Collaborating with torturers or conducting torture in Australia or abroad could be made a separate criminal offence by the Federal Government. 

In a new hardline approach against torture, the Government will also ratify the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention Against Torture — an extra treaty that allows United Nations or domestic inspectors to visit prisons and detention centres. 

from Crikey ….. 

Time for Wong to come clean on the Coorong 

Now that military officers selected by the Bush Pentagon have reached a split verdict convicting Salim Hamdan, a onetime driver for Osama bin Laden, of supporting terrorism, but innocent of terrorist conspiracy, do you feel safe?

Or are we superpower Americans still at risk until we capture bin Laden’s dentist, barber, and the person who installed the carpet in his living room?  

CNN's Barbara Starr, in a Thursday report, examined what the US military is calling 'segregation boxes': small, wooden crates being used in Iraq to hold prisoners, which the US military insists are 'humane.'  

Measuring 3 feet square and about 6 feet tall, the military claims that prisoners isolated in the chambers are checked frequently, but the practice is raising concern among human rights advocates. 

Opposition treasury spokesman Malcolm Turnbull has accused the Government of making tough economic times tougher and undermining confidence in the Australian economy.

Yesterday the Reserve Bank kept interest rates steady at 7.25 per cent after figures pointed towards a sharp slowdown of the economy. Economists have now predicted there could be an interest rate cut as early as next month. 

In the immediate aftermath of the 2001 anthrax attacks, White House officials repeatedly pressed FBI Director Robert Mueller to prove it was a second-wave assault by Al Qaeda, but investigators ruled that out, the Daily News has learned. 

There is now a growing discomfort about the role of speculative finance in the US, the capital of global finance. In an open letter addressed to all airline customers, leaders of airlines in the US have recently requested the passengers to join them in pushing legislation to add more transparency and disclosure in the oil markets. 

Also, global warming is a myth. That’s right. Cardinal George Pell said so.  

from Crikey ….. 

AFP keeps Haneef cards close to its chest 

Greg Barns writes: 

Our government really does not support democracy, except rhetorically.

When the Palestinians had a free and fair election and chose Hamas members to man their government, we refused to recognize the new government.

Apparently, the Bush administration's definition of a free election is one that provides the results the president wants.  

NSW police now have special emergency powers to bug or track people for up to four days without a warrant. 

Under the biggest shake-up to the state's surveillance laws, police will have up to four days to monitor people before needing to apply retrospectively for an emergency warrant from a Supreme Court judge. 

The Federal Government is continuing to attack the record of former treasurer Peter Costello, as speculation increases about him taking over the Liberal leadership. 

The US intelligence agencies provide a biannual report to Congress on the weapons of mass destruction developed by foreign states, which covers Iran, North Korea, India, Pakistan and others, but not Israel.  

In the first hours of dawn, Nader Elayan was woken by a call from a neighbour warning him to hurry to the house he had almost finished building. By the time he arrived, it was too late: a bulldozer was tearing down the walls. More than 100 Israeli security guards held back local residents. 

I'm on the road right now, will be back in a few days, with only sporadic contact with the virtual world of the blogosphere - and the hallucinated world of 'higher politics.'