You feel quite oppressed when these things happen, I think that we everyday have to battle with direct racism and indirect racism," she told 774 ABC Melbourne.

"In the media, I think they have a public responsibility. That's obviously one of the opportunities to get good messaging about Aboriginal people.

"But if you're constantly stereotyping us as second class then it's about profiling us as second-class citizens in our own country."

Ms Bamblett said she would speak with outgoing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Mick Gooda about the cartoon.

"I'm going to ring Mick Gooda later today ... and talk to him about how we can actually take some action to stop this kind of constant attack on Aboriginal people because most Australians would not condone that," she said.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-04/cartoon-an-'attack'-on-aboriginal-people,-indigenous-leader-says/7689248

-------------------

Bill Leak is an idiot working for the idiots at the Murdoch idiotic rabid denialist media. One cannot expect anything intelligent from Bill Leak. No even the heavy blow he suffered to his head a few years ago can be blamed for his indulgence in crap... Do I feel outrage that a fellow cartoonist would produce such shoddy bias work designed to kick people when they're down? No, I feel sadness that someone who I hoped was "intelligent" is going the Nazy way. Bill Leak is an idiot.

So is Warren... In these times when one in 15 adult aboriginal person spend the night in WA prison, we must realise there is something wrong going on. And this did not happen before the white INVASION. Time to think BETTER rather than destroy hope in the rotten manner that Bleak Leek is doing. He is an idiot.

Did I say that Bill Leak was an Idiot?

Read from top...

After widespread condemnation on social media, Leak has hit back, describing his critics as "sanctimonious Tweety Birds having a tantrum".

He has drawn a second version of the cartoon, showing himself being handed by a black policeman to a man wearing a Twitter T-shirt and carrying a club and a noose.

Leak has defended his work and claims he is speaking the truth about violence and abuse in Indigenous communities.

In a statement, The Australian said: "Bill Leak's confronting and insightful cartoons force people to examine the core issues in a way that sometimes reporting and analysis can fail to do."

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-05/bill-leak-defends-controversial-cartoon/7693244

And yes we all subscribe to twitter (I don't) wear glasses (I don't) and wear black leftie beards (I don't)... And I don't carry a noose, nor a club. I am for the non-violent hanging of cartoonists of the right wing (CONservative side). And you can see the image of Bill Leak by Bill leak is accurate. Looks like someone who doesn't understand anything much, with an long lasting army crew cut. Read above and from top.

The Australian has come under fire from advertisers over Bill Leak’s Indigenous cartoon with one major bank cancelling its advertising.

SunCorp Bank said on Twitter it “definitely [does] not support the cartoon in yesterday’s issue”.

“We are now working with our media placement agencies to remove our advertising from this content.”

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/aug/05/bill-leaks-indigenous-cartoon-prompts-suncorp-to-cancel-ads-in-the-australian

Satire has its degrees. In my book, "CONservative satirists" are not satirists. They are sarcastic turd-eaters. They attack the little guy. They figuratively kill the down-trodden and side with the big guys — those with the big guns, tonnes of cash, boots and all — and laugh AT you, not with you. They trod on the flowerbeds of the poor with contempt. They are somewhat sadistic with the sad moral that if you don't like it, go and suck on lemons... I will oblige. This is the low life of Bill Leak who, in his turdy wisdom straight from his own arse, published a really mediocre interview with P J O'Rourke in "The Australian" under the pissy neon-like heading "PJ and me against the lemon suckers". Like Leak, P J O'Rourke is also a CONservative "funny" turd-muncher (though he knew better in his idealistic youth, then he saw where the cash came from) — a liberal gonzo Yankee who for the first time in his life is going to vote Democrat. Hillary is as far right as a rich deceptive Democrat can get without being mistaken for a full-blown neocon, while Trump is the no-where mad man destroying the Republican toy box.

