Few thoughts about Palestinian Authority spokesman Ghassan Khatib

I heard him speak yesterday at the New South Wales parliament (he’s in Australia trying to convince the madly pro-Zionist Australian government to view Palestinians as human beings, so good luck with that). Khatib talked about the proposed UN vote on Palestine in September and spoke creatively about the alleged readiness of Palestine for statehood,…

Iran’s insecure mullahs attempt to cut off country from the web

Insane, unworkable and signs of autocrats who fear freedom of expression and their own citizens: Communication and information technology minister Reza Taqipour Anvari announced at the start of July that the first phase of a “National Internet,” also called “Clean Internet,” will get under way at the end of August, offering an 8 Mbps speed…

The rise of a new and clever super-power, China

Smart: S. Pandiyarajan was fiddling around with his shortwave radio set one hot summer evening at Villupuram, Tamil Nadu, when he stumbled upon a strange station. At first listen, it was a language he couldn’t identify. It sounded like Tamil, but spoken in an accent he could not recognise. He listened on, straining his ears.…

This is called making peace with Murdoch because you need him

Desperate political times result in an Australian Prime Minister asking for fair coverage of her policies; this is also known as bowing to what the Murdoch empire wants and should not receive; elevation of its perceived power. Stop indulging the unethical grubs: After months of festering tensions between the government and News Ltd, the Prime…

Who would trust firms to protect the public space?

Apparently the future in keeping us safe is to outsource intelligence to unaccountable corporations: In an age where cyberwarfare is more common than the physical battlefield, it may be necessary for the private sector to stop playing defense and go on offense, Gen. Michael Hayden said Friday. Hayden, who led the National Security Administration and…

When mad privatisation came to Greece

The country may be economically screwed but this plan will benefit only a few corporations and rich people: The starting gun for one of the biggest fire-sales in western history was fired as Greek officials began appointing advisers for the country’s ambitious privatisation drive. “Our target is clear, and it is to generate €1.7bn from…

Oh wait, says Sri Lanka, maybe we did murder civilians

Telling the truth isn’t really popular in the halls of power in Colombo: Sri Lanka’s government on Monday acknowledged for the first time civilian casualties occurred in the final phase of its 26—year civil war against Tamil Tiger rebels but calls those deaths unavoidable. A Defence Ministry report said “it was impossible” to avoid civilian…

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