It has nothing to do with endangering national security (ignore the bleating of far too many corporate journalists who simply repeat talking points from their intelligence sources) but the profound shame of US hegemony being challenged and revealed. Here’s Henry Farrell and Martha Finnemore in Foreign Affairs: The U.S. government seems outraged that people are…
Launching Profits of Doom at Curtin University in Perth
I launched my book Profits of Doom at Curtin University in Perth on 29 November to a packed house (more details and photos here… and audio is here). The focus was on Australia’s privatised immigration detention system. Dr Caroline Fleay from The Centre for Human Rights Education (CHRE) introduced me with a generous speech that I…
How America applies a two-tier justice system
Glenn Greenwald explains the reality of the law in the land of the supposedly free:
Why the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement is undemocratic
I was asked to comment by New Matilda: Antony Loewenstein Independent journalist, activist and author of Profits of Doom.… Twitter: @antloewenstein The details of the TPP,… released by Wikileaks… and proving the transparency group remains a vital organisation doing the work journalists should be undertaking, are worrying for national sovereignty. The idea that Australia will become even more…
Who and what killed Yasser Arafat?
A fascinating, new documentary by Clayton Swisher for Al Jazeera English, Killing Arafat, that examines the murky circumstances around his death. It focuses principally on the Palestinian Authority (rather than the obvious other suspect, Israel) and portrays the US-backed institution as corrupt and utterly untrustworthy. Swisher explains more about this in a recent piece in…
"No Fire Zone" is devastating film about Sri Lankan war crimes
This is a remarkable film that clearly details the range of crimes committed by the Sri Lankan military and government during the civil war that ended in 2009 and continues to this day. The regime in Colombo is desperate to discredit it but this is miserably failing. The Commonwealth meeting begins in Sri Lanka this…
Why it should not be unlawful to offend a person because of their race
Today the Guardian hosts a discussion about the proposed changes to Australia’s Racial Discrimination Act. Writer and academic Alana Lentin argues the laws should remain while I state they need reform: Alana Lentin The right to offend is often held up by liberals everywhere as more important than the right to be offended. But posing…
Nightmare reality of US Special Forces in Afghanistan
America and its allies never intended to bring “democracy” or “freedom” to Afghanistan. The reality has been covert missions tasked to root out “terrorism”. When the vast bulk of foreign forces leave the country post 2014, this CIA-led killing machine will continue. Welcome to US nation building. This is a stunning investigation by Matthieu Aikins…
David Hicks in his own words about Guantanamo and search for justice
After years of smears and lies told about Australian citizen David Hicks (along with the legal, physical and moral abuses), former Guantanamo Bay prisoner David Hicks speaks to the Sunrise program and explains why he needs and deserves justice for years of assault:
Why BDS must be supported for justice in the Middle East
My weekly Guardian column is published today: The… boycott, divestment and sanctions… (BDS) movement,… a thriving Palestinian-led initiative… that attacks… institutional links… to Israel’s illegal settlements,… has been… gaining in popularity. In Australia, the movement has been slowly growing… as Israel continues to defy international law – and it now faces one of its greatest opportunities in the court of public opinion. Shurat HaDin…