Bill Leak tells us "Humorists have a duty to resist the taboos of political correctness"... he knows people with bookshelves that groan under the weight of turgid tomes about climate alarmism... etc. See, Bill Leak is a climate denialist, anti-femme, pro-nazi humorist. He loves Tony Abbott... He's not sure about lazy Turdball. His cartoon of Turdball is that of the "Emperor with no clothes". We've been there.

Sad waste of space those two nazi joke-farters are... 

The assertion that Bill Leak and his editors make is already widely understood. There’s nothing exceptionally astute or extraordinarily perceptive about it. By now the Australian public is broadly aware that Aboriginal communities are severely impacted by issues that contribute to high incarceration rates, and more specifically the high incarceration rates of Indigenous children, particularly in the Northern Territory.

The problem with Leak’s cartoon is that it stalls, either wittingly or otherwise, well before the important conversation begins. It fails to broach in any meaningful or even clever way, the systematic, root causes of the over-representation of First Nations people in the criminal justice system. With Leak and his supporters, as is the case with successive federal and state governments, it is as though the 339 recommendations of the 1991 royal commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody simply do not exist.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/aug/15/gratuitous-emphasis-on-race-why-bill-leaks-cartoon-fails-to-be-meaningful

Read from top.

The single largest solar park in the world, with a maximum capacity of 1,000 megawatts, is nearing completion in India. The nine-square-mile Kurnal Ultra Mega Solar Park, which has cost 70 billion rupees ($1.09 billion) of both public and private money to construct, contains 4 million solar modules.

The park is located in the Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh state, which in recent years has distinguished itself as the solar power capital of India. It is a joint endeavor of India's Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and the Andhra Pradesh Solar Power Corporation, a private venture company mostly owned by government corporations.

Construction of the park began in December 2016, and it is expected to be fully operational in May. Already, 900 of the park's 1,000 MW capacity has been implemented. Kurnal Ultra has single-handedly made Andhra Pradesh the Indian state with the highest solar power capacity, 1,867 MW. In second place is Rajasthan with 1,812 MW.

read more:

https://sputniknews.com/environment/201704291053127028-india-worlds-largest-solar-park/

See stupid cartoon by Bill leak at top...

Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, 64, is one of India's most experienced diplomats. He has served as ambassador to Washington D.C., Beijing and Prague and as the high commissioner to Singapore. In May, Hindu-nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi brought him in as India's new external affairs minister. In Jaishankar's office, three pictures are on display that can be found in the offices of many civil servants across India: the president on the left, the prime minister on the right, and above them, the most famous Indian of all: freedom fighter Mahatma Gandhi.

DER SPIEGEL: Three months ago, the Indian government withdrew Jammu and Kashmir's autonomy. It also arrested hundreds of people and the region's population remained cut off from the outside world for weeks. Is India still committed to Gandhi's values?

Jaishankar: I think we have a fundamentally different understanding of what the problem in Kashmir is. Over the past 30 years, 40,000 people have lost their lives due to violence and terrorism. If we hadn't done something about it, the next 30 years would have been just as bad. Surely, none of us, including Gandhi, would have wished that on Kashmir.

DER SPIEGEL: How do you plan to improve the situation in Kashmir?

Jaishankar: Kashmir's autonomy ultimately served only a small elite. It prevented many of India's progressive laws from coming into force. Investments did not materialize. There were too few jobs. The lack of progress led to alienation and separatism, which in turn fed terrorism. Also, bear in mind that there are vested interests out there that want to fight us.

DER SPIEGEL: You're referring to Pakistan?

Jaishankar: Pakistan mostly, but also certain people within Kashmir who have assisted Pakistan over the years and who have worked for their own narrow ends.

DER SPIEGEL: Politicians, such as the former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, have been placed under house arrest. Why?

Jaishankar: Our intention is that politicians do not engage in any activities that could serve as a magnet for violence, as it has been the case in the past. A related issue is that social media and the internet have been used to radicalize. We want to prevent the loss of life.

