Showing all posts in June 2019

Anthony Bubalo is a research fellow at the Sydney-based Lowy Institute for International Policy. He seems to write regularly about the Israel/Palestine conflict, yet is simply another policy wonk more interested in the political machinations within Israel than the average Israeli or Palestinian. His article in today’s Sydney Morning Herald – on Sharon’s political earthquake…

One British university seems to have a problem with religious dress and street wear: “Imperial College London has issued a ban on its staff and students wearing hijabs or hoodies in its buildings as part of an effort to improve campus security.” The decision was taken in the name of security, you understand, and a…

My latest New Matilda column discusses media complicity in hyping the terror threat and the seeming unwillingness of the political and media elite to acknowledge why Australia has become a target in the first place: “Prime Minister John Howard and his media cheerleaders (the vast majority of the corporate media elite) tell us that a…

Does the future of “citizen journalism” start here? Internet entrepreneur Craig Newmark wants to revolutionise the media business. The Independent explores a development we should be watching very closely: “‘I do think professional and citizen journalism will blur together,’ Newmark predicts, ‘because we will find that some amateurs are as talented as a professional journalist.’…

Cambodia is hitting the headlines for all the wrong reasons. The Hindustan Times reports: “Websites advocating ‘euthanasia tourism’ allegedly posted by a US national from a sleepy Cambodian town have sparked outrage and confusion as businesses and the government debate what action to take. “The family and friends of a British national have already alleged…

– The Independent, November 22: “Iraqis face the dire prospect of losing up to $200bn (…£116bn) of the wealth of their country if an American-inspired plan to hand over development of its oil reserves to US and British multinationals comes into force next year. A report produced by American and British pressure groups warns Iraq…

Why am I not surprised? The UK Daily Mirror reports: “President Bush planned to bomb Arab TV station al-Jazeera in friendly Qatar, a “Top Secret” No 10 memo reveals. “But he was talked out of it at a White House summit by Tony Blair, who said it would provoke a worldwide backlash. “A source said:…

Yossi Verter, Haaretz, November 22: “The feeling of relief flooding Ariel Sharon on Monday was unmistakable like a life prisoner who has been set free, or a woman who finally got a divorce from an abusive husband.” Israeli politics is currently experiencing an earthquake. Ariel Sharon is leaving Likud and forming a new party. Early…

James Carroll, Boston Globe, November 21: “The free press is an absolute value not only because the unfettered flow of information is essential to the republican system, nor only because the fourth estate serves as a check on the power of the other three, but because public expression is necessary for the communal self-awareness that…

Chile’s Augusto Pinochet always thought he was above the law so his arrest in London in 1998 surprised the world. International law is developing to the point where administrators and advocates for unacceptable norms will soon face justice. And this includes those in the West. How about individuals who advised the Bush administration to avoid…