Category: the fear trade


What is the special quality in modern life that makes a major human motive out of the impulse to bully others? George Orwell..,

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March 10, 2014

With the venal bully, Dick Cheney, back in the news, here’s a timeless quote that somewhat nails the son of a…

“…half the world is ruled by secret police forces…The desire for pure power seems to be much more dominant than the desire for wealth…it is no more natural, in the sense of being biologically necessary, than drunkenness or gambling. And if it has reached new levels of lunacy in our own age, as I think it has, then the question becomes: what is the special quality in modern life that makes a major human motive out of the impulse to bully others?”

George Orwell, Tribune, 1946

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Lies Secrecy and Violence : Australia’s Shameful Refugee Policy

Filed under: Oz Junta, the fear trade, thus far... — 3 Comments
March 4, 2014

The violent bashing of asylum seekers which has resulted in the death of a young Iranian man has totally changed the world’s perceptions of the Australian Government’s treatment of refugees and embarrassed decent Australians.

The Abbott Government has no alternative to shutting its third world torture camps for refugees. The policy of making an example of and  terrifying refugees, to deter would be asylum seekers  from  travelling  to Australia to seek asylum, has collapsed under the weight of lies, secrecy and violence.

The conservative Coalition Government and the previous Labor government have based the legitimacy of their refugee program on the camps on Nauru and on Manus Island being a safe haven for asylum seekers while they wait for orderly processing.

In reality the camps are a hell on earth for refugees seeking asylum. The people sent to the camps are immediately demoralized by being told that because they have traveled by boat they will be disqualified from getting asylum in Australia. The camps are designed to be a harsh place to live and totally unsuitable for asylum seekers who are unwell and for women and children.

Initially the Minister tried to blame the victims of violence by saying they had absconded from the safety of the prison camp, but despite the strict secrecy surrounding the camp the true story has emerged that people with weapons came into the camp and bashed and shot refugees and stole their belongings.

Whatever spin the immigration Minister uses to rationalize his psychological and physical punishment of refugees and his denial of responsibility , he cannot get past the fact that under international rules he is ultimately responsible for the safety and well being of refugees he has detained, even if he has shipped  them to another country.

Minister Morrison has failed in his duty, he cannot protect the people under his care while they are under another country’s jurisdiction. He should be stood down and his unsafe refugee program should be closed down immediately.

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PUTIN human rights predator…perspectives on the Russian regime from Reporters Without Borders and Amnesty International…

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March 2, 2014

As Ukraine teeters on a knife edge between self determination and further Russian incursion, the UN Security Council assembles for crisis talks…here @ the interpretOr, we’re having another look at perspectives from Reporters Without Borders and Amnesty International on the Putin regime… Reporters Without Borders...

…in the face of the Russian public’s calls for respect and democracy, the government has responded with repression. A spate of draconian laws has been adopted in record time. Legislation regulating human rights NGOs and unauthorized demonstrations was toughened, while defamation was reintroduced into the criminal code after being decriminalized in November 2011. In the name of “protecting minors,” a federal agency has been told to compile a blacklist of “pernicious” websites that can be blocked without reference to the courts and without any possibility of defence. And the Duma is not stopping there. Plans are under way to vastly extend the scope of what is regarded as “high treason” and “state secrets.” Tools for circumventing online censorshipare to be banned. And “offending the feelings of believers” is to be penalized drastically. The desire to control is as plain as ever. OFFICIAL VERSION “The media’s active and responsible attitude and a truly independent and courageous journalism are more than ever desired and indispensible for Russia.” (Address to the Union of Journalists, April 2013) REALITY Whether indispensible or not, independent journalism is a risky activity in Russia. No fewer than 29 journalists have been murdered in direct connection with their work since Putin became president. Physical attacks and murders occur with regularity and are encouraged by the impunity enjoyed by their perpetrators. After a particularly intense wave of violence from 2008 to 2010, Putin and Dmitry Medvedev both gave personal undertakings to combat impunity. With no effect. Mikhail Beketov, who suffered lasting injuries in a November 2008 attack, died in April 2013 without seeing his assailants brought to justice. The identity of those who ordered the murders of Anna Politkovskaya and Khadzhimurad Kamalov, and the attack on Oleg Kashin, is still unknown. Read in Russian / Читать по-русски

Amnesty International …

Vladimir Putin’s return as President, following widely criticized elections, led to a surge in popular protest and demands for greater civil and political freedoms, particularly around his inauguration in May. The result was increased restrictions. Protests were frequently banned and disrupted. New laws were adopted, often without public consultation and in the face of widespread criticism, which introduced harsh administrative and criminal penalties that could be used to target legitimate protest and political and civil society activities, and to restrict foreign funding for civic activism. The Russian Federation responded belligerently to international criticism of its human rights record. A law on travel and other sanctions on officials allegedly responsible for the death of lawyer Sergei Magnitsky in custody in 2009 was passed in the USA and proposed in several other countries. The Russian authorities retaliated with reciprocal sanctions and by banning the adoption of Russian children by US citizens and prohibiting Russian NGOs from receiving funding from the USA. Russia continued to enjoy economic growth, although this slowed with falling oil prices, the global economic downturn and the lack of structural reforms at home. Public protest decreased by the end of 2012, but so did public support for the political leadership, according to opinion polls…

full report @ Amnesty International

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Bouffanted Bishop asks North Korea to house asylum seekers – Pyongyang says it is seriously considering the request from Julie Bishop

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February 25, 2014

Australia has asked North Korea, one of Asia’s poorest countries, to take in asylum seekers detained while trying to reach the Australian coast.

