Perhaps the Israel/Palestine debate is the original “avoid at all costs” topic that most sane people take special care not to involved in. Not that I don’t have opinions on the subject, but call me a pessimist but I don’t think there will ever be a peaceful resolution that pleases both sides in our lifetime.

So anyway, a subsection of local Palestinian activists have been pursuing BDS. Despite only being just one letter off BDSM it is much less interesting than it sounds. I can’t remember quite what it stood for but basically it was a basically a highly wanky way of saying “boycott” of Israeli products and services.

Now, first up. Whatever. I don’t fall into the camp of blind Israel defenders that try to pigeonhole ANY criticism of Israel as anti-Semitic. If you want to boycott anything from Israel, go nuts for all I care. It’s your money, shop or don’t shop where-ever the hell you like. But I do wonder about some of their targets.

Yes. For some reason a friggen chocolate shop is the main business targeted. Out of all the Israeli businesses or businesses with links to Israel they pick a chocolate shop because they provide chocolate to the ration packs of IDF soldiers. Now correct me if I’m wrong but I don’t think if Max Brenner stopped providing chocolate to the IDF that a Palestinian state would happen any faster. How about protesting at the Israeli embassy? Or if you want to target businesses with links to Israel, surely there would be other businesses with greater links than chocolate of all things.

ALSO the oz story on it says.

 

MAX Brenner says he is a man of peace who hates all forms of violence.

Actually, Max Brenner is as real as Ronald McDonald. It comes from a combination of the names of the founders Max Fichtman and Oded Brenner. I think someone at the company was taking the mickey with the oz.

Yes, she compared people volunteering to clean their neighbourhoods to fascism. I. Dont. Even.

The author somehow links community inspired gentrification in urban neighbourhoods to fascism, so somehow sweeping the streets is also fascist. How dare people try to actively improve ones community!

I don’t think fascism means what you think it means. Hitler had more in store for Europe than an elaborate street cleaning and gentrification operation.

It continues to then romanticise the rioters as fighting against the big bad corporate greed.

It is no coincidence that the primary target of rioters, despite a media-narrative keen to play up the social impact of these events on small retailers, was large retail warehouse stores that cling parasitically to neighbourhoods at the periphery of inner cities. These are stores that far from being the ‘heart of the community’, largely suck wealth out of it into overseas tax havens.

The reason that the larger chain stores were targeted was not some sign of class solidarity or some such bullshit but because the larger shops are more likely to have the high end electrical goods that people are after. If you want to steal an lcd tv or an iphone a big electrical chain would be a better bet than the corner store. And its not like the supposedly socially conscious rioters exclusively attacked multinational shops. The family owned Reeves furniture store may not have been looted but it was burnt to the ground. Not to mention the numerous independent, migrant owned shops that were simply trashed even if they had little of value to steal. I dont think many of these rioters did it in the name of social justice.

Further lunacy in the comments.

Wit PERMALINK

August 10, 2011 9:54 pm

This is really very good. Thanks for writing this. Everyone who reads it: disseminate by all means necessary!

The Left needs to defend the riots; not to valourise the burning of grannies’ cars, but to make clear that we reject the whole bourgeois construction of events, that we stand in solidarity with the oppressed and that, when it comes to it, we will, without hesitation, join the “rioters” to overthrow the legitimised exploitation, state-sanctioned violence and sham “democracy” that oppress us all.

Username is “Wit”. At least they are half right.

It’s not democracy when I don’t get the government that I like. So set fire to stuff.

Somehow I dont see how murder the destruction of businesses is really going to help the lot of the urban poor in London. But maybe that’s just me.

ALSO: Although the author of the post has since changed the photo back she was caught by commenters sneakily photoshopping black people out of the photo of the riot clean up, so it would better fit the narrative of it somehow being a white power fascist demonstration.

It was shocking, but it was a terrible, undeniable truth that we had to accept and deal with.

Barack Obama….. ATE VEGETABLES!

Shocking I know. But for some reason when Obama mentioned the price of arugula, (known as rocket in Australia) to voters in Iowa the usual conservative nutjobs tried to paint this as another sign of Obama’s liberal arrogance. REAL Americans don’t eat vegetables, especially residents of Iowa. They have steak and whiskey for breakfast, a double down for lunch and a deep fried hamburger for dinner. None of your liberal “vegetables” here thanks.