DER SPIEGEL: So why cut landlines? For a long time, people were completely unable to communicate with each other.

Jaishankar: Because that's how terrorists would have communicated as well.

DER SPIEGEL: But how were people supposed to call an ambulance if they needed one?

Jaishankar: I'm asking you: How were terrorists supposed to be stopped?

DER SPIEGEL: The fight against terrorism justifies all means?

Jaishankar: What kind of a question is that? Terrorists have killed apple traders in the past few weeks. Grenades have been thrown at markets. People have died. Why don't you focus on any of that?

DER SPIEGEL: You feel treated unfairly by the Western press?

Jaishankar: There are people with strong preset views. Kashmir's autonomy was based on a temporary provision. But looking at the Western press coverage, very few acknowledge this aspect. There's a reason for that: It's an inconvenient fact!

DER SPIEGEL: Both Pakistan and China control a part of Kashmir as well. Do you feel it is hypocritical of the West to criticize India but not Pakistan or China?

Jaishankar: I think the world sees Pakistan for what it is. The country openly runs a terrorist industry.

DER SPIEGEL: Which Islamabad would deny.

Jaishankar: Really? Prime Minister Imran Khan speaks openly about it. I must give him that. He acknowledges that he has a terrorism problem.

DER SPIEGEL: You haven't mentioned Beijing. Chinese companies are planning large infrastructure projects in Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka. What is India doing to counter China's influence in the region?

Jaishankar: Whatever we do, we're not doing to counter China's influence. Take China away for a moment: We would be still be investing in Nepal, Bangladesh or Sri Lanka the way we do today. South Asia is lacking regional awareness and I fault India for it, because as the largest country, it shoulders the largest responsibility. For the past five years, we have done our best to correct that mistake. The more connected South Asia is, the better it is for us too.

DER SPIEGEL: Still, China is planning to build the new Trans-Himalayan Railway close to the Indian border. Does that not bother you?

Jaishankar: There are already two rail connections between India and Nepal, and in a few years, there will be five. Nepal's border towards India is open, towards China, not so much. Many Nepalese are coming to India looking for work. How does one compare those things?

DER SPIEGEL: Many in the West see India as a counterweight to China's influence in Asia. How does India see itself?

Jaishankar: I find the idea of being someone else's pawn in some "Great Game" terribly condescending. I certainly don't plan to play the counterweight to other people. I'm in it because of my own ambitions.

DER SPIEGEL: Which are?

Jaishankar: In the next five years, we will likely become the most populous country in the world and, within a decade, the third largest economy. We have a large share of the global human talent, and if I look at the role digitization will play in the future, then I feel this is going to be a world where India can contribute more. It's not just a desire for a higher profile. We know that with more weight comes more responsibility.

DER SPIEGEL: What does that mean?

Jaishankar: Let me give you two examples. First, we have a close and emotional relationship with the countries of Africa and other southern nations. These relations are difficult to understand for people who haven't been through the colonial experience. For example, we run a significant development program in Africa that involves more than $10 billion. Second, a tsunami in the Indian Ocean caused severe destruction 15 years ago. The West responded. But today, it's a different world. Today, we take charge. Whether it's the severe earthquake in Nepal or the civil war in Yemen, the Indian Army went there each time.

DER SPIEGEL: Are you a player in the fight against climate change as well? India has grown to become the world's third largest producer of greenhouse gases.

Jaishankar: We have one of the most ambitious programs for solar energy and we help other developing countries to achieve their goals. In fact, according to the research consortium Climate Action Tracker, there are just five countries whose energy policies can be reconciled with the 2-degree goal outlined in the Paris Agreement: Bhutan, Costa Rica, Ethiopia, the Philippines - and India. We are doing better than Europe.

DER SPIEGEL: Still, researchers also point to the fact that India's emissions rose by 4.8 percent last year. When will India stop building new coal-fired power plants?