On Saturday Australia’s foreign minister, Julie Bishop, asked regime head, Kim Wrong-un, if North Korea could house some migrants.

“The Australian minister has requested that North Korea takes in some refugees,” bouffanted Wrong-un told a news briefing with Bishop in Pyongyang.

“In the past, North Koreans have fled their country to other countries but now it’s time that North Korea takes in refugees from other countries,” he said adding he

would “take serious consideration” of the request.

The comments were also carried by the official KCNA news agency.

 

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‘Pacific Despair – Australia’ …SBS/Journeyman, via Refugee Action Coalition…shot @ Nauru…

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February 18, 2014

An exclusive report filmed in the Australian asylum processing centre on Nauru, FEB, 2003.

The isolated pacific island of Nauru was used by the Howard Junta to detain and process asylum seekers. Denied access to lawyers or journalists, detainees were interned in a state of limbo for over 16 months. “We can’t take it anymore. It’s been a month since we had food or water,” despairs one detainee. Mothers were reduced to drinking rainwater and feeding their children expired milk. Access to medical services were severely restricted and the overwhelming feeling in the camp was one of despair.

“I want to die. I don’t have any future,” states one inmate.

Produced by SBS/Dateline

Distributed by Journeyman Pictures

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breaking news ::: ‘Break-out on Manus Island as asylum seekers told no resettlement in PNG’…Refugee Action Coalition (Oz)

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February 16, 2014

Reports from Manus Island indicate a major protest and breakout has taken place on the island late this afternoon. The most recent reports indicate that the riot squad has been mobilised and that the perimeter fence has been breached.

Protests have been building all day, but escalated after a meeting (around 2pm Manus time) was held to answer asylum seekers’ questions about resettlement.

Shockingly, the asylum seekers were told that they “will not be resettled in PNG” and if they wanted to go somewhere else, they will need to arrange that themselves.

There had been protests throughout the day, but around 4pm Manus Island time, events escalated and the G4S riot squad went into Oscar compound.

A couple of hours later, fences were knocked down and the whole detention centre was locked down as the protests spread to all the compounds. There were reports of a fire being set in one compound and tents have been destroyed.

It seems the perimeter fence of one compound, perhaps Oscar, has now been breached and a major protest is underway.

There are reports of asylum seekers being injured by G4S guards. Some asylum seekers have been taken to the police station.

There have been daily protests on Manus Island involving hundreds of asylum seekers since 25 January as frustrations have increased over delays in processing and uncertainty about their future.

Today’s announcement that there would be no resettlement in PNG confirms earlier reports that resettlement was never a part of the PNG deal and the PNG government has never had plans to resettle refugees.

For more information contact Ian Rintoul 0417 275 713 @ Refugee Action Coalition – click here for their site…

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new evidence of WAR CRIMES in Sri Lankan civil war – International Crimes Evidence Project (ICEP)…

Filed under: media, news, Oz Junta, the fear trade — 1 Comment
February 9, 2014

A landmark report, released Feb 2014, sheds new light on some of the worst alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the final months of the Sri Lankan civil war, which ended in May 2009. This report will contribute to an upcoming meeting of the United Nations Human Rights Council where states will decide how to ensure accountability on this issue.

The report, Island of impunity? Investigation into international crimes in the final stages of the Sri Lankan civil war, was produced by the Public Interest Advocacy Centre’s (PIAC’s) International Crimes Evidence Project (ICEP).

The report brings together some of the world’s leading experts on war crimes investigations and international law. It combines detailed, impartial, legal analysis and expert forensic and military analysis with new information and eye-witness accounts.

‘This is the most comprehensive, evidence-based report investigating allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Sri Lankan conflict,’ said PIACCEO, Edward Santow.

‘The report builds on what we already know about indiscriminate artillery bombardment of civilian areas, the denial of humanitarian assistance to those most affected by the hostilities, and specific incidents of extrajudicial killing, torture, sexual violence and enforced disappearance.’

The report will assist the UN Human Rights Council in considering how to ensure accountability for allegations of atrocities committed in the final stages of the civil war. The report presents an evidentiary platform for an international investigation into war crimes and crimes against humanity.

One new eye-witness alleges that, after the conflict, the Sri Lankan Government has systematically exhumed civilian mass graves and destroyed crucial evidence of human remains. This has critical implications for future investigations and highlights the need for urgent action to be taken.

‘The ICEP investigation reveals some of the gravest crimes under international humanitarian law and demands accountability,’ said John Ralston, Chair of ICEP’s Committee of Experts.

‘This can only occur if there is a full independent and impartial international investigation.’

Further information and fact sheets…

 Here @ the interpretOr, we recall the recentish comments of a certain Murdoch stooge + Rajapaksa apologist at CHOGM…

TONY Abbott has defended Sri Lanka’s human rights record, saying the Rajapaksa government was committed to upholding the democratic charter of the Commonwealth but that “sometimes in difficult circumstances difficult things happen”.

( The Australian, 16/11/13)

More from Abbott on his “excellent cooperation” with the Sri Lankan regime…

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take action against the looming corporate and very creepy Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)

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January 23, 2014

the interpretOr has posted recently on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a massive trade agreement that’s being negotiated in secret by 12 countries across the Pacific. It has 29 chapters covering all kinds of regulations, and we only know what’s in it because of outdated leaks and government statements – (Bill Moyers: The Corporate Plot That Obama and Corporate Lobbyists Don’t Want You to Know About (AlterNet)

tpp

A huge number of groups and individuals are opposed to the TPP and other agreements like it for all kinds of different reasons. That’s because only a small part of these agreements deal with traditional “trade” issues like tariffs and market access. They cover regulations on everything from food labeling, labor standards, access to medicines, copyright enforcement, and cross-border investments. The problem is that the only interests that are represented at the negotiating table are corporate advisors—no public interest groups, no elected representatives, and no members of the public. That means that the rules that are in TPP are designed to give new rights and privileges to major corporations, while users, consumers, and everyone else get the worst end of the deal.