AVERT YOUR EYES FROM THE COMMUNIST ARUGULA!

Of course in the real world the good farmers of Iowa actually grow lots of vegetables, including the apparently liberal leaf arugula.

Then in 2009 when the first lady started growing dreaded vegetables including the left wing arugula in the White House garden the nuts whipped themselves into a frenzy once again.

Well its a few years on but few people appear wiser because now they are going after Michelle Obama for……. eating a hamburger.

Yep.

Conservatives smelled fresh meat on Monday when first lady Michelle Obama dared to order what was once considered an All-American meal at Shake Shack. Her lunch consisted of a burger, fries, a chocolate shake and a Diet Coke (you know, to keep the calories down), a meal that totalled about 1,700 calories

Let’s just hope there was no arugula on that burger.

So the reason they are going after her is that the first lady started a campaign called “Let’s Move” designed to reduce the rather alarming rates of childhood obesity in America’s youth. A noble goal by anyone’s standards, but now a single hamburger has made Michelle Obama a giant hypocrite.

Americans seem to love this holier than though demands of their leaders. I don’t think anyone who promotes a healthy diet would argue that you can never have the occasional treat. All she did was eat a hamburger. And when she is healthy and grows and eats vegetables she gets attacked for that too. These people are insane.

Sure, in a perfect world, once the US had reliable intelligence as to bin Laden’s location they would have worked in co-operation with Pakistan, captured him alive and then tried him in a court. But the US had no idea if bin Laden was being protected by elements of the Pakistani military or government so it is likely that if they did try to do this in co-operation with Pakistan, Osama would have been tipped off and they would have lost their chance. They had their chance and they couldn’t risk it by informing Pakistan before that mission was completed.

Was it a death squad? Well Obama was given the option of targeting the compound  with a precision bombing but he rejected this and went for the harder and riskier option to avoid unnecessary casualties. He decided to put his Navy Seals life at risk for the tougher, riskier but braver option specifically to avoid casualties, this deserves praise. I think most people find it reasonable that lethal force is allowed to be used if the target is putting other lives in danger, resisting arrest or fighting back. From reports so far, bin Laden ticked all three of these boxes so I don’t think “secret death squad” or murder is an accurate description. Bin Laden decided his fate when he fought back and refused to go peacefully.

I don’t see this as hypocritical that opponents of the death penalty are welcoming the death. Rules of engagement for military and police to use lethal force once certain criteria are met, and although this mission falls into what could best be described as an international law grey area I don’t think we would be tut-tutting police or military who used similar force in a police raid or in a warzone.

As for the criticism of the spontaneous celebrations in front of the White House and in New York, sure it did look a bit tacky and in poor taste but I can’t be angry at them. Osama bin Laden’s terrorist group was the reason for the invasion of Afghanistan almost ten years ago, a war America and us have been involved in for longer than the second world war. The terrorist attack was the most deadly on US soil in its history. As the current military engagements have lacked the clear victories of older wars, this was a clearer definitive moment of success for America. Is it tacky to celebrate a death? Sure, but were the celebrations in cities once victory was declared in Europe also not celebrating the death of the enemies that resulted in that victory? I don’t see how celebrating the death of the person who was the reason behind the war in Afghanistan is that bad a thing.

Leslie Cannold compared the celebrations to those celebrating 9/11

If we found Arab street repellent when they celebrated 9/11, and I definitely did, how do we justify our celebrations now?#osamadead

Debate will rage about how much or if bin Laden’s death matters in the long term, but overall I have no problem with people being happy and celebrating it. I say Navy Seals team and Obama who gave the order, well done.

It’s a ridiculous move, and the President of the United States should not dignify such fringe dingbats with a response. Contrary to the rumours Obama already produced his birth certificate all the way back in 2008, but this did not satisfy the critics who found it impossible to believe that a black man with a funny name could have possibly been born in the old US of A.

The original short form birth certificate did not satisfy Donald Trump’s hair and the rest of the birther movement so today Obama released his long form birth certificate. Unfortunately for the president’s critics it didn’t say “secret Muslim” or “really born in Kenya”.