Jaishankar: You are putting it in a very absolute way. My answer depends on many factors, such as how quickly India can scale up alternatives such as solar, hydro or nuclear power. It is clear that coal is not our preferred choice. It's just that it's easy for someone from Germany to ask that question because your country has so many alternatives. We don't.

DER SPIEGEL: You'd like us to be more realistic?

Jaishankar: Or more generous. Or more true to your own commitments.

DER SPIEGEL: In Europe, U.S. President Donald Trump stands for a new era of nationalism and protectionism. India, too, has become more nationalistic.

Jaishankar: True, but not all nationalism is the same. Nationalism in Europe is fed by the fear that old privileges may not be viable in the future. Our nationalism is positive and dates back to the independence movement. We are also not turning away from the world. We are embracing it.

DER SPIEGEL: Does India share Europe's concerns that Trump may do permanent damage to international institutions?

Jaishankar: Let me explain the difference between Germany and India: You are in an alliance with the U.S. We are not. We are used to handling different American administrations who in the past haven't been altogether friendly towards us. We approach America as we approach many issues in international politics: with a high degree of realism. At the end of the day, President Trump is President Trump. We Indians are pragmatic people.

Read more:

https://www.spiegel.de/international/world/indian-external-affairs-minis...

Read from top.

In the world of cartooning — philosophy and empathy can be more important than the skills of drawing. Satire needs more than a pretty picture to stir a revolution. So let me welcome a new Leak to the family of Australian cartoonists... Having been on the job since 1951 in Europe, worked in that dreadful industry — advertising — for 55 years and having lazily supplied more than 7,000 cartoons to this little site (YD) since 2015, I am not as old as Bruce Petty, 91 this year, who by all means has been the current doyen of the satirists in Australia. Nor am I as sharp as a Cathy Wilcox whose often brilliant cartoons are more cutting than my breadknife. I cannot be whimsical like a Leunig. And my admiration for Bill Leak (and see above) was mixed as to before and after joining the Murdoch media.

Bill's son, Johannes, has recently joined Murdoch's The Australian. So Johannes welcome. I could be late in doing so, but I do not read the Murdoch papers (though I have bagged some of the writers there) apart from the New York Post because it's clever in its crassness, so I may have missed your arrival at The Oz last year. So, Johannes, don't let the editors stop you from stirring a revolution against the establishment. Be like Voltaire... and bite the hand that feeds you. 

From Steve Waterson, the Australian, NOVEMBER 8, 2019:

Since it was founded in 1964, The Australian has had fewer editorial cartoonists than the country has had prime ministers. This is not to suggest the roles are of equal importance: every cartoonist knows that politicians exist only for their amusement.

The cartooning tradition, if not exactly noble, is long. While the exquisitely detailed engravings of William Hogarth are not strictly speaking cartoons, this “moralising art”, with its savage depictions of societal decay, captivated 18th-century England.

And in an age of high illiteracy, a combination of grotesque caricature, hinting at a subject’s personal failings, and allusive setting was an efficient method of getting a political point across to the masses. James Gillray, the father of political cartooning, boldly drew King George III as an incompetent idiot; George Cruikshank, who followed him, created brilliant and brutal satirical images of the political parties of the 19th century.

There is no real preparation for such an exclusive job, but if cartooning can be said to be in anyone’s blood, it courses through Johannes’s veins.

“I suppose lots of bakers have sons who are bakers,” he says with a grin, but immediately acknow­ledges the lifelong masterclass he absorbed at his father’s feet.

“I remember, growing up, everywhere you looked there were cartoons and caricatures and illustrations on the walls. It felt like a very natural career path to take. It was just what Dad did, and I ­realised early on that I loved to do it too.”

Johannes followed his father in attending Sydney’s prestigious ­Julian Ashton Art School, followed by a period working in commercial art. “That was when I started doing my first cartoons, mostly for surfing magazines. I would put gags together and relate them to the stories of the day and sell them to Tracks.”