Now the White House and the US Trade Representative want the power to “fast track” TPP through Congress. The US Constitution gives Congress members the sole authority to regulate trade. But a new bill that was introduced would let Congress hand their powers over to Obama and the trade office, making this whole process even less transparent and less democratic. It’s called the “Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities Act” (HR.3830/S.1900) or TPA 2014 for short. If passed, it would severely curb Congress’ ability to conduct hearings and limit their power to solely an up or down, Yes or No vote. Stopping this fast track bill is a major part of the fight to block the passage of TPP and other secretive trade agreements.

Today, 10 days of action commence to stop this bill from passing. We’re here to share what we know about TPP, and answer your questions about why such a broad range of groups are opposed to this fast track bill. We need you to help us stop these toxic trade agreements, because mass public pressure is the most effective way to make the US government accountable.

Take Action:

Outside the US? Learn more about the impact of trade policy from these organizations:

Learn more and take action here: Stop Fast Track

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‘How could they not like me?’ bemoans Abbott Junta’s Christopher ‘Bambi’ Pyne…

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January 12, 2014

pyneful

“My wife sometimes says, ‘I don’t think that person likes you.’ And I say, ‘How could they not like me? What are you talking about?’ And she says, ‘I think you’re missing the social signals.’

::: click here for piece in full @ the Monthly :::

…Christopher Whyne???

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UN experts on torture and counter-terrorism express concern over proposed official inquiry

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December 31, 2013

GENEVA (24 December 2013) – Two United Nations independent human rights experts today welcomed the publication of parts of Sir Peter Gibson’s interim report, an official investigation into the extent of the United Kingdom’s involvement in torture and other human rights violations concerning people detained overseas in the context of counter terrorism operations.

However, the UN Special Rapporteurs on torture, Juan E. Méndez, and the Special Rapporteur on the protection and promotion of human rights while countering terrorism, Ben Emmerson, expressed concern that a proposed official inquiry is to be entrusted to a parliamentary body, the Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC).

“The Gibson Inquiry suffered from a number of procedural shortcomings which were identified in my March report (see below) to the Human Rights Council,” Mr. Emmerson said, stressing that “the UK has, until now, indicated a commitment to the establishment of a judge-led inquiry to take forward the work of Sir Peter Gibson.”

“I am concerned that this proposal appears to have been abandoned in favour of a purely parliamentary inquiry which is likely to suffer from many of the same procedural shortcomings,” he warned. “I urge the British authorities to ensure that the fresh inquiry is given the powers it needs to get at the truth.”

Special Rapporteur Méndez also expressed disappointment that the inquiry would now be handed to the parliamentary Intelligence and Security Committee to examine and complete the investigations, as announced by the Minister without Portfolio Ken Clarke.

“It is particularly discouraging to know that the decision was handed over to the ISC which is known to have previously failed to fully investigate prior allegations of torture, ill-treatment, rendition and surveillance in the context of counter-terrorism and national-security,” the independent expert said, recalling the findings of the ISC 2007 report which concluded, among other things, that “no evidence [was found] that the UK Agencies were complicit in any ‘Extraordinary Rendition’ operations.”

Mr. Méndez reminded the UK Government of its obligation under the UN Convention against Torture*: “Each Government should undertake a prompt and impartial investigation wherever there are reasonable grounds to believe that torture has been committed, and prosecute suspected perpetrators of torture.”

“The British authorities should take persistent, determined and effective measures to have all allegations of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment investigated promptly, effectively and impartially by an independent, competent domestic authority, as well as whenever there is reasonable ground to believe that such an act has been committed,” Mr. Méndez said quoting the Convention.

The expert stressed that UK Government also is obliged to hold responsible, bring to justice and punish all those who encourage, order, tolerate or perpetrate such acts responsible, including the officials in charge of the place of detention where the prohibited act is found to have been committed.

“The British Government should take note, in this respect, of the Principles on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and the Updated Set of principles for the protection and promotion of human rights through action to combat impunity as a useful tool in efforts to prevent and combat torture,” he said.

Mr. Emmerson and Mr. Méndez will follow up with the UK Government over the terms of reference and powers of the Intelligence and Security Committee inquiry, with a view to determining whether it is capable of meeting international minimum standards.

(*) The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/CAT.aspx

ENDS

Ben Emmerson (United Kingdom) is the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism. On 1 August 2011, he took up his functions on the mandate that was created in 2005 by the former United Nations Commission on Human Rights and renewed by the United Nations Human Rights Council for a three year period in September 2010. As Special Rapporteur he is independent from any Government and serves in his individual capacity. Learn more, log on to:http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Terrorism/Pages/SRTerrorismIndex.aspx

Check the Special Rapporteur’s report: http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/HRBodies/HRCouncil/RegularSession/Session22/A-HRC-22-52_en.pdf

Juan E. Méndez (Argentina) was appointed by the UN Human Rights Council as the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment on 1 November 2010. He is currently a Professor of Law at the American University – Washington College of Law and Co-Chair of the Human Rights Institute of the International Bar Association. Mr. Méndez has previously served as the President of the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) until 2009, and was the UN Secretary-General Special Advisor on the Prevention of Genocide from 2004 to 2007, as well as an advisor on crime prevention to the Prosecutor, International Criminal Court, between 2009 and 2010. Learn more, visit:http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Torture/SRTorture/Pages/SRTortureIndex.aspx