So how does birther central World Nut Daily deal with the news?

AN AFRICAN DADDY, OH NOES!!!11!!!!!

It continues:

If the document proves valid, it could answer the questions raised by those who have alleged he was not actually born in Hawaii. But it also could prove his ineligibility because of its references to his father. Some of the cases challenging Obama have explained that he was a dual citizen through his father at his birth, and they contend the framers of the Constitution excluded dual citizens from qualifying as natural born citizens.

Of course it is complete and utter bullshit that his fathers country of origin should exclude Obama from the presidency, but the birther movement was never based on anything rational to begin with. After all what possible motivation would have his parents had for lying about his country of birth back in the 60′s unless they knew he was going to be President? Why would have his parents gone to the effort or listing a fake birth notice in the newspaper, forge a fake short birth certificate and then sneak his mother off to Kenya to secretly give birth to him? There would be absolutely no reason to pull off such an elaborate hoax at that time. It’s the dumbest conspiracy since David Icke and his theory of a secret race or Lizard alien reptoids ruling the world.

No amount of proof will ever satisfy them. There will always be another conspiracy, another crazy angle to yell about and Obama will never be able to prove his legitimacy to these crazed loons.

Mr President, stop arguing with idiots.

Further on the days programming, in-between short news segments we have been treated to reruns of the 7:30 Report and Foreign Correspondent.

ABC 24 hasn’t been reluctant to cancel regular programming and cut to breaking news in the past. Whenever a government minister or senior opposition member gives a presser they usually cut to live coverage. I’ve even seen them cut to Ian Thorpe’s “Qantas advertorial” return to professional swimming and even to the heads of major companies giving speeches at their AGMs.

I dont expect ABC to have the resources to have their own continuous coverage from Japan immediately, but ABC like most news services has recipricol arrangements with other news services for occasions like this. When the Christchurch quake hit, ABC 24 ran a New Zealand news channel’s live coverage as they were giving the most up to date coverage at that time, and last night the ABC showed the feed of the English language version of the NHK. So surely the ABC can be using these resources today, but when big news hits that isn’t Western or Canberra-centric the ABC seems reluctant to give it rolling coverage.

Currently on Twitter there are reports of a Japanese nuclear plant going into meltdown and ABC 24 is showing a rerun of the childrens news show Behind the News.

Mark Scott, we know 24 is new, has stretched resources and is finding its feet, but this is beyond pathetic.

“Wot?”

“Were you in Christchurch yesterday when the earthquake hit?”

“Yes. I was ‘ere. I was ‘avin’ a wander about, eh? I was ‘avin’ me lunch, eh?”

“And how did you feel when it happened?”

“Wot? WOT?! … How did you fink I felt? Eh? … How do you fuckin’ fink I felt? Eh? Like ‘avin’ a fuckin’ party? You fink I wanted to have a fuckin’ party, go for a fuckin’ dance, you takin’ the piss? You takin’ the Michael? No no no no no no no no no no no no, I’m not ‘avin’ it, that’s bollocks that is, that’s bollocks. What you think this is, the Wheel of fuckin’ Fortune, you just turn up for a bit of a peep about, make your dough and fuck off out of it, and ask a lot of stupid fuckin’ questions?”

“Bloody hell, I – ”

“Why you swearin’? I’m not swearin’, am I?”

“I –“

“Shut up, cunt. You got some fuckin’ neck, ain’t you, you got some fuckin’ neck. Who do you fink you are? King of the castle? Cock of the walk? Quite frankly, your attitude appals me. It’s not wot you’re sayin’, it’s all this stuff you’re not sayin’ … You really fink I’m gonna have that, ya ponce?”

“I didn’t mean to create a, a, a problem, Mr, Mr …”

“Logan. Don. Don Logan … Problem? Problem?! You’re the problem! You’re the fuckin’ problem, you fucking Dr. White honkin’ jam-rag spunk bubble, I’m tellin’ you, you keep lookin’ at me, you keep lookin’ at me and askin’ me stupid fuckin’ questions like “How do I feel”, how do you fink I fuckin’ feel, I’ll put you in the fuckin’ ground, promise you!”

“ …”

“ …”

“ Um …”

“Shut up!”