So a career in advertising, a cheeky sideline in cartooning, a fair bit of surfing, then the shocking day in March 2017 when his father died, aged only 61. Johannes still struggles with the idea that Bill’s death opened doors for him at the newspaper.

“It’s very weird,” he says. “That’s a certain thing to process, that opportunities have come to me through such a devastating loss. Because if Dad was still around that opportunity would never have presented itself, to me or anybody else.”

Father and son were very close — so much so that Johannes often helped with the backgrounds for Bill’s cartoons — and there are echoes of Bill’s style in Johannes’s work. He knows he will face the inevitable comparisons, “and that’s a perfectly legitimate thing for readers to do”, he says.

But critics keen to see if the son measures up will have to get in line behind the cartoonist.

“Dad’s held on such a pedestal as far as I’m concerned,” says Johannes, “that nobody’s going to be comparing my work to his as closely as I will be.

“Dad was always in my ear, just full of encouragement. If there were ever criticisms they were constructive and supportive, so I’m going to be doing my own work,” he says.

“It’s not Dad’s work. It will never be, and I don’t want to become just an imitator. I don’t want to be seen to be trying desperately to mimic Dad’s style or mimic his approach. I think that’s probably a fast track to defeat.”

Some things, however, all editorial cartoonists have in common. “You really do need to be on top of the news,” Johannes says. That means the radio and TV permanently tuned to the news channels, and reading the papers before the working day begins. “Then I start bouncing ideas around in my head, and quite often I’ll pick up the phone and start running ideas by people.”

Then the germ of an idea is presented to the editors. “I try to do that before they go into the morning news conference, to find out if it’s a subject worth running with,” he says. “That’s very important. You don’t want to have a great idea if the subject is not a real talking point the next day.”

But when everything clicks, a good editorial cartoon can dazzle. “It can turn things on their head for the reader,” Johannes says.

“It can bring out the truth of the matter in a way that all the stories you’ve read haven’t been able to. And if you’re getting that reaction from the readers, and they’re also having a laugh, that’s the goal.”

It’s not everyone’s goal, though. There are some cartoonists working today who might have been more comfortable working in the 1850s, preaching to the masses. “These days everybody is so judgmental,” Johannes says.

“They say there’s a right way to think about the news and then there’s the wrong way. You don’t want a cartoon to lecture you; you want it to surprise you, make you look at something in a different light. But it has to be funny too. That’s something never to lose sight of, because there’s an insidious, incremental removal of ­humour from everyday conversation. But your job as a cartoonist is to be funny.

“And it can be scandalous; it can be controversial; in fact it should be. And that bit’s getting easier. As Ricky Gervais said the other day, PC culture is making it easier to cash in on the people who get their knickers in a twist over jokes.”

That remark may sound flippant, but Johannes has first-hand experience of where severe humour deficiency can lead. “Having lived through Dad’s death threats from terrorists and the witch-hunt on behalf of the Australian Human Rights Commission, I’ve certainly seen the sort of trouble you can get into,” he says.

“There’s something really interesting happening now, where it’s always cartoonists who are finding themselves the targets of these witch-hunts and embroiled in these scandals. Why cartoonists? It must be because it’s always been a job where you walk that line and take it a little over the edge.

“Now everybody’s looking and asking: is that OK, is it offensive? But if you’re serious about cartooning you need to stay right on that line, push it from time to time, and be ready.

“Be ready for the Twitter backlash,” he says, then adds, no doubt remembering his father, “and for whatever else might happen.”

Message from the editor in chief at the Australian:

Readers may be aware The Australian’s cartoon has today caused some controversy. I want to explain to you its context in this statement.

(See The Australian Website)

-----------------

The Australian newspaper is refusing to take down a cartoon published earlier today that is overtly and obscenely discriminatory.

The caricature by Johannes Leak has raised eyebrows for its clearly racist and misogynistic tone.

