All Things Politics (excluding Israel/Palestine)

[Black_White]

Pretty much the average swing against a sitting government in a bi-election last night. Yet the coalition believe it was a reinforcement of Voldemort’s leadership.

Coalition optimistic about political fortunes despite Labor retaining Dunkley in by-election

The federal opposition insists it is well placed to win Labor seats at the next election despite falling short in a Victorian by-election last night.

www.abc.net.au

 

[vindaloo]

Great idea for a thread BTW.

 

[vindaloo]

Burgess doing a good job.

China revealed as country behind spy chief’s unnamed ‘A-Team’

ASIO chief Mike Burgess has flatly refused to identify which nation was behind the recruitment of an Australian politician.

www.smh.com.au

 

[The Royal Sampler]

This is interesting.

The UK cannot legally allow Assange’s extradition to the US, because the US have not provided a written guarantee that Assange won’t receive the death penalty.

The pretense of justice meted out to Assange by the Rules Based Order has come undone - Pearls and Irritations

 

[JB1975]

This is interesting.

The UK cannot legally allow Assange’s extradition to the US, because the US have not provided a written guarantee that Assange won’t receive the death penalty.

The pretense of justice meted out to Assange by the Rules Based Order has come undone - Pearls and Irritations

To whichever English ponce it may concern,

Please send Julian to us here in the United States. We promise he will not receive a penalty of death. We will look after Julian and work to ensure that his time within the US penal system is painful enough that the mischievous albino wishes he were dead in accordance with the demands of old-style frontier international justice.

No one will hear any cries from Julian to 'please, please oh for the love of God let me die!' Nope, you won't hear a peep from him.

We may even take Julian on holiday every once in a while. North Africa is lovely. We'll delight in the shocked look upon his pasty face as we whisk him from his cell at 2am and spirit him to a secret destination, where he'll have his toes nibbled on by starved rats played with.

Yours truly, and we mean truly truly.

United States of America.

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

This is interesting.

The UK cannot legally allow Assange’s extradition to the US, because the US have not provided a written guarantee that Assange won’t receive the death penalty.

The pretense of justice meted out to Assange by the Rules Based Order has come undone - Pearls and Irritations

So we can expect to see Albo and Wong animated and enraged on this evening's news demanding an end to extradition proceedings. In fact, I anticipate Wong will demand Assange's immediate release and threaten dire consequences to relations with both countries if he is detained more than another day. Really looking forward to seeing her finally shift her emotions out of first gear, hopefully skipping 2nd and 3rd and straight into 4th, hitting the turbo charge button to add that extra shot of aggression and menace to her tone.

 

[Mauvais Cheval]

A useful summary

 

[Black_White]

So we can expect to see Albo and Wong animated and enraged on this evening's news demanding an end to extradition proceedings. In fact, I anticipate Wong will demand Assange's immediate release and threaten dire consequences to relations with both countries if he is detained more than another day. Really looking forward to seeing her finally shift her emotions out of first gear, hopefully skipping 2nd and 3rd and straight into 4th, hitting the turbo charge button to add that extra shot of aggression and menace to her tone.

I’m so confused about where I stand on Assange.
While I certainly want these types of secrets exposed, I also understand that revealing secrets at inappropriate times can cause repercussions. As happened in this case.
As there have been casualties then someone has to be held responsible. Is it Assange or someone else?
The fact that America has the death penalty though means I cannot support Assange being extradited.

 

[vindaloo]

‘Devastating conflict’: Penny Wong warns of destabilisation, provocation by China

Foreign Minister Penny Wong has issued a stark warning about the risk of conflict in the Indo-Pacific as China rises to superpower status.

www.theage.com.au

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

I’m so confused about where I stand on Assange.
While I certainly want these types of secrets exposed, I also understand that revealing secrets at inappropriate times can cause repercussions. As happened in this case.
As there have been casualties then someone has to be held responsible. Is it Assange or someone else?
The fact that America has the death penalty though means I cannot support Assange being extradited.

Have you ever seen the original video which first drew attention to Assange - the helicopter in Iraq hovering over innocent civilians mistaken for enemy who were then gunned down from the air? It was enough for me to wholeheartedly support the release of information which uncovered the dirty elements of war that are kept hidden from us. I don't trust the US military regime to do the right thing, and it certainly didn't in Iraq. As a citizen of the world, I believe I have a right to know what is happening behind the scenes.

Video: Leaked footage shows the 2007 Apache helicopter shooting in Iraq | Daily Mail Online

Wikileaks releases leaked 2007 footage of a U.S. Apache helicopter fatally shooting a group of men at public square in Eastern Baghdad.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

‘Devastating conflict’: Penny Wong warns of destabilisation, provocation by China

Foreign Minister Penny Wong has issued a stark warning about the risk of conflict in the Indo-Pacific as China rises to superpower status.

www.theage.com.au

Penny Wong has spoken! That'll have the Chinese quaking in the boots! Hopefully she'll get stuck into Netanyahu next.

 

[vindaloo]

Penny Wong has spoken! That'll have the Chinese quaking in the boots!

Beating the drums of war is more team blue though isn't it? You really think that's what Wong is doing?

 

[Black_White]

Have you ever seen the original video which first drew attention to Assange - the helicopter in Iraq hovering over innocent civilians mistaken for enemy who were then gunned down from the air? It was enough for me to wholeheartedly support the release of information which uncovered the dirty elements of war that are kept hidden from us. I don't trust the US military regime to do the right thing, and it certainly didn't in Iraq. As a citizen of the world, I believe I have a right to know what is happening behind the scenes.