“ …”

“I gotta change my shirt, it’s stickin’ to me … I’m sweatin’ like a cunt”.

Seven survivors of the Christmas Island boat tragedy will travel to Sydney today to bury family members. Among them, Madian El Ibrahimy will bury his eight-month-old daughter, Zahra and Hussein al-Husaini will lay to rest his three-month-old son Sam.

Both men’s wives drowned, or are missing.

The opposition immigration spokesman, Scott Morrison, yesterday attacked the government for flying 21 detainees from Christmas Island to attend the Muslim and Christian funerals at Rookwood and Rouse Hill for victims of December’s horrific boat crash.

Family members of 12 of the victims live in Sydney and requested they be buried here.

But Mr Morrison said transferring detainees to Sydney raised security issues and showed the government ”doesn’t understand the value of the taxpayer’s money”.

Mr Morrison told radio 2GB: ”If people wanted to attend the funeral service from Sydney, for example, who may have been relatives of those who wanted these funeral services, well, they could have held the service on Christmas Island and like any other Australian who would have wanted to go to the funeral of someone close to them, they would have paid for themselves to get on a plane and go there.”

Scott Morrison, a crusted cum stain on the fabric of the universe, this bloated, block-headed bucket of thrush from out the communal washbasin of a heizel, a kuppe drek, this plyoot karger, this farkakte proster chamoole, it k’vitsh’s “Tzufil!!”, “Too much!! Too costly!!”, the money we spend to bury the children of these “niggers” from across the sea, these invaders, these illegals, their foreign ways they bring to these pristine white shores where pristine white people go about their pristine white ways, and now we, the “taxpayer”, we pay our shekels to bury their rotting dead?

“Gai feifen ahfen yam!” it whines, such a yatebedam it thinks it is, such a man, counting our pennies for us, counting, counting, counting, bed bugs I have seen with more character than this yukel, this shtunk, this fat-faced tamaveter with its crooked beaver teeth, its dead man’s eyes, a feier zol im trefen!! … Such a grober is this boy, this shtik drek, his words are like the loose bowel movements of crazy old grandmothers that carry on the breezes that brush over a field of unburied corpses.

Kish mir en toches, groisser potz!! Me ken brechen!!

…

Feh, fuck him, his testicles are sultanas, his penis is a noodle.

Scott Morrision, zolst zein vi a lomp-am tug sollst di hangen, in der nacht sollst di brennen!!

Gai trenz ich, Morrison, gai trenz ich!!!

…

…

Farshtaist?

So, I’m sitting here on the Internet trying to keep up to date with what’s going on. Most of my information is coming via Twitter — first-, second- and third-hand accounts, and links to more credible reports by various publications — and I’m keeping a close eye on stuff like The Guardian‘s live blog and Al Jazeera English (when the guesthouse’s bandwidth allows). Even as far away from the action as central Sri Lanka might be, I feel quite informed about up-to-the-minute events.

Even though it’s 2am in Melbourne, I’m curious to know how the Australian newspaper websites are covering the story. I know it’s the middle of the night but surely skeleton web crews are at least updating their sites with links to give curious Australian readers a point of entry into the coverage, associating their masthead with news delivery. And surely a story of such global and historical importance would be given worthy prominence.

Oh, how stupid of me.

Here’s The Australian publishing an AP wire as its fourth headline, backed up by a piece by its Middle Eastern correspondent. You might care to have a read of them after you’ve browsed the latest riveting news about the Murray Darling rescue plan.

Here’s The Age publishing a piece by its man on the ground, Jason Katsoukis, as its third headline. Once you’ve finished reading about the Australian soccer team and state politics, you might care to read some words written by Katsoukis before the protests begin: “Now it seems as though the unthinkable could be about to happen …”

And here’s the Sydney Morning Herald publishing absolutely nothing at all.

This is (one of the reasons) why Australian newspapers are dying: because if it happens outside business hours, or at a time otherwise inconvenient to the deadlines of their printing presses, then as far as the newspapers are concerned their readers will just have to wait. That might’ve been okay in 1990 but in the age of the Internet it’s business suicide.

UPDATE: A tweet from Groupthink’s Cosmicjester:

@cosmicjester: abc 24 now playing a rerun of big ideas. Dont worry, its not like anything important is happening.