The cartoon follows Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden’s recent speech about Senator Kamala Harris in which he highlighted the inspiration her candidacy for vice president brings to children of black and brown heritage. The Australian depicted Mr Biden calling Ms Harris a “little brown girl”.

The racist cartoon has been condemned by many members of parliament, journalists and writers alike. 

Ketan Joshi, a science writer and University of Sydney alumni slammed the mainstream daily newspaper in a tweet.

Read more:

https://www.indianlink.com.au/little-brown-girl-the-australians-racist-cartoon/

The full toon:

Hum...

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US President Donald Trump has fanned the flames of a false conspiracy about Kamala Harris’ eligibility to be US Vice-President, fuelling an online misinformation campaign that parallels the one he used to power his rise into politics.

Asked about the matter at the White House, Mr Trump told reporters he had “heard” rumours that Ms Harris, a black woman and US-born citizen whose parents were immigrants, does not meet the requirements to serve in the White House.

The President said he considered the rumours about Ms Harris, who was tapped this week by Joe Biden to serve as his running mate on the Democratic ticket, to be “very serious”.

The conspiracy is demonstrably incorrect. Ms Harris, whose mother was born in India and father was born in Jamaica, was born in Oakland, California, and is eligible to be President and Vice-President under the constitutional requirements.

Read more:

https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/world/us-news/2020/08/14/donald-trump-kamala-harris-birther-conspiracy/

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As a cartoonist, one needs to ask many questions before committing something to the public (read from top). There are many aspects to cover and some research has to be done. I personally would not have done this cartoon, though I understand where it's coming from. If one reads some articles one can see decent news outlet being on the same page as Johannes Leak. For example:

Joe Biden formally introduced Sen. Kamala Harris as his running mate on Wednesday, telling a socially distanced audience in a Wilmington, Del., gymnasium: "I have no doubt that I picked the right person to join me as the next vice president of the United States of America."

Why it matters: Harris is a historic pick for vice president, becoming the first Black woman and first South Asian woman to be named to a major-party U.S. presidential ticket. "Kamala knows how to govern," Biden said. "She knows how to make the hard calls. She is ready to do this job on day one."

What he's saying:

"As a child of immigrants, she knows personally how immigrant families enrich our country, as well as the challenges of what it means to grow up Black and Indian-American in the United States of America. Her story is America's story — different from mine in many particulars, but not so different in the essentials."

"This morning, all across the nation, little girls woke up — especially little Black and brown girls, who so often feel overlooked and undervalued in their communities. But today — today, just maybe, they are seeing themselves for the first time in a new way, as the stuff of presidents and vice presidents."

Read more:

https://www.axios.com/joe-biden-kamala-harris-introduced-2906d455-9b6f-47ce-8319-9accdccd20c6.html

“As many of you will be aware today’s editorial cartoon in The Australian has provoked strong reactions and criticism,” Reid said.

“I wanted to share with you the note (below) that The Australian’s editor-in-chief Christopher Dore has sent to his staff tonight which will help you understand the real point the cartoon was making.”

The emails are an unusual response for Murdoch executives who don’t usually feel the need to explain themselves – but the backlash had been severe.

Read more:

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2020/aug/15/the-australian-editor-in-chief-calls-on-colleagues-to-support-cartoonist-accused-of-racism

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Zachary Norris, executive director of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, an Oakland group that works to shift public resources from prisons to community investments, said police intimidation and mass incarceration drag families and neighborhoods “into a cycle of debt and deprivation.” As a result, he suggested, Harris and any other former prosecutor running for high office must clear a substantial hurdle to gain black support.

“When you have folks who are seen as the face of moving young people and adults into that system, there is going to be a residue of anxiety, a residue of unfairness,” Norris said. “Someone whose main position has been to be a part of that process, I think, is going to be in a very difficult position.”

Read more:

https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2019-10-24/kamala-harris-california-crime

Read from top, especially above.

Will Kamala manage world peace without going to war? Fair ask... Biden is ready for war...