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Cruel Morrison’s uber dubious behaviour…

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December 16, 2013

morrtri

…The more publicity that came Scott Morrison’s way, the more hardline he became. So much so that last February, on the morning when victims of the Christmas Island boat people tragedy were due to be buried in Sydney, he launched an ill-tempered attack on the government for paying for family members to make the long journey from Christmas Island. Among them was Madian El Ibrahimy, a detainee at the Indian Ocean detention centre, whose wife, Zman, four-year-old son, Nzar, and eight-month-old daughter, Zahra, had all died at sea. “Do you think you run the risk of being seen as heartless on the day of these funerals to be saying — to be bickering over this money?” asked ABC reporter Barbara Miller, whose report that morning was broadcast on AM. Morrison replied: “When it comes to the question of do I think this is a reasonable cost then my honest answer is, ‘No, I don’t think it is reasonable.’” Seasoned commentators struggled to recall a nastier instance of gutter politics from a senior politician since the heyday of Pauline Hanson. Labor accused him of “stealing soundbites from One Nation”…

(click here for Nick Bryant’s piece in full @ the Monthly)

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THIS IS BREAKING PEOPLE – human rights violations at Australia’s asylum seeker processing centre on Manus Island, Papua New Guinea.

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Amnesty’s recent report is available to all in free and full – simply click image below for pdf…

amnestymanusreportpic

here’s an extract re MENTAL HEALTH…

…A number of service providers and asylum seekers expressed concern about deteriorating mental health. STTARS and IHMS mental health team are struggling to cope with existing demand for their services, and this is only expected to grow as the population and length of detention increases. Some asylum seekers felt that there was a deliberate “psychological war”177 on them (by the Australian Government). A service provider said, “This is the process of how you break someone mentally,” when describing the conditions in the detention centre.178

“We are dying here… I am dying many times a day.”

—J.K., 15 November 2013

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DEVELOPING COUNTRIES host over 80% of the world’s refugees – UNHCR Global Trends 2012

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November 26, 2013

UNHCR12refugeereview

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‘NOWHERE TO GO, NOWHERE TO HIDE’ Bruce Haigh on the plight of asylum seekers – Nov 2013

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Former diplomat Bruce Haigh spent years in some of the world’s hotspots where he saw and did somtimes extraordinary things. In South Africa he befriended the legendary dissident Steve Biko. In Afghanistan he took pictures of Russian military installations. In Pakistan he flirted with Benazir Bhutto, or perhaps it was Benazir flirting with him…He is a regular contributor to the Canberra Times, Crikey and other Oz media…

…here is an excerpt of Bruce Haigh’s recent piece in the Canberra Times, (15/11/13):

“…State imposed secrecy, with respect to managing minorities, dissidents or groups judged to be antithetical to the interests of the ruling elite, leads to oppression through lack of accountability. Morrison does not want to be accountable for deaths in detention or drowning at sea. Lack of transparency is a threat to human rights and democracy, but Morrison is no democrat; he is the Reischsfuhrer of asylum seekers. He decides who goes where, and when. He sends back to Sri Lanka, Tamils who are given no opportunity to express their claims for asylum in Australia and who are detained on return by the Rajapaksa regime, many to be tortured and some held indefinitely.

Sending back people without a hearing, who on the face of it, may have a legitimate refugee claim, is illegal under Australian and international law. Morrison plans to send minority oppressed Hazaras back to Afghanistan. That would also be illegal…”

::: simply click here to go through Bruce Haigh’s website + this and other prescient pieces in full :::

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“Scott Morrison, please…” Who should I say is calling? “Jesus. Jesus Christ…”

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November 24, 2013

“Scott Morrison, please…”

Who should I say is calling?

Jesus. Jesus Christ…

Just a sec…putting you through, Mr Christ…

Cheers. Thanks…

Hmmmnnnaa…MINISTERRR Morrison here…who is this?

Jesus Christ.

Look, there’s quite frankly, no need to take the proverbial…

I am Jesus Christ. Ok, Morrison…I’ll cut to the chase…we’ve had reports that you’re STILL behavin’ like a rabid, fascist, cowardly and profoundly irritating bully boy…

Have not! Have not!! Have nottt!!

…And that you’re getting off, yet again, on your faux macho, mendacious BS…demonising the defenceless…treating the poor and dispossessed like pawns in your demented game of horror…I mean, for fucks sake man, have you no shame?

But, but, but…I AM A STEWARDLY GODLY man…I, I, I, I am a christian….I AM a christian…so there…

“Reichsfuhrer of asylum seekers” according to more lucid insights. Knock it off…pronto…

I AM A STEWARDLY GODLY man. I am Minister Morrison. Just, just, just sod off Jesus, you, you, you…do-gooding hippy! Why don’t you just…just go back to where you came from!!!

….

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the trial of Donald Rumsfeld…

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November 22, 2013

dumsfeldpic

…well worth a squizz…’the trial of Donald Rumsfeld’…a prosecution by book…

“A gripping expose of the systematic, premeditated crimes of Rumsfeld and his colleagues – crimes against humanity more shocking than any committed by U.S. officials in this generation. If we push back against state-sanctioned torture and the tyranny that always, historically, follows upon it, we will have Ratner and his brave team at the Center for Constitutional Rights substantially to thank. An indispensable document and page-turning human story.”