Video: Leaked footage shows the 2007 Apache helicopter shooting in Iraq | Daily Mail Online

Wikileaks releases leaked 2007 footage of a U.S. Apache helicopter fatally shooting a group of men at public square in Eastern Baghdad.

www.dailymail.co.uk

And I don’t trust the Australian military either.
We shouldn’t trust any military anywhere.
But again, the release of the material that Assange is being bought to trial resulted in even more casualties. And like it or not, “our” military acts in our interests and needs some form of protection.
I’m not sure there is a right or wrong here. That’s why I’m very much confused, and on the fence, about how Assange is dealt with.

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

Beating the drums of war is more team blue though isn't it? You really think that's what Wong is doing?

Surely you recognise sarcasm? Inciting aggression rather than merely tacitly supporting it is not something Wong is capable of doing.

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

And I don’t trust the Australian military either.
We shouldn’t trust any military anywhere.
But again, the release of the material that Assange is being bought to trial resulted in even more casualties. And like it or not, “our” military acts in our interests and needs some form of protection.
I’m not sure there is a right or wrong here. That’s why I’m very much confused, and on the fence, about how Assange is dealt with.

Perhaps you can enlighten me regarding the casualties because I don't know the specifics? Much of the material he released concerned the USA in Iraq, a military campaign which was utterly indefensible and based on the false claim that chemical weapons had been stockpiled. I'd like to know the truth about these campaigns, even if it does cost a few US or even Australian lives. If only he could have had the opportunity to dig some more dirt on that great Aussie hero Ben Roberts Smith.

 

[The Royal Sampler]

I’m so confused about where I stand on Assange.
While I certainly want these types of secrets exposed, I also understand that revealing secrets at inappropriate times can cause repercussions. As happened in this case.
As there have been casualties then someone has to be held responsible. Is it Assange or someone else?
The fact that America has the death penalty though means I cannot support Assange being extradited.

That is apparently untrue. The investigation into Chelsea Manning concluded that no harm came to anyone as a result of the leak. Not to mention that the hypothetical risk of any leak to American assets overseas, needs to be balanced against the actual harm done to innocent civilians in the commission of war crimes.

 

[The Royal Sampler]

It’s also worth mentioning that Assange, and WikiLeaks did not release the document in unredacted format. Assange worked with journalists from major newspapers to redact as much as was required before releasing the documents, however two journalists from the Guardian published a book, which had as a chapter title the password to the unredacted document. It was then released in unredacted format on other websites, e.g. Cryptome, which has had no repercussions for the owners of those websites.

 

[The Royal Sampler]

This is a very well reasoned and informative video, if you are interested in the case.

 

[vindaloo]

Keating is a paid CCP shill these days.

As it happened: Rates, inflation and tax combination hit Australian economy; Consultant replaces Scott Morrison as Liberal Party candidate in Cook

A combination of interest rates, inflation and taxes are battering the Australian economy, a consultant will replace Scott Morrison in Cook and the ASEAN summit continues.

www.theage.com.au

 

[Black_White]

This is going to upset a few on here.

How Penny Wong made history as our longest-serving female cabinet minister

Being a Malaysian-born, openly gay woman hardly seemed like the ticket to longevity or popularity when Wong entered parliament. Yet she has achieved both.

www.theage.com.au

Especially this bit.

Australians last year ranked Wong the nation’s most impressive leader, giving her a net likeability of plus 14 per cent (Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had a rating of minus three, according to the Resolve Political Monitor, and his predecessor Scott Morrison minus 35

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

This is going to upset a few on here.

How Penny Wong made history as our longest-serving female cabinet minister

Being a Malaysian-born, openly gay woman hardly seemed like the ticket to longevity or popularity when Wong entered parliament. Yet she has achieved both.

www.theage.com.au

Especially this bit.

Don't know why she is being ranked as a leader when she is not one, nor to the best of my knowledge does she have any desire to be one. I doubt that many who ranked her watched the 7.30 Report interview on the suspension of UNRWA funds. She was very unimpressive. Having said that I am more than happy to accept that many people like her. Unfortunately for me she is the party's public foreign affairs face and carries the burden of a policy on treatment of Palestine that I find utterly unpalatable.

 

[Black_White]

Don't know why she is being ranked as a leader when she is not one, nor to the best of my knowledge does she have any desire to be one. I doubt that many who ranked her watched the 7.30 Report interview on the suspension of UNRWA funds. She was very unimpressive. Having said that I am more than happy to accept that many people like her. Unfortunately for me she is the party's public foreign affairs face and carries the burden of a policy on treatment of Palestine that I find utterly unpalatable.

The public have spoken.
Most respected!
Loving it.

 

[Black_White]

More proof that our justice system is stuffed.
Protesters who inconvenienced a few get three weeks.
Truck boss who knew that the driver who killed police was unfit to drive gets nothing.
The expectations of the public just are not being met.

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

The public have spoken.
Most respected!
Loving it.

Penny has expressed in the past that she has no desire to be party leader. I doubt that she has changed her mind. Seems weird she should top a leadership poll. Anyway, I suspect I am on my own in here not being particularly enamoured with her as a politician, though I suspect Paul Keating has his reservations.

 

[vindaloo]

Penny has expressed in the past that she has no desire to be party leader. I doubt that she has changed her mind. Seems weird she should top a leadership poll. Anyway, I suspect I am on my own in here not being particularly enamoured with her as a politician, though I suspect Paul Keating has his reservations.

I know you, surely, you're disenchanted with Keating's position on China, he's sort of like a CCP shill.
I think in other areas she's been a sort of unifier in the region. I'm a fan, I think she's done well TBH, couldn't have been worse than the previous government.