From the ABC

A senior executive of the wheat exporter has told the inquiry he discussed Iraq's demands for cash with a senior Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) official based in New York, in March 2001.

The department says the evidence is not conclusive but Labor's Kevin Rudd says the scandal gets worse each day.

"If this report is accurate, then the Howard Government has yet another question to answer on top of the questions they're refusing to answer in Parliament during the course of last week," he said.
Furthermore, an Iraqi Grains Board official in Baghdad has reportedly told a financial news service that Iraq will buy its next shipments of wheat from the United States, Canada and Europe.

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Gus-two-bob's worth:
The Aussie farmers should be up in arms against Johnnee and his merry men... Revolution!!!!

Had it been a Labor government who screwed up this food-for-oil bizo like Johnnee's government has done, including compromising future contracts and the wonky reputation of this country, there would already be ten/twenty bloodied bodies on the floor of parliament... But oh no!... because Johnnee is the smartest con-artist spruiking his rotten wares, watch him fly through bat-cave with his eyes closed not hitting anything and watch him madly slither away like a python that's just caught a frozen chook... but get away he will... Johnnee, the master of morphing into whatever knowing nothing... while we are the morons who swallow his porkies...

All the accolades are already flowing in the papers for ten years of great stuff ups...

The economy this! the economy that!... Brilliant!!!... In the meantime under this Prime Meanster, this country has become the most mean spirited ever! Selfish private scrooges, he twisted our minds to be! Public services, especially education, have degenerated into expensive corporations that already burden our democratic future... Some have disintegrated into charitable organisations that give threepence without social justice and a "moralisationing" so thick it has to be cut with a machete. Refugees still live in camps that would make Hitler proud. Medicare has slowly been shafted in favour of a US style tiered medical system with drug manufacturing companies dictating more and more the cost of medicines... Only a few notches to go... Oh yes the con is done with incremental titbits! More bribes anyone? More knowing nothing while pretending to lead?

More wars anyone? Ah! Johnnee, you remind me of that awful dirty cat that killed one of the wild bush rats living in my compost heap... That grubby cat came on to me like you engrossed yourself with your dummy partner Boosh... Lying through the teeth of your intelligence service failures! Yeah.. the cat, holding its dying prey in its locked jaws, the cat wanting its reward, engrossed itself by cuddling up to my legs... Well, I do not like cats because as good as some people say they are, they also kill many birds and many native animals — the terrible collateral damage of cat ownership... like the collateral damage of wars...
Johnnee may be a lying rodent but I think he is more like a smart deceitful feline... out there for a kill for a reward... A feline many times more dangerous that a harmless bush-rat that only reprocess the scrap-food of compost into fertiliser... And by the way I know for sure the "Big Fella" would have been horrified you spent a taxpayer's cent on a memorial for his funeral... but then he was not there to stop you with a killer smile...

Democracy? we've abandoned it for capitalist fascism with full blown deceit...

Ah well, let's dance now! It might become seditious soon...

From the SMH

Clearly warned: the bribe cable sent to ministers

By David Marr
April 28, 2006

SENIOR Federal Government ministers were clearly warned in 2001 that Iraq was demanding kickbacks under the UN oil-for-food program, according to last-minute evidence before the Cole inquiry into AWB.

A cable from Australia's UN mission in March that year reported the concerns of British diplomats, UN officials and the Norwegian head of the UN Sanctions Committee that Iraq was "blackmailing" companies and "demanding illegal commissions".

The cable was sent to the Prime Minister, John Howard, the Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, the Trade Minister, Mark Vaile, and intelligence analysts with the Office of National Assessments. Though it carries more detailed warnings of Iraq's conduct than any of the nearly 30 diplomatic cables already seen by the inquiry, the cable was not shown to investigators until very recently.
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Denial is the privilege of the man looking decidedly the other way... One can hear our Prime Grocer-open-all-hours to his shop assistant: "I don't want to know if these apples are rotten, all I want is to sell them..."
... Pass the mustard to private enterprise so that "we" (the government) can wash our hands of cock ups and make a buck at the same by selling to people what they already own... Hence there are no more responsibilities for the bloke in charge except smile while telling affable porkies, taking our money then blame the shop assistant if something goes wrong.

Right about now, Gus, our Prime Monster is untouchable. He is about to ascend the pulpit, preaching home-grown Aussie values. Wearing the bullet-proof vest of Murdoch, the flak jacket of Fairfax and the man-of-steel underpants supplied by the gutless wonders at the ABC.

He is more than hero, or dead sniper, he is the national saviour of our pension funds.  

Our national story: convicts to free settlers to abject servility. Where is Peter Lalor? 

Howard denies... Kovco cover-up claims

Howard denies... this

Howard denies... that

Howard denies... knowing

Howard denies... where

Howard denies... what

Howard denies... etc...

Our Primal Grocer denies heaps... and knows bugger all of what he should know... Ineptitude of the grand order but as long as the economy is tooted to be good we're in the big hands of the profitable banks... So being inept is not a hanging offense anymore except if you are the garbage collector... or a contract worker... In the same way as the new IR laws are tough on workers, they should apply to the politicians who should have their job reviewed every morning by the electorate. Dismissal should be compulsory for not knowing about the specs of the prime ministerial job