-NAOMI WOLF, author of The End of America

“Michael Ratner is a hero. This book will be required reading for all of Donald Rumsfeld’s lawyers and travel agents – he’ll have to check twice before leaving the country if he hopes to stay out of prison. To war criminals walking free among us, beware: Ratner and the Center for Constitutional Rights are on the case! ”

-AMY GOODMAN, host of Democracy Now!

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Murdoch, Cheney and Golan Oil…a genie out of the bottle…

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November 18, 2013

oil

Q. Why did Rupert Murdoch and Lord Jacob Rothschild purchase a total of $11 million dollars of “equity positions” with Genie Energy Corporation (IDT) totaling an 11% stake in the corporation back in 2010?

A. Israel has reportedly granted the U.S. energy firm with heavyweight political connections to explore for oil and gas in the occupied Golan Heights.

The company is a local subsidiary of New Jersey-based Genie Energy Ltd. The Strategic Advisory Board of another subsidiary, Genie Oil and Gas, includes former Vice President Dick Cheney, media magnate Rupert Murdoch, and former Republican Rep. Jim Courter...

The company’s website, http://genie.com/ has the following homepage announcement…

Genie Energy Subsidiary in Israel Granted Exploration License

Genie Energy (NYSE: GNE, GNEPRA), said today that the government of Israel has awarded its subsidiary, Genie Israel Oil and Gas, Ltd., an exclusive petroleum exploration license covering 396.5 square kilometers in the Southern portion of the Golan Heights.

 

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No Fire Zone: A case against Sri Lanka? – excerpt of devastating doco that informed Cameron…

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from http://nofirezone.org/:

Carefully evidenced and powerfully measured, ‘No Fire Zone’ is a feature length film about the final awful months of the 26 year long Sri Lankan civil war told by the people who lived through it. It is a meticulous and chilling expose of some of the worst war crimes and crimes against humanity of recent times -  told through the extraordinary personal stories of a small group of characters and also through some of the most dramatic and disturbing video evidence ever recorded.
This footage allows us to document the day to day horror of this war in a way almost never done before: Footage recorded by both the victims and perpetrators on mobile phones and small cameras – viscerally powerful actuality from the battlefield, from inside the crudely dug civilian bunkers and over-crowded makeshift hospitals.
Footage which is nothing less than direct evidence of war crimes, summary execution, torture and sexual violence.
This was supposed to be a war conducted in secret.  The Government excluded the international press, forced the UN to leave the war zone and ruthlessly silenced the Sri Lankan media – literally dozens of media workers were killed, exiled or disappeared. While the world looked away in the first few months of 2009 around  40,000 to 70,000 civilians were massacred – mostly by Sri Lankan government shelling, though the Tamil Tigers also stand accused of war crimes.
The film starts in September 2008.  An air of deep foreboding hung over Kilinochchi– the de facto capital of the Tamil homelands of Northern Sri Lanka. The armed forces of the ultra-nationalist Sinhalese government of Sri Lanka were on the move, and the brutal secessionist army of the Tamil Tigers was on the retreat. After a twenty-six year revolt – the scene was set for the final awful endgame.
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PM Abbott’s gift to Sri Lanka is collaboration on human rights abuses – Christine Milne, leader of the Greens (Oz)

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Australian Greens Leader Christine Milne says Australian Prime Minister’s gift of two naval vessels and co-operation with the Sri Lankan authorities to help stop people fleeing the country is collaboration on human rights abuses.

“The Prime Minister’s silence on human rights abuses in Sri Lanka was inexcusable complicity, but this is nothing less than collaboration and it is abhorrent,” Senator Milne said.

“I am devastated and heartbroken at the thought of Australia assisting a disgraced government to suppress and control its citizens.

“In order to sure up Tony Abbott’s cruel and hollow policy to stop the boats he is resorting to collaboration with Sri Lanka and will turn a blind eye to human rights abuses. This has nothing to do with fairness, justice or saving lives.

“I don’t think Australians who genuinely thought that stopping the boats was about saving lives will feel comfortable knowing that ‘stop the boats’ now means preventing people from running away from torture and condemning them to human rights abuses.

“Sri Lanka is not a transit country. People are escaping from torture and abuse.

“Any resources provided to Sri Lanka would be better spent in leading a genuine regional solution that cares for refugees by bringing more of them to Australia and by pushing for global action to investigate alleged war crimes.

“The Australian Greens congratulate David Cameron for doing what Australians expected their Prime Minister to do, to stand up for people suffering from persecution and abuse.”

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Tamil perspectives…interviews at a protest…East Perth…May 2009

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November 17, 2013

May 1st, 2009, I interviewed Tamil demonstrators at a rally outside ABC headquarters, East Perth…Many people were extremely concerned and visibly upset about the plight of those surviving relatives and friends who were trapped in a brutal nightmare…the killing fields of the Vanni region of north eastern Sri Lanka…

…we were about to go to press with a report from behind the lines in Vanni by David Gray of Reuters …”I managed to get a few ‘usable’ frames of a scorched and destroyed landscape. Every single dwelling was either destroyed or uninhabitable. It reminded me of East Timor in 1999. Burnt out vehicles lined the road….”

…here are a few Tamil perspectives from the demo that resonate still…

“To understand the ground situation (in the Vanni region of Sri Lanka), where there are no independent observers or media allowed by the Government, it is vital to understand the motive behind the Sri Lankan onslaught on the Tamil civilians. The meticulously planned disenfranchisement of the Tamils has been going on since independence from the British in 1948. The Tamil Tigers are an outcome of this long deprivation of basic rights to exist as equal citizens in Sri Lanka…”

“Sri Lanka – don’t kill the media. Sri Lanka – don’t bomb the hospitals. Sri Lanka – stop the genocide of Tamils.”

“Anyone really concerned about humanity and freedom should impress upon both parties for an immediate ceasefire, send in independent observers and media, provide international protection to the refugees and  bring a permanent peace solution.”

Around this time, UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) put out an urgent appeal:

Sri Lanka: 250,000 People In War Zone Need Food

 

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A day at the front line in Sri Lanka…David Gray of reuters…APRIL 27, 2009

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excerpt…

“…I had been to the front line of a war in an area that is extremely difficult to reach and come back to civilization. I was exhausted and dripping with sweat, but what about the people trapped in the war zone? They didn’t get to fly back to the comforts of a city. They continued to endure the horrors of war in dire conditions and horrendous temperatures, with minimal food, water, medical aid or even shelter. What about those who got out, but had a long journey to a refugee camp ahead of them, with no clear idea when they can go back home. It reminded me of a book I finished reading a few months ago called ‘Dispatches’ by Michael Herr about his experiences as a correspondent during the Vietnam war, and how he found it strange flying in and out of war zones. I could see what he had meant a little more clearly now – just the craziness of it all.”

clickonthrough for piece in full @ reuters.com

 

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The white vans taking away Sri Lanka’s ‘disappeared’…Channel 4 News (UK)

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November 15, 2013
The white vans taking away Sri Lanka’s ‘disappeared’
They come in the dead of night in unmarked white vans. Suspects are told they are needed for questioning and are never seen again. That is the account of hundreds of relatives of the so-called “disappeared” in Sri Lanka. After Iraq, the country now suffers the highest number of forced abductions in the world. Thousands vanished at the end of the war. But the abductions continue to this day. Human rights groups say on average, one person is “disappeared” every five days.Indian film-maker Leena Manimekalai travelled undercover across Sri Lanka to meet the families of the disappeared – who are determined to speak out despite the huge risks. Her film will be shown on Channel 4 News tonight.

Meanwhile Jon Snow is in Sri Lanka, waiting for David Cameron to arrive. Mr Cameron has argued that by going to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, rather than boycotting it, he’s better able to “shine a spotlight” on the human rights situation there.

 
Watch the preview video: White Van Stories: Sri Lanka’s ‘disappeared’
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‘Israel will attack Iran if you sign the deal’ French MP told Foreign Minister Fabius

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November 12, 2013

The Times of Israel are reporting that a French member of parliament telephoned French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius in Geneva at the weekend to warn him that hawkish Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would attack Iran’s nuclear facilities “if the P5+1 nations did not stiffen their terms” on a deal with Iran:

“I know [Netanyahu],” the French MP, Meyer Habib, reportedly told Fabius, and predicted that the Israeli prime minister would resort to the use of force if the deal was approved in its form at the time. “If you don’t toughen your positions, Netanyahu will attack Iran,” the report quoted Habib as saying. “I know this. I know him. You have to toughen your positions in order to prevent war.”

Negotiations are now due to resume November 20.

Here at the interpretOr, we recall that the dreaded Netanyahu was Israeli ambassador to the United Nations from 1984 to 1988 – the period that coincided with the Iran-Contra affair – and today makes the likes of Richard Perle (the Prince of Darkness) seem like a goofy peacenik…

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entire videO of Julian Assange | Sam Adams Awards | Oxford Union…now with SOUND…see our comments…

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the interpretOr originally shared this address, Jan 2013 – it may have been a technical issue and/or spooky jam, for at that time, the sound of Assange’s voice was corrupted to near silence…we published a synopsis as an interim measure…here we are, late 2013, and all is now clear…

jfreos's avatarthe interpretOr

Assange mentions the WikiLeaks movie saying that it's a mass propaganda attack against the WikiLeaks organisation, also it fans the flames for war on Iran as is demonstrated in the opening scene of the film that is read out by Assange who has the script. The movie shows Iran as having an active nuclear program when intelligence reports have revealed in high confidence that this is not the case.

Filmed on Wednesday 23rd January 2013

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Drones from the Other Side | MichaelMoore.com

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November 8, 2013

Drones from the Other Side | MichaelMoore.com.

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UN rapporteur calls on US, UK to release Iraq war torture dOcuments…(PressTV)

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November 1, 2013
A United Nations’ special rapporteur has called on the United States and Britain to release documents on their use of torture in the Iraq war, Press TV reports…

Guantanamo

“Despite this clear repudiation of the unlawful actions carried out by the Bush-era CIA, many of the facts remain classified, and no public official has so far been brought to justice in the United States…”

….UN special rapporteur on counter-terrorism Ben Emmerson said in a report to the UN Human Rights Council.

Emmerson, a British international lawyer, called on Washington “to publish without delay and to the fullest extent possible” the Senate Intelligence Committee report on the CIA rendition. He also called on Britain to submit its own version of the report as well.

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“The very word ‘secrecy’ is repugnant in a free and open society… ” JFK

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October 24, 2013

jfkonsecrecy

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making a killing…part One…”PR”…

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October 22, 2013

The relentless pursuit of profit is killing people, homogenizing human life and destroying our planet. Billions of us consumer citizens being  subjected to a seemingly eternal onslaught of mendacious, managerialistic and euphemistic twaddle…conditioned by Global Murdoch,  PR and additional forms of propaganda. It’s no accident in a way that Edward Bernays, originator of ‘Public Relations’,  was part of the Freud dynasty…Sigmund’s nephew, infact…’Good PR’ – as in effective – is invisible, but the impact, indelible…

20 or so years ago, an ex CEO of Washington-based PR corporation Hill & Knowlton….gave a lecture that was to prove infamous, in which he held in the one hand that morning’s edition of the NY Times, and in the other, a red marker pen, and he said something like…

“OK. This is today’s Times. I’m gonna circle with the marker every piece of editorial content that I know is derived from the PR industry. The paid advertising is already obvious, so I’ll leave that alone…I won’t circle that. …”

He then proceeded to circle what would amount to 70% of all edit content…page after broadsheet page, filled up with those red circles. He then expressed regret over his pivotal role in selling Gulf war One to middle America and beyond…

Under this man’s watch, Hill & Knowlton were hired 1990 by the Kuwaiti Royal Family, and they pioneered the VNR – video news release – as a core communications solution to drumming up public awareness of Kuwait and “them dastardly Iraqis and that baad, baad maaan, Sadaaammm…”

‘…Hello Kuwaiti Royal Family, wanna know how to get right inside the heads of several hundred million Americans who currently have neither knowledge or care of your existence ???’

‘…Errr, well, YES. Yes please…’

Thousands upon thousands of video cassettes were churned out to hundreds, if not thousands of US tv news stations, channels…coast to coast, border to border…far and wide…couriered by new networks like Fed Ex…and this every day, en masse, for more than a year…

One of the first VNRs contained footage of testimony to a US Joint Session of Congress Hearing on alleged Iraqi atrocities…This was the emotive and galvanising testimony by a young woman who addressed the hearing in person, claiming to have been a nurse at Kuwait General hospital…before Congress…under oath…describing babies being taken out of incubators by invading Iraqi forces…this testimony was released on thousands of VNRs…BUT….as Wikipedia and the annals of history remind us…

Nayirah Testimony refers to the controversial testimony given before the non-governmental Congressional Human Rights Caucus on October 10, 1990, by a female who provided only her first name, Nayirah. In her emotional testimony, Nayirah stated that after the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait she had witnessed Iraqi soldiers take babies out of incubators in a Kuwaiti hospital, take the incubators, and leave the babies to die. Though reporters did not then have access to Kuwait, her testimony was regarded as credible at the time and was widely publicized. It was cited numerous times by United States senators and the president in their rationale to back Kuwait in the Gulf War.

Her story was initially corroborated by Amnesty International[1] and testimony from evacuees. Following the liberation of Kuwait, reporters were given access to the country. An ABC report found that “patients, including premature babies, did die, when many of Kuwait’s nurses and doctors..fled” but Iraqi troops “almost certainly had not stolen hospital incubators and left hundreds of Kuwaiti babies to die.”[2][3]

In 1992, it was revealed that Nayirah’s last name was al-Ṣabaḥ (Arabic: نيره الصباح‎) and that she was the daughter of Saud bin Nasir Al-Sabah, the Kuwaiti ambassador to the United States. Furthermore, it was revealed that her testimony was organized as part of the Citizens for a Free Kuwait public relations campaign which was run by Hill & Knowlton for the Kuwaiti government. Following this, al-Sabah’s testimony has largely come to be regarded as wartime propaganda.

Making a killing?

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Morrison subjected to his “calling a spade a spade” rationalisation…

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October 21, 2013

Immigration Minister Scott Morrison has defended the use of the term “illegal arrivals” to describe asylum seekers, saying he is “calling a spade a spade”. (ABC News 21/10/13)

Here at the interpretOr, we are defending use of the term ‘gutless, nasty and deeply foul CONservative’ in describing Morrison, as we too are now “calling a spade a spade”

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‘Exposing the Dark Underbelly of Israel’…AlterNet on ‘Goliath’ by Max Blumenthal…

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October 20, 2013

If you want to peel back the layers of deception pro-Israel groups and the media have created, Max Blumenthal’s new book.Goliath: Life and Loathing in Greater Israel is the perfect place to start. It’s the bluntest book you’ll read about the state of Israeli society, as it looks deep into the soul of an ethnocracy that dominates the lives of millions of Palestinians…

blumen

Blumenthal’s book, based on four years of on-the-ground reporting and research, takes the reader from the occupied West Bank to prisons for African refugees to Palestinian areas within Israel. Through a series of profiles and vignettes, he paints a devastating portrait of a country obsessed with demographics bent on permanently subjugating the non-Jews who live between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River…click here for interview with Max Blumenthal @ AlterNet…

Max Blumenthal is an award-winning journalist and bestselling author whose articles and video documentaries have appeared in The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Daily Beast, The Nation, The Guardian, The Independent Film Channel, The Huffington Post, Salon.com, Al Jazeera English and many other publications. His new book, Goliath: Life and Loathing in Greater Israel, is in stores now. His 2009 book, Republican Gomorrah: Inside The Movement That Shattered The Party, is a New York Times and Los Angeles Times bestseller.

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::: call to action, folks…here’s a petition…30 greenpeace activists ‘Trapped in a Russian jail’ – Avaaz

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October 17, 2013

greenpeace

Ana Paula is a 31-year old from Brazil who wanted to peacefully protest Russia’s plans to drill the Arctic. Now she, along with her 29 crewmates from the Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise, is locked in a Russian jail with no release in sight. But we can throw her and the rest of her crew a lifeline.

The Greenpeace staff, some in solitary confinement, are now facing fifteen years in prison on trumped up charges of piracy. Their crime? Hanging a banner on a Russian oil rig to protest dangerous deepwater drilling in one of the earth’s most beautiful and fragile places. Many western governments have already spoken out, but now Ana Paula and Greenpeace are asking the Avaaz community to help build a truly global outcry. 

Together we can call on some of Russia’s strongest trade and political partners — Brazil, India, South Africa and the EU — to call for the release of the Arctic 30. Let’s reach 1 million to free Ana Paula and her friends. Once we hit that mark, Avaaz will project their faces in key public places to keep this story at the top of the news. (Avazz

click here to sign the petition via Avazz

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5 Enemies of Diplomacy Hell-Bent On Sabotaging Peace Between America and Iran…AlterNet…

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September 26, 2013

Will the new Iranian president’s diplomatic opening survive the onslaught from detractors like Israel, Saudi Arabia and members of the U.S. Congress?

The new Iranian leader’s diplomatic moves have brought hope to those searching for an end to hostility between Iran and the U.S. In the days leading up to the annual gathering of world leaders in New York, Iranian president Hassan Rouhani proclaimed to NBC News that Iran would not seek nuclear weapons under any circumstances and penned a Washington Post op-edin which he declared, “I’m committed to fulfilling my promises to my people, including my pledge to engage in constructive interaction with the world.”

It was all part of Rouhani’s effort to pave the way for a potential new chapter in U.S.-Iranian relations…

::: click here for piece in full @ AlterNet :::

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Oz taxpayer money funding the live export of children (Chilout.org)

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September 23, 2013

Oz taxpayer money now funding the live export of children…

abbchild

The Australian government has started exporting children and their families to offshore detention facilities. The first four children went to Manus Island, a place notorious for it’s deadly form of malaria. Others will be slated for transfer to Nauru and Manus. The physical and psychological price of detaining these children cannot be calculated. But the dollar price can. According to the Expert Panel on Asylum Seekers the estimated cost of housing asylum seekers on Nauru and Manus Island will be $2.3 billion over four years (more if the number of boat arrivals continue to rise). That amounts to $575,000,000 a year, $1,575,342.46 a day, $65,639.27 per hour, $1093.99 per minute or $18.23 a second.

$483,054,183.03…as of 4.29pm 23 Sept ’13

 

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breaking news…rupert murdoch wins 2013 Australian election…

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September 7, 2013

fuck2

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Murdoch’s bastardisation of the 1992 UK general election…Oz 2013 scenario very deja vu…

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September 3, 2013

suncovers

 

On the day of the 1992 UK general election, The Sun newspaper ran an “infamous”[37] front page featuring Labour leader, Neil Kinnock, with the headline: ‘If Kinnock wins today will the last person to leave Britain please turn out the lights’. Kinnock lost and the following day’s headline in The Sun was the triumphalist ‘It’s The Sun Wot Won It‘ (sic)

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just sod off Murdoch…Australians can choose their own gOvernment…

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his master’s vOice…

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September 2, 2013

love

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abbott JUNTA…may they remain in the shadOws…

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August 29, 2013

teamneg2

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GetUp shOrt: offensive tony abbott remarks read to camera by those he demonises…

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August 27, 2013

GetUp:

Prime Ministers reflect our national values, and have the power to change them radically. Does what Tony Abbott says matter? Well, in just a few days he wants to be speaking for all of us. That’s why GetUp members are launching this ad. Will you be part of it?

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tony’s “heroes”…THATCHER, REAGAN and hOward…

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August 26, 2013

The botoxed, far-right narcissist and obedient Murdoch minion, ‘Liberal leader’ tony abbott, shares his master’s dubious taste in despotic politicians of the recent past…

“They all left their countries, including Australia, stronger and prouder for their work in government. John Howard left our country stronger and more confident.  Margaret Thatcher left Britain stronger and more confident. And Ronald Reagan, he won the cold war, helped to make the world much safer for democracy and for the universal decencies of humanity”

 (the Guardian Australia: 26/08/13)

abbott has a revisionists pair of rose-coloured spectacles that blind him to the gritty + shitty realities of Junta power…for according to earlier interpretOr posts…the real Ronald Reagan was a right-wing, ironed-bible, helmet-haired murderer who moved in to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue a mere 30 odd years ago and hatched a foul and cunning plot to raise slush funds to finance his favourite Central American fascist death squads, the Contras –

A Human Rights Watch report found that the Contras were guilty of targeting health care clinics and health care workers for assassination; kidnapping civilians; torturing and executing civilians, including children, who were captured in combat; raping women; indiscriminately attacking civilians and civilian homes; seizing civilian property; and burning civilian houses in captured towns.

As truth is sadly stranger than fiction, abbott’s hero embarked upon his reign of terror by covertly selling arms to…IRAN…and the relatively new and archly religious fundamentalist regime of …Ayatollah Khomeini…

As to ‘heroes’ Howard and Thatcher, we say ‘TAMPA’ and the ‘General Belgrano’!

more below on Iran-Contra from Wikipedia:

The Iran–Contra affair (Persian: ایران-کنترا‎, Spanish: caso Irán-contras), also referred to as Irangate, Contragate or the Iran-Contra scandal, was a political scandal in the United States that came to light in November 1986. During the Reagan administration, senior Reagan administration officials secretly facilitated the sale of arms to Iran, the subject of an arms embargo.[1] Some U.S. officials also hoped that the arms sales would secure the release of hostages and allow U.S. intelligence agencies to fund the NicaraguanContras. Under the Boland Amendment, further funding of the Contras by the government had been prohibited by Congress....members of the executive branch sold weapons to Iran in exchange for the release of the American hostages.[2][3] Large modifications to the plan were devised by Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North of the National Security Council in late 1985, in which a portion of the proceeds from the weapon sales was diverted to fund anti-Sandinista and anti-communist rebels, or Contras, in Nicaragua.[4][5]
 
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